Frame structure indication method and communication apparatus

Abstract

Provided in the present application are a frame structure indication method and a communication apparatus. The method comprises: a first node sending first indication information, a first frame structure pattern being used for indicating the types of information that a plurality of first time-frequency resource units comprised in a first target time-frequency resource are respectively used for transmitting, the frequency domain width of the first time-frequency resource units being less than the total frequency domain width of the first target time-frequency resource, and the first frame structure pattern comprising at least two first time-frequency resource units in the frequency domain; and performing information transmission according to the first frame structure pattern. Since the first frame structure pattern comprises the at least two first resource units in the frequency domain, different resource units in the same time domain can correspond to different transmission information, so that uplink, downlink or full-duplex transmission can be performed in the same time period by means of the different resource units, thereby achieving flexible resource scheduling to satisfy communication requirements under different conditions.

Description

Frame structure indication method and communication device

[0001] CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

[0002] This application claims priority to the Chinese patent application filed with the State Intellectual Property Office of the People's Republic of China on December 15, 2023, with application number 202311734602.5 and application name "A Frame Structure Indication Method and Communication Device", all contents of which are incorporated by reference into this application. Technical Field

[0003] The embodiments of the present application relate to the field of wireless communications, and in particular to a frame structure indication method and a communication device. Background Art

[0004] Ultra-reliability, low-latency communication (URLLC) is one of the three major 5G application scenarios and a defining feature that distinguishes 5G from 2G, 3G, and 4G. As a breakthrough for the mobile communications industry to penetrate vertical industries, URLLC is crucial for widespread adoption in areas such as autonomous driving, industrial manufacturing, connected vehicles, and smart grids. It has been comprehensively enhanced in 3GPP NR Release 16.

[0005] URLLC scenarios are characterized by low latency and high reliability. URLLC has a wide range of applications, and different scenarios may have different requirements for latency, reliability, and bandwidth. URLLC applications include at least power automation (remote control, remote control, and telematics), Internet of Vehicles (IoV), and industrial manufacturing.

[0006] In a semi-static sub-band full-duplex (SBFD) uplink (UL) subband, frequency domain resources account for approximately 20% to 25% of the bandwidth. Dynamic SBFD uplink and downlink configurations are more flexible than semi-static SBFD. The base station can flexibly configure uplink and downlink transmissions at different times based on uplink and downlink traffic. Compared to dynamic time division duplex (TDD), dynamic SBFD allows UL transmissions at any time, resulting in lower latency.

[0007] However, the current frame structure indication method is based on the TDD or FDD mode, and there is no applicable frame structure indication method for a more flexible uplink and downlink configuration scenario. Summary of the Invention

[0008] The present application provides a frame structure indication method and a communication device for implementing frame structure configuration applicable to SBFD scenarios to avoid the problem that a frame structure configuration based on TDD may cause a conflict.

[0009] In the first aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a frame structure indication method, including: sending first indication information, the first indication information is used to determine a first frame structure pattern, the first frame structure pattern is used to indicate the information type used for transmission of multiple first time-frequency resource units contained in the first target time-frequency resource, the frequency domain width of the first time-frequency resource unit is smaller than the total frequency domain width of the first target time-frequency resource, and the first frame structure pattern includes at least two first time-frequency resource units in the frequency domain; information transmission is performed according to the first frame structure pattern.

[0010] In the traditional frame structure indication method, the frame structure pattern includes only one resource unit in the frequency domain, and its width in the frequency domain is equal to the available frequency bandwidth. Therefore, the traditional frame structure indication method cannot be applied to more flexible scenarios. In the above embodiment of the present application, the first node can indicate to one or more second nodes the type of information used for transmission of each first resource unit in the first frame structure pattern through the first indication information; and the target resource corresponding to the first frame structure pattern includes at least two first time-frequency resource units in the frequency domain, so the width of the first time-frequency resource unit in the frequency domain is less than the available frequency bandwidth. Since the target resource includes at least two first time-frequency resource units in the frequency domain, different time-frequency resource units in the same time domain can correspond to different information types, thereby achieving uplink transmission, downlink transmission, full-duplex transmission or flexible scheduling through different resource units in the same time period, thereby achieving more flexible resource scheduling to meet communication needs in different situations.

[0011] In one possible implementation, the method further includes: sending second indication information, where the second indication information is used to indicate the frequency domain width and / or time domain length of each of the first time-frequency resource units. In this implementation, the first node may notify the second node of the frequency domain width and / or time domain length of the first time-frequency resource unit via the second indication information; alternatively, the frequency domain width and / or time domain length of the first time-frequency resource unit may be pre-agreed upon, or may be carried in the first indication information and sent to the second node.

[0012] In one possible implementation, after transmitting information according to the first frame structure pattern, the method further includes: sending third indication information, the third indication information being used to determine a second frame structure pattern, the second frame structure pattern being used to indicate the type of information to be transmitted by one or more second time-frequency resource units contained in a second target resource, the second target resource being a subset of the first target resource; transmitting information on the second target resource according to the second frame structure pattern; and transmitting information on resources in the first target resource other than the second target resource according to the first frame structure pattern. In this implementation, the first node and the second node may first transmit information according to the first frame structure pattern, and when it is necessary to indicate the use of the second frame structure pattern for the second target resource in the first target resource, the first node may then send the third indication information, and then the first node and the second node may then transmit information according to the first frame structure pattern and the second frame structure pattern; alternatively, the first node may first send the first indication information and the third indication information, and then the first node and the second node may directly transmit information according to the first frame structure pattern and the second frame structure pattern. The first frame structure pattern and the second frame structure pattern can be used to implement an increased frame structure indication at the cell level and a smaller frame structure indication at the user level, and can also be used to reduce CLI and self-interference.

[0013] In one possible implementation, the method further includes: sending fourth indication information, where the fourth indication information is used to indicate the frequency domain width and / or time domain length of each second time-frequency resource unit. In this implementation, the first node may notify the second node of the frequency domain width and / or time domain length of the second time-frequency resource unit via the fourth indication information; alternatively, the frequency domain width and / or time domain length of the second time-frequency resource unit may be pre-agreed, or may be carried in the third indication information and sent to the second node.

[0014] In a possible implementation manner, the information type includes at least one of the following: uplink transmission, downlink transmission, full-duplex transmission, or flexible scheduling.

[0015] In a possible implementation manner, the first target resource includes at least two first time-frequency resource units in the time domain, and the time domain lengths of the at least two first time-frequency resource units are the same or different.

[0016] In one possible implementation, the time domain lengths of different first time-frequency resource units are the same or different; and / or, the frequency domain widths of different first time-frequency resource units are the same or different. If the multiple first time-frequency resource units included in the first frame structure pattern are the same size in the frequency domain and the time domain, it can be called a regular frame structure pattern, and the indication process is simple, which is easy for the second node to understand. If the multiple first time-frequency resource units included in the first frame structure pattern are not exactly the same size in the frequency domain and the time domain, it can be called an irregular frame structure diagram, and the resource configuration is more flexible and changeable, and can adapt to more resource configuration scenarios.

[0017] In one possible implementation, any two of the first time-frequency resource units that do not overlap in the time domain overlap, partially overlap, or do not overlap in the frequency domain position; or, any two of the first time-frequency resource units that do not overlap in the frequency domain overlap, partially overlap, or do not overlap in the time domain position.

[0018] In a possible implementation manner, time domain lengths of different second time-frequency resource units are the same or different; and / or frequency domain widths of different second time-frequency resource units are the same or different.

[0019] In one possible implementation, any two of the second time-frequency resource units that do not overlap in the time domain overlap, partially overlap, or do not overlap in the frequency domain position; or, any two of the second time-frequency resource units that do not overlap in the frequency domain overlap, partially overlap, or do not overlap in the time domain position.

[0020] In one possible implementation, the third indication information is sent when there may be interference in information transmission according to the first frame structure pattern. When interference may occur, part or all of the information types in the first frame structure pattern can be changed through the second frame structure pattern, thereby helping to reduce CLI and self-interference, thereby helping to improve transmission quality; or, the first indication information and the third indication information are sent periodically, and the sending period of the third indication information is less than the sending period of the first indication information. In this case, the first node can periodically adjust the information type indicated by the first frame structure pattern through the second frame structure pattern indicated by the third indication information.

[0021] In one possible implementation, the priority of the third indication information is higher than that of the first indication information. In the traditional frame structure indication method, only the information type of the time-frequency resource unit used for flexible scheduling can be further indicated. If the time-frequency resource unit that has been indicated as being used for uplink transmission or downlink transmission by the first indication information is further indicated for other transmissions by the third indication information, the receiving second node will discard the third indication information and still transmit information with the first node according to the first frame structure pattern indicated by the first indication information. In the implementation provided by the embodiment of the present application, since the priority of the third indication information is higher, the second node will no longer discard the third indication information, but will transmit information on the second target resource according to the second frame structure pattern indicated by the third indication information, and transmit information on the resources other than the second target resource in the first target resource according to the first frame structure pattern.

[0022] In a possible implementation, the third indication information includes at least one of the following: location information of the one or more second time-frequency resource units on the second target resource; location information of the second target resource on the first target resource.

[0023] In a possible implementation, the first indication information includes at least one of the following: location information of the multiple first time-frequency resource units on the first target resource; location information of the first target resource on the available time-frequency resource.

[0024] In one possible implementation, the first indication information includes an identifier of the first frame structure pattern, or the first indication information includes a matrix corresponding to the first frame structure pattern, and the value of each element in the matrix represents the type of information used for transmission by the first time-frequency resource unit at the corresponding position in the first frame structure pattern.

[0025] In one possible implementation, the first target resource is a continuous frequency domain resource or a discontinuous frequency domain resource in the frequency domain; and / or the first target resource is a continuous time domain resource or a discontinuous time domain resource in the time domain.

[0026] In second aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a frame structure indication method, the method comprising: receiving first indication information, the first indication information being used to determine a first frame structure pattern, the first frame structure pattern being used to indicate the types of information respectively transmitted by multiple first time-frequency resource units contained in the first target time-frequency resource, the frequency domain width of the first time-frequency resource unit being smaller than the total frequency domain width of the first target time-frequency resource, and the first frame structure pattern comprising at least two first time-frequency resource units in the frequency domain; and performing information transmission according to the first frame structure pattern.

[0027] In a possible implementation manner, the method further includes: receiving second indication information, where the second indication information is used to indicate the frequency domain width and / or time domain length of each of the first time-frequency resource units.

[0028] In one possible implementation, after transmitting information according to the first frame structure pattern, the method further includes: receiving third indication information, the third indication information being used to determine a second frame structure pattern, the second frame structure pattern being used to indicate the type of information to be transmitted by one or more second time-frequency resource units contained in a second target resource, the second target resource being a subset of the first target resource; transmitting information on the second target resource according to the second frame structure pattern; and transmitting information on resources in the first target resource other than the second target resource according to the first frame structure pattern.

[0029] In a possible implementation manner, the method further includes: receiving fourth indication information, where the fourth indication information is used to indicate the frequency domain width and / or time domain length of each of the second time-frequency resource units.

[0030] In a possible implementation manner, the information type includes at least one of the following: uplink transmission, downlink transmission, full-duplex transmission, or flexible scheduling.

[0031] In a possible implementation manner, the first target resource includes at least two first time-frequency resource units in the time domain, and the time domain lengths of the at least two first time-frequency resource units are the same or different.

[0032] In a possible implementation manner, time domain lengths of different first time-frequency resource units are the same or different; and / or frequency domain widths of different first time-frequency resource units are the same or different.

[0033] In one possible implementation, any two of the first time-frequency resource units that do not overlap in the time domain overlap, partially overlap, or do not overlap in the frequency domain position; or, any two of the first time-frequency resource units that do not overlap in the frequency domain overlap, partially overlap, or do not overlap in the time domain position.

[0034] In a possible implementation manner, time domain lengths of different second time-frequency resource units are the same or different; and / or frequency domain widths of different second time-frequency resource units are the same or different.

[0035] In one possible implementation, any two of the second time-frequency resource units that do not overlap in the time domain overlap, partially overlap, or do not overlap in the frequency domain position; or, any two of the second time-frequency resource units that do not overlap in the frequency domain overlap, partially overlap, or do not overlap in the time domain position.

[0036] In one possible implementation, the third indication information is sent when there may be interference in information transmission according to the first frame structure pattern; or, the first indication information and the third indication information are sent periodically, and the sending period of the third indication information is less than the sending period of the first indication information.

[0037] In a possible implementation manner, the priority of the third indication information is higher than that of the first indication information.

[0038] In a possible implementation, the third indication information includes at least one of the following: location information of the one or more second time-frequency resource units on the second target resource; location information of the second target resource on the first target resource.

[0039] In a possible implementation, the first indication information includes at least one of the following: location information of the multiple first time-frequency resource units on the first target resource; location information of the first target resource on the available time-frequency resource.

[0040] In one possible implementation, the first indication information includes an identifier of the first frame structure pattern, or the first indication information includes a matrix corresponding to the first frame structure pattern, and the value of each element in the matrix represents the type of information used for transmission by the first time-frequency resource unit at the corresponding position in the first frame structure pattern.

[0041] In one possible implementation, the first target resource is a continuous frequency domain resource or a discontinuous frequency domain resource in the frequency domain; and / or the first target resource is a continuous time domain resource or a discontinuous time domain resource in the time domain.

[0042] In a third aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication device, comprising: a processor, the processor being coupled to a memory, the memory being used to store programs or instructions, and when the program or instructions are executed by the processor, the device executes a method as in the first aspect and any possible implementation of the first aspect.

[0043] In a fourth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication device, comprising: a processor, the processor being coupled to a memory, the memory being used to store programs or instructions, and when the program or instructions are executed by the processor, the device executes a method as in the second aspect and any possible implementation method of the second aspect.

[0044] In a fifth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a chip, comprising: a processor, the processor being coupled to a memory, the memory being used to store instructions, and when the instructions are executed by the processor, the chip implements the methods described in the first to second aspects above and any one of their implementation methods.

[0045] In a sixth aspect, embodiments of the present application provide a computer-readable storage medium storing instructions that, when executed on a computer, cause the computer to execute the method described in aspects 1 to 2 and any of their implementations.

[0046] In a seventh aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a computer program product comprising instructions, which, when executed on a computer, enables the computer to execute the method as described in the first aspect to the second aspect and any one of their implementations.

[0047] The technical effects that can be achieved in any of the second to seventh aspects mentioned above can refer to the corresponding technical effects that can be achieved in the first aspect mentioned above, and the repetitions will not be discussed here. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0048] Figure 1(a) and Figure 1(b) are schematic diagrams of traditional frame structures provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0049] Figures 2(a), 2(b), 2(c), 2(d), 2(e), and 2(f) are schematic diagrams of application scenarios provided in embodiments of the present application;

[0050] FIG3 is a schematic diagram of a flow chart of a frame structure indication method provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0051] FIG4 is a schematic diagram of a first frame structure pattern provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0052] FIG5 is a schematic diagram of another first frame structure pattern provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0053] FIG6 is a schematic diagram of another first frame structure pattern provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0054] FIG7 is a schematic diagram of a frame structure provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0055] FIG8 is a schematic diagram of a first frame structure pattern and a second frame structure pattern provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0056] FIG9 is a schematic diagram of another first frame structure pattern and a second frame structure pattern provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0057] FIG10 is a schematic diagram of another first frame structure pattern and a second frame structure pattern provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0058] FIG11 is a schematic diagram of a larger pattern of a first frame structure pattern provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0059] FIG12 is a schematic diagram of a smaller pattern of a second frame structure pattern provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0060] Figures 13(a), 13(b), and 13(c) are schematic diagrams of CLI and self-interference provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0061] FIG14 is a schematic diagram of another first frame structure pattern and a second frame structure pattern provided in an embodiment of the present application;

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

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

[0064] Sub-band full-duplex (SBFD) can be implemented by configuring the frame structure based on the current time division duplex (TDD) architecture. For example, the base station can first semi-statically configure the TDD frame structure and then dynamically indicate the subband used for uplink (UL) transmission on the semi-statically configured downlink (DL) symbols or flexible symbols.

[0065] When configuring the TDD frame structure, the frequency domain is configured in units of available bandwidth, and the time domain is usually configured in units of OFDM symbols. However, in SBFD scenarios, different frequency domain resources on the same time domain symbol can be used for uplink and downlink transmission respectively. In other words, the frequency domain can be divided into smaller units to enable uplink and downlink transmission at different frequency domain locations at the same time.

[0066] The following examples are provided with reference to Figures 1(a) and 1(b). For the frame structure shown in Figure 1(a), in semi-static configuration, symbols 1 to 4 can be configured as DL symbols, and symbol 5 as a UL symbol. In dynamic indication, symbols 1 to 4 can be dynamically indicated, with subband 2 used for UL transmission. For the frame structure shown in Figure 1(b), in semi-static configuration, symbols 1 to 4 can be configured as DL symbols, and symbol 5 as a UL symbol. In dynamic indication, symbols 1 to 4 can be dynamically indicated, with subband 1 used for UL transmission.

[0067] However, the TDD-based frame structure configuration method may cause resource conflicts. For example, if an OFDM symbol is configured as a DL symbol in the semi-static configuration, but part or all of the frequency domain resources of the OFDM symbol are configured for uplink transmission in the dynamic indication; since the priority of the semi-statically configured indication information is usually higher than the priority of the dynamic indication information, the user equipment (UE) may discard the dynamic indication and continue to perform downlink transmission on the OFDM symbol. For another example, if an OFDM symbol is configured as a UL symbol in the semi-static configuration, but part or all of the frequency domain resources of the OFDM symbol are configured for downlink transmission in the dynamic indication; since the priority of the semi-statically configured indication information is usually higher than the priority of the dynamic indication information, the UE may discard the dynamic indication and continue to perform uplink transmission on the OFDM symbol. For another example, if an OFDM symbol is configured to transmit a synchronization signal and a physical broadcast channel block (SSB) in a semi-static configuration, but part or all of the frequency domain resources of the OFDM symbol are configured for uplink transmission in a dynamic indication; since the priority of the semi-statically configured indication information is usually higher than the priority of the dynamic indication information, the user equipment (UE) may discard the dynamic indication and continue to receive the SSB on the OFDM symbol.

[0068] In view of this, an embodiment of the present application provides a new frame structure indication method for implementing frame structure configuration in an SBFD scenario to avoid the problem that a frame structure configuration based on TDD may cause conflicts.

[0069] The frame structure indication method provided in the embodiment of the present application can be applied to wireless communication systems, such as 5G communication systems, satellite communication systems, vehicle to everything (V2X) systems, etc., as shown in Figures 2(a), 2(b), and 2(c). The communication system architecture shown in Figure 2(a) may include a terminal device and a radio access network (RAN) device. The satellite communication system shown in Figure 2(b) may include a terminal device and a communication satellite. The V2X communication scenario shown in Figure 2(c) includes terminal device 1 and terminal device 2, and may further include a RAN device. The frame structure indication method provided in the embodiment of the present application is applied to the communication between terminal device 1 and terminal device 2.

[0070] Among them, the radio access network (RAN) equipment is used to implement functions related to wireless access. The radio access network can also be called access network equipment or base station, which is used to access the terminal to the wireless network. The radio access network can be a base station, an evolved nodeB (eNodeB) in an LTE system or an evolved LTE system (LTE-advanced, LTE-A), a next-generation base station (gNB) in a 5G communication system, a transmission reception point (TRP), a baseband unit (BBU), a WiFi access point (AP), a base station in a future mobile communication system, or an access node in a WiFi system. The radio access network can also be a module or unit that completes some of the functions of a base station, for example, it can be a CU, DU, CU-control plane (CP), CU-user plane (UP), or a radio unit (RU). RAN can also be an open access network (open RAN, O-RAN or ORAN). In the ORAN system, CU can also be called O-CU (open CU), DU can also be called O-DU, CU-CP can also be called O-CU-CP, CU-UP can also be called O-CU-UP, and RU can also be called O-RU. The embodiments of this application do not limit the specific technology and specific equipment form adopted by the radio access network. In the following embodiments, the radio access network is referred to as RAN for example.

[0071] A terminal device is a device with wireless transceiver capabilities. It connects wirelessly to a radio access network device, thereby gaining access to the communication system. Terminal devices may also be referred to as terminals, UEs, mobile stations, or mobile terminals. The terminal device can be a mobile phone, a tablet computer, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a computer with wireless transceiver function, a wireless data card, a wireless modem (modulator demodulator, Modem), a virtual reality (VR) terminal, an augmented reality (AR) terminal, a wireless terminal in industrial control, a whole vehicle, a wireless communication module in a whole vehicle, a telematics box (T-box), a roadside unit (RSU), a terminal device in unmanned driving, a terminal device in the Internet of Things (IoT) network, a terminal device in remote medical care, a terminal device in a smart grid, a terminal device in transportation safety, a terminal device in a smart city, or a terminal device in a smart home, etc. The embodiments of the present application are not limited to this. For the convenience of description, the following embodiments of the present application will be illustrated by UE.

[0072] Communications satellites can function as RAN equipment connected to ground stations, which in turn can connect to the core network via wireless or wired links. Terminal devices on the ground communicate with the satellite base station via the air interface, thereby accessing the mobile communications network. The communications satellite, acting as RAN equipment, connects to the ground station via an air interface (NG) interface. The ground station connects to the core network via an NG interface, which can be either wireless or wired. Downlink data sent from the communications satellite to the terminal device is channel-coded data, which the communications satellite modulates before transmitting to the terminal device. Similarly, uplink data sent from the terminal device to the communications satellite can also be channel-coded data, which is then modulated and transmitted to the communications satellite.

[0073] Alternatively, communication satellites can also serve as transmission nodes between ground-based terminal devices and ground-based RAN equipment. That is, base stations are deployed on the ground, and satellites connect to ground stations via air interfaces. Ground stations can connect to base stations via wireless or wired links. Ground-based terminal devices access the mobile communication network via air interfaces (which can be various types of air interfaces, such as 5G air interfaces). Satellites act as transmission nodes, forwarding information from terminal devices.

[0074] The communication satellites mentioned above may refer to drones, hot air balloons, low-orbit satellites, medium-orbit satellites, high-orbit satellites, etc. Communication satellites may also refer to non-ground base stations or non-ground equipment, etc.

[0075] It should be noted that the wireless communication systems mentioned in the solution of the present invention include but are not limited to: narrowband Internet of Things (NB-IoT) system, global system for mobile communications (GSM), enhanced data rate for GSM evolution (EDGE), wideband code division multiple access (WCDMA), code division multiple access 2000 (CDMA2000), time division-synchronization code division multiple access (TD-SCDMA), long term evolution (LTE) and the three major application scenarios of the next generation 5G mobile communication system: enhanced mobile broadband (eMBB), URLLC and enhanced machine type communication (eMTC).

[0076] In addition, the frame structure indication method provided in the embodiments of the present application can also be applied to communications between satellites. A satellite inter-satellite link communication system may include an APT subsystem and a communication subsystem, as shown in Figure 2(d). The communication subsystem is responsible for the transmission of inter-satellite information and is the main body of the inter-satellite communication system. The APT subsystem is responsible for capture, alignment, and tracking between satellites. Specifically, determining the incoming signal's direction is capture, adjusting the transmitted wave to aim at the receiving direction is alignment, and continuously adjusting alignment and capture throughout the communication process is tracking. To minimize the effects of attenuation and interference in the channel while ensuring high confidentiality and transmission rate, the APT can be dynamically adjusted to continuously adapt to changes in satellite position and inter-satellite environment. Currently, most APT subsystems are optical systems; most communication subsystems are optical communication systems, with some microwave band systems also available, often using a single high-gain antenna. Currently, most APT subsystems and communication subsystems are independent systems.

[0077] The frame structure indication method provided in the embodiment of this application can also be applied to data encoding and decoding in wireless screen projection, VR games, mobile phone software (application, APP), etc. Taking wireless screen projection as an example, the application scenario diagram can be shown in Figure 2(e).

[0078] The frame structure indication method provided in the embodiments of this application can also be applied to integrated access and backhaul (IAB) scenarios. As shown in Figure 2(f), an IAB communication scenario may include an IAB parent node (IAB doner), an IAB node (IAB node), and a terminal device. The link between the IAB parent node and the IAB node can be called a backhaul link, and the link between the terminal device and the IAB node can be called an access link.

[0079] The product form of the terminal devices shown in Figures 2(e) and 2(f) is not limited in the embodiments of the present application, and reference may be made to the terminal devices in Figures 2(a), 2(b) and 2(c).

[0080] The flowchart of the frame structure indication method provided in the embodiment of the present application may be shown in FIG3 , and may include the following steps:

[0081] Step 301: A first node sends first indication information, where the first indication information is used to indicate a first frame structure pattern.

[0082] Among them, the first node can be a wireless access network device in a wireless communication system, such as a gNB in ​​a 5G communication system; accordingly, the second node receiving the first indication information can be a terminal device. The first node can also be a communication satellite in a satellite communication system; accordingly, the second node receiving the first indication information can be a terminal device, or it can be another communication satellite. The first node can also be an IAB node or an IAB parent node in an IAB communication scenario; accordingly, the second node receiving the first indication information can be a terminal device. The first node can also be a TV in a wireless screen projection, or a device that interacts with a terminal device in a VR scenario, etc.; accordingly, the second node receiving the first indication information can be a terminal device. The first node and the second node can also be different terminal devices in a V2X communication scenario. In addition, the first node and the second node can also be other devices, which are not limited in the embodiments of the present application.

[0083] The first frame structure pattern is used to indicate the type of information to be transmitted corresponding to each of the multiple first time-frequency resource units included in the first target time-frequency resource. The frequency domain width of the first time-frequency resource unit is smaller than the available frequency bandwidth; the first frame structure pattern includes at least two first time-frequency resource units in the frequency domain and one or more first time-frequency resource units in the time domain.

[0084] Optionally, the information type used for transmission may include uplink transmission, downlink transmission, full-duplex transmission or flexible scheduling.

[0085] In the traditional TDD frame structure, the resources indicated by the frame structure have only one time-frequency resource unit in the frequency domain, that is, the frequency domain bandwidth. That is to say, in the traditional frame structure, all the frequency domain resources corresponding to one time-frequency resource unit are either all used for uplink transmission, all used for downlink transmission, or all used for flexible scheduling. In an embodiment of the present application, the available frequency domain bandwidth can be divided into multiple first time-frequency resource units, and different first time-frequency resource units in the same time domain can correspond to different information types, that is, in the same time, different first time-frequency resource units can transmit information in different directions.

[0086] For example, FIG4 exemplarily provides a first frame structure pattern applicable to an embodiment of the present application. As shown in the figure, the first target resource includes 18 time-frequency resource units, of which time-frequency resource units 1-3 are used for downlink transmission, time-frequency resource units 4-6 are used for flexible scheduling, time-frequency resource units 7-12 are used for uplink transmission, time-frequency resource units 13-15 are used for flexible scheduling, and time-frequency resource units 16-18 are used for downlink transmission. In the example shown in FIG4 , the three time-frequency resource units contained in each row overlap in the frequency domain, and the time-frequency resource units in different rows do not overlap in the frequency domain; the six time-frequency resource units contained in each column overlap in the time domain, but the time-frequency resource units in different columns do not overlap in the time domain.

[0087] For another example, FIG5 exemplarily provides a first frame structure pattern applicable to an embodiment of the present application. As shown in the figure, the first target resource includes 18 time-frequency resource units, of which time-frequency resource units 1-3 are used for full duplex (FD) transmission, time-frequency resource units 4-6 are used for flexible scheduling, time-frequency resource units 7-9 are used for uplink transmission, time-frequency resource units 10-12 are used for full duplex transmission, time-frequency resource units 13-15 are used for flexible scheduling, and time-frequency resource units 16-18 are used for downlink transmission. In the example shown in FIG5 , the three time-frequency resource units contained in each row overlap in the frequency domain, and the time-frequency resource units in different rows do not overlap in the frequency domain; the six time-frequency resource units contained in each column overlap in delay, but the time-frequency resource units in different columns do not overlap in the time domain.

[0088] For another example, FIG6 exemplifies another first frame structure pattern. As shown in the figure, the first target resource includes 10 time-frequency resource units, time-frequency resource unit 1 is used for downlink transmission; time-frequency resource units 2-4 are used for flexible scheduling, flexible scheduling, and uplink transmission, respectively; time-frequency resource units 5-6 are used for flexible scheduling, and time-frequency resource units 7-8 are used for uplink transmission; time-frequency resource unit 9 is used for flexible scheduling, and time-frequency resource unit 10 is used for downlink transmission. In the example shown in FIG6 , time-frequency resource unit 2, time-frequency resource unit 3, and time-frequency resource unit 4 overlap in the frequency domain and do not overlap with other time-frequency resource units in the frequency domain; time-frequency resource unit 5 partially overlaps with time-frequency resource unit 7 and time-frequency resource unit 8 in the frequency domain, but does not overlap with other time-frequency resource units in the frequency domain; time-frequency resource unit 5 overlaps with time-frequency resource unit 6 in the time domain, partially overlaps with time-frequency resource unit 1, time-frequency resource unit 9, and time-frequency resource unit 10 in the time domain, and does not overlap with time-frequency resource unit 7 and time-frequency resource unit 8 in the time domain.

[0089] In the first frame structure patterns shown in Figures 4 and 5, the multiple first time-frequency resource units included are of the same size in the frequency domain and the time domain; while in the first frame structure pattern shown in Figure 6, the multiple first time-frequency resource units included may be of different sizes in the frequency domain and the time domain. In an embodiment of the present application, if the multiple first time-frequency resource units included in the first frame structure pattern are of the same size in the frequency domain and the time domain, it can be referred to as a regular frame structure pattern; if the multiple first time-frequency resource units included in the first frame structure pattern are not of the same size in the frequency domain and the time domain, it can be referred to as an irregular frame structure pattern.

[0090] A regular frame structure pattern simplifies the indication process and facilitates understanding by the second node, as the first time-frequency resource units have the same size in the frequency and time domains. An irregular frame structure pattern makes resource allocation more flexible and adaptable to a wider range of resource allocation scenarios, as the first time-frequency resource units have different sizes in the frequency and time domains.

[0091] In one possible implementation, the first indication information may include an identifier of the first frame structure pattern. Multiple frame structure patterns can be pre-configured, and a corresponding identifier can be configured for each frame structure pattern; then the first node can carry the identifier of the frame structure pattern to be indicated when sending the first indication information, and the second node that receives the first indication information can determine the frame structure pattern corresponding to the identifier based on the identifier. For example, the identifier corresponding to the first frame structure pattern shown in Figure 4 is 1, the identifier corresponding to the first frame structure pattern described in Figure 5 is 2, and the identifier corresponding to the first frame structure pattern described in Figure 6 is 3; if the identifier indicated by the first indication information is 1, it indicates that the first frame structure pattern is the frame structure pattern shown in Figure 4; if the identifier indicated by the first indication information is 3, it indicates that the first frame structure pattern is the frame structure pattern shown in Figure 6.

[0092] In another possible implementation, the first indication information may also include a matrix corresponding to the first frame structure pattern. For example, when the first node indicates the frame structure pattern shown in FIG4 , the first indication information may indicate the matrix

[0093] In a specific example, the frame structure can be predefined. In an embodiment of the present application, the transmission information of each resource unit in the "frame structure pattern" is determined, as shown in Figures 4 to 6; and the "frame structure" can give the included time-frequency resource units and the positional relationship between multiple time-frequency resource units, but the transmission information corresponding to the time-frequency resource units is not determined. For example, Figure 7 exemplifies a frame structure. The first indication information is then used to indicate the type of information corresponding to each time-frequency resource unit in the frame structure, for example, it can be indicated in the form of a matrix.

[0094] Optionally, the first indication information may also include the position information of the one or more first time-frequency resource units on the first target resource, and / or, may also include the position information of the first target resource on the available time-frequency resources of the second node. For example, the first indication information may include the starting position and / or ending position of the first target resource in the time domain, and may also include the starting position and / or ending position of the first target resource in the frequency domain. For another example, the first indication information may also include the starting position and / or ending position of at least one first time-frequency resource unit in the first target resource in the time domain, and the starting position and / or ending position in the frequency domain.

[0095] Optionally, the first target resource may be a continuous resource or a discontinuous resource in the frequency domain; the first target resource may be a continuous resource or a discontinuous resource in the time domain.

[0096] Step 302: The first node and the second node transmit information according to the first frame structure pattern.

[0097] According to the first frame structure pattern, the first node can determine which resources on the first target resource can send information to the second node and which resources can receive information sent by the second node, thereby achieving communication with the second node.

[0098] The second node determines the information types corresponding to multiple first time-frequency resource units on the first target resource based on the first frame structure pattern, that is, each first time-frequency resource unit is used for uplink transmission, downlink transmission, full-duplex transmission or flexible scheduling. Then, the second node can determine which resources on the first target resource can be used to send information to the first node and which resources can receive information sent by the first node, thereby realizing communication with the first node.

[0099] In the traditional frame structure indication method, the frame structure pattern includes only one resource unit in the frequency domain, and its width in the frequency domain is equal to the available frequency bandwidth. Therefore, the traditional frame structure indication method is only applicable to the TDD mode and cannot be applied to more flexible scenarios. In the above embodiment of the present application, the first node can indicate to one or more second nodes the type of information used for transmission of each first resource unit in the first frame structure pattern through the first indication information; and the target resource corresponding to the first frame structure pattern includes at least two first time-frequency resource units in the frequency domain, so the width of the first time-frequency resource unit in the frequency domain is less than the available frequency bandwidth. Since the target resource includes at least two first time-frequency resource units in the frequency domain, different time-frequency resource units in the same time domain can correspond to different information types, thereby achieving uplink transmission, downlink transmission, full-duplex transmission or flexible scheduling through different time-frequency resource units in the same time period, thereby achieving more flexible resource scheduling to meet communication needs in different situations.

[0100] Optionally, the frequency domain width of the first time-frequency resource unit may be X resource blocks (RBs), X resource block groups (RBGs), X physical resource blocks (PRBs), X resource elements (REs), X predefined subbands, X predefined bandwidths, or X Hertz (Hz), etc., where X is an integer greater than 0. For example, the frequency domain width of each time-frequency resource unit in the first frame structure pattern shown in FIG4 may be 12 RBs, 6 RBGs, or 1 subband (e.g., including 10 MHz or 10 RBs), etc.

[0101] Optionally, the time domain length of the first time-frequency resource unit may be Y OFDM symbols (OS), Y mini-slots, Y time slots, Y predefined time units, or Y absolute time units (such as microseconds, milliseconds, seconds, etc.), etc., wherein Y is an integer greater than 0. For example, the time domain length of each time-frequency resource unit in the first frame structure pattern shown in FIG4 may be one or more slots (one slot contains 14 or 12 OSs), or one or more mini-slots (one mini-slot contains 2, 3, 4, or 7 OSs).

[0102] In the embodiment of the present application, the frequency domain width and / or time domain length of each first time-frequency resource unit in the first frame structure pattern may be fixed or variable. Optionally, the frequency domain width and / or time domain length of the first time-frequency resource units in different first frame structure patterns may be the same or different.

[0103] When the frequency domain width and / or time domain length of the first time-frequency resource unit is fixed, a possible design is: pre-agreed on the frequency domain width and / or time domain length of each first time-frequency resource unit in the first frame structure pattern, then the first node does not need to add the indication information to be sent, and the second node can determine the frequency domain width and / or time domain length of each first time-frequency resource unit according to the pre-agreed agreement. For example, it can be pre-agreed that the frequency domain width of each first time-frequency resource unit in the frame structure pattern shown in Figure 4 is X1 RBs and the time domain length is Y1 OS. For another example, it can be pre-agreed that the frequency domain width of time-frequency resource units 1, 9, and 10 in the frame structure pattern shown in Figure 6 is X2 RBs and the time domain length is Y2 OS; the frequency domain width of time-frequency resource units 2-6 is X3 RBs and the time domain length is Y3 OS; the frequency domain width of time-frequency resource units 7-8 is X4 RBs and the time domain length is Y4 OS.

[0104] When the frequency domain width and / or time domain length of the first time-frequency resource unit is fixed, another possible design is: the information of the frequency domain width and / or time domain length of the first time-frequency resource unit is carried in the information of the first frame structure pattern and sent to the second node together with the first indication information.

[0105] When the frequency domain width and / or time domain length of the first time-frequency resource unit is fixed, another possible design is that the first node can notify the second node of the frequency domain width and / or time domain length of the first time-frequency resource unit through the second indication information. Then the second node determines the first frame structure pattern and the size of each first time-frequency resource unit in the first frame structure pattern based on the first indication information and the second indication information, thereby transmitting information with the first node. The second indication information can be sent to the second node by the first node through static configuration of high-level signaling, or the first node can also send the second indication information to the second node through semi-static configuration of high-level signaling. For example, the first node sends the first indication information to indicate the use of the first frame structure pattern shown in Figure 4, and sends the second indication information to indicate that the frequency domain width of each first time-frequency resource unit in the first frame structure pattern is X1 RBs and the time domain length is Y1 OS. Since the first frame structure pattern shown in Figure 4 is a regular frame structure pattern, the second indication information does not need to indicate the frequency domain size of each first resource unit separately. For another example, the first indication node indicates the first frame structure pattern as shown in Figure 6 through the first indication information, and indicates the frequency domain width and / or time domain length of each first resource unit in the first frame structure pattern through the second indication information. Since the first frame structure pattern shown in Figure 6 is an irregular frame structure pattern, the second indication information can indicate the frequency domain width and / or time domain length of each first resource unit respectively, and can also indicate different frequency domain widths (and / or time domain lengths) and the first resource unit corresponding to each frequency domain width (and / or time domain length).

[0106] When the frequency domain width and / or time domain length of the first time-frequency resource unit is not fixed, one possible design is: the information of the frequency domain width and / or time domain length of the first time-frequency resource unit is carried in the information of the first frame structure pattern and sent to the second node together through the first indication information. Another possible design is: the first node can notify the second node of the frequency domain width and / or time domain length of the first time-frequency resource unit through the second indication information. Then the second node determines the size of the first frame structure pattern and each first time-frequency resource unit in the first frame structure pattern based on the first indication information and the second indication information, thereby transmitting information with the first node. The second indication information can be sent to the second node by the first node through semi-static configuration of high-level signaling, or it can be sent to the second node through dynamic indication information. In this implementation method, the first node can adjust the frequency domain width and / or time domain length of the first time-frequency resource unit based on factors such as the current communication scenario, throughput, and the amount of information to be transmitted, thereby achieving more flexible resource configuration.

[0107] In a possible implementation, the first node may also send a third indication message, and the third indication message is used to indicate the type of information for transmission corresponding to one or more second time-frequency resource units contained in the second target resource. The information type of the second time-frequency resource unit may also include uplink transmission, downlink transmission, full-duplex transmission or flexible scheduling. Among them, the second target resource is a subset of the first target resource, that is, the third indication message further indicates that part or all of the patterns in the first frame structure pattern will be changed to the second frame structure pattern. Since the first target resource can be continuous or discontinuous in the frequency domain / time domain, the second target resource can also be a continuous or discontinuous resource in the frequency domain / time domain. When sending the third indication message, the first node and the second node transmit information on the second target resource according to the second frame structure pattern, and transmit information on the resources other than the second target resource in the first target resource according to the first frame structure pattern.

[0108] For example, the first node indicates the first frame structure pattern shown in Figure 4 through the first indication information. The first node may indicate the second frame structure pattern corresponding to delay resource units 13-15 (i.e., the second target resource) through the third indication information, indicating that the information type used for transmission of the second target resource will be determined according to the second frame structure pattern. Before the first node sends the third indication information, the information type of the second target resource is determined according to the first frame structure pattern, indicating flexible scheduling; after sending the third indication information, the information type of the second target resource is determined according to the second frame structure pattern. For another example, the first node indicates the first frame structure pattern shown in Figure 4 through the first indication information. The first node may indicate the second frame structure pattern corresponding to first time-frequency resource units 4-9 (i.e., the second target resource) through the third indication information, indicating that the information type of the second target resource will be determined according to the second frame structure pattern. Before the first node sends the third indication information, the information type of the second target resource is determined according to the first frame structure pattern, including both first time-frequency resource units for flexible scheduling and first time-frequency resource units for uplink transmission; after sending the third indication information, the information type of the second target resource is determined according to the second frame structure pattern.

[0109] Optionally, the first node may send the third indication information after step 302. That is, the first node and the second node may first transmit information according to the first frame structure pattern, and then, when it is necessary to indicate the second frame structure pattern to be used for the second target resource in the first target resource, the first node may send the third indication information. Alternatively, the first node may send the third indication information after step 301, and then the first node and the second node may directly transmit information according to the first frame structure pattern and the second frame structure pattern.

[0110] Similar to the first time-frequency resource, the frequency domain width of the second time-frequency resource unit can be M RBs, M RBGs, M PRBs, M REs, M predefined subbands, M predefined bandwidths, or M Hertz (Hz), etc., where M is an integer greater than 0. The time domain length of the second time-frequency resource unit can be N OSs, N mini-slots, N slots, N predefined time units, or N absolute time units (such as microseconds, milliseconds, seconds, etc.), etc., where N is an integer greater than 0.

[0111] In an embodiment of the present application, the frequency domain width and / or time domain length of each second time-frequency resource unit in the second frame structure pattern may be fixed or variable. Optionally, the frequency domain width and / or time domain length of the second time-frequency resource units in different second frame structure patterns may be the same or different.

[0112] When the frequency domain width and / or time domain length of the first time-frequency resource unit is fixed, one possible design is to pre-agreed on the frequency domain width and / or time domain length of each second time-frequency resource unit in the second frame structure pattern. In this case, the first node does not need to send additional indication information, and the second node can determine the frequency domain width and / or time domain length of each second time-frequency resource unit based on the pre-agreed arrangement. Another possible design is to carry the information about the frequency domain width and / or time domain length of the second time-frequency resource unit within the information about the second frame structure pattern and transmit it to the second node via third indication information. Yet another possible design is to notify the second node of the frequency domain width and / or time domain length of the second time-frequency resource unit via fourth indication information. The second node then determines the second frame structure pattern and the size of each second time-frequency resource unit therein based on the third and fourth indication information, thereby transmitting information with the first node. The fourth indication information can be statically configured by the first node via higher-layer signaling, or semi-statically configured by the first node via higher-layer signaling.

[0113] When the frequency domain width and / or time domain length of the second time-frequency resource unit is not fixed, one possible design is: the information of the frequency domain width and / or time domain length of the second time-frequency resource unit is carried in the information of the second frame structure pattern and sent to the second node through the third indication information. Another possible design is: the first node can notify the second node of the frequency domain width and / or time domain length of the second time-frequency resource unit through the fourth indication information. Then, the second node determines the second frame structure pattern and the size of each second time-frequency resource unit in the second frame structure pattern based on the third indication information and the fourth indication information, thereby transmitting information with the first node. Among them, the fourth indication information can be sent to the second node by the first node through semi-static configuration of high-level signaling, or it can also be sent to the second node through dynamic indication information. In this implementation method, the first node can adjust the frequency domain width and / or time domain length of the second time-frequency resource unit based on factors such as the current communication scenario, throughput, and the amount of information to be transmitted, thereby achieving more flexible resource configuration.

[0114] The time domain lengths of one or more second time-frequency resource units indicated by the second frame structure pattern may be the same or different, that is, the second target resources may include second time-frequency resource units with the same time domain lengths, or may include second time-frequency resource units with different time domain lengths. Similarly, the frequency domain widths of one or more second time-frequency resource units indicated by the second frame structure pattern may be the same or different, that is, the second target resources may include second time-frequency resource units with the same frequency domain widths, or may include second time-frequency resource units with different frequency domain widths.

[0115] Optionally, any second time-frequency resource unit may be the same as or different from any first time-frequency resource unit, that is, the time domain length of any second time-frequency resource unit may be the same as or different from the time domain length of any first time-frequency resource unit, and the frequency domain width of any second time-frequency resource unit may be the same as or different from the frequency domain width of any first time-frequency resource unit. Taking Figure 8 as an example, the first frame structure pattern is shown in (a) of Figure 8, and the third indication information indicates that the second frame structure pattern corresponding to the first time-frequency resource unit 8 in the first frame structure pattern is shown in (b) of Figure 8. According to (a) and (b) of Figure 8, it can be seen that the time domain length of the second time-frequency resource unit is different from the time domain length of the first time-frequency resource unit in the first frame structure pattern; the frequency domain width of the second time-frequency resource unit is also different from the frequency domain width of the first resource unit in the first frame structure pattern. It should be understood that the above example uses the case where the frequency domain width and time domain length of the second time-frequency resource unit are different from those of the first time-frequency resource unit, but in actual applications, one or more second time-frequency resource units may have the same frequency domain width as part or all of the first time-frequency resource units, and may be different from the frequency domain width of part or all of the first time-frequency resource units; one or more second time-frequency resource units may have the same time domain length as part or all of the first time-frequency resource units, and may be different from the time-frequency length of part or all of the first time-frequency resource units.

[0116] Optionally, any second time-frequency resource unit may overlap, partially overlap, or not overlap with any first time-frequency resource unit in the frequency domain. Taking Figure 9 as an example, the first frame structure pattern is shown in (a) of Figure 9, and the third indication information indicates that the second frame structure pattern corresponding to the time-frequency resource units 4 and 7 in the first frame structure pattern is shown in (b) of Figure 9. According to (a) and (b) of Figure 9, it can be seen that the time-frequency resource unit 1 in the second frame structure pattern overlaps with the time-frequency resource unit 4 in the first frame structure pattern in the frequency domain; the time-frequency resource unit 4 in the second frame structure pattern partially overlaps with the time-frequency resource unit 4 in the first frame structure pattern in the frequency domain, and also partially overlaps with the time-frequency resource unit 7 in the first frame structure pattern in the frequency domain, but does not overlap with the time-frequency resource units 1-3 and 10-15 in the first frame structure pattern in the frequency domain.

[0117] Optionally, any second time-frequency resource unit may overlap, partially overlap, or not overlap with any first time-frequency resource unit in terms of time domain position. Taking Figure 10 as an example, the first frame structure pattern is shown in (a) of Figure 10, and the third indication information indicates that the second frame structure pattern corresponding to the time-frequency resource units 4 and 5 in the first frame structure pattern is shown in (b) of Figure 10. According to (a) and (b) of Figure 10, it can be seen that the time-frequency resource units one, four, and seven in the second frame structure pattern overlap with the time-frequency resource unit 4 in the first frame structure pattern in the time domain, but do not overlap with the time-frequency resource units 2-3, 5-6, 8-9, 11-12, 14-15, and 17-18 in the first frame structure pattern in the time domain; the time-frequency resource unit two in the second frame structure pattern along the frequency domain direction partially overlaps with the time-frequency resource unit 4 in the first frame structure pattern in the time domain, and also partially overlaps with the time-frequency resource unit 5 in the first frame structure pattern in the frequency domain, but does not overlap with the time-frequency resource units 3, 6, 9, 12, 15, and 18 in the first frame structure pattern in the time domain.

[0118] Optionally, the third indication information may also include the position information of the one or more second time-frequency resource units mentioned above, and / or the position information of the second target resource unit. For example, the third indication information may include the starting position and / or ending position of the second target resource in the time domain, and may also include the starting position and / or ending position of the second target resource unit in the frequency domain. For another example, the third indication information may also include the starting position and / or ending position of at least one second time-frequency resource unit in the second target resource in the time domain, as well as the starting position and / or ending position in the frequency domain. In a specific example, assuming that the first frame structure pattern indicated by the first indication information is the frame structure pattern shown in Figure 4, the first node wants to further indicate the first time-frequency resource unit 4, indicating the second frame structure pattern corresponding to the time-frequency resource unit 4, then in addition to indicating the second frame structure pattern, the third indication information may also indicate coordinates (1, 2) to indicate the first time-frequency resource unit in the time domain and the second time-frequency resource unit in the frequency domain, which are the positions of the second frame structure pattern.

[0119] In an embodiment of the present application, the second target resource indicated by the second frame structure pattern can not only be the first time-frequency resource unit for flexible scheduling determined according to the first frame structure pattern, but also the first time-frequency resource unit for uplink transmission, downlink transmission or full-duplex transmission determined according to the first frame structure pattern.

[0120] In the traditional frame structure indication method, only the time-frequency resource unit used for flexible scheduling can be further indicated in terms of its information type. If the time-frequency resource unit that has been indicated as being used for uplink transmission or downlink transmission by the first indication information is further indicated as being used for other transmissions by the third indication information, the receiving second node will discard the third indication information and still transmit information with the first node according to the first frame structure pattern indicated by the first indication information. In the embodiment of the present application, there is no restriction on the second target resource. By setting the priority of the third indication information higher than the priority of the first indication information, the time-frequency resource unit indicated as being used for uplink transmission, downlink transmission or full-duplex transmission by the first indication information can be further indicated by the third indication information, thereby determining the information type of the second time-frequency resource unit on the second target resource. Then the second node will no longer discard the third indication information, but will transmit information on the second target resource according to the second frame structure pattern indicated by the third indication information, and will transmit information on the resources other than the second target resource in the first target resource according to the first frame structure pattern.

[0121] In addition, the first indication information and the third indication information may also be indication information at different levels. For example, the first indication information may be cell-level indication information, and the third indication information may be user-level indication information. That is, the first frame structure pattern indicated by the first indication information is a frame structure pattern common to all terminal devices in the cell, and the second frame structure pattern indicated by the third indication information is a frame structure pattern specific to one or more terminal devices.

[0122] In the above case, the first frame structure pattern indicated by the first indication information is generally a larger pattern, that is, the time domain size and / or frequency domain size of the first resource unit is larger; and the second frame structure pattern indicated by the third indication information is a smaller pattern, that is, the time domain size and / or frequency domain size of the second resource unit is smaller. For example, Figure 11 exemplarily provides five larger patterns applicable to the first frame structure pattern; (a) and (b) in Figure 12 exemplarily provide smaller patterns applicable to the second frame structure pattern, which can be used to replace one or more first resource units in the larger pattern.

[0123] Optionally, the third indication information may also be sent periodically. For example, the sending period of the third indication information may be 0.5 ms, 0.625 ms, 1 ms, 10 ms, etc.

[0124] In addition, the first indication information may also be sent periodically, and the sending period of the first indication information may be greater than the sending period of the third indication information. For example, if the first indication information is cell-level indication information and may be carried in a system broadcast message of the cell and sent to terminal devices located in the cell, then the sending period of the first indication information is consistent with the sending period of the system broadcast message.

[0125] Optionally, the third indication information may also be sent dynamically, for example, by using physical layer signaling to send the third indication information.

[0126] Optionally, the third indication information may be sent to the second node when the first node determines that interference may occur or interference already exists when communicating according to the first frame structure pattern.

[0127] In wireless communication systems, cross-link interference (CLI) of dynamic SBFD and self-interference of the first node are relatively serious. Especially for URLLC services with high requirements on delay and reliability, CLI and self-interference will have a significant adverse impact on URLLC services.

[0128] As shown in Figure 13(a), if user 1 of the URLLC service is performing uplink transmission with base station 1, and base station 2, which is closer to base station 1, is performing downlink transmission with user 2, then the signal sent by base station 2 will generate inter-base station CLI for the signal received by base station 1.

[0129] As shown in Figure 13(b), if user 1 of the URLLC service is performing downlink transmission with base station 1, and user 2, which is closer to user 1, is performing uplink transmission with base station 2, then the signal sent by user 2 will generate inter-user CLI on the signal received by user 1.

[0130] As shown in Figure 13(c), if user 1 of the URLLC service is performing uplink transmission with base station 1, and base station 1 is also performing downlink transmission with user 2, the signal sent by base station 1 will cause self-interference to the signal it receives.

[0131] In order to avoid the occurrence of CLI and self-interference, the first node can estimate whether CLI or self-interference will occur before transmitting information with the second node based on the information type indicated by the first frame structure pattern. For example, the first frame structure pattern is shown in (a) of Figure 14, wherein the time-frequency resource unit in the shaded part can be used for uplink transmission. If downlink transmission is performed in the time-frequency resource unit adjacent to the time-frequency resource unit in the shaded part, base station self-interference may occur. In order to avoid self-interference, the base station can send a third indication information to the terminal device. The second frame structure pattern indicated by the third indication information can be as shown in (b) of Figure 14, wherein the time-frequency resource unit adjacent to the shaded part is no longer used for downlink transmission, thereby helping to reduce the base station self-interference problem. In the scenario shown in Figure 14, the second target resource indicated by the third indication information is the same as the first target resource. In some other embodiments, the second target resource indicated by the third indication information may also be only a part of the first target resource.

[0132] Alternatively, the first node may also perform CLI measurement. If it is determined based on the measurement results that the currently generated CLI has affected the communication quality or may affect the communication quality, then the first node may send a third indication message to change the information type corresponding to some or all of the time-frequency resource units in the first target resource, thereby reducing the CLI.

[0133] Alternatively, the first node may further communicate with other nodes to determine whether the other nodes have a large CLI or whether the other nodes will generate a large CLI for the first node; if the other nodes have a large CLI or whether the other nodes will generate a large CLI for the first node, the first node may send third indication information to change the information type corresponding to some or all of the time-frequency resource elements in the first target resource, thereby reducing the CLI. For example, gNB1 may communicate with gNB2 to determine whether gNB2 currently has a large CLI and / or obtain frame structure pattern 2 indicated by gNB2, and determine whether CLI will be generated when gNB2 transmits information according to frame structure pattern 2 and gNB1 transmits information according to frame structure pattern 1 indicated by itself, thereby determining whether it is necessary to send third indication information to change the information type corresponding to some or all of the time-frequency resource elements in the first target resource.

[0134] In another possible implementation, in order to avoid CLI and self-interference problems, the first node may also periodically send the first indication information and the third indication information, but the sending period of the third indication information is less than the sending period of the first indication information, so that the first node can periodically adjust the information type indicated by the first frame structure pattern through the second frame structure pattern indicated by the third indication information.

[0135] Optionally, the third indication information may be sent via group common downlink control signaling (group common DCI).

[0136] Optionally, the third indication information may be scrambled using a specific group radio network temporary identity (RNTI) or a cyclic redundancy check (CRC).

[0137] Figure 15 is a schematic diagram of a communication device provided according to an embodiment of the present application. The communication device includes a processing module 1501 and a transceiver module 1502. The processing module 1501 is used to implement data processing by the communication device. The transceiver module 1502 is used to receive content from the communication device to other units or network elements, or to send content from the communication device to other units or network elements. It should be understood that the processing module 1501 in the embodiment of the present application can be implemented by a processor or a processor-related circuit component (or, referred to as a processing circuit), and the transceiver module 1502 can be implemented by a receiver / transmitter or a receiver / transmitter-related circuit component.

[0138] Exemplarily, the communication device may be a communication device, or may be a chip used in the communication device, or other combined devices, components, etc. having the functions of the above-mentioned communication device.

[0139] When the communication device is a first node, the processing module 1501 sends a first indication information through the transceiver module 1502, where the first indication information is used to determine a first frame structure pattern, where the first frame structure pattern is used to indicate the types of information that are respectively used to be transmitted by multiple first time-frequency resource units contained in the first target time-frequency resource, where the frequency domain width of the first time-frequency resource unit is smaller than the total frequency domain width of the first target time-frequency resource, and where the first frame structure pattern includes at least two first time-frequency resource units in the frequency domain; the processing module 1501 transmits information through the transceiver module 1502 according to the first frame structure pattern.

[0140] In addition, the above modules can also be used to support other processes executed by the first node in the embodiments shown in Figures 3 to 12, Figures 13(a) to 13(c), and Figure 14. The beneficial effects can be referred to the previous description and will not be repeated here.

[0141] When the communication device is a second node, the processing module 1501 receives the first indication information through the transceiver module 1502, where the first indication information is used to determine the first frame structure pattern, where the first frame structure pattern is used to indicate the types of information that are respectively used to be transmitted by the multiple first time-frequency resource units contained in the first target time-frequency resources, where the frequency domain width of the first time-frequency resource unit is smaller than the total frequency domain width of the first target time-frequency resource, and the first frame structure pattern includes at least two first time-frequency resource units in the frequency domain; the processing module 1501 transmits information through the transceiver module 1502 according to the first frame structure pattern.

[0142] In addition, the above modules can also be used to support other processes performed by the second node in the embodiments shown in Figures 3 to 12, 13(a) to 13(c), and 14. The beneficial effects can be referred to the previous description and will not be repeated here.

[0143] Figure 16 is a schematic diagram of another communication device provided according to an embodiment of the present application, which includes: a processor 1601, a communication interface 1602, and further includes a memory 1603 and a bus 1604. The processor 1601, the communication interface 1602 and the memory 1603 can be interconnected through a bus 1604; the bus 1604 can be a peripheral component interconnect (PCI) bus or an extended industry standard architecture (EISA) bus, etc. The above-mentioned bus 1604 can be divided into an address bus, a data bus and a control bus, etc. For ease of representation, only one line is used in Figure 16, but it does not mean that there is only one bus or one type of bus.

[0144] Processor 1601 may be a central processing unit (CPU), a network processor (NP), or a combination of a CPU and an NP. The processor may further include a hardware chip. The hardware chip may be an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a programmable logic device (PLD), or a combination thereof. The PLD may be a complex programmable logic device (CPLD), a field-programmable gate array (FPGA), a generic array logic (GAL), or any combination thereof. Memory 1603 may be a volatile memory or a non-volatile memory, or may include both volatile and non-volatile memory. The non-volatile memory may be a read-only memory (ROM), a programmable read-only memory (PROM), an erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM), an electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), or a flash memory. Volatile memory can be random access memory (RAM), which acts as external cache memory.

[0145] The processor 1601 is used to implement data processing operations of the communication device, and the communication interface 1602 is used to implement receiving operations and sending operations of the communication device.

[0146] When the communication device is a first node, the processor 1601 sends a first indication message through the communication interface 1602, and the first frame structure pattern is used to indicate the information type used for transmission of multiple first time-frequency resource units contained in the first target time-frequency resource, and the frequency domain width of the first time-frequency resource unit is smaller than the total frequency domain width of the first target time-frequency resource, and the first frame structure pattern includes at least two first time-frequency resource units in the frequency domain; the processor 1601 transmits information through the communication interface 1602 according to the first frame structure pattern.

[0147] In addition, the above components can also be used to support other processes executed by the first node in the embodiments shown in Figures 3 to 12, 13(a) to 13(c), and 14. The beneficial effects can be referred to the previous description and will not be repeated here.

[0148] When the communication device is a second node, the processor 1601 receives first indication information through the communication interface 1602, where the first indication information is used to determine a first frame structure pattern, where the first frame structure pattern is used to indicate the types of information that are transmitted by multiple first time-frequency resource units contained in the first target time-frequency resources, where the frequency domain width of the first time-frequency resource unit is smaller than the total frequency domain width of the first target time-frequency resource, and the first frame structure pattern includes at least two first time-frequency resource units in the frequency domain; the processor 1601 transmits information through the communication interface 1602 according to the first frame structure diagram.

[0149] In addition, the above components can also be used to support other processes executed by the second node in the embodiments shown in Figures 3 to 12, Figures 13(a) to 13(c), and Figure 14. The beneficial effects can be referred to the previous description and will not be repeated here.

[0150] Based on the same technical concept, an embodiment of the present application also provides a computer-readable storage medium, in which computer-readable instructions are stored. When the computer-readable instructions are executed on a computer, the method described in any possible implementation method described above is executed.

[0151] An embodiment of the present application provides a computer program product comprising instructions, which, when executed on a computer, enables the above method embodiment to be executed.

[0152] An embodiment of the present application provides a chip, including: a processor, the processor is coupled to a memory, the memory is used to store instructions, and when the instructions are executed by the processor, the chip implements the method steps executed by any of the above nodes.

[0153] In the description of the embodiments of this application, "and / or" describes the association relationship between associated objects, indicating that three relationships can exist. For example, A and / or B can represent three situations: A exists alone, A and B exist at the same time, and B exists alone. The term "plurality" used in this application refers to two or more.

[0154] In addition, it should be understood that, in the description of the present application, words such as "first" and "second" are only used for the purpose of distinguishing the description, and cannot be understood as indicating or implying relative importance, nor can they be understood as indicating or implying an order. References to "one embodiment" or "some embodiments" described in this specification mean that one or more embodiments of the present application include specific features, structures or characteristics described in conjunction with the embodiment. Therefore, the statements "in one embodiment", "in some embodiments", "in some other embodiments", "in some other embodiments", etc. that appear in different places in this specification do not necessarily refer to the same embodiment, but mean "one or more but not all embodiments", unless otherwise specifically emphasized. The terms "including", "comprising", "having" and their variations all mean "including but not limited to", unless otherwise specifically emphasized.

[0155] The method steps in the embodiments of the present application can be implemented by hardware or by a processor executing software instructions. The software instructions can be composed of corresponding software modules, and the software modules can be stored in a random access memory, a flash memory, a read-only memory, a programmable read-only memory, an erasable programmable read-only memory, an electrically erasable programmable read-only memory, a register, a hard disk, a mobile hard disk, a 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. Of course, the storage medium can also be an integral part of the processor. The processor and the storage medium can be located in an ASIC. In addition, the ASIC can be located in a base station or a terminal. Of course, the processor and the storage medium can also exist in a base station or a terminal as discrete components.

[0156] 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.

[0157] In the various embodiments of the present application, unless otherwise specified or there is a logical conflict, the terms and / or descriptions between different embodiments are consistent and can be referenced by each other. The technical features in different embodiments can be combined to form new embodiments according to their inherent logical relationships.

[0158] It is understood that the various numbers used in the embodiments of this application are merely for ease of description and are not intended to limit the scope of the embodiments of this application. The order of the sequence numbers of the above-mentioned processes does not necessarily imply a specific order of execution; the order of execution of the processes should be determined by their functions and inherent logic.

Claims

1. A frame structure indication method, characterized in that: The method comprises: Sending first indication information, where the first indication information is used to determine a first frame structure pattern, where the first frame structure pattern is used to indicate information types that are respectively used to be transmitted by a plurality of first time-frequency resource units included in a first target time-frequency resource, where a frequency domain width of the first time-frequency resource unit is smaller than a total frequency domain width of the first target time-frequency resource, and where the first frame structure pattern includes at least two first time-frequency resource units in the frequency domain; Information transmission is performed according to the first frame structure pattern.

2. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that The method further comprises: Send second indication information, where the second indication information is used to indicate the frequency domain width and / or time domain length of each of the first time-frequency resource units.

3. The method according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that: After transmitting information according to the first frame structure pattern, the method further includes: Sending third indication information, where the third indication information is used to determine a second frame structure pattern, where the second frame structure pattern is used to indicate a type of information used for transmission by one or more second time-frequency resource units included in a second target resource, where the second target resource is a subset of the first target resource; Transmitting information on the second target resource according to the second frame structure pattern; On resources in the first target resources other than the second target resources, information transmission is performed according to the first frame structure pattern.

4. The method according to claim 3, characterized in that The method further comprises: Send fourth indication information, where the fourth indication information is used to indicate the frequency domain width and / or time domain length of each of the second time-frequency resource units.

5. A frame structure indication method, characterized in that: The method comprises: Receive first indication information, where the first indication information is used to determine a first frame structure pattern, where the first frame structure pattern is used to indicate information types that are respectively used to transmit by multiple first time-frequency resource units included in a first target time-frequency resource, where a frequency domain width of the first time-frequency resource unit is smaller than a total frequency domain width of the first target time-frequency resource, and where the first frame structure pattern includes at least two first time-frequency resource units in the frequency domain; Information transmission is performed according to the first frame structure pattern.

6. The method according to claim 5, characterized in that The method further comprises: Second indication information is received, where the second indication information is used to indicate the frequency domain width and / or time domain length of each of the first time-frequency resource units.

7. The method according to claim 5 or 6, characterized in that: After transmitting information according to the first frame structure pattern, the method further includes: receiving third indication information, where the third indication information is used to determine a second frame structure pattern, where the second frame structure pattern is used to indicate a type of information used for transmission by one or more second time-frequency resource units included in a second target resource, where the second target resource is a subset of the first target resource; Transmitting information on the second target resource according to the second frame structure pattern; On resources in the first target resources other than the second target resources, information transmission is performed according to the first frame structure pattern.

8. The method according to claim 7, characterized in that The method further comprises: Receive fourth indication information, where the fourth indication information is used to indicate the frequency domain width and / or time domain length of each of the second time-frequency resource units.

9. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 8, characterized in that: The information type includes at least one of the following: uplink transmission, downlink transmission, full-duplex transmission or flexible scheduling.

10. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 9, characterized in that: The first target resource includes at least two of the first time-frequency resource units in the time domain, and the time domain lengths of the at least two first time-frequency resource units are the same or different.

11. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 10, characterized in that: The time domain lengths of different first time-frequency resource units are the same or different; and / or The frequency domain widths of different first time-frequency resource units are the same or different.

12. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 11, characterized in that: Any two of the first time-frequency resource units that do not overlap in the time domain overlap, partially overlap, or do not overlap in the frequency domain; Alternatively, any two of the first time-frequency resource units that do not overlap in the frequency domain overlap, partially overlap, or do not overlap in the time domain position.

13. The method according to any one of claims 3-4, 7-8, characterized in that: The time domain lengths of different second time-frequency resource units are the same or different; and / or The frequency domain widths of different second time-frequency resource units are the same or different.

14. The method according to any one of claims 3-4, 7-8, and 13, characterized in that: Any two of the second time-frequency resource units that do not overlap in the time domain overlap, partially overlap, or do not overlap in the frequency domain; Alternatively, any two of the second time-frequency resource units that do not overlap in the frequency domain overlap, partially overlap, or do not overlap in the time domain position.

15. The method according to any one of claims 3-4, 7-8, 13-14, characterized in that: Any of the first time-frequency resource units overlaps, partially overlaps, or does not overlap with any of the second time-frequency resource units in the time domain; and / or Any of the first time-frequency resource units and any of the second time-frequency resource units overlap, partially overlap, or do not overlap in the frequency domain.

16. The method according to any one of claims 3-4, 7-8, 13-15, characterized in that: The third indication information is sent when there may be interference in information transmission according to the first frame structure pattern; or The first indication information and the third indication information are sent periodically, and a sending period of the third indication information is smaller than a sending period of the first indication information.

17. The method according to any one of claims 3-4, 7-8, 13-16, characterized in that: The priority of the third indication information is higher than that of the first indication information.

18. The method according to any one of claims 3-4, 7-8, 13-17, characterized in that: The third indication information includes at least one of the following: Position information of the one or more second time-frequency resource units on the second target resource; The location information of the second target resource on the first target resource.

19. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 18, characterized in that: The first indication information includes at least one of the following: Position information of the multiple first time-frequency resource units on the first target resource; The location information of the first target resource on the available time-frequency resources.

20. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 19, characterized in that: The first indication information includes an identifier of the first frame structure pattern, or the first indication information includes a matrix corresponding to the first frame structure pattern, and the value of each element in the matrix represents the type of information used for transmission by the first time-frequency resource unit at the corresponding position in the first frame structure pattern.

21. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 20, characterized in that: The first target resource is a continuous frequency domain resource or a discontinuous frequency domain resource in the frequency domain; and / or The first target resource is a continuous time domain resource or a discontinuous time domain resource in the time domain.

22. A communication device, characterized in that: include: A processor, wherein the processor is coupled to a memory, wherein the memory is used to store programs or instructions, and when the programs or instructions are executed by the processor, the device executes the method according to any one of claims 1 to 21.

23. A computer-readable storage medium, characterized in that: The computer-readable storage medium stores instructions, and when the instructions are executed on a computer, the computer is enabled to execute the method according to any one of claims 1 to 21.

24. A computer program product comprising instructions, characterized in that When the instructions are executed on a computer, the computer is caused to perform the method according to any one of claims 1 to 21.

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