Data collection method, communication method, apparatus, and communication device

Abstract

The present application relates to the technical field of communications, and discloses a data collection method, a communication method, an apparatus, and a communication device. The data collection method in the embodiments of the present application comprises: a first network element receives a first message from a second network element, wherein the first message comprises related information of N terminals, and N is an integer greater than or equal to 1; and the first network element executes at least one of the following operations on the basis of the first message: sending a second message to the N terminals; and sending the second message to M target terminals, wherein the N terminals comprise the M target terminals, and the second message is used for requesting to collect positioning data.

Description

Data collection method, method of communication, apparatus, and communication device

[0001] Cross-reference to Related Applications

[0002] This application claims priority to Chinese Patent Application No. 202410656963.0, filed on May 24, 2024, and Chinese Patent Application No. 202411094246.X, filed on August 09, 2024, in China, the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference in their entirety. TECHNICAL FIELD

[0003] The present application belongs to the field of communication technology, and specifically relates to a data collection method, a method of communication, an apparatus, and a communication device. BACKGROUND

[0004] In related technologies, the idea of training or reasoning of a positioning model at a core network element (such as a location management function (LMF)) is proposed, which requires the core network element to collect positioning data, so as to use the collected positioning data to train an artificial intelligence (AI) positioning model. However, the core network element does not determine which devices to collect positioning data from. SUMMARY

[0005] Embodiments of the present application provide a data collection method, a method of communication, an apparatus, and a communication device, which can solve the problem that the core network element does not determine which terminals to collect positioning data from.

[0006] In a first aspect, a data collection method is provided, executed by a first network element, and the method comprises:

[0007] The first network element receives a first message from a second network element, and the first message contains related information of N terminals, N being an integer greater than or equal to 1;

[0008] The first network element performs at least one of the following operations based on the first message:

[0009] sending a second message to the N terminals;

[0010] sending a second message to M target terminals, the N terminals including the M target terminals;

[0011] The second message is used to request collection of positioning data.

[0012] In a second aspect, a method of communication is provided, executed by a second network element, and the method comprises:

[0013] The second network element sends a first message to the first network element, the first message containing relevant information of N terminals, N being an integer greater than or equal to 1;

[0014] The first message is used to provide relevant information of a terminal supporting positioning data collection.

[0015] Alternatively,

[0016] The first message is used to provide relevant information of a terminal agreeing to positioning data collection.

[0017] Alternatively,

[0018] The first message is used to request the first network element to determine the location information of the first terminal, and the relevant information of the N terminals includes at least one of the following:

[0019] The capability information of the first terminal;

[0020] The third identifier of the first terminal, the third identifier being an identifier identifying the identity of the terminal.

[0021] The fourth indication indicating the validity time of the third identifier of the first terminal.

[0022] In a third aspect, a method of communication is provided, the method being performed by a terminal and comprising:

[0023] The terminal receives a fifth message from the first network element or a seventh message from the second network element; wherein the fifth message is used to notify the collection of positioning data, and / or the fifth message is used to request privacy verification; and the seventh message is used to notify the collection of positioning data, and / or the fifth message is used to request privacy verification.

[0024] In a fourth aspect, a data collection apparatus is provided, the apparatus comprising:

[0025] A receiving module configured to receive a first message from a second network element, the first message containing relevant information of N terminals, N being an integer greater than or equal to 1;

[0026] A first sending module configured to perform at least one of the following operations based on the first message:

[0027] Send a second message to the N terminals;

[0028] Send a second message to M target terminals, the N terminals including the M target terminals.

[0029] The second message is used to request the collection of positioning data.

[0030] In a fifth aspect, an apparatus of communication is provided, the apparatus comprising:

[0031] a first sending module, configured to send a first message to a first network element, the first message containing information about N terminals, N being an integer greater than or equal to 1;

[0032] The first message is used to provide information about terminals supporting positioning data collection.

[0033] Alternatively,

[0034] The first message is used to provide information about terminals agreeing to positioning data collection.

[0035] Alternatively,

[0036] The first message is used to request the first network element to determine the location information of a first terminal, and the information about the N terminals includes at least one of the following:

[0037] The capability information of the first terminal;

[0038] The third identifier of the first terminal, the third identifier being an identifier identifying the identity of the terminal.

[0039] The fourth indication is used to indicate the validity time of the third identifier of the first terminal.

[0040] In a sixth aspect, a device for communication is provided, the device comprising:

[0041] a first receiving module, configured to receive a fifth message from a first network element or a seventh message from a second network element; wherein the fifth message is used to notify the collection of positioning data, and / or the fifth message is used to request privacy verification; and the seventh message is used to notify the collection of positioning data, and / or the fifth message is used to request privacy verification.

[0042] In a seventh aspect, a data collection device is provided, the device being configured to perform the steps of the method according to the first aspect, or to implement the steps of the method according to the second aspect, or to implement the steps of the method according to the third aspect.

[0043] In an eighth aspect, a terminal is provided, the terminal comprising a processor and a memory, the memory storing a program or instructions executable on the processor, the program or instructions being executed by the processor to implement the steps of the method according to the third aspect.

[0044] In a ninth aspect, a terminal is provided, comprising a processor and a communication interface, wherein the communication interface is configured to receive a fifth message from a first network element or a seventh message from a second network element; wherein the fifth message is configured to notify collection of positioning data, and / or the fifth message is configured to request privacy verification; the seventh message is configured to notify collection of positioning data, and / or the fifth message is configured to request privacy verification.

[0045] In a tenth aspect, a network-side device is provided, comprising a processor and a memory, wherein the memory stores programs or instructions executable on the processor, and the programs or instructions are executed by the processor to implement the steps of the method according to the first aspect, or implement the steps of the method according to the second aspect.

[0046] In an eleventh aspect, a network-side device is provided, comprising a processor and a communication interface, wherein the communication interface is configured to receive a first message from a second network element, the first message comprising information about N terminals, N being an integer greater than or equal to 1; and the first network element is configured to perform at least one of the following operations based on the first message: sending a second message to the N terminals; sending a second message to M target terminals, the N terminals comprising the M target terminals; wherein the second message is configured to request collection of positioning data.

[0047] In a twelfth aspect, a network-side device is provided, comprising a processor and a communication interface, wherein the communication interface is configured to send a first message to a first network element, the first message comprising information about N terminals, N being an integer greater than or equal to 1.

[0048] The first message is configured to provide information about a terminal supporting collection of positioning data.

[0049] Or,

[0050] The first message is configured to provide information about a terminal agreeing to collection of positioning data.

[0051] Or,

[0052] The first message is configured to request the first network element to determine location information of a first terminal, and the information about the N terminals comprises at least one of the following: capability information of the first terminal; a third identifier of the first terminal, the third identifier being an identifier identifying a terminal identity; and a fourth indication indicating a valid time of the third identifier of the first terminal.

[0053] In a thirteenth aspect, a readable storage medium is provided, and the readable storage medium stores a program or instructions, which, when executed by a processor, implement the steps of the method according to the first aspect, or implement the steps of the method according to the second aspect, or implement the steps of the method according to the third aspect.

[0054] In a fourteenth aspect, a wireless communication system is provided, and the wireless communication system includes a first network element and a second network element, the first network element is configured to implement the steps of the method according to the first aspect, and the second network element is configured to implement the steps of the method according to the second aspect.

[0055] In a fifteenth aspect, a chip is provided, and the chip includes a processor and a communication interface, the communication interface is coupled to the processor, and the processor is configured to run a program or instructions to implement the method according to the first aspect, or implement the method according to the second aspect, or implement the method according to the third aspect.

[0056] In a sixteenth aspect, a computer program / program product is provided, and the computer program / program product is stored in a storage medium, and the computer program / program product is executed by N processors to implement the steps of the data collection method according to the first aspect, or implement the steps of the communication method according to the second aspect, or implement the steps of the communication method according to the third aspect.

[0057] In the embodiments of the present application, the first network element receives a first message from the second network element, and the first message includes related information of N terminals, and N is an integer greater than or equal to 1; and the first network element performs at least one of the following operations based on the first message: sending a second message to the N terminals; and sending a second message to M target terminals, and the N terminals include the M target terminals; and the second message is used to request to collect positioning data. In this way, the first network element can obtain the related information of the N terminals by receiving the first message sent by the second network element, so as to determine which terminals to collect positioning data. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0058] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a network structure to which the embodiments of the present application can be applied;

[0059] FIG. 2 is a flowchart of a data collection method according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0060] FIG. 3 is a flowchart of a communication method according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0061] FIG. 4 is a flowchart of a communication method according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0062] FIG. 5 is a flowchart according to Embodiment 1 of the present application;

[0063] Fig. 6 is a flow chart according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0064] Fig. 7 is a structural diagram of a data collection device according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0065] Fig. 8 is a structural diagram of a communication device according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0066] Fig. 9 is a structural diagram of a communication device according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0067] Fig. 10 is a structural diagram of a communication device according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0068] Fig. 11 is a structural diagram of a terminal according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0069] Fig. 12 is a structural diagram of a network-side device according to an embodiment of the present application. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0070] The technical solutions in the embodiments of the present application will be clearly described below with reference to the drawings in the embodiments of the present application. Obviously, the described embodiments are only some of the embodiments of the present application, but not all of the embodiments of the present application. Based on the embodiments in the present application, all other embodiments obtained by those of ordinary skill in the art belong to the scope of protection of the present application.

[0071] The terms "first", "second", and the like in the present application are used to distinguish similar objects, and are not used to describe a specific order or sequence. It should be understood that the terms used in this way can be interchanged under appropriate circumstances, so that the embodiments of the present application can be implemented in an order other than that illustrated or described herein, and the objects distinguished by "first", "second" are generally of a kind and do not limit the number of objects, for example, the first object can be one or more. In addition, "or" in the present application means at least one of the connected objects. For example, the protection scope of "A or B" at least covers three schemes, namely, scheme one: including A and not including B; scheme two: including B and not including A; scheme three: including A and including B. In addition, the terms "A and / or B", "at least one of A and B", "at least one of A or B" also at least cover the above three schemes, respectively. The character " / " generally represents that the objects before and after are in an "or" relationship.

[0072] The term "indication" in this application can be a direct indication (or explicit indication) or an indirect indication (or implicit indication). The direct indication can be understood as that the sender explicitly informs the receiver of specific information, operations to be performed or requested results, etc. in the sent indication. The indirect indication can be understood as that the receiver determines the corresponding information according to the indication sent by the sender, or judges and determines the operations to be performed or the requested results according to the judgment result.

[0073] It is worth noting that the technology described in the embodiments of the present application is not limited to Long Term Evolution (LTE) / LTE-Advanced (LTE-A) systems, but can also be used in other wireless communication systems, such as Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA), Time Division Multiple Access (TDMA), Frequency Division Multiple Access (FDMA), Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiple Access (OFDMA), Single-carrier Frequency-Division Multiple Access (SC-FDMA) or other systems. The terms "system" and "network" in the embodiments of the present application are often used interchangeably, and the described technology can be used in the above mentioned systems and radio technologies, and also in other systems and radio technologies. The following description describes a New Radio (NR) system for example purposes, and NR terminology is used in most of the following description, but these technologies can also be applied to systems other than the NR system, such as 6th Generation (6G) communication systems. th

[0074] ​FIG. 1 shows a block diagram of a wireless communication system to which embodiments of the present application can be applied. The wireless communication system includes a terminal 11 and a network-side device 12. The terminal 11 can be a terminal-side device such as a mobile phone, a Tablet Personal Computer, a Laptop Computer, a notebook computer, a Personal Digital Assistant (PDA), a palmtop computer, a netbook, an Ultra-mobile Personal Computer (UMPC), a Mobile Internet Device (MID), an Augmented Reality (AR) device, a Virtual Reality (VR) device, a robot, a wearable device, a flight vehicle, a Vehicle User Equipment (VUE), a shipboard device, a Pedestrian User Equipment (PUE), a smart home (a home device with a wireless communication function such as a refrigerator, a television, a washing machine, or furniture), a game console, a Personal Computer (PC), a kiosk, or a self-service machine. The wearable device includes a smart watch, a smart bracelet, a smart earphone, smart glasses, smart jewelry (a smart bracelet, a smart necklace, a smart ring, a smart necklace, a smart anklet, a smart necklace, etc.), a smart wristband, smart clothes, etc. The vehicle-mounted device can also be referred to as a vehicle-mounted terminal, a vehicle-mounted controller, a vehicle-mounted module, a vehicle-mounted component, a vehicle-mounted chip, or a vehicle-mounted unit, etc. It should be noted that the specific type of the terminal 11 is not limited in the embodiments of the present application. The network-side device 12 can include an access network device or a core network device. The access network device can also be referred to as a Radio Access Network (RAN) device, a radio access network function, or a radio access network unit. The access network device can include a base station, a Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN) Access Point (AP), or a Wireless Fidelity (WiFi) node, etc.The base station can be referred to as a Node B (NB), an evolved Node B (eNB), a next generation Node B (gNB), a New Radio Node B (NR Node B), an access point, a relay station (RBS), a serving base station (SBS), a base transceiver station (BTS), a radio base station, a radio transceiver, a basic service set (BSS), an extended service set (ESS), a home Node B (HNB), a home evolved Node B, a transmit / receive point (TRP), or some other suitable terminology in the art, and is not limited to a particular technical terminology, provided that the same technical effect is achieved. It should be noted that in the embodiments of the present application, only the base station in the NR system is taken as an example for introduction, and the specific type of the base station is not limited.

[0075] The core network device can also be referred to as a core network node, a core network function, or a core network network element, etc., which includes but is not limited to at least one of the following: a mobility management entity (MME), an access and mobility management function (AMF), a session management function (SMF), a user plane function (UPF), a policy control function (PCF), a policy and charging rules function (PCRF), an edge application server discovery function (EASDF), a unified data management (UDM), a unified data repository (UDR), a home subscriber server (HSS), a centralized network configuration (CNC), a network repository function (NRF), a network exposure function (NEF), a local NEF (L-NEF), a binding support function (BSF), an application function (AF), a location management function (LMF), a gateway mobile location center (GMLC), a network data analytics function (NWDAF), etc. It should be noted that only the core network device in the NR system is taken as an example for introduction in the embodiments of the present application, and the specific type of the core network device is not limited. If the name of the core network device mentioned in the embodiments of the present application changes in the subsequent protocol version (for example, 6G), it is also within the protection scope of the present application.

[0076] Optionally, the core network device can be implemented by one or more function modules in one device, or can be implemented by multiple devices jointly, and the embodiments of the present application do not make a specific limitation in this regard. It can be understood that the above function modules can be network elements in a hardware device, can be software function modules running on a dedicated hardware, or can be virtualized function modules instantiated on a platform (for example, a cloud platform).

[0077] Before the embodiments of the present application are described, the related art will be briefly introduced as follows:

[0078] I. Positioning architecture

[0079] In the related art, a positioning request initiated by a mobile device (Mobile Originated Location Request, MO-LR), a positioning request terminated by a mobile device (Mobile Terminated Location Request, MT-LR), or a deferred MT-LR, etc. are all first arrived at an AMF, and the AMF assigns a Location Services (LCS) correlation ID to an LMF, and the LMF is responsible for formulating a positioning method and performing positioning. The LMF interacts with a User Equipment (UE) or a RAN by using Long Time Evolution Positioning Protocol (LPP) messages or NR Positioning Protocol A (NRPPa) messages, and all control plane messages need to pass through the AMF, and the LCS correlation ID is used to determine the UE and the LMF between the LMF and the AMF, and the LMF does not know the UE ID. Generally, after the LMF completes the positioning task, the LCS correlation ID is released by the AMF and the LMF.

[0080] II. Periodic reporting of measurements

[0081] The LPP protocol in the related art supports that the LMF requires the UE to periodically report a location and / or a positioning measurement; in one LPP session, the LMF sends a requirement once, and the requirement includes the number and time interval of periodic reporting, and the UE can continuously report the location and / or the positioning measurement according to the requirement.

[0082] The LPP protocol in the related art supports the LMF requiring the base station to periodically report positioning measurement. The LMF carries a periodic requirement in a positioning measurement request, and the base station reports a positioning measurement response according to the periodic requirement after receiving the positioning measurement request.

[0083] The above is the related technology in the positioning aspect.

[0084] The related technology also proposes an architecture for training or reasoning of an artificial intelligence (AI) model at a core network element (such as an LMF). In the architecture, the LMF may need to collect data for the AI model to train and reason the model at the LMF side. Then, how does the LMF determine which UEs / RANs to collect AI data for to train and reason the model at the LMF side? The related technology does not have a clear solution.

[0085] In view of this, the embodiments of the present application provide a data collection method, a communication method, an apparatus, and a communication device to solve the problem that the core network element in the related art does not determine which terminals to collect positioning data.

[0086] The data collection method provided by the embodiments of the present application will be described in detail below in combination with the accompanying drawings and some embodiments and application scenarios.

[0087] FIG. 2 shows a flowchart of a data collection method according to an embodiment of the present application. As shown in FIG. 2, the data collection method includes the following steps:

[0088] Step 201: A first network element receives a first message from a second network element, the first message containing related information of N terminals, N being an integer greater than or equal to 1;

[0089] Step 202: The first network element performs at least one of the following operations based on the first message:

[0090] sending a second message to the N terminals;

[0091] sending a second message to M target terminals, the N terminals including the M target terminals;

[0092] The second message is used to request collection of positioning data.

[0093] In the embodiments of the present application, the first network element can be understood as a core network element that needs to perform AI positioning model training or inference. The first network element can be, for example, an LMF, an NWDAF, or a sensing function (SF) core network element, or other core network elements.

[0094] The second network element can be understood as a core network element that can provide related information of terminals. The second network element can be, for example, an AMF, or other core network elements.

[0095] The first network element receives the first message sent by the second network element, that is, the first network element can obtain the related information of the N terminals. In an implementation manner, the first network element can directly send the second message to the N terminals to request the N terminals to collect positioning data. In another implementation manner, the first network element can send the second message to part of the N terminals (i.e., M target terminals) to request the M target terminals to collect positioning data. The M target terminals can be randomly selected from the N terminals by the first network element, or selected from the N terminals by the first network element based on some considerations, which is not limited in the embodiments of the present application.

[0096] In the embodiments of the present application, the first network element receives the first message from the second network element, the first message containing related information of N terminals, N being an integer greater than or equal to 1; and the first network element performs at least one of the following operations based on the first message: sending a second message to the N terminals; and sending a second message to M target terminals, the N terminals including the M target terminals; wherein the second message is used to request to collect positioning data. In this way, the first network element can obtain the related information of the N terminals by receiving the first message sent by the second network element, so as to determine which terminals to collect positioning data.

[0097] In some embodiments, the second message contains at least one of the following:

[0098] The sixth indication is used to indicate periodic reporting of positioning data.

[0099] The seventh indication is used to indicate the data type of the reported positioning data.

[0100] Information of a target area.

[0101] The second message can be understood as a positioning data collection request message. The second message can be, for example, an LPP message, that is, the first network element and the terminal can interact through the transmission of LPP messages. The second message can also be a Location Service Supplementary Service (LCS-SS) message. The second message can be transmitted through control plane signaling or user plane signaling.

[0102] The second message can carry an indication of periodic reporting, that is, a sixth indication. The second message can also carry an indication of the data type for data collection, that is, a seventh indication. The second message can also carry an indication that measurement is required. The second message can also carry information of a target area.

[0103] In an embodiment of the present application, the target area can be understood as a range to which an AI positioning model is applicable, or an area in which the first network element expects to collect positioning data. The target area can be, for example, an area of interest (AOI), which can be in the form of a cell list or a Tracking Area (TA) list, or can also be a specific area formed by coordinate points. The same description in the subsequent description can be understood in this way, and to avoid repetition, this will not be described again.

[0104] For the terminal, after receiving the second message, the terminal can perform reporting of measurement data or reporting of positioning data. Specifically, the terminal can perform periodic reporting of positioning data based on the sixth indication, or report positioning data of a data type to the first network element based on the seventh indication.

[0105] It should be noted that in addition to collecting positioning data from the terminal, the first network element can also collect positioning data from the RAN. Illustratively, the first network element can select the RAN in the target area to perform collection of positioning data through the relevant information of the RAN saved internally.

[0106] The positioning data in an embodiment of the present application can include the following contents:

[0107] Measurement data, including Channel Impulse Response (CIR), Power Delay Profile (PDP), Delay Profile (DP), Reference Signal Received Power (RSRP), Reference Signal Received Power Path (RSRPP), Reference Signal Time Difference (RSTD), etc. Measurement data refers to data used for measurement in the positioning process. UE or first network element, etc. can calculate based on measurement data to obtain location information data.

[0108] Location information data, including Location (such as Geodetic loc. or civic loc.), etc. Location information can include geographic location, latitude and longitude position, cell information or city information, etc.

[0109] Intermediate features data, including Time of Arrival (TOA) or path phase, etc. Intermediate features data refers to data generated by UE / Positioning reference Unit (PRU) / RAN, etc. in the process of processing measurement data, which may be generated based on certain algorithms or models for processing measurement data.

[0110] Assistance data, including Reference Signal (RS) configuration, etc. Assistance data refers to some data that can assist positioning, such as Radio signaling configuration information, reference cell information, neighbor cell information, RSTD search time window, etc.

[0111] Measurement data source, indicating whether the source of measurement data or intermediate features data is UE or RAN or PRU.

[0112] Data time, indicating the time when the data is generated.

[0113] It should be noted that the data type of the positioning data refers to the type indication in the positioning data. It can be easily understood that when the requester requests a data type, it means that the data of the data type is expected to be obtained. For example, if the requester requests the time of arrival (TOA) of the intermediate characteristic data as the data type of the positioning data, the provider needs to provide the specific TOA value information as the positioning data.

[0114] In the embodiments of the present application, how the first network element determines which UEs to collect positioning data, mainly provides the following two technical ideas: one is that the second network element determines the UEs supporting positioning data collection, and the second network element informs the first network element of the related information of the UEs supporting positioning data collection; the other is that the first network element itself determines the UEs supporting positioning data collection. The following first describes the related implementation of the first technical idea.

[0115] In some embodiments, the first message is used to provide the related information of the terminal supporting positioning data collection;

[0116] Alternatively,

[0117] The first message is used to provide the related information of the terminal agreeing to positioning data collection.

[0118] In this implementation, the terminal supporting positioning data collection can be understood as the terminal capable of positioning data collection, i.e., the terminal having the positioning data collection capability. The terminal agreeing to positioning data collection can be understood as the terminal supporting positioning data collection and agreeing to positioning data collection.

[0119] In one implementation, the first message is used to provide the related information of the terminal supporting positioning data collection and agreeing to positioning data collection.

[0120] In this implementation, since the first message is used to provide the related information of the terminal supporting positioning data collection or to provide the related information of the terminal agreeing to positioning data collection, it means that the second network element determines the UEs supporting positioning data collection or the UEs agreeing to positioning data collection, and the second network element informs the first network element of the related information of the determined UEs.

[0121] In some embodiments, the related information of the N terminals includes at least one of the following:

[0122] The first identifier corresponding to each of the N terminals, the first identifier being an identifier associated with positioning;

[0123] The second identifier is a group identifier associated with positioning, and the second identifier is associated with the N terminals; the third identifier corresponding to each of the N terminals, the third identifier being an identifier of a terminal identity

[0124] The first indication is used to indicate the validity time of the third identifier corresponding to each of the N terminals;

[0125] The ninth indication is used to indicate that the data collection is used for training of the model;

[0126] The N terminals each correspond to a serving cell identifier.

[0127] The first identifier corresponding to each of the N terminals can be understood as N first identifiers, and the N first identifiers correspond to the N terminals one by one. The first identifier can be in the form of, for example, an LCS correlation ID list, and the LCS correlation ID list can include multiple LCS correlation IDs. Here, a single LCS Correlation ID is used to associate a terminal involved in a data collection task or to associate a terminal involved in a data collection session.

[0128] The number of second identifiers can be one, that is, the N terminals correspond to one second identifier. The second identifier can be in the form of, for example, an LCS correlation group ID, and one LCS correlation group ID can correspond to multiple LCS correlation IDs. Here, the LCS Correlation group ID is a data collection task or a data collection session associated with a group of terminals (the group of terminals includes the N terminals).

[0129] The third identifier corresponding to each of the N terminals can be understood as N third identifiers, which correspond one-to-one to the N terminals. The third identifier can be in the form of a UE ID list, which can include the identifier of each UE in the corresponding LCS correlation ID list or LCS correlation group ID, such as a Subscription Permanent Identifier (SUPI) or a Generic Public Subscription Identifier (GPSI), and the like. Since the third identifier is used to identify the identity of the terminal, the third identifier can also be referred to as terminal identification information. Subsequent occurrences of "terminal identification information" can be understood as the third identifier. Here, a single third identifier is used to associate a terminal involved in a data collection task, or to associate a terminal involved in a data collection session.

[0130] It should be noted that the third identifier can also be a newly added terminal obfuscation identifier (or obfuscated terminal identifier), or the third identifier is a newly added temporary identifier information, which is used to obfuscate the identity of the UE. The third identifier of the N terminals corresponds one-to-one to the N terminals. The terminal obfuscation identifier can avoid the LMF from knowing the direct SUPI information, and its lifetime (or validity period) can exceed the lifetime of the LCS correlation ID. As described previously, the LCS correlation ID will be released by the AMF or LMF and the like after the end of a positioning task, and therefore, within a certain time period, the LMF and the AMF can use the terminal obfuscation identifier to identify a certain terminal to process the data collection request of the terminal.

[0131] When the third identifier is a newly added temporary identifier information, the first message can also carry the validity time of the third identifier of the N terminals. Specifically, the first message can carry a first indication to indicate the validity time of the third identifier of the N terminals, and the validity time can include a validity interval, or the validity time includes a validity start time and a validity end time. In the case where the validity time of the third identifier of a certain terminal expires, the third identifier of the terminal is not saved by the AMF and the LMF, and the LMF will also be unable to carry out positioning data collection for the terminal.

[0132] In an implementation, the ninth indication is used to indicate that the data collection is for training of the model. Through the ninth indication, the first network element can learn that any terminal in the terminal-related information carried in the first message participates in the data collection for training of the model, which can help the first network element to perform corresponding processing by distinguishing the purpose of the data collection, such as the data for training of the model can be stored by the LMF in the network for a period of time for the LMF or other network elements such as a Network Access and Delivery Framework (NWADF) to train various models.

[0133] The N service cell identifiers corresponding to the N terminals can help the first network element to determine the information of the base station identifiers participating in the data collection. For example, the first network element, such as the LMF, determines that the measurement data of the uplink positioning method (which can be understood as a method in which the terminal transmits a Sounding Reference Signal (SRS), the base station side performs measurement, and finally the network side calculates the position) needs to be collected for training of an AI positioning model of the uplink positioning method, at this time, the LMF needs to select from which base stations to collect data, and by using the service cell identifier of the terminal, the target base station for data collection can be determined in the cell. If there is no information of the service cell identifier, the first network element needs to preliminarily determine the cell where the terminal is located before selecting the base station to participate in the positioning process to collect the measurement data of the base station.

[0134] In some embodiments, before the first network element receives the first message from the second network element, the method further includes:

[0135] The first network element sends a third message to the second network element, and the third message is used to request establishment of a positioning data collection task, or the third message is used to request provision of related information of terminals supporting positioning data collection.

[0136] In the implementation in which the second network element determines the UEs supporting the positioning data collection, the first network element can first request the second network element to provide the related information of the UEs supporting the positioning data collection.

[0137] For example, when the first network element decides to collect the positioning data to train an AI positioning model, and for example, when the first network element decides to collect the positioning data of the UEs in a target area, the first network element can send a third message to the second network element to request the second network element to provide the information of the terminals supporting the positioning data collection, or to request the second network element to provide the information of the terminals supporting the positioning data collection in the target area, or to request the second network element to establish a task for the positioning data collection. Here, the terminal supporting the positioning data collection can be understood as a terminal capable of (or can) performing the positioning data collection.

[0138] Optionally, the third message comprises at least one of:

[0139] a second indication indicating that the third message is used for requesting information related to terminals supporting positioning data collection;

[0140] a third indication indicating confirmation of user privacy or user willingness;

[0141] information of a target area;

[0142] a first number indicating a minimum number of terminals required by the second network element to provide the related information;

[0143] a second number indicating a maximum number of terminals required by the second network element to provide the related information;

[0144] a third number indicating a number of terminals required by the second network element to provide the related information;

[0145] a tenth indication indicating that the data collection is used for training of a model;

[0146] an eleventh indication indicating that the data collection is used for inference of a model;

[0147] a data source type, the data source type being one or more of a terminal, a positioning reference unit, a base station;

[0148] a first address indicating an address of a target network element of a notification message.

[0149] The second indication may, for example, be an event ID indicating the type of event, or may be a data collection request indicator indicating that information of terminals and / or base stations for which positioning data collection can be performed is requested / subscribed.

[0150] The third indication is used to indicate that the second network element confirms user privacy (privacy verification is required) or to indicate that the second network element confirms user consent (user consent verification is needed). The third message can carry the third indication or can not carry the third indication. If the third message carries the third indication, the second network element needs to select the relevant information of the UE that agrees to report data to the first network element, that is, the second network element needs to select the relevant information of the UE that passes the privacy verification or the consent verification to the first network element (indicates: the UE must be notified or notified with privacy verification).

[0151] It should be noted that for the case where the second indication is used to request subscription of information of terminals and / or base stations that can perform positioning data collection, the second network element can subsequently update the information of terminals and / or base stations that can perform positioning data collection at any time using a notification message, and can dynamically adjust according to the user consent or privacy verification or UE movement of the terminal and power saving indication and other information.

[0152] For the first number, the second number and the third number described above, when the first network element explicitly provides the third number, the first number and the second number can not be provided, and when the first network element provides the first number or the second number, the third number can not be provided.

[0153] The tenth indication is used to indicate that the data collection is for model training. Through the tenth indication, the second network element can know that the positioning data of the collected terminal requested or subscribed by the first network element in the third message is for model training, which can help the second network element consider whether the terminal agrees to report data for training when determining the terminal, such as some terminals hope that their data is only used for inference and not used for training. If the privacy setting of the terminal explicitly indicates that data collection for model training is not supported, the second network element will not select the terminal when selecting the terminal subsequently after querying the privacy setting. Further, if the privacy setting of the terminal explicitly indicates that the user needs to confirm privacy when data collection is used for model training (i.e., the user of the terminal confirms whether to agree), the second network element also needs to send a privacy notification message to the terminal to inform the terminal that data collection is used for model training and request the user to pass the privacy verification.

[0154] The eleventh indication is used to indicate that the data collection is for inference of a model. Through the eleventh indication, the second network element can know that the positioning data of the terminal collected by the first network element in the third message is for inference of a model, which can help the second network element consider whether the terminal agrees to report data for inference when determining the terminal, for example, some terminals hope that their data is only used for training and not used for inference. If the privacy setting of the terminal explicitly indicates that data collection for model inference is not supported, the second network element will not select the terminal after querying the privacy setting when selecting the terminal subsequently. Furthermore, if the privacy setting of the terminal explicitly indicates that the user needs to confirm privacy when data collection is used for model inference (that is, the user confirms whether to agree), the second network element also needs to send a privacy notification message to the terminal to inform the terminal that data collection is used for model inference and request the user to pass privacy verification.

[0155] The data source type is used to indicate the target object of the positioning data that the first network element hopes to collect, and the second network element selects the object as needed after receiving this information. The data source type is one or more of a terminal, a positioning reference unit, and a base station. For example, when the first network element determines that data of an uplink positioning method needs to be collected (understandably, the terminal sends SRS, the base station side performs measurement, and finally the network side calculates the position), the data source type can indicate the base station, so that the second network element can reply with the serving cell identifier or the base station identifier in the first message after receiving it; when the first network element determines that data of a downlink positioning method needs to be collected (understandably, the base station sends a positioning reference signal (PRS), the terminal side performs measurement, and finally the terminal side or the network side calculates the position), the data source type can indicate the terminal or the positioning reference unit, so that the second network element can reply with the terminal identifier (SUPI) or the positioning correlation identifier (LCS correlation ID) in the second message after receiving it. The first address is used to indicate the address of the target network element of the notification message; it can be understood that the first address is used to inform the second network element that the notification message needs to be sent to the target network element with the address of the first address, and it needs to be noted that the notification message is a message that notifies the relevant information of the N terminals that support positioning data collection, for example, the notification message can be the first message described above, and the first address can be the address of the first network element.

[0156] In some embodiments, the method further includes:

[0157] The first network element sends a fourth message to the second network element, and the fourth message is used to request to release the positioning data collection task, or the fourth message is used to request to release the relevant information of the terminal associated with the positioning data collection.

[0158] In an implementation form, the first network element can send a fourth message to the second network element for requesting to release the positioning data collection task or requesting to release the positioning association identifier allocated by the second network element, when the collection of the positioning data has been able to meet the training or inference requirement of the AI positioning model or the first network element actively decides to terminate the collection of the positioning data.

[0159] As an example, the fourth message can carry at least one of the following: the first indication, the first identifier corresponding to each of the N terminals, the second identifier, and the third identifier corresponding to each of the N terminals.

[0160] The above is the related implementation form of the first technical idea, and the following describes the related implementation form of the second technical idea.

[0161] In some embodiments, the first message is used to request the first network element to determine the position information of the first terminal, and the related information of the N terminals includes at least one of the following:

[0162] The capability information of the first terminal;

[0163] The third identifier of the first terminal, the third identifier being an identifier identifying the identity of the terminal;

[0164] A fourth indication indicating the validity time of the third identifier of the first terminal.

[0165] In this implementation form, the first message is a message used to request to determine the position of the terminal. That is, the second network element sends the first message for the positioning task of the first terminal, and this process is a positioning process independent of the positioning data collection of the first network element, for example, MO-LR / MT-LR / deferred MT-LR, which occurs before the first network element decides to collect the data of the AI positioning model for the terminal, for example, one month ago, or one minute ago. Although this process is a positioning process independent of the positioning data collection of the first network element, it can enable the first network element to have the condition to save the capability information and the third identifier of the terminal, and can provide the related information of the terminal for the subsequent collection of the positioning data of the first network element.

[0166] In the embodiments of the present application, the capability information of the terminal can include at least one of the following:

[0167] Supporting the collection of the positioning data or not supporting the collection of the positioning data, i.e., the capability (UE capability) of the terminal supporting the data collection, refers to the characteristics of the terminal supporting the data collection (or reporting) of the AI model, or the characteristics of the terminal not supporting the data collection (or reporting) of the AI model;

[0168] Supporting AI positioning or not supporting AI positioning, i.e., UE capability of supporting AI positioning, refers to the characteristics of the terminal supporting AI positioning, or the characteristics of the terminal not supporting AI positioning;

[0169] Supporting LPP or not supporting LPP, i.e., UE capability of supporting LPP, refers to the characteristics of the terminal supporting LPP, or the characteristics of the terminal not supporting LPP;

[0170] Supporting LCS notification mechanism or not supporting LCS notification mechanism, i.e., UE capability of supporting LCS notification mechanism, refers to the characteristics of the terminal supporting LCS notification mechanism, or the characteristics of the terminal not supporting LCS notification mechanism;

[0171] Supported AI positioning methods, such as direct positioning, indirect positioning, AI measurement, or AI positioning assisted by the core network side (such as LMF);

[0172] Supported data types of positioning data collection, used to indicate the data types that the terminal can report, i.e., the types of positioning data that the UE can send to the core network side (such as LMF) in the positioning interaction process, for example, it can be a positioning result type (such as at least one of intermediate features, location and measurements), or positioning-related measurement data, etc.

[0173] Supported measurement data types, used to indicate the types of measurement data that the terminal can report, such as including CIR, PDP, RSRP, RSRPP or RSTD, etc.

[0174] In addition to carrying the above-mentioned related information of the first terminal, the first message can also carry a fourth identifier, which can be, for example, the LCS correlation ID of the first terminal, to identify that the first message is a positioning request for the first terminal.

[0175] It should be noted that in an embodiment, at the second network element, such as AMF, when receiving a positioning request for a UE, it is determined whether the UE supports AI positioning or whether the UE supports AI positioning data collection. If the UE supports AI positioning and / or supports AI positioning data collection, the AMF sends a first message to the first network element, and carries the content of the above-mentioned first message, such as the capability information of the first terminal, the third identifier of the first terminal, and the validity time of the third identifier, and the like.

[0176] After the first network element receives the first message sent by the second network element, the first network element can save the capability information of the first terminal, the third identifier of the first terminal, and the validity time of the third identifier, and the like carried in the first message. The first network element can continue to perform the subsequent steps of the positioning request of the second network element, such as MO-LR / MT-LR / deferred MT-LR. Even after the end of the positioning request, the information carried in the first message, such as the capability information of the first terminal, the third identifier of the first terminal, and the like, can still be saved at the first network element.

[0177] Then, the first network element decides to collect positioning data for training or inference of an AI positioning model, for example, the first network element decides to collect positioning data of terminals in a target area. In this case, the first network element can select M target terminals based on the pre-saved related information of N terminals. The related embodiments of the first network element selecting M target terminals are described below.

[0178] In some embodiments, the method further comprises:

[0179] The first network element determines M target terminals from the N terminals based on first information;

[0180] The first information includes at least one of the following:

[0181] The capability information of the N terminals;

[0182] The position information of the N terminals, such as historical position information;

[0183] The positioning service load of the N terminals, such as if the current positioning service load is too large, it is temporarily not selected, and if the current positioning service load is low, it can be selected;

[0184] The information of the service area (such as LMF serving area) of the first network element;

[0185] The information of the target area.

[0186] In this embodiment, the first network element can directly determine the M target terminals from the N terminals based on the first information.

[0187] In an implementation, the first network element can preliminarily select a part of potential terminals based on the first information, then perform privacy check or user consent check on the preliminarily selected terminals, and determine the M target terminals based on the result of the privacy check or the result of the user consent check.

[0188] In some embodiments, the method further includes at least one of:

[0189] The first network element sends a fifth message to a second terminal, the fifth message being used for notifying collection of positioning data, and / or the fifth message being used for requesting privacy check, the N terminals including the second terminal;

[0190] The first network element sends a sixth message to a third network element, the sixth message being used for requesting subscription information of a third terminal, the N terminals including the third terminal.

[0191] The first network element sends a fifth message to a second terminal, which can be understood as an interaction of the first network element with the terminal for privacy check, the fifth message being used for notifying a data collection request of the AI positioning model and / or confirming a privacy requirement.

[0192] Optionally, the fifth message includes at least one of:

[0193] A fourth indication for indicating collection of positioning data, i.e., for indicating that the privacy check is for performing data collection of the AI positioning model;

[0194] A fifth indication for indicating whether privacy verification is required;

[0195] Information of a target area;

[0196] An identifier of the first network element (such as LMF ID).

[0197] It should be noted that the privacy verification interaction between the first network element and the UE can be through control plane signaling or user plane signaling. If it is control plane signaling, the first network element can carry the third identifier of the terminal and the fifth message in the message sent to the second network element. The fifth message here can be understood as a kind of message container carrying LPP information or LCS-SS information, so that the second network element can determine which UE to forward the fifth message according to the third identifier of the terminal after receiving the message sent by the first network element. If it is user plane signaling, the first network element needs to send the fifth message through the user plane after the user plane connection is established, and the first network element carries the third identifier of the terminal in the message sent to the second network element during the user plane connection establishment process, so that the second network element can determine which UE to forward the user plane connection establishment message according to the third identifier of the terminal after receiving it, so as to successfully establish the user plane connection establishment message.

[0198] It should be noted that one implementation is that the fifth message uses a newly added set of LCS-SS messages dedicated to data collection for interaction. After receiving the fifth message, the UE knows that the network informs itself to collect positioning data, and if the indication of whether privacy confirmation is carried, the UE needs to confirm whether to allow the collection of positioning data.

[0199] The UE sends a reply message to the first network element, which can be sent to the first network element through control plane signaling or user plane signaling to reply the privacy confirmation result. If agreed, the first network element can select the UE for positioning data collection, and if disagreed, the first network element will not select the UE for positioning data collection.

[0200] The first network element sends a sixth message to the third network element, which can be understood as the first network element interacting with the third network element (such as UDM) to query the subscription information of the UE ID selected by the first network element, such as user consent. If the subscription information such as user consent shows that the UE agrees to report data for AI positioning model or agrees to collect data for AI positioning model on the network side, the first network element can select the UE for positioning data collection, and if disagreed, the first network element will not select the UE for positioning data collection.

[0201] The above is the method embodiment of the first network element side, and the method embodiment of the second network element side will be described below.

[0202] FIG. 3 shows a flowchart of a communication method provided by an embodiment of the application. As shown in FIG. 3, the communication method comprises the following steps:

[0203] Step 301: The second network element sends a first message to the first network element, the first message containing relevant information of N terminals, N being an integer greater than or equal to 1;

[0204] The first message is used to provide relevant information of terminals supporting positioning data collection.

[0205] Alternatively,

[0206] The first message is used to provide relevant information of terminals agreeing to positioning data collection.

[0207] Alternatively,

[0208] The first message is used to request the first network element to determine the location information of the first terminal, and the relevant information of the N terminals includes at least one of the following:

[0209] The capability information of the first terminal;

[0210] The third identifier of the first terminal, the third identifier being an identifier identifying the identity of the terminal;

[0211] The fourth indication indicating the validity time of the third identifier of the first terminal.

[0212] The first message is used to provide relevant information of terminals supporting positioning data collection. It can be understood that the second network element selects (or determines) the terminals supporting positioning data collection, so that the first network element can know which terminals to collect positioning data based on the first message.

[0213] The first message is used to provide relevant information of terminals agreeing to positioning data collection. It can be understood that the second network element selects (or determines) the terminals agreeing to positioning data collection, so that the first network element can know which terminals to collect positioning data based on the first message.

[0214] The first message is used to request the first network element to determine the location information of the first terminal. It can be understood that the second network element initiates a positioning request for positioning the first terminal, and carries the capability information, the third identifier, and the validity time of the third identifier of the first terminal at the same time of initiating the positioning request. In this way, the first network element can obtain the relevant information of the first terminal based on the first message, so as to determine to collect positioning data from the first terminal according to the obtained relevant information of the first terminal when positioning data collection is needed in the future.

[0215] It should be noted that in the first message, the second network element can provide the above-mentioned capability information, the third identifier, or the valid time of the third identifier, and the like in the first message when the second network element determines that the capability information of the UE indicates that the UE supports data collection of the AI positioning model and / or the UE supports AI positioning. If the UE does not support data collection of the AI positioning model and / or the UE does not support AI positioning, the second network element can not carry the above-mentioned capability information, the third identifier, and the valid time of the third identifier in the first message.

[0216] In some embodiments, the related information of the N terminals includes at least one of:

[0217] The first identifier corresponding to each of the N terminals, the first identifier being an identifier associated with positioning;

[0218] The second identifier, the second identifier being a group identifier associated with positioning, and the second identifier being associated with the N terminals;

[0219] The third identifier corresponding to each of the N terminals, the third identifier being an identifier identifying a terminal identity;

[0220] The first indication indicating a valid time of the third identifier corresponding to each of the N terminals;

[0221] The ninth indication indicating that the data collection is for training of the model;

[0222] The service cell identifier corresponding to each of the N terminals.

[0223] In some embodiments, before the second network element sends the first message to the first network element, the method further includes:

[0224] The second network element receives a third message from the first network element, the third message being used to request establishment of a positioning data collection task, or the third message being used to request provision of related information of a terminal supporting positioning data collection.

[0225] Optionally, the third message includes at least one of:

[0226] The second indication indicating that the third message is used to request provision of related information of a terminal supporting positioning data collection;

[0227] The third indication indicating confirmation of user privacy or user willingness;

[0228] Information of a target area;

[0229] The first number indicating a minimum number of terminals required to be provided with related information by the second network element;

[0230] a second number, used to indicate a maximum number of terminals required by the second network element to provide relevant information;

[0231] a third number, used to indicate a number of terminals required by the second network element to provide relevant information;

[0232] a tenth indication, used to indicate that data collection is for training of a model;

[0233] an eleventh indication, used to indicate that data collection is for inference of a model

[0234] a data source type, the data source type being one or more of a terminal, a positioning reference unit, a base station;

[0235] a first address, used to indicate an address of a target network element of a notification message.

[0236] In some embodiments, the method further comprises:

[0237] the second network element selects the N terminals based on second information;

[0238] wherein the second information comprises at least one of:

[0239] capability information of the N terminals;

[0240] location information of the N terminals;

[0241] connection status of the N terminals;

[0242] information of a service area of the first network element;

[0243] a first number, used to indicate a minimum number of terminals required by the second network element to provide relevant information;

[0244] a second number, used to indicate a maximum number of terminals required by the second network element to provide relevant information;

[0245] a third number, used to indicate a number of terminals required by the second network element to provide relevant information;

[0246] information of a target area;

[0247] user privacy settings of the N terminals.

[0248] In this embodiment, the second network element can select the N terminals based on the second information described above, and send relevant information of the N terminals to the first network element through the first message.

[0249] In an implementation, the second network element can preliminarily select a part of potential terminals based on the second information, and then perform privacy check or user consent check on the preliminarily selected terminals, and determine the N terminals based on the result of the privacy check or the result of the user consent check.

[0250] In an implementation, if the third message received by the second network element includes the third indication described above, i.e., the first network element requires the second network element to select the UE that agrees to report the positioning data, or the UE that passes the privacy check, or the UE that passes the user consent check, the second network element then performs privacy check or user consent check on the preliminarily selected terminals, and determines the N terminals based on the result of the privacy check or the result of the user consent check.

[0251] In some embodiments, the method further includes at least one of the following:

[0252] The second network element sends a seventh message to a fourth terminal, the seventh message being used for notifying collection of positioning data, and / or the seventh message being used for requesting privacy check, and the N terminals including the fourth terminal;

[0253] The second network element sends an eighth message to a third network element, the eighth message being used for requesting subscription information of a fifth terminal, and the N terminals including the fifth terminal.

[0254] The second network element sends a seventh message to a fourth terminal, which can be understood as an interaction between the second network element and the terminal for privacy check, and the seventh message being used for notifying a data collection request of the AI positioning model and / or confirming a privacy requirement.

[0255] The second network element sends a seventh message to a fourth terminal, which can be understood as an interaction between the second network element and the terminal for privacy check, and the seventh message being used for notifying a data collection request of the AI positioning model and / or confirming a privacy requirement.

[0256] Optionally, the seventh message includes at least one of the following:

[0257] A fifth indication indicating collection of positioning data;

[0258] A sixth indication indicating whether a reply to the privacy check is needed;

[0259] Information of a target area;

[0260] An identifier of the first network element.

[0261] For the terminal, after receiving the seventh message, the terminal knows that the network side informs itself to collect the positioning data, and if the sixth indication is also carried in the seventh message, the terminal needs to confirm whether to allow / agree to collect the positioning data. Then, the terminal sends a reply message to the second network element, which replies the privacy confirmation result. If agreed, the second network element can send the related information of the terminal to the first network element for collecting the positioning data, and if not agreed, the second network element will not send the related information of the terminal to the first network element.

[0262] It should be further noted that the privacy verification herein can reuse the existing privacy verification in LCS. When the terminal agrees to the positioning, it implicitly indicates that the terminal agrees to collect the positioning data.

[0263] The second network element sends an eighth message to the third network element, which can be understood as that the second network element interacts with the third network element (such as UDM) to query the subscription information of the UE ID preliminarily selected by the second network element, such as user consent. If the subscription information such as user consent shows that the UE allows / agrees to report the AI positioning data, or agrees to collect the AI positioning data by the network side, the second network element can send the related information of the terminal to the first network element for collecting the positioning data, and if not agreed, the second network element will not send the related information of the terminal to the first network element.

[0264] In some embodiments, the method further comprises:

[0265] The second network element receives a fourth message from the first network element, and the fourth message is used to request to release the positioning data collection task, or the fourth message is used to request to release the related information of the terminal associated with the positioning data collection;

[0266] The second network element releases the related information of the N terminals.

[0267] In this implementation, in the case that the collection of the positioning data can meet the training or inference requirements of the AI positioning model, or the first network element actively decides to terminate the collection of the positioning data, the second network element can be informed by the first network element, and the second network element releases the related information of the terminal, which can appropriately reduce the resource overhead.

[0268] The related description of the embodiments of the present application can refer to the related description of the method embodiments of FIG. 2, and the same technical effects can be achieved. To avoid repetition, this will not be described here.

[0269] The above is the method embodiment of the second network element side, and the method embodiment of the terminal side will be described below.

[0270] FIG. 4 shows a flow chart of a method of communication according to an embodiment of the present application. As shown in FIG. 4, the method of communication comprises the following steps:

[0271] Step 401: the terminal receives a fifth message from the first network element or a seventh message from the second network element; wherein the fifth message is used to inform collection of positioning data, and / or the fifth message is used to request privacy verification; the seventh message is used to inform collection of positioning data, and / or the fifth message is used to request privacy verification.

[0272] Optionally, the fifth message or the seventh message comprises at least one of the following:

[0273] a fifth indication for indicating collection of positioning data;

[0274] a sixth indication for indicating whether a reply to privacy verification is needed;

[0275] information of a target area;

[0276] an identifier of the first network element.

[0277] In some embodiments, the method further comprises:

[0278] the terminal receives a second message from the first network element, wherein the second message is used to request collection of positioning data;

[0279] the terminal reports the collected positioning data to the first network element.

[0280] Optionally, the second message comprises at least one of the following:

[0281] a seventh indication for indicating periodic reporting of positioning data;

[0282] an eighth indication for indicating a data type of the reported positioning data;

[0283] information of a target area.

[0284] In some embodiments, the method further comprises:

[0285] the terminal stops collecting positioning data and / or reporting positioning data to the first network element in case of leaving the target area.

[0286] In this embodiment, the terminal periodically reports positioning data when being in the target area, and stops reporting positioning data when leaving the target area.

[0287] Correspondingly, for the second network element, the second network element can also perform the related scheme of the method embodiment of FIG. 3 on the terminal newly entering the target area according to the moving state of the terminal, and inform the first network element of the related information of the new terminal for collecting the positioning data.

[0288] The related description of the embodiments of the present application can refer to the related description of the method embodiments of FIGS. 2 to 3, and the same technical effects can be achieved. To avoid repetition, this will not be described here.

[0289] In order to better understand the embodiments of the present application, the following provides specific embodiments for exemplary description.

[0290] In the following embodiments, the first network element is taken as an example of LMF, the second network element is taken as an example of AMF, the data collection can be understood as the collection of positioning data, and the AI model can be understood as the AI positioning model.

[0291] Embodiment 1: LMF requests UE information from AMF, and LMF performs data collection on target UE

[0292] As shown in FIG. 5, the following steps are included:

[0293] Step 1: LMF decides to perform data collection to train an AI model. For example, LMF decides to perform data collection on the UE in the target area AOI. LMF sends a third message to AMF to request AMF to provide the terminal information that can perform AI data collection or to request AMF to provide the terminal information that can perform data collection in the target area. The third request can also be a subscription message, such as Namf_Location_AIPosData_Subscribe or an existing service message of AMF, and the third message includes at least one of the following:

[0294] Second indication, for example: event ID, data collection UErequest indicator, used to indicate the event type, used to indicate the request / subscription of the terminal information that can perform AI data collection;

[0295] Third indication (optional), e.g. privacy verification is required or user consent verification is needed, used to indicate that the AMF confirms the user privacy or user will. It is to be noted that if the third indication is carried, the AMF needs to select the UE that agrees to report data to the LMF, in other words, the AMF needs to select the UE that passes the privacy verification or the will verification (indicates: the UE must either be notified or notified with privacy verification);

[0296] Target area (optional), e.g. AOI, which can be in the form of a cell / tracking area list, cell list or TA list, or a specific area formed by coordinate points;

[0297] First number (optional), used to indicate the minimum number of terminal information provided by the AMF;

[0298] Second number (optional), used to indicate the maximum number of terminal information provided by the AMF;

[0299] Third number (optional), used to indicate the number of terminal information provided by the AMF;

[0300] Tenth indication, used to indicate that the data collection is used for training of the AI positioning model;

[0301] Eleventh indication, used to indicate that the data collection is used for inference of the AI positioning model;

[0302] Data source type, which is one or more of the UE, the positioning reference unit (PRU) and the RAN;

[0303] First address, used to indicate the address of the target network element of the notification message, which indicates the address of the LMF itself.

[0304] It is to be noted that when the LMF explicitly provides the third number, the first number and the second number can not be provided, and when the LMF provides the first number and the second number, the third number can not be provided.

[0305] Step 2: The AMF selects a part of potential UEs for privacy verification or will verification, and the preliminary judgment of the UEs includes at least one of the following:

[0306] UE capability information, including at least one of: UE capability of supporting data collection, UE capability of supporting AI positioning, UE capability of supporting LPP, UE capability of supporting LCS notification mechanism, AI positioning mode supported by the terminal, data type that can be sent by the terminal, and measurement data supported by the terminal;

[0307] Connection state of the UE, such as connected state and idle state;

[0308] Target area AOI;

[0309] UE position information, TA or cell level position information of the UE;

[0310] Quantity information required by the LMF, including a first quantity, a second quantity, and a third quantity;

[0311] Service area of the LMF (LMF serving area).

[0312] It should be noted that one implementation is that steps 3 to 4 are skipped, and the AMF only performs steps 2 and 5. Further, steps 2 and 5 can be combined into one step. If steps 3 to 4 are performed, the basis for the judgment here also applies to step 5.

[0313] It should be noted that the UE capability information includes at least one of:

[0314] The UE capability of supporting data collection refers to a characteristic of the terminal supporting data collection / reporting of an AI model or a characteristic of the terminal not supporting data collection / reporting of an AI model.

[0315] The UE capability of supporting AI positioning refers to a characteristic of the terminal supporting AI positioning or a characteristic of the terminal not supporting AI positioning.

[0316] The UE capability of supporting LPP refers to a characteristic of the terminal supporting LPP or a characteristic of the terminal not supporting LPP.

[0317] UE capability of supporting LCS notification mechanism, refers to whether the terminal supports the LCS notification mechanism or does not support the LCS notification mechanism;

[0318] Supported AI positioning mode (direct positioning, indirect positioning, AI measurement, and assisting LMF in AI positioning);

[0319] Data type that can be sent, used to indicate the supported data type that can be reported, i.e., the data type that the UE can send to the core network side (such as LMF) in the positioning interaction process. For example, it can be at least one of the positioning result types: intermediate features, location, measurements, etc. It can also be positioning-related measurement data, etc.

[0320] Supported measurement data, used to indicate the measurement data type that can be reported, such as including CIR, PDP, RSRP, RSRPP, RSTD, etc. (LMF can be pre-configured to know that when some measurement data is supported, AI positioning with network assistance or UE-assisted AI positioning, etc. positioning mode can be performed, i.e., the UE reports the measurement data, and the LMF calculates / generates the positioning result based on the AI / ML model).

[0321] Steps 3 to 4 are divided into A scheme and B scheme, where the A scheme is privacy verification (privacy check), and the B scheme is user consent verification (user consent check).

[0322] The A scheme (including steps 3a and 4a) is the privacy verification interaction between the AMF and the UE, the AMF sends a seventh message to the UE to notify the UE of the data collection request of the AI model and / or confirm the privacy requirement, and the seventh message carries at least one of the following:

[0323] The fifth indication is used to indicate that the privacy verification is for the data collection privacy check of the AI model;

[0324] Target area AOI;

[0325] LMF identification information, such as LMF ID;

[0326] The sixth indication is used to indicate whether privacy verification is required.

[0327] It should be noted that one implementation is that if the third indication is received in step 1, the LMF requires the AMF to select the UE that agrees to data reporting or the UE that passes the privacy verification or the willingness verification, and the AMF performs step 3a to send a seventh message to the UE.

[0328] After the UE receives the seventh message, the UE knows that the network informs itself to perform data collection, and if the privacy confirmation indication is also carried, the UE needs to confirm whether to allow data collection in step 4a.

[0329] Steps 3a and 4a can use NAS location Notification Invoke request / return or add a new set of LCS-SS messages dedicated to data collection.

[0330] The UE sends a reply message to the AMF to reply to the privacy confirmation result. If agreed, the AMF can send the UE information to the LMF for data collection in step 5, and if not agreed, the AMF will not send the UE information to the LMF for data collection in step 5.

[0331] It should also be noted that the privacy verification here can reuse the existing privacy verification in LCS, and when the UE agrees to perform positioning, it implicitly indicates that the terminal agrees to perform data collection.

[0332] The B scheme (including steps 3b and 4b) is that the AMF interacts with the UDM for query, and the AMF sends an eighth message to the UDM to query the subscription information of the UE ID confirmed in step 2, such as user consent. Similarly, in the A scheme, if the subscription information such as user consent shows that the UE agrees to data reporting of the AI model or agrees to data collection of the AI model on the network side, the AMF can send the UE information to the LMF for data collection in step 5, and if not agreed, the AMF will not send the UE information to the LMF for data collection in step 5.

[0333] Step 5: The AMF determines the final participating UE according to the user privacy verification result (optional) or the willingness verification result (optional) and the consideration basis in step 2, allocates a LCS correlation ID for each UE to form a LCS correlation ID list, or allocates a group identifier (for example: LCS correlation group ID) for this group of UEs.

[0334] It should be noted that if it is an LCS correlation ID list, the subsequent LMF provides a single LCS correlation ID to the AMF when interacting with the AMF for data collection in the control plane (CP), and the AMF can find the target UE ID and forward the message for positioning data collection to the UE; if it is an LCS correlation group ID, the subsequent LMF provides an LCS correlation group ID to the AMF when interacting with the AMF for data collection in the CP, and the AMF determines all UE IDs in this group at one time and forwards the message for positioning data collection to all UEs.

[0335] Step 6: The AMF replies to the LMF with the first message, which can also be a notification message such as Namf_Location_AIPosData_Notify or an existing AMF service message, and the first message carries at least one of the following:

[0336] A first identifier in the form of an LCS correlation ID list;

[0337] A second identifier in the form of an LCS correlation group ID;

[0338] A third identifier (optional) in the form of a UE ID list containing the identifier of each UE in the corresponding LCS correlation ID list or LCS correlation group ID, such as SUPI, GPSI, etc.; or in the form of other IDs used to obscure the identity of the UE;

[0339] A ninth indication indicating that the data collection is used for training of the model for AI positioning.

[0340] The N terminals each correspond to a serving cell identifier, such as the serving cell ID of the UE.

[0341] A fourth identifier in the form of a cell ID list or an NG-RAN node ID list, used to provide the identification information of a group of base stations. The fourth identifier can be used for subsequent data collection.

[0342] Steps 7 to 8: The LMF performs data collection with the UE.

[0343] The LMF sends a request message (i.e., a second message) for data collection to the UE, the message carrying an indication of periodic report, an indication that measurement is required, a data type for data collection, and optionally carrying a target area AOI.

[0344] After receiving the request message for data collection, the UE performs measurement data reporting or AI positioning measurement data reporting, and reports data in the data type for data collection to the LMF.

[0345] It should be noted that the LMF and the UE can interact through the delivery of LPP messages, and can be sent through the signaling of a control plane positioning scheme or the signaling of a user plane positioning scheme.

[0346] Step 9 (optional): The UE performs periodic reporting in the AOI, and terminates the reporting when leaving the AOI.

[0347] Step 10: The AMF optionally performs steps 2 to 6 on a new UE according to the movement state of the UE, and informs the LMF of the new UE information for data collection of the AI model, and the LMF performs steps 7 to 8.

[0348] Step 11: Since the data collection has met the training requirements, or the LMF decides to terminate the data, the LMF sends a fourth message to the AMF, the message being used to release the data collection task or request the AMF to release the allocated positioning association identifier. The fourth message carries at least one of the first indication, the first identifier, the second identifier, and the third identifier.

[0349] Embodiment 2: The LMF uses saved UE information to determine the UE participating in data collection

[0350] As shown in FIG. 6, the following steps are included:

[0351] It should be noted that steps 0 to 2 in the embodiment are independent of steps 3 to 10. Steps 0 to 2 are for a positioning process of the UE, for example, MO-LR / MT-LR / deferred MT-LR, which occurs before the LMF decides to collect data for the AI model of the UE, and can be a positioning that occurred a month ago, or a positioning that occurred a minute ago. After steps 0 or 1 occur, the LMF has the condition to save the identifier and capability of the UE, thereby providing a condition for the subsequent data collection.

[0352] Step 0: AMF sends a third message to LMF, the third message is used for requesting to determine the terminal location, the third message includes at least one of:

[0353] A fourth identity, LCS correlation ID, used for identifying one positioning request for the target UE;

[0354] UE capability information, including at least one of: UE capability of supporting data collection, UE capability of supporting AI positioning, UE capability of supporting LPP, UE capability of supporting LCS notification mechanism, AI positioning mode supported by the terminal, data type that can be sent by the terminal, and measurement data supported by the terminal;

[0355] Terminal identity information (i.e. the third identity), such as SUPI, GPSI or other newly added identities that can blur the terminal identity;

[0356] Validity time, used for indicating the validity time information of the terminal blurred identity.

[0357] Step 1: LMF saves the UE capability information, terminal identity information, validity time and other information carried in the third message.

[0358] Step 2: LMF continues to perform the positioning request. For example, the subsequent steps of MO-LR / MT-LR / deferred MT-LR.

[0359] Step 3: LMF decides to collect data to train an AI positioning model. For example, LMF decides to collect data of UEs in a target area AOI.

[0360] LMF initially selects a part of potential UEs, and the basis for the initial judgment of the UEs includes at least one of the following:

[0361] UE capability information, including at least one of: UE capability of supporting data collection, UE capability of supporting AI positioning, UE capability of supporting LPP, UE capability of supporting LCS notification mechanism, AI positioning mode supported by the terminal, data type that can be sent by the terminal, and measurement data supported by the terminal;

[0362] Target area AOI, which can be a range where the model is applicable, or an area where data collection is expected to be performed;

[0363] UE location information, such as historical location information;

[0364] Service area of the LMF (LMF serving area);

[0365] Current positioning service load of the UE, such as if the load is too large at present, it is temporarily not selected, and if the load is low, it can be selected.

[0366] Steps 4 to 5: divided into A scheme and B scheme, wherein the A scheme is privacy verification (privacy check), and the B scheme is user consent verification (user consent check).

[0367] The A scheme (including steps 4a and 5a) is the privacy verification interaction between the LMF and the UE, the LMF sends a fifth message to the UE for notifying the data collection request of the AI model and / or confirming the privacy requirement, and the message can carry at least one of the following:

[0368] The fifth indication is used to indicate that the privacy verification is for performing the data collection of the AI model, data collection privacy check;

[0369] Target area AOI;

[0370] LMF identification information, such as LMF ID;

[0371] The sixth indication is used to indicate whether privacy verification is required.

[0372] It should be noted that the privacy verification interaction between the LMF and the UE can be through control plane signaling or user plane signaling. If it is control plane signaling, the LMF carries the terminal identification information and the fifth message in the message sent to the AMF. The fifth message here can be understood as a kind of message container carrying LPP information or LCS-SS information, so that the AMF determines which UE to forward the fifth message according to the terminal identification information after receiving it. If it is user plane signaling, the LMF needs to send the fifth message through the user plane after the user plane connection is established, and the LMF carries the terminal identification information in the message sent to the AMF during the user plane connection establishment process, so that the AMF determines which UE to forward the user plane connection establishment message according to the terminal identification information after receiving it, thereby successfully establishing the user plane connection establishment message.

[0373] It should be noted that one implementation is that the fifth message uses a newly added set of LCS-SS messages dedicated to data collection to interact.

[0374] After receiving the fifth message, the UE knows that the network informs itself to perform data collection, and if the privacy confirmation indication is also carried, the UE needs to confirm whether to allow data collection in step 5a.

[0375] Step 5a: The UE sends a reply message to the LMF, which can be sent to the LMF through control plane signaling or user plane signaling to reply the privacy confirmation result. If agreed, the LMF can select the UE for data collection in step 6, and if disagreed, the LMF will not select the UE for data collection in step 6.

[0376] It should also be noted that in one implementation, the LMF can reuse steps 3a to 4a in Embodiment 1 when performing steps 4 to 5. That is, the LMF sends the terminal identification information and the privacy verification indication to the AMF, the AMF performs steps 3a to 4a in Embodiment 1 according to the terminal identification information, and then feeds back the result to the LMF. The privacy verification here can reuse the LCS privacy verification in related technologies, and when the UE agrees to perform positioning, it implicitly indicates that the terminal agrees to perform AI model data collection.

[0377] It should be noted that the LMF may not have the latest location information of a certain UE, and cannot determine whether the UE still stays in the AOI, so the LMF can also send the terminal identification information and the target area AOI information (in the form of TA / cell list) to the AMF at a certain time between steps 3 and 6, and the AMF confirms whether the UE is in the target area AOI. Then the LMF selects the UE in the AOI for AI model data collection in step 6 according to the reply of the AMF.

[0378] Option B (including step 4b and step 5b) is that the LMF interacts with the UDM to query, and the LMF sends a sixth message to the UDM to query the subscription information of the UE ID confirmed in step 3, such as user consent. Similarly, option A, if the subscription information such as user consent shows that the UE agrees to report data to the AI model or agrees to collect data for the AI model on the network side, the LMF can select the UE for data collection in step 6, and if not, the AMF will not select the UE for data collection in step 6.

[0379] Step 6: The LMF determines the UE for AI data collection in combination with the privacy verification or willingness verification result of the user and the consideration basis in step 3. For example, the LMF selects the UE in the AOI that supports AI positioning, supports data collection, and performs data collection. The number of terminals participating in data collection can be determined by the LMF itself.

[0380] Steps 7 to 9: Same as example one.

[0381] Step 10: The LMF dynamically adjusts (including reducing or increasing) the UE participating in the data collection of the AI model according to the saved information and capabilities of the UE. If the UE is increased, the LMF can repeat steps 3 to 8. If the UE is reduced, the LMF does not need to repeat steps 3 to 8, and can directly send a cancellation signaling to the UE, or wait until the periodical reporting of the measurement is completed and then no longer perform step 7.

[0382] It should be noted that the dashed line in FIGS. 5 and 6 represents an optional step.

[0383] In summary, the embodiments of the present application provide a new AMF and LMF interaction method, which supports the LMF to determine the UE participating in the data collection of the AI positioning model, thereby supporting the LMF to collect positioning data and train the model.

[0384] The data collection method provided by the embodiments of the present application can be executed by a data collection device. In the embodiments of the present application, the data collection method executed by the data collection device is taken as an example to illustrate the data collection device provided by the embodiments of the present application.

[0385] The communication method provided by the embodiments of the present application can be executed by a communication device. In the embodiments of the present application, the communication method executed by the communication device is taken as an example to illustrate the communication device provided by the embodiments of the present application.

[0386] Embodiments of the present application provide a data collection apparatus. As an example, the data collection apparatus can be a communication device or a component in a communication device, such as a chip. The communication device can be a terminal, a network-side device, a server, or the like. As an example, the terminal can include, but is not limited to, the types of terminal 11 listed above, the network-side device can include, but is not limited to, the types of network-side device 12 listed above, and embodiments of the present application do not make specific limitations.

[0387] Embodiments of the present application provide a communication apparatus. As an example, the communication apparatus can be a communication device or a component in a communication device, such as a chip. The communication device can be a terminal, a network-side device, a server, or the like. As an example, the terminal can include, but is not limited to, the types of terminal 11 listed above, the network-side device can include, but is not limited to, the types of network-side device 12 listed above, and embodiments of the present application do not make specific limitations.

[0388] The data collection apparatus includes a receiving module, a sending module, and a processing module. The receiving module, the sending module, and the processing module can be implemented by software or by hardware. When implemented by hardware, the processing module can be implemented by a processor. As an example, the processor can include a general-purpose processor, a special-purpose processor, or the like, such as a central processing unit (CPU), a microprocessor, a digital signal processor (DSP), an artificial intelligent (AI) processor, a graphics processing unit (GPU), an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a network processor (NP), a field programmable gate array (FPGA), or other programmable logic devices, a gate circuit, a transistor, a discrete hardware component, or the like. The receiving module and the sending module can be implemented by a communication interface, which can include one or more of a transceiver, a pin, a circuit, a bus, a radio frequency unit, or the like.

[0389] Specifically, referring to FIG. 7, when the data collection apparatus is a network-side device or a component in a network-side device, the data collection apparatus 700 includes:

[0390] The receiving module 701 is configured to receive a first message from a second network element, the first message containing relevant information of N terminals, N being an integer greater than or equal to 1.

[0391] The first sending module 702 is configured to perform at least one of the following operations based on the first message:

[0392] sending a second message to the N terminals;

[0393] sending a second message to M target terminals, the N terminals including the M target terminals;

[0394] The second message is used to request collection of positioning data.

[0395] Optionally, the first message is used to provide related information of the terminal supporting the positioning data collection; or

[0396] The first message is used to provide related information of the terminal agreeing to the positioning data collection.

[0397] Optionally, the related information of the N terminals includes at least one of the following:

[0398] a first identifier corresponding to each of the N terminals, the first identifier being an identifier associated with positioning;

[0399] a second identifier, the second identifier being a group identifier associated with positioning, and the second identifier being associated with the N terminals;

[0400] a third identifier corresponding to each of the N terminals, the third identifier being an identifier identifying a terminal identity;

[0401] a first indication indicating a validity time of the third identifier corresponding to each of the N terminals;

[0402] a ninth indication indicating that the data collection is used for training of a model;

[0403] a service cell identifier corresponding to each of the N terminals.

[0404] Optionally, the apparatus further includes:

[0405] a second sending module configured to send a third message to the second network element, the third message being used to request establishment of a positioning data collection task, or the third message being used to request provision of related information of the terminal supporting the positioning data collection.

[0406] Optionally, the third message includes at least one of the following:

[0407] a second indication indicating that the third message is used to request provision of the related information of the terminal supporting the positioning data collection;

[0408] a third indication indicating confirmation of user privacy or user willingness;

[0409] information of a target area.

[0410] a first number, used for indicating a minimum number of terminals required for the second network element to provide relevant information;

[0411] a second number, used for indicating a maximum number of terminals required for the second network element to provide relevant information;

[0412] a third number, used for indicating a number of terminals required for the second network element to provide relevant information;

[0413] a tenth indication, used for indicating that data collection is for training of a model;

[0414] an eleventh indication, used for indicating that data collection is for inference of a model

[0415] a data source type, the data source type being one or more of a terminal, a positioning reference unit, a base station;

[0416] a first address, used for indicating an address of a target network element of a notification message.

[0417] Optionally, the apparatus further comprises:

[0418] a third sending module, configured to send a fourth message to the second network element, the fourth message being used for requesting release of a positioning data collection task, or the fourth message being used for requesting release of relevant information of a terminal associated with the positioning data collection.

[0419] Optionally, the first message is used for requesting the first network element to determine position information of a first terminal, and the relevant information of the N terminals comprises at least one of:

[0420] capability information of the first terminal;

[0421] a third identifier of the first terminal, the third identifier being an identifier used for identifying terminal identity;

[0422] a fourth indication, used for indicating a validity time of the third identifier of the first terminal.

[0423] Optionally, the apparatus further comprises:

[0424] a processing module, configured to determine M target terminals from the N terminals based on first information;

[0425] wherein the first information comprises at least one of:

[0426] capability information of the N terminals;

[0427] position information of the N terminals;

[0428] positioning service load of the N terminals;

[0429] information of a service area of the first network element;

[0430] information of a target area.

[0431] Optionally, the apparatus further comprises at least one of:

[0432] a fourth sending module, configured to send a fifth message to a second terminal, the fifth message being used for notifying collection of positioning data, and / or the fifth message being used for requesting privacy verification, the N terminals comprising the second terminal;

[0433] a fifth sending module, configured to send a sixth message to a third network element, the sixth message being used for requesting subscription information of a third terminal, the N terminals comprising the third terminal.

[0434] Optionally, the fifth message comprises at least one of:

[0435] a fifth indication, used for indicating collection of positioning data;

[0436] a sixth indication, used for indicating whether privacy verification needs to be replied;

[0437] information of a target area.

[0438] an identity of the first network element.

[0439] Optionally, the capability information comprises at least one of:

[0440] supporting collection of positioning data or not supporting collection of positioning data;

[0441] supporting artificial intelligence (AI) positioning or not supporting AI positioning;

[0442] supporting long term evolution (LTE) positioning protocol (LPP) or not supporting LPP;

[0443] supporting a notification mechanism of location services (LCS) or not supporting the notification mechanism of LCS;

[0444] a data type of supported collection of positioning data;

[0445] a type of supported measurement data.

[0446] Optionally, the second message comprises at least one of:

[0447] a seventh indication, used for indicating periodic reporting of positioning data;

[0448] an eighth indication, used for indicating a data type of reported positioning data;

[0449] information of a target area.

[0450] The data collection apparatus provided by the embodiments of the present application can implement each process implemented by the method embodiments of FIG. 2 and achieve the same technical effects. To avoid repetition, details are not described herein.

[0451] The apparatus for communication includes a receiving module, a sending module and a processing module. The receiving module, the sending module and the processing module can be implemented by software or by hardware. When implemented by hardware, the processing module can be implemented by a processor. For example, the processor can include a general-purpose processor, a special-purpose processor, a central processing unit (CPU), a microprocessor, a digital signal processor (DSP), an artificial intelligent (AI) processor, a graphics processing unit (GPU), an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a network processor (NP), a field programmable gate array (FPGA) or other programmable logic devices, a gate circuit, a transistor, a discrete hardware component, etc. The receiving module and the sending module can be implemented by a communication interface, which can include one or more of a transceiver, a pin, a circuit, a bus, a radio frequency unit, etc.

[0452] Specifically, referring to FIG. 8, when the apparatus for communication is a network-side device or a component in the network-side device, the apparatus for communication 800 includes:

[0453] A first sending module 801 is configured to send a first message to a first network element, wherein the first message contains related information of N terminals, and N is an integer greater than or equal to 1.

[0454] The first message is configured to provide the related information of the terminal supporting the positioning data collection.

[0455] Alternatively,

[0456] The first message is configured to provide the related information of the terminal agreeing to the positioning data collection.

[0457] Alternatively,

[0458] The first message is configured to request the first network element to determine the location information of the first terminal, and the related information of the N terminals includes at least one of the following:

[0459] The capability information of the first terminal

[0460] a third identity of the first terminal, the third identity being an identity identifying a terminal identity;

[0461] a fourth indication indicating a validity time of the third identity of the first terminal.

[0462] Optionally, the apparatus further comprises:

[0463] a receiving module configured to receive a third message from the first network element, the third message being used for requesting to establish a positioning data collection task, or the third message being used for requesting to provide relevant information of terminals supporting positioning data collection.

[0464] Optionally, the relevant information of the N terminals comprises at least one of:

[0465] a first identity corresponding to each of the N terminals, the first identity being a positioning-related identity;

[0466] a second identity, the second identity being a positioning-related group identity, the second identity being associated with the N terminals;

[0467] a third identity corresponding to each of the N terminals, the third identity being an identity identifying a terminal identity;

[0468] a first indication indicating a validity time of the third identity corresponding to each of the N terminals;

[0469] a ninth indication indicating that the data collection is used for training of a model;

[0470] a service cell identity corresponding to each of the N terminals.

[0471] Optionally, the third message comprises at least one of:

[0472] a second indication indicating that the third message is used for requesting to provide relevant information of terminals supporting positioning data collection;

[0473] a third indication indicating confirmation of user privacy or user willingness;

[0474] information of a target area;

[0475] a first number indicating a minimum number of terminals required by the second network element to provide relevant information;

[0476] a second number indicating a maximum number of terminals required by the second network element to provide relevant information;

[0477] a third number indicating a number of terminals required by the second network element to provide relevant information;

[0478] a tenth indication indicating that data collection is for training of a model;

[0479] an eleventh indication indicating that data collection is for inference of a model

[0480] a data source type, the data source type being one or more of a terminal, a positioning reference unit, a base station;

[0481] a first address indicating an address of a target network element of a notification message.

[0482] Optionally, the apparatus further comprises:

[0483] a first processing module configured to select the N terminals based on second information;

[0484] wherein the second information comprises at least one of:

[0485] capability information of the N terminals;

[0486] location information of the N terminals;

[0487] connection status of the N terminals;

[0488] information of a service area of the first network element;

[0489] a first number indicating a minimum number of terminals required for the second network element to provide relevant information;

[0490] a second number indicating a maximum number of terminals required for the second network element to provide relevant information;

[0491] a third number indicating a number of terminals required for the second network element to provide relevant information;

[0492] information of a target area;

[0493] user privacy settings of the N terminals.

[0494] Optionally, the apparatus further comprises at least one of:

[0495] a second sending module configured to send a seventh message to a fourth terminal, the seventh message being used to notify collection of positioning data, and / or the seventh message being used to request privacy verification, the N terminals comprising the fourth terminal;

[0496] a third sending module configured to send an eighth message to a third network element, the eighth message being used to request subscription information of a fifth terminal, the N terminals comprising the fifth terminal.

[0497] Optionally, the seventh message comprises at least one of:

[0498] a fifth indication for indicating collecting positioning data;

[0499] a sixth indication for indicating whether a privacy verification is needed;

[0500] information of a target area;

[0501] an identity of the first network element.

[0502] Optionally, the apparatus further comprises:

[0503] a receiving module, configured to receive a fourth message from the first network element, the fourth message being used for requesting releasing a positioning data collecting task, or the fourth message being used for requesting releasing information of terminals associated with the positioning data collecting;

[0504] a second processing module, configured to release the information of the N terminals.

[0505] The apparatus for communication provided in the embodiments of the present application can realize each process realized by the method embodiment of FIG. 3 and achieve the same technical effects. To avoid repetition, details are not described herein.

[0506] Specifically, referring to FIG. 9, when the apparatus for communication is a terminal or a component in a terminal, the apparatus for communication 900 comprises:

[0507] a first receiving module 901, configured to receive a fifth message from a first network element or a seventh message from a second network element; wherein the fifth message is used for notifying collecting positioning data, and / or the fifth message is used for requesting a privacy verification; and the seventh message is used for notifying collecting positioning data, and / or the fifth message is used for requesting a privacy verification.

[0508] Optionally, the fifth message or the seventh message comprises at least one of the following:

[0509] a fifth indication for indicating collecting positioning data;

[0510] a sixth indication for indicating whether a privacy verification is needed;

[0511] information of a target area;

[0512] an identity of the first network element.

[0513] Optionally, the apparatus further comprises:

[0514] a second receiving module, configured to receive a second message from the first network element, the second message being used for requesting collecting positioning data;

[0515] a sending module, configured to report the collected positioning data to the first network element.

[0516] Optionally, the second message comprises at least one of the following:

[0517] a seventh indication for indicating periodic reporting of the positioning data;

[0518] an eighth indication for indicating a data type of the reported positioning data;

[0519] information of the target area.

[0520] Optionally, the apparatus further comprises:

[0521] a processing module configured to stop collecting the positioning data and / or stop reporting the positioning data to the first network element in case of leaving the target area.

[0522] The apparatus for communication provided in the embodiments of the present application can realize each process realized by the method embodiments of FIG. 4, and achieve the same technical effects. To avoid repetition, details are not described herein.

[0523] As shown in FIG. 10, the embodiments of the present application further provide a communication device 1000, which comprises a processor 1001 and a memory 1002, and the memory 1002 stores programs or instructions executable on the processor 1001. For example, when the communication device 1000 is a terminal, the programs or instructions are executed by the processor 1001 to realize each step of the above terminal-side method embodiments, and achieve the same technical effects. When the communication device 1000 is a network-side device, the programs or instructions are executed by the processor 1001 to realize each step of the above first network element-side method embodiments, or realize each step of the above second network element-side method embodiments, and achieve the same technical effects. To avoid repetition, details are not described herein.

[0524] The embodiments of the present application further provide a terminal, which comprises a processor and a communication interface, the communication interface is coupled to the processor, and the processor is configured to run programs or instructions to realize the steps in the method embodiments shown in FIG. 4. The terminal embodiments correspond to the above terminal-side method embodiments, and each implementation process and implementation manner of the above method embodiments can be applied to the terminal embodiments, and achieve the same technical effects. The terminal can be the apparatus for communication shown in FIG. 9. Specifically, FIG. 11 is a hardware structure schematic diagram of a terminal realizing the embodiments of the present application.

[0525] The terminal 1100 includes, but is not limited to, at least part of the following components: a radio frequency unit 1101, a network module 1102, an audio output unit 1103, an input unit 1104, a sensor 1105, a display unit 1106, a user input unit 1107, an interface unit 1108, a memory 1109, and a processor 1110, etc.

[0526] Those skilled in the art can understand that the terminal 1100 can also include a power supply (such as a battery) for supplying power to each component, and the power supply can be logically connected to the processor 1110 through a power management system, so that the power management system can realize the functions of managing charging, discharging, and power consumption management. The terminal structure shown in FIG. 11 does not constitute a limitation on the terminal, and the terminal can include more or fewer components than those shown, or combine certain components, or different component arrangements, which will not be described here.

[0527] It should be understood that in the embodiments of the present application, the input unit 1104 can include a graphics processor 11041 and a microphone 11042. The graphics processor 11041 processes image data of a still picture or a video obtained by an image capture device (such as a camera) in a video capture mode or an image capture mode. The display unit 1106 can include a display panel 11061, which can be configured in the form of a liquid crystal display, an organic light-emitting diode, etc. The user input unit 1107 includes at least one of a touch panel 11071 and other input devices 11072. The touch panel 11071 is also called a touch screen. The touch panel 11071 can include two parts of a touch detection device and a touch controller. The other input devices 11072 can include, but are not limited to, a physical keyboard, function keys (such as volume control keys, on-off keys, etc.), trackballs, mice, joysticks, which will not be described here.

[0528] In the embodiments of the present application, after the radio frequency unit 1101 receives the downlink data from the network side device, it can be transmitted to the processor 1110 for processing. In addition, the radio frequency unit 1101 can send uplink data to the network side device. Generally, the radio frequency unit 1101 includes, but is not limited to, an antenna, an amplifier, a transceiver, a coupler, a low noise amplifier, a duplexer, etc.

[0529] The memory 1109 can be used to store software programs or instructions and various data. The memory 1109 can mainly include a first storage area storing programs or instructions and a second storage area storing data, wherein the first storage area can store an operating system, application programs or instructions required by N functions (such as a sound playing function, an image playing function, etc.), and the like. In addition, the memory 1109 can include a volatile memory or a non-volatile memory. The non-volatile memory can be a Read-Only Memory (ROM), a Programmable ROM (PROM), an Erasable PROM (EPROM), an Electrically EPROM (EEPROM), or a flash memory. The volatile memory can be a Random Access Memory (RAM), a Static RAM (SRAM), a Dynamic RAM (DRAM), a Synchronous DRAM (SDRAM), a Double Data Rate SDRAM (DDR SDRAM), an Enhanced SDRAM (ESDRAM), a Synch link DRAM (SLDRAM), and a Direct Rambus RAM (DRRAM). The memory 1109 in the embodiments of the present application includes but is not limited to these and any other suitable types of memory.

[0530] The processor 1110 can include one or more processing units; optionally, the processor 1110 integrates an application processor and a modem processor, wherein the application processor mainly processes operations related to an operating system, a user interface, and an application program, and the modem processor mainly processes wireless communication signals, such as a baseband processor. It can be understood that the above-mentioned modem processor can also not be integrated into the processor 1110.

[0531] The radio frequency unit 1101 is configured to:

[0532] receive a fifth message from the first network element or a seventh message from the second network element; wherein the fifth message is used to inform to collect positioning data, and / or the fifth message is used to request privacy verification; the seventh message is used to inform to collect positioning data, and / or the fifth message is used to request privacy verification.

[0533] It can be understood that the implementation process of each implementation mode mentioned in the embodiment can refer to the related description of the data collection method embodiment, and achieve the same or corresponding technical effects. To avoid repetition, it will not be repeated here.

[0534] The embodiment of the application further provides a network side device, comprising a processor and a communication interface, the communication interface and the processor are coupled, the processor is used to run programs or instructions, and the steps of the method embodiments shown in FIG. 2 or FIG. 3 are realized. The network side device embodiment corresponds to the above-mentioned first network element side method embodiment or the above-mentioned second network element side method embodiment. Each implementation process and implementation mode of the above-mentioned method embodiments can be applied to the network side device embodiment, and the same technical effects can be achieved.

[0535] Specifically, the embodiment of the application further provides a network side device, which can be a data collection apparatus shown in FIG. 2 or a communication apparatus shown in FIG. 3. As shown in FIG. 12, the network side device 1200 comprises a processor 1201, a network interface 1202 and a memory 1203. The network side device can be a data collection apparatus shown in FIG. m. The network interface 1202 is, for example, a common public radio interface (CPRI).

[0536] Specifically, the network side device 1200 of the embodiment of the application further comprises instructions or programs stored in the memory 1203 and executable on the processor 1201. The processor 1201 invokes the instructions or programs in the memory 1203 to execute the method performed by each module shown in FIG. 7 or FIG. 8, and achieves the same technical effects. To avoid repetition, it will not be repeated here.

[0537] The embodiment of the application further provides a readable storage medium, the readable storage medium stores programs or instructions, the programs or instructions are executed by the processor to realize each process of the above-mentioned data collection method embodiment, or realize each process of the above-mentioned communication method embodiment, and achieve the same technical effects. To avoid repetition, it will not be repeated here.

[0538] The processor is the processor in the terminal in the above-mentioned embodiments. The readable storage medium comprises a computer readable storage medium, such as a computer readable memory (ROM), a random access memory (RAM), a magnetic disc or an optical disc, etc. In some examples, the readable storage medium can be a non-transient readable storage medium.

[0539] The chip provided by the embodiment of the present application also can be called system chip, system chip, chip system or system on chip, etc.

[0540] It should be understood that the chip mentioned in the embodiment of the present application can also be called system chip, system chip, chip system or system on chip, etc.

[0541] The embodiment of the present application further provides a computer program / program product stored in a storage medium, wherein the computer program / program product is executed by N processors to implement the processes of the data collection method or the processes of the communication method, and the same technical effects can be achieved, and details are not repeated here.

[0542] The embodiment of the present application further provides a communication system, comprising: a first network element and a second network element, wherein the first network element can be used to execute the steps of the data collection method, and the first network element can be used to execute the steps of the communication method.

[0543] Optionally, the communication system further comprises a terminal, wherein the terminal can be used to execute the steps of the communication method.

[0544] It should be noted that, in this document, the term "comprising" or "including" or any other variant thereof is intended to cover non-exclusive inclusion, so that a process, method, article or apparatus including a series of elements not only includes those elements, but also includes other elements not explicitly listed, or further includes elements inherent to such a process, method, article or apparatus. Without more limitations, the element defined by the statement "comprising a" does not exclude the presence of additional identical elements in the process, method, article or apparatus including the element. In addition, it should be pointed out that the scope of the method and apparatus in the embodiment of the present application is not limited to the order of performing the functions shown or discussed, but can also include performing the functions in a substantially simultaneous manner or in a reverse order, for example, the described method can be performed in an order different from the described order, and various steps can also be added, omitted or combined. In addition, the features described with reference to some examples can be combined in other examples.

[0545] Through the description of the above embodiments, those skilled in the art can clearly understand that the above-mentioned example methods can be realized by means of a computer software product and a general hardware platform as necessary, and of course can also be realized by hardware. The computer software product is stored in a storage medium (such as a ROM, a RAM, a magnetic disc, an optical disc, etc.), and includes a plurality of instructions for enabling a terminal or a network side device to execute the method described in each embodiment of the present application.

[0546] The embodiments of the present application are described above in combination with the drawings, but the present application is not limited to the specific embodiments described above, and the specific embodiments described above are merely illustrative rather than limiting. Those skilled in the art can make many forms of embodiments under the inspiration of the present application without departing from the scope of the present application and the scope protected by the claims, and these embodiments all belong to the protection of the present application.

Claims

1. A method for data collection, comprising: receiving, by a first network element, a first message from a second network element, the first message comprising information of N terminals, N being an integer greater than or equal to 1; based on the first message, performing, by the first network element, at least one of the following operations: sending a second message to the N terminals; sending a second message to M target terminals, the N terminals comprising the M target terminals; wherein the second message is used for requesting to collect positioning data.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein, the first message is used for providing information of terminals supporting positioning data collection; or the first message is used for providing information of terminals agreeing to positioning data collection.

3. The method of claim 1 or 2, wherein, the information of the N terminals comprises at least one of the following: a first identifier corresponding to each of the N terminals, the first identifier being an identifier associated with positioning; a second identifier, the second identifier being a group identifier associated with positioning, the second identifier being associated with the N terminals; a third identifier corresponding to each of the N terminals, the third identifier being an identifier identifying a terminal identity; a first indication indicating a validity time of the third identifier corresponding to each of the N terminals; a ninth indication indicating that the data collection is for training of a model; a serving cell identifier corresponding to each of the N terminals.

4. The method of any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein, before the receiving, by the first network element, the first message from the second network element, the method further comprising: sending, by the first network element, a third message to the second network element, the third message being used for requesting to establish a positioning data collection task, or the third message being used for requesting to provide information of terminals supporting positioning data collection. 5.The method of claim 4, wherein the third message comprises at least one of the following: a second indication indicating that the third message is used for requesting to provide information of terminals supporting positioning data collection; a third indication indicating confirmation of user privacy or user willingness; information of a target area; a first number indicating a minimum number of terminals required by the second network element to provide the information; a second number indicating a maximum number of terminals required by the second network element to provide the information; a third number indicating a number of terminals required by the second network element to provide the information; a tenth indication indicating that the data collection is for training of a model; an eleventh indication indicating that the data collection is for inference of a model; a data source type, the data source type being one or more of a terminal, a positioning reference unit, and a base station; a first address indicating an address of a target network element of a notification message. 6.The method of any one of claims 1 to 5, further comprising: sending, by the first network element, a fourth message to the second network element, the fourth message being used for requesting to release a positioning data collection task, or the fourth message being used for requesting to release information of terminals associated with the positioning data collection.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein, the first message is used for requesting the first network element to determine location information of a first terminal, and the information of the N terminals comprises at least one of the following: capability information of the first terminal; the third identifier corresponding to the first terminal, the third identifier being an identifier identifying a terminal identity. A fourth indication indicating a valid time of the third identity of the first terminal.

8. The method of claim 1 or 7, further comprising: determining, by the first network element, M target terminals from the N terminals based on first information; wherein the first information comprises at least one of: capability information of the N terminals; location information of the N terminals; positioning service load of the N terminals; information of a service area of the first network element; information of a target area.

9. The method of any of claims 1, 7-8, further comprising at least one of: sending, by the first network element, a fifth message to a second terminal, the fifth message being used for notifying collecting positioning data, and / or the fifth message being used for requesting privacy verification, the N terminals comprising the second terminal; sending, by the first network element, a sixth message to a third network element, the sixth message being used for requesting subscription information of a third terminal, the N terminals comprising the third terminal.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein, the fifth message comprising at least one of: a fifth indication indicating collecting positioning data; a sixth indication indicating whether a reply to the privacy verification is needed; information of the target area; an identity of the first network element.

11. The method of claim 7 or 8, wherein, the capability information comprising at least one of: supporting or not supporting collecting positioning data; supporting or not supporting artificial intelligence (AI) positioning; supporting or not supporting long term evolution (LTE) positioning protocol (LPP); supporting or not supporting location service (LCS) notification mechanism; a type of data supported for collecting positioning data; a type of measurement data supported.

12. The method of any one of claims 1 to 11, wherein, the second message comprising at least one of: a seventh indication indicating periodic reporting of positioning data; an eighth indication indicating a type of the reported positioning data; information of the target area.

13. A method of communication, comprising: sending, by a second network element, a first message to a first network element, the first message comprising information related to N terminals, N being an integer greater than or equal to 1; wherein the first message is used to provide information related to a terminal supporting collecting positioning data; or, the first message is used to provide information related to a terminal agreeing to collect positioning data; or, the first message is used to request the first network element to determine location information of a first terminal, the information related to the N terminals comprising at least one of: capability information of the first terminal; a third identity of the first terminal, the third identity being an identity identifying a terminal identity; a fourth indication indicating a valid time of the third identity of the first terminal.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein, the information related to the N terminals comprising at least one of: a first identity corresponding to each of the N terminals, the first identity being an identity associated with positioning; a second identity, the second identity being a group identity associated with positioning, the second identity being associated with the N terminals; a third identity corresponding to each of the N terminals, the third identity being an identity identifying a terminal identity; a first indication indicating a valid time of the third identity corresponding to each of the N terminals; a ninth indication indicating that the data collection is for training of a model. The N terminals each correspond to a serving cell identifier.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein, Before the second network element sends a first message to the first network element, the method further comprises: The second network element receives a third message from the first network element, the third message being used to request to establish a positioning data collection task, or the third message being used to request to provide related information of terminals supporting positioning data collection.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein, The third message comprises at least one of: A second indication indicating that the third message is used to request to provide related information of terminals supporting positioning data collection; A third indication indicating confirmation of user privacy or user willingness; Information of a target area; A first number indicating a minimum number of terminals required by the second network element to provide related information; A second number indicating a maximum number of terminals required by the second network element to provide related information; A third number indicating a number of terminals required by the second network element to provide related information; A tenth indication indicating that data collection is used for training of a model; An eleventh indication indicating that data collection is used for inference of a model A data source type being one or more of a terminal, a positioning reference unit, and a base station; A first address indicating an address of a target network element of a notification message.

17. The method of any one of claims 13-16, further comprising: The second network element selects the N terminals based on second information; The second information comprises at least one of: Capability information of the N terminals; Position information of the N terminals; Connection status of the N terminals; Information of a service area of the first network element; A first number indicating a minimum number of terminals required by the second network element to provide related information; A second number indicating a maximum number of terminals required by the second network element to provide related information; A third number indicating a number of terminals required by the second network element to provide related information; Information of a target area; User privacy settings of the N terminals.

18. The method of any one of claims 13-17, further comprising at least one of: The second network element sends a seventh message to a fourth terminal, the seventh message being used to notify to collect positioning data and / or the seventh message being used to request privacy verification, the N terminals including the fourth terminal; The second network element sends an eighth message to a third network element, the eighth message being used to request subscription information of a fifth terminal, the N terminals including the fifth terminal.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein, The seventh message comprises at least one of: A fifth indication indicating to collect positioning data; A sixth indication indicating whether a reply to privacy verification is required; Information of a target area; An identifier of the first network element.

20. The method of any one of claims 13-19, further comprising: The second network element receives a fourth message from the first network element, the fourth message being used to request to release a positioning data collection task, or the fourth message being used to request to release related information of terminals associated with the positioning data collection; The second network element releases related information of the N terminals.

21. A method of communication, comprising: The terminal receives a fifth message from the first network element or a seventh message from the second network element; wherein the fifth message is used to notify collection of positioning data, and / or the fifth message is used to request privacy verification; the seventh message is used to notify collection of positioning data, and / or the fifth message is used to request privacy verification.

22. The method of claim 21, wherein, The fifth message or the seventh message comprises at least one of the following: A fifth indication indicating collection of positioning data; A sixth indication indicating whether a reply to privacy verification is needed; Information of a target area; An identifier of the first network element.

23. The method of claim 21 or 22, further comprising: The terminal receives a second message from the first network element, the second message being used to request collection of positioning data; The terminal reports the collected positioning data to the first network element.

24. The method of claim 23, wherein, The second message comprises at least one of the following: A seventh indication indicating periodic reporting of positioning data; An eighth indication indicating a data type of the reported positioning data; Information of a target area.

25. The method of claim 22 or 24, further comprising: The terminal stops collecting positioning data and / or reporting positioning data to the first network element in case of leaving the target area.

26. A data collection apparatus applied to a first network element, the apparatus comprising: A receiving module configured to receive a first message from a second network element, the first message comprising relevant information of N terminals, N being an integer greater than or equal to 1; A first sending module configured to perform at least one of the following based on the first message: sending a second message to the N terminals; sending a second message to M target terminals, the N terminals comprising the M target terminals; wherein the second message is used to request collection of positioning data.

27. The apparatus of claim 26, wherein, The first message is used to provide relevant information of terminals supporting collection of positioning data; or The first message is used to provide relevant information of terminals agreeing to collection of positioning data.

28. The apparatus of claim 26 or 27, further comprising: A second sending module configured to send a third message to the second network element, the third message being used to request establishment of a positioning data collection task, or the third message being used to request provision of relevant information of terminals supporting collection of positioning data.

29. The apparatus of any one of claims 26 to 28, further comprising: A third sending module configured to send a fourth message to the second network element, the fourth message being used to request release of a positioning data collection task, or the fourth message being used to request release of relevant information of terminals associated with collection of positioning data.

30. The apparatus of claim 26, wherein, The first message is used to request the first network element to determine location information of a first terminal, and the relevant information of the N terminals comprises at least one of the following: Capability information of the first terminal; A third identifier of the first terminal, the third identifier being an identifier identifying a terminal identity; A fourth indication indicating a valid time of the third identifier of the first terminal.

31. The apparatus of claim 26 or 30, further comprising: a processing module, configured to determine M target terminals from the N terminals based on first information; wherein the first information comprises at least one of the following: capability information of the N terminals; location information of the N terminals; positioning service load of the N terminals; information of a service area of the first network element; information of a target area.

32. The apparatus of any of claims 26, 30-31, further comprising at least one of the following: a fourth sending module, configured to send a fifth message to a second terminal, the fifth message being used to notify collection of positioning data, and / or the fifth message being used to request privacy verification, the N terminals comprising the second terminal; a fifth sending module, configured to send a sixth message to a third network element, the sixth message being used to request subscription information of a third terminal, the N terminals comprising the third terminal.

33. An apparatus for communication, the apparatus for communication being applied to a second network element, the apparatus comprising: a first sending module, configured to send a first message to a first network element, the first message containing related information of N terminals, N being an integer greater than or equal to 1; wherein the first message is used to provide related information of a terminal supporting collection of positioning data; or, the first message is used to provide related information of a terminal agreeing to collection of positioning data; or, the first message is used to request the first network element to determine location information of a first terminal, the related information of the N terminals comprising at least one of the following: capability information of the first terminal; a third identity of the first terminal, the third identity being an identity identifying a terminal identity; a fourth indication, used to indicate a validity time of the third identity of the first terminal.

34. The apparatus of any of claim 33, further comprising: a first processing module, configured to select the N terminals based on second information; wherein the second information comprises at least one of the following: capability information of the N terminals; location information of the N terminals; connection state of the N terminals; information of a service area of the first network element; a first number, used to indicate a minimum number of terminals required by the second network element to provide related information; a second number, used to indicate a maximum number of terminals required by the second network element to provide related information; a third number, used to indicate a number of terminals required by the second network element to provide related information; information of a target area; user privacy settings of the N terminals.

35. The apparatus of claim 33 or 34, further comprising at least one of the following: a second sending module, configured to send a seventh message to a fourth terminal, the seventh message being used to notify collection of positioning data, and / or the seventh message being used to request privacy verification, the N terminals comprising the fourth terminal; a third sending module, configured to send an eighth message to a third network element, the eighth message being used to request subscription information of a fifth terminal, the N terminals comprising the fifth terminal.

36. The apparatus of any of claims 33-35, further comprising: a receiving module, configured to receive a fourth message from the first network element, the fourth message being used to request to release the positioning data collection task, or the fourth message being used to request to release the related information of the terminal associated with the positioning data collection; a second processing module, configured to release the related information of the N terminals.

37. An apparatus of communication, applied to a terminal, the apparatus comprising: a first receiving module, configured to receive a fifth message from a first network element or a seventh message from a second network element; wherein the fifth message is used to notify to collect positioning data, and / or the fifth message is used to request privacy verification; the seventh message is used to notify to collect positioning data, and / or the fifth message is used to request privacy verification.

38. The apparatus of claim 37, further comprising: a processing module, configured to stop collecting the positioning data and / or stop reporting the positioning data to the first network element in case of leaving a target area.

39. A communication device, comprising a processor and a memory, the memory storing programs or instructions executable on the processor, the programs or instructions being executed by the processor to implement the steps of the data collection method according to any one of claims 1 to 12, or to implement the steps of the method of communication according to any one of claims 13 to 20, or to implement the steps of the method of communication according to any one of claims 21 to 25.

40. A readable storage medium, storing programs or instructions thereon, the programs or instructions being executed by a processor to implement the steps of the data collection method according to any one of claims 1 to 12, or to implement the steps of the method of communication according to any one of claims 13 to 20, or to implement the steps of the method of communication according to any one of claims 21 to 25.

41. A computer program product, comprising computer instructions, the computer instructions being executed by a processor to implement the steps of the data collection method according to any one of claims 1 to 12, or to implement the steps of the method of communication according to any one of claims 13 to 20, or to implement the steps of the method of communication according to any one of claims 21 to 25.

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