Signal processing method and apparatus, and device, storage medium and chip

Abstract

A signal processing method and apparatus, and a device, a storage medium and a chip, which belong to the technical field of mobile communications. The method is executed by a positioning device and comprises: receiving positioning signals transmitted by one or more ambient energy Internet of Things devices (701); and on the basis of the positioning signals, acquiring the distance between the positioning device and each ambient energy Internet of Things device (702), wherein the distance between the positioning device and each ambient energy Internet of Things device is configured to position the positioning device.

Description

Signal processing method, device, equipment, storage medium and chip Technical Field

[0001] The present application relates to the field of mobile communication technology, and in particular to a signal processing method, apparatus, device, storage medium and chip. Background Art

[0002] With the continuous development of mobile communication technology, the demand for positioning based on mobile communication is also increasing.

[0003] In related technologies, two terminals can be positioned through the Internet of Things or a cellular network; for example, two terminals in the Internet of Things and a cellular network establish an Internet of Things connection or a cellular network connection, and then receive and detect signals through the Internet of Things connection or the cellular network connection to achieve applications such as absolute positioning, relative positioning, ranging, and direction finding.

[0004] Summary of the Invention

[0005] The embodiments of the present application provide a signal processing method, apparatus, device, storage medium, and chip. The technical solution is as follows:

[0006] In one aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a signal processing method, which is performed by a positioning device and includes:

[0007] Receive positioning signals sent by one or more environmental IoT devices;

[0008] The distance between the positioning device and the environmental energy Internet of Things device is obtained according to the positioning signal; the distance between the positioning device and the environmental energy Internet of Things device is used to locate the positioning device.

[0009] In one aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a signal processing method, which is performed by an ambient energy Internet of Things device, and includes:

[0010] A positioning signal is sent to a positioning device so that the positioning device obtains the distance between the positioning device and the environmental energy Internet of Things device according to the positioning signal; the distance between the positioning device and the environmental energy Internet of Things device is used to locate the positioning device.

[0011] On the other hand, an embodiment of the present application provides a signal processing device, the device comprising:

[0012] A receiving module, configured to receive positioning signals sent by one or more environmental IoT devices;

[0013] A distance acquisition module is used to obtain the distance between the positioning device and the environmental energy Internet of Things device according to the positioning signal; the distance between the positioning device and the environmental energy Internet of Things device is used to locate the positioning device.

[0014] On the other hand, an embodiment of the present application provides a signal processing device, the device comprising:

[0015] A sending module is used to send a positioning signal to a positioning device so that the positioning device obtains the distance between the positioning device and the environmental energy Internet of Things device according to the positioning signal; the distance between the positioning device and the environmental energy Internet of Things device is used to locate the positioning device.

[0016] On the other hand, an embodiment of the present application provides a positioning device, the positioning device including a processor, a memory, and a transceiver;

[0017] The memory stores a computer program, and the processor executes the computer program to enable the terminal device to implement the signal processing method executed by the positioning device.

[0018] On the other hand, an embodiment of the present application provides an ambient energy Internet of Things device, the ambient energy Internet of Things device including a processor, a memory, and a transceiver;

[0019] A computer program is stored in the memory, and the processor executes the computer program to enable the environment-enabled Internet of Things device to implement the signal processing method executed by the above-mentioned environment-enabled Internet of Things device.

[0020] On the other hand, an embodiment of the present application further provides a computer-readable storage medium, in which a computer program is stored. The computer program is loaded and executed by a processor to implement the above-mentioned signal processing method.

[0021] On the other hand, the present application also provides a chip, which is used to run in a communication device so that the communication device executes the above-mentioned signal processing method.

[0022] In another aspect, the present application provides a computer program product, the computer program product including computer instructions stored in a computer-readable storage medium. A processor of a communication device reads the computer instructions from the computer-readable storage medium and executes the computer instructions, causing the communication device to perform the above-mentioned signal processing method.

[0023] On the other hand, the present application provides a computer program, which is executed by a processor of a communication device to implement the above signal processing method.

[0024] The embodiments of the present application provide a signal processing solution for positioning. A positioning device can calculate the distance between the two through the positioning signal sent by the environmental energy Internet of Things device, and then realize the positioning of the positioning device, thereby expanding the application scenarios of the positioning function and improving the positioning effect. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0025] In order to more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present application, the following briefly introduces the drawings required for use in the description of the embodiments. Obviously, the drawings described below are only some embodiments of the present application. For ordinary technicians in this field, other drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without any creative work.

[0026] FIG1 is a schematic diagram of the architecture of a communication system provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0027] FIG2 is a schematic diagram of the zero-power communication involved in this application;

[0028] FIG3 is a schematic diagram of the radio frequency energy harvesting principle involved in this application;

[0029] FIG4 is a schematic diagram of the backscatter communication principle involved in this application;

[0030] FIG5 is a circuit diagram of a resistive load modulation system according to the present invention;

[0031] FIG6 is a schematic diagram of backscatter communication involved in this application;

[0032] FIG7 is a flowchart of a signal processing method provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0033] FIG8 is a flowchart of a signal processing method provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0034] FIG9 is a flowchart of a signal processing method provided by one embodiment of the present application;

[0035] FIG10 is a schematic diagram of communication between a target device and an anchor device involved in the present application;

[0036] FIG11 is a schematic diagram of communication between another target device and an anchor device involved in the present application;

[0037] FIG12 is a schematic diagram of a target device involved in the present application generating radio frequency signals of different frequencies;

[0038] FIG13 is a schematic diagram of the transmission processing of different frequency signals involved in this application;

[0039] FIG14 is a schematic diagram of frequency domain offset of a backscattered signal involved in this application;

[0040] FIG15 is a schematic diagram of an anchor device involved in the present application generating radio frequency signals of different frequencies;

[0041] FIG16 is a schematic diagram of an anchor point device involved in the present application obtaining backscattered signals of different frequencies;

[0042] FIG17 is a schematic diagram of the time domain offset of the backscattered signal involved in this application;

[0043] FIG18 is a schematic diagram of a target device involved in the present application sending a radio frequency signal to multiple anchor devices at the same time;

[0044] FIG19 is a schematic diagram of a target device scheduling an anchor device backscattering involved in the present application;

[0045] FIG20 is a block diagram of a signal processing device provided by one embodiment of the present application;

[0046] FIG21 is a block diagram of a signal processing device provided by one embodiment of the present application;

[0047] FIG22 is a schematic structural diagram of a communication device provided in one embodiment of the present application. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0048] In order to make the objectives, technical solutions and advantages of this application clearer, the implementation methods of this application are further described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0049] The network architecture and business scenarios described in the embodiments of the present application are intended to more clearly illustrate the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present application, and do not constitute a limitation on the technical solutions provided by the embodiments of the present application. A person skilled in the art will appreciate that, with the evolution of the network architecture and the emergence of new business scenarios, the technical solutions provided by the embodiments of the present application are equally applicable to similar technical problems.

[0050] Figure 1 shows a schematic diagram of a communication system according to an exemplary embodiment of the present application, which includes a network device 110, a terminal device 120, and an environmental energy IoT device 130, which is not limited in the present application.

[0051] The network device 110 in the present application provides wireless communication functions, and the network device 110 includes but is not limited to: Evolved Node B (eNB), Radio Network Controller (RNC), Node B (NB), Base Station Controller (BSC), Base Transceiver Station (BTS), Home Base Station (e.g., Home Evolved Node B, or Home Node B, HNB), Baseband Unit (BBU), Access Point (AP) in Wireless Fidelity (Wi-Fi) system, Wireless Relay Node, Wireless Backhaul Node, Transmission Point (TP) or Transmission and Reception Point (TRP), etc., and can also be the Next Generation Node B (NGNB) in the 5th Generation (5G) mobile communication system. The term "gNB" refers to a base station (B, gNB) or a transmission point (TRP or TP), or one or a group of antenna panels (including multiple antenna panels) of a base station in a 5G system, or a network node constituting a gNB or a transmission point, such as a baseband unit (BBU) or a distributed unit (DU), or a base station in a Beyond Fifth Generation (B5G) or a 6th Generation (6G) mobile communication system, or a core network (CN), fronthaul, backhaul, radio access network (RAN), network slicing, or a serving cell, primary cell (PCell), primary secondary cell (PSCell), special cell (SpCell), secondary cell (SCell), or neighboring cell of a terminal device.

[0052] The terminal device 120 in this application is also called user equipment (UE), access terminal, user unit, user station, mobile station, mobile station, remote station, remote terminal, mobile device, user terminal, terminal, wireless communication device, user agent, and user device. The terminals include, but are not limited to, handheld devices, wearable devices, vehicle-mounted devices, and Internet of Things devices, such as mobile phones, tablet computers, e-book readers, laptop computers, desktop computers, televisions, game consoles, mobile Internet devices (MIDs), augmented reality (AR) terminals, virtual reality (VR) terminals, and mixed reality (MR) terminals, wearable devices, handles, electronic tags, controllers, wireless terminals in industrial control, wireless terminals in self-driving, wireless terminals in remote medical care, wireless terminals in smart grids, wireless terminals in transportation safety, wireless terminals in smart cities, wireless terminals in smart homes (such as smart TVs, routers, smart speakers, etc.), wireless terminals in remote medical surgery, cellular phones, cordless phones, Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) phones, wireless local loops (WLANs), and wireless terminals in smart cities. Loop (WLL) stations, personal digital assistants (PDA), TV set-top boxes (STB), customer premises equipment (CPE), etc.

[0053] The network device 110 and the terminal device 120 communicate with each other via some air interface technology, such as a Uu interface.

[0054] Exemplarily, there are two communication scenarios between the network device 110 and the terminal device 120: an uplink communication scenario and a downlink communication scenario. Uplink communication refers to sending signals to the network device 110; downlink communication refers to sending signals to the terminal device 120.

[0055] The terminal device 120 and other terminal devices can communicate with each other through some air interface technology, such as a PC5 interface.

[0056] In some embodiments, there are two communication scenarios between the terminal device 120 and other terminal devices: a first sideline communication scenario and a second sideline communication scenario. The first sideline communication refers to sending signals to other terminal devices; the second sideline communication refers to sending signals to the terminal device 120.

[0057] The terminal device 120 and other terminal devices are all within the network coverage and located in the same cell, or the terminal device 120 and other terminal devices are all within the network coverage but located in different cells, or the terminal device 120 is within the network coverage but other terminal devices are outside the network coverage.

[0058] The environmental energy IoT device 130 is a zero-power device based on Radio Frequency Identification (RFID).

[0059] Ambient energy IoT devices refer to devices that use various environmental energies, such as radio frequency energy, light energy, solar energy, thermal energy, mechanical energy, etc. Such devices may have no energy storage capacity or have very limited energy storage capacity (such as using capacitors with a capacity of tens of uF).

[0060] In some embodiments, ambient power IoT devices may constitute an Ambient Power Enabled IoT (Ambient IoT for short).

[0061] The technical solutions provided in the embodiments of the present application can be applied to various communication systems, such as: Global System of Mobile communication (GSM) system, Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) system, Wideband Code Division Multiple Access (WCDMA) system, General Packet Radio Service (GPRS), Long Term Evolution (LTE) system, LTE Frequency Division Duplex (FDD) system, LTE Time Division Duplex (TDD) system, Advanced Long Term Evolution (LTE-A) system, Universal Mobile Telecommunication System (UMTS), Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access (WiMAX) communication system, 5G mobile communication system, New Radio (NR) system, NR system evolution system, LTE on unlicensed spectrum (LTE-U) system, NR on unlicensed spectrum (NR-based access to unlicensed spectrum) system. Unlicensed spectrum, NR-U) system, terrestrial communication network (Terrestrial Networks, TN) system, non-terrestrial communication network (Non-Terrestrial Networks, NTN) system, wireless local area network (Wireless Local Area Networks, WLAN), wireless fidelity (Wireless Fidelity, Wi-Fi), cellular Internet of Things system, cellular passive Internet of Things system, can also be applied to the subsequent evolution system of the 5G NR system, and can also be applied to B5G, 6G and subsequent evolution systems. In some embodiments of the present application, "NR" may also be referred to as a 5G NR system or a 5G system. Among them, the 5G mobile communication system may include non-standalone networking (NSA) and / or standalone networking (SA).

[0062] The technical solutions provided in the embodiments of the present application can also be applied to machine type communication (MTC), long term evolution technology for machine-to-machine communication (LTE-M), device-to-device (D2D) network, machine-to-machine (M2M) network, Internet of Things (IoT) network or other networks. Among them, the IoT network can include, for example, the Internet of Vehicles. Among them, the communication mode in the Internet of Vehicles system is collectively referred to as vehicle to other devices (Vehicle to X, V2X, X can represent anything), for example, the V2X can include: vehicle to vehicle (V2V) communication, vehicle to infrastructure (V2I) communication, vehicle to pedestrian communication (V2P) or vehicle to network (V2N) communication, etc.

[0063] Before introducing the technical solution of this application, some background technical knowledge involved in this application is first introduced and explained. The following related technologies can be combined with the technical solution of the embodiment of this application as optional solutions, and they all fall within the scope of protection of the embodiment of this application. The embodiment of this application includes at least part of the following contents:

[0064] 1) Zero-power communication

[0065] Zero-power communication adopts energy harvesting and backscatter communication technology. The zero-power communication network is composed of network equipment and zero-power devices, as shown in Figure 2, which shows the schematic diagram of the zero-power communication involved in this application. The network equipment is used to send wireless power supply signals, downlink communication signals and receive backscatter signals from zero-power devices to zero-power devices. A basic zero-power device includes an energy harvesting module, a backscatter communication module and a low-power computing module. In addition, the zero-power device may also have a memory or sensor for storing some basic information (such as item identification, etc.) or obtaining sensor data such as ambient temperature and ambient humidity.

[0066] The key technologies of zero-power communication mainly include radio frequency energy harvesting and backscatter communication.

[0067] -RF Power Harvesting

[0068] Please refer to Figure 3, which shows the RF energy harvesting principle involved in this application. As shown in Figure 3, the RF energy harvesting module uses the principle of electromagnetic induction to harvest electromagnetic wave energy from space, thereby obtaining the energy required to operate the zero-power device, such as for driving low-power demodulation and modulation modules, sensors, and memory reading. Therefore, the zero-power device does not require traditional batteries.

[0069] -Back Scattering

[0070] Please refer to Figure 4, which shows the schematic diagram of the backscatter communication involved in this application. As shown in Figure 4, the zero-power communication terminal receives the wireless signal sent by the network, modulates the wireless signal, loads the information to be sent, and radiates the modulated signal from the antenna. This information transmission process is called backscatter communication. Backscatter and load modulation functions are inseparable. Load modulation adjusts and controls the circuit parameters of the oscillation circuit of the zero-power device according to the beat of the data stream, so that parameters such as the impedance of the electronic tag change accordingly, thereby completing the modulation process. Load modulation technology mainly includes two methods: resistive load modulation and capacitive load modulation. In resistive load modulation, a resistor is connected in parallel to the load, and the resistor is turned on or off based on the control of the binary data stream. Please refer to Figure 5, which shows the schematic diagram of the circuit of resistive load modulation involved in this application. The on and off of the resistor will cause the circuit voltage to change, thereby realizing amplitude-shift keying (ASK), that is, the modulation and transmission of the signal is achieved by adjusting the amplitude of the backscattered signal of the zero-power device. Similarly, in capacitive load modulation, the resonant frequency of the circuit can be changed by switching the capacitor on and off, realizing frequency-shift keying (FSK), that is, the modulation and transmission of the signal is achieved by adjusting the operating frequency of the backscattered signal of the zero-power device.

[0071] It can be seen that the zero-power device uses load modulation to modulate the incoming signal, thereby realizing the backscatter communication process. Therefore, the zero-power device has significant advantages:

[0072] (1) The terminal does not actively transmit signals, so it does not require complex RF links, such as power amplifiers (PAs) and RF filters.

[0073] (2) The terminal does not need to actively generate high-frequency signals, so it does not need a high-frequency crystal oscillator;

[0074] (3) With the help of backscatter communication, terminal signal transmission does not need to consume the terminal's own energy.

[0075] -coding

[0076] The data transmitted by electronic tags can be represented by various codes to represent binary "1" and "0." RFID systems typically use one of the following encoding methods: Non-Return Zero (NRZ), Manchester, Unipolar Return-Zero (RZ), Differential Binary Phase (DBP), Miller, or differential encoding. In simple terms, different pulse signals are used to represent 0 and 1.

[0077] 2) Classification of Zero-Power Terminals

[0078] Based on the energy source and usage of zero-power terminals, terminals can be divided into the following categories:

[0079] a) Passive zero-power terminal

[0080] A zero-power terminal does not require an internal battery. When it approaches a network device (such as an RFID reader), it is within the near-field radiation generated by the network device's antenna. Consequently, the zero-power terminal's antenna generates an induced current through electromagnetic induction, which drives the low-power chip circuitry in the zero-power terminal. This enables forward link signal demodulation and reverse link signal modulation. For the reverse link, the zero-power terminal uses backscatter or low-power active transmission communication methods to transmit signals.

[0081] It can be seen that the passive zero-power terminal does not require a built-in battery to drive either the forward link or the reverse link, and is a true zero-power terminal.

[0082] Passive zero-power terminals do not require batteries, and their RF circuits and baseband circuits are very simple. For example, they do not require low-noise amplifiers (LNAs), PAs (power amplifiers), crystal oscillators, analog-to-digital converters (ADCs), and other devices. Therefore, they have many advantages such as small size, light weight, very low price, and long service life.

[0083] Passive zero-power terminals can also support other energy collection methods. By collecting energy from the environment (such as light energy, thermal energy, kinetic energy, mechanical energy, etc.), they can obtain energy for driving circuits and support terminal devices to communicate.

[0084] b) Semi-passive zero-power terminal

[0085] Semi-passive zero-power terminals do not have conventional batteries themselves. Instead, they use RF energy harvesting modules to harvest radio wave energy or environmental energy (such as solar energy, thermal energy, and mechanical vibration energy). This harvested energy is then stored in an energy storage unit (such as a capacitor). The energy storage unit then powers the low-power chip circuitry of the zero-power terminal, performing tasks such as demodulating forward link signals and modulating reverse link signals. For the reverse link, the zero-power terminal uses backscatter or low-power active transmission communication methods to transmit signals.

[0086] It can be seen that the semi-passive zero-power terminal does not require a built-in battery to drive either the forward link or the reverse link. Although energy stored in capacitors is used in operation, the energy comes from the radio energy collected by the energy harvesting module. Therefore, it is also a true zero-power terminal.

[0087] Semi-passive zero-power consumption terminals inherit many advantages of passive zero-power consumption terminals, so they have many advantages such as small size, light weight, very low price, and long service life.

[0088] c) Active zero-power terminal

[0089] In some scenarios, zero-power terminals can also be active zero-power terminals, which can have built-in batteries. The battery is used to drive the low-power chip circuits of the zero-power terminal. This enables tasks such as demodulating forward link signals and modulating backward link signals. However, for backscatter links, the zero-power terminal uses backscattering or active transmission to transmit signals. Although equipped with a built-in battery, this type of active zero-power terminal has extremely low power consumption and complexity, allowing for smaller battery capacity, resulting in lower cost and size. The built-in battery can also serve as an energy storage unit, allowing the energy harvesting module to store collected ambient energy, thereby achieving a longer maintenance cycle or even no maintenance required.

[0090] Active zero-power terminals are powered by built-in batteries to extend their communication range and improve communication reliability. Therefore, they are used in scenarios with relatively high requirements for communication distance and read latency.

[0091] Some zero-power terminals, such as semi-passive zero-power terminals or active zero-power terminals, may have the ability to actively transmit, that is, in addition to communicating through backscattering, the backward link may also communicate through active transmission.

[0092] Classification of zero-power devices based on transmitter type:

[0093] Zero-power IoT services, like other IoT services, will primarily focus on uplink services:

[0094] a) Zero-power devices based on backscattering

[0095] These zero-power devices use the aforementioned backscattering method to transmit uplink data. They lack active transmitters, only backscattering transmitters. Therefore, when these terminals transmit data, they require network equipment to provide a carrier, which they then use to perform backscattering to achieve data transmission.

[0096] b) Zero-power devices based on active transmitters

[0097] These zero-power devices use active transmitters with active transmission capabilities for uplink data transmission. Therefore, when sending data, these zero-power devices can use their own active transmitters to send data without the need for network equipment to provide a carrier. Examples of active transmitters suitable for zero-power devices include ultra-low-power ASK and ultra-low-power FSK transmitters. Based on current implementations, these transmitters can reduce overall power consumption to 400-600uW when transmitting a 100uW signal.

[0098] c) Zero-power devices with both backscatter and active transmitters

[0099] This type of terminal supports both backscatter and active transmitters. The terminal can determine which uplink signal transmission method to use: backscatter or active transmitter, based on various conditions (such as battery life and available ambient energy) or based on network device scheduling.

[0100] 3) Cellular Passive IoT

[0101] Cellular IoT is booming. 3GPP has standardized IoT technologies such as NB-IoT, MTC, and RedCap. However, there are still many scenarios where IoT communication needs cannot be met using existing technologies. For example:

[0102] - Harsh communication environment

[0103] Certain IoT scenarios may encounter extreme environments such as high temperature, extremely low temperature, high humidity, high voltage, high radiation, or high-speed movement. Examples include ultra-high voltage substations, high-speed train track monitoring, environmental monitoring in high-altitude cold regions, and industrial production lines. In these scenarios, existing IoT terminals will not function due to the operating environment limitations of conventional power supplies. Furthermore, extreme operating environments are not conducive to IoT maintenance, such as battery replacement.

[0104] -Requirements for extremely small terminal form factors

[0105] Certain IoT communication scenarios, such as food traceability, commodity distribution, and smart wearables, require terminals to be extremely small for ease of use. For example, IoT terminals used for commodity management in the distribution process often take the form of electronic tags, embedded in product packaging in a very compact form factor. Another example is lightweight wearable devices that can meet user needs while improving the user experience.

[0106] - Extremely low-cost IoT communication requirements

[0107] Many IoT communication scenarios require IoT terminals to be sufficiently affordable to enhance their competitiveness compared to alternative technologies. For example, in logistics or warehousing, to facilitate the management of large quantities of circulating items, IoT terminals can be attached to each item. Communication between the terminal and the logistics network enables precise management of the entire logistics process and lifecycle. These scenarios require IoT terminals to be competitively priced.

[0108] As 5G industry applications increase, the types of connected objects and application scenarios will increase, and there will be higher requirements for the price and power consumption of communication terminals. The application of battery-free, low-cost passive IoT devices will become a key technology for cellular IoT, enriching the types and number of 5G network connection terminals and truly realizing the Internet of Everything.

[0109] During standardization discussions, the term "zero-power IoT" (ZPEI) has been coined, often referred to as "ambient power enabled IoT," or "passive IoT" in some technical literature. Ambient IoT devices are those that use various ambient energies, such as radio frequency energy, light, solar energy, thermal energy, and mechanical energy, to power themselves. These devices may have no energy storage capacity or very limited energy storage capacity (e.g., using capacitors with a capacity of tens of microfarads). Compared to existing IoT devices, ambient IoT devices offer numerous advantages, including the absence of conventional batteries, maintenance-free operation, compact size, low complexity, low cost, and a long lifespan. They can be widely applied across various industries, including vertical logistics, smart warehousing, smart agriculture, energy and power, and the Industrial Internet. They can also be used in personal applications such as smart wearables and smart homes.

[0110] Based on the discussion of Ambient IoT application scenarios in 3GPP SA1, Ambient IoT can be used in at least the following four scenarios:

[0111] Object recognition, such as logistics, production line product management, and supply chain management;

[0112] Environmental monitoring, such as temperature, humidity, and harmful gas monitoring of working environment and natural environment;

[0113] Positioning, such as indoor positioning, intelligent object search, and production line item positioning;

[0114] Intelligent control, such as intelligent control of various electrical appliances in smart homes (turning on and off air conditioners, adjusting temperature), and intelligent control of various facilities in agricultural greenhouses (automatic irrigation and fertilization).

[0115] 4) Ambient IoT

[0116] In NR and Wi-Fi systems, the battery-free and low-cost nature of devices enables low-cost, large-scale deployment and maintenance-free IoT devices. Current standards are exploring how to support ambient energy-based IoT devices in NR and Wi-Fi systems. These devices, known as ambient IoT (AMP IoT), draw their operating energy from harvested ambient energy sources, such as wireless signals, solar energy, and thermal energy. These devices are similar to passive or semi-passive devices in zero-power communications.

[0117] A research project on Ambient IoT devices has been carried out in the 3GPP RAN. Ambient IoT devices are roughly divided into three types, each with corresponding complexity and communication capabilities.

[0118] Device A: It does not have the energy storage capability and cannot send independent signals, so it uses backscatter transmission.

[0119] Device B: It has energy storage capabilities but cannot transmit independent signals. Instead, it uses backscattering transmission and can use the stored energy to amplify the backscattered signal.

[0120] Device C: It has energy storage capabilities and can send independent signals, that is, it has active transmission capabilities.

[0121] Device A has the lowest complexity and power consumption, reaching as low as 1 μW. However, its communication range is limited, typically only a few meters. Device A requires a network device to provide a carrier signal for backscattering transmission. Device C typically has a large capacitor to store energy from the environment, consumes several hundred μW, and can support active signal transmission, thus providing a longer communication range. Because device C can perform active transmission, it does not require a network device to provide a carrier signal. Device B's complexity and power consumption are between those of devices A and C.

[0122] In addition, zero-power terminals can also support various types of environmental energy harvesting, such as radio frequency, solar energy, thermal energy, mechanical energy, etc. Among them, zero-power terminals based on radio frequency energy harvesting may require the network to provide radio frequency power signals.

[0123] 5) Indoor positioning technology

[0124] In outdoor environments, thanks to GPS systems and independent cellular systems, mobile terminal positioning can achieve high accuracy. However, in indoor environments and those with deep shadows, satellite and cellular signals are often interrupted, making positioning more problematic.

[0125] When satellite positioning is not possible indoors, indoor positioning technology is used as an auxiliary to satellite positioning, addressing the problem of weak satellite signals reaching the ground and failing to penetrate buildings. Ultimately, the current location of an object is determined. Indoor positioning refers to achieving location determination in indoor environments. It primarily integrates multiple technologies, including wireless communications, base station positioning, and inertial navigation, to form an indoor positioning system, enabling location monitoring of people and objects within indoor spaces.

[0126] 6) Phase rotation in backscattering

[0127] Please refer to Figure 6, which shows a schematic diagram of the backscatter communication involved in this application. As shown in Figure 6, a schematic diagram of backscatter communication is given. In the figure, the reader sends a radio frequency signal to a zero-power device (such as a tag), and the frequency of the signal is f and the wavelength is λ. The distance between the zero-power device and the reader is d. When the zero-power device receives the radio frequency signal sent by the reader, it can backscatter the signal and send it to the reader. The backscatter signal can be modulated to carry the information sent by the zero-power device, or it can be unmodulated. Generally speaking, due to the circuit implementation of the reader and the zero-power device itself, a corresponding phase offset / phase rotation will be introduced. In general, the phase difference between the backscatter signal received by the reader and the generated radio frequency signal can be expressed as:

[0128] in, is the phase rotation caused by the distance d during signal propagation, is the phase rotation caused by the reader and zero-power device circuit, that is,

[0129] Ambient IoT devices are low-complexity, low-cost, maintenance-free, and battery-free. They harvest energy from the environment and communicate via backscatter or low-power active transmission. This allows for high-density and large-scale deployment at a low cost. During deployment, they can serve as positioning anchors to assist in improving positioning accuracy. Examples include cargo positioning in logistics, animal positioning on livestock farms, low-power positioning of individuals and items, and indoor positioning in shopping malls.

[0130] Ambient IoT devices need to solve the problem of achieving positioning. They harvest energy from the environment to generate communication energy. This energy can be from radio frequency, solar energy, thermal energy, mechanical energy, and other sources. Compared to traditional battery-powered terminals, the communication capabilities of ambient IoT devices are affected by their energy status.

[0131] When performing positioning based on Ambient IoT devices, it is crucial to avoid the impact of energy status on positioning performance. Therefore, in order to achieve positioning based on Ambient IoT devices, this application designs a positioning solution that considers the impact of Ambient IoT's energy status on communication and supports ambient IoT devices with different communication methods.

[0132] Please refer to FIG7 , which shows a flowchart of a signal processing method provided by an embodiment of the present application. The method may be performed by a positioning device, wherein the positioning device may be the terminal device 120 in the network architecture shown in FIG1 . The method may include the following steps:

[0133] Step 701: Receive positioning signals sent by one or more environmental IoT devices.

[0134] Step 702: Obtain the distance between the positioning device and the environmental energy Internet of Things device according to the positioning signal; the distance between the positioning device and the environmental energy Internet of Things device is used to locate the positioning device.

[0135] To sum up, in the solution shown in the embodiment of the present application, the positioning device can calculate the distance between the two through the positioning signal sent by the environmental energy Internet of Things device, and then realize the positioning of the positioning device, thereby expanding the application scenarios of the positioning function and improving the positioning effect.

[0136] Please refer to FIG8 , which shows a flowchart of a signal processing method provided by an embodiment of the present application. The method may be performed by an ambient energy Internet of Things device, wherein the ambient energy Internet of Things device may be the ambient energy Internet of Things device 130 in the network architecture shown in FIG1 . The method may include the following steps:

[0137] Step 801: Send a positioning signal to a positioning device so that the positioning device can obtain the distance between the positioning device and the environmental energy Internet of Things device according to the positioning signal; the distance between the positioning device and the environmental energy Internet of Things device is used to locate the positioning device.

[0138] To sum up, in the solution shown in the embodiment of the present application, the environmental energy Internet of Things device can send a positioning signal, and the positioning device can calculate the distance between the two through the positioning signal sent by the environmental energy Internet of Things device, and then realize the positioning of the positioning device, thereby expanding the application scenarios of the positioning function and improving the positioning effect.

[0139] Please refer to FIG9 , which shows a flowchart of a signal processing method provided by an embodiment of the present application. The method can be interactively executed by a positioning device and an ambient energy Internet of Things device. The positioning device can be the terminal device 120 in the network architecture shown in FIG1 , and the ambient energy Internet of Things device can be the ambient energy Internet of Things device 130 in the network architecture shown in FIG1 . The method can include the following steps:

[0140] In step 901, one or more environmentally-enabled IoT devices send positioning signals to a positioning device, and the positioning device receives the positioning signals.

[0141] In some embodiments, when the environmental energy Internet of Things device sends a positioning signal to the positioning device, it can send multiple positioning signals of different frequencies to the positioning device.

[0142] Accordingly, when the positioning device receives positioning signals sent by one or more environmentally-enabled Internet of Things devices, it can receive multiple positioning signals of different frequencies sent by each of the one or more environmentally-enabled Internet of Things devices.

[0143] Ambient IoT devices have a simple structure, low complexity, and low cost, and are expected to be deployed on a large scale and at a high density. They support energy harvesting from ambient energy to obtain energy for communication. In terms of communication methods, they can support only backscattering communication methods (with or without energy storage capabilities), or only active transmission communication methods, or both backscattering (with or without energy storage capabilities) and active transmission communication methods.

[0144] High-density, large-scale deployment of zero-power terminals (such as the ambient IoT devices mentioned above) can serve as anchor devices with known locations, enabling more precise positioning, particularly in indoor environments, significantly improving positioning accuracy. In this application, the positioning device that needs to obtain its own location is referred to as the target device. The ambient IoT device with a known location is referred to as the anchor device.

[0145] When a target device needs to determine its own location, it can receive signals from nearby anchor devices. Based on the signals sent by the anchor devices, a positioning algorithm can be used to determine the distance between the target device and the anchor devices based on the characteristic information of the signals sent by the anchor devices (for example, phase information, signal strength information, and data information carried). Furthermore, the distance between the target device and multiple anchor devices can be determined based on the signals sent by multiple anchor devices (for example, at least three). Combined with the location information of the anchor devices, the target device's location can be determined.

[0146] The positioning process can be carried out by the target device actively receiving the signal sent by the anchor device, for example: the anchor device will periodically send the signal, or the anchor device will actively send the signal when the energy reaches a threshold; there is no need for the target device to first send a trigger signal of the positioning process to the anchor device; as shown in Figure 10, it shows a communication diagram of a target device and an anchor device involved in the present application.

[0147] Alternatively, the positioning process can be triggered by the target device, that is: the target device first sends a communication trigger signal to the surrounding anchor devices, such as a scheduling signal, to schedule the anchor devices to communicate; for example, the target device sends a broadcast / groupcast / multicast signal to trigger the signal sending process of the anchor device; as shown in Figure 11, it shows a communication schematic diagram of another target device and anchor device involved in this application.

[0148] In Figures 10 and 11, anchor devices can communicate using either backscatter or active transmission. Anchor devices harvest energy from the environment (including light, RF, thermal, and vibration) to obtain energy for communication. For anchor devices that harvest energy using RF, dedicated energy supply equipment can be deployed to provide the RF signals required for energy harvesting.

[0149] The target device can determine the distance between the anchor device and the target device based on the positioning algorithm based on the signal strength, phase information, and data information (such as location information) of the signal sent by the anchor device.

[0150] Signal strength: The target device estimates its own location based on the signal strength of multiple anchor devices (at least two, and at least three in some scenarios) combined with the location information of the anchor devices.

[0151] Phase information: When determining the distance from the anchor device based on phase, the basic principle is to convert the distance into a phase difference. The distance from the target device to the anchor device can be determined by the phase characteristics of the one-way (from the anchor device to the target device) or two-way (from the target device to the anchor device and then from the anchor device to the target device) signal. As shown in Figure 10 or Figure 11, when the target device communicates with the anchor device at a distance d, assuming that the frequency of the RF signal is f and the speed of light is c, when the signal reaches the target device from the anchor device, it will cause The corresponding signal is sent from the target device to the anchor device and then returned to the target device, resulting in Phase rotation. Theoretically, the target device only needs to measure the phase difference corresponding to distance d or 2d to calculate the distance d between the target device and the anchor device. However, in practice, when the target and anchor devices transmit and receive signals, corresponding phase rotation errors are introduced. Therefore, it is difficult to accurately estimate the distance d between the target and anchor devices based solely on the phase characteristics of a single frequency signal. These phase rotation errors will affect positioning accuracy.

[0152] Therefore, when positioning based on the phase characteristics of the signal sent by the anchor device, at least the phase characteristics (phase difference) of two signals with different frequencies are required for positioning. Taking two signals with different frequencies as an example, if only the phase difference of the one-way d is considered, the phase difference of the two frequency signals is Therefore, the one-way distance can be obtained by the phase difference of the two frequency signals and the corresponding frequency value. Correspondingly, if the round-trip signal phase difference is used The distance from the target device to the anchor device is

[0153] In order to reduce the impact of unknown phase rotation introduced by the target device and anchor device due to circuit structure or signal transmission and reception processing on positioning accuracy, auxiliary positioning processing can be performed using signals of multiple different frequencies (at least 2).

[0154] When performing phase-based positioning, the supported positioning distance is related to the frequency difference. The smaller the frequency difference between the two signals, the longer the supported positioning distance. In other words, the larger the mod(c / 2Δf) (the larger the fuzzy distance).

[0155] When positioning based on the phases of signals of different frequencies, it is necessary to determine the maximum frequency difference between the different signals sent by the Ambient IoT device based on the target scenario in which the Ambient IoT device is used and the maximum positioning distance.

[0156] For example, when supporting positioning with a maximum range of 300 meters, the frequency difference Δf needs to be less than 1 MHz.

[0157] In some embodiments, the positioning signal is a signal sent by the ambient energy IoT device based on backscattering of a carrier signal.

[0158] Ambient IoT devices that support backscatter transmission may not be able to independently generate the carrier signal required for communication. In this case, they need to rely on carrier signals provided by other devices to communicate based on backscatter. In this case, the anchor device collects energy from the environment to obtain energy for communication.

[0159] In some embodiments, the carrier signal is sent by a positioning device. When positioning is required, the positioning device provides the Ambient IoT device with a carrier signal for backscattering, thereby ensuring the indirectness of the system and reducing system complexity.

[0160] Alternatively, the above-mentioned carrier signal is sent by a third-party device other than the positioning device and the ambient IoT device; when the positioning device needs to perform positioning, the third-party device can provide the carrier signal used for backscattering to the Ambient IoT device, which can support more application scenarios and improve the flexibility of carrier signal transmission.

[0161] In some embodiments, when the carrier signal is sent by a positioning device, the carrier signal and the trigger signal are the same signal; the trigger signal is a signal sent by the positioning device, and the trigger signal is used to trigger the environmental IoT device to send a positioning signal; in this case, the trigger signal can be reused as a carrier signal to reduce signal interaction and improve communication efficiency.

[0162] Alternatively, the carrier signal and the trigger signal are different signals; in this case, the carrier signal can be sent separately, thereby improving the flexibility of carrier signal sending.

[0163] In some embodiments, when the carrier signal and the trigger signal are different signals, there is a time offset between the starting time point of the carrier signal and the starting time point of the trigger signal; in this case, the sending time between the carrier signal and the trigger signal can be associated to improve the transmission efficiency of different signals.

[0164] In some embodiments, when the carrier signal is sent by a third-party device other than the positioning device and the environmental energy Internet of Things device, the carrier signal is periodically sent by the third-party device; in this case, the third-party device can periodically send the carrier signal without the need for additional instructions, which can save system signaling.

[0165] Alternatively, the carrier signal is sent by a third-party device under the control of the positioning device; in this case, the third-party device can send the carrier signal as needed, ensuring the flexibility of carrier signal transmission and saving system resources.

[0166] In the above embodiment, when the positioning signal is a signal sent by the ambient energy Internet of Things device through backscattering based on a carrier signal, the provider of the carrier signal may be as follows:

[0167] 1) The target device may provide the carrier signal required for communication with the anchor device (eg, as shown in FIG11 ).

[0168] For example, the carrier signal and the trigger signal sent by the target device (the control signal that triggers the anchor device to send a positioning signal) can be the same signal;

[0169] Alternatively, the carrier signal and the trigger signal sent by the target device may be two signals. Furthermore, there may be a time offset of T between the carrier signal and the trigger signal.

[0170] 2) The carrier signal required for communication with the anchor device can be provided by a third-party device (for example, the carrier signal provider and the power supply device in Figure 10 can be the same device, or the carrier signal provider and the power supply device in Figure 10 can be different devices).

[0171] For example, the third-party device may provide a carrier signal periodically; for another example, the third-party device may provide a carrier signal under the control of the target device.

[0172] Among them, the Ambient IoT device acts as an anchor device to assist the target device in positioning. It needs to send signals of different frequencies for the target device to locate based on the phase difference of the different frequency signals combined with the positioning algorithm.

[0173] In some embodiments, the carrier signal includes multiple first carrier signals of different frequencies sent simultaneously; the positioning signal includes multiple first positioning signals of different frequencies corresponding one-to-one to the multiple first carrier signals of different frequencies; in this case, the carrier signal can be sent at one time to ensure the transmission efficiency of the carrier signal.

[0174] And / or, the carrier signal includes multiple second carrier signals of different frequencies sent in time; the positioning signal includes multiple second positioning signals of different frequencies corresponding one-to-one to the multiple second carrier signals of different frequencies; in this case, the carrier signal can be sent multiple times to ensure the success rate of the initial transmission of the carrier signal and subsequent positioning signals.

[0175] In the above embodiment, the Ambient IoT device can simultaneously receive multiple first carrier signals of different frequencies, and for each first carrier signal, the Ambient IoT device sends a corresponding first positioning signal by reflection.

[0176] Alternatively, the Ambient IoT device may receive the second carrier signal at different times, and the frequencies of the second carrier signals received at different times may be different. For each second carrier signal, the Ambient IoT device sends the corresponding second positioning signal by reflection.

[0177] In some embodiments, when the carrier signal includes a plurality of second carrier signals with different frequencies transmitted in a time-sharing manner, the plurality of second carrier signals with different frequencies are a plurality of signals transmitted within a first time window.

[0178] In an embodiment of the present application, in order to avoid the carrier signal transmission process occupying too many resources and affecting the communication of other surrounding devices, the above-mentioned multiple second carrier signals of different frequencies can be sent within a time window.

[0179] In some embodiments, the length of the first time window is determined by a positioning device;

[0180] Alternatively, the length of the first time window is defined by the protocol;

[0181] Alternatively, the first time window is determined by the ambient energy IoT device.

[0182] In this application, the target device can generate radio frequency signals (i.e., carrier signals) of different frequencies and send them to the anchor device, and the anchor device performs backscattering based on the signals of different frequencies. Please refer to Figure 12, which shows a schematic diagram of the target device involved in this application generating radio frequency signals of different frequencies.

[0183] Please refer to Figure 13, which shows a schematic diagram of the transmission processing of different frequency signals involved in this application. Among them, the transmission processing of radio frequency signals of different frequencies can be as follows:

[0184] 1) As shown in FIG13 , the target device can simultaneously transmit multiple (at least two) signals of different frequencies. When transmitting signals of different frequencies, the initial phases can remain consistent. In other embodiments, the initial phases can be different.

[0185] 2) As shown in FIG13 , in other implementations, different frequency signals may be sent in a time division manner.

[0186] In some implementations, to reduce the impact of channel variations, time-division transmission of signals of different frequencies must be completed within a time window T. T can be implemented by the target device itself, or a value agreed upon by the protocol, or it can be determined by the Ambient IoT device and notified to the target device.

[0187] 3) As shown in FIG. 13 , in other implementations, the above two methods may be combined, that is, in each of a plurality of different time periods, the target device may send a plurality of radio frequency signals of different frequencies as carrier signals.

[0188] In some embodiments, the frequency of the positioning signal is the same as the frequency of the carrier signal reflected by the positioning signal. In this case, the frequency of the positioning signal can directly follow the frequency of the carrier signal, simplifying the system complexity.

[0189] Alternatively, there is a frequency offset between the frequency of the positioning signal and the frequency of the carrier signal reflected by the positioning signal; in this case, the frequency of the positioning signal can be set more flexibly, ensuring the flexibility of the frequency setting of the positioning signal.

[0190] In some embodiments, when there is a frequency offset between the frequency of the positioning signal and the frequency of the carrier signal reflected by the positioning signal,

[0191] The value of the frequency offset is defined by the protocol;

[0192] Alternatively, the value of the frequency offset is associated with the ambient energy IoT device;

[0193] Alternatively, the value of the frequency offset is indicated by the positioning device to the ambient energy IoT device.

[0194] In some embodiments, the method shown in FIG. 9 further includes: the positioning device may send first indication information to the ambient energy IoT device, where the first indication information indicates whether there is a frequency offset between the frequency of the positioning signal and the frequency of the carrier signal reflected by the positioning signal. Accordingly, the ambient energy IoT device may receive the first indication information sent by the positioning device.

[0195] In the above embodiment, the positioning device can control whether there is a frequency offset between the frequency of the positioning signal and the frequency of the carrier signal reflected by the positioning signal, thereby further improving the flexibility of frequency setting of the positioning signal.

[0196] For example, the first indication information may be carried in a trigger signal to indicate the Ambient IoT device, or may be carried in other signals sent before the carrier signal to indicate the Ambient IoT device.

[0197] Please refer to Figure 14, which shows a schematic diagram of the frequency domain offset of the backscattered signal involved in this application. As shown in Figure 14, the frequency domain offset processing of the backscattered signal can be as follows:

[0198] 1) The anchor device can perform backscatter based on the original frequency of the carrier signal. In some embodiments, when backscattering based on the original frequency, the target device can directly determine the round-trip phase difference based on the transmitted and received signals of the same frequency.

[0199] 2) Alternatively, when the anchor device performs backscattering based on the carrier signal, the frequency can be shifted; in some embodiments, when processing based on the frequency shift, it helps the target device to separate the frequency domains of the sending and receiving signals and reduce interference between signals.

[0200] For anchor devices capable of frequency shifting, the following feasible solutions are available to determine whether the backscattered signal sent during assisted positioning should be frequency shifted:

[0201] ① Fixed backscatter communication mode: For assisted positioning, backscatter can be performed based on the original frequency, or it can be performed based on a frequency offset from the original frequency. The frequency offset value can be a fixed value agreed upon by the protocol or a value associated with the anchor device implementation. The frequency offset value can be the same or different for different anchor devices.

[0202] ② Control-based backscatter communication: During backscatter, frequency shift is determined by the target device. The target device will indicate to the anchor device whether to perform frequency shift, either explicitly or implicitly.

[0203] Explicit indication: For example, by enabling frequency shift, or indicating the backscatter communication mode (mode 1: original frequency backscatter; mode 2: frequency shift backscatter). When there is no indication information, it can be indicated that frequency shift is not performed.

[0204] Implicit indication: For example, it can indicate the data processing during backscattering, such as the modulation method of the anchor device. Different modulation methods correspond to different backscattering processing. For example, using OOK modulation can be associated with the original frequency backscattering, while using FSK modulation can be associated with the frequency-shifted backscattering. Alternatively, a specific offset value can be indicated. If no indication is given, no offset is applied.

[0205] ③ When performing frequency offset, the frequency offset size can be a fixed value agreed upon by the protocol, or a value associated with the implementation of the anchor device. The frequency offset values ​​of different anchor devices can be the same or different; alternatively, the frequency offset size can be indicated by the target device. Among them, the specific frequency offset size that can be indicated can be in units of Hz, kHz, etc. Alternatively, the above-mentioned frequency offset can be indicated by a frequency offset index, for example, the protocol stipulates multiple different frequency offset values, which are indicated by the target device, or the anchor device reports the supported frequency offset values, which are indicated by the target device. The above-mentioned frequency offset can also be a relative frequency offset, such as an offset of x subcarriers. The above-mentioned x can be directly indicated, or an index value of multiple values.

[0206] In some embodiments, the carrier signal includes a single third carrier signal, and the positioning signal includes multiple third positioning signals of different frequencies determined based on the frequency of the third carrier signal. In this case, only a single carrier signal is required to reflect multiple positioning signals of different frequencies, simplifying the carrier signal transmission process, improving carrier signal transmission efficiency, and conserving system resources.

[0207] In the above embodiment, the anchor device can generate signals of different frequencies based on a carrier signal and send them to the target device; for example, please refer to Figure 15, which shows a schematic diagram of the anchor device involved in the present application generating radio frequency signals of different frequencies. As shown in Figure 15, the target device sends a carrier signal with a frequency of f0 to the anchor device. When the anchor device performs backscattering, it performs a frequency shift based on the carrier frequency f0, generates backscattered signals of different frequencies and sends them to the target device. The target device determines the distance from the anchor device based on the phase information of the signals of different frequencies; or a third-party device provides the carrier signal / power signal required for backscattering of the anchor device. The anchor device performs backscattering based on the carrier with a frequency of f0 provided by the third-party device, obtains two backscattered signals of different frequencies and sends them to the target device. The target device determines the distance from the anchor device based on the phase information of the signals of different frequencies.

[0208] In some embodiments, the frequency offset between the third positioning signal and the third carrier signal is defined by a protocol;

[0209] Alternatively, the frequency offset between the third positioning signal and the third carrier signal is determined by the ambient energy Internet of Things device;

[0210] Alternatively, the frequency offset between the third positioning signal and the third carrier signal is determined by the positioning device and indicated to the environmental energy Internet of Things device.

[0211] In some embodiments, the third positioning signal is used to carry modulation information; or, the third positioning signal is not used to carry modulation information.

[0212] In some embodiments, when the third positioning signal is used to carry modulation information, multiple third positioning signals of different frequencies are used to carry the same modulation information; or, multiple third positioning signals of different frequencies are used to carry different modulation information.

[0213] In the above embodiment, the processing method of backscatter signals of different frequencies (i.e., the third positioning signal) can be as follows: when the anchor device performs backscatter communication, it can obtain backscatter signals of different frequencies through frequency domain shifting. For example, the carrier signal can be passed through a mixer to obtain output signals of different frequencies; or through FSK modulation, etc., to obtain output signals of different frequencies.

[0214] For example, please refer to Figure 16, which shows a schematic diagram of the anchor device involved in this application obtaining backscatter signals of different frequencies. As shown in Figure 16, the two backscatter signals of different frequencies obtained by the anchor device can be located on both sides of the carrier frequency, or on the same side.

[0215] The anchor device obtains two backscatter signals of different frequencies. The frequency offset of these two backscatter signals relative to the carrier signal can be agreed upon by the protocol (for example, it can be a frequency offset dedicated to assisted positioning); or it can be implemented based on the anchor device; or it can be controlled by the target device, that is, the target device will indicate the frequency offset.

[0216] The two backscatter signals of different frequencies used to assist positioning may not carry modulated information; or may carry modulated information sent by the anchor device to the target device;

[0217] When carrying information sent by the anchor device to the target device, the two backscattered signals of different frequencies may carry the same information or different information.

[0218] In some embodiments, there is a time domain offset between the moment an ambient-energy IoT device receives a carrier signal and the moment it backscatters and transmits a positioning signal based on the carrier signal. In this case, after receiving the carrier signal, the anchor device can delay backscattering and transmitting the positioning signal. This allows sufficient and accurate time for the transmission and reception of positioning signals, ensuring the accuracy of positioning signal transmission and improving positioning precision.

[0219] In some embodiments, the value of the time domain offset is defined by a protocol;

[0220] Alternatively, the value of the time domain offset is determined by the ambient energy IoT device;

[0221] Alternatively, the value of the time domain offset is determined by the positioning device and indicated to the ambient energy IoT device.

[0222] Typically, anchor devices are surrounded by numerous radio frequency signals. To better assist in positioning, it's necessary to control the backscattering of these devices, including coding and modulation algorithms, frequency shift control, time domain offset control, and frame structure indication. Therefore, the anchor device itself needs to receive and process this control information and then backscatter according to its instructions. This inherently requires processing delays and may introduce unknown phase rotations.

[0223] In order to improve the accuracy of positioning, time domain offset control can be introduced into the backscatter communication process. That is, when the anchor device receives the signal sent by the target device, it does not immediately perform backscatter communication, but performs backscatter communication after a certain time domain offset. Please refer to Figure 17, which shows a schematic diagram of the time domain offset of the backscatter signal involved in this application. As shown in Figure 17:

[0224] 1) The time domain offset can be in relative time units, such as OFDM symbols, time slots, subframes, frames, backscatter basic time units, etc.; or in absolute time units, such as us, ms, s, etc.

[0225] 2) The time offset may be a fixed value, such as a fixed offset agreed upon by the protocol, and all anchor devices will perform backscatter communication based on the time offset.

[0226] 3) The time offset may be implemented based on the anchor device. For example, different anchor devices may take different times to process the control signal. The corresponding time offset may be determined based on the specific implementation.

[0227] 4) The time offset can be indicated by the target device, and the time offset value (unit is as described above) can be directly indicated; or the index value of multiple preset time offsets can be indicated (there are multiple protocol agreed or target device configured time offset values, and the time offset value is indicated by indicating the index of the time offset value).

[0228] In some embodiments, the positioning signal is a signal sent by the ambient energy IoT device through low-power active transmission.

[0229] Anchor devices can use low-power active transmission to send positioning signals. Ambient IoT devices capable of low-power active transmission have the ability to generate positioning signals and do not require other devices to provide the carrier signal required for communication. However, unlike existing smart devices, they lack batteries and cannot communicate continuously for long periods of time. Ambient IoT devices can harvest ambient energy to generate the energy needed for communication.

[0230] In some embodiments, the method for obtaining energy for the environmental energy IoT device to send a positioning signal includes one or more of the following: collecting energy other than radio frequency signals in the environment;

[0231] performing energy collection on a first radio frequency signal sent by the positioning device;

[0232] And, energy is harvested from a second radio frequency signal sent by a third-party device.

[0233] In some embodiments, when the method for obtaining energy for the environmental energy IoT device to send a positioning signal includes harvesting energy from a first radio frequency signal sent by the positioning device,

[0234] The first radio frequency signal and the trigger signal are the same signal; the trigger signal is a signal sent by the positioning device, and the trigger signal is used to trigger the environmental IoT device to send a positioning signal; or,

[0235] In the case where the positioning signal is a signal sent by the ambient energy Internet of Things device through backscattering based on a carrier signal, the first radio frequency signal and the carrier signal are the same signal; or,

[0236] The first radio frequency signal is a signal other than the trigger signal and the carrier signal.

[0237] In some embodiments, when the method for obtaining energy for the environmental energy IoT device to send a positioning signal includes harvesting energy from a second radio frequency signal sent by a third-party device,

[0238] The second radio frequency signal is periodically sent by a third-party device;

[0239] Alternatively, the second radio frequency signal is sent by a third-party device under the control of the positioning device.

[0240] Wherein, when the positioning signal is a signal sent by the ambient energy IoT device through low-power active transmission, the ambient energy acquisition method may include at least one of the following:

[0241] 1) It can collect light energy, radio frequency energy, thermal energy, vibration energy, etc. in the environment.

[0242] 2) Energy can be harvested from the radio frequency signal sent by the target device.

[0243] For example, the radio frequency signal may be the same as the trigger signal sent by the target device (a control signal that triggers the anchor device to send a positioning signal);

[0244] Alternatively, the radio frequency signal may be a signal independently sent by the target device. Furthermore, there may be a time offset of T between the radio frequency signal and the trigger signal.

[0245] 3) Energy can be harvested from radio frequency signals sent by third-party devices.

[0246] For example, a third-party device may periodically provide an Ambient IoT device with a radio frequency signal for energy harvesting; for another example, a third-party device may provide a radio frequency signal under the control of a target device.

[0247] When an Ambient IoT device acts as an anchor device to assist the target device in positioning, it needs to send signals of different frequencies. The target device uses the phase difference of the different frequency signals combined with the positioning algorithm to locate the target device.

[0248] In some embodiments, when the positioning signal is a signal sent by the environmental energy Internet of Things device through low-power active transmission, the positioning signal includes multiple fourth positioning signals of different frequencies corresponding to multiple trigger signals respectively; the trigger signal is a signal sent by the positioning device, and the trigger signal is used to trigger the environmental energy Internet of Things device to send the positioning signal.

[0249] Among them, the target device can trigger the anchor device to send signals multiple times; when the target device triggers the anchor device to send signals, the anchor device will actively send signals with low power consumption at the corresponding frequency; by triggering the target device multiple times, the anchor device can actively send signals with low power consumption multiple times, and there will be at least 2 signals with different frequencies.

[0250] In some embodiments, when the positioning signal includes a plurality of fourth positioning signals,

[0251] The frequency domain position of the fourth positioning signal is indicated by the positioning device;

[0252] Alternatively, the frequency domain offset between the frequency domain position of the fourth positioning signal and the frequency domain position of the trigger signal corresponding to the fourth positioning signal is indicated by the positioning device;

[0253] Alternatively, the frequency domain position of the fourth positioning signal is the same as the frequency domain position of the trigger signal corresponding to the fourth positioning signal;

[0254] Alternatively, the frequency domain offset between the frequency domain position of the fourth positioning signal and the frequency domain position of the trigger signal corresponding to the fourth positioning signal is defined by a protocol.

[0255] In some embodiments, when the positioning signal includes a plurality of fourth positioning signals, the plurality of trigger signals are a plurality of signals sent within the second time window.

[0256] The frequency resources of the trigger signal of the target device can be as follows:

[0257] 1) The target device can trigger on the same frequency resource in a time-division manner. Each time the trigger anchor device sends a positioning auxiliary signal, it indicates the frequency domain resource.

[0258] The target device may directly indicate the frequency domain position of the signal during low-power active transmission; or the target device may indicate the frequency domain offset of the signal during low-power active transmission relative to the trigger signal.

[0259] 2) The target device can be triggered on different frequency resources in a time-division manner.

[0260] The target device can provide frequency domain resource indication every time the trigger anchor device sends a positioning auxiliary signal.

[0261] For example, the frequency domain position of the signal during low-power active transmission can be directly indicated; for another example, the frequency domain offset of the signal relative to the trigger signal during low-power active transmission can be indicated.

[0262] Alternatively, the target device does not need to indicate frequency domain resources, and the signal of the anchor device performing low-power active transmission is associated with the trigger signal. For example, the same frequency as the trigger signal is used; another example is a semi-static offset configured by a protocol agreement.

[0263] 3) Furthermore, when the target device triggers the anchor device to perform low-power active transmission, it needs to be completed within the time window T.

[0264] The anchor device may process the transmission of signals of different frequencies as follows: the signals of different frequencies may be transmitted in a time division manner.

[0265] To reduce the impact of channel variations and meet the latency requirements of positioning scenarios, time-division transmission of signals of different frequencies must be completed within a time window T. T can be implemented by the target device itself or a value agreed upon by the protocol.

[0266] In some embodiments, when the positioning signal is a signal sent by an ambient energy Internet of Things device through low-power active transmission, the positioning signal includes multiple fifth positioning signals of different frequencies corresponding to a single trigger signal.

[0267] The target device can trigger the anchor device multiple times with a single trigger, sending positioning signals multiple times. This means the target device can trigger once, and upon receiving the trigger from the anchor device, the anchor device can transmit positioning signals multiple times using different frequency resources. For example, the same initial phase can be used for each of these multiple positioning signal transmissions; alternatively, a fixed phase difference can be used between two consecutive positioning signal transmissions.

[0268] In some embodiments, when the positioning signal includes multiple fifth positioning signals, the trigger signal is further used to indicate the following information:

[0269] a frequency domain position of the fifth positioning signal;

[0270] Alternatively, a frequency domain offset between the frequency domain position of the fifth positioning signal and the frequency domain position of the trigger signal;

[0271] or, a time window in which a plurality of fifth positioning signals are located;

[0272] Alternatively, the first frequency domain position among the frequency domain positions of the multiple fifth positioning signals, and the frequency hopping interval between the frequency domain positions of the multiple fifth positioning signals.

[0273] The indication content of the trigger signal of the target device may be as follows:

[0274] It can directly indicate multiple (at least 2) frequency domain positions of the signal during low-power active transmission.

[0275] It can indicate multiple (at least 2) frequency domain offsets of the signal relative to the trigger signal during low-power active transmission.

[0276] A time window can be indicated; wherein the indication of the time window can adopt at least one of the following: the time offset of the starting position of the time window relative to the trigger signal; the time offset of the ending position of the time window relative to the trigger signal; the starting position of the time window; the ending position of the time window; the length of the time window.

[0277] It can indicate the initial frequency domain position and the subsequent frequency hopping interval.

[0278] In some embodiments, the plurality of fourth positioning signals or the plurality of fifth positioning signals are signals sent separately by the ambient energy Internet of Things device in a time division manner.

[0279] In some embodiments, the plurality of fourth positioning signals or the plurality of fifth positioning signals are a plurality of signals sent within the third time window.

[0280] In some embodiments, the length of the third time window is determined by the ambient energy Internet of Things device; or, the length of the third time window is defined by a protocol.

[0281] The sending process of different frequency signals of the anchor device may be as follows: different frequency signals are sent in a time division manner.

[0282] To reduce the impact of channel variations and meet the latency requirements of positioning scenarios, time-division transmission of signals of different frequencies must be completed within a time window T. T can be implemented by the target device itself or a value agreed upon by the protocol.

[0283] In some embodiments, the time offset between the plurality of fourth positioning signals or the plurality of fifth positioning signals and the trigger signal is a fixed value;

[0284] Alternatively, the time offset between the plurality of fourth positioning signals or the plurality of fifth positioning signals and the trigger signal is determined by the ambient energy Internet of Things device;

[0285] Alternatively, the time offset between the plurality of fourth positioning signals or the plurality of fifth positioning signals and the trigger signal is indicated by the positioning device.

[0286] In some embodiments, when the time offset between the plurality of fourth positioning signals or the plurality of fifth positioning signals and the trigger signal is indicated by the positioning device, the trigger signal is further used to indicate the following information:

[0287] a time offset between the plurality of fourth positioning signals or the plurality of fifth positioning signals and the trigger signal;

[0288] Alternatively, a time window for sending multiple fourth positioning signals or multiple fifth positioning signals;

[0289] Alternatively, the time offset between the latest sending time of the plurality of fourth positioning signals or the plurality of fifth positioning signals and the trigger signal.

[0290] Among them, the time domain resources of actively transmitting signals through low power consumption can be as follows:

[0291] 1) When the target device triggers the anchor device to send a signal, it can indicate the time domain resource for signal transmission.

[0292] ①Indicates the time offset and determines the time domain position where the signal is sent.

[0293] For example, when the energy of the anchor device is insufficient to send a signal, the trigger fails and the signal is not sent; when the energy of the anchor device is sufficient to send a signal, the trigger succeeds and the signal is sent.

[0294] ② Indicate the time window (for example, the length of the time window may be indicated).

[0295] For example, the anchor device sends signals within the time window according to the energy status; when the energy obtained based on energy harvesting is sufficient for communication, the signal is sent; otherwise, the signal is not sent.

[0296] ③Indicates the time offset and determines the latest time domain transmission position of the signal.

[0297] For example, the anchor device sends the signal before the latest time domain transmission position of the signal according to the energy state; when the energy obtained based on energy harvesting is sufficient for communication, the signal is sent; otherwise, the signal is not sent.

[0298] 2) When the target device triggers the anchor device to send a signal, it may not indicate the time domain resource for signal transmission.

[0299] For example, the terminal sends a signal based on the energy state when the energy obtained based on energy harvesting is sufficient for communication; otherwise, the terminal does not send a signal.

[0300] 3) The time domain offset can be in relative time units, such as OFDM symbols, time slots, subframes, frames, backscatter basic time units, etc.; or in absolute time units, such as us, ms, s, etc.

[0301] 4) The time offset may be a fixed value, such as a fixed offset agreed upon by the protocol, and all anchor devices will perform backscatter communication based on the time offset.

[0302] 5) The time offset may be implemented based on the anchor device. For example, different anchor devices may take different times to process the control signal. The corresponding time offset may be determined based on the specific implementation.

[0303] 6) The time offset can be indicated by the target device, and the time offset value (unit is as described above) can be directly indicated; or the index value of multiple preset time offsets can be indicated (there are multiple protocol agreed or target device configured time offset values, and the time offset value is indicated by indicating the index of the time offset value).

[0304] In some embodiments, the method shown in FIG9 further includes:

[0305] The positioning device can send a trigger signal to multiple environmental Internet of Things devices at the same time through broadcast or multicast, and the trigger signal is used to trigger the environmental Internet of Things devices to send positioning signals; or, the positioning device can send a trigger signal to the environmental Internet of Things devices through unicast.

[0306] Accordingly, the environmental energy Internet of Things device can receive a trigger signal sent by the positioning device to multiple environmental energy Internet of Things devices simultaneously through broadcast or multicast; or, the environmental energy Internet of Things device can receive a trigger signal sent by the positioning device to the environmental energy Internet of Things device through unicast.

[0307] In some embodiments, when a positioning device sends a trigger signal to multiple ambient energy Internet of Things devices simultaneously by broadcasting or multicasting, and when an ambient energy Internet of Things device receives a trigger signal sent by the positioning device to multiple ambient energy Internet of Things devices simultaneously by broadcasting or multicasting, the positioning signal includes information associated with the location of the ambient energy Internet of Things device;

[0308] The information associated with the location of the ambient energy Internet of Things device includes: an identifier of the ambient energy Internet of Things device, and / or location information of the ambient energy Internet of Things device.

[0309] For example, the timing of backscatter communications from multiple anchor devices needs to be limited. In order to locate the target device, multiple anchor devices (at least 3) are needed to assist. When the target device is located based on the backscatter signals from multiple anchor devices, there are two implementation methods.

[0310] 1) Simultaneously sending radio frequency signals (which may carry control information) to multiple anchor devices and receiving backscattered signals from multiple anchor devices. Please refer to Figure 18, which shows a schematic diagram of the target device involved in this application sending radio frequency signals to multiple anchor devices simultaneously.

[0311] In this manner, when the anchor device performs backscattering, it needs to carry associated information for determining the location of the anchor device, which may specifically include one of the following: identification information of the terminal, location information of the anchor device.

[0312] For example, the anchor device can carry its terminal identification information in the positioning signal for the target device to identify the anchor device. The location information of the anchor device needs to be obtained by other means. For example, the control center (which can be a network device) saves the location information of the anchor device, and the target device needs to communicate with the control center to obtain the location information of the anchor device. In some embodiments, the target device does not need to obtain the specific location information of the anchor device. At this time, the target device obtains the distance between itself and multiple anchor devices, as well as the terminal identification of the corresponding anchor device, and can send this information to the control information. The control center determines the location of the target device based on the location of the anchor device and the information sent by the target device, and directly returns the location information of the target device to the target device.

[0313] For another example, the anchor device can directly send its location information to the target device in the positioning signal; the target device obtains its own location information based on the positions of multiple anchor devices and the calculated distances between it and these anchor devices.

[0314] 2) Based on scheduling, point-to-point communication is performed with the anchor device, scheduling a certain anchor device for backscatter communication, and determining the distance to the anchor device based on the backscatter signal of the anchor device. Please refer to Figure 19, which shows a schematic diagram of the target device scheduling the backscatter of the anchor device involved in this application.

[0315] The target device can first identify the surrounding anchor devices, determine the existing anchor devices, and then select at least three anchor devices. Using a scheduling method, it can establish point-to-point communication with the anchor devices and determine the distance to the anchor devices based on the phase information of the backscattered signal. The target device can then determine its own location based on the distance to multiple anchor devices and the location information of these anchor devices.

[0316] When the target device identifies surrounding anchor devices, it may send control information to the surrounding anchor devices. The surrounding anchor devices then perform backscattering. This backscattered information carries associated information (including at least identification information) for determining the location of the anchor devices, as described in Method 1 above. The terminal may select at least three of the multiple anchor devices for assisted positioning based on preset rules or implementation methods.

[0317] For example, the timing of low-power active transmission of multi-anchor devices needs to be limited.

[0318] 1) The target device sends radio frequency signals (which can carry control information, broadcast / multicast / groupcast) to multiple anchor devices at the same time, and receives signals actively transmitted by multiple anchor devices.

[0319] When the anchor device sends a signal, it needs to carry associated information for determining the location of the anchor device, which may specifically include one of the following: identification information of the terminal, location information of the anchor device.

[0320] 2) Based on the scheduling method, point-to-point communication is performed with the anchor device. A certain anchor device is scheduled for communication, and the distance to the anchor device is determined based on the signal actively transmitted by the anchor device.

[0321] In some embodiments, the method shown in FIG9 further includes:

[0322] When sending a trigger signal, the positioning device can indicate the time information of sending the positioning signal to the environmental energy Internet of Things device, so that when the environmental energy Internet of Things device receives trigger signals sent by multiple devices at the same time, it can send positioning signals to multiple devices separately in a time-division manner; the multiple devices include the positioning device.

[0323] Correspondingly, the environmental energy Internet of Things device can receive the time information of sending the positioning signal indicated by the positioning device when sending the trigger signal; when the trigger signals sent by multiple devices are received at the same time, the positioning signal is sent to multiple devices separately in a time-division manner according to the time information; the multiple devices include the positioning device.

[0324] In some embodiments, the time information includes:

[0325] The sending time window, multiple time domain offsets between the receiving time point of the trigger signal and the sending time point of the positioning signal, or multiple sending time points of the positioning signal.

[0326] In some embodiments, the method shown in FIG9 further includes:

[0327] When sending a trigger signal, the positioning device may instruct the environmental energy Internet of Things device to send the identification information of the positioning device; at this time, the positioning signal may include the identification information of the positioning device.

[0328] Correspondingly, the environmental energy Internet of Things device can receive the identification information of the positioning device indicated when sending the trigger signal, and send the positioning device.

[0329] For example, when an anchor device sends a positioning signal via backscatter, more than one target device may need to be located. When multiple target devices need to be located, there may be two or more target devices that trigger the same anchor device to perform backscattering at the same time. In this case, the positioning process for multiple target devices can be as follows:

[0330] 1) When the target device actively receives the backscattered signal from the anchor device for processing, different target devices can perform their own processing.

[0331] 2) When the target device triggers the anchor device to perform backscatter processing:

[0332] ① The target device carries its own identification information and sends it to the anchor device: the anchor device performs backscattering based on the identification information received from the target device, and sends the identification information or the information processed based on the identification information to the target device through backscattering; when the triggers of multiple target devices collide, the anchor device determines to perform backscatter communication with a certain target device according to preset rules (such as the priority of the terminal group, the time order of the arrival of the trigger, etc.), and gives up communication with other target devices.

[0333] Alternatively, when a target device triggers an anchor device to backscatter, the anchor device is allowed to backscatter within a time window. If multiple target devices trigger a collision, the anchor device backscatters to different target devices based on the time windows indicated by the target devices. The carrier signal must be present throughout the entire time window. If a target device conflict cannot be resolved, the anchor device determines a target device to backscatter with based on pre-set rules and abandons communication with the other target devices.

[0334] ③ Alternatively, when the target device triggers the anchor device to perform backscatter communication, it indicates at least 2 time domain offsets, or at least 2 backscatter communication times; when the triggers of multiple target devices collide, the anchor device selects the corresponding time unit for backscatter communication based on the indication information of the target device.

[0335] For example, when the anchor device actively sends a positioning signal, more than one target device may need to be positioned. When multiple target devices need to be positioned, there may be two or more target devices that trigger the same anchor device to communicate at the same time. In this case, the positioning process for multiple target devices can be as follows:

[0336] 1) When the target device actively receives the signal sent by the anchor device for processing, different target devices can perform their own processing.

[0337] 2) When the target device triggers the anchor device to communicate:

[0338] ① The target device carries its own identification information and sends it to the anchor device: The anchor device communicates based on the received identification information of the target device, and sends the identification information or information processed based on the identification information to the target device through low-power active transmission; when the triggers of multiple target devices collide, the anchor device determines to communicate with a certain target device based on preset rules (such as the priority of the terminal group, the time order of the trigger arrival, etc.), and gives up communicating with other target devices;

[0339] ② Alternatively, when the target device triggers the anchor device to communicate, the anchor device is allowed to communicate within a time window. When the triggers of multiple target devices collide, the anchor device communicates to different target devices in time-division according to the time windows indicated by the target devices. This needs to be judged in combination with the energy state. When the target device conflict cannot be resolved, the anchor device determines to communicate with a certain target device according to the preset rules and gives up communicating with other target devices;

[0340] ③ Alternatively, when the target device triggers the anchor device to perform backscatter communication, it indicates at least 2 time domain offsets, or at least 2 communication times; when the triggers of multiple target devices collide, the anchor device selects the corresponding time unit for communication based on the indication information of the target device.

[0341] In step 902, the positioning device obtains the distance between the positioning device and the environmental energy IoT device according to the positioning signal.

[0342] In some embodiments, the positioning device obtains the distance between the positioning device and the environmental energy Internet of Things device based on the positioning signal, including: the positioning device obtains the distance between the positioning device and the environmental energy Internet of Things device based on the signal strength of the positioning signal and / or the phase information of the positioning signal.

[0343] In step 903, the positioning device locates the positioning device according to the distance between the positioning device and the environmental energy Internet of Things device.

[0344] Among them, when the above-mentioned environmental Internet of Things devices include multiple (for example, more than 3), the positioning device can calculate the position of the positioning device based on the distance between the positioning device and the multiple environmental Internet of Things devices, as well as the positions of the multiple environmental Internet of Things devices, to achieve the positioning of the positioning device.

[0345] The above-mentioned solution of this application proposes a method for assisted positioning of Ambient IoT devices. Ambient IoT acts as an anchor device with a known location and communicates with a target device using backscatter or active transmission communication methods. The target device can determine the distance to the anchor device based on the phase information of the communication signal of different frequencies from the anchor device (the device with a known location), and then determine the location information of the target device based on the location information of at least three anchor devices.

[0346] The above scheme of this application provides specific design details, including frequency offset control and time domain offset control methods for anchor device communication; timing processing of assisted positioning of multiple anchor devices; and response processing of the anchor device when multiple target devices trigger the same anchor device.

[0347] Please refer to Figure 20, which shows a block diagram of a signal processing device provided by an embodiment of the present application. The signal processing device has the function of implementing the method shown in any of Figures 7 to 9 above, which is performed by the positioning device. As shown in Figure 20, the device may include:

[0348] Receiving module 2001, used to receive positioning signals sent by one or more environmental IoT devices;

[0349] The distance acquisition module 2002 is used to obtain the distance between the positioning device and the environmental energy Internet of Things device according to the positioning signal; the distance between the positioning device and the environmental energy Internet of Things device is used to locate the positioning device.

[0350] In some embodiments, the distance acquisition module 2002 is used to obtain the distance between the positioning device and the environmental energy Internet of Things device based on the signal strength of the positioning signal and / or the phase information of the positioning signal.

[0351] In some embodiments, the receiving module 2001 is used to receive multiple positioning signals of different frequencies sent by each of the one or more ambient-enabled Internet of Things devices.

[0352] In some embodiments, the positioning signal is a signal sent by the ambient energy IoT device through backscattering based on a carrier signal.

[0353] In some embodiments, the carrier signal is sent by the positioning device; or, the carrier signal is sent by a third-party device other than the positioning device and the environmental energy Internet of Things device.

[0354] In some embodiments, when the carrier signal is sent by the positioning device,

[0355] The carrier signal and the trigger signal are the same signal; the trigger signal is a signal sent by the positioning device, and the trigger signal is used to trigger the environmental energy Internet of Things device to send the positioning signal;

[0356] Alternatively, the carrier signal and the trigger signal are different signals.

[0357] In some embodiments, when the carrier signal and the trigger signal are different signals, there is a time offset between the starting time point of the carrier signal and the starting time point of the trigger signal.

[0358] In some embodiments, when the carrier signal is sent by a third-party device other than the positioning device and the ambient energy Internet of Things device,

[0359] The carrier signal is periodically sent by the third-party device;

[0360] Alternatively, the carrier signal is sent by the third-party device under the control of the positioning device.

[0361] In some embodiments, the carrier signal includes a plurality of first carrier signals of different frequencies transmitted simultaneously; the positioning signal includes a plurality of first positioning signals of different frequencies corresponding one-to-one to the plurality of first carrier signals of different frequencies;

[0362] And / or, the carrier signal includes multiple second carrier signals of different frequencies sent in time division; the positioning signal includes multiple second positioning signals of different frequencies corresponding one-to-one to the multiple second carrier signals of different frequencies.

[0363] In some embodiments, when the carrier signal includes a plurality of second carrier signals of different frequencies transmitted in a time-sharing manner, the plurality of second carrier signals of different frequencies are a plurality of signals transmitted within a first time window.

[0364] In some embodiments, the length of the first time window is determined by the positioning device; or, the length of the first time window is defined by a protocol; or, the first time window is determined by the ambient energy Internet of Things device.

[0365] In some embodiments, the frequency of the positioning signal is the same as the frequency of the carrier signal reflected by the positioning signal; or, there is a frequency offset between the frequency of the positioning signal and the frequency of the carrier signal reflected by the positioning signal.

[0366] In some embodiments, when there is a frequency offset between the frequency of the positioning signal and the frequency of the carrier signal reflected by the positioning signal, the value of the frequency offset is defined by a protocol; or, the value of the frequency offset is associated with the ambient energy Internet of Things device; or, the value of the frequency offset is indicated to the ambient energy Internet of Things device by the positioning device.

[0367] In some embodiments, the device also includes: a first sending module, used to send first indication information to the environmental energy Internet of Things device, and the first indication information is used to indicate whether there is a frequency offset between the frequency of the positioning signal and the frequency of the carrier signal reflected by the positioning signal.

[0368] In some embodiments, the carrier signal includes a single third carrier signal, and the positioning signal includes a plurality of third positioning signals with different frequencies determined according to the frequency of the third carrier signal.

[0369] In some embodiments, the frequency offset between the third positioning signal and the third carrier signal is defined by a protocol; or, the frequency offset between the third positioning signal and the third carrier signal is determined by the ambient energy Internet of Things device; or, the frequency offset between the third positioning signal and the third carrier signal is determined by the positioning device and indicated to the ambient energy Internet of Things device.

[0370] In some embodiments, the third positioning signal is used to carry modulation information; or, the third positioning signal is not used to carry modulation information.

[0371] In some embodiments, when the third positioning signal is used to carry modulation information, multiple third positioning signals of different frequencies are used to carry the same modulation information; or, multiple third positioning signals of different frequencies are used to carry different modulation information.

[0372] In some embodiments, there is a time domain offset between the moment when the ambient energy Internet of Things device receives the carrier signal and the moment when the ambient energy Internet of Things device sends the positioning signal by backscattering according to the carrier signal.

[0373] In some embodiments, the value of the time domain offset is defined by a protocol; or, the value of the time domain offset is determined by the ambient energy Internet of Things device; or, the value of the time domain offset is determined by the positioning device and indicated to the ambient energy Internet of Things device.

[0374] In some embodiments, the positioning signal is a signal sent by the environmental IoT device through low-power active transmission.

[0375] In some embodiments, the positioning signal includes a plurality of fourth positioning signals of different frequencies corresponding to a plurality of trigger signals respectively; the trigger signal is a signal sent by the positioning device, and the trigger signal is used to trigger the environmental IoT device to send the positioning signal; or, the positioning signal includes a plurality of fifth positioning signals of different frequencies corresponding to a single trigger signal.

[0376] In some embodiments, when the positioning signal includes multiple fourth positioning signals, the frequency domain position of the fourth positioning signal is indicated by the positioning device; or, the frequency domain offset between the frequency domain position of the fourth positioning signal and the frequency domain position of the trigger signal corresponding to the fourth positioning signal is indicated by the positioning device; or, the frequency domain position of the fourth positioning signal is the same as the frequency domain position of the trigger signal corresponding to the fourth positioning signal; or, the frequency domain offset between the frequency domain position of the fourth positioning signal and the frequency domain position of the trigger signal corresponding to the fourth positioning signal is defined by a protocol.

[0377] In some embodiments, when the positioning signal includes a plurality of the fourth positioning signals, the plurality of trigger signals are a plurality of signals sent within a second time window.

[0378] In some embodiments, when the positioning signal includes multiple fifth positioning signals, the trigger signal is also used to indicate the following information: the frequency domain position of the fifth positioning signal; or, the frequency domain offset between the frequency domain position of the fifth positioning signal and the frequency domain position of the trigger signal; or, the time window in which multiple fifth positioning signals are located; or, the first frequency domain position among the frequency domain positions of multiple fifth positioning signals, and the frequency hopping interval between the frequency domain positions of multiple fifth positioning signals.

[0379] In some embodiments, the plurality of fourth positioning signals or the plurality of fifth positioning signals are signals respectively sent by the environmental energy Internet of Things device in a time division manner.

[0380] In some embodiments, the plurality of fourth positioning signals or the plurality of fifth positioning signals are a plurality of signals sent within a third time window.

[0381] In some embodiments, the length of the third time window is determined by the ambient IoT device; or, the length of the third time window is defined by a protocol.

[0382] In some embodiments, the time offset between the multiple fourth positioning signals or the multiple fifth positioning signals and the trigger signal is a fixed value; or, the time offset between the multiple fourth positioning signals or the multiple fifth positioning signals and the trigger signal is determined by the environmental energy Internet of Things device; or, the time offset between the multiple fourth positioning signals or the multiple fifth positioning signals and the trigger signal is indicated by the positioning device.

[0383] In some embodiments, when the time offset between multiple fourth positioning signals or multiple fifth positioning signals and the trigger signal is indicated by the positioning device, the trigger signal is also used to indicate the following information: the time offset between multiple fourth positioning signals or multiple fifth positioning signals and the trigger signal; or, the time window for sending multiple fourth positioning signals or multiple fifth positioning signals; or, the time offset between the latest sending time of multiple fourth positioning signals or multiple fifth positioning signals and the trigger signal.

[0384] In some embodiments, the device also includes: a second sending module, which is used to send a trigger signal to multiple environmental energy Internet of Things devices at the same time through broadcast or multicast, and the trigger signal is used to trigger the environmental energy Internet of Things device to send the positioning signal; or, send the trigger signal to the environmental energy Internet of Things device through unicast.

[0385] In some embodiments, when a trigger signal is sent to a plurality of the ambient energy Internet of Things devices simultaneously by broadcasting or multicasting, the positioning signal includes information associated with the location of the ambient energy Internet of Things devices;

[0386] The information associated with the location of the ambient energy Internet of Things device includes: an identifier of the ambient energy Internet of Things device, and / or location information of the ambient energy Internet of Things device.

[0387] In some embodiments, the device also includes: a third sending module, which is used to indicate the time information of sending the positioning signal to the environmental energy Internet of Things device when sending the trigger signal, so that when the environmental energy Internet of Things device receives the trigger signals sent by multiple devices at the same time, it can send the positioning signals to the multiple devices respectively in a time-division manner; the multiple devices include the positioning device.

[0388] In some embodiments, the time information includes: a sending time window, multiple time domain offsets between a receiving time point of the trigger signal and a sending time point of the positioning signal, or multiple sending time points of the positioning signal.

[0389] In some embodiments, the apparatus further includes: a fourth sending module, configured to instruct the environmental energy Internet of Things device to send identification information of the positioning device when sending the trigger signal; the positioning signal includes the identification information of the positioning device.

[0390] In some embodiments, the method for obtaining energy for the environmental energy IoT device to send the positioning signal includes one or more of the following: collecting energy other than radio frequency signals in the environment; collecting energy from the first radio frequency signal sent by the positioning device; and collecting energy from the second radio frequency signal sent by a third-party device.

[0391] In some embodiments, when the method for obtaining energy for the environmental energy IoT device to send the positioning signal includes harvesting energy from the first radio frequency signal sent by the positioning device,

[0392] The first radio frequency signal and the trigger signal are the same signal; the trigger signal is a signal sent by the positioning device, and the trigger signal is used to trigger the environmental IoT device to send the positioning signal; or,

[0393] In the case where the positioning signal is a signal sent by the environmental IoT device through backscattering according to a carrier signal, the first radio frequency signal and the carrier signal are the same signal; or

[0394] The first radio frequency signal is a signal other than the trigger signal and the carrier signal.

[0395] In some embodiments, when the method for obtaining energy for the environmental energy IoT device to send the positioning signal includes harvesting energy from a second radio frequency signal sent by a third-party device,

[0396] The second radio frequency signal is sent periodically by the third-party device; or, the second radio frequency signal is sent by the third-party device under the control of the positioning device.

[0397] Please refer to Figure 21, which shows a block diagram of a signal processing device provided by an embodiment of the present application. The signal processing device has the function of implementing the method shown in any of Figures 7 to 9 above, which is performed by the environmental energy Internet of Things device. As shown in Figure 21, the device may include:

[0398] The sending module 2101 is used to send a positioning signal to a positioning device so that the positioning device can obtain the distance between the positioning device and the environmental energy Internet of Things device according to the positioning signal; the distance between the positioning device and the environmental energy Internet of Things device is used to locate the positioning device.

[0399] In some embodiments, the sending module 2101 is configured to send multiple positioning signals of different frequencies to a positioning device.

[0400] In some embodiments, the positioning signal is a signal sent by the ambient energy IoT device through backscattering based on a carrier signal.

[0401] In some embodiments, the carrier signal is sent by the positioning device; or, the carrier signal is sent by a third-party device other than the positioning device and the environmental energy Internet of Things device.

[0402] In some embodiments, when the carrier signal is sent by the positioning device, the carrier signal and the trigger signal are the same signal; the trigger signal is a signal sent by the positioning device, and the trigger signal is used to trigger the environmental IoT device to send the positioning signal; or, the carrier signal and the trigger signal are different signals.

[0403] In some embodiments, when the carrier signal and the trigger signal are different signals, there is a time offset between the starting time point of the carrier signal and the starting time point of the trigger signal.

[0404] In some embodiments, when the carrier signal is sent by a third-party device other than the positioning device and the ambient energy Internet of Things device, the carrier signal is sent periodically by the third-party device; or, the carrier signal is sent by the third-party device under the control of the positioning device.

[0405] In some embodiments, the carrier signal includes multiple first carrier signals of different frequencies sent simultaneously; the positioning signal includes multiple first positioning signals of different frequencies corresponding one-to-one to the multiple first carrier signals of different frequencies; and / or, the carrier signal includes multiple second carrier signals of different frequencies sent in time-sharing; the positioning signal includes multiple second positioning signals of different frequencies corresponding one-to-one to the multiple second carrier signals of different frequencies.

[0406] In some embodiments, when the carrier signal includes a plurality of second carrier signals of different frequencies transmitted in a time-sharing manner, the plurality of second carrier signals of different frequencies are a plurality of signals transmitted within a first time window.

[0407] In some embodiments, the length of the first time window is determined by the positioning device; or, the length of the first time window is defined by a protocol; or, the first time window is determined by the ambient energy Internet of Things device.

[0408] In some embodiments, the frequency of the positioning signal is the same as the frequency of the carrier signal reflected by the positioning signal; or, there is a frequency offset between the frequency of the positioning signal and the frequency of the carrier signal reflected by the positioning signal.

[0409] In some embodiments, when there is a frequency offset between the frequency of the positioning signal and the frequency of the carrier signal reflected by the positioning signal, the value of the frequency offset is defined by a protocol; or, the value of the frequency offset is associated with the ambient energy Internet of Things device; or, the value of the frequency offset is indicated to the ambient energy Internet of Things device by the positioning device.

[0410] In some embodiments, the apparatus further includes: a first receiving module for receiving first indication information sent by the positioning device, wherein the first indication information is used to indicate whether there is a frequency offset between the frequency of the positioning signal and the frequency of the carrier signal reflected by the positioning signal.

[0411] In some embodiments, the carrier signal includes a single third carrier signal, and the positioning signal includes a plurality of third positioning signals with different frequencies determined according to the frequency of the third carrier signal.

[0412] In some embodiments, the frequency offset between the third positioning signal and the third carrier signal is defined by a protocol; or, the frequency offset between the third positioning signal and the third carrier signal is determined by the ambient energy Internet of Things device; or, the frequency offset between the third positioning signal and the third carrier signal is determined by the positioning device and indicated to the ambient energy Internet of Things device.

[0413] In some embodiments, the third positioning signal is used to carry modulation information; or, the third positioning signal is not used to carry modulation information.

[0414] In some embodiments, when the third positioning signal is used to carry modulation information, multiple third positioning signals of different frequencies are used to carry the same modulation information; or, multiple third positioning signals of different frequencies are used to carry different modulation information.

[0415] In some embodiments, there is a time domain offset between the moment when the ambient energy Internet of Things device receives the carrier signal and the moment when the ambient energy Internet of Things device sends the positioning signal by backscattering according to the carrier signal.

[0416] In some embodiments, the value of the time domain offset is defined by a protocol; or, the value of the time domain offset is determined by the ambient energy Internet of Things device; or, the value of the time domain offset is determined by the positioning device and indicated to the ambient energy Internet of Things device.

[0417] In some embodiments, the positioning signal is a signal sent by the environmental IoT device through low-power active transmission.

[0418] In some embodiments, the positioning signal includes a plurality of fourth positioning signals of different frequencies corresponding to a plurality of trigger signals respectively; the trigger signal is a signal sent by the positioning device, and the trigger signal is used to trigger the environmental IoT device to send the positioning signal; or, the positioning signal includes a plurality of fifth positioning signals of different frequencies corresponding to a single trigger signal.

[0419] In some embodiments, when the positioning signal includes multiple fourth positioning signals, the frequency domain position of the fourth positioning signal is indicated by the positioning device; or, the frequency domain offset between the frequency domain position of the fourth positioning signal and the frequency domain position of the trigger signal corresponding to the fourth positioning signal is indicated by the positioning device; or, the frequency domain position of the fourth positioning signal is the same as the frequency domain position of the trigger signal corresponding to the fourth positioning signal; or, the frequency domain offset between the frequency domain position of the fourth positioning signal and the frequency domain position of the trigger signal corresponding to the fourth positioning signal is defined by a protocol.

[0420] In some embodiments, when the positioning signal includes a plurality of the fourth positioning signals, the plurality of trigger signals are a plurality of signals sent within a second time window.

[0421] In some embodiments, when the positioning signal includes multiple fifth positioning signals, the trigger signal is also used to indicate the following information: the frequency domain position of the fifth positioning signal; or, the frequency domain offset between the frequency domain position of the fifth positioning signal and the frequency domain position of the trigger signal; or, the time window in which multiple fifth positioning signals are located; or, the first frequency domain position among the frequency domain positions of multiple fifth positioning signals, and the frequency hopping interval between the frequency domain positions of multiple fifth positioning signals.

[0422] In some embodiments, the plurality of fourth positioning signals or the plurality of fifth positioning signals are signals respectively sent by the environmental energy Internet of Things device in a time division manner.

[0423] In some embodiments, the plurality of fourth positioning signals or the plurality of fifth positioning signals are a plurality of signals sent within a third time window.

[0424] In some embodiments, the length of the third time window is determined by the ambient IoT device; or, the length of the third time window is defined by a protocol.

[0425] In some embodiments, the time offset between the multiple fourth positioning signals or the multiple fifth positioning signals and the trigger signal is a fixed value; or, the time offset between the multiple fourth positioning signals or the multiple fifth positioning signals and the trigger signal is determined by the environmental energy Internet of Things device; or, the time offset between the multiple fourth positioning signals or the multiple fifth positioning signals and the trigger signal is indicated by the positioning device.

[0426] In some embodiments, when the time offset between multiple fourth positioning signals or multiple fifth positioning signals and the trigger signal is indicated by the positioning device, the trigger signal is also used to indicate the following information: the time offset between multiple fourth positioning signals or multiple fifth positioning signals and the trigger signal; or, the time window for sending multiple fourth positioning signals or multiple fifth positioning signals; or, the time offset between the latest sending time of multiple fourth positioning signals or multiple fifth positioning signals and the trigger signal.

[0427] In some embodiments, the device also includes: a second receiving module, used to receive a trigger signal sent by the positioning device to multiple environmental energy Internet of Things devices simultaneously through broadcast or multicast, and the trigger signal is used to trigger the environmental energy Internet of Things device to send the positioning signal; or, receive the trigger signal sent by the positioning device to the environmental energy Internet of Things device through unicast.

[0428] In some embodiments, when receiving a trigger signal sent by the positioning device to multiple environmental energy Internet of Things devices simultaneously by broadcasting or multicasting, the positioning signal contains information associated with the location of the environmental energy Internet of Things device; the information associated with the location of the environmental energy Internet of Things device includes: the identification of the environmental energy Internet of Things device, and / or the location information of the environmental energy Internet of Things device.

[0429] In some embodiments, the apparatus further comprises:

[0430] a third receiving module, configured to receive time information of sending the positioning signal indicated by the positioning device when sending the trigger signal;

[0431] The sending module is configured to send the positioning signals to the multiple devices respectively in a time-division manner according to the time information when the trigger signals sent by multiple devices are received simultaneously; the multiple devices include the positioning device.

[0432] In some embodiments, the time information includes: a sending time window, multiple time domain offsets between a receiving time point of the trigger signal and a sending time point of the positioning signal, or multiple sending time points of the positioning signal.

[0433] In some embodiments, the apparatus further includes: a fourth receiving module configured to receive identification information of the positioning device indicated by the positioning device when sending the trigger signal; the positioning signal includes the identification information of the positioning device.

[0434] In some embodiments, the method for obtaining energy for the environmental energy IoT device to send the positioning signal includes one or more of the following: collecting energy other than radio frequency signals in the environment; collecting energy from the first radio frequency signal sent by the positioning device; and collecting energy from the second radio frequency signal sent by a third-party device.

[0435] In some embodiments, when the method for obtaining energy for the environmental energy Internet of Things device to send the positioning signal includes energy collection from a first radio frequency signal sent by the positioning device, the first radio frequency signal and the trigger signal are the same signal; the trigger signal is a signal sent by the positioning device, and the trigger signal is used to trigger the environmental energy Internet of Things device to send the positioning signal; or, when the positioning signal is a signal sent by the environmental energy Internet of Things device based on backscattering of a carrier signal, the first radio frequency signal and the carrier signal are the same signal; or, the first radio frequency signal is a signal other than the trigger signal and the carrier signal.

[0436] In some embodiments, when the method for obtaining energy for the environmental energy IoT device to send the positioning signal includes energy collection from a second radio frequency signal sent by a third-party device, the second radio frequency signal is periodically sent by the third-party device; or, the second radio frequency signal is sent by the third-party device under the control of the positioning device.

[0437] It should be noted that the device provided in the above embodiment only uses the division of the above-mentioned functional modules as an example to implement its functions. In actual applications, the above-mentioned functions can be assigned to different functional modules according to actual needs, that is, the content structure of the device can be divided into different functional modules to complete all or part of the functions described above.

[0438] Regarding the apparatus in the above embodiment, the specific manner in which each module performs operations has been described in detail in the embodiment of the method, and will not be elaborated here.

[0439] Please refer to FIG22 , which shows a schematic diagram of the structure of a communication device 2200 provided in one embodiment of the present application. The communication device 2200 may include: a processor 2201 , a receiver 2202 , a transmitter 2203 , a memory 2204 , and a bus 2205 .

[0440] The processor 2201 includes one or more processing cores. The processor 2201 executes various functional applications and information processing by running software programs and modules.

[0441] Receiver 2202 and transmitter 2203 can be implemented as a communication component, which can be a communication chip. This communication chip can also be called a transceiver. Memory 2204 is connected to processor 2201 via bus 2205. Memory 2204 can be used to store computer programs, and processor 2201 is used to execute the computer programs to implement the various steps in the above method embodiments.

[0442] In addition, memory 2204 can be implemented by any type of volatile or non-volatile storage device or a combination thereof, including but not limited to: magnetic disk or optical disk, electrically erasable programmable read-only memory, erasable programmable read-only memory, static random access memory, read-only memory, magnetic memory, flash memory, and programmable read-only memory.

[0443] In an exemplary embodiment, when the communication device 2200 is implemented as the above-mentioned positioning device, the receiver 2202 and the processor 2201 execute the computer program to enable the communication device to implement the various steps performed by the positioning device in the methods shown in Figures 7 to 9.

[0444] In an exemplary embodiment, when the communication device 2200 is implemented as the above-mentioned ambient energy Internet of Things device, the transmitter 2203 executes the computer program so that the communication device implements the various steps performed by the ambient energy Internet of Things device in the method shown in Figures 7 to 9.

[0445] An embodiment of the present application also provides a computer-readable storage medium, which stores a computer program. The computer program is loaded and executed by a processor to implement all or part of the steps performed by the positioning device or the environmental energy Internet of Things device in the methods shown in Figures 7 to 9 above.

[0446] The present application also provides a chip, which is used to run in a communication device so that the communication device executes all or part of the steps in the methods shown in Figures 7 to 9 above, which are executed by the positioning device or the environmental energy Internet of Things device.

[0447] The present application also provides a computer program product, which includes computer instructions stored in a computer-readable storage medium. A processor of a communication device reads the computer instructions from the computer-readable storage medium and executes the computer instructions, causing the communication device to perform all or part of the steps of the methods shown in Figures 7 to 9 above, which are performed by the positioning device or the environmental energy Internet of Things device.

[0448] The present application also provides a computer program, which is executed by a processor of a communication device to implement all or part of the steps performed by a positioning device or an environmental energy Internet of Things device in the methods shown in Figures 7 to 9 above.

[0449] Those skilled in the art will appreciate that in one or more of the above examples, the functions described in the embodiments of the present application can be implemented using hardware, software, firmware, or any combination thereof. When implemented using software, these functions can be stored in a computer-readable medium or transmitted as one or more instructions or codes on a computer-readable medium. Computer-readable media include computer storage media and communication media, wherein communication media include any media that facilitates the transmission of computer programs from one place to another. The storage medium can be any available medium that can be accessed by a general-purpose or special-purpose computer.

[0450] The above description is merely an exemplary embodiment of the present application and is not intended to limit the present application. Any modifications, equivalent replacements, improvements, etc. made within the spirit and principles of the present application shall be included in the scope of protection of the present application.

Claims

1. A signal processing method, characterized in that, The method is executed by a positioning device, and the method includes: Receiving positioning signals sent by one or more ambient energy Internet of Things devices; Obtaining the distance between the positioning device and the ambient energy Internet of Things device according to the positioning signal; the distance between the positioning device and the ambient energy Internet of Things device is used to position the positioning device.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein The obtaining the distance between the positioning device and the ambient energy Internet of Things device according to the positioning signal includes: Obtaining the distance between the positioning device and the ambient energy Internet of Things device according to the signal strength of the positioning signal and / or the phase information of the positioning signal.

3. The method according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that, The receiving positioning signals sent by one or more ambient energy Internet of Things devices includes: Receiving multiple positioning signals with different frequencies sent by each of the one or more ambient energy Internet of Things devices.

4. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that, The positioning signal is a signal sent by the ambient energy Internet of Things device through backscattering according to a carrier signal.

5. The method according to claim 4, wherein The carrier signal is sent by the positioning device; Or, the carrier signal is sent by a third-party device other than the positioning device and the ambient energy Internet of Things device.

6. The method according to claim 5, wherein In the case where the carrier signal is sent by the positioning device, The carrier signal and the trigger signal are the same signal; the trigger signal is a signal sent by the positioning device, and the trigger signal is used to trigger the ambient energy Internet of Things device to send the positioning signal; Or, the carrier signal and the trigger signal are different signals.

7. The method according to claim 6, characterized in that, In the case where the carrier signal and the trigger signal are different signals, there is a time offset between the start time point of the carrier signal and the start time point of the trigger signal.

8. The method according to claim 5, characterized in that In the case where the carrier signal is sent by a third-party device other than the positioning device and the ambient energy Internet of Things device, The carrier signal is periodically sent by the third-party device; Or, the carrier signal is sent by the third-party device under the control of the positioning device.

9. The method according to any one of claims 4 to 8, wherein The carrier signal includes multiple first carrier signals with different frequencies sent simultaneously; the positioning signal includes multiple first positioning signals with different frequencies corresponding one-to-one to the multiple first carrier signals with different frequencies; And / or, The carrier signal includes multiple second carrier signals with different frequencies sent at different times; the positioning signal includes multiple second positioning signals with different frequencies corresponding one-to-one to the multiple second carrier signals with different frequencies.

10. The method according to claim 9, wherein In the case where the carrier signal includes multiple second carrier signals with different frequencies sent at different times, the multiple second carrier signals with different frequencies are multiple signals sent within a first time window.

11. The method according to claim 10, wherein The length of the first time window is determined by the positioning device; Or, the length of the first time window is defined by a protocol; Or, the first time window is determined by the ambient energy Internet of Things device.

12. The method according to any one of claims 9 to 11, wherein The frequency of the positioning signal is the same as the frequency of the carrier signal reflected by the positioning signal; Or, There is a frequency offset between the frequency of the positioning signal and the frequency of the carrier signal reflected by the positioning signal.

13. The method according to claim 12, characterized in that, In the case where there is a frequency offset between the frequency of the positioning signal and the frequency of the carrier signal reflected by the positioning signal, The value of the frequency offset is defined by the protocol; Or, the value of the frequency offset is associated with the ambient energy Internet of Things device; Or, the value of the frequency offset is indicated by the positioning device to the ambient energy Internet of Things device.

14. The method according to claim 12 or 13, characterized in that, The method further includes: Sending first indication information to the ambient energy Internet of Things device, where the first indication information is used to indicate whether there is a frequency offset between the frequency of the positioning signal and the frequency of the carrier signal reflected by the positioning signal.

15. The method according to any one of claims 4 to 8, characterized in that The carrier signal includes a single third carrier signal, and the positioning signal includes multiple third positioning signals with different frequencies determined according to the frequency of the third carrier signal.

16. The method according to claim 15, wherein The frequency offset between the third positioning signal and the third carrier signal is defined by the protocol; Or, the frequency offset between the third positioning signal and the third carrier signal is determined by the ambient energy Internet of Things device; Or, the frequency offset between the third positioning signal and the third carrier signal is determined by the positioning device and indicated to the ambient energy Internet of Things device.

17. The method according to claim 15 or 16, characterized in that The third positioning signal is used to carry modulation information; or, the third positioning signal is not used to carry modulation information.

18. The method according to claim 17, wherein In the case where the third positioning signal is used to carry modulation information, Multiple third positioning signals with different frequencies are used to carry the same modulation information; Or, Multiple third positioning signals with different frequencies are used to carry different modulation information.

19. The method according to any one of claims 4 to 18, wherein There is a time-domain offset between the moment when the ambient energy Internet of Things device receives the carrier signal and the moment when the ambient energy Internet of Things device performs backscattering according to the carrier signal to send the positioning signal.

20. The method according to claim 19, wherein The value of the time-domain offset is defined by the protocol; Or, the value of the time-domain offset is determined by the ambient energy Internet of Things device; Or, the value of the time-domain offset is determined by the positioning device and indicated to the ambient energy Internet of Things device.

21. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that, The positioning signal is a signal actively transmitted by the ambient energy Internet of Things device in a low-power manner.

22. The method according to claim 21, wherein The positioning signal includes multiple fourth positioning signals with different frequencies corresponding to multiple trigger signals respectively; the trigger signal is a signal sent by the positioning device, and the trigger signal is used to trigger the ambient energy Internet of Things device to send the positioning signal; Or, The positioning signal includes multiple fifth positioning signals with different frequencies corresponding to a single trigger signal.

23. The method according to claim 22, wherein In the case where the positioning signal includes multiple fourth positioning signals, The frequency-domain position of the fourth positioning signal is indicated by the positioning device; Alternatively, the frequency-domain offset between the frequency-domain position of the fourth positioning signal and the frequency-domain position of the trigger signal corresponding to the fourth positioning signal is indicated by the positioning device; Alternatively, the frequency-domain position of the fourth positioning signal is the same as the frequency-domain position of the trigger signal corresponding to the fourth positioning signal; Alternatively, the frequency-domain offset between the frequency-domain position of the fourth positioning signal and the frequency-domain position of the trigger signal corresponding to the fourth positioning signal is defined by the protocol.

24. The method according to claim 22 or 23, characterized in that, In the case where the positioning signal includes a plurality of the fourth positioning signals, the plurality of trigger signals are a plurality of signals transmitted within a second time window.

25. The method according to claim 22, characterized in that, In the case where the positioning signal includes a plurality of the fifth positioning signals, the trigger signal is further used to indicate the following information: the frequency-domain position of the fifth positioning signal; Alternatively, the frequency-domain offset between the frequency-domain position of the fifth positioning signal and the frequency-domain position of the trigger signal; Alternatively, the time window in which a plurality of the fifth positioning signals are located; Alternatively, the first frequency-domain position among the frequency-domain positions of a plurality of the fifth positioning signals, and the frequency hopping interval between the frequency-domain positions of a plurality of the fifth positioning signals.

26. The method according to any one of claims 22 to 25, wherein a plurality of the fourth positioning signals or a plurality of the fifth positioning signals are signals respectively transmitted by the ambient energy Internet of Things device in a time-division manner.

27. The method according to claim 26, wherein a plurality of the fourth positioning signals or a plurality of the fifth positioning signals are a plurality of signals transmitted within a third time window.

28. The method according to claim 27, wherein the third time window is determined by the ambient energy Internet of Things device; Alternatively, the length of the third time window is defined by the protocol.

29. The method according to any one of claims 22 to 25, wherein the time offset between a plurality of the fourth positioning signals or a plurality of the fifth positioning signals and the trigger signal is a fixed value; Alternatively, the time offset between a plurality of the fourth positioning signals or a plurality of the fifth positioning signals and the trigger signal is determined by the ambient energy Internet of Things device; Alternatively, the time offset between a plurality of the fourth positioning signals or a plurality of the fifth positioning signals and the trigger signal is indicated by the positioning device.

30. The method according to claim 29, wherein In the case where the time offset between a plurality of the fourth positioning signals or a plurality of the fifth positioning signals and the trigger signal is indicated by the positioning device, the trigger signal is further used to indicate the following information: the time offset between a plurality of the fourth positioning signals or a plurality of the fifth positioning signals and the trigger signal; Alternatively, the time window for transmitting a plurality of the fourth positioning signals or a plurality of the fifth positioning signals; Alternatively, the time offset between the latest transmission time of a plurality of the fourth positioning signals or a plurality of the fifth positioning signals and the trigger signal.

31. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 30, characterized in that, The method further includes: simultaneously sending a trigger signal to a plurality of the ambient energy Internet of Things devices by means of broadcast or multicast, the trigger signal being used to trigger the ambient energy Internet of Things device to send the positioning signal; Alternatively, Send the trigger signal to the ambient energy Internet of Things device in a unicast manner.

32. The method according to claim 31, wherein In the case of sending trigger signals to multiple ambient energy Internet of Things devices simultaneously via broadcast or multicast, the positioning signal contains information associated with the locations of the ambient energy Internet of Things devices; The information associated with the locations of the ambient energy Internet of Things devices includes: the identifier of the ambient energy Internet of Things device, and / or, the location information of the ambient energy Internet of Things device.

33. The method according to claim 31 or 32, characterized in that, The method further includes: When sending the trigger signal, indicate to the ambient energy Internet of Things device the time information for sending the positioning signal, so that in the case where the ambient energy Internet of Things device receives trigger signals sent by multiple devices simultaneously, it sends the positioning signals to the multiple devices respectively in a time-division manner; the multiple devices include the positioning device.

34. The method according to claim 33, wherein The time information includes: A transmission time window, multiple time-domain offsets between the reception time point of the trigger signal and the transmission time point of the positioning signal, or multiple transmission time points of the positioning signal.

35. The method according to claim 31 or 32, characterized in that, The method further includes: When sending the trigger signal, indicate to the ambient energy Internet of Things device the identifier information of the positioning device; the positioning signal contains the identifier information of the positioning device.

36. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 35, characterized in that The acquisition method of the energy for the ambient energy Internet of Things device to send the positioning signal includes one or more of the following: Collect energy from the environment other than radio frequency signals; Collect energy from the first radio frequency signal sent by the positioning device; And collect energy from the second radio frequency signal sent by a third-party device.

37. The method according to claim 36, wherein In the case where the acquisition method of the energy for the ambient energy Internet of Things device to send the positioning signal includes collecting energy from the first radio frequency signal sent by the positioning device, The first radio frequency signal and the trigger signal are the same signal; the trigger signal is a signal sent by the positioning device and is used to trigger the ambient energy Internet of Things device to send the positioning signal; or, In the case where the positioning signal is a signal sent by the ambient energy Internet of Things device through backscattering based on a carrier signal, the first radio frequency signal and the carrier signal are the same signal; or, The first radio frequency signal is a signal other than the trigger signal and the carrier signal.

38. The method according to claim 36 or 37, characterized in that, In the case where the acquisition method of the energy for the ambient energy Internet of Things device to send the positioning signal includes collecting energy from the second radio frequency signal sent by a third-party device, The second radio frequency signal is periodically sent by the third-party device; Or, the second radio frequency signal is sent by the third-party device under the control of the positioning device.

39. A signal processing method, characterized in that, The method is executed by an ambient energy Internet of Things device, and the method includes: Send a positioning signal to a positioning device so that the positioning device obtains the distance between the positioning device and the ambient energy Internet of Things device according to the positioning signal; the distance between the positioning device and the ambient energy Internet of Things device is used to position the positioning device.

40. The method according to claim 39, characterized in that, The sending the positioning signal to the positioning device includes: Send multiple positioning signals with different frequencies to the positioning device.

41. The method according to claim 39 or 40, characterized in that, The positioning signal is a signal sent by the ambient energy Internet of Things device through backscattering based on a carrier signal.

42. The method according to claim 41, wherein the carrier signal is sent by the positioning device; alternatively, the carrier signal is sent by a third-party device other than the positioning device and the ambient energy Internet of Things device.

43. The method according to claim 42, wherein In the case where the carrier signal is sent by the positioning device, the carrier signal and the trigger signal are the same signal; the trigger signal is a signal sent by the positioning device, and the trigger signal is used to trigger the ambient energy Internet of Things device to send the positioning signal; alternatively, the carrier signal and the trigger signal are different signals.

44. The method according to claim 43, wherein In the case where the carrier signal and the trigger signal are different signals, there is a time offset between the start time point of the carrier signal and the start time point of the trigger signal.

45. The method according to claim 42, wherein In the case where the carrier signal is sent by a third-party device other than the positioning device and the ambient energy Internet of Things device, the carrier signal is periodically sent by the third-party device; alternatively, the carrier signal is sent by the third-party device under the control of the positioning device.

46. The method according to any one of claims 41 to 45, wherein the carrier signal includes a plurality of first carrier signals with different frequencies sent simultaneously; the positioning signal includes a plurality of first positioning signals with different frequencies corresponding one-to-one to the plurality of first carrier signals with different frequencies; and / or, the carrier signal includes a plurality of second carrier signals with different frequencies sent at different times; the positioning signal includes a plurality of second positioning signals with different frequencies corresponding one-to-one to the plurality of second carrier signals with different frequencies.

47. The method according to claim 46, wherein In the case where the carrier signal includes a plurality of second carrier signals with different frequencies sent at different times, the plurality of second carrier signals with different frequencies are signals sent within a first time window.

48. The method according to claim 47, wherein the length of the first time window is determined by the positioning device; alternatively, the length of the first time window is defined by a protocol; alternatively, the first time window is determined by the ambient energy Internet of Things device.

49. The method according to any one of claims 46 to 48, wherein the frequency of the positioning signal is the same as the frequency of the carrier signal reflected by the positioning signal; alternatively, there is a frequency offset between the frequency of the positioning signal and the frequency of the carrier signal reflected by the positioning signal.

50. The method according to claim 49, wherein In the case where there is a frequency offset between the frequency of the positioning signal and the frequency of the carrier signal reflected by the positioning signal, the value of the frequency offset is defined by a protocol; alternatively, the value of the frequency offset is associated with the ambient energy Internet of Things device; alternatively, the value of the frequency offset is indicated by the positioning device to the ambient energy Internet of Things device.

51. The method according to claim 49 or 50, characterized in that, The method further includes: receiving first indication information sent by the positioning device, where the first indication information is used to indicate whether there is a frequency offset between the frequency of the positioning signal and the frequency of the carrier signal reflected by the positioning signal.

52. The method according to any one of claims 41 to 45, characterized in that, The carrier signal includes a single third carrier signal, and the positioning signal includes multiple third positioning signals with different frequencies determined according to the frequency of the third carrier signal.

53. The method according to claim 52, wherein the frequency offset between the third positioning signal and the third carrier signal is defined by a protocol; alternatively, the frequency offset between the third positioning signal and the third carrier signal is determined by the ambient energy Internet of Things device; alternatively, the frequency offset between the third positioning signal and the third carrier signal is determined by the positioning device and indicated to the ambient energy Internet of Things device.

54. The method according to claim 52 or 53, characterized in that, The third positioning signal is used to carry modulation information; or, the third positioning signal is not used to carry modulation information.

55. The method according to claim 54, characterized in that, In the case where the third positioning signal is used to carry modulation information, the multiple third positioning signals with different frequencies are used to carry the same modulation information; or the multiple third positioning signals with different frequencies are used to carry different modulation information.

56. The method according to any one of claims 41 to 55, wherein there is a time domain offset between the moment when the ambient energy Internet of Things device receives the carrier signal and the moment when the ambient energy Internet of Things device performs backscattering transmission of the positioning signal according to the carrier signal.

57. The method according to claim 56, wherein the value of the time domain offset is defined by a protocol; alternatively, the value of the time domain offset is determined by the ambient energy Internet of Things device; alternatively, the value of the time domain offset is determined by the positioning device and indicated to the ambient energy Internet of Things device.

58. The method according to claim 39 or 40, characterized in that, The positioning signal is a signal actively transmitted by the ambient energy Internet of Things device in a low-power manner.

59. The method according to claim 58, wherein the positioning signal includes multiple fourth positioning signals with different frequencies respectively corresponding to multiple trigger signals; the trigger signal is a signal sent by the positioning device, and the trigger signal is used to trigger the ambient energy Internet of Things device to send the positioning signal; or the positioning signal includes multiple fifth positioning signals with different frequencies corresponding to a single trigger signal.

60. The method according to claim 59, wherein, In the case where the positioning signal includes multiple fourth positioning signals, the frequency domain position of the fourth positioning signal is indicated by the positioning device; alternatively, the frequency domain offset between the frequency domain position of the fourth positioning signal and the frequency domain position of the trigger signal corresponding to the fourth positioning signal is indicated by the positioning device; alternatively, the frequency domain position of the fourth positioning signal is the same as the frequency domain position of the trigger signal corresponding to the fourth positioning signal; alternatively, the frequency domain offset between the frequency domain position of the fourth positioning signal and the frequency domain position of the trigger signal corresponding to the fourth positioning signal is defined by a protocol.

61. The method according to claim 59 or 60, characterized in that, In the case where the positioning signal includes multiple fourth positioning signals, the multiple trigger signals are multiple signals sent within a second time window.

62. The method according to claim 61, wherein In the case where the positioning signal includes multiple fifth positioning signals, the trigger signal is further used to indicate the following information: the frequency domain position of the fifth positioning signal; Alternatively, a frequency-domain offset between the frequency-domain position of the fifth positioning signal and the frequency-domain position of the trigger signal; Alternatively, a time window in which a plurality of the fifth positioning signals are located; Alternatively, a first frequency-domain position among the frequency-domain positions of a plurality of the fifth positioning signals, and a frequency-hopping interval between the frequency-domain positions of the plurality of the fifth positioning signals.

63. The method according to any one of claims 59 to 62, wherein A plurality of the fourth positioning signals or a plurality of the fifth positioning signals are signals respectively sent by the ambient energy Internet of Things device in a time-division manner.

64. The method according to claim 63, wherein A plurality of the fourth positioning signals or a plurality of the fifth positioning signals are a plurality of signals sent within a third time window.

65. The method according to claim 64, wherein The third time window is determined by the ambient energy Internet of Things device; Alternatively, the length of the third time window is defined by a protocol.

66. The method according to any one of claims 59 to 62, wherein A time offset between a plurality of the fourth positioning signals or a plurality of the fifth positioning signals and the trigger signal is a fixed value; Alternatively, a time offset between a plurality of the fourth positioning signals or a plurality of the fifth positioning signals and the trigger signal is determined by the ambient energy Internet of Things device; Alternatively, a time offset between a plurality of the fourth positioning signals or a plurality of the fifth positioning signals and the trigger signal is indicated by the positioning device.

67. The method according to claim 66, wherein In a case where a time offset between a plurality of the fourth positioning signals or a plurality of the fifth positioning signals and the trigger signal is indicated by the positioning device, the trigger signal is further used to indicate the following information: A time offset between a plurality of the fourth positioning signals or a plurality of the fifth positioning signals and the trigger signal; Alternatively, a time window for sending a plurality of the fourth positioning signals or a plurality of the fifth positioning signals; Alternatively, a time offset between the latest sending time of a plurality of the fourth positioning signals or a plurality of the fifth positioning signals and the trigger signal.

68. The method according to any one of claims 39 to 67, characterized in that, The method further includes: Receiving a trigger signal sent by the positioning device to a plurality of the ambient energy Internet of Things devices simultaneously by broadcast or multicast, the trigger signal being used to trigger the ambient energy Internet of Things device to send the positioning signal; Alternatively, Receiving the trigger signal sent by the positioning device to the ambient energy Internet of Things device by unicast.

69. The method according to claim 68, wherein, In a case of receiving a trigger signal sent by the positioning device to a plurality of the ambient energy Internet of Things devices simultaneously by broadcast or multicast, the positioning signal includes information associated with the position of the ambient energy Internet of Things device; The information associated with the position of the ambient energy Internet of Things device includes: an identifier of the ambient energy Internet of Things device, and / or, location information of the ambient energy Internet of Things device.

70. The method according to claim 68 or 69, characterized in that, The method further includes: Receiving time information for sending the positioning signal indicated by the positioning device when sending the trigger signal; In the case of receiving the trigger signals sent by multiple devices simultaneously, according to the time information, the positioning signals are respectively sent to the multiple devices in a time-division manner; the multiple devices include the positioning device.

71. The method according to claim 70, characterized in that, The time information includes: A transmission time window, multiple time-domain offsets between the reception time point of the trigger signal and the transmission time point of the positioning signal, or multiple transmission time points of the positioning signal.

72. The method according to claim 70 or 71, characterized in that, The method further includes: Receiving the identification information of the positioning device indicated when the positioning device sends the trigger signal; the identification information of the positioning device is included in the positioning signal.

73. The method according to any one of claims 39 to 72, characterized in that, The acquisition method of the energy for the environmental energy Internet of Things device to send the positioning signal includes one or more of the following: Collecting energy other than radio frequency signals in the environment; Collecting energy from the first radio frequency signal sent by the positioning device; And collecting energy from the second radio frequency signal sent by a third-party device.

74. The method according to claim 73, wherein In the case where the acquisition method of the energy for the environmental energy Internet of Things device to send the positioning signal includes collecting energy from the first radio frequency signal sent by the positioning device, The first radio frequency signal and the trigger signal are the same signal; the trigger signal is a signal sent by the positioning device and is used to trigger the environmental energy Internet of Things device to send the positioning signal; or, In the case where the positioning signal is a signal sent by the environmental energy Internet of Things device through backscattering according to a carrier signal, the first radio frequency signal and the carrier signal are the same signal; or, The first radio frequency signal is a signal other than the trigger signal and the carrier signal.

75. The method according to claim 73 or 74, characterized in that, In the case where the acquisition method of the energy for the environmental energy Internet of Things device to send the positioning signal includes collecting energy from the second radio frequency signal sent by a third-party device, The second radio frequency signal is periodically sent by the third-party device; Or, the second radio frequency signal is sent by the third-party device under the control of the positioning device.

76. A signal processing device, characterized in that, The device includes: A receiving module, configured to receive positioning signals sent by one or more environmental energy Internet of Things devices; A distance acquisition module, configured to acquire the distance between the positioning device and the environmental energy Internet of Things device according to the positioning signal; the distance between the positioning device and the environmental energy Internet of Things device is used to position the positioning device.

77. A signal processing device, characterized in that, The device includes: A sending module, configured to send a positioning signal to a positioning device so that the positioning device acquires the distance between the positioning device and the environmental energy Internet of Things device according to the positioning signal; the distance between the positioning device and the environmental energy Internet of Things device is used to position the positioning device.

78. A positioning device, characterized in that, The positioning device includes a processor, a memory, and a transceiver; A computer program is stored in the memory, and the processor executes the computer program to enable the positioning device to implement the signal processing method according to any one of claims 1 to 38 above.

79. An Internet of Things device for the environment, characterized in that, The environmental energy Internet of Things device includes a processor, a memory, and a transceiver; A computer program is stored in the memory, and the processor executes the computer program to enable the IoT device in the environment to implement the signal processing method described in any one of claims 39 to 75 above.

80. A computer-readable storage medium, characterized in that, A computer program is stored in the storage medium, and the computer program is used to be executed by the processor of the communication device to enable the communication device to implement the signal processing method described in any one of claims 1 to 75.

81. A chip, characterized in that, The chip includes an integrated circuit and an application program, and the chip is used to run in a communication device to enable the communication device to execute the signal processing method described in any one of claims 1 to 75.

82. A computer program product, characterized in that, The computer program product includes computer instructions, and the computer instructions are stored in a computer-readable storage medium; the processor of the communication device reads the computer instructions from the computer-readable storage medium and executes the computer instructions to enable the communication device to execute the signal processing method described in any one of claims 1 to 75.

83. A computer program, characterized in that, The computer program is executed by the processor of the communication device to enable the communication device to implement the signal processing method described in any one of claims 1 to 75.

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