Coordination of channel estimation and decoding

Abstract

Embodiments of this disclosure relate to the coordination of channel estimation and decoding, providing apparatus, methods, devices, and computer-readable storage media for coordinating channel estimation and decoding. In one method, a first device receives from a second device a first configuration of a complexity category for the first device, the first configuration indicating the number of parallel channel estimation processes to be performed to estimate the channel between the first and second devices. The first device receives from the second device one or more second configurations, the one or more second configurations indicating one or more parameters for performing the number of parallel channel estimation processes. The first device performs the number of parallel channel estimation processes with the second device based on a complexity category using the one or more parameters.

Description

Cross-references to related applications

[0001] This application claims priority and benefit to U.S. Provisional Application No. 63 / 779426, filed March 28, 2025, the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference in their entirety. Technical Field

[0002] Various exemplary embodiments of this disclosure generally relate to the telecommunications field, and more specifically to apparatus, methods, devices, and computer-readable storage media for coordination of channel estimation and decoding. Background Technology

[0003] Channel estimation can be used to assess channel characteristics, including fading, delay, and multipath effects, thereby improving communication efficiency. During channel estimation, the receiver can estimate the characteristics of the communication channel to recover the transmitted data. During channel decoding, the receiver can decode the transmitted data back to its original form. Joint channel estimation and decoding (JCED) is a signal processing technique in modern communication systems used to enhance the accuracy and reliability of data transmission. JCED can integrate channel estimation and data decoding to improve overall system performance. Summary of the Invention

[0004] In a first aspect of this disclosure, a first apparatus is provided. The first apparatus includes: at least one processor; and at least one memory storing instructions that, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the first apparatus to at least: receive from a second apparatus a first configuration of the complexity category of the first apparatus, the first configuration indicating the number of parallel channel estimation processes to be performed to estimate the channel between the first apparatus and the second apparatus; receive from the second apparatus one or more second configurations, the one or more second configurations indicating one or more parameters for performing the number of parallel channel estimation processes; and perform the number of parallel channel estimation processes with the second apparatus based on the complexity category using the one or more parameters.

[0005] In a second aspect of this disclosure, a second apparatus is provided. The second apparatus includes: at least one processor; and at least one memory storing instructions that, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the second apparatus to at least: transmit to a first apparatus a first configuration of the complexity category of the first apparatus, the first configuration indicating the number of parallel channel estimation processes to be performed to estimate the channel between the first apparatus and the second apparatus; transmit to the first apparatus one or more second configurations, the one or more second configurations indicating one or more parameters for performing the number of parallel channel estimation processes; and perform the number of parallel channel estimation processes with the first apparatus based on the complexity category using the one or more parameters.

[0006] In a third aspect of this disclosure, a method is provided at a first device. The method includes: receiving from a second device a first configuration of a complexity category of the first device, the first configuration indicating the number of parallel channel estimation processes to be performed to estimate a channel between the first device and the second device; receiving from the second device one or more second configurations, the one or more second configurations indicating one or more parameters for performing the number of parallel channel estimation processes; and performing the number of parallel channel estimation processes with the second device based on the complexity category using the one or more parameters.

[0007] In a fourth aspect of this disclosure, a method is provided at a second device. The method includes: transmitting to a first device a first configuration of a complexity category of the first device, the first configuration indicating the number of parallel channel estimation processes to be performed to estimate a channel between the first device and the second device; transmitting to the first device one or more second configurations, the one or more second configurations indicating one or more parameters for performing the number of parallel channel estimation processes; and performing the number of parallel channel estimation processes with the first device based on the complexity category using the one or more parameters.

[0008] In a fifth aspect of this disclosure, a first apparatus is provided. The first apparatus includes: components for receiving from a second apparatus a first configuration of a complexity category of the first apparatus, the first configuration indicating the number of parallel channel estimation processes to be performed to estimate a channel between the first apparatus and the second apparatus; components for receiving from the second apparatus one or more second configurations, the one or more second configurations indicating one or more parameters for performing the number of parallel channel estimation processes; and components for using the one or more parameters to perform the number of parallel channel estimation processes with the second apparatus based on the complexity category.

[0009] In a sixth aspect of this disclosure, a second apparatus is provided. The second apparatus includes: components for transmitting to a first apparatus a first configuration of a complexity category of the first apparatus, the first configuration indicating the number of parallel channel estimation processes to be performed to estimate a channel between the first apparatus and the second apparatus; components for transmitting to the first apparatus one or more second configurations, the one or more second configurations indicating one or more parameters for performing the number of parallel channel estimation processes; and components for performing the number of parallel channel estimation processes with the first apparatus based on the complexity category using the one or more parameters.

[0010] In a seventh aspect of this disclosure, a computer-readable medium is provided. The computer-readable medium includes instructions stored thereon for causing a device to perform at least the methods according to the third and fourth aspects.

[0011] It should be understood that the summary portion is not intended to identify key or essential features of the embodiments of this disclosure, nor is it intended to limit the scope of this disclosure. Other features of this disclosure will become readily apparent from the following description. Attached Figure Description

[0012] Some exemplary embodiments will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Figure 1 An example communication environment in which example embodiments of this disclosure may be implemented is shown; Figure 2 A schematic diagram of the frame structure of a transmitted frame is shown; Figure 3 Signaling flows illustrating an example process for coordinating channel estimation and decoding according to some example embodiments of this disclosure; Figure 4 Signaling flows illustrating an example process for coordinating channel estimation and decoding according to some example embodiments of this disclosure; Figure 5 Signaling flows illustrating an example process for coordinating channel estimation and decoding according to some example embodiments of this disclosure; Figure 6 An example flowchart illustrating the coordination process of channel estimation and decoding is shown; Figure 7 A flowchart is shown showing an example method implemented at a first device according to some example embodiments of the present disclosure; Figure 8 A flowchart is shown illustrating an example method implemented at a second device according to some example embodiments of the present disclosure; Figure 9 A flowchart is shown showing an example method implemented at a first device according to some example embodiments of the present disclosure; Figure 10 A flowchart is shown illustrating an example method implemented at a second device according to some example embodiments of the present disclosure; Figure 11 A flowchart is shown showing an example method implemented at a first device according to some example embodiments of the present disclosure; Figure 12 A flowchart is shown illustrating an example method implemented at a second device according to some example embodiments of the present disclosure; Figure 13 A simplified block diagram of a device suitable for implementing example embodiments of the present disclosure is shown; and Figure 14 A block diagram of an example computer-readable medium according to some example embodiments of the present disclosure is shown.

[0013] In all the accompanying drawings, the same or similar reference numerals denote the same or similar elements. Detailed Implementation

[0014] The principles of this disclosure will now be described with reference to some exemplary embodiments. It should be understood that these embodiments are described for illustrative purposes only and to help those skilled in the art to understand and implement this disclosure, without implying any limitation on the scope of this disclosure. The embodiments described herein can be implemented in various ways other than those described below.

[0015] In the following description and claims, unless otherwise defined, all technical and scientific terms used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which this disclosure pertains.

[0016] References to "an embodiment," "an embodiment," "an example embodiment," etc., in this disclosure indicate that the described embodiment may include a particular feature, structure, or characteristic, but not every embodiment includes that particular feature, structure, or characteristic. Furthermore, these phrases do not necessarily refer to the same embodiment. In addition, when a particular feature, structure, or characteristic is described in connection with an embodiment, it is to be noted that those skilled in the art will recognize, whether explicitly described or not, that such features, structures, or characteristics apply in conjunction with other embodiments.

[0017] It should be understood that although terms such as "first," "second," etc., may be used before names (or similar designations) to describe various elements herein, these elements should not be limited by these terms. These terms are used only to distinguish one element from another, and they do not restrict the order of the nouns (or similar designations). For example, without departing from the scope of the exemplary embodiments, a first element may be referred to as a second element, and similarly, a second element may be referred to as a first element. As used herein, the term "and / or" includes any and all combinations of one or more of the listed terms.

[0018] As used herein, “at least one of the following: ” and “at least one of ” and similar expressions, wherein the list of two or more elements is connected by “and” or “or”, means at least any one of these elements, or at least any two or more of these elements, or at least all of these elements.

[0019] As used herein, unless explicitly stated otherwise, the action of “responding to A” or “responding to A” does not indicate that the action is performed immediately after “A” occurs and may include one or more intervention steps.

[0020] The terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments only and is not intended to limit the exemplary embodiments. As used herein, the singular forms “a,” “an,” and “the” are also intended to include the plural forms unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. It should also be understood that the terms “comprising,” “including,” “having,” “possessing,” “containing,” and / or “covering,” as used herein, specify the presence of the stated features, elements, and / or components, but do not exclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, elements, components, and / or combinations thereof.

[0021] As used in this application, the term "circuit" may refer to one or more of the following: (a) Hardware circuit implementation only (e.g., implemented with purely analog and / or digital circuits) and (b) A combination of hardware circuitry and software, such as (if applicable): (i) A combination of (multiple) analog and / or digital hardware circuits and software / firmware, and (ii) Any part of a hardware processor having software (including (multiple) digital signal processors, software, and (multiple) memories, which work together to enable a device (such as a mobile phone or server) to perform various functions) and (c) The operation requires software (e.g., firmware) for the operation of (multiple) hardware circuits and / or (multiple) processors, such as (multiple) microprocessors or parts thereof, but the software may be absent when the operation does not require the software.

[0022] This definition of "circuit" applies to all uses of the term in this application. As a further example, as used in this application, the term "circuit" also covers only hardware circuitry or processors (or processors), or portions of hardware circuitry or servers and their accompanying software and / or firmware implementations. For example, where applicable to certain claim elements, the term "circuit" also covers baseband integrated circuits or processor integrated circuits for mobile devices or similar integrated circuits in servers, cellular network devices, or other computing or networking devices.

[0023] As used herein, the term "communication network" refers to a network that conforms to any suitable communication standard, such as New Radio (NR), Long Term Evolution (LTE), LTE-A Advanced (LTE-A), Wideband Code Division Multiple Access (WCDMA), High-Speed ​​Packet Access (HSPA), Narrowband Internet of Things (NB-IoT), etc. Furthermore, communication between user equipment and network equipment in a communication network can be performed according to any suitable generation of communication protocol, including but not limited to first-generation (1G), second-generation (2G), 2.5G, 2.75G, third-generation (3G), fourth-generation (4G), 4.5G, fifth-generation (5G), 5G Advanced, sixth-generation (6G) communication protocols, wireless local network communication protocols such as IEEE 802.11, and / or any other currently known or future-developed protocols. Furthermore, communication can utilize any suitable wireless communication technology, including but not limited to: Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA), Frequency Division Multiple Access (FDMA), Time Division Multiple Access (TDMA), Frequency Division Duplex (FDD), Time Division Duplex (TDD), Multiple Input Multiple Output (MIMO), Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiple Access (OFDM), Discrete Fourier Transform Extended OFDM (DFT-s-OFDM), and / or any other currently known or future-developed technology. Embodiments of this disclosure can be applied to a variety of communication systems. Given the rapid development of communication, future types of communication technologies and systems capable of implementing this disclosure will inevitably emerge. The scope of this disclosure should not be considered limited to the systems described above.

[0024] As used herein, the term "network device" refers to a node in a communications network through which a user equipment (UE) accesses the network and receives services. Depending on the terminology and technology applied, a network device can refer to a base station (BS) or access point (AP), such as a Node B (NodeB or NB), an evolved Node B (eNodeB or eNB), an NR NB (also known as a gNB), a Remote Radio Unit (RRU), a Radio Head (RH), a Remote Radio Head (RRH), a relay, an Integrated Access and Backhaul (IAB) node, a low-power node (such as femtoseconds, picoseconds, non-terrestrial network (NTN) or non-terrestrial network equipment (such as satellite network equipment), low Earth orbit (LEO) satellites and geostationary Earth orbit (GEO) satellites, spacecraft network equipment, etc.). In some example embodiments, the Radio Access Network (RAN) decoupling architecture includes a centralized unit (CU) and a distributed unit (DU) at the IAB donor node. The IAB node includes a mobile terminal (IAB-MT) portion that behaves similarly to a UE toward its parent node, and the DU portion of the IAB node behaves similarly to a base station toward the next-hop IAB node.

[0025] The term "user equipment" refers to any terminal device capable of wireless communication. By way of example and not limitation, user equipment may also be referred to as user equipment (UE), subscriber station (SS), portable subscriber station, mobile station (MS), or access terminal (AT). User equipment can include, but is not limited to, mobile phones, cellular phones, smartphones, Voice over IP (VoIP) phones, wireless local loop phones, tablets, wearable user devices, personal digital assistants (PDAs), portable computers, desktop computers, image capture user devices (such as digital cameras), gaming user devices, music storage and playback devices, vehicular wireless user devices, wireless endpoints, mobile stations, laptop embedded devices (LEEs), laptop devices (LMEs), Universal Serial Bus (USB) dongles, smart devices, wireless customer premises equipment (CPEs), Internet of Things (IoT) devices, watches or other wearable devices, head-mounted displays (HMDs), vehicles, drones, medical devices and applications (e.g., remote surgery), industrial devices and applications (e.g., robots and / or other wireless devices operating in the context of industrial and / or automated processing chains), consumer electronics devices, devices operating on commercial and / or industrial wireless networks, etc. User equipment may also correspond to the mobile terminal (MT) portion of an IAB node (e.g., a relay node). In the following description, the terms "user equipment," "terminal equipment," "terminal," "user equipment," and "UE" are used interchangeably.

[0026] As used herein, the terms “resource,” “transmission resource,” “resource block,” “physical resource block” (PRB), “uplink resource,” or “downlink resource” can refer to any resource used to perform communication, such as communication between a user equipment and a network device, including resources in the time domain, frequency domain, spatial domain, code domain, or any other combination of time, frequency, spatial, and / or code domain resources used to enable communication. In the following, unless explicitly stated otherwise, resources in the frequency and time domains will be used as examples of transmission resources used to describe some exemplary embodiments of this disclosure. Note that the exemplary embodiments of this disclosure are equally applicable to other resources in other domains.

[0027] Figure 1 An example communication environment 100 in which exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure can be implemented is shown. For example... Figure 1 As shown, the communication environment 100 may include multiple communication devices, including a first device 110 and a second device 120. The first device 110 may operate as a terminal device (e.g., UE), and the second device 120 may operate as a network device (e.g., BS or gNB).

[0028] The service area provided by the second device 120 is referred to as cell 102. The first device 110 can communicate with the second device 120 within cell 102. Cell 102, which currently serves the first device 110, can be considered the serving cell.

[0029] It should be understood that Figure 1 The number or type of devices or equipment and their connections shown are given for illustrative purposes and do not imply any limitation. Communication environment 100 may include any suitable number or type of devices or equipment configured to implement the exemplary embodiments of this disclosure. Although not shown, it should be understood that one or more additional terminal devices may be located in cell 102, and / or one or more additional cells may be provided by second device 120.

[0030] In some example embodiments, if the first device 110 is a terminal device or is included in a terminal device, and the second device 120 is a network device or is included in a network device, then the link from the second device 120 to the first device 110 is referred to as a downlink (DL), and the link from the first device 110 to the second device 120 is referred to as an uplink (UL). In the DL, the second device 120 is a transmission (TX) device (or transmitter), and the first device 110 is a reception (RX) device (or receiver). In the UL, the first device 110 is a TX device, and the second device 120 is an RX device.

[0031] Both the first device 110 and the second device 120 can be equipped with multiple antennas to enhance network capacity and communication efficiency using multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) technology. In a MIMO system, considering the MIMO block fading channel, its elements are complex numbers. Channel coefficient matrix Indicates the number of transmission antennas. (Indicates the number of receiving antennas) It remains constant within each time instance. Generally, it depends on the coherence time and coherence frequency of the underlying wireless channel. Channel coefficient matrix It remains constant during the transmission of the encoded message. In the... The channel output at each time point is given as follows: (1) In equation (1), Indicates the transmitted signal, wherein the signal is composed of The number of time instances occupied (representing the length in the time domain) )yes , Indicates the received signal, wherein the signal is received by The number of time instances occupied (representing the length in the time domain) )yes , This represents the implementation of the channel coefficient matrix, and The variance is expressed as The additive white Gaussian noise (AWGN) term, where express Identity matrix.

[0032] If the instantaneous channel state information (CSI) is not known at either the transmitter or the receiver, a method for handling the lack of instantaneous CSI at the receiver is solved by including pilots (which can be orthogonal symbol sequences known to both the transmitter and the receiver) in the transmission frame. Figure 2 The example packet structure for Pilot-Assisted Transmission (PAT) is provided, illustrating a schematic diagram of the frame structure 200 of a transmitted frame. For example... Figure 2 As shown, each square 205 corresponds to a symbol and the frame structure 200 can be represented as ,in Indicates the pilot signal (which corresponds to block 210) and This represents the encoded data symbol (which corresponds to block 220). In the preceding... Pilot signals are transmitted during each time instance. In the remaining... During the time instance, encoded data symbols are transmitted. Equation (1) can be rewritten as follows:

[0033] in , This indicates the received signal associated with the pilot signal. This represents the received signal associated with the coded data symbol. , and This indicates the AWGN item.

[0034] It should be noted that pilots can be transmitted at different time instances to optimize channel estimation accuracy. Before channel decoding begins, the receiver uses the pilots to estimate the CSI. The CSI can then be considered perfect and used to initiate an efficient decoder using mismatched bit-by-bit soft information such as the log-likelihood ratio (LLR). This is known as PAT with mismatched decoding (PAT-MD), and such processes are widely used in LTE and 5G NR, as well as other wireless technologies.

[0035] The performance of PAT can be improved through more complex signal processing at the receiver. For example, the receiver can use iterative channel estimation and decoding. These methods are also known as code-aided (e.g., turbo) synchronization or parameter estimation, where the initial channel estimate is treated as noisy and is corrected via iteration between channel estimation and channel decoding using underlying channel codes. Such methods are also known as decision-oriented methods, where the initial channel estimate is used only for initial (hard or soft) decisions about the message. Based on hard decisions, the binary value (0 or 1) of the message can be provided directly. Based on soft decisions, continuous values ​​(such as the log-likelihood ratio, LLR) indicating how likely the bits in the message are to be 0 or 1 can be provided.

[0036] Then, the initial decision is used to compute a new channel estimate, which leads to another decision on the message. It can be observed that this iterative approach has several problems. First, the latency is caused by the maximum processing delay, which is linear over the maximum allowed number of iterations between channel estimation and decoding. Second, the initial channel estimate is used in a hard-decision orientation algorithm where the channel coding does not have an efficient decoder to provide symbol-by-symbol soft messages. In this case, performance may be dominated by the quality of the initial channel estimate, which requires relatively large overhead.

[0037] The performance of PAT can be improved via JCED methods, which take into account the lack of CSI at the start of channel decoding. Such methods require significant changes to the decoding algorithm by embedding the uncertainty of CSI during the decoding process. Some of these methods rely on an efficient representation of the code via a trellis, which combines the channel and code trellises using Viterbi or BCJR-like algorithms. Such algorithms may not offer favorable complexity if the underlying code does not have an efficient trellis, such as low-density parity-check (LDPC) or polar codes in 5G. Another JCED method proposes considering imperfect CSI during consecutive elimination (SC) or consecutive elimination list (SCL) decoding of polar codes. However, this can lead to additional costs in computing decoding metrics over the channel state range. Besides the change in the decoding algorithm, this computation also requires linear complexity in the search space of CSI.

[0038] Another approach to improve PAT performance is to use initial channel estimation to obtain a candidate list of transmitted messages with high probabilities, and to make the final decision by treating the pilot as part of the codebook. In other words, the pilot provides a good initial estimate of the transmitted message within a subset of the codebook obtained via any list decoding algorithm. Furthermore, the pilot can be included in the calculation of the final decision metric. However, when the transmitted message is short (e.g., with fewer bits or symbols), which is essentially the case for applications envisioned by Ultra-Reliable Low-Latency Communication (URLLC), there is a non-negligible loss in the rate of the underlying channel code due to the inclusion of the pilot for CSI estimation, which degrades performance.

[0039] The JCED method has been shown to improve link throughput by reducing pilot overhead used for channel estimation. However, this improvement comes at a high complexity cost, as considering the underlying channel coding is a computationally expensive task, especially in the case of MIMO channels, where there is significant overhead before channel decoding begins. Several parameters need to be estimated. Compared to simple PAT-MD, the iterative method suffers from unavoidably higher latency and requires a bit-by-bit soft decision decoder to approach optimal performance. Furthermore, the iterative method may require large pilot overhead for sufficiently good initial estimates that dominate performance, especially at low to medium signal-to-noise ratios (SNR).

[0040] According to some example embodiments, a solution for coordinating channel estimation and decoding is proposed. In some example embodiments, a first device 110 receives a first configuration of its complexity category from a second device 120, the first configuration indicating the number of parallel channel estimation processes to be performed to estimate the channel between the first device 110 and the second device 120. Then, the number of parallel channel estimation processes is performed based on the complexity category.

[0041] This solution provides configuration signaling for the parallel channel estimation process. Based on the configuration signaling, a certain number of channel estimation processes can be executed in parallel according to the configured complexity category. In this way, the latency of channel estimation and decoding can be reduced, thereby improving communication reliability and efficiency.

[0042] Figure 3 The signaling flow of an example process 300 for coordinating channel estimation and decoding according to some example embodiments of this disclosure is shown. Process 300 involves referencing... Figure 1 The first device 110 and the second device 120 are described.

[0043] like Figure 3As shown, the second device 120 transmits (305) a first configuration of the complexity category of the first device 110 to the first device 110. The first configuration indicates the number of parallel channel estimation processes to be performed to estimate the channel between the first device 110 and the second device 120. Accordingly, the first device 110 receives (310) the first configuration.

[0044] In some example embodiments, the parallel channel estimation process can be performed on a candidate channel list between the first device 110 and the second device 120. For example, the channel estimation process in the parallel channel estimation process can be performed on candidate channels in the candidate channel list between the first device 110 and the second device 120. In some examples, the candidate channel list can be obtained based on an initial channel estimate (e.g., by sampling from the estimated channel distribution function). Parallel channel estimation processes for different candidate channels can reduce the processing latency of multiple channel estimation processes.

[0045] In some example embodiments, the channel estimation process in the number of parallel channel estimation processes may include a JCED process. Parallel JCED processing can reduce processing latency while improving channel estimation efficiency.

[0046] In some example embodiments, the channel may be a channel from the second device 120 (as a transmitter) to the first device 110 (as a receiver), or a channel from the first device 110 (as a transmitter) to the second device 120 (as a receiver). In some examples, where the transmitter and receiver are equipped with multiple antennas, for example, to enhance data transmission and reception, the channel may include a MIMO channel. Multiple streams can be transmitted simultaneously via a MIMO channel, thereby increasing data throughput.

[0047] In some example embodiments, the complexity category may be a category related to the processing complexity (such as computational complexity) of the first device 110. In some examples, the complexity category may indicate the number of parallel processors, processing components, or processing units of the first device 110, for example, to provide parallel signal detection, channel estimation, and decoding. In one example, the complexity category may indicate the number of parallel channel estimation processes that the first device 110 needs to perform.

[0048] In some example embodiments, the complexity category may be determined by the second device 110 based on the parallel processing capability of the first device 110. The parallel processing capability of the first device 110 may be related to the number of parallel channel estimation processes allowed by the first device. In some example embodiments, the first device 110 may transmit information about its parallel processing capability to the second device 110, indicating the number of parallel channel estimation processes allowed by the first device.

[0049] For example, if the first device 110 has 5 parallel processors, then the first device 110 is capable of executing up to 5 parallel channel estimation processes. In this case, the first device 110 can report the maximum number of parallel channel estimation processes it can support (e.g., 5) to the second device 120 to indicate its parallel processing capability. In some example embodiments, the parallel processing capability of the first device 110 can be expressed as log2( The report was sent to the second device 120, in which This is the number of parallel processors in the first device 110 (for example, it can be a power of 2). In this way, the resources or overhead used to report the parallel processing capabilities of the first device 110 can be reduced.

[0050] After the second device 120 receives information about the parallel processing capability of the first device 110, the second device 120 can assign a complexity category to the first device 110 by taking that information into account. For example, the number of parallel channel estimation processes configured via the first configuration of the complexity category can be equal to or less than the number of parallel channel estimation processes within the parallel processing capability of the first device 110, such that the configured complexity category does not exceed the parallel processing capability of the first device 110.

[0051] In some example embodiments, the configured complexity category may depend on the latency budget used to estimate the channel (e.g., the latency budget used for the JCED process). In some examples, a portion of the end-to-end latency budget may be allocated to the JCED process. The number of parallel processing components to be used for the JCED process can be determined based on the portion of the end-to-end latency budget allocated to the JCED process. For example, the complexity category may be determined based on a tolerable latency budget for the JCED. If the latency budget is higher, the second device 120 may be configured with more parallel processing components. In the example, low-latency applications may be more sensitive to latency. Therefore, for low-latency applications, the complexity category of the first device 110 may be configured with consideration of the latency budget used to estimate the channel.

[0052] The second device 120 may use any suitable method to notify the first device 110 of the first configuration of the complexity category. In some example embodiments, a mapping table between the values ​​of the complexity category and the number of parallel channel estimation processes may exist. This table may be configured, predefined, or specified in a standard. For example, given the number of parallel channel estimation processes, the corresponding value of the complexity category can be looked up in the table as the first configuration of the complexity category for the first device 110. In one example, the value of the complexity category may be represented by a positive integer, such as the number of parallel channel estimation processes.

[0053] In some example embodiments, the first configuration of the complexity category can be carried in a Radio Resource Control (RRC) message. In one example, the second device 120 can configure the complexity category to the first device 110 via RRC signaling. Semi-static configuration via RRC messages can reduce signaling overhead and latency. Other signaling methods are also possible.

[0054] After the complexity category is configured from the second device 120 to the first device 110, the first device 110 and the second device 120 perform (315, 320) the same number of parallel channel estimation processes based on the complexity category. For example, the number of parallel channel estimation processes can be performed at the receiver (first device 110 or second device 120).

[0055] In some example embodiments, to further improve the performance of channel estimation, reference signaling can be configured to determine at least one characteristic of the channel. The reference signal can be from the first device 110 to the second device 120 or from the second device 120 to the first device 110, and can include any suitable reference signal that can be used for channel measurement and estimation. For example, the reference signal can include a synchronization signal block (SSB), a channel state information reference signal (CSI-RS), etc.

[0056] In some example embodiments, in order to configure reference signaling, the second device 120 may send to the first device 110 a configuration (referred to herein as a third configuration) for the transmission of a reference signal to determine at least one characteristic of the channel. Correspondingly, the first device 110 may receive the third configuration from the second device 120. For example, the transmission of the reference signal may be configured as periodic transmission of a reference signal having a bandwidth span supported by the first device 110.

[0057] During the configured transmission of reference signaling from the transmitter to the receiver, reference signal measurement can be performed at the receiver side, wherein one of the first device 110 and the second device 120 can act as a transmitter, and the other of the first device 110 and the second device 120 can act as a receiver. Based on the reference signal measurement, the characteristics of the channel can be determined.

[0058] In some example embodiments, at least one characteristic of the channel may include the size of the coherent resource block (also known as the coherent block size). Channel characteristics can be considered constant within a coherent resource block (also known as a coherent block) that may occupy some time and / or frequency resources. By considering the coherent block in channel estimation, the accuracy and performance of channel estimation can be improved.

[0059] Alternatively or additionally, at least one characteristic of the channel may include the channel rank. The channel rank can reflect the specific characteristics of the channel and is related to the number of transmit antennas and receive antennas. The channel rank can indicate the number of spatially independent channels between the transmitter and receiver. This specific characteristic of the channel can be taken into account in subsequent parallel processing used for channel estimation.

[0060] In the example, when transmitting reference signaling (in UL or DL), the receiver (first device 110 or second device 120) can perform channel rank estimation and / or check the maximum coherence block common to the channel (e.g., MIMO channel). When the receiver performs a parallel channel estimation process (e.g., JCED parallel processing), the receiver can take into account the characteristics of the channel.

[0061] In some example embodiments, the network can be configured with one or more parameters for performing, for example, a parallel channel estimation process at the receiver. The number of parallel channel estimation processes is then performed based on the one or more configured parameters to improve the performance and efficiency of the parallel channel estimation process. Reference will be made below. Figure 4 Some example implementations of this are described.

[0062] Figure 4 The signaling flow of an example process 400 for coordinated channel estimation and decoding according to some example embodiments of this disclosure is shown. Process 400 involves referencing... Figure 1 The first device 110 and the second device 120 are described.

[0063] like Figure 4 As shown, the second device transmits (405) one or more second configurations to the first device 110, the one or more second configurations indicating one or more parameters for performing a number of parallel channel estimation processes to estimate one or more parameters of the channel between the first device 110 and the second device 120. Accordingly, the first device 110 receives (410) one or more second configurations.

[0064] In some example embodiments, one or more configured parameters may include the length of the channel's coherent resource block (also known as the coherent block length). The length of the coherent resource block can be a length in the time domain or the frequency domain. In one example, the length of the coherent resource block may be determined by... This indicates the number of time instances of the channel. As mentioned above, channel characteristics can be considered constant within a coherent resource block. Therefore, configuration parameters related to the length of the coherent resource block can indicate the coherence characteristics of the channel, thereby optimizing channel estimation.

[0065] Alternatively or additionally, the parameter may include the length of the pilot (also known as the pilot length). The pilot length can be in the time domain or the frequency domain. In one example, the pilot length may be determined by... This indicates the number of time instances of (orthogonal) pilot allocations or the number of pilots. In some examples, the length of the coherent resource block can be greater than the length of the pilot (e.g., This ensures that after allocating pilot resources, there are still resources remaining for data transmission. Therefore, channel estimation can be performed simultaneously with data transmission. On the receiver side, data can be decoded based on the results of channel estimation, thereby increasing the data decoding success rate and improving data transmission efficiency.

[0066] In alternative or additional locations, the pilot length may be greater than or equal to the number of transmission antennas (e.g., In this way, each transmit antenna can transmit at least one pilot signal for the receiver to estimate the channel, thereby improving channel estimation performance. In some examples, for a channel rank equal to... (Indicates the number of transmission antennas) and For a full-rank MIMO channel with the minimum value among (representing the number of receiving antennas), the pilot length can be determined by the number of transmitting antennas (e.g., This ensures the performance of channel estimation (e.g., JCED).

[0067] In some example embodiments, the pilot length may be related to the number of parallel channel estimation processes to be performed. In one example, the pilot length (or the number of pilots) can be selected from a lookup table, and an optimal or best pilot length (e.g., for optimal JCED performance) can be derived given the complexity category of the first device 110 (which may indicate the number of parallel channel estimation processes). For example, given the complexity category, optimal length can be optimized via simulation. To achieve optimal JCED performance.

[0068] Similar to the length of a pilot, the transmission power of a pilot can be related to the number of parallel channel estimation processes to be performed. For example, the power allocated to pilot transmission can be increased or decreased based on a lookup table corresponding to a given complexity category for the number of parallel processing units in the first device 110. In one example, the power can be increased or decreased for a pilot of a given length (e.g., a given...). The power allocation is performed by [a device]. Alternatively, the transmit power of the pilot can be jointly determined. Given the complexity class supported by the first device 110, power allocation can be arranged for either the first device 110 or the second device 120 (depending on which of the first device 110 and the second device 120 acts as the receiver).

[0069] In some example embodiments, one or more parameters may also include the code block length (also known as the code block length), coding rate, and / or modulation order. These parameters can be applied to one or both of the pilot and data transmission to improve channel estimation accuracy and performance, as well as data transmission efficiency.

[0070] In some example embodiments, one or more second configurations indicating one or more parameters may be based on at least one measurement of a reference signal. For example, in some example embodiments, the second device 120 may transmit a third configuration of a reference signal to the first device 110 for determining at least one characteristic of the channel, as described above. The reference signal may be from the first device 110 to the second device 120 or from the second device 120 to the first device 110. In this case, the second device 120 may perform measurements on the reference signal transmitted by the first device 110 and / or receive reports or feedback from the first device 110 of the measurement results of the reference signal transmitted by the second device 120. Based on the measurement results(s), the second device 120 may configure one or more parameters for a parallel channel estimation process. In one example, parameters such as the coherence block length may be configured based on the measurement of the reference signal and / or feedback of the measurement results of the reference signal. Pilot length Code block length, coding rate, and modulation order (e.g., The parameters of ).

[0071] One or more parameters used to perform the parallel channel estimation process can be configured in a semi-static or dynamic manner. In some example embodiments, one or more second configurations may include at least one semi-static (or semi-persistent) configuration indicating at least one first parameter among one or more parameters. For example, some parameters used for parallel channel estimation may not need to be changed or frequently or dynamically configured; these parameters may include, for example, the length of a coherent resource block and / or the length of a pilot. These parameters can be configured via one or more semi-static (or semi-persistent) configurations. In some example embodiments, at least one semi-static configuration may be carried in an RRC message.

[0072] One or more second configurations may also include at least one dynamic configuration indicating at least one of the one or more parameters. In this way, at least one second parameter that needs to be changed or configured more frequently or dynamically can be updated in real time, for example, based on current channel conditions, user requirements, and network status. In some example embodiments, at least one dynamic configuration can be carried in the downlink control information (DCI) message. In this way, a portion of the parameter (e.g., The configuration of parameters can be done semi-statically, for example, using RRC signaling, while the remaining parts can be set dynamically, for example, using DCI control signaling. Therefore, parameter configuration can be more flexible and efficient. In some example embodiments, parameters already configured via semi-static configuration can be changed or updated via another dynamic configuration when needed, providing greater flexibility.

[0073] After the second device 120 configures one or more parameters to the first device 110, such as Figure 4 As shown, the first device 110 and the second device 120 perform the number of parallel channel estimation processes (325, 330) with each other based on one or more parameters. The parallel channel estimation processes can be performed against a candidate channel list between the first device 110 and the second device 120. For example, channel estimation processes within the parallel channel estimation process can be performed against candidate channels in the candidate channel list. In some example embodiments, the channel may include a MIMO channel. The channel estimation processes within the number of parallel channel estimation processes may include a JCED process or a (pilot-assisted) MIMO detection and JCED process.

[0074] It should be understood that, as mentioned above, Figure 3 The features and operations described in relation to the first device 110 and the second device 120 also apply to Figure 4 The process in step 400 has a similar effect. For the sake of simplicity, its details will not be repeated.

[0075] In some example embodiments, a first configuration of the complexity category of the first device 110 and one or more second configurations indicating one or more parameters for performing the number of parallel channel estimation processes can be used together to perform the number of parallel channel estimation processes to provide greater flexibility. Reference will be made below. Figure 5 Some example implementations of this are described.

[0076] Figure 5 The signaling flow of an example process 500 for coordinated channel estimation and decoding according to some example embodiments of this disclosure is shown. Process 500 involves referencing... Figure 1 The first device 110 and the second device 120 are described.

[0077] like Figure 5 As shown, the second device 120 transmits (305) a first configuration of the complexity category of the first device 110 to the first device 110. The first configuration indicates the number of parallel channel estimation processes to be performed to estimate the channel between the first device 110 and the second device 120. Accordingly, the first device 110 receives (310) the first configuration. In some example embodiments, the first configuration may be carried in an RRC message.

[0078] In some example embodiments, the channel may include a MIMO channel from the first device 110 to the second device 120 or from the second device 120 to the first device 110. In some example embodiments, the channel estimation process in the number of parallel channel estimation processes may include a JCED process or a (pilot-assisted) MIMO detection and JCED process.

[0079] In some example embodiments, the first device 110 may transmit information about its parallel processing capabilities to the second device 110. Correspondingly, the second device 120 may receive information about the parallel processing capabilities of the first device 110. The complexity category can then be determined by the second device 110 based on the parallel processing capabilities of the first device 110.

[0080] In some example embodiments, the complexity category may depend on the delay budget used to estimate the channel. For example, the complexity category may be determined based on the tolerable delay budget for a parallel channel estimation process (e.g., a parallel JCED process).

[0081] In some example embodiments, the second device 120 may transmit to the first device 110 a third configuration for transmitting a reference signal used herein to determine at least one characteristic of the channel. Correspondingly, the first device 110 may receive the third configuration from the second device 120. For example, periodic transmission of a reference signal having a user-supported bandwidth span may be configured to determine the characteristics of the MIMO channel.

[0082] In some example embodiments, at least one characteristic of the channel may include the size of the coherent resource block (or coherent block size) and / or the channel rank. Therefore, an appropriate coherent block size and (MIMO) channel rank can be considered at the receiver for (JCED) parallel processing.

[0083] In some example embodiments, the second device 120 transmits (515) one or more second configurations to the first device 110, the one or more second configurations indicating one or more parameters for performing the number of parallel channel estimation processes. Accordingly, the first device 110 receives (520) one or more second configurations. In some example embodiments, the one or more second configurations may be based on at least one measurement of a reference signal.

[0084] In some example embodiments, one or more parameters include at least one of the following: the length of the coherent resource block of the channel, the length of the pilot, the length of the code block, the coding rate, or the modulation order. In some example embodiments, the length of the pilot may be related to the number of parallel channel estimation processes to be performed. In some example embodiments, the transmission power of the pilot may be related to the number of parallel channel estimation processes to be performed. In one example, given the complexity category of the first device 110, the transmission power of the pilot may be determined for a given length of the pilot, or jointly with the length of the pilot may be determined.

[0085] In some example embodiments, one or more second configurations may include: at least one semi-static (or semi-persistent) configuration indicating at least one first parameter among one or more parameters, such as the length of a coherent resource block and the length of a pilot; and at least one dynamic configuration indicating at least one second parameter among one or more parameters. In this way, a portion of the parameters can be configured semi-statically, for example, using RRC signaling, while the remainder can be set dynamically, for example, using DCI signaling.

[0086] After configuring the complexity category and one or more parameters for parallel channel estimation, the first device 110 and the second device 120 perform (525, 520) parallel channel estimation processes with each other based on the complexity category using one or more parameters. In some example embodiments, the parallel channel estimation process can be performed against a list of candidate channels between the first device 110 and the second device 120. For example, a channel estimation process within a parallel channel estimation process can be performed against candidate channels in the candidate channel list.

[0087] It should be understood that, as mentioned above, Figures 3 to 4 The features and operations described in relation to the first device 110 and the second device 120 also apply to Figure 5 The process in step 500 has a similar effect. For the sake of simplicity, its details will not be repeated.

[0088] An example of parallel channel estimation will be described below. In this example, after the observed channel, the pilot symbols... and its corresponding observations It can be used to derive channel distribution. An example of deriving channel distribution is using least squares (LS) or maximum likelihood (ML) soft channel estimation, where it is expressed as... The channel distribution can be represented as a Gaussian distribution. ,in Represents the mean of the distribution. This is the LS estimation of the channel (as an example of hard estimation). The noise variance represents the distribution. Indicates the length of the pilot signal. Representing dimensions The identity matrix. Alternatively, the distribution of the channel can be constructed using minimum mean square error (MMSE) estimation.

[0089] After obtaining the soft estimate of the channel, a candidate channel estimate list can be obtained from the candidate channel list, which is represented as a list. ,in arrive This represents candidate channel estimation. In some examples, It can be set to the distribution used. The average value. Then, it can be obtained through the distribution. Random sampling of subsequent values , In some other examples, It can also be achieved through distribution Random sampling.

[0090] Then, MIMO detection can be performed. For each A MIMO detector can be used to obtain bitwise LLR. The parallel detectors can run in parallel. The detector can be any suitable detector, such as an MMSE detector, an MMSE parallel interference cancellation (MMSE-PIC) detector, or an ML detector.

[0091] As an example, the JCED procedure can be executed. In this example, for each The obtained LLR can be fed into the corresponding decoder. The decoder can be a list decoder or a hard decision decoder based on the following two different objective functions:

[0092] When using a list decoder, for each A list decoder can be used to obtain the contents of a list. The list of codewords in the [reference]. Then, for each [reference]... Evaluate the objective function (3), which requires a corresponding list. Modulation and interleaving versions of each codeword. List of maximized objectives (3). Members were selected for channel estimation. For example, represented as Then, select the minimum target. The code As a message estimate, among which It's typing Modulated and interwoven versions.

[0093] When using a hardware decoder, for each A hard decision decoder can be used to obtain the estimate. Then, return a pair that maximizes the objective function (4). and As a message estimate.

[0094] Simulation results show that the proposed solution achieves better performance. In the simulation, consider... , , and And Rayleigh fading channels. Short polar codes designed according to 5G reliability sequences were used in the simulation, where the block length was chosen to be 128 bits, and the coding rate was... It was set to 0.25 and quadrature phase shift keying (QPSK) signaling with Gray marking was used. With MMSE soft channel estimation generated using a random list, the receiver using the proposed solution showed a greater gain in frame error rate (FER) compared to the PAT-MD scheme under SC decoding.

[0095] Reference Figure 6 This section introduces an example process for coordinating channel estimation and decoding. Figure 6 An example flowchart of a sample procedure 600 for coordinating channel estimation and decoding is shown. In this example, JCED is performed for channel estimation of the MIMO channel.

[0096] like Figure 6 As shown, in block 602, pilot-assisted MIMO JCED transmission can be established between the first device 110 and the second device 120. In some examples, during establishment, the first device 110 can report its parallel processing capabilities to the second device 120 and be assigned a complexity category. At block 604, initial reference signaling can be performed to estimate coherent blocks and channel rank.

[0097] At box 606, semi-static JCED operation parameters can be configured, including, for example, the coherence block length. and pilot length At box 608, dynamic JCED operation parameters can be configured, including, for example, the code block length. The coding rate or modulation order. For example, some parameters can be configured semi-statically using RRC signaling, while others can be updated dynamically using DCI control signaling.

[0098] At box 610, packet transmission can be performed. JCED operations can be performed at the receiver. For example, JCED operations, including soft channel estimation, list channel estimation, MIMO detection, and JCED, can be performed at the receiver (first device 110 or second device 120).

[0099] At box 612, it can be determined whether the semi-static parameters need to be updated. If the semi-static parameters do not need to be updated, the dynamic parameters can be updated at box 614, and then the update of the dynamic parameters can be performed at box 608. Then, procedure 600 can return to box 608. If the semi-static parameters need to be updated, procedure 600 can return to box 606.

[0100] Figure 7 A flowchart of an example method 700 implemented at a first device according to some example embodiments of the present disclosure is shown. Reference will be made to this flowchart for discussion purposes. Figure 1 Method 700 is described from the perspective of the first device 110.

[0101] At block 710, the first device 110 receives a first configuration of the complexity category of the first device from the second device 120, the first configuration indicating the number of parallel channel estimation processes to be performed to estimate the channel between the first device and the second device 120.

[0102] In block 720, the first device 110 receives one or more second configurations from the second device 120, the one or more second configurations indicating one or more parameters for performing the number of parallel channel estimation processes.

[0103] At box 730, the first device 110 performs the number of parallel channel estimation processes with the second device 120 by using one or more parameters based on the complexity category.

[0104] In some example embodiments, the first device 110 may transmit information about the parallel processing capabilities of the first device to the second device 120, the information indicating the number of parallel channel estimation processes allowed by the first device 110.

[0105] In some example implementations, the complexity category may depend on the delay budget used to estimate the channel.

[0106] In some example embodiments, the first device 110 may receive a third configuration from the second device 120 for the transmission of a reference signal to be used to determine at least one characteristic of the channel.

[0107] In some example embodiments, at least one characteristic of the channel may include at least one of the size of the coherent resource block of the channel or the channel rank of the channel.

[0108] In some example embodiments, one or more second configurations may be based on at least one measurement of a reference signal.

[0109] In some example embodiments, this first configuration can be carried in a radio resource control message.

[0110] In some example embodiments, one or more second configurations may include: at least one semi-static configuration indicating at least one first parameter among one or more parameters, and at least one dynamic configuration indicating at least one second parameter among one or more parameters.

[0111] In some example embodiments, the at least one semi-static configuration may be carried in a radio resource control message, and the at least one dynamic configuration may be carried in a downlink control information message.

[0112] In some example embodiments, one or more parameters may include at least one of the following: the length of the coherent resource block of the channel, the length of the pilot, the length of the code block, the coding rate, or the modulation order.

[0113] In some example embodiments, the length of the pilot may be related to the number of parallel channel estimation processes to be performed.

[0114] In some example embodiments, the transmission power of the pilot may be related to the number of parallel channel estimation processes to be performed.

[0115] In some example embodiments, the channel estimation process in the parallel channel estimation process can be performed for candidate channels in the candidate channel list between the first device and the second device 120.

[0116] In some example embodiments, the channel estimation process in the number of parallel channel estimation processes may include a joint channel estimation and decoding process.

[0117] In some example embodiments, the channel may include a multiple-input multiple-output channel.

[0118] In some example embodiments, a first device capable of performing any method 700 (e.g., Figure 1 The first device 110 may include components for performing corresponding operations of method 700 and any embodiments thereof. These components may be implemented in any suitable form. For example, the components may be implemented in a circuit or software module. The first device may be implemented as or included in... Figure 1 In the first device 110.

[0119] Figure 8 A flowchart of an example method 800 implemented at a second device according to some example embodiments of the present disclosure is shown. Reference will be made to this flowchart for discussion purposes. Figure 1 Method 800 is described from the perspective of the second device 120.

[0120] In block 810, the second device 120 transmits a first configuration of the complexity category of the first device 110 to the first device 110, the first configuration indicating the number of parallel channel estimation processes to be performed to estimate the channel between the first device 110 and the second device 120.

[0121] In block 820, the second device 120 transmits one or more second configurations to the first device 110, the one or more second configurations indicating one or more parameters for performing the number of parallel channel estimation processes.

[0122] At box 830, the second device 120 performs the number of parallel channel estimation processes with the first device 110 by using one or more parameters based on the complexity category.

[0123] In some example embodiments, the channel may include a multiple-input multiple-output channel.

[0124] In some example embodiments, the second device 120 may receive information from the first device 110 regarding the parallel processing capabilities of the first device 110, which indicates the number of parallel channel estimation processes allowed by the first device 110.

[0125] In some example implementations, the complexity category may depend on the delay budget used to estimate the channel.

[0126] In some example embodiments, the second device 120 may transmit a third configuration to the first device 110, which transmits a reference signal with the first device to determine at least one characteristic of the channel.

[0127] In some example embodiments, at least one characteristic of the channel may include at least one of the size of the coherent resource block or the channel rank of the channel.

[0128] In some example embodiments, one or more second configurations may be based on at least one measurement of a reference signal.

[0129] In some example embodiments, this first configuration can be carried in a radio resource control message.

[0130] In some example embodiments, one or more second configurations may include: at least one semi-static configuration indicating at least one first parameter among one or more parameters, and at least one dynamic configuration indicating at least one second parameter among one or more parameters.

[0131] In some example embodiments, the at least one semi-static configuration may be carried in a radio resource control message, and the at least one dynamic configuration may be carried in a downlink control information message.

[0132] In some example embodiments, one or more parameters may include at least one of the following: the length of the coherent resource block of the channel, the length of the pilot, the length of the code block, the coding rate, or the modulation order.

[0133] In some example embodiments, the length of the pilot may be related to the number of parallel channel estimation processes to be performed.

[0134] In some example embodiments, the transmission power of the pilot may be related to the number of parallel channel estimation processes to be performed.

[0135] In some example embodiments, the channel estimation process in the parallel channel estimation process may be performed on candidate channels in a candidate channel list between the first device 110 and the second device 120.

[0136] In some example embodiments, the channel estimation process in the number of parallel channel estimation processes may include a joint channel estimation and decoding process.

[0137] In some example embodiments, the channel may include a multiple-input multiple-output channel.

[0138] In some example embodiments, a second device capable of performing any method 800 (e.g., Figure 1 The second device 120 may include components for performing corresponding operations of method 800 and any embodiments thereof. These components may be implemented in any suitable form. For example, the components may be implemented in a circuit or software module. The second device may be implemented as or included in... Figure 1 The second device 120 in the middle.

[0139] Figure 9 A flowchart of an example method 900 implemented at a first device according to some example embodiments of the present disclosure is shown. Reference will be made to this flowchart for discussion purposes. Figure 1 Method 900 is described from the perspective of the first device 110.

[0140] At block 910, the first device 110 receives a first configuration of the complexity category of the first device 110 from the second device 120. The first configuration indicates the number of parallel channel estimation processes to be performed to estimate the channel between the first device 110 and the second device 120.

[0141] At box 920, the first device 110 performs the number of parallel channel estimation processes based on the complexity category and the second device 120.

[0142] In some example embodiments, the first device 110 may transmit information about the parallel processing capabilities of the first device 110 to the second device 120, the information indicating the number of parallel channel estimation processes allowed by the first device 110.

[0143] In some example implementations, the complexity category may depend on the delay budget used to estimate the channel.

[0144] In some example embodiments, the first device 110 may receive a third configuration from the second device 120 for the transmission of a reference signal to determine at least one characteristic of the channel.

[0145] In some example embodiments, at least one characteristic of the channel may include at least one of the size of the coherent resource block or the channel rank of the channel.

[0146] In some example embodiments, this first configuration can be carried in a radio resource control message.

[0147] In some example embodiments, the channel estimation process in the parallel channel estimation process may be performed on candidate channels in a candidate channel list between the first device 110 and the second device 120.

[0148] In some example embodiments, the channel estimation process in the number of parallel channel estimation processes may include a joint channel estimation and decoding process.

[0149] In some example embodiments, the channel may include a multiple-input multiple-output channel.

[0150] In some example embodiments, a first device capable of performing any method 900 (e.g., Figure 1 The first device 110 may include components for performing corresponding operations of method 900 and any embodiments thereof. These components may be implemented in any suitable form. For example, the components may be implemented in a circuit or software module. The first device may be implemented as or included in... Figure 1 In the first device 110.

[0151] Figure 10 A flowchart of an example method 1000 implemented at a second device according to some example embodiments of the present disclosure is shown. Reference will be made to this flowchart for discussion purposes. Figure 1 Method 1000 is described from the perspective of the second device 120.

[0152] At block 1010, the second device 120 transmits a first configuration of the complexity category of the first device 110 to the first device 110, the first configuration indicating the number of parallel channel estimation processes to be performed to estimate the channel between the first device 110 and the second device 120.

[0153] At box 1020, the second device 120 performs the number of parallel channel estimation processes with the first device 110 based on the complexity category.

[0154] In some example embodiments, the second device 120 may receive information from the first device 110 regarding the parallel processing capabilities of the first device 110, which indicates the number of parallel channel estimation processes allowed by the first device 110.

[0155] In some example implementations, the complexity category may depend on the delay budget used to estimate the channel.

[0156] In some example embodiments, the second device 120 may transmit a third configuration to the first device 110, which transmits a reference signal with the first device to determine at least one characteristic of the channel.

[0157] In some example embodiments, at least one characteristic of the channel may include at least one of the size of the coherent resource block or the channel rank of the channel.

[0158] In some example embodiments, this first configuration can be carried in a radio resource control message.

[0159] In some example embodiments, the channel estimation process in the parallel channel estimation process may be performed on candidate channels in a candidate channel list between the first device 110 and the second device 120.

[0160] In some example embodiments, the channel estimation process in the number of parallel channel estimation processes may include a joint channel estimation and decoding process.

[0161] In some example embodiments, the channel may include a multiple-input multiple-output channel.

[0162] In some example embodiments, a second device capable of performing any method 1000 (e.g., Figure 1 The second device 120 may include components for performing corresponding operations of method 1000 and any embodiments thereof. These components may be implemented in any suitable form. For example, the components may be implemented in a circuit or software module. The second device may be implemented as or included in... Figure 1 The second device 120 in the middle.

[0163] Figure 11 A flowchart of an example method 1100 implemented at a first device according to some example embodiments of the present disclosure is shown. Reference will be made to this flowchart for discussion purposes. Figure 1 Method 1100 is described from the perspective of the first device 110.

[0164] In block 1110, the first device 110 receives one or more second configurations from the second device 120, the one or more second configurations indicating that a certain number of parallel channel estimation processes are performed to estimate one or more parameters of the channel between the first device 110 and the second device 120.

[0165] In block 1120, the first device 110 performs the number of parallel channel estimation processes with the second device 120 based on one or more parameters.

[0166] In some example embodiments, the first device 110 may receive a third configuration from the second device 120 to transmit a reference signal with the second device to determine at least one characteristic of the channel.

[0167] In some example embodiments, at least one characteristic of the channel may include at least one of the size of the coherent resource block of the channel or the channel rank of the channel.

[0168] In some example embodiments, one or more second configurations may be based on at least one measurement of a reference signal.

[0169] In some example embodiments, one or more second configurations may include: at least one semi-static configuration indicating at least one first parameter among one or more parameters, and at least one dynamic configuration indicating at least one second parameter among one or more parameters.

[0170] In some example embodiments, the at least one semi-static configuration may be carried in a radio resource control message, and the at least one dynamic configuration may be carried in a downlink control information message.

[0171] In some example embodiments, one or more parameters may include at least one of the following: the length of the coherent resource block of the channel, the length of the pilot, the length of the code block, the coding rate, or the modulation order.

[0172] In some example embodiments, the length of the pilot may be related to the number of parallel channel estimation processes to be performed.

[0173] In some example embodiments, the transmission power of the pilot may be related to the number of parallel channel estimation processes to be performed.

[0174] In some example embodiments, the channel estimation process in the parallel channel estimation process may be performed on candidate channels in a candidate channel list between the first device 110 and the second device 120.

[0175] In some example embodiments, the channel estimation process in the number of parallel channel estimation processes may include a joint channel estimation and decoding process.

[0176] In some example embodiments, the channel may include a multiple-input multiple-output channel.

[0177] In some example embodiments, a first device capable of performing any method 1100 (e.g., Figure 1The first device 110 may include components for performing corresponding operations of method 1100 and any embodiments thereof. These components may be implemented in any suitable form. For example, the components may be implemented in a circuit or software module. The first device may be implemented as or included in... Figure 1 In the first device 110.

[0178] Figure 12 A flowchart of an example method 1200 implemented at a second device according to some example embodiments of the present disclosure is shown. Reference will be made to this flowchart for discussion purposes. Figure 1 Method 1200 is described from the perspective of the second device 120.

[0179] In block 1210, the second device 120 transmits one or more second configurations to the first device 110, the one or more second configurations indicating that a number of parallel channel estimation processes are performed to estimate one or more parameters of the channel between the first device 110 and the second device 120.

[0180] In block 1220, the second device 120 performs the number of parallel channel estimation processes with the first device 110 based on one or more parameters.

[0181] In some example embodiments, the second device 120 may transmit a third configuration to the first device 110, which transmits a reference signal with the first device to determine at least one characteristic of the channel.

[0182] In some example embodiments, at least one characteristic of the channel may include at least one of the size of the coherent resource block of the channel or the channel rank of the channel.

[0183] In some example embodiments, one or more second configurations may be based on at least one measurement of a reference signal.

[0184] In some example embodiments, one or more second configurations may include: at least one semi-static configuration indicating at least one first parameter among one or more parameters, and at least one dynamic configuration indicating at least one second parameter among one or more parameters.

[0185] In some example embodiments, the at least one semi-static configuration may be carried in a radio resource control message, and the at least one dynamic configuration may be carried in a downlink control information message.

[0186] In some example embodiments, one or more parameters may include at least one of the following: the length of the coherent resource block of the channel, the length of the pilot, the length of the code block, the coding rate, or the modulation order.

[0187] In some example embodiments, the length of the pilot may be related to the number of parallel channel estimation processes to be performed.

[0188] In some example embodiments, the transmission power of the pilot may be related to the number of parallel channel estimation processes to be performed.

[0189] In some example embodiments, the channel estimation process in the parallel channel estimation process may be performed on candidate channels in a candidate channel list between the first device 110 and the second device 120.

[0190] In some example embodiments, the channel estimation process in the number of parallel channel estimation processes may include a joint channel estimation and decoding process.

[0191] In some example embodiments, the channel may include a multiple-input multiple-output channel.

[0192] In some example embodiments, a second device capable of performing any method 1200 (e.g., Figure 1 The second device 120 may include components for performing corresponding operations of method 1200 and any embodiments thereof. These components may be implemented in any suitable form. For example, the components may be implemented in a circuit or software module. The second device may be implemented as or included in... Figure 1 The second device 120 in the middle.

[0193] Figure 13 This is a simplified block diagram of a device 1300 suitable for implementing exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure. The device 1300 can be provided to implement a communication device, such as... Figure 1 The first device 110 and the second device 120 are shown. As shown, the device 1300 includes one or more processors 1310, one or more memories 1320 coupled to the processors 1310, and one or more communication modules 1340 coupled to the processors 1310.

[0194] Communication module 1340 is used for bidirectional communication. Communication module 1340 has one or more communication interfaces to facilitate communication with one or more other modules or devices. The communication interface can represent any interface necessary for communication with other network elements. In some example embodiments, communication module 1340 may include at least one antenna.

[0195] As a non-limiting example, processor 1310 can be any type suitable for a local technology network and can include one or more of the following: general-purpose computer, special-purpose computer, microprocessor, digital signal processor (DSP), and processor based on a multi-core processor architecture. Device 1300 can have multiple processors, such as application-specific integrated circuit chips that are time-dependent on a clock synchronized with the main processor.

[0196] Memory 1320 may include one or more non-volatile memories and one or more volatile memories. Examples of non-volatile memories include, but are not limited to, read-only memory (ROM) 1324, electrically programmable read-only memory (EPROM), flash memory, hard disk, compact disc (CD), digital video disc (DVD), optical disc, laser disc, and other magnetic and / or optical storage. Examples of volatile memories include, but are not limited to, random access memory (RAM) 1322 and other volatile memories that will not be maintained during power outages.

[0197] Computer program 1330 includes computer-executable instructions that are executed by an associated processor 1310. The instructions of program 1330 may include instructions for performing operations / actions of some example embodiments of this disclosure. Program 1330 may be stored in memory (e.g., ROM 1324). Processor 1310 can perform any suitable actions and processes by loading program 1330 into RAM 1322.

[0198] Example embodiments of this disclosure can be implemented by means of program 1330, enabling device 1300 to perform as described in the reference. Figures 1 to 12 Any process discussed in this disclosure. Exemplary embodiments of this disclosure may also be implemented by hardware or by a combination of software and hardware.

[0199] In some example embodiments, program 1330 may be tangibly included in a computer-readable medium, which may be included in device 1300 (such as in memory 1320) or in other storage devices accessible by device 1300. Device 1300 may load program 1330 from the computer-readable medium into RAM 1322 for execution. In some example embodiments, the computer-readable medium may include any type of non-transitory storage medium, such as ROM, EPROM, flash memory, hard disk, CD, DVD, etc. As used herein, the term "non-transitory" is a limitation of the medium itself (i.e., tangible, not tactile), rather than a limitation of the persistence of data storage (e.g., RAM versus ROM).

[0200] Figure 14 An example of a computer-readable medium 1400 is shown, which may be in the form of a CD, DVD, or other optical storage disc. The computer-readable medium 1400 has a program 1330 stored thereon.

[0201] In general, the various embodiments of this disclosure can be implemented in hardware or dedicated circuitry, software, logic, or any combination thereof. Some aspects can be implemented in hardware, and others can be implemented in firmware or software that can be executed by a controller, microprocessor, or other computing device. Although various aspects of the embodiments of this disclosure are shown and described as block diagrams, flowcharts, or using some other graphical representation, it should be understood that the blocks, apparatuses, systems, techniques, or methods described herein can be implemented in hardware, software, firmware, dedicated circuitry or logic, general-purpose hardware or controllers or other computing devices, or some combination thereof, as non-limiting examples.

[0202] Some exemplary embodiments of this disclosure also provide at least one computer program product tangibly stored on a computer-readable medium, such as a non-transitory computer-readable medium. The computer program product includes computer-executable instructions, such as those included in a program module, which are executed in a device on a target physical or virtual processor to perform any of the methods described above. Generally, program modules include routines, programs, libraries, objects, classes, components, data structures, etc., that perform a particular task or implement a particular abstract data type. In various embodiments, the functionality of a program module can be combined or split among program modules as needed. The machine-executable instructions for a program module can execute within a local or distributed device. In a distributed device, the program module can reside on both local and remote storage media.

[0203] Program code for performing the methods of this disclosure may be written in any combination of one or more programming languages. The program code may be provided to a processor or controller of a general-purpose computer, special-purpose computer, or other programmable data processing apparatus, such that, when executed by the processor or controller, the program code causes the functions / operations specified in the flowcharts and / or block diagrams to be performed. The program code may be executed entirely on a machine, partially on a machine, as a stand-alone software package, partially on a machine and partially on a remote machine, or entirely on a remote machine or server.

[0204] In the context of this disclosure, computer program code or related data may be carried by any suitable carrier wave to enable a device, apparatus, or processor to perform the various processes and operations described above. Examples of carrier waves include signals, computer-readable media, etc.

[0205] Computer-readable media can be computer-readable signal media or computer-readable storage media. Computer-readable media can include, but is not limited to, electronic, magnetic, optical, electromagnetic, infrared, or semiconductor systems, apparatuses, or devices, or any suitable combination thereof. More specific examples of computer-readable storage media will include electrical connections having one or more wires, portable computer disks, hard disks, random access memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM or flash memory), optical fibers, portable optical disc read-only memory (CD-ROM), optical storage devices, magnetic storage devices, or any suitable combination thereof.

[0206] Furthermore, although operations are described in a specific order, this should not be construed as requiring that such operations be performed in the specific order shown or sequentially, or requiring that all shown operations be performed to achieve the desired result. In some cases, multitasking and parallel processing may be advantageous. Similarly, while several specific implementation details are included in the foregoing discussion, these should not be construed as limiting the scope of this disclosure, but rather as a description of features that may be specific to particular embodiments. Unless explicitly stated otherwise, certain features described in the context of a single embodiment may also be implemented in combination in a single embodiment. Conversely, unless explicitly stated otherwise, various features described in the context of a single embodiment may also be implemented individually or in any suitable sub-combination in multiple embodiments.

[0207] Although this disclosure has been described in language specific to structural features and / or methodological actions, it should be understood that the disclosure as defined in the appended claims is not necessarily limited to the specific features or actions described above. Rather, the specific features and actions described above are disclosed as exemplary forms for implementing the claims.

[0208] Furthermore, the various implementations of this disclosure can be described with reference to the following terms, and their features can be combined in any reasonable manner.

[0209] Clause 1. A first means for communication, comprising: at least one processor; and at least one memory storing instructions that, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the first means to at least: receive from a second means a first configuration of the complexity class of the first means, the first configuration indicating a number of parallel channel estimation processes to be performed to estimate a channel between the first means and the second means; receive from the second means one or more second configurations, the one or more second configurations indicating one or more parameters for performing the number of parallel channel estimation processes; and perform the number of parallel channel estimation processes with the second means based on the complexity class using the one or more parameters.

[0210] Clause 2. The first device according to Clause 1, wherein the first device is further configured to: transmit to the second device information about the parallel processing capability of the first device, the information indicating the number of parallel channel estimation processes permitted by the first device.

[0211] Clause 3. The first device according to Clause 1, wherein the complexity category depends on the delay budget used to estimate the channel.

[0212] Clause 4. The first means according to Clause 1, wherein the first means is further configured to: receive from the second means a third configuration of transmission of a reference signal to be used to determine at least one characteristic of the channel.

[0213] Clause 5. The first apparatus according to Clause 4, wherein the at least one characteristic of the channel includes at least one of the size of the coherent resource block of the channel or the channel rank of the channel.

[0214] Clause 6. The first device according to Clause 4 or 5, wherein the one or more second configurations are based on at least one measurement of the reference signal.

[0215] Clause 7. A first device according to any one of Clauses 1 to 5, wherein the first configuration is carried in a radio resource control message.

[0216] Clause 8. A first device according to any one of Clauses 1 to 5, wherein the one or more second configurations comprise: at least one semi-static configuration indicating at least one first parameter among the one or more parameters, and at least one dynamic configuration indicating at least one second parameter among the one or more parameters.

[0217] Clause 9. The first apparatus according to Clause 8, wherein the at least one semi-static configuration is carried in a radio resource control message and the at least one dynamic configuration is carried in a downlink control information message.

[0218] Clause 10. A first apparatus according to any one of Clauses 1 to 5, wherein the one or more parameters include at least one of the following: the length of the coherent resource block of the channel, the length of the pilot, the length of the code block, the coding rate, or the modulation order.

[0219] Clause 11. A second means for communication, comprising: at least one processor; and at least one memory storing instructions that, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the second means to at least: transmit to a first means a first configuration of the complexity class of the first means, the first configuration indicating the number of parallel channel estimation processes to be performed to estimate a channel between the first means and the second means; transmit to the first means one or more second configurations, the one or more second configurations indicating one or more parameters for performing the number of parallel channel estimation processes; and perform the number of parallel channel estimation processes with the first means based on the complexity class using the one or more parameters.

[0220] Clause 12. The second device according to Clause 11, wherein the second device is further configured to: receive from the first device information about the parallel processing capability of the first device, the information indicating the number of parallel channel estimation processes permitted by the first device.

[0221] Clause 13. A second device pursuant to Clause 11 or 12, wherein the complexity category depends on the delay budget used to estimate the channel.

[0222] Clause 14. A method for communication, comprising: at a first device, receiving from a second device a first configuration of a complexity category of the first device, the first configuration indicating a number of parallel channel estimation processes to be performed to estimate a channel between the first device and the second device; receiving from the second device one or more second configurations, the one or more second configurations indicating one or more parameters for performing the number of parallel channel estimation processes; and performing the number of parallel channel estimation processes with the second device based on the complexity category using the one or more parameters.

[0223] Clause 15. A method for communication, comprising: at a second device, transmitting to a first device a first configuration of a complexity category of the first device, the first configuration indicating a number of parallel channel estimation processes to be performed to estimate a channel between the first device and the second device; transmitting to the first device one or more second configurations, the one or more second configurations indicating one or more parameters for performing the number of parallel channel estimation processes; and performing the number of parallel channel estimation processes with the first device based on the complexity category using the one or more parameters.

Claims

1. A first device for communication, comprising: At least one processor; as well as At least one memory stores instructions that, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the first device to at least: The first configuration for the complexity category of the first device is received from the second device, and the first configuration indicates the number of parallel channel estimation processes to be performed to estimate the channel between the first device and the second device. Receive one or more second configurations from the second device, the one or more second configurations indicating one or more parameters for performing the number of parallel channel estimation processes; as well as The number of parallel channel estimation processes are performed with the second device by using one or more of the parameters, based on the complexity category.

2. The first device according to claim 1, wherein the first device is further configured to: Information about the parallel processing capabilities of the first device is transmitted to the second device, the information indicating the number of parallel channel estimation processes allowed by the first device.

3. The first apparatus of claim 1, wherein the complexity category depends on the delay budget used to estimate the channel.

4. The first device according to claim 1, wherein the first device is further configured to: A third configuration for receiving a reference signal from the second device to be used to determine at least one characteristic of the channel.

5. The first apparatus of claim 4, wherein the at least one characteristic of the channel includes at least one of the size of the coherent resource block of the channel or the channel rank of the channel.

6. The first apparatus according to claim 4 or 5, wherein the one or more second configurations are based on at least one measurement of the reference signal.

7. The first apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the first configuration is carried in a radio resource control message.

8. The first device according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the one or more second configurations comprise: Indicates at least one semi-static configuration of at least one first parameter among the one or more parameters, and Indicates at least one dynamic configuration of at least one second parameter among the one or more parameters.

9. The first apparatus of claim 8, wherein the at least one semi-static configuration is carried in a radio resource control message, and the at least one dynamic configuration is carried in a downlink control information message.

10. The first device according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the one or more parameters include at least one of the following: The length of the coherent resource block of the channel, Pilot length, The length of the code block, Code rate, or Modulation order.

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