Location determination method and apparatus

Abstract

The present application provides a location determination method and apparatus. The method may be applied to a first network device. The method includes sending first information and second information to each of a plurality of second network devices, where the first information indicates to the second network device to determine a first delay of a pilot signal passing through a transmission channel and a reception channel of the second network device, and the second information indicates to the second network device to send a pilot signal to one or more third network devices and receive the pilot signal from the one or more third network devices; receiving the first delay and one or more second delays of each of the second network devices; and determining location information of each of the second network devices based on air interface delays between the second network devices, where the air interface delays between the second network devices are determined based on the first delay and one or more second delays of each of the second network devices. This scheme can improve the efficiency of determining location information of a plurality of second network devices.

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present application relates to the field of communications, and in particular to location determination methods and apparatus. [Background technology]

[0002] This application claims priority to Chinese Patent Application No. 202211531315.X, entitled "LOCATION DETERMINING METHOD AND APPARATUS," filed with the State Intellectual Property Office of China on December 1, 2022, which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

[0003] During the actual engineering deployment of an indoor base station, the planned site location may be inconsistent with the actual installation location due to reasons such as an inaccurate manual installation location or the inability to install the indoor base station at the planned location point, etc. Therefore, operation and maintenance personnel cannot obtain the actual installation locations of all indoor base stations in an area based on the installation design drawings, which is not conducive to the subsequent operation and maintenance of the indoor base station and affects the automatic and digital management of site device information assets.

[0004] Currently, during operation and maintenance or troubleshooting, operation and maintenance personnel can locate the control node that controls the indoor base station based on the information recorded during the installation process of the construction team, and then locate the location of the indoor base station through the interface of the control node.

[0005] However, the searching method has low efficiency, and when the construction team is changed, the recorded installation information is easily lost. Therefore, it is more difficult to search for the location of the indoor base station. Summary of the Invention

[0006] SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The embodiments of the present application provide a location determination method and apparatus to improve the efficiency of determining location information of multiple indoor base stations.

[0007] According to a first aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a location determination method, which may be applied to a first network device (e.g., a device or a chip of the first network device). In the method, the first network device sends first information and second information to each of a plurality of second network devices, where the first information indicates to the second network device to determine a first delay of a pilot signal passing through a transmission channel and a reception channel of the second network device, and the second information indicates to the second network device to send a pilot signal to one or more third network devices and receive a pilot signal from the one or more third network devices. The first network device receives the first delay and one or more second delays of each of the second network devices, where each second delay of each of the second network devices is a delay of the pilot signal from the transmission channel of the respective third network device to the reception channel of the second network device. The first network device determines location information of each of the second network devices based on the air interface delay between the second network devices.

[0008] The third network device is a network device other than the second network device among the plurality of second network devices, and the air interface delay between the second network devices is determined based on the first delay and one or more second delays of each second network device.

[0009] In this embodiment of the present application, the first network device sends first information and second information to each of one or more second network devices, so that the first network device can obtain the first delay determined by each second network device based on the pilot signal and the one or more second delays determined by receiving the pilot signal. Further, the first network device can determine location information of each second network device based on the air interface delay between the second network devices, and the air interface delay between the second network devices is determined based on the first delay and one or more second delays of each second network device.

[0010] It can be appreciated that the first network device can determine the location information of each of the plurality of second network devices by using the first delay and one or more second delays fed back by each second network device. Compared with a manner in which the location information of each second network device is determined through manual measurement, this manner can improve the efficiency of determining the location information of the plurality of second network devices and improve the accuracy of the location information of each second network device.

[0011] In any implementation, the second information indicates to the second network device, among other things, to send a pilot signal to each of one or more third network devices by using a different first beam in each of a plurality of first slots, and to receive a pilot signal from each third network device by using a different second beam in each of a plurality of second slots.

[0012] In this way, when sending a pilot signal to each of one or more third network devices, each second network device sends the pilot signal to the third network device by using a different first beam in each of the plurality of first slots, and when receiving a pilot signal from each third network device, each second network device receives the pilot signal from the third network device by using a different second beam in each of the plurality of second slots. This increases the beam gain for sending and receiving the pilot signal by each second network device, which in turn helps to improve the air interface quality of the wireless link between the second network devices and further helps to improve the accuracy of the location information of each second network device.

[0013] In any implementation, the second information indicates to the second network device, among other things, to send a pilot signal to each of one or more third network devices by using a different first beam in each of the plurality of first slots and to receive a pilot signal from each third network device by using a different second beam in each of the plurality of second slots, wherein each second delay of each second network device is, among other things, a delay corresponding to an optimal beam pair, and the optimal beam pair is a beam pair having a maximum received signal-to-noise ratio among the plurality of first beams and the plurality of second beams.

[0014] In any implementation, the first network device may further receive beam information of one or more optimal beam pairs of each second network device. In this way, the first network device may determine location information of each second network device with respect to the beam information of one or more optimal beam pairs of each second network device, and the accuracy of the location information of each second network device may be further improved.

[0015] In any implementation, the first network device determining location information of each second network device based on air interface delays between the second network devices includes: the first network device determining a distance between every two second network devices based on the air interface delays between the second network devices, and determining location information of each second network device based on the distance between every two second network devices and location information of one or more fourth network devices, where the fourth network device is a network device whose location information is known to the plurality of second network devices.

[0016] It may be recognized that after the first network device determines the distance between any two second network devices based on the air interface delay between the second network devices, the first network device may determine location information of each remaining second network device based on known location information of a small number of the second network devices, thereby improving the efficiency of determining location information of multiple second network devices.

[0017] In any implementation, the first network device determining location information of each second network device based on the distance between every two second network devices and location information of one or more fourth network devices includes: the first network device determining a spatial topology structure between the plurality of second network devices based on the distance between every two second network devices and beam information of an optimal beam pair of each second network device, and determining location information of each second network device based on the distance between every two second network devices, the spatial topology structure, and location information of one or more fourth network devices.

[0018] In any implementation, the first network device may further compensate for the delay of the receiving channels of any two second network devices among the plurality of second network devices based on the first delay and the second delay of the plurality of second network devices, and determine the air interface delay between the second network devices based on the compensated delay of the receiving channels of any two second network devices.

[0019] In an optional implementation, the first network device may determine a second network device corresponding to each of the plurality of logical ports based on the plurality of logical ports of the fifth network device, where the fifth network device is a network device that controls the plurality of second network devices. This method helps to improve the efficiency of searching for a faulty second network device during subsequent operation and maintenance processing of the plurality of second network devices.

[0020] According to a second aspect, the present application further provides a location determination method. The location determination method in this aspect corresponds to the location determination method in the first aspect. The location determination method in this aspect will be described from the perspective of a second network device (and may be applied to a device or a chip of the second network device). In this method, the second network device receives first information and second information, where the first information indicates to the second network device to determine a first delay of a pilot signal passing through a transmission channel and a reception channel of the second network device, and the second information indicates to the second network device to send the pilot signal to one or more third network devices and receive the pilot signal from the one or more third network devices. The second network device determines the first delay based on the pilot signal. The second network device sends the pilot signal to the one or more third network devices. The second network device receives the pilot signal from the one or more third network devices and determines one or more second delays. The second network device sends the first delay and the one or more second delays.

[0021] The third network device is a network device other than the second network device among the plurality of second network devices, and each of the one or more second delays is a delay of the pilot signal from the transmission channel of the respective third network device to the reception channel of the second network device.

[0022] In this embodiment of the present application, the second network device receives the first information and the second information, determines a first delay based on the pilot signal, determines one or more second delays by receiving the pilot signal, and then feeds back the first delay and the one or more second delays to the first network device. Thus, the second network device determines location information of each second network device based on the air interface delay between the second network devices, and the air interface delay between the second network devices is determined based on the first delay and one or more second delays of each second network device, thereby further improving the efficiency of determining location information of multiple second network devices.

[0023] In any implementation, the second information indicates to the second network device, among other things, to send a pilot signal to each of one or more third network devices by using a different first beam in each of a plurality of first slots, and to receive a pilot signal from each third network device by using a different second beam in each of a plurality of second slots.

[0024] In this case, the second network device sending a pilot signal to one or more third network devices includes: the second network device sending the pilot signal to each of the one or more third network devices by using a different first beam in each of a plurality of first slots; and the second network device receiving a pilot signal from the one or more third network devices includes: the second network device receiving a pilot signal from each of the third network devices by using a different second beam in each of a plurality of second slots. This scheme increases beam gains for sending and receiving pilot signals by each of the second network devices, in other words, helps to improve the air interface quality of the wireless link between the second network devices and further helps to improve the accuracy of location information of each of the second network devices.

[0025] In an optional implementation, the second delay of each of the second network devices is a delay corresponding to an optimal beam pair, where the optimal beam pair is a beam pair having a maximum received signal-to-noise ratio among the plurality of first beams and the plurality of second beams. This scheme helps to improve the accuracy of the one or more second delays, and further helps to improve the accuracy of the location information of each of the second network devices.

[0026] In any implementation, the second network device may further send beam information of one or more optimal beam pairs. In this way, the first network device determines location information of each second network device with respect to the beam information of one or more optimal beam pairs of the second network device, and the accuracy of the location information of each second network device may be further improved.

[0027] According to a third aspect, the present application further provides a communication device. The communication device has some or all of the functions of implementing the first network device in the first aspect, or some or all of the functions of implementing the second network device in the second aspect. For example, the functions of the communication device may have the functions of some or all of the embodiments of the first network device in the first aspect of the present application, or may have the functions of independently implementing any one of the embodiments of the present application. The functions may be implemented by hardware, or may be implemented by hardware by executing corresponding software. The hardware or software may include one or more units or modules corresponding to the functions.

[0028] In a possible design, the structure of the communication device may include a processing unit and a communication unit. The processing unit is configured to support the communication device to perform corresponding functions in the above method. The communication unit is configured to support communication between a terminal device and another communication device. The communication device may further include a storage unit. The storage unit is configured to be coupled to the processing unit and the communication unit and stores program instructions and data required for the communication device.

[0029] In one implementation, a communication device includes a processing unit and a communication unit.

[0030] The communication unit is configured to send the first information and the second information to each of a plurality of second network devices.

[0031] The first information indicates to the second network device to determine a first delay of a pilot signal passing through a transmission channel and a reception channel of the second network device, and the second information indicates to the second network device to send a pilot signal to one or more third network devices and receive a pilot signal from one or more third network devices, the third network device being a network device other than the second network device among the plurality of second network devices.

[0032] The communication unit is further configured to receive a first delay and one or more second delays of each second network device, and each second delay of each second network device is a delay of a pilot signal from a transmission channel of the respective third network device to a reception channel of the second network device.

[0033] The processing unit is configured to determine location information of each second network device based on an air interface delay between the second network devices, the air interface delay between the second network devices being determined based on a first delay and one or more second delays of each second network device.

[0034] Furthermore, for other optional implementations of the communication device in this aspect, please refer to the related content of the first aspect, and the details will not be described again here.

[0035] In another implementation, a communication device includes a processing unit and a communication unit.

[0036] The communication unit is configured to receive first information and second information, where the first information indicates to the second network device to determine a first delay of a pilot signal passing through a transmission channel and a reception channel of the second network device, and the second information indicates to the second network device to send a pilot signal to one or more third network devices and receive a pilot signal from one or more third network devices, the third network device being a network device other than the second network device among the plurality of second network devices.

[0037] The processing unit is configured to determine the first delay based on the pilot signal.

[0038] The communication unit is further configured to send a pilot signal to one or more third network devices.

[0039] The processing unit is further configured to receive pilot signals from one or more third network devices and determine one or more second delays, each of the one or more second delays being a delay of the pilot signal from a transmit channel of a respective third network device to a receive channel of the second network device.

[0040] The communication unit is further configured to send the first delay and the one or more second delays.

[0041] Furthermore, for other optional implementations of the communication device in this aspect, please refer to the related content of the second aspect, and the details will not be described again here.

[0042] In one example, the communication unit may be a transceiver or a communication interface, the storage unit may be a memory, and the processing unit may be a processor.

[0043] In one implementation, a communications device includes a processor and a transceiver.

[0044] The transceiver is configured to send the first information and the second information to each of a plurality of second network devices.

[0045] The first information indicates to the second network device to determine a first delay of a pilot signal passing through a transmission channel and a reception channel of the second network device, and the second information indicates to the second network device to send a pilot signal to one or more third network devices and receive a pilot signal from one or more third network devices, the third network device being a network device other than the second network device among the plurality of second network devices.

[0046] The transceiver is further configured to receive the first delay and one or more second delays of each second network device, wherein each second delay of each second network device is a delay of a pilot signal from a transmit channel of the respective third network device to a receive channel of the second network device.

[0047] The processor is configured to determine location information of each second network device based on an air interface delay between the second network devices, the air interface delay between the second network devices being determined based on the first delay and one or more second delays of each second network device.

[0048] Furthermore, for other optional implementations of the communication device in this aspect, please refer to the related content of the first aspect, and the details will not be described again here.

[0049] In another implementation, a communications device includes a processor and a transceiver.

[0050] The transceiver is configured to receive first information and second information, the first information indicating to the second network device to determine a first delay of a pilot signal passing through a transmission channel and a reception channel of the second network device, and the second information indicating to the second network device to send a pilot signal to one or more third network devices and receive a pilot signal from one or more third network devices, the third network device being a network device other than the second network device among the plurality of second network devices.

[0051] The processor is configured to determine the first delay based on the pilot signal.

[0052] The transceiver is further configured to send a pilot signal to one or more third network devices.

[0053] The processor is further configured to receive a pilot signal from one or more third network devices and determine one or more second delays, each of the one or more second delays being a delay of the pilot signal from a transmit channel of a respective third network device to a receive channel of the second network device.

[0054] The transceiver is further configured to send the first delay and the one or more second delays.

[0055] Furthermore, for other optional implementations of the communication device in this aspect, please refer to the related content of the second aspect, and the details will not be described again here.

[0056] In another implementation, the communication device is a chip or a chip system. The processing unit may also be represented as a processing circuit or a logic circuit. The communication unit may be an input / output interface, an interface circuit, an output circuit, an input circuit, a pin, an associated circuit, etc. on the chip or chip system.

[0057] In one implementation, the processor may be configured to perform, for example, but not limited to, baseband-related processing, and the transceiver may be configured to perform, for example, but not limited to, radio frequency reception and transmission. The above components may be separately disposed on independent chips, or at least some or all of the components may be disposed on the same chip. For example, the processor may be further divided into an analog baseband processor and a digital baseband processor. The analog baseband processor and the transceiver may be integrated on the same chip, and the digital baseband processor may be disposed on a separate chip. With the continuous development of integrated circuit technology, more and more components may be integrated on the same chip. For example, a digital baseband processor and multiple application processors (for example, but not limited to, a graphics processor and a multimedia processor) may be integrated on the same chip. Such a chip may be referred to as a system-on-a-chip (SoC). Whether the components are independently disposed on different chips or integrated and disposed on one or more chips typically depends on the requirements of the product design. The implementation of the components is not limited to the embodiments of the present application.

[0058] According to a fourth aspect, the present application further provides a processor configured to implement the above-described method. In the process of implementing the method, the process of sending information and the process of receiving information in the above-described method can be understood as the process of outputting information by the processor and the process of receiving input information by the processor. When outputting information, the processor outputs the information to the transceiver, which then transmits the information. After the information is output by the processor, other processing may need to be performed on the information before it arrives at the transceiver. Similarly, during the reception of input information by the processor, the transceiver receives the information and inputs it to the processor. Furthermore, after the transceiver receives the information, other processing may need to be performed on the information before it is input to the processor.

[0059] Unless otherwise specified, or where operations such as transmitting and receiving related to a processor do not contradict the actual function or internal logic of the operations in the relevant description, all operations may be more generally understood as operations such as output, reception, and input of a processor instead of operations such as transmitting and receiving performed directly by radio frequency circuits and antennas.

[0060] In one implementation, the processor may be a processor specially configured to perform the method or a processor that executes computer instructions in memory to perform the method, such as a general-purpose processor. The memory may be a non-transitory memory, such as a read-only memory (ROM). The memory and the processor may be integrated on the same chip or may be separately arranged on different chips. The type of memory and the manner in which the memory and the processor are arranged are not limited to the embodiments of the present application.

[0061] According to a fifth aspect, the present application further provides a communication system. The system includes a network device and a terminal device. In another possible design, the system may further include another device that interacts with the network device and the terminal device. In this embodiment of the present application, the first network device is a network device in the communication system, and the second network device is an indoor base station.

[0062] According to a sixth aspect, the present application provides a computer-readable storage medium configured to store instructions that, when executed by a computer, implement a method according to either the first or second aspect.

[0063] According to a seventh aspect, the present application further provides a computer program product comprising instructions, which when run on a computer, implements a method according to either the first or second aspect.

[0064] According to an eighth aspect, the present application provides a chip system. The chip system includes a processor and an interface. The interface is configured to receive a program or instruction. The processor is configured to call the program or instruction to support a first network device in implementing or performing a function in the first aspect, or a second network device in implementing or performing a function in the second aspect, for example, to determine or process at least one of data and information in the above method. In a possible design, the chip system further includes a memory. The memory is configured to store program instructions and data required for the first network device. The chip system may include a chip, or may include a chip and another discrete component.

[0065] According to a ninth aspect, the present application provides a communications device including a processor configured to execute a computer program or executable instructions stored in a memory, the computer program or executable instructions, when executed, enabling the device to perform a method according to possible implementations of the first or second aspect.

[0066] In a possible implementation, the processor and memory are integrated together.

[0067] In another possible implementation, the memory is located external to the communication device.

[0068] For the beneficial effects of the third to ninth aspects, please refer to the beneficial effects of the first and second aspects, and the details will not be described again here. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0069] [Figure 1] 1 is a diagram of a system structure of a communication system according to an embodiment of the present application; [Figure 2] FIG. 10 is a diagram of performing signal strength measurements at N points near a pRRU to be measured according to an embodiment of the present application. [Figure 3a] FIG. 1 is a diagram of a planned connection between an RHUB and a pRRU according to an embodiment of the present application. [Figure 3b] FIG. 2 is a diagram of an actual physical connection between an RHUB and a pRRU according to an embodiment of the present application. [Figure 4] 1 is a diagram of interactions in a location information determination method according to an embodiment of the present application; [Figure 5] FIG. 2 is a diagram of an interaction between a first network device and a pRRU according to an embodiment of the present application; [Figure 6] FIG. 10 is another diagram of the interaction between the first network device and the pRRU according to an embodiment of the present application; [Figure 7] 1 is a schematic diagram of a spatial topology structure between multiple pRRUs according to an embodiment of the present application; [Figure 8] FIG. 10 is a diagram of determining a pRRU-1 corresponding to logical port 1 according to an embodiment of the present application; [Figure 9] FIG. 2 is another diagram of a system architecture according to an embodiment of the present application. [Figure 10A] FIG. 2 is a diagram of an interaction between a first network device and multiple pRRUs according to an embodiment of the present application; [Figure 10B] FIG. 2 is a diagram of an interaction between a first network device and multiple pRRUs according to an embodiment of the present application; [Figure 11] 1 is a diagram of the structure of a communication device according to an embodiment of the present application; [Figure 12] FIG. 2 is another diagram of the structure of a communication device according to an embodiment of the present application. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0070] DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The following provides a clear and complete description of the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present application with reference to the accompanying drawings in the embodiments of the present application.

[0071] To better understand the location determination method disclosed in the embodiments of the present application, a communication system to which the embodiments of the present application are applicable will be described.

[0072] Embodiments of the present application may be applied to wireless communication systems such as long term evolution (LTE) systems, post-5G evolved systems such as fifth generation (5G) mobile communication systems and sixth generation (6G) mobile communication systems, satellite communication systems, and short-range systems. A system architecture is shown in FIG. 1. The wireless communication system may include one or more network devices and one or more terminal devices. The wireless communication system may also implement point-to-point communication. For example, multiple terminal devices communicate with each other.

[0073] It may be understood that the wireless communication systems described in the embodiments of the present application include, but are not limited to, narrowband-internet of things (NB-IoT) systems, Long LTE systems, three application scenarios of 5G / 6G mobile communication systems: enhanced mobile broadband (eMBB), ultra-reliable low-latency communication (URLLC), and massive machine-type communications (mMTC), wireless fidelity (Wi-Fi) systems, etc.

[0074] In an embodiment of the present application, the network device is a device having a wireless transceiver function and configured to communicate with a terminal device, and may be an evolved NodeB (eNB or eNodeB) in LTE, a base station in a 5G / 6G network, a base station in a future evolved public land mobile network (PLMN), a broadband network gateway (BNG), an aggregation switch, a non-3rd generation partnership project (3GPP) access device, etc.Optionally, the network device in the embodiments of the present application may be various forms of base stations, for example, a macro base station, a micro base station (also called a small cell), a relay station, an access point, future devices for implementing base station functions, an access point (AP), a transmitting and receiving point (TRP), a transmitting point (TP) in a Wi-Fi system, a mobile switching center, a device implementing base station functions in device-to-device (D2D) communication, vehicle-to-everything (V2X) communication, and machine-to-machine (M2M) communication, a device implementing base station functions in evolved communication systems after 5G, an integrated access and backhaul (IAB), a central unit (CU) and a distributed unit (DU) in a cloud radio access network (C-RAN) system, and a non-terrestrial network (N2M). The access node may include a network device in a NTN (Network, Network Telecommunications Network) communication system, i.e., may be deployed on a stratospheric platform or a satellite, and may further include various devices (e.g., an active antenna processing unit (AAU)) and a baseband unit (BBU) forming an access node, although this is not particularly limited in the embodiments of the present application.

[0075] Network devices may communicate and interact with core network devices to provide communication services to terminal devices. The core network devices are, for example, devices in a 5G network core network (CN). As a bearer network, the core network provides an interface to a data network, provides communication connectivity, authentication, management, and policy control for terminals, and bears data services.

[0076] The terminal device in the embodiments of the present application may include various devices with wireless communication capabilities, such as a handheld device, an in-vehicle device, a wearable device, a computing device, or another processing device connected to a wireless modem. The terminal device may also be referred to as a terminal. A terminal device may alternatively be a user equipment (UE), access terminal, subscriber unit, user agent, cellular phone, smartphone, wireless data card, personal digital assistant (PDA) computer, tablet computer, wireless modem, handheld device, laptop computer, smart point of sale (POS) machine, customer-premises equipment (CPE), machine type communication (MTC) terminal, communication device mounted on a high altitude aircraft, wearable device, unmanned aerial vehicle, robot, terminal in D2D, terminal in vehicle-to-everything (V2X), virtual reality (VR) terminal device, augmented reality (AR) terminal device, wireless terminal in industrial control, wireless terminal in self driving, remote medical The wireless terminal may be a wireless terminal in medical, a wireless terminal in a smart grid, a wireless terminal in transportation safety, a wireless terminal in a smart city, a wireless terminal in a smart home, a terminal device in a future communication network, etc. This is not limited in this application.

[0077] The embodiments of the present application are applicable to a communication scenario involving a first network device and multiple second network devices. The first network device may be a network device in the above-mentioned wireless communication system. The first network device may be regarded as a base station control unit and may implement base station control command transmission and signal processing. The second network device is an indoor base station, for example, a pico base station remote radio unit (pRRU). The pRRU is used as a remote radio unit of the indoor base station to implement radio frequency signal processing functions.

[0078] The embodiments of the present application may also be applied to scenarios in which the deployment locations of multiple radars are calculated in a radar networking system.

[0079] In the embodiments disclosed in this application, any aspect, embodiment, or feature of the application is presented by describing a system that includes multiple devices, components, modules, etc. It is to be appreciated and understood that each system may include other devices, components, modules, etc. and / or may not include all of the devices, components, modules, etc. described with reference to the accompanying drawings. Furthermore, combinations of these solutions may be used.

[0080] Currently, during the daily operation, maintenance, and troubleshooting of an indoor base station, operation and maintenance personnel may search for a control node (e.g., a Remote Radio Unit Hub (RHUB)) that controls the indoor base station based on information recorded during the installation process of a construction team, and then search for the location of the corresponding indoor base station through the interface of the control node. However, the searching method is low in efficiency. The RHUB is configured to aggregate and forward data to configure multiple pRRUs to provide wireless coverage to multiple indoor floors or areas. Therefore, the RHUB is a control node that controls multiple pRRUs.

[0081] The operation and maintenance personnel may further carry a test device and perform signal strength measurements at multiple points near the pRRU to be measured along a pre-designed test route to determine the location information of the pRRU to be measured. Figure 2 illustrates performing signal strength measurements at N points near the pRRU to be measured. The operation and maintenance personnel calculate information about the distance between different test points and the pRRU to be measured based on the tested received signal strength and an empirical model of spatial path loss. The operation and maintenance personnel then determine the location information of the pRRU to be measured using a multi-point distance location method based on the location coordinates of the test points recorded by the test device. The process of determining the location information of the pRRU to be measured depends on the empirical model of spatial path loss. If the matching error between the air interface channel environment near the pRRU to be measured and the empirical model of spatial path loss is large, a large error will occur in the location of the pRRU to be measured.

[0082] Operation and maintenance personnel may further use distance measurement equipment to measure the distance between each measurement target pRRU and a reference point (reference point in the environment) or a reference plane (reference plane in the environment) to calibrate the location coordinates of the pRRU. This measurement method is time-consuming, cost-intensive, inefficient, and prone to manual operation errors. Therefore, automatic site operation and maintenance cannot be implemented.

[0083] Furthermore, the connection between the RHUB and the pRRU relies on manual connection, which is prone to cases such as incorrect connection between the RHUB port and the pRRU. For example, Figure 3a is a diagram of a planned connection between the RHUB and the pRRU. As shown in Figure 3a, in the planned connection relationship between the RHUB and the pRRU, logical port 1 of the RHUB is connected to pRRU-1 in logical cell-1, logical port 2 of the RHUB is connected to pRRU-2 in logical cell-1, logical port 3 of the RHUB is connected to pRRU-3 in logical cell-2, and logical port 4 of the RHUB is connected to pRRU-4 in logical cell-2. Figure 3b is a diagram of the actual physical connection between the RHUB and the pRRU. As shown in Figure 3b, in the actual physical connection between the RHUB and the pRRU, logical port 1 of the RHUB is connected to pRRU-1 in logical cell-1, logical port 2 of the RHUB is connected to pRRU-3 in logical cell-1, logical port 3 of the RHUB is connected to pRRU-2 in logical cell-2, and logical port 4 of the RHUB is connected to pRRU-4 in logical cell-2. The mismatch between the planned connection topology and the physical connection between the RHUB and the pRRU makes it difficult to search and identify the pRRU, and also increases network interference, resulting in a decrease in network performance indicators and a deterioration in user experience.

[0084] One embodiment of the present application provides a location information determination method, in which a second network device sends first information and second information to each of a plurality of second network devices, where the first information indicates to the second network device to determine a first delay of a pilot signal passing through a transmission channel and a reception channel of the second network device, and the second information indicates to the second network device to send the pilot signal to one or more third network devices and receive the pilot signal from the one or more third network devices. Each of the plurality of second network devices receives the first information and the second information. Each second network device determines the first delay based on the pilot signal and determines one or more second delays by receiving the pilot signal. Each second network device feeds back the first delay and one or more second delays of the second network device to the first network device. Thus, the first network device determines location information of each second network device based on air interface delays between the second network devices, where the air interface delays between the second network devices are determined based on a first delay and one or more second delays of each second network device.

[0085] It can be appreciated that the first network device can determine the location information of each of the plurality of second network devices by using the first delay and one or more second delays fed back by each second network device. Compared with a manner in which the location information of each second network device is determined through manual measurement, this manner can improve the efficiency of determining the location information of the plurality of second network devices and improve the accuracy of the location information of each second network device.

[0086] An embodiment of the present application provides a location information determination method. Figure 4 is a diagram of interactions in the location information determination method. The location information determination method is described in terms of interactions between a first network device and a plurality of second network devices. The location information determination method includes, but is not limited to, the following steps:

[0087] S101: A first network device sends first information and second information to each of a plurality of second network devices, where the first information indicates to the second network device to determine a first delay of a pilot signal passing through a transmission channel and a reception channel of the second network device, and the second information indicates to the second network device to send a pilot signal to one or more third network devices and receive a pilot signal from the one or more third network devices. Correspondingly, each of the plurality of second network devices receives the first information and the second information.

[0088] The third network device is a network device other than the second network device among the plurality of second network devices.

[0089] Each of the plurality of second network devices includes a transmit channel and a receive channel. The transmit channel is configured to send a signal, and the receive channel is configured to receive a signal. For each second network device, the first delay is a delay of a pilot signal passing through the transmit channel and the receive channel of the second network device. Specifically, the first delay is a delay of the second network device sending the pilot signal through the transmit channel of the second network device to the receive channel of the second network device.

[0090] For example, the plurality of second network devices may include pRRU-1 and pRRU-2, and the first network device may include a control module. Figure 5 illustrates an interaction between the control module of the first network device and the pRRU-1 and pRRU-2. As shown in Figure 5, the first network device sends first information and second information to the pRRU-1 and pRRU-2 by using the control module. The delays of the transmit channels of the pRRU-1 and pRRU-2 are T1 and T2, respectively. The delays of the receive channels of the pRRU-1 and pRRU-2 are R1 and R2, respectively. The delays of the self-loopback air interfaces of the pRRU-1 and pRRU-2 are C1 and C2, respectively. The delay of the self-loopback air interface of the pRRU-1 is the delay of transmitting a pilot signal within the pRRU-1. The delay of the self-loopback air interface of the pRRU-2 is the delay of transmitting a pilot signal within the pRRU-2.

[0091] The first delay can be understood as the delay of the pilot signal passing through the transmission channel and the reception channel of the second network device, or the delay of the pilot signal passing through the transmission channel, the self-loopback air interface, and the reception channel of the second network device. The self-loopback air interface is the air interface through which the pilot signal is transferred within the second network device. In this case, in Figure 5, the delay of the pilot signal passing through the transmission channel, the self-loopback air interface, and the reception channel of the pRRU-1, i.e., the first delay t of the pRRU-1, 11 is T1+C1+R1, which is the delay of the pilot signal passing through the transmission channel, the self-loopback air interface, and the reception channel of the pRRU-2, i.e., the first delay t 22 is T2+C2+R2.

[0092] The first network device sends first information to each second network device, which helps each second network device determine a first delay based on the pilot signal and further helps the first network device obtain the first delay of each second network device necessary to determine location information of each second network device.

[0093] The second information sent by the first network device to each second network device indicating that the second network device sends pilot signals to one or more third network devices and receives pilot signals from one or more third network devices can be understood as: the second information of each second network device indicates to the second network device that it sends pilot signals to network devices other than the second network device among the plurality of second network devices and receives pilot signals from network devices other than the second network device among the plurality of second network devices. In this way, the first network device can control the plurality of second network devices to send pilot signals to each other. This helps each second network device determine a second delay by receiving a pilot signal from another network device, and further helps the first network device obtain one or more second delays of each second network device necessary for determining location information of each second network device.

[0094] For example, the plurality of second network devices include pRRU-1, pRRU-2, and pRRU-3. The second information sent by the first network device to pRRU-1 indicates to pRRU-1 that it will send pilot signals to pRRU-2 and pRRU-3 and receive pilot signals from pRRU-2 and pRRU-3. The second information sent by the first network device to pRRU-2 indicates to pRRU-2 that it will send pilot signals to pRRU-1 and pRRU-3 and receive pilot signals from pRRU-1 and pRRU-3. The second information sent by the first network device to pRRU-3 indicates to pRRU-3 that it will send pilot signals to pRRU-1 and pRRU-2 and receive pilot signals from pRRU-1 and pRRU-2.

[0095] In any implementation, a plurality of directional beams are preconfigured for each of a plurality of second network devices, and the plurality of directional beams of each second network device include a plurality of first beams and a plurality of second beams. Thus, each second network device can send and receive signals by using the plurality of directional beams, thereby increasing the beam gain of sending and receiving signals by each second network device, and in other words, improving the air interface quality of the wireless link between the second network devices.

[0096] In any implementation, when multiple directional beams are pre-configured for each of the multiple second network devices, the second information indicates to the second network device, among other things, to send pilot signals to each of one or more third network devices by using different first beams in each of the multiple first slots, and to receive pilot signals from each third network device by using different second beams in each of the multiple second slots.

[0097] In other words, when multiple directional beams are pre-configured for each of a plurality of second network devices, when the first network device controls each second network device to send a pilot signal to each of one or more third network devices by using the second information, the pilot signal is sent to the third network device by using a different first beam in each of a plurality of first slots, and when the first network device controls each second network device to receive a pilot signal from each third network device by using the second information, the pilot signal from the third network device is received by using a different second beam in each of a plurality of second slots.

[0098] For example, the first network device includes a control module. Figure 6 is a diagram illustrating the first network device sending second information to the pRRU-1 by using the control module. As shown in Figure 6, four directional beams, namely, directional beam 1, directional beam 2, directional beam 3, and directional beam 4, are configured for the pRRU-1. Therefore, the first network device may send the second information to the pRRU-1 by using the control module to control the pRRU-1 to send and receive pilot signals by using different directional beams in different slots. For example, the second information indicates to the pRRU-1 to send pilot signals to the pRRU-2 by using directional beam 1, directional beam 2, directional beam 3, and directional beam 4 in each of the different slots, and to receive pilot signals from the pRRU-2 by using directional beam 1, directional beam 2, directional beam 3, and directional beam 4 in each of the different slots.

[0099] For example, the plurality of second network devices include pRRU-1, pRRU-2, and pRRU-3. For pRRU-1, the third network devices are pRRU-2 and pRRU-3. By using the second information, the first network device indicates to pRRU-1 that it sends a pilot signal to pRRU-2 by using Beam 1 and Beam 2 in Slot 1 and Slot 2, respectively, receives a pilot signal from pRRU-2 by using Beam 3 and Beam 4 in Slot 3 and Slot 4, sends a pilot signal to pRRU-3 by using Beam 1 and Beam 2 in Slot 5 and Slot 6, respectively, and receives a pilot signal from pRRU-3 by using Beam 3 and Beam 4 in Slot 7 and Slot 8, respectively.

[0100] The first network device uses the second information to control each second network device to send a pilot signal to the third network device by using a different first beam in each of the plurality of first slots and to receive a pilot signal from the third network device by using a different second beam in each of the plurality of second slots, thereby allowing each second network device to determine one or more second delays according to the principle of maximum received signal-to-noise ratio, which helps to improve the accuracy of calculation of the distance between the second network devices and further helps to improve the accuracy of location information of the second network devices.

[0101] It can be understood that the first information and the second information can be different control information or the same control information. This is not limited in this embodiment of the present application. Both the first information and the second information can be understood as control signaling delivered by the first network device to each second network device.

[0102] S102: The second network device determines a first delay based on the pilot signal.

[0103] The second network device is any network device among a plurality of second network devices.

[0104] The first information of each second network device indicates to the second network device to determine a first delay of a pilot signal passing through a transmission channel and a reception channel of the second network device, thereby it can be understood that each of the multiple second network devices determines the first delay based on the pilot signal.

[0105] Determining the first delay based on the pilot signal by the second network device includes: the pilot signal passes through a transmission channel and a reception channel of the second network device, and the second network device determines the first delay based on a time when the pilot signal is sent from the transmission channel of the second network device and a time when the pilot signal is received through the reception channel.

[0106] The first delay may also be understood as the duration of the pilot signal from the transmission channel of the second network device to the reception channel of the second network device. Thus, each second network device determines the duration of the pilot signal from the transmission channel of the second network device to the reception channel of the second network device as the first delay of the second network device.

[0107] S103: The second network device sends a pilot signal to one or more third network devices.

[0108] It can be understood that each second network device sends a pilot signal to a network device other than the second network device among the plurality of second network devices, thereby causing each second network device to receive a pilot signal from another network device among the plurality of second network devices.

[0109] For example, the plurality of second network devices include pRRU-1, pRRU-2, and pRRU-3, where pRRU-1 sends a pilot signal to pRRU-2 and pRRU-3, pRRU-2 sends a pilot signal to pRRU-1 and pRRU-3, and pRRU-3 sends a pilot signal to pRRU-1 and pRRU-2.

[0110] In any implementation, the second network device sending a pilot signal to one or more third network devices includes: the second network device sending the pilot signal to each of the one or more third network devices by using different first beams in a plurality of first slots. In other words, the second network device sends the pilot signal to each of the third network devices by using different first beams in each of the different slots.

[0111] For example, the plurality of second network devices include pRRU-1, pRRU-2, and pRRU-3. For pRRU-1, the third network devices are pRRU-2 and pRRU-3. pRRU-1 sends a pilot signal to pRRU-2 by using beam 1 and beam 2 in slot 1 and slot 2, respectively, and sends a pilot signal to pRRU-3 by using beam 1 and beam 2 in slot 5 and slot 6, respectively.

[0112] S104: The second network device receives pilot signals from one or more third network devices and determines one or more second delays, each of the one or more second delays being a delay of the pilot signal from a transmission channel of a respective third network device to a reception channel of the second network device.

[0113] Each second network device sends a pilot signal to a network device other than the second network device in the plurality of second network devices, thereby allowing each second network device to receive a pilot signal from a network device other than the second network device in the plurality of second network devices, i.e., each second network device may receive a pilot signal from one or more third network devices.

[0114] Each second delay of each second network device being a delay of the pilot signal from the transmit channel of the third network device to the receive channel of the second network device may be understood as each second delay being a duration of the pilot signal from the transmit channel of the third network device to the receive channel of the second network device. Thus, each second network device may determine a second delay for receiving a pilot signal from the third network device based on the time at which the respective third network device sends a pilot signal to the second network device and the time at which the pilot signal from the third network device is received. Each second network device may receive pilot signals from one or more third network devices, thereby allowing each second network device to determine one or more second delays.

[0115] For example, the plurality of second network devices may include pRRU-1, pRRU-2, and pRRU-3. For pRRU-1, pRRU-1 may determine second delay #1 based on the time when pRRU-2 sends a pilot signal to pRRU-1 and the time when the pilot signal from pRRU-2 is received. pRRU-1 may further determine second delay #2 based on the time when pRRU-3 sends a pilot signal to pRRU-1 and the time when the pilot signal from pRRU-3 is received. Similarly, pRRU-2 and pRRU-3 may respectively determine two second delays.

[0116] In any implementation, receiving a pilot signal from one or more third network devices by the second network device includes: the second network device receiving a pilot signal from each of the one or more third network devices by using a second beam in each of the plurality of second slots. In other words, the second network device may receive a pilot signal from each third network device by using a different second beam in each of different slots.

[0117] For example, the plurality of second network devices include pRRU-1, pRRU-2, and pRRU-3. For pRRU-1, the third network devices are pRRU-2 and pRRU-3. pRRU-1 receives a pilot signal from pRRU-2 by using beam 3 and beam 4 in slot 3 and slot 4, respectively, and receives a pilot signal from pRRU-3 by using beam 3 and beam 4 in slot 7 and slot 8, respectively.

[0118] When each second network device sends pilot signals to each third network device by using different first beams in different slots and receives pilot signals from each third network device by using different second beams in different slots, it can be understood that the multiple first beams used by each second network device to send pilot signals to each third network device and the multiple beams used by each third network device to receive pilot signals from the second network device can be considered as a group of beam pairs.

[0119] For example, the plurality of second network devices include pRRU-1, pRRU-2, and pRRU-3. For pRRU-1, the third network devices are pRRU-2 and pRRU-3. pRRU-1 sends a pilot signal to pRRU-2 by using Beam 1 in Slot 1, and correspondingly, pRRU-2 receives a pilot signal from pRRU-1 by using Beam 1' in Slot 1, where Beam 1 and Beam 1' may form Beam Pair 1. pRRU-1 sends a pilot signal to pRRU-2 by using Beam 2 in Slot 2, and correspondingly, pRRU-2 receives a pilot signal from pRRU-1 by using Beam 2' in Slot 2, where Beam 2 and Beam 2' may form Beam Pair 2. pRRU-1 sends a pilot signal to pRRU-3 by using Beam 3 in slot 3, and correspondingly, pRRU-3 receives a pilot signal from pRRU-3 by using Beam 3' in slot 3, where Beam 3 and Beam 3' may form Beam Pair 3. pRRU-1 sends a pilot signal to pRRU-3 by using Beam 4 in slot 4, and correspondingly, pRRU-3 receives a pilot signal from pRRU-1 by using Beam 4' in slot 4, where Beam 4 and Beam 4' may form Beam Pair 4.

[0120] In this implementation, the respective second delays of each second network device are specifically delays corresponding to the optimal beam pair, where the optimal beam pair is the beam pair with the largest received signal-to-noise ratio among the plurality of first beams and the plurality of second beams. In other words, when each second network device transmits a pilot signal to each third network device by using a different first beam in a different slot and receives a pilot signal from each third network device by using a different second beam in a different slot, the respective second delays of each second network device are the delays at which the second network device receives the pilot signal from the third network device by using the optimal beam pair. Furthermore, when the second network device receives the pilot signal from the third network device by using the optimal beam pair, the received signal-to-noise ratio is compared with the signal-to-noise ratio obtained when the pilot signal from the third network device is received by using a different beam pair. The signal-to-noise ratio obtained when the second network device receives the pilot signal from the third network device by using the optimal beam pair is the largest.

[0121] For example, the plurality of second network devices include pRRU-1 and pRRU-2. For pRRU-1, the third network device is pRRU-2. pRRU-1 sends a pilot signal to pRRU-2 by using Beam 1 in slot 1, and correspondingly, pRRU-2 receives the pilot signal from pRRU-1 by using Beam 1' in slot 1. pRRU-1 sends a pilot signal to pRRU-2 by using Beam 2 in slot 2, and correspondingly, pRRU-2 receives the pilot signal from pRRU-1 by using Beam 2' in slot 2. A signal-to-noise ratio obtained when pRRU-2 receives the pilot signal from pRRU-1 by using Beam 2' in slot 2 is greater than a signal-to-noise ratio obtained when the pilot signal from pRRU-1 is received by using Beam 1' in slot 1. In this case, the second delay in receiving a pilot signal from pRRU-1 by pRRU-2 is a delay corresponding to the beam pair formed by beam 2 and beam 2', and can be understood as the delay in sending a pilot signal to pRRU-2 by using beam 2 in slot 2 by pRRU-1, and receiving a pilot signal from pRRU-1 by using beam 2' in slot 2 by pRRU-2.

[0122] In this implementation, the accuracy of each of the one or more second delays may be improved, and the accuracy of the location information of each second network device determined by the first network device based on the one or more second delays of the respective second network device may be further improved.

[0123] The execution sequence of S102 to S104 is not limited in this embodiment of the present application. In other words, S102 can be performed before S103 and S104, or after S103 and S104. Similarly, S103 can be performed before S102 and S104, or after S102 and S104, and S104 can be performed before S102 and S103, or after S102 and S103.

[0124] S105: The second network device sends the first delay and one or more second delays. Correspondingly, the first network device receives the first delay and one or more second delays of each second network device.

[0125] It can be understood that each of the multiple second network devices sends the first delay and one or more second delays of the second network device to the first network device, thereby allowing the first network device to obtain the delay information necessary to determine location information of each second network device.

[0126] In any implementation, each second network device may record one or more optimal beam pairs, and more specifically, may further record beam direction information and beam angle information of the optimal beam pair corresponding to the maximum signal-to-noise ratio received when a pilot signal from each third network device is received.

[0127] Optionally, each second network device may further send one or more optimal beam pairs of the second network device to the first network device. Correspondingly, the first network device may further receive one or more optimal beam pairs from each second network device. This scheme helps the first network device to refer to the beam direction information and beam angle information of each of the one or more optimal beam pairs of each second network device when determining location information of each second network device, and further helps to improve the accuracy of the location information of each second network device.

[0128] S106: The first network device determines location information of each second network device based on air interface delays between the second network devices, where the air interface delays between the second network devices are determined based on a first delay and one or more second delays of each second network device.

[0129] In any implementation, the first network device may further compensate for the delay of the receiving channels of any two second network devices among the multiple second network devices based on the first delay and one or more second delays of the multiple second network devices, and then determine the air interface delay between the second network devices based on the compensated delay of the receiving channels of any two second network devices.

[0130] The first network device compensating for the delay of the receiving channel of any two second network devices among the plurality of second network devices based on the first delay and one or more second delays of the plurality of second network devices may also be understood as the first network device matching the delay of the receiving channel of the two second network devices based on the first delay and one or more second delays of any two second network devices among the plurality of second network devices, and may further be understood as the first network device compensating for the delay of the receiving channel of one of the two second network devices when allowing the delay of the receiving channel of any two second network devices to be the same.

[0131] For example, as shown in Figure 5, the plurality of second network devices includes pRRU-1 and pRRU-2. 12 represents the air interface delay between the transmission of pRRU-1 and the reception of pRRU-2, and H 21 represents the air interface delay between the transmission of pRRU-2 and the reception of pRRU-1. The first delay determined by pRRU-1 is t 11 and the second delay determined by pRRU-1 is t 21 and the first delay determined by pRRU-2 is t 22 and the second delay determined by pRRU-2 is t 12 In this case, the relationship between the delays is as follows: t 11 =T1+C1+R1(1) t 21 =T2+H 21 +R1(2) t 22 =T2+C2+R2(3) t 12 =T1+H 12 +R2(4)

[0132] The first network device determines whether the H 12 =H 21 Furthermore, if the influence of the difference between the delays C1 and C2 of the self-loopback air interfaces of different pRRUs is ignored, that is, C1≈C2, the following can be obtained by using formulas (1) to (4):

[0133]

number

[0134] The first network device receives the first delay t 11 and a second delay t 21 and the first delay t of pRRU-2 22 and a second delay t 12 It can be recognized from formula (5) that the first network device may determine a difference value between the receive channel of pRRU-1 and the receive channel of pRRU-2 based on the delay R1 of the receive channel of pRRU-1 and the delay R2 of the receive channel of pRRU-2. Thus, the first network device may allow the delay R1 of the receive channel of pRRU-1 to be equal to the delay R2 of the receive channel of pRRU-2, thereby matching the delays of the receive channels of pRRU-1 and pRRU-2. In other words, when allowing the delay R1 of the receive channel of pRRU-1 to be equal to the delay R2 of the receive channel of pRRU-2, the first network device compensates for the delay of the receive channel of pRRU-1 or pRRU-2. For example, the first network device increases the delay R1 of the receive channel of pRRU-1 by R1-R2 or decreases the delay R2 of the receive channel of pRRU-1 by R1-R2.

[0135] After compensating for the delay of the receiving channels of pRRU-1 and pRRU-2, the first network device may obtain the air interface delay between pRRU-1 and pRRU-2 through calculation based on the above formulas (1) to (4). Therefore, the first network device may determine the distance between pRRU-1 and pRRU-2 based on the air interface delay between pRRU-1 and pRRU-2, and may further determine location information of pRRU-1 and pRRU-2 based on the distance between pRRU-1 and pRRU-2. For example, if the location information of pRRU-1 is pre-configured, the first network device may determine the location information of pRRU-2 based on the distance between pRRU-1 and pRRU-2 and the known location information of pRRU-1.

[0136] It can be appreciated that the first network device may compensate for the delay of the receiving channel of any two second network devices among the multiple second network devices based on the first delay and one or more second delays of the multiple second network devices, and then determine the air interface delay between the second network devices based on the compensated delay of the receiving channel of any two second network devices. Thus, the first network device may determine the location information of each second network device based on the air interface delay between the second network devices.

[0137] In any implementation, the first network device determining location information of each second network device based on air interface delays between the second network devices includes: the first network device determining a distance between every two second network devices based on the air interface delays between the second network devices, and determining location information of each second network device based on the distance between every two second network devices and location information of one or more fourth network devices, where the fourth network device is a network device whose location information is known to the plurality of second network devices.

[0138] In other words, the first network device determines the distance between any two second network devices based on the air interface delay between the second network devices, and then determines location information of another network device among the plurality of second network devices based on the distance between any two second network devices and a small amount of known location information of the second network device.

[0139] In any implementation, the first network device determining location information of each second network device based on the distance between every two second network devices and location information of one or more fourth network devices includes: the first network device determining a spatial topology structure between the plurality of second network devices based on the distance between every two second network devices and beam information of one or more optimal beam pairs of each second network device, and determining location information of each second network device based on the distance between every two second network devices, the spatial topology structure, and location information of the one or more fourth network devices.

[0140] It can be understood that the first network device determines a spatial topology structure between multiple second network devices, in other words, a relative location structure relationship between the second network devices, based on the distance between any two network devices and the beam information of one or more optimal beam pairs of each second network device by using multidimensional scaling techniques.

[0141] For example, the plurality of second network devices include pRRU-1, pRRU-2, pRRU-3, and pRRU-4. The first network device determines a spatial topology structure between the four pRRUs based on the distance between any two pRRUs and the beam information of one or more optimal beam pairs of each pRRU by using a multidimensional scaling technique, as shown in Figure 7. Figure 7 is a schematic diagram of the spatial topology structure between the four pRRUs.

[0142] The first network device then performs rigid transformation operations such as translation, mirroring, and rotation on the diagram of the spatial topology structure among the multiple second network devices based on the distance between any two second network devices, the spatial topology structure among the multiple second network devices, and planned location information of a small number of second network devices among the multiple second network devices, to determine location information of each second network device.

[0143] It can be recognized that, compared to a scheme in which the location information of each second network device is determined through manual measurement, in an implementation in which the first network device determines the location information of each second network device, the efficiency of determining the location information of each second network device may be improved and the accuracy of the location information of each second network device may be improved.

[0144] In an optional implementation, the first network device may further determine, based on the plurality of logical ports of the fifth network device, a second network device corresponding to each of the plurality of logical ports, i.e., determine a connection relationship between each logical port and the second network device. The fifth network device is a network device that controls the plurality of second network devices. For example, the fifth network device is an RHUB.

[0145] It can be understood that the first network device designates a specific second network device to send a pilot signal based on the logical port of the fifth network device. The first network device acquires a distance from the second network device to another network device through measurements of received signals and air interface delays implemented by network devices other than the second network device among the plurality of second network devices. The first network device then determines a location of the second network device in the spatial topology structure with respect to the spatial topology structure among the plurality of second network devices, and further determines a second network device corresponding to the designated logical port, i.e., determines a second network device connected to the logical port.

[0146] For example, Figure 8 is a diagram of determining, by a first network device, the pRRU-1 corresponding to logical port 1. As shown in Figure 8, the first network device may use a control module to control the pRRU connected to logical port 1 to send a pilot signal to another pRRU, determine the distance between the pRRU-1 connected to logical port 1 and another pRRU, and then determine the location of the pRRU-1 connected to logical port 1 shown in Figure 8 based on the spatial topology structure between pRRU-1 to pRRU-4.

[0147] In this implementation, the first network device can determine the connection relationship between the logical port of the RHUB and each pRRU, and no manual on-site testing is required, which can improve the efficiency of searching for and identifying a faulty pRRU in subsequent operation and maintenance processes.

[0148] In this embodiment of the present application, the second network device sends first information and second information to each of a plurality of second network devices, where the first information indicates to the second network device to determine a first delay of a pilot signal passing through a transmission channel and a reception channel of the second network device, and the second information indicates to the second network device to send the pilot signal to one or more third network devices and receive the pilot signal from one or more third network devices. Each of the plurality of second network devices receives the first information and the second information. Each second network device determines the first delay based on the pilot signal and determines one or more second delays by receiving the pilot signal. Each second network device feeds back the first delay and one or more second delays of the second network device to the first network device. Thus, the first network device determines location information of each second network device based on air interface delays between the second network devices, where the air interface delays between the second network devices are determined based on a first delay and one or more second delays of each second network device.

[0149] The first network device may determine location information of each of the plurality of second network devices by using the first delay and one or more second delays fed back by each second network device. Compared with a manner in which the location information of each second network device is determined through manual measurement, this manner may improve the efficiency of determining the location information of the plurality of second network devices and improve the accuracy of the location information of each second network device.

[0150] 9 is a diagram of a system architecture using an example in which the plurality of second network devices include pRRU-1, pRRU-2, pRRU-3, and pRRU-4, and the fifth network device is an RHUB. As shown in FIG. 9, the first network device includes a control module and a data processing module. The control module and the data processing module of the first network device are connected to the RHUB, and the four logical ports of the RHUB are connected to pRRU-1, pRRU-2, pRRU-3, and pRRU-4, respectively. Each of pRRU-1, pRRU-2, pRRU-3, and pRRU-4 includes a channel correction module, a transmit channel, and a receive channel.

[0151] The control module of the first network device is configured to schedule each pRRU to send or receive a pilot signal in a designated slot, i.e., the first network device sends first information and second information to each pRRU by using the control module. Furthermore, the control module of the first network device is further configured to switch, select, and schedule a directional beam of each pRRU. The data processing module of the first network device is configured to collect measurement results of each pRRU, build a spatial topology architecture among the multiple pRRUs based on the measurement results of the multiple pRRUs, and determine location information of each pRRU. In other words, the data processing module of the first network device is configured to receive a first delay and one or more second delays for each pRRU, build a spatial topology architecture among the multiple pRRUs based on the first delay and one or more second delays for the multiple pRRUs, and determine location information of each pRRU.

[0152] The channel correction module of each pRRU is configured to correct the delay of the receiving channel, specifically, to compensate for the delay of the receiving channel between the pRRU and another pRRU. The transmitting channel of each pRRU is configured to transmit a signal, and the receiving channel of each pRRU is configured to receive a signal. For pRRU-1, it can be further recognized from FIG. 9 that pRRU-1 may send a signal to another pRRU by using directional beam 1, directional beam 2, directional beam 3, and directional beam 4. For example, pRRU-1 may send a pilot signal to pRRU-2 by using directional beam 1, directional beam 2, directional beam 3, and directional beam 4. Similarly, pRRU-1 may further send signals to pRRU-3 and pRRU-4 by using directional beam 1, directional beam 2, directional beam 3, and directional beam 4.

[0153] For example, the plurality of second network devices include pRRU-1, pRRU-2, and pRRU-3, and the first network device includes a processing module and a control module. Figures 10A and 10B are diagrams of interactions between the data processing module, the control module, and each pRRU. As shown in Figures 10A and 10B, the interactions between the data processing module, the control module, and each pRRU include, but are not limited to, the following steps:

[0154] S11: The first network device sends first information to each pRRU by using a control module, the first information indicating to the pRRU to determine a first delay of a pilot signal passing through the pRRU's transmit channel and receive channel. Correspondingly, each pRRU receives the first information and starts the pRRU's channel correction module, so that the pilot signal is looped back through the pRRU's internal air interface and the first delay is determined.

[0155] S12: The first network device sends second information to each pRRU by using a control module, where the second information indicates to the pRRU to send and receive a pilot signal in a specific slot. Correspondingly, each pRRU receives the second information.

[0156] S13: Each pRRU sends a pilot signal to another pRRU, receives a pilot signal from another pRRU, completes delay estimation, and determines one or more second delays.

[0157] S14: Each pRRU feeds back the first delay and one or more second delays to the first network device. Correspondingly, the first network device receives the first delay and one or more second delays of each pRRU by using a data processing module.

[0158] S15: The data processing module of the first network device processes the first delay and one or more second delays of each pRRU to obtain a difference between the delays of the receiving channels of the pRRUs. Specifically, the first network device compensates for the delays of the receiving channels of any two pRRUs based on the first delay and one or more second delays of each pRRU.

[0159] S16: The data processing module of the first network device determines an air interface delay between every two pRRUs based on the compensated delay of the receiving channels of every two pRRUs, and determines a distance between every two pRRUs based on the air interface delay between every two pRRUs.

[0160] S17: The data processing module of the first network device determines a spatial topology relationship between the multiple pRRUs based on the distance between any two pRRUs.

[0161] S18: The data processing module of the first network device determines location information of each pRRU based on the distance between any two pRRUs and the spatial topology relationship among the multiple pRRUs.

[0162] It may be recognized that the first network device may use the control module to control the multiple pRRUs to send pilot signals to each other and receive pilot signals from each other, so that each pRRU determines a first delay and one or more second delays and feeds back the first delay and one or more second delays of the pRRU to the first network device. Furthermore, the first network device may determine location information of each pRRU based on the first delay and one or more second delays of the multiple pRRUs, eliminating the need for operation and maintenance personnel to obtain the location information of each pRRU through on-site measurement. This may improve the efficiency and accuracy of determining the location information of the multiple pRRUs.

[0163] For the technical solutions described above, the corresponding device implementation solutions are further described below.

[0164] To implement the functions in the methods provided in the above embodiments of the present application, the first network device and the second network device may include a hardware structure and / or a software module, and may implement the above functions in the form of a hardware structure, a software module, or a combination of a hardware structure and a software module. Whether the functions in the above functions are implemented by using a hardware structure, a software module, or a combination of a hardware structure and a software module depends on the specific application and design constraints of the technical solution.

[0165] 11 , an embodiment of the present application provides a communication device 1100. The communication device 1100 may be a component (e.g., an integrated circuit or chip) of a first network device, or may be a component (e.g., an integrated circuit or chip) of a second network device. Alternatively, the communication device 1100 may be another communication unit configured to implement a method in a method embodiment of the present application. The communication device 1100 may include a communication unit 1101 and a processing unit 1102. Optionally, the communication device may further include a storage unit 1103.

[0166] In a possible design, for example, one or more units in FIG. 11 may be implemented by one or more processors, or by one or more processors and memories, or by one or more processors and transceivers, or by one or more processors, memories, and transceivers. This is not limited in this embodiment of the present application. The processor, memory, and transceiver may be disposed separately or integrated.

[0167] The communication device 1100 has a function of implementing the first network device or the second network device described in the embodiments of the present application. For example, the communication device 1100 includes a module, unit, or means corresponding to the first network device that performs steps related to the first network device described in the embodiments of the present application. The function, unit, or means may be implemented by software or hardware, may be implemented by hardware that executes corresponding software, or may be implemented by a combination of software and hardware. For details, please further refer to the corresponding description in the corresponding method embodiment above.

[0168] In one possible design, communications device 1100 may include a processing unit 1102 and a communications unit 1101 .

[0169] The communication unit 1101 is configured to send the first information and the second information to each of a plurality of second network devices.

[0170] The first information indicates to the second network device to determine a first delay of the pilot signal passing through a transmit channel and a receive channel of the second network device.

[0171] The second information indicates to the second network device to send pilot signals to one or more third network devices and receive pilot signals from one or more third network devices, the third network devices being network devices other than the second network device among the plurality of second network devices.

[0172] The communication unit 1101 is further configured to receive the first delay and one or more second delays of each second network device.

[0173] The respective second delays of the respective second network devices are delays of the pilot signal from the transmit channel of the respective third network device to the receive channel of the second network device.

[0174] The processing unit 1102 is configured to determine location information of each second network device based on an air interface delay between the second network devices, where the air interface delay between the second network devices is determined based on a first delay and one or more second delays of each second network device.

[0175] In any implementation, the second information indicates to the second network device, among other things, to send a pilot signal to each of one or more third network devices by using a different first beam in each of a plurality of first slots, and to receive a pilot signal from each third network device by using a different second beam in each of a plurality of second slots.

[0176] In any implementation, the second delay of each of the second network devices is, in particular, a delay corresponding to an optimal beam pair, the optimal beam pair being a beam pair having the largest received signal-to-noise ratio among the plurality of first beams and the plurality of second beams.

[0177] In any implementation, the communication unit 1101 is further configured to receive beam information of one or more optimal beam pairs of each second network device.

[0178] In any implementation, the processing unit 1102 is configured to determine location information of each second network device based on an air interface delay between the second network devices, in particular, to determine a distance between any two second network devices based on the air interface delay between the second network devices, and to determine location information of each second network device based on the distance between any two second network devices and location information of one or more fourth network devices, where the fourth network device is a network device whose location information is known among the plurality of second network devices.

[0179] In any implementation, the processing unit 1102 is configured to cause the first network device to determine location information of each second network device based on the distance between any two second network devices and location information of one or more fourth network devices, in particular to determine a spatial topology structure between multiple second network devices based on the distance between any two second network devices and beam information of one or more optimal beam pairs of each second network device, and to determine location information of each second network device based on the distance between any two second network devices, the spatial topology structure, and location information of one or more fourth network devices.

[0180] In any implementation, the processing unit 1102 is further configured to compensate for delays of receiving channels of any two second network devices among the plurality of second network devices based on the first delay and one or more second delays of the plurality of second network devices, and determine an air interface delay between the second network devices based on the compensated delays of the receiving channels of any two second network devices.

[0181] In any implementation, the processing unit 1102 is further configured to determine, based on the plurality of logical ports of the fifth network device, a second network device corresponding to each of the plurality of logical ports, where the fifth network device is a network device that controls the plurality of second network devices.

[0182] In any implementation, the processing unit 1102 may include the data processing module and the control module of the first network device of FIG.

[0183] This embodiment of the present application and the above method embodiment are based on the same concept and achieve the same technical effect. For the specific principles, please refer to the description of the above embodiment. The details will not be described again.

[0184] In another possible design, communications device 1100 may include a processing unit 1102 and a communications unit 1101 .

[0185] The communication unit 1101 is configured to receive first information and second information, where the first information indicates to the second network device to determine a first delay of a pilot signal passing through a transmission channel and a reception channel of the second network device.

[0186] The second information indicates to the second network device to send pilot signals to one or more third network devices and receive pilot signals from one or more third network devices, the third network devices being network devices other than the second network device among the plurality of second network devices.

[0187] The processing unit 1102 is configured to determine the first delay based on the pilot signal.

[0188] The communication unit 1101 is further configured to send a pilot signal to one or more third network devices.

[0189] The communication unit 1101 is further configured to receive and determine pilot signals from one or more third network devices and determine one or more second delays, each of the one or more second delays being a delay of the pilot signal from a transmission channel of a respective third network device to a reception channel of the second network device.

[0190] The communication unit 1101 is further configured to send the first delay and the one or more second delays.

[0191] In any implementation, the second information indicates to the second network device, among other things, to send a pilot signal to each of one or more third network devices by using a different first beam in each of a plurality of first slots, and to receive a pilot signal from each third network device by using a different second beam in each of a plurality of second slots.

[0192] The communication unit 1101 is configured to send pilot signals to one or more third network devices, and in particular to: Sending a pilot signal to each of the one or more third network devices by using a different first beam in each of the plurality of first slots.

[0193] The communication unit 1101 is configured to receive pilot signals from one or more third network devices, and in particular to: Receiving a pilot signal from each third network device by using a different second beam in each of the plurality of second slots.

[0194] In any implementation, the second delay of each of the second network devices is, in particular, a delay corresponding to an optimal beam pair, the optimal beam pair being a beam pair having the largest received signal-to-noise ratio among the plurality of first beams and the plurality of second beams.

[0195] In any implementation, the communication unit 1101 is further configured to send beam information of one or more optimal beam pairs.

[0196] This embodiment of the present application and the above method embodiment are based on the same concept and achieve the same technical effect. For the specific principles, please refer to the description of the above embodiment. The details will not be described again.

[0197] An embodiment of the present application further provides a communication device 1200. Figure 12 is a diagram of the structure of the communication device 1200. The communication device 1200 may be a first network device, or may be a chip, chip system, processor, etc. that supports the first network device to implement the above method, or may be a second network device, or may be a chip, chip system, processor, etc. that supports the second network device to implement the above method. The device may be configured to implement the method described in the above method embodiment. For details, please refer to the description in the above method embodiment.

[0198] The communications device 1200 may include one or more processors 1201. The processor 1201 may be a general-purpose processor, a special-purpose processor, etc. For example, the processor may be a baseband processor, a digital signal processor, an application-specific integrated circuit, a field-programmable gate array or another programmable logic device, a discrete gate or transistor logic device, a discrete hardware component, or a central processing unit (CPU). The baseband processor may be configured to process communications protocols and communications data. The central processing unit may be configured to control a communications device (e.g., a base station, a baseband chip, a terminal, a terminal chip, a DU, or a CU), execute software programs, and process data of the software programs.

[0199] Optionally, the communication device 1200 may include one or more memories 1202. The memories may store instructions 1204, which may be executed on the processor 1201 to enable the communication device 1200 to perform the methods described in the above method embodiments. Optionally, the memory 1202 may further store data. The processor 1201 and the memory 1202 may be disposed separately or integrated together.

[0200] The memory 1202 may include, but is not limited to, non-volatile memory such as a hard disk drive (HDD) or solid-state drive (SSD), random access memory (RAM), erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM), ROM, portable compact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM), etc.

[0201] Optionally, the communications device 1200 may further include a transceiver 1205 and an antenna 1206. The transceiver 1205 may be referred to as a transceiver unit, transceiver machinery, transceiver circuit, etc., and is configured to implement transceiver functionality. The transceiver 1205 may include a receiver and a transmitter. The receiver may be referred to as a receiving machinery, receiver circuit, etc., and is configured to implement receiving functionality. The transmitter may be referred to as a transmitting machinery, transmitter circuit, etc., and is configured to implement transmitting functionality.

[0202] The communication apparatus 1200 is a first network device. The transceiver 1205 is configured to perform steps S101 and S105 in the location determination method. The processor 1201 is configured to perform step S106 in the location determination method.

[0203] The communication apparatus 1200 is a second network device. The transceiver 1205 is configured to perform steps S101, S103, and S105 of the location determination method. The processor 1201 is configured to perform steps S102 and S104 of the location determination method.

[0204] In another possible design, the processor 1201 may include a transceiver configured to implement transmission and reception functions. For example, the transceiver may be a transceiver circuit, an interface, or an interface circuit. The transceiver circuit, interface, or interface circuit configured to implement transmission and reception functions may be separate or integrated together. The transceiver circuit, interface, or interface circuit may be configured to read and write code / data. Alternatively, the transceiver circuit, interface, or interface circuit may be configured to transmit or transfer signals.

[0205] In another possible design, the processor 1201 may optionally store instructions 1203. When the instructions 1203 are executed on the processor 1201, the communications device 1200 is enabled to perform the methods described in the above method embodiments. The instructions 1203 may be fixed in the processor 1201. In this case, the processor 1201 may be implemented by hardware.

[0206] In yet another possible design, the communication device 1200 may include a circuit. The circuit may implement the transmitting, receiving, or communication function in the above method embodiments. The processor and transceiver described in the embodiments of the present application may be implemented on an integrated circuit (IC), an analog IC, a radio frequency integrated circuit (RFIC), a mixed-signal IC, an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a printed circuit board (PCB), an electronic device, etc. The processor and transceiver may alternatively be fabricated by using various IC technologies, such as complementary metal oxide semiconductor (CMOS), n-type metal oxide semiconductor (NMOS), p-type metal oxide semiconductor (PMOS), bipolar junction transistor (BJT), bipolar CMOS (BiCMOS), silicon germanium (SiGe), and gallium arsenide (GaAs).

[0207] The scope of the communication device described in the embodiments of the present application is not limited thereto, and the structure of the communication device may not be limited by Fig. 12. The communication device may be an independent device or a part of a larger device. For example, the communication device may be as follows: (1) A standalone integrated circuit IC, chip, or chip system or subsystem; (2) a set having one or more ICs, where, optionally, the IC set may alternatively include a storage component configured to store data and instructions; (3) ASIC, e.g., a modem (modulator), or (4) A module that can be embedded into another device.

[0208] In the embodiments of the present application, a communication device and a chip may further implement the communication device 1100. Those skilled in the art may further understand that the various illustrative logic blocks and steps listed in the embodiments of the present application may be implemented by using electronic hardware, computer software, or a combination thereof. Whether a function is implemented by using hardware or software depends on a specific application and the design requirements of the overall system. Those skilled in the art may use various methods to implement the described functions for each specific application, but the implementation should not be considered to go beyond the scope of the embodiments of the present application.

[0209] This embodiment of the present application and the above method embodiment shown in the location determination method are based on the same concept and achieve the same technical effect. For the specific principles, please refer to the description of the above embodiment shown in the location determination method. The details will not be described again.

[0210] The present application further provides a computer-readable storage medium configured to store computer software instructions, which, when executed by a communication device, implement the functions in any one of the above method embodiments.

[0211] The present application further provides a computer program product configured to store computer software instructions, which, when executed by a communication device, implement the functions in any one of the above method embodiments.

[0212] The present application further provides a computer program, which, when run on a computer, implements the functions of any one of the above method embodiments.

[0213] The present application further provides a communication system, the system including one or more network devices and one or more terminal devices. In another possible design, the system may further include another device that interacts with the network devices and the terminal devices in the solution provided herein.

[0214] All or part of the above embodiments may be implemented using software, hardware, firmware, or any combination thereof. When software is used to implement an embodiment, all or part of the embodiment may be implemented in the form of a computer program product. The computer program product includes one or more computer instructions. When the computer instructions are loaded and executed on a computer, all or part of the procedures or functions according to the embodiments of the present application are generated. The computer may be a general-purpose computer, a special-purpose computer, a computer network, or another programmable device. The computer instructions may be stored in a computer-readable storage medium or transmitted from a computer-readable storage medium to another computer-readable storage medium. For example, the computer instructions may be transmitted from a website, computer, server, or data center to another website, computer, server, or data center via a wired (e.g., coaxial cable, optical fiber, or digital subscriber line (DSL)) or wireless (e.g., infrared, radio, or microwave) method. A computer-readable storage medium may be any available medium accessible by a computer or data storage device, e.g., a server or data center, that integrates one or more available media. The available media may be magnetic media (e.g., floppy disks, hard disk drives, or magnetic tapes), optical media (e.g., digital video discs (DVDs)), solid-state media (e.g., SSDs), and the like.

[0215] The above description is merely a specific implementation of the present application and does not limit the scope of protection of the present application. Any modifications or replacements that can be easily conceived by those skilled in the art within the technical scope disclosed in the present application shall fall within the scope of protection of the present application. Therefore, the scope of protection of the present application shall be subject to the scope of protection of the claims.

Claims

1. 1. A location determination method, the method comprising: sending the first information and the second information to each of a plurality of second network devices; the first information indicates to the second network device to determine a first delay of a pilot signal passing through a transmission channel and a reception channel of the second network device; the second information indicates to the second network device to send the pilot signal to one or more third network devices and receive the pilot signal from the one or more third network devices, the third network devices being network devices other than the second network device among the plurality of second network devices; receiving the first delay and one or more second delays of each second network device; a second delay of each second network device being a delay of the pilot signal from a transmit channel of a respective third network device to the receive channel of the second network device; determining location information of each second network device based on an air interface delay between the second network devices, the air interface delay between the second network devices being determined based on the first delay and the one or more second delays of each second network device; A location determination method comprising:

2. 2. The method of claim 1, wherein the second information indicates to the second network device, in particular, to send the pilot signal to each of the one or more third network devices by using a different first beam in each of a plurality of first slots, and to receive the pilot signal from each third network device by using a different second beam in each of a plurality of second slots.

3. the second delay of each of the second network devices is a delay corresponding to an optimal beam pair in particular; The method of claim 2 , wherein the optimal beam pair is a beam pair having a maximum received signal-to-noise ratio among the plurality of first beams and the plurality of second beams.

4. The method comprises: The method of claim 3 , further comprising receiving beam information of one or more optimal beam pairs for each second network device.

5. determining location information of each second network device based on an air interface delay between the second network devices; determining a distance between any two second network devices based on the air interface delay between the second network devices; determining the location information of each second network device based on the distance between any two second network devices and location information of one or more fourth network devices, the fourth network device is a network device whose location information is known in the plurality of second network devices; The method of any one of claims 1 to 4, comprising:

6. determining the location information of each second network device based on the distance between any two second network devices and location information of one or more fourth network devices, determining a spatial topology structure between the plurality of second network devices based on the distance between any two second network devices and the beam information of the one or more optimal beam pairs of each second network device; determining the location information of each second network device based on the distance between any two second network devices, the spatial topology structure, and the location information of the one or more fourth network devices; The method of claim 5 , comprising:

7. The method comprises: compensating for delays of receive channels of any two second network devices among the plurality of second network devices based on the first delay and the one or more second delays of the plurality of second network devices; determining the air interface delay between any two second network devices based on the compensated delays of the receiving channels of the second network devices; The method of claim 1 , further comprising:

8. The method comprises: determining, based on a plurality of logical ports of a fifth network device, a second network device corresponding to each of the plurality of logical ports; the fifth network device is a network device that controls the plurality of second network devices; The method of claim 1 , further comprising:

9. 1. A location determination method, the method comprising: receiving first information and second information, the first information indicating to the second network device to determine a first delay of a pilot signal passing through a transmit channel and a receive channel of the second network device; the second information indicates to the second network device to send the pilot signal to one or more third network devices and receive the pilot signal from the one or more third network devices, the third network devices being network devices other than the second network device among the plurality of second network devices; determining the first delay based on the pilot signal; sending the pilot signal to the one or more third network devices; receiving the pilot signal from the one or more third network devices and determining one or more second delays, each of the one or more second delays being a delay of the pilot signal from a transmit channel of a respective third network device to the receive channel of the second network device; sending the first delay and the one or more second delays; A location determination method comprising:

10. The second information particularly indicates to the second network device to send the pilot signal to each of the one or more third network devices by using a different first beam in each of a plurality of first slots, and to receive the pilot signal from each third network device by using a different second beam in each of a plurality of second slots; sending the pilot signal to the one or more third network devices; sending the pilot signal to each of the one or more third network devices by using the different first beams in each of the plurality of first slots; Equipped with receiving the pilot signal from the one or more third network devices; receiving the pilot signal from each third network device by using the different second beam in each of the plurality of second slots; The method of claim 9 comprising:

11. the second delay of each of the second network devices is specifically a delay corresponding to an optimal beam pair; The method of claim 10 , wherein the optimal beam pair is a beam pair having a maximum received signal-to-noise ratio among the plurality of first beams and the plurality of second beams.

12. The method comprises: Sending beam information for one or more optimal beam pairs. The method of claim 11 further comprising:

13. A communication device, the device comprising: a processing unit and a communication unit; the communication unit sends the first information and the second information to each of a plurality of second network devices; the first information indicates to the second network device to determine a first delay of a pilot signal passing through a transmission channel and a reception channel of the second network device; the second information is configured to indicate to the second network device to send the pilot signal to one or more third network devices and receive the pilot signal from the one or more third network devices, the third network devices being network devices other than the second network device among the plurality of second network devices; the communication unit is further configured to receive the first delay and one or more second delays of each second network device, each second delay of each second network device being a delay of the pilot signal from a transmission channel of a respective third network device to the reception channel of the second network device; A communications device configured such that the processing unit determines location information of each second network device based on an air interface delay between the second network devices, the air interface delay between the second network devices being determined based on the first delay and the one or more second delays of each second network device.

14. 14. The apparatus of claim 13, wherein the second information indicates to the second network device, in particular, to send the pilot signal to each of the one or more third network devices by using a different first beam in each of a plurality of first slots and to receive the pilot signal from each third network device by using a different second beam in each of a plurality of second slots.

15. the second delay of each of the second network devices is a delay corresponding to an optimal beam pair in particular; 15. The apparatus of claim 14, wherein the optimal beam pair is a beam pair having a maximum received signal-to-noise ratio among the plurality of first beams and the plurality of second beams.

16. The communication unit The apparatus of claim 15 , further configured to receive beam information of one or more optimal beam pairs for each second network device.

17. The processing unit determines the location information of each second network device based on the air interface delay between the second network devices, and in particular: determining a distance between any two second network devices based on the air interface delay between the second network devices; determining the location information of each second network device based on the distance between any two second network devices and location information of one or more fourth network devices; 17. The apparatus of claim 13, wherein the fourth network device is configured to be a network device whose location information is known in the plurality of second network devices.

18. The processing unit determines the location information of each second network device based on the distance between any two second network devices and location information of one or more fourth network devices, and in particular: determining a spatial topology structure between the plurality of second network devices based on the distance between any two second network devices and the beam information of the one or more optimal beam pairs of each second network device; 20. The apparatus of claim 17, configured to determine the location information of each second network device based on the distance between any two second network devices, the spatial topology structure, and the location information of the one or more fourth network devices.

19. The processing unit compensate for delays of receiving channels of any two second network devices among the plurality of second network devices based on the first delay and the one or more second delays of the plurality of second network devices; 19. The apparatus of claim 13, further configured to determine the air interface delay between the second network devices based on a compensated delay of the receive channel of every two second network devices.

20. The processing unit determining, based on a plurality of logical ports of a fifth network device, a second network device corresponding to each of the plurality of logical ports; 20. The apparatus of claim 13, further configured such that the fifth network device is a network device that controls the plurality of second network devices.

21. A communication device, the device comprising a communication unit and a processing unit; The communication unit receives first information and second information, the first information indicating to the second network device to determine a first delay of a pilot signal passing through a transmission channel and a reception channel of the second network device; the second information is configured to indicate to the second network device to send the pilot signal to one or more third network devices and receive the pilot signal from the one or more third network devices, the third network devices being network devices other than the second network device among the plurality of second network devices; the processing unit is configured to determine the first delay based on the pilot signal; the communication unit is further configured to send the pilot signal to the one or more third network devices; the communication unit is further configured to receive the pilot signal from the one or more third network devices and determine one or more second delays, each of the one or more second delays being a delay of the pilot signal from a transmit channel of a respective third network device to the receive channel of the second network device; The communication unit is further configured to send the first delay and the one or more second delays.

22. The second information particularly indicates to the second network device to send the pilot signal to each of the one or more third network devices by using a different first beam in each of a plurality of first slots, and to receive the pilot signal from each third network device by using a different second beam in each of a plurality of second slots; The communication unit sends the pilot signal to the one or more third network devices, and in particular configured to send the pilot signal to each of the one or more third network devices by using the different first beam in each of the plurality of first slots; The communication unit receives the pilot signals from the one or more third network devices, and in particular 22. The apparatus of claim 21, configured to receive the pilot signal from each third network device by using the different second beam in each of the plurality of second slots.

23. the second delay of each of the second network devices is specifically a delay corresponding to an optimal beam pair; 23. The apparatus of claim 22, wherein the optimal beam pair is a beam pair having a maximum received signal-to-noise ratio among the plurality of first beams and the plurality of second beams.

24. The communication unit Sends beam information for one or more optimal beam pairs 24. The apparatus of claim 23, further configured to:

25. A communications device comprising a processor and a transceiver, the transceiver configured to communicate with another communications device, and the processor configured to execute a program, whereby the communications device implements a method according to any one of claims 1 to 8.

26. A communications device comprising a processor and a transceiver, the transceiver configured to communicate with another communications device, and the processor configured to execute a program, whereby the communications device implements a method according to any one of claims 9 to 12.

27. A communication device comprising a unit adapted to implement the method according to any one of claims 1 to 8.

28. A communication device comprising a unit adapted to implement the method according to any one of claims 9 to 12.

29. 1. A communication system comprising:

25. A device according to any one of claims 13 to 20 and a device according to any one of claims 21 to 24. A communication device according to claim 25 and a communication device according to claim 26, or A communication device according to claim 27 and a communication device according to claim 28 A communication system comprising:

30. 13. A computer-readable storage medium configured to store instructions that, when executed on a computer, perform the method of any one of claims 1 to 8 or perform the method of any one of claims 9 to 12.

31. A computer program product comprising instructions, which when run on a computer, causes the method of any one of claims 1 to 8 to be performed or causes the method of any one of claims 9 to 12 to be performed.

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