Communication method and communication device

Abstract

The invention provides a communication method and a communication device, and the method comprises the steps that an LMF receives first information from terminal equipment or network equipment, the first information indicates that the terminal equipment is in a near field communication range or a far field communication range corresponding to the network equipment, and then the LMF selects a proper positioning method based on the first information to position the terminal equipment. According to the method, the problem that the positioning result is inaccurate due to the fact that the LMF cannot directly sense that the terminal equipment is located in the near-field communication range or the far-field communication range and an improper positioning method is used can be avoided.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present application relates to the field of communications, and more specifically, to a communication method and a communication device. Background Art

[0002] As the antenna panel increases and the communication frequency band becomes higher, the near-field communication range of the base station may be further expanded. For example, the communication radius can reach tens of meters or even hundreds of meters, so near-field communication will become possible in the future. The positioning method in far-field communication is generally based on the plane wave assumption, and the equiphase surface of the plane wave is a plane. However, the plane wave assumption does not hold in the near field. Near-field communication needs to be modeled based on the spherical wave model. The equiphase surface during the propagation of electromagnetic waves is a sphere. It can be understood that since the channel models used in the near-field communication range and the far-field communication range are different, the positioning methods that can be used should also be different. Since the location management function (LMF) network element cannot directly sense that the terminal device is in the near-field communication range and the far-field communication range, an inappropriate positioning method may be used, resulting in inaccurate positioning of the terminal device. Summary of the invention

[0003] The present application provides a communication method and a communication device, which can avoid the problem of inaccurate positioning results caused by using inappropriate positioning methods because the positioning management function network element cannot directly sense that the terminal device is within the near-field communication range or the far-field communication range.

[0004] In a first aspect, a communication method is provided, which can be executed by a location management function network element, or can also be executed by a component (such as a chip or circuit) of the location management function network element, without limitation. For ease of description, the following description is taken as an example of execution by a location management function network element LMF.

[0005] The method includes: LMF receives first information, the first information indicates that the terminal device is in a near-field communication range or a far-field communication range corresponding to the network device; LMF selects a suitable positioning method based on the first information to position the terminal device.

[0006] In certain implementations of the first aspect, the LMF receives the first information, including: the LMF receives the first information from the terminal device.

[0007] In one manner, the network device may specify a condition or manner for the terminal device to send the first information to the LMF. As an example, two possible conditions or manners for the terminal device to report the first information are given below.

[0008] Example 1: The network device configures an event trigger for the terminal device, and once the event occurs, the terminal device reports the first information to the LMF. In this example, the trigger event may be when the terminal device switches between the far field and the near field, or when the terminal device enters the near field, or when the far-field reference signal measured by the terminal device is higher than a given threshold, or when the near-field reference signal measured by the terminal device is higher than a given threshold.

[0009] Example 2: The network device may request the terminal device to periodically report the first information. For example, the network device may configure the above conditions or methods to the terminal device when the positioning service is initiated, or the network device may also send the above conditions or methods through a broadcast message, for example, sending information corresponding to the above conditions or methods in SIB or posSIB. In another way, the terminal device may send the first information to the LMF on its own. For example, the terminal device reports the first information to the LMF before each positioning.

[0010] In another embodiment, the terminal device may send the first information to the LMF based on the request of the LMF. For example, the LMF requests the terminal device to report the first information before each positioning. In some implementations of the first aspect, the first information is carried in a positioning protocol message. For example, the positioning protocol message is an LPP message.

[0011] In certain implementations of the first aspect, the positioning protocol message is used to request the provision of assistance data for positioning measurement. For example, the positioning protocol message is a request assistance data (Request Assistance Data) message; or, the positioning protocol message is used to provide location information of the terminal device, for example, the positioning protocol message is a provide location information (Provide Location Information) message.

[0012] In certain implementations of the first aspect, the first information is carried in a non-access stratum NAS message or a location service LCS message.

[0013] In certain implementations of the first aspect, a NAS message or an LCS message is used to initiate a positioning service request.

[0014] In certain implementations of the first aspect, the LMF receives the first information, including: the LMF receives the first information from the network device.

[0015] In certain implementations of the first aspect, the method also includes: LMF sends a first request message to the network device, the first request message requests the network device to report that the terminal device is in a near-field communication range or a far-field communication range; then LMF receives first information from the network device, including: LMF receives a first request response message from the network device, the first request response message includes the first information.

[0016] In a second aspect, a communication method is provided, which can be executed by a terminal device, or can also be executed by a component (such as a chip or circuit) of the terminal device, without limitation. For ease of description, the following description is based on an example of execution by a terminal device.

[0017] The method includes: the terminal device determines first information, the first information indicates that the terminal device is in a near-field communication range or a far-field communication range corresponding to the network device; the terminal device sends the first information to a positioning management function LMF.

[0018] In some implementations of the second aspect, the first information is carried in a positioning protocol message.

[0019] In some implementations of the second aspect, the positioning protocol message is used to request provision of assistance data for positioning measurement; or, the positioning protocol message is used to provide location information of the terminal device.

[0020] In certain implementations of the second aspect, the first information is carried in a non-access stratum NAS message or a location service LCS message.

[0021] In certain implementations of the second aspect, a NAS message or an LCS message is used to initiate a positioning service request.

[0022] In certain implementations of the second aspect, the method further includes: the terminal device receives system broadcast information from the network device, and the broadcast information indicates that the terminal device receiving the broadcast information is located in a near-field communication range or a far-field communication range. For example, the network device sets 1 bit in the master information block MIB to indicate the near-field information or the far-field information. For example, the network device sets 1 bit in the system information blocks (SIB) 1 or other SIBs to indicate the near-field or far-field information.

[0023] In certain implementations of the second aspect, the method further includes: the terminal device determines, based on historically acquired location information of the terminal device, that the terminal device is located within a near field communication range or a far field communication range.

[0024] For example, the terminal device obtains its own position in the most recent positioning. At this time, the terminal device can compare the historical positioning result with the near field communication range to determine whether it has entered the near field.

[0025] For example, the near field communication range here can be a theoretical range of the radiated near field, or a specified or configured range, which is not specifically limited in this application. For example, the communication radius of the theoretical range of the radiated near field can generally be expressed by the formula Determined by, where D is the maximum geometric dimension of the antenna, and λ is the wavelength of the electromagnetic wave. However, it is also related to the specific channel model, etc. The present application does not limit the formula for calculating the communication radius of the radiation near field area.

[0026] Optionally, in order to estimate the near field range based on the theoretical radiation near field formula, the terminal device can also obtain information #1 from the network device, and information #1 may include at least one of the following parameters: the maximum geometric dimensions of the antenna of the service cell network device, the frequency or wavelength information of the electromagnetic wave, and the position of the antenna.

[0027] In certain implementations of the second aspect, the method further includes: the terminal device determines, based on channel information obtained by measuring the reference signal, that the terminal device is located in a near-field communication range or a far-field communication range.

[0028] In a third aspect, a communication method is provided, which can be executed by a network device, or can also be executed by a component (such as a chip or circuit) in the network device, without limitation. For ease of description, the following description is based on an example of execution by a network device.

[0029] The method includes: the network device determines first information, the first information indicates that the terminal device is in a near-field communication range or a far-field communication range corresponding to the network device; the network device sends the first information to a positioning management function LMF.

[0030] For example, the network device may determine whether the terminal device is located in the near field based on a reference signal (eg, SRS) or other signal sent by the terminal device, and thereby determine the first information.

[0031] For example, the terminal device may provide the network device with the far-field and near-field information of the terminal device, such as the terminal device reporting the far-field and near-field information of the terminal device, thereby helping the network device determine the first information. For example, the terminal device may report the far-field and near-field information of the terminal device to the network device via an RRC message, a MAC message, or a UCI message.

[0032] Optionally, the terminal device may also report the far-field and near-field information to the network device based on the method or conditions described in implementation method one.

[0033] Optionally, in this implementation method, the manner or condition for the terminal device to report the far-field and near-field information to the network device may also be configured by the network device, or the network device may request the terminal device to report the far-field and near-field information.

[0034] In certain implementations of the third aspect, the method also includes: the network device receives a first request message from the LMF, the first request message requests the network device to report that the terminal device is in a near-field communication range or a far-field communication range; then the network device sends first information to the LMF, including: the network device sends a first request response message to the LMF, the first request response message includes the first information.

[0035] In a fourth aspect, a communication method is provided, which can be executed by a location management function network element, or can also be executed by a component (such as a chip or circuit) of the location management function network element, without limitation. For ease of description, the following description is taken as an example of execution by a location management function network element LMF.

[0036] The method includes: LMF sends a first request message to a network device, the first request message is used to request the network device to send a first reference signal or change the configuration information of the first reference signal, the first reference signal is a reference signal within the near field communication range corresponding to the network device; LMF receives a first request response message from the network device, the first request response message includes the configuration information of the first reference signal.

[0037] In the above technical solution, enabling LMF to initiate a near-field reference signal configuration request to the network side can avoid inaccurate positioning results caused by the terminal device entering the near-field range.

[0038] For example, the first request information includes information #1, and information #1 includes at least one of the following parameters:

[0039] 1) Transmission characteristic information of the first reference signal. For example, the transmission characteristic information includes information such as period and bandwidth.

[0040] 2) Distance and angle information corresponding to the first reference signal. For example, requesting the terminal device to send a first reference signal within a specified distance range, wherein the distance specified for sending the first reference signal represents a radius distance centered on the TRP or the reference antenna, or the distance and angle corresponding to the first reference signal are the distance and angle of the energy convergence center of the beam corresponding to the first reference signal relative to the reference antenna of the network device.

[0041] Exemplarily, if the distance range is [d1, d2], the distance range may be within a circular area represented by two radius distances centered on the reference antenna. When the network device forms the beam of the first reference signal, it may adjust the first reference signal so that it is focused within the range represented by [d1, d2], that is, the energy convergence center of the beam corresponding to the first reference signal is within the range represented by [d1, d2].

[0042] 3) Instructing the network device to send a reference signal through a reference signal resource, where the reference signal frequency domain resource corresponds to different frequency domain units. For example, the frequency domain unit may be a subcarrier, etc. In certain implementations of the fourth aspect, the configuration information of the first reference signal includes angle information and distance information corresponding to the first reference signal, wherein the distance corresponding to the first reference signal is the angle and distance between the energy convergence center point of the beam corresponding to the first reference signal and the reference antenna of the network device.

[0043] In certain implementations of the fourth aspect, the method also includes: the LMF receives a second request message from the terminal device, the second request message is used to request the LMF to send or change the configuration information of the first reference signal; the LMF sends a second request response message to the terminal device, the second request response message includes the configuration information of the first reference signal.

[0044] In certain implementations of the fourth aspect, the second request message includes first information, and the first information indicates that the terminal device is within a near field communication range.

[0045] In certain implementations of the fourth aspect, the second request message includes second information, where the second information indicates an identifier of at least one reference signal received by the terminal device or a reference signal received power RSRP of at least one reference signal measured by the terminal device.

[0046] In a fifth aspect, a communication method is provided, which can be executed by a terminal device, or can also be executed by a component (such as a chip or circuit) of the terminal device, without limitation. For ease of description, the following description is based on an example of execution by a terminal device.

[0047] The method includes: the terminal device sends a second request message to the positioning management function LMF, the second request message is used to request the LMF to send or change the configuration information of the first reference signal, the first reference signal is a reference signal within the near-field communication range corresponding to the network device; the terminal device receives a second request response message from the LMF, the second request response message includes the configuration information of the first reference signal.

[0048] In certain implementations of the fifth aspect, the configuration information of the first reference signal includes angle information and distance information corresponding to the first reference signal beam, wherein the distance corresponding to the first reference signal is the angle and distance between the energy convergence center point of the beam corresponding to the first reference signal and the reference antenna of the network device.

[0049] In certain implementations of the fifth aspect, the second request message includes first information, and the first information indicates that the terminal device is within a near field communication range.

[0050] In certain implementations of the fifth aspect, the terminal device carries the relevant information of the received reference signal in the second request message, and the LMF carries the relevant information in the first request message and sends it to the network device, and the network device determines the supported reference signal configuration based on the relevant information. For example, the second request message includes second information, and the second information indicates the identifier of at least one reference signal received by the terminal device or the index information of the measured SSB, or the second information indicates the RSRP of at least one reference signal measured by the terminal device or the energy information of the measured SSB.

[0051] In the above technical solution, the second information can assist LMF in determining the rough location of the terminal, thereby facilitating the determination of the first information.

[0052] In a sixth aspect, a communication device is provided, which is used to execute the method provided in any one of the first to fifth aspects. Specifically, the communication device may include a unit and / or module for executing the method provided in the first aspect or any one of the above-mentioned implementations of the first aspect, or include a unit and / or module for executing the method provided in the second aspect or any one of the above-mentioned implementations of the second aspect, or include a unit and / or module for executing the method provided in the third aspect or any one of the above-mentioned implementations of the third aspect, or include a unit and / or module for executing the method provided in the fourth aspect or any one of the above-mentioned implementations of the fourth aspect, or include a unit and / or module for executing the method provided in the fifth aspect or any one of the above-mentioned implementations of the fifth aspect.

[0053] In one implementation, the communication device is a device (such as a terminal device, such as an LMF, and such as a network device). When the communication device is a device, the transceiver unit may be a transceiver, or an input / output interface; the processing unit may be at least one processor. Optionally, the transceiver may be a transceiver circuit. Optionally, the input / output interface may be an input / output circuit.

[0054] In another implementation, the communication device is a chip, a chip system or a circuit used in a device (such as a terminal device, such as an LMF, and such as a network device). When the communication device is a chip, a chip system or a circuit used in a device, the transceiver unit may be an input / output interface, an interface circuit, an output circuit, an input circuit, a pin or a related circuit on the chip, the chip system or the circuit; the processing unit may be at least one processor, a processing circuit or a logic circuit.

[0055] In the seventh aspect, a communication device is provided, which includes: a memory for storing programs; and at least one processor for executing computer programs or instructions stored in the memory to execute the method provided by the first aspect or any one of the above-mentioned implementations of the first aspect, or to execute the method provided by the second aspect or any one of the above-mentioned implementations of the second aspect, or to execute the method provided by the third aspect or any one of the above-mentioned implementations of the third aspect, or to execute the method provided by the fourth aspect or any one of the above-mentioned implementations of the fourth aspect, or to execute the method provided by the fifth aspect or any one of the above-mentioned implementations of the fifth aspect.

[0056] In one implementation, the communication device is a device (such as a terminal device, such as a LMF, or a network device).

[0057] In another implementation, the device is a chip, a chip system or a circuit used in a device (such as a terminal device, a LMF, or a network device).

[0058] In an eighth aspect, the present application provides a processor for executing the methods provided in the above aspects.

[0059] For the operations such as sending and acquiring / receiving involved in the processor, unless otherwise specified, or unless they conflict with their actual function or internal logic in the relevant description, they can be understood as operations such as processor output, reception, input, etc., or as sending and receiving operations performed by the radio frequency circuit and antenna, and this application does not limit this.

[0060] In a ninth aspect, a computer-readable storage medium is provided, which stores a program code for execution by a device, wherein the program code includes instructions for executing the method provided by the first aspect or any one of the above-mentioned implementations of the first aspect, or includes instructions for executing the method provided by the second aspect or any one of the above-mentioned implementations of the second aspect, or includes instructions for executing the method provided by the third aspect or any one of the above-mentioned implementations of the third aspect, or includes instructions for executing the method provided by the fourth aspect or any one of the above-mentioned implementations of the fourth aspect, or includes instructions for executing the method provided by the fifth aspect or any one of the above-mentioned implementations of the fifth aspect.

[0061] In the tenth aspect, a computer program product comprising instructions is provided. When the computer program product runs on a computer, it enables the computer to execute the method provided by the first aspect or any one of the above-mentioned implementations of the first aspect, or enables the computer to execute the method provided by the second aspect or any one of the above-mentioned implementations of the second aspect, or enables the computer to execute the method provided by the third aspect or any one of the above-mentioned implementations of the third aspect, or enables the computer to execute the method provided by the fourth aspect or any one of the above-mentioned implementations of the fourth aspect, or enables the computer to execute the method provided by the fifth aspect or any one of the above-mentioned implementations of the fifth aspect.

[0062] In the eleventh aspect, a chip is provided, the chip including a processor and a communication interface, the processor reads instructions stored in a memory through the communication interface, executes the method provided by the first aspect or any one of the above-mentioned implementations of the first aspect, or executes the method provided by the second aspect or any one of the above-mentioned implementations of the second aspect, or executes the method provided by the third aspect or any one of the above-mentioned implementations of the third aspect, or executes the method provided by the fourth aspect or any one of the above-mentioned implementations of the fourth aspect, or executes the method provided by the fifth aspect or any one of the above-mentioned implementations of the fifth aspect.

[0063] Optionally, as an implementation method, the chip also includes a memory, in which a computer program or instruction is stored, and the processor is used to execute the computer program or instruction stored in the memory. When the computer program or instruction is executed, the processor is used to execute the method provided by the first aspect or any one of the above-mentioned implementation methods of the first aspect, or execute the method provided by the second aspect or any one of the above-mentioned implementation methods of the second aspect, or execute the method provided by the third aspect or any one of the above-mentioned implementation methods of the third aspect, or execute the method provided by the fourth aspect or any one of the above-mentioned implementation methods of the fourth aspect, or execute the method provided by the fifth aspect or any one of the above-mentioned implementation methods of the fifth aspect.

[0064] In a twelfth aspect, a communication system is provided, comprising at least one of the terminal device, LMF and network device mentioned above. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0065] Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of a wireless communication system 100 applicable to an embodiment of the present application.

[0066] Figure 2 is a schematic diagram of a wireless communication system 200 applicable to an embodiment of the present application.

[0067] Figure 3 It is a schematic diagram of the basic process of downlink positioning.

[0068] Figure 4 is a schematic diagram of near field communication range and far field communication range.

[0069] Figure 5 It is a schematic flow chart of the communication method 500 provided in the present application.

[0070] Figure 6 It is a schematic diagram of a possible implementation method of LMF receiving the first information given in this application.

[0071] Figure 7 This is a schematic diagram of an on-demand PRS transmission process provided in an embodiment of the present application.

[0072] Figure 8 It is a schematic flow chart of the communication method 800 provided in the present application.

[0073] Fig. 9 It is a schematic block diagram of a communication device 1100 provided in an embodiment of the present application.

[0074] Fig.10 It is a schematic block diagram of a communication device 1200 provided in an embodiment of the present application. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0075] The technical solutions in the embodiments of the present application will be described below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

[0076] Before introducing the embodiments of the present application, the following points are first explained.

[0077] First, in this application, unless otherwise specified or there is a 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 internal logical relationships.

[0078] It can be understood that some optional features in the embodiments of the present application may not depend on other features in some scenarios, and may also be combined with other features in some scenarios, without limitation.

[0079] It can be understood that the schemes in the embodiments of the present application can be used in combination, and the explanations or descriptions of the various terms, similar operations or steps appearing in the embodiments can be referenced or explained to each other in each embodiment, and the present application does not limit this.

[0080] Second, in this application, "at least one" means one or more, and "more than one" means two or more. "And / or" describes the association relationship of associated objects, indicating that three relationships may exist. For example, A and / or B can mean: A exists alone, A and B exist at the same time, and B exists alone, where A and B can be singular or plural. In the text description of this application, the character " / " generally indicates that the associated objects before and after are in an "or" relationship. "At least one of the following" or similar expressions refers to any combination of these items, including any combination of single or plural items. For example, at least one of a, b and c can mean: a, or b, or c, or a and b, or a and c, or b and c, or a, b and c. Where a, b and c can be single or multiple, respectively.

[0081] Third, in the present application, "first", "second" and various numerical references are used to distinguish for the convenience of description and are not used to limit the scope of the embodiments of the present application. For example, different messages are distinguished, rather than used to describe a specific order or sequence. It should be understood that the objects described in this way can be interchanged where appropriate so as to be able to describe solutions other than the embodiments of the present application.

[0082] Fourth, in this application, the terms "include" and "have" and any variations thereof are intended to cover non-exclusive inclusions. For example, a process, method, system, product or apparatus comprising a series of steps or units is not necessarily limited to those steps or units explicitly listed, but may include other steps or units not explicitly listed or inherent to these processes, methods, products or apparatuses.

[0083] Fifth, in this application, "indication" may include direct indication and indirect indication. When describing that a certain indication information indicates A, it may include that the indication information directly indicates A or indirectly indicates A, but it does not mean that the indication information must carry A.

[0084] Sixth, in this application, "sending information to XX (device)" can be understood as the destination of the information being the device. It can include sending information to the device directly or indirectly. "Receiving information from XX (device) or receiving information from XX (device)" can be understood as the source of the information being the device, which can include receiving information from the device directly or indirectly. The information may be processed as necessary between the source and destination of the information, such as format changes, but the destination can understand the valid information from the source.

[0085] Seventh, the arrows or boxes shown by dotted lines in the schematic diagrams of the accompanying drawings in the specification of this application represent optional steps or optional modules.

[0086] The technical solutions of the embodiments of the present application can be applied to various communication systems, such as: long term evolution (LTE) system, LTE frequency division duplex (FDD) system, LTE time division duplex (TDD), universal mobile telecommunication system (UMTS), worldwide interoperability for microwave access (WiMAX) communication system, fifth generation (5G) system or new radio (NR) and future communication systems, vehicle-to-X V2X, where V2X may include vehicle to network (V2N), vehicle to vehicle (V2V), vehicle to infrastructure (V2I), vehicle to pedestrian (V2P), etc., long term evolution-vehicle (LTE-V), Internet of Vehicles, machine type communication (MTC), Internet of Things (IoT), etc. things, IoT), long term evolution-machine (LTE-M), machine to machine (M2M), etc.

[0087] The terminal device in the embodiments of the present application may refer to user equipment (UE), access terminal, user unit, user station, mobile station, mobile station, remote station, remote terminal, mobile device, user terminal, terminal, wireless communication device, user agent or user device. The terminal device may also be a cellular phone, a cordless phone, a Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) phone, a Wireless Local Loop (WLL) station, a Personal Digital Assistant (PDA), a handheld device with wireless communication function, a computing device or other processing device connected to a wireless modem, a vehicle-mounted device, a wearable device, an audio device, a terminal device in a future 5G network or a terminal device in a future evolved Public Land Mobile Network (PLMN), etc., and the embodiments of the present application are not limited to this.

[0088] The terminal device in the present application may also be a road side unit (RSU). RSU is a facility deployed on the roadside for auxiliary communication in the vehicle-mounted delay-tolerant network. It is directly connected to the backbone network and can communicate wirelessly with the vehicle. Compared with the vehicles in the vehicle-mounted delay-tolerant network, RSU has better communication capabilities, coverage and transmission speed, and can communicate with multiple vehicles at the same time. In addition, RSU has a large storage space that can store information and increase the probability of communication. Therefore, by deploying relevant RSUs in the road traffic system, on the one hand, it can effectively solve the existing vehicle-mounted Internet access problem, and on the other hand, it can greatly increase the communication opportunities between vehicles. By caching messages through RSU, efficient transmission of messages between vehicles can be achieved.

[0089] Exemplarily, the terminal device may include: a radio resource control (RRC) signaling interaction module, a media access control (MAC) signaling interaction module, and a physical (PHY) signaling interaction module. Among them, the RRC signaling interaction module may be: a module used by the network device and the terminal device to send and receive RRC signaling. The MAC signaling interaction module may be: a module used by the network device and the terminal device to send and receive MAC control element (CE) (MAC-CE) signaling. PHY signaling and data may be: a module used by the network device and the terminal device to send and receive uplink control signaling or downlink control signaling, uplink and downlink data, or downlink data.

[0090] The network device in the embodiment of the present application can be a device for communicating with a terminal device, and the network device includes but is not limited to: an evolved nodeB (eNB or eNodeB) in an LTE system, and can also be a wireless controller in a cloud radio access network (CRAN) scenario, and can also be a radio network controller (RNC), a base station controller (BSC), a home base station (for example, home evolved nodeB, or home nodeB, HNB), a baseband unit (BBU), or the network device can be a relay station, an access point, a vehicle-mounted device, a wearable device, and a network device in a 5G network or a network device in a future evolved PLMN network, etc., and can be an access point (AP) in a wireless local area network (WLAN), a wireless relay node, a wireless backhaul node, a transmission point (TP) or a transmission and reception point (TRP), etc., and can be a new wireless system (new The invention relates to a gNB or a transmission point (TRP or TP) in a 5G radio (NR) system, or one or a group of antenna panels (including multiple antenna panels) of a base station in a 5G system, or a network node constituting a gNB or a transmission point, which is not limited in the embodiments of the present application.

[0091] In some deployments, the gNB may include a centralized unit (CU) and a distributed unit (DU). The gNB may also include an active antenna unit (AAU). The CU implements some functions of the gNB, and the DU implements some functions of the gNB. For example, the CU is responsible for processing non-real-time protocols and services, and implementing the functions of the radio resource control (RRC) and packet data convergence protocol (PDCP) layers. The DU is responsible for processing physical layer protocols and real-time services, and implementing the functions of the radio link control (RLC) layer, the media access control (MAC) layer, and the physical (PHY) layer. The AAU implements some physical layer processing functions, RF processing, and related functions of active antennas. Since the information of the RRC layer will eventually become the information of the PHY layer, or be converted from the information of the PHY layer, in this architecture, high-level signaling, such as RRC layer signaling, can also be considered to be sent by the DU, or by the DU+AAU. It is understandable that the network device may be a device including one or more of a CU node, a DU node, and an AAU node. In addition, the CU may be classified as a network device in an access network (radio access network, RAN), or the CU may be classified as a network device in a core network (core network, CN), which is not limited in this application.

[0092] The network device in the embodiment of the present application may also be an open radio access network (open-radio access network, O-RAN) device (open RAN, or ORAN), that is, the network device includes multiple RAN nodes, and multiple RAN nodes cooperate to assist the terminal device to achieve wireless access, and different RAN nodes respectively implement part of the functions of the network device. As an example, the RAN node may be a CU, DU, CU-control plane (control plane, CP), CU-user plane (user plane, UP), or radio unit (radio unit, RU), etc. Among them, CU and DU may be set separately, or may also be included in the same network element, such as BBU. RU may be included in a radio frequency device or radio frequency unit, such as a remote radio unit (remote radio unit, RRU), an active antenna processing unit (active antenna unit, AAU) or a remote radio head (remote radio head, RRH). For example, in some deployments, the network device may include a centralized unit (centralized unit, CU) and a DU. 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, in the ORAN system, CU may also be referred to as O-CU (open CU), DU may also be referred to as O-DU (open DU), CU-CP may also be referred to as O-CU-CP (open CU-CP), CU-UP may also be referred to as O-CU-UP (open CU-UP), and RU may also be referred to as O-RU (open RU). For the convenience of description, this application uses CU, CU-CP, CU-UP, DU and / or RU as examples for description. Any unit in the CU (or CU-CP, CU-UP), DU and / or 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.

[0093] Optionally, for network elements in the ORAN system, each network element may implement the protocol layer functions shown in Table 1 below.

[0094] Table 1

[0095]

[0096]

[0097] It should be noted that, in the ORAN system, the network device in the present application may be one or more network elements in Table 1 above.

[0098] The following describes the architecture of the CU and DU of the access network device. The access network device includes at least one CU and at least one DU. Optionally, the access network device also includes at least one RU.

[0099] The following is an introduction using an access network device including a CU and a DU as an example. The CU has some functions of the core network, and the CU may include a CU-CP and a CU-UP. The CU and the DU may be configured according to the protocol layer functions of the wireless network they implement. For example, the CU is configured to implement the functions of the packet data convergence protocol (PDCP) layer and the protocol layers above (for example, the RRC layer and / or the SDAP layer). The DU is configured to implement the functions of the protocol layers below the PDCP layer (for example, the RLC layer, the MAC layer, and / or the physical (PHY) layer). For another example, the CU is configured to implement the functions of the protocol layers above the PDCP layer (such as the RRC layer and / or the SDAP layer), and the DU is configured to implement the functions of the PDCP layer and the protocol layers below (for example, the RLC layer, the MAC layer, and / or the PHY layer, etc.).

[0100] When the CU includes a CU-CP and a CU-UP, the CU-CP is used to implement the control plane function of the CU, and the CU-UP is used to implement the user plane function of the CU. For example, when the CU is configured to implement the functions of the PDCP layer, the RRC layer, and the SDAP layer, the CU-CP is used to implement the control plane function of the RRC layer and the PDCP layer, and the CU-UP is used to implement the user plane function of the SDAP layer and the PDCP layer.

[0101] CU-CP can interact with network elements in the core network for implementing control plane functions. The network elements in the core network for implementing control plane functions can be access and mobility function network elements, such as access and mobility management function (AMF) in 5G systems. The access and mobility function network elements are responsible for mobility management in mobile networks, such as location update of terminal devices, registration network of terminal devices, switching of terminal devices, etc.

[0102] CU-UP can interact with network elements in the core network that are used to implement user plane functions. Network elements in the core network that are used to implement user plane functions, such as the User Plane Function (UPF) in the 5G system, are responsible for forwarding and receiving data in terminal devices.

[0103] The above configuration of CU and DU is only an example, and the functions of CU and DU can also be configured as needed. For example, the CU or DU can be configured to have the functions of more protocol layers, or the CU or DU can be configured to have partial processing functions of the protocol layer. For example, some functions of the RLC layer and the functions of the protocol layers above the RLC layer are set in the CU, and the remaining functions of the RLC layer and the functions of the protocol layers below the RLC layer are set in the DU. For another example, the functions of the CU or DU can be divided according to the service type or other system requirements. For example, by delay, the functions that need to meet the smaller delay requirements for processing time are set in the DU, and the functions that do not need to meet the delay requirements are set in the CU.

[0104] DU and RU can cooperate to jointly implement the functions of the PHY layer. A DU can be connected to one or more RUs. The functions of DU and RU can be configured in a variety of ways according to the design. For example, DU is configured to implement baseband functions, and RU is configured to implement mid-RF functions. For another example, DU is configured to implement high-level functions in the PHY layer, and RU is configured to implement low-level functions in the PHY layer or to implement the low-level functions and RF functions. The high-level functions in the physical layer may include a part of the functions of the physical layer, which is closer to the MAC layer, and the low-level functions in the physical layer may include another part of the functions of the physical layer, which is closer to the mid-RF side.

[0105] It should be noted that the network device can be a device or apparatus with a chip, or a device or apparatus with an integrated circuit, or a chip, chip system, module or control unit in the aforementioned device or apparatus, and this application does not limit it. It should be noted that in this application, when referring to a network device, it can refer to the network device itself, or it can refer to a chip, functional module or integrated circuit in the network device that completes the method provided in this application, and this application does not limit it.

[0106] To facilitate understanding of the embodiments of the present application, a communication system to which the embodiments of the present application may be applied is first described.

[0107] Figure 1 1 is a schematic diagram of a wireless communication system 100 applicable to an embodiment of the present application. The communication system 100 includes a terminal device ( Figure 1 UE), wireless access network ( Figure 1 In the figure, it is represented as the next generation radio access network (NG-RAN) and the core network.

[0108] The wireless access network includes one or more next generation evolved node B (ng-eNB) and gNB. ng-eNB refers to an LTE base station connected to the 5G core network, and gNB refers to a 5G base station connected to the 5G core network. Ng-eNB and gNB, or two ng-eNBs, or two gNBs communicate through the Xn interface. The Xn interface can also be called the XnAP interface. The wireless access network is connected to the core network through the NG-C interface.

[0109] The core network includes other functions such as access and mobility management function (AMF) and location management function (LMF).

[0110] LMF is responsible for supporting different types of location services for UE, including positioning of UE and transmission of auxiliary data to UE. LMF may exchange signals with RAN, such as ng-eNB or gNB, and UE. For example, LMF and ng-eNB or gNB exchange information through new radio positioning protocol annex (NRPPa) messages, such as obtaining configuration information of positioning reference signal (PRS), sounding reference signal (SRS), cell timing, cell location information, etc. For another example, LMF and UE transmit UE capability information, auxiliary information, measurement information, etc. through LTE positioning protocol (LPP) messages.

[0111] The AMF entity can receive location service requests related to the UE from the location services (LCS) entity of the 5G core (5G core, 5GC), or the AMF itself can also start some location services on behalf of a specific UE and forward the location service request to the LMF.

[0112] The terminal device is connected to the radio access network via the ng-eNB through the LTE-Uu interface. The terminal device can also be connected to the radio access network via the gNB through the NR-Uu interface.

[0113] It should also be understood that the communication system 100 may include one or more terminal devices, for example, one or more terminal device groups (such as Figure 1A gNB can send data or control signaling to one or more terminal devices. Multiple gNBs can also send data or control signaling to a terminal device at the same time.

[0114] Optionally, Figure 1 The ng-eNB and gNB can also be replaced by TRP, TP, reception point (RP), cell, etc.

[0115] Figure 2 2 is a schematic diagram of a wireless communication system 200 applicable to an embodiment of the present application. Figure 2 As shown, the wireless communication system 200 may include at least one terminal device, such as Figure 2 The wireless communication system 200 may further include a plurality of network devices (for example, the network device may be a base station (BS) or a TRP, and the base station is taken as an example below), wherein the plurality of base stations include a base station of a serving cell of the terminal device 101 and base stations of one or more neighboring cells of the serving cell. The base station of the serving cell (also referred to as a serving base station) is as follows: Figure 2 As shown in 102, the base stations of the neighboring cells (also referred to as neighboring base stations) include base stations 103 and 104 (not shown in the figure). Both the network device and the terminal device can be configured with multiple antennas, and the network device and the terminal device can communicate using multi-antenna technology.

[0116] Optionally, Figure 2 The base station can be replaced by TRP, TP, RP, cell, etc.

[0117] In addition to network devices and terminal devices, the wireless communication system 200 may also include an LMF network element 105. The LMF network element 105 can be used to implement location estimation of terminal devices. The LMF network element 105 can be deployed inside the core network, that is, the LMF network element 105 also belongs to a core network element. The LMF network element 105 can communicate with the network device through an AMF network element (not shown in the figure). For ease of description, in the embodiment of the present application, the LMF network element sending information to the network device through the AMF network element is referred to as the LMF network element sending information to the network device. In other words, the LMF network element sending a message to the network device in the embodiment of the present application can be understood as the LMF network element first sending the information to the AMF network element, and the AMF network element forwarding the information to the network device. Optionally, if there is an interface between the LMF network element and the network device, the LMF network element can directly send the information to the network device.

[0118] In some embodiments, some functions of the LMF network element 105, such as the location management component (LMC), can be integrated into the network device. For example, the base station 102 of the serving cell and the base stations 103 and 104 of the two neighboring cells are integrated with LMC. The LMC of the LMF network element integrated in the network device sending information to the network device can also be considered as the LMF network element sending information to the network device.

[0119] It should be noted that Figure 2 The architecture of the communication system shown in is only an example and is not limited to other architectures. Figure 2 2 shows a base station 102 of a serving cell and base stations 103 and 104 of two neighboring cells. Obviously, the communication system 200 may further include base stations of more neighboring cells.

[0120] In the communication system 100 and the communication system 200, the LMF network element and the base station communicate via the NRPPa protocol. The LMF network element and the UE communicate via the LPP protocol. Among them, the LMF exchanges cell information with the base station via the NRPPa protocol, for example, the configuration information of the reference signal of the cell, the cell timing information, and the geographical location information of the cell. The LMF transmits UE capability information, auxiliary information, measurement information, etc. with the UE via the LPP protocol.

[0121] It should be noted that Figure 1 and Figure 2 The names of the network elements and interfaces are only examples. This application does not exclude the possibility that the network elements may be named differently in the future, or that the functions of the network elements may be merged. With the evolution of technology, any device or network element that can realize the functions of the above network elements is within the protection scope of this application. Secondly, the above network elements may also be referred to as entities, equipment, devices, functions or modules, etc., which are not specifically limited in this application.

[0122] It should also be noted that the above-mentioned network architecture applied to the embodiments of the present application is only an example of a network architecture described from the perspective of a traditional point-to-point architecture and a service-oriented architecture. The network architecture applicable to the embodiments of the present application is not limited to this. Any network architecture that can realize the functions of the above-mentioned network elements is applicable to the embodiments of the present application.

[0123] Below, some terms or concepts in the embodiments of the present application are explained to facilitate understanding by those skilled in the art.

[0124] 1. Beam: The electromagnetic wave radiation pattern of a group of antenna systems.

[0125] 2. Beamforming: A technology for establishing antenna radiation patterns. Specifically, beamforming is a process of forming a directional electromagnetic wave radiation direction by adjusting the amplitude or phase of the signal on the RF link.

[0126] 3. Reference signal received power (RSRP): RSRP measures the power of the reference signal received by the UE. The reference signal here is sent by the base station and measured by the UE. The unit of RSRP is dBm.

[0127] 4. TRP: A group of geographically co-located antennas (e.g., an antenna array with one or more antenna elements) that supports TP and / or RP functionality.

[0128] Positioning is an important function in mobile communication systems, requiring the system to provide users' location information in real time. At present, the target UE (target UE) can be located through positioning technology, so that the positioning initiator that initiates the positioning service can obtain the location information of the target UE. Among them, the positioning initiator can be LCS, UE, or AMF network element. For example: LCS requests the service AMF of the target UE to locate the target UE; or, the service AMF of the target UE decides to locate the target UE; or, the target UE requests the positioning service from its service AMF, such as initiating a request due to positioning or transmitting auxiliary information. When the positioning service is triggered, LMF will further perform positioning-related operations. LMF needs to interact with the base station, such as obtaining auxiliary information related to air interface positioning; LMF also needs to interact with the target UE, such as the capability transmission process, including obtaining the positioning capability of the UE, providing the UE with auxiliary information related to positioning, etc.

[0129] In the existing positioning, the target UE can be positioned by sending and / or receiving a reference signal related to positioning, and the positioning method supported in NR and LTE can be used to achieve the positioning of the target UE. For example, the reference signal related to positioning includes PRS and / or SRS, where PRS is a downlink signal and SRS is an uplink signal.

[0130] At present, positioning methods include uplink positioning methods and downlink positioning methods. Among them, the uplink positioning method sends a reference signal related to positioning (such as SRS) in the uplink, and the base station performs position calculation. Typical positioning methods include uplink time difference of arrival (UL-TDOA) and uplink angle of arrival (UL-AOA). These two positioning methods measure the time difference (TDOA) or angle of arrival (AOA) of the positioning-related signal sent by the UE to multiple cell base stations by the base station to determine the position of the UE. Correspondingly, the downlink positioning method sends a reference signal related to positioning (such as PRS) in the downlink, and the terminal performs position calculation. Typical positioning methods include downlink time difference of arrival (DL-TDOA). The following describes the basic process of downlink positioning in detail using downlink positioning as an example.

[0131] Figure 3 This is a schematic diagram of the basic process of downlink positioning. Figure 3 As shown, the downlink positioning process includes:

[0132] 301. LMF obtains UE capabilities through LPP capability transfer process.

[0133] The UE capability may include the UE's processing capability for downlink (DL) reference signals (RS). For ease of description, the process is described by taking the downlink reference signal as PRS as an example.

[0134] 302. The LMF sends a TRP information request to multiple NG-RAN nodes, and correspondingly, the NG-RAN node receives the TRP information request.

[0135] The TRP information request can be used to request the TRP information of the TRP. Exemplarily, the TRP information may include at least one of the following: cell information, coordinates, TRP ID of the NG-RAN TRP, PRS configuration, etc. Among them, the PRS configuration may include the time domain resource configuration of the PRS, the frequency domain resource configuration of the PRS, etc. Exemplarily, the time domain resource configuration of the PRS includes the period of the PRS, the slot offset, etc., which are not listed here one by one. The frequency domain resource configuration of the PRS may include the frequency point, the comb size, etc., which are not listed here one by one.

[0136] 303. The NG-RAN node sends a TRP information response to the LMF, and correspondingly, the LMF receives the TRP information response.

[0137] It can be understood that the TRP information response is used to respond to the TRP information request. The TRP information response can carry the information requested by the LMF.

[0138] 304. The LMF provides the UE with assistance data required for measurement and / or calculation through an assistance data transfer process. The assistance data may include cell information of multiple TPRs, PRS configuration, etc.

[0139] 305. LMF sends a request location information to the UE, and the UE receives the request location information.

[0140] The requested location information can be used to request the UE to measure the PRS to obtain the corresponding measurement value or location estimation result. For example, in the DL-TDOA positioning technology, the LMF can request the UE to measure the downlink reference signal arrival time difference (DL RSTD) by requesting the location information.

[0141] 306. The UE measures the PRS and obtains a measurement result.

[0142] 307. The UE sends provide location information to the LMF, and reports the measurement value or location estimation result to the LMF. Correspondingly, the LMF receives the provide location information.

[0143] Optionally, the UE supports different modes for positioning. For example, the location information of the target UE is calculated by the LMF, which can be called the LMF-based mode or the UE-assisted mode. For another example, the target UE calculates its own location information, which can be called the UE-based mode.

[0144] For example, for the DL-TDOA positioning method, if it is LMF-based, the target UE needs to report to the LMF the DL RSTD obtained by the target UE from measuring PRSs of multiple base stations, and the LMF calculates the location information of the target UE based on the DL RSTD reported by the UE.

[0145] For example, if it is UE-based, the target UE can calculate its own location information based on the DLRSTD obtained by measuring PRS from multiple base stations and the auxiliary information provided by the network side, and can provide the UE's location information to the LMF by providing a location information message.

[0146] When an antenna radiates a wireless signal in free space, the electromagnetic diffraction domain of the wireless signal can be divided into an inductive near-field region, a radiating near-field region, and a far-field region according to the radiation characteristics of the wireless signal in free space. Figure 4 A schematic diagram of each area is given, and the communication radii corresponding to the sensing near-field area and the radiation near-field area are d1 and d2 respectively.

[0147] Optionally, the near field communication range described in the present application may be a radiated near field area. For example, the near field communication range can generally be determined using formula (1), but it is also related to a specific channel model, etc. The present application does not limit the formula for calculating the communication radius of the radiated near field area.

[0148]

[0149] Where D is the maximum geometric dimension of the antenna and λ is the wavelength of the electromagnetic wave.

[0150] Optionally, the near field communication range described in this application may be a specified or configured range. For example, the near field communication range is a partial area indicated or configured in the radiation near field area, and this application does not limit this. For example, an area with a communication radius of d3 may be specified as the near field communication range, and d3 may be specified by the protocol or configured by the network side.

[0151] As the antenna panel increases and the communication frequency band becomes higher, the near-field communication range of the base station may be further expanded. For example, the communication radius can reach tens of meters or even hundreds of meters, so near-field communication will become possible in the future. The positioning method in far-field communication is generally based on the plane wave assumption, and the equiphase surface of the plane wave is a plane. However, the plane wave assumption does not hold in the near field. Near-field communication needs to be modeled based on the spherical wave model. The equiphase surface during the propagation of electromagnetic waves is a sphere. Since the channel models used in near-field communication and far-field communication are different, the positioning methods that can be used should also be different. At present, LMF may not be able to perceive whether the UE is in the far field or the near field, resulting in inaccurate positioning of the terminal device.

[0152] In view of this, the present application proposes a communication method, which can effectively solve the above technical problems. The communication method proposed in the present application is described in detail below.

[0153] Figure 5is a schematic flow chart of a communication method 500 provided in the present application. The method includes the following steps.

[0154] S510, LMF receives first information, the first information indicates that the terminal device is in a near field communication range or a far field communication range corresponding to the network device.

[0155] Combine the following Figure 6 Several possible implementations of LMF receiving the first information are given.

[0156] Implementation method 1: During the positioning process, the terminal device moves from the far field to the near field or from the near field to the far field. The terminal device determines the first information and sends the first information to the LMF. Correspondingly, the LMF receives the first information from the terminal device.

[0157] For example, the terminal device can determine that it has entered the near field in the following ways:

[0158] 1) The terminal device determines whether it has entered the near field based on the near field information or near field indication carried by the network device in the system broadcast information.

[0159] For example, the network device sets 1 bit in a master information block (MIB) to indicate near-field information or far-field information.

[0160] For example, the network device indicates the near-field or far-field information through system information blocks (SIB) 1 or other SIBs, for example, through 1 bit to indicate the near-field or far-field information.

[0161] 2) The terminal device determines whether it has entered the near field based on the location information of the terminal device acquired historically.

[0162] For example, the terminal device obtains its own position in the most recent positioning. At this time, the terminal device can determine whether it has entered the near field based on the comparison between the historical positioning result and the near field communication range. For example, the near field communication range here can be the theoretical range of the radiated near field shown in formula (1), or a specified or configured range, which is not specifically limited in this application.

[0163] Optionally, in order to estimate the near field range based on the theoretical radiation near field formula, the terminal device can also obtain information #1 from the network device, and information #1 may include at least one of the following parameters: the maximum geometric dimensions of the antenna of the service cell network device, the frequency or wavelength information of the electromagnetic wave, and the position of the antenna.

[0164] For example, the terminal device may obtain information #1 from the network device through system information, or the terminal device may obtain information #1 through dedicated signaling. For example, the dedicated signaling may be radio resource control (RRC) signaling or LPP signaling.

[0165] 3) The terminal device determines whether it has entered the near field based on the channel information obtained by measuring the reference signal. For example, the terminal device measures the reference signal, such as the reference signal can be a channel status information (CSI) reference signal (CSI-RS) or PRS, and the terminal device can estimate the channel based on the measurement result. For example, if the channel characteristics are closer to the channel characteristics in the near field, the terminal device is considered to have entered the near field range.

[0166] 4) The terminal device makes a judgment based on the energy (RSRP) of the received reference signal. For example, when the terminal device is in the far field, the terminal device can measure the RSRP of the received reference signal #1. If the RSRP measured by the terminal device is lower than a certain threshold during the movement of the terminal, the terminal device can be considered to have entered the near field range. Among them, reference signal #1 is a signal sent in the far field range.

[0167] For example, the first information indicates the switch between the far field and the near field. For example, the first information indicates through 1 bit that the LMF learns that the terminal device is currently in the far field, and when the 1 bit information is received again, it indicates that the terminal device switches from the far field to the near field.

[0168] For example, the first information indicates whether the terminal device is in the far field or in the near field. For example, the first information is indicated by 1 bit, and if the 1 bit is 0, it indicates that the terminal device is in the far field, and if the 1 bit is 1, it indicates that the terminal device is in the near field, or vice versa.

[0169] For example, the first information is carried in the first field. For example, if the first field is near-field, it means that the terminal device is located in the far field, and if the first field is far-field, it means that the terminal device is located in the far field.

[0170] Optional, such as Figure 6 As shown in case 1, the terminal device transmits the first information to the LMF through a positioning protocol message, that is, the first information is carried in the positioning protocol message. For example, the positioning protocol message is described below as an LPP message.

[0171] For example, the LPP message is used to request assistance data for positioning measurement. For example, the LPP message is a Request Assistance Data message.

[0172] For example, the LPP message is used to provide the location information of the terminal device, and the location information of the terminal device may be a measurement quantity that can be used to determine the terminal device and / or a location estimation result of the terminal device. For example, the LPP message is Figure 3 The Provide Location Information message in 307.

[0173] In one manner, the network device may specify a condition or manner for the terminal device to send the first information to the LMF. As an example, two possible conditions or manners for the terminal device to report the first information are given below.

[0174] Example 1: The network device configures an event trigger for the terminal device. Once the event occurs, the terminal device reports the first information to the LMF.

[0175] For example, the trigger event may be when the terminal device switches between far field and near field, or when the terminal device enters the near field, or when the far field reference signal measured by the terminal device is higher than a given threshold, or when the near field reference signal measured by the terminal device is higher than a given threshold.

[0176] Example 2: The network device may request the terminal device to periodically report the first information.

[0177] For example, the network device may configure the above conditions or methods to the terminal device when the positioning service is initiated, or the network device may send the above conditions or methods via a broadcast message, such as sending information corresponding to the above conditions or methods in SIB or posSIB.

[0178] In another manner, the terminal device may send the first information to the LMF by itself. For example, the terminal device reports the first information to the LMF before each positioning.

[0179] In another embodiment, the terminal device may send the first information to the LMF based on the request of the LMF. For example, the LMF requests the terminal device to report the first information before each positioning. Figure 6 As shown in Case 2, the first information is carried in a non-access stratum (NAS) message or a location services (LCS) message. The terminal device transmits the first information to the AMF through the NAS message or the LCS message, and then the AMF transmits the first information to the LMF.

[0180] For example, the NAS message or the LCS message is used to initiate a location service request. For example, for a mobile originated location request (MO-LR) location initiated by a terminal, the second request message is a MO-LR request message.

[0181] Implementation method 2: The network device determines the first information and sends the first information to the LMF. Correspondingly, the LMF receives the first information from the network device.

[0182] For example, if the network device is an O-RAN device, the step of determining and sending the first information may be implemented by the CU-CP, CU-UP or DU and / or RU.

[0183] For example, the network device may determine whether the terminal device is located in the near field based on a reference signal (eg, SRS) or other signal sent by the terminal device, and thereby determine the first information.

[0184] For example, the terminal device may provide the network device with the far-field and near-field information of the terminal device, such as the terminal device reporting the far-field and near-field information of the terminal device, thereby helping the network device determine the first information. For example, the terminal device may report the far-field and near-field information of the terminal device to the network device via an RRC message, a MAC message, or an uplink control information (UCI) message.

[0185] For example, the network device may also determine the first information based on a measurement result of a reference signal or a measurement result of other signals reported by the terminal device, such as a radio resource management (RRM) measurement result.

[0186] Optionally, the terminal device may also report the far-field and near-field information to the network device based on the method or conditions described in implementation method one.

[0187] Optionally, in this implementation method, the manner or condition for the terminal device to report the far-field and near-field information to the network device may also be configured by the network device, or the network device may request the terminal device to report the far-field and near-field information.

[0188] Optionally, the sending of the first information by the network device to the LMF may be triggered by a LMF request, or may be actively reported by the network device.

[0189] For example, if triggered by an LMF request, before the network device sends the first information to the LMF, the method also includes: the LMF sends a first request message to the network device, the first request message requests the network device to report that the terminal device is in the near field communication range or the far field communication range, and correspondingly, the network device receives the first request message from the LMF; thereafter, the network device sends a first request response message to the LMF, the first request response message includes the first information, and correspondingly, the LMF receives the first request response message from the network device.

[0190] For example, in the uplink positioning process, the first request message may be a positioning information request (positioninginformation response) message, and the first request response message may be a positioning information response (positioninginformation response) message.

[0191] S520, LMF selects a suitable positioning method to locate the terminal device based on the first information.

[0192] Specifically, when the terminal device enters the near field, the near field positioning method is used to locate the target terminal device. When the terminal device enters the near field, the far field positioning method is used to locate the target terminal device. This method can avoid the problem of inaccurate positioning results caused by the LMF being unable to sense that the terminal device has entered the near field communication range and using an inappropriate positioning method.

[0193] Another technical problem raised by the present application and the corresponding solution are described in detail below.

[0194] Figure 3 In the downlink positioning process shown in FIG. 1 , the LMF obtains the PRS configuration information from the network device and provides the relevant information to the terminal device. On this basis, the 3rd generation partnership project (3GPP) also introduced an on-demand PRS process, where the terminal device or LMF can request on-demand to send or change the configuration of the reference signal. Figure 7 The on-demand PRS configuration process is described by taking the reference signal as PRS as an example.

[0195] Figure 7 FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of an on-demand PRS transmission procedure provided in an embodiment of the present application. The procedure may include the following steps.

[0196] 700. LMF obtains information on on-demand PRS configuration supported by TRP through the NRPPa TRP information exchange process.

[0197] The on-demand PRS process initiated by the UE may include steps 701 and 702:

[0198] 701. LMF provides a pre-defined PRS configuration to the UE.

[0199] As an example, the LMF may send the predefined PRS configuration via an LPP message such as a provide assistance data message.

[0200] As another example, the LMF may send a predefined PRS configuration to the access network device via an NRPPa message, and then the access network device sends the predefined PRS configuration via a positioning system information block (posSIB).

[0201] In the embodiment of the present application, each PRS configuration may be associated with a PRS configuration ID.

[0202] 702. The UE sends an LPP request assistance data message to the LMF. Correspondingly, the LMF receives the LPP request assistance data message.

[0203] Exemplarily, the LPP request assistance data message may be used to send an on-demand PRS request (on-demand PRS request), where the on-demand PRS request may request an identifier (ID) of a predefined PRS configuration, or the on-demand PRS request may be used to request specific parameters of the PRS configuration.

[0204] For example, the on-demand PRS request may be a request for PRS transmission, or may be a request for a change in PRS transmission characteristics. The change in PRS transmission characteristics shown here may also be referred to as a change in PRS configuration or a change in PRS configuration. Requesting PRS transmission may also mean requesting a change in PRS configuration or a change in PRS configuration.

[0205] The on-demand PRS process initiated by the LMF may include step 703:

[0206] 703. For the on-demand PRS initiated by the LMF, the LMF may exchange LPP messages with the UE, such as obtaining the measurement results of the UE or the downlink PRS positioning capability of the UE.

[0207] In addition to the above steps 701 to 703, the on-demand PRS transmission process may further include the following steps:

[0208] 704. LMF determines whether PRS transmission is needed or changes to PRS transmission characteristics (determine the need for PRS transmission or change to PRS transmission characteristics).

[0209] Exemplarily, the LMF may perform the above step 704 based on the positioning accuracy. The embodiment of the present application does not limit how the LMF determines whether PRS transmission is required or whether PRS transmission characteristics are changed.

[0210] If the LMF determines in S704 that PRS transmission or change of PRS transmission characteristics is required, S705 is executed.

[0211] 705. LMF requests the serving gNB / TRP and non-serving gNB / TRP to transmit PRS or change the configuration of the PRS being transmitted through an NRPPa PRS configuration request message.

[0212] 706. The serving gNB / TRP and the non-serving gNB / TRP provide the successfully configured or changed PRS configuration through the NRPPa PRS configuration response message.

[0213] 707. LMF provides PRS configuration or error cause to UE through LPP provide assistance data message.

[0214] Exemplarily, if the on-demand PRS request is successfully responded, the changed PRS configuration may be sent to the UE. If the LMF determines not to respond to the on-demand PRS request, or the base station rejects the PRS configuration request of the LMF, the LMF may send an error cause to the UE.

[0215] Figure 7 The on-demand PRS request process shown is only an example. Figure 7For related instructions, please refer to the standard description, and the embodiments of the present application are not limited to this.

[0216] It can be understood that the configuration of the reference signal can also be changed on demand within the near field range. As an example, after the LMF obtains the measurement results or position estimation results of the UE, if the measurement results or position estimation results obtained based on the current PRS cannot meet the current positioning accuracy requirements, the LMF can initiate an on-demand PRS request process for the near field range. As another example, if the current PRS cannot meet the current positioning or measurement requirements of the UE, the UE can initiate an on-demand PRS request process for the near field range. As another example, in the near field range, since the beam is focused at a certain angle and distance, there may be a coverage blind spot. When the positioning service is initiated, if the area where the terminal device is located is in the coverage blind spot of the beam within the near field range, or the reference signal corresponding to the beam within the near field range is weak, the UE can also initiate an on-demand PRS request for the near field range to support the positioning service. For Figure 3 and Figure 7 The embodiments of the present application will not list them one by one.

[0217] The present application proposes another communication method, which can realize and support on-demand reference signal request within the near field. The communication method proposed in the present application is described in detail below.

[0218] Figure 8 800 is a schematic flow chart of a communication method 800 provided in the present application. The method includes the following steps.

[0219] S810, LMF sends a first request message to the network device, the first request message is used to request the network device to send a first reference signal or change the configuration information of the first reference signal, the first reference signal is a reference signal within the near field range. Correspondingly, the network device receives the first request message from LMF. Optionally, the first reference signal can be a PRS or other reference signals related to positioning, which is not limited in this application.

[0220] Optionally, the first request information includes information #1, and information #1 includes at least one of the following parameters:

[0221] 1) Transmission characteristic information of the first reference signal. For example, the transmission characteristic information includes information such as period and bandwidth.

[0222] 2) Distance and angle information corresponding to the first reference signal. For example, requesting the terminal device to send a first reference signal within a specified distance range, wherein the distance specified for sending the first reference signal represents a radius distance centered on the TRP or the reference antenna, or the distance and angle corresponding to the first reference signal are the distance and angle of the energy convergence center of the beam corresponding to the first reference signal relative to the reference antenna of the network device.

[0223] Exemplarily, if the distance range is [d1, d2], the distance range may be within a circular area represented by two radius distances centered on the reference antenna. When the network device forms the beam of the first reference signal, it may adjust the first reference signal so that it is focused within the range represented by [d1, d2], that is, the energy convergence center of the beam corresponding to the first reference signal is within the range represented by [d1, d2].

[0224] 3) Instructing the network device to send a reference signal through a reference signal resource, where the reference signal frequency domain resource corresponds to different frequency domain units. For example, the frequency domain unit may be a subcarrier or the like.

[0225] S820, the network device sends a first request response message to the LMF, where the first request response message includes configuration information of the first reference signal. Correspondingly, the LMF receives the first request response message from the network device.

[0226] For example, the first request message is Figure 7 The PRS configuration request message in 705, the first request response message is Figure 7 The PRS configuration request (PRS configurationresponse) message in 706.

[0227] Optionally, the network device side may have multiple sets of first reference signal configurations, and the first reference signal configuration obtained in this step may be part or all of the information in a set of first reference signal configurations that meets current requirements among the multiple sets of first reference signal configurations.

[0228] For example, any one set of configuration information among the multiple sets of configuration information of the first reference signal includes angle information and distance information corresponding to the first reference signal corresponding to the configuration information.

[0229] It can be understood that the above method can enable LMF to initiate a near-field reference signal configuration request to the network side, which can avoid inaccurate positioning results caused by the terminal device entering the near-field range.

[0230] Optionally, before S810, the terminal device may trigger a configuration for acquiring the first reference signal, and the method further includes:

[0231] S830, the terminal device sends a second request message to the LMF, where the second request message is used to request the LMF to send or change the first reference signal configuration information. The corresponding LMF receives the second request message from the terminal device.

[0232] For example, the second request message includes information #2, and the information #2 requests to send the configuration information of the first reference signal required, such as the period, bandwidth, distance and angle configuration corresponding to the first reference signal. Then the first request message in S810 may also include information #2.

[0233] For example, the second request message includes first information, and the first information indicates that the terminal device is within a near field communication range.

[0234] For example, the terminal device can carry the relevant information of the received reference signal in the second request message, and the LMF can carry the relevant information in the first request message and send it to the network device, and the network device determines the supported reference signal configuration based on the relevant information. For example, the second request message includes second information, and the second information indicates the identifier of at least one reference signal received by the terminal device or the index information of the measured SSB, or the second information indicates the RSRP of at least one reference signal measured by the terminal device or the energy information of the measured SSB. The second information can assist the LMF in determining the rough position of the terminal, thereby facilitating the determination of the first information.

[0235] S840, LMF sends a second request response message to the terminal device, where the second request response message includes the first reference signal configuration information.

[0236] For example, the second request message in S830 may be Figure 7 The LPP request auxiliary data (LP Passistance data) message in 702, the LPP provides auxiliary data message can be used to initiate an on-demand request, and the second request response message in S840 can be Figure 7 The LPP provides assistance data message may include a reference signal configuration corresponding to the on-demand request.

[0237] For example, if the network device is an O-RAN device, S810 and S820 may be implemented by CU-CP, CU-UP or DU.

[0238] It should be understood that the sequence numbers of the above processes do not mean the order of execution. 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 embodiments of the present application.

[0239] It should also be understood that in some of the above embodiments, the devices in the existing network architecture are mainly used as examples for exemplary description, and it should be understood that the embodiments of the present application do not limit the specific form of the devices. For example, devices that can achieve the same function in the future are applicable to the embodiments of the present application.

[0240] It can be understood that in the above-mentioned method embodiments, the methods and operations implemented by the device (such as the above-mentioned LMF, terminal device, network device, etc.) can also be implemented by components of the device (such as chips or circuits).

[0241] Above, combined Figures 1 to 8 The method provided by the embodiment of the present application is described in detail. The above method is mainly introduced from the perspective of interaction between LMF, network equipment and terminal equipment. It can be understood that LMF, network equipment and terminal equipment, in order to achieve the above functions, include hardware structures and / or software modules corresponding to the execution of each function.

[0242] Those skilled in the art should be aware 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 performed 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.

[0243] The following, combined Fig. 9 and Fig.10 The communication device provided by the embodiment of the present application is described in detail. It should be understood that the description of the device embodiment corresponds to the description of the method embodiment. Therefore, the content that is not described in detail can refer to the method embodiment above. For the sake of brevity, some contents will not be repeated. The embodiment of the present application can divide the functional modules of the LMF or terminal device or network device according to the above method example. For example, each functional module can be divided corresponding to each function, or two or more functions can be integrated into one processing module. The above-mentioned 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, which is only a logical function division. There may be other division methods in actual implementation. The following is an example of dividing each functional module corresponding to each function.

[0244] Fig. 9 1 is a schematic block diagram of a communication device 1100 provided in an embodiment of the present application. Fig. 9As shown, the device 1100 may include a communication unit 1110 and a processing unit 1120. The communication unit 1110 may communicate with the outside, and the processing unit 1120 is used for data processing. The communication unit 1110 may also be called a communication interface or a transceiver unit.

[0245] Optionally, the transceiver unit may include a receiving unit and a sending unit, which is not limited in this application.

[0246] In a possible design, the device 1100 may implement the steps or processes corresponding to the LMF execution in the above method embodiment, wherein the processing unit 1120 is used to perform the operations related to the processing of the LMF in the above method embodiment, and the communication unit 1110 is used to perform the operations related to the sending of the LMF in the above method embodiment. For example, in method 800, the communication unit 1110 may be used to perform the operations performed by the LMF in S820, and the processing unit 1120 may be used to perform the operations performed by the LMF in S830.

[0247] In another possible design, the device 1100 may implement the steps or processes corresponding to those performed by the terminal device in the above method embodiment, wherein the communication unit 1110 is used to perform the reception-related operations of the terminal device in the above method embodiment, and the processing unit 1120 is used to perform the processing-related operations of the terminal device in the above method embodiment. For example, in method 500, the communication unit 1110 may be used to perform the operations performed by the terminal device in S530, and the processing unit 1120 may be used to perform the operations performed by the terminal device in S510 and S520. For another example, in method 800, the communication unit 1110 may be used to perform the operations performed by the terminal device in S820 and S840, and the processing unit 1120 may be used to perform the operations performed by the terminal device in S810.

[0248] In another possible design, the device 1100 may implement the steps or processes executed by the network device in the above method embodiment, wherein the processing unit 1120 is used to perform the processing-related operations of the network device in the above method embodiment, and the communication unit 1110 is used to perform the sending-related operations of the network device in the above method embodiment. For example, in method 500, the communication unit 1110 may be used to perform the operations performed by the network device in S530. For another example, in method 800, the communication unit 1110 may be used to perform the operations performed by the network device in S840.

[0249] Optionally, the communication device 1100 may further include a storage unit, which may be used to store instructions and / or data, and the processing unit 1120 may read the instructions and / or data in the storage unit so that the communication device 1100 implements the aforementioned method embodiment.

[0250] It should be understood that the device 1100 here is embodied in the form of a functional unit. The term "unit" here may refer to an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), an electronic circuit, a processor (such as a shared processor, a dedicated processor or a group processor, etc.) and a memory for executing one or more software or firmware programs, a merged logic circuit and / or other suitable components that support the described functions. In an optional example, those skilled in the art can understand that the device 1100 can be specifically the LMF in the above-mentioned embodiment, and can be used to execute the various processes and / or steps corresponding to the LMF in the above-mentioned method embodiment, or the device 1100 can be specifically the terminal device in the above-mentioned embodiment, and can be used to execute the various processes and / or steps corresponding to the terminal device in the above-mentioned method embodiment, or the device 1100 can be specifically the network device in the above-mentioned embodiment, and can be used to execute the various processes and / or steps corresponding to the network device in the above-mentioned method embodiment. To avoid repetition, it will not be repeated here.

[0251] The device 1100 of each of the above schemes has the function of implementing the corresponding steps executed by the LMF in the above method, or the device 1100 of each of the above schemes has the function of implementing the corresponding steps executed by the terminal device in the above method, or the device 1100 of each of the above schemes has the function of implementing the corresponding steps executed by the network device in the above method. The functions can be implemented by hardware, or by hardware executing corresponding software implementations. The hardware or software includes one or more modules corresponding to the above functions; for example, the communication unit can be replaced by a transceiver (for example, the sending unit in the communication unit can be replaced by a transmitter, and the receiving unit in the communication unit can be replaced by a receiver), and other units, such as the processing unit, can be replaced by a processor to respectively perform the sending and receiving operations and related processing operations in each method embodiment.

[0252] In one implementation, the communication device is a device (such as a terminal device, such as an LMF, and such as a network device). When the communication device is a device, the transceiver unit may be a transceiver, or an input / output interface; the processing unit may be at least one processor or a processor-related circuit. Optionally, the transceiver may be a transceiver circuit (for example, it may include a receiving circuit and a transmitting circuit). Optionally, the input / output interface may be an input / output circuit.

[0253] In another implementation, the communication device is a chip, a chip system or a circuit used in a device (such as a terminal device, such as an LMF, and such as a network device). When the communication device is a chip, a chip system or a circuit used in a device, the transceiver unit may be an input / output interface, an interface circuit, an output circuit, an input circuit, a pin or a related circuit on the chip, the chip system or the circuit; the processing unit may be a processor or a microprocessor or an integrated circuit integrated on the chip, the chip system or the circuit.

[0254] Fig.10 1 is a schematic block diagram of a communication device 1200 provided in an embodiment of the present application. The device 1200 includes a processor 1210 and a transceiver 1220. The processor 1210 and the transceiver 1220 communicate with each other through an internal connection path, and the processor 1210 is used to execute instructions to control the transceiver 1220 to send signals and / or receive signals.

[0255] Optionally, the device 1200 may further include a memory 1230, and the memory 1230 communicates with the processor 1210 and the transceiver 1220 through an internal connection path. The memory 1230 is used to store instructions, and the processor 1210 may execute the instructions stored in the memory 1230.

[0256] Optionally, the memory 1230 may include a read-only memory and a random access memory, and provide instructions and data to the processor. A portion of the memory may also include a non-volatile random access memory. For example, the memory may also store information about the device type. The memory 1230 is used to store instructions, and the processor 1210 may be used to execute the instructions stored in the memory, and when the processor 1210 executes the instructions stored in the memory, the processor 1210 is used to execute the various steps and / or processes of the above-mentioned method embodiment corresponding to the LMF or the terminal device.

[0257] Optionally, the communication device 1200 may include one or more memories 1230 .

[0258] Optionally, the memory 1230 may be integrated with the processor 1210 or provided separately.

[0259] In one possible design, the device 1200 is used to implement each process and step corresponding to the LMF in the above method embodiment. For example, in method 800, the transceiver 1220 can be used to execute the operation performed by the LMF in S820, and the processor 1210 can be used to execute the operation performed by the LMF in S830.

[0260] In another possible design, the apparatus 1200 is used to implement the various processes and steps corresponding to the terminal device in the above method embodiments. For example, in method 500, the transceiver 1220 may be used to execute the operation performed by the terminal device in S530, and the processor 1210 may be used to execute the operations performed by the terminal device in S510 and S520. For another example, in method 800, the transceiver 1220 may be used to execute the operations performed by the terminal device in S820 and S840, and the processor 1210 may be used to execute the operation performed by the terminal device in S810.

[0261] In another possible design, the device 1200 is used to implement the various processes and steps corresponding to the network device in the above method embodiments. For example, in method 500, the transceiver 1220 can be used to perform the operation performed by the network device in S530. For another example, in method 800, the transceiver 1220 can be used to perform the operation performed by the network device in S840.

[0262] In one implementation, the communication device 1200 is a device (such as a terminal device, such as an LMF, and such as a network device). When the communication device is a device, the transceiver may be an input / output interface; the processor may be at least one processor-related circuit. Optionally, the transceiver may be a transceiver circuit (for example, it may include a receiving circuit and a transmitting circuit). Optionally, the input / output interface may be an input / output circuit.

[0263] In another implementation, the communication device 1200 is a chip, a chip system or a circuit used in a device (such as a terminal device, such as an LMF, and such as a network device), wherein the transceiver may be an input-output circuit or a communication interface; the processor may be a processing module or a microprocessor or an integrated circuit integrated on the chip. The sending operation of the device in the above method embodiment may be understood as the output of the chip, and the receiving operation of the device in the above method embodiment may be understood as the input of the chip.

[0264] Optionally, the transceiver includes a transmitter and a receiver, which respectively implement the steps of sending and receiving of the device (such as a terminal device, such as an LMF, and such as a network device) in the embodiment of the present application. When the device 1200 is a chip, the transmitter and the receiver can be used as the input and output interfaces of the chip. The transmitter corresponds to the output, and the receiver corresponds to the input.

[0265] It should be understood that the device 1200 can be specifically the LMF or terminal device or network device in the above embodiment, or a chip or a chip system. Correspondingly, the transceiver 1220 can be a transceiver circuit of the chip, which is not limited here. Specifically, the device 1200 can be used to execute the various steps and / or processes corresponding to the LMF or terminal device or network device in the above method embodiment.

[0266] In the implementation process, each step of the above method can be completed by an integrated logic circuit of hardware in a processor or an instruction in the form of software. The steps of the method disclosed in conjunction with the embodiment of the present application can be directly embodied as a hardware processor for execution, or a combination of hardware and software modules in a processor for execution. The software module can be located in a storage medium mature in the art such as a random access memory, a flash memory, a read-only memory, a programmable read-only memory or an electrically erasable programmable memory, a register, etc. The storage medium is located in a memory, and the processor reads the information in the memory and completes the steps of the above method in conjunction with its hardware. To avoid repetition, it is not described in detail here.

[0267] It should be noted that the processor in the embodiment of the present application can be an integrated circuit chip with signal processing capabilities. In the implementation process, each step of the above method embodiment can be completed by an integrated logic circuit of hardware in the processor or an instruction in the form of software. The above processor can be a general-purpose processor, digital signal processing (digital signal processing, DSP), ASIC, field-programmable gate array (field-programmable gate array, FPGA) or other programmable logic devices, discrete gates or transistor logic devices, discrete hardware components. The processor in the embodiment of the present application can implement or execute the methods, steps and logic block diagrams disclosed in the embodiment of the present application. The general-purpose processor can be a microprocessor or the processor can also be any conventional processor, etc. The steps of the method disclosed in the embodiment of the present application can be directly embodied as a hardware decoding processor to execute, or the hardware and software modules in the decoding processor can be combined and executed. The software module can be located in a mature storage medium in the field such as a random access memory, a flash memory, a read-only memory, a programmable read-only memory or an electrically erasable programmable memory, a register, etc. The storage medium is located in the memory, and the processor reads the information in the memory and completes the steps of the above method in combination with its hardware.

[0268] It can be understood that the memory in the embodiments of the present application can be a volatile memory or a non-volatile memory, or can include both volatile and non-volatile memories. Among them, the non-volatile memory can be a read-only memory (ROM), a programmable read-only memory (PROM), an erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM), an electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), or a flash memory. The volatile memory can be a random access memory (RAM), which is used as an external cache. By way of example and not limitation, many forms of RAM are available, such as static RAM (SRAM), dynamic RAM (DRAM), synchronous DRAM (SDRAM), double data rate SDRAM (DDR SDRAM), enhanced SDRAM (ESDRAM), synchronous link DRAM (SLDRAM), and direct RAM (DR RAM). It should be noted that the memory of the systems and methods described herein is intended to include, but is not limited to, these and any other suitable types of memory.

[0269] It should be noted that when the processor is a general-purpose processor, DSP, ASIC, FPGA or other programmable logic device, discrete gate or transistor logic device, discrete hardware component, the memory (storage module) can be integrated into the processor.

[0270] In addition, the present application also provides a computer-readable storage medium, which stores computer instructions. When the computer instructions are executed on a computer, the operations and / or processes performed by the LMF or terminal device or network device in each method embodiment of the present application are executed.

[0271] The present application also provides a computer program product, which includes computer program code or instructions. When the computer program code or instructions are run on a computer, the operations and / or processes performed by the LMF or terminal device or network device in the various method embodiments of the present application are executed.

[0272] In addition, the present application also provides a chip, the chip including a processor. A memory for storing a computer program is provided independently of the chip, and the processor is used to execute the computer program stored in the memory, so that the operation and / or processing performed by the LMF or the terminal device or the network device in any method embodiment is executed.

[0273] Furthermore, the chip may further include a communication interface. The communication interface may be an input / output interface, or an interface circuit, etc. Furthermore, the chip may further include a memory.

[0274] In addition, the present application also provides a communication system, including the LMF in the embodiment of the present application, a terminal device, and at least one network element in the network device.

[0275] It should also be noted that the memory described herein is intended to include, but is not limited to, these and any other suitable types of memory.

[0276] It can be appreciated by a person skilled in the art that the units and algorithm steps of each example described in conjunction with the embodiments disclosed herein can be implemented in electronic hardware, or in combination with computer software and electronic hardware. Whether these functions are performed in hardware or software 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. It can be clearly understood by a person skilled in the art that for the convenience and simplicity of description, the specific working process of the system, device and unit described above can refer to the corresponding process in the aforementioned method embodiment, and will not be repeated here. In several embodiments provided in this application, it should be understood that the disclosed system, device and method can be implemented in other ways. For example, the device embodiments described above are only schematic, for example, the division of the unit is only a logical function division, and 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, 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. The units described as separate components may or may not be physically separated, and the components displayed as units may or may not be physical units, that is, they may be located in one place, or they may be distributed on multiple network units. Some or all of the units may be selected according to actual needs to achieve the purpose of the scheme of this embodiment. In addition, each functional unit in each embodiment of the present application may be integrated into a processing unit, or each unit may exist physically separately, or two or more units may be integrated into one unit.

[0277] If the functions are implemented in the form of software functional units and sold or used as independent products, they can be stored in a computer-readable storage medium. Based on this understanding, the technical solution of the present application can essentially or in other words, the part that can contribute or the part of the technical solution can be embodied in the form of a software product, which is stored in a storage medium and includes several instructions for a computer device (which can be a personal computer, server, or network device, etc.) to perform all or part of the steps of the methods described in each embodiment of the present application. The aforementioned storage medium includes: various media that can store program codes, such as USB flash drives, mobile hard drives, ROM, RAM, magnetic disks, or optical disks.

[0278] It should be 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.

[0279] It should also be understood that in the present application, "when", "if" and "if" all mean that the network element will take corresponding actions under certain objective circumstances, and do not limit the time, nor do they require the network element to have a judgment action when implementing it, nor do they mean that there are other limitations.

[0280] It should also be understood that in each embodiment of the present application, "A corresponds to B" means that B is associated with A, and B can be determined according to A. However, it should also be understood that determining B according to A does not mean determining B only according to A, and B can also be determined according to A and / or other information.

[0281] The above is only a specific implementation of the present application, but the protection scope of the present application is not limited thereto. Any person skilled in the art who is familiar with the present technical field can easily think of changes or substitutions within the technical scope disclosed in the present application, which should be included in the protection scope of the present application. Therefore, the protection scope of the present application should be based on the protection scope of the claims.

Claims

1. A communication method, characterized in that: include: The positioning management function LMF receives first information, wherein the first information indicates that the terminal device is in a near field communication range or a far field communication range corresponding to the network device; The LMF selects a suitable positioning method to locate the terminal device based on the first information.

2. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that The LMF receives first information, including: The LMF receives the first information from the terminal device.

3. The method according to claim 2, characterized in that The first information is carried in a positioning protocol message.

4. The method according to claim 3, characterized in that The positioning protocol message is used to request provision of assistance data for positioning measurement; or, The positioning protocol message is used to provide location information of the terminal device.

5. The method according to claim 2, characterized in that: The first information is carried in a non-access stratum NAS message or a location service LCS message.

6. The method according to claim 5, characterized in that The NAS message or the LCS message is used to initiate a positioning service request.

7. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that The LMF receives first information, including: The LMF receives the first information from the network device.

8. The method according to claim 7, characterized in that The method further comprises: The LMF sends a first request message to the network device, wherein the first request message requests the network device to report that the terminal device is within the near field communication range or the far field communication range; Then the LMF receives the first information from the network device, including: The LMF receives a first request response message from the network device, where the first request response message includes the first information.

9. A method of communication, characterized in that: include: The terminal device determines first information, where the first information indicates that the terminal device is within a near field communication range or a far field communication range corresponding to the network device; The terminal device sends the first information to the location management function LMF.

10. The method according to claim 9, characterized in that The first information is carried in a positioning protocol message.

11. The method according to claim 10, characterized in that The positioning protocol message is used to request provision of assistance data for positioning measurement; or, The positioning protocol message is used to provide location information of the terminal device.

12. The method according to claim 9, characterized in that The first information is carried in a non-access stratum NAS message or a location service LCS message.

13. The method according to claim 12, characterized in that The NAS message or the LCS message is used to initiate a positioning service request.

14. The method according to any one of claims 9 to 13, characterized in that The method further comprises: The terminal device receives system broadcast information from the network device, where the system broadcast information indicates that the terminal device receiving the system broadcast information is located in the near field communication range or the far field communication range; or, The terminal device determines, based on historically acquired location information of the terminal device, that the terminal device is located within the near field communication range or the far field communication range; or, The terminal device determines, based on channel information obtained by measuring a reference signal, that the terminal device is located within the near-field communication range or the far-field communication range.

15. A method of communication, characterized in that: include: The network device determines first information, where the first information indicates that the terminal device is within a near field communication range or a far field communication range corresponding to the network device; The network device sends the first information to the location management function LMF.

16. The method according to claim 15, characterized in that The method further comprises: The network device receives a first request message from the LMF, wherein the first request message requests the network device to report that the terminal device is within the near field communication range or the far field communication range; Then the network device sends the first information to the LMF, including: The network device sends a first request response message to the LMF, where the first request response message includes the first information.

17. A communication device, characterized in that: The apparatus comprises: a module for executing the method according to any one of claims 1 to 8, or a module for executing the method according to any one of claims 9 to 14, or a module for executing the method according to claim 15 or 16.

18. A communication device, characterized in that: include: A processor, configured to execute a computer program stored in a memory so that the apparatus performs the method as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 8, or so that the apparatus performs the method as claimed in any one of claims 9 to 14, or so that the apparatus performs the method as claimed in claim 15 or 16.

19. A computer-readable storage medium, characterized in that: include: The computer-readable storage medium stores a computer program; when the computer program runs on a computer, the computer executes the method as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 8, or the computer executes the method as claimed in any one of claims 9 to 14, or the computer executes the method as claimed in claim 15 or 16.

20. A communication system, characterized in that: Including location management function LMF, terminal equipment and network equipment, The LMF is used to execute the method as described in any one of claims 1 to 8, the terminal device is used to execute the method as described in any one of claims 9 to 14, and the network is used to execute the method as described in claim 15 or 16.

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