Communication method and apparatus

Abstract

A communication method and apparatus, which relate to the technical field of communications, and can reduce the number of instances of beam scanning required to determine a beam, thereby reducing the consumption of communication resources. The method comprises: a base station sending first indication information and N first reference signals, wherein the first indication information is used for indicating that the N first reference signals are divided into K groups, N and K being integers greater than 1, and N being greater than or equal to K; a terminal determining first feedback information on the basis of one group of first reference signals (e.g., a first group of reference signals) from among the K groups of first reference signals and a formula (a), and sending the first feedback information to the base station; and on the basis of the first feedback information, the base station determining a first beam for transmitting data, wherein βn and βn+1 represent the received energy of different first reference signals in the first group of reference signals.

Description

Communication method and device

[0001] This application claims priority to the Chinese patent application filed with the State Intellectual Property Office on October 23, 2023, with application number 202311377134.0 and application name “Communication Method and Device,” the entire contents of which are incorporated by reference into this application. Technical Field

[0002] The present application relates to the field of communication technology, and in particular to a communication method and device. Background Art

[0003] With the advancement of science and technology, communication devices are playing an increasingly important role in people's production and daily life. When a device communicates wirelessly with other devices, it first needs to determine the location of the other device. For example, the base station uses the following layered bandwidth beam scanning method to determine the location of the terminal. As shown in Figure 1, the base station sends multiple wide beams in different directions toward the terminal (such as beams a to d). The terminal performs beam scanning and feedbacks the optimal wide beam ID (such as beam b) to the base station. Next, the base station sends multiple narrow beams (such as beams e to h) to the coverage area of ​​beam b. The terminal performs beam scanning and feedbacks the optimal narrow beam (such as beam f) to the base station. The base station sends an even narrower beam (such as beam i to beam l) to the coverage area of ​​beam f. This process repeats until the beam width scanned by the terminal meets the requirements. The base station then determines the optimal beam for communication with the terminal (such as beam j) and sends the beam in the direction of this optimal beam to communicate with the terminal.

[0004] However, the above method requires multiple beam scans to find the optimal beam, which consumes more communication resources.

[0005] Summary of the Invention

[0006] The present application provides a communication method and apparatus that can reduce the number of beam scans required to determine a beam, thereby reducing the consumption of communication resources.

[0007] In order to achieve the above objectives, the embodiments of the present application provide the following technical solutions:

[0008] In a first aspect, a communication method is provided, comprising: receiving first indication information and N first reference signals; the first indication information is used to indicate N first reference signals of K groups, where N and K are integers greater than 1, and N is greater than or equal to K; sending first feedback information; the first feedback information is used by a sending device to determine a first beam for transmitting data; the first feedback information is determined based on multiple first reference signals in one of the K groups of first reference signals.

[0009] This solution groups N first reference signals and determines first feedback information based on a group of first reference signals. This allows a transmitting device to determine a first beam for data transmission based on the first feedback information, thereby reducing the number of beam scans required to determine the beam and thus reducing communication resource consumption.

[0010] In conjunction with the first aspect, in one possible design, the beams used to transmit each set of first reference signals spatially overlap. The received energies of the multiple first reference signals differ, and the pointing angle of the beam with the highest energy can be calculated based on the received energies of the multiple first reference signals. This allows the transmitting device to determine the beam for data transmission with a single beam scan, thus conserving communication resources.

[0011] In combination with the first aspect, in one possible design, the method also includes: the first feedback information is determined based on a first group of reference signals, the first group of reference signals includes a first target reference signal and a second target reference signal, and the first feedback information is determined based on the received energy of the first target reference signal and the received energy of the second target reference signal.

[0012] In combination with the first aspect, in one possible design, the received energy can be obtained based on one or more of the following parameters: reference signal received power (RSRP), received signal strength indicator (RSSI), or reference signal received quality (RSRQ).

[0013] In combination with the first aspect, in one possible design, the method further includes: receiving second indication information and M second reference signals; the second indication information is used to indicate U groups of M second reference signals, where U and M are positive integers greater than or equal to 1; where M is less than N; and sending second feedback information, where the second feedback information is used by the transmitting device to determine a second beam for transmitting data; the second feedback information is determined based on multiple second reference signals in one group of the U groups of second reference signals. The transmitting device performs beam scanning again, and the number of first reference signals is less than that of the previous beam scan, so that the second beam for transmitting data determined by the transmitting device has a better communication effect.

[0014] In combination with the first aspect, in one possible design, the first indication information includes identifiers of N first reference signals, where the identifiers of the first reference signals are one or more of the following identifiers: a group identifier of the first reference signal, a resource identifier of the first reference signal; the identifier of the first reference signal is used to determine the grouping of the first reference signal.

[0015] In combination with the first aspect, in a possible design, reference signals having the same grouping identifier of the first reference signal are grouped together.

[0016] In combination with the first aspect, in a possible design, reference signals with adjacent resource identifiers of the first reference signal are grouped together.

[0017] In conjunction with the first aspect, in one possible design, the first feedback information includes first target feedback information and second target feedback information; the first target feedback information is used to determine a first direction of the first beam, and the second target feedback information is used to determine a second direction of the first beam, where the first direction is different from the second direction. Using the first target feedback information and the second target feedback information, the transmitting device can determine the angle of the beam in both directions of beam transmission.

[0018] In combination with the first aspect, in one possible design, the first group of reference signals also includes a third target reference signal, and the first target reference signal and the second target reference signal are used to determine the first target feedback information, and the first target reference signal and the third target reference signal are used to determine the second target feedback information; or, the first group of reference signals also includes a third target reference signal and a fourth target reference signal, and the first target reference signal and the second target reference signal are used to determine the first target feedback information, and the first target reference signal and the third target reference signal are used to determine the second target feedback information; or, the first group of reference signals also includes a third target reference signal and a fourth target reference signal, and the first target reference signal and the third target reference signal are used to determine the first target feedback information, and the second target reference signal and the fourth target reference signal are used to determine the first target feedback information.

[0019] In combination with the first aspect, in one possible design, when the first group of reference signals also includes a third target reference signal and a fourth target reference signal, if the sum of the received energies of the first target reference signal and the second target reference signal is greater than the sum of the received energies of the third target reference signal and the fourth target reference signal, then the first target reference signal and the second target reference signal are used to determine the first target feedback information; if the sum of the received energies of the first target reference signal and the third target reference signal is greater than the sum of the received energies of the first target reference signal and the fourth target reference signal, then the first target reference signal and the third target reference signal are used to determine the second target feedback information. When a group of first reference signals includes four first reference signals, the first feedback information is obtained based on the two first reference signals (such as the first target reference signal and the second target reference signal) with the larger sum of received energies, so that the first feedback information can better feedback areas with stronger communication signals.

[0020] In combination with the first aspect, in a possible design, the first feedback information is γ n , γn It is determined according to the following formula: β n represents the received energy of the first target reference signal, β n+1 represents the received energy of the second target reference signal.

[0021] In conjunction with the first aspect, in one possible design, the first feedback information includes one or more of the following information: received energy of the first target reference signal, an identifier of the first target reference signal, received energy of the second target reference signal, and an identifier of the second target reference signal. By sending the received energy of the first target reference signal, the identifier of the first target reference signal, the received energy of the second target reference signal, and the identifier of the second target reference signal to the transmitting device, the transmitting device can determine, based on the received energy of the first target reference signal, the identifier of the first target reference signal, the received energy of the second target reference signal, and the identifier of the second target reference signal, a directional angle having a higher received energy among the directional angles of the first group of reference signals.

[0022] In combination with the first aspect, in one possible design, the first group of reference signals is the group in which the sum of the received energy of the first reference signals among the K groups of first reference signals is the largest, or the first group of reference signals is the group in which the sum of the received energy of the first reference signals among the K groups of first reference signals is higher than a first threshold.

[0023] According to a second aspect, a communication method is provided, comprising: sending first indication information and N first reference signals; the first indication information is used to indicate N first reference signals of K groups, where N and K are integers greater than 1, and N is greater than or equal to K; receiving first feedback information, and determining a first beam for transmitting data based on the first feedback information; the first feedback information is determined based on multiple first reference signals in one of the K groups of first reference signals.

[0024] In combination with the second aspect, in one possible design, the first feedback information is determined based on a first group of reference signals, the first group of reference signals includes a first target reference signal and a second target reference signal, and the first feedback information is determined based on the received energy of the first target reference signal and the received energy of the second target reference signal.

[0025] In combination with the second aspect, in a possible design, it also includes: sending second indication information and M second reference signals; the second indication information is used to indicate M second reference signals of U groups, U and M are positive integers greater than or equal to 1; wherein, M is less than N; receiving second feedback information, the second feedback information is used to determine the second beam for transmitting data; the second feedback information is determined based on multiple second reference signals in one group of U groups of second reference signals.

[0026] In combination with the second aspect, in one possible design, the first indication information includes N first reference signal identifiers, the first reference signal identifier includes a group identifier of the first reference signal, or a resource identifier of the first reference signal; the first reference signal identifier is used to determine the grouping of the first reference signal.

[0027] In combination with the second aspect, in one possible design, the first feedback information includes first target feedback information and second target feedback information; the first target feedback information is used to determine the first direction of the first beam, and the second target feedback information is used to determine the second direction of the first beam, and the first direction is different from the second direction.

[0028] Combined with the second aspect, in a possible design, the feedback information is γ n , γ n It is determined according to the following formula: β n represents the energy value of the first target reference signal, β n+1 Represents the energy value of the second target reference signal.

[0029] In combination with the second aspect, in one possible design, the first feedback information includes: received energy of the first target reference signal, an identifier of the first target reference signal, received energy of the second target reference signal, and an identifier of the second target reference signal.

[0030] In combination with the second aspect, in one possible design, the first group of reference signals is the group in which the sum of the received energy of the first reference signals among the K groups of first reference signals is the largest, or the first group of reference signals is the group in which the sum of the received energy of the first reference signals among the K groups of first reference signals is higher than a first threshold.

[0031] In conjunction with the second aspect, in one possible design, the further step includes: transmitting beam information of a first beam group, where the beams in the first beam group are associated with M second reference signals. An IRS receives the beam information of the first beam group and transmits the beams of the first beam group according to the beam information of the first beam group, thereby enabling the transmitting device to instruct the IRS to perform beam scanning.

[0032] In conjunction with the second aspect, in one possible design, the first beam group includes a first target beam and a second target beam, wherein the pointing angle of the first target beam in the first direction is greater than the pointing angle of the first beam in the first direction, and the pointing angle of the second target beam in the first direction is less than the pointing angle of the first beam in the first direction. By indicating that the pointing angles of the first target beam and the second target beam are on opposite sides of the first beam, the transmitting device can send fewer beams during the second round of beam scanning, and determine the second beam using fewer beams, thereby conserving communication resources.

[0033] In conjunction with the second aspect, in one possible design, the first beam group further includes a third target beam and a fourth target beam, wherein the pointing angle of the third target beam in the second direction is greater than the pointing angle of the first beam in the second direction, and the pointing angle of the fourth target beam in the second direction is less than the pointing angle of the first beam in the second direction. By transmitting beams on both sides of the first beam in the first and second directions, the transmitting device can determine the second beam in both directions, thereby more accurately determining the second beam.

[0034] According to a third aspect, a communication method is provided, comprising: receiving beam information of a first beam group, the beams in the first beam group being associated with M second reference signals; M being a positive integer greater than or equal to 1; and sending a signal through the beams in the first beam group according to the beam information of the first beam group; the beams in the first beam group are determined according to the first beam, the first beam being a beam for transmitting data determined by the transmitting device according to first feedback information, the first feedback information being determined by the transmitting device according to multiple first reference signals in one group of N first reference signals of K groups; wherein M is less than N.

[0035] In combination with the third aspect, in one possible design, the first beam group includes a first target beam and a second target beam, the pointing angle of the first target beam in the first direction is greater than the pointing angle of the first beam in the first direction, and the pointing angle of the second target beam in the first direction is less than the pointing angle of the first beam in the first direction.

[0036] In combination with the third aspect, in one possible design, the first beam group also includes a third target beam and a fourth target beam, the pointing angle of the third target beam in the second direction is greater than the pointing angle of the first beam in the second direction, and the pointing angle of the fourth target beam in the second direction is less than the pointing angle of the first beam in the second direction.

[0037] In a fourth aspect, a communication device is provided. The communication device is used to implement the various communication methods described above. The communication device includes modules, units, or means corresponding to the communication methods described above. The modules, units, or means can be implemented through hardware, software, or hardware executing corresponding software implementations. The hardware or software includes one or more modules or units corresponding to the functions described above.

[0038] In a fifth aspect, a communication device is provided, comprising: a processor and a memory; the memory is configured to store computer instructions, and when the processor executes the instructions, the communication device executes the communication method according to any of the above aspects.

[0039] In a sixth aspect, a communication device is provided, comprising: a processor coupled to a memory, the processor being configured to read and execute instructions in the memory so as to enable the communication device to perform the communication method according to any of the above aspects.

[0040] In the seventh aspect, a chip system is provided, which includes a processor and an input / output port, the processor is used to implement the processing functions involved in the communication method of any aspect of the above aspects, and the input / output port is used to implement the transceiver functions involved in the communication method of any aspect of the above aspects.

[0041] In one possible design, the chip system also includes a memory, which is used to store program instructions and data for implementing the functions involved in the communication method of any of the above aspects.

[0042] The chip system may be composed of chips, or may include chips and other discrete devices.

[0043] In an eighth aspect, a communication system is provided, comprising a first communication device and a second communication device, wherein the second communication device executes the communication method of the third aspect, and the first communication device executes the communication method of the second aspect.

[0044] In combination with the eighth aspect, in a possible design, it also includes: a third communication device, which executes the communication method of the first aspect above.

[0045] In a ninth aspect, a computer-readable storage medium is provided. The computer-readable storage medium stores instructions that, when executed on a communication device, cause the communication device to execute any of the communication methods described in any of the above aspects.

[0046] In a tenth aspect, a computer program product is provided, which includes a computer program or instructions, and when the computer program or instructions are executed on a computer, the computer executes the communication method as designed in any of the above aspects.

[0047] It can be understood that the beneficial effects that can be achieved by the methods, devices, computer-readable storage media, and computer program products provided in the second to tenth aspects above can be referred to the beneficial effects in the first aspect and any possible implementation method provided above, and will not be repeated here. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0048] Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of a beam scanning scenario;

[0049] FIG2 is a schematic diagram of the architecture of a communication system used in an embodiment of the present application;

[0050] FIG3 is another schematic diagram of the architecture of the communication system used in the embodiment of the present application;

[0051] FIG4 is a schematic diagram of a base station performing beam scanning in one direction according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0052] FIG5 is a flow chart of a communication method according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0053] FIG6 is a schematic diagram of the pointing angle of the first beam used for transmitting data according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0054] FIG7 is another schematic diagram of a base station performing beam scanning in one direction according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0055] FIG8 is another schematic diagram of a flow chart of a communication method according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0056] FIG9 is another schematic diagram of a base station performing beam scanning in one direction according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0057] FIG10 is a schematic diagram of a base station performing beam scanning in two directions according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0058] FIG11 is another schematic diagram of a base station performing beam scanning in two directions according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0059] FIG12 is a schematic diagram of a base station and a terminal performing beam scanning according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0060] FIG13 is a schematic diagram of a process in which a base station instructs an IRS to perform beam scanning according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0061] FIG14 is a schematic diagram of a base station instructing an IRS to perform beam scanning according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0062] FIG15 is a schematic diagram of the structure of a communication device provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0063] FIG16 is another schematic diagram of the structure of the communication device provided in an embodiment of the present application. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0064] Figure 2 is a schematic diagram of the architecture of a communication system 1000 used in an embodiment of the present application. As shown in Figure 2 , the communication system includes a radio access network (RAN) 100. RAN 100 includes at least one RAN node (e.g., 110a and 110b in Figure 2 , collectively referred to as 110) and may also include at least one terminal (e.g., 120a-120j in Figure 2 , collectively referred to as 120). RAN 100 may also include other RAN nodes, such as wireless relay devices and / or wireless backhaul devices (not shown in Figure 2 ). Terminal 120 is wirelessly connected to RAN node 110. Terminals and RAN nodes may be connected to each other via wired or wireless connections. Communication system 1000 may also include a core network 200. RAN node 110 is wirelessly or wiredly connected to core network 200. Core network devices in core network 200 and RAN node 110 in RAN 100 may be separate physical devices, or they may be a single physical device that integrates the logical functions of core network devices and RAN nodes. The communication system 1000 may also include the Internet 300 .

[0065] RAN100 may be an evolved universal terrestrial radio access (E-UTRA) system, a new radio (NR) system, or a future radio access system defined in the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP). RAN100 may also include two or more of the aforementioned different radio access systems. RAN100 may also be an open RAN (O-RAN).

[0066] A RAN node, also known as a radio access network device, RAN entity, network device, or access node, facilitates wireless access to a communication system by a terminal. In one application scenario, a RAN node can be a base station (BS), an evolved NodeB (eNodeB), a transmission reception point (TRP), a next-generation NodeB (gNB) in a fifth-generation (5G) mobile communication system, a next-generation NodeB in a sixth-generation (6G) mobile communication system, or a base station in a future mobile communication system. A RAN node can be a macro base station (such as 110a in Figure 2), a micro base station, an indoor station (such as 110b in Figure 2), a relay node, or a donor node.

[0067] In another application scenario, multiple RAN nodes can collaborate to help terminals achieve wireless access, with different RAN nodes implementing portions of the base station's functions. For example, a RAN node can be a centralized unit (CU), a distributed unit (DU), or a radio unit (RU). The CU implements the base station's radio resource control protocol and packet data convergence protocol (PDCP) functions, as well as the service data adaptation protocol (SDAP) functions. The DU implements the base station's radio link control layer and medium access control (MAC) layer functions, as well as some or all of the physical layer functions. For detailed descriptions of each of the above protocol layers, please refer to the relevant 3GPP technical specifications. The RU can be used to implement the transmission and reception of radio frequency signals. The CU and DU can be two independent RAN nodes, or they can be integrated into the same RAN node, such as in a baseband unit (BBU). The RU can be included in radio frequency equipment, such as a remote radio unit (RRU) or an active antenna unit (AAU). The CU can be further divided into two types of RAN nodes: CU-control plane and CU-user plane.

[0068] In different systems, RAN nodes may have different names. For example, in an O-RAN system, a CU may be called an open CU (O-CU), a DU may be called an open DU (O-DU), and a RU may be called an open RU (O-RU). The RAN node in the embodiments of the present application may be implemented by a software module, a hardware module, or a combination of a software module and a hardware module. For example, the RAN node may be a server loaded with the corresponding software module. The embodiments of the present application do not limit the specific technology and specific device form adopted by the RAN node. For ease of description, the following description takes a base station as an example of a RAN node.

[0069] A terminal is a device with wireless transceiver capabilities that can send signals to a base station or receive signals from a base station. A terminal can also be referred to as a terminal device, user equipment (UE), also known as a user terminal or terminal, mobile station, mobile terminal, etc. Terminals can be widely used in various scenarios, such as device-to-device (D2D), vehicle-to-everything (V2X) communication, machine-type communication (MTC), Internet of Things (IoT), virtual reality, augmented reality, industrial control, autonomous driving, telemedicine, smart grid, smart furniture, smart office, smart wearable, smart transportation, smart city, etc. The terminal can be a mobile phone, tablet computer, computer with wireless transceiver capabilities, wearable device, vehicle, aircraft, ship, robot, robotic arm, smart home device, etc. The embodiments of this application do not limit the specific technology and specific device form adopted by the terminal.

[0070] Base stations and terminals can be fixed or mobile. They can be deployed on land, indoors or outdoors, handheld or vehicle-mounted; on water; or on aircraft, balloons, and satellites. The embodiments of this application do not limit the application scenarios of base stations and terminals.

[0071] The roles of base stations and terminals can be relative. For example, the helicopter or drone 120i in Figure 2 can be configured as a mobile base station. To terminals 120j accessing the wireless access network 100 via 120i, terminal 120i is a base station. However, to base station 110a, 120i is a terminal, meaning that communication between 110a and 120i occurs via a wireless air interface protocol. Of course, communication between 110a and 120i can also occur via a base station-to-base station interface protocol. In this case, 120i is also a base station relative to 110a. Therefore, base stations and terminals can be collectively referred to as communication devices. 110a and 110b in Figure 2 can be referred to as communication devices with base station functionality, while 120a-120j in Figure 2 can be referred to as communication devices with terminal functionality.

[0072] Communication between base stations and terminals, between base stations, and between terminals can be carried out through authorized spectrum, unauthorized spectrum, or both; communication can be carried out through spectrum below 6 gigahertz (GHz), spectrum above 6 GHz, or spectrum below 6 GHz and spectrum above 6 GHz. The embodiments of the present application do not limit the spectrum resources used for wireless communication.

[0073] In the embodiments of the present application, the functions of the base station may also be performed by a module (such as a chip) in the base station, or by a control subsystem that includes the base station functions. The control subsystem that includes the base station functions here may be a control center in the above-mentioned application scenarios such as smart grid, industrial control, smart transportation, and smart city. The functions of the terminal may also be performed by a module (such as a chip or modem) in the terminal, or by a device that includes the terminal functions.

[0074] In this application, a base station sends downlink signals or downlink information to a terminal, and the downlink information is carried on a downlink channel; the terminal sends uplink signals or uplink information to the base station, and the uplink information is carried on an uplink channel. In order to communicate with the base station, the terminal needs to establish a wireless connection with the cell controlled by the base station. The cell with which the terminal has established a wireless connection is called the serving cell of the terminal. When the terminal communicates with the serving cell, it will also be subject to interference from signals in neighboring cells.

[0075] The intelligent reflecting surface (IRS) includes a passive antenna array and a terminal module for receiving control signaling from the macro base station. It has the ability to control the reflection phase of each array element. The IRS can switch the reflection weight according to the instructions of the base station, that is, adjust the phase distribution of the reflecting surface, thereby changing the direction of the reflected beam and reflecting the signal transmitted by the base station to the IRS in the desired direction. For example, referring to Figure 3, Figure 3 is a schematic diagram of base station 100 communicating with terminal 120 through IRS 110. In actual communication scenarios, obstructions such as buildings and walls can cause the lack of a direct line-of-sight propagation (LOS) path between the terminal and the base station, resulting in poor signal quality received by the terminal and affecting the terminal's communication performance. By changing the direction of the non-line-of-sight propagation (NLOS) path, the IRS can improve the NLOS path to an LOS path, thereby improving the channel environment in weak coverage areas and enhancing the communication performance of terminals and other devices in weak coverage channel environments.

[0076] To ensure that the beam reflected by the IRS accurately finds the terminal it wants to serve, the base station must first perform beam management. Specifically, the macro base station instructs the IRS to switch to different reflection weights at different times and transmits corresponding downlink reference signals, such as the channel state information-reference signal (CSI-RS), at those times. The terminal then measures the quality of the downlink reference signal reflected by the IRS and reports the measurement results. The base station then uses these measurements to determine the impact of different IRS reflection weights on the terminal's received signal quality. It then selects the reflection weight that improves the terminal's received signal quality the most and notifies the IRS for subsequent communication.

[0077] IRS beam management consumes macro base station downlink time and frequency resources to transmit downlink reference signals. Because the IRS is a passive array, all its gain comes from beamforming. To achieve optimal results, the IRS array's electrical dimensions (e.g., effective area) must be large, resulting in a large number of narrow beams, which in turn consumes significant macro base station resources.

[0078] Generally, for a given beam frequency, the larger the effective area of ​​the IRS array, the greater the gain. For high-frequency 28 GHz signals, a 320mm × 320mm IRS can provide relatively significant coverage gains. Taking the following table as an example, at 28 GHz, the corresponding narrow beamwidth of this size is 1.71°. To cover an angular range of ±60° horizontally and ±15° vertically (also expressed as ±60°H and ±15°V), the calculation is (120 ÷ 1.71) × (30 ÷ 1.71) = 1260, meaning the IRS needs to scan a total of 1260 narrow beams. Assuming the base station's CSI-RS measurement period is 80 ms, the high-frequency subcarrier spacing is 120 kHz, the corresponding slot duration is 0.125 ms, and the uplink / downlink slot ratio is 1:4, there are 512 downlink slots within 80 ms. Assuming each slot has 12 symbols for data transmission, a total of 6144 symbols can be used for data transmission. Of these, 1260 symbols are used to transmit CSI-RS to the IRS for beam management. The beam scanning overhead consumed by beam management accounts for 20.5% of the total signal resources. Similarly, as shown in Table 1, when the IRS size is 320mm×320mm and the coverage angle range is ±60° horizontally and ±10° vertically, the beam management overhead accounts for 13.7% of the total resources. When the coverage angle range is ±30° horizontally and ±10° vertically, the beam management overhead accounts for 6.8% of the total resources. When the IRS size is 640mm×640mm, the beam scanning overhead consumes even more resources.

[0079] Table 1

[0080] As can be seen, scanning all beams during each beam scan requires a significant amount of resources. However, with layered scanning, multiple beam scans are required between communication devices to ensure beam scanning accuracy. This results in a high overhead for the beams occupied by the downlink reference signal used for beam scanning in each downlink beam sent by the base station. Furthermore, although the layered scanning approach reduces the beam scanning range during each beam scan, multiple beams still need to be scanned during each beam scan. For example, in the example shown in Figure 1, four beams need to be scanned during each beam scan.

[0081] Based on this, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication method. Through the method of the present application, the consumption of downlink resources of the base station by beam management can be reduced. The embodiment of the present application utilizes the correlation between each group of beams, and reports feedback information to the beam sending device (such as a base station) through a beam receiving device (such as a terminal). The beam sending device can obtain the angle of departure (angle of departure, AOD) (also called the pointing angle) estimate of the beam link from the sending device to the receiving device based on the feedback information, thereby reducing the number of beam scans of the sending device. In addition, in the next round of scanning, the sending device can perform beam scanning in two directions with similar AOD estimates, instead of performing beam scanning in multiple directions, thereby saving scanning overhead. The application scenarios of the embodiments of the present application are introduced below.

[0082] In some embodiments, embodiments of the present application can be applied to scenarios where a transmitting device performs beam scanning and a receiving device performs reception. For example, referring to Figure 2 , base station 110a (an example transmitting device) performs beam scanning, and terminal 120a (an example receiving device) receives the beam. For another example, still referring to Figure 2 , terminal 120a (an example transmitting device) performs beam scanning, and base station 110a (an example receiving device) receives the beam.

[0083] In other embodiments, the present invention can be applied to scenarios where a transmitting device instructs a scanning device to perform beam scanning, and a receiving device performs reception. For example, referring to FIG3 , base station 100 (transmitting device) instructs IRS 110 (scanning device) to perform beam scanning, and terminal 120 (receiving device) receives the beam.

[0084] 4 , which is a schematic diagram of the beam scanning process in accordance with an embodiment of the present application, describes the communication method provided in accordance with an embodiment of the present application, taking as an example a base station (an example of a transmitting device) performing beam scanning and a terminal using a fixed-angle beam (e.g., beam z) to receive signals transmitted by the base station.

[0085] 5 , the communication method provided in the embodiment of the present application includes the following steps.

[0086] S501. A base station sends first indication information and N first reference signals.

[0087] Correspondingly, the terminal receives the first indication information and N first reference signals.

[0088] The first indication information is used to indicate N first reference signals of K groups. That is, the N first reference signals are divided into K groups. Wherein, N and K are integers greater than 1, and N is greater than or equal to K.

[0089] Optionally, the first indication information indicates that two adjacent reference signals belong to the same group.

[0090] Exemplarily, N = K + 1. The base station transmits four beams (beams 1 to 4), each of which carries a first reference signal, N = 4. For example, beam 1 carries first reference signal 1, beam 2 carries first reference signal 2, beam 3 carries first reference signal 3, and beam 4 carries first reference signal 4. Beams 1 to 4 are oriented adjacent to each other, and the first indication information indicates that beams 1 and 2 are in the same group (e.g., group 1), beams 2 and 3 are in the same group (e.g., group 2), and beams 3 and 4 are in the same group (e.g., group 3). K = 3.

[0091] Exemplarily, the first reference signal may be a CSI-RS.

[0092] In some embodiments, the first indication information includes identifiers of N first reference signals. The identifier of the first reference signal is used to determine the grouping of the first reference signal. The identifier of the first reference signal is one or more of the following identifiers: a group identifier of the first reference signal, a resource identifier of the first reference signal. Exemplarily, the identifiers of adjacent first reference signals may be consecutive serial numbers, and two first reference signals with consecutive identifier serial numbers may be considered to be in the same group. For example, the identifier of the first reference signal is a physical layer identity (PCI). As another example, first reference signals with the same group identifier of the reference signal may be considered to be in the same group. Referring to Figure 4, the group identifier of the first reference signal 1 on beam 1 may be group 1, the group identifier of the first reference signal 2 on beam 2 may be group 1 and group 2, the group identifier of the first reference signal 3 on beam 3 may be group 2 and group 3, and the group identifier of the first reference signal 4 on beam 4 may be group 3. The first reference signal 1 and the first reference signal 2 can be determined as a group through the group identifier group 1 of the first reference signal 1 and the group identifier group 1 of the first reference signal 2. The first reference signal 2 and the first reference signal 3 can be determined as a group through the group identifier group 2 of the first reference signal 2 and the group identifier group 2 of the first reference signal 3. And so on. No further details are given.

[0093] In some embodiments, the first indication information is 1, and the base station indicates N first reference signals through the indication information.

[0094] In some other embodiments, there are N first indication information, and the base station indicates N first reference signals through N indication information, and each indication information indicates 1 first reference signal.

[0095] The first indication information indicating the first reference signal may be sent in the same message as the first reference signal, or may be sent in different messages.

[0096] Exemplarily, the first indication information can be carried in control signaling such as radio resource control (RRC) signaling, media access control-control element (MAC-CE), downlink control information (DCI) signaling, etc.

[0097] S502: The terminal sends first feedback information.

[0098] Correspondingly, the base station receives the first feedback information.

[0099] The first feedback information is used by the base station to determine a first beam for transmitting data; the first feedback information is determined based on multiple first reference signals in one of the K groups of first reference signals.

[0100] The first feedback information is determined based on the received energy of multiple first reference signals in one of the K groups of first reference signals. Referring to Figure 4, when the terminal receives the above N first reference signals, it can obtain the received energy of each of the above N first reference signals. The received energy of the N first reference signals is recorded as β1,…,β N For example, the received energies of first reference signals a to d are denoted as β1 to β4, respectively. Based on the first indication information, the terminal can obtain three groups of first reference signals, determine one group of reference signals from the three groups of first reference signals, and obtain feedback information based on the received energies of the first reference signals in this group. In other words, the terminal can group the received energies of the first reference signals based on the first indication information, determine one group of received energies from the grouped received energies, and obtain feedback information based on the grouped received energies.

[0101] In some embodiments, the first feedback information is determined based on a first group of reference signals, the first group of reference signals includes a first target reference signal and a second target reference signal, and the first feedback information is determined based on the received energy of the first target reference signal and the received energy of the second target reference signal.

[0102] Exemplarily, the first group of reference signals may be any one of the K groups of first reference signals. Furthermore, the first group of reference signals may be a group of the K groups of first reference signals whose sum of received energy of the first reference signals exceeds a first threshold. The first threshold may be a value indicated by the base station to the terminal, or the first threshold may be a value predefined by the base station or the terminal. Furthermore, the first group of reference signals may be a group of the K groups of first reference signals whose sum of received energy of the first reference signals is the largest.

[0103] Exemplarily, the received energy may be obtained based on one or more of the following parameters: RSRP, RSSI, or RSRQ.

[0104] Exemplarily, referring to Figure 6, the first group of reference signals is the reference signals in group 2, wherein the first reference signal 2 on beam 2 is the first target reference signal in group 2, and the first reference signal 3 on beam 3 is the second target reference signal in group 2, and the first feedback information is determined based on the received energy of the first reference signal 2 and the received energy of the first reference signal 3.

[0105] In some embodiments, the number of first beams is multiple, the number of first feedback information is multiple, and the direction angle of each first beam determined according to one piece of first feedback information can be expressed as Each first feedback information is determined based on a group of reference signals. For example, as shown in Figure 4, the first feedback information 1 is determined based on the reference signals in group 2, and the first feedback information 2 is determined based on the reference signals in group 3. The base station can obtain the first beam 1 based on the first feedback information 1. The pointing angle of the first beam 1 is expressed as The base station obtains the first beam 2 according to the first feedback information 2. The pointing angle of the first beam 2 is expressed as

[0106] In some embodiments, the terminal may determine the first feedback information according to Formula 1, and the first feedback information may be expressed as γ1.

[0107] Among them, β n represents the received energy of the first target reference signal, β n+1 β2 represents the received energy of the second target reference signal. For example, taking the case of determining the first feedback information using two groups of beams as shown in FIG4 , where n=2, β2 represents the received energy of the first reference signal 2, and β3 represents the received energy of the first reference signal 3.

[0108] In this scheme, there is a certain range of angle overlap between each group of beams (two adjacent beams), and γ1 can reflect the receiving energy relationship between the group of beams, so that γ1 can reflect the angle information of the overlapping area between the multiple beams where the first reference signal of the group is located, and obtain the pointing angle of the first beam.

[0109] The terminal can send the first feedback information γ1 to the base station, and the base station calculates the pointing angle of the first beam according to the following formula 2:

[0110] in, represents the center of the pointing angle of beam 2 and the pointing angle of beam 3, that is, It represents half of the sum of the pointing angles of beam 2 and beam 3. Δ1 represents the offset angle, i.e. the difference between the pointing angle of beam 2 (or beam 3) and For example, according to formula 2, the base station can calculate that when γ = 0, When γ=1, When γ=-1,

[0111] For example, the derivation process of Formula 2 is given as follows:

[0112] Taking the first target reference signal being the first reference signal 2 and the second target reference signal being the first reference signal 3 as an example, n=2.

[0113] β2 can be calculated based on the first reference signal 2 (denoted as y2) received by the terminal, and y2 refers to Formula 3.

[0114] Where L represents the number of channel multipaths from the base station to the terminal link, θ l represents the departure angle of the lth multipath (also called the AOD of the lth multipath), a T (θ l ) represents the angle θ l The steering vector, α l represents the channel gain, represents the channel, represents the center of the pointing angle of beam 2 and the pointing angle of beam 3, Δ1 represents the offset angle, represents the pointing angle of beam 2, represents the weight of beam 2, x represents the first reference signal 2 of beam 2, and q represents the noise at the receiving end.

[0115] Assume that the first * The energy of the multipath is the largest, then β2 can be expressed as

[0116] Similarly, β3 can be calculated based on the first reference signal 3 (denoted as y3) received by the terminal, and y3 refers to Formula 5.

[0117] Where L represents the number of channel multipaths from the base station to the terminal link, θ l represents the departure angle of the lth multipath (also called the AOD of the lth multipath), a T (θ l ) represents the angle θ l The steering vector, α l represents the channel gain, represents the channel, represents the center of the pointing angle of beam 2 and the pointing angle of beam 3, Δ1 represents the offset angle, represents the pointing angle of beam 3, represents the weight of beam 3, x represents the first reference signal 3 of beam 3, and q represents the noise at the receiving end.

[0118] Assume that the first * The energy of the multipath is the largest, then β3 can be expressed as:

[0119] Formula 7 is obtained based on Formula 4 and Formula 6.

[0120] Formula 7 is transformed so that the base station can calculate the value of and Δ1 can be used to obtain the angle of the first beam used to transmit data As shown in Formula 2.

[0121] It should be noted that the above formulas are merely examples, and the above formulas may have other equivalent descriptions. For example, Formula 1 may also be expressed as Formula 8.

[0122] In some other embodiments, the first feedback information includes one or more of the following information: the received energy of the first target reference signal, the identifier of the first target reference signal, the received energy of the second target reference signal, and the identifier of the second target reference signal. The terminal may send the above information to the base station. Accordingly, the base station receives the above information. After receiving the received energy of the first target reference signal and the received energy of the second target reference signal, the base station calculates γ1 according to formula 1, and obtains γ1 according to the identifier of the first target reference signal and the identifier of the second target reference signal. and Δ1, and thus the pointing angle of the first beam is obtained according to formula 2

[0123] Through this solution, the terminal sends first feedback information determined based on a set of first reference signals to the base station. After receiving the first feedback information, the base station can calculate the AOD of the path with the strongest energy based on the first reference signal in the first feedback information. The AOD of the path with the strongest energy is between the beam directions of the set of first reference signals. The base station can determine the first beam for transmitting data based on the first feedback information, and the base station uses the first beam for subsequent data transmission. It can be seen that in this solution, the base station does not need multiple rounds of scanning. This solution reduces the communication resources consumed by multiple rounds of beam scanning.

[0124] In addition, since the beams containing a group of first reference signals have overlapping parts, the first feedback information can reflect the energy of the overlapping area of ​​the beams containing the group of first reference signals, so that the energy of the angles covered by the overlapping area can be obtained without sending beams to multiple angles, thereby obtaining the AOD of the path with the strongest energy.

[0125] It should be noted that the above example uses a beam group including two beams in one direction as an example. In other embodiments, the beam group may include three or more beams in one direction. For example, when the beam group includes three beams, that is, when three reference signals form a group, the terminal can arbitrarily select two adjacent reference signals from the reference signals of the beam group and determine the first feedback information based on the two selected reference signals using the above formula 1. For another example, the terminal can select two reference signals with the highest received energy from the three reference signals and determine the first feedback information based on the two selected reference signals using the above formula 1.

[0126] This embodiment of the present application also provides a communication method, which can be performed after step S502 above. Referring to FIG7 , after the base station or terminal performs steps S501 and S502, the base station performs a second round (e.g., transmitting beams 5 and 6), a third round, or more rounds of beam scanning using this method, so that the beam for data transmission determined by the base station based on the second feedback information has better communication effects with the terminal. Referring to FIG8 , the communication method includes the following steps.

[0127] S1001. A base station sends second indication information and M second reference signals.

[0128] Correspondingly, the terminal receives the second indication information and M second reference signals.

[0129] The second indication information is used to indicate M second reference signals of U groups, where U and M are positive integers greater than or equal to 1, and U is less than M.

[0130] Exemplarily, referring to Figure 7, U=1, M=2, beam 5 (an example of the first target beam) carries the second reference signal 1, beam 6 (an example of the second target beam) carries the second reference signal 2, beam 5 and beam 6 belong to the same group of beams, and the second reference signal 1 and the second reference signal 2 belong to the same group of second reference signals.

[0131] In some embodiments, the reference signals of the beams on both sides of the first beam are the same group. Determine the AOD of beam 5 and beam 6. For example, the AOD of beam 5 is equal to The AOD of beam 6 is equal to Δ2 is determined according to the beam widths of beam 5 and beam 6. For example, beam 5 and beam 6 have the same width, and Δ2 is half the width of beam 5 and beam 6. Referring to S501 to S502 above, the base station may scan beam 5 and beam 6 according to their AODs.

[0132] When there are multiple first beams, the reference signals on both sides of each first beam belong to the same group. For example, referring to Figure 4 , the beam reference signals on both sides of first beam 1 belong to the same group. The reference signals on both sides of first beam 2 also belong to the same group. It should be noted that when the base station determines the pointing angle of the second beam for data transmission in one direction, "both sides of the first beam" refers to both sides of the first beam in one direction. When the base station determines the pointing angle of the second beam for data transmission in two directions, "both sides of the first beam" refers to both sides of the first beam in both directions.

[0133] In some embodiments, the beam widths of beam 5 and beam 6 are smaller than the beam widths of beam 1 to beam 4 in the above S501 .

[0134] For the relevant contents of S1001 above, reference may also be made to the corresponding contents of S501 above. For example, the second reference signal may be a CSI-RS, the second indication information includes identifiers of M second reference signals, and the identifiers of the second reference signals are used to determine the grouping of the second reference signals, etc., which will not be repeated here.

[0135] S1002. The terminal sends second feedback information.

[0136] Correspondingly, the base station receives the second feedback information.

[0137] The second feedback information is used by the transmitting device to determine a second beam for transmitting data. The second feedback information is determined based on multiple second reference signals in one of the U groups of second reference signals. Exemplarily, the second feedback information is determined based on a received energy relationship among the M second reference signals.

[0138] In some embodiments, U is equal to the number of the first beams. For example, if the first beam is first beam 1, then the number of first beams is 1, and U = 1. For another example, if the first beam includes first beam 1 and first beam 2, then the number of first beams is 2, and U = 2.

[0139] Referring to the description of S502 above, the terminal may send second feedback information γ2 to the base station.

[0140] Among them, β n represents the received energy of the second reference signal 1, β n+1 represents the received energy of the second reference signal 2.

[0141] The base station performs the operation of S502 as shown in Formula 2, and and Δ1 to obtain the angle of the second beam used to transmit data in, Δ1=Δ2, Δ2 represents the offset angle, that is, the pointing angle of beam 5 (or beam 6) and The size of the angle between them.

[0142] The second reference signal 1 and the second reference signal 2 may be reference signals in a second group of reference signals. The second group of reference signals is a group having the largest sum of received energy of the second reference signals among U groups of second reference signals, or the second group of reference signals is a group having the sum of received energy of the second reference signals among U groups of second reference signals greater than a second threshold. The second threshold may be a preset threshold or a threshold sent by the base station.

[0143] For the relevant content of S1002 above, reference may also be made to the corresponding content of S502 above. For example, the second feedback information includes one or more of the following information: the received energy of the second reference signal 1, the identifier of the second reference signal 1, the received energy of the second reference signal 2, and the identifier of the second reference signal 2, etc., which will not be repeated here.

[0144] Through this solution, the AOD angle of the beam is measured again based on the method in S501, thereby further improving the accuracy of the estimated AOD angle of the beam. As the average value of the beam exit angle in the beam group, the AOD of the beam where the second group of reference signals are located is and This reduces the range of beam scanning and saves communication resources.

[0145] It should be noted that methods S1001 and S1002 of the embodiments of the present application can also be executed after other existing communication methods. For example, in the beam scanning process shown in Figure 1, after the base station sends beam a to beam d, the terminal feeds back the RSRP value of the reference signal on beam a to beam d to the beam. The base station can execute the above S1001 according to the RSRP value of the reference signal. For example, referring to Figure 9, the RSRP values ​​of the reference signals on beam a to beam d are -70dBm, -75dBm, -80dBm and -90dBm respectively. The base station can select the reference signal with the largest RSRP value (such as reference signal b) and use the AOD of the beam of reference signal b (beam b) as the Beam 5 carrying the second reference signal 1 and beam 6 carrying the second reference signal 2 are sent, and M=2.

[0146] In the above embodiment, the method of the embodiment of the present application is introduced by taking the base station estimating the AOD of the beam (such as the first beam and the second beam) in one direction (such as the horizontal direction) as an example. Referring to Figure 10, the following is still taken as an example that the base station scans the beam and the terminal uses a fixed-angle beam (such as beam z) to receive the beam sent by the base station to introduce the method of the base station estimating the AOD of the beam in two directions (horizontal and vertical directions, or positive 45° direction and negative 45° direction) in the embodiment of the present application.

[0147] In some embodiments, the first feedback information includes first target feedback information and second target feedback information, wherein the first target feedback information is used to determine a first direction of the first beam, and the second target feedback information is used to determine a second direction of the first beam, wherein the first direction is different from the second direction.

[0148] In the above S502, the first feedback information determined according to the received energy of the first target reference signal (first reference signal 2) and the received energy of the second target reference signal (first reference signal 3) can be referred to as the first target feedback information γ 11 10 , the base station may determine the first direction of the first beam (such as direction 1) based on the first target feedback information, and determine the second direction of the first beam (such as direction 3) based on the second target feedback information.

[0149] Exemplarily, the first group of reference signals may include first to third target reference signals, the first target reference signal and the second target reference signal are used to determine the first target feedback information, and the first target reference signal and the third target reference signal are used to determine the second target feedback information. For example, referring to FIG10 , the base station transmits beams 1 to 4 and beams 9 to 12 through beam scanning, and the reference signals on beams 1 to 4 are first reference signals 1 to first reference signals 4, respectively, and the reference signals on beams 9 to 12 are first reference signals 9 to first reference signals 12, respectively. The terminal can determine the first target feedback information γ based on the first reference signal 2 (first target reference signal) and the first reference signal 3 (second target reference signal). 11 , determine the second target feedback information γ according to the first reference signal 2 and the first reference signal 10 (third target reference signal) 12 . Referring to Formula 1, the first target feedback information γ 11 It can be expressed as Second target feedback information γ 12 It can be expressed as

[0150] As another example, the first group of reference signals may include first to fourth target reference signals, the first and second target reference signals being used to determine the first target feedback information, and the first and third target reference signals being used to determine the second target feedback information. For example, referring to FIG10 , the first to fourth target reference signals are first reference signal 2, first reference signal 3, first reference signal 10, and first reference signal 11, respectively.

[0151] In another exemplary embodiment, the first group of reference signals includes the first target reference signal to the fourth target reference signal, the first target reference signal and the third target reference signal are used to determine the first target feedback information, and the second target reference signal and the fourth target reference signal are used to determine the first target feedback information. For example, referring to FIG10, the terminal can determine the first target feedback information based on the first reference signal 2 and the first reference signal 10, and determine the second target feedback information based on the first reference signal 3 and the first reference signal 11. Referring to Formula 1, the first target feedback information γ 11 It can be expressed as Second target feedback information γ 12 It can be expressed as

[0152] In some embodiments, when the first group of reference signals includes first to fourth target reference signals, if the sum of received energies of the first target reference signal and the second target reference signal is greater than the sum of received energies of the third target reference signal and the fourth target reference signal, the first target reference signal and the second target reference signal are used to determine the first target feedback information. If the sum of received energies of the first target reference signal and the third target reference signal is greater than the sum of received energies of the first target reference signal and the fourth target reference signal, the first target reference signal and the third target reference signal are used to determine the second target feedback information.

[0153] For example, referring to FIG10 , the energy values ​​of the first target reference signal to the fourth target reference signal in the first group of reference signals are β2, β3, β 10 and β 11 The terminal compares β2+β3 and β 10 +β 11 The size of β2+β3>β 10 +β 11 ,but Thus, the base station can use the beam width Δ of beam 2 and beam 3 in direction 1 and the direction of beam 2 and beam 3 in direction 1 to determine the direction of the beam 2 and beam 3. Obtain the pointing angle of the first beam. If β2+β3<β 10 +β 11 ,but Thus, the base station can use the beam width Δ of beam 10 and beam 11 in direction 1 and the direction of beam 10 and beam 11 in direction 1 to determine the direction of the beam 10 and beam 11. The terminal compares β2+β 10 and β3+β 11 The size of β2+β 10 >β3+β 11 ,but Thus, the base station can use the beam width Δ of beam 2 and beam 10 in direction 3 and the direction of beam 2 and beam 10 in direction 3 to determine the direction of the beam 2 and beam 10. Obtain the pointing angle of the first beam. If β2+β 10 <β3+β 11 ,but Thus, the base station can use the beam width Δ of beam 3 and beam 11 in direction 3 and the direction of beam 3 Obtain the pointing angle of the first beam.

[0154] In some embodiments, the first group of reference signals includes a third target reference signal and a fourth target reference signal, and the first feedback information further includes: received energy of the third target reference signal, an identifier of the third target reference signal, received energy of the fourth target reference signal, and an identifier of the fourth target reference signal. Referring to the above description, the base station can calculate γ based on the received energy of the reference signals from the first target reference signal to the fourth target reference signal. 11 and γ 12 , thereby reducing the terminal calculation γ 11 and γ 12 In addition, since the terminal does not need to 11 and γ 12 Performing the calculation can also reduce the time it takes for the base station to receive the first feedback information.

[0155] Through this solution, the base station can determine the AOD of the first beam in two directions, thereby selecting the first beam for data transmission.

[0156] The above embodiment illustrates an example of a base station estimating beam angles in two directions. Similar to the communication method of FIG8 , the above embodiment may also perform two or more rounds of estimating beam pointing angles. Referring now to FIG11 , the following describes the base station sending a second reference signal in two directions, taking U=1 as an example.

[0157] The base station transmits second reference signal 5 via beam 5 and second reference signal 6 via beam 6. The vertical pointing angle of beam 5 is greater than that of the first beam, and the vertical pointing angle of beam 6 is smaller than that of the first beam. The base station transmits second reference signal 7 via beam 7 (the third target beam) and second reference signal 8 via beam 8 (the fourth target beam). The horizontal pointing angle of beam 7 is greater than that of the first beam, and the horizontal pointing angle of beam 8 is smaller than that of the first beam.

[0158] Through the above solution, the AOD of the beam is estimated in two directions, thereby improving the accuracy of the beam AOD.

[0159] The method for the base station to estimate the AOD of sending the second reference signal beam in two directions may refer to the method for the base station to estimate the AOD of sending the first reference signal beam in two directions in the above embodiment, which will not be repeated here.

[0160] In the above embodiment, the embodiment of the present application is described by taking the example of a base station performing beam scanning and a terminal using a fixed beam for reception. Below, with reference to FIG12 , the embodiment of the present application is described by taking the example of both the base station and the terminal performing beam scanning and estimating the base station's AOD and the terminal's AOA in one direction (direction 1 as shown in FIG10 ) as an example.

[0161] Referring to (1) of Figure 12, the base station sends the first indication information and N first reference signals. The N beams in the first beam group carry N first reference signals. The first indication information is used to indicate the N first reference signals of K groups. The N beams in the first beam group are beam 1 to beam 4, respectively, and N=4. The base station performs beam scanning on the N beams in the first beam group. The terminal receives the first reference signal through the beam in the first receiving beam group. The first receiving beam group includes P beams, namely beam 13 to beam 16, and P is equal to 4. The base station performs N (4) beam scans. For the N beam scans performed by the base station, the terminal uses one beam for reception each time, and the reception energy of the reference signal received by the terminal each time can be recorded as β n,p , where n represents the beam number of the base station's transmitted beam (e.g., n=1 for beam 1), 1≤n≤N, and p represents the beam number of the terminal's received beam (e.g., p=1 for beam 13, p=4 for beam 16), 1≤p≤P. For example, when the base station performs the first beam scan, the terminal uses beam 13 for reception and obtains the received energy β of the four first reference signals. 1,1 , β 2,1 , β 3,1 and β 4,1 When the base station performs the second beam scan, the terminal uses beam 14 for reception and obtains the receiving energy β of the four first reference signals.1,2 , β 2,2 , β 3,2 and β 4,2 Similarly, the terminal uses beam 15 and beam 16 to receive the first reference signal carried by the beam scanned by the base station and obtains the receiving energy β of the first reference signal respectively. 1,3 , β 2,3 , β 3,3 , β 4,3 and β 1,4 , β 2,4 , β 3,4 , β 4,4 , so that the terminal obtains the reception energy of 16 (4 times 4) first reference signals.

[0162] The terminal may determine a transmit reference signal group from the first reference signals sent by the base station and determine a receive reference signal group from the N first reference signals received by the terminal using different beams based on the grouping information of the first reference signals and the receive energy of the 16 first reference signals. Exemplarily, the receive energy of the transmit reference signal group is {β 2,3 , β 3,3}, the received energy of the reference signal group is {β 2,3 , β 2,4 The method for determining the transmitted reference signal group and the received reference signal group may refer to the method for determining the first group of reference signals, which will not be described in detail here.

[0163] In some embodiments, the reference signal of the terminal is a sounding reference signal (SRS).

[0164] The terminal sends the first feedback information. Correspondingly, the base station receives the first feedback information. Referring to the description of S501 and S502 above, the terminal can send the reference signal group according to the received energy {β 2,3 , β 3,3}, send the first feedback information to the base station, so that the base station obtains the AOD of the first beam, which will not be repeated here.

[0165] The terminal can receive the reference signal group according to the received energy {β 2,3 , β 2,4}Determine AOA.

[0166] The terminal obtains the received energy relationship value η according to formula 9, η=η n,p .

[0167] According to formula 10, when the base station uses the nth beam and the terminal uses the pth beam, the first reference signal y received by the terminal is obtained. n,p .

[0168] Among them, Δ T Indicates the offset angle of the beam sent by the base station, Δ R Indicates the offset angle of the beam received by the terminal. Indicates the pointing angle of the p-th beam of the terminal. Indicates the pointing angle of the nth beam of the base station. ψ l Indicates the AOA of the lth path of the base station-terminal channel.

[0169] It should be noted that the above Δ T , Δ R This is just an example. In actual application, Δ T , Δ R It can also be set to 1 / 3, 2 / 5 of the wave width, etc.

[0170] Based on y n,p , β n,p and β n,p+1 It can be expressed as Formula 11 and Formula 12.

[0171] in, Indicates the pointing angle of the terminal's p+1th beam. Indicates the pointing angle of the (n+1)th beam of the base station.

[0172] According to formula 11 and formula 12, formula 13 is obtained.

[0173] Thus, the terminal can use formula 13 according to η n,p Solve the terminal's AOAψ l* Through this solution, in the scenario where both the base station and the terminal perform beam scanning, the base station's AOD and the terminal's AOA can be obtained, and the base station and the terminal can use a more optimal beam for data transmission.

[0174] In some embodiments, the terminal sends a reception energy relationship value η to the base station, and the base station receives η from the terminal.

[0175] The base station can determine the terminal's receiving weight based on η. Because the base station needs to serve multiple terminals, the beam used by the base station when ultimately transmitting data may point in multiple directions. This results in the beam selected by the terminal for data transmission during the base station's beam management process not necessarily being the best beam among the multiple beams sent by the base station during actual data transmission. In this embodiment of the present application, the terminal sends η to the base station, so that when the base station serves multiple terminals, it can globally allocate more optimal receiving weights to the multiple terminals based on the obtained AOAs of the multiple terminals.

[0176] In some embodiments, before the terminal sends feedback information (such as first feedback information, second feedback information, etc.), the further step includes: uniformly quantizing the feedback information. The terminal sending the feedback information may be implemented as: the terminal sending a uniformly quantized value of the feedback information.

[0177] The value range of the feedback information is [-1, 1]. Quantizing the feedback information can reduce the overhead occupied by the feedback information and save communication resources.

[0178] Exemplarily, the above S502 may be implemented as the terminal sending a uniformly quantized value of the first feedback information γ1.

[0179] In some other embodiments, the terminal performs non-uniform quantization on the feedback information before reporting the feedback information.

[0180] The probability of the feedback information value being distributed near 1 or -1 is relatively high, corresponding to the AOD and the center of the two adjacent beams. There is a certain deviation. Through this solution, the feedback information is non-uniformly quantized, which can improve the accuracy of the feedback information quantization.

[0181] In the above embodiment, the base station and the terminal both perform one round of beam scanning. Referring to the method shown in S1001 and S1002 above, the base station and the terminal can perform two, three or more rounds of beam scanning. When the base station performs two rounds of beam scanning, it can obtain the first beam according to the first round of beam scanning. exist Referring to (2) of Figure 12, the base station transmits beam 5 and beam 6, and the AOD of beam 5 and beam 6 is When the terminal performs the second round of scanning, it can use the beam angle ψ obtained in the first round of beam scanning to calculate the beam angle ψ. l* , in ψ l* Referring to (2) of Figure 12, the terminal transmits beam 17 and beam 18, and the angle between beam 17 and beam 18 is ψ l* Thus, after multiple rounds of scanning, a better AOD and AOA can be obtained. Referring to (3) of Figure 12, the base station can obtain a transmit beam 19 based on a better AOD, and the terminal can obtain a receive beam 20 based on a better AOA.

[0182] In some embodiments, the base station (transmitting device) sends beam information to the IRS, and the IRS scans the beam sent by the base station (the beam carries a reference signal) according to the beam information, and the terminal uses a fixed-angle beam (such as beam z) to receive the beam sent by the base station. In this scenario, the base station instructs the IRS to perform beam scanning, which can also be called indirect beam scanning by the base station. In this scenario, before sending a reference signal (such as a first reference signal, a second reference signal, etc.) to the terminal, the base station also includes a process of instructing the IRS to perform beam scanning. Referring to Figure 13, taking the example of the base station instructing the IRS to scan the beams in the first beam group, S1401 to S1402 may also be included before S1001.

[0183] S1401: The base station sends beam information of a first beam group to an IRS. Correspondingly, the IRS receives the beam information of the first beam group from the base station.

[0184] The beam information of the first beam group indicates the beam information of the beams in the first beam group. The beams in the first beam group are associated with the M second reference signals. In other words, the beams in the first beam group are beams that carry the M second reference signals. For example, referring to Figure 14 , the first beam group includes beams 5 and 6, and M = 2. The IRS can scan beams 5 and 6 in the first beam group based on the beam information of the first beam group.

[0185] In some embodiments, the beam information of the first beam group includes the pointing angle of the beam. The base station can instruct the IRS to scan M beams within a first angle range, that is, the angles of the two beams with the largest angle difference among the M beams are less than or equal to the first angle range. The IRS can perform beam scanning according to the pointing angle of each beam. For example, referring to Figure 14, the base station instructs the IRS to scan beam 5 and beam 6 within [10, 40]°. The IRS can send beam 5 in the direction of 10° and beam 6 in the direction of 40°. For another example, the base station instructs the IRS to send beam 5 in the direction of 10° and beam 6 in the direction of 40°.

[0186] In some embodiments, the beam information of the first beam group also includes an offset angle. The IRS can send (such as reflect) a beam according to the pointing angle and the offset angle of the beam. For example, the pointing angle of the beam is 10° and the offset angle is 2°. The IRS can send beam 5 in the direction of 8° (10 minus 2) and send beam 6 in the direction of 12° (10 plus 2). In some embodiments, beam 5 and beam 6 still have overlapping parts after being offset by the offset angle. The overlapping part of beam 5 and beam 6 associates beam 5 and beam 6, and the angle information within the coverage range of beam 5 and beam 6 is obtained according to the energy of beam 5 and beam 6, thereby obtaining the angle of the beam with the best signal between beam 5 and beam 6.

[0187] Exemplarily, the first angle range may be determined according to the size of the smart reflective surface. Further exemplary, the first angle range may be a preset angle range.

[0188] In some other embodiments, the beam information of the first beam group includes a codebook and / or a beam phase, and the codebook and the beam phase are respectively used to indicate angles of beams in the first beam group.

[0189] S1402: The base station sends second beam information to the IRS. Accordingly, the IRS receives the second beam information from the base station. The second beam information includes a preset time period during which the IRS sends the M beams.

[0190] In some embodiments, the preset time period can be determined based on a transmission time interval (TTI) number or a symbol number. For example, taking the TTI number as an example, the preset time periods are TTI1 and TTI2, and the base station transmits beam 5 in TTI1 and beam 6 in TTI2.

[0191] The second beam information and the beam information of the first beam group may be in the same message or in different messages.

[0192] In some embodiments, the base station sending the M second reference signals in the above S1001 can be implemented as S1403. Correspondingly, the IRS executes S1404, and the terminal executes S1405.

[0193] S1403. The base station sends M second reference signals at a time corresponding to each of the M beams within a preset time period.

[0194] S1404. The IRS scans the M beams according to the pointing angle of each beam at a time corresponding to each beam.

[0195] For example, referring to Figure 14 , the base station transmits second reference signal 5 via beam 5 and second reference signal 6 via beam 6. The base station transmits second reference signal 5 at TTI 1, and the IRS reflects beam 5 in a 10° direction at TTI 1. The base station transmits second reference signal 6 at TTI 2, and the IRS reflects second reference signal 6 in a 40° direction at TTI 2.

[0196] S1405. The terminal receives M second reference signals.

[0197] In this solution, the base station can instruct the IRS to reflect the beam according to the angle indicated by the base station. Subsequently, after the base station determines to use the second beam for data transmission, the base station can instruct the IRS to reflect the second beam according to the direction of the second beam, so that the second beam is used for subsequent data transmission.

[0198] In the scenario of IRS reflected beam, L in the above formulas 1, 3, and 5 represents the number of channel multipaths from the IRS to the terminal. l Indicates the AOA of the lth path from the IRS to the terminal channel.

[0199] In the above embodiment, the embodiment of the present application is introduced by taking the base station or IRS performing beam scanning, the terminal using a fixed beam reception, or the terminal performing beam scanning on the receiving beam as an example. The embodiment of the present application can also be implemented as a terminal (an example of a transmitting device) performing beam scanning, and the base station using a fixed beam to receive a reference signal to obtain the exit angle of the terminal transmitting beam. The specific implementation method can refer to the above S501 and S502, or the description of S1001 and S1002, which will not be repeated here. When the terminal performs beam scanning as a transmitting device, the terminal sends a first reference signal to the base station, and the first reference signal can be an SRS.

[0200] In the various embodiments of the present application, unless otherwise specified or logically conflicting, the terms and / or descriptions between different embodiments are consistent and can be referenced to each other, and the technical features in different embodiments can be combined to form new embodiments according to their inherent logical relationships. For example, the above-mentioned multiple embodiments can be combined, and the combined scheme can be implemented. Optionally, some operations in the process of each method embodiment are optionally combined, and / or the order of some operations is optionally changed. In addition, the execution order between the steps of each process is only exemplary and does not constitute a limitation on the execution order between the steps. Other execution orders can also be used between the steps. It is not intended to indicate that the execution order is the only order in which these operations can be performed. Ordinary technicians in this field will think of various ways to reorder the operations in this article. In addition, it should be noted that the process details involved in a certain embodiment of this article are also applicable to other embodiments in a similar manner, or different embodiments can be used in combination.

[0201] It is understood that, in order to implement the functions in the above embodiments, the base station and the terminal include hardware structures and / or software modules corresponding to the execution of each function. Those skilled in the art should readily appreciate that, in conjunction with the units and method steps of the various examples 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 computer software-driven hardware manner depends on the specific application scenario and design constraints of the technical solution.

[0202] Figures 15 and 16 are schematic diagrams of the structures of possible communication devices provided in embodiments of the present application. These communication devices can be used to implement the functions of the terminal or base station in the above-mentioned method embodiments, and thus can also achieve the beneficial effects possessed by the above-mentioned method embodiments. In the embodiments of the present application, the communication device can be the terminal 120 as shown in Figure 2, or the base station 110 as shown in Figure 2, or a module (such as a chip) applied to the terminal or base station.

[0203] As shown in Figure 15, the communication device 1300 includes a processing unit 1310 and a transceiver unit 1320. The communication device 1300 is used to implement the functions of the terminal or base station in the method embodiment shown in Figure 5 or Figure 8 above.

[0204] When the communication device 1300 is used to implement the functions of the terminal in the method embodiment shown in Figure 5: the transceiver unit 1320 is used to receive the first indication information and N first reference signals and send the first feedback information; the processing unit 1310 is used to perform processing-related functions.

[0205] When the communication device 1300 is used to implement the functions of the base station in the method embodiment shown in Figure 5: the transceiver unit 1320 is used to send the first indication information and N first reference signals and receive the first feedback information; the processing unit 1310 is used to perform processing-related functions.

[0206] When the communication device 1300 is used to implement the functions of the terminal in the method embodiment shown in Figure 8: the transceiver unit 1320 is used to receive the second indication information and M second reference signals and send second feedback information; the processing unit 1310 is used to perform processing-related functions.

[0207] When communication device 1300 is used to implement the functions of a base station in the method embodiment shown in FIG8 , transceiver unit 1320 is used to transmit second indication information and M second reference signals and receive second feedback information; processing unit 1310 is used to perform processing-related functions. For a more detailed description of processing unit 1310 and transceiver unit 1320, please refer to the relevant descriptions of the method embodiments shown in FIG5 and FIG8 .

[0208] As shown in Figure 16, communication device 1400 includes a processor 1410 and an interface circuit 1420. Processor 1410 and interface circuit 1420 are coupled to each other. It is understood that interface circuit 1420 can be a transceiver or an input / output interface. Optionally, communication device 1400 may also include a memory 1430 for storing instructions executed by processor 1410, input data required by processor 1410 to execute instructions, or data generated after processor 1410 executes instructions.

[0209] When the communication device 1400 is used to implement the method shown in FIG. 5 , the processor 1410 is used to implement the functions of the processing unit 1310 , and the interface circuit 1420 is used to implement the functions of the transceiver unit 1320 .

[0210] When the above-mentioned communication device is a chip applied to a terminal, the terminal chip implements the functions of the terminal in the above-mentioned method embodiment. When the terminal chip receives information from the base station, it can be understood that the information is first received by other modules in the terminal (such as a radio frequency module or antenna) and then sent to the terminal chip by these modules. When the terminal chip sends information to the base station, it can be understood that the information is first sent to other modules in the terminal (such as a radio frequency module or antenna) and then sent to the base station by these modules.

[0211] When the above-mentioned communication device is a chip applied to a base station, the base station chip implements the functions of the base station in the above-mentioned method embodiment. When the base station chip receives information from the terminal, it can be understood that the information is first received by other modules in the base station (such as a radio frequency module or antenna) and then sent to the base station chip by these modules. When the base station chip sends information to the terminal, it can be understood that the information is sent to other modules in the base station (such as a radio frequency module or antenna) and then sent to the terminal by these modules.

[0212] In this application, when entity A sends information to entity B, it can be done directly from A to B or indirectly through another entity. Similarly, when entity B receives information from entity A, it can be done directly from entity B or indirectly through another entity. Entities A and B herein can be RAN nodes or terminals, or modules within a RAN node or terminal. The sending and receiving of information can be information exchange between a RAN node and a terminal, for example, between a base station and a terminal; the sending and receiving of information can also be information exchange between two RAN nodes, for example, between a CU and a DU; the sending and receiving of information can also be information exchange between different modules within a device, for example, between a terminal chip and other modules in the terminal, or between a base station chip and other modules within the base station.

[0213] 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.

[0214] 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.

[0215] 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.

[0216] The terms "first" and "second" in the specification and drawings of this application are used to distinguish objects or to distinguish the processing of the same object. Words such as "first" and "second" can distinguish identical or similar items with substantially the same functions and effects. For example, the first device and the second device are merely used to distinguish different devices and do not limit their order. Those skilled in the art will understand that words such as "first" and "second" do not limit the quantity or execution order, and words such as "first" and "second" do not necessarily mean different.

[0217] "At least one" means one or more, and "a plurality" means two or more.

[0218] "And / or" describes the association relationship of associated objects, indicating that there can be three relationships. 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. The character " / " generally indicates that the previous and next associated objects are in an "or" relationship. "At least one of the following" or similar expressions refers to any combination of these items, including any combination of single or plural items. For example, at least one of a, b, or c can mean: a, b, c, ab, ac, bc, or abc, where a, b, c can be single or plural.

[0219] Furthermore, the terms "including," "having," and any variations thereof, as used in the description of this application are intended to cover non-exclusive inclusions. For example, a process, method, system, product, or apparatus comprising a series of steps or units is not limited to the listed steps or units, but may optionally include other steps or units not listed, or may optionally include other steps or units inherent to the process, method, product, or apparatus.

[0220] It should be noted that in the embodiments of this application, words such as "exemplary" or "for example" are used to indicate examples, illustrations, or descriptions. Any embodiment or design described as "exemplary" or "for example" in the embodiments of this application should not be interpreted as being more preferred or advantageous over other embodiments or designs. Rather, the use of words such as "exemplary" or "for example" is intended to present the relevant concepts in a concrete manner.

Claims

1. A communication method, characterized in that: The method comprises: Receive first indication information and N first reference signals; the first indication information is used to indicate the N first reference signals of K groups, where N and K are integers greater than 1, and N is greater than or equal to K; Sending first feedback information; the first feedback information is used by a sending device to determine a first beam for transmitting data; the first feedback information is determined based on multiple first reference signals in one of the K groups of first reference signals.

2. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that The first feedback information is determined based on a first group of reference signals, the first group of reference signals includes a first target reference signal and a second target reference signal, and the first feedback information is determined based on received energy of the first target reference signal and received energy of the second target reference signal.

3. The method according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that: Also includes: Receiving second indication information and M second reference signals; The second indication information is used to indicate M second reference signals of U groups, where U and M are positive integers greater than or equal to 1; wherein M is less than N; Sending second feedback information, where the second feedback information is used by the sending device to determine a second beam for transmitting data; The second feedback information is determined according to a plurality of second reference signals in one group of the U groups of second reference signals.

4. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that: The first indication information includes identifiers of N first reference signals, where the identifiers of the first reference signals are one or more of the following identifiers: a group identifier of the first reference signal, a resource identifier of the first reference signal; the identifier of the first reference signal is used to determine the grouping of the first reference signal.

5. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that: The first feedback information includes first target feedback information and second target feedback information; the first target feedback information is used to determine a first direction of the first beam, and the second target feedback information is used to determine a second direction of the first beam, and the first direction is different from the second direction.

6. The method according to claim 5, characterized in that The first group of reference signals also includes a third target reference signal, the first target reference signal and the second target reference signal are used to determine first target feedback information, and the first target reference signal and the third target reference signal are used to determine second target feedback information; Alternatively, the first group of reference signals further includes a third target reference signal and a fourth target reference signal, the first target reference signal and the second target reference signal are used to determine first target feedback information, and the first target reference signal and the third target reference signal are used to determine second target feedback information; Alternatively, the first group of reference signals also includes a third target reference signal and a fourth target reference signal, the first target reference signal and the third target reference signal are used to determine the first target feedback information, and the second target reference signal and the fourth target reference signal are used to determine the first target feedback information.

7. The method according to claim 6, characterized in that In a case where the first group of reference signals also includes a third target reference signal and a fourth target reference signal, if a sum of received energies of the first target reference signal and the second target reference signal is greater than a sum of received energies of the third target reference signal and the fourth target reference signal, the first target reference signal and the second target reference signal are used to determine first target feedback information; If the sum of received energies of the first target reference signal and the third target reference signal is greater than the sum of received energies of the first target reference signal and the fourth target reference signal, the first target reference signal and the third target reference signal are used to determine second target feedback information.

8. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 7, characterized in that: The first feedback information is γ n , the γ n It is determined according to the following formula: β n represents the received energy of the first target reference signal, β n+1 Represents the received energy of the second target reference signal.

9. The method according to any one of claims 2 to 7, characterized in that: The first feedback information includes one or more of the following information: received energy of the first target reference signal, an identifier of the first target reference signal, received energy of the second target reference signal, and an identifier of the second target reference signal.

10. The method according to any one of claims 2 to 9, characterized in that: The first group of reference signals is a group whose sum of received energies of first reference signals is the largest among the K groups of first reference signals, or the first group of reference signals is a group whose sum of received energies of first reference signals is higher than a first threshold among the K groups of first reference signals.

11. A communication method, characterized in that: include: Sending first indication information and N first reference signals; The first indication information is used to indicate N first reference signals of K groups, where N and K are integers greater than 1, and N is greater than or equal to K; First feedback information is received, and a first beam for transmitting data is determined according to the first feedback information; the first feedback information is determined according to a plurality of first reference signals in one of the K groups of first reference signals.

12. The method according to claim 11, characterized in that The first feedback information is determined based on a first group of reference signals, the first group of reference signals includes a first target reference signal and a second target reference signal, and the first feedback information is determined based on received energy of the first target reference signal and received energy of the second target reference signal.

13. The method according to claim 11 or 12, characterized in that: Also includes: Sending second indication information and M second reference signals; the second indication information is used to indicate M second reference signals of U groups, where U and M are positive integers greater than or equal to 1; wherein M is less than N; receiving second feedback information, where the second feedback information is used to determine a second beam for transmitting data; The second feedback information is determined according to a plurality of second reference signals in one group of the U groups of second reference signals.

14. The method according to any one of claims 11 to 13, characterized in that: The first indication information includes N first reference signal identifiers, and the first reference signal identifier includes a group identifier of the first reference signal, or a resource identifier of the first reference signal; the first reference signal identifier is used to determine the grouping of the first reference signal.

15. The method according to any one of claims 11 to 14, characterized in that: The first feedback information includes first target feedback information and second target feedback information; The first target feedback information is used to determine a first direction of the first beam, and the second target feedback information is used to determine a second direction of the first beam, and the first direction is different from the second direction.

16. The method according to any one of claims 11 to 15, characterized in that: The feedback information is γ n , the γ n It is determined according to the following formula: β n represents the energy value of the first target reference signal, β n+1 Represents the energy value of the second target reference signal.

17. The method according to any one of claims 12 to 16, characterized in that: The first feedback information includes: received energy of the first target reference signal, an identifier of the first target reference signal, received energy of the second target reference signal, and an identifier of the second target reference signal.

18. The method according to any one of claims 12 to 17, characterized in that: The first group of reference signals is a group whose sum of received energies of first reference signals is the largest among the K groups of first reference signals, or the first group of reference signals is a group whose sum of received energies of first reference signals is higher than a first threshold among the K groups of first reference signals.

19. The method according to any one of claims 11 to 18, characterized in that: Also includes: Beam information of a first beam group is sent, where beams in the first beam group are associated with the M second reference signals.

20. The method according to claim 19, characterized in that The first beam group includes a first target beam and a second target beam, wherein the pointing angle of the first target beam in the first direction is greater than the pointing angle of the first beam in the first direction, and the pointing angle of the second target beam in the first direction is less than the pointing angle of the first beam in the first direction.

21. The method according to claim 20, characterized in that The first beam group also includes a third target beam and a fourth target beam, wherein the pointing angle of the third target beam in the second direction is greater than the pointing angle of the first beam in the second direction, and the pointing angle of the fourth target beam in the second direction is less than the pointing angle of the first beam in the second direction.

22. A communication method, characterized in that: include: Receiving beam information of a first beam group, where beams in the first beam group are associated with the M second reference signals; M is a positive integer greater than or equal to 1; According to beam information of the first beam group, a signal is sent through a beam in the first beam group; the beam in the first beam group is determined according to the first beam, the first beam is a beam for transmitting data determined by a sending device according to first feedback information, and the first feedback information is determined by the sending device according to multiple first reference signals in one group of N first reference signals of K groups; wherein M is less than N.

23. The communication method according to claim 22, characterized in that: The first beam group includes a first target beam and a second target beam, wherein the pointing angle of the first target beam in the first direction is greater than the pointing angle of the first beam in the first direction, and the pointing angle of the second target beam in the first direction is less than the pointing angle of the first beam in the first direction.

24. The communication method according to claim 23, characterized in that: The first beam group also includes a third target beam and a fourth target beam, wherein the pointing angle of the third target beam in the second direction is greater than the pointing angle of the first beam in the second direction, and the pointing angle of the fourth target beam in the second direction is less than the pointing angle of the first beam in the second direction.

25. A computer-readable storage medium, wherein instructions are stored in the computer-readable storage medium, characterized in that: When the instruction is executed on a communication device, the communication device is caused to execute the method as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 10, or the communication device is caused to execute the method as claimed in any one of claims 11 to 21, or the communication device is caused to execute the method as claimed in any one of claims 22 to 24.

26. A communication device, characterized in that: Comprising a module for executing the method according to any one of claims 1 to 10, or comprising a module for executing the method according to any one of claims 11 to 21, or comprising a module for executing the method according to any one of claims 22 to 24.

27. A communication device, characterized in that: include: Processor and memory; The memory is used to store computer instructions. When the processor executes the computer instructions, the communication device executes the communication method as described in any one of claims 1 to 10, or the communication device executes the communication method as described in any one of claims 11 to 21, or the communication device executes the communication method as described in any one of claims 22 to 24.

28. A communication system, characterized in that: The method comprises a first communication device and a second communication device, wherein the first communication device executes the communication method according to any one of claims 11 to 21, and the second communication device executes the communication method according to any one of claims 22 to 24.

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