Imitation radio frequency division multiplexing-based perception and / or communication in network

Abstract

The invention relates to awareness and / or communication in a network. The application proposes a perceiving device, a perceiving device transmitter, a perceiving device receiver, a network device, a network and a corresponding method for operating the device. The sensing device is configured to generate an imitated radio frequency division multiplexing (AFDM) signal including a linear frequency modulation carrier set that is orthogonal in a discrete affine Fourier transform (DAFT) domain, the linear frequency modulation carrier set being generated on the basis of inverse discrete affine Fourier transform (IDAFT), and to transmit the AFDM signal, in which the linear frequency modulation carrier set is not orthogonal in the discrete affine Fourier transform (DAFT) domain, and in which the linear frequency modulation carrier set is not orthogonal in the discrete affine Fourier transform (DAFT) domain, and in which the linear frequency modulation carrier set is not orthogonal in the discrete affine Fourier transform (DAFT) domain. And the chirp carrier set comprises a first subset of chirp carriers as pilot signals for perception and a second subset of chirp carriers that are zeroed.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present application relates to sensing and / or communication in a network. The present application provides a sensing device, a sensing device transmitter, a sensing device receiver, a network device, a network, and corresponding methods for operating the devices. The sensing device is used to send a novel signal for sensing and / or communication in a network. Background Art

[0002] One of the anticipated requirements for the 6G waveform is support for Sensing as a Service (SAS). SAS refers to providing network awareness or network-supported / coordinated awareness to user devices. This applies to both traditional applications, such as driving radar, and less traditional applications, such as real-time radio frequency (RF)-based environment reconstruction and incorporating the results into artificial intelligence (AI) services. While the underlying wireless waveform of the communication network should produce good sensing performance, it is also subject to resource allocation and other constraints imposed by the network providing SAS, such as limiting interference between sensing signals. In practice, having multiple devices using SAS in the same cell area means that these devices will all transmit sensing / probe signals, potentially interfering with each other and other nearby devices. Therefore, sensing should be supported or coordinated by the network. Since the devices using SAS are also communicating devices, network support for SAS may also include support for integrated sensing and communication (ISAC) from these devices.

[0003] Typically, channel estimation is based on pilot signals, which are signals known to the receiving device and inserted into the transmitted signal to allow the receiving device to estimate the impact of the propagation channel on the transmitted signal. In long-term evolution (LTE) and new-radio (NR) systems, downlink pilot signals include the downlink demodulation reference signal (DMRS) and the channel state information reference signal (CSI-RS), while uplink pilot signals include the uplink DMRS and the sounding reference signal (SRS).

[0004] Traditional frequency modulated continuous-wave (FMCW) radars based on chirps have good sensing performance at low processing complexity. However, FMCW is not suitable for ISAC. In fact, only suboptimal solutions in terms of resource utilization efficiency have been proposed to integrate FMCW sensing with data communication, e.g., time-division multiplexing (TDM) of FMCW and communication signals. However, TDM has a large overhead.

[0005] Waveform-based (e.g., orthogonal frequency-division multiplexing (OFDM) and orthogonal time frequency space (OTFS)) ISAC schemes can achieve similar range and velocity resolution and root mean squared error (RMSE) performance as FMCW radars while supporting data transmission to communication receivers. However, contrary to FMCW radars, these schemes require implementation operations (e.g., costly full-duplex analog cancellation operations) to cancel the direct path self-interference, which otherwise would saturate the analog-to-digital converter (ADC) of the sensing receiver. In FMCW, self-interference cancellation (SIC) only requires a simple direct current (DC) blocking module. SUMMARY

[0006] In view of the above, it is an object of the present application to provide efficient sensing, communication and / or channel estimation. Another object is to support at least one of the following features: resource efficient multiplexing with other sensing signal sources; ISAC; resource efficient and / or low complexity MIMO sensing; self-interference cancellation.

[0007] These and other objects are achieved by the present application described in the appended independent claims. Advantageous implementations are further defined in the dependent claims.

[0008] The present application is based on the following considerations. Orthogonal chirp division multiplexing (OCDM) and affine frequency division multiplexing (AFDM) can provide new multi-chirp waveforms for wireless communications. OCDM is generated using the discrete Fresnel transform (DFnT), while AFDM is generated based on the discrete affine Fourier transform (DAFT), which is a linear transformation characterized by several parameters (c1, c2), and the DFnT is a special case of it. AFDM "based on DAFT" can mean that a transmitter uses the inverse discrete affine Fourier transform (IDAFT) to map its input symbols to its output discrete-time chirps (parametrized using (c1, c2)). This is analogous to the way OFDM is based on the discrete Fourier transform (DFT), because an OFDM transmitter uses the inverse discrete Fourier transform (IDFT) to map its input symbols to its output frequency subcarriers. AFDM can achieve full diversity of linear time-varying (LTV) channels with low pilot overhead.

[0009] In general, one of the main advantages of multi-chirp signals, especially AFDM signals, is the channel estimation performance that can be achieved based on chirp pilots. Since multi-chirp AFDM signals are based on DAFT, each chirp pilot of an AFDM signal is equivalent to a DAFT-domain symbol. When a sufficient number of zero-protected samples is appended, only one DAFT-domain symbol used as a pilot can yield a complete delay-Doppler representation of the wireless channel, i.e., all delay components and Doppler components associated with the propagation medium can be identified. This is obviously relevant for sensing and radar applications, because the delay-Doppler representation of the wireless channel (associated with the round-trip propagation from a wireless transmitter to a nearby target and back to the transmitter) translates into range-velocity information about these targets.

[0010] For sensing with multiple antennas, multiple radar signals can be generated that are mutually orthogonal, where each radar signal can be associated with one transmit antenna or spatial beam. This is equally applicable to the case of multiple radars, i.e. multiple sensing devices are located in the same area and should maximize the mutual interference between them. For MIMO FMCW or multi-radar FMCW, one approach can be to allow the continuous time-shifted chirps belonging to different transmitters to overlap in time, while orthogonality is achieved through filtering in the intermediate-frequency (IF) domain, provided that there is a long enough guard interval separating each two subsequent chirps. However, the “analog” nature of FMCW chirps implies a redundancy in resource utilization (manifesting as redundancy in time in the case of time-shifted approach). Embodiments of the present application provide an efficient approach for this resource-inefficient case based on AFDM waveforms.

[0011] A first aspect of the present application provides a sensing device transmitter for generating an AFDM signal comprising a set of chirp carriers that are orthogonal in the DAFT domain and transmitting the AFDM signal, the set of chirp carriers being generated based on IDAFT, wherein the set of chirp carriers comprises a first subset of chirp carriers that are used as pilot signals for sensing and a second subset of chirp carriers that are zeroed.

[0012] The sensing device transmitter can be a wireless sensing device transmitter, e.g. for wireless sensing and / or wireless communication.

[0013] The second subset of chirp carriers can be used as sensing pilots or data carriers by the network and / or other sensing device transmitters in the same cell area.

[0014] Each chirp carrier of the set of chirp carriers can occupy the entire spectrum and the entire duration of the AFDM signal.

[0015] The sensing device transmitter can provide resource-efficient multiplexing with other sensing signal sources.

[0016] The sensing device transmitter can be comprised in a sensing device.

[0017] In an implementation form of the first aspect, the set of chirp carriers further comprises a third subset of chirp carriers for data transmission and / or control message transmission.

[0018] The sensing device transmitter can provide efficient, e.g. resource-efficient, ISAC.

[0019] In a further implementation form of the first aspect, the perception device transmitter is configured to obtain a pair of DAFT parameters for parameterizing the set of chirp carriers, and generate the AFDM signal based on the pair of DAFT parameters.

[0020] The pair of DAFT parameters can be used to determine the IDAFT used by the perception device transmitter.

[0021] In a further implementation form of the first aspect, the perception device transmitter is configured to obtain a pair of DAFT parameters and / or allocation information, and determine at least two of the first subset of chirp carriers, the second subset of chirp carriers and the third subset of chirp carriers based on the pair of DAFT parameters and / or the allocation information.

[0022] The allocation information can be obtained and / or received from a network device. The allocation information can be predetermined and / or stored in the perception device transmitter.

[0023] The perception device transmitter can be configured to allocate each chirp carrier of the set of chirp carriers of the AFDM signal to any of the first subset of chirp carriers, the second subset of chirp carriers and the third subset of chirp carriers based on the allocation information.

[0024] Each chirp carrier of the set of chirp carriers can be associated with an index, the index of the chirp carrier specifying an input position of an input symbol of the IDAFT corresponding to the chirp carrier.

[0025] The allocation information can comprise a first subset of indices (e.g., specifying input positions of a first subset of pilot symbols), a second subset of indices (e.g., specifying input positions of a second subset of null symbols) and a third subset of indices (e.g., specifying input positions of a third subset of data symbols).

[0026] The perception device transmitter can be further configured to generate at least two of the first subset of chirp carriers, the second subset of chirp carriers and the third subset of chirp carriers based on the first subset of indices, the second subset of indices and the third subset of indices, respectively.

[0027] In a further implementation form of the first aspect, the pair of DAFT parameters comprises a first parameter indicating a slope of a chirp carrier of the set of chirp carriers, the slope being defined by a linear frequency variation over time of each chirp carrier of the set of chirp carriers.

[0028] In an implementation form of the first aspect, the pair of DAFT parameters further comprises a second parameter indicating a diagonal matrix used by the perception device transmitter to adjust a waveform of the AFDM signal.

[0029] In an implementation form of the first aspect, the perception device transmitter is configured to obtain a set of input symbols comprising at least two of a first subset of pilot symbols, a second subset of null symbols and a third subset of data symbols; map the set of input symbols to the set of chirp carriers parameterized with the pair of DAFT parameters by applying the IDAFT.

[0030] In an implementation form of the first aspect, each input symbol of the first subset of pilot symbols corresponds to a chirp carrier of a first subset of chirp carriers and is surrounded in the DAFT domain by a number of null symbols of the second subset of null symbols corresponding to a second subset of chirp carriers, which form respective guard intervals of the chirp carrier of the first subset of chirp carriers.

[0031] For example, the respective guard interval can be greater than 0 in the DAFT domain.

[0032] In an implementation form of the first aspect, each chirp carrier of the set of chirp carriers and / or the respective guard interval of the chirp carrier is not overlapping in the DAFT domain with any other chirp carrier of the set of chirp carriers and / or the respective guard interval of the other chirp carrier.

[0033] In an implementation form of the first aspect, the number of null symbols of each input symbol of the first subset of pilot symbols is at least equal to 2N DAFT c1(L-1)+2Q, wherein L-1 is a round-trip delay in samples associated with a target within a maximum distance supported by the perception device transmitter; wherein the first parameter of the pair of DAFT parameters is wherein Q is a normalized Doppler shift in samples associated with a target at a maximum relative speed of the perception device transmitter to be supported by the device; wherein M DAFT is a predetermined system parameter equal to a size of the DAFT, which is also a number of chirp carriers of the set of chirp carriers.

[0034] In a further implementation form of the first aspect, the sensing device transmitter comprises a plurality of transmit antennas, the sensing device transmitter being configured to allocate each of the first subset of linear frequency modulated carriers to a different antenna of the plurality of antennas and / or to a different spatial beam collectively formed by the plurality of antennas for transmitting each linear frequency modulated carrier exclusively through the antenna or the spatial beam.

[0035] The plurality of transmit antennas can comprise physical antennas and / or antenna feeds.

[0036] The sensing device transmitter can be configured to allocate each of the set of linear frequency modulated carriers to a different antenna of the plurality of antennas and / or to a different spatial beam collectively formed by the plurality of antennas for transmitting each linear frequency modulated carrier exclusively through the antenna or the spatial beam. Each of the second subset of linear frequency modulated carriers can not be transmitted as these linear frequency modulated carriers are zeroed. Some antennas or spatial beams can be allocated to the second subset of linear frequency modulated carriers and can not be used by or in data communication with the sensing device transmitter.

[0037] The sensing device transmitter can provide a resource-efficient and / or low-complexity MIMO sensing.

[0038] In a further implementation form of the first aspect, the sensing device transmitter is configured to transmit a sensing resource request message to a network device and to receive the pair of DAFT parameters and / or the allocation information as a response to the request.

[0039] The sensing resource request message can be transmitted using at least some of the set of linear frequency modulated carriers of the AFDM signal.

[0040] In a further implementation form of the first aspect, each of the set of linear frequency modulated carriers is associated with a respective different linear frequency modulation.

[0041] A second aspect of the present application provides a sensing device receiver configured to: receive an AFDM signal comprising a set of linear frequency modulated carriers that are orthogonal in a DAFT domain, the set of linear frequency modulated carriers comprising a first subset of linear frequency modulated carriers as pilot signals for sensing and a second subset of linear frequency modulated carriers that are zeroed; and generate an output signal based on the AFDM signal.

[0042] The set of linear frequency modulated carriers can be generated based on IDAFT.

[0043] The sensing device receiver can be a wireless sensing device receiver, e.g., for wireless reception and / or wireless communication.

[0044] The perception device receiver can be comprised in a perception device.

[0045] The perception device receiver can be comprised in a network of two or more perception devices and / or network devices.

[0046] The AFDM signal can be received from multiple perception devices or only from one of the two or more perception devices. The AFDM signal can be received from the network device.

[0047] The AFDM signal can comprise multiple respective AFDM signals from different perception devices and / or network devices.

[0048] In an implementation form of the second aspect, the perception device receiver is further configured to obtain a chirp local oscillator, down-convert the AFDM signal (e.g. the first subset of chirp carriers or the pilot signal) using the chirp local oscillator to generate a down-converted output based on at least the first subset of chirp carriers, block a direct current (DC) component of the down-converted output to generate a blocked output, and further comprise a continuous-time filter configured to filter the blocked output to generate the output signal.

[0049] The perception device receiver can provide self-interference cancellation.

[0050] In another implementation form of the second aspect, the AFDM signal is received over at least one channel, and the perception device receiver is further configured to generate channel estimation information for the at least one channel based on the output signal.

[0051] In another implementation form of the second aspect, the receiver is further configured to generate, based on the channel estimation information, distance and / or relative velocity estimates for one or more targets in an environment surrounding the receiver using the at least one channel.

[0052] The perception device can generate the estimates, and the receiver can be comprised in the perception device. Generating the estimates can comprise transmitting signals to the one or more targets over the at least one channel and receiving signals from the one or more targets.

[0053] In another implementation form of the second aspect, the set of chirp carriers further comprises a third subset of chirp carriers for data transmission and / or control message transmission.

[0054] In a further implementation form of the second aspect, the AFDM signal comprises a set of AFDM multi-chirp symbols, the perceptual device receiver comprises a radio frequency (RF) down-converter for down-converting the AFDM signal, and the perceptual device receiver is configured to: designate one chirp carrier of the set of chirp carriers as a reference chirp carrier, the chirp local oscillator comprises a set of periodic chirp segments, each chirp segment of the set of periodic chirp segments is synchronized in time and frequency to the reference chirp carrier in one AFDM symbol of the set of AFDM multi-chirp symbols; feed the chirp local oscillator to the RF down-converter to generate a set of multi-tone signal segments, each segment of the set of multi-tone signal segments corresponds to one AFDM symbol of the set of AFDM multi-chirp symbols; block the DC component of the down-converted output to cancel or attenuate direct path interference generated by a portion of the AFDM signal modulating the reference chirp carrier, and the continuous-time filter is configured to filter the blocked output to cancel or attenuate direct path interference corresponding to tones of the down-converted output generated by a portion of the AFDM signal modulating other chirp carriers of the set of chirp carriers.

[0055] A third aspect of the present application provides a network device for coordinating a network of two or more perceptual devices, the network device being configured to: obtain a pair of DAFT parameters for parameterizing a set of chirp carriers that are orthogonal in a DAFT domain; determine, for each perceptual device of the two or more perceptual devices, respective allocation information; transmit the pair of DAFT parameters to the two or more perceptual devices; transmit, for each perceptual device of the two or more perceptual devices, the respective allocation information to the perceptual device; and the respective allocation information indicates, for each perceptual device of the two or more perceptual devices, a division of the set of chirp carriers into at least a first subset of chirp carriers that are used as pilot signals for perception and a second subset of chirp carriers that are zeroed.

[0056] For example, the network device can be a wireless network device for wireless communication.

[0057] The set of chirp carriers can be determined based on the DAFT parameters.

[0058] The network device can comprise a perceptual device.

[0059] The pair of DAFT parameters can be used to determine the DAFT used by the two or more sensing devices. The set of chirp carriers is associated with the two or more sensing devices. For example, the two or more sensing devices can respectively generate an AFDM signal comprising the set of chirp carriers.

[0060] The allocation information can be determined based on the pair of DAFT parameters and / or by uniformly allocating chirp carriers included in the entire set of chirp carriers to each of the two or more sensing devices. Each sensing device can use its respective allocated chirp carriers for sensing and / or communication.

[0061] The allocation information can be used to minimize or reduce interference between the two or more network devices.

[0062] In an implementation form of the third aspect, for each of the two or more sensing devices, the respective allocation information indicates that the set of chirp carriers is divided into at least a first subset of the chirp carriers, a second subset of the chirp carriers, and a third subset of the chirp carriers for data transmission and / or control message transmission.

[0063] In another implementation form of the third aspect, for each of the two or more sensing devices, the first subset of the chirp carriers is completely different from at least one of: a respective first subset of chirp carriers of each other sensing device of the two or more sensing devices, a respective third subset of chirp carriers of each other sensing device of the two or more sensing devices.

[0064] In another implementation form of the third aspect, the network device is configured to receive a sensing resource request message from at least one of the two or more sensing devices, obtain the pair of DAFT parameters and / or determine the allocation information as a response to the sensing resource request message.

[0065] In another implementation form of the third aspect, the network device is configured to obtain capability information indicating one or more capability parameters of the two or more sensing devices, determine the respective allocation information of each of the two or more sensing devices based on the capability information.

[0066] For example, the network device can obtain resource information about resources of a network, e.g., resource capacity and resource utilization information of resources associated with the two or more sensing devices, to determine the allocation information.

[0067] The fourth aspect of the present application provides a sensing device, comprising a sensing device transmitter according to the first aspect or an implementation manner of the first aspect, and a sensing device receiver according to the second aspect or an implementation manner of the second aspect.

[0068] In an implementation manner of the fourth aspect, the sensing device is further configured to generate, based on the channel estimation information, distance and / or relative velocity estimation about one or more targets in an environment surrounding the sensing device, by utilizing the at least one channel.

[0069] The generation of the estimation can comprise transmitting signals to the one or more targets through the at least one channel, and receiving signals from the one or more targets.

[0070] The sensing device of the fourth aspect and the implementation manners thereof achieve the advantages and effects of the sensing device transmitter of the first aspect, the sensing device receiver of the second aspect, and the corresponding implementation manners thereof.

[0071] The fifth aspect of the present application provides a network, comprising two or more sensing devices according to the fourth aspect or an implementation manner of the fourth aspect, respectively, and a network device according to the third aspect or an implementation manner of the third aspect.

[0072] The network of the fifth aspect can have implementation manners corresponding to the implementation manners of the sensing device of the fourth aspect and the network device of the third aspect. The network of the fifth aspect and the implementation manners thereof achieve the advantages and effects of the sensing device transmitter of the first aspect, the sensing device receiver of the second aspect, the network device of the third aspect, the sensing device of the fourth aspect, and the corresponding implementation manners thereof.

[0073] The sixth aspect of the present application provides a method of operating a sensing device transmitter. The method comprises generating an AFDM signal comprising a set of orthogonal linear frequency modulation carriers in a DAFT domain, and transmitting the AFDM signal, the set of linear frequency modulation carriers being generated based on IDAFT, wherein the set of linear frequency modulation carriers comprises a first subset of linear frequency modulation carriers as pilot signals for sensing and a second subset of linear frequency modulation carriers being zeroed.

[0074] Implementation manners of the method of the sixth aspect can correspond to the implementation manners of the sensing device transmitter of the first aspect. The method of the sixth aspect and the implementation manners thereof achieve the advantages and effects of the sensing device transmitter of the first aspect and the corresponding implementation manners thereof.

[0075] A seventh aspect of the present application provides a method for operating a receiver of a perception device. The method comprises: receiving an AFDM signal comprising a set of orthogonal chirp carriers in a DAFT domain, the chirp carrier set comprising a first subset of chirp carriers serving as pilot signals for perception and a second subset of chirp carriers set to zero; and generating an output signal based on the AFDM signal.

[0076] The implementation of the method of the seventh aspect may correspond to the implementation of the perception device receiver of the second aspect. The method of the seventh aspect and its implementation achieve the advantages and effects of the perception device receiver of the second aspect and its corresponding implementation.

[0077] An eighth aspect of the present application provides a method for operating a network device to coordinate a network of two or more sensing devices. The method includes: obtaining a pair of DAFT parameters for parameterizing a set of orthogonal linear frequency modulation carriers in a DAFT domain; determining corresponding allocation information for each of the two or more sensing devices; sending the pair of DAFT parameters to the two or more sensing devices; for each of the two or more sensing devices, sending the corresponding allocation information to the sensing device; for each of the two or more sensing devices, the corresponding allocation information indicates that the set of linear frequency modulation carriers is divided into at least a first subset of linear frequency modulation carriers as pilot signals for sensing and a second subset of linear frequency modulation carriers that are set to zero.

[0078] The method of the eighth aspect may have an implementation corresponding to the implementation of the network device of the third aspect. The method of the eighth aspect and its implementation achieve the advantages and effects of the network device of the third aspect and its corresponding implementation.

[0079] A ninth aspect of the present application provides a method for operating a sensing device, which includes the method of the fifth aspect or an implementation of the fifth aspect and the method of the sixth aspect or an implementation of the sixth aspect.

[0080] The method of the ninth aspect may have an implementation corresponding to the implementation of the sensing device of the fourth aspect. The method of the ninth aspect and its implementation achieve the advantages and effects of the sensing device of the fourth aspect and its corresponding implementation.

[0081] Furthermore, in this application, the phrases "null symbols" and "zero guard samples" may be used interchangeably.

[0082] Furthermore, in the present application the phrases “guard interval” and “cushion interval” are used interchangeably.

[0083] It has to be noted that all devices, elements, units and means described in the present application can be implemented in software or hardware elements or any kind of combination thereof. All steps which are performed by the various entities described in the present application could be performed by the respective entity itself, or by yet one or more entities providing information or assistance, or by a dedicated entity providing dedicated services. Moreover, the respective entities, units or means could be implemented across several devices, elements or units, or be completely integrated within one device, element or unit. It is also conceivable that future devices, elements or units are developed which are totally different from the devices, elements or units as described in the present application. Thus, the terms device, element, unit and means are not to be interpreted in a too narrow way as their function could be performed by one element or means or several elements or means, or it could be performed by one device or unit or be divided among several devices or units. Also combinations of software and hardware elements or units could be used to carry out the functions of the respective entities described in the present application. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0084] The above described various aspects and implementations will be explained in the following description with reference to the accompanying drawings, which are given by way of illustration and do not limit the present application.

[0085] Figure 1 A sensing device transmitter according to the present application is shown.

[0086] Figure 2 A sensing device receiver according to the present application is shown.

[0087] Figure 3 A network device according to the present application is shown.

[0088] Figure 4 AFDM based sensing by two transmitters according to the present application is shown.

[0089] Figure 5 A time-frequency representation of an AFDM based ISAC waveform according to the present application is shown.

[0090] Figure 6 A wireless communication system according to the present application is shown.

[0091] Figure 7 An AFDM MIMO sensing device transmitter architecture for sensing and / or communication sensing integration according to the present application is shown.

[0092] Figure 8 A sensing device receiver according to the present application is shown.

[0093] Figure 9 A time-frequency representation of exemplary output of analog dechirping in case of an AFDM signal with two active linear frequency modulated subcarriers according to the present application is shown.

[0094] Figure 10 A method according to embodiments of the present application is shown.

[0095] Figure 11 A method according to embodiments of the present application is shown.

[0096] Figure 12 A method according to embodiments of the present application is shown. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0097] Figure 1 A sensing device transmitter 106 according to the present application is shown. The sensing device transmitter 106 is configured to generate an AFDM signal 101 comprising a set of orthogonal chirp carriers 102 in a DAFT domain. The set of chirp carriers 102 is generated based on an IDAFT, the set of chirp carriers 102 comprising a first subset 102a of chirp carriers as pilot signals for sensing and a second subset 102b of chirp carriers being zeroed. Further, the sensing device transmitter 106 is configured to transmit the AFDM signal 101.

[0098] The sensing device transmitter 106 can transmit the AFDM signal 101 to a sensing device receiver 103 and / or to a network device 200.

[0099] The sensing device transmitter 106 can comprise one or more IDAFT modules configured to generate the set of chirp carriers 102 and / or the AFDM signal 101.

[0100] The AFDM signal 101 for wireless sensing transmitted by the sensing device transmitter 106 can be generated by frequency up-converting the output of an IDAFT module fed with a vector comprising complex values of at least one non-zero element. The vector can comprise a set of input symbols. For example, the vector can comprise at least two of a first subset of pilot symbols, a second subset of null symbols and a third subset of data symbols.

[0101] The sensing device transmitter 106 can be comprised in a sensing device 100.

[0102] The above-mentioned features of the sensing device transmitter 106 can be part of a transmitter portion or transmitter side of the sensing device 106. The sensing device 106 can further comprise a receiver 103 portion or sensing device receiver 103 side.

[0103] The sensing device transmitter 106 can be an ISAC device (i.e., a communicable sensing device transmitter 106) that generates an AFDM signal 101 that includes the following components: a first subset of linear frequency modulated carriers 102a as a pilot signal dedicated for sensing, or for transmitter-side sensing or channel estimation at the sensing device receiver 103 side; a third subset of linear frequency modulated carriers 102c that are simultaneously used for transmitting data and control to a communicating sensing device receiver 103 device 103; a second subset of linear frequency modulated carriers 102b that are zeroed (e.g., left empty) and can be used as sensing pilots or data carriers by other ISAC devices within the same cell area.

[0104] When analyzed in the DAFT domain (with appropriate parameters), the AFDM signal 101 according to embodiments of the application can consist of identifiable finite support segments separated by guard intervals.

[0105] When analyzed for each antenna or in the spatial beam domain, the finite support DAFT domain segments of the sensing signals belonging to different antennas or beams can be non-overlapping.

[0106] Figure 2 A sensing device receiver 103 according to the application is shown. The sensing device receiver 103 is configured to receive an AFDM signal 101 comprising a set of orthogonal linear frequency modulated carriers 102 in a DAFT domain. The set of linear frequency modulated carriers 102 comprises a first subset of linear frequency modulated carriers 102a as a pilot signal for sensing and a second subset of linear frequency modulated carriers 102b that are zeroed. The sensing device receiver 103 is further configured to generate an output signal based on the AFDM signal 101.

[0107] The sensing device receiver 103 can be comprised in a sensing device 100. The sensing device 100 can comprise a sensing device receiver 103 part and a transmitter part.

[0108] Figure 3A network device 200 according to the present application is shown. The network device 200 is configured to coordinate a network of two or more sensing devices 100. The network device 200 is configured to obtain a pair of DAFT parameters 104 for parameterizing a set of orthogonal linear frequency modulated carriers 102 in a DAFT domain and to determine for each of the two or more sensing devices 100 respective allocation information 105. Further, the network device 200 is configured to transmit the pair of DAFT parameters 104 to the two or more sensing devices 100 and, for each of the two or more sensing devices 100, the respective allocation information 105 to the sensing device 100. For each of the two or more sensing devices 100, the respective allocation information 105 indicates a partitioning of the set of linear frequency modulated carriers 102 into at least a first subset 102a of linear frequency modulated carriers as pilot signals for sensing and a second subset 102b of linear frequency modulated carriers being zeroed.

[0109] The two or more sensing devices 100 and the network device 200 can form a network. The network device 200 can comprise a sensing device 100.

[0110] The network device 200 can be responsible for setting the value of (c1, c2) of the DAFT pair 104 for the underlying DAFT used by the two or more sensing devices 100 (e.g. all sensing devices 100 in a cell area) and for coordinating the allocation of specific linear frequency modulated carriers used by each AFDM sensing device 100 in order to reduce and / or minimize interference between the carriers.

[0111] Embodiments of the present application are based on AFDM, e.g. a transmitter using an IDAFT module to generate time domain samples of an AFDM signal 101 for propagation over a wireless channel for communication and / or sensing.

[0112] In FMCW radars for target range and target velocity resolution, and / or target maximum range and target maximum velocity, the sensing signal transmitted by one radar transmitter (e.g. one antenna of one radar device or one spatial beam jointly formed by all antennas of the device) can comprise a corresponding number of consecutive non-overlapping chirps, each chirp having a respective chirp rate, i.e. a corresponding slope in the time-frequency plan. In order to decouple velocity from range, multiple consecutive chirps can be required for each spatial beam or antenna.

[0113] On the other hand, the AFDM signal 101 according to the present application can be configured to use the same frequency bandwidth as the FMCW signal described above, wherein the DAFT parameters (c1, c2) 104 are chosen such that only one chirp per spatial beam or antenna can be used. This is because one DAFT domain symbol (i.e. one chirp) can be sufficient to provide a complete delay-Doppler channel representation, provided that the parameter c1 of the underlying DAFT is set to and has a sufficiently large Q, and assuming that the DAFT domain symbol is surrounded by a sufficient number of DAFT domain zero guard samples (at least equal to (2Q+1)L-1). L can be the round-trip delay in samples associated with the maximum range of targets to be supported. This number of zero guard samples is used because: in AFDM, the (c1, c2)-DAFT domain input-output is related to a time-varying channel with delay l p ∈{0…L-1} and Doppler spread (2Q+1), this relationship is equivalent to having the channel impulse response with delay = (1+2Q)l p +q (q ∈ {-Q,…,Q}).

[0114] The second set of chirps 102 is zeroed and / or left empty and can be used as a sensing pilot, and / or for data transmission and / or control message transmission by the other sensing device transmitters 106 in the vicinity.

[0115] The sensing device transmitters 106 can comprise a plurality of transmit antennas generating the AFDM signal 101, wherein the orthogonality required for MIMO sensing is achieved by DAFT domain multiplexing, i.e. different chirps are assigned to different antennas or spatial beams formed by these antennas, each chirp being surrounded by a sufficient number of zero guard samples in the DAFT domain, e.g. as shown in Figure 4 for the case of two sensing antennas or two spatial beams.

[0116] Figure 4 An AFDM-based sensing by two transmitters is shown according to the present application. For example, the two transmitters can be a 2x2 MIMO or 2 radar transmitters.

[0117] Figure 5 A time-frequency representation of an AFDM-based ISAC waveform is shown according to the present application.

[0118] Figure 5A data chirp associated with a third subset 102c of linear frequency modulated carriers is shown, a pilot chirp associated with a first subset 102a of linear frequency modulated carriers, a guard interval surrounding the pilot chirp, wherein the guard interval is associated with a second subset 102b of linear frequency modulated carriers.

[0119] DAFT domain orthogonality can be used to multiplex a perception signal with data symbols to the network (uplink), from the network to a perception device 100 (downlink) or from one perception device 100 to another perception device 100 (sidelink).

[0120] Figure 6 A wireless communication system according to the present application is shown. The system can also be referred to as a network. The system comprises a network device 200 and a plurality of perception devices 100, some of which can be ISAC devices, i.e. these devices are also capable of communication. At least some of the signals transmitted by different components of the system are AFDM signals 101, which can be based on N DAFT - point (c1.c2) - DAFT wherein Q can be a system parameter, which can be set and broadcast by the network device 200 so that the perception devices 100 can obtain its value.

[0121] The network device 200 can be a network node. The network device 200 can be a base station or an access point. Two or more perception devices 100 can be ISAC devices.

[0122] By coordinating the perception device transmitters 106 of the perception devices 100, e.g. the AFDM signals 101 of the perception device transmitters 106, with the network device 200, interference between the signals 101 of the perception device transmitters 106 can be reduced or minimized.

[0123] For example, the network device 200 can be configured to at least one of: transmit a periodic or continuous synchronization signal, which can be an AFDM signal 101; receive a perception resource request message from one or more of the above-mentioned perception devices 100; transmit a perception resource allocation / assignment control message to one or more of the perception devices 100 to assign indices of the input non-zero elements to respective IDAFT modules of these perception devices.

[0124] The timing of the AFDM signals 101 transmitted by one or more perception device transmitters 106 can be determined based on a synchronization signal transmitted periodically or continuously by the network device 200.

[0125] A fourth subset of the set of chirp carriers 102 of the AFDM signal 101 (e.g., a fourth subset of the inputs to the IDAFT module of the respective sensing device transmitter 106) can be used to transmit a sensing resource request message. The sensing chirp carriers and / or the resource request chirp carriers can be multiplexed at the inputs to the IDAFT module of the respective sensing device transmitter 106, where the data carries the chirp carriers to the network node or other sensing devices 100.

[0126] Each sensing device 100 can also estimate the distance and / or velocity of targets in its vicinity.

[0127] Figure 7 An AFDM MIMO sensing device transmitter 106 architecture for sensing and / or communication-sensing integration is shown in accordance with the present application. The sensing device transmitter 106 can generate the AFDM signal 101 based on the modules and elements shown in Figure 7 The sensing device transmitter 106 can transmit the generated AFDM signal 101 based on the corresponding antennas in the last step. For example, the sensing device transmitter 106 comprises N tx antennas for transmission (transmit antennas), where N tx may be a positive integer. The AFDM MIMO sensing device transmitter 106 comprises a first module for sensing pilot index generation and MIMO codebook generation. The AFDM MIMO sensing device transmitter 106 can also comprise two or more IDAFT modules that perform IDAFT based on a pair of DAFT parameters (c1, c2) 104. The pair of DAFT parameters 104 can be provided to the two or more IDAFT modules from a coordination module for network coordination of sensing pilots. The coordination module can be included in the sensing device transmitter 106. The coordination module can receive the pair of DAFT parameters 104 from a network device 200 external to the sensing device transmitter 106.

[0128] The input samples represented by the consecutive lines from the first module to the respective IDAFT modules are exemplary chirp carrier pilots for sensing. The other shorter input samples are exemplary guard samples or data symbols.

[0129] The coefficients represent the elements of the beamforming vector applied to the j-th DAFT domain sensing pilot p j In Figure 7 , only a digital implementation of MIMO precoding is given. This is only for illustration, as analog or hybrid digital-analog architectures are also possible.

[0130] Furthermore, Figure 7Two or more time-domain CP insertion & P / S modules of two or more IDAFT modules are shown. "P / S" stands for "parallel-to-serial" operation, i.e., for transmitting the elements of a vector sequentially in time. "CP insertion" stands for cyclic prefix insertion. Furthermore, the perception device transmitter 106 can perform a digital-to-analog conversion (DAC) after the modules.

[0131] The perception device transmitter 106 can comprise a plurality of transmit antennas and a plurality of IDAFT modules, the number of which is equal to or smaller than the number of the antennas, wherein a perception signal can be generated by one IDAFT module, the modules using the same complex-valued vector but with different weight allocations when fed in time. The vector comprises at least as many non-zero elements as the number of IDAFT modules and / or can comprise a set of input symbols. After digital-to-analog conversion and frequency upconversion, the output of each IDAFT module can be fed into the input of an analog summer at the input of one or more transmit antennas.

[0132] In the case of AFDM based on DAFT with q < Q, where Q is the maximum Doppler shift in samples corresponding to the maximum target relative velocity to be supported, to achieve the same perception performance, multiple pilot chirps per antenna or per spatial beam are needed instead of one pilot chirp per antenna in the case of DAFT . Compared to AFDM based on DAFT , AFDM based on DAFT results in fewer measurements per pilot transmission. AFDM based on DAFT achieves full diversity order of LTV channels, while AFDM based on DAFT does not. Using M AFDM pilot chirps instead of one AFDM pilot chirp can not increase the total pilot overhead. One pilot symbol of AFDM may require more guard samples than one pilot symbol of AFDM , because the effective (in the DAFT domain) delay spread of the former is larger than that of the latter.

[0133] Figure 8 A perception device receiver 103 according to the present application is shown. Each perception device transmitter 106 and / or network device 200 can comprise a perception device receiver 103. The perception device receiver 103 can receive the AFDM signal 101 from the perception device transmitter 106 and / or network device 200. For example, the perception device receiver 103 can be a perception device receiver 103 of a perception device 100. Figure 7The cognitive device receiver 103 portion of the cognitive device transmitter 106 is shown in FIG. The cognitive device receiver 103 may include an N for receiving the AFDM signal 101. rx The number of sensing device receiver 103 antennas, where N rx Can be a positive integer. N rx The number of sensing device receiver 103 antennas may be multiple sensing device receiver 103 antennas. rx The antenna of each sensing device receiver 103 may include a physical antenna and / or an antenna feed port.

[0134] The step (eg, the first step) of receiving the AFDM signal 101 by the sensory device receiver 103 may be a de-chirping operation, which has the advantage of achieving low-cost self-interference cancellation.

[0135] If the AFDM signal 101 is used Generated (instead of using AFDM generated by In the case of AFDM, Compared with the AFDM, Figure 8 The architecture of the sensor receiver 103 may involve higher hardware complexity. Figure 8 The analog filter block of each branch of the architecture will need to be replaced by a splitter followed by M analog filters in order to receive the echo generated by each of the M pilot chirps without generating direct path self-interference.

[0136] For the cognitive device receiver 103, there is no need to use expensive full-duplex methods to simulate the cancellation of direct path self-interference. This is an advantage compared to ISAC schemes based on OFDM or OTFS.

[0137] The antenna of the cognitive device receiver 103 can be connected to an RF downconverter that feeds a chirp local oscillator that generates periodic chirp segments that are synchronized with the AFDM symbols transmitted by the cognitive device transmitter 106, such that the chirp segments coincide in time and frequency with a reference chirp defined as one of the chirp carriers of the transmitted AFDM signal 101. The RF downconverter can generate a downconverted output.

[0138] Additionally, a DC blocking module may be connected to the output of the downconverter to eliminate direct path interference generated by the signal transmitted by the portion modulating the reference chirp. The DC blocking module may be used to block the DC component of the downconverted output to generate a blocked output.

[0139] Moreover, a continuous-time (analog) filter can be connected to the output of the DC blocking module and tuned to cancel the direct-path interference produced by the signal transmitted by the modulating other perceptual chirp and the chirp carrying data and control symbols. The continuous-time filter can be used to filter the blocking output to generate the output signal. The continuous-time filter can comprise N rx respective filters, e.g., one filter for each perceptual device receiver 103 antenna. Moreover, Figure 8 The analog-to-digital conversion of each respective filter and baseband processing module is shown.

[0140] Figure 9 A time-frequency representation of an exemplary output of the analog de-chirping according to the present application is shown in the case of an AFDM signal 101 having two active chirp subcarriers (chirp subcarrier 0 and chirp subcarrier m0e {1,..., N DAFT -1}). In this example, the chirp subcarriers are generated using DAFT( and Q = 1) and the de-chirping is done using one of the two chirp carriers as a reference chirp. Figure 9 The y-axis of the bottom plot is the normalized frequency. As Figure 9 shown in the top plot, the self-interference related to the reference chirp itself can appear after the de-chirping at zero frequency and can thus be cancelled by DC blocking. Moreover, the self-interference related to the other chirp appears as a segment of a complex exponential signal whose deterministic frequency is related to the sample difference between the DAFT-domain indices of the two chirp carriers. This interference can be cancelled by an analog low-pass filter.

[0141] In the case of multiple antennas or multiple radars, the AFDM-based device achieves a gain in terms of resource utilization compared to FMCW-based devices, while having the same simple SIC properties and the same resolution as FMCW due to the “analog” nature of FMCW. In the ISAC scenario, the AFDM-based device also enables a better spectral efficiency for data transmission compared to FMCW-based devices that time- or frequency-division multiplex the communication signal carrying data with the radar signal, since the portion of the time-frequency resources occupied by the perception signal (and thus not carrying data) is larger in the scheme of FMCW-based devices compared to embodiments of the present application. Embodiments of the present application thus provide an improved data spectral efficiency. Moreover, neither OFDM- nor OTFS-based perception or communication perception integration can provide the self-interference cancellation feature of AFDM.

[0142] Each perception device 100, each perception device transmitter 106, each perception device receiver 103, and / or network device 200 according to the present application can include a respective processor for controlling the respective device. The perception device receiver 103 included in a perception device 100 or network device 200 can share a processor with the perception device transmitter 106 of the perception device 100 or network device 200. For example, a network according to the present application can include three or more processors. The perception device transmitter 106 can include a first processor, the perception device receiver 103 can include a second processor, and / or the network device 200 can include a third processor.

[0143] Generally, the first processor can be used to perform, implement, or initiate the various operations of the perception device transmitter 106 described herein. The first processor can include hardware and / or can be controlled by software. The hardware can include analog circuitry or digital circuitry, or both analog and digital circuitry. The digital circuitry can include components such as application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs), field-programmable arrays (FPGAs), digital signal processors (DSPs), or multi-purpose processors, among others. The perception device transmitter 106 can also include a memory circuit for storing one or more instructions executable by the first processor, particularly under control of the software. For example, the memory circuit can include a non-transitory storage medium storing executable software code that, when executed by the first processor, causes the various operations of the perception device transmitter 106 to be performed. In one embodiment, the perception device transmitter 106 can include one or more first processors and a non-transitory memory connected to the one or more first processors. The non-transitory memory can carry executable program code that, when executed by the one or more first processors, causes the perception device transmitter 106 to perform, implement, or initiate the operations or methods described herein.

[0144] Generally, the second processor can be used to perform, implement, or initiate various operations of the perception device receiver 103 described herein. The second processor can include hardware and / or can be controlled by software. The hardware can include analog circuitry or digital circuitry, or both analog and digital circuitry. The digital circuitry can include components such as application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs), field-programmable arrays (FPGAs), digital signal processors (DSPs), or multi-purpose processors, etc. The perception device receiver 103 can also include a memory circuit for storing one or more instructions executable by the second processor, especially under the control of software. For example, the memory circuit can include a non-transitory storage medium storing executable software code that, when executed by the second processor, causes various operations of the perception device receiver 103 to be performed. In one embodiment, the perception device receiver 103 can include one or more second processors and a non-transitory memory connected to the one or more second processors. The non-transitory memory can carry executable program code that, when executed by the one or more second processors, causes the perception device receiver 103 to perform, implement, or initiate the operations or methods described herein.

[0145] Generally, the third processor can be used to perform, implement, or initiate various operations of the network device 200 described herein. The third processor can include hardware and / or can be controlled by software. The hardware can include analog circuitry or digital circuitry, or both analog and digital circuitry. The digital circuitry can include components such as application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs), field-programmable arrays (FPGAs), digital signal processors (DSPs), or multi-purpose processors, etc. The network device 200 can also include a memory circuit for storing one or more instructions executable by the third processor, especially under the control of software. For example, the memory circuit can include a non-transitory storage medium storing executable software code that, when executed by the third processor, causes various operations of the network device 200 to be performed. In one embodiment, the network device 200 can include one or more third processors and a non-transitory memory connected to the one or more third processors. The non-transitory memory can carry executable program code that, when executed by the one or more third processors, causes the network device 200 to perform, implement, or initiate the operations or methods described herein.

[0146] Figure 10 A method 300 according to embodiments of the present application is shown. The method 300 can be performed by a perception device transmitter 106. The method 300 comprises a step 301 of generating an AFDM signal comprising a set of orthogonal chirp carriers 102 in a DAFT domain. Further, the method 300 comprises a step 302 of transmitting the AFDM signal 101.

[0147] Typically, the set of chirp carriers 102 is generated based on the IDAFT comprising a first subset 102a of chirp carriers as pilot signals for perception and a second subset 102b of chirp carriers being zeroed.

[0148] Figure 11 A method 400 according to embodiments of the present application is shown. The method 400 can be performed by a perception device receiver 103. The method 400 comprises a step 401 of receiving an AFDM signal 101 comprising a set of orthogonal chirp carriers 102 in a DAFT domain. Further, the method 400 comprises a step 402 of generating an output signal based on the AFDM signal 101.

[0149] Typically, the set of chirp carriers 102 comprises a first subset 102a of chirp carriers as pilot signals for perception and a second subset 102b of chirp carriers being zeroed.

[0150] Figure 12 A method 500 according to embodiments of the present application is shown. The method 500 can be performed by a network device 200. The method 500 comprises a step 501 of obtaining a pair of DAFT parameters 104 for parameterizing a set of orthogonal chirp carriers 102 in a DAFT domain. Further, the method 500 comprises a step 502 of determining, for each of two or more perception devices 100, respective allocation information 105. Further, the method 500 comprises a step 503 of transmitting the pair of DAFT parameters 104 to the two or more perception devices 100. Further, the method 500 comprises a step 504 of transmitting, for each of the two or more perception devices 100, the respective allocation information 105 to the perception device 100.

[0151] Typically, the method 500 is used for coordinating a network of two or more perception devices 100 and, for each of the two or more perception devices 100, the respective allocation information 105 indicates a partitioning of the set of chirp carriers 102 into at least a first subset 102a of chirp carriers as pilot signals for perception and a second subset 102b of chirp carriers being zeroed.

[0152] The application has been described in relation to various embodiments as examples and implementations. However, other variants can be understood and implemented by those skilled in the art in implementing the claimed subject matter from a study of the drawings, the application, and the independent claims. In the claims, the word "comprising" does not exclude other elements or steps, and the indefinite article "a" does not exclude a plurality. A single element or other unit can fulfill the functions of several entities or items recited in the claims. The mere fact that certain measures are recited in mutually different dependent claims does not indicate that a combination of these measures cannot be used to advantage.

Claims

1. A sensory device transmitter (106), characterized in that The sensing device transmitter (106) is used to generating an AFDM signal (101) comprising a set of orthogonal chirp carriers (102) in a discrete affine Fourier transform (DAFT) domain; Sending the AFDM signal (101); The linear frequency modulation carrier set (102) is generated based on the inverse discrete affine Fourier transform (IDAFT); The chirp carrier set (102) includes a first subset (102a) of chirp carriers serving as pilot signals for sensing and a second subset (102b) of chirp carriers that are set to zero.

2. The sensing device transmitter (106) according to claim 1, characterized in that The set of chirp carriers (102) further includes a third subset (102c) of chirp carriers used for data transmission and / or control message transmission.

3. The sensing device transmitter (106) according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that Used for Obtaining a pair of DAFT parameters (104) for parameterizing the chirp carrier set (102); The AFDM signal (101) is also generated based on the pair of DAFT parameters (104).

4. The sensing device transmitter (106) according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that Used for Obtaining a pair of DAFT parameters (104) and / or allocation information (105); At least two of the first subset (102a) of chirp carriers, the second subset (102b) of chirp carriers, and the third subset (102c) of chirp carriers are determined based on the allocation information (105) and / or the pair of DAFT parameters (104).

5. The sensing device transmitter (106) according to claim 3 or 4, characterized in that: The pair of DAFT parameters (104) includes a first parameter indicating a slope of the chirp carrier of the set of chirp carriers (102), the slope being defined by a linear frequency variation over time of each chirp carrier of the set of chirp carriers (102).

6. The sensing device transmitter (106) according to any one of claims 3 to 5, characterized in that The sensing device transmitter (106) is used to: obtaining an input symbol set comprising at least two of a first subset of pilot symbols, a second subset of null symbols, and a third subset of data symbols; The input symbol set is mapped to the set of chirp carriers (102) parameterized by the pair of DAFT parameters (104) by applying the IDAFT.

7. The sensing device transmitter (106) according to claim 6, characterized in that Each input symbol of the first subset of pilot symbols corresponds to a chirp carrier of the first subset (102a) of the chirp carriers and is surrounded in the DAFT domain by a plurality of null symbols of the second subset (102b) of the null symbols corresponding to the second subset (102b) of the chirp carriers, the null symbols forming a respective buffering interval of the chirp carriers of the first subset (102a) of the chirp.

8. The sensing device transmitter (106) according to claim 7, characterized in that For each input symbol from the first subset of pilot symbols, the number of null symbols is at least equal to 2N DAFT c1(L-1)+2Q, wherein L-1 is the round trip delay in samples associated with a target within the maximum distance supported by the sensing device transmitter (106); Wherein, the first parameter of the pair of DAFT parameters (104) is where Q is the normalized Doppler shift in samples associated with a target at the maximum relative velocity to the sensing device transmitter (106) to be supported by the device; Among them, N DAFT is a predetermined system parameter equal to the size of the DAFT and is also the number of chirp carriers of the chirp carrier set (102).

9. The sensing device transmitter (106) according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that The sensing device transmitter (106) includes a plurality of transmitting antennas, The sensory device transmitter (106) is configured to assign each chirp carrier of the first subset of chirp carriers to a different antenna among the plurality of antennas and / or to a different spatial beam formed by the plurality of antennas, so as to transmit each chirp carrier exclusively through the antenna or the spatial beam.

10. The sensing device transmitter (106) according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that The invention is used for sending a sense resource request message to a network device (200), and receiving the pair of DAFT parameters (104) and / or the allocation information (105) as a response to the request.

11. A sensing device receiver (103), characterized in that The sensing device receiver (103) is used to: Receiving an AFDM signal including a set of chirp carriers (102) orthogonal in a discrete affine Fourier transform (DAFT) domain, wherein the set of chirp carriers (102) includes a first subset (102a) of chirp carriers serving as pilot signals for sensing and a second subset (102b) of chirp carriers set to zero; An output signal is generated based on the AFDM signal (101).

12. The sensing device receiver (103) according to claim 11, characterized in that The sensing device receiver (103) is also used to Get the linear frequency modulated local oscillator, downconverting the AFDM signal (101) using the chirped local oscillator to generate a downconverted output based on at least a first subset (102a) of the chirped carriers, Direct current (DC) blocks the down-converted output to generate a blocked output, The sensing device receiver (103) further comprises a continuous-time filter for filtering the blocking output to generate the output signal.

13. The sensing device receiver (103) according to claim 11 or 12, characterized in that receiving the AFDM signal (101) via at least one channel, The sensing device receiver (103) is further configured to generate channel estimation information of the at least one channel based on the output signal.

14. The receiver (103) according to claim 13, characterized in that The receiver (103) is further configured to generate a range and / or relative velocity estimate for one or more targets in an environment surrounding the receiver (103) using the at least one channel based on the channel estimation information.

15. The sensing device receiver (103) according to any one of claims 11 to 14, characterized in that The set of chirp carriers (102) further includes a third subset (102c) of chirp carriers used for data transmission and / or control message transmission.

16. The sensing device receiver (103) according to any one of claims 12 to 15, characterized in that The AFDM signal (101) comprises an AFDM multi-chirp symbol set, The sensing device receiver (103) includes A radio frequency (RF) down-converter, configured to down-convert the AFDM signal (101); The sensing device receiver (103) is used to: designating a chirp carrier of the chirp carrier set (102) as a reference chirp carrier, The chirp local oscillator includes a set of periodic chirp segments, each chirp segment of the set of periodic chirp segments being synchronized in time and frequency with the reference chirp carrier in one AFDM symbol of the set of AFDM multi-chirp symbols, feeding the chirp local oscillator to the RF downconverter to generate a set of multi-tone signal segments, each segment of the set of multi-tone signal segments corresponding to an AFDM symbol of the AFDM multi-chirp symbol set; blocking the DC component of the down-converted output to eliminate or attenuate direct path interference generated by a portion of the AFDM signal (101) modulating the reference chirp carrier, The continuous-time filter is used to filter the blocking output to remove or attenuate direct path interference corresponding to a tone of the down-converted output, the down-converted output being generated by a portion of the AFDM signal (101) modulating other chirp carriers of the set of chirp carriers (102).

17. A sensing device (100), characterized in that The invention comprises a perceptual device transmitter (106) according to any one of claims 1 to 10 and a perceptual device receiver (103) according to any one of claims 11 to 16.

18. The sensing device receiver (103) according to claim 17, characterized in that The sensing device (100) is further configured to generate, based on the channel estimation information, a distance and / or relative velocity estimate of one or more targets in an environment surrounding the sensing device (100) using the at least one channel.

19. A network device (200) for coordinating a network of two or more sensing devices (100), characterized in that The network device (200) is used for: Obtaining a pair of discrete affine Fourier transform (DAFT) parameters (104) for parameterizing a set of orthogonal linear frequency modulation carriers (102) in the DAFT domain, determining corresponding allocation information (105) for each of the two or more sensing devices (100), sending the pair of DAFT parameters (104) to the two or more sensing devices (100), For each of the two or more sensing devices (100), sending the corresponding allocation information (105) to the sensing device (100), For each of the two or more sensing devices (100), the corresponding allocation information (105) indicates that the chirp carrier set (102) is divided into at least a first subset (102a) of chirp carriers serving as pilot signals for sensing and a second subset (102b) of chirp carriers that are set to zero.

20. The network device (200) according to claim 19, characterized in that For each of the two or more sensing devices (100), the corresponding allocation information (105) indicates that the set of chirp carriers (102) is divided into at least a first subset (102a) of the chirp carriers, a second subset (102b) of the chirp carriers, and a third subset (102c) of chirp carriers for data transmission and / or control message transmission.

21. The network device (200) according to claim 19 or 20, characterized in that For each of the two or more perceptual devices (100), the first subset (102a) of chirp carriers is completely different from at least one of: the first subset (102a) of the corresponding chirp carriers of each other of the two or more perceptual devices (100), and the third subset (102c) of the corresponding chirp carriers of each other of the two or more perceptual devices (100).

22. The network device (200) according to any one of claims 19 to 21, characterized in that Used for: receiving a sensing resource request message from at least one sensing device (100) of the two or more sensing devices (100), The pair of DAFT parameters (104) is obtained and / or the allocation information (105) is determined as a response to the sensing resource request message.

23. A network, characterized in that The method comprises two or more sensing devices (100) according to claim 17 or 18, and a network device (200) according to any one of claims 19 to 22.

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