Demodulation reference signal transceiving method and device

Abstract

The invention provides a demodulation reference signal receiving and transmitting method and device, relates to the field of communication, and helps to reduce time-frequency domain resources occupied by a DMRS configured by network equipment for a PDSCH and a PDCCH. The method comprises the following steps: acquiring a first time domain resource and a first frequency domain resource; receiving a first type of demodulation reference signal (DMRS) from the network equipment on the first time domain resource and the first frequency domain resource; wherein the first type of DMRS is used for demodulating information transmitted by a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) and information transmitted by a physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH) from the network equipment.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This application relates to the field of communications, and particularly to a method and apparatus for transmitting and receiving demodulated reference signals in the field of communications. Background Technology

[0002] The demodulation reference signal (DMRS) can be used for channel estimation of physical channels and demodulation of uplink and downlink data. Therefore, data transmission on various physical channels is accompanied by DMRS transmission. For example, network devices can configure DMRS for the physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH), enabling terminal devices to demodulate information transmitted through the PDSCH based on the PDSCH DMRS; and network devices can configure DMRS for the physical downlink control channel (PDCCH), enabling terminal devices to demodulate information transmitted through the PDCCH based on the PDCCH DMRS, and so on.

[0003] However, in this DMRS configuration method, the total time-frequency domain resources occupied by the network device for configuring DMRS for each channel are relatively large. Summary of the Invention

[0004] This application provides a demodulation reference signal transceiver method and apparatus that can reduce the total time-frequency domain resources occupied by DMRS configured for multiple channels.

[0005] In a first aspect, a demodulation reference signal receiving method is provided, the method comprising: acquiring a first time-domain resource and a first frequency-domain resource; receiving a first type demodulation reference signal (DMRS) from a network device on the first time-domain resource and the first frequency-domain resource; wherein the first type DMRS is used to demodulate information transmitted from the network device via PDCCH and PDSCH.

[0006] In one possible implementation, the method is performed by a first communication device. The first communication device may be a terminal device or a chip or circuit that can be applied to the terminal device.

[0007] The demodulation reference signal receiving method of this application allows a network device to configure a first type of DMRS on a first communication device. This type of DMRS can be used to demodulate information transmitted on a first channel or a second channel. Thus, in scenarios where the first communication device is stationary or moves slowly (e.g., when channel changes are slow), the first communication device can utilize this DMRS to demodulate information transmitted via PDCCH and PDSCH. Compared to the total time-frequency domain resources occupied by PDCCH-DMRS and PDSCH-DMRS, the first type of DMRS occupies fewer time-frequency domain resources.

[0008] In conjunction with the first aspect, in some embodiments of the first aspect, the method further includes: receiving first information from a network device, the first information being used to indicate activation of a first type of DMRS or to indicate that the received DMRS is a first type of DMRS.

[0009] In this way, the first communication device can determine, based on the first information, that the DMRS configured by the network device is a first type of DMRS, that is, the first communication device can determine that the DMRS configured by the network device can be used to demodulate PDCCH transmission information and PDSCH transmission information.

[0010] In conjunction with the first aspect, in some embodiments of the first aspect, the first time-domain resource is determined based on one or more of the following: a second time-domain resource, a third time-domain resource, or a first quantity; wherein the second time-domain resource is the time-domain resource occupied by the PDCCH, the first quantity is the maximum number of time units that the first type of DMRS can occupy, and the third time-domain resource is the time-domain resource occupied by the PDSCH.

[0011] Since the first type of DMRS is used to demodulate PDCCH and PDSCH transmission information, the first time-domain resource is related to the second or third time-domain resource. Furthermore, the first communication device can also determine the first time-domain resource based on the number of time units that the first time-domain resource can occupy.

[0012] In conjunction with the first aspect, in some embodiments of the first aspect, the first time-domain resource is part or all of the time units in the second time-domain resource.

[0013] In this way, the first communication device can determine the first time domain resource based on the second time domain resource.

[0014] In conjunction with the first aspect, in some embodiments of the first aspect, the method further includes: receiving second information from a network device, the second information indicating a first quantity or a first time domain resource, the first quantity being the maximum number of time units that a first type of DMRS can occupy.

[0015] In this way, the network device can configure different first time domain resources or first time domain resources of different lengths to the first communication device under different circumstances.

[0016] In conjunction with the first aspect, in some embodiments of the first aspect, the first frequency domain resource is located on the (i+a×j)th subcarrier of each RB in at least one resource block RB; wherein each RB in at least one RB carries at least one of PDCCH transmission information and PDSCH transmission information, i indicates that the starting position of the first frequency domain resource in each RB is the i-th subcarrier, j indicates the difference between the indices of two adjacent subcarriers in the first frequency domain resource, and a is less than or equal to a max a max It is a positive integer, and i+a max ×j is less than or equal to 12, and i, a and j are integers greater than or equal to 0.

[0017] In this way, the spacing between two adjacent subcarriers in the first frequency domain resource is the same. Given that the first communication device determines the starting subcarrier and the spacing between two adjacent subcarriers, the first communication device can determine the first frequency domain resource.

[0018] In conjunction with the first aspect, in some embodiments of the first aspect, the first frequency domain resource is determined based on the second frequency domain resource or the third frequency domain resource, wherein the second frequency domain resource is the frequency domain resource occupied by the PDCCH and the third frequency domain resource is the frequency domain resource occupied by the PDSCH.

[0019] Since the first type of DMRS is used to demodulate PDCCH and PDSCH transmission information, the first frequency domain resource is related to the second or third frequency domain resource.

[0020] In conjunction with the first aspect, in some embodiments of the first aspect, in each of the at least one RB, the first frequency domain resource includes at least one sub-frequency domain resource, each of the at least one sub-frequency domain resource includes M adjacent subcarriers, the starting subcarriers of two adjacent sub-frequency domain resources are spaced N subcarriers apart, each of the at least one RB carries at least one of PDCCH transmission information and PDSCH transmission information, where N and M are positive integers, and N is greater than or equal to M.

[0021] In this way, network devices can configure different first frequency domain resources under different conditions. For example, when there are fewer users and the first type of DMRS needs to map fewer antenna ports, the first time domain resources can be distributed with a spacing of 1 subcarrier; when there are more users and the first type of DMRS needs to map more antenna ports, the first time domain resources can be distributed with a spacing of 4 subcarriers, and every 2 subcarriers are connected together.

[0022] In conjunction with the first aspect, in some implementations of the first aspect, the first frequency domain resources are agreed upon by a protocol or configured by the network device through signaling.

[0023] Thus, when the first frequency domain resources are agreed upon by the protocol, the signaling overhead of configuring the first type of DMRS by the network device is relatively small; when the first frequency domain resources are configured by the network device through signaling, the network device can configure different first frequency domain resources under different circumstances.

[0024] In conjunction with the first aspect, in some embodiments of the first aspect, the method further includes: sending third information to a network device, the third information being used to indicate that the first communication device supports a first type of DMRS.

[0025] In this way, the network device can determine that the first communication device supports the first type of DMRS, so that the network device will not configure the first type of DMRS for the first communication device when the first communication device does not support the use of the first type of DMRS, thereby reducing the situation where the network device configures invalid DMRS.

[0026] Secondly, another method for transmitting a demodulation reference signal is provided, the method comprising: determining a first type of demodulation reference signal DMRS, wherein the first type of DMRS occupies a first time domain resource and a first frequency domain resource; wherein the first type of DMRS is used to demodulate information transmitted by PDCCH and information transmitted by PDSCH; and transmitting the first type of DMRS to a terminal device on the first time domain resource and the first frequency domain resource.

[0027] In one possible implementation, the method is performed by a second communication device. The second communication device may be a network device or a chip or circuit that can be applied to a network device.

[0028] In conjunction with the second aspect, in some embodiments of the second aspect, the method further includes: sending first information to a terminal device, the first information being used to indicate activation of a first type of DMRS or to indicate that the configured DMRS is a first type of DMRS.

[0029] In conjunction with the second aspect, in some embodiments of the second aspect, the first time-domain resource is determined based on one or more of the following: a second time-domain resource, a third time-domain resource, or a first quantity; wherein the second time-domain resource is the time-domain resource of the PDCCH, the first quantity is the maximum number of time units that the first type of DMRS can occupy, and the third time-domain resource is the time-domain resource of the PDSCH.

[0030] In conjunction with the second aspect, in some embodiments of the second aspect, the first time-domain resource is part or all of the time units in the second time-domain resource.

[0031] In conjunction with the second aspect, in some embodiments of the second aspect, the method further includes: sending second information to a terminal device, the second information indicating a first quantity or a first time domain resource, the first quantity being the maximum number of time units that a first type of DMRS can occupy.

[0032] In conjunction with the second aspect, in some embodiments of the second aspect, the first frequency domain resource is located on the (i+a×j)th subcarrier of each RB in at least one resource block RB; wherein each RB in at least one RB carries at least one of PDCCH transmission information and PDSCH transmission information, i indicates that the starting position of the first frequency domain resource in each RB is the i-th subcarrier, j indicates the difference between the indices of two adjacent subcarriers in the first frequency domain resource, and a is less than or equal to a max a max It is a positive integer, and i+a max ×j is less than or equal to 12, and i, a and j are integers greater than or equal to 0.

[0033] In conjunction with the second aspect, in some embodiments of the second aspect, the first frequency domain resource is determined based on the second frequency domain resource or the third frequency domain resource, wherein the second frequency domain resource is the frequency domain resource occupied by the PDCCH and the third frequency domain resource is the frequency domain resource occupied by the PDSCH.

[0034] In conjunction with the second aspect, in some embodiments of the second aspect, the first frequency domain resource is in each of at least one RB, the first frequency domain resource includes at least one sub-frequency domain resource, each of the at least one sub-frequency domain resource includes M adjacent subcarriers, the starting subcarriers of two adjacent sub-frequency domain resources are spaced N subcarriers apart, each of the at least one RB carries at least one of PDCCH transmission information and PDSCH transmission information, N and M are positive integers, and N is greater than or equal to M.

[0035] In conjunction with the second aspect, in some embodiments of the second aspect, the first frequency domain resources are agreed upon by the protocol or configured by the second communication device through signaling.

[0036] In conjunction with the second aspect, in some embodiments of the second aspect, the method further includes: receiving third information from a terminal device, the third information being used to indicate that the terminal device supports a first type of DMRS.

[0037] Thirdly, a communication device is provided for performing the method in any possible implementation of the first or second aspect described above. Specifically, the communication device includes a module for performing the method in any possible implementation of the first or second aspect described above.

[0038] Fourthly, this application provides another communication device, including a processor coupled to a memory, which can be used to execute instructions in the memory to implement the method in any of the possible implementations of the first or second aspect described above. Optionally, the communication device further includes a memory. Optionally, the communication device further includes a communication interface, to which the processor is coupled.

[0039] In one implementation, the communication device is a terminal device or a network device. When the communication device is a terminal device or a network device, the communication interface can be a transceiver, or an input / output interface.

[0040] In another implementation, the communication device is a chip applicable to terminal devices or network devices. When the communication device is a chip applicable to terminal devices or network devices, the aforementioned communication interface can be an input / output interface.

[0041] Fifthly, a processor is provided, comprising: an input circuit, an output circuit, and a processing circuit. The processing circuit is configured to receive signals through the input circuit and transmit signals through the output circuit, causing the processor to execute the method in any possible implementation of the first or second aspect described above.

[0042] In the specific implementation process, the processor can be a chip, the input circuit can be an input pin, the output circuit can be an output pin, and the processing circuit can be a transistor, gate circuit, flip-flop, and various logic circuits. The input signal received by the input circuit can be received and input by, for example, but not limited to, a receiver, and the signal output by the output circuit can be output to, for example, but not limited to, a transmitter and transmitted by the transmitter. Furthermore, the input circuit and the output circuit can be the same circuit, which is used as the input circuit and the output circuit at different times. This application does not limit the specific implementation of the processor and various circuits.

[0043] In a sixth aspect, a communication device is provided, including a processor and a memory. The processor is configured to read instructions stored in the memory, receive signals via a receiver, and transmit signals via a transmitter to execute the method in any possible implementation of the first or second aspect described above.

[0044] Optionally, the processor may be one or more, and the memory may be one or more.

[0045] Optionally, the memory may be integrated with the processor, or the memory may be separated from the processor.

[0046] In the specific implementation process, the memory can be a non-transitory memory, such as read-only memory (ROM), which can be integrated with the processor on the same chip or set on different chips. This application does not limit the type of memory or the way the memory and processor are set.

[0047] It should be understood that the relevant data interaction process, such as sending instruction information, can be a process of outputting instruction information from the processor, and receiving capability information can be a process of the processor receiving input capability information. Specifically, the processed output data can be output to the transmitter, and the input data received by the processor can come from the receiver. Here, the transmitter and receiver can be collectively referred to as transceivers.

[0048] The communication device in the sixth aspect above can be a chip. The processor can be implemented in hardware or software. When implemented in hardware, the processor can be a logic circuit, integrated circuit, etc. When implemented in software, the processor can be a general-purpose processor that reads software code stored in memory. The memory can be integrated into the processor or located outside the processor and exist independently.

[0049] In a seventh aspect, a computer program product is provided, the computer program product comprising: a computer program (also referred to as code or instructions), which, when the computer program is run, causes a computer to perform the method in any possible implementation of the first or second aspect described above.

[0050] Eighthly, a computer-readable storage medium is provided that stores a computer program (also referred to as code or instructions) that, when executed on a computer, causes the computer to perform the methods in any possible implementation of the first or second aspect described above. Attached Figure Description

[0051] Figure 1 A schematic diagram of PDSCH-DMRS for a mapping type A;

[0052] Figure 2 A schematic diagram of PDSCH-DMRS for a mapping type B;

[0053] Figure 3 A schematic diagram of a type 1 PDSCH-DMRS;

[0054] Figure 4 A schematic diagram of a type 2 PDSCH-DMRS;

[0055] Figure 5This is a schematic diagram of a PDCCH-DMRS;

[0056] Figure 6 This is a schematic diagram of a communication system to which the embodiments of this application apply;

[0057] Figure 7 A schematic diagram of PDSCH-DMRS and PDCCH-DMRS;

[0058] Figure 8 A schematic diagram of a first type of DMRS provided for an embodiment of this application;

[0059] Figure 9 A flowchart illustrating a demodulation reference signal transmission and reception method provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0060] Figure 10 A schematic diagram of a second type of first DMRS provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0061] Figure 11 A schematic diagram of a third type of first type DMRS provided in the embodiments of this application;

[0062] Figure 12 A schematic diagram of the fourth type of first DMRS provided in the embodiments of this application;

[0063] Figure 13 A schematic diagram of the fifth type of first DMRS provided in the embodiments of this application;

[0064] Figure 14 A schematic diagram of the sixth type of first DMRS provided in the embodiments of this application;

[0065] Figure 15 A schematic block diagram of a communication device provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0066] Figure 16 A schematic block diagram of another communication device provided in the embodiments of this application;

[0067] Figure 17 A schematic block diagram of an O-RAN system provided for embodiments of this application;

[0068] Figure 18 This is a schematic block diagram illustrating the network element function division and protocol layer structure of the O-RAN device provided in the embodiments of this application. Detailed Implementation

[0069] The technical solutions in this application will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0070] In the embodiments of the present application, terms such as "first" and "second" are used to distinguish identical or similar items with basically the same functions and effects. For example, the first value and the second value are only used to distinguish different values, and do not limit their order. Those skilled in the art can understand that terms such as "first" and "second" do not limit the quantity and execution order, and terms such as "first" and "second" do not necessarily limit being different.

[0071] It should be noted that in the embodiments of the present application, words such as "exemplarily" or "for example" are used to indicate examples, illustrations or explanations. Any embodiment or design solution described as "exemplarily" or "for example" in the present application should not be construed as more preferred or more advantageous than other embodiments or design solutions. Rather, the use of words such as "exemplarily" or "for example" aims to present relevant concepts in a specific manner.

[0072] In the embodiments of the present application, "at least one" means one or more, and "multiple" means two or more. "And / or" describes the association relationship of associated objects and indicates that there can be three relationships. For example, A and / or B can represent: A exists alone, A and B exist simultaneously, and B exists alone, where A and B can be singular or plural. The character " / " generally indicates that the associated objects before and after are in an "or" relationship. "At least one (item)" or its similar expression refers to any combination of these items, including any combination of single item (item) or plural items (items). For example, at least one (item) of a, b, or c can represent: a, b, c, a - b, a - c, b - c, or a - b - c, where a, b, and c can be single or multiple.

[0073] The technical solutions of the embodiments of the present application can be applied to various communication systems, such as: Long Term Evolution (LTE) system, LTE Frequency Division Duplex (FDD) system, LTE Time Division Duplex (TDD), Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access (WiMAX) communication system, 5th generation (5G) system or New Radio (NR), future communication systems, etc.

[0074] The terminal equipment in this application embodiment can also be referred to as: user equipment (UE), mobile station (MS), mobile terminal (MT), access terminal, user unit, user station, mobile station, mobile station, remote station, remote terminal, mobile device, user terminal, terminal, wireless communication equipment, user agent, or user device, etc.

[0075] Terminal devices can be devices that provide voice / data connectivity to users, such as handheld devices with wireless connectivity, in-vehicle devices, etc. Currently, examples of terminal devices include: mobile phones, tablets, laptops, PDAs, mobile internet devices (MIDs), wearable devices, virtual reality (VR) devices, augmented reality (AR) devices, wireless terminals in industrial control, wireless terminals in self-driving vehicles, wireless terminals in remote medical surgery, wireless terminals in smart grids, wireless terminals in transportation safety, wireless terminals in smart cities, wireless terminals in smart homes, cellular phones, cordless phones, session initiation protocol (SIP) phones, wireless local loop (WLL) stations, personal digital assistants (PDAs), handheld devices with wireless communication capabilities, computing devices or other processing devices connected to wireless modems, in-vehicle devices, wearable devices, terminal devices in 5G networks, or future public land mobile communication networks. This application does not limit the scope to terminal devices in network (PLMN), etc.

[0076] By way of example and not limitation, in this application, the terminal device can be a terminal device in an Internet of Things (IoT) system. The Internet of Things is an important component of future information technology development. Its main technical characteristic is connecting objects to networks through communication technologies, thereby realizing an intelligent network of human-machine interconnection and object-to-object interconnection. Exemplarily, the terminal device in the embodiments of this application can be a wearable device. Wearable devices, also known as wearable smart devices, are a general term for devices that apply wearable technology to intelligently design and develop everyday wearables, such as glasses, gloves, watches, clothing, and shoes. Wearable devices are portable devices that can be worn directly on the body or integrated into a user's clothing or accessories. Wearable devices are not merely hardware devices; they can also achieve powerful functions through software support, data interaction, and cloud interaction. Broadly defined, wearable smart devices include those with comprehensive functions, large size, and the ability to achieve complete or partial functions without relying on a smartphone, such as smartwatches or smart glasses, as well as those focused on a specific application function and requiring the use of other devices such as smartphones, such as various smart bracelets and smart jewelry for vital sign monitoring.

[0077] By way of example and not limitation, in the embodiments of this application, the terminal device can also be a terminal device in machine-type communication (MTC). Furthermore, the terminal device can also be an on-board module, on-board component, on-board chip, or on-board unit, etc., built into a vehicle as one or more components or units. The vehicle can implement the methods provided in this application through the built-in on-board module, on-board component, on-board chip, or on-board unit, etc. Therefore, the embodiments of this application can also be applied to vehicle networking, such as vehicle-to-everything (V2X), long-term evolution-vehicle (LTE-V) technology, and vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) technology.

[0078] The network equipment involved in this application can be a device that communicates with terminal devices. This network equipment can also be called an access network device or a wireless access network device. It can be a transmission reception point (TRP), an evolved NodeB (eNB or eNodeB) in an LTE system, a home base station (e.g., home evolved NodeB, or home Node B, HNB), a base band unit (BBU), a wireless controller in a cloud radio access network (CRAN) scenario, or a relay station, access point, vehicle-mounted equipment, wearable devices, and network equipment in 5G networks or future evolved PLMN networks, etc. It can also be an access point (AP) in a WLAN, or a gNB in ​​an NR system. The above-mentioned network equipment can also be a city base station, micro base station, pico base station, femtobase station, etc. This application does not limit this.

[0079] First, let's introduce some of the technical terms and symbols used in this application.

[0080] 1. Resource element (RE), resource element (RB), and resource element group (REG) are the basic units used to describe the allocation of radio resources.

[0081] Here, RE is the smallest resource unit, representing a combination of an OFDM symbol in the time domain and a subcarrier in the frequency domain.

[0082] An RB is a resource unit composed of multiple REs, typically representing a rectangular area in both the time and frequency domains. In the frequency domain, an RB typically contains 12 subcarriers; in the time domain, the length of an RB can be a time slot (typically containing 7 or 14 OFDM symbols, depending on the subcarrier spacing).

[0083] A REG is a resource unit composed of multiple REs, typically used for resource allocation in the PDCCH (Physical Downlink Control Channel). A REG usually contains several consecutive REs, the exact number of which may vary depending on the standard and configuration. For example, in 5G NR, a REG typically contains 12 REs distributed within an OFDM symbol.

[0084] 2. Uplink physical channels may include, but are not limited to: random access channel (PRACH), physical uplink control channel (PUCCH), and physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH).

[0085] 3. Uplink reference signal can refer to a reference signal sent by a terminal device to a network device. For example, uplink reference signals may include, but are not limited to: channel sounding reference signal (SRS), uplink control channel demodulation reference signal (DMRS), uplink data channel demodulation reference signal (PUSCH-DMRS), uplink phase noise tracking reference signal (PTRS), and uplink positioning signal, etc.

[0086] 4. Downlink physical channels may include, but are not limited to: physical broadcast channel (PBCH), physical downlink control channel (PDCCH), and physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH).

[0087] 5. PDSCH, the main downlink channel used to transmit user data, can be used to carry actual user data packets, such as web page content and video streams.

[0088] Based on the different time-domain resources of PDSCH, PDSCH can be divided into mapping type A and mapping type B.

[0089] Mapping type A is defined as follows: Within a time slot, the OFDM symbols occupied by the PDSCH start from the OFDM symbol position {0,1,2,3}, with a symbol length of 3 to 14 OFDM symbols, and cannot exceed the time slot boundary. The time slot boundary is the boundary between the current time slot and the next time slot; the OFDM symbols occupied by the PDSCH cannot cross over into the OFDM symbols of the next time slot.

[0090] It should be understood that in the embodiments of this application, OFDM symbols {0,1,2,3…} represent OFDM symbol 0, OFDM symbol 1, OFDM symbol 2, or OFDM symbol 3, and so on. OFDM symbol 'a' represents the number or index of the OFDM symbol within a time slot, where 'a' is an integer greater than or equal to 0. For example, within a time slot, OFDM symbols can be numbered starting from 0 according to the chronological order. For the sake of brevity, this will not be elaborated further below.

[0091] It should also be understood that the indexes of OFDM symbols shown in the embodiments of this application are merely examples, and the indexes of OFDM symbols can also be other identifiers, such as letters or other numerical values. This application does not impose specific limitations in this regard.

[0092] Mapping type B is: within a time slot, the OFDM symbols occupied by PDSCH start from the OFDM symbol position {0,1,…,12}, and the symbol length is 2, 4 or 7 OFDM symbols, which cannot exceed the time slot boundary.

[0093] 6. PDCCH (Power Distribution Channel) is a channel used to transmit control information. It can carry scheduling information and other control information, instructing terminal devices on how to receive and decode data on the PDCCH. For example, network devices can send downlink control information (DCI) to terminal devices via the PDCCH.

[0094] It should be understood that in the embodiments of this application, transmitting PDSCH can also be understood as transmitting information through PDSCH; transmitting PDCCH can also be understood as transmitting information through PDCCH. For the sake of brevity, this will not be elaborated further below.

[0095] 7. Downlink control information (DCI): DCI can be used to indicate: downlink scheduling information, which indicates how the terminal device receives PDSCH, such as PDSCH time-frequency domain resources, PDSCH modulation and coding scheme, and hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) parameters; uplink scheduling information (UL grants), which indicates how the terminal device sends PUSCH; and other physical layer control information, such as slot format indicator (SFI), pre-emption indicator (PI), and power control commands, which are used to assist the terminal device in receiving and sending data.

[0096] 8. Downlink reference signal can refer to a reference signal sent by a network device to a terminal device. For example, downlink reference signals may include, but are not limited to: downlink control channel demodulation reference signal (PDCCH-DMRS), downlink data channel demodulation reference signal (PDSCH-DMRS), phase noise tracking signal, channel status information reference signal (CSI-RS), time / frequency tracking reference signal (TRS), cell reference signal (CRS), and LTE / NR positioning signal (positioning RS), etc.

[0097] PDCCH-DMRS can also be represented as PDCCH DMRS, and PDSCH-DMRS can also be represented as PDSCH DMRS. This application does not make any specific restrictions on this.

[0098] It should be understood that the uplink and downlink reference signals, as well as the uplink and downlink physical channels shown above, are merely examples and should not constitute any limitation on this application. The uplink or downlink reference signal may also include more reference signals, and this application does not preclude the possibility of defining other reference signals in future protocols to achieve the same or similar functions. Similarly, the uplink or downlink physical channel may also include more physical channels, and this application does not preclude the possibility of defining other physical channels in future protocols to achieve the same or similar functions.

[0099] 9. Demodulation Reference Signal (DMRS): During data transmission, DMRS is used for demodulation of uplink and downlink data. Except for PRACH, each of the other NR physical channels has its own DMRS distributed across its respective resources. Examples include PUSCH-DMRS, PDCCH-DMRS, and PDSCH-DMRS shown above.

[0100] DMRS are widely present in various important physical channels. Among them, PUSCH-DMRS is the DMRS present in PUSCH; PDCCH-DMRS is the DMRS present in PDCCH; and PDSCH-DMRS is the DMRS present in PDSCH.

[0101] DMRS can be divided into front-loaded DMRS and additional DMRS.

[0102] In wireless communication systems, the pre-DMRS is a reference signal used for channel estimation and demodulation. It is inserted into the data stream before data transmission so that the receiver can accurately estimate the channel state and thus correctly demodulate the received data.

[0103] Additional DMRS are reference signals added in addition to the pre-DMRS to enhance channel estimation and data demodulation performance. They are typically used in more complex transmission scenarios, such as highly mobile users, poor channel conditions, or scenarios requiring higher data rates.

[0104] Taking PDSCH-DMRS as an example, depending on the different time-domain resources of PDSCH-DMRS, the mapping types of DMRS time-domain resources include mapping type A and mapping type B.

[0105] From a time-domain resource perspective, to reduce demodulation and decoding delays, the pre-DMRS is positioned before the orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) symbols occupied by the PDSCH, and the pre-DMRS occupies 1 to 2 OFDM symbols. Since the pre-DMRS is for demodulating the PDSCH signal, its position must be designed in conjunction with different PDSCH time-domain mapping types.

[0106] 10. For mapping type A, the OFDM symbols occupied by the pre-DMRS are relative to the start position of the time slot. The pre-DMRS of mapping type A can also be understood as the DMRS that accompanies the PDSCH transmission of mapping type A.

[0107] For example, such as Figure 1 As shown, the horizontal axis represents the time domain, where each cell represents an OFDM symbol; the vertical axis represents the frequency domain, where each cell represents a subcarrier. Thus, each cell can be understood as a resource element (RE). The PDSCH occupies OFDM symbols 0 to 13 within a time slot; the PDSCH-DMRS occupies OFDM symbol 2.

[0108] 11. For mapping type B, the OFDM symbols occupied by the pre-drilled DMRS are relative to the start position of the PDSCH symbols. A PDSCH symbol is the OFDM symbol occupied by the PDSCH within a time slot. The pre-drilled DMRS for mapping type B can also be understood as the DMRS that accompanies the PDSCH transmission of mapping type B.

[0109] For example, such as Figure 2As shown, PDSCH occupies OFDM symbols 8 to 11 in one time slot; the symbol length occupied by PDSCH is 4. PDSCH-DMRS is the first OFDM symbol among the OFDM symbols occupied by PDSCH, namely OFDM symbol 8.

[0110] Taking PDSCH-DMRS as an example, based on the different resource element (RE) mapping densities in the frequency domain resources, DMRS supports different numbers of antenna ports. DMRS can be divided into different DMRS types, which can also be called DMRS configuration types, etc. DMRS types can include DMRS type 1 and DMRS type 2.

[0111] Among them, DMRS type 1 occupying a single OFDM symbol supports a maximum of 4 antenna ports, and DMRS type 1 occupying a dual OFDM symbol supports a maximum of 8 antenna ports; DMRS type 2 occupying a single OFDM symbol supports a maximum of 6 antenna ports, and DMRS type 2 occupying a dual OFDM symbol supports a maximum of 12 antenna ports.

[0112] 12. DMRS Type 1: DMRS REs are distributed in the frequency domain of each OFDM symbol with a density of 50%. That is, in DMRS Type 1, DMRS REs are assigned to the same antenna port for every interval of 1 RE.

[0113] For example, such as Figure 3 As shown, from a frequency domain perspective, the DMRS allocated to antenna ports 1000, 1001, 1004, and 1005 occupy subcarriers 0, 2, 4, 6, 8, and 10, respectively, with a subcarrier spacing of one subcarrier; from an RE perspective, they occupy an RE spacing of one RE. Similarly, from a frequency domain perspective, the DMRS allocated to antenna ports 1002, 1003, 1006, and 1007 occupy subcarriers 1, 3, 5, 7, 9, and 11, respectively, with a subcarrier spacing of one subcarrier; from an RE perspective, they occupy an RE spacing of one RE.

[0114] Here, DMRS RE can be understood as either the RE used to carry DMRS or the RE occupied by DMRS. A gap of 1 RE means that within the same OFDM symbol, there is a gap of 1 RE between two adjacent REs.

[0115] It should be understood that in the embodiments of this application, antenna port q represents the antenna port corresponding to the number or index q. The index or number of the antenna port shown in the embodiments of this application are just examples. q can be an integer, and the index or number of the antenna port shown in the embodiments of this application can also be replaced with other values. Alternatively, the number or index q of the antenna port can also be a letter or other forms. The embodiments of this application do not specifically limit this.

[0116] 13. DMRS Type 2: Within each OFDM symbol, DMRS REs are connected together in pairs and spaced 4 REs apart, with a density of approximately 33.3%. That is, in DMRS Type 2, DMRS are assigned to the same antenna port in pairs with a spacing of 4 REs.

[0117] For example, such as Figure 4 As shown, the DMRS assigned to antenna ports 1000, 1001, 1006, and 1007 occupy subcarriers 0 and 1, and subcarriers 6 and 7, respectively. From a frequency domain perspective, these subcarriers are two adjacent subcarriers (e.g., subcarriers 0 and 1 are adjacent subcarriers) spaced four subcarriers apart (e.g., subcarriers 1 and 6 are spaced four subcarriers apart). From a RE perspective, these subcarriers are two connected REs spaced four REs apart. The DMRS assigned to antenna ports 1002, 1003, 1008, and 1009 occupy subcarriers 2 and 3, and subcarriers 8 and 9, respectively. From a frequency domain perspective, these subcarriers are two adjacent subcarriers spaced four subcarriers apart. From a RE perspective, these subcarriers are two connected REs spaced four REs apart. Similarly, the DMRS assigned to antenna ports 1004, 1005, 1010, and 1011 occupy subcarriers 4 and 5, and subcarriers 10 and 11, respectively. From a frequency domain perspective, the subcarriers they occupy are two adjacent subcarriers, spaced four subcarriers apart. From an RE perspective, the REs they occupy are two connected REs, spaced four REs apart.

[0118] It should be understood that Figure 3 and Figure 4 For illustrative purposes only, in some possible implementations, the number of OFDM symbols occupied by PDSCH-DMRS may be more or less, and the subcarrier occupied by PDSCH-DMRS may be other subcarriers; in addition, the antenna port corresponding to PDSCH-DMRS may be other antenna ports, and this application does not specifically limit this.

[0119] It should also be understood that, in the embodiments of this application, subcarrier y represents the number or index of subcarriers within an RB in ascending order of frequency, where y is an integer greater than or equal to 0. For example, within an RB, subcarrier y can be numbered starting from 0 and following an integer order in ascending order of frequency. For the sake of brevity, this will not be elaborated further below.

[0120] It should be noted that the subcarrier index shown in the embodiments of this application is merely an example. The subcarrier index can also be other identifiers, such as letters or other numerical values. This application does not impose specific limitations on it.

[0121] 14. Time-domain resources of PDCCH-DMRS: PDCCH-DMRS typically occupies the same OFDM symbols as PDCCH. For example, if PDCCH occupies OFDM symbols 0 and 1 in a time slot, then PDCCH-DMRS occupies OFDM symbols 0 and 1 in that time slot; or, if PDCCH occupies OFDM symbol 0 in a time slot, then PDCCH-DMRS occupies OFDM symbol 0 in that time slot, and so on.

[0122] 15. Frequency domain resources of PDCCH-DMRS: PDCCH and PDCCH-DMRS typically support single-antenna port transmission. The frequency domain resources of PDCCH-DMRS are typically three subcarriers in a REG.

[0123] For example, such as Figure 5 As shown, from a frequency domain perspective, one REG covers subcarriers 0 to 11, a total of 12 subcarriers. The frequency domain resources of PDCCH-DMRS are typically subcarriers 1, 5, and 9 from subcarriers 0 to 11 covered by one REG. From the perspective of REs, PDCCH-DMRS occupies 3 REs within one REG.

[0124] It should be understood that Figure 5 For illustrative purposes only, in some possible implementations, the frequency domain resources of PDCCH-DMRS may also be other subcarriers, and this application does not specifically limit them.

[0125] 16. DMRS Port: This refers to the antenna port used to transmit DMRS. Each DMRS port can represent an independent channel estimation reference source, typically associated with a specific antenna or antenna array. The design and configuration of DMRS ports are particularly important in multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) systems, as they directly affect the accuracy of channel estimation and system performance. Typically, each reference signal port occupies different time-frequency code domain resources to reduce mutual interference. Each reference signal port corresponds to a physical antenna, and the mapping relationship between DMRS ports and physical antennas needs to be coordinated at the transmitting and receiving ends to ensure that the receiver can correctly identify and use DMRS for channel estimation.

[0126] 17. Master Information Block (MIB): Messages transmitted on the physical broadcast channel (PBCH). Terminal devices obtain system information block (SIB) information by reading MIB information. The MIB is used to carry scheduling information, etc., of the system information block.

[0127] 18. System messages include various information used by network devices to notify terminal devices about the system, such as network information of the cell where the terminal device is located, registration area information, public channel information, and information about other cells. System messages include SIB1 and other system information blocks (OSI).

[0128] SIB1 carries cell selection information, access control information, initial access-related channel configuration information, and scheduling information for the remaining system information blocks, which contain the actual data. System messages are carried on a set of radio frames and can be broadcast via the broadcast channel (BCH).

[0129] To facilitate understanding of the embodiments of this application, firstly, in conjunction with Figure 6 The communication system applicable to the embodiments of this application will be described in detail.

[0130] Figure 6 This is a schematic diagram of a communication system 600 used in an embodiment of this application. The communication system 600 may include at least one network device, such as... Figure 6 The network device 610 shown; the communication system 600 may also include at least one terminal device, such as Figure 6The terminal device 620 is shown. The network device 610 and the terminal device 620 can communicate via a wireless link. In one possible scenario, the network device 610 can act as a transmitter, and the terminal device 620 can act as a receiver, with the network device 610 sending signals to the terminal device 620; in another possible scenario, the network device 610 can act as a receiver, and the terminal device 620 can act as a transmitter, with the terminal device 620 sending signals to the network device 610.

[0131] Figure 6 An exemplary network device 610 and a terminal device 620 are shown. Optionally, the communication system 600 may also include multiple network devices and / or multiple terminal devices. The network device 610 may be a router, base station, etc., and the terminal device 620 may be a mobile phone, tablet computer, smart bracelet, etc., which are not limited in this application embodiment.

[0132] The aforementioned communication devices, such as Figure 6 The network device 610 or terminal device 620 can be configured with multiple antennas. These multiple antennas may include at least one transmitting antenna for transmitting signals and at least one receiving antenna for receiving signals. Additionally, each communication device also includes a transmitter chain and a receiver chain, which, as will be understood by those skilled in the art, may include multiple components (e.g., processors, modulators, multiplexers, demodulators, demultiplexers, or antennas) related to signal transmission and reception. Therefore, the network device 610 and the terminal device 620 can communicate via multi-antenna technology.

[0133] Optionally, the communication system 600 may also include other network entities such as a network controller and a mobility management entity, but the embodiments of this application are not limited thereto.

[0134] It should also be understood that the method provided in the embodiments of this application can be applied to a variety of communication systems, including 5G new radio (NR) systems. Communication system 600 is only an example. This application does not limit the specific architecture of the applicable system, nor does it limit the number and form of various devices contained in each communication system.

[0135] Currently, terminal devices can determine PDSCH time-domain resources through higher-layer parameters and DCI. Among them, higher-layer parameters can be parameters carried in messages such as system information block 1 (SIB1), RRC setup message, security mode command, or RRC reconfiguration message.

[0136] For example, the higher-level parameters can be carried in the PDSCH-time domain resource allocation list field of any of the above messages.

[0137] The PDSCH-time domain resource allocation list may include, for example, the following information:

[0138] k0 INTEGER(0…32);

[0139] mapping type ENUMERRATED{typeA, typeB};

[0140] start symbol and length INTEGER(0…127)}.

[0141] Where k0 is the time slot offset interval of PDSCH relative to PDCCH, that is, the interval between the time slot where the PDSCH time domain resource is located and the time slot where the PDCCH time domain resource is located. When k0 is 0 (the default value), it means that PDSCH and PDCCH are scheduled in the same time slot, that is, the PDSCH time domain resource and the PDCCH time domain resource are in the same time slot; mapping type is the mapping type; start symbol and length are the starting OFDM symbol and OFDM symbol length of PDSCH.

[0142] Network devices can indicate multiple PDSCH-time domain resource allocation list fields to terminal devices via messages such as SIB1, RRC setup messages, security mode signaling, or RRC configuration messages. For example, up to 16 PDSCH-time domain resource allocation list fields can be indicated, where each PDSCH-time domain resource allocation list field carries different higher-level parameters (k0, mapping type, starting OFDM symbol of PDSCH, and OFDM symbol length). Therefore, network devices can further indicate to terminal devices via DCI which specific PDSCH-time domain resource indicates which of the multiple PDSCH-time domain resource allocation list fields.

[0143] It is understandable that messages carrying higher-level parameters are sent at specific times. Therefore, according to the order in which the above-mentioned messages that can carry higher-level parameters are sent, the terminal device can determine the PDSCH time domain resources based on the higher-level parameters carried in the previously acquired message and the latest DCI. The latest DCI is the DCI that the terminal device acquired last.

[0144] For example, before parsing the SIB1 message, the terminal device can determine the PDSCH time-domain resources based on the master information block (MIB) and the latest DCI; after parsing the SIB1 message but before parsing the RRC establishment message, the terminal device uses the higher-layer parameters carried in the SIB1 message and the latest DCI to determine the PDSCH time-domain resources; after parsing the RRC establishment message but before parsing the RRC configuration message, the terminal device uses the higher-layer parameters carried in the RRC establishment message and the latest DCI to determine the PDSCH time-domain resources; after parsing the RRC configuration message, the terminal device can use the higher-layer parameters carried in the RRC configuration message and the latest DCI to determine the PDSCH time-domain resources.

[0145] It should be understood that between two consecutive acquisitions of messages carrying higher-layer parameters, the terminal device may receive DCI from the network device multiple times, and the latest DCI is the DCI most recently received by the terminal device.

[0146] Since various PDSCH time-domain resources are configured in the high-level parameters, the specific PDSCH time-domain resource used needs to be determined in conjunction with DCI. For example, the terminal device can determine the specific PDSCH time-domain resource to be used based on the time domain resource assignment field in DCI 1_0 or DCI 1_1.

[0147] It should be understood that DCI 1_0 or DCI 1_1 are two formats of DCI. DCI 1_0 can be used for downlink data transmission scheduling and may contain control information required for PDSCH resource allocation and decoding. DCI 1_1 can also be used for downlink data transmission scheduling, but it is typically used in more complex scenarios, such as carrier aggregation or MIMO configurations. DCI 1_1 contains similar information to DCI 1_0, but it may include more fields to support complex transmission schemes.

[0148] Furthermore, based on the PDSCH mapping type, the terminal device can determine the preceding DMRS time-domain resources. For example, when the PDSCH time-domain resource allocation method (mapping type) is type A, the starting OFDM symbol of the PDSCH can be OFDM symbol 0 to 3. Then, the starting position of the preceding DMRS within the time slot is OFDM symbol 2 or OFDM symbol 3. By default, the starting position of the preceding DMRS within the time slot is OFDM symbol 2; when DMRS-TypeA-Position = 3 in the MIB, the starting position of the preceding DMRS within the time slot is OFDM symbol 3. Here, DMRS-TypeA-Position can be understood as a field in the MIB. When the PDSCH time-domain resource allocation method (mapping type) is type B, the starting OFDM symbol of the PDSCH may be OFDM symbol 0 to 12, then the starting position of the pre-DMRS is located at the first OFDM symbol of the PDSCH; if the first OFDM symbol of the PDSCH belongs to the control-resource set (CORESET), then the starting position of the pre-DMRS is the first OFDM symbol after the last OFDM symbol in the CORESET.

[0149] It should be understood that the control resource set can also be called the control resource collection, which can be understood as the set of physical resources used to carry DCI, such as RB or RE used to carry DCI.

[0150] Additional DMRS typically occupies 1 to 3 OFDM symbols. In high-speed scenarios, network devices can configure the presence or absence of additional DMRS and the time-domain resources of additional DMRS through the DMRS-additional position field in the higher-layer parameters.

[0151] Similarly, the terminal device can also determine the PDSCH-DMRS frequency domain resources based on higher-layer parameters and DCI. These higher-layer parameters can be, for example, parameters carried in the RRC establishment message or RRC configuration message. For example, the higher-layer parameters may include the following information:

[0152]

[0153] Among them, DMRS-type is used to indicate the DMRS type, for example, indicating that the DMRS type is type 2; DMRS-additional position is used to indicate the additional DMRS position; max length is used to indicate the maximum number of OFDM symbols occupied by PDSCH-DMRS, for example, len2 is used to indicate that PDSCH-DMRS occupies a maximum of 2 OFDM symbols.

[0154] Furthermore, network devices can indicate the number of OFDM symbols occupied by the PDSCH-DMRS to terminal devices via DCI. The number of OFDM symbols indicated in the DCI is less than or equal to the maximum number of OFDM symbols occupied by the PDSCH-DMRS as indicated by the max length parameter in the higher layers. For example, if max length is len2, indicating that the maximum number of OFDM symbols occupied by the PDSCH-DMRS is 2 OFDM symbols, then the number of OFDM symbols occupied by the PDSCH-DMRS indicated by the DCI can be either 1 OFDM symbol or 2 OFDM symbols.

[0155] The above illustrates how terminal devices determine the time-frequency domain resources of PDSCH-DMRS.

[0156] In addition to PDSCH-DMRS, the time-domain resources of PDCCH-DMRS can be OFDM symbols occupied by PDCCH. For example, if the time-domain resources of PDCCH are OFDM symbols 0 and 1, then the time-domain resources of PDCCH-DMRS are OFDM symbols 0 and 1. Furthermore, the frequency-domain resources of PDCCH-DMRS can be referenced... Figure 5 The PDCCH-DMRS frequency domain resources are shown.

[0157] Therefore, for PDSCH and PDCCH transmitted in a time slot, the time-frequency domain resources of PDCCH-DMRS and PDSCH-DMRS can be as follows: Figure 7 As shown.

[0158] From a time-domain perspective, the PDSCH mapping type is mapping type A, and the PDSCH occupies OFDM symbols 0 to 13 in one time slot; the PDSCH-DMRS occupies OFDM symbols 2 and 3 in the same time slot; the PDCCH occupies OFDM symbols 0 and 1 in the same time slot; and the PDCCH-DMRS occupies OFDM symbols 0 and 1 in the same time slot.

[0159] From a frequency domain perspective, the PDCCH occupies a subcarrier in one REG, while the PDCCH-DMRS occupies subcarriers 1, 5, and 9 in that REG. The PDSCH occupies subcarriers in two REGs, with the PDSCH-DMRS being type 1, occupying the odd-indexed subcarriers in both REGs. From a frequency domain perspective, it can be seen that the frequency domain resources of the PDCCH-DMRS overlap with those of the PDSCH-DMRS. For example, there are PDCCH-DMRS and PDSCH-DMRS occupying subcarrier 1, subcarrier 5, and subcarrier 9.

[0160] It should be understood that Figure 7 For illustrative purposes only, the mapping type of PDSCH and PDSCH-DMRS can also be mapping type B, and the PDSCH time-domain resources or PDSCH-DMRS time-domain resources can include more or fewer OFDM symbols; furthermore, PDSCH-DMRS can also be type 2, and the PDSCH or PDSCH-DMRS frequency-domain resources can include more or fewer subcarriers. For the sake of brevity, these will not be shown in detail here.

[0161] This demonstrates that there is redundancy between the PDCCH-DMRS and PDSCH-DMRS configured in network devices, resulting in a large amount of time-frequency domain resources being consumed by these configurations. Therefore, a method is urgently needed to reduce the total time-frequency domain resources occupied by the DMRS configured for PDSCH and PDCCH.

[0162] In view of this, a demodulation reference signal transmission and reception method is provided. The network device can configure a first type of DMRS for the terminal device. The terminal device can demodulate information transmitted via PDCCH based on the first type of DMRS, and can also use the first type of DMRS to demodulate information transmitted via PDSCH. In this way, the network device can configure a DMRS that can be used jointly for PDCCH and PDSCH. Compared to configuring PDCCH-DMRS and PDSCH-DMRS separately, the first type of DMRS occupies less time-frequency domain resources.

[0163] It should be understood that, in the embodiments of this application, demodulating PDCCH can also be understood as demodulating information transmitted through PDCCH, and transmitting PDCCH can also be understood as transmitting information through PDCCH; demodulating PDSCH can also be understood as demodulating information transmitted through PDSCH, and transmitting PDSCH can also be understood as transmitting information through PDSCH. For the sake of brevity, this will not be elaborated further below.

[0164] For example, such as Figure 8 As shown, the time-frequency domain resources occupied by PDCCH and Figure 7 The PDCCH shown occupies the same time-frequency domain resources; the PDSCH occupies the same time-frequency domain resources. Figure 7 The PDSCH shown occupies the same time and frequency domain resources. However, the time domain resources of the first type of DMRS are OFDM symbols 0 and 1 occupied by the PDCCH; the frequency domain resources of the first type of DMRS are subcarrier 1, subcarrier 5, and subcarrier 9 in the two REGs where the PDSCH is located. This first type of DMRS can serve as... Figure 7 The function of PDSCH-DMRS shown in the figure can also play a role in Figure 7 The role of PDCCH-DMRS is shown in the diagram. However, the RE occupied by this first type of DMRS is compared to... Figure 7 The PDCCH-DMRS and PDSCH-DMRS shown in the diagram occupy fewer REs. Therefore, it is evident that the scheme in this application can reduce the time-frequency domain resources occupied by the DMRS configured in the network device.

[0165] It should be understood that Figure 8 For illustrative purposes only, the PDSCH frequency domain resources can also be more or fewer subcarriers; the PDSCH time domain resources can be fewer OFDM symbols; the PDCCH time domain resources can be more or fewer symbols; and the PDCCH frequency domain resources can be more or fewer subcarriers. This application does not impose specific limitations in this regard.

[0166] Below, in conjunction with Figures 9 to 14 This application provides a detailed description of the demodulation reference signal transmission and reception method. The embodiments shown in this application illustrate the demodulation reference signal transmission and reception method from the perspective of device interaction. The specific forms and quantities of the devices shown are merely examples and should not constitute any limitation on the implementation of the method provided in this application. Below, using network devices and terminal devices as examples, the demodulation reference signal transmission and reception method of the embodiments of this application will be described in detail.

[0167] It should be understood that the terminal device can be the terminal device itself, or a chip, chip system, or processor that supports the terminal device in implementing the demodulation reference signal transmission and reception method, or a logic module or software that can implement all or part of the terminal device; the network device can be the network device itself, or a chip, chip system, or processor that supports the network device in implementing the demodulation reference signal transmission and reception method, or a logic module or software that can implement all or part of the network device, and this application does not make specific limitations in this regard.

[0168] Figure 9This is a flowchart illustrating a demodulation reference signal transmission and reception method 900 provided in an embodiment of this application. Method 900 is applicable to system 600 and includes the following steps:

[0169] S901, The terminal device acquires the first time domain resources and the first frequency domain resources.

[0170] The first time domain resource can be defined by a protocol or configured by the network device through signaling, and the first frequency domain resource can be defined by a protocol or configured by the network device through signaling. Please refer to the description below for details.

[0171] The first time-domain resource may be, for example, one or more time units, such as one or more OFDM symbols, and the first frequency-domain resource may be, for example, one or more frequency-domain units, such as one or more subcarriers.

[0172] It should be noted that, in the embodiments of this application, the granularity of time-domain resources is a time unit, which can be an OFDM symbol, or a time unit can be a time slot or other time granularity; the granularity of frequency-domain resources is a frequency-domain unit, which can be a subcarrier, or a frequency-domain unit can be other frequency-domain granularity. This application does not impose specific limitations on this.

[0173] S902, Network equipment identifies Type 1 DMRS.

[0174] The first type of DMRS is, for example, Figure 8 The DMRS shown is an example. Type I DMRS can be used to demodulate information transmitted via PDCCH or PDSCH. In other words, Type I DMRS can be understood as a joint DMRS of PDCCH and PDSCH.

[0175] S903, on the first time domain resources and the first frequency domain resources, the network device sends a first type of DMRS to the terminal device. Correspondingly, the terminal device receives the first type of DMRS from the network device. The first type of DMRS is used to demodulate the information transmitted from the downlink control channel PDCCH and the downlink data channel PDSCH from the network device.

[0176] The information transmitted via PDCCH can also be replaced with PDCCH or information transmitted via PDCCH; the information transmitted via PDSCH can also be replaced with PDSCH or information transmitted via PDSCH.

[0177] Optionally, method 900 may then further include:

[0178] S904: Network devices send information to terminal devices via PDCCH and PDSCH, respectively. Correspondingly, terminal devices receive information from network devices. Type 1 DMRS can be used to demodulate information transmitted via PDCCH and PDSCH.

[0179] S905, the terminal equipment is based on the first type of DMRS, demodulating information transmitted via PDCCH and information transmitted via PDSCH.

[0180] Optionally, the time domain resources occupied by the first time domain, the time domain resources occupied by the PDCCH, and the time domain resources occupied by the PDSCH can belong to the same time slot.

[0181] The time-domain resources occupied by PDCCH can also be understood as the time-domain resources used to transmit information through PDCCH, such as at least one OFDM symbol; the time-domain resources occupied by PDSCH can also be understood as the time-domain resources used to transmit information through PDSCH, such as at least one OFDM symbol.

[0182] Thus, because the degree of channel change may be low over a shorter period of time, the accuracy of demodulating information transmitted via PDCCH and PDSCH using Type I DMRS is relatively high.

[0183] Furthermore, since the first type of DMRS is used to demodulate information transmitted via PDCCH and information transmitted via PDSCH, the first type of DMRS can be transmitted along with at least one of the information transmitted via PDCCH and information transmitted via PDSCH.

[0184] For example, the first frequency domain resource may occupy one or more RBs. These one or more RBs may carry at least one of the information transmitted via PDCCH and information transmitted via PDSCH. In other words, the resource range of the first frequency domain resource may be the frequency domain resource occupied by PDCCH or the frequency domain resource occupied by PDSCH. And / or, the resource range of the first time domain resource may be one or more time slots occupied by PDCCH or one or more time slots occupied by PDSCH. That is, each time slot within this resource range may transmit first type DMRS.

[0185] This allows the terminal device to more accurately demodulate at least one of the information transmitted via PDCCH and PDSCH based on the first type of DMRS. Furthermore, the terminal device can also determine the first frequency domain resource based on the frequency domain resources occupied by the PDCCH or the PDSCH.

[0186] It should be noted that the terminal device demodulates the information transmitted in the PDCCH and PDSCH based on the first type of DMRS, but this does not limit the first type of DMRS to only being used for demodulating the information transmitted in the PDCCH and PDSCH. For example, the terminal device can also use the first type of DMRS for channel estimation of at least one of the PDCCH and PDSCH. This application does not impose specific limitations in this regard.

[0187] The demodulation reference signal transmission and reception method of this application allows the network device to configure a type of DMRS for the terminal device. This DMRS can be used to demodulate information transmitted via PDCCH or PDSCH. Thus, in scenarios where the terminal device is stationary or moves slowly (where channel changes are slow), the terminal device can utilize this DMRS to demodulate information transmitted via both PDCCH and PDSCH. This eliminates the need for the network device to configure PDCCH-DMRS and PDSCH-DMRS separately for the terminal device. Furthermore, compared to the combined time-frequency domain resources occupied by PDCCH-DMRS and PDSCH-DMRS, the first type of DMRS occupies fewer time-frequency domain resources.

[0188] Since Type 1 DMRS is a type of DMRS that differs from PDCCH-DMRS and PDSCH-DMRS, network devices can instruct terminal devices to activate this type of DMRS in the following ways.

[0189] As an optional embodiment, method 900 further includes: the network device sending first information to the terminal device, the first information being used to indicate that a first type of DMRS is enabled, or the first information being used to indicate that the configured DMRS is a first type of DMRS. Correspondingly, the terminal device receives the first information from the network device.

[0190] When the first information is used to indicate the activation of the first type of DMRS, the first information can also be understood as the first information used to indicate that the state of the first switch is on. The first switch can be understood as a field used to indicate whether the first type of DMRS is activated. The first information can be, for example, 1 or on, indicating that the first type of DMRS is activated.

[0191] It should be understood that activation can also be replaced by enabling, etc., and this application does not specifically limit it in this regard.

[0192] If the network device instructs the terminal device not to activate Type 1 DMRS, the network device may choose not to send the first message to the terminal device. That is, if the network device does not send the first message to the terminal device, Type 1 DMRS is not activated by default.

[0193] Alternatively, if the network device instructs the terminal device not to activate the first type of DMRS, the network device can send information 1 to the terminal device, where information 1 indicates that the first type of DMRS is not activated. In this case, the first information and information 1 can respectively describe two states of the first switch. The first information can indicate that the first switch is in the on state, i.e., the first type of DMRS is activated; information 1 can indicate that the first switch is in the off state, i.e., the first type of DMRS is not activated. For example, information 1 can be 0 and the first information can be 1; or information 1 can be off and the first information can be on, etc. In this way, the terminal device can determine whether to activate the first type of DMRS based on information 1 or the first information.

[0194] When the first information is used to indicate that the configured DMRS is a first type of DMRS, the first information is information used to indicate the first type. The terminal device can determine that the DMRS configured by the network device is a first type of DMRS based on the first information, or it can be understood that the terminal device can determine that the DMRS received by the terminal device is a first type of DMRS based on the first information.

[0195] It should be understood that in the embodiments of this application, the first type may also be referred to as joint DMRS, type 3, type C, first pattern, or first design, etc., and the first switch may also be referred to as joint DMRS switch, etc. This application does not specifically limit the name of this type of DMRS.

[0196] Optionally, the first information can be carried in higher-level parameters or RRC parameters, such as in the time domain resource allocation list field. For example, the first information can be carried in MIB, SIB1 messages, RRC establishment messages, or RRC configuration messages. Alternatively, the first information can also be carried in DCI. This application does not impose specific limitations on this.

[0197] Based on the above embodiments, the terminal device may also indicate to the network device whether it has the capability to use the first type of DMRS.

[0198] As an optional embodiment, method 900 further includes: the terminal device sending third information to the network device, the third information indicating that the terminal device supports the first type of DMRS. Correspondingly, the network device receives the third information from the terminal device.

[0199] The third type of information can be carried in messages such as UE capability information. The terminal device supports the use of Type 1 DMRS, that is, the terminal device can use Type 1 DMRS to demodulate information transmitted via PDCCH and PDSCH.

[0200] If the terminal device does not support Type 1 DMRS, the terminal device may choose not to send third information to the network device. In other words, if the terminal device does not send third information to the network device, it is assumed by default that the terminal device does not support Type 1 DMRS.

[0201] Alternatively, if the terminal device indicates to the network device that it does not support the first type of DMRS, the terminal device may send information 2 to the network device, which indicates that the terminal device does not support the first type of DMRS.

[0202] In this context, Information 2 and the third information can be understood as information describing two different states of a field. This field could be a field describing whether the terminal device supports the use of Type 1 DMRS. For example, the field name could be UE-capability-joint DMRS or UE-capability-type 3. Information 2 and the third information represent the two states of this field; for example, Information 2 could be 0 and the third information could be 1; or Information 2 could be off and the third information could be on, etc. This allows the network device to determine whether the terminal device supports Type 1 DMRS based on Information 2 or the third information. It also allows the network device to configure Type 1 DMRS if the terminal device supports it, thus avoiding configuring invalid DMRS for the terminal device and resulting in higher communication quality between the network device and the terminal device.

[0203] Optionally, the third information may be a response to information 3. For example, method 900 further includes: the network device sending information 3 to the terminal device, information 3 being used to inquire whether the terminal device supports the first type of DMRS. Correspondingly, the terminal device receives information 3 from the network device. And in response to information 3, the terminal device sends third information to the network device.

[0204] Information 3, for example, is carried in messages such as UE capability request.

[0205] In this way, the network device can send information 3 to the terminal device before configuring DMRS, so that the network device can determine whether the terminal device supports the first type of DMRS before configuring DMRS.

[0206] Based on the above embodiments, the first time-domain resources used by the network device to send the first type of DMRS to the terminal device can be determined in the following way.

[0207] As an optional embodiment, the first time-domain resource is determined based on one or more of the following: a second time-domain resource, a third time-domain resource, or a first quantity. Wherein, the second time-domain resource is the time-domain resource of the PDCCH; the third time-domain resource is the time-domain resource of the PDSCH; and the first quantity is the maximum number of time units that the first type of DMRS can occupy.

[0208] It should be understood that the time-domain resources occupied by PDCCH are the same as the time-domain resources used for transmitting information via PDCCH; the time-domain resources occupied by PDSCH are the same as the time-domain resources used for transmitting information via PDSCH. The maximum number of time units that a Type I DMRS can occupy is also the maximum number of time units included in the first time-domain resources. For example, a first quantity of 2 OFDM symbols means that a Type I DMRS can occupy a maximum of 2 OFDM symbols.

[0209] Since the first type of DMRS is used to demodulate information transmitted via PDCCH and PDSCH, the first time-domain resource is related to the time-domain resources of either PDCCH or PDSCH. Furthermore, the number of time units included in the first time-domain resource can be less than or equal to a first number. Based on this, terminal devices and network devices can determine the first time-domain resource in several ways.

[0210] In a first possible implementation, the first time-domain resource is determined based on the second time-domain resource.

[0211] The second time-domain resource can be one or more time units. For example, when the PDCCH is PDCCH, the second time-domain resource can be one or more OFDM symbols in a time slot. The first time-domain resource can be some or all of the time units in the second time-domain resource, as detailed in Method 1 or Method 2 below.

[0212] Method 1: The first time domain resource is a portion of the time units in the second time domain resource.

[0213] In one example, the first time-domain resource can be the first Z time units in the second time-domain resource, where Z is a positive integer.

[0214] The first Z time units can be understood as the Z time units that occur first in chronological order. For example, assuming Z is 2, and the second time domain resource is OFDM symbol 0, OFDM symbol 1, and OFDM symbol 2 in a time slot, then the first time domain resource is OFDM symbol 0 and OFDM symbol 1.

[0215] Z can also be 1, in which case the first time domain resource is the first time unit in the second time domain resource.

[0216] For example, assuming PDCCH is PDCCH and PDSCH is PDSCH, then the first time-domain resource and the second time-domain resource can be configured as follows: Figure 10 As shown. The second time-domain resource (the time-domain resource of PDCCH) is OFDM symbol 0 and OFDM symbol 1 in a time slot, and the first time-domain resource is OFDM symbol 0 in the same time slot.

[0217] Will Figure 10 and Figure 7 The comparison shows that the first type of DMRS configured on the network device requires less time domain resources compared to configuring PDCCH-DMRS and PDSCH-DMRS separately.

[0218] In another example, the first time-domain resource can also be the last V time units in the second time-domain resource, where V is a positive integer. The last V time units can be understood as the last V time units that occur in chronological order. For example, assuming V is 1, and the second time-domain resource is OFDM symbol 0 and OFDM symbol 1 in a time slot, then the first time-domain resource is OFDM symbol 1.

[0219] For example, if V can be 1, then the first time-domain resource is the last time unit in the second time-domain resource. Therefore, when PDCCH is PDCCH and PDSCH is PDSCH, combined with... Figure 10 The first time-domain resource can be OFDM symbol 1.

[0220] It is understood that the first time-domain resource is not limited to the first Z time units or the last V time units in the second time-domain resource; it can also be one or more time units located in the middle of the second time-domain resource. For example, if the second time-domain resource is OFDM symbol 0, OFDM symbol 1, and OFDM symbol 2 in a time slot, then the first time-domain resource can be OFDM symbol 1. For the sake of simplicity, they will not be shown one by one here.

[0221] Optionally, in Method 1, the first time domain resource can be agreed upon by a protocol or configured by the network device through signaling.

[0222] For example, the protocol may stipulate that the first time-domain resource is the first Z time units or the last V time units in the second time-domain resource; or, method 900 may further include: the network device sending information 4 to the terminal device, information 4 indicating that the first time-domain resource is the first Z time units or the last V time units in the second time-domain resource. Correspondingly, the terminal device receives information 4 from the network device.

[0223] It should be understood that information 4 can be carried in high-level parameters or RRC parameters. That is, information 4 can be carried in messages such as MIB, SIB1, RRC establishment messages or RRC configuration messages, or information 4 can also be carried in DCI. This application does not make specific limitations in this regard.

[0224] Method 2: The first time domain resource is all time units in the second time domain resource.

[0225] In this approach, if the terminal device can determine the second time-domain resource, then the terminal device can determine the first time-domain resource.

[0226] Optionally, the network device can indicate the second time-domain resource to the terminal device via messages such as SIB1, RRC establishment messages, or RRC configuration messages. For example, the network device can indicate to the terminal device the number u of OFDM symbols occupied by the second time-domain resource, where u is a positive integer. In this way, the terminal device can determine that the second time-domain resource is the first u OFDM symbols in a time slot. Furthermore, the terminal device can determine that the first time-domain resource is the first u OFDM symbols in a time slot.

[0227] It should be understood that the above-described method of network device indicating second time domain resources to terminal device is merely an example, and the embodiments of this application do not specifically limit the method of network device indicating second time domain resources to terminal device.

[0228] For example, if the second time-domain resource is the first two OFDM symbols in a time slot, then the first and second time-domain resources can be configured as follows: Figure 8 As shown. The second time-domain resource and the first time-domain resource are both OFDM symbol 0 and OFDM symbol 1 in one time slot.

[0229] Optionally, in method 2, the first time domain resource can be agreed upon by the protocol or configured by the network device through signaling.

[0230] For example, the protocol may stipulate that the first time domain resource is the second time domain resource; or, method 900 may further include: the network device sending information 5 to the terminal device, information 5 indicating that the first time domain resource includes all time units of the second time domain resource. Correspondingly, the terminal device receives information 5 from the network device.

[0231] It should be understood that information 5 can be carried in high-level parameters or RRC parameters. That is, information 5 can be carried in messages such as MIB, SIB1, RRC establishment messages or RRC configuration messages, or information 5 can also be carried in DCI. This application does not make specific limitations in this regard.

[0232] In a second possible implementation, the first time-domain resource is determined based on the third time-domain resource.

[0233] The third time-domain resource can be one or more time units. For example, the third time-domain resource can be one or more OFDM symbols in a time slot.

[0234] It should be understood that the specific details of the third time domain resources can be found in the description of PDSCH for mapping type A and mapping type B above. Network devices can indicate the third time domain resources to terminal devices through higher-layer parameters and DCI. The method by which network devices indicate the third frequency domain resources to terminal devices can be found in the description above, and will not be repeated here.

[0235] Similar to the first possible implementation, the first time domain resource can also be part or all of the time units in the third time domain resource, as can be seen in the first and second cases below.

[0236] In the first case, if the PDSCH is mapping type A, then within a time slot, the OFDM symbols (third time-domain resource) occupied by the PDSCH start from the OFDM symbol position {0,1,2,3}, with a symbol length of 3 to 14 OFDM symbols, and cannot exceed the time slot boundary. The starting position of the first time-domain resource can be the s-th OFDM symbol in a time slot, where s is a positive integer, such as 2, 3, or 4, etc., and the first time-domain resource can include r OFDM symbols, where r is a positive integer, such as 1 or 2, etc.

[0237] That is, the first time-domain resource is similar to the time-domain resource of PDSCH-DMRS of mapping type A. The first and third time-domain resources can be as follows: Figure 11 As shown. Here, PDSCH is the PDSCH of mapping type A, and the first time-domain resource is the third OFDM symbol in this time slot, i.e., OFDM symbol 2. Furthermore, the first time-domain resource is a subset of the OFDM symbols in the third time-domain resource.

[0238] Will Figure 11 and Figure 7 The comparison shows that the first type of DMRS configured on the network device requires less time domain resources compared to configuring PDCCH-DMRS and PDSCH-DMRS separately.

[0239] It should be understood that Figure 11 For illustrative purposes only, the number of OFDM symbols included in the first time-domain resource can be even greater, and the OFDM symbols included in the first time-domain resource can also be other OFDM symbols. For the sake of brevity, they will not be shown one by one here.

[0240] In this case, the first time domain resources can be agreed upon by the protocol or configured by the network device through signaling.

[0241] For example, method 900 further includes: the network device sending information 6 to the terminal device, information 6 indicating the mapping type of the first time-domain resource. Correspondingly, the terminal device receives information 6 from the network device. The mapping type of the first time-domain resource may indicate that the starting position of the first time-domain resource is the s-th OFDM symbol in a time slot.

[0242] It should be understood that the mapping type of the first time domain resource can be called mapping type C or mapping type 1a, etc., and this application does not make a specific limitation on it.

[0243] Furthermore, method 900 may also include: the network device sending information 7 to the terminal device, the information 7 indicating that the first time-domain resource includes r OFDM symbols. Correspondingly, the terminal device receives information 7 from the network device.

[0244] It should be understood that information 6 and information 7 can be carried in the same signaling or in different signaling. Furthermore, when information 6 and information 7 are carried in the same signaling, they can be carried in the same or different fields. This application does not make any specific limitations in this regard.

[0245] It should also be understood that information 6 and / or information 7 can be carried in higher-level parameters, such as the time domain resource allocation list. That is, information 6 and / or information 7 can be carried in messages such as MIB, SIB1, RRC establishment messages, or RRC configuration messages. Alternatively, information 6 and / or information 7 can also be carried in the DCI. This application does not specifically limit this.

[0246] It should be noted that in the first case, the method for determining the third time-domain resource (e.g., the PDSCH time-domain resource) is similar to the method for determining the PDSCH time-domain resource of mapping type A. Please refer to the description above, which will not be repeated here.

[0247] It should also be noted that, in the first case, if the s-th OFDM symbol in a time slot belongs to the control resource set, then the starting position of the first time-domain resource can be the first OFDM symbol after the last OFDM symbol in the control resource set. For example, combining... Figure 11 The control resource set includes OFDM symbol 0 and OFDM symbol 1 in a given time slot. If s is 1 or 2, then the s-th OFDM symbol in a given time slot belongs to the control resource set. Therefore, the starting position of the first time domain resource is the first OFDM symbol after the control resource set, i.e., OFDM symbol 2.

[0248] In the second case, if the PDSCH is mapping type B, meaning that within a time slot, the OFDM symbols (third time-domain resource) occupied by the PDSCH start from OFDM symbols {0,1,…,12}, with a symbol length of 2, 4, or 7 OFDM symbols, and cannot exceed the time slot boundary, then the starting position of the first time-domain resource is the c-th OFDM symbol in the third time-domain resource, where c is a positive integer, and c can be, for example, 1 or 2; and the first time-domain resource can include d OFDM symbols, where d is a positive integer, and d can be, for example, 1 or 2.

[0249] That is, the first time-domain resource is similar to the time-domain resource of PDSCH-DMRS of mapping type B. The first and third time-domain resources can be as follows: Figure 12 As shown. Among them, PDSCH is the PDSCH of mapping type B, the third time domain resource is OFDM symbols 8 to OFDM symbols 11 in a time slot, and the first time domain resource is the first OFDM symbol in the third time domain resource, namely OFDM symbol 8.

[0250] Will Figure 12 and Figure 7 The comparison shows that the first type of DMRS configured on the network device requires less time domain resources compared to configuring PDCCH-DMRS and PDSCH-DMRS separately.

[0251] It should be understood that Figure 12 For illustrative purposes only, the starting position of the third time-domain resource can be other locations, and the third time-domain resource can include more or fewer OFDM symbols. Furthermore, the first time-domain resource can also be other OFDM symbols from the third time-domain resource, such as OFDM symbol 9, etc.; the first time-domain resource can also include more OFDM symbols. For the sake of brevity, they will not be shown one by one here.

[0252] In this case, the first time domain resources can be agreed upon by the protocol or configured by the network device through signaling.

[0253] For example, method 900 further includes: the network device sending information 8 to the terminal device, information 8 indicating the mapping type of the first time-domain resource. Correspondingly, the terminal device receives information 8 from the network device. The mapping type of the first time-domain resource may indicate that the starting position of the first time-domain resource is the c-th OFDM symbol in the third time-domain resource.

[0254] It should be understood that the mapping type of the first time domain resource can be called mapping type C or mapping type 1b, etc., and this application does not make a specific limitation on it.

[0255] Furthermore, method 900 may also include: the network device sending information 9 to the terminal device, the information 9 indicating that the first time-domain resource includes d OFDM symbols. Correspondingly, the terminal device receives information 9 from the network device.

[0256] It should be understood that information 8 and information 9 can be carried in the same signaling or in different signaling. Furthermore, when information 8 and information 9 are carried in the same signaling, they can be carried in the same or different fields. This application does not make any specific limitations in this regard.

[0257] It should also be understood that information 8 and / or information 9 can be carried in higher-level parameters, such as the time domain resource allocation list. That is, information 8 and / or information 9 can be carried in messages such as MIB, SIB1, RRC establishment messages, or RRC configuration messages. Alternatively, information 8 and / or information 9 can also be carried in the DCI. This application does not specifically limit this.

[0258] It should be noted that in the second case, the method for determining the third time-domain resource (the time-domain resource occupied by PDSCH) is similar to the method for determining the PDSCH time-domain resource of mapping type B. Please refer to the description above, which will not be repeated here.

[0259] It should also be noted that in the second case, if the c-th OFDM symbol in a time slot belongs to the control resource set, then the starting position of the first time-domain resource can be the first OFDM symbol after the last OFDM symbol in the control resource set. For example, combining... Figure 12 The control resource set includes OFDM symbol 0 and OFDM symbol 1 in a time slot. If the c-th time unit in the third time domain resource is OFDM symbol 0 or OFDM symbol 1, then the starting position of the first time domain resource is the first OFDM symbol after the control resource set, i.e., OFDM symbol 2.

[0260] In a third possible implementation, the first temporal resource is determined based on a first quantity.

[0261] The first quantity can be the maximum number of time units that the first type of DMRS can occupy. For example, the first quantity can be 1 OFDM symbol or 2 OFDM symbols, etc.

[0262] The first quantity can be agreed upon by the protocol, or it can be configured by the network device through signaling.

[0263] For example, method 900 further includes: the network device sending second information to the terminal device, the second information indicating the first quantity. Correspondingly, the terminal device receives the second information from the network device. In this way, the terminal device can determine the maximum number of time units that the first time domain resource can occupy.

[0264] It should be understood that the second information can be carried in the maximum length field of the RRC parameter, for example, len2 or len1, where len2 can represent 2 OFDM symbols and len1 can represent 1 OFDM symbol.

[0265] It should also be understood that the second information can be carried in messages such as MIB, SIB1, RRC establishment messages, or RRC configuration messages. This application does not specifically limit this.

[0266] Furthermore, the network device can also indicate to the terminal device via DCI the number of time units included in the first time-domain resource, assuming this number is a second number. The second number is less than or equal to the first number. The second number could be, for example, one OFDM symbol or two OFDM symbols. In this way, the terminal device can determine the number of time units included in the first time-domain resource.

[0267] Based on the number of time units included in the first time domain resource, the terminal device can determine the first time domain resource by combining the starting position of the first time domain resource.

[0268] It should be understood that the starting position of the first time-domain resource can be located in the second or third time-domain resource. Furthermore, the starting position of the first time-domain resource can be agreed upon by a protocol or configured by the network device through signaling. The method by which the terminal device determines the starting position of the first time-domain resource can refer to the first or second possible implementation method, which will not be elaborated here.

[0269] It should be noted that the first to third possible implementation methods described above can also be combined. For example, the terminal device can determine the starting position of the first time-domain resource according to the first or second possible implementation method, and can determine the number of time units included in the first time-domain resource according to the third possible implementation method. For the sake of brevity, these will not be elaborated further here.

[0270] In addition to the first to third possible implementations described above, the network device may also directly indicate the first time domain resource to the terminal device.

[0271] For example, method 900 further includes: the network device sending second information to the terminal device. The second information is used to indicate a first time-domain resource. Correspondingly, the terminal device receives the second information from the network device.

[0272] The second information could indicate, for example, the starting position and the second quantity of the first time-domain resource, where the second quantity refers to the number of time units included in the first time-domain resource. In this way, the terminal device can directly determine the first time-domain resource based on the second information.

[0273] It should be understood that the second information can be carried in messages such as MIB, SIB1, RRC establishment message or RRC configuration message, or it can be carried in DCI. This application does not make any specific limitation on this.

[0274] Furthermore, the first frequency domain resources can be determined in the following ways. These methods can also be combined, as detailed below.

[0275] In the first approach, the first frequency domain resource is determined based on the second or third frequency domain resource. The second frequency domain resource is the frequency domain resource occupied by the PDCCH, and the third frequency domain resource is the frequency domain resource occupied by the PDSCH.

[0276] It should be understood that the frequency domain resources occupied by PDCCH are also the frequency domain resources used for transmitting information via PDCCH; the frequency domain resources occupied by PDSCH are also the frequency domain resources used for transmitting information via PDSCH. The first frequency domain resources, the second frequency domain resources, or the third frequency domain resources may each include one or more adjacent frequency domain units.

[0277] Since the first type of DMRS is used to demodulate information transmitted via PDCCH and PDSCH, the first frequency domain resource is related to the frequency domain resources occupied by PDCCH or PDSCH. For example, the first frequency domain resource may be some or all of the frequency domain units in the second frequency domain resource; or, the first frequency domain resource may be some or all of the frequency domain units in the third frequency domain resource.

[0278] It should be noted that in the first method, the second and third frequency domain resources can be agreed upon by the protocol or configured by the network device through signaling. This application embodiment does not specifically limit the way the terminal device determines the second and third frequency domain resources.

[0279] The second approach, where the first frequency domain resource is the i+a×j-th subcarrier in each of at least one RB, where i, a, and j are integers greater than or equal to 0, and i+a×j is less than or equal to 12.

[0280] It should be understood that since an RB comprises 12 subcarriers, i + a × j is less than or equal to 12. At least one RB can be, for example, a second or third frequency domain resource.

[0281] It should also be understood that in the embodiments of this application, the subcarrier index is an integer greater than or equal to 0, and the subcarrier index starts from 0 and increases sequentially according to the frequency from smallest to largest. Therefore, the (i+a×j)th subcarrier is subcarrier (i+a×j-1). For example, combined with... Figure 8 The first frequency domain resources are the 2nd, 6th, and 10th subcarriers in each RB. The 2nd subcarrier is subcarrier 1, the 6th subcarrier is subcarrier 5, and the 10th subcarrier is subcarrier 9.

[0282] Where i can represent that the starting position of the first frequency domain resource in each RB is the i-th subcarrier, for example, combined with Figure 8 The starting position of the first frequency domain resource in each RB is the second subcarrier; j can be understood as the difference between the indices of two adjacent subcarriers in the first frequency domain resource, for example, combined with Figure 8 In the first frequency domain resource, the difference between two adjacent subcarrier indices is 4 (e.g., the difference between subcarrier 1 and subcarrier 5 is 4); 'a' is an integer greater than or equal to 0, and 'a' can take values ​​from 0 to 0. max a max It is a positive integer, and i+a max ×j is less than or equal to 12, for example, combined with Figure 8 , where a can be 0, 1 or 2.

[0283] It should be understood that when the subcarrier index is not a sequentially arranged integer greater than or equal to 0, j can be understood as the sum of the number of spaced subcarriers between two adjacent subcarriers in the first frequency domain resource and 1.

[0284] In the second approach, the first frequency domain resource is similar to the PDCCH-DMRS frequency domain resource. The PDCCH-DMRS frequency domain resource consists of the 2nd, 6th, and 10th subcarriers in each RB, i.e., subcarrier 1, subcarrier 5, and subcarrier 9. Similarly, assuming i is 2, j is 4, and a can take values ​​of 0, 1, and 2, then the first frequency domain resource is the 2nd, 6th, and 10th subcarriers in each RB. The first frequency domain resource can be as follows: Figure 8 or Figure 10 As shown. The first frequency domain resource consists of subcarrier 1, subcarrier 5, and subcarrier 9 of each of the two RBs. The third frequency domain resource consists of the subcarriers included in the two RBs, that is, the first frequency domain resource is a portion of the subcarriers in the third frequency domain resource.

[0285] It should be understood that Figure 8 and Figure 10 For example only, the first frequency domain resource can also be a portion of the subcarriers in the second frequency domain resource, for example, combined with Figure 8The first frequency domain resource can be subcarrier 1, subcarrier 5, and subcarrier 9 in an RB occupied by the PDCCH, that is, the RB above does not carry the first type of DMRS. This application does not make specific limitations in this regard.

[0286] It should also be understood that Figure 8 and Figure 10 For illustrative purposes only, in this case, the first time-domain resource could also be some or all of the time units in the third time-domain resource. Figure 8 and Figure 10 In this context, the first time-domain resource can also be one or more OFDM symbols from OFDM symbol 2 to OFDM symbol 13. In other words, in the second approach, the first time-domain resource can be determined according to any of the methods described above. For the sake of brevity, they will not be shown one by one here.

[0287] It should be noted that, Figure 8 and Figure 11 For example only, the values ​​of i, a, and j may be other values, such as i being 0, j being 4, and a being 1, 2, and 3. In this case, the first frequency domain resource is the 4th, 8th, and 12th subcarriers in each RB. For the sake of simplicity, they will not be shown one by one here.

[0288] Furthermore, in this approach, the first frequency domain resources can be agreed upon by the protocol or configured by the network device through signaling.

[0289] For example, the protocol can specify the values ​​of i and j in i+a×j. For instance, if i is specified as 2 and j as 4, then since i+a×j is less than or equal to 12, a can take any of 0, 1, and 2. Alternatively, the protocol can specify the values ​​of i+a×j, for example, i+a×j can be specified as 2, 6, and 10. Or, the protocol can specify the first frequency domain resource as subcarrier 1, subcarrier 5, and subcarrier 9, which is equivalent to i+a×j being 2, 6, and 10. Based on this, the protocol can also specify a type 3 frequency domain resource, which is the i+a×j-th subcarrier in each RB. Thus, when the network device indicates type 3 to the terminal device via signaling, the terminal device can determine that the first frequency domain resource is the i+a×j-th subcarrier in each RB.

[0290] For example, method 900 further includes: the network device sending information 10 to the terminal device, the information 10 indicating that the first frequency domain resource is type 3. Correspondingly, the terminal device receives information 10 from the network device.

[0291] It should be understood that type 3 is merely an example, and type 3 can have other names, such as type c, etc. Furthermore, "the first frequency domain resource is type 3" can also be understood as, from a frequency domain perspective, the first type of DMRS is type 3.

[0292] It should also be understood that information 10 can be carried in high-level parameters, such as RRC parameters, that is, information 10 can be carried in messages such as MIB, SIB1, RRC establishment messages, or RRC configuration messages. Alternatively, information 10 can also be carried in DCI, and this application does not specifically limit this.

[0293] The third approach is that in each of the at least one RB, the first frequency domain resource includes at least one sub-frequency domain resource, each of the at least one sub-frequency domain resources includes M adjacent subcarriers, the starting subcarriers of two adjacent sub-frequency domain resources are spaced N subcarriers apart, each of the at least one RB carries at least one of the information transmitted by PDCCH and the information transmitted by PDSCH, where N and M are positive integers, and N is greater than or equal to M.

[0294] At least one RB can be an RB occupied by the PDCCH or an RB occupied by the PDSCH. M adjacent subcarriers can also be understood as M consecutive subcarriers, for example... Figure 12 As shown, subcarrier 0 and subcarrier 1 are two adjacent subcarriers; subcarrier 0, subcarrier 1, and subcarrier 2 are three adjacent subcarriers, and so on. An interval of N subcarriers can also be understood as N subcarriers not carrying Type I DMRS, for example... Figure 12 As shown, there is a 1-subcarrier interval between subcarrier 2 and subcarrier 0, namely subcarrier 1, and subcarrier 1 does not carry the first type of DMRS.

[0295] For example, combined Figure 10 , Figure 11 or Figure 12 At least one RB can be one of the two RBs occupied by the PDSCH. M adjacent subcarriers can also be replaced by one subcarrier, for example... Figure 11 The first type of DMRS shown in the diagram has one subcarrier for each sub-frequency domain resource, with a one-subcarrier interval between any two adjacent subcarriers. Alternatively, the M adjacent subcarriers can be two adjacent subcarriers, and the starting subcarriers of any two adjacent sub-frequency domain resources can be spaced four subcarriers apart, for example... Figure 14 The first type of DMRS is shown in the figure.

[0296] Furthermore, the interval of N subcarriers between the starting subcarriers of two adjacent sub-frequency domain resources can also be replaced by: an interval of N subcarriers between the last subcarriers of two adjacent sub-frequency domain resources; or, in two adjacent sub-frequency domain resources, an interval of N subcarriers between the 0th subcarrier of one sub-frequency domain resource and the 0th subcarrier of the other sub-frequency domain resource, where 0 is a positive integer less than or equal to M. This application does not impose specific limitations on this.

[0297] In Case 1, the first frequency domain resources are similar to those in DMRS Type 1. That is, the first frequency domain resources can be distributed at intervals.

[0298] For example, N can be 1 and M can be 1, then the first frequency domain resources are distributed with a spacing of 1 subcarrier. The first frequency domain resources can be as follows: Figure 11 or Figure 12 As shown.

[0299] It should be noted that, in this case, the first frequency domain resource can be a portion of the subcarriers in the third frequency domain resource, for example... Figure 11 or Figure 12 As shown, the first frequency domain resource comprises 50% of the subcarriers in the third frequency domain resource. In some possible implementations, the first frequency domain resource can also be made to comprise all the subcarriers in the third frequency domain resource through frequency division multiplexing or other methods. In this case, the first frequency domain resource and... Figure 3 The type 1 PDSCH-DMRS frequency domain resources shown are similar.

[0300] For example, such as Figure 13 As shown, the first frequency domain resource comprises all subcarriers in the third frequency domain resource. Specifically, the first type of DMRS mapped to antenna ports 1000, 1001, 1004, and 1005 occupies 50% of the subcarriers in the third frequency domain resource, and these subcarriers are spaced one subcarrier apart. The first type of DMRS mapped to antenna ports 1002, 1003, 1006, and 1007 occupies the remaining 50% of the subcarriers in the third frequency domain resource, and these subcarriers are also spaced one subcarrier apart.

[0301] It should be understood that Figure 11 , Figure 12 as well as Figure 13 For illustrative purposes only, in this case, the first frequency domain resource could also be some or all of the subcarriers in the second frequency domain resource. Figure 11 , Figure 12 as well as Figure 13 In the middle, the RBs not occupied by PDCCH do not carry Type I DMRS, that is, the RBs above do not carry Type I DMRS.

[0302] It should also be understood that Figure 11 , Figure 12 as well as Figure 13 For illustrative purposes only, in this case, the first time-domain resource could occupy more OFDM symbols. Alternatively, the first time-domain resource could also be some or all of the time units in the second time-domain resource. Figure 11 , Figure 12 as well as Figure 13In this context, the first time-domain resource can also be OFDM symbol 0 and / or OFDM symbol 1. That is, in case 1, the first time-domain resource can be determined in any of the ways described above. For the sake of brevity, these will not be shown one by one here.

[0303] In Case 2, the first frequency domain resource is similar to the frequency domain resource of DMRS Type 2. That is, the first frequency domain resource can be distributed with a spacing of 4 subcarriers, and every 2 subcarriers are connected together.

[0304] For example, N can be 4 and M can be 2, then the first frequency domain resources are distributed with a spacing of 4 subcarriers, and every 2 subcarriers are connected together. In this case, the first frequency domain resources and... Figure 4 The PDSCH-DMRS frequency domain resources of type 2 shown in the figure are similar.

[0305] For example, such as Figure 14 As shown, the first frequency domain resource comprises all subcarriers in the third frequency domain resource. The first type of DMRS mapped to antenna ports 1000, 1001, 1006, and 1007 occupies 33.3% of the subcarriers in the third frequency domain resource, and these subcarriers are also distributed with a spacing of 4 subcarriers, with every 2 subcarriers connected together. Similarly, the first type of DMRS mapped to antenna ports 1002, 1003, 1008, and 1009 occupies 33.3% of the subcarriers in the third frequency domain resource, and these subcarriers are also distributed with a spacing of 4 subcarriers, with every 2 subcarriers connected together. The first type of DMRS mapped to antenna ports 1004, 1005, 1010, and 1011 occupies 33.3% of the subcarriers in the third frequency domain resource, and these subcarriers are also distributed with a spacing of 4 subcarriers, with every 2 subcarriers connected together.

[0306] It should be noted that, Figure 14 For example only, the first frequency domain resource can also be a portion of the subcarriers in the third frequency domain resource, for example, combined with Figure 14 The first frequency domain resource is the subcarriers occupied by the first type of DMRS mapped to antenna ports 1000, 1001, 1006, and 1007; or, the first frequency domain resource is the subcarriers occupied by the first type of DMRS mapped to antenna ports 1000, 1001, 1006, and 1007, and the subcarriers occupied by the first type of DMRS mapped to antenna ports 1002, 1003, 1008, and 1009, etc. For simplicity, they will not be shown one by one here.

[0307] It should also be understood that Figure 14For illustrative purposes only, in this case, the first frequency domain resource could also be some or all of the subcarriers in the second frequency domain resource. Figure 14 In the middle, the RBs not occupied by PDCCH do not carry Type I DMRS, that is, the RBs above do not carry Type I DMRS.

[0308] It should also be understood that Figure 14 For illustrative purposes only, in this case, the first time-domain resource could occupy more OFDM symbols. Alternatively, the first time-domain resource could also be some or all of the time units in the second time-domain resource. Figure 14 In this context, the first time-domain resource can also be OFDM symbol 0 and / or OFDM symbol 1. That is, in case 2, the first time-domain resource can be determined in any of the ways described above. For the sake of brevity, these will not be shown one by one here.

[0309] Furthermore, in this approach, the first frequency domain resources can be agreed upon by the protocol or configured by the network device through signaling.

[0310] For example, the protocol may define frequency domain resources of type 1a, such as the first frequency domain resources shown in case 1; the protocol may define frequency domain resources of type 2a, such as the first frequency domain resources shown in case 2.

[0311] Thus, when the network device indicates type 1a or type 2a to the terminal device via signaling, the terminal device can determine the first frequency domain resource.

[0312] For example, method 900 further includes: the network device sending information 11 to the terminal device, the information 11 indicating whether the first frequency domain resource is type 1a or type 2a. Correspondingly, the terminal device receives information 11 from the network device.

[0313] It should be understood that type 1a or type 2a are merely examples, and type 1a or type 2a can be other names, such as type 1a could also be type 3, and type 2a could also be type 4, etc. Furthermore, "the first frequency domain resource is type 1a" can also be understood as "from a frequency domain perspective, the first type of DMRS is type 1a"; "the first frequency domain resource is type 1b" can also be understood as "from a frequency domain perspective, the first type of DMRS is type 1b".

[0314] It should also be understood that information 11 can be carried in high-level parameters, such as RRC parameters, that is, information 11 can be carried in messages such as MIB, SIB1, RRC establishment messages, or RRC configuration messages. Alternatively, information 11 can also be carried in DCI, and this application does not specifically limit this.

[0315] Based on the above embodiments, the first frequency domain resources can be agreed upon by the protocol or configured by the network device through signaling.

[0316] For example, the protocol may specify the subcarriers included in the first frequency domain resource, such as specifying the index of the subcarriers included in the first frequency domain resource; or, the network device may indicate the subcarriers included in the first frequency domain resource to the terminal device via signaling, such as specifying the index of the subcarriers included in the first frequency domain resource to the terminal device via signaling, and this index may be indicated by a formula or various parameters. The formula may be, for example, i + a × j, and the parameters may be, for example, N and M. Furthermore, the formula may be of other forms, and the parameters may be other parameters. Alternatively, the protocol may directly specify, or the network device may indicate to the terminal device, the index of the subcarriers included in the first frequency domain resource. For example, the first frequency domain resource may include subcarrier 1, subcarrier 5, and subcarrier 9, etc.

[0317] It is understood that the first type of DMRS in the embodiments of this application may be a front-end DMRS, or it may be other DMRS that can be used to demodulate information transmitted through PDCCH and PDSCH. This application does not make any specific limitation on this.

[0318] It should be noted that the order of the methods listed above does not imply the order of execution. The execution order of each process should be determined by its function and internal logic.

[0319] The above text combined Figures 9 to 14 The demodulation reference signal transmission and reception method of the embodiments of this application is described in detail below, in conjunction with Figures 15 to 18 This application describes in detail the communication apparatus according to embodiments of the present application. The communication apparatus includes modules or units for performing each part of the above embodiments. The modules or units may be software, hardware, or a combination of software and hardware. The following is only a brief illustrative example of the communication apparatus; for details of the implementation, please refer to the description of the foregoing method embodiments, which will not be repeated below.

[0320] Figure 15 This is a schematic block diagram of a communication device 1500 provided in an embodiment of this application. Figure 15 As shown, the communication device 1500 includes a transceiver module 1502 and a processing module 1501.

[0321] In one possible implementation, the communication device 1500 is used to implement the steps corresponding to the terminal device in the method 900 described above.

[0322] The processing module 1501 is used to acquire a first time-domain resource and a first frequency-domain resource; the transceiver module 1502 is used to receive a first type demodulation reference signal (DMRS) from the network device on the first time-domain resource and the first frequency-domain resource; wherein the first type DMRS is used to demodulate information transmitted from the downlink control channel (PDCCH) and the downlink data channel (PDSCH) from the network device.

[0323] Optionally, the transceiver module 1502 is further configured to receive first information from the network device, the first information being used to indicate activation of a first type of DMRS or to indicate that the received DMRS is a first type of DMRS.

[0324] Optionally, the first time-domain resource is determined based on one or more of the following: a second time-domain resource, a third time-domain resource, or a first quantity; wherein the second time-domain resource is the time-domain resource occupied by the PDCCH, the first quantity is the maximum number of time units that the first type of DMRS can occupy, and the third time-domain resource is the time-domain resource occupied by the PDSCH.

[0325] Optionally, the first time domain resource is part or all of the time units in the second time domain resource.

[0326] Optionally, the transceiver module 1502 is further configured to receive second information from the network device, the second information being used to indicate a first quantity or a first time domain resource, the first quantity being the maximum number of time units that the first type of DMRS can occupy.

[0327] Optionally, the first frequency domain resource is located on the (i+a×j)th subcarrier of each RB in at least one resource block RB; wherein each RB in at least one RB carries at least one of the information transmitted by PDCCH and the information transmitted by PDSCH, i indicates that the starting position of the first frequency domain resource in each RB is the i-th subcarrier, j indicates the difference between the indices of two adjacent subcarriers in the first frequency domain resource, and a is less than or equal to a max a max It is a positive integer, and i+a max ×j is less than or equal to 12, i, a and j are integers greater than or equal to 0, and i+a×j is less than or equal to 12.

[0328] Optionally, the first frequency domain resource is determined based on the second or third frequency domain resource, where the second frequency domain resource is the frequency domain resource occupied by the PDCCH and the third frequency domain resource is the frequency domain resource occupied by the PDSCH.

[0329] Optionally, in each of the at least one RB, the first frequency domain resource includes at least one sub-frequency domain resource, each of the at least one sub-frequency domain resources includes M adjacent subcarriers, the starting subcarriers of two adjacent sub-frequency domain resources are spaced N subcarriers apart, each of the at least one RB carries at least one of the information transmitted by PDCCH and the information transmitted by PDSCH, where N and M are positive integers, and N is greater than or equal to M.

[0330] Optionally, the first frequency domain resources are agreed upon by the protocol or configured by the network device through signaling.

[0331] Optionally, the transceiver module 1502 is also configured to send third information to the network device, the third information being used to indicate that the communication device 1500 supports the first type of DMRS.

[0332] In another possible implementation, the communication device 1500 is used to implement the steps corresponding to the network device in the method 900 described above.

[0333] The processing module 1501 is used to: determine a first type demodulation reference signal DMRS, wherein the first type DMRS occupies a first time domain resource and a first frequency domain resource; wherein the first type DMRS is used to demodulate the information transmitted by the downlink control channel PDCCH and the information transmitted by the downlink data channel PDSCH; the transceiver module 1502 is used to send the first type demodulation reference signal DMRS to the terminal device on the first time domain resource and the first frequency domain resource.

[0334] Optionally, the transceiver module 1502 is further configured to send first information to the terminal device, the first information being used to indicate the activation of a first type of DMRS or to indicate that the configured DMRS is a first type of DMRS.

[0335] Optionally, the first time-domain resource is determined based on one or more of the following: a second time-domain resource, a third time-domain resource, or a first quantity; wherein the second time-domain resource is the time-domain resource occupied by the PDCCH, the first quantity is the maximum number of time units that the first type of DMRS can occupy, and the third time-domain resource is the time-domain resource occupied by the PDSCH.

[0336] Optionally, the first time domain resource is part or all of the time units in the second time domain resource.

[0337] Optionally, the transceiver module 1502 is further configured to send second information to the terminal device, the second information being used to indicate a first quantity or a first time domain resource, the first quantity being the maximum number of time units that can be occupied by the first type of DMRS.

[0338] Optionally, the first frequency domain resource is located on the (i+a×j)th subcarrier of each RB in at least one resource block RB; wherein each RB in at least one RB carries at least one of the information transmitted by PDCCH and the information transmitted by PDSCH, i indicates that the starting position of the first frequency domain resource in each RB is the i-th subcarrier, j indicates the difference between the indices of two adjacent subcarriers in the first frequency domain resource, and a is less than or equal to a max a max It is a positive integer, and i+a max ×j is less than or equal to 12, and i, a and j are integers greater than or equal to 0.

[0339] Optionally, the first frequency domain resource is determined based on the second or third frequency domain resource, where the second frequency domain resource is the frequency domain resource occupied by the PDCCH and the third frequency domain resource is the frequency domain resource occupied by the PDSCH.

[0340] Optionally, in each of the at least one RB, the first frequency domain resource includes at least one sub-frequency domain resource, each of the at least one sub-frequency domain resources includes M adjacent subcarriers, the starting subcarriers of two adjacent sub-frequency domain resources are spaced N subcarriers apart, each of the at least one RB carries at least one of the information transmitted by PDCCH and the information transmitted by PDSCH, where N and M are positive integers, and N is greater than or equal to M.

[0341] Optionally, the first frequency domain resources are agreed upon by the protocol or configured by the communication device 1500 via signaling.

[0342] Optionally, the transceiver module 1502 is further configured to receive third information from the terminal device, the third information being used to indicate that the terminal device supports the first type of DMRS.

[0343] It should be understood that the communication device 1500 here is embodied in the form of a functional module. The term "module" here can refer to application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs), electronic circuits, processors (e.g., shared processors, proprietary processors, or group processors, etc.) and memories for executing one or more software or firmware programs, integrated logic circuits, and / or other suitable components supporting the described functions. In an alternative example, those skilled in the art will understand that the communication device 1500 can specifically be a terminal device or network device as described in the above embodiments. The communication device 1500 can be used to execute the various processes and / or steps corresponding to the terminal device or network device in the above method embodiments; to avoid repetition, these will not be described again here.

[0344] The aforementioned communication device 1500 has the function of implementing the corresponding steps performed by the terminal device or network device in the above method; the above functions can be implemented by hardware or by hardware executing corresponding software. The hardware or software includes one or more modules corresponding to the above functions. In embodiments of this application, Figure 15 The communication device 1500 in the middle can also be a chip, such as a SOC.

[0345] Figure 16 A schematic diagram of the communication device 1600 provided in an embodiment of this application is shown. The communication device 1600 includes a processor 1601, a transceiver 1602, and a memory 1603. The processor 1601, transceiver 1602, and memory 1603 communicate with each other via internal interconnection paths. The memory 1603 stores instructions, such as computer-defined code. The processor 1601 executes the instructions stored in the memory 1603 to control the transceiver 1602 to send and / or receive signals.

[0346] It should be understood that the communication device 1600 may specifically be a network device or a terminal device in the above embodiments, and may be used to execute the various steps and / or processes corresponding to the network device or terminal device in the above method embodiments. Optionally, the memory 1603 may include a read-only memory and a random access memory, and provide instructions and data to the processor. A portion of the memory may also include non-volatile random access memory. For example, the memory may also store device type information. The processor 1601 may be used to execute instructions stored in the memory, and when the processor 1601 executes instructions stored in the memory, the processor 1601 is used to execute the various steps and / or processes of the above method embodiments. The transceiver 1602 may include a transmitter 16021, a receiver 16022, and an antenna 16023. The transmitter 16021 may be used to implement the various steps and / or processes corresponding to the transceiver for performing the transmission action. For example, the transmitter 16021 may be used to transmit information to another device through the antenna 16023. Receiver 16022 can be used to implement the various steps and / or processes corresponding to the transceiver described above for performing the receiving action. For example, receiver 16022 can be used to receive information from another device via antenna 16023.

[0347] It should be understood that, in the embodiments of this application, the processor may be a central processing unit (CPU), or it may be other general-purpose processors, digital signal processors (DSPs), application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs), field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), or other programmable logic devices, discrete gate or transistor logic devices, discrete hardware components, etc. The general-purpose processor may be a microprocessor or any conventional processor.

[0348] In implementation, each step of the above method can be completed by integrated logic circuits in the processor's hardware or by instructions in software. The steps of the method disclosed in the embodiments of this application can be directly manifested as execution by a hardware processor, or as a combination of hardware and software modules within the processor. The software modules can reside in random access memory, flash memory, read-only memory, programmable read-only memory, electrically erasable programmable memory, registers, or other mature storage media in the art. This storage medium is located in memory, and the processor executes the instructions in the memory, combining them with its hardware to complete the steps of the above method. To avoid repetition, detailed descriptions are omitted here.

[0349] Figure 17 This is a schematic diagram of an O-RAN system illustrated in an embodiment of this application. The O-RAN system may also include... Figure 17 Other components besides those shown.

[0350] like Figure 17 As shown, the network device in this embodiment can also be called an access network device. The access network device (i.e., RAN, such as an eNB, gNB, or next-generation access network device) can communicate with the core network (CN) through a backhaul link, or it can communicate with the terminal device through an air interface.

[0351] Specifically, the baseband unit (BBU) in the access network equipment communicates with the core network equipment via a backhaul link; the radio unit (RU) in the access network equipment communicates with at least one terminal device via an air interface. The BBU communicates with at least one RU via a fronthaul link. The BBU and RU may or may not be co-located.

[0352] The BBU includes at least one control unit (CU) and at least one distributed unit (DU), which can communicate via at least one midhaul link.

[0353] Figure 18 This is a diagram illustrating the network element function division and protocol layer structure of an O-RAN device according to an embodiment of this application.

[0354] In some examples, the CU is a logical node that carries the Radio Resource Control (RRC) layer, Service Data Adaptation Protocol (SDAP) layer, Packet Data Convergence Protocol (PDCP) layer, and other control functions of the access network equipment. The CU connects to network nodes such as core network equipment through interfaces, which may be E2 interfaces, etc. Optionally, the CU may possess some of the functions of the core network equipment. The CU (e.g., PDCP layer and higher layers) connects to the DU (e.g., RLC layer and lower layers) through interfaces, which may be F1 interfaces, etc. In some examples, these interfaces (e.g., F1 interfaces) can provide control plane (C-Plane) and user plane (U-Plane) functions, such as interface management, system information management, UE context management, and RRC message transmission. F1AP is the application protocol of the F1 interface, defining the F1 signaling procedures in some examples. The F1 interface supports control plane F1-C and user plane F1-U.

[0355] In some examples, the CU can be split into CU-CP (control unit-control plane) and CU-UP (control unit-user plane). CU-CP is a logical node carrying the RRC layer and PDCP-C (control plane part of PDCP) layer, used to implement the CU's control plane functions. CU-CP can interact with network elements in the core network used to implement control plane functions. These network elements in the core network can be access and mobility function (AMF) network elements, such as the access and mobility management function (AMF) in a 5G system. AMF network elements are responsible for mobility management in the mobile network, such as terminal device location updates, terminal device registration with the network, and terminal device handover. CU-UP is a logical node carrying the SDAP layer and PDCP-U (user plane part of PDCP) layer, used to implement the CU's user plane functions. CU-UP can interact with network elements in the core network used to implement user plane functions. These network elements in the core network, such as the UPF (user plane function) in a 5G system, are responsible for data forwarding and receiving in terminal devices. The above CU and DU configurations are merely examples; the functions of the CU and DU can be configured as needed. For instance, the CU or DU can be configured to have more protocol layer functions, or only some protocol layer processing functions. For example, some RLC layer functions and protocol layer functions above the RLC layer can be placed in the CU, while the remaining RLC layer functions and protocol layer functions below the RLC layer can be placed in the DU. Furthermore, the functions of the CU or DU can be divided according to service type or other system requirements, such as by latency. Functions that require low latency can be placed in the DU, while functions that do not require low latency can be placed in the CU.

[0356] In some examples, a DU is a logical node that carries the radio link control (RLC) layer, medium access control (MAC) layer, higher physical layer (PHY) layer, and other functions. In some examples, a DU can control at least one RU. The DU connects to the RU through interfaces, which may be fronthaul interfaces. In some examples, the higher PHY layer includes the PHY layer processing, such as forward error correction (FEC) encoding and decoding, scrambling, modulation, and demodulation.

[0357] In some examples, the RU is a logical node carrying both lower physical layer (PHY) and radio frequency (RF) processing, also known as RF chain. In some examples, the RU can be a 3GPP transmission reception point (TRP), a remote radio head (RRH), or other similar entities. In some examples, the low-PHY includes PHY processing functions such as fast Fourier transform (FFT), inverse fast Fourier transform (IFFT), digital beamforming, and filtering. The RU communicates with one or more UEs via a radio link.

[0358] The DU and RU can be co-located or not. The DU and RU exchange control plane and user plane information via a lower-layer split-control, user, and synchronization (LLS-CUS) interface through a fronthaul link. LLS-CUS may include LLS-C and LLS-U interfaces, respectively providing the control plane (C-plane) and user plane (U-plane). In some examples, the control plane (C-plane) refers to real-time control between the DU and RU. The DU and RU exchange management information via an LLS-M interface on the fronthaul link; the management plane (M-plane) refers to non-real-time management operations between the DU and RU.

[0359] DU and RU can cooperate to implement the functions of the PHY layer. A DU can be connected to one or more RUs. The functions of DU and RU can be configured in various ways depending on the design. For example, a DU can be configured to implement baseband functions, and an RU can be configured to implement mid-RF functions. Another example is that a DU can be configured to implement higher-level functions in the PHY layer, and an RU can be configured to implement lower-level functions in the PHY layer, or to implement both lower-level and RF functions. Higher-level functions in the physical layer can include a portion of the physical layer's functions that are closer to the MAC layer, while lower-level functions in the physical layer can include another portion of the physical layer's functions that are closer to the mid-RF side.

[0360] In different systems, CU (or CU-CP and CU-UP), DU, or RU may have different names, but those skilled in the art will understand their meaning. For example, in an ORAN system, CU can also be called O-CU (open CU), DU can also be called O-DU, CU-CP can also be called O-CU-CP, CU-UP can also be called O-CU-UP, and RU can also be called O-RU. For ease of description, this application uses CU, CU-CP, CU-UP, DU, and RU as examples.

[0361] This application also provides a computer-readable storage medium for storing a computer program for implementing the methods shown in the above-described method embodiments.

[0362] This application also provides a computer program product, which includes a computer program (also referred to as code or instructions) that, when run on a computer, allows the computer to perform the methods shown in the above-described method embodiments.

[0363] Those skilled in the art will recognize that the modules and algorithm steps of the various examples described in conjunction with the embodiments disclosed herein can be implemented in electronic hardware, or a combination of computer software and electronic hardware. Whether these functions are implemented in hardware or software depends on the specific application and design constraints of the technical solution. Those skilled in the art can use different methods to implement the described functions for each specific application, but such implementation should not be considered beyond the scope of this application.

[0364] Those skilled in the art will understand that, for the sake of convenience and brevity, the specific working processes of the systems, devices, and modules described above can be referred to the corresponding processes in the foregoing method embodiments, and will not be repeated here.

[0365] In the several embodiments provided in this application, it should be understood that the disclosed systems, apparatuses, and methods can be implemented in other ways. For example, the apparatus embodiments described above are merely illustrative; for instance, the division of modules is only a logical functional division, and in actual implementation, there may be other division methods. For example, multiple modules or components may be combined or integrated into another system, or some features may be ignored or not executed. Furthermore, the coupling or direct coupling or communication connection shown or discussed may be through some interfaces; the indirect coupling or communication connection between apparatuses or modules may be electrical, mechanical, or other forms.

[0366] The modules described as separate components may or may not be physically separate. The components shown as modules may or may not be physical modules; that is, they may be located in one place or distributed across multiple network modules. Some or all of the modules can be selected to achieve the purpose of this embodiment according to actual needs.

[0367] In addition, the functional modules in the various embodiments of this application can be integrated into one processing module, or each module can exist physically separately, or two or more modules can be integrated into one module.

[0368] If the aforementioned functions are implemented as software functional modules and sold or used as independent products, they can be stored in a computer-readable storage medium. Based on this understanding, the technical solution of this application, in essence, or the part that contributes to the prior art, or a portion of the technical solution, can be embodied in the form of a software product. This computer software product is stored in a storage medium and includes several instructions to cause a computer device (which may be a personal computer, server, or network device, etc.) to execute all or part of the steps of the methods described in the various embodiments of this application. The aforementioned storage medium includes various media capable of storing program code, such as USB flash drives, portable hard drives, read-only memory (ROM), random access memory (RAM), magnetic disks, or optical disks.

[0369] The above description is merely a specific embodiment of this application, but the protection scope of the embodiments of this application is not limited thereto. Any variations or substitutions that can be easily conceived by those skilled in the art within the technical scope disclosed in the embodiments of this application should be included within the protection scope of the embodiments of this application. Therefore, the protection scope of the embodiments of this application should be determined by the protection scope of the claims.

Claims

1. A method for receiving a demodulated reference signal, characterized in that, The method comprises: acquiring a first time domain resource and a first frequency domain resource; receiving a first type of demodulation reference signal (DMRS) from a network device on the first time domain resource and the first frequency domain resource; wherein the first type of DMRS is used for demodulating information of a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) transmission and information of a physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH) transmission from the network device.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein, The method further comprises: receiving first information from the network device, the first information being used for indicating that the first type of DMRS is activated or indicating that a received DMRS is the first type of DMRS.

3. The method according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that, The first time domain resource is determined based on one or more of the following: a second time domain resource, a third time domain resource, or a first quantity; wherein the second time domain resource is a time domain resource occupied by the PDCCH, the third time domain resource is a time domain resource occupied by the PDSCH, and the first quantity is a number of time units that the first type of DMRS can occupy at most.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein, The first time domain resource occupies part or all of the time units in the second time domain resource.

5. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that, The method further comprises: receiving second information from the network device, the second information being used for indicating the first quantity or the first time domain resource, the first quantity being a number of time units that the first type of DMRS can occupy at most.

6. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that, The first frequency domain resource is located on the i+a x jth subcarrier of each of at least one resource block (RB); wherein each of the at least one RB carries at least one of information of the PDCCH transmission and information of the PDSCH transmission, i represents that a starting position of the first frequency domain resource in each RB is the i th subcarrier, j represents a difference value of indices of two adjacent subcarriers in the first frequency domain resource, and a is less than or equal to a max , a max is a positive integer, and i+a max x j is less than or equal to 12, i, a, and j are integers greater than or equal to 0.

7. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that, The first frequency domain resource is determined based on a second frequency domain resource or a third frequency domain resource, the second frequency domain resource being a frequency domain resource occupied by the PDCCH, and the third frequency domain resource being a frequency domain resource occupied by the PDSCH.

8. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 7, characterized in that, In each of at least one RB, the first frequency domain resource comprises at least one sub-frequency domain resource, each of the at least one sub-frequency domain resource comprises adjacent M subcarriers, and adjacent two of the at least one sub-frequency domain resource are separated by N subcarriers, N and M being positive integers and N being greater than or equal to M, and each of the at least one RB carries at least one of the information of the PDCCH transmission and the information of the PDSCH transmission.

9. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 8, characterized in that, The first frequency domain resource is configured by a protocol or the network device through signaling.

10. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 9, characterized in that, The method further comprises: sending third information to the network device, the third information being used for indicating that the terminal device supports the first type of DMRS. 11.A method for transmitting a demodulation reference signal, the method comprising: The method comprises: determining a first type of demodulation reference signal (DMRS), the first type of DMRS occupying a first time domain resource and a first frequency domain resource; wherein the first type of DMRS is used for demodulating information of a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) transmission and information of a physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH) transmission; sending the first type of DMRS to a terminal device on the first time domain resource and the first frequency domain resource.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein, The method further comprises: sending first information to the terminal device, the first information being used for indicating that the first type of DMRS is activated or indicating that a configured DMRS is the first type of DMRS.

13. The method according to claim 11 or 12, characterized in that, The first time domain resource is determined based on one or more of the following: a second time domain resource, a third time domain resource, or a first quantity; The second time domain resource is a time domain resource occupied by the PDCCH, the third time domain resource is a time domain resource occupied by the PDSCH, and the first quantity is a maximum number of time units that the first type of DMRS can occupy.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein, The first time domain resource occupies part or all of the time units in the second time domain resource.

15. The method according to any one of claims 11 to 14, characterized in that, The method further includes: sending second information to the terminal device, the second information being used to indicate the first quantity or the first time domain resource, the first quantity being a maximum number of time units that the first type of DMRS can occupy.

16. The method according to any one of claims 11 to 15, characterized in that, The first frequency domain resource is located on the i+a x jth subcarrier of each of at least one resource block (RB); wherein each of the at least one RB carries at least one of information of the PDCCH transmission and information of the PDSCH transmission, i represents that a starting position of the first frequency domain resource in each RB is the i th subcarrier, j represents a difference value of indices of two adjacent subcarriers in the first frequency domain resource, and a is less than or equal to a max , a max is a positive integer, and i+a max x j is less than or equal to 12, i, a, and j are integers greater than or equal to 0.

17. The method according to any one of claims 11 to 16, characterized in that, The first frequency domain resource is determined based on a second frequency domain resource or a third frequency domain resource, the second frequency domain resource being a frequency domain resource occupied by the PDCCH, and the third frequency domain resource being a frequency domain resource occupied by the PDSCH.

18. The method according to any one of claims 11 to 17, characterized in that, In each of the at least one RB, the first frequency domain resource includes at least one sub-frequency domain resource, each of the at least one sub-frequency domain resource includes adjacent M subcarriers, and adjacent two of the at least one sub-frequency domain resource are spaced apart by N subcarriers, N and M being positive integers, and N being greater than or equal to M.

19. The method according to any one of claims 11 to 18, characterized in that, The first frequency domain resource is configured by signaling or is agreed by a protocol.

20. The method of any one of claims 11 to 19, wherein, The method further includes: receiving third information from the terminal device, the third information being used to indicate that the terminal device supports the first type of DMRS.

21. A communications device, characterized by The apparatus includes: The apparatus includes modules for performing the method of any of claims 1-10 or the method of any of claims 11-20.

22. A communications device, characterized by The apparatus includes: A processor coupled to a memory, the memory being used to store a computer program, when the processor invokes the computer program, the apparatus executes the method of any of claims 1-10 or the method of any of claims 11-20.

23. A computer-readable storage medium, characterized in that, A computer program product for storing a computer program, the computer program including instructions for implementing the method of any of claims 1-10 or the method of any of claims 11-20.

24. A computer program product comprising instructions therein, the computer program product comprising instructions therein, characterized in that, When the instructions run on a computer, the computer implements the method of any of claims 1-10 or the method of any of claims 11-20.

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