Method, apparatus and system for representing radio environment or geometry information

Abstract

Exemplary embodiments relate to methods for representing a mapping configuration between radio environment information, geometric / geographic information, or both information. In one method, a first device obtains at least one of a first map or a second map from a second device. The first map represents radio environment information and includes a first set of elements. The second map represents geometric information and includes a second set of elements. Elements in the first map represent a portion of the radio environment information, and elements in the second map represent a portion of the geometric information. The first device then performs an operation according to the at least one of the first map or the second map. In this manner, the radio environment information and the geometry information may be transmitted between devices.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] Exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure generally relate to the field of communications, and in particular, to methods for representing radio environment information or geometry information. BACKGROUND

[0002] Development of various technologies enables environment awareness capability for communication systems, particularly wireless communication systems, which typically already possess some communication-related hardware with potential for sensing operations. That is, a communication system with environment awareness capability can perform sensing operations in addition to performing communication operations. Development and application of such systems can have various names, such as integrated communication and sensing, integrated sensing and communication, joint sensing and communication, etc. With the aid of these sensing operations, a communication system can sense environment information, including radio environment information, geometry / geography information, information about objects in the environment, location and movement information of objects associated with the communication system, etc. Environment awareness capability is beneficial in several major areas of scenarios and technologies, such as intelligent transportation, smart city, smart home, industrial IoT, environment perception, and perception-aided communication, etc. Further, data or information acquired by performing environment perception can be used to improve the performance of a communication system.

[0003] Generally, user equipment (UE) location information is used in cellular communication networks to improve various performance metrics of the network. Such performance metrics can include, for example, capacity, agility, and efficiency. In addition, simultaneous localization and mapping (SLAM) can track UE locations and simultaneously construct / update associated radio environment information. Accordingly, construction and indication of environment information is expected to be a key for future communication systems. SUMMARY

[0004] Generally, exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure provide solutions for representing and transmitting radio environment information, geometry / geography information, or mapping configuration between the two.

[0005] It should be understood that the summary section is not intended to determine key or essential features of embodiments of the present disclosure, nor to limit the scope of the present disclosure. Other features of the present disclosure will become readily apparent from the following description.

[0006] In a first aspect, a method implemented at a first device is provided. In the method, the first device obtains at least one of a first map or a second map. The first map represents radio environment information and includes a first set of elements. The second map represents geometric information and includes a second set of elements. An element in the first map represents a portion of the radio environment information, and an element in the second map represents a portion of the geometric information. Then, the first device performs an operation based on at least one of the first map or the second map. In this way, radio environment information and geometric information can be transmitted between devices. Thus, when one device is unable to perceive or measure accurate and complete environment information, the device can obtain accurate and complete environment information from another device with higher perception capability. Then, the perception operation and communication of the device can be performed according to the more accurate and complete information, thereby achieving higher performance.

[0007] In some embodiments, an element in the first map has at least one of: a multipath or ray tracing information type, a channel matrix information type characterizing a channel, a beamforming information type, a reference signal information type, or a channel quality or state information type. In this way, radio environment information can be indicated in multiple dimensions. Thus, radio environment information can be described from multiple perspectives as needed.

[0008] In some embodiments, an element in the second map has at least one of: a two-dimension (2D) location area type; a three-dimension (3D) location area type; a geographic coordinate type; or a processed data type associated with geometric information. In this way, elements in the second map can be flexibly configured.

[0009] In some embodiments, an element in one of the first map or the second map has one or more element types. In some embodiments, a first element in the one of the first map or the second map has a first element type, and a second element in the one of the first map or the second map has a second element type, where there is at least one of: the first element type is the same as or different from the second element type; a first size of the first element is the same as or different from a second size of the second element; or a first value range of the first element is the same as or different from a second value range of the second element. In this way, elements in the first map can be flexibly configured.

[0010] In some embodiments, at least one of the first map or the second map is represented by a matrix including the first set of elements or the second set of elements, the matrix having a plurality of dimensions. In this way, the first map and the second map can be represented by a matrix having any number of dimensions, so that environment information can be accurately described.

[0011] In some embodiments, the matrix is represented by at least one of: a number of dimensions, one or more element types of elements in the matrix, content of the elements, or indices of the elements. In this way, the matrix representing the first map or the second map can be indicated with predefined parameters.

[0012] In some embodiments, each element in the matrix has a same size in the number of dimensions, wherein at least one of the first map or the second map is represented by at least one of: a number of elements in the matrix; or the same size. In this way, if the sizes of the elements in the matrix are the same, the transmission parameters indicating the matrix can be simplified. Therefore, the transmission overhead of the first map or the second map can be reduced.

[0013] In some embodiments, a first element in the matrix has a first size, and a second element in the matrix has a second size different from the first size in the number of dimensions, wherein the matrix is represented by at least one of: a starting position of each element in the matrix, a length of each element in the matrix in each of the number of dimensions. In this way, even if the sizes or types of the elements are different, the elements in the first map or the second map can be flexibly indicated.

[0014] In some embodiments, a first set of elements or a second set of elements in the matrix is determined by including a quadtree or an octree of a plurality of levels; an element in the matrix is associated with one of the plurality of levels. In this way, the elements in the matrix can be divided in a predefined rule, and the division can be indicated according to the characteristics of the quadtree or the octree.

[0015] In some embodiments, there is at least one of: a third element and a fourth element in the matrix associated with a same level of the plurality of levels have a same size in the number of dimensions; or a fifth element in the matrix associated with a first level of the plurality of levels has a third size, and a sixth element in the matrix associated with a second level of the plurality of levels has a fourth size different from the third size in the number of dimensions. In this way, the sizes of the elements can be indicated according to the characteristics of the quadtree or the octree.

[0016] In some embodiments, at least one of the first map or the second map is represented by a list or an array including the first set of elements or the second set of elements. In some embodiments, at least one of the first map or the second map is represented by at least one of: a number of elements in the list or the array, one or more element types for the elements in the list or the array, sizes for the elements in the list or the array, content of the elements, or indices of the elements. In this way, the first map and the second map can be represented in various ways, e.g., a matrix, a list, or an array.

[0017] In some embodiments, at least one of the following is present: an element in the first map is associated with an index of another element in the second map, or an element in the second map is associated with an index of another element in the first map. In this way, the mapping between the first map and the second map can be further indicated. Thus, the device can determine the required wireless environment.

[0018] In some embodiments, at least one of the first map or the second map is carried in at least one of the following: synchronization signal block (SSB) signaling; a first message specific to the first device; or a second message specific to a group of devices including the first device; or a broadcast message. In this way, the first map and the second map can be periodically or dynamically transmitted.

[0019] In some embodiments, performing the operations comprises at least one of: performing a sensing operation based on at least one of the first map or the second map; communicating based on at least one of the first map or the second map; determining a set of beams for at least one of the sensing operation and the communicating based on at least one of the first map or the second map; determining a transmission power for at least one of the sensing operation and the communicating based on at least one of the first map or the second map; or determining a reference signal for at least one of the sensing operation and the communicating based on at least one of the first map or the second map. In this way, with the first map and the second map from the second device, the first device can more accurately perform the sensing operation and the communicating.

[0020] In some embodiments, at least one of the first map or the second map has a compressed format. In this way, the payload of the mapping configuration, the first map, or the second map can be reduced.

[0021] In some embodiments, the first device obtains at least one of the first map or the second map by: receiving the at least one of the first map or the second map from the second device. In this way, the second device can dynamically indicate the first map or the second map.

[0022] In a second aspect, a method implemented at a second device is provided. In the method, the second device sends at least one of a first map or a second map to a first device. The first map represents radio environment information and includes a first set of elements, and the second map represents geometry information and includes a second set of elements. An element in the first map represents a part of the radio environment information, and an element in the second map represents a part of the geometry information. In this way, the radio environment information and the geometry information can be transmitted between devices. Therefore, when one device cannot perceive or measure accurate and complete environment information, the device can obtain accurate and complete environment information from another device with higher perception capability. Then, the perception operation and communication of the device can be performed according to the more accurate and complete information, thereby achieving higher performance.

[0023] In some embodiments, an element in the first map has at least one of: a multipath or ray tracing information type, a channel matrix information type characterizing a channel, a beamforming information type, a reference signal information type, or a channel quality or state information type. In this way, the radio environment information can be indicated in multiple dimensions. Therefore, the radio environment information can be described from multiple angles as needed.

[0024] In some embodiments, an element in the second map has at least one of: a two-dimension (2D) location area type; a three-dimension (3D) location area type; a geographic coordinate type; or a processed data type associated with the geometry information. In this way, the elements in the second map can be flexibly configured.

[0025] In some embodiments, an element in one of the first map or the second map has one or more element types. In some embodiments, a first element in the one of the first map or the second map has a first element type, and a second element in the one of the first map or the second map has a second element type, where there is at least one of: the first element type is the same as or different from the second element type, a first size of the first element is the same as or different from a second size of the second element, or a first value range of the first element is the same as or different from a second value range of the second element. In this way, the elements in the first map can be flexibly configured.

[0026] In some embodiments, at least one of the first map or the second map is represented by a matrix including the first set of elements or the second set of elements, the matrix having a plurality of dimensions. In this way, the first map and the second map can be represented by a matrix having any number of dimensions, so that the environment information can be accurately described.

[0027] In some embodiments, the matrix is represented by at least one of: a number of dimensions, one or more element types of the elements in the matrix, content of the elements, or indices of the elements. In this way, the matrix representing the first map or the second map can be indicated with predefined parameters.

[0028] In some embodiments, each element in the matrix has a same size in the number of dimensions, and wherein at least one of the first map or the second map is represented by at least one of: a number of the elements in the matrix; or the same size. In this way, if the sizes of the elements in the matrix are the same, the transmission parameters indicating the matrix can be simplified. Therefore, the transmission overhead of the first map or the second map can be reduced.

[0029] In some embodiments, a first element in the matrix has a first size, a second element in the matrix has a second size different from the first size in the number of dimensions, and wherein the matrix is represented by at least one of: a starting position of each element in the matrix in the number of dimensions, or a length of each element in the matrix in each of the number of dimensions. In this way, even if the sizes or types of the elements are different, the elements in the first map or the second map can be flexibly indicated.

[0030] In some embodiments, a first set of elements or a second set of elements in the matrix is determined by including a quadtree or an octree of a plurality of levels, and an element in the matrix is associated with one of the plurality of levels. In this way, the elements in the matrix can be partitioned in a predefined rule, and the partitioning can be indicated according to the characteristics of the quadtree or the octree.

[0031] In some embodiments, there is at least one of: a third element and a fourth element in the matrix associated with a same level of the plurality of levels have a same size in the number of dimensions; or a fifth element in the matrix associated with a first level of the plurality of levels has a third size, and a sixth element in the matrix associated with a second level of the plurality of levels has a fourth size different from the third size in the number of dimensions. In this way, the sizes of the elements can be indicated according to the characteristics of the quadtree or the octree.

[0032] In some embodiments, at least one of the first map or the second map is represented by a list or an array including the first set of elements or the second set of elements. In some embodiments, at least one of the first map or the second map is represented by at least one of: a number of the elements in the list or the array, one or more element types of the elements in the list or the array, sizes of the elements in the list or the array, content of the elements, or indices of the elements. In this way, the first map and the second map can be represented in various ways, e.g., a matrix, a list, or an array.

[0033] In some embodiments, at least one of the following is present: an element in the first map is associated with an index of another element in the second map, or an element in the second map is associated with an index of another element in the first map. In this way, the mapping between the first map and the second map can be further indicated. Thus, the device can determine the required wireless environment.

[0034] In some embodiments, at least one of the first map or the second map is carried in at least one of the following: synchronization signal block (SSB) signaling; a first message specific to the first device; a second message specific to a group of devices including the first device; or a broadcast message. In this way, the first map and the second map can be periodically or dynamically sent.

[0035] In some embodiments, at least one of the first map or the second map has a compressed format. In this way, the payload of the mapping configuration, the first map or the second map can be reduced.

[0036] In a third aspect, a first device is provided. The first device includes a transceiver and a processor communicatively coupled with the transceiver. The processor is configured to obtain at least one of a first map or a second map from a second device. The first map represents radio environment information and includes a first set of elements. The second map represents geometric information and includes a second set of elements. An element in the first map represents a part of the radio environment information, and an element in the second map represents a part of the geometric information. Then, the first device performs an operation based on at least one of the first map or the second map. In this way, the radio environment information and the geometric information can be transmitted between devices. Thus, when one device is unable to perceive or measure accurate and complete environment information, it can obtain accurate and complete environment information from another device with higher perception capability. Then, the perception operation and communication of the device can be performed according to more accurate and complete information, thereby achieving higher performance.

[0037] In a fourth aspect, a second device is provided. The second device comprises a transceiver and a processor communicatively coupled with the transceiver. The processor is configured to transmit, via the transceiver, at least one of a first map or a second map to a first device. The first map represents radio environment information and comprises a first set of elements, and the second map represents geometry information and comprises a second set of elements. An element in the first map represents a portion of the radio environment information, and an element in the second map represents a portion of the geometry information. In this way, radio environment information and geometry information can be transmitted between devices. Thus, when one device is unable to sense or measure accurate and complete environment information, the device can obtain accurate and complete environment information from another device with higher sensing capability. Then, sensing operations and communications of the device can be performed according to the more accurate and complete information, thereby achieving higher performance.

[0038] In a fifth aspect, a non-transitory computer-readable medium comprising a computer program stored thereon, which, when executed on at least one processor, causes the at least one processor to carry out the method of any one of the first aspect or the second aspect.

[0039] In a sixth aspect, an apparatus is provided comprising at least one processing circuitry configured to carry out the method of any one of the first aspect or the second aspect.

[0040] In a seventh aspect, a computer program product tangibly stored on a computer-readable medium and comprising computer-executable instructions, which, when executed, cause an apparatus to carry out the method of any one of the first aspect or the second aspect. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0041] Some example embodiments will be described with reference to the drawings, in which: Figure 1A An example environment in which some embodiments of the disclosure can be implemented is illustrated; Figure 1B An example communication system in which some embodiments of the disclosure can be implemented is illustrated; Figure 1C An example device in the example environment of Figure 1A and Figure 1B is illustrated; Figure 1D Example modules in a device of the disclosure are illustrated; Figure 1E An example sensing management function (SMF) of the disclosure is illustrated; Figure 2Signaling procedures for indicating radio environment information and geometry information are shown in accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure; Figures 3A to 3D Exemplary partitioning of elements in at least one of the first map or the second map, exemplary indexing of elements, and exemplary matrix representation of the map are shown in accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure; Figures 4A to 4D Exemplary indication or representation of the first map or the second map and other exemplary partitioning of elements in at least one of the first map or the second map are shown in accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure; Figure 5 Exemplary list or array representation of the first map or the second map are shown in accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure; Figure 6 A flowchart of an exemplary method implemented at a first device is shown in accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure; Figure 7 A flowchart of an exemplary method implemented at a first device is shown in accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure; Figure 8 A simplified block diagram of a device suitable for implementing exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure is shown.

[0042] Throughout the drawings, identical or similar reference numerals can designate identical or similar elements throughout the several views. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0043] The principles of the present disclosure will now be described with reference to some exemplary embodiments. It should be understood that the embodiments are described only for the purpose of explanation and to help understand and implement the present disclosure, and do not pose any limitation on the scope of the present disclosure. The embodiments of the present disclosure described herein can be implemented in various ways other than those specifically described below.

[0044] In the following description and claims, unless otherwise defined, all technical and scientific terms used herein are to be taken as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which this disclosure belongs.

[0045] Reference in the specification to “one embodiment”, “an embodiment”, “exemplary embodiment” or similar terms means that a described embodiment can include a particular feature, structure, or characteristic, but every embodiment can not necessarily include the particular feature, structure, or characteristic. Furthermore, such phrases are not necessarily referring to the same embodiment. Furthermore, when a particular feature, structure, or characteristic is described in connection with an embodiment, it is submitted that adapt or modify such feature, structure, or characteristic for use in connection with other embodiments, whether or not such adapt or modifications are expressly described.

[0046] It should be understood that, although the terms“first” and“second” and the like can be used herein to describe various elements, these elements should not be limited by these terms. The terms are only used to distinguish one element from another. For example, a first element could be termed a second element, and, similarly, a second element could be termed a first element, without departing from the scope of the example embodiments. As used herein, the term“and / or” includes any and all combinations of one or more of the associated listed items. Other explicit or implicit definitions can be included below.

[0047] The terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments only and is not intended to be limiting of example embodiments. As used herein, the singular forms“a,”“an” and“the” are intended to include the plural forms as well, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. It will be further understood that the terms“comprises,”“comprising,”“has,”“having,”“includes” and / or“including,” when used herein, specify the presence of stated features, elements and / or components etc., but do not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, elements, components and / or combinations thereof.

[0048] In the following description and claims, unless otherwise defined, all technical and scientific terms used herein are to be taken as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which this disclosure belongs.

[0049] As used herein, the term “terminal device” refers to any device having wireless or wired communication capability. Examples of terminal devices include, but are not limited to, user equipment (UE), personal computers (PCs), desktops, mobile telephones, cellular telephones, smart phones, personal digital assistants (PDAs), portable computers, tablet PCs, wearable devices, internet of things (IoT) devices, Ultra-reliable and Low Latency Communication (URLLC) devices, Internet of Everything (IoE) devices, machine type communication (MTC) devices, devices for vehicle to everything (V2X) communication, devices for Integrated Access and Backhaul (IAB), devices for Small Data Transmission (SDT), devices for mobility, devices for Multicast and Broadcast Service (MBS), devices for positioning, devices for dynamic / flexible duplex in commercial networks, RedCap devices, space or aerial vehicles in non-terrestrial networks (NTNs) including satellites and High Altitude Platforms (HAPs) encompassed in Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS), eXtended Reality (XR) devices including different types of reality (e.g., Augmented Reality (AR), Mixed Reality (MR), and Virtual Reality (VR)), unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), drones, devices on high speed trains (HSTs), image capture devices (e.g., digital cameras, sensors, gaming devices, music storage and playback devices, networking devices, etc.). Terminal devices can also include “groupcast / broadcast” features to support public safety and / or mission critical applications. Terminal devices can also include transparent IPv4 / IPv6 multicast delivery, e.g., for IPTV, smart TV, wireless services, wireless software delivery, group communication, and IoT applications.A terminal can comprise one Subscriber Identity Module (SIM) or multiple SIMs, also referred to as multi-SIM. The term "terminal device" can also be used interchangeably with variants of some of all the aforementioned terms, e.g. UE, mobile station, user station, mobile terminal, user terminal, wireless device, or capability-reduced terminal device.

[0050] As used herein, the term "network device" refers to a device capable of providing or hosting a cell or a coverage area in which terminal devices can communicate. Examples of network devices include, but are not limited to, a base station (NodeB or NB), an evolved NodeB (eNodeB or eNB), a next generation NodeB (gNB), a transmission reception point (TRP), a radio remote unit (RRU), a radio head (RH), a remote radio head (RRH), an IAB node, a femto node or pico node, etc. low power node, a reconfigurable intelligent surface (RIS), a network controlled repeater, etc.

[0051] A terminal device or a network device can have artificial intelligence (AI) or machine learning (ML) capabilities. AI / ML generally refers to a model trained according to a large amount of collected specific function data, which can be used to predict some information. A terminal or network device can operate in several frequency ranges, such as FR1 (410 MHz - 7125 MHz), FR2 (24.25 GHz to 71 GHz), 71 GHz to 114 GHz, and frequency ranges greater than 100 GHz, including terahertz (THz) frequencies. A terminal or network device can also operate in licensed spectrum, unlicensed spectrum, or shared spectrum. A terminal device can have multiple connections with multiple network devices, such as in a multi-radio dual connectivity (MR-DC) application scenario. A terminal device or a network device can have an advanced duplex function, such as full duplex, flexible duplex, and cross-division duplex (XDD) mode.

[0052] A network device can have functions or capabilities for network energy saving, self-organizing network (SON) automation, or minimization of drive test (MDT) mechanisms. A terminal can have functions or capabilities for power saving.

[0053] Embodiments of the present disclosure can be implemented in test equipment, such as signal generators, signal analyzers, spectrum analyzers, network analyzers, test terminal equipment, test network equipment, and channel emulators.

[0054] Embodiments of the present disclosure can be implemented in accordance with any generation of communication protocols currently known or developed in the future. Examples of these communication protocols include, but are not limited to, cellular protocols including first generation (1G), second generation (2G), 2.5G, 2.75G, third generation (3G), fourth generation (4G), sometimes referred to as “LTE”, 4.5G, sometimes referred to as “LTE Advanced” and “LTE Advanced Pro”, fifth generation (5G), sometimes referred to as “NR”, 5.5G, 5G-Advanced, and sixth generation (6G), as well as generations of Wireless Fidelity (WiFi) and Ultra Wideband (UWB).

[0055] In one embodiment, the terminal device can be connected to a first network device and a second network device. One of the first network device and the second network device can be a master node, and the other can be a slave node. The first network device and the second network device can use different radio access technologies (RATs). In one embodiment, the first network device can be a first RAT device, and the second network device can be a second RAT device. In one embodiment, the first RAT device is an eNB, and the second RAT device is a gNB. In another embodiment, the first RAT device is a 5G network device, and the second RAT device is a 6G network device. Information related to different RATs can be sent from at least one of the first network device and the second network device to the terminal device. In one embodiment, first information can be sent from the first network device to the terminal device, and second information can be sent from the second network device to the terminal device directly or through the first network device. In one embodiment, information related to configuration of the terminal device configured by the second network device can be sent from the second network device to the terminal device through the first network device. Information related to configuration adjustment of the terminal device configured by the second network device can be sent from the second network device to the terminal device directly or through the first network device.

[0056] In some examples, a value, process, or apparatus can be referred to as "optimal," "minimum," "maximum," "lowest," "highest," or the like. It will be understood that such a description is intended to indicate that a selection can be made among many function alternatives; however, such a selection can be optimal in some respects, but not necessarily better, smaller, higher, or more optimal in other respects than other selections.

[0057] As used herein, the term "circuitry" can refer to hardware and / or hardware combined with software. For example, a circuitry can be a combination of analog and / or digital hardware circuitry with software / firmware. As another example, a circuitry can be any portion of a hardware processor with software, including a digital signal processor, software, and memory that work together to cause an apparatus, such as a terminal device or a network device, to perform various functions. In yet another example, a circuitry can be a hardware circuitry and / or a processor, such as a microprocessor or a portion of a microprocessor, that runs software / firmware but can not have software present when not running. As used herein, the term circuitry also encompasses implementation of only a hardware circuitry or a processor or a portion of a hardware circuitry or a processor, and software and / or firmware accompanying the hardware circuitry or processor.

[0058] The term "first map" as used herein refers to radio environment information, which can also be called a radio environment map, a radio frequency (RF) map, a radio map, a radio-based map, a radio signal-based map, a wireless signal-based map, or other similar meaning map. In the present disclosure, the terms "first map" and "RF-map" can be used interchangeably.

[0059] The term "second map" as used herein refers to geographic and / or geometric information, which can also be called location / geometric / geo information or map (G-map), or some intermediate result after processing of the location / geometric / geo information, or other similar meaning map. In the present disclosure, the terms "second map" and "G-map" can be used interchangeably.

[0060] The term "map" as used herein refers to an indication form, which can also be replaced by a list, a matrix, a group, a set, a range, an area, a relation, a lookup table, information, or other names. The term "mapping" refers to a relation, which can also be replaced by a relation, a match, a lookup table, or other names.

[0061] The term "size" as used herein refers to a measure or metric of an element in a map in different aspects. That is, the term "size" as used herein can be understood in a broader sense than a strict physical meaning. For example, the size can refer to a measure or metric of at least one of the following aspects: size, compression ratio / bit, type order, number of parameters in an element, and the like. Non-limitingly, the size can refer to other similar metrics of an element.

[0062] In the present disclosure, an element in the first map can also be called an "RF-map element". An element in the second map can also be called a "G-map element". An element in the mapping configuration can also be called a "mapping element".

[0063] Currently, perception systems can be used to help collect UE pose information, including the UE’s location in a global coordinate system, the UE’s speed and direction of movement in the global coordinate system, orientation information, and information about the radio environment. “Location” is also referred to as “position,” and the two terms can be used interchangeably herein. Well-known perception systems include Radio Detection and Ranging (RADAR) and Light Detection and Ranging (LIDAR), among others. While perception systems can be separate from communication systems, using an integrated system to collect information is advantageous to reduce hardware (and cost) in the system and the time, frequency, or spatial resources needed to perform both functions. However, using communication system hardware to perform perception of UE pose information and environmental information is highly challenging and an open problem. The difficulty of this problem is related to factors such as limited communication system resolution, dynamic nature of the environment, and the large number of objects whose electromagnetic properties and locations need to be estimated. SLAM can use different types of sensors, such as 2D / 3D cameras to acquire visual features from the environment, and LiDAR to acquire ranging / depth information. Radio SLAM has emerged in recent years, based on radio frequency sensors (sensors based on radio signals). While vision-based SLAM and LiDAR-based SLAM can achieve higher resolution of the environmental map, they are susceptible to weather and light conditions. On the other hand, radio-based SLAM provides a lower resolution map but is not affected by weather and light.

[0064] As noted above, construction and indication of environmental information is a key aspect for communication systems. Generally, processing functions for localization / positioning and environmental map construction / update can be performed locally, e.g., at the UE side. However, local processing SLAM does not utilize information from other nodes in the network, e.g., from base stations (BSs). Thus, a UE’s local environmental map is typically inaccurate or incomplete.

[0065] Additionally, terrestrial networks and non-terrestrial networks can enable a range of new services and applications, such as earth monitoring, remote sensing, passive sensing and positioning, navigation and tracking, autonomous delivery and mobility. Terrestrial network-based sensing and non-terrestrial network-based sensing can provide intelligent context-aware networks to enhance UE experience. For example, terrestrial network-based sensing and non-terrestrial network-based sensing can involve opportunities for positioning and sensing applications based on a set of new features and service capabilities. Applications such as THz imaging and spectroscopy have the potential to provide continuous, real-time physiological information for future digital health technologies through dynamic, non-invasive, non-contact measurements. Simultaneous localization and mapping (SLAM) methods can not only enable advanced cross reality (XR) applications, but also enhance navigation for autonomous objects such as vehicles and drones. In terrestrial networks and non-terrestrial networks, measured channel data and sensing positioning data can be acquired through large bandwidth, new spectrum, dense networks, and more light-of-sight (LOS) links. From these data, a wireless environment map can be drawn, in which channel information is linked with its corresponding positioning or environmental information, to provide enhanced physical layer design according to the map.

[0066] Since a base station or other network device can collect and use its own channel and / or sensing data, or UE’s channel and / or sensing data, the base station or other network device can have a larger field of view, a longer sensing distance, more detailed global information, and a higher resolution environmental map. If the network provides an environmental map to a UE, the environmental map can help the UE to improve its sensing function, such as improving sensing accuracy or reducing sensing complexity, and the environmental map can also assist the UE communication, such as MIMO or beamforming process.

[0067] In view of the above, exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure propose a mechanism for indicating and representing wireless environment and / or geometry information. In the mechanism, a first device receives at least one of a first map or a second map from a second device. The first map represents radio environment information and includes a first set of elements. The second map represents geometry information and includes a second set of elements. An element in the first map represents a portion of the radio environment information, and an element in the second map represents a portion of the geometry information. Then, the first device performs an operation based on at least one of the first map or the second map. In this way, radio environment information and geometry information can be transmitted between devices. Therefore, when one device cannot sense or measure accurate and complete environmental information, the device can obtain accurate and complete environmental information from another device with higher sensing capability. Then, the sensing operation and communication of the device can be performed according to the more accurate and complete information, thereby achieving higher performance.

[0068] For illustrative purposes, reference will be made in the following Figures 1A to 8 The principles and exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure are described. However, it is to be noted that these embodiments are given by way of illustration only and are not intended to limit the scope of the application to the structures and combinations specifically shown and described herein.

[0069] Figure 1A An exemplary environment 100A in which some embodiments of the present disclosure can be implemented is shown.

[0070] Reference is made to Figure 1A , as a non-limiting illustrative example, a simplified schematic diagram of a communication system is provided. The communication system 100A includes a wireless access network 120. The wireless access network 120 can be a next generation (e.g., sixth generation (6G) or higher) wireless access network, or a legacy (e.g., 5G, 4G, 3G or 2G) wireless access network. One or more communication electronic devices (EDs) 110a, 110b, 110c, 110d, 110e, 110f, 110g, 110h, 110i, 110j (generally referred to as 110) can be interconnected, or connected to one or more network nodes (170a, 170b, generally referred to as 170) in the wireless access network 120. A core network 130 can be part of the communication system, can rely on, or be independent of the radio access technology used in the communication system 100A. Further, the communication system 100A includes a public switched telephone network (PSTN) 140, the Internet 150, and other networks 160.

[0071] Figure 1BAn exemplary system 100B in which some embodiments of the present disclosure can be implemented is shown. Generally, the communication system 100B enables multiple wireless or wireline elements to communicate data and other content. The communication system 100B can be used to provide voice, data, video, signaling, and / or text content, among other content, through broadcast, multicast, and unicast, among other techniques. The communication system 100B can operate through sharing of resources, such as carrier frequency spectrum bandwidth, among its constituent elements. The communication system 100B can include terrestrial communication systems and / or non-terrestrial communication systems. The communication system 100B can provide a wide range of communication services and applications (e.g., earth monitoring, remote sensing, passive sensing and positioning, navigation and tracking, autonomous delivery and mobility, among others). The communication system 100B can provide high availability and robustness through joint operation of terrestrial communication systems and non-terrestrial communication systems. For example, integration of non-terrestrial communication systems (or components thereof) into terrestrial communication systems can result in a heterogeneous network that can be viewed as comprising multiple tiers. The heterogeneous network can achieve better overall performance compared to traditional communication networks through efficient multi-link joint operation, more flexible function sharing, and faster physical layer link switching between terrestrial networks and non-terrestrial networks.

[0072] The terrestrial communication systems and non-terrestrial communication systems can be viewed as subsystems of a communication system. In the example shown in FIG. 1b, the communication system 100B includes electronic devices (EDs) 110a, 110b, 110c, 110d (generally referred to as EDs 110), radio access networks (RANs) 120a, 120b, a non-terrestrial communication network 120c, a core network 130, a public switched telephone network (PSTN) 140, the Internet 150, and other networks 160. The RANs 120a, 120b include respective base stations (BSs) 170a, 170b, which can be generally referred to as terrestrial transmit and receive points (T-TRPs) 170a, 170b. The non-terrestrial communication network 120c includes an access node 172, which can be generally referred to as a non-terrestrial transmit and receive point (NT-TRP) 172. Without limitation, Figure 1B The above-described EDs 110, TRPs 170, RANs 120, core networks 130, PSTNs 140, Internets 150, and other networks 160 in FIG. 1B can be Figure 1A The above-described EDs 110, TRPs 170, RANs 120, core networks 130, PSTNs 140, Internets 150, and other networks 160 in FIG. 1B can be Figure 1BThe aforementioned EDs 110, TRPs 170, RANs 120, core networks 130, PSTNs 140, Internet 150, and other networks 160 in the figures can be devices, sites, RANs, networks other than Figure 1A

[0073] Alternatively or additionally, any ED 110 can be configured to connect, access, or communicate with any T-TRP 170a, 170b and NT-TRP 172, Internet 150, core network 130, PSTN 140, other networks 160, or any combination of the foregoing. In some examples, ED 110a can communicate uplink and / or downlink transmissions with T-TRP 170a over terrestrial air interface 190a. In some examples, EDs 110a, 110b, 110c, and 110d can also communicate directly with one another over one or more sidelink air interfaces 190b. In some examples, ED 110d can communicate uplink and / or downlink transmissions with NT-TRP 172 over non-terrestrial air interface 190c.

[0074] Air interfaces 190a and 190b can use similar communication techniques, such as any applicable wireless access technology. For example, communication system 100B can implement one or more channel access methods in air interfaces 190a and 190b, such as code division multiple access (CDMA), space division multiple access (SDMA), time division multiple access (TDMA), frequency division multiple access (FDMA), orthogonal FDMA (OFDMA), Direct Fourier Transform spread OFDMA (DFT-OFDMA), or single-carrier FDMA (SC-FDMA). Air interfaces 190a and 190b can utilize other high-dimensional signal spaces, which can involve combinations of orthogonal and non-orthogonal dimensions.

[0075] Non-terrestrial air interface 190c can implement communication between ED 110d and one or more NT-TRPs 172 over a wireless link or simple link. For some examples, the link is a dedicated connection for unicast transmissions, a connection for broadcast transmissions, or a connection between a group of EDs 110 and one or more NT-TRPs 172 for groupcast transmissions. ​

[0076] The RANs 120a and 120b communicate with the core network 130 to provide the EDs 110a, 110b, and 110c with access to voice, data, etc. services. The RANs 120a and 120b and / or the core network 130 can communicate with one or more other RANs (not shown) which can or can not be served by the core network 130 and can or can not use the same radio access technology(s) as the RANs 120a and / or 120b. The core network 130 can also serve as a gateway for the RANs 120a and 120b or EDs 110a, 110b, and 110c, or both, to other networks (for example, PSTN 140, the Internet 150, and the other networks 160) as well. In addition, some or all of the EDs 110a, 110b, and 110c can include functionality for communicating over different wireless links using different wireless technologies and / or protocols with different wireless networks. Instead of (or in addition to) wireless communication, the EDs 110a, 110b, and 110c can communicate with a service provider or switch (not shown) and the Internet 150 over wired communication channels. The PSTN 140 can include a circuit-switched telephone network for providing plain old telephone service (POTS). The Internet 150 can include networks of computers and subnetworks (intranets) or both, and incorporate protocols such as the Internet Protocol (IP), Transmission Control Protocol (TCP), User Datagram Protocol (UDP), etc. The EDs 110a, 110b, and 110c can be multi-mode devices capable of operating according to multiple wireless access technologies and incorporate multiple transceivers as needed to support these technologies.

[0077] As Figure 1BAny or all of the EDs 110 and BSs 170 shown can be sensing nodes in the system 100A. A sensing node is a network entity that senses by transmitting and receiving sensing signals. Some sensing nodes are communication devices that both communicate and sense. However, it is possible for some sensing nodes to not communicate, but to be dedicated to sensing. The sensing agent 174 is an example of a sensing node that is dedicated to sensing. Unlike the EDs 110 and BSs 170, the sensing agent 174 does not transmit nor receive communication signals. However, the sensing agent 174 can transmit configuration information, sensing information, signaling information, or other information within the communication system 100B. The sensing agent 174 can communicate with the core network 130 to transmit information with the rest of the communication system 100B. For example, the sensing agent 174 can determine the location of the ED 110a and transmit that information to the base station 170a through the core network 130. Although Figure 2 Only one sensing agent 174 is shown in the middle, but any number of sensing agents can be implemented in the communication system 100B. In some embodiments, one or more sensing agents can be implemented at one or more RANs 120.

[0078] Sensing nodes can combine sensing-based techniques with reference signal-based techniques to enhance UE pose determination. This type of sensing node can also be referred to as a sensing management function (SMF). In some networks, the SMF can also be referred to as a location management function (LMF). The SMF can be implemented as a physical, standalone entity at the core network 130 that connects with multiple BSs 170. In other aspects of the application, the SMF can be implemented as a logical entity co-located within a BS 170 through logic executed by the processor 182.

[0079] Figure 1C An example device in an example environment of Figure 1A and Figure 1B is shown. Specifically, Figure 1CAnother example of an ED 110 and base stations 170a, 170b, and / or 170c of some embodiments of the present disclosure is shown. The ED 110 is used to connect people, objects, machines, etc. The ED 110 can be widely used in various scenarios, such as cellular communication, device-to-device (D2D), vehicle to everything (V2X), peer-to-peer (P2P), machine-to-machine (M2M), machine-type communication (MTC), internet of things (IOT), virtual reality (VR), augmented reality (AR), mixed reality (MR), metaverse, digital twin, industrial control, autonomous driving, telemedicine, smart grid, smart home, smart office, smart wearable device, intelligent transportation, smart city, unmanned aerial vehicle, robot, remote sensing, passive sensing, positioning, navigation and tracking, autonomous delivery and mobile, etc.

[0080] Each ED 110 represents any applicable end-user device for wireless operation, which can include (or can be referred to as) a user equipment / device (UE), a wireless transmit / receive unit (WTRU), a mobile station, a fixed or mobile subscriber unit, a cellular phone, a station (STA), a machine type communication (MTC) device, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a smartphone, a laptop, a computer, a tablet, a wireless sensor, a consumer electronics device, a smart book, a vehicle, a car, a truck, a bus, a train, or an IoT device, a wearable device (e.g., a watch, a head-mounted device, glasses), an industrial device, or a means for communicating (e.g., a communication module, a modem, or a chip), among others. Future generations of EDs 110 can be referred to using other terminology. Each base station 170a and 170b is a T-TRP, hereinafter referred to as T-TRP 170. An NT-TRP is also shown in FIG. 3, hereinafter referred to as NT-TRP 172. Each ED 110 connected to the T-TRP 170 and / or the NT-TRP 172 can be dynamically or semi-statically turned on (i.e., established, activated, or enabled), turned off (i.e., released, deactivated, or disabled), and / or configured in response to one or more of connection availability and connection necessity.

[0081] The ED 110 includes one or more antennas 104, a transmitter 111, and a receiver 113 coupled to the one or more antennas 104. Only one antenna 104 is shown in the figure. One, some, or all of the antennas 104 can also be a panel. The transmitter 111 and the receiver 113 can be, for example, integrated as a transceiver. The transceiver is used to modulate data or other content for transmission by at least one antenna 104 or a network interface controller (NIC). The transceiver is also used to demodulate data or other content received by the at least one antenna 104. Each transceiver includes any applicable structure for generating signals for wireless or wired transmission and / or for processing signals received via wireless or wired means. Each antenna 104 includes any applicable structure for transmitting and / or receiving wireless or wired signals.

[0082] The ED 110 includes at least one memory 115. The memory 115 stores instructions and data used, generated, or collected by the ED 110. For example, the memory 115 could store software

[0083] The ED 110 can also include one or more input / output devices (not shown) or interfaces (such as wired interfaces to the Internet 150 in Figure 1A or Figure 1B ). The input / output devices support interaction with users or other devices. Each input / output device includes any suitable structure for providing information to or receiving information from a user, including, for example, an speaker, microphone, keypad, keyboard, display, or a touch screen.

[0084] ED 110 includes a processor 117 to perform operations including operations related to preparing transmissions for uplink transmissions to NT-TRPs 172 and / or T-TRPs 170, operations related to processing downlink transmissions received from NT-TRPs 172 and / or T-TRPs 170, and operations related to processing sidelink transmissions to and from another ED 110. The processing operations related to preparing transmissions for uplink transmissions can include operations such as encoding, modulating, transmit beamforming, and generating symbols for transmission. The processing operations related to processing downlink transmissions can include operations such as receive beamforming, demodulating, and decoding received symbols. According to embodiments, receiver 113 can receive downlink transmissions, possibly using receive beamforming, and processor 117 can extract signaling (e.g., by detecting and / or decoding the signaling) from the downlink transmissions. For example, the signaling can be reference signals transmitted by NT-TRPs 172 and / or T-TRPs 170. In some embodiments, processor 117 implements transmit beamforming and / or receive beamforming according to beam pointing indications (e.g., beam angle information (BAI)) received from T-TRPs 170. In some embodiments, processor 117 can perform operations related to network access (e.g., initial access) and / or downlink synchronization, such as operations related to detecting synchronization sequences, decoding and acquiring system information, and the like. In some embodiments, processor 117 can perform channel estimation, e.g., using reference signals received from NT-TRPs 172 and / or T-TRPs 170.

[0085] Although not shown, processor 117 can form part of transmitter 111 and / or part of receiver 113. Although not shown, memory 115 can form part of processor 117.

[0086] Processor 117, the processing components of transmitter 111, and the processing components of receiver 113 can all be implemented by the same or different one or more processors to execute instructions stored in memory (e.g., memory 115). Alternatively, some or all of processor 117, the processing components of transmitter 111, and the processing components of receiver 113 can be implemented using a programmed field-programmable gate array (FPGA), a graphical processing unit (GPU), a Central Processing Unit (CPU), or an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), among other specialized circuits.

[0087] In some implementations, T-TRP 170 can have other names, such as a base station, a base transceiver station (BTS), a wireless base station, a network node, a network equipment, a network-side device, a transmission / reception node, a NodeB, an evolved NodeB (eNodeB or eNB), a home eNodeB, a next Generation NodeB (gNB), a transmission point (TP), a site controller, an access point (AP), a wireless router, a relay, a remote radio head, a ground node, a ground network device, a ground base station, a base band unit (BBU), a remote radio unit (RRU), an active antenna unit (AAU), a remote radio head (RRH), a central unit (CU), a distributed unit (DU), a positioning node, etc. T-TRP 170 can be a macro BS, a micro BS, a relay node, a host node, etc., or a combination thereof. T-TRP 170 can refer to the above-mentioned devices or means (e.g., a communication module, a modem, or a chip) in the above-mentioned devices.

[0088] In some embodiments, various parts of T-TRP 170 can be distributed. For example, some modules of T-TRP 170 can be located at a remote end of a device that houses antenna 106 of T-TRP 170, can be coupled to the device that houses antenna 106 of T-TRP 170 through a communication link (not shown), such as a common public radio interface (CPRI), which is sometimes referred to as front-haul. Thus, in some embodiments, the term T-TRP 170 can also refer to modules on the network side that perform processing operations for ED 110 position determination, resource allocation (scheduling), message generation and encoding / decoding, etc., which are not necessarily part of the device that houses antenna 106 of T-TRP 170. These modules can also be coupled to other T-TRPs. In some embodiments, T-TRP 170 can actually be multiple T-TRPs that work together to serve ED 110, for example, by using coordinated multipoint transmission.

[0089] The T-TRP 170 includes at least one transmitter 181 and at least one receiver 183 coupled to one or more antennas 106. Only one antenna 106 is shown in the figure. One, some or all of the antennas 106 can also be panels. The transmitter 181 and receiver 183 can be integrated as a transceiver. The T-TRP 170 also includes a processor 182 for performing operations, including operations related to preparing transmissions for downlink transmissions to the ED 110, processing uplink transmissions received from the ED 110, preparing transmissions for backhaul transmissions to the NT-TRP 172, and processing transmissions received from the NT-TRP 172 over the backhaul. Processing operations related to preparing transmissions for downlink or backhaul transmissions can include operations such as encoding, modulation, precoding (e.g., multiple input multiple output (MIMO) precoding), transmit beamforming, and generating symbols for transmission. Processing operations related to processing transmissions received in uplink or over the backhaul can include operations such as receive beamforming, demodulating received symbols, and decoding received symbols. The processor 182 can also perform operations related to network access (e.g., initial access) and / or downlink synchronization, such as generating contents of a synchronization signal block (SSB), generating system information, etc. In some embodiments, the processor 182 also generates beam pointing indications, such as the BAI, which the scheduler 184 can schedule for transmission. The processor 182 performs other network-side processing operations described herein, such as determining a location of the ED 110, determining a deployment location of the NT-TRP 172, etc. In some embodiments, the processor 182 can generate signaling, such as to configure one or more parameters of the ED 110 and / or one or more parameters of the NT-TRP 172. Any signaling generated by the processor 182 is transmitted by the transmitter 181. It should be noted that “signaling” as used herein can also be referred to as control signaling. Dynamic signaling can be transmitted in a control channel such as a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH), and static or semi-static higher layer signaling can be included in data packets transmitted in a data channel such as a physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH).

[0090] A scheduler 184 can be coupled to the processor 182. The scheduler 184 can be included in the T-TRP 170 or can operate separately. The scheduler 184 can schedule uplink, downlink, and / or backhaul transmissions including issuing scheduling grants and / or configuring grant-free (“configured grant”) resources. The T-TRP 170 also includes memory 185 that stores information and data. The memory 185 stores instructions and data used, generated, or collected by the T-TRP 170. For example, the memory 185 can store software

[0091] Although not shown, the processor 182 can form part of the transmitter 181 and / or part of the receiver 183. Further, although not shown, the processor 182 can implement the scheduler 184. Although not shown, the memory 185 can form part of the processor 182.

[0092] The processor 182, the scheduler 184, the processing components of the transmitter 181, and the processing components of the receiver 183 can each be implemented by the same or different one or more processors configured to execute instructions stored in a memory (e.g., the memory 185). Alternatively, some or all of the processor 182, the scheduler 184, the processing components of the transmitter 181, and the processing components of the receiver 183 can be implemented using FPGA, GPU, CPU, or ASIC, among other specialized circuits.

[0093] While NT-TRP 172 is shown by way of example only as a drone, NT-TRP 172 can be implemented in any applicable non-ground-based form, such as a high-altitude platform, a satellite, a high-altitude platform and unmanned aircraft as an international mobile telecommunication base station, which will be discussed below. In addition, in some implementations, NT-TRP 172 can have other names, such as a non-ground node, a non-ground network device, or a non-ground base station. NT-TRP 172 includes a transmitter 186 and a receiver 187 coupled to one or more antennas 108. Only one antenna 108 is shown in the figure. One, some or all of the antennas can also be panels. The transmitter 186 and the receiver 187 can be integrated as a transceiver. NT-TRP 172 also includes a processor 188 for performing operations, including operations related to preparing transmissions for downlink transmissions to ED 110, processing uplink transmissions received from ED 110, preparing transmissions for backhaul transmissions to T-TRP 170, and processing transmissions received from T-TRP 170 over the backhaul. Processing operations related to preparing transmissions for downlink or backhaul transmissions can include operations such as encoding, modulating, precoding (e.g., MIMO precoding), transmit beamforming, and generating symbols for transmission. Processing operations related to processing transmissions received in uplink or over the backhaul can include operations such as receive beamforming, demodulating received symbols, and decoding received symbols. In some embodiments, processor 188 implements transmit beamforming and / or receive beamforming according to beam pointing information (e.g., BAI) received from T-TRP 170. In some embodiments, processor 188 can generate signaling, such as to configure one or more parameters of ED 110. In some embodiments, NT-TRP 172 implements physical layer processing, but not higher layer functions such as functions of medium access control (MAC) or radio link control (RLC) layers. Since this is by way of example only, more generally, NT-TRP 172 can implement higher layer functions in addition to physical layer processing.

[0094] NT-TRP 172 also includes a memory 189 that stores information and data. Although not shown, processor 188 can form part of transmitter 186 and / or part of receiver 187. Although not shown, memory 189 can form part of processor 188.

[0095] The processor 188, processing components of the transmitter 186, and processing components of the receiver 187 can all be implemented by the same or different one or more processors that are used to execute instructions stored in a memory (e.g., the memory 189). Alternatively, some or all of the processor 188, processing components of the transmitter 186, and processing components of the receiver 187 can be implemented using programmed FPGAs, GPUs, CPUs, or specialized circuitry such as ASICs, etc. In some embodiments, the NT-TRP 172 can actually be multiple NT-TRPs that operate together to serve the ED 110, e.g., through coordinated multipoint transmission. The T-TRP 170, NT-TRP 172, and / or ED 110 can include other components, but these have been omitted for clarity.

[0096] Figure 1D Exemplary modules in the devices of the present disclosure are shown. One or more steps of the embodiment methods provided herein can be performed by Figure 1D corresponding units or modules of. Figure 1D Units or modules in the devices of the ED 110, T-TRP 170, or NT-TRP 172, etc. are shown. For example, a signal can be transmitted by a transmitting unit or module. A signal can be received by a receiving unit or module. A signal can be processed by a processing unit or module. Other steps can be performed by an AI or ML module. The corresponding units or modules can be implemented using hardware, one or more components or devices executing software, or a combination thereof. For example, one or more units or modules can be integrated circuits such as programmed FPGAs, GPUs, CPUs, or ASICs, etc. It should be understood that if these modules are implemented as software executed, for example, using a processor, these modules can be retrieved by the processor as needed, individually or collectively, for processing, in one or more instances, and it should also be understood that these modules can themselves include instructions for further deployment and instantiation.

[0097] Other details regarding the ED 110, T-TRP 170, and NT-TRP 172 are known to those skilled in the art. Accordingly, these details are omitted here.

[0098] Figure 1E An exemplary sensing management function (SMF) of the present disclosure is shown.

[0099] As Figure 1EAs shown, the SMF 176, when implemented as a physical standalone entity, includes at least one transmitter 192, at least one processor 194, one or more antennas 195, at least one receiver 196, a scheduler 198, and at least one memory 199. A transceiver (not shown) can be used instead of the transmitter 192 and receiver 196. The scheduler 198 can be coupled to the processor 194. The scheduler 198 can be included within the SMF 176 or can operate separately from the SMF. The processor 194 implements various processing operations of the SMF 176, such as signal coding, data processing, power control, input / output processing, or any other functionality. The processor 194 also can be implemented as part of a treatment or all of the functionality described above and / or in embodiments. Each processor 194 includes any suitable processing or computing device configured to perform one or more operations. Each processor 194 can include, for example, a microprocessor, a microcontroller, a digital signal processor, a field programmable gate array, or an application specific integrated circuit.

[0100] Reference signal based pose determination techniques fall under the “active” pose estimation paradigm. In the active pose estimation paradigm, the inquirer of the pose information (e.g., a UE) participates in the process of determining the inquirer’s pose. The inquirer can transmit or receive (or both) signals specific to the pose determination process. Global navigation satellite system (GNSS) based positioning techniques, such as those based on the Global Positioning System (GPS), are other examples of the active pose estimation paradigm.

[0101] In contrast, radar based perception techniques, for example, can be considered to fall under the “passive” pose determination paradigm. In the passive pose determination paradigm, the target is unaware of the pose determination process.

[0102] By integrating perception and communication in one system, the system does not need to operate according to a single paradigm only. Therefore, combining perception based techniques with reference signal based techniques can enable enhanced pose determination.

[0103] For example, the enhanced pose determination can include obtaining UE channel subspace information, which is particularly useful for UE channel reconstruction at the sensing node, especially for beam-based operation and communication. The UE channel subspace is a subset of the entire algebraic space defined on the spatial domain, in which the entire channel from the TP to the UE is located. Thus, the UE channel subspace can define the TP-to-UE channel very precisely. Signals transmitted on other subspaces have negligible contribution to the UE channel. Knowing the UE channel subspace helps to reduce the workload required for UE-end channel measurement and network-end channel reconstruction. Therefore, combining sensing-based techniques with reference signal-based techniques can greatly reduce the overhead of UE channel reconstruction compared to traditional methods. The subspace information can also facilitate subspace-based sensing to reduce sensing complexity and improve sensing accuracy.

[0104] In view of the above, aspects of the present disclosure provide methods for indicating a wireless environment map and for defining the relationship and / or mapping between location / geometric / geographical information and the wireless environment map. Different maps and mappings can be used in different scenarios. According to some embodiments of the present disclosure, the network can provide the UE with the latest wireless environment map information according to the location / geometric / geographical information, or the UE can obtain the latest wireless environment map according to the location / geometric / geographical information. In this way, the sensing and / or communication performance of the UE is improved, or the processing latency and / or complexity is reduced, or both.

[0105] In some example embodiments, the methods and devices of the present disclosure are described through the interaction and processing procedures between a user equipment (UE) and a base station (BS). Alternatively, the information and protocol flow exchanges in these procedures can also be performed by other network nodes described in Figures 1A to 1E the disclosure, such as between the ED 110 and the TRP 170, between the ED 110 and the core network, between the ED 110 and the ED 110, between the TRP 170 and the TRP 170. The UE in the procedures described in the present disclosure can be replaced by a sensing node. The BS in the procedures described in the present disclosure can be replaced by a sensing coordinator. The sensing coordinator is a node in the network that can assist in sensing operations. These nodes can be independent nodes dedicated to sensing operations, or other nodes that perform sensing operations in parallel with communication operations (e.g., the TRP 170, the ED 110, or the core network node as described above).

[0106] So far, the example communication environment, communication system, electronic device, UE, BS, sensing node, etc. of the present disclosure have been discussed. Figures 1A to 1E The methods and procedures of the embodiments of the present disclosure are further discussed with reference to Figures 2 to 7 the accompanying drawings.

[0107] Figure 2 A signaling procedure 200 for indicating radio environment information and geometry information according to some embodiments of the present disclosure is shown. For illustration purposes, reference will be made to Figures 1A to 1E The procedure 200 will be described. By way of example only and without limitation, as shown, the first device 110 can be a UE 110 or an ED 110 as shown in Figure 2 and Figure 1A and 1B the second device 170 can be a BS 170 or a TRP 170 as shown in Figure 1A and 1B .

[0108] In the signaling procedure 200, the first device 110 obtains (210) at least one of a first map or a second map. The first map represents radio environment information and includes a first set of elements. The second map represents geometry information and includes a second set of elements. An element in the first map represents a part of the radio environment information, and an element in the second map represents a part of the geometry information. In some embodiments, the first device 110 can obtain at least one of the first map or the second map by receiving at least one of the first map and the second map from the second device 170. For example, the second device 170 can be a base station, a network device, or a core network (CN) device. In this case, the second device 170 can measure the first map and the second map with higher quality. The second device 170 can send (201) at least one of the first map or the second map 203 to the first device 110. Then, the first device 110 can accordingly receive (205) at least one of the first map or the second map 203, i.e., the radio environment information or the geometry information. In this way, if the first device 110 has limited sensing capability, e.g., the first device 110 itself cannot obtain correct, complete, and / or accurate radio environment information or geometry information, the first device can obtain the first map and the second map from another device. Then, the sensing operation and communication of the device can be performed based on more accurate and complete information, achieving higher performance. Additionally or alternatively, at least one of the first map or the second map can also be pre-configured and stored at the first device 110, which can be updated as needed. For example, the second device 170 can dynamically indicate an updated first map or an updated second map. Additionally or alternatively, the first device 110 can also download the first map and / or the second map from the core network. Without limitation, the first device 110 can acquire the first map and / or the second map in any other way.

[0109] With respect to the first map and the second map, in some embodiments, the second device 170 can determine the first map and the second map by performing sensing operations or measurement operations on the environment associated with the first device 110 and the second device 170. As mentioned above, the second device 170 can be a network device or a base station, the second device 170 can measure the first map and the second map with higher quality. Without limitation, the second device 170 can be any other device, such as a TRP, a drone, a satellite, etc. Additionally or alternatively, the second device 170 can also obtain the first map and the second map from other network devices, a core network, other networks, etc., and then the second device 170 indicates the obtained first map and the second map to the first device 110. In this way, the first device 110 can obtain the first map, the second map, and the mapping configuration between the two with high precision and redundant information. Therefore, the first device 110 can determine the accurate radio environment associated with the first device 110, thereby improving the communication performance.

[0110] Additionally, the partitioning of elements in at least one of the first map or the second map, which represents a portion of the corresponding information, can be determined in a number of alternative ways. In turn, by means of the partitioning, at least one of the first map and the second map can be represented or indicated accordingly. For more clarity, reference will be mainly made to Figure 3A and 3B The map partitioning for at least one of the first map or the second map is further discussed. In addition, reference will be mainly made to Figures 3C to 5 The indication or representation for at least one of the first map or the second map is discussed. Without limitation, the discussion made for the map partitioning and the map representation can be referred to each other.

[0111] Still with reference to Figure 2 , the second device 170 can also transmit (230) a mapping configuration 235 between the first map and the second map. The mapping configuration can indicate a mapping between one element in the first map and another element in the second map. Then, the first device 110 can receive (240) the mapping configuration 235 accordingly. In this case, the first device 110 can also determine the association between the radio environment information and the geometry information. Therefore, the first device 110 can determine the specific radio environment information according to the position, geometry, or geographical information as needed. In some embodiments, the mapping configuration can be contained in the first map or the second map. For example, it is assumed that the elements in the first map and / or the second map can be identified by corresponding indices. In this case, one element in the first map can be associated with the index of another element in the second map, or one element in the second map can be associated with the index of another element in the first map.

[0112] After receiving (220) at least one of the first map or the second map, the first device 110 performs (250) an operation based on at least one of the first map or the second map. The operation can be any operation related to the radio. For example, the first device 110 can perform a sensing operation and a communication operation. Specifically, the first device 110 can perform the sensing operation based on at least one of the first map or the second map. Additionally or alternatively, the first device 110 can communicate based on at least one of the first map or the second map. Additionally or alternatively, the first device 110 can determine a set of beams for at least one of the sensing operation and the communication based on at least one of the first map or the second map. Additionally or alternatively, the first device 110 can determine a transmission power for at least one of the sensing operation and the communication based on at least one of the first map or the second map. Additionally or alternatively, the first device 110 can determine a reference signal for at least one of the sensing operation and the communication based on at least one of the first map or the second map. In this way, the sensing / communication performance of the UE is improved, and / or the processing latency / complexity is reduced.

[0113] Additionally, as mentioned above, the partitioning of the elements in at least one of the first map or the second map can be determined in a number of ways. In some example embodiments of the present disclosure, the first map representing radio environment information can also be referred to as an RF-map, and the second map representing geometry information can also be referred to as a G-map.

[0114] Figure 3A An example partitioning of elements in at least one of the first map or the second map according to some embodiments of the present disclosure is shown. It should be appreciated that, Figure 3A The example maps in Figs. 1-3 are shown for illustration purposes only, Figure 3A Any of the maps in Figs. 1-3 can be used to represent either of the first map or the second map.

[0115] With respect to the RF-map, the RF-map can include N RF-map elements, N ≥ 1. The RF-map elements can include ray tracing or multipath information. For example, each path / ray can include information about the amplitude, time delay, angle, etc. of the path / ray. The RF-map elements can include one or more paths / rays, e.g., a {amplitude, time delay, angle,...} set. Additionally or alternatively, the RF-map elements can include channel H information. H can be represented in a vectorized format, a matrix-based format, or a scalar value. Additionally or alternatively, the RF-map elements can include beamforming information. For example, each beam can include information about the beam angle, beam gradient, beam width, etc. of the beam. The RF-map elements can include one or more beams, e.g., a {beam angle, beam gradient, beam width,...} set. Additionally or alternatively, the RF-map elements can include reference signal information. For example, each RF-map element can include one or more reference signals. Additionally or alternatively, the RF-map elements can include one or more channel quality indicators (CQIs). Additionally or alternatively, the RF-map elements can be a direct or indirect representation of channel state / quality, e.g., CQI, MCS, SNR, range of MCS, range of SNR, etc. For illustration only, as shown in FIG. 3, in the map 301, the map elements have the same size and the same shape. In other words, the RF-map 301 is uniformly partitioned, or the elements in the RF-map 301 have regular shapes and sizes. Figure 3A

[0116] In some embodiments, the partitioning of the RF-map can be uniform or non-uniform. In other words, the grid in the RF-map can be partitioned uniformly or non-uniformly, or the elements in the RF-map can be regular or irregular. For example, if the RF-map is uniformly partitioned (or the elements in the RF-map are regular), the elements in the RF-map can have the same element type / modality. Moreover, the range of values for each element in the RF-map is the same. For example, if the elements have a signal to noise ratio (SNR) type, the range of values for the elements in the RF-map can be 20 dB. Specifically, the value for the first element in the RF-map can be 0-20 dB, and the value for the second element in the RF-map can be 20-40 dB. In this case, the range of values in the two elements is the same, i.e., 20 dB. As shown in FIG. 3, the map 301 can be a uniformly partitioned RF-map. Moreover, the elements in the map 301 are regular. Figure 3A

[0117] ​​Alternatively, the partitioning of the RF-map can also be non-uniform, or the elements in the RF-map can be irregular. In an example, the elements in the RF-map can have different types and / or modalities. For example, if a first element in the RF-map has a first plurality of types and / or modalities, a second element in the RF-map has a second plurality of types and / or modalities. In this case, at least a portion of the first plurality of types and / or modalities can be different from the second plurality of types and / or modalities. In another example, the elements in the RF-map can still have the same type / modality. In this case, the value ranges of the elements in the RF-map can be different from each other. Just to illustrate, as shown in Figure 3A the elements in the map 303 have different sizes and shapes. In addition, the elements in the maps 305-309 can also have irregular shapes, i.e., the elements are not rectangular or square. Thus, the partitioning of the RF-maps 303-309 can be non-uniform, or the elements in these maps have irregular shapes / sizes.

[0118] Additionally or alternatively, in some embodiments, a first size of a first element in the RF-map can be the same or different from a second size of a second element in the RF-map, regardless of whether the element types are the same.

[0119] In some embodiments, the first size can be different from the second size in terms of dimensions if the element types of the first element and the second element are the same. For example, the first element, the second element, and another third element have the channel H information type. The size of the first element is 512x64x80. The size of the second element is 256x128. The size of the third element is vector 1x100. In this example, the sizes of these elements are different in terms of dimensions.

[0120] Additionally or alternatively, in some embodiments, the first size can differ from the second size in terms of the number of bits, compression or quantization ratio, or compression or quantization level of the elements. That is, the compression or quantization ratio / level of the elements is different. In an example, the first element has a channel H information type, the channel H information is compressed or quantized to 5 bits of information. The second element is a channel H information type, the channel H information is compressed or quantized to 4 bits of information. If the original quantization level of the channel H information is 16 bits of information (i.e., the information is originally stored with 16 bits), the compression ratio associated with the quantization of the first element and the second element is 3.2 and 4, respectively. Thus, the compression or quantization ratio / level of the elements can be different even for the same element type. While quantization and compression are often referring to different but related concepts, in the context of the previous example, the two terms can be used interchangeably for certain purposes. Additionally, in another example, the first element has a multipath information type, the amplitude, delay, and angle information of each path is compressed or quantized to 6 bits, 8 bits, and 5 bits, respectively. The second element can be a beamforming information type, the beam angle, beam gradient, and beam width information of each beam is compressed or quantized to 6 bits, 5 bits, and 7 bits, respectively. The quantization level of the elements can also be different for different element types. The quantization level can be different even for the angle in the path information and the angle in the beamforming information, for example.

[0121] Additionally or alternatively, the first size can differ from the second size in terms of the order of the information types in each element. In an example, the first element can be {channel H information, beamforming information}, and the second element can be {beamforming information, channel H information}. That is, the elements can include multiple types, and the order of the types can also be different.

[0122] Additionally or alternatively, the first size can differ from the second size in terms of the number of parameters in the elements. In an example, the first element can have beamforming information with a beam number of 5. The second element can have beamforming information with a beam number of 3. Thus, the elements include different numbers of parameters. In another example, the first element has a ray tracing type and a channel quality type, the ray tracing type includes 4 rays / paths, however, the second element can only have a ray tracing type, the ray tracing type includes 2 rays / paths.

[0123] Additionally or alternatively, in some embodiments, the first value range of the first element and the second value range of the second element may be the same or different. In an example, when the elements in the RF map are of the same type, the first value range of the first element in the RF map and the second value range of the second element in the RF map may be the same or different, depending on whether the RF map is uniformly divided. In another example, the first element has reference signal information with a value range of 0-20 dB; the second element has reference signal information with a value range of 0-30 dB. The value ranges of the elements are different. In yet another example, when the first element and the second element have different element types, since the "physical dimensions" of these elements are already different, the first value range and the second value range should also be different.

[0124] Furthermore, the second map representing geometric information (also known as a G-map) can also represent processed intermediate results such as geometric / geographical information. A G-map can be a grid-based map or represented in other formats. A G-map can include M G-map elements / grids, where M ≥ 1. G-map elements / grids can indicate 2D / 3D locations, 2D / 3D regions or areas, geometric information about the surrounding scene, geographic coordinates, other geometric / geographical information, or preprocessed geometric / geographical information.

[0125] like Figure 3A As shown, the grid in the exemplary map can be an element in a G-map. Similarly, the division of a G-map can be uniform or non-uniform. In other words, elements in a G-map can be regular or irregular. In some embodiments, if the division of the G-map is uniform, the geographic / geometric extent associated with each element in the G-map can have the same size or shape. Additionally, elements in a G-map can also have one or more types and / or shapes. In some embodiments, elements in a G-map have at least one of the following: a two-dimensional (2D) location area type; a three-dimensional (3D) location area type; a geographic coordinate type; or a processed data type associated with geographic / geometric information. Additionally, in the example, one element in the G-map may include 3D location area information and geographic coordinate information, while another element in the G-map may include geometric information about the surrounding scene. That is, elements in a G-map can include different types (different numbers of types). For illustration only, as shown in 3A, the division of map 301 is uniform. For example, the G-map elements / grids in map 301 have the same size and the same shape.

[0126] Alternatively, the partition of the G-Map can be non-uniform, or the elements / grids in the G-Map can be irregular. In some embodiments, the value range of a third element in the G-Map can be different from the value range of a fourth element in the G-Map. In other words, the elements / grids in the G-Map can have different sizes or shapes. Moreover, the element / grid shape can be regular or irregular. As shown in FIG. 3, the sizes and shapes of the elements / grids are different in the maps 330 to 309. In the maps 305 to 309, the elements can have irregular shapes, i.e., the elements are not rectangular or square. In this way, the description of the geometric / geographical information can be flexibly provided to the UE. Figure 3A

[0127] In some embodiments, the sizes of the elements in the G-Map can be different in terms of element dimensions. For example, one element in the G-Map is of the 2D location area type with a dimension of 100 x 200; another element in the G-Map is of the 2D location area type with a dimension of 200 x 200. The sizes / dimensions of the elements are different. Additionally or alternatively, one element in the G-Map is of the 2D location area type with a dimension of 100 x 200; another element in the G-Map is of the 3D location area type with a dimension of 50 x 250 x 100.

[0128] Additionally or alternatively, the sizes of the elements in the G-Map can be different in terms of compression or quantization ratio / level. For example, one element in the G-Map is of the 2D location area type with 2D location area information compressed or quantized to 8 bits. Another element in the G-Map can be of the 3D location area type with 3D location area information compressed or quantized to 12 bits. Another element in the G-Map is of the geographical coordinate type with geographical coordinates (x, y, z) compressed or quantized to 16 bits. Thus, the compression or quantization ratio / level of the elements can be different.

[0129] Additionally or alternatively, the sizes of the elements in the G-Map can be different in terms of the order of information types in each element. For example, one element in the G-Map includes {2D location area, geographical coordinates}. Another element in the G-Map includes {geographical coordinates, 2D location area}. That is, the elements in the G-Map can include multiple types, and the order of the types can be different.

[0130] Additionally or alternatively, the sizes of the elements in the G-Map can be different in terms of the number of parameters in the elements. For example, one element in the G-Map is of the 2D geographical coordinate type including 3 sets of coordinates (x, y). Another element in the G-Map is of the 2D geographical coordinate type including 4 sets of coordinates (x, y). That is, the elements in the G-Map can include different numbers of parameters. In this way, the description of the geometric / geographical information can be flexibly provided to the UE. ​

[0131] In summary, each map (e.g., RF-map or G-map) can include one or more elements. Furthermore, the elements in a map can have several representations or include several items of information. Specifically, a first element in a first map has a first element type, and a second element in the first map has a second element type. Furthermore, the first element type is the same as or different from the second element type. In addition, a first size of the first element is the same as or different from a second size of the second element; or, a first value range of the first element is the same as or different from a second value range of the second element.

[0132] In specific examples, each map element can include ray tracing or multipath information. For example, each path / ray can include information about the amplitude delay, angle, etc. of the path / ray. Furthermore, the element can include one or more paths / rays, e.g., a {amplitude, delay, angle,...} set. For example, such a map element can be used in an RF-map. Additionally or alternatively, each map element can include channel H information. H can be represented in a vectorized format, a matrix-based format, or a scalar value. For example, such a map element can be used in an RF-map. Additionally or alternatively, each map element can include beamforming information. For example, each beam can include information about the beam angle, beam gradient, beam width, etc. of the beam. That is, the element can include one or more beams, e.g., a {beam angle, beam gradient, beam width,...} set. For example, such a map element can be used in an RF-map. Additionally or alternatively, each map element can include reference signal information. For example, each element can include one or more reference signals. For example, such a map element can be used in an RF-map. Additionally or alternatively, each map element can include one or more channel quality indicator (CQI) metrics. For example, such a map element can be used in an RF-map. Additionally or alternatively, each map element can be a direct or indirect representation of channel state / quality, e.g., CQI, MCS, SNR, range of MSC, range of SNR, etc. For example, such a map element can be used in an RF-map. Additionally or alternatively, each map element can include geometry / geographical information, e.g., 2D / 3D position, 2D / 3D area or region, geometry information about the surrounding scene, geographical coordinates, or other geometry / geographical information. This information can be a scalar value or a vector value. For example, such a map element can be used in a G-map. Additionally or alternatively, each map element can include intermediate values or pre-processed geometry / geographical information, e.g., direction relative to the BS, distance from the BS, etc. For example, such a map element can be used in a G-map. Furthermore, the elements in a map can have different sizes or shapes. The shape of an element can be regular or irregular.

[0133] Additionally, once the elements in at least one of the first map or the second map are partitioned or determined, a corresponding identifier can be configured for the map elements. The identifier of a map element can be an index. Without limitation, the identifier can also be any other marker.

[0134] Figure 3B An exemplary index of the identified elements of some embodiments of the present disclosure is shown. Without limitation, the index of the elements in Figure 3B may be an index of the elements in the first map or an index of the elements in the second map.

[0135] As Figure 3B shown, the elements in the first map and / or the second map can be referred to, identified, or indicated by a unique index. In some embodiments, the index can be configured for the elements explicitly or implicitly according to the order of the elements, as shown below. That is, in some cases, once the map is partitioned, the index of the map elements is automatically determined according to the element order.

[0136] The above embodiments relate to the partitioning of a map (e.g., the first map or the second map). In turn, the representation or indication of the partitioned map is further discussed. Figures 3C to 5

[0137] To indicate the representation of the map, the matrix can be represented with at least one of a number of dimensions, one or more element types of the elements in the matrix, content of the elements, or an index of the elements. In addition, according to the characteristics of the matrix (or the elements in the matrix), the matrix can be indicated or represented in the following ways.

[0138] As a specific example, Figure 3C A uniformly partitioned matrix of an embodiment of the present disclosure is shown. As Figure 3C ​The illustrated map can be the first map or the second map described above. In some embodiments, at least one of the first map or the second map is represented by a matrix comprising the first set of elements or the second set of elements, the matrix having a plurality of dimensions. For example, a map (RF-map, or G-map, or other map) of the present disclosure can be represented by a high-dimensional matrix, the high-dimensional matrix being composed of a plurality of map elements. A map element can have a number of representations, each element having an index (explicitly, or implicitly), as described previously. In some embodiments, the high-dimensional matrix can be represented by a number of dimensions of the matrix, one or more element types of the elements in the matrix, content of the elements, and / or indices of the elements. In an example, to represent a map, the matrix dimensions / size (e.g., matrix size M x N) and content of each element in the matrix can be indicated. Additionally, a matrix element can have a number of representations, e.g., ray tracing / multipath information, channel H information, channel state / quality information, beamforming information, reference signal information, CQI, as described previously.

[0139] As shown in Figure 3C , the partitioning of the matrix representing the map is uniform. In this case, elements 311 and 313 can have the same element type (e.g., SINR information, ray tracing / multipath information, channel H information, or beamforming information, as described above). Additionally, elements 311 and 313 have the same range of values, e.g., 20 dB. Additionally, if the partitioning of the high-dimensional matrix is uniform, meaning that each element can have the same or similar metric, the indication or representation of the matrix can be simplified. For further clarity, reference is made to Figure 4A the indication and representation of a uniformly partitioned matrix is further discussed.

[0140] Alternatively, the partitioning of the matrix representing the first map or the second map can be non-uniform. As another specific example, Figure 3D a non-uniformly partitioned matrix of an embodiment of the present disclosure is shown. As shown in Figure 3D The illustrated map can be the first map or the second map described above. As described above, element 315 can have a different element type than element 317. For example, the type of element 315 can be ray tracing / multipath information. That is, the type of element 317 can be channel H information. Alternatively, the types of elements 315 and 317 can still be the same. That is, the range of values of the two elements can be different. For example, the types of the two elements can be SINR types, the range of values of element 315 can be 0-20 dB, and the range of values of element 317 can be 20-80 dB. For further clarity, reference is made to Figures 4B to 4D the indication and representation of a non-uniformly partitioned matrix is further discussed.

[0141] Figure 4AAn exemplary indication or representation of the first map or the second map is shown.

[0142] As mentioned above, the indication or representation of the matrix representing the map can be simplified if the partition of the matrix is uniform. In some embodiments, the matrix can be represented by at least one of: the number of elements in the matrix, or the length of each element in the matrix in each of the plurality of dimensions. In a specific example, if the elements of the matrix have SINR type and receive beam degree type, the matrix can be represented by the start point 401, the length (i.e. element size) or the number of elements in SINR and receive beam degree. In an example, the start point 401 can be {-20dB, -180°}, and the length in the two dimensions can be represented as 3dB and 5° respectively. In this case, if the x-dimension of the matrix is SINR type and the y-dimension of the matrix is receive beam degree type, the element with index 0 can be {[-20dB, -17dB), [-180°, -175°)}. Further, the element with index 1 can be {[-17dB, -14dB), [-180°, -175°)}, and the element with index 5 can be {[-20dB, -17dB), [-175°, -170°)}. Additionally or alternatively, the start point or the length in each dimension can be pre-configured or pre-defined, in which case the second device 170 can also indicate one of the start point, the element length or the number of elements to the first device 110. It should be appreciated that the above-mentioned element types are shown for the purpose of discussion, and there can be any other types of elements. In other words, if the partition of the high-dimensional matrix is uniform, to represent the map, the size of each element or the number of elements in the map can be indicated. Further, the indication can be explicit or implicit.

[0143] Alternatively, the partition of the matrix representing the map can be non-uniform. In this case, reference will be made to Figures 4B to 4D The representation and indication of the matrix will be further discussed. Figures 4B to Figure 4D An exemplary indication or representation of the first map or the second map and other exemplary partition of elements in at least one of the first map or the second map of some embodiments of the disclosure is shown.

[0144] In some embodiments, an element in the matrix has a size, and another element in the matrix has another size different from the size in the plurality of dimensions. In this case, the matrix can be represented or indicated by at least one of: the starting position of each element in the matrix in the plurality of dimensions, or the length of each element in the matrix in each of the plurality of dimensions. In a specific example, if the partition of the high-dimensional matrix is non-uniform, to represent the map, the range / bounding box of each element can be indicated. For example, taking a 2D map / matrix as an example, as shown in FIG. 4B, the matrix can be represented by the start point 401, the length in SINR and receive beam degree, and the range of each element in the matrix. In an example, the start point 401 can be {-20dB, -180°}, the length in the two dimensions can be represented as 3dB and 5° respectively, and the range of each element in the matrix can be represented as {[-20dB, -17dB), [-180°, -175°)}, {[-17dB, -14dB), [-180°, -175°)}, {[-14dB, -11dB), [-180°, -175°)}, {[-11dB, -8dB), [-180°, -175°)}, {[-8dB, -5dB), [-180°, -175°)}, {[-5dB, -2dB), [-180°, -175°)}, {[-2dB, 1dB), [-180°, -175°)}, {[-1dB, 2dB), [-180°, -175°)}, {[2dB, 5dB), [-180°, -175°)}, {[5dB, 8dB), [-180°, -175°)}, {[8dB, 11dB), [-180°, -175°)}, {[11dB, 14dB), [-180°, -175°)}, {[14dB, 17dB), [-180°, -175°)}, {[17dB, 20dB), [-180°, -175°)}. Figure 4BAs shown, the elements in the matrix that are divided can be indicated by {{start point x0, y0, x range d0, y range d0'}, {start point x1, y1, x range d1, y range d1'}...}; where (x0, y0) represents the start position of the first partition / range / bounding box (implicit / explicit index is 0), "x range d0" represents the size / length in the x dimension, "y range d0'" represents the size / length in the y dimension, (x1, y1) represents the start position of the second partition / range / bounding box (implicit / explicit index is 1).

[0145] Alternatively, the non-uniformly divided matrix can be represented or indicated by a quadtree structure or an octree structure including multiple levels. Specifically, if the matrix is divided based on the quadtree structure or the octree structure, the elements in the matrix can be associated with one of the multiple levels. In addition, the third and fourth elements in the matrix that are associated with the same level of the multiple levels can have the same size in multiple dimensions. Further, the fifth element in the matrix that is associated with the first level of the multiple levels has a third size, and the sixth element in the matrix that is associated with the second level of the multiple levels has a fourth size that is different from the third size in multiple dimensions. As shown, Figure 4C As shown, the element 421-1 is associated with the node 421-2 in the quadtree structure, and the element 423-1 is associated with the node 423-2 in the quadtree structure, and the node 421-2 and the node 423-2 are at the same level of the quadtree structure. In this case, the element 421-1 and the element 423-1 can have the same size, the dimension of the matrix. Further, the element 425-1 is associated with the node 425-2 in the quadtree structure, and the node 425-2 is at a different level from the node 421-2 or 423-2. In this case, the element 421-1 and 423-1 can have a different size from the node 425-1. For example, the size of the element 425-1 can be smaller than the element 421-1. That is, if the division of the high-dimensional matrix is non-uniform, in order to represent the mapping, the range / bounding box of each element can be indicated or represented based on the tree partition (e.g., quadtree, octree,...). Figure 4C As further shown, the number 1 in the node of the quadtree structure represents further partitioning, and the number 0 in the node represents terminating partitioning.

[0146] Additionally or alternatively, if the matrix or map is a 3D map / matrix, the octree structure can be used to represent the division or partition of the matrix. The high-order tree can be used to represent the partition of the high-dimensional map / matrix. As shown, Figure 4D As further shown, the division or partition of the matrix can also be indicated or represented by the octree structure. In addition, the indication manner can be similar to the quadtree structure.

[0147] In some embodiments, for a matrix representing the geometry information (i.e., G-Map), the starting position of the above matrix can be a starting position of a location / geometry / geography (e.g., in global or local position / coordinates).

[0148] Additionally, there can be an implicit mapping configuration between the first map and the second map. For example, an element in one of the first map or the second map can reference one or more other elements in the other of the first map or the second map, as described in the embodiments related to Figure 3B In an example, an element in the first map can be associated with an index of another element in the second map. Additionally or alternatively, an element in the second map can be associated with an index of another element in the first map. For example, a G-Map element can reference an element index of an RF-Map, and an RF-Map element can also reference an element index of a G-Map. For example, a G-Map element can reference an index, bounding box / partition / range (e.g., starting position, range / size), or tree node (e.g., tree level, node index) of an RF-Map. It should be appreciated that the above embodiments are described with reference to a 2D matrix, however, the matrix can also be a high-dimensional matrix, and the above methods are applicable. That is, the association between the first map and the second map can also be indicated in the first map or the second map itself, so that the first device 110 can determine the accurate radio frequency environment as needed.

[0149] Referring back to Figure 2 , in addition to the representation of the matrix or tree structure, alternatively, at least one of the first map or the second map can also be indicated or represented by a list or array including the first element set or the second element set. In this case, at least one of the first map or the second map can be represented by at least one of the following: the number of elements in the list or array, one or more element types of the elements in the list or array, the size of the elements in the list or array, the content of the elements, or the index of the elements.

[0150] In a specific example of the list or array, the first map or the second map can be represented by a list or array consisting of a plurality of map elements. A map element can have a number of representations, each element having an index (explicitly, or implicitly), as described previously. In addition, an element i can have a number of element representations. In addition to the map element representation described in Figures 3C to 4D , the element index “i” and / or the element type in the list or array can also be included in the element. Additionally or alternatively, the number of paths / beam or size information can be included in the element. Some examples are given below.

[0151] In an example, the map is a G-Map, and the map element can be used to indicate a G-Map location. In this case, element i can be: {(x, y, z)}, where (x, y, z) represents a location / position / coordinate. In addition, an element index "i" can be included, that is, the representation of element i becomes {index i, (x, y, z)}.

[0152] Alternatively, the map is an RF-Map, and the map element can be used to indicate an RF-Map element, such as one or more paths / rays. In this case, element i can be: {{amplitude 0, delay 0, angle 0}, {amplitude 1, delay 1, angle 1}, …, {amplitude n i , delay n i , angle n i}}, where {amplitude x, delay x, angle x} represents the amplitude, delay, angle of a path / ray in a set of paths / rays (e.g., multiple paths / multiple rays). n i is the number of paths / rays. In addition, the number of paths n i and / or an element index "i" can be included, that is, the representation of element i becomes {index i, number of paths n i , {amplitude 0, delay 0, angle 0}, {amplitude 1, delay 1, angle 1}, …, {amplitude n i , delay n i , angle n i}}. In addition, element i can also include an element type. For example, element i can be {type RAY, number of paths n i , {amplitude 0, delay 0, angle 0}, {amplitude 1, delay 1, angle 1}, …, {amplitude n i , delay n i, , angle n i}}, where type RAY indicates that the element type is multiple paths / multiple rays. In another example, element j can be {type BEAM, number of beams n j , {angle 0, gradient 0, width 0}, …, {angle n j , gradient n j , width n j}}, where type BEAM indicates that the element type is beamforming information (each beam can include information about the beam angle, beam gradient, beam width, etc. of the beam. The element can include one or more beams). Optionally, the number of paths n i or the number of beams n j may be included in element i, for example, the representation of element j becomes {index j, type BEAM, number of beams n j , {angle 0, gradient 0, width 0}, …, {angle nj gradient n j Width n j Additionally, element i can include the element size. For example, element i could be {type H, size M}. t ×N t , value / compressed value…}, where “M t ×N t "" represents the element size / length / dimension, and "value / compressed value..." indicates the original or compressed value of the channel H information included in this element.

[0153] Figure 5 Exemplary list or array representations of first or second maps according to some embodiments of this disclosure are shown. Figure 5 As shown and as described above, a map represented by a list or array can be: {number of elements k, {element 0, element 1, …, element k}}, where the map includes k elements. The number k can be optionally included. For example, element 501 can have eight dimensions, element 503 can have six dimensions, and element 505 can have five dimensions. Dimensions can refer to element types. That is, each of elements 501 to 503 can have one or more types, such as channel matrix, SINR, channel quality, etc. Furthermore, at least some of these elements can have different element types from each other. Non-limitingly, additionally or alternatively, elements 501 to 505 can also have different sizes. For example, elements 501 to 503 can have the same element type, such as rays / paths. However, element 501 can include eight rays / paths, element 503 can include six rays / paths, and element 505 can include five rays / paths.

[0154] Return to reference Figure 2 At least one of the first map or the second map 215 may be carried in any signaling message between the first device 110 and the second device 170. In some embodiments, at least one of the first map or the second map 215 may be carried in at least one of the following: synchronization signal block (SSB) signaling, a first message specific to the first device, a second message specific to a group of devices including the first device, or a broadcast message.

[0155] In an example, the BS can broadcast, groupcast or unicast an RF-map to the UE, the RF-map consisting of a plurality of map elements. The map message / indication can be carried in an SSB for broadcast, or in a groupcast message targeting a group of UEs or even dedicated to one UE. Alternatively, the BS can broadcast, groupcast or unicast a G-map to the UE, the G-map consisting of a plurality of map elements. The map message / indication can be carried in an SSB for broadcast, or in a groupcast message targeting a group of UEs or even dedicated to one UE. Additionally, the RF-map and the G-map can be included in different messages / indications from the BS to the UE. The timing for transmitting the RF-map and the G-map can be different.

[0156] Additionally, as mentioned above, if the map is represented by a high dimensional matrix, the matrix dimension / size, the partition size / partition method / each element bounding box / each element range (especially for non-uniformly divided matrix), each element content (ray tracing / multipath information, channel H information, channel state / quality information, beamforming information, reference signal information, CQI...) need to be indicated. Each element has an index (explicitly, or implicitly). Additionally or alternatively, if the map is represented by a list or an array, the number of elements (optionally), each element content (ray tracing / multipath information, channel H information, channel state / quality information, beamforming information, reference signal information, CQI...) need to be indicated. For example, {number of elements k, {element 0,..., element k}} can be indicated. Additionally or alternatively, at least one of the first map or the second map 215 is in compressed format. That is, the RF-map and / or the G-map can be compressed to reduce the signaling overhead.

[0157] Therefore, with at least one of the RF-map or the G-map, the first device 110 can perform the sensing operation and the communication more accurately. For example, once the first device 110 determines the element in the first map associated with the first device 110 (i.e., the radio environment information associated with the first device 110), the first device 110 can perform the sensing operation according to the element in the first map associated with the first device. Additionally or alternatively, the first device 110 can communicate according to the element in the first map associated with the first device. Additionally or alternatively, the first device 110 can determine a set of beams for at least one of the sensing operation and the communication according to the element in the first map associated with the first device. Additionally or alternatively, the first device 110 can determine a transmission power for at least one of the sensing operation and the communication according to the element in the first map associated with the first device. Additionally or alternatively, the first device 110 can determine a reference signal for at least one of the sensing operation and the communication according to the element in the first map associated with the first device.

[0158] In view of the above, some example embodiments of the present disclosure define two types of maps. Each map (RF-map or G-map or other map) comprises N elements, N≥1. A map element can have several representations or comprise several items of information. For example, each map element can comprise ray tracing or multipath information, channel H information, beamforming information, reference signal information, one or more CQIs, a direct or indirect representation of channel state / quality, geometric / geographical information, intermediate values or pre-processed geometric / geographical information, or any combination of these mentioned options. Thus, some embodiments of the present disclosure can achieve at least the following advantages. That is, different RF-maps (including specific types of RF-map elements) can be flexibly provided according to different scenarios and perception / communication tasks. Moreover, a description of location / geometric / geographical information can be flexibly provided to a UE.

[0159] Moreover, a map (first map or second map) can have several representations. A map can be represented by a high-dimensional matrix. In this case, at least one of the following can be indicated: matrix dimension / size, partition size / partition method / bounding box per element / range per element (in particular for non-uniformly divided matrices), content per element (ray tracing / multipath information, channel H information, channel state / quality information, beamforming information, reference signal information, CQI,...). Alternatively, a map can be represented by a list or array. In this case, the number of elements (optionally) and the content per element need to be indicated, e.g., {number of elements k, {element 0,..., element k}}. The elements in a map can have different sizes or shapes. The shape of an element can be regular or irregular. The elements in a map can have the same type / modality or different types and / or modalities.

[0160] Thus, some embodiments of the present disclosure can achieve at least the following advantages. According to some embodiments of the present disclosure, different RF-maps (including specific types of RF-map elements) can be flexibly provided according to different scenarios and perception / communication tasks. According to the present disclosure, a description of location / geometric / geographical information can be flexibly provided to a UE. According to some embodiments of the present disclosure, a UE can obtain an up-to-date map of the wireless environment according to the location / geometric / geographical information. In this way, the perception / communication performance of the UE is improved, and / or the processing latency / complexity is reduced. According to some embodiments of the present disclosure, a UE can obtain an up-to-date map of the wireless environment according to the location / geometric / geographical information. In this way, the perception / communication performance of the UE is improved, and / or the processing latency / complexity is reduced.

[0161] Additionally, the BS can broadcast, groupcast or unicast the RF-map and / or the G-map to the UE, which is composed of multiple map elements. The RF-map and the G-map can be included in different messages / indications from the BS to the UE. The timing for transmitting the RF-map and the G-map can be different. In some embodiments, the RF-map and / or the G-map can be compressed. In this way, the UE can acquire the latest wireless environment map. Therefore, the perception / communication performance of the UE is improved, and / or the processing latency / complexity is reduced.

[0162] Figure 6 A flowchart of a method 600 of implementing communication at a first device is shown that illustrates some embodiments of the present disclosure. The method 600 can be implemented at the first device 110 as shown. For discussion purposes, reference will be made to the first device 110 and the second device 120 as shown in FIG. 1. Figure 1A The method 600 will be described. It should be understood that the method 600 can include additional acts not shown and / or some of the shown acts can be omitted, without the scope of the present disclosure being so limited. Figure 1A The method 600 will be described. It should be understood that the method 600 can include additional acts not shown and / or some of the shown acts can be omitted, without the scope of the present disclosure being so limited.

[0163] At 610, the first device 110 obtains at least one of a first map or a second map from the second device. The first map represents radio environment information and includes a first set of elements. The second map represents geometry information and includes a second set of elements. The elements in the first map represent a portion of the radio environment information, and the elements in the second map represent a portion of the geometry information. At 620, the first device performs an operation based on the at least one of the first map or the second map.

[0164] In some embodiments, the elements in the first map have at least one of: a multipath or ray tracing information type, a channel matrix information type characterizing a channel, a beamforming information type, a reference signal information type, or a channel quality or state information type.

[0165] In some embodiments, the elements in the second map have at least one of: a two-dimension (2D) location area type; a three-dimension (3D) location area type; a geographic coordinate type; or a processed data type associated with the geometry information.

[0166] In some embodiments, the elements in one of the first map or the second map have one or more element types.

[0167] In some embodiments, a first element in one of the first map or the second map has a first element type, a second element in the one of the first map or the second map has a second element type, wherein at least one of the following is true: the first element type is the same as or different from the second element type; a first size of the first element is the same as or different from a second size of the second element; or a first value range of the first element is the same as or different from a second value range of the second element.

[0168] In some embodiments, at least one of the first map or the second map is represented by a matrix including the first set of elements or the second set of elements, the matrix having a plurality of dimensions.

[0169] In some embodiments, the matrix is represented by at least one of: the plurality of dimensions, one or more element types of elements in the matrix, content of the elements, or indices of the elements.

[0170] In some embodiments, each element in the matrix has a same size in the plurality of dimensions, wherein at least one of the first map or the second map is represented by at least one of: a number of elements in the matrix; or the same size.

[0171] In some embodiments, a first element in the matrix has a first size, a second element in the matrix has a second size different from the first size in the plurality of dimensions, wherein the matrix is represented by at least one of: a starting position of each element in the matrix in the plurality of dimensions, or a length of each element in the matrix in each of the plurality of dimensions.

[0172] In some embodiments, the first set of elements or the second set of elements in the matrix is determined by a quadtree or an octree including a plurality of levels; elements in the matrix are associated with one of the plurality of levels.

[0173] In some embodiments, at least one of the following is true: a third element and a fourth element in the matrix associated with a same one of the plurality of levels have a same size in the plurality of dimensions; or a fifth element in the matrix associated with a first one of the plurality of levels has a third size, a sixth element in the matrix associated with a second one of the plurality of levels has a fourth size different from the third size in the plurality of dimensions.

[0174] In some embodiments, at least one of the first map or the second map is represented by a list or an array including the first set of elements or the second set of elements. In some embodiments, at least one of the first map or the second map is represented by at least one of: a number of elements in the list or the array, one or more element types of elements in the list or the array, a size of elements in the list or the array, content of the elements, or indices of the elements.

[0175] In some embodiments, at least one of the following is true: an element in the first map is associated with an index of another element in the second map, or an element in the second map is associated with an index of another element in the first map.

[0176] In some embodiments, at least one of the first map or the second map is carried in at least one of: synchronization signal block (SSB) signaling; a first message specific to the first device; or a second message specific to a group of devices including the first device; or a broadcast message.

[0177] In some embodiments, performing the operations comprises: performing a sensing operation based on at least one of the first map or the second map; communicating based on at least one of the first map or the second map; determining a set of beams for at least one of the sensing operation and the communicating based on at least one of the first map or the second map; determining a transmission power for at least one of the sensing operation and the communicating based on at least one of the first map or the second map; or determining a reference signal for at least one of the sensing operation and the communicating based on at least one of the first map or the second map.

[0178] In some embodiments, at least one of the first map or the second map has a compressed format. In some embodiments, obtaining at least one of the first map or the second map comprises: receiving at least one of the first map or the second map from the second device.

[0179] Figure 7 A flowchart of a method 700 of communicating implemented at a second device is shown that illustrates some embodiments of the present disclosure. The method 700 can be implemented at a second device 170, as shown. For discussion purposes, reference will be made to the first and second devices 110 and 170 of FIG. 1. However, the scope of the present disclosure should not be limited in this manner. Figure 1A The method 700 is described with reference to FIG. 1. It should be understood that the method 700 can include additional actions not shown and / or can omit some of the actions shown, without changing the scope of the present disclosure. Figure 1A The method 700 is described with reference to FIG. 1. It should be understood that the method 700 can include additional actions not shown and / or can omit some of the actions shown, without changing the scope of the present disclosure.

[0180] At 710, the second device 170 sends at least one of a first map or a second map to the first device. The first map represents radio environment information and includes a first set of elements, and the second map represents geometry information and includes a second set of elements. An element in the first map represents a portion of the radio environment information, and an element in the second map represents a portion of the geometry information.

[0181] In some embodiments, an element in the first map has at least one of: a multipath or ray tracing information type, a channel matrix information type characterizing a channel, a beamforming information type, a reference signal information type, or a channel quality or state information type. In this way, the radio environment information can be indicated in multiple dimensions. Thus, the radio environment information can be described from multiple perspectives as needed.

[0182] In some embodiments, an element in the second map has at least one of the following: a two-dimension (2D) location area type; a three-dimension (3D) location area type; a geographic coordinate type; or a processed data type associated with geometry information. In this way, the elements in the second map can be flexibly configured.

[0183] In some embodiments, an element in one of the first map or the second map has one or more element types. In some embodiments, a first element in one of the first map or the second map has a first element type, and a second element in one of the first map or the second map has a second element type, where there is at least one of the following: the first element type is the same as or different from the second element type; a first size of the first element is the same as or different from a second size of the second element; or a first value range of the first element is the same as or different from a second value range of the second element. In this way, the elements in the first map can be flexibly configured.

[0184] In some embodiments, at least one of the first map or the second map is represented by a matrix including the first element set or the second element set, the matrix having a plurality of dimensions. In this way, the first map and the second map can be represented by a matrix having any number of dimensions, so that the environment information can be accurately described.

[0185] In some embodiments, the matrix is represented by at least one of the following: the plurality of dimensions, one or more element types of the elements in the matrix, content of the elements, or an index of the elements. In this way, the matrix representing the first map or the second map can be indicated by predefined parameters.

[0186] In some embodiments, each element in the matrix has a same size in the plurality of dimensions, where at least one of the first map or the second map is represented by at least one of the following: a number of the elements in the matrix; and the same size. In this way, if the sizes of the elements in the matrix are the same, the transmission parameters indicating the matrix can be simplified. Therefore, the transmission overhead of the first map or the second map can be reduced.

[0187] In some embodiments, a first element in the matrix has a first size, and a second element in the matrix has a second size different from the first size in the plurality of dimensions, where the matrix is represented by a starting position of each element in the matrix in the plurality of dimensions and a length of each element in the matrix in each of the plurality of dimensions. In this way, the elements in the first map or the second map can be flexibly indicated even if the sizes or types of the elements are different.

[0188] In some embodiments, the first set of elements or the second set of elements in the matrix is determined by a quadtree or an octree comprising a plurality of levels; an element in the matrix is associated with a level in the plurality of levels. In this way, the elements in the matrix can be partitioned in a predefined rule, which can be indicated according to the characteristics of the quadtree or the octree.

[0189] In some embodiments, at least one of the following is true: a third element and a fourth element in the matrix associated with a same level in the plurality of levels have a same size in a plurality of dimensions; or a fifth element in the matrix associated with a first level in the plurality of levels has a third size, and a sixth element in the matrix associated with a second level in the plurality of levels has a fourth size different from the third size in the plurality of dimensions. In this way, the size of the elements can be indicated according to the characteristics of the quadtree or the octree.

[0190] In some embodiments, at least one of the first map or the second map is represented by a list or an array comprising the first set of elements or the second set of elements. In some embodiments, at least one of the first map or the second map is represented by at least one of: a number of elements in the list or the array, one or more element types of the elements in the list or the array, a size of the elements in the list or the array, content of the elements, or an index of the elements. In this way, the first map and the second map can be represented in a variety of ways, e.g., a matrix, a list, or an array.

[0191] In some embodiments, at least one of the following is true: an element in the first map is associated with an index of another element in the second map, or an element in the second map is associated with an index of another element in the first map. In this way, the mapping between the first map and the second map can be further indicated. As a result, the device can determine the required wireless environment.

[0192] In some embodiments, at least one of the first map or the second map is carried in at least one of: a synchronization signal block (SSB) signaling; a first message specific to the first device; a second message specific to a group of devices comprising the first device; or a broadcast message. In this way, the first map and the second map can be transmitted periodically or dynamically.

[0193] In some embodiments, at least one of the first map or the second map is represented in a compressed format. In this way, the payload of the mapping configuration, the first map, or the second map can be reduced.

[0194] Figure 8 is a simplified block diagram of a device 800 suitable for implementing some embodiments of the present disclosure. The device 800 can be regarded as comprising at least one processor 802, at least one memory 804 including a computer program product 806, and at least one transceiver 808. The processor 802, the memory 804, and the transceiver 808 can be communicatively coupled, e.g., via one or more buses 810. The processor 802 is configured to Figure 1AAnother exemplary embodiment of the first device 110 or the second device 170 is shown. Thus, the device 800 can be implemented at or as at least a part of the devices described above.

[0195] As shown, the device 800 includes a processor 810, a memory 820 coupled to the processor 810, a suitable transmitter (TX) and receiver (RX) 840 coupled to the processor 810, and a communication interface coupled to the TX / RX 840. The TX / RX 840 can also be referred to as a transceiver. The TX / RX 840 can be coupled to the processor 810 through any suitable interface for inputting and outputting signals to and from the processor. The memory 820 stores at least a part of a program 830. The TX / RX 840 is for bidirectional communication. The TX / RX 840 has at least one antenna to facilitate communication, but in practice, an access node or base station referred to in this application can have several antennas. The communication interface can represent any interface needed to communicate with other network elements, such as an X2 or Xn interface for bidirectional communication between gNBs or eNBs, an S1 interface for communication between a Mobility Management Entity (MME) / Serving Gateway (S-GW) and a gNB or eNB, an Un interface for communication between a gNB or eNB and a relay node (RN), or a Uu interface for communication between a gNB or eNB and a terminal device.

[0196] The program 830 is assumed to include program instructions that, when executed by the associated processor 810, enable the device 800 to operate in accordance with the embodiments of the present disclosure, as described herein with reference to FIGs. 1-7. Embodiments herein can be implemented by computer software executable by the processor 810 of the device 800, or by hardware, or by a combination of software and hardware. The processor 810 can be used to implement various embodiments of the present disclosure. Furthermore, the combination of the processor 810 and the memory 820 can form a processing means 850 for implementing various embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0197] The memory 820 can be of any type suitable to the local technical requirements, and can be implemented using any suitable data storage technology, such as non-volatile computer-readable memory devices, semiconductor-based memory devices, magnetic memory devices and systems, optical memory devices and systems, fixed memory and removable memory (as non-limiting examples). Although only one memory 820 is shown in the device 800, there can be several physically different memory modules in the device 800. The processor 810 can be of any type suitable to the local technical requirements, and can include one or more of general-purpose computers, special purpose computers, microprocessors, digital signal processors (DSPs), and processors based on multi-core processor architectures, as non-limiting examples. The device 800 can have multiple processors such as a dedicated integrated circuit chip that is time-slaved to a clock that is synchronized with a master processor.

[0198] In some embodiments, the terminal device comprises circuitry for performing the method 600.

[0199] In some embodiments, the network device comprises circuitry for performing the method 700.

[0200] Components included in the apparatuses and / or devices of the present disclosure can be implemented in various ways, including software, hardware, firmware, or any combination thereof. In one embodiment, one or more units can be implemented using software and / or firmware, e.g., using machine-executable instructions stored on a storage medium. In addition to or instead of machine-executable instructions, part or all of the units in the apparatuses and / or devices can be implemented at least partly by one or more hardware logic components. For example, and without limitation, illustrative types of hardware logic components that can be used include field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs), application-specific standard products (ASSPs), system-on-a-chip systems (SOCs), complex programmable logic devices (CPLDs), etc.

[0201] In general, the various embodiments of the disclosure can be implemented in hardware or special-purpose circuits, software, logic or any combination thereof. Some aspects can be implemented in hardware, while other aspects can be implemented in firmware or software which can be executed by a controller, microprocessor or other computing device. While various aspects of embodiments of the disclosure are illustrated and described as block diagrams, flow charts, or using some other pictorial representation, it is well understood that these blocks, apparatus, systems, techniques termination or methods described herein can be implemented in hardware, software, firmware, special purpose circuits or logic, general purpose hardware or controller or other computing devices, or some combination thereof.

[0202] The present disclosure also provides at least one computer program product which is tangibly stored on a non-transitory computer readable storage medium. The computer program product includes computer executable instructions, for example, as embodied in program modules that, when executed on devices on a target real or virtual processor, perform the processes or methods as described above with reference to any one of Figures 3 to 14. In general, program modules include routines, programs, libraries, objects, classes, components, data structures, etc. that perform particular tasks or implement particular abstract data types. The functionality of the program modules can be combined or split between program modules as desired in various embodiments. Machine executable instructions for a program module can be executed within a local or distributed device. In a distributed device, program modules can be located in local and remote memory storage devices.

[0203] Program code for carrying out methods of the present disclosure can be written in any combination of one or more programming languages. This program code can be provided to a processor or controller of a general purpose computer, special purpose computer, or other programmable data processing apparatus to produce a machine, such that the program code, when executed by the processor or controller, produces the functions / operations specified in the flowcharts and / or block diagrams. The program code can be executed entirely on a machine, partly on a machine (as a stand-alone software package), partly on a machine and partly on a remote machine or entirely on a remote machine or server.

[0204] The program code mentioned above can be embodied on a machine-readable medium, which can be any tangible medium that can contain, or store a program for use by or in connection with an instruction execution system, apparatus, or device. The machine-readable medium can be a machine-readable signal medium or a machine-readable storage medium. It can include, but not limited to, an electronic, magnetic, optical, electromagnetic, infrared, or semiconductor system, apparatus, or device, or any suitable combination of the above. More specific examples of the machine-readable storage medium will include an electrical connection having one or more wires, a portable computer diskette, a hard disk, a random access memory (RAM), a read-only memory (ROM), an erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM or flash memory), an optical fiber, a portable compact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM), an optical storage device, a magnetic storage device, or any suitable combination of the above.

[0205] Moreover, while operations can be depicted in the drawings in a particular, sequential order, this should not be understood as requiring or implying that such operations be performed in the order illustrated, or that all illustrated operations be performed, to achieve desirable results. In certain circumstances, multitasking and parallel processing can be advantageous. Likewise, while several specific embodiments have been set forth, these should be understood as merely illustrative as there can be other embodiments that fall within the scope of the disclosure. Certain features that are described in the context of separate embodiments can also be implemented in combination in a single embodiment. Conversely, various features that are described in the context of a single embodiment can also be implemented in multiple embodiments or in any suitable sub-combination.

[0206] Although the present disclosure has been described in language specific to structural features and / or methodological acts, it is to be understood that the subject of the appended claims is not necessarily limited to the specific features or acts described above. Rather, the specific features and acts described above are disclosed as example implementations of implementing the claims.

[0207] When these functions are implemented in the form of software function units and sold or used as independent products, these functions can be stored in a computer readable storage medium. Based on such understanding, the technical solutions of the present application essentially or the parts of the prior art that make contributions or the parts of the technical solutions can be implemented in the form of a software product. The software product is stored in a storage medium and includes a number of instructions for instructing a computer device (which can be a personal computer, a server or a network device) to execute all or part of the steps of the method described in the embodiments of the present application. The above storage medium includes any medium that can store program codes, such as a USB flash disk, a mobile hard disk, a read-only memory (ROM), a random access memory (RAM), a magnetic disk or an optical disk.

[0208] The above description is only some specific implementation manners of the present application, and is not intended to limit the protection scope of the present application. Any changes or replacements of the technical contents disclosed in the present application that are easily conceived by those skilled in the art are within the protection scope of the present application. Therefore, the protection scope of the present disclosure should be subject to the protection scope of the claims.

Claims

1. A method comprising: Obtain at least one of a first map or a second map, wherein the first map represents radio environment information and includes a first set of elements, the second map represents geometric information and includes a second set of elements, and the elements in the first map represent a portion of the radio environment information, and the elements in the second map represent a portion of the geometric information; as well as The operation is performed based on at least one of the first map or the second map.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the elements in the first map have at least one of the following: Multipath or ray tracing information type, The type of channel matrix information that characterizes the channel. Beamforming information type Reference signal information type, or Channel quality or status information type.

3. The method according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the elements in the second map have at least one of the following: Two-dimensional (2D) location region type; 3D location region type; Geographic coordinate type; or The processed data type associated with the geometric information.

4. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the elements in one of the first map or the second map have one or more element types.

5. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the first element in one of the first map or the second map has a first element type, and the second element in one of the first map or the second map has a second element type, and wherein at least one of the following is present: The first element type is the same as or different from the second element type; The first size of the first element is the same as or different from the second size of the second element; or The first value range of the first element is the same as or different from the second value range of the second element.

6. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein at least one of the first map or the second map is represented by a matrix including the first set of elements or the second set of elements, and the matrix has multiple dimensions.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the matrix is ​​represented by at least one of the following: The multiple dimensions, For one or more element types of the elements in the matrix, Regarding the content of the element, or The index of the element.

8. The method of claim 6 or 7, wherein each element in the matrix has the same size across the plurality of dimensions, and wherein at least one of the first map or the second map is represented by at least one of the following: The number of elements in the matrix; or The same size.

9. The method of claim 6 or 7, wherein the first element of the matrix has a first size, the second element of the matrix has a second size different from the first size in the plurality of dimensions, and wherein the matrix is ​​represented by at least one of the following: The starting position of each element in the matrix in the plurality of dimensions, or The length of each element in the matrix in each of the plurality of dimensions.

10. The method according to claim 6 or 7, wherein: The first set of elements or the second set of elements in the matrix is ​​determined by a quadtree or octree that includes multiple levels; as well as The elements in the matrix are associated with one of the multiple levels.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein at least one of the following is present: The third and fourth elements in the matrix that are associated with the same level in the plurality of levels have the same size in the plurality of dimensions; or The fifth element in the matrix associated with the first level of the plurality of levels has a third size, and the sixth element in the matrix associated with the second level of the plurality of levels has a fourth size, which is different from the third size in the plurality of dimensions.

12. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 11, wherein at least one of the first map or the second map is represented by a list or array including the first set of elements or the second set of elements.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein at least one of the first map or the second map is represented by at least one of the following: The number of elements in the list or the array For one or more element types of the elements in the list or array, Regarding the size of the elements in the list or array, Regarding the content of the element, or The index of the element.

14. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 13, wherein at least one of the following is present: An element in the first map is associated with the index of another element in the second map, or An element in the second map is associated with an index of another element in the first map.

15. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 14, wherein at least one of the first map or the second map is carried out in at least one of the following: Synchronization signal block (SSB) signaling; The first message specific to the first device; A second message specific to a group of devices including the first device; or Broadcast message.

16. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 15, wherein performing the operation comprises at least one of the following: Perform a perception operation based on at least one of the first map or the second map; Communication is performed based on at least one of the first map or the second map; A beam set for at least one of the sensing operation and the communication is determined based on at least one of the first map or the second map; The transmission power for at least one of the sensing operation and the communication is determined based on at least one of the first map or the second map; or A reference signal for at least one of the sensing operation and the communication is determined based on at least one of the first map or the second map.

17. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 16, wherein at least one of the first map or the second map has a compressed format.

18. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 17, wherein obtaining at least one of the first map or the second map comprises: Receive at least one of the first map or the second map from the second device.

19. A method comprising: Output at least one of a first map or a second map, wherein the first map represents radio environment information and includes a first set of elements, and the second map represents geometric information and includes a second set of elements, wherein elements in the first map represent a portion of the radio environment information, and elements in the second map represent a portion of the geometric information.

20. The method of claim 19, wherein the elements in the first map have at least one of the following: Multipath or ray tracing information type, The type of channel matrix information that characterizes the channel. Beamforming information type Reference signal information type, or Channel quality or status information type.

21. The method of claim 19 or 20, wherein the elements in the second map have at least one of the following: Two-dimensional (2D) location region type; 3D location region type; Geographic coordinate type; or The processed data type associated with the geometric information.

22. The method according to any one of claims 19 to 21, wherein the elements in one of the first map or the second map have one or more element types.

23. The method according to any one of claims 19 to 22, wherein the first element in one of the first map or the second map has a first element type, and the second element in one of the first map or the second map has a second element type, and wherein at least one of the following exists: The first element type is the same as or different from the second element type; The first size of the first element is the same as or different from the second size of the second element; or The first value range of the first element is the same as or different from the second value range of the second element.

24. The method according to any one of claims 19 to 23, wherein at least one of the first map or the second map is represented by a matrix including the first set of elements or the second set of elements, and the matrix has multiple dimensions.

25. The method of claim 24, wherein the matrix is ​​represented by at least one of the following: The multiple dimensions, For one or more element types in the matrix, Regarding the content of the element, or The index of the element.

26. The method of claim 24 or 25, wherein each element in the matrix has the same size across the plurality of dimensions, and wherein at least one of the first map or the second map is represented by at least one of the following: The number of elements in the matrix; or The same size.

27. The method of claim 24 or 25, wherein the first element of the matrix has a first size, the second element of the matrix has a second size different from the first size in the plurality of dimensions, and wherein the matrix is ​​represented by at least one of the following: The starting position of each element in the matrix in the plurality of dimensions, or The length of each element in the matrix in each of the plurality of dimensions.

28. The method according to claim 24 or 25, wherein: The first set of elements or the second set of elements in the matrix is ​​determined by a quadtree or octree that includes multiple levels; as well as The elements in the matrix are associated with one of the multiple levels.

29. The method of claim 28, wherein at least one of the following is present: The third and fourth elements in the matrix that are associated with the same level in the plurality of levels have the same size in the plurality of dimensions; or The fifth element in the matrix associated with the first level of the plurality of levels has a third size, and the sixth element in the matrix associated with the second level of the plurality of levels has a fourth size, the fourth size being different from the third size in the plurality of dimensions.

30. The method according to any one of claims 19 to 29, wherein at least one of the first map or the second map is represented by a list or array including the first set of elements or the second set of elements.

31. The method of claim 30, wherein at least one of the first map or the second map is represented by at least one of the following: The number of elements in the list or the array One or more element types in the list or array Regarding the size of the elements in the list or array, Regarding the content of the element, or The index of the element.

32. The method according to any one of claims 19 to 31, wherein at least one of the following is present: An element in the first map is associated with the index of another element in the second map, or An element in the second map is associated with an index of another element in the first map.

33. The method according to any one of claims 19 to 32, wherein at least one of the first map or the second map is carried out in at least one of the following: Synchronization signal block (SSB) signaling; The first message specific to the first device; A second message specific to a group of devices including the first device; or Broadcast message.

34. The method according to any one of claims 19 to 33, wherein at least one of the first map or the second map has a compressed format.

35. A first device comprising: interface; as well as The processor that is communicatively coupled to the interface, The processor is configured as follows: Obtain at least one of a first map or a second map, wherein the first map represents radio environment information and includes a first set of elements, and the second map represents geometric information and includes a second set of elements, wherein elements in the first map represent a portion of the radio environment information, and elements in the second map represent a portion of the geometric information; as well as The operation is performed based on at least one of the first map or the second map.

36. A second device comprising: interface; as well as The processor that is communicatively coupled to the interface, The processor is configured as follows: The interface outputs at least one of a first map or a second map, wherein the first map represents radio environment information and includes a first set of elements, and the second map represents geometric information and includes a second set of elements, wherein elements in the first map represent a portion of the radio environment information, and elements in the second map represent a portion of the geometric information.

37. A computer-readable medium comprising a computer program stored thereon, which, when executed on at least one processor, causes the at least one processor to perform the method according to any one of claims 1 to 34.

38. An apparatus comprising at least one processor configured to cause the apparatus to perform the method according to any one of claims 1 to 34.

39. A computer program product comprising computer-executable instructions that, when executed, cause a device to perform the method according to any one of claims 1 to 34.

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