A communication method and apparatus

Abstract

The application provides a communication method, which can make the sensing device perform sensing on the sensing area in different resolutions in stages through the indication of the sensing network element, thereby improving the accuracy of the sensing result under the premise of reducing the resource usage of the communication system.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This application relates to the field of communication technology, specifically to a communication method and apparatus. Background Technology

[0002] With the continuous development of wireless communication technology, the scale of wireless communication systems is increasing day by day. When using network equipment and terminal equipment for target / environment perception, the target perception process is quite complex due to the processing of a large amount of signal data and the collaborative work of multiple devices, resulting in a long perception processing time. Summary of the Invention

[0003] This application provides a communication method that, when using a communication system for sensing, can filter important areas for fine-grained sensing based on preliminary sensing results within a region, and perform precise sensing in these important areas. This improves the sensing accuracy and precision of the communication system while reducing the computational complexity of the sensing task and increasing the resource utilization of the communication system. This application also provides corresponding apparatus, computer-readable storage media, and computer program products.

[0004] A first aspect of this application provides a communication method applied to a first communication device. The method includes: sending a first sensing instruction to a second communication device; wherein the first sensing instruction instructs the second communication device to perform preliminary sensing within a first sensing area to obtain a first sensing result; sending a second sensing instruction to the second communication device; wherein the second sensing instruction instructs the second communication device to perform focused sensing within a second sensing area to obtain a second sensing result, wherein the sensing resolution of the preliminary sensing is less than the sensing resolution of the focused sensing, and the area size of the first sensing area is greater than the area size of the second sensing area; and obtaining a final sensing result based on the first and second sensing results.

[0005] In this application, the first communication device can be a sensing network element or a component of a sensing network element, such as a communication device capable of realizing sensing configuration and management functions. The first communication device can manage other sensing devices in the communication system, such as configuring sensing parameters for the second communication device according to specific sensing tasks and scenarios.

[0006] In this application, the second communication device can be a communication device capable of realizing sensing functions, and can be a sensor of different types. The second communication device can include sensing devices on the terminal device side and sensing devices on the network device side.

[0007] In this application, the second communication device can be a terminal device or a component of the terminal device, such as a communication module, a circuit or chip responsible for communication functions (such as a modem chip, also known as a baseband chip, or a system-on-chip (SoC) chip or system-in-package (SIP) chip containing a modem core), a chip system, or a processor, etc., which can be applied to the terminal device. It can also be a logic module or software that can realize all or part of the functions of the terminal device.

[0008] In this application, the second communication device may also be a network device or a component of an access network device, such as a communication module, processor, chip, chip system, or circuit that can be applied in the access network device, or a logic module or software that can realize all or part of the functions of the access network device.

[0009] In this application, the number of second communication devices can be one or more. When there are multiple second communication devices, the first communication device can issue a first sensing instruction to each second communication device, instructing each second communication device to sense the sensing area.

[0010] In this application, perception refers to the process by which network devices or terminal devices send and receive wireless signals reflected or scattered by a perceived target, and obtain information such as the intensity, time difference, phase difference, and Doppler frequency shift of the wireless signals. After processing the signals through signal processing algorithms, information such as the distance, angle, speed, size, and shape of the perceived target is extracted, and the final imaging result is obtained based on this information.

[0011] In this application, the sensing target can be any tangible object in the environment capable of reflecting electromagnetic waves, such as mountains, forests, or buildings, and can also include mobile objects such as vehicles, drones, pedestrians, and terminal devices. The sensing target can also be referred to as the perceived target, the detected target, the perceived object, the detected object, or the sensed device, etc., and the embodiments of this application do not limit this terminology.

[0012] In this application, the sensing mode of the second communication device may include the second communication device automatically transmitting and receiving sensing signals to obtain information about the sensing target; or one second communication device transmitting a sensing signal, and another second communication device receiving and measuring relevant data from the sensing signal to obtain information about the sensing target; or the second communication device transmitting and receiving signals multiple times during movement, and obtaining information about the sensing target by measuring these signals. The sensing mode of the second communication device is not limited here. For ease of explanation, this application embodiment uses the second communication device automatically transmitting and receiving sensing signals to obtain information about the sensing target as an application scenario.

[0013] In this application, the sensing signal can be a signal used to acquire scene information of the sensing target or sensing area. Information about the sensing target or area can be obtained by measuring, processing, and analyzing the signal data of the sensing signal. The signal type of the sensing signal can include millimeter-wave signals, microwave signals, infrared signals, laser signals, etc., and is not limited thereto.

[0014] In this application, the sensing steps can be divided into preliminary sensing and focused sensing. The sensing resolution of preliminary sensing is lower than that of focused sensing; that is, a larger grid can be used to scan the sensing area in preliminary sensing, while a smaller grid can be used in focused sensing.

[0015] In this application, a grid is used to divide the sensing area into small cells, each corresponding to a spatial location. The size of the grid is related to the sensing resolution. When high-resolution images or fine spatial information are needed, i.e., when the sensing resolution is higher, a smaller grid is required to scan the sensing area, thereby more accurately capturing the detailed features of the sensed target in the sensing area. Using a larger grid will lead to a decrease in sensing resolution because each grid cell covers a larger area, causing the second communication device to integrate or average the information within the grid range, thus losing some details of the sensed target.

[0016] In this application, larger grid scans yield lower resolution, while smaller grid scans yield higher resolution. Therefore, the second perception result obtained by focused perception is more accurate in capturing the detailed features of the perceived target compared to the first perception result obtained by preliminary perception, but focused perception consumes more computational resources.

[0017] In this application, the first sensing instruction includes sensing parameters, which include at least one of broadband size, beamwidth, transmit power, and the first sensing region.

[0018] In this application, the bandwidth refers to the bandwidth of the wireless signal transmitted by the second communication device. The larger the bandwidth, the more information the wireless signal can carry, thereby improving the perception resolution. The beamwidth determines the radiation range and directionality of the wireless signal in space. The narrower the beamwidth, the higher the perception resolution, and the narrower the beamwidth, the more accurately it can point to the target. The transmission power refers to the power intensity of the wireless signal transmitted by the second communication device. Increasing the transmission power can increase the strength of the received signal and improve the signal-to-noise ratio, thereby enabling the second communication device to better extract signal features and thus improve the perception resolution.

[0019] In this application, the first sensing area is the initial sensing range. The first sensing area can be the entire coverage area of ​​the second communication device signal, or it can be a range specified by the first communication device within the entire coverage area of ​​the second communication device signal. If there are multiple second communication devices, the first sensing area is the sum of the entire coverage areas of all the second communication device signals.

[0020] In this application, the sensing parameters are used to determine the initial sensing resolution, and the initial sensing resolution and the first sensing area are used to determine the grid size of the first sensing grid.

[0021] In this application, the perception resolution determines the smallest detail feature of the perceived target that the second communication device can distinguish. When the perception resolution is higher, the features of the perceived target are clearer and more accurate, that is, the perception accuracy is higher. Conversely, when the perception resolution is lower, the features of the perceived target are coarser, that is, the perception accuracy is lower.

[0022] In this application, a higher sensing resolution requires a smaller grid to scan the area, while a larger sensing area necessitates a corresponding increase in the size of the sensing grid. Therefore, the size of the first sensing grid is determined by both the initial sensing resolution and the size of the first sensing area.

[0023] In this application, the first sensing result is obtained from the measurement data of the echo signal of the sensing signal after the second communication device sends a sensing signal to the first sensing area. After the second communication device obtains the measurement data of the echo signal, it obtains the first sensing result by performing signal processing and analysis on the measurement data.

[0024] In this application, if the second communication device does not obtain the first sensing result, that is, if the second communication device does not obtain the information of the sensing target when performing preliminary sensing in the first sensing area, the second communication device will not report the first sensing result or will report the information that the sensing target was not identified to the first communication device.

[0025] In this application, the communication method further includes: receiving a first sensing result from a second communication device; wherein the first sensing result includes at least one of the sensing target's position, moving speed, structural information, shape, category, material, signal-to-noise ratio, and radar cross section (RCS).

[0026] In this application, the position of the sensing target can be obtained by measuring the time interval between the signal being sent and received after being reflected by the sensing target, thus obtaining the distance between the sensing target and the second communication device. Furthermore, the azimuth and elevation angles of the sensing target relative to the second communication device can be calculated by measuring the phase difference or time difference of the sensing signal arriving at different antennas, thereby obtaining the angular position of the sensing target.

[0027] In this application, the second communication device can calculate the radial velocity of the sensing target based on the Doppler effect. When the sensing target moves, the frequency of the reflected signal changes. Therefore, the moving speed of the sensing target can be calculated by analyzing the frequency offset of the received signal.

[0028] In this application, the structural information of the perceived target can be obtained by using technologies such as synthetic aperture radar (SAR) to process sensing signals from multiple different locations and synthesize a high-resolution target image. By moving the SAR platform and transmitting and receiving signals at different locations, and processing the signal coherence, two-dimensional or three-dimensional structural images of the perceived target can be obtained.

[0029] In this application, the second communication device can also transmit multi-frequency or broadband signals. Different frequencies of signals have different scattering characteristics on the target. By analyzing the scattering of different frequency signals, detailed information about the target structure can be obtained.

[0030] In this application, the shape of the perceived target can be extracted from the contour information of the target based on the intensity distribution of the perceived signal. For example, in optical imaging, the target's shape contour can be obtained by analyzing the grayscale difference between the target and the background in an image and using edge detection algorithms. Alternatively, in radar imaging, the shape of the perceived target can be obtained based on the scattering intensity distribution of different parts of the target.

[0031] In this application, the second communication device can extract various features from the sensed signal, such as spectral features, texture features, and polarization features, and then use machine learning or deep learning algorithms to classify the sensed target. The first communication device can pre-train on a large number of target signals of known categories to establish a classification model. When the second communication device receives the signal features of a new sensed signal, it can predict the category of the sensed target through the model.

[0032] In this application, the material of the sensing target can be obtained by analyzing the spectral characteristics of the sensing signal. Objects of different materials have different absorption, reflection, and scattering characteristics for light or electromagnetic waves of different wavelengths. The second communication device can determine the material of the sensing target by analyzing its spectral reflectance curve.

[0033] In this application, the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) of the sensed target refers to the ratio of signal power to noise power. By analyzing the power spectral density of the sensed signal and estimating the signal power and noise power, the received signal can typically be divided in the frequency domain.

[0034] In this application, the radar cross section (RCS) of a sensing target is a physical quantity that measures the target's ability to scatter radar waves. It is related to factors such as the target's size, shape, material, electromagnetic properties, and the frequency and angle of incidence of the radar waves. A response model of the measurement system can be established by measuring and calibrating a standard target with a known RCS. Then, the sensing target is measured, and the intensity of the received signal is compared with the measurement results of the standard target. Combining this with the parameters of the measurement system and information such as the target's distance, the RCS of the sensing target is calculated.

[0035] In this application, the second sensing area is determined based on the first sensing result. After receiving the first sensing result sent by the second communication device, the first communication device can identify the second sensing area that needs to be focused on sensing based on the first sensing result.

[0036] In this application, the first communication device can determine which areas need to be prioritized for sensing based on the magnitude of the first sensing result. For example, when the magnitude of the first sensing result is greater than a first threshold, the area corresponding to the first sensing result is considered to need to be prioritized for sensing, and this area is then designated as the second sensing area. The first threshold can be configured by an upstream communication device and transmitted to the first communication device via signaling, or it can be pre-configured by the first communication device before leaving the factory, or it can be predefined, or it can be set by the first communication device itself based on historical parameters. The method of setting the first and second thresholds is not limited here.

[0037] In this context, configuration refers to the process where a higher-level communication device sends configuration information or parameter values ​​to a first communication device via messages or signaling. This allows the first communication device to determine communication parameters or transmission resources based on these values ​​or information. Pre-configured content typically refers to information pre-recorded / written into the hardware and / or software of the first communication device itself, determined by the manufacturer and modifiable through software or hardware. Predefined content typically refers to standard-defined information that does not require configuration from other devices, pre-recorded / written into the hardware and / or software of the first communication device, or information that cannot be modified by network devices or other terminal devices. Pre-configuration can be performed by the network through system information blocks (SIBs) or RRC signaling.

[0038] In this application, the size of the second sensing area is smaller than the size of the first sensing area, and the second sensing area is contained within the first sensing area, which is the key sensing area confirmed by the first sensing result.

[0039] In this application, the second sensing instruction includes sensing parameters, which include at least one of broadband size, beamwidth, and transmit power.

[0040] In this application, the perception parameters in the second perception instruction are used to determine the perception resolution of the key perception, which is greater than the perception resolution of the preliminary perception. That is, the perception accuracy of the key perception is greater than the perception accuracy of the preliminary perception, and the features of the perceived target obtained in the key perception are more detailed than the features of the perceived target obtained in the preliminary perception.

[0041] In this application, the size of the second grid for key perception is smaller than the size of the first grid for preliminary perception. Therefore, the perception imaging results of the perceived target obtained by key perception are more refined and contain more details of the perceived target features.

[0042] In the first aspect mentioned above, the first communication device instructs the second communication device to perform sensing at different resolutions through two sensing commands. Only when the second sensing area that needs to be focused on is identified is the second communication device instructed to perform high-resolution focused sensing. This allows the sensing (communication) system to dynamically adjust the sensing resolution according to specific needs, reducing the waste of resources caused by using high-resolution imaging for the entire sensing area, improving the utilization efficiency of the bandwidth and beam resources of the second communication device transmitting sensing signals, and using high-resolution small-grid sensing in the key sensing area can obtain more accurate sensing results.

[0043] In one possible implementation, the first communication device obtains a final perception result based on a first perception result and a second perception result, including: fusing the second perception result with the first perception result within a first perception area to obtain the final perception result.

[0044] In this application, the first communication device can achieve fusion of the second perception result and the first perception result by using the second perception result to cover the features of the second perception region within the first perception region in the first perception result. For example, the first communication device can achieve fusion by finding the position corresponding to the second perception region within the first perception region and replacing the first perception result at the corresponding position with the second perception result, or it can achieve fusion by weighted summation of the two perception results. This application does not limit the method of fusion between the first and second perception results.

[0045] In this possible implementation, the first communication device can improve the accuracy of the final perception result by fusing two perception results with different resolutions, and reduce the computing resources and bandwidth requirements of the communication system for perception. This improves the perception efficiency and perception imaging accuracy of the communication system while enhancing the comprehensiveness and accuracy of the final imaging result.

[0046] A second aspect of this application provides a communication method applied to a second communication device. The method includes: receiving a first sensing instruction from a first communication device; wherein the first sensing instruction instructs the second communication device to perform preliminary sensing within a first sensing area to obtain a first sensing result; receiving a second sensing instruction from the first communication device; wherein the second sensing instruction instructs the second communication device to perform focused sensing within a second sensing area to obtain a second sensing result, wherein the sensing resolution of the preliminary sensing is smaller than the sensing resolution of the focused sensing, the area size of the first sensing area is larger than the area size of the second sensing area, and the first and second sensing results are used by the first communication device to obtain a final sensing result.

[0047] In one possible implementation, the first sensing instruction includes sensing parameters, which include at least one of broadband size, beamwidth, transmit power, and the first sensing region.

[0048] In one possible implementation, the sensing parameters are used to determine the initial sensing resolution, and the initial sensing resolution and the first sensing region are used to determine the grid size of the first sensing grid.

[0049] In one possible implementation, the method further includes: sending a first sensing result to a first communication device; wherein the first sensing result includes at least one of the sensing target's position, moving speed, structural information, shape, category, material, signal-to-noise ratio, and radar cross section (RCS).

[0050] In one possible implementation, the second sensing area is determined by the first communication device based on the first sensing result.

[0051] In one possible implementation, the final sensing result is obtained by the first communication device fusing the second sensing result with the first sensing result within the first sensing area.

[0052] In one possible implementation, the method further includes: sending a sensing signal to the first sensing area;

[0053] The first sensing result is obtained from the measurement data of the echo signal of the sensing signal.

[0054] In the second aspect mentioned above, the second communication device performs two sensing operations at different resolutions as instructed by the first communication device. This reduces the amount of sensing computation and the consumption of sensing resources during the initial sensing operation, and improves the accuracy of sensing during the key sensing operation. As a result, the real-time performance of sensing is improved, as well as the fineness of the final sensing result.

[0055] A third aspect of this application provides a communication device, which can be a first communication device, including: a transceiver module and a processing module;

[0056] The transceiver module is used to send a first sensing command to the second communication device; wherein the first sensing command is used to instruct the second communication device to perform preliminary sensing within the first sensing area and obtain a first sensing result;

[0057] The transceiver module is also used to send a second sensing instruction to the second communication device; wherein the second sensing instruction is used to instruct the second communication device to perform focused sensing within the second sensing area to obtain the second sensing result, the sensing resolution of the initial sensing is smaller than the sensing resolution of the focused sensing, and the area size of the first sensing area is larger than the area size of the second sensing area.

[0058] The processing module is used to obtain the final perception result based on the first perception result and the second perception result.

[0059] In one possible implementation, the first sensing instruction includes sensing parameters, which include at least one of broadband size, beamwidth, transmit power, and the first sensing region.

[0060] In one possible implementation, the sensing parameters are used to determine the initial sensing resolution, and the initial sensing resolution and the first sensing region are used to determine the grid size of the first sensing grid.

[0061] In one possible implementation, the transceiver module is further configured to receive a first sensing result from a second communication device; wherein the first sensing result includes at least one of the sensing target's position, movement speed, structural information, shape, category, material, signal-to-noise ratio, and radar cross section (RCS).

[0062] In one possible implementation, the second sensing area is determined based on the result of the first sensing.

[0063] In one possible implementation, the processing module is further configured to fuse the second perception result with the first perception result within the first perception area to obtain the final perception result.

[0064] In one possible implementation, the first sensing result is obtained from the measurement data of the echo signal based on the sensing signal after the second communication device sends a sensing signal to the first sensing area.

[0065] A fourth aspect of this application provides a communication device, which can be a second communication device that communicates with a first communication device, the communication device comprising: a transceiver module and a processing module;

[0066] The transceiver module is used to receive a first sensing instruction from a first communication device; wherein the first sensing instruction is used to instruct a second communication device to perform preliminary sensing within a first sensing area and obtain a first sensing result;

[0067] The transceiver module is also used to receive a second sensing instruction from the first communication device; wherein the second sensing instruction is used to instruct the second communication device to perform focused sensing within the second sensing area to obtain a second sensing result, the sensing resolution of the initial sensing is less than the sensing resolution of the focused sensing, the area size of the first sensing area is greater than the area size of the second sensing area, and the first sensing result and the second sensing result are used by the first communication device to obtain a final sensing result.

[0068] In one possible implementation, the first sensing instruction includes sensing parameters, which include at least one of broadband size, beamwidth, transmit power, and the first sensing region.

[0069] In one possible implementation, the sensing parameters are used to determine the initial sensing resolution, and the initial sensing resolution and the first sensing region are used to determine the grid size of the first sensing grid.

[0070] In one possible implementation, the transceiver module is further configured to send a first sensing result to the first communication device; wherein the first sensing result includes at least one of the sensing target's position, moving speed, structural information, shape, category, material, signal-to-noise ratio, and radar cross section (RCS).

[0071] In one possible implementation, the second sensing area is determined by the first communication device based on the first sensing result.

[0072] In one possible implementation, the final sensing result is obtained by the first communication device fusing the second sensing result with the first sensing result within the first sensing area.

[0073] In one possible implementation, the transceiver module is further configured to send a sensing signal to the first sensing area; and to obtain a first sensing result based on the measurement data of the echo signal of the sensing signal.

[0074] A fifth aspect of this application provides a communication device including a processor. The processor is configured to invoke and execute computer programs or instructions, causing the processor to implement as described in the first aspect or any of the implementations in the first aspect.

[0075] Optionally, the communication device also includes a transceiver; the processor is also used to control the transceiver to send and receive signals.

[0076] Optionally, the communication device includes a memory in which computer programs or instructions are stored.

[0077] The communication device mentioned in the fifth aspect above can be a device or a chip (system) in a device.

[0078] A sixth aspect of this application provides a communication device including a processor. The processor is configured to invoke and execute computer programs or instructions, causing the processor to implement as described in the second aspect or any of the implementations in the second aspect.

[0079] Optionally, the communication device also includes a transceiver; the processor is also used to control the transceiver to send and receive signals.

[0080] Optionally, the communication device includes a memory in which computer programs or instructions are stored.

[0081] The communication device mentioned in the sixth aspect can be a device or a chip (system) in a device.

[0082] The seventh aspect of this application provides a communication device, which may be a first communication device or a module or unit (e.g., a chip, a chip system, or a circuit) in the first communication device that corresponds to the execution of the methods / operations / steps / actions described in the first aspect.

[0083] The eighth aspect of this application provides a communication device, which may be a second communication device or a module or unit (e.g., a chip, a chip system, or a circuit) in the second communication device that corresponds to the execution of the methods / operations / steps / actions described in the second aspect.

[0084] The ninth aspect of this application provides a computer-readable storage medium including a computer program or instructions that, when executed on a computer, cause the computer to perform an implementation as described in the first aspect or any of the first aspects.

[0085] The tenth aspect of this application provides a computer-readable storage medium including a computer program or instructions that, when executed on a computer, cause the computer to perform an implementation as described in the second aspect or any of the second aspects.

[0086] The eleventh aspect of this application provides a computer program product including a computer program or instructions, which, when run on a computer, causes the computer to perform an implementation as described in the first aspect or any of the first aspects.

[0087] The twelfth aspect of this application provides a computer program product including a computer program or instructions, which, when run on a computer, causes the computer to perform an implementation as described in the second aspect or any of the second aspects.

[0088] The thirteenth aspect of this application provides a chip device including a processor for calling a computer program or instructions in memory to cause the processor to execute the first aspect or any implementation thereof.

[0089] Optionally, the memory may be located inside or outside the chip device.

[0090] The fourteenth aspect of this application provides a chip device including a processor for calling a computer program or instructions stored in a memory, so that the processor executes the second aspect or any implementation thereof described above.

[0091] Optionally, the memory may be located inside or outside the chip device.

[0092] The fifteenth aspect of this application provides a communication system, which includes a first communication device and a second communication device. The first communication device is used to execute the first aspect or any one of the implementations of the first aspect, and the second communication device is used to execute the second aspect or any one of the implementations of the second aspect.

[0093] The technical effects of the third aspect or any possible implementation of the third aspect, the fifth aspect, the seventh aspect, the ninth aspect, the eleventh aspect, the thirteenth aspect or the fifteenth aspect can be found in the first aspect or the technical effects of different possible implementations of the first aspect, and will not be repeated here.

[0094] The technical effects of the fourth aspect or any possible implementation of the fourth aspect, the sixth aspect, the eighth aspect, the tenth aspect, the twelfth aspect, the fourteenth aspect, or the fifteenth aspect can be found in the technical effects of the second aspect or different possible implementations of the second aspect, and will not be repeated here. Attached Figure Description

[0095] Figure 1A This is a schematic diagram illustrating an example application scenario of the communication system provided in this application embodiment;

[0096] Figure 1B This is another example schematic diagram of the application scenario of the communication system provided in the embodiments of this application;

[0097] Figure 1C This is another example schematic diagram of the application scenario of the communication system provided in the embodiments of this application;

[0098] Figure 1D This is another example schematic diagram of the application scenario of the communication system provided in the embodiments of this application;

[0099] Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram of the perception mode in the communication method provided in the embodiments of this application;

[0100] Figure 3 This is a schematic diagram illustrating the connection between the terminal device and the network device in the communication method provided in the embodiments of this application;

[0101] Figure 4 This is a schematic diagram of an embodiment of the communication method provided in this application;

[0102] Figure 5 This is a schematic diagram of another embodiment of the communication method provided in this application;

[0103] Figure 6 This is a schematic diagram of an application scenario of the communication method provided in the embodiments of this application;

[0104] Figure 7 This is a schematic diagram of the O-RAN system provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0105] Figure 8 This is another structural schematic diagram of the O-RAN system provided in the embodiments of this application;

[0106] Figure 9This is a schematic diagram of the structure of the communication device provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0107] Figure 10 This is another structural schematic diagram of the communication device provided in the embodiments of this application;

[0108] Figure 11 This is another structural schematic diagram of the communication device provided in the embodiments of this application;

[0109] Figure 12 This is another structural schematic diagram of the communication device provided in the embodiments of this application. Detailed Implementation

[0110] The embodiments of this application are described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Obviously, the described embodiments are only a part of the embodiments of this application, and not all of them. As those skilled in the art will understand, with the development of technology and the emergence of new scenarios, the technical solutions provided by the embodiments of this application are also applicable to similar technical problems.

[0111] The terms "first," "second," etc., used in the specification, claims, and accompanying drawings of this application are used to distinguish similar objects and are not necessarily used to describe a specific order or sequence. It should be understood that such data can be interchanged where appropriate so that the embodiments described herein can be implemented in a sequence other than that illustrated or described herein. Furthermore, the terms "comprising" and "having," and any variations thereof, are intended to cover a non-exclusive inclusion; for example, a process, method, system, product, or apparatus that comprises a series of steps or units is not necessarily limited to those steps or units explicitly listed, but may include other steps or units not explicitly listed or inherent to such processes, methods, products, or apparatus.

[0112] This application provides a communication method for instructing a sensing device to perform sensing at different resolutions for areas of different importance during the sensing process via a sensing network element, thereby improving the precision of sensing while reducing the system's computational load. This application also provides corresponding apparatus, computer-readable storage media, and computer program products, etc., which are described in detail below.

[0113] The technical solutions of this application embodiment can be applied to various communication systems, such as: satellite communication, 5th generation (5G) system or new radio (NR), long term evolution (LTE) system, LTE frequency division duplex (FDD) system, LTE time division duplex (TDD) system, universal mobile telecommunication system (UMTS), future communication systems after 5G network, vehicle to everything (V2X) communication system, machine to machine (M2M) communication, machine type communication (MTC), Internet of Things (IoT) communication system, or other communication systems.

[0114] The communication system described in this application can be a communication system based on orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) and / or time division multiplexing (TDM), or a communication system or communication and sensing system based on frequency modulated continuous waveform (FMCW).

[0115] The terminal equipment and network equipment of this application are described below.

[0116] Terminal equipment can be a device capable of receiving core network information or a wireless terminal device that handles network device scheduling and instruction information. Wireless terminal equipment can be a device that provides voice and / or data connectivity to a user, a handheld device with wireless connectivity, another processing device connected to a wireless modem, or a device with sensing capabilities.

[0117] Terminal equipment, also known as user equipment (UE), mobile station (MS), mobile terminal (MT), etc., is a device that includes wireless communication functions, such as handheld devices or vehicle-mounted devices with wireless connectivity.

[0118] Terminal devices can communicate with one or more core networks or the Internet via a radio access network (RAN). Terminal devices can be mobile terminal devices, such as mobile phones (or "cellular" phones), computers, and data cards. For example, they can be portable, pocket-sized, handheld, computer-embedded, or vehicle-mounted mobile devices that exchange voice and / or data with the RAN. Examples include personal communication service (PCS) phones, cordless phones, session initiation protocol (SIP) phones, wireless local loop (WLL) stations, personal digital assistants (PDAs), tablets, and computers with wireless transceiver capabilities. Wireless terminal equipment can also be referred to as a system, subscriber unit, subscriber station, mobile station (MS), remote station, access point (AP), remote terminal, access terminal, user terminal, user agent, subscriber station (SS), customer premises equipment (CPE), terminal, user equipment, mobile terminal, etc.

[0119] By way of example and not limitation, in this embodiment, the terminal device can also be a wearable device. Wearable devices, also known as wearable smart devices or smart wearable devices, are a general term for devices that utilize wearable technology to intelligently design and develop everyday wearables, such as glasses, gloves, watches, clothing, and shoes. Wearable devices are portable devices that are worn directly on the body or integrated into the user's clothing or accessories. Wearable devices are not merely hardware devices, but also achieve powerful functions through software support, data interaction, and cloud interaction. Broadly speaking, wearable smart devices include those that are feature-rich, large in size, and can achieve complete or partial functions without relying on a smartphone, such as smartwatches or smart glasses, as well as those that focus on a specific type of application function and require the use of other devices such as smartphones, such as various smart bracelets, smart helmets, and smart jewelry for vital sign monitoring.

[0120] Furthermore, terminal devices can also be terminal devices for communication systems evolved from fifth-generation (5G) communication systems (such as 5G Advanced or future communication systems). For example, the form and function of communication terminals can be further expanded, including but not limited to vehicles, cellular network terminals (integrating satellite terminal functions), drones, Internet of Things (IoT) devices, as well as virtual reality (VR) devices, augmented reality (AR) devices, wireless terminals in industrial control, wireless terminals in vehicle-to-everything (V2X) communication, wireless terminals in self-driving vehicles, wireless terminals in remote medical surgery, wireless terminals in smart grids, wireless terminals in transportation safety, wireless terminals in smart cities, or wireless terminals in smart homes. For example, wireless terminals in V2X communication can be in-vehicle equipment, vehicle-mounted equipment, in-vehicle modules, vehicles, etc. Wireless terminals in industrial control can be cameras, robots, etc. Wireless terminals in smart homes can be televisions, air conditioners, robot vacuums, speakers, set-top boxes, etc.

[0121] In this embodiment, the device for implementing the functions of the terminal device can be the terminal device itself, or it can be any device capable of supporting the terminal device in implementing those functions, such as a chip system. This device can be installed in or used in conjunction with the terminal device. In this embodiment, the chip system can be composed of chips or may include chips and other discrete components. This embodiment only uses the terminal device as an example to illustrate the device for implementing the functions of the terminal device, and does not constitute a limitation on the solution of this embodiment.

[0122] The network device in this application embodiment is a means deployed in a radio access network to provide wireless communication functions for terminal devices. It can refer to a radio access network (RAN) node (or device) or base station that connects the terminal device to the wireless network. Currently, some common examples of access network nodes (or devices) include: Node B (NB), evolved Node B (eNB or eNodeB), generation node B (gNB) in 5G NR systems, nodes in future communication systems (e.g., xNodeB), transmission reception point (TRP), transmitting point (TP), transmission measurement function (TMF), radio network controller (RNC), base station controller (BSC), base transceiver station (BTS), access point (AP), etc. Furthermore, in network architectures such as cloud radio access network (CloudRAN) or open radio access network (ORAN), the access network device can be a device including CU and / or DU. In the RAN system, which includes CUs and DUs, the protocol layers of gNBs are separated. Some protocol layer functions are centrally controlled by the CU, while the remaining functions are distributed in the DU, which is centrally controlled by the CU. This separation of CUs and DUs can be based on the protocol stack. For example, one possible separation method is to deploy the RRC, Service Data Adaptation Protocol (SDAP), and Packet Data Convergence Protocol (PDCP) layers in the CU, and the remaining Radio Link Control (RLC), Media Access Control (MAC), and Physical (PHY) layers in the DU. CUs and DUs are connected via the F1 interface. A CU, representing its associated gNB, connects to the core network via the NG interface, and a CU, representing its associated gNB, connects to other gNBs (or other CUs) via the Xn interface. In actual RAN deployments, in addition to the logical gNBs composed of CUs and DUs, the RAN equipment also includes RUs (not shown in the diagram).An RU is a hardware unit that includes some PHY layer functionality and / or antenna equipment. Optionally, the RU can be configured to be independent of the antenna equipment (e.g., an antenna line device (ALD)) or integrated with the antenna equipment. For example, in a 5G NR system, the aforementioned RU can be an active antenna unit (AAU), which is a processing unit that integrates a remote radio unit (RRU) (or remote radio head (RRH)) and antenna equipment.

[0123] It should be noted that in practical applications, there may be multiple ways to deploy access network devices, and this application does not limit them.

[0124] In some examples, the CU can be split into control plane CU nodes (central unit-control plane (CU-CP)) and user plane CU nodes (central unit-user plane (CU-UP)). The CU-CP is a logical node carrying the RRC layer and the PDCP-C (control plane part of PDCP) layer, used to implement the CU's control plane functions. The CU-CP can interact with network elements in the core network used to implement control plane functions. These network elements in the core network can be access and mobility function (AMF) network elements, such as the access and mobility management function (AMF) in a 5G system. The AMF network element is responsible for mobility management in the mobile network, such as terminal device location updates, terminal device registration with the network, and terminal device handover. The CU-UP is a logical node carrying the SDAP layer and the PDCP-U (user plane part of PDCP) layer, used to implement the CU's user plane functions. The CU-UP can interact with network elements in the core network used to implement user plane functions. In the core network, network elements used to implement user plane functions, such as the user plane function (UPF) in a 5G system, are responsible for forwarding and receiving data in terminal devices. The above configuration of CU and DU is merely an example; the functions of CU and DU can be configured as needed. For example, CU or DU can be configured to have more protocol layer functions, or to have only some protocol layer processing functions. For instance, some RLC layer functions and protocol layer functions above the RLC layer can be placed in the CU, while the remaining RLC layer functions and protocol layer functions below the RLC layer can be placed in the DU. Furthermore, the functions of CU or DU can be divided according to service type or other system requirements, such as by latency, placing functions that need to meet low latency requirements in the DU and functions that do not need to meet such latency requirements in the CU.

[0125] In some examples, the DU is a logical node that carries the RLC layer, MAC layer, higher physical layer (HigherPHY) layer, and other functions. In some examples, the DU can control at least one RU. The DU connects to the RU through interfaces, which can be fronthaul interfaces. In some examples, the Higher PHY layer includes the PHY layer processing, such as forward error correction (FEC) encoding and decoding, scrambling, modulation, and demodulation.

[0126] In some examples, the RU is a logical node that carries both lower physical layer (PHY) and radio frequency (RF) processing. In some examples, the RU can be a 3GPP TRP or RRH or other similar entity. In some examples, the Low-PHY includes PHY processing functions such as Fast Fourier Transform (FFT), Inverse Fast Fourier Transform (IFFT), digital beamforming, and filtering. The RU communicates with one or more UEs via a radio link.

[0127] The DU and RU can be co-located or not. The DU and RU exchange control plane and user plane information via a lower-layer split-control, user, and synchronization (LLS-CUS) interface through a fronthaul link. LLS-CUS may include LLS-C and LLS-U interfaces that provide the control plane (C-Plane) and user plane (U-Plane), respectively. In some examples, the control plane (C-Plane) refers to real-time control between the DU and RU. The DU and RU exchange management information via an LLS-M interface on the fronthaul link; the management plane (M-Plane) refers to non-real-time management operations between the DU and RU.

[0128] DU and RU can cooperate to implement the functions of the PHY layer. A DU can be connected to one or more RUs. The functions of DU and RU can be configured in various ways depending on the design. For example, a DU can be configured to implement baseband functions, and an RU can be configured to implement mid-RF functions. Another example is that a DU can be configured to implement higher-level functions in the PHY layer, and an RU can be configured to implement lower-level functions in the PHY layer, or to implement both lower-level and RF functions. Higher-level functions in the physical layer can include a portion of the physical layer's functions that are closer to the MAC layer, while lower-level functions in the physical layer can include another portion of the physical layer's functions that are closer to the mid-RF side.

[0129] In different systems, CU (or CU-CP and CU-UP), DU, or RU may have different names, but those skilled in the art will understand their meaning. For example, in an ORAN system, CU can also be called O-CU (open CU), DU can also be called O-DU, CU-CP can also be called O-CU-CP, CU-UP can also be called O-CU-UP, and RU can also be called O-RU. For ease of description, this application uses CU, CU-CP, CU-UP, DU, and RU as examples.

[0130] In this embodiment, the apparatus for implementing the functions of a network device can be a network device itself, or an apparatus capable of supporting the network device in implementing those functions (e.g., a chip system, hardware circuit, software module, or hardware circuit plus software module). This apparatus can be installed in the network device or used in conjunction with the network device. In this embodiment, only the apparatus for implementing the functions of an access network device is described as a network device, and this does not constitute a limitation on the solutions of this embodiment.

[0131] It should be noted that network devices and / or terminal devices can be deployed on land, including indoors or outdoors, handheld or vehicle-mounted; they can also be deployed on water; and they can also be deployed in the air on airplanes, balloons, and satellites. This application does not limit the scenario in which the network devices and terminal devices are located. Furthermore, terminal devices and network devices can be hardware devices; they can also be software functions running on dedicated or general-purpose hardware, such as virtualization functions instantiated on a platform (e.g., a cloud platform); or they can be entities that include dedicated or general-purpose hardware devices and software functions. This application does not limit the specific form of terminal devices and network devices.

[0132] For ease of understanding, the technical terms involved in the embodiments of this application are briefly introduced below:

[0133] (1) Communication and sensing integration: Communication and sensing integration is a technology that deeply integrates the two functions of communication and sensing. By optimizing the system's signal design, resource allocation, and processing algorithms, the system can sense and monitor the surrounding environment or target while transmitting information, thereby achieving collaborative work and resource sharing between the two functions of communication and sensing, improving the overall performance and efficiency of the system, and meeting the dual needs of communication and sensing in various application scenarios.

[0134] (2) Sensing Node: A network node in a wireless network that participates in the sensing service process, including sensing network elements, sensing devices (including base stations and terminal devices), and other network elements that are enhanced to support network sensing capabilities.

[0135] (3) Perception Area: Also known as the Region of Interest (ROI), it usually refers to the area to be perceived and measured, as determined by the central node. The perception area typically includes the perception target. The perception target refers to the target objects in the environment, such as buildings, vehicles, or other objects.

[0136] (4) Sensing target: can be any tangible object in the environment that can reflect electromagnetic waves, such as mountains, forests or buildings, and can also include mobile objects such as vehicles, drones, pedestrians, and terminal devices. The target can also be called the sensed target, the detected target, the sensed object, the detected object or the sensed device, etc., which are not limited in the embodiments of this application.

[0137] (5) Sensing signal: refers to the radio frequency signal used to sense the environment or sense the target. SS can be a sensing reference signal (SERS), a positioning reference signal (PRS), or a sounding reference signal (SRS), etc. The sensing signal can be transmitted in the form of a beam.

[0138] (6) Echo signal (ES): refers to the signal after the sensing signal is transmitted, reflected or scattered. The sensing result can be determined by measuring the echo signal. The echo signal can be received by beam.

[0139] (7) Configuration and Pre-configuration: In this application, both configuration and pre-configuration are used. Configuration refers to the network device / server sending configuration information or parameter values ​​to the terminal via messages or signaling, so that the terminal can determine communication parameters or resources for transmission based on these values ​​or information. Pre-configuration is similar to configuration; it can be parameter information or parameter values ​​negotiated in advance between the network device / server and the terminal device, or it can be parameter information or parameter values ​​used by the base station / network device or terminal device as specified in standard protocols, or it can be parameter information or parameter values ​​pre-stored in the base station / server or terminal device. This application does not limit this.

[0140] Furthermore, these values ​​and parameters can be changed or updated.

[0141] (8) The terms "system" and "network" in the embodiments of this application can be used interchangeably. "Multiple" refers to two or more. "And / or" describes the relationship between related objects, indicating that there can be three relationships. For example, A and / or B can mean: A exists alone, A and B exist simultaneously, or B exists alone, where A and B can be singular or plural. The character " / " generally indicates that the related objects before and after are in an "or" relationship. "At least one of the following" or similar expressions refer to any combination of these items, including any combination of single or plural items. For example, "at least one of A, B and C" includes A, B, C, AB, AC, BC or ABC. And, unless otherwise specified, the ordinal numbers such as "first" and "second" mentioned in the embodiments of this application are used to distinguish multiple objects and are not used to limit the order, sequence, priority or importance of multiple objects.

[0142] (9) In the embodiments of this application, "send" and "receive" indicate the direction of signal transmission. For example, "send information to XX" can be understood as the destination of the information being XX, which may include sending directly through the air interface or sending indirectly through the air interface by other units or modules. "Receive information from YY" can be understood as the source of the information being YY, which may include receiving directly from YY through the air interface or receiving indirectly from YY through the air interface by other units or modules. "Send" can also be understood as the "output" of the chip interface, and "receive" can also be understood as the "input" of the chip interface.

[0143] In other words, sending and receiving can occur between devices, such as between network devices and terminal devices, or within a device, such as between components, modules, chips, software modules, or hardware modules within the device via buses, wiring, or interfaces.

[0144] It is understandable that information may undergo necessary processing, such as encoding and modulation, between the source and destination, but the destination can understand the valid information from the source. Similar statements in this application can be interpreted in a similar way and will not be elaborated further.

[0145] (10) In the embodiments of this application, "instruction" may include direct instruction and indirect instruction, as well as explicit instruction and implicit instruction. The information indicated by a certain piece of information (as described below, the instruction information) is called the information to be instructed. In the specific implementation process, there are many ways to indicate the information to be instructed, such as, but not limited to, directly indicating the information to be instructed, such as the information to be instructed itself or its index. It can also indirectly indicate the information to be instructed by indicating other information, where there is an association between the other information and the information to be instructed; or it can only indicate a part of the information to be instructed, while the other parts of the information to be instructed are known or pre-agreed upon. For example, the instruction of specific information can be achieved by using a pre-agreed (e.g., protocol pre-defined or pre-configured) arrangement order of various information, thereby reducing the instruction overhead to a certain extent. This application does not limit the specific method of instruction. It is understood that for the sender of the instruction information, the instruction information can be used to indicate the information to be instructed; for the receiver of the instruction information, the instruction information can be used to determine the information to be instructed.

[0146] In this application, unless otherwise specified, the same or similar parts between the various embodiments can be referred to each other. In the various embodiments of this application, and the various methods / designs / implementations within each embodiment, unless otherwise specified or logically conflicting, the terminology and / or descriptions between different embodiments and between the various methods / designs / implementations within each embodiment are consistent and can be mutually referenced. The technical features in different embodiments and the various methods / designs / implementations within each embodiment can be combined to form new embodiments, methods, or implementations based on their inherent logical relationships. The following descriptions of the embodiments of this application do not constitute a limitation on the scope of protection of this application.

[0147] The communication method provided in this application embodiment can be applied to, for example... Figures 1A to 1D The communication system shown.

[0148] Please see Figure 1A This is a schematic diagram of the architecture of the communication system 1000 used in an embodiment of this application. Figure 1A As shown, the communication system may include a radio access network (RAN) 100. Optionally, the communication system 1000 may also include a core network 200 and an Internet 300. The RAN 100 includes at least one RAN node (e.g., Figure 1A 110a and 110b, collectively referred to as 110, may also include at least one terminal (such as...). Figure 1A RAN100, denoted as RAN100, comprises RAN nodes 120a-120j, collectively referred to as RAN120. RAN100 may also include other RAN nodes, such as wireless relay equipment and / or wireless backhaul equipment. Figure 1A (Not shown in the image). Terminal 120 connects wirelessly to RAN node 110, and RAN node 110 connects wirelessly or via a wired connection to core network 200. The core network equipment in core network 200 and RAN node 110 in RAN 100 can be independent physical devices, or they can be the same physical device integrating the logical functions of core network equipment and RAN nodes. Terminals can connect to each other, and RAN nodes can connect to each other, via wired or wireless connections.

[0149] The communication method provided in this application embodiment can be applied to joint sensing scenarios, which refer to multiple sensing nodes sensing the same sensing area, and then multiple sensing nodes sending multiple determined sensing results to a sensing network element, which then fuses the multiple sensing results to reduce the uncertainty of sensing and improve sensing performance.

[0150] The joint sensing scenario can be a dual-base joint sensing scenario, a single-base joint sensing scenario, or a hybrid dual-base and single-base joint sensing scenario. A dual-base joint sensing scenario refers to a transceiver-transmitter joint sensing scenario, where the transmitter of the sensing signal and the receiver of the echo signal are not the same communication device. A single-base joint sensing scenario refers to a transceiver-integrated joint sensing scenario, where the transmitter of the sensing signal and the receiver of the echo signal belong to the same communication device; a single-base joint sensing scenario can also be called a self-sensing scenario. A hybrid dual-base and single-base joint sensing scenario refers to a scenario in which the communication devices participating in the joint sensing include both transceiver-integrated and transceiver-separated communication devices.

[0151] by Figure 1A Taking the communication system shown as an example, different devices (including network devices to network devices, network devices to terminal devices, and / or terminal devices to terminal devices) perform communication-related services. For example, Figure 1B As shown, when a sensing element used to implement sensing network functions triggers a sensing process, it can notify multiple sensing devices to participate in sensing. The sensing modes used by each sensing device may be the same or different. The sensing resources used in the sensing process can be either mutually orthogonal (i.e., non-shared resource mode) ensured by a protocol, or configured with the same sensing resources (i.e., shared resource mode). The above process depends on the configuration of the sensing element.

[0152] like Figure 1CAs shown, sensing devices can include a combination of multiple base stations and terminal devices. Base stations, as the core resource of the communication system, possess powerful signal transmission and reception capabilities, enabling high-precision spatial positioning and real-time signal processing. Terminal devices, as widely distributed terminals, can be flexibly deployed in different spatial locations, providing more detailed sensing data. The resources of base stations and terminal devices can be combined according to different task requirements to form different sensing and imaging configurations.

[0153] The communication method provided in this application can be applied to integrated communication and sensing scenarios, such as... Figure 1D As shown, network devices and terminal devices in a communication network can sense objects that do not have communication capabilities while communicating with each other.

[0154] The sensing modes included in the communication method provided in this application embodiment can be as follows: Figure 2 As shown, the sensing modes include base station self-transmission and self-reception, terminal device self-transmission and self-reception, base station A transmitting and base station B receiving, terminal device A transmitting and terminal device B receiving, base station transmitting and terminal device receiving, and terminal device transmitting and base station receiving. Among them, as... Figure 3 As shown, network devices such as base stations and terminal devices can communicate via an air interface. As described above, the devices used to send and receive sensing signals in the communication system can be terminal devices or network devices, and the devices sending and receiving sensing signals can be the same device or different devices; this application embodiment does not impose any restrictions.

[0155] The communication method provided in this application embodiment can be implemented through the interaction of a first communication device and a second communication device. The first communication device can be a communication device for receiving and sending information and capable of realizing sensing configuration and management functions, or a communication device capable of supporting the functions required by the communication device to implement the communication method, such as a chip. Exemplarily, the first communication device is a sensing network element, or a chip disposed in a sensing network element for implementing the functions of the sensing network element, or other components for implementing the functions of the sensing network element. In the following description, the example of the first communication device being a sensing network element will be used. The second communication device can be a communication device for data exchange and communication, or a communication device capable of supporting the functions required by the communication device to implement the communication method, such as a chip. Exemplarily, the second communication device is a terminal device / network device, or a chip disposed in a terminal device / network device for implementing the functions of the terminal device / network device, or other components for implementing the functions of the terminal device / network device. In the following description, the example of the second communication device being a terminal device / network device will be used.

[0156] like Figure 4As shown, the communication method provided in this application embodiment includes:

[0157] S401. The first communication device sends a first sensing instruction to the second communication device, and correspondingly, the second communication device receives the first sensing instruction from the first communication device.

[0158] In this application, the first communication device is a sensing network element, or a communication device capable of realizing functions such as sensing control and sensing computing, which can manage other sensing devices in the communication system.

[0159] In this application, the number of second communication devices can be one or more. When there are multiple second communication devices, the first communication device can issue a first sensing instruction to each second communication device, instructing each second communication device to sense the sensing area.

[0160] In this application, the first sensing instruction includes sensing parameters, which include at least one of broadband size, beamwidth, transmit power, and the first sensing region.

[0161] In this application, the bandwidth refers to the bandwidth of the wireless signal transmitted by the second communication device. The larger the bandwidth, the more information the wireless signal can carry, thereby improving the perception resolution. The beamwidth determines the radiation range and directionality of the wireless signal in space. The narrower the beamwidth, the higher the perception resolution, and the narrower the beamwidth, the more accurately it can point to the target. The transmission power refers to the power intensity of the wireless signal transmitted by the second communication device. Increasing the transmission power can increase the strength of the received signal and improve the signal-to-noise ratio, thereby enabling the second communication device to better extract signal features and thus improve the perception resolution.

[0162] In this application, the first sensing area may be constituted by the entire communication coverage area of ​​the second communication device, or it may be an area specified by the first communication device within the entire communication coverage area of ​​the second communication device. If there are multiple second communication devices, the first sensing area may include the sum of the communication coverage areas of the multiple second communication devices.

[0163] In this application, the sensing parameters are used to determine the initial sensing resolution, and the initial sensing resolution and the first sensing area are used to determine the grid size of the first sensing grid.

[0164] In this application, the perception resolution determines the smallest detail feature of the perceived target that the second communication device can distinguish. When the perception resolution is higher, the features of the perceived target are clearer and more accurate, that is, the perception accuracy is higher. Conversely, when the perception resolution is lower, the features of the perceived target are coarser, that is, the perception accuracy is lower.

[0165] In this application, a higher sensing resolution requires a smaller grid to scan the area, while a larger sensing area necessitates a corresponding increase in the size of the sensing grid. Therefore, the size of the first sensing grid is determined by both the initial sensing resolution and the size of the first sensing area.

[0166] In this application, after receiving the first sensing instruction, the second communication device sends a sensing signal to the first sensing area according to the content of the first sensing instruction.

[0167] In this application, the sensing signal can be a signal used to acquire scene information of the sensing target or sensing area. Information about the sensing target or area can be obtained by measuring, processing, and analyzing the signal data of the sensing signal. The signal type of the sensing signal can include millimeter-wave signals, microwave signals, infrared signals, laser signals, etc., and is not limited thereto.

[0168] In this application, the sensing mode of the second communication device may include the second communication device automatically transmitting and receiving sensing signals to obtain information about the sensing target; or one second communication device transmitting a sensing signal, and another second communication device receiving and measuring relevant data from the sensing signal to obtain information about the sensing target; or the second communication device transmitting and receiving signals multiple times during movement, and obtaining information about the sensing target by measuring these signals. The sensing mode of the second communication device is not limited here. For ease of explanation, this application embodiment uses the second communication device automatically transmitting and receiving sensing signals to obtain information about the sensing target as an application scenario.

[0169] S402. The second communication device sends a first sensing result to the first communication device, and correspondingly, the first communication device receives the first sensing result from the second communication device.

[0170] In this application, the first sensing result is obtained by the second communication device based on the measurement data of the echo signal of the sensing signal after the second communication device receives the echo signal. After the second communication device obtains the measurement data of the echo signal, it performs signal processing and analysis on the measurement data to obtain the first sensing result.

[0171] In this application, if the second communication device does not obtain the first sensing result, that is, if the second communication device does not obtain the information of the sensing target when performing preliminary sensing in the first sensing area, the second communication device will not report the first sensing result or will report the information that the sensing target was not identified to the first communication device.

[0172] In this application, the first perception result includes at least one of the following: the position, speed of movement, structural information, shape, category, material, signal-to-noise ratio, and radar cross section (RCS) of the perceived target.

[0173] In this application, the position of the sensing target can be obtained by measuring the time interval between the signal being sent and received after being reflected by the sensing target, thus obtaining the distance between the sensing target and the second communication device. Furthermore, the azimuth and elevation angles of the sensing target relative to the second communication device can be calculated by measuring the phase difference or time difference of the sensing signal arriving at different antennas, thereby obtaining the angular position of the sensing target.

[0174] In this application, the second communication device can calculate the radial velocity of the sensing target based on the Doppler effect. When the sensing target moves, the frequency of the reflected signal changes. Therefore, the moving speed of the sensing target can be calculated by analyzing the frequency offset of the received signal.

[0175] In this application, the structural information of the perceived target can be obtained by using technologies such as synthetic aperture radar (SAR) to process sensing signals from multiple different locations and synthesize a high-resolution target image. By moving the SAR platform and transmitting and receiving signals at different locations, and processing the signal coherence, two-dimensional or three-dimensional structural images of the perceived target can be obtained.

[0176] In this application, the second communication device can also transmit multi-frequency or broadband signals. Different frequencies of signals have different scattering characteristics on the target. By analyzing the scattering of different frequency signals, detailed information about the target structure can be obtained.

[0177] In this application, the shape of the perceived target can be extracted from the contour information of the target based on the intensity distribution of the perceived signal. For example, in optical imaging, the target's shape contour can be obtained by analyzing the grayscale difference between the target and the background in an image and using edge detection algorithms. Alternatively, in radar imaging, the shape of the perceived target can be obtained based on the scattering intensity distribution of different parts of the target.

[0178] In this application, the second communication device can extract various features from the sensed signal, such as spectral features, texture features, and polarization features, and then use machine learning or deep learning algorithms to classify the sensed target. The first communication device can pre-train on a large number of target signals of known categories to establish a classification model. When the second communication device receives the signal features of a new sensed signal, it can predict the category of the sensed target through the model.

[0179] In this application, the material of the sensing target can be obtained by analyzing the spectral characteristics of the sensing signal. Objects of different materials have different absorption, reflection, and scattering characteristics for light or electromagnetic waves of different wavelengths. The second communication device can determine the material of the sensing target by analyzing its spectral reflectance curve.

[0180] In this application, the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) of the sensed target refers to the ratio of signal power to noise power. By analyzing the power spectral density of the sensed signal and estimating the signal power and noise power, the received signal can typically be divided in the frequency domain.

[0181] In this application, the radar cross section (RCS) of a sensing target is a physical quantity that measures the target's ability to scatter radar waves. It is related to factors such as the target's size, shape, material, electromagnetic properties, and the frequency and angle of incidence of the radar waves. A response model of the measurement system can be established by measuring and calibrating a standard target with a known RCS. Then, the sensing target is measured, and the intensity of the received signal is compared with the measurement results of the standard target. Combining this with the parameters of the measurement system and information such as the target's distance, the RCS of the sensing target is calculated.

[0182] In this application, after the first communication device receives the first sensing result from the second communication device, it determines which areas within the first sensing area need to be prioritized for sensing based on the magnitude of the first sensing result, i.e., which parts within the first sensing area constitute the second sensing area. For example, the first communication device can determine the magnitude of the first sensing result by setting a first threshold. When the magnitude of the first sensing result is greater than the first threshold, the area corresponding to the first sensing result is considered to need to be prioritized for sensing, and this area is then designated as the second sensing area. The first threshold can be configured by the superior communication device and sent to the first communication device via signaling, or it can be pre-configured by the first communication device before leaving the factory, or it can be predefined, or it can be set by the first communication device itself based on historical parameters. The method of setting the first and second thresholds is not limited here.

[0183] In this context, configuration refers to the process where a higher-level communication device sends configuration information or parameter values ​​to a first communication device via messages or signaling. This allows the first communication device to determine communication parameters or transmission resources based on these values ​​or information. Pre-configured content typically refers to information pre-recorded / written into the hardware and / or software of the first communication device itself, determined by the manufacturer and modifiable through software or hardware. Predefined content typically refers to standard-defined information that does not require configuration from other devices, pre-recorded / written into the hardware and / or software of the first communication device, or information that cannot be modified by network devices or other terminal devices. Pre-configuration can be performed by the network through system information blocks (SIBs) or RRC signaling.

[0184] In this application, the size of the second sensing area is smaller than the size of the first sensing area, and the second sensing area is contained within the first sensing area, which is the key sensing area confirmed by the first sensing result.

[0185] S403. The first communication device sends a second sensing instruction to the second communication device, and correspondingly, the second communication device receives the second sensing instruction from the first communication device.

[0186] In this application, the second sensing instruction includes sensing parameters, which include at least one of broadband size, beamwidth, and transmit power.

[0187] In this application, the perception parameters in the second perception instruction are used to determine the perception resolution of the key perception, which is greater than the perception resolution of the preliminary perception. That is, the perception accuracy of the key perception is greater than the perception accuracy of the preliminary perception, and the features of the perceived target obtained in the key perception are more detailed than the features of the perceived target obtained in the preliminary perception.

[0188] Therefore, the bandwidth in the second sensing command is greater than the bandwidth in the first sensing command, or the beamwidth in the second sensing command is less than the beamwidth in the first sensing command, or the transmit power in the second sensing command is greater than the transmit power in the first sensing command.

[0189] In this application, the second sensing instruction also includes the second sensing area determined in S402. The second sensing area is determined by the first communication device based on the first sensing result. The second sensing area includes the sensing target and is an area that needs to be sensed.

[0190] In this application, after receiving the second sensing command, the second communication device performs a fine scan of the second sensing area with a higher resolution, thereby obtaining a second sensing result with higher imaging accuracy.

[0191] S404. The second communication device sends a second sensing result to the first communication device, and correspondingly, the first communication device receives the second sensing result from the second communication device.

[0192] In this application, the second sensing result includes at least one of the following: the position, speed of movement, structural information, shape, category, material, signal-to-noise ratio, and radar cross section (RCS) of the sensing target.

[0193] In this way, the first communication device instructs the second communication device to perform sensing at different resolutions through two sensing commands. Only when the second sensing area that needs to be focused on is identified is the second communication device instructed to perform high-resolution focused sensing. This allows the sensing (communication) system to dynamically adjust the sensing resolution according to specific needs, reducing the waste of resources caused by using high-resolution imaging for the entire sensing area. It also improves the efficiency of bandwidth and beam resources of the second communication device in transmitting sensing signals. Furthermore, using high-resolution small-grid sensing in the key sensing area can yield more accurate sensing results.

[0194] In one possible embodiment, the first communication device obtains a final perception result based on a first perception result and a second perception result, including: fusing the second perception result with the first perception result within a first perception area to obtain the final perception result.

[0195] In this application, the first communication device can achieve fusion of the second perception result and the first perception result by using the second perception result to cover the features of the second perception region within the first perception region in the first perception result. For example, the first communication device can achieve fusion by finding the position corresponding to the second perception region within the first perception region and replacing the first perception result at the corresponding position with the second perception result, or it can achieve fusion by weighted summation of the two perception results. This application does not limit the method of fusion between the first and second perception results.

[0196] Through the above embodiments, the first communication device can improve the accuracy of the final perception result by fusing two perception results with different resolutions, and reduce the computing resources and bandwidth requirements of the communication system for perception. Under the premise of improving the comprehensiveness and accuracy of the final imaging result, the perception efficiency and perception imaging accuracy of the communication system are improved.

[0197] In one possible implementation, such as Figure 5 As shown, the communication method provided in this application also includes:

[0198] S501. The second communication device sends a sensing signal to the first sensing area.

[0199] In this application, the second communication device uses a larger grid scanning method to perform preliminary sensing of the entire area of ​​the communication coverage, i.e., the first sensing area, wherein the sensing resolution in the larger grid is relatively small.

[0200] S502. The second communication device receives the echo signal.

[0201] In this application, the echo signal is a wireless signal that is a sensor signal reflected or scattered by the target.

[0202] S503. The second communication device obtains the first sensing result based on the echo signal.

[0203] In this application, the second communication device can obtain the first sensing result by acquiring information such as the strength, time difference, phase difference, and Doppler frequency shift of the wireless signal.

[0204] S504. The second communication device sends a sensing signal to the second sensing area.

[0205] In this application, the second sensing area is determined based on the first sensing result. The specific implementation is as described in S402 above and will not be repeated here. In S504, the bandwidth of the sensing signal transmitted by the second communication device is greater than the bandwidth of the sensing signal transmitted by the second communication device in S501; or the beamwidth of the sensing signal transmitted by the second communication device in S504 is less than the beamwidth of the sensing signal transmitted by the second communication device in S501; or the transmission power of the sensing signal transmitted by the second communication device in S504 is greater than the transmission power of the sensing signal transmitted by the second communication device in S501. These details will not be repeated here.

[0206] S505. The second communication device receives the echo signal.

[0207] In this application, the perception resolution in the initial perception (S501) is less than the perception resolution in the key perception (S504).

[0208] S506. The second communication device obtains the second sensing result based on the echo signal.

[0209] In the above manner, the second communication device can focus on sensing the key area within the first sensing area, i.e. the second sensing area, according to the two instructions from the first communication device, thereby obtaining a more accurate sensing and imaging result. In the initial sensing, due to the smaller sensing resolution, the sensing calculation rate of the second communication device can be reduced, thereby improving the sensing speed of the second communication device and reducing the computational complexity of the communication system.

[0210] The application example diagram of the communication method provided in the embodiments of this application can be seen as follows: Figure 6 As shown. Communication methods can be applied to Figure 6The communication system includes a sensing network element and three base stations, BS1, BS2, and BS3. The sensing network element first instructs base stations BS1, BS2, and BS3 to perform preliminary sensing (large-grid sensing imaging) within their respective signal coverage areas, and then sends the sensing results back to the sensing network element. Based on the preliminary sensing results, the sensing network element identifies the key sensing area of ​​the building, and then instructs base station BS3, whose signal coverage area includes this area, to perform focused sensing (small-grid fine sensing imaging) within that key sensing area. BS3 then sends the second sensing result back to the sensing network element. The sensing network element can then fuse the two sensing results to obtain the final sensing result.

[0211] In the above embodiments, the sensing network element in the communication system, through an adaptive sensing mechanism, first instructs the base station or terminal equipment to use low resolution to perform a rough sensing of the entire sensing area by adjusting the bandwidth, beamwidth, or signal transmission power. This allows for a rapid scan to obtain the overall structure and basic location of the sensing target (building) within the sensing area. Based on the preliminary sensing results, the sensing network element determines which areas are key areas by setting thresholds and instructs the base station to perform high-resolution sensing of these key areas. This improves the accuracy of the sensing results while saving sensing resources in the communication system, thereby increasing the resource utilization and sensing efficiency of the communication system.

[0212] The communication system and communication method in the embodiments of this application have been described above. The communication device provided in the embodiments of this application will be described below.

[0213] Please see Figure 7 This application provides an O-RAN system architecture. This system can implement the functions of the first or second communication device in the above method embodiments, and therefore also achieves the beneficial effects of the above method embodiments.

[0214] As shown in the figure, the access network equipment (RAN, such as eNB, gNB, or next-generation access network equipment) communicates with the core network (CN) through the backhaul link and with the user equipment (UE) through the air interface.

[0215] Specifically, the baseband unit (BBU) in the access network equipment communicates with the core network via a backhaul link, and the radio unit (RU) in the access network equipment communicates with at least one UE via an air interface. The BBU communicates with at least one RU via a fronthaul link. The BBU and RU may or may not be co-located.

[0216] The BBU includes at least one control unit (CU) and at least one distributed unit (DU), which can communicate via at least one midhaul link.

[0217] Please see Figure 8 This application provides another O-RAN system architecture.

[0218] In some examples, the CU is a logical node carrying the radio resource control (RRC) layer, service data adaptation protocol (SDAP) layer, packet data convergence protocol (PDCP) layer, and other control functions of the access network equipment. The CU connects to network nodes such as the core network through interfaces, which can be interfaces such as E2 interfaces. Optionally, the CU may have some core network functions. The CU (e.g., PDCP layer and higher layers) connects to the DU (e.g., RLC layer and lower layers) through interfaces, which can be interfaces such as F1 interfaces. In some examples, these interfaces (e.g., F1 interfaces) can provide control plane (C-Plane) and user plane (U-Plane) functions (e.g., interface management, system information management, UE context management, RRC message transmission, etc.). F1AP is the application protocol of the F1 interface, defining the F1 signaling procedures in some examples. The F1 interface supports control plane F1-C and user plane F1-U.

[0219] In some examples, the CU can be split into CU-CP (control unit-control plane) and CU-UP (control unit-user plane). CU-CP is a logical node carrying the RRC layer and PDCP-C (control plane part of PDCP) layer, used to implement the CU's control plane functions. CU-CP can interact with network elements in the core network used to implement control plane functions. These network elements in the core network can be access and mobility function (AMF) network elements, such as the access and mobility management function (AMF) in a 5G system. The AMF network element is responsible for mobility management in the mobile network, such as terminal device location updates, terminal device registration with the network, and terminal device handover. CU-UP is a logical node carrying the SDAP layer and PDCP-U (user plane part of PDCP) layer, used to implement the CU's user plane functions. CU-UP can interact with network elements in the core network used to implement user plane functions. These network elements in the core network, such as the UPF (User Plane Function) in a 5G system, are responsible for data forwarding and receiving in terminal devices. The above CU and DU configurations are merely examples; the functions of the CU and DU can be configured as needed. For instance, the CU or DU can be configured to have more protocol layer functions, or only some protocol layer processing functions. For example, some RLC layer functions and protocol layer functions above the RLC layer can be placed in the CU, while the remaining RLC layer functions and protocol layer functions below the RLC layer can be placed in the DU. Furthermore, the functions of the CU or DU can be divided according to service type or other system requirements, such as by latency. Functions that require low latency can be placed in the DU, while functions that do not require low latency can be placed in the CU.

[0220] In some examples, a DU is a logical node that carries the radio link control (RLC) layer, medium access control (MAC) layer, higher physical layer (Higher PHY) layer, and other functions. In some examples, a DU can control at least one RU. The DU connects to the RU through interfaces, which can be fronthaul interfaces.

[0221] In some examples, the CU may not have a PDCP layer, i.e., it only includes the RRC layer. CU-CP does not have PDCP-C. CU-UP may not have PDCP-U, or may not have CU-UP at all. In some examples, the DU may not have an RLC layer, only a MAC and a higher PHY layer. Furthermore, in some examples, it may not have a CU and may only include the DU.

[0222] In some examples, the Higher PHY layer includes the PHY layer processing, such as forward error correction (FEC) encoding and decoding, scrambling, modulation, and demodulation. In some examples, the RU is a logical node carrying both lower physical layer (Lower PHY) and radio frequency (RF) processing. In some examples, the RU can be a 3GPP transmission reception point (TRP), a remote radio head (RRH), or other similar entities. In some examples, the Low-PHY includes the PHY processing, such as fast fourier transform (FFT), inverse fast fourier transform (IFFT), digital beamforming, and filtering. The RU communicates with one or more UEs via a radio link.

[0223] The DU and RU can be co-located or separate. The DU and RU exchange control plane and user plane information via a lower-layer Split CUS-Plane (LLS-CUS) interface through a fronthaul link. LLS-CUS may include LLS-C and LLS-U interfaces providing the control plane (C-Plane) and user plane (U-Plane), respectively. In some examples, the control plane (C-Plane) refers to real-time control between the DU and RU. The DU and RU exchange management information via an LLS-M interface on the fronthaul link; the management plane (M-Plane) refers to non-real-time management operations between the DU and RU. The DU and RU can cooperate to implement PHY layer functions. A DU can be connected to one or more RUs. The functions of the DU and RU can be configured in various ways depending on the design. For example, the DU may be configured to implement baseband functions, and the RU may be configured to implement mid-frequency functions. For example, DU is configured to implement higher-level functions in the PHY layer, and RU is configured to implement lower-level functions in the PHY layer, or to implement both lower-level functions and RF functions. Higher-level functions in the physical layer may include a portion of the physical layer's functions that are closer to the MAC layer, while lower-level functions in the physical layer may include another portion of the physical layer's functions that are closer to the mid-RF side.

[0224] Please see Figure 9 This application provides a communication device 900, which can realize the functions of the first or second communication device in the above method embodiments, and thus also achieve the beneficial effects of the above method embodiments. In this application embodiment, the communication device 900 can be the first or second communication device, or it can be an integrated circuit or component inside the first or second communication device, such as a chip, baseband chip, modem chip, SoC chip (e.g., an SoC chip containing a modem core), SIP chip, communication module, chip system, processor, etc.

[0225] It should be noted that the transceiver unit 902 can also be called a transceiver module, which may include a sending unit (also called a sending module) and / or a receiving unit (also called a receiving module), which are used to perform the sending and receiving operations in the embodiment, respectively.

[0226] In one possible implementation, when the device 900 is for performing Figure 4When the method executed by the first communication device in the relevant embodiments is implemented, the device 900 includes a processing unit 901 and a transceiver unit 902; the transceiver unit 902 is used to send a first sensing instruction to the second communication device; wherein, the first sensing instruction is used to instruct the second communication device to perform preliminary sensing within a first sensing area to obtain a first sensing result; the transceiver unit 902 is also used to send a second sensing instruction to the second communication device; wherein, the second sensing instruction is used to instruct the second communication device to perform focused sensing within a second sensing area to obtain a second sensing result, the sensing resolution of the preliminary sensing is smaller than the sensing resolution of the focused sensing, and the area size of the first sensing area is larger than the area size of the second sensing area; the processing unit 901 is used to obtain a final sensing result based on the first sensing result and the second sensing result.

[0227] In one possible implementation, when the device 900 is for performing Figure 4 When the second communication device executes the method in the relevant embodiments, the device 900 includes a processing unit 901 and a transceiver unit 902; the transceiver unit 902 is used to receive a first sensing instruction from the first communication device; wherein, the first sensing instruction is used to instruct the second communication device to perform preliminary sensing within a first sensing area to obtain a first sensing result; the transceiver unit 902 is also used to receive a second sensing instruction from the first communication device; wherein, the second sensing instruction is used to instruct the second communication device to perform focused sensing within a second sensing area to obtain a second sensing result, the sensing resolution of the preliminary sensing is smaller than the sensing resolution of the focused sensing, the area size of the first sensing area is larger than the area size of the second sensing area, and the first sensing result and the second sensing result are used by the first communication device to obtain a final sensing result.

[0228] In one possible design, when the communication device 900 is a terminal device or a communication module within a terminal, the function of the processing unit 901 can be implemented by one or more processors. Specifically, the processor may include a modem chip, a SoC chip (such as a SoC chip containing a modem core), or a SIP chip. The function of the transceiver unit 902 can be implemented by transceiver circuitry.

[0229] In one possible design, when the communication device 900 is a circuit or chip in a terminal responsible for communication functions, such as a modem chip, a SoC chip, or a SoC chip or SIP chip containing a modem core, the function of the processing unit 901 can be implemented by a circuit system in the aforementioned chip that includes one or more processors or processor cores. The function of the transceiver unit 902 can be implemented by the interface circuitry or data transceiver circuitry on the aforementioned chip.

[0230] It should be noted that the information execution process of the unit of the above-mentioned communication device 900 can be specifically described in the method embodiment shown above in this application, and will not be repeated here.

[0231] Please see Figure 10 This is another schematic structural diagram of the communication device 10000 provided in this application. The communication device 10000 includes a logic circuit 1001 and an input / output interface 1002. The communication device 10000 can be a chip or an integrated circuit.

[0232] in, Figure 9 The transceiver unit 902 shown can be a communication interface, which can be... Figure 10 The input / output interface 1002 may include an input interface and an output interface. Alternatively, the communication interface may also be a transceiver circuit, which may include an input interface circuit and an output interface circuit.

[0233] In one possible implementation, when the device 10000 is used for execution Figure 4 When the method executed by the first communication device in the relevant embodiments is implemented, the input / output interface 1002 is used to send a first sensing instruction to the second communication device; wherein, the first sensing instruction is used to instruct the second communication device to perform preliminary sensing within a first sensing area to obtain a first sensing result; the input / output interface 1002 is also used to send a second sensing instruction to the second communication device; wherein, the second sensing instruction is used to instruct the second communication device to perform focused sensing within a second sensing area to obtain a second sensing result, the sensing resolution of the preliminary sensing is smaller than the sensing resolution of the focused sensing, and the area size of the first sensing area is larger than the area size of the second sensing area; the logic circuit 1001 is used to obtain a final sensing result based on the first sensing result and the second sensing result.

[0234] In one possible implementation, when the device 10000 is used for execution Figure 4When the second communication device executes the method in the relevant embodiments, the input / output interface 1002 is used to receive a first sensing instruction from the first communication device; wherein, the first sensing instruction is used to instruct the second communication device to perform preliminary sensing within a first sensing area to obtain a first sensing result; the input / output interface 1002 is used to receive a second sensing instruction from the first communication device; wherein, the second sensing instruction is used to instruct the second communication device to perform focused sensing within a second sensing area to obtain a second sensing result, the sensing resolution of the preliminary sensing is smaller than the sensing resolution of the focused sensing, the area size of the first sensing area is larger than the area size of the second sensing area, and the first sensing result and the second sensing result are used by the first communication device to obtain a final sensing result.

[0235] The logic circuit 1001 and the input / output interface 1002 can also perform other steps performed by the first or second communication device in any embodiment and achieve corresponding beneficial effects, which will not be elaborated here.

[0236] In one possible implementation, Figure 9 The processing unit 901 shown can be Figure 10 The logic circuit 1001 in the middle.

[0237] Optionally, the logic circuit 1001 can be a processing device, the functions of which can be partially or entirely implemented in software.

[0238] Optionally, the processing apparatus may include a memory and a processor, wherein the memory is used to store a computer program, and the processor reads and executes the computer program stored in the memory to perform the corresponding processing and / or steps in any of the method embodiments.

[0239] Optionally, the processing device may consist of only a processor. Memory for storing computer programs is located outside the processing device, and the processor is connected to the memory via circuitry / wires to read and execute the computer programs stored in the memory. The memory and processor may be integrated together or physically independent of each other.

[0240] Optionally, the processing device may be one or more chips, or one or more integrated circuits. For example, the processing device may be one or more field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs), system on-chips (SoCs), central processing units (CPUs), network processors (NPs), digital signal processors (DSPs), microcontroller units (MCUs), programmable logic controllers (PLDs), or other integrated chips, or any combination of the above chips or processors.

[0241] Please see Figure 11 The communication device 1100 mentioned in the above embodiments provided for the purposes of this application can specifically be the communication device serving as a terminal device in the above embodiments. Figure 11 The example shown illustrates how a terminal device can be implemented through a terminal device (or a component within a terminal device).

[0242] The present invention provides a possible logical structure diagram of the communication device 1100, which may include, but is not limited to, at least one processor 1101 and a communication port 1102.

[0243] in, Figure 9 The transceiver unit 902 shown can be a communication interface, which can be... Figure 11 The communication port 1102 may include an input interface and an output interface. Alternatively, the communication port 1102 may also be a transceiver circuit, which may include an input interface circuit and an output interface circuit.

[0244] Further optionally, the device may also include at least one of a memory 1103 and a bus 1104. In the embodiments of this application, the at least one processor 1101 is used to control the operation of the communication device 1100.

[0245] Furthermore, the processor 1101 can be a central processing unit, a general-purpose processor, a digital signal processor, an application-specific integrated circuit, a field-programmable gate array, or other programmable logic devices, transistor logic devices, hardware components, or any combination thereof. It can implement or execute the various exemplary logic blocks, modules, and circuits described in conjunction with the disclosure of this application. The processor can also be a combination that implements computing functions, such as a combination of one or more microprocessors, a combination of a digital signal processor and a microprocessor, etc. Those skilled in the art will clearly understand that, for the sake of convenience and brevity, the specific working processes of the systems, devices, and units described above can be referred to the corresponding processes in the foregoing method embodiments, and will not be repeated here.

[0246] It should be noted that, Figure 11 The communication device 1100 shown can be used to implement the steps implemented by the terminal device in the aforementioned method embodiments, and to achieve the corresponding technical effects of the terminal device. Figure 11 The specific implementation of the terminal device shown can be referred to the description of the first or second communication device in the foregoing method embodiments, and will not be repeated here.

[0247] Please see Figure 12 The above-described embodiments of the communication device 1200, provided as an example of the present application, are structural schematic diagrams. Specifically, the communication device 1200 can be a network device as described in the above embodiments. Figure 12 The example shown illustrates a network device implemented through a network device (or a component within a network device). The structure of this communication device can be referenced. Figure 12 The structure shown.

[0248] The communication device 1200 includes at least one processor 1211 and at least one network interface 1214. Optionally, the communication device further includes at least one memory 1212, at least one transceiver 1213, and one or more antennas 1215. The processor 1211, memory 1212, transceiver 1213, and network interface 1214 are connected, for example, via a bus. In this embodiment, the connection may include various interfaces, transmission lines, or buses, etc., and this embodiment is not limited thereto. The antenna 1215 is connected to the transceiver 1213. The network interface 1214 enables the communication device to communicate with other communication devices through a communication link. For example, the network interface 1214 may include a network interface between the communication device and core network equipment, such as an S1 interface; the network interface may also include a network interface between the communication device and other communication devices (e.g., other network devices or core network equipment), such as an X2 or Xn interface.

[0249] in, Figure 9The transceiver unit 902 shown can be a communication interface, which can be... Figure 12 The network interface 1214 may include an input interface and an output interface. Alternatively, the network interface 1214 may also be a transceiver circuit, which may include an input interface circuit and an output interface circuit.

[0250] The processor 1211 is mainly used to process communication protocols and communication data, control the entire communication device, execute software programs, and process data from the software programs, for example, to support the communication device in performing the actions described in the embodiments. The communication device may include a baseband processor and a central processing unit. The baseband processor is mainly used to process communication protocols and communication data, while the central processing unit is mainly used to control the entire terminal device, execute software programs, and process data from the software programs. Figure 12 The processor 1211 can integrate the functions of a baseband processor and a central processing unit. Those skilled in the art will understand that the baseband processor and the central processing unit can also be independent processors interconnected via technologies such as buses. Those skilled in the art will understand that a terminal device can include multiple baseband processors to adapt to different network standards, and a terminal device can include multiple central processing units to enhance its processing capabilities. The various components of the terminal device can be connected via various buses. The baseband processor can also be described as a baseband processing circuit or a baseband processing chip. The central processing unit can also be described as a central processing circuit or a central processing chip. The function of processing communication protocols and communication data can be built into the processor or stored in memory as a software program, with the processor executing the software program to implement the baseband processing function.

[0251] The memory is primarily used to store software programs and data. The memory 1212 can exist independently or be connected to the processor 1211. Optionally, the memory 1212 can be integrated with the processor 1211, for example, integrated within a single chip. The memory 1212 can store program code that executes the technical solutions of the embodiments of this application, and its execution is controlled by the processor 1211. The various types of computer program code being executed can also be considered as drivers for the processor 1211.

[0252] Figure 12 Only one memory and one processor are shown. In actual terminal devices, there may be multiple processors and multiple memories. Memory can also be called storage medium or storage device, etc. Memory can be a storage element on the same chip as the processor, i.e., an on-chip storage element, or it can be a separate storage element; this application does not limit this.

[0253] Transceiver 1213 can be used to support the reception or transmission of radio frequency signals between a communication device and a terminal. Transceiver 1213 can be connected to antenna 1215. Transceiver 1213 includes a transmitter Tx and / or a receiver Rx. Specifically, one or more antennas 1215 can receive radio frequency signals. The receiver Rx of transceiver 1213 is used to receive the radio frequency signals from the antennas, convert the radio frequency signals into digital baseband signals or digital intermediate frequency signals, and provide the digital baseband signals or digital intermediate frequency signals to processor 1211 so that processor 1211 can perform further processing on the digital baseband signals or digital intermediate frequency signals, such as demodulation and decoding. In addition, the transmitter Tx in transceiver 1213 is also used to receive the modulated digital baseband signals or digital intermediate frequency signals from processor 1211, convert the modulated digital baseband signals or digital intermediate frequency signals into radio frequency signals, and transmit the radio frequency signals through one or more antennas 1215. Specifically, the receiver Rx can selectively perform one or more stages of downmixing and analog-to-digital conversion on the radio frequency signal to obtain a digital baseband signal or a digital intermediate frequency (IF) signal. The order of these downmixing and IF conversion processes is adjustable. The transmitter Tx can selectively perform one or more stages of upmixing and digital-to-analog conversion on the modulated digital baseband signal or digital IF signal to obtain a radio frequency signal. The order of these upmixing and IF conversion processes is also adjustable. The digital baseband signal and the digital IF signal can be collectively referred to as digital signals.

[0254] The transceiver 1213 can also be called a transceiver unit, transceiver, transceiver device, etc. Optionally, the device in the transceiver unit that performs the receiving function can be regarded as the receiving unit, and the device in the transceiver unit that performs the transmitting function can be regarded as the transmitting unit. That is, the transceiver unit includes a receiving unit and a transmitting unit. The receiving unit can also be called a receiver, input port, receiving circuit, etc., and the transmitting unit can be called a transmitter, transmitter, or transmitting circuit, etc.

[0255] It should be noted that, Figure 12 The communication device 1200 shown can be used to implement the steps implemented by the network device in the aforementioned method embodiments, and to achieve the corresponding technical effects of the network device. Figure 12 The specific implementation of the communication device 1200 shown can be referred to the description of the first or second communication device in the foregoing method embodiments, and will not be repeated here.

[0256] This application also provides a computer-readable storage medium for storing one or more computer-executable instructions. When the computer-executable instructions are executed by a processor, the processor performs the method described in the possible implementations of the first or second communication device in the foregoing embodiments.

[0257] This application also provides a computer program product (or computer program) that, when executed by a processor, executes the method described above for the possible implementation of the first or second communication device.

[0258] This application also provides a chip system including at least one processor for supporting a communication device in implementing the functions involved in the possible implementations of the communication device described above. Optionally, the chip system further includes an interface circuit that provides program instructions and / or data to the at least one processor. In one possible design, the chip system may also include a memory for storing the program instructions and data necessary for the communication device. The chip system may be composed of chips or may include chips and other discrete devices, wherein the communication device may specifically be the first communication device or the second communication device in the aforementioned method embodiments.

[0259] This application also provides a communication system, which includes the first communication device in any of the above embodiments.

[0260] Optionally, the communication system may also include a second communication device.

[0261] In the embodiments provided in this application, it should be understood that the disclosed systems, apparatuses, and methods can be implemented in other ways. For example, the apparatus embodiments described above are merely illustrative; for instance, the division of units is only a logical functional division, and in actual implementation, there may be other division methods. For example, multiple units or components may be combined or integrated into another system, or some features may be ignored or not executed. Furthermore, the coupling or direct coupling or communication connection shown or discussed may be through some interfaces, indirect coupling or communication connection between devices or units, and may be electrical, mechanical, or other forms. Whether a function is implemented in hardware or software depends on the specific application and design constraints of the technical solution. Those skilled in the art can use different methods to implement the described functions for each specific application, but such implementation should not be considered beyond the scope of this application.

[0262] The units described as separate components may or may not be physically separate. The components shown as units may or may not be physical units; that is, they may be located in one place or distributed across multiple network units. Some or all of the units can be selected to achieve the purpose of this embodiment according to actual needs.

[0263] Furthermore, the functional units in the various embodiments of this application can be integrated into one processing unit, or each unit can exist physically separately, or two or more units can be integrated into one unit. The integrated unit can be implemented in hardware or as a software functional unit. If the integrated unit is implemented as a software functional unit and sold or used as an independent product, it can be stored in a computer-readable storage medium. Based on this understanding, the technical solution of this application, in essence, or the part that contributes, or all or part of the technical solution, can be embodied in the form of a software product. This computer software product is stored in a storage medium and includes several instructions to cause a computer device (which may be a personal computer, server, or network device, etc.) to execute all or part of the steps of the methods described in the various embodiments of this application. The aforementioned storage medium includes various media capable of storing program code, such as USB flash drives, portable hard drives, read-only memory (ROM), random access memory (RAM), magnetic disks, or optical disks.

Claims

1. A communication method, said method being applied to a first communication device, characterized in that, The method includes: Send a first sensing instruction to a second communication device; wherein the first sensing instruction is used to instruct the second communication device to perform preliminary sensing within a first sensing area and obtain a first sensing result; Send a second sensing instruction to the second communication device; wherein the second sensing instruction is used to instruct the second communication device to perform focused sensing within a second sensing area to obtain a second sensing result, the sensing resolution of the preliminary sensing is smaller than the sensing resolution of the focused sensing, and the area size of the first sensing area is larger than the area size of the second sensing area. The final perception result is obtained based on the first perception result and the second perception result.

2. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that, The first sensing instruction includes sensing parameters, which include at least one of broadband size, beamwidth, transmit power, and the first sensing region.

3. The method according to claim 2, characterized in that, The sensing parameters are used to determine the sensing resolution of the initial sensing, and the sensing resolution of the initial sensing and the first sensing area are used to determine the grid size of the first sensing grid.

4. The method according to any one of claims 1-3, characterized in that, The method further includes: receiving the first sensing result from the second communication device; wherein the first sensing result includes at least one of the sensing target's position, movement speed, structural information, shape, category, material, signal-to-noise ratio, and radar cross section (RCS).

5. The method according to any one of claims 1-4, characterized in that, The second sensing area is determined based on the first sensing result.

6. The method according to any one of claims 1-5, characterized in that, The final perception result is obtained based on the first perception result and the second perception result, including: The second perception result is fused with the first perception result within the first perception area to obtain the final perception result.

7. The method according to any one of claims 1-6, characterized in that, The first sensing result is obtained from the measurement data of the echo signal of the sensing signal after the second communication device sends a sensing signal to the first sensing area.

8. A communication method, said method being applied to a second communication device, characterized in that, The method includes: Receive a first sensing instruction from a first communication device; wherein the first sensing instruction is used to instruct the second communication device to perform preliminary sensing within a first sensing area and obtain a first sensing result; The system receives a second sensing instruction from the first communication device; wherein the second sensing instruction is used to instruct the second communication device to perform focused sensing within a second sensing area to obtain a second sensing result, the sensing resolution of the preliminary sensing is smaller than the sensing resolution of the focused sensing, the area size of the first sensing area is larger than the area size of the second sensing area, and the first sensing result and the second sensing result are used by the first communication device to obtain a final sensing result.

9. The method according to claim 8, characterized in that, The first sensing instruction includes sensing parameters, which include at least one of broadband size, beamwidth, transmit power, and the first sensing region.

10. The method according to claim 9, characterized in that, The sensing parameters are used to determine the sensing resolution of the initial sensing, and the sensing resolution of the initial sensing and the first sensing area are used to determine the grid size of the first sensing grid.

11. The method according to any one of claims 8-10, characterized in that, The method further includes: sending the first sensing result to the first communication device; wherein the first sensing result includes at least one of the sensing target's position, moving speed, structural information, shape, category, material, signal-to-noise ratio, and radar cross section (RCS).

12. The method according to any one of claims 8-11, characterized in that, The second sensing area is determined by the first communication device based on the first sensing result.

13. The method according to any one of claims 8-12, characterized in that, The final perception result is obtained by the first communication device fusing the second perception result with the first perception result within the first perception area.

14. The method according to any one of claims 8-13, characterized in that, The method further includes: sending a sensing signal to the first sensing area; The first sensing result is obtained based on the measurement data of the echo signal of the sensing signal.

15. A communication device, characterized in that, Includes at least one processor; The at least one processor is configured to execute computer programs or instructions to enable the communication device to implement the method as described in any one of claims 1 to 14.

16. The communication device according to claim 15, characterized in that, The communication device also includes a memory; The processor is coupled to the memory; The memory is used to store the computer program or instructions.

17. A computer-readable storage medium, characterized in that, The computer-readable storage medium stores a computer program or instructions that, when executed, cause the method described in any one of claims 1 to 14 to be performed.

18. A computer program product, characterized in that, When the program instructions are executed on a computer, the computer causes the computer to perform the method as described in any one of claims 1 to 14.

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