Channel measurement method and communication apparatus

Abstract

The embodiments of the present application relate to the technical field of communications. Disclosed are a channel measurement method and a communication apparatus, which can reduce the channel measurement overhead between a base station and a UE in an IRS scenario and improve the precision of channel measurement. The method comprises: receiving first resource information and first signal measurement information of a first reference signal that are sent by a terminal device, wherein the first reference signal is a downlink reference signal among a plurality of downlink reference signals received by the terminal device from a first network device; receiving a plurality of uplink reference signals sent by the first network device, wherein the plurality of uplink reference signals are used for determining second resource information and second signal measurement information of a second reference signal from the plurality of uplink reference signals; and sending instruction information to the first network device, wherein the instruction information is determined on the basis of the first resource information, the first signal measurement information, the second resource information and the second signal measurement information, and the instruction information is used for the first network device to determine a weight value. The embodiments of the present application are used in IRS bidirectional channel measurement.

Description

Channel measurement method and communication device

[0001] This application claims priority to the Chinese patent application filed with the State Intellectual Property Office on February 19, 2024, with application number 202410187889.2 and application name “A Channel Measurement Method and Communication Device”, the entire contents of which are incorporated by reference into this application. Technical Field

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

[0003] Typically, an intelligent reflecting surface (IRS) consists of a multi-element array of passive reflective elements with adjustable phases, along with a mobile terminal (MT) that receives control signals from a base station (BS). The MT adjusts the phase of each element by sending signals to the IRS, thereby reflecting the received signal at the IRS in the desired direction. This enables channel enhancement and rank-enhancing in areas with weak coverage.

[0004] When adjusting the phase of an IRS element, the channel measurement results between the base station and user equipment (UE) can be obtained through the IRS element-by-element channel measurement method, and the phase of the IRS element can be designed based on the channel measurement results. In this IRS element-by-element channel measurement method, all elements except one must be turned off to calculate the equivalent channel between the base station and the UE. This method polls each element to obtain the equivalent channel between the base station and the UE when operating independently. Therefore, this measurement method incurs a high overhead for the base station in performing channel measurements between the base station and the UE. Furthermore, in this IRS element-by-element channel measurement method, the signal-to-noise ratio of the cascaded channels between the base station and the IRS and the IRS and the UE is low, resulting in low accuracy in the channel measurement results. Summary of the Invention

[0005] The embodiments of the present application provide a channel measurement method and a communication device, which can reduce the channel measurement overhead between the base station and the UE in the IRS scenario and improve the channel measurement accuracy.

[0006] To achieve the above objectives, the embodiments of the present application adopt the following technical solutions.

[0007] In a first aspect, a channel measurement method is provided. Optionally, the execution subject of the method can be a network device, or a component or device applied to the network device (such as a processor, chip, or chip system, etc.), or a logic module or software that can realize all or part of the network device functions. The method includes: receiving first resource information and first signal measurement information of a first reference signal sent by a terminal device, where the first reference signal is a downlink reference signal among multiple downlink reference signals received by the terminal device from the first network device; receiving multiple uplink reference signals sent by the first network device, where the multiple uplink reference signals are used to determine second resource information and second signal measurement information of a second reference signal from the multiple uplink reference signals; and sending indication information to the first network device, where the indication information is determined based on the first resource information, the first signal measurement information, the second resource information, and the second signal measurement information, and the indication information is used by the first network device to determine a weight.

[0008] The execution entity of the first aspect may be a second network device. The first network device may be an IRS, the second network device may be a base station, and the terminal device may be a UE. The weight value may be understood as the weight value of the IRS. The IRS may be configured to reflect received signals in a desired direction. For example, the IRS may reflect signals received from a base station toward the UE.

[0009] Considering that the weight of IRS is related to the channel measurement result or channel information between the base station and the UE, the indication information in this application can be understood as being used to indicate or reflect the channel information between the base station and the UE in the IRS scenario. Compared with the IRS array-by-array channel measurement method, which requires obtaining the channel information between the base station and the UE when each array element of the IRS works independently, it takes approximately (N I +1)N Rx Pilot resources (N I Indicates the number of IRS elements, N RxIn this application, the IRS only needs to send multiple downlink reference signals to the UE and multiple uplink reference signals to the base station. The base station determines the channel measurement result, or in other words, the indication information indicating the IRS weight, based on the first resource information and first signal measurement information of the first reference signal reported by the UE, as well as the second resource information and second signal measurement information of the second reference signal obtained by the base station based on the multiple uplink reference signals. This is equivalent to a bidirectional measurement method for the IRS, in which all elements of the IRS participate in the transmission of uplink and downlink reference signals simultaneously. Compared to the IRS element-by-element channel measurement method, this application does not require element-by-element channel measurement, resulting in lower channel measurement overhead. Furthermore, in this IRS element-by-element channel measurement method, when a single IRS element is operating, the signal-to-noise ratio of the concatenated channel between the base station and the IRS, and the channel between the IRS and the UE, is low, resulting in lower accuracy in the channel information measured by the base station between the base station and the UE. This application does not require individual IRS elements to operate. When all IRS elements participate in the transmission of uplink and downlink reference signals, the accuracy of the channel information measured by the base station can be improved.

[0010] In one possible design, the first reference signal includes a first downlink reference signal from among multiple downlink reference signals, and the first resource information indicates a resource identifier for the first downlink reference signal; the second reference signal includes a first uplink reference signal from among multiple uplink reference signals, and the second resource information indicates a resource identifier for the first uplink reference signal; wherein the number of first reference signals is one or more, and the number of second reference signals is one or more. This means that the terminal device can obtain one or more downlink reference signals from the multiple downlink reference signals received from the first network device / IRS and report the resource identifiers of the one or more downlink reference signals to the base station. The second network device / base station can determine the resource identifiers of the one or more uplink reference signals from among the multiple uplink reference signals received from the first network device / IRS. In this way, the second network device can determine channel information / weights between the second network device and the first network device, and between the first network device and the terminal device, based on the resource identifiers of the one or more downlink reference signals and the resource identifiers of the one or more uplink reference signals reported by the terminal device. This method of determining channel information / weights based on the bidirectional / uplink / downlink reference signals transmitted by the first network device reduces the channel measurement overhead compared to the IRS element-by-element measurement method.

[0011] In one possible design, the first signal measurement information includes the first reference signal received power and first receiving angle information of the first downlink reference signal on the terminal device side; the second signal measurement information includes the second reference signal received power and second receiving angle information of the first uplink reference signal on the second network device side. The first receiving angle information here can be the receiving angle information when the received power of the first downlink reference signal is maximized, and the second receiving angle information can be the receiving angle information when the received power of the first uplink reference signal is maximized. For the second network device, when the second network device obtains the indication information, it can obtain the channel information between the first network device and the second network device and the channel information between the first network device and the terminal device based on the first signal measurement information and the second signal measurement information. This method of determining the channel information / weight based on the first signal measurement information between the terminal device and the first network device obtained by the terminal device and the second signal measurement information between the first network device and the second network device obtained by the second network device has less channel measurement overhead than the IRS array-by-element measurement method.

[0012] In one possible design, the indication information includes an identifier of a second downlink reference signal and an identifier of a second uplink reference signal. The second downlink reference signal is one or more reference signals in the first reference signal, and the second uplink reference signal is one or more reference signals in the second reference signal. This means that the second network device ultimately obtains the identifier of the second downlink reference signal among multiple downlink reference signals, and the identifier of the second uplink reference signal among multiple uplink reference signals. When the reference signal identifiers are used to indicate the first network device, the first network device can obtain the weights corresponding to the second uplink reference signal and the second downlink reference signal based on the weights used when sending the reference signals, thereby determining the phase based on the weights.

[0013] In one possible design, the second downlink reference signal and the second uplink reference signal are determined based on first signal measurement information and a first weight corresponding to the first reference signal, second signal measurement information and a second weight corresponding to the second reference signal, and channel information between a mobile terminal in the first network device and a reflection array in the first network device. This application does not limit the manner in which the second network device determines the second downlink reference signal and the second uplink reference signal.

[0014] In one possible design, before receiving the resource information and first signal measurement information of the first reference signal sent by the terminal device, the method further includes: sending first configuration information to the first network device and the terminal device, the first configuration information being used to indicate the port resource of each downlink reference signal among the multiple downlink reference signals sent by the first network device to the terminal device; and sending second configuration information to the first network device, the second configuration information being used to indicate the port resource of each uplink reference signal among the multiple uplink reference signals sent by the first network device to the second network device. In this way, the first network device can send multiple downlink reference signals to the terminal device according to the first configuration information and send multiple uplink reference signals to the second network device according to the second configuration information, so that the terminal device measures the multiple downlink reference signals and the base station measures the multiple uplink reference signals, thereby obtaining signal measurement results of the multiple downlink reference signals and the multiple uplink reference signals, so that the base station can further obtain channel information between the first network device and the second network device and channel information between the first network device and the terminal device. Compared with the IRS array-by-element measurement method, the present application has less measurement overhead.

[0015] In one possible design, the method further includes: not sending downlink signals on the port resources for the multiple downlink reference signals indicated by the first configuration information. This design can be understood as the second network device / base station performing puncturing on the port resources for the multiple downlink reference signals. In this way, when the first network device sends multiple downlink reference signals to the terminal device, the second network device does not send downlink signals to the terminal device, thereby avoiding interference with the downlink signals of the second network device when the first network device sends downlink reference signals.

[0016] In one possible design, before sending the first configuration information and the second configuration information, the method further includes: receiving capability information sent by the first network device, where the capability information is used to indicate that the first network device has the capability to send a reference signal. In other words, the capability information is used to indicate that the first network device has the capability to actively send an empty feed. This is equivalent to the existing IRS only having the capability of signal reflection. In this application, if the IRS has the capability of sending a reference signal, the IRS can send a downlink reference signal to the terminal device and an uplink reference signal to the base station to perform IRS bidirectional channel measurement.

[0017] In one possible design, the multiple downlink reference signals include multiple channel state information reference signals (CSI-RSs), and the multiple uplink reference signals include multiple channel sounding reference signals (SRSs). This application does not limit the types of downlink reference signals and uplink reference signals.

[0018] In one possible design, multiple downlink reference signals are sent by the first network device via different downlink ports using different beams; and multiple uplink reference signals are sent by the first network device via different uplink ports using different beams. Transmitting signals via different beams from different ports is equivalent to transmitting uplink and downlink reference signals using different weights from the IRS. This facilitates the second network device / base station determining the weights of the optimal path pairs between the base station and the IRS, and between the IRS and the UE, based on the signal measurement information of the UE and the signal measurement information obtained by the base station, so that the IRS can determine the phase based on the weights of the optimal path pairs. Specifically, when a UE receives multiple downlink reference signals, if the transmission beam direction of any downlink reference signal aligns with the direction of a path of the channel, the UE receives greater power. Based on the power, the UE can determine that the measurement information for any downlink reference signal includes information about this path. In this way, the UE can determine the path information corresponding to each downlink reference signal. Similarly, the base station can also determine the path information corresponding to each uplink reference signal. Based on this, the second network device / base station can further determine an optimal path pair based on the signal measurement information of the UE and the signal measurement information obtained by the base station, including at least one path between the base station and the IRS, and at least one path between the IRS and the UE. When the IRS determines the weight of the optimal path pair, it is equivalent to determining the optimal path pair between the base station and the UE.

[0019] In one possible design, the first reference signal is a downlink reference signal having a reference signal received power greater than or equal to a first reference signal received power threshold among multiple downlink reference signals; the second reference signal is an uplink reference signal having a reference signal received power greater than or equal to a second reference signal received power threshold among multiple uplink reference signals. That is, the UE reports to the base station a downlink reference signal having a higher reference signal received power, and the base station determines an uplink reference signal having a higher reference signal received power. This facilitates the base station determining the channel information of the optimal path pair between the base station and the IRS, and between the IRS and the UE, based on the downlink reference signal having a higher reference signal received power and the uplink reference signal having a higher reference signal received power.

[0020] In a second aspect, a channel measurement method is provided. Optionally, the execution subject of the method can be a network device, or a component or device (such as a processor, chip, or chip system) applied to the network device, or a logic module or software that can realize all or part of the network device functions. The method includes: sending multiple downlink reference signals to a terminal device, the multiple downlink reference signals are used by the terminal device to determine first resource information and first signal measurement information of a first reference signal from multiple downlink reference signals; sending multiple uplink reference signals to a second network device, the multiple uplink reference signals are used by the second network device to determine second resource information and second signal measurement information of a second reference signal from multiple uplink reference signals; receiving indication information sent by the second network device, the indication information is determined based on the first resource information, the first signal measurement information, the second resource information, and the second signal measurement information, and the indication information is used by the first network device to determine the weight.

[0021] The execution subject of the second aspect may be a first network device. The first network device may be an IRS, the second network device may be a base station, and the terminal device may be a UE. The beneficial effects of the second aspect can be found in the description of the first aspect.

[0022] In one possible design, the first reference signal includes a first downlink reference signal among multiple downlink reference signals, and the first resource information is used to indicate the resource identifier of the first downlink reference signal; the second reference signal includes a first uplink reference signal among multiple uplink reference signals, and the second resource information is used to indicate the resource identifier of the first uplink reference signal; wherein the number of first reference signals is one or more, and the number of second reference signals is one or more.

[0023] In one possible design, the first signal measurement information includes the first reference signal receiving power and first receiving angle information of the first downlink reference signal on the terminal device side; the second signal measurement information includes the second reference signal receiving power and second receiving angle information of the first uplink reference signal on the second network device side.

[0024] In one possible design, the indication information includes an identifier of a second downlink reference signal and an identifier of a second uplink reference signal, the second downlink reference signal is one or more reference signals in the first reference signal, and the second uplink reference signal is one or more reference signals in the second reference signal.

[0025] In one possible design, the second downlink reference signal and the second uplink reference signal are determined based on the first signal measurement information and the first weight corresponding to the first reference signal, the second signal measurement information and the second weight corresponding to the second reference signal, and the channel information between the mobile terminal in the first network device and the reflection front in the first network device.

[0026] In one possible design, before receiving multiple downlink reference signals and multiple uplink reference signals, the method also includes: receiving first configuration information and second configuration information sent by the second network device, the first configuration information being used to indicate the port resources of each downlink reference signal in the multiple downlink reference signals sent by the first network device to the terminal device, and the second configuration information being used to indicate the port resources of each uplink reference signal in the multiple uplink reference signals sent by the first network device to the second network device.

[0027] In one possible design, before receiving the first configuration information and the second configuration information, the method further includes: sending capability information to the second network device, where the capability information is used to indicate that the first network device has the capability to send a reference signal.

[0028] In one possible design, the multiple downlink reference signals include multiple CSI-RSs; the multiple uplink reference signals include multiple SRSs.

[0029] In one possible design, sending multiple downlink reference signals to a terminal device includes: sending multiple downlink reference signals to the terminal device through different beams at different downlink ports; sending multiple uplink reference signals to a network device includes: sending multiple uplink reference signals to a second network device through different uplink ports.

[0030] In one possible design, the first reference signal is a downlink reference signal among multiple downlink reference signals, whose reference signal receiving power is greater than or equal to the first reference signal receiving power threshold; the second reference signal is an uplink reference signal among multiple uplink reference signals, whose reference signal receiving power is greater than or equal to the second reference signal receiving power threshold.

[0031] In a third aspect, a communication device is provided. The communication device may be a second network device, which may be, for example, a base station. It may also be a component or device (such as a processor, a chip, or a chip system, etc.) applied to the second network device, or a logic module or software that can implement all or part of the functions of the second network device. The communication device includes: a receiving unit for receiving first resource information and first signal measurement information of a first reference signal sent by a terminal device, where the first reference signal is a downlink reference signal among multiple downlink reference signals received by the terminal device from the first network device; the receiving unit is also used to receive multiple uplink reference signals sent by the first network device, where the multiple uplink reference signals are used to determine the second resource information and second signal measurement information of the second reference signal from the multiple uplink reference signals; a sending unit is used to send indication information to the first network device, where the indication information is determined based on the first resource information, the first signal measurement information, the second resource information, and the second signal measurement information, and the indication information is used by the first network device to determine a weight.

[0032] In one possible design, the sending unit is also used to: send first configuration information to the first network device and the terminal device, the first configuration information being used to indicate the port resources of each downlink reference signal among multiple downlink reference signals sent by the first network device to the terminal device; and send second configuration information to the first network device, the second configuration information being used to indicate the port resources of each uplink reference signal among multiple uplink reference signals sent by the first network device to the second network device.

[0033] In one possible design, the sending unit is further used to: not send a downlink signal on the port resources of the multiple downlink reference signals indicated by the first configuration information.

[0034] In one possible design, the receiving unit is further used to: receive capability information sent by the first network device, where the capability information is used to indicate that the first network device has the capability to send a reference signal.

[0035] In a fourth aspect, a communication device is provided. The communication device may be a first network device, and the first network device may be, for example, an IRS. It may also be a component or device (such as a processor, chip, or chip system, etc.) applied to the first network device, or it may be a logic module or software that can implement all or part of the functions of the first network device. The communication device includes: a sending unit, configured to send multiple downlink reference signals to a terminal device, the multiple downlink reference signals being used by the terminal device to determine first resource information and first signal measurement information of a first reference signal from multiple downlink reference signals; the sending unit is also configured to send multiple uplink reference signals to a second network device, the multiple uplink reference signals being used by the second network device to determine second resource information and second signal measurement information of a second reference signal from multiple uplink reference signals; a receiving unit, configured to receive an indication that the second network device sends indication information determined based on the first resource information, the first signal measurement information, the second resource information, and the second signal measurement information, the indication information being used by the first network device to determine a weight.

[0036] In one possible design, the receiving unit is also used to: receive first configuration information and second configuration information sent by the second network device, the first configuration information is used to indicate the port resources of each downlink reference signal in multiple downlink reference signals sent by the first network device to the terminal device, and the second configuration information is used to indicate the port resources of each uplink reference signal in multiple uplink reference signals sent by the first network device to the second network device.

[0037] In one possible design, the sending unit is further used to: before receiving the first configuration information and the second configuration information, send capability information to the second network device, where the capability information is used to indicate that the first network device has the capability to send a reference signal.

[0038] In one possible design, the sending unit is used to: send multiple downlink reference signals to the terminal device through different beams at different downlink ports; and send multiple uplink reference signals to the second network device through different uplink ports.

[0039] In a fifth aspect, a communication device is provided. The communication device may be a base station, or a component or device applied to a base station (such as a processor, a chip, or a chip system), or a logic module or software that can implement all or part of the base station functions. The communication device includes a processor and a transceiver, at least one processor is connected to a memory, and at least one processor is used to read and execute a program stored in the memory, so that the communication device performs the method as described in the first aspect and any possible design of the first aspect. The processor can be used to control the transceiver to: receive first resource information and first signal measurement information of a first reference signal sent by a terminal device, the first reference signal being a downlink reference signal among multiple downlink reference signals received by the terminal device from a first network device; receive multiple uplink reference signals sent by the first network device, the multiple uplink reference signals being used to determine second resource information and second signal measurement information of a second reference signal from the multiple uplink reference signals; and send indication information to the first network device, the indication information being determined based on the first resource information, the first signal measurement information, the second resource information, and the second signal measurement information, and the indication information being used by the first network device to determine a weight.

[0040] In one possible design, the processor may be used to control the transceiver to: before receiving the resource information of the first reference signal and the first signal measurement information sent by the terminal device, send first configuration information to the first network device and the terminal device, the first configuration information being used to indicate the port resources of each downlink reference signal in multiple downlink reference signals sent by the first network device to the terminal device; and send second configuration information to the first network device, the second configuration information being used to indicate the port resources of each uplink reference signal in multiple uplink reference signals sent by the first network device to the second network device.

[0041] In one possible design, the processor may be configured to control the transceiver to: not send downlink signals on port resources of multiple downlink reference signals indicated by the first configuration information.

[0042] In one possible design, the processor may be used to control the transceiver to: before sending the first configuration information and the second configuration information, receive capability information sent by the first network device, where the capability information is used to indicate that the first network device has the capability to send a reference signal.

[0043] In a sixth aspect, a communication device is provided. The communication device may be an IRS, or a component or device (such as a processor, chip, or chip system) applied to the IRS, or a logic module or software that can implement all or part of the IRS functions. The communication device includes a processor and a transceiver, at least one processor is connected to a memory, and at least one processor is used to read and execute a program stored in the memory, so that the communication device performs the method described in the first aspect and any possible design of the first aspect. The processor may be used to control the transceiver to: send multiple downlink reference signals to a terminal device, the multiple downlink reference signals being used by the terminal device to determine first resource information and first signal measurement information of a first reference signal from the multiple downlink reference signals; send multiple uplink reference signals to a second network device, the multiple uplink reference signals being used by the second network device to determine second resource information and second signal measurement information of a second reference signal from the multiple uplink reference signals; and receive indication information sent by the second network device, the indication information being determined based on the first resource information, the first signal measurement information, the second resource information, and the second signal measurement information, and the indication information being used by the first network device to determine a weight.

[0044] In one possible design, the processor may be used to control the transceiver to: before receiving multiple downlink reference signals and multiple uplink reference signals, receive first configuration information and second configuration information sent by the second network device, the first configuration information being used to indicate the port resources of each downlink reference signal in the multiple downlink reference signals sent by the first network device to the terminal device, and the second configuration information being used to indicate the port resources of each uplink reference signal in the multiple uplink reference signals sent by the first network device to the second network device.

[0045] In one possible design, the processor may be used to control the transceiver to: before receiving the first configuration information and the second configuration information, send capability information to the second network device, where the capability information is used to indicate that the first network device has the capability to send a reference signal.

[0046] In one possible design, the processor may be used to control the transceiver to: send multiple downlink reference signals to the terminal device through different beams at different downlink ports; and send multiple uplink reference signals to the second network device through different uplink ports.

[0047] In the third, fourth, fifth and sixth aspects:

[0048] In one possible design, the first reference signal includes a first downlink reference signal among multiple downlink reference signals, and the first resource information is used to indicate the resource identifier of the first downlink reference signal; the second reference signal includes a first uplink reference signal among multiple uplink reference signals, and the second resource information is used to indicate the resource identifier of the first uplink reference signal; wherein the number of first reference signals is one or more, and the number of second reference signals is one or more.

[0049] In one possible design, the first signal measurement information includes the first reference signal receiving power and first receiving angle information of the first downlink reference signal on the terminal device side; the second signal measurement information includes the second reference signal receiving power and second receiving angle information of the first uplink reference signal on the second network device side.

[0050] In one possible design, the indication information includes an identifier of a second downlink reference signal and an identifier of a second uplink reference signal, the second downlink reference signal is one or more reference signals in the first reference signal, and the second uplink reference signal is one or more reference signals in the second reference signal.

[0051] In one possible design, the second downlink reference signal and the second uplink reference signal are determined based on the first signal measurement information and the first weight corresponding to the first reference signal, the second signal measurement information and the second weight corresponding to the second reference signal, and the channel information between the mobile terminal in the first network device and the reflection front in the first network device.

[0052] In one possible design, the multiple downlink reference signals include multiple channel state information reference signals CSI-RS; the multiple uplink reference signals include multiple channel sounding reference signals SRS.

[0053] In one possible design, the multiple downlink reference signals are sent by the first network device through different beams at different downlink ports; and the multiple uplink reference signals are sent by the first network device through different beams at different uplink ports.

[0054] In one possible design, the first reference signal is a downlink reference signal among multiple downlink reference signals, whose reference signal receiving power is greater than or equal to the first reference signal receiving power threshold; the second reference signal is an uplink reference signal among multiple uplink reference signals, whose reference signal receiving power is greater than or equal to the second reference signal receiving power threshold.

[0055] In a seventh aspect, a communication system is provided, comprising the communication device (second network device / base station) of the third aspect and any possible design of the third aspect, and the communication device (first network device / IRS) of the fourth aspect and any possible design of the fourth aspect. The communication system may further include a terminal device.

[0056] In an eighth aspect, a communication system is provided, comprising the communication device (second network device / base station) of the fifth aspect and any possible design of the fifth aspect, and the communication device (first network device / IRS) of the sixth aspect and any possible design of the sixth aspect. The communication system may further include a terminal device.

[0057] In the ninth aspect, a chip is provided, which is coupled to a memory and is used to read and execute program instructions stored in the memory to implement the method described in the first aspect or any possible design of the first aspect, and / or the method described in the second aspect or any possible design of the second aspect.

[0058] In a tenth aspect, a computer-readable storage medium is provided, comprising computer instructions. When the computer instructions are executed on a communication device, the communication device executes the channel measurement method of the first aspect and any possible design, and / or executes the method of the second aspect and any possible design of the second aspect.

[0059] In the eleventh aspect, a computer program product is provided. When the computer program product runs on a computer or processor, it enables the computer or processor to execute the channel measurement method in the above-mentioned first aspect and any possible design, and / or execute the method in the above-mentioned second aspect and any possible design of the second aspect. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0060] FIG1 is a schematic diagram of the architecture of a communication system provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0061] FIG2 is a schematic diagram of the architecture of a communication system provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0062] FIG3 is a schematic diagram of an application scenario of an IRS provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0063] FIG4 is a schematic diagram of channel information required to implement IRS channel rank increase according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0064] FIG5 is a flow chart of a channel measurement method provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0065] FIG6 is a schematic diagram of the architecture of an IRS provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0066] FIG7 is a flow chart of a channel measurement method provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0067] FIG8 is a schematic diagram of a frame format of an air-fed IRS provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0068] FIG9 is a schematic structural diagram of a communication device provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0069] FIG10 is a schematic structural diagram of a communication device provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0070] FIG11 is a schematic structural diagram of a communication device provided in an embodiment of the present application. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0071] For ease of understanding, some examples of concepts related to the embodiments of this application are provided for reference as follows:

[0072] Port: Antenna port is abbreviated as port. A port can be understood as a transmitting antenna identified by the receiving end, or a transmitting antenna that can be distinguished in space. The transmitting antenna can be a virtual antenna or a spatial resource. The receiving end can be a network device or a terminal device. Each virtual antenna or spatial resource can correspond to an antenna port, and each virtual antenna can be a weighted combination of multiple physical antennas. Depending on the signal carried, the antenna port can be divided into a reference signal port and a data port. Among them, the reference signal port can include but is not limited to a channel sounding reference signal (SRS) port, a demodulation reference signal (DMRS) port, a channel state information reference signal (CSI-RS) port, etc. For a DMRS port, each antenna port corresponds to a spatial stream or spatial layer. Each DMRS port corresponds to a port index. Each DMRS port corresponds to a DMRS sequence, and each DMRS port corresponds to one or more time-frequency resources. The corresponding DMRS sequence is mapped according to a rule within the time-frequency resource unit contained in one or more time-frequency resources. A DMRS sequence can also be called a DMRS symbol sequence or a DMRS symbol vector. The time-frequency resource unit can be a frequency domain subcarrier or an orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) symbol, or a resource element (RE). For SRS ports, each SRS port corresponds to a terminal antenna port. Each SRS port corresponds to an SRS sequence, which is mapped within the corresponding time-frequency resource unit. Each CSI-RS port can also correspond to a CSI-RS sequence, which is mapped within the corresponding time-frequency resource unit.

[0073] Discrete Fourier transform (DFT) weights / beams: Where i=0,1,…,M1O1-1, Where k = 0, 1, ..., M2O2-1, where M1 and M2 are the number of horizontal and vertical elements in the antenna array, respectively, and O1 and O2 are the oversampling multiples in the horizontal and vertical directions of the antenna array, respectively. Different DFT weights can be obtained by combining different i and k. The number of different DFT weights is M1M2O1O2. In addition, in the case of a uniform linear array, the antenna array has only one dimension, and the DFT weight is u or v.

[0074] Orthogonal DFT weights / beams: In the DFT weights / beams, let i = o1 + kO1, k = 0, 1, ..., M1-1, where o1∈{0, 1, 2, ..., O1-1}. Let j = o2 + lO2, l = 0, 1, ..., M2-1, where o2∈{0, 1, 2, ..., O2-1}. For each fixed o1, o2, the M1M2 DFT weights, formed by M1 i with different k values ​​and M2 j with different l values, are mutually orthogonal and are formed into a matrix This matrix is ​​called an orthogonal DFT weight / beam group. For each fixed o1, o2, the corresponding M1M2 orthogonal DFT weights / beams are calculated. Since the M1M2 DFT weights are mutually orthogonal, the matrix is ​​a unitary matrix satisfying W H W=I, where I is the unit matrix.

[0075] An intelligent reflecting surface (IRS) is a surface composed of multiple passive reflective elements with adjustable phases. The IRS is also equipped with a mobile terminal (MT) that receives control signaling from the base station (BS). The BS can adjust the phase of each element by sending signaling to the IRS, thereby reflecting the received signal at the IRS in the desired direction. This enables channel enhancement and rank-enhancing in areas with weak coverage.

[0076] Channel rank increase: Assume that the channel from BS to UE is matrix H d , the BS-IRS-UE channel is the matrix H c By adjusting the phase of IRS, H c The meaning of channel rank increase is to adjust the phase of IRS appropriately so that H d +H c The entire channel is decomposed by singular value decomposition (SVD) and H dAfter SVD decomposition, the smaller singular values ​​are compared with H d This significantly improves the throughput. This can increase the number of transmission flows from the BS to the UE, thereby improving throughput.

[0077] The technical solutions in the embodiments of the present application will be described below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in the embodiments of the present application. In the description of the embodiments of the present application, unless otherwise specified, " / " means or, for example, A / B can mean A or B; "and / or" in this article is merely a description of the association relationship of associated objects, indicating that three relationships can exist, for example, A and / or B can mean: A exists alone, A and B exist at the same time, and B exists alone. In addition, in the description of the embodiments of the present application, "multiple" means two or more than two.

[0078] In the following, the terms "first" and "second" are used for descriptive purposes only and should not be understood to indicate or imply relative importance or implicitly specify the number of the technical features indicated. Therefore, a feature defined as "first" or "second" may explicitly or implicitly include one or more of the features. In the description of this embodiment, unless otherwise specified, "plurality" means two or more.

[0079] Embodiments of the present application can be applied to a communication system 1000 as shown in FIG1 . The communication system 1000 includes a radio access network (RAN) 100, wherein the RAN 100 includes at least one RAN node (e.g., 110a and 110b in FIG1 , collectively referred to as 110), and may also include at least one terminal (e.g., 120a-120j in FIG1 , collectively referred to as 120). The RAN 100 may also include other RAN nodes, such as wireless relay devices and / or wireless backhaul devices (not shown in FIG1 ). The terminal 120 is wirelessly connected to the RAN node 110. Terminals and RAN nodes may be connected to each other via wired or wireless connections. The communication system 1000 may also include a core network 200. The RAN node 110 is wirelessly connected to the core network 200. The core network devices in the core network 200 and the RAN node 110 in the RAN 100 may be independent and distinct physical devices, or they may be a single physical device that integrates the logical functions of the core network devices and the logical functions of the RAN nodes. The communication system 1000 may also include the Internet 300 .

[0080] RAN100 may be an evolved universal terrestrial radio access (E-UTRA) system, a new radio (NR) system, or a future radio access system defined in the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP). RAN100 may also include two or more of the aforementioned different radio access systems. RAN100 may also be an open RAN (O-RAN).

[0081] A RAN node, also known as a radio access network device, RAN entity, or access node, facilitates wireless access to a communication system by a terminal. In one application scenario, a RAN node can be a base station, an evolved NodeB (eNodeB), a transmission reception point (TRP), a next-generation NodeB (gNB) in a fifth-generation (5G) mobile communication system, a next-generation base station in a sixth-generation (6G) mobile communication system, or a base station in a future mobile communication system. A RAN node can be a macro base station (such as 110a in Figure 1), a micro base station, an indoor station (such as 110b in Figure 1), a relay node, or a donor node.

[0082] In another application scenario, multiple RAN nodes can collaborate to help terminals achieve wireless access, with different RAN nodes implementing portions of the base station's functions. For example, a RAN node can be a centralized unit (CU), a distributed unit (DU), or a radio unit (RU). The CU implements the base station's radio resource control protocol and packet data convergence protocol (PDCP) functions, as well as the service data adaptation protocol (SDAP) functions. The DU implements the base station's radio link control layer and medium access control (MAC) layer functions, as well as some or all of the physical layer functions. For detailed descriptions of each of the above protocol layers, please refer to the relevant 3GPP technical specifications. The RU can be used to implement the transmission and reception of radio frequency signals. The CU and DU can be two independent RAN nodes, or they can be integrated into the same RAN node, such as in a baseband unit (BBU). The RU can be included in radio frequency equipment, such as a remote radio unit (RRU) or an active antenna unit (AAU). The CU can be further divided into two types of RAN nodes: CU-control plane and CU-user plane.

[0083] The network device 100 can be a base station, an evolved NodeB (eNodeB), an access point (AP), a transmission reception point (TRP), a next generation NodeB (gNB), a next generation base station in a sixth generation (6G) mobile communication system, a base station in a future mobile communication system, or an access node in a WiFi system. The RAN node can be a macro base station, a micro base station or an indoor station, a relay node or a donor node, or a wireless controller in a cloud radio access network (CRAN) scenario. Optionally, the network device 100 can also be a server, a wearable device, a vehicle or an on-board device, etc. For example, the access network device in the vehicle to everything (V2X) technology can be a road side unit (RSU).

[0084] In another possible scenario, multiple network devices 100 collaborate to assist the terminal in achieving wireless access, and different network devices 100 respectively implement part of the functions of the base station. For example, the network device 100 can be a centralized unit (CU), a distributed unit (DU), a CU-control plane (CP), a CU-user plane (UP), or a radio unit (RU). The CU and DU can be set separately, or can also be included in the same network element, such as a baseband unit (BBU). The RU can be included in a radio frequency device or radio frequency unit, such as a remote radio unit (RRU), an active antenna unit (AAU), or a remote radio head (RRH).

[0085] In different systems, CU (or CU-CP and CU-UP), DU or RU may also have different names, but those skilled in the art can understand their meanings. For example, in the ORAN system, CU may also be called O-CU (Open CU), DU may also be called O-DU, CU-CP may also be called O-CU-CP, CU-UP may also be called O-CU-UP, and RU may also be called O-RU. The network device 100 in the embodiment of the present application can be implemented by a software module, a hardware module, or a combination of a software module and a hardware module. For example, the network device 100 may be a server loaded with the corresponding software module. The embodiment of the present application does not limit the specific technology and specific device form adopted by the network device 100. For the convenience of description, the base station is used as an example of the network device 100 for description below.

[0086] A terminal device is a device with wireless transceiver capabilities that can send signals to a base station or receive signals from a base station. The terminal device 120 may also be referred to as a terminal device, user equipment (UE), mobile station, mobile terminal, etc. The terminal device 120 can be widely used in various scenarios, such as device-to-device (D2D), vehicle-to-everything (V2X) communication, machine-type communication (MTC), Internet of Things (IoT), virtual reality, augmented reality, industrial control, autonomous driving, telemedicine, smart grid, smart furniture, smart office, smart wearable, smart transportation, smart city, etc. The terminal can be a mobile phone, tablet computer, computer with wireless transceiver capabilities, wearable device, vehicle, airplane, ship, robot, robotic arm, smart home device, etc. The embodiments of the present application do not limit the specific technology and specific device form adopted by the terminal.

[0087] The base station and terminal device 120 can be fixed or mobile. They can be deployed on land, indoors or outdoors, handheld or vehicle-mounted; on water; or on aircraft, balloons, and satellites. The embodiments of this application do not limit the application scenarios of the base station and terminal device 120.

[0088] In some scenarios, as shown in FIG2(a), which illustrates an architecture diagram of a communication system 2000, based on the communication system 1000, the RAN 100 includes a RAN node 110, such as a base station, and may also include an IRS 130. The RAN node 110 can communicate with a terminal device 120 via the IRS 130.

[0089] As shown in Figure 2(b), IRS 130 may include a reflective array 1301 composed of multiple phase-adjustable passive reflective elements and a control unit 1302. Reflective array 1301 includes the multiple elements 1301a shown in Figure 2(a). A control link may be established between control unit 1302 and RAN node 110. Control unit 1302 may receive control signaling sent by RAN node 110. This control signaling is used to adjust the phase of each element 1301a in reflective array 1301, thereby reflecting the received signal at IRS 130 in the desired direction, thereby achieving functions such as channel enhancement and channel rank increase in weak coverage areas. Reflective array 1301 can be understood as an array of reflectors, and control unit 1302 can be understood as a module for communication. Specifically, when RAN node 110 needs to transmit uplink or downlink data, RAN node 110 may first send IRS 130's beam information and the beam's effective time slot to IRS 130 via control signaling, such as downlink control information (DCI). When transmitting uplink or downlink data, IRS 130 switches the corresponding beam in the corresponding time slot according to the instruction of RAN node 110, thereby reflecting the signal in the desired direction. This includes uplink reflection of RAN node 110 to reflect the signal of terminal device 120 toward RAN node 110, and downlink reflection of terminal device 120 to reflect the signal of RAN node 110 toward terminal device 120.

[0090] Taking RAN node 110 as a base station (BS) and terminal device 120 as user equipment (UE) as an example, FIG3 shows a schematic diagram of an application scenario for IRS 130. In actual communication scenarios, as shown in FIG3 (a), obstruction by buildings or walls can result in the absence of a line-of-sight (LOS) path between the UE and the base station, that is, the LOS path directly to the UE is blocked. Without IRS 130, the signal sent by the base station can only reach the UE via a non-line-of-sight (NLOS) path. The received signal strength at the UE is weak, and the UE receives poor signal quality, which affects the UE's communication performance. If IRS 130 is deployed, the base station can reasonably adjust the phase of IRS 130 to build a stronger path on the base station-IRS-UE path, thereby achieving enhancement in weak coverage areas and improving the communication performance of devices such as UEs in weak coverage channel environments. On the other hand, when a LOS path exists directly from the base station to the UE, but the channel condition number is large, the base station can adjust the phase of IRS 110 to achieve an overall channel rank increase between the base station and the UE. As shown in Figure 3(b), the channel between the base station and the terminal device 120 can be considered a low-rank channel, while the channel between the base station, IRS 130, and the terminal device 120 is a high-rank channel. Furthermore, due to the passive nature of the array elements in the IRS 130, the power consumption and manufacturing cost of the IRS 130 are relatively low.

[0091] In the embodiments of the present application, the functions of the base station may also be performed by a module (such as a chip) in the base station, or by a control subsystem that includes the base station functions. The control subsystem that includes the base station functions here may be a control center in the above-mentioned application scenarios such as smart grid, industrial control, intelligent transportation, and smart city. Similarly, the functions of the IRS may also be performed by a module (such as a chip) in the IRS, or by a device that includes the IRS. The functions of the terminal may also be performed by a module (such as a chip or a modem) in the terminal, or by a device that includes the terminal functions.

[0092] In this application, a base station sends downlink signals or downlink information to a terminal, and the downlink information is carried on a downlink channel; the terminal sends uplink signals or uplink information to the base station, and the uplink information is carried on an uplink channel. In order to communicate with the base station, the terminal needs to establish a wireless connection in the cell controlled by the base station. The cell with which the terminal has established a wireless connection is called the serving cell of the terminal. When the terminal communicates with the serving cell, it will also be interfered with by signals from neighboring cells.

[0093] In order to achieve channel rank increase, the base station often needs to obtain relatively accurate channel information from the base station to the IRS and from the IRS to the UE. Figure 4 shows a schematic diagram of the channel information required to achieve IRS channel rank increase. The channel from the base station to the IRS has M bar diameters, and the channel can be expressed as Note that the IRS-UE channel has N paths, and its channel can be expressed as Among them, N Tx Indicates the number of ports of the base station, N I Indicates the number of IRS elements, N Rx Indicates the number of UE ports. In addition, α m and β n Corresponding to H I and H u The amplitude factor of the mth and nth paths in the equation represents the strength of the path; θ m ,φ m ,ζ n ,ρ n They respectively represent the transmission / reception angle of the channel between the base station and IRS at the base station, the transmission / reception angle of the channel between the base station and IRS at the IRS, the transmission / reception angle of IRS-UE at the IRS, and the transmission / reception angle of IRS-UE at the UE. They represent the send / receive steering vectors of the base station to IRS channel, the send / receive steering vectors of the base station to IRS channel, the send / receive steering vectors of the IRS to UE channel, and the send / receive steering vectors of the IRS to UE channel. The direct channel between the base station and the UE is denoted as The IRS weight is The equivalent channel H between the base station and the UE c It can be expressed as formula (1). c =H d +H I diag(ω)H u , formula (1).

[0094] Formula (1) can also be transformed into formula (2).

[0095] Among them, H u (N I ,:) indicates H u Nth I Row, ω(N I ) represents the Nth I elements.

[0096] In one implementation, the channel between the base station and the UE can be measured using an IRS element-by-element channel measurement solution. The base station then designs the IRS weight ω based on the channel measurement results and notifies the IRS of the weight ω for phase adjustment.

[0097] Among them, IRS array element channel measurement means that when the base station performs channel measurement, all array elements except for a certain IRS array element k are turned off. At this time, the equivalent channel H between the base station and the UE is c It can be expressed as formula (3).

[0098] At this time, if ω(k) is set to 1, the base station can obtain This is repeated multiple times for each array element, and the equivalent channels corresponding to all array elements k can be obtained. Then, the base station can instruct the IRS to turn off all array elements for channel measurement, and the direct channel between the base station and the UE can be obtained as H d , thus obtaining the formula (3) This is equivalent to obtaining the channel information between the base station and the IRS, as well as the channel information between the IRS and the UE. It is worth noting that In this way, the base station can The weight value ω of the IRS is designed and notified to the IRS. The IRS adjusts the phase according to the weight value ω to achieve channel rank increase.

[0099] In this way, the base station needs to turn off the IRS elements one by one to calculate the channel information between the base station and the IRS and the channel information between the IRS and the UE. The overhead of obtaining the channel information between the base station and the IRS and the channel information between the IRS and the UE is relatively large, which requires approximately (N I +1)N Rx Furthermore, in this element-by-element channel measurement scheme, when a single element is operating, the cascaded channel consisting of the channel between the base station and the IRS and the channel between the IRS and the UE introduces path loss from two channels. This cascaded channel typically has a low signal-to-noise ratio, and the gain when a single element is operating is small, resulting in low channel measurement accuracy at the base station.

[0100] Therefore, the present application proposes a channel measurement method, in which the IRS can send multiple downlink reference signals to the UE, and the UE reports the resource identifiers and signal measurement information of the downlink reference signals that meet the conditions to the base station. The IRS then sends multiple uplink reference signals to the base station, and the base station determines the resource identifiers and signal measurement information of the uplink reference signals that meet the conditions. The base station then determines indication information based on the resource identifiers and signal measurement information of the downlink reference signals and uplink reference signals that meet the conditions, and sends the indication information to the IRS. The indication information is used by the IRS to determine the weight. Generally, the IRS determines the weight based on the channel measurement results. The indication information used by the IRS to determine the weight here can be understood as information used to indicate the channel measurement results. In this way, compared with the IRS array element measurement method, the present application can avoid the high overhead caused by polling the array elements of the IRS one by one to perform channel measurement to obtain the channel measurement results. The present application can perform channel measurement by sending reference signals to the uplink and downlink of the IRS. Moreover, the IRS bidirectional channel measurement method of the present application can avoid the problem of poor channel measurement accuracy caused by the low signal-to-noise ratio of the cascade channel between the base station and the IRS and between the IRS and the UE in the IRS array-by-element measurement method when a single array element is working. In the present application, all array elements of the IRS simultaneously perform air interface transmission and participate in the channel measurement process, which can improve the channel measurement accuracy.

[0101] Based on the above introduction, the embodiments of the present application are introduced below.

[0102] FIG5 is a flow chart of a channel measurement method provided in an embodiment of the present application, which includes the following process.

[0103] 501. A first network device sends multiple downlink reference signals to a terminal device.

[0104] Correspondingly, the terminal device receives multiple downlink reference signals sent by the first network device.

[0105] In this application, the first network device is an IRS, which includes a mobile terminal and a reflective array. The mobile terminal can be deployed in front of the reflective array, and the mobile terminal can send a pilot signal to the base station and the terminal device via the reflective array in an air-feed manner.

[0106] Based on this, in some embodiments, before the first network device sends the multiple downlink reference signals, the method further includes: the first network device sending capability information to the second network device, where the capability information is used to indicate that the first network device has the capability to send reference signals. Correspondingly, the second network device receives the capability information sent by the first network device.

[0107] In the present application, the second network device is a base station. This is equivalent to the IRS reporting to the base station that the IRS has the ability to send reference signals. The IRS's ability to send reference signals can also be understood as the IRS's ability to actively send empty feeds. In this way, when the base station determines that the IRS has the ability to actively send empty feeds, the base station can send port resources for uplink reference signals and downlink reference signals to the IRS, so that the IRS can send downlink reference signals to the terminal device according to the port resources for the downlink reference signals configured by the base station, and send uplink reference signals to the base station according to the port resources for the uplink reference signals configured by the base station.

[0108] Therefore, in some embodiments, before the first network device sends multiple downlink reference signals to the terminal device, the method further includes: the second network device sending first configuration information to the first network device and the terminal device, the first configuration information being used to indicate a port resource for each downlink reference signal among the multiple downlink reference signals sent by the first network device to the terminal device. The second network device sending second configuration information to the first network device, the second configuration information being used to indicate a port resource for each uplink reference signal among the multiple uplink reference signals sent by the first network device to the second network device.

[0109] Among them, port resources may include port identifiers and time-frequency domain resources, etc.

[0110] In some embodiments, the multiple downlink reference signals are transmitted by the first network device via different downlink ports using different beams. Alternatively, the transmission beams of the multiple downlink reference signals are mutually orthogonal. This prevents beam overlap by ensuring that the transmission beams of the multiple downlink reference signals are in different directions.

[0111] 502. The terminal device sends first resource information and first signal measurement information of a first reference signal to the second network device. The first reference signal is a downlink reference signal among multiple downlink reference signals received by the terminal device from the first network device.

[0112] In other words, the multiple downlink reference signals are used by the terminal device to determine the first resource information and the first signal measurement information of the first reference signal from the multiple downlink reference signals.

[0113] Correspondingly, the second network device receives the first resource information and first signal measurement information of the first reference signal sent by the terminal device. For example, the base station receives the first resource information and first signal measurement information of the first reference signal sent by the UE.

[0114] Here, the first reference signal can be understood as a downlink reference signal that meets the conditions and is screened by the terminal device from multiple received downlink reference signals.

[0115] In some embodiments, the first reference signal is a downlink reference signal having a reference signal received power greater than or equal to a first reference signal received power threshold among multiple downlink reference signals. This takes into account that, for a terminal device, the path corresponding to a downlink reference signal having a higher reference signal received power has a higher signal strength. The downlink reference signals corresponding to these qualifying path(s) help the base station side determine the path for signal transmission between the IRS and the terminal device.

[0116] In some embodiments, the first reference signal includes a first downlink reference signal among a plurality of downlink reference signals, and the first resource information is used to indicate a resource identifier of the first downlink reference signal. The number of the first reference signal is one or more.

[0117] For example, when multiple downlink reference signals are CSI-RS, the first resource information can be understood as the resource identifier of the first CSI-RS, or called the first CRI (first CSI-RS resource indicator), and can also be understood as the first CRI being the port identifier of the first CSI-RS or the reference signal identifier of the first CSI-RS, etc.

[0118] In some embodiments, the first signal measurement information includes a first RSRP and a first reception angle information of the first downlink reference signal on the terminal device side. In this way, the base station can obtain the resource identifier, RSRP, and reception angle information of the first reference signal that meets the conditions among multiple downlink reference signals.

[0119] 503. The first network device sends multiple uplink reference signals to the second network device, where the multiple uplink reference signals are used to determine second resource information and second signal measurement information of a second reference signal from the multiple uplink reference signals.

[0120] Correspondingly, the second network device receives multiple uplink reference signals sent by the first network device. In other words, the base station receives multiple uplink reference signals sent by the IRS.

[0121] It can be understood here that the second reference signal is an uplink reference signal that meets the conditions and is obtained by screening multiple uplink reference signals.

[0122] In some embodiments, the second reference signal is an uplink reference signal among multiple uplink reference signals whose reference signal received power is greater than or equal to a second reference signal received power threshold. Similar to the first reference signal, it is considered that, for the second network device, the path corresponding to the uplink reference signal with a higher reference signal received power has a higher signal strength. The uplink reference signals corresponding to these qualified path(s) help the base station determine the path for signal transmission between the IRS and the base station.

[0123] In some embodiments, the multiple uplink reference signals are transmitted by the first network device via different uplink ports using different beams. Alternatively, the transmission beams of the multiple uplink reference signals are mutually orthogonal. This prevents beam overlap by ensuring that the transmission beams of the multiple uplink reference signals are in different directions.

[0124] In some embodiments, the second reference signal includes a first uplink reference signal among a plurality of uplink reference signals, and the second resource information is used to indicate a resource identifier of the first uplink reference signal. The number of the second reference signal is one or more.

[0125] In some embodiments, the multiple uplink reference signals include multiple SRSs. That is, each uplink reference signal sent by the IRS is an SRS. The second resource information can be understood as a resource identifier of the first SRS, or referred to as a first SRI (first SRS resource indicator). It can also be understood that the first SRI is a port identifier of the first SRS or a reference signal identifier of the first SRS.

[0126] In some embodiments, the second signal measurement information includes the first uplink reference signal received power and the second reference signal received angle information of the second network device. In this way, the base station can obtain the resource identifier, RSRP, and reception angle information of the second reference signal that meets the conditions among multiple uplink reference signals.

[0127] The downlink reference signal sent by the IRS in this application is not limited to CSI-RS, and may be other types of downlink reference signals. The uplink reference signal sent by the IRS in this application is not limited to SRS, and may be other types of uplink reference signals.

[0128] 504. The second network device sends indication information to the first network device. The indication information is determined based on the first resource information, the first signal measurement information, the second resource information, and the second signal measurement information. The indication information is used by the first network device to determine a weight.

[0129] The indication information here can be understood as an indication of the channel measurement result determined by the base station based on the measurement result between the IRS and the terminal device reported by the terminal device (the first resource information and first signal measurement information of the first reference signal) and the measurement result between the base station and the IRS determined by the base station itself (the second resource information and second signal measurement information of the second reference signal).

[0130] In some embodiments, the indication information includes an identifier of a second downlink reference signal and an identifier of a second uplink reference signal, the second downlink reference signal being one or more reference signals in the first reference signal, and the second uplink reference signal being one or more reference signals in the second reference signal. When both the second downlink reference signal and the second uplink reference signal are one, this is equivalent to the base station determining an optimal path pair between the IRS and the terminal device, and between the IRS and the base station.

[0131] For example, when the second downlink reference signal is identified as the second CRI (resource identifier of the second CSI-RS) and the second uplink reference signal is identified as the second SRI (resource identifier of the second SRS), it is equivalent to the base station sending the second CRI and the second SRI to the IRS.

[0132] Thus, after determining the optimal path pair, the IRS, considering that it knows the IRS weight corresponding to each downlink reference signal and the IRS weight corresponding to each uplink reference signal, can obtain the weight corresponding to the second CRI based on the second CRI, and obtain the weight corresponding to the second SRI based on the second SRI. In this way, the IRS can further determine IRS phase information based on the weight corresponding to the second CRI and the weight corresponding to the second SRI, thereby achieving channel rank increase between the base station and the terminal device.

[0133] In some embodiments, the second downlink reference signal and the second uplink reference signal are determined based on first signal measurement information and a first weight corresponding to the first reference signal, second signal measurement information and a second weight corresponding to the second reference signal, and channel information between the mobile terminal in the first network device and the reflection array in the first network device. Specific examples of how to select the second downlink reference signal and the second uplink reference signal from the first reference signal and the second reference signal are described below.

[0134] Therefore, in the present application, the IRS only needs to send multiple downlink reference signals to the terminal device, and the terminal device performs signal measurement between the IRS and the terminal device, and the IRS sends multiple uplink reference signals to the base station, and the base station performs signal measurement between the base station and the IRS. The base station then selects the uplink reference signal and downlink reference signal corresponding to the optimal path pair based on the measurement information between the IRS and the terminal device, and the measurement information between the IRS and the base station. In this way, the IRS can determine the weight corresponding to the optimal path pair and perform phase calculation based on the weight. The present application does not require array-by-array measurement of the IRS, reducing the overhead of channel measurement. Moreover, it can avoid the problem of low signal-to-noise ratio of the cascade channel when a single array element of the IRS is working, thereby improving the accuracy of channel measurement.

[0135] Based on the introduction of Figure 5, taking the first network device as IRS, the second network device as base station, and the terminal device as UE as an example, the channel measurement method of the present application is further exemplarily introduced below.

[0136] In order to facilitate understanding of the channel measurement method of the present application, the architecture of the IRS is first introduced here. As described above, the IRS may include a mobile terminal and a reflection array. Figure 6 is a schematic diagram of the architecture of an IRS600. The IRS600 includes a mobile terminal (MT) 6001 and a reflection array 6002. The mobile terminal 6001 includes a baseband, a low noise amplifier (LNA) and a power amplifier (PA). Among them, the LNA and PA are deployed on one chip, and the baseband is a separate chip. The base station can be used to receive signaling instructions from the base station, such as the first configuration information and the second configuration information in the present application.

[0137] The baseband can transmit CSI-RS signals to the UE via reflection array 6002 through an empty feed method, and can also transmit pilot signals such as SRS signals to the base station. For example, a switch 6003 is coupled to the baseband. When switch 6003 connects the baseband to the PA, the base station can transmit CSI-RS signals to the UE via reflection array 6002 through an empty feed method. When switch 6003 connects the baseband to the LNA, the base station can transmit SRS signals to the base station via reflection array 6002 through an empty feed method.

[0138] As shown in FIG6 , the channel from the baseband to the reflection front 6002 can be recorded as Since the position of the baseband to the reflection array 6002 is fixed and the distance between the baseband and the reflection array 6002 is relatively short, it can be considered that the channel h1 from the baseband to the reflection array 6002 is unchanged, and h1 can be obtained by measuring in advance.

[0139] In some embodiments, when the IRS 600 sends capability information to the base station, the capability information may include the baseband to the channel h1 of the reflection front 6002 , so that the base station can determine the second CRI and the second SRI in this application.

[0140] Based on the introduction to IRS in FIG6 , FIG7 is a flow chart of a channel measurement method provided in an embodiment of the present application, which includes the following process.

[0141] 701a. The IRS sends capability information to the base station, where the capability information is used to indicate that the IRS has the capability to send a reference signal.

[0142] Correspondingly, the base station receives the capability information sent by the IRS.

[0143] In some embodiments, after a connection is established between the base station and the IRS, such as an RRC connection, when the IRS reports the capability information of the IRS to the base station, the IRS may carry first indication information in the capability information, and the first indication information is used to indicate that the IRS has the ability to actively send reference signals / pilot signals / air feeds.

[0144] Exemplarily, the capability information may be reported via messages such as uplink control information (UCI) or physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH).

[0145] In some embodiments, the capability information may also include a channel h1 from the mobile terminal to the reflection front in the IRS.

[0146] 701b. The base station sends first configuration information to the IRS and the UE, and the base station sends second configuration information to the IRS, where the first configuration information is used to indicate the port resources of each CSI-RS in the multiple CSI-RSs sent by the IRS to the UE, and the second configuration information is used to indicate the port resources of each SRS in the multiple SRSs sent by the IRS to the base station.

[0147] Correspondingly, the IRS receives the first configuration information sent by the base station. The UE receives the first configuration information sent by the base station.

[0148] Figure 8 is a schematic diagram of the frame format of an air-fed IRS, including the frame formats of a base station, an IRS, and a UE. The base station may send first configuration information to the IRS and the UE in a transmit time slot in a data frame, such as a T1 time slot, and send second configuration information to the IRS. The first configuration information sent by the base station to the IRS may be sent in one message or in two separate messages, which is not limited in this application. The first configuration information sent by the base station to the IRS and the UE, and the first configuration information received by the IRS and the UE may be sent in one message or in one message. The first configuration information received by the UE may be reflected to the UE via the IRS.

[0149] Exemplarily, the first configuration information and / or the second configuration information may be transmitted via RRC signaling or media access control element (MAC CE) signaling. This application does not limit the manner in which the first configuration information and / or the second configuration information is sent.

[0150] In some embodiments, the period of multiple CSI-RS port resources can be shorter than the period of multiple SRS port resources. That is, multiple CSI-RS port resources have a short period, while multiple SRS port resources have a long period. This is because the IRS is fixed and the channel between the base station and the IRS changes relatively slowly, so multiple SRS port resources can be configured with a short period. However, the UE is mobile and the channel between the UE and the IRS may change rapidly, so multiple CSI-RS port resources can be configured with a short period.

[0151] Exemplarily, the port resources of multiple CSI-RSs may include the correspondence between the reference signal identifiers corresponding to the multiple CSI-RSs and the downlink port identifiers of the IRSs, as well as the time domain resources and frequency domain resources of the CSI-RSs transmitted by each downlink port. Similarly, the port resources of multiple SRSs may include the correspondence between the reference signal identifiers corresponding to the multiple SRSs and the uplink port identifiers of the IRSs, as well as the time domain resources and frequency domain resources of the SRSs transmitted by each uplink port.

[0152] In some embodiments, the uplink port and downlink port here can be the reference signal port mentioned in this application, that is, the uplink port is the SRS port and the downlink port is the CSI-RS port. The reference signal port can be the antenna port of the transmit antenna / virtual antenna. Each virtual antenna can be a weighted combination of multiple physical antennas.

[0153] 702. The IRS sends multiple CSI-RSs to the UE according to a port resource of each CSI-RS in the multiple CSI-RSs.

[0154] As shown in FIG8 , the IRS may send multiple CSI-RSs to the UE in the downlink time slot T2.

[0155] In some embodiments, the IRS can use different beams to transmit CSI-RS on each CSI-RS port resource in the downlink time slot, that is, different CSI-RS ports correspond to different transmit beams / CSI-RS. The IRS can send multiple CSI-RSs to the UE in a time-sharing manner.

[0156] In some embodiments, the beams used by the IRS to transmit multiple CSI-RSs are multiple DFT orthogonal beams, each of which is transmitted through a CSI-RS port. In this way, there is no overlap in the paths of the multiple DFT orthogonal beams.

[0157] In some embodiments, when an IRS occupies multiple CSI-RS port resources to transmit multiple CSI-RSs, the base station may puncture these multiple CSI-RS port resources within the base station's port resources, i.e., not transmit downlink signals to the UE on these multiple CSI-RS port resources. This allows the UE to receive multiple CSI-RSs from the IRS without interference from the base station's downlink signal.

[0158] 703. The UE measures and obtains the RSRP corresponding to each CSI-RS, and determines the resource identifier of the first CSI-RS whose RSRP is greater than or equal to a first RSRP threshold, and first reception angle information of the first CSI-RS.

[0159] For example, the weights of the multiple CSI-RS beams sent by the base station are denoted as ω k , that is, the weight of the transmission beam corresponding to the kth CSI-RS among multiple CSI-RSs is recorded as ω k In the case of , the UE can measure the transmit beam corresponding to the received k-th CSI-RS, and the equivalent channel between the IRS and the UE can be expressed as: Or expressed as: in, H represents the transposed matrix of the channel h1 from the mobile terminal to the reflection front in the IRS. u Represents the channel between the IRS and the UE. Here, it can be understood that when each transmission beam between the IRS and the UE has N paths, the sum of the equivalent channels of the N paths is the equivalent channel between the IRS and the UE. Considering that the number of array elements in the reflection array of the IRS is large and the spatial resolution is high, it can be considered that for any two different paths n1 and n2 in the beam sent by the IRS to the UE, That is, in a transmit beam sent by the IRS to the UE, the product of the transmit steering vectors of the n2th path and the n1th path at the IRS is approximately 0. Therefore, when the UE measures any beam carrying CSI-RS, it can be considered that the RSRP corresponding to the nth path, that is, When the value of appears large, This means that the RSRP of the current transmit beam measured by the UE is the RSRP of the nth path among the N paths. Alternatively, the RSRP of the current transmit beam measured by the UE is the RSRP of the nth path with the highest RSRP among the N paths. Alternatively, the current transmit beam direction is aligned with the direction of the nth path. This allows the UE to obtain the RSRP corresponding to each beam / CSI-RS when the IRS uses multiple orthogonal DFT beams for time-sharing transmission of multiple CSI-RSs.

[0160] In this case, the RSRP corresponding to the beam / CSI-RS received by the UE from the IRS is In the case of , the receiving signal angle of the UE receiving the current beam can be obtained by solving the following formula (4): information.

[0161] That is, the UE can Solve and get the maximum value of formula (4) At this time, the UE obtains the receiving signal angle of the current beam That is, the received signal angle of the current beam measured by the UE To maximize the value of formula (4)

[0162] In this way, the UE can obtain the RSRP and first receiving angle information corresponding to each CSI-RS Then, the UE may screen, according to the first RSRP threshold, from the multiple CSI-RSs to obtain a CSI-RS having an RSRP greater than or equal to the first RSRP threshold.

[0163] 704. The UE sends a first CSI-RS resource identifier (first CRI), a first RSRP, and first receiving angle information to the base station.

[0164] Exemplarily, based on step 703, as shown in FIG8 , the UE may report to the base station in the uplink time slot T3 the identifier of the CSI-RS whose RSRP is greater than or equal to the first RSRP threshold. For example, when the CSI-RS whose RSRP is greater than or equal to the first RSRP threshold includes the first CSI-RS, the UE may report the resource identifier (first CSI) of the first CSI-RS, the first RSRP, and the first reception angle information. The first CSI may be, for example, a reference signal sequence number of a first CSI-RS or a downlink port identifier / port number of an IRS sending the first CSI-RS.

[0165] In some embodiments, the UE may send a physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) or a physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH) to the base station, where the PUCCH includes the above-mentioned first CRI, first RSRP and first receiving angle information, or the PUSCH includes the above-mentioned first CRI, first RSRP and first receiving angle information.

[0166] 705. The IRS sends multiple SRSs to the base station according to the port resource of each SRS in the multiple SRSs.

[0167] As shown in FIG8 , the IRS may continue to send multiple SRSs to the base station in the uplink time slot T4.

[0168] Similar to step 702, in some embodiments, the IRS may use different beams to transmit SRS on each SRS port resource, that is, different SRS ports correspond to different transmit beams / SRSs. The IRS may send multiple SRSs to the UE in a time-division manner.

[0169] In some embodiments, the beams used by the IRS when transmitting multiple SRSs are multiple DFT orthogonal beams, and each DFT orthogonal beam is transmitted through an SRS port. In this way, there is no overlap in the paths of the multiple DFT orthogonal beams.

[0170] 706. The base station measures and obtains the RSRP corresponding to each SRS, and determines a first SRS whose RSRP is greater than or equal to a second RSRP threshold, as well as a second RSRP and second reception angle information of the first SRS.

[0171] Similar to step 703, the weights of the beams of multiple SRSs sent by the base station are recorded as ω k , that is, the weight of the transmission beam corresponding to the kth SRS among multiple SRSs is recorded as ω k In the case of , the base station can measure the transmit beam corresponding to the received k-th SRS, and the equivalent channel between the base station and the IRS can be expressed as: Or expressed as: in, Indicates the channel H between the base station and IRS I The transposed matrix of . Here, it can be understood that when each transmission beam between the IRS and the base station has M paths, the sum of the equivalent channels of the M paths is the equivalent channel between the IRS and the base station. Considering that the number of array elements in the reflection array of the IRS is large and the spatial resolution is high, it can be considered that for any two different paths m1 and m2 in the beam sent by the IRS to the base station, That is, in a transmission beam sent by the IRS to the base station, the product of the receiving steering vectors of the m2th path and the m1th path at the base station is approximately 0. Therefore, when the base station measures any beam carrying SRS, it can be considered that the RSRP corresponding to the mth path, that is, When the value of appears large, Here, it can be understood that the RSRP of the current transmit beam measured by the base station is the RSRP of the mth path among the M paths. In other words, the RSRP of the current transmit beam measured by the base station is the RSRP of the mth path with the largest RSRP among the M paths. In other words, the current transmit beam direction is consistent with the direction of the mth path. In this way, when the IRS uses multiple DFT orthogonal beams to send multiple SRSs in time-sharing, the base station can obtain the RSRP corresponding to each beam / SRS. The specific meaning of the letters in the formula here can be found in the explanation of Figure 4 of this application.

[0172] In this case, the RSRP corresponding to the beam / SRS received by the base station from the IRS is In the case of , the receiving signal angle of the base station receiving the current beam can be obtained by solving the following formula (5): information.

[0173] That is to say, the base station can Solve and get the maximum value of formula (5) At this time, the base station obtains the receiving signal angle of the current beam That is, the receiving signal angle of the current beam measured by the base station To maximize the value of formula (5)

[0174] In this way, the base station can obtain the RSRP and second receiving angle information corresponding to each SRS Then, the base station may screen the multiple SRSs according to the second RSRP threshold to obtain a first SRS having an RSRP greater than or equal to the second RSRP threshold.

[0175] 707. The base station obtains the corresponding values ​​of the plurality of measurement paths according to the first CRI, the first RSRP, the first receiving angle information, the resource identifier of the first SRS (the first SRI), the second RSRP, and the second receiving angle information.

[0176] For example, the base station may obtain one or more first CRIs and one or more first SRIs. The set of first reception angle information corresponding to the first CRI reported by the UE is: The combination of the second receiving angle information corresponding to the second SRI obtained by the base station is: In this case, the base station can be and A receiving angle is selected from each of the two groups to form a path pair / measurement path pair. In this way, when there are multiple first CRIs and / or multiple first SRIs, the base station can obtain multiple measurement path pairs. Alternatively, it can be understood that CSI-RSs and SRSs that meet the conditions are combined to obtain resource identifier groups corresponding to the multiple combinations.

[0177] Then, the base station can obtain the first RSRP and the first receiving angle information corresponding to the first CSI-RS in each measurement path. and the first weight ω k1 , the second RSRP and second receiving angle information corresponding to the first SRS and the second weight ω k2 Calculate and obtain the RSRP value corresponding to each measurement path pair.

[0178] For example, the estimation process of the RSRP value corresponding to each measurement path pair may be:

[0179] The first receiving angle information corresponding to any measurement path pair is: The second receiving angle information is In the case of The first SRI corresponds to In this way, the corresponding measurement diameter can be obtained Typically, the base station knows the weight ω corresponding to each CSI-RS and each SRS k Therefore, in order to correctly estimate the The IRS may be reported to the base station h1 via capability information. h1 may be considered unchanged.

[0180] 708. The base station selects a first measurement path pair according to the reception angle information and RSRP corresponding to the multiple measurement path pairs, where the first measurement path pair includes a second SRS and a second CSI-RS.

[0181] In some embodiments, the base station obtains the corresponding In the case of And the first receiving angle information of the measurement diameter alignment and the second receiving angle information Recover the channel information H corresponding to each measurement path pair n,m . H n,m It can be understood as the equivalent channel between the base station and the UE under each measurement path pair.

[0182] The base station can then select one or more first measurement path pairs that meet the conditions from the multiple measurement path pairs based on the channel information corresponding to each measurement path pair. The base station then determines the weight corresponding to the second SRS and the weight corresponding to the second CSI-RS based on the second SRS and the second CSI-RS in the selected first measurement path pairs.

[0183] For example, when the terminal receiving energy is low and the coverage is poor, it is possible to select H d +H n,m The first measurement path pair with the largest singular value after SVD decomposition is used to improve terminal coverage; when the terminal coverage is good, but H d When the singular value difference is large, you can choose to make H d +H n,m The first measurement path pair whose singular value difference becomes smaller after SVD decomposition is performed to increase the number of transmission streams and achieve channel rank increase.

[0184] 709. The base station sends a resource identifier of a second SRS (a second SRI) and a resource identifier of a second CSI-RS (a second CRI) to the IRS. The second SRI and the second CRI are used to determine a weight.

[0185] If the base station selects multiple first measurement path pairs, the base station may send the second SRIs and second CRIs corresponding to the multiple first measurement path pairs to the IRS.

[0186] Exemplarily, the base station may send an RRC message or DCI to the IRS, where the RRC message or DCI carries the second SRI and second CRI corresponding to the first measurement path pair, or the second SRI and second CRI corresponding to multiple pairs of first measurement path pairs.

[0187] 710. The IRS determines weights corresponding to the second SRI and the second CRI, to determine a phase according to the weights.

[0188] For the IRS, when the IRS receives the second SRI and the second CRI, assuming that the base station measures the SRS corresponding to the second SRI, the weight used by the IRS to send the SRS is When the UE measures the CSI-RS corresponding to the second CRI, the weight used by the IRS to send the CSI-RS is IRS can be used to calculate the phase information using the following formula (6).

[0189] The present application does not limit the calculation method of the IRS to obtain the phase according to the weights corresponding to the second SRI and the second CRI.

[0190] Therefore, in this application, when the base station configures uplink and downlink reference signal resources to the IRS and downlink reference signal resources to the UE, the IRS transmits a downlink reference signal to the UE and an uplink reference signal to the base station, causing the UE to measure the downlink reference signal and the base station to measure the uplink reference signal. The base station then combines the UE's signal measurement results with the base station's signal measurement results to obtain one or more measurement path pairs, and recovers the channel information corresponding to each path pair based on the information of each measurement path pair. Based on the channel information corresponding to each path pair, the base station then determines the weights between the base station and the IRS, and between the IRS and the UE. The base station then notifies the IRS of these two weights via the SRI and CRI, allowing the IRS to obtain phase information based on these two weights. These two weights can also be understood as the weights corresponding to the optimal paths determined by the base station between the base station and the IRS, and between the IRS and the UE. Thus, during the entire channel measurement process, this application does not require element-by-element measurement of the IRS's reflection array. All elements in the IRS operate simultaneously, and only uplink and downlink reference signals need to be transmitted. This reduces the measurement overhead compared to element-by-element measurement. Moreover, it can avoid the problem of small signal-to-noise ratio and low channel measurement accuracy caused by the cascade channel when a single array element is working.

[0191] If the embodiments of the present application are applied to an ORAN system, the functions of the above-mentioned base station can be implemented by the CU-CP.

[0192] It is understood that to implement the functions in the above embodiments, the base station and IRS include hardware structures and / or software modules corresponding to each function. Those skilled in the art will readily appreciate that, in conjunction with the various exemplary units and method steps described in the embodiments disclosed herein, this application can be implemented in hardware or a combination of hardware and computer software. Whether a function is implemented in hardware or in a hardware-driven manner by computer software depends on the specific application scenario and design constraints of the technical solution.

[0193] Figures 9, 10, and 11 are schematic diagrams of the structures of possible communication devices provided in embodiments of the present application. These communication devices can be used to implement the functions of the IRS or base station in the above-mentioned method embodiments, thereby also achieving the beneficial effects of the above-mentioned method embodiments. In the embodiments of the present application, the communication device can be the IRS 130 shown in Figure 2, or the RAN node (base station) 110 shown in Figure 1 or Figure 2, or a module (such as a chip) applied to the IRS or base station.

[0194] As shown in Figure 9, the communication device 900 includes a processing unit 910 and a transceiver unit 920. The communication device 900 is used to implement the functions of the IRS / first network device or the base station / second network device in the method embodiment shown in Figure 5 or Figure 7.

[0195] When the communication device 900 is used to implement the functions of the second network device (base station) in the method embodiment shown in FIG5 : the transceiver unit 920 is configured to receive first resource information and first signal measurement information of a first reference signal sent by a terminal device; receive multiple uplink reference signals sent by the first network device; and send indication information to the first network device, the indication information being used by the first network device to determine a weight. The processing unit 910 is configured to determine the indication information based on the first resource information and first signal measurement information of the first reference signal sent by an IRS and the multiple uplink reference signals sent by the IRS.

[0196] When the communication device 900 is used to implement the function of the base station in the method embodiment shown in Figure 7: the transceiver unit 920 is used to receive the capability information sent by the IRS; send the first configuration information to the IRS and the UE and send the second configuration information to the IRS; receive the first CRI, the first RSRP and the first receiving angle information sent by the UE; receive multiple SRSs sent by the IRS; send indication information to the IRS; the processing unit 910 is used to measure and obtain the RSRP corresponding to each SRS, and determine the first SRS whose RSRP is greater than or equal to the second RSRP threshold, as well as the second RSRP and the second receiving angle information of the first SRS; according to the first CRI, the first RSRP and the first receiving angle information, as well as the resource identifier (first SRI), the second RSRP and the second receiving angle information of the first SRS, obtain the corresponding values ​​of the multiple measurement paths respectively. A first measurement path pair is selected according to reception angle information and RSRP corresponding to the plurality of measurement path pairs, where the first measurement path pair includes a second SRS and a second CSI-RS.

[0197] For a more detailed description of the processing unit 910 and the transceiver unit 920 , reference may be made to the relevant description of the base station in the method embodiment shown in FIG. 5 or FIG. 7 .

[0198] When the communication device 900 is used to implement the function of the first network device (IRS) in the method embodiment shown in Figure 5: the transceiver unit 920 is used to send multiple downlink reference signals to the terminal device; send multiple uplink reference signals to the second network device; and receive indication information sent by the first network device.

[0199] When the communication device 900 is used to implement the function of the IRS in the method embodiment shown in Figure 7: the transceiver unit 920 is used to send capability information to the base station; receive the first configuration information and the second configuration information sent by the base station; send multiple CSI-RS to the UE; send multiple SRS to the base station; the processing unit 910 is used to determine the weights corresponding to the second SRI and the second CRI, so as to determine the phase according to the weights.

[0200] For a more detailed description of the processing unit 910 and the transceiver unit 920 , reference may be made to the relevant description of the IRS in the method embodiment shown in FIG. 5 or FIG. 7 .

[0201] As shown in Figure 10, the present application also provides a communication device 10000. When the communication device 10000 is used to implement the function of a second network device / base station, Figure 10 (a) shows a structural schematic diagram of a second network device / base station, and the communication device 10000 includes a control information receiving module 10001, a control information sending module 10002 and an information processing module 10003. Among them, the control information receiving module 10001 can receive CSI feedback information reported by at least one terminal device / UE and IRS feedback information reported by the IRS. Among them, the CSI feedback information includes the resource identifier, RSRP and receiving angle information of the downlink reference signal (CSI-RS) that meets the conditions, and the IRS feedback information includes whether the IRS supports air feed transmission / has the ability to send reference signals, and multiple SRSs sent by the IRS. The control information sending module 10002 can send UE control information to the UE and send IRS control information to the IRS. UE control information includes instructions for which CSI-RS resources the UE receives and the reception angles of the CSI-RS that meet the requirements. IRS control information includes instructions for the resources on which the IRS transmits CSI-RS and SRS, as well as the CRI and SRI sent to the IRS to control the IRS weight. Information processing module 10003 is responsible for selecting CSI and SRI based on the UE's CSI feedback and the base station's own SRI information.

[0202] For a more detailed description of the control information receiving module 10001, the control information sending module 10002 and the information processing module 10003, reference may be made to the relevant description of the second network device / base station in the method embodiment shown in FIG. 5 or FIG. 7.

[0203] When the communication device 10000 is used to implement the functions of the first network device / IRS, (b) in Figure 10 shows a schematic structural diagram of the first network device / IRS. The first network device includes a control information receiving module 10004, a weight calculation module 10005, and a reference signal sending module 10006. The control information receiving module 10004 can receive IRS control information sent from the second network device / base station. The IRS control information includes the resources for the IRS to send CSI-RS and the resources for sending SRS, as well as an indication that the UE needs to feedback the reception angle information of the CSI-RS that meets the conditions. The reference signal sending module 10006 can be used to send multiple CSI-RSs to the UE based on the CSI-RS resources, and send multiple SRSs to the first network device / base station based on the SRS resources. The weight calculation module 10005 can be used to receive the SRI and CRI sent by the first network device / base station, and determine the weight of the IRS based on the SRI and CRI, so as to perform phase calculation and adjustment based on the weight.

[0204] For a more detailed description of the control information receiving module 10004, the weight calculation module 10005 and the reference signal sending module 10006, please refer to the relevant description of the first network device / IRS in the method embodiment shown in Figure 5 or Figure 7.

[0205] When the communication device 10000 is used to implement the functions of the terminal device / UE, (c) in Figure 10 shows a schematic structural diagram of a terminal device / UE. The terminal device / UE includes a control information receiving module 10007, a measurement information calculation module 10008 and a measurement information sending module 10009. The control information receiving module 10007 can be used to receive UE control information sent by the second network device / base station. The UE control information includes the resources for the IRS to send multiple CSI-RSs, and also includes indication information instructing the UE to report the RSRP and reception angle information of the CRI that meets the conditions. The measurement information calculation module 10008 is used to perform signal measurement on the received multiple CSI-RSs to obtain the CRI that meets the conditions and the RSRP and reception angle information of the CRI. The measurement information sending module 10009 is used to report the CRI that meets the conditions and the RSRP and reception angle information of the CRI to the base station.

[0206] For a more detailed description of the above-mentioned control information receiving module 10007, measurement information calculating module 10008 and measurement information sending module 10009, please refer to the relevant description of the terminal device / UE in the method embodiment shown in Figure 5 or Figure 7.

[0207] When the communication device 900 / 10000 is a chip for an IRS, the IRS chip implements the IRS functionality described in the method embodiments. When the IRS chip receives information from a base station, it can be understood that the information is first received by other modules in the IRS (e.g., a radio frequency module or antenna) and then transmitted to the IRS chip by these modules. When the IRS chip transmits information to a base station / UE, it can be understood that the information is first transmitted to other modules in the IRS (e.g., a radio frequency module or antenna) and then transmitted to the base station / UE by these modules.

[0208] When the communication device 900 / 10000 is a chip used in a base station, the base station chip implements the functions of the base station in the above-mentioned method embodiment. The base station chip receives information from the UE, which can be understood as the information being first received by other modules in the base station (such as a radio frequency module or antenna) and then sent to the base station chip by these modules. The base station chip sends information to the UE / IRS, which can be understood as the information being sent to other modules in the base station (such as a radio frequency module or antenna) and then sent to the UE / IRS by these modules.

[0209] Figure 11 shows a schematic diagram of the structure of a possible communication device. It is understandable that the communication device 1100 includes necessary means such as modules, units, elements, circuits, or interfaces, which are appropriately configured together to implement this solution. The communication device 1100 can be the network device or terminal in Figure 1, or the IRS or other network device in Figure 2, or a component (such as a chip) in these devices to implement the method described in the above method embodiment. The communication device 1100 includes one or more processors 1110. The processor 1110 can be a general-purpose processor or a dedicated processor. For example, it can be a baseband processor or a central processing unit. The baseband processor can be used to process communication protocols and communication data, and the central processing unit can be used to control the communication device (such as a base station, IRS, terminal, or chip, etc.), execute software programs, and process data of software programs.

[0210] Optionally, in one design, the processor 1110 may include a program 1130 (sometimes also referred to as code or instructions), which may be executed on the processor 1110 to cause the communication device 1100 to perform the methods described in the above embodiments. In another possible design, the communication device 1100 includes a circuit (not shown in FIG. 11 ), which may be used, for example, to implement the functions of obtaining signal measurement information / CRI and SRI in the above embodiments.

[0211] Optionally, the communication device 1100 may include one or more memories 1120 on which a program 1140 (sometimes also referred to as code or instructions) is stored. The program 1140 can be run on the processor 1110, so that the communication device 1100 performs the method described in the above method embodiment.

[0212] Optionally, the processor 1110 and / or the memory 1120 may include an AI module 1170, 1180, which is configured to implement AI-related functions. The AI ​​module may be implemented using software, hardware, or a combination of software and hardware. For example, the AI ​​module may include a radio access network intelligent controller (RIC) module. For example, the AI ​​module may be a near real-time RIC or a non-real-time RIC.

[0213] Optionally, data may be stored in the processor 1110 and / or the memory 1120. The processor and memory may be provided separately or integrated together.

[0214] Optionally, the communication device 1100 may further include a transceiver 1150 and / or an antenna 1160. The processor 1110 may also be sometimes referred to as a processing unit, and controls the communication device (e.g., a RAN node or an IRS). The transceiver 1150 may also be sometimes referred to as a transceiver unit, a transceiver, a transceiver circuit, or a transceiver, and is configured to implement the transceiver functions of the communication device through the antenna 1160.

[0215] Illustratively, the transceiver 1150 may include the functions of the aforementioned transceiver unit 920, and / or the functions of the control information receiving module 10001 and the control information sending module 10002, and / or the functions of the control information receiving module 10004 and the reference signal sending module 10006, and / or the functions of the control information receiving module 10007 and the measurement information sending module 10009. The processor 1110 may include the functions of the aforementioned processing unit 910, and / or the functions of the information processing module 10003, and / or the functions of the weight calculation module 10005, and / or the functions of the measurement information calculation module 10008.

[0216] An embodiment of the present application also provides a communication system, including a first network device (IRS), a second network device (base station) and a terminal device (UE) in an embodiment of the present application, which can be used to implement the above-mentioned channel measurement method.

[0217] An embodiment of the present application further provides a computer storage medium storing computer instructions. When the computer instructions are executed on an electronic device, the electronic device executes the above-mentioned related method steps to implement the channel measurement method in the above-mentioned embodiment.

[0218] An embodiment of the present application further provides a computer program product. When the computer program product is run on a computer, the computer is caused to execute the above-mentioned related steps to implement the channel measurement method performed by the electronic device in the above-mentioned embodiment.

[0219] Among them, the first network device, the second network device, the base station, the IRS, the computer storage medium, the computer program product or the chip provided in this embodiment are all used to execute the corresponding methods provided above. Therefore, the beneficial effects that can be achieved can refer to the beneficial effects in the corresponding methods provided above, and will not be repeated here.

[0220] In this application, when entity A sends information to entity B, it can be done directly from A to B or indirectly through another entity. Similarly, when entity B receives information from entity A, it can be done directly from entity B or indirectly through another entity. Entities A and B herein can be RAN nodes or terminals, or modules within a RAN node or terminal. The sending and receiving of information can be information exchange between a RAN node and a terminal, for example, between a base station and a terminal; the sending and receiving of information can also be information exchange between two RAN nodes, for example, between a CU and a DU; the sending and receiving of information can also be information exchange between different modules within a device, for example, between a terminal chip and other modules in the terminal, or between a base station chip and other modules within the base station.

[0221] It is understood that the processor in the embodiments of the present application may be a central processing unit (CPU), or may be other general-purpose processors, digital signal processors (DSP), application-specific integrated circuits (ASIC), field programmable gate arrays (FPGA), or other programmable logic devices, transistor logic devices, hardware components, or any combination thereof. The general-purpose processor may be a microprocessor or any conventional processor.

[0222] The method steps in the embodiments of the present application can be implemented in hardware or in software instructions that can be executed by a processor. The software instructions can be composed of corresponding software modules, and the software modules can be stored in random access memory, flash memory, read-only memory, programmable read-only memory, erasable programmable read-only memory, electrically erasable programmable read-only memory, registers, hard disk, mobile hard disk, CD-ROM or any other form of storage medium well known in the art. An exemplary storage medium is coupled to the processor so that the processor can read information from the storage medium and write information to the storage medium. The storage medium can also be an integral part of the processor. The processor and storage medium can be located in an ASIC. In addition, the ASIC can be located in a base station or a terminal. The processor and storage medium can also exist in a base station or a terminal as discrete components.

[0223] In the above embodiments, all or part of the embodiments may be implemented using software, hardware, firmware, or any combination thereof. When implemented using software, all or part of the embodiments may be implemented in the form of a computer program product. The computer program product includes one or more computer programs or instructions. When the computer program or instructions are loaded and executed on a computer, the processes or functions described in the embodiments of the present application are performed in whole or in part. The computer may be a general-purpose computer, a special-purpose computer, a computer network, a network device, a user device, or other programmable device. The computer program or instructions may be stored in a computer-readable storage medium or transferred from one computer-readable storage medium to another. For example, the computer program or instructions may be transferred from one website, computer, server, or data center to another website, computer, server, or data center via wired or wireless means. The computer-readable storage medium may be any available medium that can be accessed by a computer or a data storage device such as a server or data center that integrates one or more available media. The available medium may be a magnetic medium, such as a floppy disk, hard disk, or magnetic tape; an optical medium, such as a digital video disk; or a semiconductor medium, such as a solid-state drive. The computer-readable storage medium may be a volatile or nonvolatile storage medium, or may include both volatile and nonvolatile types of storage media.

[0224] In the various embodiments of the present application, unless otherwise specified or there is a logical conflict, the terms and / or descriptions between different embodiments are consistent and can be referenced by each other. The technical features in different embodiments can be combined to form new embodiments according to their inherent logical relationships.

[0225] In this application, "at least one" means one or more, and "more" means two or more. "And / or" describes the association relationship of associated objects, indicating that three relationships may exist. For example, A and / or B can mean: A exists alone, A and B exist at the same time, and B exists alone, where A and B can be singular or plural. In the text description of this application, the character " / " generally indicates that the previous and next associated objects are in an "or" relationship. "Including at least one of A, B and C" can mean: including A; including B; including C; including A and B; including A and C; including B and C; including A, B and C.

[0226] It is understood that the various numbers used in the embodiments of this application are merely for ease of description and are not intended to limit the scope of the embodiments of this application. The order of the sequence numbers of the above-mentioned processes does not necessarily imply a specific order of execution; the order of execution of the processes should be determined by their functions and inherent logic.

Claims

1. A channel measurement method, characterized in that: include: receiving first resource information and first signal measurement information of a first reference signal sent by a terminal device, where the first reference signal is a downlink reference signal among multiple downlink reference signals received by the terminal device from a first network device; receiving a plurality of uplink reference signals sent by the first network device, where the plurality of uplink reference signals are used to determine second resource information and second signal measurement information of a second reference signal from the plurality of uplink reference signals; Send indication information to the first network device, where the indication information is determined based on the first resource information, the first signal measurement information, the second resource information, and the second signal measurement information, and the indication information is used by the first network device to determine a weight.

2. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that The first reference signal includes a first downlink reference signal among the multiple downlink reference signals, and the first resource information is used to indicate a resource identifier of the first downlink reference signal; The second reference signal includes a first uplink reference signal among the multiple uplink reference signals, and the second resource information is used to indicate a resource identifier of the first uplink reference signal; The number of the first reference signals is one or more, and the number of the second reference signals is one or more.

3. The method according to claim 2, characterized in that The first signal measurement information includes first reference signal received power and first receiving angle information of the first downlink reference signal at the terminal device side; The second signal measurement information includes second reference signal received power and second receiving angle information of the first uplink reference signal on the second network device side.

4. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that The indication information includes an identifier of a second downlink reference signal and an identifier of a second uplink reference signal, the second downlink reference signal is one or more reference signals in the first reference signals, and the second uplink reference signal is one or more reference signals in the second reference signals.

5. The method according to claim 4, characterized in that The second downlink reference signal and the second uplink reference signal are determined based on the first signal measurement information and first weight corresponding to the first reference signal, the second signal measurement information and second weight corresponding to the second reference signal, and the channel information between the mobile terminal in the first network device and the reflection front in the first network device.

6. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that Before receiving the resource information of the first reference signal and the first signal measurement information sent by the terminal device, the method further includes: Sending first configuration information to the first network device and the terminal device, where the first configuration information is used to indicate a port resource for each downlink reference signal among the multiple downlink reference signals sent by the first network device to the terminal device; Second configuration information is sent to the first network device, where the second configuration information is used to indicate a port resource of each uplink reference signal among the multiple uplink reference signals sent by the first network device to the second network device.

7. The method according to claim 6, characterized in that The method further includes: not sending a downlink signal on the port resources of the multiple downlink reference signals indicated by the first configuration information.

8. The method according to claim 6 or 7, characterized in that Before sending the first configuration information and the second configuration information, the method further includes: Capability information sent by the first network device is received, where the capability information is used to indicate that the first network device has a capability of sending a reference signal.

9. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 8, characterized in that The multiple downlink reference signals include multiple channel state information reference signals CSI-RS; The multiple uplink reference signals include multiple channel sounding reference signals SRS.

10. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 9, characterized in that The multiple downlink reference signals are sent by the first network device through different downlink ports through different beams; The multiple uplink reference signals are sent by the first network device through different uplink ports through different beams.

11. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 10, characterized in that The first reference signal is a downlink reference signal whose reference signal received power is greater than or equal to a first reference signal received power threshold among the multiple downlink reference signals; The second reference signal is an uplink reference signal whose reference signal received power is greater than or equal to a second reference signal received power threshold among the multiple uplink reference signals.

12. A channel measurement method, characterized in that: The method comprises: Sending a plurality of downlink reference signals to a terminal device, where the plurality of downlink reference signals are used by the terminal device to determine first resource information and first signal measurement information of a first reference signal from the plurality of downlink reference signals; Sending a plurality of uplink reference signals to a second network device, where the plurality of uplink reference signals are used by the second network device to determine second resource information and second signal measurement information of a second reference signal from the plurality of uplink reference signals; Receive indication information sent by the second network device, where the indication information is determined based on the first resource information, the first signal measurement information, the second resource information, and the second signal measurement information, and the indication information is used by the first network device to determine a weight.

13. The method according to claim 12, characterized in that The first reference signal includes a first downlink reference signal among the multiple downlink reference signals, and the first resource information is used to indicate a resource identifier of the first downlink reference signal; The second reference signal includes a first uplink reference signal among the multiple uplink reference signals, and the second resource information is used to indicate a resource identifier of the first uplink reference signal; The number of the first reference signals is one or more, and the number of the second reference signals is one or more.

14. The method according to claim 13, characterized in that The first signal measurement information includes first reference signal received power and first receiving angle information of the first downlink reference signal at the terminal device side; The second signal measurement information includes second reference signal received power and second receiving angle information of the first uplink reference signal on the second network device side.

15. The method according to any one of claims 12 to 14, characterized in that: The indication information includes an identifier of a second downlink reference signal and an identifier of a second uplink reference signal, the second downlink reference signal is one or more reference signals in the first reference signals, and the second uplink reference signal is one or more reference signals in the second reference signals.

16. The method according to claim 15, characterized in that The second downlink reference signal and the second uplink reference signal are determined based on the first signal measurement information and first weight corresponding to the first reference signal, the second signal measurement information and second weight corresponding to the second reference signal, and the channel information between the mobile terminal in the first network device and the reflection front in the first network device.

17. The method according to any one of claims 12 to 16, characterized in that: Before receiving the multiple downlink reference signals and the multiple uplink reference signals, the method further includes: Receive first configuration information and second configuration information sent by the second network device, where the first configuration information is used to indicate the port resources of each downlink reference signal among the multiple downlink reference signals sent by the first network device to the terminal device, and the second configuration information is used to indicate the port resources of each uplink reference signal among the multiple uplink reference signals sent by the first network device to the second network device.

18. The method according to claim 17, characterized in that Before receiving the first configuration information and the second configuration information, the method further includes: Capability information is sent to the second network device, where the capability information is used to indicate that the first network device has the capability of sending a reference signal.

19. The method according to any one of claims 12 to 18, characterized in that: The multiple downlink reference signals include multiple channel state information reference signals CSI-RS; The multiple uplink reference signals include multiple channel sounding reference signals SRS.

20. The method according to any one of claims 12 to 19, characterized in that: The sending of multiple downlink reference signals to the terminal device includes: sending the multiple downlink reference signals to the terminal device through different beams at different downlink ports; Sending a plurality of uplink reference signals to the network device includes: sending the plurality of uplink reference signals to the second network device through different uplink ports and different beams.

21. The method according to any one of claims 12 to 20, characterized in that: The first reference signal is a downlink reference signal whose reference signal received power is greater than or equal to a first reference signal received power threshold among the multiple downlink reference signals; The second reference signal is an uplink reference signal whose reference signal received power is greater than or equal to a second reference signal received power threshold among the multiple uplink reference signals.

22. A communication device, characterized in that: The communication device comprises: a receiving unit, configured to receive first resource information and first signal measurement information of a first reference signal sent by a terminal device, where the first reference signal is a downlink reference signal among multiple downlink reference signals received by the terminal device from a first network device; The receiving unit is further configured to receive a plurality of uplink reference signals sent by the first network device, wherein the plurality of uplink reference signals are used to determine second resource information and second signal measurement information of a second reference signal from the plurality of uplink reference signals; A sending unit is used to send indication information to the first network device, where the indication information is determined based on the first resource information, the first signal measurement information, the second resource information and the second signal measurement information, and the indication information is used by the first network device to determine a weight.

23. A communication device, characterized in that: The communication device comprises: a sending unit, configured to send a plurality of downlink reference signals to a terminal device, wherein the plurality of downlink reference signals are used by the terminal device to determine first resource information and first signal measurement information of a first reference signal from the plurality of downlink reference signals; The sending unit is further configured to send a plurality of uplink reference signals to the second network device, where the plurality of uplink reference signals are used by the second network device to determine second resource information and second signal measurement information of a second reference signal from the plurality of uplink reference signals; The receiving unit is used to receive the indication information sent by the second network device, which is determined based on the first resource information, the first signal measurement information, the second resource information and the second signal measurement information, and the indication information is used by the first network device to determine the weight.

24. A communication system, characterized in that: The communication system includes the communication device according to claim 22 and the communication device according to claim 23.

25. A communication device, characterized in that: The communication device comprises at least one processor connected to a memory, and the at least one processor is used to read and execute a program stored in the memory, so that the communication device executes the method according to any one of claims 1 to 21.

26. A computer-readable storage medium, characterized in that The method comprises computer instructions, which, when executed on an electronic device, cause the electronic device to execute the method according to any one of claims 1 to 21.

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