Communication method and apparatus

Abstract

The present application provides a communication method and apparatus, capable of improving the transmission performance of a data frame. The method comprises: a first device generates a first data frame, and sends the first data frame to a second device. The first data frame comprises first indication information and pilot information, the first indication information is used for indicating a frequency domain resource occupied by the pilot information, and data communication is performed between the first device and the second device on the basis of a power line.

Description

Communication method and apparatus

[0001] Cross-reference to Related Applications

[0002] This application claims priority to the Chinese Patent Application No. 202410868807.0, filed on June 28, 2024, and entitled "A Communication Method and Apparatus", the content of which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety. TECHNICAL FIELD

[0003] The present application relates to the field of communication technology, and in particular to a communication method and apparatus. BACKGROUND

[0004] With the development of power line communication (PLC) technology, PLC is gradually applied to smart grid, industrial control, Internet of Things and other fields, and can meet the interconnection of large-scale intelligent devices. PLC mainly uses power lines as transmission media to realize the transmission of data frames, but the transmission environment of power line channels is poor and there are various complex noise interferences.

[0005] For example, in a home power line network, various electrical load impedances on the power line change in real time, causing the channel noise interference to change in real time, thereby resulting in poor transmission performance of data frames. SUMMARY

[0006] The present application provides a communication method and apparatus, which is applied to a power line communication scenario and can improve the transmission performance of data frames.

[0007] In a first aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication method applied to a first device, including: generating a first data frame, the first data frame including first indication information and pilot information; wherein the first indication information is used to indicate the frequency domain resources occupied by the pilot information; and sending the first data frame to a second device, the first device and the second device performing data communication based on a power line.

[0008] In the above design, by introducing pilot information in the data frame transmitted in the power line network and indicating the frequency domain resources occupied by the pilot information, channel estimation can be performed in time using the pilot, thereby improving the transmission performance of data frames.

[0009] In one possible design, the pilot information includes M pilot groups, a starting subcarrier occupied by an m-th pilot group of the M pilot groups is different from a starting subcarrier occupied by an (m+1)-th pilot group of the M pilot groups by consecutive N subcarriers, and the first indication information is used to indicate a value of the N; where the N and the M are positive integers, and the m is a positive integer less than or equal to M-1. In another possible design, the pilot information includes M pilot groups, a starting subcarrier occupied by an m-th pilot group of the M pilot groups is different from a starting subcarrier occupied by an (m+1)-th pilot group of the M pilot groups by N valid subcarriers, and the first indication information is used to indicate a value of the N; where the valid subcarriers are non-permanent mask subcarriers (PMSCs) and non-region mask subcarriers (RMSCs), the N and the M are positive integers, and the m is a positive integer less than or equal to M-1.

[0010] The above design configures subcarriers occupied by pilots in the frequency domain resource, and pilots in the same frequency domain resource at different times are used for channel estimation, which can adapt to real-time changes in the channel and reduce the impact of untimely channel estimation on data transmission performance.

[0011] In one possible design, a starting subcarrier occupied by a 1st pilot group of the M pilot groups is a k-th subcarrier of subcarriers occupied by the first data frame; where the k is a positive integer less than or equal to N. In another possible design, a starting subcarrier occupied by a 1st pilot group of the M pilot groups is a k-th valid subcarrier of valid subcarriers occupied by the first data frame; where the valid subcarriers are non-permanent mask subcarriers (PMSCs) and non-region mask subcarriers (RMSCs), and the k is a positive integer less than or equal to N. By defining the starting subcarrier of the pilot, the power line communication device can quickly determine the location distribution of the pilot in the frequency domain, which helps to improve the efficiency of channel estimation.

[0012] In one possible design, single-stream transmission data is used between the first device and the second device, the m-th pilot group includes one pilot, and the one pilot occupies one subcarrier. In another possible design, double-stream transmission data is used between the first device and the second device, the m-th pilot group includes two pilots, each of the two pilots occupies one subcarrier, and the two pilots are orthogonal to each other. Such a design adapts to various transmission scenarios to design pilot groups, and can ensure the accuracy of channel estimation.

[0013] In one possible design, the value of the N includes 4, 8, or 16, the first indication information occupies 2 bits in a frame header of the first data frame, and one value of the first indication information corresponds to one value of the N.

[0014] In a possible design, before the first data frame is generated, the method further includes: receiving second indication information from the second device, where the second indication information is used to indicate that the channel between the first device and the second device changes.

[0015] In a possible design, before the first data frame is generated, the method further includes: sending a second data frame to the second device; and receiving, from the second device, acknowledgement information that includes second indication information, where the second indication information is used to indicate that the channel between the first device and the second device changes, and the second indication information is determined by the second device based on the second data frame.

[0016] In a possible design, the sending of the first data frame to the second device includes: sending the first data frame in a first time period, where the first time period is a time period in which the channel between the first device and the second device changes.

[0017] With the above design, the power line communication device (the first device) sends a data frame carrying a pilot when the channel changes, which helps to perform channel estimation in time using the pilot, and can improve the accuracy of channel estimation, thereby improving the data transmission performance.

[0018] In a second aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication method, applied to a second device, and including: receiving a first data frame from a first device, where the first data frame includes first indication information and pilot information; the first indication information is used to indicate frequency domain resources occupied by the pilot information; the first device and the second device perform data communication based on a power line; and performing channel estimation between the first device and the second device according to the first indication information and the pilot information.

[0019] In a possible design, the pilot information includes M groups of pilots, a start subcarrier occupied by an m th pilot group in the M groups of pilots is different from a start subcarrier occupied by an m+1 th pilot group in the M groups of pilots by N continuous subcarriers, and the first indication information is used to indicate a value of the N; where the N and the M are positive integers, and the m is a positive integer less than or equal to M-1.

[0020] In a possible design, the pilot information includes M groups of pilots, a start subcarrier occupied by an m th pilot group in the M groups of pilots is different from a start subcarrier occupied by an m+1 th pilot group in the M groups of pilots by N effective subcarriers, and the first indication information is used to indicate a value of the N; where the effective subcarriers are non-permanent mask subcarriers (PMSC) and non-region mask subcarriers (RMSC), the N and the M are positive integers, and the m is a positive integer less than or equal to M-1.

[0021] In one possible design, the first group of pilots in the M groups of pilots occupies a starting subcarrier that is the kth subcarrier in the subcarriers occupied by the first data frame, where k is a positive integer less than or equal to N-1.

[0022] In one possible design, the first group of pilots in the M groups of pilots occupies a starting subcarrier that is the kth valid subcarrier in the valid subcarriers occupied by the first data frame, where the valid subcarriers are non-permanently muted subcarriers (PMSCs) and non-regionally muted subcarriers (RMSCs), and k is a positive integer less than or equal to N-1.

[0023] In one possible design, the first device and the second device communicate data based on single-stream transmission, and the mth group of pilots includes one pilot occupying one subcarrier.

[0024] In one possible design, the first device and the second device communicate data based on dual-stream transmission, and the mth group of pilots includes two pilots each occupying one subcarrier, and the two pilots are orthogonal to each other.

[0025] In one possible design, N can take values of 4, 8, or 16, the first indication information occupies 2 bits in a frame header of the first data frame, and one value of the first indication information corresponds to one value of N.

[0026] In one possible design, before receiving the first data frame from the first device, the method further includes sending, to the first device, second indication information indicating a change in a channel between the first device and the second device.

[0027] In one possible design, before receiving the first data frame from the first device, the method further includes receiving a second data frame from the first device, and sending, to the first device, acknowledgment information including second indication information indicating a change in a channel between the first device and the second device based on the second data frame.

[0028] In one possible design, the receiving the first data frame from the first device includes receiving the first data frame from the first device in a first time period, where the first time period is a time period during which a channel between the first device and the second device changes.

[0029] In a third aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication apparatus, which can be the first device, or a device, module or chip in the first device, or an apparatus that can be used with the first device. In one design, the communication apparatus can include a module corresponding to each of the methods / operations / steps / actions described in the first aspect, which can be implemented in hardware circuitry, software, or both. In one design, the communication apparatus can include a processing module and a communication module including a transmitting unit and a receiving unit. Optionally, the processing module can also be referred to as a processing unit.

[0030] The processing module is configured to generate a first data frame, the first data frame including first indication information and pilot information, wherein the first indication information is used to indicate frequency domain resources occupied by the pilot information.

[0031] The communication module is configured to send the first data frame to a second device, and the first device and the second device perform data communication based on a power line.

[0032] In one possible design, the pilot information includes M groups of pilots, a starting subcarrier occupied by an m-th group of pilots in the M groups of pilots is different from a starting subcarrier occupied by an (m+1)-th group of pilots by N consecutive subcarriers, and the first indication information is used to indicate a value of the N, where N and M are positive integers, and m is a positive integer less than or equal to M-1. In another possible design, the pilot information includes M groups of pilots, a starting subcarrier occupied by an m-th group of pilots in the M groups of pilots is different from a starting subcarrier occupied by an (m+1)-th group of pilots by N valid subcarriers, and the first indication information is used to indicate a value of the N, where the valid subcarriers are non-permanent mask subcarriers (PMSCs) and non-regional mask subcarriers (RMSCs), N and M are positive integers, and m is a positive integer less than or equal to M-1.

[0033] In one possible design, a starting subcarrier occupied by a first group of pilots in the M groups of pilots is a k-th subcarrier in subcarriers occupied by the first data frame, where k is a positive integer less than or equal to N. In another possible design, a starting subcarrier occupied by a first group of pilots in the M groups of pilots is a k-th valid subcarrier in valid subcarriers occupied by the first data frame, where the valid subcarriers are non-permanent mask subcarriers (PMSCs) and non-regional mask subcarriers (RMSCs), and k is a positive integer less than or equal to N.

[0034] In one possible design, the first device and the second device communicate data based on single-stream transmission, the mthgroup of pilots includes one pilot, and the one pilot occupies one subcarrier. In another possible design, the first device and the second device communicate data based on dual-stream transmission, the mthgroup of pilots includes two pilots, each of the two pilots occupies one subcarrier, and the two pilots are orthogonal to each other.

[0035] In one possible design, N can be 4, 8, or 16, and the first indication information occupies 2 bits in a frame header of the first data frame, and one value of the first indication information corresponds to one value of N.

[0036] In one possible design, before the processing module generates the first data frame, the communication module can further receive second indication information from the second device, where the second indication information indicates a change in the channel between the first device and the second device.

[0037] In one possible design, before the processing module generates the first data frame, the communication module can further transmit a second data frame to the second device, and receive acknowledgement information from the second device, where the acknowledgement information includes second indication information, the second indication information indicates a change in the channel between the first device and the second device, and the second indication information is determined by the second device based on the second data frame.

[0038] In one possible design, the communication module, when transmitting the first data frame to the second device, can be specifically configured to transmit the first data frame in a first time period, and the first time period is a time period in which the channel between the first device and the second device changes.

[0039] In a fourth aspect, embodiments of the present application provide a communication apparatus, which can be the second device, a device, a module, or a chip in the second device, or an apparatus that can be used with the second device. In one design, the communication apparatus can include modules corresponding to the methods / operations / steps / actions described in the second aspect, which can be hardware circuits, software, or a combination of hardware circuits and software. In one design, the communication apparatus can include a processing module and a communication module, and the communication module can include a transmitting unit and a receiving unit. Optionally, the processing module can also be replaced by a processing unit.

[0040] The communication module is configured to receive a first data frame from a first device, the first data frame comprising first indication information and pilot information, wherein the first indication information is used to indicate frequency domain resources occupied by the pilot information, and the first device and the second device perform data communication based on a power line;

[0041] The processing module is configured to perform channel estimation between the first device and the second device according to the first indication information and the pilot information.

[0042] In a possible design, the pilot information comprises M groups of pilots, a start subcarrier occupied by an mth group of pilots in the M groups of pilots is different from a start subcarrier occupied by an (m+1)th group of pilots by N continuous subcarriers, and the first indication information is used to indicate a value of the N, where the N and the M are positive integers, and the m is a positive integer less than or equal to M-1.

[0043] In a possible design, the pilot information comprises M groups of pilots, a start subcarrier occupied by an mth group of pilots in the M groups of pilots is different from a start subcarrier occupied by an (m+1)th group of pilots by N valid subcarriers, and the first indication information is used to indicate a value of the N, where the valid subcarriers are non-permanent mask subcarriers (PMSC) and non-region mask subcarriers (RMSC), the N and the M are positive integers, and the m is a positive integer less than or equal to M-1.

[0044] In a possible design, a start subcarrier occupied by a first group of pilots in the M groups of pilots is a kth subcarrier in subcarriers occupied by the first data frame, where the k is a positive integer less than or equal to N-1.

[0045] In a possible design, a start subcarrier occupied by a first group of pilots in the M groups of pilots is a kth valid subcarrier in valid subcarriers occupied by the first data frame, where the valid subcarriers are non-permanent mask subcarriers (PMSC) and non-region mask subcarriers (RMSC), and the k is a positive integer less than or equal to N-1.

[0046] In a possible design, the first device and the second device perform single-stream transmission data, the mth group of pilots comprises one pilot, and the one pilot occupies one subcarrier.

[0047] In a possible design, the first device and the second device perform double-stream transmission data, the mth group of pilots comprises two pilots, each of the two pilots occupies one subcarrier, and the two pilots are orthogonal to each other.

[0048] In a possible design, the N includes 4, 8, or 16, the first indication information occupies 2 bits in a frame header of the first data frame, and one value of the first indication information corresponds to one value of the N.

[0049] In a possible design, the communication module is further configured to, before receiving the first data frame from the first device, send second indication information to the first device, where the second indication information is used to indicate that the channel between the first device and the second device changes.

[0050] In a possible design, the communication module is further configured to, before receiving the first data frame from the first device, receive a second data frame from the first device; and send, to the first device, acknowledgement information including second indication information according to the second data frame, where the second indication information is used to indicate that the channel between the first device and the second device changes.

[0051] In a possible design, the communication module is further configured to, in a first time period, receive the first data frame from the first device, where the first time period is a time period during which the channel between the first device and the second device changes.

[0052] In a fifth aspect, a communication apparatus is provided, which includes at least one processor and a memory. The memory is configured to store computer programs or instructions. When the apparatus is running, the at least one processor executes the computer programs or instructions, so that the communication apparatus performs the method in the first aspect or any of the designs of the first aspect, or performs the method in the second aspect or any of the designs of the second aspect.

[0053] In a sixth aspect, another communication apparatus is provided, which includes a logic circuit and an input / output interface. The input / output interface can be understood as an interface circuit. The logic circuit can be configured to run code instructions to perform the method in the first aspect or any of the designs of the first aspect, or perform the method in the second aspect or any of the designs of the second aspect.

[0054] In a seventh aspect, a computer readable storage medium is provided, which stores computer readable instructions. When the computer readable instructions run on a computer, the computer performs the method in the first aspect or any of the designs of the first aspect, or performs the method in the second aspect or any of the designs of the second aspect, or performs the method in the third aspect or any of the designs of the third aspect, or performs the method in the fourth aspect or any of the designs of the fourth aspect.

[0055] In an eighth aspect, the present application provides a computer program product comprising instructions which, when executed on a computer, cause the computer to carry out the method of the first aspect or any of the designs of the first aspect, or carry out the method of the second aspect or any of the designs of the second aspect.

[0056] In a ninth aspect, the present application provides a chip system, which comprises a processor, and can further comprise a memory, for implementing the method described in the first aspect or any of the designs of the first aspect, or carrying out the method of the second aspect or any of the designs of the second aspect. The chip system can be constituted by a chip, or can comprise a chip and other discrete devices.

[0057] In a tenth aspect, the present application provides a communication system, which comprises a terminal device and a satellite, and is used for carrying out the method of the first aspect or any of the designs of the first aspect, or carrying out the method of the second aspect or any of the designs of the second aspect.

[0058] The technical effects achieved by the second aspect to the tenth aspect can refer to the technical effects achieved by the corresponding design scheme of the first aspect, which will not be repeated here. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0059] Fig. 1 is a schematic diagram of an architecture of a power line communication system;

[0060] Fig. 2 is a schematic diagram of a structure of a data frame;

[0061] Fig. 3 is a schematic diagram of a flow of a communication method provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0062] Fig. 4A is a schematic diagram of a pilot pattern provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0063] Fig. 4B is a schematic diagram of a pilot pattern provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0064] Fig. 5A is a schematic diagram of a pilot pattern provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0065] Fig. 5B is a schematic diagram of a pilot pattern provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0066] Fig. 6A is a schematic diagram of a pilot pattern provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0067] Fig. 6B is a schematic diagram of a pilot pattern provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0068] Fig. 7 is a schematic diagram of a flow of a communication method provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0069] Fig. 8 is a schematic diagram of a structure of a communication apparatus provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0070] FIG. 9 is a structural schematic diagram of a communication apparatus according to an embodiment of the present application. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0071] In order to make the purpose, technical solutions and advantages of the embodiments of the present application clearer, the embodiments of the present application will be further described in detail below with reference to the drawings.

[0072] The network architecture and service scenarios described in the embodiments of the present application are used to more clearly illustrate the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present application, and do not constitute a limitation on the technical solutions provided by the embodiments of the present application. It can be known by those skilled in the art that, with the evolution of network architecture and the appearance of new service scenarios, the technical solutions provided by the embodiments of the present application are also applicable to similar technical problems.

[0073] At least one (item) related to the embodiments of the present application is described below, indicating one (item) or multiple (items). Multiple (items) refer to two (items) or more than two (items). "And / or" describes the association relationship of the associated objects, which means that there can be three relationships, for example, A and / or B, which can represent the three cases of A alone, A and B together, and B alone. The character " / " generally represents an "or" relationship between the front and rear associated objects. The terms "system" and "network" in the embodiments of the present application can be used interchangeably. The terms "according to" and "based on" in the embodiments of the present application can be used interchangeably. In addition, it should be understood that although the terms first, second, etc. can be used to describe various objects in the embodiments of the present application, these objects should not be limited by these terms. These terms are only used to distinguish each object from each other.

[0074] The terms "include" and "have" and any variations thereof mentioned in the embodiments of the present application and any modifications thereof are intended to cover non-exclusive inclusion. For example, a process, method, system, product or device including a series of steps or units is not limited to the listed steps or units, but can optionally include other steps or units not listed or can optionally include other steps or units inherent to the process, method, product or device. It should be noted that the words "exemplary" or "for example" in the embodiments of the present application are used to mean by way of example, illustration or description. Any method or design scheme described as "exemplary" or "for example" in the embodiments of the present application should not be interpreted as more preferred or more advantageous than other methods or design schemes. Rather, the words "exemplary" or "for example" are used in the specific manner to present the relevant concept.

[0075] Embodiments of the present application are mainly applied to a PLC scenario. In the PLC scenario, power lines are mainly used as transmission media to implement transmission of data frames. Exemplarily, the power lines can be copper power lines, such as plastic copper wires. One or more bridge nodes, such as sockets or distribution boxes, can be included on the power lines. One or more power consuming devices can be connected to each bridge node. Exemplarily, the power consuming devices in embodiments of the present application can include household appliances (such as refrigerators, telephones, air conditioners) and / or power cats.

[0076] As shown in FIG. 1, a schematic diagram of a topology of a PLC system provided by embodiments of the present application is shown. As shown in FIG. 1, the power lines include bridge nodes T1, T2, T3, …, T_N-1, and T_N. A power line communication device 10 is connected to the bridge node T1, and a power line communication device 20 is connected to the bridge node T_N. The power line communication device 10 is a transmitting device in the PLC, and the power line communication device 20 is a receiving device in the PLC. FIG. 1 is only an example of a topology of the PLC. Embodiments of the present application do not limit the number and / or positions of the power line communication devices connected to the bridge nodes, and do not limit the number and / or positions of the bridge nodes on the power lines, or the number and / or positions of the power consuming devices.

[0077] The data is transmitted in the form of a data frame between the power line communication device 10 and the power line communication device 20. The data frame is a data unit used for communication in the PLC, and can also be referred to as a signal frame or a physical frame. As shown in FIG. 2, the data frame can include a preamble, a header, and a payload. The preamble can be used for frame synchronization of the data frame. In addition, the preamble can also be used for initial channel estimation or automatic gain control (AGC). The header includes some parameter information of a physical layer (PHY), such as an identification (ID) of the transmitting device (which can also be referred to as a source identification (SID)), an ID of the receiving device (which can also be referred to as a destination identification (DID)), and the like. The payload carries data using orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) symbols. The OFDM symbols included in the payload can also be referred to as payload symbols.

[0078] The advantage of PLC is that the power line covers a wide range and naturally covers the households and corridors of residents, and the difficulty is that the load impedance on the power line changes in real time, and the noise interference also changes in real time, which greatly restricts the transmission rate on the line and puts higher requirements on the design of the transceiver. Among them, the biggest influence on the power line channel is the various electrical loads added by the user on the power line, for example, in a home power line network, some electrical appliances will have extremely short impedance changes in different working states, causing real-time changes in channel noise interference, that is, the channel changes rapidly in a very short time, and different load symbols in the same data frame are in different channel states, so the channel estimation based on the frame header and ACE symbol cannot be applied to all load symbols in the data frame, thereby causing poor transmission performance of the data frame.

[0079] Therefore, embodiments of the present application provide a communication method, by inserting pilots in the load symbols in the data frame for channel estimation, the transmission performance of the data frame can be improved. For ease of description, the first device represents the transmitting device in the PLC, and the second device represents the receiving device in the PLC as an example.

[0080] As shown in FIG. 3, a communication method mainly includes the following steps.

[0081] S301, the first device generates a first data frame.

[0082] The first data frame includes data and pilot information, for example, the load symbols in the first data frame are used to carry data and pilot information, and the data and pilot information occupy different frequency domain resources in the frequency domain corresponding to the same load symbol. It can be understood that the pilot information can also be referred to as a pilot, and the pilot is used for channel estimation.

[0083] In one possible implementation, a pilot comb pattern can be used, and a group of pilots is inserted every N consecutive subcarriers in the frequency domain corresponding to the load symbol, and the pilot information includes M groups of pilots, and the starting subcarrier occupied by the mth group of pilots in the M groups of pilots is different from the starting subcarrier occupied by the (m+1)th group of pilots by N consecutive subcarriers; or it can also be understood that: the indexes of the subcarriers are continuously numbered by integers, and the difference between the index of the starting subcarrier occupied by the mth group of pilots in the M groups of pilots and the index of the starting subcarrier occupied by the (m+1)th group of pilots is N. Wherein, N and M are positive integers, m is a positive integer less than or equal to M-1, for example, m takes an integer from 1 to M-1; the value of M depends on the size of the frequency domain resource occupied by the first data frame; the value of N can be 4, 8, 16 or other values, which are not limited by embodiments of the present application. The "a group of pilots" involved in the embodiments of the present application can also be described as a pilot group, which is not limited by the embodiments of the present application.

[0084] Optionally, the starting subcarrier occupied by the first group of pilots in the M groups of pilots can be set as the starting subcarrier occupied by the first data frame by default, or the starting subcarrier occupied by the first group of pilots in the M groups of pilots is the kth subcarrier in all subcarriers occupied by the first data frame. The value of k includes positive integers less than or equal to N.

[0085] Exemplarily, in the scenario of transmitting data between devices in a single-stream mode, the data of multiple sending channels is the same. FIG. 4A takes two sending channels Tx0 and Tx1, N=4, and k=1 as an example to illustrate the distribution of pilot information in the frequency domain. Each pilot group includes one pilot, and the pilot occupies one subcarrier. The subcarriers between pilot groups in the frequency domain are used to carry data, which are referred to as data subcarriers. In FIG. 4A, the positions of pilot subcarriers are shown by black filling patterns, and the positions of data subcarriers are shown by non-color filling. Each pilot group in pilot groups 1-3 occupies one subcarrier, and the starting subcarriers of every two pilot groups are different by 4 subcarriers. In addition, it can be understood that the single-stream mode transmission can also be described as single-stream transmission.

[0086] Exemplarily, in the scenario of transmitting data between devices in a double-stream mode, the data of multiple sending channels is different. FIG. 4B takes two sending channels Tx0 and Tx1, N=4, and k=1 as an example to illustrate the distribution of pilot information in the frequency domain. Each pilot group includes two pilots, and each pilot occupies one subcarrier. The two pilots are orthogonal to each other. The subcarriers occupied by the pilots are referred to as pilot subcarriers. The subcarriers between pilot groups in the frequency domain are used to carry data, which are referred to as data subcarriers. In FIG. 4B, the positions of pilot subcarriers are shown by black filling patterns, and the positions of data subcarriers are shown by non-color filling. Each pilot group in pilot groups 1-3 occupies two subcarriers, and the starting subcarriers of every two pilot groups are different by 4 subcarriers. It can be understood that the double-stream mode transmission can also be described as double-stream transmission.

[0087] In addition, optionally, permanent masked sub carriers (PMSCs) or regionally masked sub carriers (RMSCs) exist on the frequency domain resource corresponding to the payload symbol. In one possible implementation, if resource conflict exists between the sub carriers occupied by a certain group of pilots and the PMSCs or RMSCs (e.g., partial or complete sub carrier overlap exists), the PMSCs or RMSCs have priority, and the group of pilots is muted, i.e., the pilot is not used for channel estimation. For ease of understanding, FIG. 5A shows, based on FIG. 4A, that the PMSCs or RMSCs have resource conflict with the pilot 3 in the case of a single-stream transmission data frame, and thus 1 sub carrier (i.e., the PMSC or RMSC) configured to carry the pilot group 3 actually does not carry the pilot. Similarly, FIG. 5B shows, based on FIG. 4B, that the PMSCs or RMSCs have resource conflict with the pilot group 3 in the case of a dual-stream transmission data frame, and thus the group of pilots is muted, i.e., 2 sub carriers configured to carry the pilot group 3 actually do not carry the pilot. In FIG. 5A and FIG. 5B, the PMSCs or RMSCs are filled with diagonal patterns; in addition, the PMSCs or RMSCs can also be sub carriers between two groups of pilots.

[0088] In another possible implementation, a group of pilots can be inserted every N valid sub carriers on the frequency domain corresponding to the payload symbol, and the foregoing pilot information includes M groups of pilots, the starting sub carrier occupied by the mth group of pilots in the M groups of pilots is different from the starting sub carrier occupied by the (m+1)th group of pilots by N valid sub carriers; or it can also be understood that: there are N-1 valid sub carriers between the starting sub carrier occupied by the mth group of pilots and the starting sub carrier occupied by the (m+1)th group of pilots among the sub carriers spaced therebetween. The valid sub carrier is a non-PMSC and a non-RMSC, or it can also be alternatively described as: the valid sub carrier refers to a sub carrier other than the PMSC and the RMSC. N and M are positive integers, m is a positive integer less than or equal to M-1, for example, m takes an integer from 1 to M-1; the value of M depends on the size of the frequency domain resource occupied by the first data frame; the value of N can be 4, 8, 16, or other values, which are not limited by the embodiments of the present application.

[0089] Optionally, the starting sub carrier occupied by the first group of pilots in the M groups of pilots can be set as the starting sub carrier of the first data frame by default, or the starting sub carrier occupied by the first group of pilots in the M groups of pilots is the kth valid sub carrier in all valid sub carriers occupied by the first data frame. The value of k includes a positive integer less than or equal to N.

[0090] Exemplarily, in the scenario of transmitting data between devices in a single-stream mode, the data of the multiple sending channels is identical. FIG. 6A exemplarily illustrates the distribution of pilot information in the frequency domain, taking two sending channels Tx0 and Tx1, N=4, and k=1 as examples. Each pilot group includes one pilot, and the one pilot occupies one subcarrier. The subcarrier occupied by the pilot can be denoted as a pilot subcarrier. The subcarriers between pilot groups in the frequency domain can be data subcarriers, or PMSCs or RMSCs. In FIG. 6A, the positions of pilot subcarriers are schematically shown by black fill patterns, the positions of data subcarriers are schematically shown by non-colored fill patterns, and the positions of PMSCs or RMSCs are schematically shown by diagonal line patterns. As an example, there is no PMSC or RMSC between pilot group 1 and pilot group 2 in FIG. 6A, and thus the starting subcarriers of pilot group 1 and pilot group 2 are different by 4 effective subcarriers, which can also be understood as 4 subcarriers. There is one PMSC or RMSC between pilot group 2 and pilot group 3, and thus the starting subcarriers of pilot group 2 and pilot group 3 are different by 4 effective subcarriers, which correspond to 5 continuous subcarriers. In addition, it can be understood that the single-stream mode transmission can also be described as single-stream transmission.

[0091] Exemplarily, in the scenario of transmitting data between devices in a double-stream mode, the data of the multiple sending channels is different. FIG. 6B exemplarily illustrates the distribution of pilot information in the frequency domain, taking two sending channels Tx0 and Tx1, N=4, and k=1 as examples. Each pilot group includes two pilots, and each of the two pilots occupies one subcarrier. The two pilots are orthogonal to each other. The subcarrier occupied by the pilot can be denoted as a pilot subcarrier. The subcarriers between pilot groups in the frequency domain can be data subcarriers, or PMSCs or RMSCs. In FIG. 6B, the positions of pilot subcarriers are schematically shown by black fill patterns, the positions of data subcarriers are schematically shown by non-colored fill patterns, and the positions of PMSCs or RMSCs are schematically shown by diagonal line patterns. As an example, there is no PMSC or RMSC between pilot group 1 and pilot group 2 in FIG. 6B, and thus the 4 effective subcarriers can also be understood as 4 subcarriers. There is one PMSC or RMSC between pilot group 2 and pilot group 3, and thus the starting subcarriers of pilot group 2 and pilot group 3 are different by 4 effective subcarriers, which correspond to 5 continuous subcarriers. In addition, it can be understood that the double-stream mode transmission can also be described as double-stream transmission.

[0092] In combination with the pilot patterns shown in FIGS. 4A-6B, it can also be understood that the pilot in the data frame can be carried on multiple payload symbols for transmission, and the pilot occupies the same subcarriers in the frequency domain corresponding to different payload symbols, that is, the pilot and the data are simultaneously transmitted in a frequency division multiplexing manner.

[0093] Based on the above design, the first device can also carry first indication information in the first data frame, the first indication information being used to indicate frequency domain resources occupied by pilot information. For example, the first indication information is used to indicate the value of N, and the first indication information can also be referred to as pilot interval indication. Taking the value of N including 4, 8, and 16 as an example, the first indication information can occupy 2 bits in the frame header of the first data frame, one value of the first indication information corresponds to one value of N, for example, when the first indication information takes the value of 01, it indicates that the value of N is 4, when the first indication information takes the value of 10, it indicates that the value of N is 8, and when the first indication information takes the value of 11, it indicates that the value of N is 16. In addition, optionally, when the first indication information takes the value of 00, it means that the first data frame does not carry pilot information, or it can also be described as: when the first indication information takes the value of 00, it means that the pilot information in the first data frame is disabled. Correspondingly, it can be understood that when the first indication information does not take the value of 00, it means that the pilot information in the first data frame is enabled.

[0094] In a possible implementation, the power line communication devices communicate with each other using a gigabit home networking (G.hn) protocol, and the first indication information can be carried in the frame header of a data frame defined in the G.hn protocol. For example, Table 1 shows that the first indication information is denoted as PII, and occupies the 5th and 6th bits in byte 3 of the frame header common part.

[0095] Table 1

[0096] Optionally, the first data frame can also include third indication information used to indicate that the pilot interval is N subcarriers or N valid subcarriers, and the third indication information can be a 1-bit flag in the frame header. When the third indication information takes the value of 0, it indicates that the pilot interval is N continuous subcarriers, that is, a group of pilots is inserted every N continuous subcarriers in the frequency domain corresponding to the payload symbol. When the third indication information takes the value of 1, it indicates that the pilot interval is N valid subcarriers, that is, a group of pilots is inserted every N valid subcarriers in the frequency domain corresponding to the payload symbol. In addition, the frame header of the first data frame can also carry information used to indicate the value of k.

[0097] S302, the first device sends a first data frame to a second device.

[0098] It can be understood that the first device and the second device communicate based on power line communication, and the first device can send the first data frame to the second device through the power line.

[0099] Corresponding to the description in S301, the first data frame includes the first indication information, pilot information and data. Optionally, the first data frame can also include the third indication information and / or the value of k.

[0100] S303, the second device performs channel estimation between the first device and the second device according to the first indication information and the pilot information.

[0101] In a possible implementation, corresponding to the case that a set of pilots are inserted every N consecutive subcarriers in the frequency domain corresponding to the payload symbols in the first data frame described in S301, the second device determines the pilot subcarriers occupied by the pilot information in the frequency domain according to the value of N indicated by the first indication information, and obtains the pilot on each payload symbol in the first data frame after muting the pilot subcarriers that conflict with the PMSC or RMSC, and then performs channel estimation between the first device and the second device based on the pilot on each payload symbol in the first data frame.

[0102] In another possible implementation, corresponding to the case that a set of pilots are inserted every N valid subcarriers in the frequency domain corresponding to the payload symbols in the first data frame described in S301, the second device determines the pilot subcarriers occupied by the pilot information in the frequency domain according to the value of N indicated by the first indication information, and then performs channel estimation between the first device and the second device based on the pilot on each payload symbol in the first data frame.

[0103] In the above scheme, by inserting pilots in the frequency domain resources corresponding to the payload symbols of the data frame, channel estimation can be performed in real time using the pilot on each payload symbol, which can be applied to channel change scenarios to improve the transmission performance of the data frame.

[0104] As shown in FIG. 7, a communication method mainly includes the following steps.

[0105] S701, the first device determines to carry a pilot in a data frame.

[0106] The data frame can be a data frame sent by the first device to the second device, and the first device and the second device communicate based on power line communication. Optionally, carrying a pilot in the data frame can also be understood as enabling or activating a pilot mechanism.

[0107] In a possible implementation, the second device can send second indication information to the first device when it discovers that the channel between the first device and the second device changes, and the second indication information is used to indicate that the channel between the first device and the second device changes.

[0108] For example, the second device can perform signaling interaction with the first device through underlying driver software, and then the second device can carry the second indication information in the signaling related to the underlying driver software and send it to the first device.

[0109] For example, the second device can identify whether the channel between the first device and the second device changes by detecting the power or frequency domain amplitude of the payload symbol in the second data frame, and in the case that the channel changes, the second device carries the second indication information in the acknowledge (ACK) sent to the first device. Optionally, the second indication information occupies 1 bit in the ACK, and the second indication information takes the value 0 to indicate that the channel changes, and the second indication information takes the value 1 to indicate that the channel does not change; or the second indication information takes the value 1 to indicate that the channel changes, and the second indication information takes the value 0 to indicate that the channel does not change.

[0110] For example, in the case that the power line communication devices use the ITU-T G.hn protocol to communicate, the second indication information can occupy 1 bit in the specific part of the ACK physical layer frame type. Optionally, the second indication information is referred to as channel variation indication (CVI), and the location of the CVI in the ACK can be shown in Table 2 as follows.

[0111] Table 2

[0112] In another possible implementation, one or more channel estimation (CE) windows can be set, which can be understood as a time period, and the device performs channel estimation in the time period corresponding to the CE window. In the case that part or all of the CE windows have channel changes, the pilot can be enabled in the CE window or time period in which the channel changes. For example, the first device can determine to send a first data frame in a first time period, and the first data frame includes first indication information, pilot information and data. The first time period is a time period in which the channel between the first device and the second device changes, and the first time period can include one or more CE windows in which the channel changes. Such a design enables the pilot only in the CE window in which the channel changes, and does not need to enable the pilot in the CE window in which the channel does not change, thereby reducing the transmission overhead occupied by the pilot and saving data resources.

[0113] Based on the above scheme, S701 can also be understood as the first device determining to carry the pilot in the data frame when the channel between the first device and the second device changes.

[0114] S702, the first device generates a first data frame.

[0115] This step can be implemented with reference to the description in S301, and will not be repeated in this embodiment. It is understood that, taking the value of the first indication information N as one of 4, 8, or 16 as an example, in the scheme described in FIG7, the first indication information occupies 2 bits in the first data frame, and the value of these 2 bits can be 01, 10, or 11.

[0116] S703, the first device sends the first data frame to the second device.

[0117] This step can be implemented with reference to the description in S302, and will not be repeated in the embodiments of this application.

[0118] S704, the second device performs channel estimation between the first device and the second device based on the first instruction information and pilot information.

[0119] This step can be implemented with reference to the description in S303, and will not be repeated in the embodiments of this application.

[0120] Based on the same concept, referring to Figure 8, this application embodiment provides a communication device 800, which includes a processing module 801 and a communication module 802. The communication device 800 can be a first device, or a communication device applied to or used in conjunction with a first device to implement a communication method executed on the first device side; alternatively, the communication device 800 can be a second device, or a communication device applied to or used in conjunction with a second device to implement a communication method executed on the second device side.

[0121] The communication module can also be called a transceiver module, transceiver, transceiver unit, or transceiver device. The processing module can also be called a processor, processing board, processing unit, or processing device. Optionally, the communication module is used to perform the sending and receiving operations on the first or second device side in the above method. The device in the communication module that implements the receiving function can be regarded as a receiving unit, and the device in the communication module that implements the sending function can be regarded as a sending unit. That is, the communication module includes a receiving unit and a sending unit.

[0122] When the communication device 800 is applied to the first device, the processing module 801 can be used to implement the processing function of the first device in the embodiment shown in FIG3 or FIG7, and the communication module 802 can be used to implement the sending and receiving function of the first device in the embodiment shown in FIG3 or FIG7.

[0123] When the communication device 800 is applied to the second device, the processing module 801 can be used to implement the processing function of the second device in the embodiment shown in FIG3 or FIG7, and the communication module 802 can be used to implement the sending and receiving function of the second device in the embodiment shown in FIG3 or FIG7.

[0124] It should be noted that the aforementioned communication module and / or processing module can be implemented by a virtual module, for example, the processing module can be implemented by a software function unit or a virtual device, and the communication module can be implemented by a software function or a virtual device. Alternatively, the processing module or the communication module can also be implemented by an entity device, for example, if the communication device is implemented by a chip / chip circuit, the communication module can be an input / output circuit and / or a communication interface, which performs an input operation (corresponding to the aforementioned receiving operation) and an output operation (corresponding to the aforementioned sending operation); and the processing module is an integrated processor or a microprocessor or an integrated circuit.

[0125] The division of the modules in the embodiments of the present application is illustrative, and is only a logical function division. In actual implementation, another division manner can be used. In addition, each function module in each embodiment of the present application can be integrated in one processor, or can be a separate physical existence, or two or more modules can be integrated in one module. The integrated module can be implemented in the form of hardware or in the form of a software function module.

[0126] Based on the same technical concept, the embodiments of the present application also provide a communication device 900. For example, the communication device 900 can be a chip or a chip system. Optionally, in the embodiments of the present application, the chip system can be composed of a chip, or can include a chip and other discrete devices.

[0127] The communication device 900 can be used to implement the functions of any second device in the communication system described in the foregoing embodiments. The communication device 900 can include at least one processor 910 coupled with a memory. Optionally, the memory can be located in the communication device, and can be integrated with the processor, or can be located outside the communication device. For example, the communication device 900 can further include at least one memory 920. The memory 920 stores necessary computer programs, computer programs or instructions and / or data in any of the foregoing embodiments. The processor 910 can execute the computer programs stored in the memory 920 to complete the method in any of the foregoing embodiments.

[0128] The communication device 900 can further include a communication interface 930, through which the communication device 900 can exchange information with other devices. For example, the communication interface 930 can be a transceiver, a circuit, a bus, a module, a pin, or another type of communication interface. When the communication device 900 is a chip-type device or a circuit, the communication interface 930 in the communication device 900 can also be an input-output circuit that can input (or receive) information and output (or send) information. The processor can be an integrated processor or a microprocessor or an integrated circuit or a logic circuit. The processor can determine output information according to input information.

[0129] The coupling in the embodiments of the present application is indirect coupling or communication connection between devices, units, or modules, which can be electrical, mechanical, or other forms, and is used for information exchange between devices, units, or modules. The processor 910 can operate in cooperation with the memory 920 and the communication interface 930. The specific connection medium between the processor 910, the memory 920, and the communication interface 930 is not limited in the embodiments of the present application.

[0130] Optionally, referring to FIG. 9, the processor 910, the memory 920, and the communication interface 930 are connected to each other through a bus 940. The bus 940 can be a peripheral component interconnect (PCI) bus or an extended industry standard architecture (EISA) bus, etc. The bus can be divided into an address bus, a data bus, a control bus, etc. For ease of representation, only one thick line is used in FIG. 9, but it does not mean that there is only one bus or only one type of bus.

[0131] In the embodiments of the present application, the processor can be a general-purpose processor, a digital signal processor, an application-specific integrated circuit, a field programmable gate array or other programmable logic device, a discrete gate or transistor logic device, a discrete hardware component, and can implement or execute the disclosed methods, steps, and logic block diagrams in the embodiments of the present application. The general-purpose processor can be a microprocessor or any conventional processor, etc. The steps of the method disclosed in conjunction with the embodiments of the present application can be directly embodied as execution completed by a hardware processor, or executed by a combination of hardware and software modules in the processor.

[0132] In the embodiments of the present application, the memory can be a non-volatile memory, such as a hard disk drive (HDD) or a solid-state drive (SSD), and can also be a volatile memory, such as a random-access memory (RAM). The memory can be any other medium capable of carrying or storing desired program codes in the form of instructions or data structures and capable of being accessed by a computer, but is not limited to this. The memory in the embodiments of the present application can also be a circuit or any other device capable of realizing a storage function, for storing program instructions and / or data.

[0133] In a possible implementation, the communication apparatus 900 can be applied to a first device, and specifically, the communication apparatus 900 can be the first device or a device capable of supporting the first device to realize the functions of the first device in any of the above-mentioned embodiments. The memory 920 stores computer programs (or instructions) and / or data for realizing the functions of the first device in any of the above-mentioned embodiments. The processor 910 can execute the computer programs stored in the memory 920 to complete the method performed by the first device in any of the above-mentioned embodiments. When applied to the first device, the communication interface in the communication apparatus 900 can be used to interact with a second device, send information to the second device, or receive information from the second device.

[0134] In another possible implementation, the communication apparatus 900 can be applied to a second device, and specifically, the communication apparatus 900 can be the second device or a device capable of supporting the second device to realize the functions of the second device in any of the above-mentioned embodiments. The memory 920 stores computer programs (or instructions) and / or data for realizing the functions of the second device in any of the above-mentioned embodiments. The processor 910 can execute the computer programs stored in the memory 920 to complete the method performed by the second device in any of the above-mentioned embodiments. When applied to the second device, the communication interface in the communication apparatus 900 can be used to interact with a first device, send information to the first device, or receive information from the first device.

[0135] Since the communication apparatus 900 provided in this embodiment can be applied to a first device to complete the method performed by the first device, or applied to a second device to complete the method performed by the second device. Therefore, the technical effects that can be achieved thereby can refer to the method examples described above, which will not be repeated here.

[0136] Based on the above embodiments, the embodiments of the present application provide a communication system including a first device and a second device, wherein the first device and the second device can realize the method provided in the embodiments shown in FIG. 3 or FIG. 7.

[0137] The technical solutions provided by the embodiments of the present application can be realized by software, hardware, firmware or any combination thereof, in whole or in part. When realized by software, the technical solutions can be realized in the form of a computer program product in whole or in part. The computer program product includes one or more computer instructions. When the computer program instructions are loaded and executed on a computer, the processes or functions described in the embodiments of the present application are generated in whole or in part. The computer can be a general-purpose computer, a special-purpose computer, a computer network, a first second device, a first device or other programmable apparatus. The computer instructions can be stored in a computer-readable storage medium or transmitted from one computer-readable storage medium to another computer-readable storage medium, for example, the computer instructions can be transmitted from one website, computer, server or data center to another website, computer, server or data center through a wired (such as coaxial cable, optical fiber, digital subscriber line (DSL)) or wireless (such as infrared, wireless, microwave, etc.) manner. The computer-readable storage medium can be any available medium that can be accessed by a computer or a data storage device such as a server, data center, etc. integrated with one or more available media. The available media can be a magnetic medium (such as a floppy disk, a hard disk, a magnetic tape), an optical medium (such as a digital video disc (DVD)), or a semiconductor medium, etc.

[0138] In the embodiments of the present application, under the premise of no logical contradiction, the methods and / or terms between the method embodiments can be mutually referred to, for example, the functions and / or terms between the device embodiments can be mutually referred to, for example, the functions and / or terms between the device embodiments and the method embodiments can be mutually referred to.

[0139] Obviously, those skilled in the art can make various modifications and variations to the embodiments of the present application without departing from the scope of the embodiments of the present application. Thus, if these modifications and variations of the embodiments of the present application fall within the scope of the claims of the embodiments of the present application and their equivalent technologies, the embodiments of the present application also intend to include these modifications and variations.

Claims

1. A communication method, characterized in that, Applied to the first device, including: A first data frame is generated, the first data frame including first indication information and pilot information; wherein, the first indication information is used to indicate the frequency domain resources occupied by the pilot information; The first data frame is sent to the second device, and the first device and the second device communicate with each other based on power lines.

2. The method as described in claim 1, characterized in that, The pilot information includes M groups of pilots. The starting subcarrier occupied by the m-th pilot group in the M groups of pilots differs from the starting subcarrier occupied by the (m+1)-th pilot group by N consecutive subcarriers. The first indication information is used to indicate the value of N. Wherein, N and M are positive integers, and m is a positive integer less than or equal to M-1.

3. The method as described in claim 1, characterized in that, The pilot information includes M groups of pilots. The starting subcarrier occupied by the m-th pilot group in the M groups of pilots differs from the starting subcarrier occupied by the (m+1)-th pilot group by N effective subcarriers. The first indication information is used to indicate the value of N. The effective subcarriers are non-permanently shielded subcarriers (PMSC) and non-regionally shielded subcarriers (RMSC). N and M are positive integers, and m is a positive integer less than or equal to M-1.

4. The method as described in claim 2 or 3, characterized in that, The starting subcarrier occupied by the first group of pilots in the M groups is the kth subcarrier among the subcarriers occupied by the first data frame; wherein, k is a positive integer less than or equal to N.

5. The method as described in claim 2 or 3, characterized in that, The starting subcarrier occupied by the first group of pilots in the M groups is the kth effective subcarrier among the effective subcarriers occupied by the first data frame; wherein, the effective subcarrier is a non-permanently shielded subcarrier PMSC and a non-regionally shielded subcarrier RMSC, and k is a positive integer less than or equal to N.

6. The method according to any one of claims 2-5, characterized in that, The first device and the second device transmit data based on a single stream. The m-th pilot group includes one pilot, and the one pilot occupies one subcarrier.

7. The method according to any one of claims 2-6, characterized in that, The first device and the second device transmit data based on dual streams. The m-th group of pilots includes two pilots, each of which occupies one subcarrier. The two pilots are orthogonal to each other.

8. The method according to any one of claims 2-7, characterized in that, The value of N includes 4, 8 or 16. The first indication information occupies 2 bits in the frame header of the first data frame, and one value of the first indication information corresponds to one value of N.

9. The method according to any one of claims 1-8, characterized in that, Before generating the first data frame, the following is also included: Receive a second indication message from the second device, the second indication message being used to indicate a change in the channel between the first device and the second device.

10. The method according to any one of claims 1-8, characterized in that, Before generating the first data frame, the following is also included: Send a second data frame to the second device; The device receives confirmation information from the second device, which includes second indication information. The second indication information is used to indicate that the channel between the first device and the second device has changed. The second indication information is determined by the second device based on the second data frame.

11. The method according to any one of claims 1-10, characterized in that, Sending the first data frame to the second device includes: The first data frame is sent during a first time period; wherein the first time period is the time period during which the channel between the first device and the second device changes.

12. A communication method, characterized in that, Applied to a second device, including: A first data frame is received from a first device, the first data frame including first indication information and pilot information; wherein, the first indication information is used to indicate the frequency domain resources occupied by the pilot information; the first device and the second device communicate with each other based on power lines; Based on the first indication information and the pilot information, channel estimation is performed between the first device and the second device.

13. The method as described in claim 12, characterized in that, The pilot information includes M groups of pilots. The starting subcarrier occupied by the m-th pilot group in the M groups of pilots differs from the starting subcarrier occupied by the (m+1)-th pilot group by N consecutive subcarriers. The first indication information is used to indicate the value of N. Wherein, N and M are positive integers, and m is a positive integer less than or equal to M-1.

14. The method as described in claim 12, characterized in that, The pilot information includes M groups of pilots. The starting subcarrier occupied by the m-th pilot group in the M groups of pilots differs from the starting subcarrier occupied by the (m+1)-th pilot group by N effective subcarriers. The first indication information is used to indicate the value of N. The effective subcarriers are non-permanently shielded subcarriers (PMSC) and non-regionally shielded subcarriers (RMSC). N and M are positive integers, and m is a positive integer less than or equal to M-1.

15. The method as described in claim 13 or 14, characterized in that, The starting subcarrier occupied by the first group of pilots in the M groups is the kth subcarrier among the subcarriers occupied by the first data frame; wherein, k is a positive integer less than or equal to N-1.

16. The method as described in claim 13 or 14, characterized in that, The starting subcarrier occupied by the first group of pilots in the M groups is the kth effective subcarrier among the effective subcarriers occupied by the first data frame; wherein, the effective subcarrier is a non-permanently shielded subcarrier PMSC and a non-regionally shielded subcarrier RMSC, and k is a positive integer less than or equal to N-1.

17. The method according to any one of claims 13-16, characterized in that, The first device and the second device transmit data based on a single stream. The m-th pilot group includes one pilot, and the one pilot occupies one subcarrier.

18. The method according to any one of claims 13-17, characterized in that, The first device and the second device transmit data based on dual streams. The m-th group of pilots includes two pilots, each of which occupies one subcarrier. The two pilots are orthogonal to each other.

19. The method according to any one of claims 13-18, characterized in that, The value of N includes 4, 8 or 16. The first indication information occupies 2 bits in the frame header of the first data frame, and one value of the first indication information corresponds to one value of N.

20. The method according to any one of claims 12-19, characterized in that, Before receiving the first data frame from the first device, it also includes: Send a second indication message to the first device, the second indication message being used to indicate a change in the channel between the first device and the second device.

21. The method according to any one of claims 12-19, characterized in that, Before receiving the first data frame from the first device, it also includes: Receive a second data frame from the first device; According to the second data frame, an acknowledgment message is sent to the first device. The acknowledgment message includes a second indication message, which is used to indicate that the channel between the first device and the second device has changed.

22. The method according to any one of claims 12-21, characterized in that, Receiving the first data frame from the first device includes: During a first time period, the first data frame is received from the first device; wherein, the first time period is the time period during which the channel between the first device and the second device changes.

23. A communication device, characterized in that, It includes a module for performing the method as described in any one of claims 1-11, or includes a module for performing the method as described in any one of claims 12-22.

24. A communication device, characterized in that, include: A processor coupled to a memory, the processor being configured to invoke computer program instructions stored in the memory to perform the method as claimed in any one of claims 1-11, or to perform the method as claimed in any one of claims 12-22.

25. A computer-readable storage medium, characterized in that, The computer-readable storage medium stores instructions that, when executed on a computer, cause the computer to perform the method as described in any one of claims 1-22.

26. A computer program product, characterized in that, Includes computer execution instructions, which, when executed on a computer, cause the computer to perform the method as described in any one of claims 1-22.

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