First communication device, second communication device, communication method, and communication system

Abstract

Appropriate use of sensing for specific targets to be detected. [Solution] A first communication device according to one aspect of the present disclosure includes a receiving unit that receives a sensing instruction indicating a detection target by sensing or a sensing method that can be used to detect the detection target, and a control unit that controls the sensing of the detection target based on the sensing instruction.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a first communication device, a second communication device, a communication method, and a communication system.

Background Art

[0002] In recent years, studies on wireless sensing technology using radio frequency signals have been progressing. For example, 5G wireless sensing using signals of the 5th generation mobile communication system New Radio (5G NR) of the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP (registered trademark)) (e.g., Non-Patent Document 1), Wi-Fi sensing using signals of Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 802.11 (Wi-Fi (registered trademark)), etc. have been studied.

[0003] In addition, integrated sensing and communication (ISAC), which integrates a communication function and a sensing function, has been studied.

[0004] Information regarding characteristics of an object (such as shape, size, orientation, speed, position, distance between objects, or relative movement, etc.) may be acquired by wireless sensing.

Prior Art Documents

Non-Patent Documents

[0005]

Non-Patent Document 1

[0006] As mentioned above, wireless sensing is being considered for 3GPP 5G NR, but progress has not yet been made in considering specific methods for controlling sensing. If this is not clearly defined, the accuracy (performance) of wireless sensing may be insufficient, potentially leading to increased communication overhead due to false object detection and a decline in the quality of services provided by external application functions.

[0007] Therefore, one of the objectives of this disclosure is to provide a first communication device, a second communication device, a communication method, and a communication system that can appropriately utilize sensing for a specific detection target. [Means for solving the problem]

[0008] A first communication device according to one aspect of the present disclosure includes a receiving unit that receives a sensing instruction indicating a detection target by sensing or a sensing method that can be used to detect the detection target, and a control unit that controls the sensing of the detection target based on the sensing instruction. [Effects of the Invention]

[0009] According to one aspect of this disclosure, sensing can be appropriately utilized for a specific target to be detected. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0010] [Figure 1]Figure 1 is a diagram showing an example of a schematic configuration of a system according to one embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 2] Figure 2 is a diagram showing an example of the schematic functional configuration of each device according to one embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 3] Figure 3 is a diagram showing an example of a schematic hardware configuration of each device according to one embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 4] Figure 4 shows an example of a first sensing step according to one embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 5] Figure 5 shows an example of information management regarding sensing capabilities in an SF according to one embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 6] Figure 6 shows an example of a second sensing step according to one embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 7] Figure 7 shows an example of a sensing procedure for ice detection according to one embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 8] Figure 8 shows an example of sensing for flood detection in an underpass. [Figure 9] Figure 9 shows an example of a sensing procedure for flood detection according to one embodiment of the present disclosure. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0011] Embodiments of this disclosure will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings. In this specification and in the drawings, elements that can be described similarly are denoted by the same reference numerals, and redundant explanations can be omitted.

[0012] In this disclosure, text enclosed in parentheses () may indicate an explanation of the preceding text (e.g., a spelling explanation), a paraphrase, a specific example, or supplementary information. Similarly, text enclosed in square brackets ([]) may be interpreted as part of the overall meaning of the text, or as excluding (ignoring) the brackets. Note that parentheses () and square brackets ([]) may also be used for purposes / meanings other than those described above.

[0013] In the present disclosure, "A / B" and "at least one of A and B" may be read interchangeably with each other. Also, in the present disclosure, "A / B / C" may mean "at least one of A, B, and C".

[0014] In the present disclosure, a network function (Network Function (NF)) may include, for example, at least one of the following: · Application Function (AF) (for example, a function that realizes an application server outside the 5G core network (5G Core Network (5GC))), · Access and Mobility management Function (AMF) (for example, a function that manages registration, location, etc. of a UE), · Data Network (DN) (for example, a function that realizes a data network outside the 5GC), · Location Management Function (LMF) (for example, a function of communication control related to location information service), · Non-3GPP Inter-Working Function (N3IWF) (for example, a function that connects an untrusted non-3GPP access network and the 5GC), · Network Exposure Function (NEF) (for example, a function that provides an application interface of the NF service of the 5GC to the outside), · Network Slice Selection Function (NSSF) (for example, a function that selects a network slice), · Network Data Analytics Function (NWDAF) (for example, a function that analyzes network data), · Operation, Administration and Maintenance (Management) (OAM) (for example, a function that provides means for operation, administration and maintenance), ·Policy Control Function (PCF) (e.g., a function that controls the quality of the data transfer path, policies, etc.) ·Session Management Function (SMF) (e.g., a function that manages sessions) ·Trusted Non-3GPP Gateway Function (TNGF) (e.g., a function that connects a trusted non-3GPP access network and 5GC) ·Trusted WLAN Interworking Function (TWIF) (e.g., a function that connects a trusted non-3GPP access network and 5GC for 5G-incompatible UEs via a wireless local area network (Local Area Network (LAN))) ·(Radio) Access Network ((R)AN) (e.g., a function that provides a wireless access network) ·User Equipment (UE) (e.g., a function that provides user access to network services via a wireless interface) ·Unified Data Management (UDM) (e.g., a function that stores / manages subscriber information, UE authentication information, etc.) ·Unified Data Repository (UDR) (e.g., a function that manages authentication / authorization based on subscriber information) ·User Plane Function (UPF) (e.g., a function that transmits user data packets)

[0015] Note that these are merely examples, and it is naturally understood that other NFs are also covered in this disclosure.

[0016] <System> Figure 1 shows an example of a schematic configuration of a system according to one embodiment of the present disclosure. System 1 includes User Equipment (UE) 10, Base Station (BS) 20, Network Function (NF) server 30, and Application Server 40. System 1 may also be called a [wireless / information] communication system.

[0017] System 1 is, for example, a system compliant with a 3GPP Technical Specification (TS). More specifically, for example, System 1 may be a system compliant with a TS for a 5th generation mobile communication system (5G) or New Radio (NR).

[0018] System 1 is not limited to this example and may include systems utilizing Long Term Evolution (LTE), LTE-Advanced (LTE-A), 4th generation mobile communication system (4G), 5th generation mobile communication system (5G), 6th generation mobile communication system (6G), xth generation mobile communication system (xG (where x is, for example, an integer or decimal)), New Radio (NR), Global System for Mobile communications (GSM®), CDMA2000, Ultra Mobile Broadband (UMB), IEEE 802.11 (Wi-Fi®), IEEE 802.16 (WiMAX®), IEEE 802.20, Ultra-WideBand (UWB), Bluetooth®, and other wireless communication methods, as well as next-generation systems that are extended, modified, created, or defined based on these.

[0019] In other words, terms related to 5G in this disclosure can be interpreted as terms related to other technologies / systems. Furthermore, when such interpretations are made, it will be obvious to those skilled in the art that, for example, NF can be interpreted as having a similar function (or a device having a similar function) to the NF of 5G.

[0020] In System 1, UE10 receives wireless communication services using Network (NW) 3000. NW3000 corresponds to the cellular network to which UE10 can connect.

[0021] In this disclosure, cellular network may be interpreted as mobile network, wireless communication network, 5G core network (5GC), [3GPP] access network, etc. 5GC may include, for example, an optical fiber network. In this disclosure, 5GC, network, physical network, and core network (CN) may be interpreted as interchangeable.

[0022] UE10 connects to NW3000 via BS20. UE10 may be a mobile device (mobile communication terminal) such as a smartphone, tablet, or wearable device, or it may be a fixed communication terminal. UE10 may be a device mounted on a moving object (e.g., a vehicle), the moving object itself, or a device included in the moving object (held by a person riding in the moving object).

[0023] UE10 may utilize (or be equipped with) a Subscriber Identity Module (SIM) / Embedded SIM (eSIM) of an operator providing wireless communication services using NW3000. Furthermore, UE10 may switch connections to different operators' NW3000s by switching the Access Point Name (APN) configuration profile.

[0024] In System 1, the communication link going to (receiving) BS20 and going out of (transmitting) UE10 may be called the uplink (UL), and the communication link going out of (transmitting) BS20 and going to (receiving) UE10 may be called the downlink (DL).

[0025] BS20 provides UE10 with a Radio Access Network (RAN). An area on the Radio Access Network where wireless communication is possible is also called a cell. In this disclosure, BS and (Radio) Access Network ((R)AN) may be used interchangeably.

[0026] BS20 is, for example, a gNB. The gNB provides NR user plane and control plane protocol terminations towards the UE and is connected to 5GC via the NG interface. BS20 may also be an en-gNB. The en-gNB provides NR user plane and control plane protocol terminations towards the UE and operates as a secondary node in E-UTRA-NR Dual Connectivity (EN-DC).

[0027] UE10 / BS20 / NF Server 30 / Application Server 40 may have wireless sensing capabilities, for example, they may have a sensing transmitter / receiver. UE10 / BS20 may use the sensing transmitter / receiver to perform wireless sensing around its own terminal and acquire sensing data.

[0028] UE10 / BS20 / NF Server 30 / Application Server 40 may have devices (cameras, sensors, lasers, etc.) for sensing means other than wireless sensing (e.g., image sensing, light detection and ranging (LiDAR)).

[0029] The sensing of UE10 / BS20 / NF Server 30 / Application Server 40 may be at least one of monostatic sensing, bistatic sensing, or multistatic sensing.

[0030] Monostatic sensing may be a type of sensing in which the system itself transmits a sensing signal (e.g., a specific reference signal) and receives an echo signal [from the object] to acquire sensing data. Bistatic sensing may be a type of sensing in which the system itself or a cooperating UE10 / BS20 / NF server 30 / application server 40's sensing transmitter transmits a signal, and the cooperating UE10 / BS20 / NF server 30 / application server 40 or the system's own sensing receiver receives the above signal [affected by the object]. Multistatic sensing may refer to a type of sensing in which there are multiple sensing transmitters / multiple sensing receivers for an object.

[0031] The NF server 30 provides at least one of the functions of the NF described above. Figure 1 shows an NF server 30 providing an AMF, an NF server 30 providing an SMF, an NF server 30 providing a UPF, and so on. In this disclosure, the NF server 30 and NFs (e.g., AMF, NEF, NSSF, PCF, SMF, etc.) are interchangeable.

[0032] In this disclosure, NF may include a Sensing Function (SF) that manages, controls, and analyzes sensing.

[0033] The application server 40 may correspond to the above-mentioned AF as defined for the 5G Core Network (5GC). In this disclosure, the application server 40, app, AF, etc., are interchangeable.

[0034] Furthermore, as shown in Figure 1, the application server 40 may be an external application server (external AF) belonging to a network outside 5GC (which may also be called an untrusted AF, located outside the operator's trust domain), and may communicate with the NF server 30 within 5GC via the NEF. The application server 40 may also be an internal application server (internal AF) included within 5GC (which may also be called a trusted AF, located within the operator's trust domain), although this is not shown in the figure, and may communicate with the NF server 30 within 5GC [without going through the NEF].

[0035] The application server 40 (e.g., an untrusted AF) may support the exchange of information by service providers other than telecommunications carriers to provide services related to the UE10 using communications, via an API that makes the 5GC services (NF, especially control NF) accessible from the outside. Such exchange of information may include, for example, requesting and obtaining information about the location / state of the UE10, and specifying the quality of service (such as communication speed) for the UE10.

[0036] Any device shown in Figure 1 may also be called a network node, node, server, [wired / wireless] communication device, information processing device, etc. Furthermore, the lines between devices in Figure 1 indicate logical connections and do not necessarily have to be physically connected directly (they may be connected indirectly via another device).

[0037] <Configuration of each device> Examples of the configurations of each device (UE10, BS20, NF server 30, application server 40) according to the embodiments of this disclosure will be described.

[0038] <<Functional Configuration>> Figure 2 is a diagram showing an example of the schematic functional configuration of each device according to one embodiment of the present disclosure. For example, UE10 includes a control unit 110, a communication unit 120, an input / output unit 130, and a storage unit 140.

[0039] Furthermore, BS20, NF Server 30, and Application Server 40 may have a similar functional configuration. For this reason, in Figure 3, the symbols for the functional blocks corresponding to each device are also shown, with the largest digit of the symbol representing each device (for example, for BS20, the largest digit "2" in "20") replaced with "1". The following explanation will focus on the functional blocks related to UE10, but it should be understood that the same explanation applies to the other devices.

[0040] This example primarily shows the functional blocks of the characteristic parts of this embodiment, and each device may also have other functional blocks necessary for other processes. Furthermore, the configuration may omit some functional blocks.

[0041] The control unit 110 controls the UE 10 and provides various functions. For example, the control unit 110 may control communication with other devices via the communication unit 120. The control unit 110 may also acquire information necessary for processing based on information received via the communication unit 120. The control unit 110 may also be called a processing unit.

[0042] The communication unit 120 communicates (transmits / receives) with other devices via wired or wireless connections. The communication unit 120 may obtain information from the received signal and output it to the control unit 110, or it may convert information input from the control unit 110 into a signal and transmit it. The communication unit 120 may be configured as an integrated transmitting and receiving unit (a unit capable of both transmitting and receiving), or it may be composed of separate transmitting and receiving units.

[0043] The input / output unit 130 may include an input unit that accepts input from a human operator or acquires information by performing measurements (sensing) of the surrounding environment. The input unit may be connected to a predetermined device, storage medium, etc., and accept data input. The input unit may output the input results to, for example, the control unit 110.

[0044] Furthermore, the input / output unit 130 may include an output unit that outputs data, content, etc., in a format perceptible to humans. The output unit may include a display unit that displays images, an audio output unit that outputs sound, and the like.

[0045] Either the communication unit 120 or the input / output unit 130, or a combination thereof, may function as a sensing transmitter / receiver. Sensing performed via the communication unit 120 may be wireless sensing, while sensing performed via the input / output unit 130 may be non-wireless sensing. The sensing unit may be called a sensing unit, a measurement unit, etc. For example, the measurement unit may perform sensing using the sensing method described later and acquire the sensed data.

[0046] The memory unit 140 stores (holds) various information that the UE 10 uses for processing. The control unit 110 may instruct the memory unit 140 to read or write data.

[0047] <<Hardware Configuration>> Figure 3 shows an example of a schematic hardware configuration of each device according to one embodiment of the present disclosure. Each device comprises an antenna 910, a radio frequency (RF) circuit 920, a processor 930, a network interface 940, an input / output device 950, a memory 960, and a storage device 970.

[0048] For example, the control unit X10 (X=1, 2, 3, 4; the same applies hereafter) described above may be implemented by a processor 930. The communication unit X20 may be implemented by an antenna 910 / RF circuit 920 / network interface 940. The input / output unit X30 may be implemented by an input device / output device 950. The storage unit X40 may be implemented by a memory 960 / storage 970.

[0049] The hardware configuration of each device may include one or more of the elements shown in Figure 3, or it may be configured without some of the elements. For example, UE10 may not have a network interface 940.

[0050] Antenna 910 converts a signal into radio waves and radiates the radio waves into space. Antenna 910 also receives radio waves in space and converts the radio waves into signals. Multiple antennas 910 may be mounted, or they may include a transmitting antenna and a receiving antenna, or they may include a single antenna for transmitting and receiving. Antenna 910 may include a directional antenna, or it may include multiple antenna elements.

[0051] The RF circuit 920 performs analog processing on the signals transmitted and received via the antenna 910. The RF circuit 920 may include filters (e.g., high-frequency filters, low-pass filters), amplifiers, modulators, frequency synthesizers, analog-to-digital conversion circuits, digital-to-analog conversion circuits, Fast Fourier Transform (FFT) / Inverse Fast Fourier Transform (IFFT) processing circuits, and the like.

[0052] The RF circuit 920 may perform amplification, filtering, and demodulation to a baseband signal on the received radio frequency band signal and output it to the processor 930. The RF circuit 920 may also perform modulation to a radio frequency band, filtering, and amplification on the baseband signal input from the processor 930 and transmit the radio frequency band signal via the transmitting and receiving antenna 910. The RF circuit 920 may also perform physical layer processing (for example, processing of lower-level functions of the physical layer), and may perform beamforming processing such as analog beamforming and digital beamforming.

[0053] The processor 930 may control the entire device. The processor 930 may read programs (program code), software (software modules), data, etc., from the storage 970 into the memory 960 and perform various processes according to these. For example, the processor 930 may execute and control an operating system (OS) program loaded into the memory 960.

[0054] The processor 930 may consist of a central processing unit (CPU) that includes interfaces with peripheral devices, control units, arithmetic units, registers, etc. The processor 930 may also include a microprocessor, a digital signal processor (DSP), an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a programmable logic device (PLD), a field-programmable gate array (FPGA), a graphics processing unit (GPU), a neural processing unit (NPU), and the like.

[0055] The processor 930 may perform digital processing of signals transmitted and received via the antenna 910 and the RF circuit 920. This digital processing may include processing at the physical layer (e.g., processing of higher-level functions of the physical layer), processing at layers above the Medium Access Control (MAC) layer, and processing such as modulation, demodulation, coding, decoding, and scrambling. The processor 930 also processes signals transmitted and received via the network interface 940.

[0056] The processor 930 may include multiple processors or it may be a single processor. The multiple processors may include a baseband processor that performs the digital processing and one or more processors that perform other processing (e.g., overall control).

[0057] The network interface 940 may be, for example, a network adapter, which is connected to an external network via a wired connection and performs signal transmission and reception.

[0058] The RF circuit 920, processor 930, and network interface 940 may be configured as an integrated unit. The RF circuit 920, processor 930, and network interface 940 may also be referred to as a network controller, network card, or communication module.

[0059] The input / output device 950 includes input devices that accept input from the outside or acquire information about the surrounding environment (e.g., keyboard, mouse, microphone, switch, button, camera, sensor, etc.), output devices that perform output to the outside (e.g., display, speaker, Light Emitting Diode (LED) lamp, etc.), and devices that integrate these (e.g., touch panel). A locator for acquiring location information (e.g., a receiver compatible with Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS)) may also be included as a sensor.

[0060] Memory 960 is a computer-readable non-temporary recording medium that stores programs executed by the processor 930, parameters related to those programs, and various other information. Memory 960 may include at least one of Read Only Memory (ROM), Erasable Programmable ROM (EPROM), (Electrically EPROM (EEPROM)), Random Access Memory (RAM), and flash memory. All or part of memory 960 may be contained within the processor 930. Memory 960 may also be called registers, cache, main memory, etc.

[0061] Storage 970 is a computer-readable, non-temporary recording medium that stores various types of information. Storage 970 may include, for example, at least one of the following: flexible disks, floppy disks, magneto-optical disks (e.g., Compact Disc ROM (CD-ROM)), digital multipurpose disks, Blu-ray® disks), removable disks, hard disk drives (HDDs), smart cards, and flash memory devices (e.g., Solid State Drives (SSDs)). Storage 970 may also be called auxiliary storage.

[0062] Furthermore, each device, such as the processor 930 and the memory 960, may be connected by a bus for communicating information. A single bus may be used within the device, or different buses may be used between the devices.

[0063] Furthermore, BS20 may be separated into three elements: a Radio Unit (RU), a Distributed Unit (DU), and a Central Unit (CU). The RU implements RF processing and lower-level physical layer functions. The DU implements higher-level physical layer functions, MAC layer functions, and Radio Link Control (RLC) layer functions. The CU implements Packet Data Convergence Protocol (PDCP) layer, Service Data Adaptation Protocol (SDAP), and Radio Resource Control (RRC) layer functions.

[0064] In this disclosure, BS20 may include a single device that implements all the functions of RU, DU, and CU, or it may include multiple devices, each implementing some of the functions of RU, DU, and CU.

[0065] Furthermore, other devices in this disclosure may also be implemented by multiple devices located physically separately from each other. Conversely, multiple different devices in this disclosure (for example, two or more of UE10, BS20, NF server 30, and application server 40) may be implemented as a single device.

[0066] Furthermore, all or part of the devices described herein may mean logical devices implemented by virtual machines, containers, Docker, etc., or physical devices that operate such logical devices.

[0067] <Example of operation> The following describes examples of the operation of each device / function according to the embodiments of this disclosure. The communication methods (wireless communication methods, control methods) described below may be applied to the system 1 described above.

[0068] In the following descriptions of this disclosure, reference numerals may be omitted. For example, UE in the following descriptions may mean UE10.

[0069] In the following description, each device / function may be interpreted as one or more functional blocks (e.g., control unit 110, communication unit 120) or hardware configuration (e.g., RF circuit 920, processor 930) within the device / function.

[0070] In this disclosure, sensing, wireless sensing, and collaborative sensing (CS) may be interpreted interchangeably. CS may mean sensing that involves multiple BS / UEs performing overlapping area / time sensing (for example, sensing that calculates sensing results based on sensing data obtained from these sensings).

[0071] In this disclosure, SF may be interpreted as other NFs in the NW (e.g., NWDAF), or as SF / other NFs. One or more steps (processes) performed by one device / function in the following description may be interpreted as steps performed in a distributed manner by multiple devices / functions. For example, one of these devices / functions may perform part of the one or more steps, and the other may perform the remainder of the one or more steps. For example, the first / second steps described below describe SF receiving a first sensing request and sending a second sensing request, but this may also cover the following: "One of the SF and the other NF receives the first sensing request, [sends information to the other (e.g., that the first sensing request has been received, an instruction to send a second sensing request, etc.)] and the other sends a second sensing request."

[0072] In the following procedure, UE may be interpreted as UE / BS. For example, UE information may be interpreted as BS information, and based on the BS information, the BS of the sensing participant described below, the requesting party or any other BS, a BS included in or near the sensing target area, etc., may be determined.

[0073] <<First step in sensing>> Figure 4 shows an example of a first sensing step according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0074] In step S101, the sensing requester (e.g., AF or UE) sends a sensing request (which may also be called the first sensing request) to the SF. The sensing request may include information to identify the sensing participant (which may also be called the implementer) (e.g., UE information, area information, time information, or any combination thereof). The information to identify the sensing participant may also be called sensing participant identification information, participant identification information, or simply identification information.

[0075] In this disclosure, if the sensing requester is a UE / trusted AF, the transmission and reception between the requester and the SF (e.g., sending a sensing request) may not be conducted via the NEF (via the BS or directly). If the sensing requester is an untrusted AF, the transmission and reception between the requester and the SF may be conducted via the NEF.

[0076] Note that UE information only needs to be information that identifies the UE of the sensing participant, and may include, for example, at least one of the following: ·Generic Public Subscription Identifier (GPSI), ·Subscription Permanent Identifier (SUPI), ·NR Cell Global Identifier (NCGI), • NR Cell Identify (NCI) or Cell Identifier (Identifier (ID) gNB ID, • Internet Protocol (IP) address (e.g., Internet Protocol Version 4 (IPv4) address, Internet Protocol Version 6 (IPv6) address, IPv6 prefix), • MAC address, • External Group Identifier • Internal Group Identifier Any other identifier to identify the UE (e.g., UE ID), the UE's telephone number itself, or information related to the telephone number (e.g., Mobile Station International Subscriber Directory Number (MSISDN))).

[0077] The UE information included in a sensing request may include UE information indicating the UE that requested the sensing (which may also be called the requesting UE or demanding UE). The requesting UE may be the UE that sends the sensing request, or it may be the UE that notifies the AF that it wishes to receive the sensing results.

[0078] Area information may be information indicating the area to be sensed, for example, information indicating the area (region / domain) where the UE is located [currently, in the past, or in the future]. Area information may be included in the UE information.

[0079] The above area may be indicated by at least one of the following: a range of latitude and longitude [from a reference point], distance [from a reference point], a geographical area, a tracking area (TA), or it may be predefined by the requesting party / SF / NEF. The area information may include at least one of the following: a reference point, a range of latitude and longitude [from a reference point], distance [from a reference point], an address / shape indicating the geographical area, a list of TA identifiers (Tracking Area Identity (TAI)), a Public Land Mobile Network (PLMN) ID, or an area identifier (Identifier (ID)) predefined by the requesting party / SF / NEF. The above reference point may be pre-set by the requesting party / SF / NEF, or it may be the current location of the UE.

[0080] Time information may be information indicating the time [of the sensing target], and may include information about the time [when the UE is located in the above region / area]. The above time may be identified based on at least one of the following: start time, end time, duration from the start time, time zone, period, offset [of the period from a particular time]. The unit of time may be expressed, for example, seconds, minutes, hours, etc.

[0081] Furthermore, if the UE information is an external (proprietary) ID different from the ID (e.g., GPSI) of a 3GPP domain (under 5GS management), the requesting party / NEF may have information regarding the mapping (correspondence) between the 3GPP domain ID and the external ID. In this disclosure, UE information may be interpreted as UE information converted to a 3GPP domain ID by the NEF or another NF.

[0082] Furthermore, in this disclosure, UE information may be in list format or any format (e.g., array format, vector format, etc.). In other words, the information in this disclosure may be interpreted as information [list], identifying information, specifying information, etc. The UE information may include one or more values ​​that represent an individual UE (e.g., one IP address) or one or more values ​​that represent multiple UEs (e.g., a range of IP addresses, the area information mentioned above).

[0083] The requesting party may derive the remaining information from one or two of the following: UE information, area information, and time information. Furthermore, the requesting party may derive at least one of the UE information, area information, and time information based on predetermined settings / values ​​(which may be called default settings / values). For example, the default value for time information may indicate a predetermined time after the current time.

[0084] The requesting party may derive the remaining information from any or two of the following: UE information, area information, time information, etc. Furthermore, the SF / NEF may derive at least one of the following information not included in the sensing request: UE information, area information, time information, etc., based on any or two of the UE information, area information, time information, etc. included in the sensing request. For example, the requesting party / SF / NEF may have prior knowledge of the correspondence between UEs and areas, and may derive area information from UE information, or UE information from area information, based on that correspondence.

[0085] Furthermore, the requesting party / SF / NEF may derive at least one of the UE information, area information, and time information based on predetermined settings / values ​​(which may be called default settings / values, for example). For example, the default value for time information may indicate a predetermined time after the current time.

[0086] In step S102, the SF discovers the sensing participants (hereinafter also referred to as participants) [based on the first sensing request]. In this disclosure, discovery, determination, identification, etc., may be interpreted interchangeably. The participants may be one or more devices (BS / UE). If multiple participants are discovered, the sensing may be a CS or individual sensings.

[0087] For example, the SF may identify a [requesting party or any] UE based on the UE information of the first sensing request in step S101, and determine a BS / UE located near that [requesting party or any] UE as a participant. Alternatively, the SF may determine at least one of the UEs indicated by the UE information of the first sensing request in step S101 as a participant. Furthermore, the SF may determine a BS / UE located in or near an area based on the area information of the first sensing request in step S101 as a participant.

[0088] Whether a UE is near the requesting UE or any other UE, or is included in / near the area, may be determined based on the location information of each device (requesting UE, each BS, each UE), or based on the communication / connection status of each device. The SF may determine as a participant any BS / UE that is expected to be included in / near the area at a time specified based on time information.

[0089] The first sensing request may include information that explicitly or implicitly designates the CS, and the SF may decide, based on this information, to take control for the CS with respect to the first sensing request (for example, to discover multiple participants). The information that implicitly designates the CS may be the aforementioned UE information, area information, or information indicating sensing accuracy.

[0090] The SF may receive information regarding sensing capabilities (which may also be called sensing functions) from the BS / UE in advance. The SF may determine which BS / UEs are candidates for participation based on the sensing capabilities of each BS / UE, and may select participants from among the candidates in step S102. The information regarding sensing capabilities may include information indicating that [the device] supports / has (or does not support / does not have) sensing [functions / capabilities], or it may include information indicating the available sensing means [of the device]. The information regarding sensing capabilities may be included in UE capability information, or it may be included in any inter-device messages / signaling.

[0091] In this disclosure, the sensing means and the sensing method may be interpreted as interchangeable.

[0092] Prior to step S102, the SF may send an inquiry to the BS / UE requesting it to report information regarding sensing capabilities. The BS / UE may then send information regarding sensing capabilities to the SF in response to the inquiry. The sending and receiving of such inquiries and information regarding sensing capabilities may be controlled via a specific NF (e.g., AMF).

[0093] Furthermore, the BS / UE may transmit information regarding sensing capabilities to the SF at any time. This timing may occur at a specific period / duration / frequency. The above specific period / duration / frequency may be predetermined, or information indicating the above specific period / duration / frequency may be notified from the SF to the BS / UE.

[0094] When SF receives information about a new / different sensing capability for a given BS / UE, it may store the current timing as the timing (which may be called the update timing) at which this sensing capability information is updated.

[0095] The update timing may be before step S101 (which may be called step S100, for example), before step S102, or at any other time.

[0096] It is preferable that the SF controls the transmission of the above query to update information regarding sensing capability immediately before step S102.

[0097] The SF / specific NF (e.g., AMF) may store the sensing capability of the BS / UE in association with at least one of the following: information to identify the BS / UE (e.g., UE information), the update timing, etc. (for example, in the form of a [Reference] table). Note that the SF may not be limited to tables, but may use any format such as lists or arrays to associate and store this information.

[0098] Figure 5 shows an example of information management regarding sensing capabilities in an SF according to one embodiment of the present disclosure. This example shows how UE information (e.g., UE ID), the last update date (year, month, day), and available sensing means are managed in a table format. In Figure 5, for example, UE1 is shown to have terahertz waves and millimeter waves available as sensing means, and its last update date is June 20, 2024.

[0099] In step S103, the SF sends a sensing request to the participant [via a BS / UE near the participant]. The sensing request in step S103 (which may be called a second sensing request) may contain the same information as the first sensing request in step S101, or it may contain different information. For example, the UE information (or area information or time information) included in the second sensing request may represent a portion of the content (e.g., some UEs, some areas, some times) included in the UE information (or area information or time information) included in the first sensing request. Second sensing requests to multiple participants may be configured such that the UE information (or area information or time information) included in them, when combined, is the same as or corresponds to the content of the UE information (or area information or time information) included in the first sensing request.

[0100] The second sensing request from the SF to the participant may be sent using, for example, RRC signaling (e.g., an RRC reconfiguration message).

[0101] In step S104, each participant who receives a sensing request in step S103 may perform sensing based on the sensing request and collect sensing data. For example, a participant may perform sensing at the time indicated by the time information of the sensing request / in the area indicated by the area information of the sensing request.

[0102] Furthermore, the second sensing request may include information that explicitly or implicitly designates a CS, and based on this information, the participant may determine that the sensing to be performed is a CS and may perform different controls than those for individual sensings that are not CS.

[0103] In step S105, each participant may transmit sensing data to the SF. In step S105, participants may also calculate sensing results based on the sensing data and transmit such sensing results to the SF together with or instead of the sensing data. In this disclosure, participants may also transmit sensing data / sensing results to other devices (e.g., edge servers [in / outside the operator's trust domain], any NF, other AF, etc.).

[0104] In step S106, the SF may calculate the sensing result based on the sensing data / sensing results received from each participant (for example, by integrating these data / results). In this disclosure, the SF may receive sensing data / sensing results directly from participants, or it may receive (acquire) sensing data / sensing results received by other devices (e.g., edge servers [in / outside the operator's trust domain], any NF, other AF, etc.) via said other devices.

[0105] In step S107, the SF may transmit the sensing results (for example, at least one of the sensing results transmitted by the participant in step S105 and the sensing results calculated by the SF in step S106) to the requester of the sensing (requesting AF or requesting UE). The SF may transmit some or all of the sensing data from each participant to the requester along with or instead of the sensing results. In this disclosure, the SF may transmit sensing data / sensing results to other devices (e.g., edge servers [in / outside the operator's trust domain], any NF, other AF, etc.). In this disclosure, the requester of the sensing may receive sensing data / sensing results directly from the SF, or may receive (acquire) sensing data / sensing results received by other devices (e.g., edge servers [in / outside the operator's trust domain], any NF, other AF, etc.) via said other devices. Furthermore, if the requesting UE has notified the AF that it wishes to receive the sensing results, the AF may also send the sensing results / sensing data to the requesting UE.

[0106] In this disclosure, sensing results / sensing data may be interpreted interchangeably with information regarding sensing results.

[0107] According to the first sensing procedure described above, sensing can be performed on UEs in the appropriate area / time. According to the first procedure, for example, sensing from multiple UEs (such as cars) can be integrated to detect the overall situation (such as road conditions). The drawback of sensing by only one UE, such as the existence of parts that cannot be detected due to obstacles, can be expected to be improved by performing CS in the first procedure.

[0108] <<Second step in sensing>> Figure 6 shows an example of a second sensing step according to one embodiment of the present disclosure. In the second sensing step, it is possible to specify the sensing method to be used for sensing.

[0109] Steps S200-S207 of the second procedure may correspond to steps S100-S107 of the first procedure, respectively. The differences between the second procedure and the first procedure will now be explained. Any part of the second procedure that is not explained [step S20X (where X=0-7)] may include the same content as in step S10X of the first procedure.

[0110] In step S200, the BS / UE may transmit information to the SF regarding the sensing methods it supports. The SF may store (or pre-register) the sensing methods supported by each BS / UE in association with the corresponding BS / UE information. The information regarding the supported sensing methods may indicate at least one of the supported sensing methods, or it may indicate that sensing is not supported (i.e., there is no sensing function).

[0111] Here, the sensing method may include at least one of the following: 3GPP sensing, non-3GPP sensing, etc.

[0112] 3GPP sensing may be sensing as defined in the 3GPP standard, or sensing that uses the wireless communication technology / frequency of the 3GPP standard. 3GPP sensing can detect the effects (reflection, refraction, diffraction, etc.) that a 3GPP wireless signal receives from a target object, environment, etc.

[0113] Non-3GPP sensing may be sensing defined outside of 3GPP standards, and may be sensing using non-3GPP wireless communication technologies / frequencies such as Wi-Fi, or sensing using technologies other than wireless communication technologies. Non-3GPP sensing may include at least one of the following: Wi-Fi sensing, image sensing, light detection and ranging (LiDAR), cameras, radar, sonar, ultrasonic waves, infrared.

[0114] A sensing method may include the frequency used for sensing, and information on a supported sensing method may include information on the frequency used for sensing. The frequency used for sensing may be expressed as an absolute value or a relative value [Hz] from some reference value, or as a predefined range or a name corresponding to that range (e.g., terahertz wave, subterahertz wave, millimeter wave, centimeter wave, frequency range (FR), frequency band). FR may indicate at least one of the frequency ranges defined in 3GPP, such as FR1, FR2, FR2-1, FR2-2, FR3, etc. A frequency band may indicate at least one of the frequency bands defined in 3GPP, for example, FR2 could take the range n257-n263. For example, n257 corresponds to the 26.5-29.5 GHz band. A frequency band is suitable when specifying a frequency with an intermediate granularity that is finer than the entire millimeter wave range (30-300 GHz band) but coarser than the frequency value. Furthermore, the information regarding supported sensing methods may include only information regarding the frequency used for sensing, [for example, in the case of 3GPP sensing].

[0115] Information regarding supported sensing methods may include information about objects that can be preferably sensed or are desired to be sensed, information about supported or desired sensing services, etc. The information about objects may include, for example, information indicating the gas / liquid / solid (e.g., ice) that is the object. The information about sensing services may include, for example, information indicating sensing services such as detection of a specific gas / liquid / solid (e.g., ice), intruder detection, detection of people / animals on the road, rainfall monitoring, vehicle autonomous driving / navigation, and collision avoidance for unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs). This information may be explicitly or implicitly associated with the sensing method and may be called auxiliary information regarding the sensing method (auxiliary information for identifying the sensing method).

[0116] Information regarding supported sensing methods may be included in the information regarding sensing capability. Prior to step S202, the SF may send an inquiry to the BS / UE to report information regarding supported sensing methods [including information regarding sensing capability]. In response to the inquiry, the BS / UE may send the information regarding supported sensing methods [including information regarding sensing capability] to the SF. The sending and receiving of such inquiries, information regarding supported sensing methods [including information regarding sensing capability], etc., may be controlled via a specific NF (e.g., AMF).

[0117] The timing for registering / updating information about the supported sensing method may be before step S201 (step S200), before step S202, or at any other time.

[0118] It is preferable for the SF to control the transmission of the above query to update information on the sensing capabilities [including information on the sensing methods to be supported] immediately before step S202. This is expected to allow the SF to select a participant capable of performing appropriate sensing, even if the BS / UE varies the available sensing means depending on the environment.

[0119] In step S201, the first sensing request sent by the sensing requester (AF or UE) may include, in addition to any or a combination thereof, UE information, area information, time information, etc., information about the sensing method for which the sensing result is desired. Information about the sensing method for which the sensing result is desired may be called sensing [method] specification information, sensing instruction information, desired sensing [method] information, or simply specification information. Multiple sensing methods may be indicated by the sensing specification information.

[0120] Furthermore, the party requesting the sensing may obtain information from the SF in advance regarding the sensing methods supported by each BS / UE. In this case, the party requesting the sensing can, for example, include sensing specification information that includes only the sensing methods supported by the BS / UE in a certain area in the first sensing request, which includes area information indicating that area, thereby ensuring that sensing is performed in a specified manner.

[0121] Furthermore, the sensing specification information may include information / auxiliary information about the sensing method, similar to that described in the information about supported sensing methods above. For example, the sensing specification information may be information indicating a specific sensing method (millimeter wave, LiDAR, etc.), or it may be auxiliary information regarding the sensing method (for example, information indicating that ice detection is desired (requested)).

[0122] If the first sensing request includes supplementary information regarding the sensing method, the SF may determine the actual sensing method [to be performed by the participant] based on that supplementary information.

[0123] In step S202, the SF may determine BS / UEs that support the sensing method indicated in the sensing designation information of step S201 as candidate participants, based on the sensing methods supported by each BS / UE that have been registered / updated in advance, and select participants from among the candidate participants.

[0124] If it is determined to perform control for CS based on the first sensing request in step S201, and if the sensing specification information indicates multiple sensing methods, the SF may decide to associate multiple participants with different sensing methods. The SF may also decide to associate a single participant with multiple sensing methods. In other words, the SF may decide which participant will perform which sensing method.

[0125] In step S203, the second sensing request sent by the SF may include sensing specification information. The SF may send a second sensing request for each participant that includes specification information specifying the corresponding sensing method.

[0126] In step S203, the second sensing request may be sent to the participant by another NF (e.g., NWDAF) instead of the SF. For example, the source of the second sensing request (either the SF or the other NF) may be different from (or the other of the SF or the other NF) the destination of the information on the supported sensing method in step S200, or it may be the same.

[0127] In step S204, each participant who receives the second sensing request in step S203 may perform sensing based on the second sensing request and collect sensing data. For example, a participant may perform sensing using the sensing method indicated by the sensing specification information of the second sensing request.

[0128] Furthermore, the sensing data may include 3GPP sensing data obtained through 3GPP sensing, non-3GPP sensing data obtained through non-3GPP sensing, and so on.

[0129] In step S204, if a participant is already performing sensing [based on a previously received second sensing request] (in other words, sensing based on an older sensing request), they may perform sensing based on the newly received second sensing request in addition to the previously performed sensing, or they may discontinue sensing based on the older sensing request and perform sensing based on the newly received second sensing request. For example, if a participant performing 3GPP sensing receives a second sensing request that includes sensing designation information specifying non-3GPP sensing, they may control themselves to perform only the non-3GPP sensing, or they may control themselves to perform both the 3GPP sensing and the non-3GPP sensing.

[0130] The second procedure may also be used to switch a participant's sensing method if it is anticipated (predicted) or has deteriorated due to factors such as bad weather (rain, etc.) or radio interference. Examples of sensing methods whose accuracy deteriorates in bad weather include cameras (image sensing) and LiDAR. Examples of sensing methods whose accuracy deteriorates in the event of radio interference include sensing using electromagnetic waves (e.g., 3GPP sensing, Wi-Fi sensing). However, even in the event of bad weather, if the sensing is indoors where it is not directly affected by rain or wind, the deterioration of the sensing accuracy of cameras (image sensing), LiDAR, etc., is unlikely to occur.

[0131] Here, information relating to (or around) a device (e.g., weather / location / radio environment) may be called environmental information. Weather information may include, for example, current / past / future weather information / meteorological elements (temperature, atmospheric pressure, humidity, wind direction, precipitation, etc.) for the area where the device is located / nearby. Location information may include latitude, longitude, altitude, the speed and direction of travel of the device, etc. Radio environment information may include channel status, channel quality, received power, etc., relating to the device.

[0132] In step S201, the sensing requester may, if the environmental information of a participant / candidate participant changes or is expected to change, send a first sensing request that includes sensing specification information specifying an appropriate sensing method [for at least one of a participant / candidate participant and another participant / candidate participant] based on the environmental information. For example, if the radio environment of a participant performing 3GPP sensing deteriorates, the requester may send a first sensing request that includes sensing specification information specifying camera sensing so that the participant can be requested to use a camera as a sensing method.

[0133] In step S203, if the environmental information of a participant / candidate changes or is expected to change, the SF may send a second sensing request that includes sensing designation information specifying an appropriate sensing method for at least one of a participant / candidate and another participant / candidate, based on the environmental information.

[0134] The sensing requester / SF may determine the appropriate sensing method and / or send a first / second sensing request including sensing specification information specifying the appropriate sensing method if it determines that the sensing accuracy of a particular sensing method of a certain participant / candidate participant deteriorates or improves (for example, falls below / above a certain threshold, or fluctuates above a certain threshold). Such a particular threshold may be defined in advance in the standard, or it may be set for the sensing requester / SF / participant / candidate participant.

[0135] Furthermore, the sensing requester / SF may obtain its own environmental information through its own sensing, or it may obtain it using the internet (for example, a website that provides weather information). Furthermore, the sensing requester / SF may obtain the environmental information of participants / candidate participants based on signals / information transmitted by the participants / candidate participants, or it may obtain it using the internet (for example, a website that provides weather information).

[0136] The sensing requester / SF may determine whether a participant's / candidate's environmental information is changing or has changed based on the aforementioned acquired information (such as its own environmental information and the participant's / candidate's environmental information), signals / information transmitted by the participant / candidate, information obtainable from the Internet, etc., or it may determine based on information transmitted by the SF / sensing requester indicating that a participant's / candidate's environmental information is changing or has changed.

[0137] Furthermore, the sensing requester / SF may determine whether the sensing accuracy of a particular sensing method for a participant / candidate has deteriorated or improved based on the aforementioned information obtained (such as its own environmental information and the environmental information of the participant / candidate), signals / information transmitted from the participant / candidate, and information obtainable from the Internet, or it may determine based on information transmitted by the SF / sensing requester indicating whether the sensing accuracy of a particular sensing method for a participant / candidate has deteriorated or improved.

[0138] If the first sensing request sent by the sensing requester in step S201 does not include sensing designation information, in step S203, the SF may autonomously determine sensing designation information for each participant and include it in each participant's second sensing request and send it. The autonomous determination of sensing designation information for participants may be carried out based on environmental information concerning the participant / candidate participant.

[0139] According to the second sensing procedure described above, for example, the results of multiple sensing methods (e.g., 3GPP sensing and non-3GPP sensing) can be combined to achieve more accurate sensing. The second procedure is expected to improve the shortcomings of using a single sensing method, such as limitations in accuracy or degradation of sensing performance in adverse weather conditions (rain, fog, snow, etc.).

[0140] The sensing specification information described above may also include information specifying the required sensing quality / accuracy / resolution / distance / coverage. For example, sensing quality may be classified into high, medium, and low (low, medium, high) sensing resolution, or low, medium, and high sensing accuracy. In this disclosure, sensing procedure, sensing method, sensing quality, sensing content, etc., may be interpreted interchangeably.

[0141] Furthermore, the first / second sensing request may include information specifying the sensing content, such as UE information, area information, time information, sensing method, sensing quality / accuracy / resolution / distance / coverage, and other information. The sensing content may also correspond to when / where / who / what / why / how the sensing will be performed.

[0142] The participants determined in steps S102 / S202 may be UEs / BS that satisfy specific trigger conditions. These specific trigger conditions may relate to at least one of the following of the BS / UE: location information, movement status, communication status, capabilities, current time, current / future weather, etc.

[0143] In this disclosure, a sensing participant that receives a sensing request may transition to a state in which it executes a sensing task. A UE / BS executing a sensing task may continue to perform the instructed sensing (and transmit data / results) until the sensing stop conditions are met.

[0144] The sensing stop conditions may include at least one of the following: being instructed to stop / modify / release / cancel this sensing (which may also be called sensing request cancellation information); or a certain amount of time elapsed since receiving the sensing request.

[0145] In this disclosure, the first communication device, the [sensing] participant, the sensing device, the sensing receiver, the sensing transmitter, the UE, and the BS may be interchangeable. The sensing device may be a communication device that performs sensing based on instructions from the CN, or it may be a UE / BS. In this disclosure, the second communication device, the CN, the [NF within the CN], and the [SF within the CN] may be interchangeable.

[0146] <<Examples of ice detection>> The following describes the procedures for ice detection and flood detection as more specific examples. These procedures will be explained based on the steps outlined in the second procedure described above.

[0147] Ice detection may include, for example, detecting the freezing condition of the road surface. It is expected that ice can be suitably detected using terahertz waves.

[0148] Water and ice are known to have particularly large terahertz wave properties (e.g., absorption coefficient) compared to visible light, making it possible to perform ice / water detection sensing using terahertz waves (for example, the Journal of the Optical Society of Japan, "Optics," pp. 485-486, Vol. 36, No. 8 (2007)).

[0149] While water and ice have almost no difference in absorption characteristics in the visible light wavelength range, differences in absorption characteristics emerge around the terahertz wave (frequency 0.1-10 THz (wavelength 30 μm-3 mm)).

[0150] Furthermore, when plotting a graph with frequency on the horizontal axis and reflectance ([dB]) on the vertical axis, water exhibits a downward-convex shape where its reflectance is lowest at around 1 THz (and changes rapidly around 1 THz), while ice has the characteristic (reflectance characteristic) of remaining almost constant at around -20 dB around 1 THz.

[0151] Figure 7 shows an example of a sensing procedure for ice detection according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0152] Steps S300-S307 of this procedure may correspond to steps S200-S207 of the second procedure, respectively. This procedure will be explained in more detail than the second procedure. The content of this procedure [step S30X (where X=0-7)] that is not explained may include the same content as in step S20X of the second procedure [step S20X].

[0153] In step S300, the UE / BS (potential participant) may transmit sensing capability information to the SF indicating that it supports ice detection or terahertz wave sensing, as information regarding the sensing methods it supports. In this disclosure, a UE / BS that may be a participant in sensing may be referred to as a participant candidate. In this disclosure, the sensing capability information may be transmitted to an NF separate from the SF, stored by the NF, and forwarded to the SF as needed.

[0154] In step S301, the source of the sensing request (AF / UE) may send a sensing request for ice detection to the SF. A sensing request for ice detection may be a sensing request indicating that the object to be detected is ice or that the frequency used for sensing is a terahertz wave.

[0155] Thus, in this disclosure, a sensing request may include information that explicitly or implicitly indicates the object to be detected by sensing. Such information may indicate a sensing content / method (e.g., terahertz waves) that can be used (or is suitable for) ice detection, or it may include information that specifies a frequency of a sensing signal that can be used (or is suitable for) ice detection.

[0156] Furthermore, a sensing request may include information to identify the sensing participants (e.g., UE information, area information, time information, or any combination thereof). The sensing request may also include service requirements information that represents the requirements for the sensing service. The service requirements information may include one or more of the following: information specifying the sensing method (e.g., 3GPP sensing, image sensing), information specifying the sensing accuracy, information specifying the maximum sensing delay, information specifying the resources allocated to sensing, and information specifying the acceptable false positive rate.

[0157] The requesting party may decide to obtain sensing results for ice detection based on environmental information described in the second step, and in step S301, send a sensing request for ice detection to the SF. For example, if the temperature in a certain area is below a specific threshold (e.g., 5°C), the requesting party may send a sensing request for ice detection to the SF for that area.

[0158] In step S302, the SF selects (or discovers) participants from the candidate participants based on the sensing request. The SF may select one or more participants based on information included in the sensing request to identify the sensing participants. The SF may select one or more participants based on service requirements information and capability information for each candidate participant. The SF may select participants from UE / BS that are suitable for ice detection (e.g., support ice detection or terahertz wave sensing). For example, UE / BS located within a given area and / or satisfying the requirements represented by the service requirements information may be selected as participants.

[0159] Furthermore, even if the sensing request does not indicate ice detection, the SF may decide to obtain sensing results for ice detection based on environmental information, etc., and in step S302, select participants from preferred UE / BS for ice detection, and in subsequent steps, obtain sensing data / sensing results related to ice detection or send them to the requester.

[0160] In step S303, the SF transmits a sensing indication to the participant for ice detection. In this disclosure, the sensing indication and the second sensing request may be interchangeable. The sensing indication may include some or all of the information that may be included in the sensing request in step S301. The sensing indication for ice detection may indicate that the object to be detected is ice or that the frequency used for sensing is a terahertz wave.

[0161] In step S304, the participant performs the instructed sensing (sensing of the object to be detected) in response to receiving a sensing instruction. The participant performs sensing based on the sensing instruction transmitted from the SF and collects (acquires) sensing data. The participant may also control the sensing of the object to be detected based on the above sensing instruction. In this example, if a sensing instruction for ice detection is received, the participant may determine a suitable sensing method for ice detection and may perform (or attempt to perform) ice detection using the determined sensing method (e.g., terahertz waves). The participant may also perform (or attempt to perform) ice detection based on the sensing method indicated by the above sensing instruction.

[0162] In step S305, the participant transmits the sensing data acquired in step S304 to the SF. The sensing data may be transmitted directly from the participant to the SF, or it may be forwarded to the SF via any NF.

[0163] In step S306, the SF generates sensing results based on sensing data obtained from one or more participants. The SF may detect ice based on the sensing data and the characteristics of the terahertz waves described above (e.g., absorption characteristics, reflection characteristics). If ice is detected, the sensing results may include information that ice has been detected, the location of the detected ice, etc. If ice is not detected, the sensing results may indicate that no ice was detected [in the specified area].

[0164] Furthermore, the SF may generate sensing results by fusing multiple sets of sensing data. In this case, the SF may obtain multiple sets of sensing data from one participant, or multiple sets of sensing data from multiple participants.

[0165] In step S307, SF30 transmits the sensing results to the source of the sensing request. The sensing results may also be transmitted to any device specified in the sensing request.

[0166] In steps S305-S307, the sensing data / sensing results may be interpreted interchangeably with the sensing product. The sensing product may include at least one of the following: sensing data obtained directly by sensing (which may also be called raw data), sensing results obtained based on the sensing data, and intermediate data (intermediate results) between the raw data and the sensing results. The intermediate data may mean any form of data / information generated during the process of obtaining sensing results from the raw data, and may correspond to data that shows at least one of the features extracted from the intermediate raw data (e.g., feature quantities, feature points, point clouds, etc.).

[0167] In other words, any entity among the participants, SFs, and requesters may create any sensing product. Which sensing product a participant generates may be determined by the participant's state / network state or specified by a sensing instruction. Which sensing product an SF generates may be determined by the participant's state / SF state / network state or specified by a sensing request.

[0168] Furthermore, terahertz waves do not necessarily have to be used for ice detection; sensing for ice detection may be performed using other sensing methods.

[0169] According to the ice detection examples described above, ice detection can be appropriately controlled.

[0170] <<Examples of flood detection>> Flood detection may include, for example, the detection of flooding on roads. Flooding may be determined when the height (depth) of the water surface above the road surface exceeds a standard water level. As described above, it is expected that water can be suitably detected using terahertz waves.

[0171] In flood detection, it is particularly preferable to be able to detect flooding in underpasses where there is a high risk of flooding. Here, an underpass generally refers to a road that is lower than the surrounding ground level for reasons such as passing under an intersecting railway or road.

[0172] Figure 8 shows an example of sensing for flood detection in an underpass. In this example, sensing participants (UE10 / BS20) are installed within the underpass. These participants may, for example, have a pan / tilt type terahertz wave transmitter / receiver.

[0173] Participants may sweep the terahertz wave beam downwards to determine the range in which water properties (e.g., absorption properties, reflection properties) can be detected, and identify the maximum angle (θ in this example) at which water is detected. Participants may also obtain the distance to the object being measured at angle θ, and based on this distance and θ, they can determine the normal height H - flood height h shown in the figure. The normal height H may correspond to the normal height of the road surface from the participant [beam transmitter], or it may be measured by sensing when there is no flooding. From the above, participants may determine the flood height h.

[0174] If it is discovered that an underpass is flooded, vehicles attempting to enter the underpass (Figure 8) can be notified [for example, via AF or directly from the participant], thereby preventing those vehicles from entering the flooded road.

[0175] Figure 9 shows an example of a sensing procedure for flood detection according to one embodiment of the present disclosure. Note that flood detection may be interpreted as detecting water (or water depth) on the road surface.

[0176] Steps S400-S407 of this procedure may correspond to steps S200-S207 of the second procedure or steps S300-S307 of the ice detection procedure, respectively. The differences between this procedure and these procedures will be explained. The content of this procedure [step S40X (where X=0-7)] that is not explained may include the same content as in step S20X of the second procedure or step S30X of the ice detection procedure.

[0177] In step S400, the UE / BS (potential participant) may transmit sensing capability information to the SF indicating that it supports flood detection or terahertz wave sensing, as information regarding the sensing methods it supports.

[0178] In step S401, the source of the sensing request (AF / UE) sends a sensing request to the SF indicating flood detection. A sensing request for flood detection may also be a sensing request indicating that the object to be detected is flooded or that the frequency used for sensing is a terahertz wave. The sensing request may include information that explicitly or implicitly indicates the object to be detected by sensing. This information may indicate the sensing content / method (e.g., terahertz waves) that can be used (or is suitable for) flood detection, or it may include information that specifies the frequency of the sensing signal that can be used (or is suitable for) flood detection.

[0179] The sensing request may indicate that it requests (reports) at least one of the following as a sensing result: ·Measurement position information, • Angle information, • Information on flood height (or depth).

[0180] Here, the measurement location information may be information indicating the position of the sensing entity (participant) (e.g., latitude, longitude, altitude, height from the road surface [under normal conditions]). The angle information may be information indicating the [maximum] angle at which water is detected. This angle may be at least one of the following: vertical angle, elevation angle, depression angle, etc. The angle information may include angles in the direction along the road (longitudinal direction) or angles in the direction perpendicular to the road (transverse direction). The flood height information may be information indicating the height of the water surface from the road surface [under normal conditions].

[0181] The angle information may also indicate a set of angles of the beams that detected water. In this case, the extent of the flooding can be identified even if the flooded area is isolated. Furthermore, the angle indicated by the angle information may represent a specific value (e.g., 0 degrees) if no water is detected.

[0182] The requesting party may decide to obtain flood detection sensing results based on environmental information described in the second step, and in step S401, send a sensing request for flood detection to the SF. For example, the requesting party may send a sensing request for flood detection to the SF for an area if the amount of rainfall in that area exceeds a certain threshold.

[0183] In step S402, the SF selects (or discovers) a participant from the candidate participants based on the sensing request. The SF may select a participant from the UE / BS that is suitable for flood detection (for example, one that supports flood detection or terahertz wave sensing).

[0184] Furthermore, even if the sensing request does not indicate flood detection, the SF may decide to obtain flood detection sensing results based on environmental information, etc., and in step S402, select participants from preferred UE / BS for flood detection, and in subsequent steps, obtain sensing data / sensing results related to flood detection or send them to the requester.

[0185] In step S403, the SF transmits a sensing instruction to the participant for flood detection. The sensing instruction may include some or all of the information that may be included in the sensing request in step S401. The sensing instruction for flood detection may indicate that the object to be detected is flooded or that the frequency used for sensing is a terahertz wave.

[0186] In step S404, the participant performs the instructed sensing (sensing of the target to be detected) in response to receiving a sensing instruction. The participant performs sensing based on the sensing instruction transmitted from the SF and collects (acquires) sensing data. The participant may control the sensing of the target to be detected based on the above sensing instruction. As in this example, when a sensing instruction for flood detection is received, the participant may determine a suitable sensing method for flood detection based on the above sensing instruction, and may perform (or attempt to perform) flood detection using the determined sensing method (e.g., terahertz waves). The participant may perform (or attempt to perform) flood detection based on the sensing method indicated by the above sensing instruction.

[0187] In step S405, the participant transmits the sensing data acquired in step S404 to the SF.

[0188] In step S406, the SF generates sensing results based on sensing data obtained from one or more participants. Based on the sensing data and the characteristics of the terahertz waves described above (e.g., absorption characteristics, reflection characteristics), the SF may detect water (flooding) and obtain at least one of the measurement location information, angle information, and flooding height information described above. Information regarding the location (or area) of the detected flooding (e.g., latitude, longitude, distance from the participant, etc.) may also be obtained.

[0189] The SF may determine that flooding has occurred if the water level above the road surface [under normal conditions] exceeds a standard water level. This standard water level may be predetermined in the standard, determined on an area-by-area basis, or set (notified) by another device (participant / SF / requester).

[0190] The sensing result may include at least one of the following: that flooding has been detected, information about the location of the detected flooding, measurement location information, angle information, and flooding height information. If no flooding is detected, the sensing result may indicate that no flooding was detected [in the specified area].

[0191] In step S407, the SF transmits the sensing results to the source that requested the sensing. The sensing results may also be transmitted to any device specified in the sensing request.

[0192] As described in the ice detection procedure, the sensing data / sensing results in steps S405-S407 may be interpreted as sensing products, and any entity among the participant / SF / requester may create any sensing products for flood detection. For example, a participant may, based on the sensing data, obtain at least one of the following: that flooding is detected, information about the location of the detected flooding, measurement location information, angle information, and flooding height information, and transmit this at least one piece of information to the SF in addition to or instead of the sensing data.

[0193] Furthermore, entities that perform calculations such as information regarding the location of detected flooding, measurement location information, angle information, and flooding height information preferably possess information about the area being sensed (e.g., topographic information), and may use such information in the above calculations. Such information may be obtained using the internet (e.g., a website that provides topographic information) or obtained (notified) from other devices (participants / SF / requesters).

[0194] Furthermore, participants performing sensing for flood detection do not need to have a pan / tilt type terahertz wave transmitter / receiver; they may, for example, have an analog / digital beamforming capable [non-pan / tilt type] transmitter / receiver.

[0195] Furthermore, terahertz waves do not necessarily have to be used for flood detection; sensing for flood detection may be carried out using other sensing methods.

[0196] According to the flood detection examples described above, flood detection can be appropriately controlled.

[0197] <<Additional Information>> Furthermore, the above embodiment may be applied to detect other objects using sensing, not just ice and flooding, by adapting the instructions. For example, fog, hail, snow (snow accumulation), and lightning may be designated as detection targets for sensing, and related information (measurement results) may be obtained through sensing.

[0198] <Note> The following invention is added with respect to one embodiment of this disclosure. [Note 1] A receiving unit that receives a sensing instruction indicating a target to be detected by sensing (e.g., ice, flooding) or a sensing method that can be used to detect the target (e.g., terahertz waves), A first communication device (e.g., a sensing participant (UE / BS)) having a control unit that controls the sensing of the target to be detected based on the sensing instruction. [Note 2] The object to be detected is the first communication device described in Appendix 1, which includes ice. [Note 3] The object to be detected is the first communication device described in Appendix 1 or Appendix 2, including flooding. [Note 4] The sensing instruction indicates that the system should report information (angle information) indicating the angle at which water is detected. The first communication device according to Appendix 3, having a transmitting unit that transmits the information [to a second communication device (e.g., a device in CN, SF)] based on the sensing. [Note 5] A receiving unit that receives a sensing request indicating a target to be detected by sensing or a sensing method that can be used to detect the said target, A control unit that selects participants for sensing from one or more first communication devices based on the sensing request, A second communication device (e.g., a device in CN, SF) having a transmitting unit that transmits a sensing instruction indicating the detection target or the sensing method to the participant. [Note 6] The object to be detected is ice, as described in Appendix 5, for the second communication device. [Note 7] The object to be detected is the second communication device described in Appendix 5 or Appendix 6, which is submerged in water. [Note 8] The sensing instruction indicates that the system should report information indicating the angle at which water is detected. The receiving unit is the second communication device described in Appendix 7 that receives the information from the participant. [Note 9] The steps include receiving a sensing instruction indicating a target to be detected by sensing or a sensing method that can be used to detect the target, A communication method for a first communication device, comprising the steps of controlling the sensing of the object to be detected based on the sensing instruction. [Note 10] The steps include receiving a sensing request indicating a target to be detected by sensing or a sensing method that can be used to detect the target, Based on the sensing request, the steps include selecting a sensing participant from one or more first communication devices, A communication method for a second communication device, comprising the step of transmitting a sensing instruction to the participant indicating the object to be detected or the sensing method. [Note 11] A communication system (e.g., System 1) comprising a first communication device described in any of Appendix 1 to Appendix 4 and a second communication device described in any of Appendix 5 to Appendix 8.

[0199] <Variation> In addition, terms used in this disclosure and terms necessary for understanding this disclosure may be replaced with terms having the same or similar meaning.

[0200] In this disclosure, terms such as apparatus, circuit, device, section, and unit are interchangeable.

[0201] The information, parameters, etc., described in this disclosure may be expressed using absolute values, relative values ​​from a given value, or corresponding other information. For example, wireless resources may be indicated by a given index.

[0202] The names used for parameters and other elements in this disclosure are not restrictive in any way. Furthermore, mathematical formulas and other elements that use these parameters may differ from those explicitly disclosed in this disclosure.

[0203] The information, signals, etc. described in this disclosure may be represented using any of the various different techniques. For example, the data, instructions, commands, information, signals, bits, symbols, chips, etc. that may be referred to throughout the above description may be represented by voltage, current, electromagnetic waves, magnetic fields or magnetic particles, optical fields or photons, or any combination thereof.

[0204] Input and output information and signals may be stored in a specific location (e.g., memory) or managed using a management table. Input and output information and signals may be overwritten, updated, or appended to. Output information and signals may be deleted. Input information and signals may be transmitted to other devices.

[0205] Any information described in this disclosure (e.g., variables, constants, parameters) may be notified from any first device (e.g., UE / BS) to any second device (e.g., BS / UE), even if not specifically stated in the embodiments described above. Notification of any information may be interpreted as notification of information indicating / specifying (or relating to) the value of such any information.

[0206] In this disclosure, the words “notify,” “request,” “activate,” “deactivate,” “indicate,” “select,” “configure,” “update,” and “determine” may be interpreted as interchangeable.

[0207] In this disclosure, the terms "support," "control / operate / use," and "are controllable / operate / available" may be interpreted as interchangeable.

[0208] In this disclosure, notification of information is not limited to the manner / embodiments described herein and may be carried out by other means. For example, notification of information in this disclosure may be carried out by radio access-related signaling, RAN-related signaling, core network-related signaling, other signals, or a combination thereof. In this disclosure, signaling, messages, parameters, fields, information elements (IE), settings, etc., may be interpreted interchangeably.

[0209] Wireless access-related signaling may include signaling related to wireless access (wireless interface) between UE-RAN, and may also fall under Access Stratum (AS) signaling. Wireless access-related signaling may also include physical layer signaling, upper layer signaling, etc.

[0210] Physical layer signaling may include, for example, Downlink Control Information (DCI) and Uplink Control Information (UCI). Upper layer signaling may include, for example, Radio Resource Control (RRC) signaling and Medium Access Control (MAC) signaling.

[0211] RRC signaling may include broadcast information (e.g., Master Information Block (MIB), System Information Block (SIB)). MAC signaling may include MAC Control Element (MAC CE), MAC Protocol Data Unit (MAC PDU), etc.

[0212] RAN-related signaling may include signaling for RAN-to-RAN control, such as Xn Application Protocol (XnAP) signaling.

[0213] Core network-related signaling may include signaling for control between UEs and CNs, such as Non-Access Stratum (NAS) signaling. Core network-related signaling may also include signaling for control between CNs, such as Hyper Text Transfer Protocol (HTTP) messages.

[0214] Furthermore, notification of the specified information (for example, notification that "X is the case") is not limited to explicit notification, but may also be made implicitly (for example, by not providing notification of the specified information or by providing notification of other information).

[0215] Software should be broadly interpreted to mean instructions, instruction sets, code, code segments, program code, programs, subprograms, software modules, applications, software applications, software packages, routines, subroutines, objects, executable files, execution threads, procedures, functions, and so on, whether they are called software, firmware, middleware, microcode, hardware description languages, or by any other name.

[0216] Furthermore, software, instructions, information, etc., may be transmitted and received via a transmission medium. For example, if software is transmitted from a website, server, or other remote source using at least one of wired technology (such as coaxial cable, fiber optic cable, twisted pair, or Digital Subscriber Line (DSL)) and wireless technology (such as infrared or microwave), then at least one of these wired and wireless technologies is included in the definition of a transmission medium.

[0217] In this disclosure, terms such as "Base Station (BS)", "wireless base station", "relay station", "fixed station", "NodeB", "eNB (eNodeB)", "gNB (gNodeB)", "access point", "Transmission Point (TP)", "Reception Point (RP)", "Transmission / Reception Point (TRP)", "panel", "cell", "sector", "cell group", "carrier", and "component carrier" may be used interchangeably.

[0218] In this disclosure, terms such as "Mobile Station (MS)," "user terminal," "User Equipment (UE)," and "terminal" may be used interchangeably.

[0219] Any device in this disclosure may also be called a server, device, transmitter, receiver, wireless communication device, information processing device, etc., and these terms may be interchangeable. Any device in this disclosure may be a device mounted on a moving object, a device contained within a moving object (held by a person riding in the moving object), or the moving object itself. Such moving objects include, but are not limited to, vehicles, transport vehicles, automobiles, motorcycles, bicycles, connected cars, excavators, bulldozers, wheel loaders, dump trucks, forklifts, trains, buses, handcarts, rickshaws, ships and other watercraft, airplanes, rockets, satellites, drones, multicopters, quadcopters, balloons, and items mounted on them. Such moving objects may also be autonomous / autonomous. In this disclosure, a moving object may also be interchangeable with a non-moving object (for example, a non-moving object that a person can ride in).

[0220] Each aspect / embodiment described in this disclosure may be used individually, in combination, or switched between as needed during execution. Furthermore, the processing procedures, sequences, flowcharts, etc., of each aspect / embodiment described in this disclosure may be rearranged or some steps may be omitted, as long as they are consistent. For example, the methods described in this disclosure present various step elements using exemplary order and are not limited to the specific order presented.

[0221] In this disclosure, the phrase "based on" does not mean "based solely on" unless otherwise specified. In other words, the phrase "based on" means both "based solely on" and "based at least on."

[0222] Any reference to elements using the designations “first,” “second,” etc., as used in this disclosure does not generally limit the quantity or order of those elements. These designations may be used in this disclosure as a convenient way to distinguish between two or more elements. Accordingly, the references to the first and second elements do not imply that only two elements may be employed or that the first element must precede the second element in any way.

[0223] As used in this disclosure, the terms “connected,” “coupled,” and any variations thereof mean any direct or indirect connection or coupling between two or more elements, and may include the presence of one or more intermediate elements between two elements that are “connected” or “coupled” with each other. The coupling or connection between elements may be physical, logical, or a combination thereof. The coupling or connection between elements may be via at least one of wired and wireless connections.

[0224] In this disclosure, the term "A and B are different" may mean "A and B are different from each other." The term may also mean "A and B are each different from C." Terms such as "separate" and "combine" may be interpreted similarly to "different."

[0225] Where the terms “include,” “including,” and variations thereof are used in this disclosure, these terms are intended to be inclusive, as is the term “comprising.” Furthermore, the term “or” as used in this disclosure is not intended to mean exclusive OR.

[0226] In this disclosure, if articles are added by translation, such as a, an, and the in English, this disclosure may include the fact that the noun following these articles is plural.

[0227] In this disclosure, words such as "decision," "judgment," "determination," "selection," "specification," "calculation," "calculation," "processing," "derivation," "search," "confirmation," "assumption," and "expectation" may be interpreted as interchangeable.

[0228] In this disclosure, terms such as "less than or equal to," "less than," "greater than or equal to," "more than," and "equal to" may be interpreted interchangeably. In addition, in this disclosure, terms meaning "good," "bad," "big," "small," "high," "low," "early," "slow," "wide," and "narrow" may be interpreted interchangeably, not limited to the positive, comparative, and superlative degrees. Furthermore, in this disclosure, terms meaning "good," "bad," "big," "small," "high," "low," "early," "slow," "wide," and "narrow" may be interpreted interchangeably, not limited to the positive, comparative, and superlative degrees, by adding "i-th" (where i is any integer) to the expression (for example, "highest" may be interpreted interchangeably with "i-th highest").

[0229] In this disclosure, "of," "for," "regarding," "related to," and "associated with" may be interpreted as being interchangeable.

[0230] Although the invention described herein has been explained in detail above, it will be clear to those skilled in the art that the invention described herein is not limited to the embodiments described herein. The descriptions herein are illustrative and not intended to be restrictive in any way to the invention described herein.

Claims

1. A receiving unit that receives a sensing instruction indicating a target to be detected by sensing or a sensing method that can be used to detect the target to be detected, A first communication device having a control unit that controls the sensing of the object to be detected based on the sensing instruction.

2. The first communication device according to claim 1, wherein the object to be detected includes ice.

3. The detection target is the first communication device according to claim 1, including flooding.

4. The sensing instruction indicates that the system should report information indicating the angle at which water is detected. The first communication device according to claim 3, having a transmitting unit that transmits the information based on the sensing.

5. A receiving unit that receives a sensing request indicating a target to be detected by sensing or a sensing method that can be used to detect the said target, A control unit that selects participants for sensing from one or more first communication devices based on the sensing request, A second communication device having a transmitting unit that transmits a sensing instruction indicating the detection target or the sensing method to the participant.

6. The second communication device according to claim 5, wherein the object to be detected includes ice.

7. The detection target includes flooding, as described in claim 5 for the second communication device.

8. The sensing instruction indicates that the system should report information indicating the angle at which water is detected. The receiving unit is the second communication device according to claim 7, which receives the information from the participant.

9. The steps include receiving a sensing instruction indicating a target to be detected by sensing or a sensing method that can be used to detect the target, A communication method for a first communication device, comprising the step of controlling the sensing of the object to be detected based on the sensing instruction.

10. The steps include receiving a sensing request indicating a target to be detected by sensing or a sensing method that can be used to detect the target, Based on the sensing request, the steps include selecting a sensing participant from one or more first communication devices, A communication method for a second communication device, comprising the step of transmitting a sensing instruction to the participant indicating the object to be detected or the sensing method.

11. A communication system comprising a first communication device according to any one of claims 1 to 4, and a second communication device according to any one of claims 5 to 8.

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