Communication method, communication device, communication system, storage medium, and program product

Abstract

Embodiments of the present disclosure relate to a communication method, a communication apparatus, a communication system, a storage medium and a program product. The communication method can be applied to a terminal, and the method comprises: receiving first information sent by a network device, wherein the first information is used to indicate a sparse pattern of an antenna array; and determining a first codebook of the antenna array according to the sparse pattern. In this way, in the embodiments of the present disclosure, the terminal can determine the first codebook of the antenna array through the sparse pattern of the antenna array, thereby realizing the transmission function.

Description

Communication method, communication apparatus, communication system, storage medium, and program product TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The present disclosure relates to the technical field of communication, and particularly relates to a communication method, a communication apparatus, a communication system, a storage medium and a program product. BACKGROUND

[0002] In the process of wireless communication, the antenna system occupies an important position. In a large-scale antenna array, the number of antenna elements is large, which will bring about radio frequency chain overhead and system power consumption. In order to reduce the overhead and power consumption, a sparse antenna array is proposed. However, there is no codebook for the sparse antenna array at present, and therefore, the codebook design problem needs to be considered.

[0003] SUMMARY

[0004] In the case of introducing the sparse antenna array, it is necessary to consider how to design the codebook thereof for transmission of the sparse antenna array.

[0005] Embodiments of the present disclosure provide a communication method, a communication apparatus, a communication system, a storage medium and a program product, which can determine a first codebook of an antenna array through a sparse pattern of the antenna array, so as to realize a transmission function.

[0006] According to a first aspect of embodiments of the present disclosure, a communication method is provided, which is performed by a terminal, and the method comprises: receiving first information sent by a network device, wherein the first information is used to indicate a sparse pattern of an antenna array; and determining a first codebook of the antenna array according to the sparse pattern.

[0007] According to a second aspect of embodiments of the present disclosure, a communication method is provided, which is performed by a network device, and the method comprises: sending first information to a terminal, wherein the first information is used to indicate a sparse pattern of an antenna array, and the sparse pattern is used for the terminal to determine a first codebook of the antenna array.

[0008] According to a third aspect of embodiments of the present disclosure, a communication apparatus is provided, which comprises: a first transceiving module configured to receive first information sent by a network device, wherein the first information is used to indicate a sparse pattern of an antenna array; and a first processing module configured to determine a first codebook of the antenna array according to the sparse pattern.

[0009] According to a fourth aspect of embodiments of the present disclosure, a communication apparatus is provided, which comprises: a second transceiving module configured to send first information to a terminal, wherein the first information is used to indicate a sparse pattern of an antenna array, and the sparse pattern is used for the terminal to determine a first codebook of the antenna array.

[0010] According to a fifth aspect of the embodiments of the present disclosure, a terminal is provided, which includes at least one processor and a memory storing instructions. The instructions, when executed by the terminal, cause the terminal to implement the communication method according to the first aspect.

[0011] According to a sixth aspect of the embodiments of the present disclosure, a network device is provided, which includes at least one processor and a memory storing instructions. The instructions, when executed by the network device, cause the network device to implement the communication method according to the second aspect.

[0012] According to a seventh aspect of the embodiments of the present disclosure, a communication system is provided. The communication system includes a terminal and a network device. The terminal is configured to implement the communication method according to the first aspect, and the network device is configured to implement the communication method according to the second aspect.

[0013] According to an eighth aspect of the embodiments of the present disclosure, a storage medium is provided, which stores instructions. When the instructions are run on a communication device, the communication device implements the communication method according to the first aspect or the second aspect.

[0014] According to a ninth aspect of the embodiments of the present disclosure, a computer program product is provided. When the computer program product is executed by a communication device, the communication device implements the communication method according to the first aspect or the second aspect.

[0015] According to a tenth aspect of the embodiments of the present disclosure, a computer program is provided. When the computer program is run on a computer, the computer implements the communication method according to the first aspect or the second aspect.

[0016] According to an eleventh aspect of the embodiments of the present disclosure, a chip or chip system is provided. The chip or chip system includes processing circuitry. The processing circuitry is configured to implement the communication method according to the first aspect or the second aspect.

[0017] According to the embodiments of the present disclosure, by receiving the first information sent by the network device and used for indicating the sparse pattern of the antenna array, the terminal can determine the first codebook of the antenna array according to the sparse pattern of the antenna array, thereby realizing the transmission function.

[0018] It should be understood that the above general description and the following detailed description are only exemplary and explanatory, and do not constitute a limitation on the embodiments of the present disclosure. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0019] In order to more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present disclosure, the following describes the drawings required for the embodiment description. The following drawings are only some embodiments of the present disclosure, and do not specifically limit the protection scope of the present disclosure.

[0020] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of an architecture of a communication system according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0021] FIG. 2A is a schematic diagram of an interaction of a communication method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0022] FIG. 2B is a schematic diagram of an antenna array according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0023] FIG. 3A is a schematic diagram of a flow of a communication method performed at a terminal side according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0024] FIG. 3B is a schematic diagram of a flow of a communication method performed at a network device side according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0025] FIG. 4A is another schematic diagram of a flow of a communication method performed at a terminal side according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0026] FIG. 4B is another schematic diagram of a flow of a communication method performed at a network device side according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0027] FIG. 5A is a schematic diagram of a structure of a communication apparatus according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0028] FIG. 5B is a schematic diagram of a structure of a communication apparatus according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0029] FIG. 6A is a schematic diagram of a structure of a communication device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0030] FIG. 6B is a schematic diagram of a structure of a chip according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0031] The embodiments of the present disclosure provide a communication method, a communication apparatus, a communication system, a storage medium and a program product.

[0032] In a first aspect, the embodiments of the present disclosure provide a communication method performed by a terminal, including: receiving first information sent by a network device, wherein the first information is used to indicate a sparse pattern of an antenna array; determining a first codebook of the antenna array according to the sparse pattern.

[0033] In the embodiments of the present disclosure, by receiving the first information sent by the network device and used to indicate the sparse pattern of the antenna array, the terminal can determine the first codebook of the antenna array according to the sparse pattern of the antenna array, so as to realize the transmission function.

[0034] In some embodiments, the first codebook of the antenna array is determined according to the sparse pattern, including: determining the number of virtual antenna elements and the antenna position index of the antenna array based on the sparse pattern; and determining the first codebook according to the second codebook associated with the uniform antenna array and the antenna position index, the second codebook being determined according to the number of virtual antenna elements.

[0035] In some embodiments, the method further includes: obtaining a third codebook according to the number of virtual antenna elements, the third codebook being associated with an antenna port number of the first number, the first number being N is the number of virtual antenna elements; and the first codebook is determined by using the first N rows in the third codebook to constitute the second codebook.

[0036] In some embodiments, the method further includes: receiving second information sent by the network device, the second information being used to indicate the number of antenna ports of the antenna array; and determining the first codebook according to the second codebook associated with the uniform antenna array and the antenna position index, including: determining M rows of elements from the second codebook based on the antenna position index, the value of M being the number of antenna ports of the antenna array; and determining the first codebook based on the M rows of elements.

[0037] In some embodiments, the method further includes: receiving a downlink reference signal sent by the network device; performing measurement based on the downlink reference signal to obtain a measurement result; and determining a first precoding matrix according to the measurement result and the first codebook, the first precoding matrix being used for uplink transmission.

[0038] In some embodiments, the method further includes: sending third information to the network device, the third information being used to indicate the first precoding matrix, the first precoding matrix being used by the network device to determine a second precoding matrix, the second precoding matrix being used for downlink transmission.

[0039] In some embodiments, the number of antenna ports configured for the downlink reference signal is determined according to the number of antenna ports of the antenna array.

[0040] In a second aspect, the embodiments of the present disclosure provide a communication method, performed by a network device, including: sending first information to a terminal, the first information being used to indicate a sparse pattern of an antenna array, the sparse pattern being used by the terminal to determine a first codebook of the antenna array.

[0041] In the embodiments of the present disclosure, the first information sent by the network device to the terminal and used to indicate the sparse pattern of the antenna array enables the terminal to determine the first codebook of the antenna array according to the sparse pattern of the antenna array, thereby realizing the transmission function.

[0042] In some embodiments, the method further includes one of the following: determining the first codebook according to the sparse pattern; and receiving fourth information, the fourth information being used to indicate the first codebook determined by the terminal.

[0043] In some embodiments, the method further includes receiving third information sent by the terminal, the third information being used to indicate the first precoding matrix; and determining the second precoding matrix based on the first precoding matrix and the first codebook, the second precoding matrix being used for downlink transmission.

[0044] In some embodiments, the first codebook is determined based on a second codebook associated with a uniform antenna array and an antenna position index, the second codebook being determined according to a virtual antenna element quantity, and the virtual antenna element quantity and the antenna position index being determined based on the sparse pattern.

[0045] In some embodiments, the second codebook is obtained by acquiring a third codebook according to the virtual antenna element quantity, and the second codebook is composed of the first N rows in the third codebook, the third codebook being associated with an antenna port quantity of the first quantity, and the first quantity being N is the virtual antenna element quantity.

[0046] In some embodiments, the method further includes sending second information to the terminal, the second information being used to indicate an antenna port quantity of the antenna array, the antenna port quantity of the antenna array being M, and each column of the first codebook including M row elements, the M row elements being determined from the second codebook according to the antenna position index.

[0047] In some embodiments, the method further includes sending a downlink reference signal to the terminal, the downlink reference signal being used for the terminal to perform measurement, and a measurement result of the measurement being used for the terminal to determine the first precoding matrix, the first precoding matrix being used for uplink transmission.

[0048] In some embodiments, an antenna port quantity configured for the downlink reference signal is determined according to the antenna port quantity of the antenna array.

[0049] In a third aspect, the embodiments of the present disclosure provide a communication apparatus, including: a first receiving module configured to receive first information sent by a network device, wherein the first information is used to indicate a sparse pattern of an antenna array; and a first processing module configured to determine a first codebook of the antenna array according to the sparse pattern.

[0050] In some embodiments, the first processing module is configured to perform the following steps: determining a virtual antenna element quantity and an antenna position index of the antenna array based on the sparse pattern; and determining the first codebook according to a second codebook associated with a uniform antenna array and the antenna position index, the second codebook being determined according to the virtual antenna element quantity.

[0051] In some embodiments, the first processing module is further configured to perform the following steps: acquiring a third codebook according to the virtual antenna element quantity, the third codebook being associated with an antenna port quantity of the first quantity, and the first quantity being N is the number of virtual antenna elements; the second codebook is composed of the first N rows in the third codebook.

[0052] In some embodiments, the first transceiver module is further configured to receive second information sent by the network device, the second information being used to indicate the number of antenna ports of the antenna array; and the first processing module is further configured to perform the following steps: determining M rows of elements from the second codebook based on the antenna position index, M being equal to the number of antenna ports of the antenna array; and determining the first codebook based on the M rows of elements.

[0053] In some embodiments, the first transceiver module is further configured to receive a downlink reference signal sent by the network device; and the first processing module is further configured to perform the following steps: performing measurement based on the downlink reference signal to obtain a measurement result; and determining a first precoding matrix for uplink transmission according to the measurement result and the first codebook.

[0054] In some embodiments, the first transceiver module is further configured to send third information to the network device, the third information being used to indicate the first precoding matrix, the first precoding matrix being used by the network device to determine a second precoding matrix for downlink transmission.

[0055] In some embodiments, the number of antenna ports of the downlink reference signal is determined according to the number of antenna ports of the antenna array.

[0056] In the fourth aspect, the embodiments of the present disclosure provide a communication device, comprising: a second transceiver module configured to send first information to a terminal, wherein the first information is used to indicate a sparse pattern of an antenna array, and the sparse pattern is used by the terminal to determine a first codebook of the antenna array.

[0057] In some embodiments, the communication device further comprises: a second processing module configured to determine the first codebook according to the sparse pattern; or the second transceiver module is further configured to receive fourth information, the fourth information being used to indicate the first codebook determined by the terminal.

[0058] In some embodiments, the second transceiver module is further configured to receive third information sent by the terminal, the third information being used to indicate the first precoding matrix; and the second processing module is further configured to determine a second precoding matrix for downlink transmission based on the first precoding matrix and the first codebook.

[0059] In some embodiments, the first codebook is determined based on a second codebook associated with a uniform antenna array and an antenna position index, the second codebook being determined according to a number of virtual antenna elements, and the number of virtual antenna elements and the antenna position index being determined based on the sparse pattern.

[0060] In some embodiments, the second codebook is obtained according to the number of virtual antenna elements, and is composed of the first N rows in the third codebook, the third codebook being associated with the first number of antenna ports, the first number being N is the number of virtual antenna elements.

[0061] In some embodiments, the second transceiver is further configured to send, to the terminal, second information, the second information being used to indicate the number of antenna ports of the antenna array, the number of antenna ports of the antenna array being M, each column of the first codebook including M rows of elements, the M rows of elements being determined from the second codebook according to the antenna position index.

[0062] In some embodiments, the second transceiver is further configured to send, to the terminal, a downlink reference signal, the downlink reference signal being used for the terminal to perform measurement, a measurement result of the measurement being used for the terminal to determine the first precoding matrix, the first precoding matrix being used for uplink transmission.

[0063] In some embodiments, the number of antenna ports configured for the downlink reference signal is determined according to the number of antenna ports of the antenna array.

[0064] In a fifth aspect, an embodiment of the present disclosure provides a terminal. The terminal includes at least one processor and a memory storing instructions. The instructions, when executed by the terminal, cause the terminal to implement the communication method in the first aspect and possible implementation manners thereof.

[0065] In a sixth aspect, an embodiment of the present disclosure provides a network device. The network device includes at least one processor and a memory storing instructions. The instructions, when executed by the network device, cause the network device to implement the communication method in the second aspect and possible implementation manners thereof.

[0066] In a seventh aspect, an embodiment of the present disclosure provides a communication system. The communication system includes a terminal and a network device. The terminal is configured to implement the communication method in the first aspect and possible implementation manners thereof, and the network device is configured to implement the communication method in the second aspect and possible implementation manners thereof.

[0067] In an eighth aspect, an embodiment of the present disclosure provides a storage medium storing instructions, when the instructions are run on a communication device, causing the communication device to implement the communication method in the first aspect, the second aspect and possible implementation manners thereof.

[0068] In a ninth aspect, an embodiment of the present disclosure provides a computer program product. The computer program product, when executed by a communication device, causes the communication device to implement the communication method in the first aspect, the second aspect and possible implementation manners thereof.

[0069] In a tenth aspect, an embodiment of the present disclosure provides a computer program. The computer program, when running on a computer, causes the computer to perform the communication method according to the first aspect, the second aspect, and possible implementation manners thereof.

[0070] In an eleventh aspect, an embodiment of the present disclosure provides a chip or chip system. The chip or chip system includes processing circuitry. The processing circuitry is configured to perform the communication method according to the first aspect, the second aspect, and possible implementation manners thereof.

[0071] It can be understood that the terminal, the network device, the communication system, the storage medium, the computer program product, the computer program, the chip or the chip system are all used to execute the method according to the embodiments of the present disclosure. Therefore, the beneficial effects that can be achieved can refer to the beneficial effects in the corresponding method, which will not be described here.

[0072] The embodiments of the present disclosure provide a communication method, a communication apparatus, a communication system, a storage medium, and a program product. In some embodiments, the terms of the communication method, the information processing method, the codebook determination method, and the antenna array transmission method can be replaced with each other. The terms of the terminal, the network device, the communication apparatus, the information processing apparatus, the codebook determination apparatus, and the antenna array transmission apparatus can be replaced with each other. The terms of the communication system, the information processing system, the codebook determination system, and the antenna array transmission system can be replaced with each other.

[0073] The embodiments of the present disclosure are not exhaustive, but only illustrate some embodiments, and are not specific limitations on the protection scope of the present disclosure. In the case of no contradiction, each step in an embodiment can be implemented as an independent embodiment, and the steps can be combined arbitrarily, for example, the scheme after removing some steps in an embodiment can also be implemented as an independent embodiment, and the order of the steps in an embodiment can be exchanged arbitrarily, in addition, the optional implementation manners in an embodiment can be combined arbitrarily; in addition, the embodiments can be combined arbitrarily, for example, the steps of different embodiments or parts or all of the steps of different embodiments can be combined arbitrarily, an embodiment can be combined with the optional implementation manners of other embodiments.

[0074] In each embodiment of the present disclosure, the terms and / or descriptions between the embodiments are consistent if there is no special description and logical conflict, and can be referred to each other, and the technical features in different embodiments can be combined to form a new embodiment according to the logical relationship between them.

[0075] The terms used in the embodiments of the present disclosure are only for the purpose of describing specific embodiments, and not as a limitation on the present disclosure.

[0076] In the embodiments of the present disclosure, an element expressed in singular form, such as "a", "an", "the", "said", "the aforementioned", "the foregoing", "this", and the like, unless otherwise specified, can represent "one and only one", or can represent "one or more", "at least one", and the like. For example, in the case of using an article such as "a", "an", "the" in English, the noun after the article can be understood as a singular expression, or can be understood as a plural expression.

[0077] In the embodiments of the present disclosure, "plurality" refers to two or more.

[0078] In some embodiments, the terms "at least one of", "one or more", "a plurality of", "multiple", and the like can be replaced with each other.

[0079] In some embodiments, the description modes such as "at least one of A, B", "A and / or B", "A in one case and B in another case", "in response to a case A, in response to a case B", and the like can include the following technical solutions according to the case: in some embodiments, A is executed regardless of B; in some embodiments, B is executed regardless of A; in some embodiments, A and B are selectively executed from A and B; in some embodiments, A and B are executed (A and B are both executed). When there are more branches such as A, B, C, and the like, it is similar to the above.

[0080] In some embodiments, the description modes such as "A or B" and the like can include the following technical solutions according to the case: in some embodiments, A is executed regardless of B; in some embodiments, B is executed regardless of A; in some embodiments, A and B are selectively executed from A and B. When there are more branches such as A, B, C, and the like, it is similar to the above.

[0081] The prefix words of "first", "second" and the like in the embodiments of the present disclosure are merely used to distinguish different description objects, and do not constitute limitation on the position, order, priority, quantity or content of the description objects. The description objects are described in the claims or embodiments, and should not be construed as redundant limitation because of the use of the prefix words. For example, the description object is "field", and the ordinal words before "field" in "first field" and "second field" do not limit the position or order between "fields", and "first" and "second" do not limit whether the "fields" modified thereby are in the same message or not, nor limit the order of "first field" and "second field". For another example, the description object is "level", and the ordinal words before "level" in "first level" and "second level" do not limit the priority between "levels". For another example, the quantity of the description object is not limited by the ordinal words, and can be one or more. For example, "first device", wherein the quantity of "device" can be one or more. In addition, the objects modified by different prefix words can be the same or different, for example, the description object is "device", and "first device" and "second device" can be the same device or different devices, and the types thereof can be the same or different. For another example, the description object is "information", and "first information" and "second information" can be the same information or different information, and the contents thereof can be the same or different.

[0082] In some embodiments, "including A", "containing A", "for indicating A", "carrying A" can be interpreted as directly carrying A, or indirectly indicating A.

[0083] In some embodiments, the terms of "in response to", "in response to determining", "in the case of", "when", "when", "if", "if" and the like can be replaced with each other.

[0084] In some embodiments, the terms of "greater than", "greater than or equal to", "not less than", "more than", "more than or equal to", "not less than", "higher than", "higher than or equal to", "not lower than", "above" and the like can be replaced with each other, and the terms of "less than", "less than or equal to", "not greater than", "less than", "less than or equal to", "not more than", "lower than", "lower than or equal to", "not higher than", "below" and the like can be replaced with each other.

[0085] In some embodiments, an apparatus or the like can be interpreted as an entity, and can also be interpreted as virtual, and the name thereof is not limited to the name described in the embodiments. The terms "apparatus", "equipment", "device", "circuit", "network element", "node", "function", "unit", "section", "system", "network", "chip", "chip system", "entity", "subject" and the like can be replaced with each other.

[0086] In some embodiments, a "network" can be interpreted as an apparatus (for example, an access network device, a core network device, and the like) included in the network.

[0087] In some embodiments, the terms "network device", "access network device (AN device)", "radio access network device (RAN device)", "base station (BS)", "radio base station", "fixed station", "node", "access network node", "access point", "transmission point (TP)", "reception point (RP)", "transmission / reception point (TRP)", "panel", "antenna panel", "antenna array", "cell", "macro cell", "small cell", "femtocell", "picocell", "sector", "cell group", "serving cell", "carrier", "component carrier", "bandwidth part (BWP)" and the like can be replaced with each other.

[0088] In some embodiments, the terms "terminal," "terminal device," "user equipment (UE)," "user terminal," "mobile station (MS)," "mobile terminal (MT)," "subscriber station," "mobile unit," "subscriber unit," "wireless unit," "remote unit," "mobile device," "wireless device," "wireless communication device," "remote device," "mobile subscriber station," "access terminal," "mobile terminal," "wireless terminal," "remote terminal," "handset," "user agent," "mobile client," "client," and so on can be replaced with each other.

[0089] In some embodiments, the access network device, the core network device, or the network device can be replaced with a terminal. For example, the embodiments of the present disclosure can also be applied to a structure in which communication between the access network device, the core network device, or the network device and the terminal is replaced with communication between a plurality of terminals (e.g., device-to-device (D2D), vehicle-to-everything (V2X), etc.). In this case, the terminal can also be configured to have all or part of the functions of the access network device. In addition, the terms "uplink," "downlink," and the like can also be replaced with terms corresponding to the inter-terminal communication (e.g., "side"). For example, the uplink channel, the downlink channel, and the like can be replaced with the side channel, and the uplink, the downlink, and the like can be replaced with the sidelink.

[0090] In some embodiments, the terminal can be replaced with the access network device, the core network device, or the network device. In this case, the access network device, the core network device, or the network device can also be configured to have all or part of the functions of the terminal.

[0091] In some embodiments, the data, information, etc. can be obtained in compliance with the laws and regulations of the country in which the location is situated.

[0092] In some embodiments, the data, information, etc. can be obtained after obtaining the consent of the user.

[0093] In addition, each element, each row, or each column in the table of the embodiments of the present disclosure can be implemented as an independent embodiment, and any combination of any element, any row, or any column can also be implemented as an independent embodiment.

[0094] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of an architecture of a communication system according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in FIG. 1, the communication system 100 includes a terminal 101 and a network device 102. The network device 102 can also be referred to as an access network device.

[0095] In some embodiments, the terminal 101 includes at least one of a mobile phone, a wearable device, an Internet of Things device, a car with communication function, a smart car, a Pad, a computer with wireless transceiver function, a virtual reality (VR) terminal device, an augmented reality (AR) terminal device, a wireless terminal device in industrial control, a wireless terminal device in self-driving, a wireless terminal device in remote medical surgery, a wireless terminal device in smart grid, a wireless terminal device in transportation safety, a wireless terminal device in smart city, a wireless terminal device in smart home, etc., but is not limited thereto.

[0096] In some embodiments, the network device 102, for example, is a node or device that accesses a terminal to a wireless network, and the network device 102 can include at least one of an evolved NodeB (eNB), a next generation eNB (ng-eNB), a next generation NodeB (gNB), a node B (NB), a home node B (HNB), a home evolved node B (HeNB), a wireless backhaul device, a radio network controller (RNC), a base station controller (BSC), a base transceiver station (BTS), a base band unit (BBU), a mobile switching center, a base station in a 6G communication system, an Open RAN, a Cloud RAN, a base station in other communication systems, an access node in a Wi-Fi system, but is not limited thereto.

[0097] In some embodiments, the network device 102 can be composed of a central unit (CU) and a distributed unit (DU), wherein the CU can also be referred to as a control unit (control unit), and the CU-DU structure can split the protocol layers of the network device 102, and the functions of part of the protocol layers are controlled by the CU, and the functions of the remaining part or all of the protocol layers are distributed in the DU and controlled by the CU, but are not limited thereto.

[0098] In some embodiments, the CU and the DU can be centrally deployed in one network device, or can be distributedly deployed in multiple network devices.

[0099] In some embodiments, one network device 102 can include one CU and at least one DU. One CU can be connected with multiple DUs, and one DU can only be connected with one CU.

[0100] It can be understood that the communication system described in the embodiments of the present disclosure is for more clearly illustrating the technical solutions of the present disclosure, and does not constitute a limitation on the technical solutions proposed in the present disclosure. It can be known by those skilled in the art that, with the evolution of system architecture and the appearance of new business scenarios, the technical solutions proposed in the present disclosure are also applicable to similar technical problems.

[0101] The following embodiments of the present disclosure can be applied to the communication system 100 shown in FIG. 1, or part of the subjects, but are not limited thereto. The subjects shown in FIG. 1 are illustrative, and the communication system can include all or part of the subjects in FIG. 1, or other subjects other than those in FIG. 1. The number and form of each subject is arbitrary, each subject can be physical or virtual, the connection relationship between each subject is illustrative, each subject can not be connected or can be connected, and the connection can be in any manner, can be direct connection or indirect connection, can be wired connection or wireless connection.

[0102] Embodiments of the present disclosure can be applied to Long Term Evolution (LTE), LTE-Advanced (LTE-A), LTE-Beyond (LTE-B), SUPER 3G, IMT-Advanced, 4th generation mobile communication system (4G), 5th generation mobile communication system (5G), 5G new radio (NR), Future Radio Access (FRA), New-Radio Access Technology (RAT), new radio (NR), new radio access (NX), Future generation radio access (FX), Global System for Mobile communications (GSM (registered trademark)), CDMA2000, Ultra Mobile Broadband (UMB), IEEE 802.11 (Wi-Fi (registered trademark)), IEEE 802.16 (WiMAX (registered trademark)), IEEE 802.20, Ultra-Wide Band (UWB), Bluetooth (Bluetooth (registered trademark)), Public Land Mobile Network (PLMN) network, Device-to-Device (D2D) system, Machine to Machine (M2M) system, Internet of Things (IoT) system, Vehicle-to-Everything (V2X), system using other communication methods, next-generation system expanded based thereon, and the like. In addition, a plurality of systems can be combined (for example, combination of LTE or LTE-A and 5G, and the like).

[0103] Hereinafter, terms related to the present disclosure are explained and interpreted.

[0104] I. Introduction to Antenna System

[0105] With the rapid development of wireless communication technology, multiple input multiple output (MIMO) antenna system can effectively improve the capacity and throughput of wireless communication system by equipping multiple antennas at the base station, and is one of the key technologies of 4G, 5G and other wireless communications. Since the resources of the existing low and medium frequency bands are relatively crowded, higher frequency bands are needed to obtain greater bandwidth. However, the propagation of high frequency electromagnetic waves is greatly attenuated, and the transmission distance and coverage range are relatively limited. Therefore, the base station needs to equip more antennas to obtain greater beamforming gain to compensate for the attenuation of high frequency transmission, so large-scale antenna arrays and even super large-scale antenna arrays have become one of the research hotspots in academia and industry.

[0106] In a large-scale antenna array, the number of antenna elements is large, which brings expensive radio frequency chain overhead and system power consumption. In order to further reduce the overhead and power consumption, a sparse antenna array is proposed. In a super large-scale antenna array, the distance between any two antenna elements is usually half a wavelength, while in a sparse antenna array, the distance between some antenna elements is greater than half a wavelength. On the one hand, when the number of elements of the existing non-sparse antenna array is equal to the number of elements of the sparse antenna array, the sparse antenna array has a larger antenna aperture, a narrower main lobe width and a more accurate directivity because the distance between some antenna elements of the sparse antenna array is larger. On the other hand, when the antenna aperture of the existing non-sparse antenna array is equal to the antenna array aperture of the sparse antenna, the sparse antenna array has fewer antenna elements and corresponding radio frequency chains, and has lower overhead and power consumption. Therefore, the sparse antenna array has very high research value and prospect.

[0107] In some embodiments, the sparse antenna array can be formed based on a uniform antenna array. In an embodiment, the sparse antenna array can be realized by activating some elements and deactivating the remaining elements in the uniform array according to a certain distribution rule.

[0108] In some embodiments, the sparse antenna array has a corresponding sparse pattern. The activated elements and the deactivated elements are indicated by the elements in the sparse pattern. In the sparse pattern, element 0 can indicate that the corresponding antenna element is deactivated, and element 1 can indicate that the corresponding antenna element is activated.

[0109] In some embodiments, the terms "antenna array", "antenna system", "array antenna" and the like can be replaced with each other.

[0110] In some embodiments, the terms "non-sparse antenna array", "uniform antenna array", "uniform linear array", "uniform planar array" and the like can be replaced with each other.

[0111] In some embodiments, the terms "sparse antenna array", "non-uniform antenna array", and the like can be replaced with each other.

[0112] II. Introduction to sparse antenna array

[0113] In some embodiments, the sparse antenna array can include a minimum redundancy array (MRA), a minimum hole array (MHA), a co-prime array (CA), a nested array (NA), and the like. Of course, other types of sparse arrays can also be included, which are not specifically limited in the embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0114] In some embodiments, CA and NA can be regarded as a combination of two arrays, and when the number of array elements of the two is determined, the array element positions of CA and NA have a closed-form solution. In the following, CA and NA are introduced by taking a uniform linear array (ULA) as an example.

[0115] In an example, CA is composed of two ULAs, and the number of antenna elements of the two ULAs is P and Q (P < Q) respectively. The antenna element positions of the two ULA arrays are represented as S1 = {qP | q = 0, 1, 2, …, Q-1} and S2 = {pQ | p = 0, 1, 2, …, 2P-1} respectively. In an example, when P = 2 and Q = 3, S1 = {0, 2, 4} and S2 = {0, 3, 6, 9}, and thus the antenna element positions of CA can be represented as {0, 2, 3, 4, 6, 9}.

[0116] In an example, NA is composed of two ULAs, the number of array elements of the first ULA is P and the array element spacing is d, the number of array elements of the second ULA is Q and the array element spacing is (P+1)d, and the array element spacing between the first array element of the second ULA and the last array element of the first ULA is d. In an example, when P = 5 and Q = 5, S1 = {0, 1, 2, 3, 4} and S2 = {5, 11, 17, 23, 29}, and thus the antenna element positions of NA can be represented as {0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 11, 17, 23, 29}.

[0117] In an example, Table 1 shows the antenna element positions and antenna aperture of different sparse antenna array types when the number of antenna elements is 10.

[0118] Table 1

[0119] In some embodiments, since there is currently no codebook for sparse antenna arrays, when the antenna array configured by the network device is a sparse antenna array, how to determine the corresponding codebook is a problem to be solved.

[0120] The embodiments of the present disclosure provide a communication method, a communication apparatus, a communication system, a storage medium and a program product. The terminal receives first information sent by the network device to indicate the sparse pattern of the antenna array, so that the terminal can determine the first codebook of the antenna array according to the sparse pattern of the antenna array, thereby realizing the transmission function. Since the antenna array is a sparse antenna array, the number of virtual antenna elements of the sparse antenna array is greater than the number of antenna ports of the sparse antenna array, which increases the antenna aperture and reduces the main lobe width, thereby improving the performance gain of the antenna array.

[0121] FIG. 2A is an interaction schematic diagram of a communication method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in FIG. 2A, the embodiments of the present disclosure relate to a communication method, which is executed by the communication system 100, and the communication method includes steps S2101 to S2109.

[0122] In step S2101, the network device sends first information.

[0123] In some embodiments, the terminal receives the first information.

[0124] In some embodiments, the first information is used to indicate the sparse pattern of the antenna array. In some embodiments, the first information can indicate the sparse pattern of one or more antenna arrays. Here, the antenna array can also be referred to as a sparse antenna array, a non-uniform antenna array.

[0125] In some embodiments, the antenna array can be formed by arranging a plurality of antenna elements in a non-uniform distribution geometry.

[0126] In some embodiments, the antenna array can be composed of a non-uniform linear array. In some embodiments, the antenna array can be composed of a plurality of ULAs.

[0127] In some embodiments, the antenna array can include, but is not limited to, at least one of MRA, MHA, CA and NA.

[0128] In some embodiments, the sparse pattern of the antenna array is used by the terminal to determine a first codebook for antenna array adaptation. In some embodiments, the first codebook is used by the terminal to determine a first precoding matrix, which is used for uplink transmission of the terminal. In some embodiments, the first codebook can be used for single-layer transmission or multi-layer transmission. In an embodiment, if the signals transmitted by the antenna ports are completely orthogonal, the first codebook is associated with a transmission rank of 1 or 2. If the signals transmitted by the antenna ports are quasi-orthogonal or non-orthogonal, the first codebook can be associated with a transmission rank of 1, 2, 3, 4, ….

[0129] In some embodiments, the sparse pattern can be used to determine the number of virtual antenna elements (denoted as N, N is a positive integer) and the location index (denoted as A) of the antenna elements of the antenna array. In an embodiment, N is the number of elements in the sparse pattern, in other words, the sparse pattern can include N elements, and the number of N is the number of virtual antenna elements. In the sparse pattern, the N elements can include element 0 and element 1. Wherein, element 0 indicates that the corresponding antenna element is deactivated, and element 1 indicates that the corresponding antenna element is activated. In an embodiment, A is indicated by element 1 in the sparse pattern.

[0130] In an example, the sparse pattern of the antenna array can be represented as: [1 1 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 1] (denoted as F), the total number of elements in the sparse pattern is 20; the ports corresponding to element 1 in the sparse pattern are: 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 9, 14, 19, that is, the antenna elements corresponding to element 1 are activated. Since the sparse pattern can determine the number of virtual antenna elements N and the antenna location index A of the antenna array corresponding to the sparse pattern, the number of virtual antenna elements N of the antenna array corresponding to the sparse pattern F is the total number of elements 20 in the sparse pattern F; the antenna location index A corresponding to the sparse pattern F is indicated by element 1 in the sparse pattern F, that is: {0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 9, 14, 19}.

[0131] FIG. 2B is a schematic diagram of an antenna array provided according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. The sparse pattern F in the above example corresponds to the antenna array shown in FIG. 2B. As shown in FIG. 2B, the indexes of the antenna ports in the antenna array are: 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, …, 19. The antenna array is composed of two ULAs, the number of antenna ports (N1) corresponding to the first ULA is 4, the indexes of the antenna ports are 0, 1, 2, 3, and the four antenna ports are all activated ports, and the interval between adjacent activated antenna ports is The antenna elements corresponding to the four antenna ports are the activated antenna elements of the first ULA. The number of antenna ports (N2) corresponding to the second ULA is 4, and the indexes of the antenna ports are 4, 5, 6, …, 19. Among the 16 ports, the antenna ports with indexes 4, 9, 14, and 19 are activated, and the interval between adjacent activated ports is The antenna elements corresponding to the four activated antenna ports are the activated antenna elements of the second ULA. Here, λ is the wavelength.

[0132] Correspondingly, the number of virtual antenna elements N of the antenna array shown in FIG. 2B is the total number of elements in the sparse pattern F, that is, 20. The antenna position index A of the antenna array shown in FIG. 2B is indicated by element 1 in the sparse pattern F, that is, {0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 9, 14, 19}.

[0133] In some embodiments, the name of the first information is not limited, for example, it is “sparse pattern information”, “design method information”, “arrangement method information”, and the like.

[0134] In some embodiments, the first information can be carried in downlink signaling, such as a radio resource control (RRC) message (such as RRCConnnectionConfiguration), downlink control information (DCI), media access control-control element (MAC-CE) signaling, or other high-layer signaling.

[0135] In some embodiments, the network device can indicate the sparse pattern of the antenna array through an RRC message, DCI, MAC-CE signaling, or other signaling, which is not specifically limited in the embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0136] In step S2102, the network device sends second information.

[0137] In some embodiments, the terminal receives the second information.

[0138] In some embodiments, the second information is used to indicate the number of antenna ports of the antenna array. In some embodiments, the number of antenna ports of the antenna array is used to determine the number of rows corresponding to the first codebook of the antenna array. In some embodiments, the number of antenna ports of the antenna array is equal to the number of rows corresponding to the first codebook of the antenna array. In some embodiments, the number of antenna ports associated with the first codebook is the number of antenna ports of the antenna array.

[0139] In some embodiments, in the case that the antenna array is composed of one non-uniform linear array, the number of ports of the antenna array is the number of effective elements in the non-uniform linear array. In some embodiments, in the case that the antenna array is composed of multiple ULAs, the number of ports of the antenna array is the sum of the number of antenna elements of the multiple ULAs. In some embodiments, the number of antenna elements of a ULA is the number of antenna ports of the ULA, in other words, in the case that the antenna array is composed of multiple ULAs, the number of ports of the antenna array is the sum of the number of antenna ports of the multiple ULAs.

[0140] In an example, assuming that the antenna array is NA, NA is composed of two ULAs, and the number of antenna elements of the two ULAs is N1 and N2 respectively, then the number of antenna elements of NA is (N1+N2), and the number of antenna ports of NA is also (N1+N2). In an example, if N1 takes the value of 4 and N2 takes the value of 4, then the number of antenna ports of NA is 8.

[0141] In some embodiments, the name of the second information is not limited, for example, it is “port number information”, “element number information” and the like.

[0142] In some embodiments, the second information can be carried in downlink signaling, such as RRC message, DCI, MAC-CE signaling or other high-layer signaling and the like.

[0143] In some embodiments, the network device can indicate the number of ports of the antenna array through RRC message, DCI, MAC-CE signaling or other signaling, and the embodiments of the present disclosure are not limited specifically.

[0144] In some embodiments, the second information can be sent in the first information, in which case, step S2101 and step S2102 can be executed simultaneously.

[0145] In some embodiments, the first information and the second information can be indicated by the network device through the same RRC message, the same DCI, the same MAC-CE signaling or other same signaling. In this case, step S2101 and step S2102 can be executed simultaneously.

[0146] In some embodiments, the first information and the second information can be indicated by the network device through different RRC messages, different DCIs, different MAC-CE signaling or other different signaling. In this case, the execution order of step S2101 and step S2102 is not limited, for example, step S2101 and step S2102 can be exchanged in order or executed simultaneously.

[0147] In some embodiments, when the network device does not send the second information, and the second information is also not carried in the first information, step S2102 is omitted, in which case the terminal can determine the number of antenna ports of the antenna array according to the sparse pattern. In some embodiments, the number of elements 1 in the sparse pattern is the number of antenna ports of the antenna array.

[0148] In step S2103, the terminal determines the first codebook of the antenna array according to the sparse pattern.

[0149] In some embodiments, after the terminal receives the first information sent by the network device, the terminal determines the first codebook of the antenna array according to the sparse pattern of the antenna array indicated by the first information.

[0150] In some embodiments, the terminal determines the number of virtual antenna elements N and the antenna position index A of the antenna array based on the sparse pattern, and determines the first codebook according to the number of virtual antenna elements N and the antenna position index A.

[0151] In some embodiments, the terminal can determine a second codebook associated with a uniform antenna array according to the number of virtual antenna elements N, and then determine the first codebook according to the second codebook and the antenna position index A. In some embodiments, the second codebook is a codebook associated with a uniform antenna array determined according to the number of virtual antenna elements N, and the number of antenna ports associated with the second codebook is the number of virtual antenna elements N. In some embodiments, the second codebook is used to determine the first codebook.

[0152] In some embodiments, the second codebook can be determined in the following two ways, including but not limited to.

[0153] Method 1: The terminal uses the first N rows in the codebook associated with the uniform antenna array B to form the second codebook.

[0154] Method 2: The terminal determines a third codebook according to the number of virtual antenna elements N, and then uses the first N rows in the third codebook to form the second codebook. Here, the number of antenna ports associated with the third codebook is a first number: The third codebook is a codebook associated with a uniform antenna array.

[0155] In some embodiments, the number of antenna ports associated with the third codebook is greater than the number of antenna ports N associated with the second codebook, and N is greater than the number of antenna ports associated with the first codebook, i.e., N is greater than the number of antenna ports of the antenna array.

[0156] In some embodiments, for method 1, the number of rows in the codebook associated with the uniform antenna array B is 2 m, m is a positive integer, and the codebook associated with the uniform antenna array B can be determined by the number of antenna ports C of the uniform antenna array B. Here, the value of C is the same as the number of rows of the codebook associated with the uniform antenna array B, and both are 2 m , and the value of m is determined according to N.

[0157] In some embodiments, the terminal can determine 2 m , that is, the condition 2 m ≥ N is satisfied. The value of 2 m is the number of antenna ports C of the uniform antenna array B, which is also the number of rows of the codebook associated with the uniform antenna array B. The terminal can obtain the codebook associated with the uniform antenna array B according to the number of rows of the codebook associated with the uniform antenna array B, and then determine the codebook obtained by retaining the first N rows in the codebook associated with the uniform antenna array B as the second codebook. In other words, the terminal can determine the codebook associated with the uniform antenna array B according to the number of virtual antenna elements N, and then obtain the second codebook according to the codebook associated with the uniform antenna array B.

[0158] In an example, for mode 1, assuming N = 20, the condition 2 m ≥ N is satisfied, and the value of 2 m is 32, 64, …, 2 p , where p is an integer greater than 6, that is, the value of the number of antenna ports C is 32, 64, …, 2 p In this case, the codebook associated with the uniform antenna array B can be determined from the existing codebook types of uniform antenna arrays (such as 3rd Generation Partnership Project Type 1 (3GPP Type 1)), for example, the codebook associated with the uniform antenna array B can be determined from the 32-port codebook, 64-port codebook, 2 p port codebook, etc. in 3GPP Type 1.

[0159] In some embodiments, the number of 32-port codebooks, 64-port codebooks, 2 p port codebooks, etc. in 3GPP Type 1 can be one or more.

[0160] In an example, for mode 1, if N = 20, in the case that the codebook associated with the uniform antenna array B is a 32-port codebook, the second codebook is composed of the first 20 rows of the 32-port codebook. In an example, for mode 1, N = 20, in the case that the codebook associated with the uniform antenna array B is a 64-port codebook, the second codebook is composed of the first 20 rows of the 64-port codebook.

[0161] In some embodiments, for method 2, the third codebook can be the codebook with the smallest number of antenna ports among the multiple codebooks associated with the uniform antenna array B in method 1. In this case, the terminal can form the second codebook from the first N rows of the codebook with the smallest number of antenna ports among the multiple codebooks associated with the uniform antenna array B.

[0162] In one example, for method 2, if N = 20, the third codebook is the 32-port codebook among the multiple codebooks associated with the uniform antenna array B in method 1 above, then the second codebook is the codebook consisting of the first 20 rows of the 32-port codebook.

[0163] In some embodiments, for method 2, the number of antenna ports associated with the third codebook can be represented by a first quantity. The terminal can determine the value of the first quantity based on the number of virtual antenna elements N. The first quantity is... Then the first N rows of the third codebook are used to form the second codebook.

[0164] In some embodiments, the first quantity is the quantity that satisfies the condition: 2 m ≥N of 2 m The minimum value of . In one example, N = 20, satisfying the condition: 2 m ≥N of 2 m The minimum value of is 32, and the value of the first quantity is also 32. Then the third codebook is the codebook associated with the uniform antenna array of the 32 ports, and the second codebook is the codebook composed of the first 20 rows of the codebook of the 32 ports.

[0165] In some instances, the first quantity may be indicated by the network device. In some embodiments, the network device may send the first quantity along with first information or second information. In some embodiments, the network device may send the first quantity through other downlink signaling different from the first information or second information, which is not limited in this disclosure. In some embodiments, when the first quantity is indicated by the network device, the terminal does not need to determine the first quantity and can directly obtain the third codebook from the codebook associated with the existing uniform array based on the first quantity indicated by the network device.

[0166] In some embodiments, after the terminal determines the second codebook in the above manner, the determination of the first codebook based on the second codebook and the antenna position index A can be achieved through the following steps: Step 1: Based on the antenna position index A, determine M rows of elements from the second codebook, where M is the number of antenna ports of the antenna array; Step 2: Based on the M rows of elements, determine the first codebook.

[0167] In some embodiments, for the above-mentioned M, if step S2102 is not omitted, the terminal can determine the number of antenna ports of the antenna array based on the second information, and thus determine M.

[0168] In some embodiments, for the above M, in the case that step S2102 is omitted, the sparse pattern can be used to determine the number of antenna ports of the antenna array, thus the terminal can determine the number of antenna ports of the antenna array based on the sparse pattern, and further determine M. In an example, the antenna array is NA, and its sparse pattern is [1 1 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 1], then the number of antenna ports of NA is the number of elements 1 in the sparse pattern, i.e. 8, and M is also 8.

[0169] In some embodiments, for step 1, determining M rows of elements from the second codebook based on the antenna position index A can be: the terminal obtains the elements of the rows corresponding to the elements in the antenna position index A in the second codebook according to the elements in the antenna position index A, to obtain M rows of elements. In an example, the antenna position index A is {0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 9, 14, 19}, then the terminal obtains the elements of the 0th, 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 9th, 14th, 19th rows in the second codebook based on the antenna position index A, to obtain 8 rows of elements.

[0170] In some embodiments, for step 2, the terminal determining the first codebook based on the M rows of elements can include: arranging the M rows of elements in the order of the size of the rows in the second codebook in which each row of elements is located, to obtain the first codebook, each column of the first codebook contains M elements. In some embodiments, the number of columns of the first codebook can be equal to the number of transmission layers associated with the first codebook. In an example, M takes the value of 8, and the 8 rows of elements are the elements of the 0th, 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 9th, 14th, 19th rows in the second codebook, then arranging the 8 rows of elements in the order of the size of the rows in the second codebook in which each row of elements is located, i.e. the 0th row of elements is the 0th row of the first codebook, the 1st row of elements is the 1st row of the first codebook, …, the 19th row of elements is the 7th row of the first codebook, to obtain the first codebook.

[0171] In some embodiments, the network device can determine the second codebook based on the above manner, and deliver the second codebook to the terminal. Correspondingly, then the terminal receives the second codebook delivered by the network device, and determines the first codebook according to the second codebook and the antenna position index A.

[0172] In some embodiments, the terminal can determine the third codebook according to the above manner, and then determine the first codebook according to the third codebook and the antenna position index A.

[0173] In some embodiments, the terminal determining the first codebook according to the third codebook and the antenna position index can be achieved by the following steps: step a, determining M rows of elements from the third codebook based on the antenna position index, M takes the value of the number of antenna ports of the antenna array; step b, determining the first codebook based on the M rows of elements.

[0174] In some embodiments, for step a, the M row elements are determined from the third codebook based on the antenna position index, which can be: the terminal obtains the elements of the rows in the third codebook corresponding to the elements in the antenna position index according to the elements in the antenna position index, to obtain the M row elements. In an example, the antenna position index is {0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 9, 14, 19}, then the terminal obtains the elements of the 0th, 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 9th, 14th, 19th rows in the third codebook respectively based on the antenna position index, to obtain 8 row elements.

[0175] In some embodiments, for step b, the terminal determines the first codebook based on the M row elements, which can refer to the implementation of the first codebook determination manner in step 2, which will not be repeated here.

[0176] In some embodiments, the network device can determine the third codebook based on the above manner, and deliver the third codebook to the terminal. Correspondingly, then the terminal receives the third codebook delivered by the network device, and determines the first codebook according to the third codebook and the antenna position index A.

[0177] In step S2104, the terminal sends the fourth information.

[0178] In some embodiments, the network device receives the fourth information.

[0179] In some embodiments, the fourth information is used to indicate the first codebook determined by the terminal. In some embodiments, the first codebook is used by the network device to determine the second precoding matrix, and the second precoding matrix is used for downlink transmission.

[0180] In some embodiments, the name of the fourth information is not limited, which is, for example, “codebook information”, “adapted codebook information of antenna array” and the like.

[0181] In some embodiments, the fourth information can be carried in uplink signaling, such as: RRC message, uplink control information (UCI), MAC-CE signaling or other signaling, etc.

[0182] In some embodiments, the terminal can indicate the first codebook determined by the terminal through RRC message, UCI, MAC-CE signaling or other signaling, which is not limited in the embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0183] In some embodiments, the network device can determine the first codebook by itself according to the sparse pattern. In this case, step S2104 can be omitted.

[0184] In some embodiments, the network device can send the determined first codebook to the terminal. In some embodiments, the network device can determine the first codebook in the manner described with reference to step S2103, or in other manners, which are not limited in the embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0185] In step S2105, the network device sends a downlink reference signal.

[0186] In some embodiments, the terminal receives the downlink reference signal. In some embodiments, the downlink reference signal is used by the terminal to perform measurement.

[0187] In some embodiments, the downlink reference signal can be a channel state information reference signal (CSI-RS) or other reference signal, which is not limited in the embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0188] In some embodiments, the number of antenna ports configured for the downlink reference signal is determined according to the number of antenna ports of the antenna array. In some embodiments, the network device knows the number of antenna ports of the corresponding antenna array, and determines the number of antenna ports configured for the downlink reference signal according to the number of antenna ports of the antenna array.

[0189] In an example, it is assumed that the antenna array is composed of two ULAs, and the number of antenna elements of the two ULAs is N1 and N2 respectively. If N1 is 4 and N2 is 4, the number of antenna ports of the antenna array is 8. In this case, the antenna array of the network device can send an 8-port CSI-RS. In an example, in the related art, the two ULAs of the network device can send a 4-port CSI-RS respectively.

[0190] In some embodiments, the terminal performs different measurements in different cases of the downlink reference signal.

[0191] In some embodiments, the downlink reference signal can be carried in downlink signaling, such as RRC message, DCI, MAC-CE signaling or other high-layer signaling, etc. In some embodiments, the network device can indicate the downlink reference signal through RRC message, DCI, MAC-CE signaling or other signaling, which is not limited in the embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0192] In some embodiments, the downlink reference signal can be sent in the first information, in which case, step S2101 and step S2105 can be performed simultaneously.

[0193] In some embodiments, the downlink reference signal can be sent in the second information, in which case, step S2102 and step S2105 can be performed simultaneously.

[0194] In some embodiments, the first information, the second information, and the information carrying the downlink reference signal can be indicated by the network device through a same RRC message, a same DCI, a same MAC-CE signaling, or other same signaling. In this case, step S2101, step S2102, and step S2105 can be executed simultaneously.

[0195] In some embodiments, step S2105 and step S2104 can be executed in an exchange order.

[0196] In step S2106, the terminal performs measurement based on the downlink reference signal to obtain a measurement result.

[0197] In some embodiments, after receiving the downlink reference signal, the terminal performs measurement based on the downlink reference signal to obtain a measurement result.

[0198] In an embodiment, the downlink reference signal is a CSI-RS, and the measurement performed by the terminal based on the CSI-RS can include channel quality measurement, beam management, time-frequency offset tracking, radio resource management measurement, and wireless link management measurement, so as to obtain measurement results of different measurements.

[0199] In an example, if an antenna array of the network device transmits an 8-port CSI-RS, the terminal performs measurement according to the 8-port CSI-RS to obtain a measurement result. In an example, if two ULAs of the network device can respectively transmit a 4-port CSI-RS, the terminal performs measurement according to the two 4-port CSI-RS respectively to obtain a measurement result.

[0200] In step S2107, the terminal determines a first precoding matrix according to the measurement result and the first codebook.

[0201] In some embodiments, the terminal determines a first precoding matrix matching the measurement result from the first codebook according to the measurement result.

[0202] In some embodiments, the measurement result is different, and the determined first precoding matrix can be different or the same, which is not limited in the embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0203] In some embodiments, the first precoding matrix is used for uplink transmission. In some embodiments, the first precoding matrix is used for the network device to determine a second precoding matrix, and the second precoding matrix is used for downlink transmission.

[0204] In an example, if the antenna array of the network device transmits one 8-port CSI-RS, the terminal performs measurement according to the 8-port CSI-RS, obtains a measurement result, and determines a first precoding matrix according to the measurement result and the first codebook. In an example, if two ULAs of the network device can respectively transmit one 4-port CSI-RS, the terminal performs measurement according to the two 4-port CSI-RS respectively, obtains two measurement results, and determines two first precoding matrices according to the two measurement results and the first codebook.

[0205] In step S2108, the terminal transmits third information.

[0206] In some embodiments, the network device receives the third information.

[0207] In some embodiments, the third information is used to indicate the first precoding matrix.

[0208] In some embodiments, the third information can be carried in uplink signaling, such as RRC message, UCI, MAC-CE signaling, or other signaling.

[0209] In some embodiments, the third information can be carried in UCI, channel quality indication (CQI) information, pre-coding matrix indication (PMI) information, or other uplink signaling. In some embodiments, the terminal can indicate the third information through UCI, CQI information, PMI information, or other uplink signaling.

[0210] In an example, if the antenna array of the network device transmits one 8-port CSI-RS, the terminal performs measurement according to the 8-port CSI-RS, obtains a measurement result, and determines a first precoding matrix according to the measurement result and the first codebook. In this case, the terminal uses 2 bits to transmit the first precoding matrix. In an example, if two ULAs of the network device can respectively transmit one 4-port CSI-RS, the terminal performs measurement according to the two 4-port CSI-RS respectively, obtains two measurement results, and determines two first precoding matrices according to the two measurement results and the first codebook. In this case, the terminal needs to use 2 bits to transmit the two first precoding matrices respectively, a total of 4 bits. Therefore, compared with the case that two ULAs of the network device can respectively transmit one 4-port CSI-RS, the case that the antenna array of the network device transmits one 8-port CSI-RS can reduce the bit overhead when transmitting the first precoding matrix.

[0211] In step S2109, the network device determines a second precoding matrix based on the first precoding matrix and the first codebook.

[0212] In some embodiments, the network device receives the first precoding matrix, and determines a second precoding matrix from the first codebook according to the first precoding matrix, the second precoding matrix being adapted to the first precoding matrix.

[0213] In some embodiments, the second precoding matrix has the same number of rows as the first precoding matrix, the number of rows being equal to the number of antenna ports of the antenna array.

[0214] The communication method related to the embodiments of the present disclosure can include at least one of steps S2101 to S2109. For example, step S2101 can be implemented as an independent embodiment. For example, steps S2101 and S2102 can be implemented as an independent embodiment. For example, a combination of steps S2101 and S2103 can be implemented as an independent embodiment. For example, a combination of steps S2101, S2102 and S2103 can be implemented as an independent embodiment. For example, a combination of steps S2101, S2103, S2105, S2106 and S2107 can be implemented as an independent embodiment. For example, a combination of steps S2101, S2103, S2105, S2106, S2107 and S2108 can be implemented as an independent embodiment. For example, a combination of steps S2101, S2103, S2105, S2106, S2107, S2108 and S2109 can be implemented as an independent embodiment, but not limited thereto.

[0215] In some embodiments, steps S2101 and S2102 can be exchanged in order or performed simultaneously.

[0216] In some embodiments, steps S2101 and S2105 can be performed simultaneously.

[0217] In some embodiments, steps S2102 and S2105 can be performed simultaneously.

[0218] In some embodiments, steps S2104 and S2105 can be exchanged in order.

[0219] In some embodiments, steps S2102 to S2109 are optional, and one or more of these steps can be omitted or replaced in different embodiments.

[0220] In some embodiments, steps S2102, S2104 to S2109 are optional, and one or more of these steps can be omitted or replaced in different embodiments.

[0221] In some embodiments, steps S2103 to S2109 are optional, and one or more of these steps can be omitted or replaced in different embodiments.

[0222] In some embodiments, steps S2104 to S2109 are optional, and one or more of these steps can be omitted or replaced in different embodiments.

[0223] In some embodiments, steps S2102, S2104, S2108, S2109 are optional, and one or more of these steps can be omitted or replaced in different embodiments.

[0224] In some embodiments, the names of information and the like are not limited to the names described in the embodiments, and the terms of “information”, “message”, “signal”, “signaling”, “report”, “configuration”, “indication”, “instruction”, “command”, “channel”, “parameter”, “domain”, “field”, “symbol”, “element”, “codebook”, “codeword”, “codepoint”, “bit”, “data”, “program”, “chip”, and the like can be replaced with each other.

[0225] In some embodiments, the terms of “carry”, “include”, “contain”, and the like can be replaced with each other.

[0226] In some embodiments, the terms of “first type of mobility”, “second type of mobility”, “first mobility”, “second mobility”, and the like can be replaced with each other, the terms of “downlink”, “physical downlink”, and the like can be replaced with each other, and the terms of “sidelink”, “sidelink communication”, “direct connection”, “direct connection link”, and the like can be replaced with each other.

[0227] In some embodiments, the terms of “acquire”, “obtain”, “get”, “receive”, “transmit”, “bidirectional transmission”, “send and / or receive” can be replaced with each other, and can be interpreted as receiving from other subjects, acquiring from a protocol, acquiring from a higher layer, obtaining by self-processing, autonomously implementing, and the like.

[0228] In some embodiments, the terms of "sending", "transmitting", "reporting", "issuing", "transferring", "requesting", "bidirectional transferring", "sending and / or receiving", and the like can be replaced by each other.

[0229] In some embodiments, the terms of "antenna array", "antenna system", "array antenna", and the like can be replaced by each other.

[0230] In some embodiments, the terms of "uniform antenna array", "uniform linear array", "uniform planar array", "non-sparse antenna array", and the like can be replaced by each other.

[0231] In some embodiments, the terms of "non-uniform antenna array", "sparse antenna array", and the like can be replaced by each other.

[0232] In some embodiments, the terms of "certain", "preseted", "preset", "set", "indicated", "certain", "arbitrary", "first", and the like can be replaced by each other. "Certain A", "preset A", "preset A", "set A", "indicated A", "certain A", "arbitrary A", "first A" can be interpreted as A specified in advance in a protocol or the like, A obtained by setting, configuration, or indication, or A as certain, arbitrary, or first, but not limited thereto.

[0233] In some embodiments, the determination or judgment can be made by a value represented by 1 bit (0 or 1), or by a true or false value (Boolean value) represented by true or false, or by comparison of numerical values (for example, comparison with a predetermined value), but not limited thereto.

[0234] FIG. 3A is a flow diagram of a communication method performed by a terminal according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in FIG. 3A, the present disclosure relates to a communication method applied to the terminal, and the method includes steps S3101-S3108.

[0235] In step S3101, first information is acquired.

[0236] The optional implementation of step S3101 can refer to step S2101 in FIG. 2A and other associated parts in the embodiments involved in FIG. 2A, which will not be repeated here.

[0237] In step S3102, second information is acquired.

[0238] The optional implementation of step S3102 can refer to step S2102 in FIG. 2A and other associated parts in the embodiments involved in FIG. 2A, which will not be repeated here.

[0239] In step S3103, a first codebook of the antenna array is determined according to the sparse pattern.

[0240] Optional implementation of step S3103 can be referred to step S2103 in FIG. 2A and other associated parts in the embodiments related to FIG. 2A. Details are not described here again.

[0241] In step S3104, the fourth information is sent.

[0242] Optional implementation of step S3104 can be referred to step S2104 in FIG. 2A and other associated parts in the embodiments related to FIG. 2A. Details are not described here again.

[0243] In step S3105, a downlink reference signal is acquired.

[0244] Optional implementation of step S3105 can be referred to step S2105 in FIG. 2A and other associated parts in the embodiments related to FIG. 2A. Details are not described here again.

[0245] In step S3106, a measurement is performed based on the downlink reference signal to obtain a measurement result.

[0246] Optional implementation of step S3106 can be referred to step S2106 in FIG. 2A and other associated parts in the embodiments related to FIG. 2A. Details are not described here again.

[0247] In step S3107, a first precoding matrix is determined according to the measurement result and the first codebook.

[0248] Optional implementation of step S3107 can be referred to step S2107 in FIG. 2A and other associated parts in the embodiments related to FIG. 2A. Details are not described here again.

[0249] In step S3108, the third information is sent.

[0250] Optional implementation of step S3108 can be referred to step S2108 in FIG. 2A and other associated parts in the embodiments related to FIG. 2A. Details are not described here again.

[0251] The communication method related to the embodiments of the present disclosure can include at least one of steps S3101 to S3108. For example, step S3101 can be implemented as an independent embodiment. For example, steps S3101 and S3102 can be implemented as an independent embodiment. For example, a combination of steps S3101 and S3103 can be implemented as an independent embodiment. For example, a combination of steps S3101, S3102 and S3103 can be implemented as an independent embodiment. For example, a combination of steps S3101, S3103, S3105, S3106 and S3107 can be implemented as an independent embodiment. For example, a combination of steps S3101, S3103, S3105, S3106, S3107 and S3108 can be implemented as an independent embodiment, but the present disclosure is not limited thereto.

[0252] In some embodiments, steps S3101 and S3102 can be exchanged in order or performed simultaneously.

[0253] In some embodiments, steps S3101 and S3105 can be performed simultaneously.

[0254] In some embodiments, steps S3102 and S3105 can be performed simultaneously.

[0255] In some embodiments, steps S3104 and S3105 can be exchanged in order.

[0256] In some embodiments, steps S3102 to S3108 are optional, and one or more of these steps can be omitted or replaced in different embodiments.

[0257] In some embodiments, steps S3102, S3104 to S3108 are optional, and one or more of these steps can be omitted or replaced in different embodiments.

[0258] In some embodiments, steps S3103 to S3108 are optional, and one or more of these steps can be omitted or replaced in different embodiments.

[0259] In some embodiments, steps S3104 to S3108 are optional, and one or more of these steps can be omitted or replaced in different embodiments.

[0260] In some embodiments, steps S3102, S3104, S3108 are optional, and one or more of these steps can be omitted or replaced in different embodiments.

[0261] FIG. 3B is a flow diagram illustrating a method for performing communication on a network device side according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in FIG. 3B, the embodiment of the present disclosure relates to a communication method, which is applied to the network device described above, and the method includes steps S3201-S3206.

[0262] In step S3201, the first information is transmitted.

[0263] The optional implementation of step S3201 can be found with reference to step S2101 in FIG. 2A and other associated parts in the embodiments related to FIG. 2A, which will not be repeated here.

[0264] In step S3202, the second information is transmitted.

[0265] The optional implementation of step S3202 can be found with reference to step S2102 in FIG. 2A and other associated parts in the embodiments related to FIG. 2A, which will not be repeated here.

[0266] In step S3203, the fourth information is acquired.

[0267] The optional implementation of step S3203 can be found with reference to step S2104 in FIG. 2A and other associated parts in the embodiments related to FIG. 2A, which will not be repeated here.

[0268] In step S3204, the downlink reference signal is transmitted.

[0269] The optional implementation of step S3243 can be found with reference to step S2105 in FIG. 2A and other associated parts in the embodiments related to FIG. 2A, which will not be repeated here.

[0270] In step S3205, the third information is acquired.

[0271] The optional implementation of step S3205 can be found with reference to step S2108 in FIG. 2A and other associated parts in the embodiments related to FIG. 2A, which will not be repeated here.

[0272] In step S3206, the second precoding matrix is determined based on the first precoding matrix and the first codebook.

[0273] The optional implementation of step S3206 can be found with reference to step S2109 in FIG. 2A and other associated parts in the embodiments related to FIG. 2A, which will not be repeated here.

[0274] The communication method related to the embodiments of the present disclosure can include at least one of steps S3201 to S3206. For example, step S3201 can be implemented as an independent embodiment. For example, step S3201 and step S3202 can be implemented as independent embodiments. For example, step S3201 and step S3204 can be implemented as independent embodiments. For example, the combination of step S3201, step S3204, step S3205 and step S3206 can be implemented as an independent embodiment, but is not limited thereto.

[0275] In some embodiments, the order of step S3201 and step S3202 can be exchanged or performed simultaneously.

[0276] In some embodiments, step S3203 and step S3204 can be performed in an exchanged order.

[0277] In some embodiments, step S3202, step S3203, step S3204, step S3205 and step S3206 are optional, and one or more of these steps can be omitted or replaced in different embodiments.

[0278] In some embodiments, step S3203, step S3204, step S3205 and step S3206 are optional, and one or more of these steps can be omitted or replaced in different embodiments.

[0279] In some embodiments, step S3202, step S3203, step S3205 and step S3206 are optional, and one or more of these steps can be omitted or replaced in different embodiments.

[0280] FIG. 4A is a flow diagram of a communication method performed on a terminal side according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in FIG. 4A, the embodiments of the present disclosure relate to a communication method applied to the terminal, and the method includes steps S4101 to S4102.

[0281] In step S4101, first information is obtained.

[0282] The optional implementation of step S4201 can be referred to the embodiments related to step S2101 in FIG. 2A and other associated parts in FIG. 2A, which will not be described here.

[0283] In step S4102, a first codebook of the antenna array is determined according to the sparse pattern.

[0284] The optional implementation of step S4202 can be referred to the embodiments related to step S2103 in FIG. 2A and other associated parts in FIG. 2A, which will not be described here.

[0285] FIG. 4B is a flow diagram of a method for performing communication on a network device side according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in FIG. 4B, the present disclosure relates to a communication method, which is applied to the network device described above, and the method comprises step S4201.

[0286] In step S4201, first information is transmitted.

[0287] The optional implementation of step S4201 can refer to step S2101 in FIG. 2A and other related parts in the embodiments described with respect to FIG. 2A, which will not be described herein.

[0288] In the following, the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present disclosure are exemplarily described through specific implementations.

[0289] In some embodiments, the base station configures the sparse pattern of the antenna array and the number of antenna ports (N1+N2) to the UE through signaling. In some embodiments, the signaling can be RRC, MAC-CE, DCI, etc.

[0290] In some embodiments, the base station transmits a downlink reference signal with a port number of (N1+N2). In an example, the downlink reference signal can be a CSI-RS.

[0291] In some embodiments, the UE determines the number of virtual antenna elements N of the sparse array according to the sparse pattern, and determines a non-sparse codebook with a port number of

[0292] In some embodiments, the base station can also directly configure the number of ports of the non-sparse codebook for the UE, and keep the first N rows of each precoding matrix in the codebook to obtain a codebook W with a port number of N, where the precoding matrix can be represented as w i , and i=1, 2, …, |W|.

[0293] In some embodiments, the UE calculates a (N1+N2) port codebook W according to the N port codebook and the sparse pattern where the precoding matrix can be represented as w i P and keeps the rows corresponding to the non-sparse elements. In some embodiments, due to the sparse characteristics of the antenna array, the codebook described above can be used for single-layer or two-layer transmission.

[0294] In some embodiments, the UE measures the downlink reference signal and selects the optimal precoding matrix from the codebook, and reports it to the base station through UCI, and the base station generates a precoding matrix according to the UCI feedback for downlink transmission.

[0295] ​In an example, the antenna array of the base station is NA, the port number of the first layer ULA is 4, the port number of the second layer ULA is 4, the total number of antenna ports is 8, the total number of virtual antenna elements is 20, and the antenna position index is {0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 9, 14, 19}.

[0296] In an example, the base station configures the sparse pattern of the sparse array as [1 1 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 1].

[0297] In an example, the base station transmits an 8-port CSI-RS for channel estimation.

[0298] In an example, the UE determines the number of virtual antenna elements of the sparse array as 20 according to the sparse pattern, and acquires a codebook with a port number of 20 according to the existing 3GPP Type 1 32-port codebook.

[0299] In an example, the UE generates an 8-port codebook for the sparse array according to the sparse pattern and the 20-port codebook, and reserves elements corresponding to the rows {0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 9, 14, 19}.

[0300] In an example, the UE selects an optimal precoding matrix in the generated 8-port codebook by measuring the CSI-RS, and performs subsequent transmission.

[0301] The embodiments of the present disclosure further provide a device for implementing any of the above methods, for example, a device including units or modules for implementing each step performed by a terminal in any of the above methods. For another example, another device is provided, including units or modules for implementing each step performed by a network device (such as an access network device) in any of the above methods.

[0302] It should be understood that the division of each unit or module in the above apparatus is only a logical function division, and all or part of them can be integrated into a physical entity or physically separated in actual implementation. In addition, the units or modules in the apparatus can be implemented in the form of processor calling software: for example, the apparatus includes a processor, the processor is connected with a memory, the memory stores instructions, and the processor calls the instructions stored in the memory to realize the functions of any of the above methods or the units or modules of the above apparatus, wherein the processor is a general processor such as a central processing unit (CPU) or a microprocessor, and the memory is a memory in the apparatus or a memory outside the apparatus. Alternatively, the units or modules in the apparatus can be implemented in the form of hardware circuit, and the functions of part or all of the units or modules can be realized by the design of the hardware circuit. The above hardware circuit can be understood as one or more processors; for example, in one implementation, the above hardware circuit is an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), and the functions of part or all of the units or modules are realized by the design of the logical relationship between the elements in the circuit; for another example, in another implementation, the above hardware circuit is a programmable logic device (PLD), and a field programmable gate array (FPGA) is taken as an example, which can include a large number of logic gate circuits, and the connection relationship between the logic gate circuits is configured by a configuration file, so as to realize the functions of part or all of the units or modules. All units or modules of the above apparatus can be all implemented in the form of processor calling software, or all implemented in the form of hardware circuit, or part implemented in the form of processor calling software and the remaining part implemented in the form of hardware circuit.

[0303] In embodiments of the present disclosure, the processor is a circuit with signal processing capability. In one implementation, the processor can be a circuit with instruction reading and running capability, such as a CPU, a microprocessor, a graphics processing unit (GPU) (which can also be understood as a microprocessor), a digital signal processor (DSP), or the like. In another implementation, the processor can implement certain functions through a logical relationship of a hardware circuit, and the logical relationship of the hardware circuit is fixed or can be reconfigured. For example, the processor is an ASIC or a PLD implemented hardware circuit, such as an FPGA. In the reconfigurable hardware circuit, the processor loads a configuration document to implement the hardware circuit configuration. It can be understood that the processor loads instructions to implement the functions of the above part or all units or modules. In addition, it can also be a hardware circuit designed for artificial intelligence, which can be understood as an ASIC, such as a neural network processing unit (NPU), a tensor processing unit (TPU), a deep learning processing unit (DPU), and the like.

[0304] As shown in FIG. 5A, FIG. 5A is a structural schematic diagram of a communication apparatus provided by an embodiment of the present disclosure. The structure of the communication apparatus 5100 can be as shown in FIG. 5A. The communication apparatus 5100 can be a terminal. The communication apparatus 5100 includes a first transceiver module 5101 and a first processing module 5102. In some embodiments, the first transceiver module 5101 is configured to receive first information sent by a network device, where the first information is used to indicate a sparse pattern of an antenna array; and the first processing module 5102 is configured to determine a first codebook of the antenna array according to the sparse pattern. In some embodiments, the first transceiver module 5101 is configured to perform at least one of the communication steps (for example, steps S3101, S3102, S3104, S3105, S3108) of receiving and / or sending performed by the terminal in any of the above methods, details of which are not described herein again. In some embodiments, the first processing module 5102 is configured to perform at least one of the processing steps (for example, steps S3103, S3106, S3107) performed by the terminal in any of the above methods, details of which are not described herein again.

[0305] In some embodiments, the first transceiver module 5101 can include a sending module and / or a receiving module, which can be separate or integrated together. Optionally, the first transceiver module 5101 can be replaced by a transceiver.

[0306] As shown in FIG. 5B, FIG. 5B is a structural schematic diagram of a communication apparatus provided by embodiments of the present disclosure. The structure of the communication apparatus 5200 can be as shown in FIG. 5B. The communication apparatus 5200 can be a network device. The communication apparatus 5200 includes a second transceiver module 5201 and a second processing module 5202. In some embodiments, the second transceiver module 5201 is configured to send first information to a terminal, where the first information is used to indicate a sparse pattern of an antenna array, and the sparse pattern is used by the terminal to determine a first codebook of the antenna array. In some embodiments, the second processing module 5202 is configured to determine the first codebook according to the sparse pattern. In some embodiments, the second transceiver module 5201 is configured to perform at least one of the communication steps (e.g., steps S3201-S3205) of sending and / or receiving performed by the network device in any of the above methods, which will not be described herein again. In some embodiments, the second processing module 5202 is configured to perform at least one of the processing steps (e.g., step S3206) performed by the terminal in any of the above methods, which will not be described herein again.

[0307] In some embodiments, the second transceiver module 5201 can include a sending module and / or a receiving module, which can be separate or integrated together. Alternatively, the second transceiver module 5201 can be replaced by a transceiver.

[0308] FIG. 6A is a structural schematic diagram of a communication device provided by embodiments of the present disclosure. The communication device 6100 can be a terminal (e.g., a user equipment, etc.), a network device (e.g., a base station), a chip, a chip system, or a processor supporting the implementation of the above method by the communication device, or a chip, a chip system, or a processor supporting the implementation of the above method by the terminal. The communication device 6100 can be used to implement the methods described in the above method embodiments, which can be referred to the descriptions in the above method embodiments.

[0309] As shown in FIG. 6A, the communication device 6100 includes one or more processors 6101. The processor 6101 can be a general-purpose processor or a special-purpose processor, for example, a baseband processor or a central processing unit. The baseband processor can be configured to process communication protocols and communication data, and the central processing unit can be configured to control a network node (e.g., a base station, a baseband chip, a terminal device, a terminal device chip, a DU or a CU, etc.), execute programs, and process data of the programs. Alternatively, the communication device 6100 is configured to execute any of the above methods. Alternatively, the one or more processors 6101 are configured to invoke instructions to cause the communication device 6100 to execute any of the above methods.

[0310] In some embodiments, the communication device 6100 further includes one or more transceivers 6102. When the communication device 6100 includes one or more transceivers 6102, the transceiver 6102 performs at least one of the communication steps (e.g., steps S2101, S2102, S2104, S2105, S2108, but not limited to) in the above-described methods, and the processor 6101 performs at least one of the other steps (e.g., steps S2103, S2106, S2107, S2109, but not limited to). In alternative embodiments, the transceiver can include a receiver and / or a transmitter, which can be separate or integrated together. Alternatively, the terms transceiver, transceiving unit, transceiver, transceiving circuit, interface circuit, interface, etc. can be replaced with each other, and the terms transmitter, transmitting unit, transmitter, transmitting circuit, etc. can be replaced with each other, and the terms receiver, receiving unit, receiver, receiving circuit, etc. can be replaced with each other.

[0311] In some embodiments, the communication device 6100 further includes one or more memories 6103 for storing data. Alternatively, all or part of the memory 6103 can also be outside the communication device 6100. In alternative embodiments, the communication device 6100 can include one or more interface circuits 6104. Alternatively, the interface circuit 6104 is connected with the memory 6103, and the interface circuit 6104 can be used to receive data from the memory 6103 or other devices, and can be used to send data to the memory 6103 or other devices. For example, the interface circuit 6104 can read the data stored in the memory 6103 and send the data to the processor 6101.

[0312] The communication device 6100 described in the above embodiments can be a terminal or a network device, but the scope of the communication device 6100 described in the present disclosure is not limited thereto, and the structure of the communication device 6100 can not be limited by FIG. 6A. The access network device can be a standalone device or can be part of a larger device. For example, the terminal can be: (1) a standalone integrated circuit (IC), or a chip, or a chip system or subsystem; (2) a set of one or more ICs, which can optionally include storage components for storing data, programs; (3) an ASIC, such as a modem; (4) a module that can be embedded in other devices; (5) a receiver, a terminal device, a smart terminal device, a cellular phone, a wireless device, a handset, a mobile unit, a vehicle-mounted device, a network device, a cloud device, an artificial intelligence device, etc.; (6) others, etc.

[0313] FIG. 6B is a schematic diagram of a structure of a chip according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. For the case that the communication device 6100 can be a chip or a chip system, refer to the schematic diagram of the structure of the chip 6200 shown in FIG. 6B, but the present disclosure is not limited thereto.

[0314] The chip 6200 comprises one or more processors 6201. The chip 6200 is configured to perform any of the above methods.

[0315] In some embodiments, the chip 6200 further comprises one or more interface circuits 6202. Optionally, the terms of interface circuit, interface, transceiver pin, etc. can be replaced by each other. In some embodiments, the chip 6200 further comprises one or more memories 6203 for storing data. Optionally, all or part of the memory 6203 can be outside the chip 6200. Optionally, the interface circuit 6202 is connected with the memory 6203, and the interface circuit 6202 can be configured to receive data from the memory 6203 or other devices, and the interface circuit 6202 can be configured to send data to the memory 6203 or other devices. For example, the interface circuit 6202 can read the data stored in the memory 6203 and send the data to the processor 6201.

[0316] In some embodiments, the interface circuit 6202 performs at least one of the communication steps such as sending and / or receiving in the above methods. The interface circuit 6202 performing the communication steps such as sending and / or receiving in the above methods means that the interface circuit 6202 performs data interaction between the processor 6201, the chip 6200, the memory 6203 or the transceiver device.

[0317] The modules and / or devices described in each of the embodiments of the virtual device, the physical device, the chip, etc. can be combined or separated as appropriate. Optionally, part or all of the steps can also be performed by multiple modules and / or devices in cooperation, which is not limited herein.

[0318] The embodiments of the present disclosure further provide a storage medium, and the storage medium stores instructions. When the instructions run on the communication device 6100, the communication device 6100 performs any of the above methods. Optionally, the storage medium is an electronic storage medium. Optionally, the storage medium is a computer-readable storage medium, but the present disclosure is not limited thereto, and it can also be a storage medium readable by other devices. Optionally, the storage medium can be a non-transitory storage medium, but the present disclosure is not limited thereto, and it can also be a transitory storage medium.

[0319] The embodiments of the present disclosure further provide a computer program product, which is executed by the communication device 6100, so that the communication device 6100 performs any of the above methods.

[0320] The embodiments of the present disclosure further provide a computer program, which, when running on a computer, enables the computer to perform any of the above methods.

[0321] Other embodiments of the present disclosure will be apparent to those skilled in the art from consideration of the specification and practice of the embodiments disclosed herein. The present disclosure is intended to cover any variations, uses or adaptations of the present disclosure following, in general, the principles of the present disclosure and including such

[0322] It will be understood that the present disclosure is not limited to the precise structures herein described and illustrated in the drawings, and that various modifications and changes can be made without departing from its scope. The scope of the present disclosure is limited only by the claims that follow.

Claims

1. A communication method, performed by a terminal, the method comprising: receiving first information transmitted by a network device, wherein the first information is used to indicate a sparse pattern of an antenna array; and determining a first codebook of the antenna array according to the sparse pattern. The determining the first codebook of the antenna array according to the sparse pattern comprises: determining a number of virtual antenna elements and an antenna position index of the antenna array based on the sparse pattern; and determining the first codebook according to a second codebook associated with a uniform antenna array and the antenna position index, the second codebook being determined according to the number of virtual antenna elements. The method further comprises: N being the number of virtual antenna elements; and using the first N rows in the third codebook to constitute the second codebook.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein, The method further comprises: receiving second information transmitted by the network device, the second information being used to indicate a number of antenna ports of the antenna array; and the determining the first codebook according to the second codebook associated with the uniform antenna array and the antenna position index comprises: determining M rows of elements from the second codebook based on the antenna position index, M being equal to the number of antenna ports of the antenna array; and determining the first codebook based on the M rows of elements. The method further comprises: receiving a downlink reference signal transmitted by the network device; performing measurement based on the downlink reference signal to obtain a measurement result; and determining a first precoding matrix for uplink transmission according to the measurement result and the first codebook. The method further comprises: transmitting third information to the network device, the third information being used to indicate the first precoding matrix, the first precoding matrix being used by the network device to determine a second precoding matrix for downlink transmission.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein, The number of antenna ports of the downlink reference signal is determined according to the number of antenna ports of the antenna array. According to the quantity of the virtual antenna elements, a third codebook is acquired, the quantity of antenna ports associated with the third codebook is a first quantity, and the first quantity is 8.A communication method, performed by a network device, the method comprising: transmitting first information to a terminal, wherein the first information is used to indicate a sparse pattern of an antenna array, the sparse pattern being used by the terminal to determine a first codebook of the antenna array. The method further comprises one of the following: determining the first codebook according to the sparse pattern; and receiving fourth information, the fourth information being used to indicate the first codebook determined by the terminal.

4. The method of claim 2 or 3, wherein, The method further comprises: receiving third information transmitted by the terminal, the third information being used to indicate a first precoding matrix; and determining a second precoding matrix for downlink transmission based on the first precoding matrix and the first codebook. The first codebook is determined based on a second codebook associated with a uniform antenna array and an antenna position index, the second codebook being determined according to a number of virtual antenna elements, the number of virtual antenna elements and the antenna position index being determined based on the sparse pattern. The method further comprises: ​ ​ 5. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein, ​ ​ ​ ​ 6. The method of claim 5, wherein, ​ ​ 7. The method of claim 5 or 6, wherein, ​ ​ ​ 9. The method of claim 8, wherein, ​ ​ ​ 10. The method of claim 9, wherein, ​ ​ ​ 11. The method according to any one of claims 8 to 10, wherein, ​ 12. The method of claim 11, wherein, The second codebook is obtained according to the virtual antenna element quantity, and is composed of the first N rows in a third codebook, the third codebook being associated with an antenna port quantity of a first quantity, the first quantity being N is the virtual antenna element quantity.

13. The method of claim 11 or 12, wherein, ​ The second information is transmitted to the terminal, and the second information is used to indicate a number of antenna ports of the antenna array, the number of antenna ports of the antenna array is M, each column of the first codebook includes M rows of elements, and the M rows of elements are determined from the second codebook according to the antenna position index.

14. The method according to any one of claims 8 to 13, wherein, The method further includes: The downlink reference signal is transmitted to the terminal, the downlink reference signal is used for the terminal to perform measurement, and a measurement result of the measurement The first precoding matrix is determined by the terminal, and the first precoding matrix is used for uplink transmission.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein, The number of antenna ports of the downlink reference signal is determined according to the number of antenna ports of the antenna array.

16. A communication apparatus comprising: The first transceiver module is configured to receive first information transmitted by a network device, wherein the first information is used to indicate a sparse pattern of an antenna array; The first processing module is configured to determine a first codebook of the antenna array according to the sparse pattern.

17. A communication apparatus comprising: The second transceiver module is configured to transmit first information to a terminal, wherein the first information is used to indicate a sparse pattern of an antenna array, and the sparse pattern is used for the terminal to determine a first codebook of the antenna array.

18. A terminal comprising: At least one processor; A memory storing instructions; When the instructions are executed by the terminal, the terminal implements the communication method in any one of claims 1 to 7.

19. A network device comprising: At least one processor; A memory storing instructions; When the instructions are executed by the network device, the network device implements the communication method in any one of claims 8 to 15.

20. A communication system comprising: The terminal is configured to implement the communication method in any one of claims 1 to 7; The network device is configured to implement the communication method in any one of claims 8 to 15.

21. A storage medium storing instructions, wherein, When the instructions run on the communication device, the communication device performs the communication method in any one of claims 1 to 15.

22. A computer program product comprising a computer program that, when running on a communication device, causes the communication device to perform the communication method in any one of claims 1 to 15.

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