Ultra-wideband communication method, apparatus, and computer readable storage medium

Abstract

The present application relates to a communication system, and in particular to an ultra-wideband communication method, an apparatus, and a computer readable storage medium. The method comprises: a first device sends a first frame to a second device, the first frame being used for initiating distance measurement, and the first device being located within the signal coverage range of the second device; the first device receives a second frame of the second device, the second frame comprising indication information indicating whether time synchronization has been performed; and the first device sends a third frame to a third device, the third frame comprising the indication information, and the indication information being used for time synchronization of the third device, wherein the third device is not located within the signal coverage range of the second device. Embodiments of the present application can improve the expansibility of networks.

Description

Ultra-wideband communication method, device, and computer-readable storage medium

[0001] This application claims priority to the Chinese patent application with application number 202311129815.5 filed with the State Intellectual Property Office of China on August 31, 2023, and priority to the Chinese patent application entitled “A method, device and computer-readable storage medium for ultra-wideband communication”, all contents of which are incorporated by reference into this application. Technical Field

[0002] The embodiments of the present application relate to the field of wireless communications, and in particular to an ultra-wideband communication method, apparatus, and computer-readable storage medium. Background Art

[0003] Ultrawideband (UWB) meshes enable rapid networking, ranging, and positioning through high-precision ranging and wide-area information transmission. To meet the high real-time requirements of UWB mesh networks, they must implement fast time synchronization and ranging between devices to achieve rapid networking and positioning.

[0004] Typically, the coordinator device can send a beacon frame for time synchronization, and then the ranging initiator device sends a ranging control message (RCM) frame to transmit the ranging parameters, control the ranging process, and start the ranging process according to the configured ranging parameters. After the ranging process is completed, the ranging initiator device can send the measurement value to the corresponding ranging responder through the measurement report (MR) frame to summarize and calculate the ranging result.

[0005] In the aforementioned ranging scheme, time synchronization relies entirely on the beacon frames of the coordinator device. However, if the coordinator device fails or the receiving device is out of the coordinator's signal coverage, the receiving device will not be able to receive the beacon frame, and time synchronization will be impossible. Therefore, how to improve network scalability is an urgent problem to be solved.

[0006] Summary of the Invention

[0007] The embodiments of the present application provide an ultra-wideband communication method, apparatus, and computer-readable storage medium, which can improve the scalability of a network.

[0008] In a first aspect, the present application provides an ultra-wideband communication method, which can be applied to a first device, or to a device in the first device (e.g., a chip, or a chip system, or a circuit), or a device that can be used with the first device. The following description takes application to the first device as an example. The method may include: the first device sends a first frame to a second device, the first frame is used to initiate ranging, and the first device is within the signal coverage of the second device; the first device receives a second frame from the second device, the second frame includes indication information indicating whether time synchronization has been performed; the first device sends a third frame to a third device, the third frame includes indication information, the indication information is used for the third device to perform time synchronization, and the third device is not within the signal coverage of the second device.

[0009] Unlike the current time synchronization that completely relies on the coordinator device to send beacon frames for time synchronization, in the embodiment of the present application, since the third device is not within the signal coverage range of the second device and the first device is within the signal coverage range of the second device, the first device can initiate a first frame for ranging to the second device and receive a second frame from the second device, the second frame includes indication information indicating whether time synchronization has been performed; the first device then sends a third frame to the third device, and the third frame includes indication information, so that the third device can perform time synchronization according to the indication information, thereby getting rid of the dependence on beacon frames for time synchronization in the UWB mesh network, breaking through the limitations of the coordinator device signal coverage, and improving the scalability of the network.

[0010] In a possible implementation, when the indication information indicates that time synchronization has been performed, the second frame and the third frame further include calibration time.

[0011] In a possible implementation, the first frame, the second frame, and the third frame include a ranging frame type and / or a current ranging cycle.

[0012] In one possible implementation, the third frame also includes the sending time of the first frame, the receiving time of the second frame and the sending time of the third frame. The sending time of the first frame, the receiving time of the second frame and the sending time of the third frame are used for ranging by the third device.

[0013] In the embodiment of the present application, ranging is performed by using the sending time of the first frame in the third frame, the receiving time of the second frame, and the sending time of the third frame, so that time synchronization and ranging transmission can be integrated in the UWB mesh network, thereby accelerating the ranging process, prompting the device to quickly complete mesh networking, and efficiently realizing time synchronization, ranging, and positioning between devices in the UWB mesh network, thereby improving the scalability of the network.

[0014] In a possible implementation, the second frame further includes the distance between the second device and the other device and the identifier of the other device.

[0015] In an embodiment of the present application, the measurement result can be transmitted through the second frame, so that the measurement result can be transmitted under time synchronization, thereby realizing time synchronization, ranging and / or measurement result transmission in a UWB mesh network, thereby speeding up the ranging process, prompting the device to quickly complete mesh networking, and efficiently realizing time synchronization, ranging and positioning between devices under the UWB mesh network, thereby improving the scalability of the network.

[0016] In a possible implementation, the first frame, the second frame, and the third frame are carried in a scrambled timestamp sequence packet (SP) 1 frame.

[0017] In a possible implementation, the second device is a highest priority device in the ultra-wideband network.

[0018] In a possible implementation, the method may further include: powering on the first device and searching whether other devices send the first frame; after a first time period, if no device sends the first frame, the first device starts sending the first frame to the second device.

[0019] In a possible implementation, the first duration can be expressed as Ranging block+Tindex*Ranging round, where Ranging block represents the duration of a ranging block, Tindex represents the number of the first device, and Ranging round represents the duration of a ranging cycle.

[0020] In a second aspect, the present application provides a communication method, which can be applied to a second device, or to an apparatus in the second device (e.g., a chip, or a chip system, or a circuit), or an apparatus capable of being used in conjunction with the second device. The method is described below using the application to the second device as an example. The method may include: the second device receiving a first frame from the first device, the first frame being used to initiate ranging, and the first device being within the signal coverage range of the second device; and the second device sending a second frame to the first device, the second frame including indication information indicating whether time synchronization has been performed.

[0021] Unlike the current time synchronization that completely relies on the coordinator device to send beacon frames for time synchronization, in the embodiment of the present application, the first device is located within the signal coverage range of the second device. Therefore, the first device can initiate a first frame for ranging to the second device and receive a second frame from the second device. The second frame includes indication information indicating whether time synchronization has been performed, thereby getting rid of the dependence on beacon frames for time synchronization in the UWB mesh network, breaking through the limitations of the coordinator device signal coverage, and improving the scalability of the network.

[0022] It should be understood that the executor of the second aspect can be the second device, the specific content of the second aspect corresponds to the content of the first aspect, the corresponding features of the second aspect and the beneficial effects achieved can refer to the description of the first aspect. To avoid repetition, the detailed description is appropriately omitted here.

[0023] In a possible implementation, the method may further include: determining a calibration time according to a difference between a current receiving time of the first frame and an expected receiving time of the first frame.

[0024] In one possible implementation, the current receiving time of the first frame can be expressed as Current round = Clock count % Ranging block, the expected receiving time of the first frame can be expressed as Expected round = Tindex * Ranging round, and the difference is expressed as Delta round = Expected round - Current round; if Delta round ≤ -Ranging block / 2, the calibration time is expressed as Correction Value = Ranging block + Delta round; or if Delta round > -Ranging block / 2, the calibration time is expressed as Correction Value = Delta round.

[0025] In a possible implementation, when the indication information indicates that time synchronization has been performed, the second frame further includes the calibration time.

[0026] In a possible implementation manner, the first frame and the second frame include a ranging frame type and / or a current ranging cycle.

[0027] In a possible implementation, the second frame further includes a distance between the second device and other devices and an identifier of the other device.

[0028] In a possible implementation manner, the first frame or the second frame is carried in an SP1 frame.

[0029] In a possible implementation, the second device is a highest priority device in the ultra-wideband network.

[0030] In a third aspect, the present application provides a communication method, which can be applied to a third device, or to an apparatus (e.g., a chip, or a chip system, or a circuit) in the third device, or to an apparatus capable of being used in conjunction with the third device. The following description takes application to the third device as an example. The method may include: the third device receiving a third frame from the first device, the third frame including indication information indicating whether time synchronization has been performed; and the third device performing time synchronization according to the indication information.

[0031] Unlike the current time synchronization that completely relies on the coordinator device to send beacon frames for time synchronization, in the embodiment of the present application, since the third device is not within the signal coverage range of the second device, the third device can receive a third frame from the first device, and the third frame includes indication information, so that the third device can perform time synchronization according to the indication information, thereby getting rid of the dependence on beacon frames for time synchronization in the UWB mesh network, breaking through the limitations of the coordinator device signal coverage, and improving the scalability of the network.

[0032] It should be understood that the executor of the third aspect can be a third device, and the specific content of the third aspect corresponds to the content of the first and second aspects. The corresponding features of the third aspect and the beneficial effects achieved can refer to the description of the first and second aspects. In order to avoid repetition, the detailed description is appropriately omitted here.

[0033] In a possible implementation, when the indication information indicates that time synchronization has been performed, the third frame further includes a calibration time; and performing time synchronization according to the indication information includes: the third device performing time synchronization according to the calibration time.

[0034] In a possible implementation, when the indication information indicates that time synchronization is not performed, performing time synchronization according to the indication information includes: the third device performing time synchronization with the first device.

[0035] In a possible implementation, the third frame includes a ranging frame type and / or a current ranging cycle.

[0036] In one possible implementation, the third frame also includes the sending time of the first frame, the receiving time of the second frame, and the sending time of the third frame; the method also includes: performing ranging according to the sending time of the first frame, the receiving time of the second frame, and the sending time of the third frame.

[0037] In a possible implementation, the third frame is carried in an SP1 frame.

[0038] In a fourth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication device, which may be a first device or a device in the first device (e.g., a chip, or a chip system, or a circuit). The beneficial effects can be found in the description of the first aspect and will not be repeated here. The communication device has the function of implementing the behavior in the method example of the first aspect above. The function can be implemented by hardware or by executing corresponding software implementation by hardware. The hardware or software includes one or more modules corresponding to the above functions.

[0039] In a fifth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication device, which may be a second device or a device in the second device (e.g., a chip, or a chip system, or a circuit). The beneficial effects can be found in the description of the second aspect and will not be repeated here. The communication device has the function of implementing the behavior in the method example of the second aspect above. The function can be implemented by hardware or by executing corresponding software implementation by hardware. The hardware or software includes one or more modules corresponding to the above functions.

[0040] In a sixth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication device, which may be a third device or a device in a third device (e.g., a chip, or a chip system, or a circuit). The beneficial effects can be found in the description of the third aspect and will not be repeated here. The communication device has the function of implementing the behavior in the method example of the third aspect above. The function can be implemented by hardware or by executing corresponding software implementation by hardware. The hardware or software includes one or more modules corresponding to the above functions.

[0041] In the seventh aspect, a communication device is provided, which may include at least a processor, a memory, an input interface and an output interface, the input interface is used to receive information from other communication devices outside the communication device, and the output interface is used to output information to other communication devices outside the communication device, and the processor calls the computer program stored in the memory to execute the method provided by the first aspect or any embodiment of the first aspect, the second aspect or any embodiment of the second aspect, and the third aspect or any embodiment of the third aspect.

[0042] In an eighth aspect, the present application provides a computer-readable storage medium having computer instructions stored thereon. When the computer program or computer instructions are executed, the method described in the above-mentioned first aspect and any possible implementation thereof, the second aspect and any possible implementation thereof, and the third aspect and any possible implementation thereof is executed.

[0043] In the ninth aspect, the present application provides a computer program product comprising executable instructions, which, when run on a communication device, enables the methods described in the above-mentioned first aspect and any possible implementation thereof, the second aspect and any possible implementation thereof, and the third aspect and any possible implementation thereof to be executed.

[0044] In a tenth aspect, the present application provides a communication device comprising a logic circuit and an interface, wherein the logic circuit and the interface are coupled; the interface is used to input and / or output code instructions, and the logic circuit is used to execute the code instructions, thereby implementing the methods of the first aspect and any possible implementation thereof, the second aspect and any possible implementation thereof, and the third aspect and any possible implementation thereof. The communication device may be a chip or a chip system, and the chip system may be composed of a chip or may include a chip and other discrete devices.

[0045] In the eleventh aspect, the present application provides a communication system, which includes at least one first device, at least one second device and at least one third device. When the at least one first device, at least one second device and at least one third device are operating in the communication system, it is used to execute any one of the communication methods described in the first to third aspects above. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0046] FIG1 is a schematic diagram of a scenario in which information is transmitted and diffused in a network according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0047] FIG2 is a schematic diagram of a ranging process provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0048] FIG3 is a schematic diagram of the structure of a data unit provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0049] FIG4 is a schematic diagram of the structure of a PHY payload field provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0050] FIG5 is a schematic diagram of the structure of a frame control field provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0051] FIG6 is a schematic diagram of the structure of a beacon frame provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0052] FIG7 is a schematic diagram showing the principle of implementing time synchronization using a beacon frame according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0053] FIG8 is a schematic diagram of the structure of a data frame provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0054] FIG9 is a schematic diagram of the structure of a payload IEs field provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0055] FIG10 is a schematic diagram of the structure of an ARC IE field provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0056] FIG11 is a schematic diagram of the structure of an RMIIE field provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0057] FIG12 is a schematic diagram of a network architecture provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0058] 13 is a schematic diagram of a coordinator device sending a beacon frame for clock synchronization according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0059] FIG14 is a flow chart of an ultra-wideband communication method according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0060] FIG15 is a schematic diagram of the structure of a mesh IE field provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0061] FIG16 is a scene diagram of a UWB mesh network provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0062] FIG17 is a schematic diagram of a process of T4 initiating ranging provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0063] FIG18 is a schematic diagram of an embodiment of the present application, in which the time when A0 actually receives an I frame is after the expected time;

[0064] FIG19 is a schematic diagram of a time when A0 actually receives an I frame before an expected time, provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0065] FIG20 is a schematic diagram of a TOF calculation principle provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0066] FIG21 is a schematic diagram of a process in which T2 initiates ranging before T4 according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0067] Figures 22 and 23 are structural diagrams of a communication device provided in an embodiment of the present application. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0068] The following is a description of the technical terms that may appear in the embodiments of this application. The terms used in the implementation section of this application are only used to explain the specific embodiments of this application and are not intended to limit this application. In the various embodiments of this application, unless otherwise specified or there is a logical conflict, the terms and / or descriptions between different embodiments are consistent and can be referenced to each other. The technical features in different embodiments can be combined to form new embodiments based on their inherent logical relationships.

[0069] (1) UWB mesh network

[0070] UWB technology boasts wide bandwidth, high transmission rates, low power consumption, and excellent multipath mitigation, and is widely used in various fields. Mesh networks, as a new wireless network technology, enable the continuous diffusion and transmission of information between nodes, enabling widespread node connectivity and information communication.

[0071] Please refer to Figure 1, which is a schematic diagram of a scenario in which information is transmitted and diffused in a network according to an embodiment of the present application. As shown in Figure 1, a cross-room mesh network includes multiple devices (the example in the figure includes 9 devices, T0 to T8), and the lines in the figure can represent the connection links established by each device in the Mesh network. As can be seen from the figure, the information sent by T0 can be transmitted across the room to T3 in the next room through the network link T0→T6→T7→T3 (or through other links, just for example, the same below), and can also be transmitted across the room to T1 through the link T0→T6→T7→T1, that is, the message of T0 can be continuously transmitted and diffused through the Mesh network, thereby spreading to all devices in the entire network.

[0072] UWB mesh networks combine the advantages of UWB and mesh networking technologies, achieving rapid networking, ranging, and positioning through high-precision ranging and wide-area information transmission. They have broad application prospects in search and rescue, finding people, and finding objects. For example, they can be used for networking and positioning firefighting teams, positioning personnel teams during field search and exploration, and for everyday purposes such as finding people and objects. To meet the high real-time requirements of UWB mesh networks, UWB mesh networks must be able to achieve rapid time synchronization and ranging between devices to achieve rapid networking and positioning.

[0073] (2) UWB mesh ranging

[0074] The current implementation of UWB mesh network can be: usually the coordinator device can send beacon frames for time synchronization, and then the ranging initiator device sends a ranging control message (RCM) frame to transmit the ranging parameters, control the ranging process, and start the ranging process according to the configured ranging parameters. After the ranging process is completed, the ranging initiator device can send the measurement value through the measurement report (RM) frame to the corresponding ranging responder to summarize and calculate the ranging results.

[0075] Taking one-to-many double-sided two-way ranging (DS-TWR) as an example, please refer to Figure 2, which is a schematic diagram of a ranging process provided by an embodiment of the present application. As shown in Figure 2, the initiator sends a beacon frame to multiple responding devices (such as responding device 1-responding device n) for time synchronization, and then sends an RCM frame to transmit ranging control information. For example, it sends an I frame, and multiple responding devices reply with an R frame. The initiator then sends an F frame to the multiple responding devices, thereby realizing the ranging process. After completing the ranging process, the initiator can send the measurement value to the multiple responding devices through the MR frame.

[0076] As shown in Figure 3, the structure of the physical layer protocol data unit (PPDU) in the ranging process can exemplarily include the following four types: SP0, SP1, SP2, and SP3. The SP0 frame may include a synchronization header (SHR) field, a physical layer frame header (PHR) field, and a PHY payload field; the SP1 frame may include an SHR field, a scrambling timestamp sequence (STS) field, a PHR field, and a PHY payload field; the SP2 frame may include an SHR field, a PHR field, a PHY payload field, and an STS field; and the SP3 frame may include an SHR field and an STS field.

[0077] The four structures differ in the location of the STS field and whether or not they carry a PHY payload. In the aforementioned ranging process, the beacon frame used for time synchronization, the RCM frame used to configure ranging parameters, and the MR frame used to summarize measurement results can use the SP0 frame structure with a PHY payload field. However, the I, R, and F frames used in one-to-many DS-TWR ranging can use the SP3 frame structure without a PHY payload field.

[0078] Please refer to Figure 4, which is a schematic diagram of the structure of a PHY payload field provided in an embodiment of the present application. As shown in Figure 4, the PHY payload field includes a frame control field, a sequence number field, a destination PAN ID field, a destination address field, a source PAN ID field, a source address field, an addressing field field, an auxiliary security header field, an information element (IE) field, a header IEs field, a payload IEs field, a frame payload field, a frame check sequence (FCS) field, a medium access control (MAC) payload field, and an MFR field. Further, please refer to Figure 5, which is a schematic diagram of the structure of a frame control field provided in an embodiment of the present application. As shown in Figure 5, the frame control field may include a frame type field, a security enabled field, a frame pending field, an acknowledgment request (AR) field, a PAN ID compression field, a reserved field, a sequence number compression field, an IE present field, a destination addressing mode field, a frame version field, and a source addressing mode field. Among them, the frame type field in the frame control field can indicate the type of the frame, as shown in Table 1 below:

[0079] Table 1 Frame type values ​​and corresponding meanings

[0080] As shown in Table 1, when the value of the frame type is 000, it may indicate that the frame is a beacon frame, and when the value of the frame type is 001, it may indicate that the frame is a data frame.

[0081] in:

[0082] For the beacon frame, the frame structure of the beacon frame can refer to Figure 6. As shown in Figure 6, the beacon frame may include a frame control field, a sequence number field, an addressing field, an auxiliary security header field, an IEs field, a header IEs field, a payload IEs field, a beacon payload field, an FCS field, a MAC payload field, and an MFR field. The principle of time synchronization achieved by the beacon frame can refer to Figure 7. As shown in Figure 7, the coordinator device sends two beacon frames, and the Rx device calculates the adjustment time based on the difference between the actual time interval and the expected time interval of the two received beacon frames to perform time synchronization.

[0083] For data frames, their structure can be seen in Figure 8 . As shown in Figure 8 , the difference from the beacon frame in Figure 6 is that the beacon frame includes a beacon payload field, while the data frame includes a data payload field. Except for the data payload field, the other fields are the same as those in the beacon frame. For RCM and MR frames, their frame structures can be designed based on the data frame structure in combination with different IEs.

[0084] The structural diagram of the payload IEs field can be referred to Figure 9. As shown in Figure 9, the payload IEs field can be composed of multiple payload IE fields. Each payload IE field is divided according to the group ID. When group ID = 0x01, it can represent MLME IE, and its content part can be composed of multiple nested IEs. Each nested IE is distinguished by sub-ID and carries different content.

[0085] For RCM frames, their information can be transmitted through ARC IE (sub-ID=0x49), while for MR frames, their information can be transmitted through RMIIE (sub-ID=0x53). The structure of the content of ARC IE and RMIIE can be referred to Figures 10 and 11. As shown in Figure 10, the ARC IE may include a multi-node mode field, a ranging period usage field, an STS packet configuration field, a schedule mode field, a deferred mode field, a time structure indicator field, an RCM validity rounds field, a multiple message receipt confirmation request (MMRCR) field, a content control field, a ranging block duration field, a ranging period duration field, a ranging slot duration field, and a session ID field. As shown in Figure 11, the RMI IE may include a current reply time (reply time present) field, a round-trip time (round-trip time present) field, a current TOF (TOF present) field, a current AOA azimuth (AOA azimuth present) field, a current AOA altitude (AOA elevation present) field, a current AOA FOM (AOA FOM present) field, an address size specifier (address size specifier) ​​field, a deferred mode (deferred mode) field, an RMI list length (RMI list length) field, and an RMI list (RMI list) field.

[0086] It should be understood that the embodiments of the present application can be applied to sensing systems, and can also be applied to systems that comply with IEEE 802.11 system standards, such as 802.11bf, 802.11a / b / g, 802.11n, 802.11ac, 802.11ax, or their next generations, such as 802.11be, Wi-Fi 7 or EHT, or even next-generation standards, such as Wi-Fi 8, UHR, Wi-Fi AI and other 802.11 series protocol wireless local area network systems, or wireless personal area network systems based on ultra-wideband UWB, etc., and can also be applied to wireless local area network (WLAN) scenarios. Alternatively, the embodiments of the present application can also be applied to wireless local area network systems such as the Internet of Things (IoT) network or the Vehicle to X (V2X) network. Of course, the embodiments of the present application can also be applied to other possible communication systems, such as long term evolution (LTE) system, LTE frequency division duplex (FDD) system, LTE time division duplex (TDD), universal mobile telecommunication system (UMTS), world-wide interoperability for microwave access (WiMAX) communication system, and future 6G communication system.

[0087] The following takes the scenario in which the embodiment of the present application can be applied to a wireless personal area network system based on ultra-wideband UWB as an example.

[0088] Please refer to Figure 12, which is a schematic diagram of a network architecture provided by an embodiment of the present application. As shown in Figure 12, a network architecture including one wireless access point AP and two stations is used as an example for explanation. The STA associated with the AP can receive wireless frames sent by the AP and can also send wireless frames to the AP. In addition, the embodiment of the present application is also applicable to communication between APs. For example, each AP can communicate with each other through a distributed system (DS), and the embodiment of the present application is also applicable to communication between STAs. It should be understood that the number of APs and STAs in Figure 1 is only an example, and can be more or less.

[0089] The STA involved in the embodiments of the present application is a device with wireless communication capabilities that supports communication using the WLAN protocol and has the ability to communicate with other stations or access points in the WLAN network. In a WLAN system, a station can be referred to as a non-access point station (non-AP STA). For example, an STA is any user communication device that allows a user to communicate with an AP and, therefore, with a WLAN. The device can be a complete device or a chip or processing system installed in the complete device. Devices equipped with these chips or processing systems can implement the methods and functions of the embodiments of the present application under the control of the chip or processing system. For example, a STA may be any user terminal, user device, access device, subscriber station, subscriber unit, mobile station, user agent, user equipment, or other names with wireless communication capabilities. User terminals may include any handheld devices, vehicle-mounted devices, wearable devices, computing devices, or other processing devices connected to a wireless modem with wireless communication capabilities, as well as various forms of user equipment (UE), mobile station (MS), terminal, terminal equipment, portable communication devices, handsets, portable computing devices, entertainment devices, gaming devices or systems, global positioning system devices, or any other suitable devices configured to conduct network communication via a wireless medium. For example, a STA may be a router, switch, or bridge. For ease of description, the above-mentioned devices are collectively referred to as stations or STAs.

[0090] The access point (e.g., AP) involved in the embodiments of the present application is a device with wireless communication capabilities, supports communication using the WLAN protocol, and has the function of communicating with other devices in the WLAN network (e.g., stations or other access points). Of course, it can also have the function of communicating with other devices. In a WLAN system, an access point can be called an access point station (AP STA). The device can be a complete device, or it can be a chip or processing system installed in the complete device. The device installed with these chips or processing systems can implement the methods and functions of the embodiments of the present application under the control of the chip or processing system. The AP in the embodiments of the present application can be a device that provides services for STAs and can support the 802.11 series protocols. For example, the AP can be a communication entity such as a communication server, router, switch, bridge, etc.; the AP can include various forms of macro base stations, micro base stations, relay stations, etc. Of course, the AP can also be a chip and processing system in these various forms of devices, thereby implementing the methods and functions of the embodiments of the present application.

[0091] The AP and STA involved in the embodiments of the present application may be APs and STAs applicable to the IEEE 802.11 system standard. An AP is a device deployed in a wireless communication network to provide wireless communication functions for its associated STAs. The AP can be used as the hub of the communication system and is typically a network-side product that supports the MAC and PHY of the 802.11 system standard. For example, it may be a base station, router, gateway, repeater, communication server, switch or bridge and other communication equipment, wherein the base station may include various forms of macro base stations, micro base stations, relay stations, etc. Here, for the sake of convenience of description, the above-mentioned devices are collectively referred to as APs. A STA is typically a terminal product that supports the medium access control (MAC) and physical layer (PHY) of the 802.11 system standard, such as a mobile phone, a laptop computer, etc.

[0092] WLAN systems can provide high-speed, low-latency transmission. As WLAN application scenarios continue to evolve, they will be applied to a wider range of scenarios and industries, including the Internet of Things (IoT), the Internet of Vehicles (IoV), the banking industry, corporate offices, stadiums and exhibition halls, concert halls, hotel rooms, dormitories, hospital wards, classrooms, supermarkets, plazas, streets, production workshops, and warehouses. Devices supporting WLAN communication (e.g., access points or stations) can include sensor nodes in smart cities (e.g., smart water meters, smart electricity meters, and smart air quality monitoring nodes), smart devices in smart homes (e.g., smart cameras, projectors, displays, TVs, speakers, refrigerators, washing machines, etc.), nodes in the Internet of Things (IoT), entertainment terminals (e.g., wearable devices such as AR and VR), smart devices in smart offices (e.g., printers, projectors, speakers, and audio systems), IoV devices, infrastructure in daily life (e.g., vending machines, self-service kiosks in supermarkets, self-service checkout machines, and self-service ordering kiosks), and equipment in large sports and music venues. There is no special limitation on the specific forms of STA and AP in the embodiments of the present application, which are only illustrative here.

[0093] Furthermore, the applicable scenarios of the present application can be divided into the following types according to the DMG perception type, including single-station DMG SBP (DMG SBP with monostatic), dual-station DMG SBP (DMG SBP with bistatic), multi-station DMG SBP (DMG SBP with multistatic), single-station collaborative DMG SBP (DMG SBP with monostatic with coordination) and dual-station collaborative DMG SBP (DMG SBP with bistatic with coordination), etc.

[0094] In the embodiments of the present application, TX may represent a transmitting end, i.e., a device that transmits a data frame; and RX may represent a receiving end, i.e., a device that receives a data frame. The description is unified here and will not be repeated later.

[0095] In order to facilitate the understanding of the embodiments of the present application, the technical problems to be specifically solved by the present application are further analyzed and proposed.

[0096] According to the ranging process shown in Figure 2, it can be seen that time synchronization depends entirely on the coordinator device sending beacon frames. However, if the coordinator device fails or the receiving device receiving the beacon frame is not within the signal coverage range of the coordinator device, the receiving device will not be able to receive the beacon frame, and thus time synchronization will not be achieved. For example, please refer to Figure 13, which is a schematic diagram of a coordinator device sending a beacon frame for clock synchronization provided by an embodiment of the present application. As shown in Figure 13, the coordinator device is T0, which is used to send beacon frames to achieve time synchronization of devices within the network. Its coverage range is the gray area, and the covered devices are T1, T2, T3, T4, and T5. The T6 and T7 devices outside the house are not covered (due to coverage distance, wall obstruction, etc.). Because the clock synchronization of the remaining devices except T0 needs to rely on the beacon frame transmitted by T0, when T0 fails or the beacon frame is sent and received incorrectly, the device cannot achieve time synchronization, and the robustness is poor; in addition, devices that cannot be covered by the T0 signal, such as T6 and T7, cannot be time synchronized, and the scalability is poor.

[0097] Secondly, the ranging process requires time synchronization first, then sending and receiving ranging parameters through RCM frames, then performing the ranging process, and finally summarizing and transmitting the measurement values. The process is complicated and time-consuming.

[0098] Therefore, the technical problems to be solved by this application may include: 1. How to improve the scalability of the network; 2. How to improve the robustness of the network; 3. How to reduce the delay of ranging.

[0099] This application proposes a communication method, which will be described below through the following embodiments. In the various embodiments of this application, unless otherwise specified or logically conflicting, the terms and / or descriptions between different embodiments are consistent and can be referenced to each other. The technical features in different embodiments can be combined to form new embodiments based on their inherent logical relationships.

[0100] The embodiment of the present application can illustrate the method by taking the first device, the second device, and the third device as the execution subjects of the interactive illustration as an example. The present application does not limit the execution subjects of the interactive illustration. For example, the first device can also be a chip, a chip system, or a processor that supports the first device to implement the method, or a logic module or software that can implement all or part of the functions of the first device; the second device can also be a chip, a chip system, or a processor that supports the second device to implement the method, or a logic module or software that can implement all or part of the functions of the second device; the third device can also be a chip, a chip system, or a processor that supports the third device to implement the method, or a logic module or software that can implement all or part of the functions of the third device. The embodiments of the present application are uniformly explained here and will not be repeated later.

[0101] The following describes an ultra-wideband communication method provided by an embodiment of the present application. Please refer to Figure 14, which is a flow chart of an ultra-wideband communication method according to an embodiment of the present application. As shown in Figure 14, the communication method includes but is not limited to the following steps:

[0102] S1401: A first device sends a first frame to a second device, where the first frame is used to initiate ranging. Correspondingly, the second device receives the first frame from the first device.

[0103] The second device may be a coordinator device or other device capable of communicating with the first device. The first device may be an initiator device for ranging. The first device is within the signal coverage of the second device. The first frame may be carried in an SP1 frame and include the ranging frame type and / or the current ranging cycle.

[0104] In one possible implementation, the first device can initiate ranging as the initiator. After powering on, the first device can first search for other devices sending the first frame. After a first duration, if no device sends the first frame, the first device can start sending the first frame to the second device. The first duration can be expressed as Ranging block + Tindex * Ranging round, where Ranging block represents the duration of a ranging block, Tindex represents the number of the first device, and Ranging round represents the duration of a ranging cycle.

[0105] S1402: The second device sends a second frame to the first device, where the second frame includes indication information indicating whether time synchronization has been performed. Correspondingly, the first device receives the second frame from the second device.

[0106] After the second device receives the first frame from the first device, it can send a second frame to the second device. The second frame can be understood as a response frame to the first frame. Optionally, the second device can perform time synchronization, specifically, it can determine the calibration time based on the difference between the current reception time of the first frame and the expected reception time of the first frame. In a possible implementation, the current reception time of the first frame can be expressed as Current round = clock count % Ranging block, the expected reception time of the first frame can be expressed as Expected round = Tindex * Ranging round, and the difference is expressed as Delta round = Expected round - Current round; if Delta round ≤ -Ranging block / 2, the calibration time is expressed as Correction Value = Ranging block + Delta round; or if Delta round > -Ranging block / 2, the calibration time is expressed as Correction Value = Delta round.

[0107] The second frame can be carried in the SP1 frame and include the ranging frame type and / or the current ranging period, as well as indication information. The indication information can be used to indicate whether time synchronization has been achieved, which can be understood as indicating whether the local device has been time synchronized by the coordinator device after its clock has been calibrated. If the second device has not yet achieved time synchronization, the indication information indicates that time synchronization has not been achieved. If the indication information indicates that time synchronization has been achieved, the second frame may further include the calibration time.

[0108] The content indicated by the indication information can be determined by different values. For example, Table 2 describes the correspondence between the values ​​and meanings of the indication information.

[0109] Table 2 indicates the meaning of the corresponding values ​​of the information

[0110] As shown in Table 2, the value corresponding to the indication information is 0x00, which indicates that time synchronization has been performed, and the value corresponding to the indication information is 0x01, which indicates that time synchronization has not been performed. The calibration time can be a 16-bit symbol number in milliseconds. When the value corresponding to the indication information is 0x00, the calibration time is saved. When the value corresponding to the indication information is 0x01, the calibration time does not exist.

[0111] S1403: The first device sends a third frame to the third device, where the third frame includes indication information. Correspondingly, the third device receives the third frame from the first device.

[0112] The third device is not within the signal coverage of the second device. After receiving the second frame from the second device, the first device may send a third frame to the third device.

[0113] The third frame may be carried in the SP1 frame and include the ranging frame type and / or the current ranging period and indication information. It is understood that the first device may forward the indication information from the second device to the third device via the third frame. If the second device has not yet performed time synchronization, the indication information indicates that time synchronization has not been performed. If the indication information indicates that time synchronization has been performed, the third frame may further include a calibration time.

[0114] S1404. The third device performs time synchronization according to the instruction information.

[0115] After receiving the third frame from the first device, the third device may perform time synchronization according to the indication information in the third frame.

[0116] In one possible implementation, if the indication information in the third frame indicates that time synchronization has not been performed, the third device may synchronize time with the first device. If the network does not have a calibration time directly or indirectly from the coordinator device, the third device may use the first device's clock as a reference and complete local time synchronization in a preset order. This prevents the UWB mesh network from being unable to complete time synchronization due to a coordinator device failure or the failure of the calibration time information to be delivered, thereby improving network robustness.

[0117] In another possible implementation, if the indication information in the third frame indicates that time synchronization has been performed, the third device may perform time synchronization according to the calibration time in the third frame.

[0118] The frame types of ranging contained in the first frame, the second frame and the third frame may include I frame, R frame and F frame, for example, the first frame is an I frame, the second frame is an R frame and the third frame is an F frame.

[0119] Different frame types can be distinguished by different values. For example, Table 3 describes the correspondence between the values ​​and meanings of the ranging frame types.

[0120] Table 3 Meaning of the values ​​corresponding to the ranging frame type

[0121] As shown in Table 3, the value corresponding to the ranging frame type is 0x00, which can represent the first frame, the value corresponding to the ranging frame type is 0x01, which can represent the second frame, and the value corresponding to the ranging frame type is 0x02, which can represent the third frame.

[0122] The current ranging cycles contained in the first frame, the second frame and the third frame may be cyclically counted from 0 to 255.

[0123] Optionally, after receiving the second frame from the second device, the first device may perform time synchronization based on the indication information in the second frame. In one possible implementation, if the indication information in the second frame indicates that time synchronization has not been performed, the first device may perform time synchronization with the second device. In another possible implementation, if the indication information in the second frame indicates that time synchronization has been performed, the first device may perform time synchronization based on the calibration time in the second frame. For details, please refer to the description of the third device performing time synchronization based on the indication information in the third frame, and will not be repeated here.

[0124] In one possible implementation, the second device may not necessarily be designated as the coordinator device. Devices may be arranged according to a certain priority, and the clock of the highest priority device in the current network may be used as a reference to complete time synchronization across the entire network.

[0125] Unlike the current time synchronization that completely relies on the coordinator device to send beacon frames for time synchronization, in the embodiment of the present application, since the third device is not within the signal coverage range of the second device and the first device is within the signal coverage range of the second device, the first device can initiate a first frame for ranging to the second device and receive a second frame from the second device, the second frame includes indication information indicating whether time synchronization has been performed; the first device then sends a third frame to the third device, and the third frame includes indication information, so that the third device can perform time synchronization according to the indication information, thereby getting rid of the dependence on beacon frames for time synchronization in the UWB mesh network, breaking through the limitations of the coordinator device signal coverage, and improving the scalability of the network.

[0126] Based on the method embodiment shown in Figure 14, in one possible implementation, the second frame may also include the distance between the second device and the other device and the identification of the other device, which can be understood as the time of flight (TOF) value of the second device and the other device in the previous round of ranging and the corresponding device number.

[0127] In a possible implementation, the third frame may also include the sending time of the first frame, the receiving time of the second frame, and the sending time of the third frame. After the third device receives the third frame from the first device, it can perform distance measurement based on the sending time of the first frame, the receiving time of the second frame, and the sending time of the third frame in the third frame. Specifically, the third device can calculate the TOF value between the first device and the third device by using the DS-TWR formula based on the sending time of the first frame, the receiving time of the second frame, the sending time of the third frame, and the three timestamps stored locally (the receiving time of the first frame, the sending time of the second frame, and the receiving time of the third frame). Then, the distance between the first device and the third device can be obtained by multiplying the TOF value by the speed of light in the air.

[0128] In an embodiment of the present application, the third device can perform time synchronization according to the indication information, thereby getting rid of the dependence on the beacon frame for time synchronization in the UWB mesh network, and can also transmit the measurement result through the second frame, and perform ranging through the sending time of the first frame, the receiving time of the second frame and the sending time of the third frame in the third frame, so that time synchronization, ranging, and measurement result transmission can be integrated in the UWB mesh network, getting rid of the dependence on the beacon frame for time synchronization, breaking through the limitations of the coordinator device signal coverage, realizing time synchronization between devices in a large range, speeding up the ranging process, prompting the devices to quickly complete the mesh networking, and efficiently realizing time synchronization, ranging and positioning between devices in the UWB mesh network, thereby improving the scalability of the network.

[0129] In conjunction with the method embodiment described in FIG. 14 , the present embodiment may not require beacon frames for time synchronization, nor may it require MR frames for measurement value transmission. Please refer to FIG. 15 , which is a schematic diagram of the structure of a mesh IE field provided in an embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 15 , the mesh IE field may include a ranging frame type field (rangingframetype), a ranging period field (ranginground), a calibration synchronization field (correctionsync), a calibration time (correctionvalue), a mesh ranging payload length (meshrangingpayloadlength), and a mesh ranging payload (meshrangingpayload). It should be understood that the field names in this embodiment are merely illustrative and do not limit the field names; the fields may also be referred to by other names. It should be understood that the number and location of fields included in the mesh IE field are merely illustrative; adding, removing, or replacing the contents of the mesh IE field to achieve the same function also falls within the scope of protection of the present embodiment.

[0130] The sub-ID of the mesh IE field can be set to 0x5d in the reserved ID.

[0131] The ranging frame type field may indicate the type of ranging frame in the DS-TWR ranging process. For example, the ranging frame type may include an I frame, an R frame, and an F frame. In one possible implementation, the I frame, the R frame, and the F frame may correspond to the first frame, the second frame, and the third frame described above.

[0132] Table 4 Meaning of the values ​​corresponding to the ranging frame type

[0133] As shown in Table 4, the value corresponding to the ranging frame type is 0x00, which can represent an I frame, the value corresponding to the ranging frame type is 0x01, which can represent an R frame, and the value corresponding to the ranging frame type is 0x02, which can represent an F frame.

[0134] The ranging cycle field can indicate the current ranging cycle, which is counted from 0 to 255 cycles. The calibration synchronization field can indicate the above-mentioned indication information, that is, whether the clock of this device has been calibrated by the coordinator device to complete time synchronization. For details, please refer to the description in Table 2 above. The calibration time field can indicate the above-mentioned calibration time, which can be a 16-bit symbol number in milliseconds. For example, when the calibration synchronization field = 0x00, the calibration time field is saved, and when the calibration synchronization field = 0x01, the calibration time field does not exist. The grid ranging load length field saves the length of the grid ranging load field, and the grid ranging load field saves the load information that needs to be transmitted in each ranging frame during the ranging process.

[0135] For the first frame, it may include a ranging frame type field and a ranging period field; for the second frame and the third frame, it may include a ranging frame type field, a ranging period field, a calibration synchronization field, a calibration time field (optional), a grid ranging load length field, and a grid ranging load field. For the second frame, the grid ranging load field may store the distance between the second device and the other device and the identifier of the other device. For the second frame, the grid ranging load field may store the sending time of the first frame, the receiving time of the second frame, and the sending time of the third frame.

[0136] By using the SP1 frame format in a mesh IE field, time synchronization, ranging, and measurement result transmission are integrated. This eliminates the reliance on beacon frames for time synchronization, breaks through the limitations of coordinator device signal coverage, achieves time synchronization between devices over a large range, speeds up the ranging process, and enables devices to quickly complete mesh networking. This allows for efficient time synchronization, ranging, and positioning between devices in the UWB mesh network, thereby improving network scalability.

[0137] In one embodiment, please refer to Figure 16, which is a scenario diagram of a UWB mesh network provided by an embodiment of the present application. As shown in Figure 16, assume that there are currently 10 devices, namely, A0 / A1 / T0 / T1 / T2 / T4 / T5 / T6 / T7 / T8 (without T3), with A0 being the coordinator. In area 1, devices T0 / T4 / T5 / T6 / A0 / A1 can measure distance to each other and have reachable signals. In area 2, devices T2 / T6 / T7 / T8 can measure distance to each other. In area 3, devices T4 / T5 / T6 / T7 / T8 can measure distance to each other. In area 4, devices T1 / T2 / T7 / T8 can measure distance to each other.

[0138] The following is a schematic illustration using the example where the first device is T4, the first frame is an I frame, the second frame is an R frame, and the third frame is an F frame. Assuming that the T device can initiate ranging as the initiating device of ranging, after the T device is powered on, it can first wait for the first time length (refer to the above description Ranging block + Tindex * Ranging round) to search whether there are other T devices sending I frames. Assuming that no T device sends an I frame before T4, when it counts to Ranging block + 4 * Ranging round, T4 starts to send I frames to the second device (A device and T device within the signal coverage range of T4). After T4 sends the I frame, the sending time of an I frame can be obtained as ITX. As shown in Figure 17, the ranging block (rangingblock) can represent the duration of a block, Tindex represents the number of the T device, and Ranging round represents the duration of a round. During the ranging process initiated by T4, T1 / T2 is not within the signal coverage range and will not reply with an R frame. At this time, the coordinator device A0 can receive the I frame sent by T4. The moment A0 receives the I frame is IRX. A0 sets the value of the correction sync field to 0x00 in the R frame replied to T4 (the clock of the coordinator device A0 is synchronized by default), and the correction time field in the R frame is set to the specific calibration time. At the same time, the distance measured by A0 and other devices in the previous round (such as TOF value) and the corresponding device number are placed in the mesh ranging payload field and sent to T4. The moment A0 sends the R frame is RTX.

[0139] The calibration time can be calculated as follows:

[0140] Assume that the current reception time of A0 receiving the I frame sent by T4 is Current round = clock count % Ranging block. A0's expected reception time of the I frame sent by T4, Expected round = Tindex * Ranging round. The difference between the two, Delta round = Expected round - Current round. The following possible implementations are possible for Delta round:

[0141] In the first possible implementation, as shown in FIG18 , the time when A0 actually (current round) receives the I frame sent by T4 is after the expected (expected round) time. At this time, Delta round ≤ -Ranging block / 2, then Correction Value = Ranging block + Delta round, and the time when T4 subsequently initiates ranging is Ranging round 8 + Ranging block + Delta round = 8 + 9 - 4 = Ranging round 4.

[0142] In the second possible implementation, as shown in FIG19 , the time when A0 actually (current round) receives the I frame sent by T4 is before the expected (expected round) time. At this time, Delta round > -Ranging block / 2, then Correction Value = Delta round, and the time when T4 subsequently initiates ranging is Ranging round 1 + Delta round = 1 + 3 = Ranging round 4.

[0143] The above calibration time is sent to T4 through A0's R frame. The moment when T4 receives the R frame sent by A0 is RRX (T4 can receive R frames in reply from multiple devices within the communication range. Here, the R frame reception moment is only taken as an example by A0, and the others are similar). After T4 receives the R frame, T4 can calculate the sending time FTX of the F frame in advance, and then attach the sending time ITX of the I frame, the receiving time of each R frame (including the receiving time RRX of the R frame from A0) and the calculated sending time FTX of the F frame to the mesh ranging payload field in the F frame and send it out. After other devices within the communication range receive the F frame, they will extract the timestamp of the mesh ranging payload field to calculate TOF. Taking A0 as an example, the same principle applies to other devices. A0 extracts the three timestamps ITX, RRX, and FTX from the grid ranging payload field, combines them with the three locally saved timestamps IRX, RTX, and FRX, and uses the DS-TWR formula to calculate the TOF value between T4 and A0. The TOF value is then multiplied by the speed of light in air to obtain the distance between T4 and A0. The TOF calculation principle can be shown in Figure 20, and the formula can be as follows:

[0144] T round1 =R RX -I TX

[0145] T reply1 =R TX -I RX

[0146] T reply2 =F TX -R RX

[0147] T round2 =F RX -R TX

[0148] It should be noted that when the above-mentioned T4 sends the F frame, it can also set the value of the calibration synchronization (correction sync) field to 0x00 (T4 has been synchronized by the coordinator device at this time), and set the calibration time (correction value) field to the value of the calibration time (correction value) field in the R frame replied by A0 and send it out to inform all devices within the communication range (T0 / T5 / T6 / T7 / T8).

[0149] Taking T5 as an example, it can be indirectly synchronized by A0. When T5 receives the value of the calibration time (correction value) field in the F frame sent by T4, T5's ranging round can be arranged as follows: T5Corrected ranging round=I rx time+Correction Value+(T5index-T4index)*Ranging round. Among them, I rx time can represent the system time when T5 receives the I frame sent by T4, Correction Value can represent the calibration time attached by T4 in the F frame (relative to A0), and (T5index-T4index)*Ranging round can represent the relative sequence time of T5 delaying the sending of the I frame to initiate ranging relative to T4. T6, T7, T8 and so on. The signal propagation time can be ignored here (it is assumed to be less than 100ns). It is only necessary to ensure time synchronization to prevent the ranging signals of each device from conflicting.

[0150] It should be noted that after the device completes time synchronization with A0 (coordinator device), the value of the calibration synchronization (correction sync) field can be set to 0x00 in the F frame, and the calibration time (correction value) can be broadcast. Otherwise, the value of the calibration synchronization (correction sync) field is 0x01, and the calibration time (correction value) is not broadcast.

[0151] One possible implementation method is as follows: after T4 sends an I frame, the ranging rounds of T0 / T5 / T6 / T7 / T8 will be reasonably allocated and will no longer conflict; but what needs to be considered at this time is that during the T4 transmission process, other T devices may send I frames to initiate ranging. Here, it is assumed that T2 broadcasts an I frame before T4, and the following situation will occur: as shown in Figure 21, at this time, T2 broadcasts an I frame, which can be received by T1 / T6 / T7 / T8. At this time, it is assumed that T4 has not yet broadcast an I frame, that is, T2 is the device that first broadcasts an I frame in the entire network. When T1 / T6 / T7 / T8 receive the I frame, they reply with R frames in sequence, and then receive the F frame broadcast by T2. At this time, because T2 has not yet been synchronized by coordinator device A0, T2's F frame will not broadcast the calibration time (correction value). However, for T1 / T6 / T7 / T8, after receiving the F frame and recognizing that T2 is not synchronized with A0, T1 / T6 / T7 / T8 will first synchronize locally with T2 and not broadcast it in the F frame. In other words, when there is no calibration time (correction value) directly or indirectly from coordinator device A0 in the network, it can synchronize with the ranging initiator device as much as possible. During the synchronization process, it will wait as much as possible for the calibration time (correction value) directly or indirectly transmitted from coordinator device A0 by the mesh network. This can avoid the UWB mesh network from being unable to complete time synchronization when the coordinator device fails or the calibration time information has not yet been transmitted, thereby improving the robustness of the network.

[0152] It is understandable that in order to implement the functions in the above embodiments, the first device, the second device, and the third device include hardware structures and / or software modules corresponding to the execution of each function. Those skilled in the art should readily appreciate that, in combination with the units and method steps of each example described in the embodiments disclosed in this application, this application can be implemented in the form of hardware or a combination of hardware and computer software. Whether a function is executed in hardware or in a manner driven by computer software depends on the specific application scenario and design constraints of the technical solution.

[0153] Figures 22 and 23 are schematic diagrams of possible communication devices provided by embodiments of the present application. These communication devices can be used to implement the functions of the first device, the second device, or the third device in the above method embodiments, thereby also achieving the beneficial effects of the above method embodiments.

[0154] As shown in Figure 22, the communication device 2200 includes a processing unit 2201 and a transceiver unit 2202. The communication device 2200 is used to implement the functions of the first device, the second device, or the third device in the method embodiment shown in Figure 14 above.

[0155] When the communication device 2200 is used to implement the function of the first device in the method embodiment shown in FIG14 :

[0156] The transceiver unit 2202 is used to send a first frame to the second device, where the first frame is used to initiate ranging, and the first device is located within the signal coverage of the second device; receive a second frame from the second device, where the second frame includes indication information indicating whether time synchronization has been performed; and send a third frame to the third device, where the third frame includes indication information, where the indication information is used for the third device to perform time synchronization, and the third device is not located within the signal coverage of the second device.

[0157] In one possible implementation, the processing unit 2201 is configured to search, after being powered on, whether another device has sent a first frame;

[0158] The transceiver unit 2202 is configured to, after a first time period, if no device sends the first frame, start the first device to send the first frame to the second device.

[0159] In a possible implementation, the first duration can be expressed as Ranging block+Tindex*Ranging round, where Ranging block represents the duration of a ranging block, Tindex represents the number of the first device, and Ranging round represents the duration of a ranging cycle.

[0160] When the communication device 2200 is used to implement the function of the second device in the method embodiment shown in FIG14 :

[0161] The transceiver unit 2202 is used to receive a first frame from the first device, the first frame is used to initiate ranging, and the first device is located within the signal coverage range of the second device; and send a second frame to the first device, the second frame including indication information indicating whether time synchronization has been performed.

[0162] In a possible implementation, the processing unit 2201 is configured to determine the calibration time according to a difference between a current receiving time of the first frame and an expected receiving time of the first frame.

[0163] In one possible implementation, the current receiving time of the first frame can be expressed as Current round = clock count % Ranging block, the expected receiving time of the first frame can be expressed as Expected round = Tindex * Ranging round, and the difference is expressed as Delta round = Expected round - Current round; if Delta round ≤ -Ranging block / 2, the calibration time is expressed as Correction Value = Ranging block + Delta round; or if Delta round > -Ranging block / 2, the calibration time is expressed as Correction Value = Delta round.

[0164] When the communication device 2200 is used to implement the function of the third device in the method embodiment shown in FIG14 :

[0165] The transceiver unit 2202 is configured to receive a third frame from the first device, where the third frame includes indication information indicating whether time synchronization has been performed;

[0166] The processing unit 2201 is configured to perform time synchronization according to the indication information.

[0167] In a possible implementation, the processing unit 2201 is configured to perform time synchronization according to the calibration time.

[0168] In a possible implementation, when the indication information indicates that time synchronization is not performed, the processing unit 2201 performs time synchronization according to the indication information, specifically for: performing time synchronization with the first device.

[0169] In a possible implementation, the processing unit 2201 is configured to perform ranging according to the sending time of the first frame, the receiving time of the second frame, and the sending time of the third frame.

[0170] When the communication device 2200 is used to implement the functions of the first device, the second device, or the third device in the method embodiment shown in FIG14 :

[0171] In a possible implementation, when the indication information indicates that time synchronization has been performed, the second frame and the third frame further include calibration time.

[0172] In a possible implementation, the first frame, the second frame, and the third frame include a ranging frame type and / or a current ranging cycle.

[0173] In one possible implementation, the third frame also includes the sending time of the first frame, the receiving time of the second frame and the sending time of the third frame. The sending time of the first frame, the receiving time of the second frame and the sending time of the third frame are used for ranging by the third device.

[0174] In a possible implementation, the second frame further includes the distance between the second device and the other device and the identifier of the other device.

[0175] In a possible implementation, the first frame, the second frame, and the third frame are carried in the SP1 frame.

[0176] In a possible implementation, the second device is a highest priority device in the ultra-wideband network.

[0177] For a more detailed description of the above-mentioned processing unit 2201 and the transceiver unit 2202, please refer to the relevant description in the method embodiment shown in Figure 14.

[0178] As shown in Figure 23, communication device 2300 includes a processor 2301 and an interface circuit 2302. Processor 2301 and interface circuit 2302 are coupled to each other. It is understood that interface circuit 2302 can be a transceiver or an input / output interface. Optionally, communication device 2300 may also include a memory 2303 for storing instructions executed by processor 2301, input data required by processor 2301 to execute instructions, or data generated by processor 2301 after executing instructions.

[0179] When the communication device 2300 is used to implement the method shown in FIG14 , the processor 2301 is used to implement the functions of the processing unit 2201 , and the interface circuit 2302 is used to implement the functions of the transceiver unit 2202 .

[0180] When the communication device is a chip implemented in the first device, the chip implements the functions of the first device in the above method embodiment. The chip receives information sent from the second device or third device to the first device through other modules in the first device (such as a radio frequency module or antenna); or the chip sends information to other modules in the first device (such as a radio frequency module or antenna), and the information is sent from the first device to the second device or third device.

[0181] When the communication device is a chip implemented in a second device, the chip implements the functions of the second device in the above method embodiment. The chip receives information sent from the first device or the third device to the second device through other modules in the second device (such as a radio frequency module or an antenna); or the chip sends information to other modules in the second device (such as a radio frequency module or an antenna), where the information is sent from the second device to the first device or the third device.

[0182] When the communication device is a chip implemented in a third device, the chip implements the functions of the third device in the above method embodiment. The chip receives information sent from the first device or the second device to the third device through other modules in the third device (such as a radio frequency module or an antenna); or the chip sends information to other modules in the third device (such as a radio frequency module or an antenna), where the information is sent from the third device to the first device or the second device.

[0183] It is understood that the processor in the embodiments of the present application may be a central processing unit (CPU), or may be other general-purpose processors, digital signal processors (DSP), application-specific integrated circuits (ASIC), field programmable gate arrays (FPGA), or other programmable logic devices, transistor logic devices, hardware components, or any combination thereof. The general-purpose processor may be a microprocessor or any conventional processor.

[0184] The method steps in the embodiments of the present application can be implemented in hardware or in software instructions that can be executed by a processor. The software instructions can be composed of corresponding software modules, and the software modules can be stored in random access memory, flash memory, read-only memory, programmable read-only memory, erasable programmable read-only memory, electrically erasable programmable read-only memory, registers, hard disk, mobile hard disk, CD-ROM or any other form of storage medium well known in the art. An exemplary storage medium is coupled to the processor so that the processor can read information from the storage medium and write information to the storage medium. The storage medium can also be an integral part of the processor. The processor and storage medium can be located in an ASIC. In addition, the ASIC can be located in a base station or a terminal. The processor and storage medium can also exist in a base station or a terminal as discrete components.

[0185] In the above embodiments, all or part of the embodiments may be implemented using software, hardware, firmware, or any combination thereof. When implemented using software, all or part of the embodiments may be implemented in the form of a computer program product. The computer program product includes one or more computer programs or instructions. When the computer program or instructions are loaded and executed on a computer, the processes or functions described in the embodiments of the present application are performed in whole or in part. The computer may be a general-purpose computer, a special-purpose computer, a computer network, a network device, a user device, or other programmable device. The computer program or instructions may be stored in a computer-readable storage medium or transferred from one computer-readable storage medium to another. For example, the computer program or instructions may be transferred from one website, computer, server, or data center to another website, computer, server, or data center via wired or wireless means. The computer-readable storage medium may be any available medium that can be accessed by a computer or a data storage device such as a server or data center that integrates one or more available media. The available medium may be a magnetic medium, such as a floppy disk, hard disk, or magnetic tape; an optical medium, such as a digital video disk; or a semiconductor medium, such as a solid-state drive. The computer-readable storage medium may be a volatile or nonvolatile storage medium, or may include both volatile and nonvolatile types of storage media.

[0186] In the various embodiments of the present application, unless otherwise specified or there is a logical conflict, the terms and / or descriptions between different embodiments are consistent and can be referenced by each other. The technical features in different embodiments can be combined to form new embodiments according to their inherent logical relationships.

[0187] In this application, "at least one" means one or more, and "more" means two or more. "And / or" describes the association relationship of associated objects, indicating that three relationships may exist. For example, A and / or B can mean: A exists alone, A and B exist at the same time, and B exists alone, where A and B can be singular or plural. In the text description of this application, the character " / " generally indicates that the previous and next associated objects are in an "or" relationship; in the formula of this application, the character " / " indicates that the previous and next associated objects are in a "division" relationship. "Including at least one of A, B and C" can mean: including A; including B; including C; including A and B; including A and C; including B and C; including A, B and C.

[0188] It is understood that the various numbers used in the embodiments of this application are merely for ease of description and are not intended to limit the scope of the embodiments of this application. The order of the sequence numbers of the above-mentioned processes does not necessarily imply a specific order of execution; the order of execution of the processes should be determined by their functions and inherent logic.

Claims

1. An ultra-wideband communication method, characterized in that: include: A first device sends a first frame to a second device, where the first frame is used to initiate ranging, and the first device is within a signal coverage range of the second device; The first device receives a second frame from the second device, where the second frame includes indication information indicating whether time synchronization has been performed; The first device sends a third frame to a third device, where the third frame includes the indication information, where the indication information is used for the third device to perform time synchronization, and the third device is not located within the signal coverage of the second device.

2. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that: In a case where the indication information indicates that time synchronization has been performed, the second frame and the third frame further include calibration time.

3. The method according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that: The first frame, the second frame, and the third frame include a ranging frame type and / or a current ranging cycle.

4. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that: The third frame also includes the sending time of the first frame, the receiving time of the second frame and the sending time of the third frame, and the sending time of the first frame, the receiving time of the second frame and the sending time of the third frame are used for ranging by the third device.

5. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that: The second frame also includes the distance between the second device and other devices and the identifiers of the other devices.

6. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that: The first frame, the second frame or the third frame is carried in a scrambled timestamp sequence data packet SP1 frame.

7. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that: The second device is a highest priority device in the ultra-wideband network.

8. A communication method, characterized in that: include: The second device receives a first frame from the first device, where the first frame is used to initiate ranging, and the first device is located within the signal coverage of the second device; The second device sends a second frame to the first device, where the second frame includes indication information indicating whether time synchronization has been performed.

9. The method according to claim 8, characterized in that The method further comprises: The calibration time is determined according to a difference between a current reception time of the first frame and an expected reception time of the first frame.

10. The method according to claim 9, characterized in that When the indication information indicates that time synchronization has been performed, the second frame further includes the calibration time.

11. The method according to any one of claims 8 to 10, characterized in that: The first frame and the second frame include a ranging frame type and / or a current ranging cycle.

12. The method according to claim 11, characterized in that The second frame also includes the distance between the second device and other devices and the identifiers of the other devices.

13. The method according to any one of claims 8 to 12, characterized in that: The first frame or the second frame is carried in a scrambled timestamp sequence data packet SP1 frame.

14. The method according to any one of claims 8 to 13, characterized in that: The second device is a highest priority device in the ultra-wideband network.

15. A communication method, characterized in that: include: The third device receives a third frame from the first device, wherein the third frame includes indication information indicating whether time synchronization has been performed; The third device performs time synchronization according to the indication information.

16. The method according to claim 15, characterized in that In the case where the indication information indicates that time synchronization has been performed, the third frame further includes a calibration time; The performing time synchronization according to the indication information comprises: The third device performs time synchronization according to the calibration time.

17. The method according to claim 15, characterized in that When the indication information indicates that time synchronization is not performed, performing time synchronization according to the indication information includes: The third device performs time synchronization with the first device.

18. The method according to any one of claims 15 to 17, characterized in that: The third frame includes a ranging frame type and / or a current ranging cycle.

19. The method according to any one of claims 15 to 18, characterized in that: The third frame also includes the sending time of the first frame, the receiving time of the second frame and the sending time of the third frame; the method also includes: Distance measurement is performed according to the sending time of the first frame, the receiving time of the second frame, and the sending time of the third frame.

20. The method according to any one of claims 15 to 19, characterized in that: The third frame is carried in the scrambled timestamp sequence data packet SP1 frame.

21. A communication device, characterized in that: include: A transceiver unit, configured to send a first frame to a second device, wherein the first frame is used to initiate ranging, and the first device is located within a signal coverage range of the second device; The transceiver unit is further configured to receive a second frame from the second device, wherein the second frame includes indication information indicating whether time synchronization has been performed; The transceiver unit is further used to send a third frame to a third device, where the third frame includes the indication information, where the indication information is used for the third device to perform time synchronization, and the third device is not located within the signal coverage of the second device.

22. The device according to claim 21, characterized in that In a case where the indication information indicates that time synchronization has been performed, the second frame and the third frame further include calibration time.

23. The device according to claim 21 or 22, characterized in that The first frame, the second frame, and the third frame include a ranging frame type and / or a current ranging cycle.

24. The device according to any one of claims 21 to 23, characterized in that The third frame also includes the sending time of the first frame, the receiving time of the second frame and the sending time of the third frame, and the sending time of the first frame, the receiving time of the second frame and the sending time of the third frame are used for ranging by the third device.

25. The device according to any one of claims 21 to 24, characterized in that The second frame also includes the distance between the second device and other devices and the identifiers of the other devices.

26. The device according to any one of claims 21 to 25, characterized in that The first frame, the second frame or the third frame is carried in a scrambled timestamp sequence data packet SP1 frame.

27. The device according to any one of claims 21 to 26, characterized in that The second device is a highest priority device in the ultra-wideband network.

28. A communication device, characterized in that: include: A transceiver unit, configured to receive a first frame from a first device, wherein the first frame is used to initiate ranging, and the first device is located within a signal coverage range of the second device; The transceiver unit is further used to send a second frame to the first device, where the second frame includes indication information indicating whether time synchronization has been performed.

29. The device according to claim 28, characterized in that The communication device further comprises: A processing unit is used to determine a calibration time according to a difference between a current receiving time of the first frame and an expected receiving time of the first frame.

30. The device according to claim 29, characterized in that When the indication information indicates that time synchronization has been performed, the second frame further includes the calibration time.

31. The device according to any one of claims 28 to 30, characterized in that The first frame and the second frame include a ranging frame type and / or a current ranging cycle.

32. The device according to claim 31, characterized in that The second frame also includes the distance between the second device and other devices and the identifiers of the other devices.

33. The device according to any one of claims 28 to 32, characterized in that The first frame or the second frame is carried in a scrambled timestamp sequence data packet SP1 frame.

34. The device according to any one of claims 28 to 33, characterized in that The second device is a highest priority device in the ultra-wideband network.

35. A communication device, characterized in that: include: a transceiver unit, configured to receive a third frame from the first device, wherein the third frame includes indication information indicating whether time synchronization has been performed; A processing unit is used to perform time synchronization according to the indication information.

36. The device according to claim 35, characterized in that In the case where the indication information indicates that time synchronization has been performed, the third frame further includes a calibration time; The processing unit performs time synchronization according to the indication information, specifically for: Time synchronization is performed according to the calibration time.

37. The device according to claim 35, characterized in that When the indication information indicates that time synchronization is not performed, the processing unit performs time synchronization according to the indication information, specifically for: Perform time synchronization with the first device.

38. The device according to any one of claims 35 to 37, characterized in that The third frame includes a ranging frame type and / or a current ranging cycle.

39. The device according to any one of claims 35 to 38, characterized in that The third frame also includes the sending time of the first frame, the receiving time of the second frame and the sending time of the third frame; The processing unit is further configured to perform ranging according to a sending time of the first frame, a receiving time of the second frame, and a sending time of the third frame.

40. The device according to any one of claims 35 to 39, characterized in that The third frame is carried in the scrambled timestamp sequence data packet SP1 frame.

41. A communication device, characterized in that: The method comprises a processor configured to execute the method according to any one of claims 1 to 20.

42. The communication device according to claim 41, characterized in that The communication device also includes a memory.

43. A computer-readable storage medium, characterized in that The storage medium stores a computer program or an instruction. When the computer program or the instruction is executed by the communication device, the method according to any one of claims 1 to 20 is implemented.

44. A computer program product, characterized in that The computer program product comprises instructions, and when the instructions are executed by a processor, the method according to any one of claims 1 to 20 is implemented.

45. A chip, characterized in that: comprising a logic circuit and an interface, wherein the logic circuit and the interface are coupled; The interface is used to input and / or output code instructions, and the logic circuit is used to execute the code instructions so that the method described in any one of claims 1 to 20 is executed.

46. ​​A communication system, characterized in that: The method comprises a first device, a second device and a third device, wherein the first device is used to implement the method according to any one of claims 1 to 7, the second device is used to execute the method according to any one of claims 8 to 14, and the third device is used to execute the method according to any one of claims 15 to 20.

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