Terminal device and method

Abstract

An exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure relates to a solution for resource allocation configuration for sidelink reference signals, in which a first communication device acquires a resource allocation configuration for sidelink reference signals, the resource allocation configuration including: a first resource allocation configuration indicating a resource pool set including multiple resource pools for sidelink communication and a time-frequency location within the resource pool set; or a second resource allocation configuration indicating a number of resource units of a predetermined bandwidth selected from a dedicated resource pool for sidelink reference signal communication. The first communication device determines resources to be allocated for sidelink reference signals based on the resource allocation configuration, and performs sidelink reference signal communication with at least one second communication device using the determined resources.

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] FIELD Exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure relate generally to the field of communications technologies, and more particularly to methods, apparatus, and media for resource allocation configuration for sidelink reference signals (SL-RS). [Background technology]

[0002] Sidelink (SL) refers to a communication mode in which a direct link is established between communication devices, such as terminal devices, and data and information are exchanged directly between the terminal devices without the intervention of a network device. In sidelink communication, sidelink reference signals (SL-RS) may be exchanged between communication devices for various applications. For example, a communication device (e.g., a terminal device) may be configured to determine its own location and / or the location of other communication devices based on SL-RSs (e.g., positioning reference signals (PRSs)) exchanged with other communication devices. Generally, resource allocation may be configured for communication of the SL-RSs. Summary of the Invention [Means for solving the problem]

[0003] Embodiments of the present disclosure generally provide a method, an apparatus, and a computer storage medium for resource allocation configuration for sidelink reference signals.

[0004] In a first aspect, there is provided a communication method, comprising: obtaining, in a first communication device, a resource allocation configuration for sidelink reference signals, the resource allocation configuration including either a first resource allocation configuration indicating a resource pool set including a plurality of resource pools for sidelink communication and a time-frequency location within the resource pool set, or a second resource allocation configuration indicating a number of resource units of a predetermined bandwidth selected from a dedicated resource pool for communication of the sidelink reference signals; determining, based on the resource allocation configuration, resources to be allocated for the sidelink reference signals; and performing communication of the sidelink reference signals with at least one second communication device using the determined resources.

[0005] In a second aspect, there is provided a communications apparatus comprising a processing unit and a memory, coupled to the processing unit, having instructions stored thereon, the instructions, when executed by the processing unit, causing the apparatus to perform a method according to the first aspect.

[0006] In a third aspect, there is provided a computer-readable medium having stored thereon instructions which, when executed on at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to implement a method according to the first aspect.

[0007] Other features of the present disclosure will become readily apparent from the following description. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0008] The above and other objects, features and advantages of the present disclosure will become more apparent from a more detailed description of some exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure in the accompanying drawings.

[0009] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 illustrates an exemplary communication environment in which exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure may be implemented.

[0010] [Figure 2]FIG. 10 illustrates a flowchart of a process for resource allocation for sidelink reference signals according to some embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0011] [Figure 3A] 10A-10C are schematic diagrams illustrating several examples of resource allocation configurations for SL-RS according to some embodiments of the present disclosure. [Figure 3B] 10A-10C are schematic diagrams illustrating several examples of resource allocation configurations for SL-RS according to some embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0012] [Figure 4A] 10A-10C are schematic diagrams illustrating some examples of resource allocation configurations for SL-RS according to some further embodiments of the present disclosure. [Figure 4B] 10A-10C are schematic diagrams illustrating some examples of resource allocation configurations for SL-RS according to some further embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0013] [Figure 5A] 10A-10C are schematic diagrams illustrating some examples of resource allocation configurations for SL-RS according to some further embodiments of the present disclosure. [Figure 5B] 10A-10C are schematic diagrams illustrating some examples of resource allocation configurations for SL-RS according to some further embodiments of the present disclosure. [Figure 5C] 10A-10C are schematic diagrams illustrating some examples of resource allocation configurations for SL-RS according to some further embodiments of the present disclosure. [Figure 5D] 10A-10C are schematic diagrams illustrating some examples of resource allocation configurations for SL-RS according to some further embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0014] [Figure 6A] 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating some examples of resource allocation configurations and control information for SL-RS according to some embodiments of the present disclosure. [Figure 6B] 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating some examples of resource allocation configurations and control information for SL-RS according to some embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0015] [Figure 7A] 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating some examples of resource allocation configurations and control information for SL-RS according to some embodiments of the present disclosure. [Figure 7B] 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating some examples of resource allocation configurations and control information for SL-RS according to some embodiments of the present disclosure. [Figure 7C] 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating some examples of resource allocation configurations and control information for SL-RS according to some embodiments of the present disclosure. [Figure 7D] 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating some examples of resource allocation configurations and control information for SL-RS according to some embodiments of the present disclosure. [Figure 7E] 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating some examples of resource allocation configurations and control information for SL-RS according to some embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0016] [Figure 8A] 10A-10C are schematic diagrams illustrating some examples of resource allocation configurations for SL-RS according to some further embodiments of the present disclosure. [Figure 8B] 10A-10C are schematic diagrams illustrating some examples of resource allocation configurations for SL-RS according to some further embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0017] [Figure 9] FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram illustrating an example of resource allocation configuration for SL-RS according to some other embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0018] [Figure 10A] 10A-10C are schematic diagrams illustrating some examples of resource allocation configurations for SL-RS according to some further embodiments of the present disclosure. [Figure 10B] 10A-10C are schematic diagrams illustrating some examples of resource allocation configurations for SL-RS according to some further embodiments of the present disclosure. [Figure 10C]10A-10C are schematic diagrams illustrating some examples of resource allocation configurations for SL-RS according to some further embodiments of the present disclosure. [Figure 10D] 10A-10C are schematic diagrams illustrating some examples of resource allocation configurations for SL-RS according to some further embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0019] [Figure 11A] 10A-10C are schematic diagrams illustrating some examples of resource allocation configurations for SL-RS according to some further embodiments of the present disclosure. [Figure 11B] 10A-10C are schematic diagrams illustrating some examples of resource allocation configurations for SL-RS according to some further embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0020] [Figure 12] FIG. 1 is a schematic block diagram of an apparatus suitable for implementing exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0021] Throughout the drawings, the same or similar reference numbers represent the same or similar elements. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0022] The principles of the present disclosure will be described with reference to several embodiments. It should be understood that these embodiments are set forth for illustrative purposes only to aid those skilled in the art in understanding and practicing the present disclosure, and do not imply any limitations on the scope of the present disclosure. The present disclosure described herein can be embodied in various forms other than those described below.

[0023] In the following description and claims, unless defined otherwise, all technical and scientific terms used have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which this disclosure belongs.

[0024] In this disclosure, the term "terminal device" refers to any device with wireless or wired communication capabilities. Examples of terminal devices include user equipment (UE), personal computers, desktops, mobile phones, cellular phones, smartphones, personal digital assistants (PDAs), portable computers, tablets, wearable devices, internet of things (IoT) devices, Ultra-reliable and Low Latency Communication (URLLC) devices, Internet of Everything (IoE) devices, machine type communication (MTC) devices, in-vehicle devices for V2X communications where X represents pedestrian, vehicle, or infrastructure / network, devices for Integrated Access and Backhaul (IAB), spacecraft or air vehicles in a Non-terrestrial network (NTN) including Satellites and High Altitude Platforms (HAPs) including Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UASs), Augmented Reality (AR), Mixed Reality (MR), and other technologies. This includes, but is not limited to, extended reality (XR) devices, which include different types of reality such as real reality (VR), virtual reality (VR), unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), commonly known as drones, i.e., aircraft without a human pilot, devices on high speed trains (HST), image capture devices such as digital cameras, sensors, gaming devices, music storage and playback devices, and internet appliances that enable wireless or wired internet access and browsing.The "terminal device" may also have "multicast / broadcast" capabilities and support public safety and mission-critical, V2X applications, transparent IPV4 / IPV6 multicast delivery, IPTV, smart TV, wireless services, over-the-air software delivery, group communication, and IoT applications. It may also incorporate one or more Subscriber Identity Modules (SIMs), known as multi-SIMs. The term "terminal device" may be used interchangeably with UE, mobile station, subscriber station, mobile terminal, user terminal, or wireless device.

[0025] The term "network device" refers to a device capable of providing or hosting a cell or coverage area over which terminal devices can communicate. Examples of network devices include, but are not limited to, a Node B (NodeB or NB), an evolved Node B (eNodeB or eNB), a next generation Node B (gNB), a transmission reception point (TRP), a remote radio unit (RRU), a radio head (RH), a remote radio head (RRH), a low-power node such as an IAB node, a femto node, a pico node, and a reconfigurable intelligent surface (RIS).

[0026] A terminal device or network device may have artificial intelligence (AI) or machine learning capabilities, which typically include models trained from a large amount of collected data for a specific function and can be used to predict some information.

[0027] The terminal device or network device may operate in multiple frequency ranges, such as FR1 (410 MHz to 7125 MHz), FR2 (24.25 GHz to 71 GHz), frequency bands greater than 100 GHz, and terahertz (THz). It can also operate in licensed, unlicensed, and shared spectrum. The terminal device may have multiple connections with network devices in Multi-Radio Dual Connectivity (MR-DC) application scenarios. The terminal device or network device can operate in full duplex, flexible duplex, and cross division duplex modes.

[0028] Embodiments of the present disclosure may be implemented in test equipment, such as a signal generator, a signal analyzer, a spectrum analyzer, a network analyzer, a test terminal equipment, a test network equipment, or a channel emulator. In some embodiments, the terminal equipment may be connected to a first network device and a second network device. One of the first network device and the second network device may be a master node and the other may be a secondary node. The first network device and the second network device may use different radio access technologies (RATs). In some embodiments, the first network device may be a first RAT device and the second network device may be a second RAT device. In some embodiments, the first RAT device is an eNB and the second RAT device is a gNB. Information related to the different RATs may be transmitted to the terminal device from at least one of the first network device and the second network device. In some embodiments, the first information may be transmitted from the first network device to the terminal device, and the second information may be transmitted from the second network device to the terminal device directly or via the first network device. In some embodiments, information regarding the configuration of the terminal device configured by the second network device may be transmitted from the second network device via the first network device, and information regarding the reconfiguration of the terminal device configured by the second network device may be transmitted to the terminal device directly from the second network device or via the first network device.

[0029] In this disclosure, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise, the singular forms "a," "the," and "the" are intended to include the plural. The term "comprises" and variations thereof are interpreted as open-ended terms meaning "including, but not limited to." The term "based on" is interpreted as "based at least in part on." The terms "one embodiment" and "embodiment" are interpreted as "at least one embodiment." The term "another embodiment" is interpreted as "at least one other embodiment." Terms such as "first," "second," etc. may refer to different objects or the same object. The following content may include other definitions, both explicit and implicit.

[0030] In some instances, values, procedures, or devices are referred to as "optimal," "lowest," "highest," "minimum," "maximum," etc. It is understood that such descriptions are intended to indicate choices among multiple functional alternatives used, and that such choices are not necessarily better, smaller, higher, or more preferred than other choices.

[0031] As used herein, the terms "resource," "transmission resource," "uplink resource," or "downlink resource" may refer to any resource for performing communication, such as a time domain resource, a frequency domain resource, a space domain resource, a code domain resource, or any other resource that enables communication. Hereinafter, unless otherwise specified, both frequency domain and time domain resources are used as examples of transmission resources for describing some exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure. It should be noted that the exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure are equally applicable to other resources in other domains.

[0032] Embodiments of the present disclosure provide a solution for resource allocation for sidelink reference signals.

[0033] The principles and embodiments of the present disclosure will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings.

[0034] Example of a communication network FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of an exemplary communication environment 100 in which exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure may be implemented.

[0035] Communication environment 100 includes multiple communication devices 110-1, 110-2, 110-3, 110-4, and 120. In Figure 1, communication devices 110-1, 110-2, 110-3, and 110-4 (collectively or individually referred to as communication devices 110) are shown as terminal devices. Communication device 120 is shown as a network device that provides a serving area 102, referred to as a cell.

[0036] It should be understood that the number of devices and their connections in Figure 1 are shown for purposes of illustration and are not intended to limit the present disclosure. Communication environment 100 may include any suitable number of network devices and / or terminal devices adapted to implement embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0037] Communications in communication environment 100 may conform to any suitable standard, including, but not limited to, Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM), Long Term Evolution (LTE), LTE-Evolution, LTE-Advanced (LTE-A), New Radio (NR), Wideband Code Division Multiple Access (WCDMA), Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA), GSM EDGE Radio Access Network (GERAN), Machine Type Communication (MTC), etc. Embodiments of the present disclosure may be performed in accordance with any currently known or future-developed generation of communication protocols. Examples of communication protocols include, but are not limited to, first generation (1G), second generation (2G), 2.5G, 2.75G, third generation (3G), fourth generation (4G), 4.5G, fifth generation (5G) communication protocols, 5.5G, 5G-Advanced networks, or sixth generation (6G) networks.

[0038] In some embodiments, communication device 110 and communication device 120 may communicate with each other via a channel, such as a wireless communication channel over the air interface (e.g., the Uu interface). A communication device 110 that can communicate with communication device 120 may be within serving area 102 of communication device 120. In the example illustrated in FIG. 1, communication devices 110-1 and 110-2 can communicate with communication device 120. The wireless communication channels may include a physical uplink control channel (PUCCH), a physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH), a physical random access channel (PRACH), a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH), a physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH), and a physical broadcast channel (PBCH). Of course, any other suitable channel may also be used. In the exemplary communication environment 100, the link from communication device 110 to communication device 120 is referred to as the uplink, and the link from communication device 120 to communication device 110 is referred to as the downlink.

[0039] In some embodiments, the communication devices 110 may communicate with each other via a sidelink (SL) connection. Sidelink is a communication mode that allows direct communication between two or more terminal devices without communication via a network device. SL communication may be performed over a wireless interface (such as a PC5 interface). SL communication may be unicast, groupcast, or broadcast and may be used for device-to-device (D2D) communication, vehicle-to-everything (V2X) communication, emergency rescue applications, etc.

[0040] Depending on whether the communication device is covered within the serving area of ​​the network device, SL communication scenarios include in-coverage, partial coverage, and out-of-coverage (OOC). For example, in the example of FIG. 1, for SL communications between communication devices, SL communication between communication device 110-1 and communication device 110-2 is within the coverage of communication device 120, and SL communication between communication device 110-3 and communication device 110-4 is out-of-coverage. Partial coverage may involve a scenario in which communication device 110 is within a network coverage area, but other communication devices are outside the network coverage area. For example, in FIG. 1, SL communications between one of communication device 110-1 and communication device 110-2 and one of communication device 110-3 and communication device 110-4 may be in partial coverage.

[0041] In some cases, a network device facilitates scheduling of resources for SL communication. In other cases, SL communication is performed between communication devices 110 without involving a network device (e.g., communication device 120).

[0042] An SL resource allocation scheme may be applied to allocate resources in the SL resource pool for SL communication. There may be two SL resource allocation schemes. In a first SL resource allocation scheme (referred to as Mode 1 for SL resource allocation), the network device may schedule SL resources via a communication interface with the communication device 110. The resource allocation may include dynamic grants, such as via downlink control information (DCI), or configured grants (e.g., Type 1 or Type 2 configured grants). In a second SL resource allocation scheme (referred to as Mode 2 for SL resource allocation), resources for SL communication may be autonomously selected by the communication device 110 based on a contention scheme.

[0043] In SL communication, reference signals transmitted on the sidelink may be referred to as sidelink reference signals (SL-RS). SL-RS may be exchanged between communication devices for many applications. For example, a communication device (e.g., user equipment (UE)) may be configured to determine its own location and / or the locations of other communication devices based on SL-RS (e.g., positioning reference signals (PRS)) exchanged with other communication devices. In addition to positioning, SL-RS may be communicated to enable determination of sidelink channel conditions, determination of a communication method, and / or other purposes. In addition to SL-PRS, SL-RS may also include, for example, channel status information reference signals (CSI RS), sounding reference signals (SRS), or other reference signals that need to be transmitted in SL communication.

[0044] The reference signal is typically recognized by both the transmitter (TX) and receiver (RX) communication devices. In SL communication, resources may be allocated for the TX communication device to transmit the SL-RS and for the RX communication device to detect the SL-RS.

[0045] SL communication may be performed using resources from a configured SL resource pool. The resource allocation configuration for the SL-RS is important considering the resource unitization and detection accuracy of the SL-RS.

[0046] Operating principle and process example An exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure provides a solution for resource allocation configuration for the SL-RS. In this solution, resources allocated for the SL-RS are determined based on a resource allocation configuration indicating a resource pool set including multiple resource pools for sidelink communication and a time-frequency location within the resource pool set. Alternatively, resources allocated for the SL-RS are determined based on a resource allocation configuration indicating a number of resource units selected from a dedicated resource pool for communication of sidelink reference signals, where the resource unit is a predetermined bandwidth. A communication device determines the allocated resources based on the resource allocation configuration and performs communication of the SL-RS with at least one other communication device using the determined resources.

[0047] This solution allows for the configuration of a SL resource pool and / or a dedicated resource pool for SL-RS, which can facilitate resource allocation for SL-RS transmission. The resource pool set or the dedicated resource pool can also be configured to support wideband SL-RS transmission in various SL communication scenarios.

[0048] The principles and embodiments of the present disclosure will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings.

[0049] Please refer to Figure 2. Figure 2 shows a flowchart of a process 200 for resource allocation for sidelink reference signals according to some embodiments of the present disclosure. For illustrative purposes, the process 200 will be described with reference to Figure 1. The process 200 may be implemented in any of the communication devices 110 of Figure 1.

[0050] In block 210, the communication device 110 obtains a resource allocation configuration for the SL-RS.

[0051] In process 200, communication device 110 (sometimes referred to herein as a “first communication device”) may be any communication device that has an SL connection with one or more other communication devices 110 (sometimes referred to herein as a “second communication device”).

[0052] In some embodiments, communications device 110 may receive information indicative of some or all of the resource allocation configuration for the SL-RS from a network device, such as communications device 120 in the example of Figure 1. That is, the network device is configured to schedule resources for SL-RS transmission (e.g., mode 1 for resource allocation). In some embodiments, communications device 110 may receive information indicative of some or all of the resource allocation configuration from communications device 120 and transmit the information to one or more other communications devices 110 that are configured to receive or transmit the SL-RS.

[0053] In some embodiments, a communications device 110 may determine a resource allocation configuration for an SL-RS (e.g., mode 2 for resource allocation) or may be configured to have a resource allocation configuration for an SL-RS (e.g., mode 2 for resource allocation). The communications device 110 may transmit information indicative of some or all of the resource allocation configuration to one or more other communications devices 110 configured to receive or transmit an SL-RS. In some embodiments, the communications device 110 may receive the information from one or more communications devices 110 via an SL connection.

[0054] For example, in the case of sidelink positioning, the SL-PRS is communicated between the target device to be positioned and at least one anchor device according to different PRS-based positioning techniques. An anchor device may include any device that supports target device positioning. In some embodiments, it is assumed that the target device and at least one anchor device have established a sidelink connection, for example, via a PC5 interface. In some embodiments, the target device may function as a TX device that transmits the SL-PRS to the anchor device. In some embodiments, one or more anchor devices may function as TX devices that transmit the SL-PRS to the target device and / or other anchor devices.

[0055] The communication device 110 implementing process 200 may be either a target device or an anchor device. In some embodiments, the communication device 110 may determine or receive the resource allocation configuration for the SL-PRS from a network device or another communication device 110. In some embodiments, the communication device 110 may transmit information indicative of the resource allocation configuration or a portion of the resource allocation configuration to another device, which may then determine the resources the other device uses to transmit or receive the SL-PRS. In some embodiments, the anchor device may transmit or receive the SL-PRS via a directional beam, where the SL-PRS directional beam corresponds to a particular spatial direction and coverage.

[0056] In some embodiments, in the case of sidelink positioning, in addition to resource allocation configuration, absolute or relative positioning aiding information may be exchanged between the target device and at least one anchor device.

[0057] In embodiments of the present disclosure, a resource allocation configuration is proposed for SL-RS transmission. As described below, several introductions or extensions of the resource allocation configuration for SL-RS are proposed. In some embodiments, information indicating the resource allocation configuration may be included in sidelink control information (SCI) transmitted to or received from the communication device 110. In some embodiments, one or more new fields having additional information related to the resource allocation configuration may be inserted into a conventional SCI format for sidelink communications (e.g., SCI Format 1-A, SCI Format 1-B, SCI Format 2-A, SCI Format 2-B, SCI Format 2-C, etc.). In some embodiments, one or more conventional fields in a conventional SCI format may be redefined or extended (with the same or different size) to indicate information indicating the resource allocation configuration for the SL-RS. In some embodiments, a new SCI format (e.g., SCI Format 1-X and / or SCI Format 2-D) or a media access control-control element (MAC CE) may be introduced to convey information indicating the resource allocation configuration for the SL-RS. In some embodiments, the new SCI format may also include some of the information contained in the previous format.

[0058] In some embodiments, the information indicating the resource allocation configuration for the SL-RS may include one or more SL-RS resource-related parameters for determining the resources allocated for the SL-RS, which may include a sub-carrier spacing (SCS) / cyclic prefix (CP) for the SL-RS resources, an SL-RS resource set configuration identity, an SL-RS resource allocation configuration identity, an SL-RS resource periodicity, a number of SL-RS resource repetitions, an offset between two repetition instances of an SL-RS source, a starting slot / symbol of the SL-RS resources, a comb size of the SL-RS resources, etc.

[0059] When determining resources for the SL-RS, the determination of these parameters may be based on (pre)configuration (which may be conveyed in assistance information) and / or indication of applicable resources by control information (e.g., via DCI, SCI, and / or MAC-CE). That is, some SL-RS resource-related parameters may be pre-configured, and some SL-RS resource-related parameters may be indicated when resources for SL-RS transmission are needed or will be needed. In the latter case, in some embodiments, several approaches may be applied to determine or indicate one or more SL-RS resource-related parameters. In a first approach, an association between an SL-RS resource-related parameter and an applicable resource may be pre-defined. In a second approach, the SL-RS resource-related parameter may be indicated together with a time-frequency resource indication. For example, the SL-RS resource-related parameter may be indicated by a frequency resource indication value (FRIV) and a time resource indication value (TRIV), or may be indicated by information in one or more fields in a new DCI format, a new SCI format, or a new MAC-CE.

[0060] It will be appreciated that there may be other ways of conveying information indicating the resource allocation configuration for the SL-RS, and the scope of the present disclosure is not limited in this respect.

[0061] A detailed description of the proposed resource allocation configuration is provided.

[0062] In some embodiments, the SL-RS may be communicated using resources allocated across multiple resource pools for SL communication. Herein, a resource pool for SL communication is also referred to as an "SL resource pool." An SL resource pool may include a regular or common resource pool configured for communication device 110 for SL communication, including communication of SL data and / or SL control information. Herein, the terms "SL communication," "SL resource pool," or "SL resources" may refer to SL-related communication, an SL-related resource pool, or resources for SL data, SL-RS, and / or other SL control information. In some embodiments, multiple SL resource pools are (pre)defined or (pre)configured as a resource pool set, which may enable transmission of a wideband SL-RS and reuse of a legacy SL resource pool. In some embodiments, the multiple SL resource pools may include one or more legacy SL resource pools. At least a portion of the frequency resources in each of the multiple SL resource pools may be used for SL-RS transmission.

[0063] When allocating specific resources for the SL-RS, the communication device 110 obtains a first resource allocation configuration for the SL-RS. The first resource allocation configuration indicates a resource pool set and a time-frequency location within the resource pool set. By allocating resources across multiple resource pools, it is possible to support transmission of a wideband SL-RS because resources across the multiple SL resource pools are configured to have wider bandwidths.

[0064] In some embodiments, a dedicated resource pool (DRP) is introduced for SL-RS communication. In some embodiments, the SL-RS is communicated using resources allocated from the dedicated resource pool. The dedicated resource pool is divided into multiple resource units in the frequency domain, where a resource unit is a predetermined bandwidth. When allocating specific resources for the SL-RS, the communications device 110 obtains a second resource allocation configuration indicating the number of resource units selected from the dedicated resource pool for communication of the SL-RS.

[0065] Several example embodiments of the first resource allocation configuration and the second resource allocation configuration are described in detail below.

[0066] In block 220, the communication device 110 determines resources allocated for the SL-RS based on the resource allocation configuration.

[0067] As described above, the communications device 110 may receive or itself determine information indicating a resource allocation configuration (e.g., a first resource allocation configuration or a second resource allocation configuration), such as one or more SL-RS resource-related parameters. The communications device 110 may determine the resources allocated for the SL-RS based on the SL-RS resource-related parameters.

[0068] In block 230, the communication device 110 performs SL-RS communication with at least one other communication device 110 using the determined resources.

[0069] In some embodiments, the communication device 110 is a TX device for the SL-RS and may use the assigned resources to transmit the SL-RS to at least one other communication device 110. In some embodiments, the communication device 110 is an RX device for the SL-RS and may use the assigned resources to detect the SL-RS transmitted by the other communication device 110.

[0070] Resource Pool Set Based Configuration As described above, the first resource allocation configuration for the SL-RS indicates a resource pool set and a time-frequency location within the resource pool set. The resource pool set includes multiple SL resource pools for SL communication. In some embodiments, there may be multiple resource pool sets applicable for the SL-RS, each including a different combination of two or more resource pools for SL communication. The number of SL resource pools included in each resource pool set may be predetermined and may be the same or different from each other. The first resource allocation configuration may indicate one of the multiple applicable resource pool sets by a resource pool set-related parameter, e.g., represented as "R."

[0071] In some embodiments, multiple SL resource pools within a resource pool set may at least partially overlap each other in the time domain, such that resources at a particular time can be allocated from the resource pool set for an SL-RS.

[0072] In some embodiments, a resource pool set may include at least two resource pools that are contiguous in the frequency domain. Figure 3A illustrates an example of resource allocation for SL-RS across a resource pool set. As shown, resource pools for SL communication (referred to as SL resource pools) 302-1 and 302-2 that are contiguous in the frequency domain are combined to form a resource pool set for SL-RS. In this example, SL resource pools 302-1 and 302-2 substantially overlap each other in the time domain. However, it will be understood that SL resource pools within a resource pool set may partially overlap in the time domain.

[0073] To specifically allocate resources from the resource pool set, a time-frequency location within the resource pool set may be indicated. In some embodiments, for contiguous resource pools, resources for the SL-RS may be allocated as a combination of all resource pools or a combination of adjacent frequency portions of the resource pools. For example, in FIG. 3A , resources for the SL-RS (referred to as SL-RS resources) 310-1 have a frequency bandwidth that spans all SL resource pools 302-1 and 302-2. SL-RS resources 310-2 have a bandwidth that spans the entire frequency band of SL resource pool 302-1 and the frequency portion of SL resource pool 302-2. SL-RS resources 310-3 have a bandwidth that spans the adjacent portions of SL resource pools 302-1 and 302-2, and SL-RS resources 310-4 have a bandwidth that spans the frequency portion of SL resource pool 302-1 and the entire frequency band of SL resource pool 302-1. It should be noted that SL-RS resources may be allocated to have other combinations of SL resource pools in the frequency domain.

[0074] In some embodiments, a resource pool set may include at least two SL resource pools that are not adjacent in the frequency domain. That is, there may be a frequency gap between two SL resource pools in a resource pool set. Figure 3B illustrates another example of resource allocation, where the resource pool set includes SL resource pool 302-3 and SL resource pool 302-4, which are not adjacent in the frequency domain. In Figure 3B, SL-RS resource 310-5 is allocated to have a bandwidth that spans all frequency bands of SL resource pools 302-3 and 302-4. However, similar to Figure 3A, SL-RS resource 310-5 may also be allocated to have a bandwidth that spans all or adjacent portions of two or more SL resource pools in the resource pool set.

[0075] It will be understood that the examples of Figures 3A and 3B are provided for illustrative purposes only. Although two SL resource pools are shown, in some other embodiments, the set of resource pools to which SL-RS resources are allocated may include more than two SL resource pools, in which case the SL-RS resources may be allocated to have the full or partial bandwidth of two or more of those SL resource pools. In some embodiments, the set of resource pools may include both contiguous and non-contiguous SL resource pools.

[0076] In some embodiments, a frequency threshold may be introduced. In the case of non-contiguous SL resource pools, this means that the SL-RS may be transmitted using resources with a frequency gap. If the frequency gap between multiple SL resource pools in a resource pool set is within (e.g., less than) the frequency threshold, joint detection may be applied to jointly detect the SL-RS transmitted on the multiple SL resource pools. Otherwise, if the frequency gap between multiple SL resource pools in a resource pool set exceeds the frequency threshold, independent detection may be applied to detect the SL-RS on each of the resource pools in the resource pool set. Independent detection may improve the success rate and accuracy in detecting the SL-RS when the resource gap is relatively large. Detection of the SL-RS may be performed by the communication device 110 functioning as a RX device for the SL-RS.

[0077] In some embodiments, the frequency threshold may be set as a threshold parameter (denoted as Fgap). In some embodiments, the frequency threshold may be set, for example, when non-contiguous resource pools are included in the resource pool set. In some embodiments, when there are two or more frequency gaps between SL resource pools in the resource pool set, any one or the largest of the frequency gaps may be selected to compare with the frequency threshold, or an aggregate value (e.g., average) of two or more frequency gaps may be compared with the frequency threshold to determine whether to apply joint detection or independent detection.

[0078] In some embodiments, a dedicated time slot (or simply slot) for SL-RS communication is introduced in the time domain. Thus, in a resource pool set-based configuration, the first resource allocation configuration may indicate a dedicated time slot for the SL-RS. An SL resource pool within the resource pool set is configured to have a dedicated slot for SL-RS communication and may therefore be referred to as an SL-RS resource pool.

[0079] The dedicated time slots may be periodic slots for transmitting periodic SL-RSs, or may be on-demand slots for one-time or aperiodic SL-RS transmissions. Figures 4A and 4B show examples of a first resource allocation configuration having periodic slots and on-demand slots for SL-RSs, respectively. As shown, there may be multiple slots in the time domain. Slot 412 may be used for other communications, such as UL / DL communications, periodic slot 414 is configured for normal SL communications, and periodic slot 416 is dedicated for SL-RS communications.

[0080] 4A , resources within dedicated periodic slots 416 for SL-RS communications can be configured as a periodic SL-RS resource pool 402. In a resource pool set-based configuration, each SL resource pool within the resource pool set may be configured to have periodic slots for SL-RS communications. To allocate resources for SL-RS communications, this periodic dedicated slot may be configured for the corresponding communication device 110 by configuring or pre-configuring its periodicity. In some embodiments, the periodicity of the dedicated slots for SL-RS communications may be the same as or different from the periodicity of the slots 414 for other SL communications.

[0081] 4B , when communicating an SL-RS between communication devices 110, a dedicated on-demand slot 418 for SL-RS communication may be set. The time position of the on-demand dedicated slot 418 may be set for the corresponding communication device 110.

[0082] In some embodiments, if a dedicated slot is configured for SL-RS communication, the structure of the dedicated slot for SL-RS communication may be specifically defined. Generally, one slot for communication includes a predetermined number of symbols within a specific structure. In addition to the SL-RS, symbols within the slot may be used to carry other information, such as automatic gain control (AGC) or a physical sidelink control channel (PSCCH), and / or may function as gaps. The PSCCH may be used to carry control information, such as SCI.

[0083] In some embodiments, the structure of a dedicated slot may be defined such that all available symbols within the dedicated slot can be configured to transmit a single SL-RS. In some embodiments, a symbol for AGC (referred to as an AGC symbol) may be configured to precede the start symbol of the symbols for the SL-RS. FIG. 5A illustrates such an example. In FIG. 5A and subsequent figures, the slot is assumed to include a total of 14 symbols, although other numbers of symbols are possible. For illustrative purposes, one SL resource pool 502 within a resource pool set is shown in FIGS. 5A through 5D, but it will be understood that the structure of a dedicated slot for SL-RS communication may also be applied to other SL resource pools.

[0084] As shown in Figure 5A, in addition to the AGC symbol 512 and gap symbol 518, 12 symbols 516 in the dedicated slot 504 may be configured to transmit a single SL-RS. That is, a single 12-symbol SL-RS may be transmitted in the dedicated slot 504. In Figure 5A, the AGC symbol 512 is located immediately before the first SL-RS symbol of the 12 SL-RS symbols 516. The gap symbol 518 is located at the end of the dedicated slot 504.

[0085] In some embodiments, a shorter length of the SL-RS (e.g., shorter than 12 symbols) may be configured within a slot. The number of symbols for the SL-RS may be configured as a smaller number, so that there are multiple opportunities for SL-RS transmission within a slot. In some embodiments, the AGC symbol may be configured to precede the start symbol of each SL-RS symbol.

[0086] 5B, two symbols 516 may be set aside for the SL-RS, for a total of four 2-symbol SL-RSs in the dedicated slot 504. In this example, an AGC symbol 512 is placed immediately before the first SL-RS symbol 516 of each 2-symbol SL-RS, and a gap symbol 518 is placed at the end of the dedicated slot 504. The remaining symbols are defined as PSCCH symbols 514.

[0087] 5C, four symbols 516 may be configured for the SL-RS, with a total of two 4-symbol SL-RSs in the dedicated slot 504. In this example, an AGC symbol 512 is placed immediately before the first SL-RS symbol 516 of each 4-symbol SL-RS, and a gap symbol 518 is placed at the end of the dedicated slot 504 and between the two 4-symbol SL-RSs. A PSCCH symbol 514 may be defined within the slot.

[0088] 5D, six symbols 516 may be set aside for the SL-RS, resulting in a total of two 6-symbol SL-RSs in the dedicated slot 504. In this example, an AGC symbol 512 is placed immediately before the first SL-RS symbol 516 of each 6-symbol SL-RS.

[0089] In some embodiments, the structure of a dedicated slot for an SL resource pool used in a resource pool set may depend on whether the dedicated slot includes an SCI (e.g., a PSCCH), and thus a dedicated slot may include an AGC symbol and an SL-RS symbol with an SCI (e.g., a PSCCH symbol in Figures 5B and 5C) or without an SCI (e.g., Figures 5A and 5D).

[0090] It is understood that the number of symbols and symbol types shown in Figures 5A-5D are for illustrative purposes, and the symbols of the SL-RS may be defined in other ways depending on the total number of symbols in the slot and other necessary information carried in the slot.

[0091] In some embodiments, considering a particular resource for transmitting an SL-RS according to a predefined structure of dedicated slots in the SL resource pool, the first resource allocation configuration may indicate the number of symbols and their respective positions for communication of the SL-RS within the dedicated slot. The symbol positions may be indicated by corresponding symbol indexes. For example, if the structure of FIG. 5B is applied and the first of four 2-symbol SL-RSs is allocated, the number of symbols may be 2, and the symbol positions may indicate the third and fourth symbols within the dedicated slot 504.

[0092] Some example embodiments have been described regarding a first resource allocation configuration based on a resource pool set. In some embodiments, information indicating the first resource allocation configuration may be transmitted in the SCI and / or MAC CE to indicate the resource pool set and specific resources allocated or reserved from the resource pool set for SL-RS transmission. In some embodiments of SL positioning in which an SL-PRS is transmitted, information regarding the positioning signal / channel (SL-PRS, measurement report, etc.) and the positioning procedure may be transmitted in the SCI and / or MAC CE.

[0093] In some embodiments, information indicating the first resource allocation configuration may be carried in at least one first resource for control information in at least one SL resource pool in the resource pool set. In some embodiments, the SL resource pool for carrying the information indicating the first resource allocation may be selected as an SL resource pool having a relatively low subchannel, such as the lowest subchannel in the frequency domain. FIG. 6A shows an example in which SL resource pools 602-1 and 602-2 in a dedicated slot 601 are allocated for SL-RS communication. SL resource pool 602-1 has a lower subchannel compared to SL resource pool 602-2. Thus, the information indicating the first resource allocation configuration may be carried in resources for control information in SL resource pool 602-1. The resources for control information may include PSCCH symbols in the dedicated slot. In some examples, for symbols in the dedicated slot 601 for control information, the lowest subchannel of the symbol (e.g., the bottom end of PSCCH symbol 614) may be configured to carry information regarding the first resource allocation configuration for the SL-RS. The remaining symbols in the SL resource pools 602-1 and 602-2 may be configured as AGC symbols 612, SL-RS symbols 616, and gap symbols 618.

[0094] In some embodiments, an SL resource pool may be randomly selected from the resource pool set to convey information about the first resource allocation configuration for the SL-RS.

[0095] In some embodiments, the information indicating the first resource allocation configuration may be carried in at least one second resource for control information in at least one other resource pool for SL communication. For example, if a dedicated slot is configured for SL-RS transmission, another SL resource pool may not be configured in the resource pool set. The time position of the at least one second resource may precede the time position of the resource in the dedicated timeslot for SL-RS.

[0096] 6B, SL resource pools 602-1 and 602-3 in normal slot 603 are used for SL communications, while SL resource pools 602-1 and 602-3 in the subsequent dedicated slot 605 are used only for SL-RS communications. In addition to AGC symbols 622 and gap symbols 625, SL resource pools 602-1 and 602-3 in normal slot 603 may be configured primarily for SL data transmission, e.g., via physical sidelink shared channel (PSCCH) symbols 625.

[0097] Information indicating a first resource allocation configuration in the dedicated slot 605 for SL-RS communication may be carried in resources from the normal slot 603. For example, PSCCH symbols 623 in the SL resource pool 602-1 having the lowest subchannel may be configured to carry the information. PSCCH symbols 624 in the SL resource pool 602-2 may be used to carry other control information. In such a case, symbols in the dedicated slot 605 may be used primarily for SL-RS transmission and may be configured as SL-RS symbols 627 in addition to AGC symbols 622 and gap symbols 626.

[0098] In some embodiments, a simple trigger is carried as control information (e.g., in the SCI) to activate a first resource allocation configuration based on the (pre)configuration of dedicated slots for SL-RS across multiple SL resource pools and the (pre)configuration of corresponding SL-RS resources. Based on the trigger, the communication device 110, which functions as the RX device, is notified of the intended SL-RS transmission. In some embodiments, a limited amount of additional information, such as the identity and time offset of the allocated SL-RS resources, is also included as the trigger at the same time, allowing the RX device to determine the specific resources to be used at this time. In some embodiments, the SL-RS resource indication is conveyed within the dedicated slot, e.g., in the form of a trigger. For example, in FIG. 6A , an SL-RS trigger is carried in the PSCCH symbol 614 to activate a first resource allocation configuration indicating a resource pool set.

[0099] In some embodiments, the information indicating the first resource allocation configuration may include one or more specific SL-RS resource-related parameters (e.g., FRIV or TRIV) to configure the SL-RS resource allocation (RA), and a certain amount of information may need to be conveyed to the RX device. In such cases, more symbols in a slot may be configured to carry the information indicating the first resource allocation configuration. In some embodiments, resources of the SL resource pool in regular slots (e.g., not for SL-RS communication) may be configured to carry the information indicating the first resource allocation configuration. For example, in FIG. 6B, more PSCCH symbols 623 in regular slot 603 may be used to carry the information indicating the first resource allocation configuration. In this way, more resources in dedicated slot 605 may be configured for SL-RS communication.

[0100] In some embodiments, the communications device 110 acting as a TX device (which may be a target device or an anchor device in the example of sidelink positioning) may transmit information indicative of the first resource allocation, and the communications device 110 acting as an RX device may monitor a corresponding resource pool to receive information indicative of the first resource allocation.

[0101] In some cases, when the SL-RS is transmitted across multiple SL resource pools in a resource pool set, the SL and SL-RS communications may share the same resource pools in both the time and frequency domains. That is, no dedicated slots are configured for SL-RS transmission. The SL-RS may be multiplexed with other SL traffic data / information (PSSCH, PSCCH, measurement reports, etc.) using slots (e.g., regular slots).

[0102] For normal slots, in some embodiments, the same resource pattern in different SL resource pools in a resource pool set may be configured for SL-RSs in the normal slot to simplify SL-RS detection. In some examples, the resource pattern may be defined by symbols in the time domain. In some embodiments, symbols at the same time position within a normal slot are configured in multiple SL resource pools. As shown in FIG. 7A , within SL resource pools 702-1 and 702-2 in normal slot 701, symbols 715 having the same resource pattern within the two SL resource pools are allocated for SL-RS communication. Normal slot 701 may also include other symbols within the two SL resource pools 702-1 and 702-2, including AGC symbols 711, PSCCH symbols 712 for control information, PSSCH symbols 713 for SL data transmission, and gap symbols 714.

[0103] For a regular slot, in some embodiments, multiple resource pools have different resource patterns for communicating sidelink reference signals. These resource patterns may be staggered in the time domain. The different resource patterns may correspond to resources (e.g., symbols) in the multiple resource pools that partially overlap in the time domain. As shown in Figure 7B, unlike the example of Figure 7A, the resource pattern for SL-RS in SL resource pool 702-1 includes symbol 715, and the resource pattern for SL-RS in SL resource pool 702-2 includes SL-RS symbol 716, which partially overlaps with SL-RS symbol 715.

[0104] The staggered resource pattern for the SL-RS can accommodate regular SL traffic data in the SL resource pool when SL traffic and SL-RS are multiplexed in the same slot. For example, compared to SL resource pool 702-2, SL resource pool 702-1 contains more control information conveyed in PSCCH symbols 712, so the SL-RS may be placed in later symbols.

[0105] In some embodiments, the first resource allocation configuration may indicate the same or different resource patterns for SL-RS communication within a resource pool set, allowing the RX device to determine the symbols for the SL-RS.

[0106] If the SL resource pools in the resource pool set are configured in normal slots, as in the case of dedicated slots described above, the information indicating the first resource allocation configuration may be carried in resources for control information in either the SL resource pool having the lower or lowest subchannel in the frequency domain, or the SL resource pool in which the SL-RS is transmitted.

[0107] 7C, information indicating a first resource allocation configuration for SL-RSs is carried in PSCCH symbol 722 in SL resource pool 702-1 and indicates SL-RS symbols 715 allocated for SL-RSs in both SL resource pool 702-1 ("RP1") and SL resource pool 702-2 ("RP2"). In some examples, PSCCH symbol 723 in SL resource pool 702-2 may be configured to indicate SL-RS symbols 715 allocated only to SL-RSs in SL resource pool 702-2.

[0108] In some embodiments, the information indicating the first resource allocation configuration may be uniformly included in resources (e.g., SCIs) for control information in each SL resource pool in the resource pool set, thereby achieving diversity transmission. That is, the information indicating the first resource allocation configuration may be carried in each resource for control information in multiple SL resource pools in the resource pool set, enabling transmission diversity of the information and improving detection accuracy of the information. In the example of Figure 7C, the same resource pattern is assigned to two consecutive SL resource pools for the SL-RS. However, it will be understood that this also applies to cases where different staggered resource patterns and non-consecutive SL resource pools are configured.

[0109] For example, in Figure 7D, information indicating a first resource allocation configuration for the SL-RS may be carried in the PSCCH symbols 732 of both SL resource pools 702-1 and 702-2. The PSCCH symbols 732 of each resource pool may indicate the same information for RA of the SL-RS symbols 715 of both resource pools. In the example of Figure 7D, the same resource pattern is assigned to two non-contiguous SL resource pools for the SL-RS. However, it should be clear that this also applies when configuring different staggered resource patterns and contiguous SL resource pools.

[0110] In some embodiments, the control information for each SL resource pool may include a partial resource configuration for that resource pool. Specifically, the information indicating a first resource allocation configuration may include a first information section related to the partial resource allocation configuration for a first SL resource pool in the resource pool set, a second information section related to the partial resource configuration for a second resource pool in the resource pool set, etc. The first information section is carried in resources for control information in the first resource pool, the second information section is carried in resources for control information in the second resource pool, and so on.

[0111] For example, as shown in Figure 7E, PSCCH symbol 742 in SL resource pool 702-1 is configured to carry an information section related to the SL-RS RA for SL resource pool 702-1, while PSCCH symbol 744 in SL resource pool 702-2 is configured to carry an information section related to the SL-RS RA for SL resource pool 702-2. In the example of Figure 7E, two non-contiguous SL resource pools for SL-RS are assigned different staggered resource patterns, although it will be understood that this also applies when configuring contiguous SL resource pools with the same resource pattern.

[0112] Dedicated resource pool based configuration In some embodiments, as described above, the second resource allocation configuration for the SL-RS may configure a dedicated resource pool for SL-RS communication. Configuring a dedicated resource pool for the SL-RS facilitates efficient resource usage in the dedicated resource pool for SL-RS transmissions from devices in the same or a different normal SL resource pool, facilitating efficient resource allocation for the SL-RS.

[0113] A frequency domain structure of the dedicated resource pool may be defined to enable flexible transmission of the SL-RS. Specifically, the dedicated resource pool is divided into multiple resource units in the frequency domain, where a resource unit is a predetermined bandwidth. The bandwidth of the dedicated resource pool may be configured or pre-configured to include an integer number of such resource units. The resource unit may be a minimum bandwidth for the SL-RS in the dedicated resource pool.

[0114] In some embodiments, the bandwidth of a resource unit (or frequency domain unit) may be determined based on a potential bandwidth granularity of a physical resource block (PRB) for the SL-RS and a potential subchannel bandwidth. In some embodiments, the potential granularity of a PRB may include, for example, 4, 8, and / or 16 PRBs for the SL-RS. In some embodiments, the potential subchannel bandwidth may include, for example, 10, 12, 15, 20, 25, 50, 75, or 100 PRBs for each subchannel. In some embodiments, the predetermined bandwidth for a resource unit in the second resource allocation configuration is equal to an integer multiple of the least common multiple of the bandwidth granularity and the subchannel bandwidth for the SL-RS, for example, 12 PRBs, 20 PRBs, or 24 PRBs.

[0115] The resource units may be used as intervals within a dedicated resource pool. The dedicated resource pool may include a set of evenly spaced resource units for SL-RS resources. When allocating a specific resource for an SL-RS, a certain number of resource units (one or more) may be allocated. That is, each SL-RS may be located on a grid of resource units in the frequency domain in the dedicated resource pool.

[0116] In some embodiments, the bandwidth of the SL-RS in a dedicated resource pool may be configured or pre-configured to include an integer number of resource units. For example, as shown in FIG. 8A, in the dedicated resource pool 802 for the SL-RS, a resource unit 812 includes multiple subchannels 810 in the frequency domain. Two resource units 812 are allocated for the SL-RS 814, and more than two resource units 812 are allocated for the SL-RS 816.

[0117] In some embodiments, the bandwidth settings of the SL-RSs in the dedicated resource pool may be classified according to an integer multiple relationship. That is, the bandwidth of one SL-RS may be equal to an integer multiple of the bandwidth of another SL-RS. As a result, when allocating resources for two SL-RSs, the total bandwidth of the number of resource units allocated for one SL-RS may be equal to an integer multiple of the total bandwidth of the number of resource units for another SL-RS. For example, as shown in FIG. 8B, the total bandwidth of the SL-RS 816 is twice the total bandwidth of the SL-RS 818, which is twice the total bandwidth of the SL-RS 814. This classification in the frequency domain allows optimal utilization of the bandwidth of the dedicated resource pool for SL-RS transmission. If necessary, resource units of different sizes may be allocated for transmitting different SL-RSs.

[0118] Regarding resource allocation for the SL-RS in the dedicated resource pool, particularly for a resource allocation scheme performed by the communication device 110 without the involvement of a network device, the resource allocation may follow a predetermined ranking in the frequency domain. Specifically, among available resource blocks (RBs), such as PRBs, in the dedicated resource pool, the number of resource units indicated by the second resource allocation configuration may be selected from available RBs according to a predetermined ranking in the frequency domain. In this way, resource utilization can be improved and the number of resource units remaining unallocated can be reduced.

[0119] For example, as shown in Figure 9, the ordering may be from bottom to top in the frequency domain 902, i.e., from the lowest available PRB to the highest available PRB in the dedicated resource pool 802. Specifically, two resource units are selected from the first lowest PRB for the first SL-RS 914, and two more resource units are selected from the new lowest available PRB for the second SL-RS 914, and so on. Alternatively, as shown in Figure 9, the ordering may be from the highest available PRB to the lowest available PRB 904. In this direction, the first SL-RS 914 is allocated four resource units from the highest PRB or highest resource unit.

[0120] In some embodiments, a random top-to-bottom and bottom-to-top ranking may be applied to resource allocation, and in some embodiments, resource units for the SL-RS may be randomly selected from a dedicated resource pool.

[0121] In some embodiments, if a dedicated resource pool is configured for SL-RS communication, the slot for the dedicated resource pool may be considered as a dedicated slot for SL-RS communication. In some embodiments, the structure of the dedicated slot is similar to that described for the resource pool set-based configuration, e.g., similar to that shown in Figures 5A to 5D. Thus, a single 12-symbol SL-RS with a single AGC, or multiple 2-symbol, 4-symbol, or 6-symbol SL-RS with multiple AGCs, with or without SCI, may be included in the dedicated slot. The structure of the dedicated slot may be designed taking into account various factors. In some embodiments, the second resource allocation configuration may further indicate the number of symbols for communication of sidelink reference signals within the timeslot and the respective positions of the symbols.

[0122] The above describes some example embodiments of a second resource allocation configuration based on a dedicated resource pool set. In some embodiments, information indicating the second resource allocation configuration may be transmitted in the SCI and / or MAC CE to indicate the dedicated resource pool set and the resource units in the dedicated resource pool allocated for SL-RS transmission.

[0123] In some embodiments, the information indicating the second resource allocation configuration may be carried on resources for control information in a dedicated resource pool. In some embodiments, the information indicating the second resource allocation configuration may be carried on resources for control information in another resource pool for SL communications other than the dedicated resource pool, for example, in a normal SL resource pool.

[0124] In some embodiments, when a dedicated resource pool is associated with one normal SL resource pool, i.e., when all SL-RS transmissions in the dedicated resource pool are transmitted by communication devices 110 that share the same SL resource pool, information indicating the second resource allocation configuration may be conveyed only in the SCI in the normal SL resource pool, for example, as a new field in the normal SCI format or as a field in the SCI in the new format.

[0125] 10A, a dedicated resource pool 1002 for SL-RS is associated with a regular SL resource pool 1004 in slot 1001. Information indicating a second resource allocation configuration may be carried in resources for control information in the SL resource pool 1004, such as PSCCH symbol 1014. PSCCH symbol 1104 indicates the SL resource allocation in the dedicated resource pool 1002. The remaining symbols in the SL resource pool 1004 may be configured as AGC symbols 1012, PSSCH symbols for SL data 1016, and gap symbols 1018. Symbols in the dedicated resource pool 1002, in addition to the AGC symbols 1012 and gap symbols 1018, may be configured as SL-RS symbols 1019.

[0126] In some embodiments, similar to the case of the resource pool set-based configuration, based on specific requirements such as different resource allocation schemes, the information indicating the second resource allocation configuration may take the form of comprehensive information including FRIV, TRIV, etc., or a simple indication as a trigger. Such information may be carried in the regular SL resource pool.

[0127] In some embodiments, information indicating the second resource allocation configuration may be conveyed in a new format SCI (e.g., Format 1-X) in the dedicated resource pool, such as in the lowest subchannel corresponding to the intended SL-RS transmission in the dedicated resource pool. SCI Format 1-X includes the SL-RS resource indication / reservation and may occupy one or two symbols in the slot. For time-division multiplexing (TDM) of overlapping or partially overlapping SL-RS resources in the frequency domain within a slot, if the lowest subchannel is (partially) occupied for SCI transmission associated with one SL-RS, the subchannel adjacent to the lowest subchannel is used for SCI transmission associated with another SL-RS, and so on according to the time ordering of different SL-RSs within the slot; thus, a predetermined number (e.g., M) of the lowest subchannels may be reserved solely for conveying SCI.

[0128] 10B , for resource pool 1003 dedicated to SL-RSs and associated with SL resource pool 1004, subchannel 1014 within the PSCCH symbols of the dedicated resource pool 1003 is used to carry information regarding resource allocation configuration for SL-RS symbol 1020 allocated for a first SL-RS, and subchannel 1015 within the PSCCH symbols of the dedicated resource pool 1003 is used to carry information regarding resource allocation configuration for SL-RS symbol 1019 allocated for a second SL-RS. According to this configuration, the SL-RS within SL-RS symbol 1019 and the SL-RS within SL-RS symbol 1020 may be communicated in a TDM manner. PSCCH symbol 1022 within SL resource pool 1004 may be configured to carry SCI for normal SL communication.

[0129] In some embodiments, when a dedicated resource pool is associated with multiple normal SL resource pools, i.e., communication devices 110 in different normal SL resource pools may share the dedicated resource pool to transmit SL-RSs. In this case, for at least the associated SL resource pools having a resource allocation scheme by the communication devices 110 without the involvement of a network device, information related to a second resource allocation configuration may be conveyed in a new format SCI (e.g., Format 1-X) in the dedicated resource pool, such as the lowest subchannel corresponding to the intended SL-PRS transmission in the dedicated resource pool. For example, as shown in FIG. 10C , a dedicated resource pool 1003 for SL-RSs is associated with SL resource pool 1004 and SL resource pool 1006. Subchannel 1014 in the PSCCH of dedicated resource pool 1003 is used to carry information regarding the resource allocation configuration for SL-RS symbols 1020 allocated for a first SL-RS, and subchannel 1015 in the PSCCH symbols of dedicated resource pool 1003 is used to carry information regarding the resource allocation configuration for SL-RS symbols 1019 allocated for a second SL-RS. PSCCH symbols 1022 in the SL resource pools 1004 and 1006 can be configured to carry SCI for normal SL communications.

[0130] Alternatively, adjacent subchannels may be used for TDM SL-PRS with slots, similar to the case above where a dedicated resource pool is associated with one regular SL resource pool.

[0131] 10D, a dedicated resource pool 1005 may be configured for communication of TDM SL-RSs in slot 1001. In addition to subchannels 1014 and 1015, a PSCCH symbol 1017 in the lowest subchannel may also be configured to carry information regarding resource allocation configuration for SL-RS symbol 1021. The SL-RS in SL-RS symbol 1021 may be communicated with the SL-RSs in SL-RS symbols 1019 and 1020 in a frequency division multiplexing (FDM) manner.

[0132] In some embodiments, an SL-RS may be transmitted in both a dedicated resource pool and an associated SL resource pool that may or may not be contiguous with the dedicated resource pool. For example, in a resource pool set-based configuration, the resource pool set may be configured to include one or more dedicated resource pools for SL-RS and one or more regular SL resource pools. In some embodiments, resources allocated from such a resource pool set may be based on a resource allocation scheme, with or without the involvement of a network device (Mode 1 or Mode 2), that is applied to SL-RS communications.

[0133] In some embodiments, the information indicating the resource allocation configuration for the set of resource pools may be similar to that described above. In some embodiments, the information indicating the resource allocation configuration may be partially conveyed in a new format SCI (e.g., format 1-X) in the lowest subchannel corresponding to the intended SL-RS transmission in the dedicated resource pool. At the same time, the remaining information corresponding to the intended SL-RS transmission in the regular SL resource pool may be conveyed in the SCI transmitted in the regular SL resource pool. That is, the SL-RS resources in the regular SL resource pool and the dedicated resource pool are indicated separately in the SCI for the corresponding resource pool.

[0134] 11A, a resource pool set includes a regular SL resource pool 1102 and a dedicated resource pool for SL-RS. In slot 1101, a PSCCH symbol 1114 in the dedicated resource pool 1104 is configured to carry an information section indicating an SL-RS symbol 1122 in the dedicated resource pool 1104, and a PSCCH symbol 1116 in the SL resource pool 1102 is configured to carry an information section indicating an SL-RS symbol 1122 in the SL resource pool 1102. The remaining symbols in the resource pool set include an AGC symbol 1112, a PSCCH symbol 1118 in the SL resource pool 1102, and a gap symbol 1120.

[0135] In some embodiments, similar to the resource pool set comprising all SL resource pools, identical or staggered resource patterns may be configured for the dedicated and SL resource pools. For example, in Figure 11A, the SL-RS symbols 1122 in the SL resource pool 1102 and the dedicated resource pool 1104 have the same resource pattern. In another example shown in Figure 11B, the SL-RS symbols 1122 in the dedicated resource pool 1104 have a different resource pattern than the SL-RS symbols 1124 in the SL resource pool 1102. The two resource patterns are staggered in the time domain.

[0136] It will be understood that the examples and structures of Figures 10A-11B are provided for illustrative purposes, as there are many variations in slot structures and the scope of the present disclosure is not limited in this respect.

[0137] Device example Figure 12 is a schematic block diagram of an apparatus 1200 suitable for implementing embodiments of the present disclosure. The apparatus 1200 can be considered another example implementation of the communication apparatus 110 or the communication apparatus 120 shown in Figure 1. Thus, the apparatus 1200 can be implemented in, or at least as part of, the communication apparatus 110 or the communication apparatus 120.

[0138] As shown, the apparatus 1200 comprises a processor 1210, a memory 1220 coupled to the processor 1210, a suitable transmitter (TX) / receiver (RX) 1240 coupled to the processor 1210, and a communication interface coupled to the TX / RX 1240. The memory 1210 stores at least a portion of a program 1230. The TX / RX 1240 is for bidirectional communication. The TX / RX 1240 has at least one antenna to facilitate communication, although in practice the access nodes referred to in this disclosure may have multiple antennas. The communication interface may represent any interface required for communication with other network elements, such as, for example, an X2 / Xn interface for bidirectional communication between eNBs / gNBs, an S1 / NG interface for communication between a Mobility Management Entity (MME) / Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF) / SGW / UPF and an eNB / gNB, an Un interface for communication between an eNB / gNB and a relay node (RN), or a Uu interface for communication between an eNB / gNB and a terminal device.

[0139] The program 1230 is assumed to include program instructions that, when executed by the associated processor 1210, cause the device 1200 to operate in accordance with embodiments of the present disclosure, as described herein with reference to FIGS. 1-11B. Embodiments of the present disclosure may be implemented by computer software executable by the processor 1210 of the device 1200, by hardware, or by a combination of software and hardware. The processor 1210 may be configured to implement various embodiments of the present disclosure. Furthermore, the combination of the processor 1210 and the memory 1220 may form a processing means 1250 suitable for implementing various embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0140] Memory 1220 may be of any type suitable for a local technology network and may be implemented using any suitable data storage technology, such as, by way of non-limiting example, non-transitory computer-readable storage media, semiconductor-based memory devices, magnetic memory devices and systems, optical memory devices and systems, fixed memory, and removable memory. While only one memory 1220 is shown in device 1200, device 1200 may have multiple physically distinct memory modules. Processor 1210 may be of any type suitable for a local technology network and may include, by way of non-limiting example, one or more of a general-purpose computer, a special-purpose computer, a microprocessor, a digital signal processor (DSP), and a processor based on a multi-core processor architecture. Device 1200 may have multiple processors, such as application-specific integrated circuit chips that are time-slaved to a clock that synchronizes the main processor.

[0141] In some embodiments, a communications device (e.g., a terminal device) comprises circuitry configured to: obtain a resource allocation configuration for sidelink reference signals, the resource allocation configuration including a first resource allocation configuration indicating a resource pool set comprising a plurality of resource pools for sidelink communication and a time-frequency location within the resource pool set, or a second resource allocation configuration indicating a number of resource units of a predetermined bandwidth selected from a dedicated resource pool for communication of the sidelink reference signals; determine resources to be allocated for the sidelink reference signals based on the resource allocation configuration; and perform communication of the sidelink reference signals with at least one second communications device using the determined resources.

[0142] In some embodiments, the multiple resource pools include at least one of at least two resource pools that are partially overlapping in the time domain and contiguous in the frequency domain, and at least two resource pools that are non-contiguous in the frequency domain.

[0143] In some embodiments, the resource allocation configuration includes a first resource allocation configuration. In some embodiments, the circuitry is configured to perform communication of the sidelink reference signal by applying independent detection of the sidelink reference signal to each of the plurality of resource pools in accordance with a determination that a frequency gap between the plurality of resource pools exceeds a frequency threshold, and by applying joint detection of the sidelink reference signal to the plurality of resource pools in accordance with a determination that the frequency gap is within the frequency threshold.

[0144] In some embodiments, the first resource allocation configuration further indicates dedicated time slots for sidelink reference signals.

[0145] In some embodiments, the first resource allocation configuration further indicates a periodicity of the dedicated time slots.

[0146] In some embodiments, the first resource allocation configuration or the second resource allocation configuration further indicates the number of symbols and their respective positions within a timeslot for communication of sidelink reference signals.

[0147] In some embodiments, a symbol for automatic gain control (AGC) is included before the start symbol of the symbols for communication of the sidelink reference signal.

[0148] In some embodiments, the information indicative of the first resource allocation configuration is carried in at least one first resource for control information in at least one resource pool in the resource pool set or at least one second resource for control information in at least one other resource pool for sidelink communication, the second resource having a time position preceding that of a resource in a dedicated timeslot for sidelink reference signals.

[0149] In some embodiments, the information indicating the first resource allocation configuration is carried in each resource for control information in a plurality of resource pools in the resource pool set.

[0150] In some embodiments, the information indicating the first resource allocation configuration includes a first information section related to a partial resource allocation configuration for a first resource pool in the resource pool set and a second information section related to a partial resource allocation configuration for a second resource pool in the resource pool set, In some embodiments, the first information section is carried in resources for control information in the first resource pool and the second information section is carried in resources for control information in the second resource pool.

[0151] In some embodiments, the information indicating the second resource allocation configuration is carried in a third resource for control information in a dedicated resource pool or a fourth resource for control information in another resource pool for sidelink communication other than the dedicated resource pool.

[0152] In some embodiments, the information indicative of the first resource allocation configuration or the second resource allocation configuration includes at least one parameter for the first resource allocation configuration or a trigger for activating the first resource allocation configuration.

[0153] In some embodiments, the first resource allocation configuration further indicates a resource pattern for communication of sidelink reference signals in a plurality of resource pools or different resource patterns for communication of sidelink reference signals in a plurality of resource pools, the different resource patterns corresponding to resources in the plurality of resource pools that partially overlap in the time domain.

[0154] In some embodiments, the predetermined bandwidth for the resource units in the second resource allocation configuration is equal to an integer multiple of the least common multiple of the bandwidth granularity for the sidelink reference signals and the subchannel bandwidth.

[0155] In some embodiments, the total bandwidth of a number of resource units for a sidelink reference signal is equal to an integer multiple of the total bandwidth of another number of resource units for another sidelink reference signal.

[0156] In some embodiments, the dedicated resource pool includes a plurality of physical blocks (RBs), and the number of resource units indicated by the second resource allocation configuration is selected from the available RBs in the dedicated resource pool according to a predetermined ranking in the frequency domain.

[0157] In some embodiments, the plurality of resource pools in the set of resource pools includes a dedicated resource pool.

[0158] In some embodiments, the circuitry is configured to obtain the resource allocation configuration by receiving information indicative of the resource allocation configuration from a third communication device.

[0159] In some embodiments, the circuitry is configured to transmit information indicative of the resource allocation configuration to at least one second communication device.

[0160] In some embodiments, the circuitry is configured such that the sidelink reference signals include a sidelink positioning reference signal (SL-PRS).

[0161] The term "circuitry" as used in this disclosure may refer to a hardware circuit and / or a combination of a hardware circuit and software. For example, a circuit may be a combination of analog and / or digital hardware circuitry and software / firmware. As another example, a circuit may be any portion of a hardware processor with software, where the hardware processor includes digital signal processor(s), software, and memory(s) that work together to cause a device, such as a terminal device or network device, to perform various functions. As yet another example, a circuit may be a hardware circuit and / or processor, such as a microprocessor or portion of a microprocessor, that requires software / firmware to operate, but the software may not be present when not necessary for operation. As used in this disclosure, the term circuitry also includes simply a hardware circuit or processor(s) or portion of a hardware circuit or processor(s) and its (or their) associated software and / or firmware implementation.

[0162] In summary, the embodiments of the present disclosure provide the following solutions:

[0163] In one solution, a communication method includes, in a first communication device, obtaining a resource allocation configuration for sidelink reference signals, the resource allocation configuration including a first resource allocation configuration indicating a resource pool set including a plurality of resource pools for sidelink communication and a time-frequency location within the resource pool set, or a second resource allocation configuration indicating a number of resource units of a predetermined bandwidth selected from a dedicated resource pool for communication of the sidelink reference signals; determining resources to be allocated for the sidelink reference signals based on the resource allocation configuration; and performing communication of the sidelink reference signals with at least one second communication device using the determined resources.

[0164] In some embodiments, the multiple resource pools include at least one of at least two resource pools that are partially overlapping in the time domain and contiguous in the frequency domain, and at least two resource pools that are non-contiguous in the frequency domain.

[0165] In some embodiments, the resource allocation configuration comprises a first resource allocation configuration, and performing communication of the sidelink reference signals comprises: applying independent detection of the sidelink reference signals to each of the plurality of resource pools in accordance with determining that a frequency gap between the plurality of resource pools exceeds a frequency threshold; and applying joint detection of the sidelink reference signals to the plurality of resource pools in accordance with determining that the frequency gap is within the frequency threshold.

[0166] In some embodiments, the first resource allocation configuration further indicates dedicated time slots for sidelink reference signals.

[0167] In some embodiments, the first resource allocation configuration further indicates a periodicity of the dedicated time slots.

[0168] In some embodiments, the first resource allocation configuration or the second resource allocation configuration further indicates the number of symbols and their respective positions within a timeslot for communication of sidelink reference signals.

[0169] In some embodiments, a symbol for automatic gain control (AGC) is included before the start symbol of the symbols for communication of the sidelink reference signal.

[0170] In some embodiments, the information indicative of the first resource allocation configuration is carried in at least one first resource for control information in at least one resource pool in the resource pool set or at least one second resource for control information in at least one other resource pool for sidelink communication, the second resource having a time position preceding that of a resource in a dedicated timeslot for sidelink reference signals.

[0171] In some embodiments, the information indicating the first resource allocation configuration is carried in each resource for control information in a plurality of resource pools in the resource pool set.

[0172] In some embodiments, the information indicating the first resource allocation configuration includes a first information section related to a partial resource configuration for a first resource pool in the resource pool set and a second information section related to a partial resource configuration for a second resource pool in the resource pool set, the first information section being carried in resources for control information in the first resource pool and the second information section being carried in resources for control information in the second resource pool.

[0173] In some embodiments, the information indicating the second resource allocation configuration is carried in a third resource for control information in a dedicated resource pool or a fourth resource for control information in another resource pool for sidelink communication other than the dedicated resource pool.

[0174] In some embodiments, the information indicative of the first resource allocation configuration or the second resource allocation configuration includes at least one parameter for the first resource allocation configuration or a trigger for activating the first resource allocation configuration.

[0175] In some embodiments, the first resource allocation configuration further indicates a resource pattern for communication of sidelink reference signals in a plurality of resource pools or different resource patterns for communication of sidelink reference signals in a plurality of resource pools, the different resource patterns corresponding to resources in the plurality of resource pools that partially overlap in the time domain.

[0176] In some embodiments, the predetermined bandwidth for the resource units in the second resource allocation configuration is equal to an integer multiple of the least common multiple of the bandwidth granularity for the sidelink reference signals and the subchannel bandwidth.

[0177] In some embodiments, the total bandwidth of a number of resource units for a sidelink reference signal is equal to an integer multiple of the total bandwidth of another number of resource units for another sidelink reference signal.

[0178] In some embodiments, the dedicated resource pool includes a plurality of physical blocks (RBs), and the number of resource units indicated by the second resource allocation configuration is selected from the available RBs in the dedicated resource pool according to a predetermined ranking in the frequency domain.

[0179] In some embodiments, the plurality of resource pools in the set of resource pools includes a dedicated resource pool.

[0180] In some embodiments, obtaining the resource allocation configuration includes receiving information indicative of the resource allocation configuration from the third communications device.

[0181] In some embodiments, the method further includes transmitting information indicative of the resource allocation configuration to the at least one second communication device.

[0182] In some embodiments, the sidelink reference signals include sidelink positioning reference signals (SL-PRS).

[0183] In another solution, a communications device includes at least one processor and at least one memory having stored therein instructions that, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the device to perform any of the methods described above.

[0184] Another solution is a computer-readable medium having stored thereon instructions that, when executed on at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to perform any of the methods described above.

[0185] Yet another solution is a computer program comprising instructions that, when executed on at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to perform any of the methods described above.

[0186] In general, various embodiments of the present disclosure may be implemented in hardware or special purpose circuits, software, logic, or any combination thereof. Some aspects may be implemented in hardware, while other aspects may be implemented in firmware or software that may be executed by a controller, microprocessor, or other computing device. While various aspects of embodiments of the present disclosure are illustrated and described using block diagrams, flowcharts, or some other pictorial representations, it should be understood that the blocks, devices, systems, techniques, or methods described in this disclosure may be implemented in, by way of non-limiting example, hardware, software, firmware, special purpose circuits or logic, general purpose hardware or controller, or other computing device, or some combination thereof.

[0187] The present disclosure also provides at least one computer program product tangibly stored on a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium. The computer program product includes computer-executable instructions (e.g., computer-executable instructions included in program modules) that execute on a device by a target real or virtual processor to perform the processes or methods described above with reference to FIGS. 1-11. Generally, program modules include routines, programs, libraries, objects, classes, components, data structures, etc. that perform particular tasks or implement particular abstract data types. The functionality of the program modules may be combined or split among program modules as desired in various embodiments. The machine-executable instructions for the program modules may be executed in local or distributed devices. In a distributed device, the program modules may be located in both local and remote storage media.

[0188] Program code for implementing the methods of the present disclosure may be written in any combination of one or more programming languages. These program codes may be provided to a processor or controller of a general-purpose computer, a special-purpose computer, or other programmable data processing apparatus, so that when executed by the processor or controller, the program code performs the functions / acts specified in the flowcharts and / or block diagrams. The program code may be executed entirely on a machine, partially on a machine, as a stand-alone software package, partially on a machine and partially on a remote machine, or entirely on a remote machine or server.

[0189] The program code may be embodied in a machine-readable medium, which may be any tangible medium that can contain or store a program for use by or in connection with an instruction execution system, apparatus, or device. The machine-readable medium may be a machine-readable signal medium or a machine-readable storage medium. The machine-readable medium includes, but is not limited to, an electronic, magnetic, optical, electromagnetic, infrared, or semiconductor system, apparatus, or device, or any suitable combination thereof. More specific examples of machine-readable storage media include an electrical connection having one or more wires, a portable computer disk, a hard disk, a random access memory (RAM), a read-only memory (ROM), an erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM or flash memory), an optical fiber, a portable compact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM), an optical storage device, a magnetic storage device, or any suitable combination of the foregoing.

[0190] Furthermore, although operations are described in a particular order, this should not be understood as requiring such operations to be performed in the particular order shown, or sequentially, or that all of the operations shown be performed, to achieve desirable results. In certain situations, multitasking and parallel processing may be advantageous. Similarly, while several specific implementation details are included in the above description, these should not be construed as limiting the scope of the disclosure, but rather as descriptions of features that may be specific to particular embodiments. Certain features that are described in the context of separate embodiments can also be implemented in combination in a single embodiment. Conversely, various features that are described in the context of a single embodiment can also be implemented in multiple embodiments separately or in any suitable subcombination.

[0191] Although the present disclosure has been described in language specific to structural features and / or methodological operations, it is to be understood that the present disclosure, which is limited to the appended claims, is not necessarily limited to the specific features or operations described above. Rather, the specific features and operations described above are disclosed as example forms of implementing the claims.

Claims

1. and obtaining, in a first communication device, a resource allocation configuration for a sidelink reference signal, the resource allocation configuration comprising: a first resource allocation configuration indicating a resource pool set including a plurality of resource pools for sidelink communication and a time-frequency location within the resource pool set; or a second resource allocation configuration indicating a number of resource units of a predetermined bandwidth selected from a dedicated resource pool for communication of the sidelink reference signal; and determining resources to be allocated for the sidelink reference signals based on the resource allocation configuration; and performing communication of the sidelink reference signals with at least one second communication device using the determined resources; and A communication method including:

2. the plurality of resource pools partially overlap in the time domain; at least two sidelink resource pools that are contiguous in the frequency domain; and at least two sidelink resource pools that are not consecutive in the frequency domain; at least one of: The method of claim 1.

3. the resource allocation configuration comprises the first resource allocation configuration, and performing the communication of the sidelink reference signal comprises: applying independent detection of the sidelink reference signals to each of the plurality of sidelink resource pools according to a determination that a frequency gap between the at least two sidelink resource pools exceeds a frequency threshold; and and applying joint detection of the sidelink reference signals to the plurality of resource pools in accordance with determining that the frequency gap is within the frequency threshold. The method of claim 1.

4. the first resource allocation configuration further indicates a dedicated time slot for the sidelink reference signal. The method of claim 1.

5. the first resource allocation configuration further indicates a periodicity of the dedicated time slots. The method of claim 4.

6. the first resource allocation configuration or the second resource allocation configuration further indicates a number of symbols for communication of the sidelink reference signal and respective positions of the symbols within a timeslot. The method of claim 1.

7. a symbol for automatic gain control (AGC) is included before the start symbol of the symbols for communication of the sidelink reference signal; The method of claim 6.

8. The information indicating the first resource allocation configuration includes: at least one first resource for control information in at least one resource pool in the set of resource pools; or at least one second resource for control information in at least one other resource pool for sidelink communication, the at least one second resource having a time position preceding a time position of a resource in the dedicated timeslot for the sidelink reference signal; transported in The method of claim 1.

9. the information indicating the first resource allocation configuration is carried in each resource for control information within the plurality of resource pools in the resource pool set. The method of claim 8.

10. the information indicating the first resource allocation configuration includes a first information section related to a partial resource configuration for a first resource pool in the resource pool set and a second information section related to a partial resource configuration for a second resource pool in the resource pool set; the first information section is carried in resources for control information in the first resource pool, and the second information section is carried in resources for control information in the second resource pool. The method of claim 8.

11. The information indicating the second resource allocation configuration includes: a third resource for control information within the dedicated resource pool; or fourth resources for control information in a separate resource pool for sidelink communication other than the dedicated resource pool; transported in The method of claim 1.

12. the information indicating the first resource allocation configuration or the second resource allocation configuration includes at least one parameter for the first resource allocation configuration or a trigger for activating the first resource allocation configuration; The method of claim 1.

13. The first resource allocation configuration includes: a resource pattern for communication of the sidelink reference signals in the plurality of resource pools, or and further indicating different resource patterns for communication of the sidelink reference signals in the plurality of resource pools, the different resource patterns corresponding to resources in the plurality of resource pools that partially overlap in the time domain. The method of claim 1.

14. the predetermined bandwidth for resource units in the second resource allocation configuration is equal to an integer multiple of the least common multiple of a bandwidth granularity for the sidelink reference signals and a subchannel bandwidth. The method of claim 1.

15. the total bandwidth of the number of resource units for the sidelink reference signal is equal to an integer multiple of the total bandwidth of another number of resource units for another sidelink reference signal. The method of claim 1.

16. the dedicated resource pool includes a plurality of physical blocks (RBs), and the number of resource units indicated by the second resource allocation configuration is selected from available RBs in the dedicated resource pool according to a predetermined ranking in a frequency domain. The method of claim 1.

17. the plurality of resource pools in the resource pool set include the dedicated resource pool. The method of claim 1.

18. The sidelink reference signal includes a sidelink positioning reference signal (SL-PRS), The method of claim 1.

19. comprising at least one processor configured to cause the device to carry out the method according to any one of claims 1 to 18, Communication equipment.

20. - storing instructions which, when executed on at least one processor, cause said at least one processor to perform the method of any one of claims 1 to 18; Computer-readable medium.

Images