Wireless device, communication apparatus, and computer-readable storage medium

Abstract

A wireless device includes: a detection means configured to acquire N×M reception results to detect an obstacle by receiving sensing signals transmitted from a communication apparatus with N transmission beams from the first to the N-th, using M reception beams from the first to the M-th, where one of N and M is an integer of 1 or greater and the other is an integer of 2 or greater; and a transmission means configured to transmit the reception results of the sensing signals to the communication apparatus, wherein when the detection means determines that obstacles detected in a plurality of first reception results are identical among the N×M reception results, the transmission means is configured to transmit, to the communication apparatus, a second reception result among the plurality of first reception results and identifiers for one or more first reception results, different from the second reception result, among the plurality of first reception results.

Description

Wireless device, communication apparatus and computer-readable storage medium

[0001] The present disclosure relates to sensing technology using a communication device.

[0002] Non-Patent Document 1 discloses various use cases of sensing services in mobile communication networks. In one of the configurations disclosed in Non-Patent Document 1, a base station (BS), which is a wireless communication device, transmits a sensing signal (hereinafter referred to as a sensing signal), and a wireless device (WD) feeds back the reception result of the sensing signal to the base station, thereby allowing the mobile communication network to collect sensing data. Based on the collected sensing data, the mobile communication network can recognize the environment of the area in which the base station provides service (hereinafter referred to as a service area), such as obstacles that obstruct the propagation of wireless signals. Note that obstacles include stationary objects such as buildings and moving objects such as vehicles. Using a signal used for communication as a sensing signal enables efficient communication and sensing.

[0003] Patent Document 1 discloses a system called ISAC (Integrated Sensing and Communication) that integrates sensing signals and communication signals.

[0004] WO 2023 / 205961

[0005] 3GPP TR 22.837, V19.0.0, June 2023

[0006] For example, as shown in FIG. 1, BS1 is configured to transmit N (N is an integer equal to or greater than 1) transmission beams T#1 to T#N, and WD2 is configured to receive M (M is an integer equal to or greater than 1) reception beams R#1 to R#M. Furthermore, BS1 is configured to transmit a sensing signal using each of the N transmission beams at a transmission timing, which is a recurring timing. For example, a downlink reference signal (RS) specified in the Third Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) can be used as the sensing signal. As an example, a channel state information reference signal (CSI-RS) or a positioning reference signal (PRS) can be used as the sensing signal. It should be noted that a newly specified sensing signal can also be used for sensing.

[0007] WD2 receives, with each of M receiving beams, the sensing signals transmitted by BS1 using each of N transmitting beams, thereby obtaining a total of N×M reception results. WD2 then feeds back to BS1 the total of N×M reception results for each combination of transmitting beams and receiving beams. The reception results that WD2 feeds back to BS1 may include information indicating the combination of transmitting beams and receiving beams that obtained the reception results, as well as the received power, propagation delay, and frequency Doppler shift amount of the received sensing signal. Note that the information indicating the combination of transmitting beams and receiving beams may be configured not to be explicitly included in the reception results, for example, by specifying it in the transmission order of the reception results.

[0008] BS1 and WD2 can detect an obstacle and its position based on the direction of the transmission beam used to transmit the sensing signal, the direction of the reception beam used to receive the sensing signal, and the delay between when BS1 transmits the sensing signal and when WD2 receives the sensing signal. For example, as shown in FIG. 2, when WD2 receives a sensing signal transmitted by transmission beam T#1 by reception beam R#2, the presence of obstacle 3 shown in FIG. 2 can be detected. Furthermore, if obstacle 3 is moving, the frequency of the sensing signal received by reception beam R#2 shifts due to the Doppler effect depending on the moving speed and moving direction of obstacle 3. Therefore, BS1 and WD2 can determine the moving speed and moving direction of obstacle 3 based on the Doppler shift of the sensing signal.

[0009] As described above, every time WD 2 receives a sensing signal, it feeds back N×M reception results to BS 1. For example, if a total of P bits are required to indicate one reception result, the amount of information (number of bits) in one feedback is P×N×M bits.

[0010] According to one aspect of the present disclosure, a wireless device comprises a detection means configured to detect an obstacle by obtaining N x M reception results by receiving a sensing signal transmitted from a communication device via each of N transmission beams from the first to the Nth, using each of M reception beams from the first to the Mth, where one of N and M is an integer greater than or equal to 1 and the other is an integer greater than or equal to 2, and a transmission means configured to transmit the reception results of the sensing signal to the communication device, wherein when the detection means determines that the obstacle detected in multiple first reception results among the N x M reception results is the same, the transmission means is configured to transmit to the communication device a second reception result of one of the multiple first reception results and an identifier of one or more first reception results that are different from the second reception result among the multiple first reception results.

[0011] Other features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which the same or similar elements are designated by the same reference numerals.

[0012] 4 is a diagram showing an example of a sensing configuration. A diagram showing an example of obstacle detection. A sequence diagram according to an embodiment. A diagram showing an example of a reception result at S1 of FIG. 3. A diagram showing an example of obstacle detection. A diagram showing an example of a reception result at S5 of FIG. 3. A diagram showing an example of a codebook. A diagram showing an example of a codebook. A diagram showing an example of a codebook. A diagram showing an example of an identifier determined by a codebook. A diagram showing an example of an identifier determined by a codebook. A diagram showing an example of obstacle detection. A diagram showing an example of obstacle detection. A diagram showing an example of an obstacle detection. A diagram showing an example of a configuration of a wireless device according to an embodiment. A diagram showing an example of a configuration of a base station apparatus according to an embodiment.

[0013] Hereinafter, the embodiments will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. Note that the following embodiments do not limit the scope of the invention as claimed, and not all combinations of features described in the embodiments are necessarily essential to the invention. Two or more of the features described in the embodiments may be arbitrarily combined. Furthermore, the same reference numerals are used for the same or similar components, and redundant explanations will be omitted.

[0014] <First Embodiment> Fig. 1 shows a sensing configuration used to explain the embodiment. As shown in Fig. 1, BS1 is configured to transmit N transmission beams T#1 to T#N. Similarly, WD2 is configured to receive M reception beams R#1 to R#M. One of N and M is an integer greater than or equal to 2, and the other is an integer greater than or equal to 1. Alternatively, N and M are both integers greater than or equal to 2. In the following explanation, the n in transmission beam T#n (n is an integer from 1 to N) will be referred to as the "transmission beam number," and the m in reception beam R#m (m is an integer from 1 to M) will be referred to as the "reception beam number."

[0015] In this embodiment, it is assumed that no other transmit beams exist between two transmit beams with consecutive numbers, and no other receive beams exist between two receive beams with consecutive numbers. In the following description, two transmit beams with consecutive numbers are also referred to as "adjacent" transmit beams, and two receive beams with consecutive numbers are also referred to as "adjacent" receive beams.

[0016] BS1 is configured to transmit a sensing signal using each of N transmission beams, and WD2 is configured to receive the sensing signal using each of M reception beams to obtain N×M reception results. WD2 feeds back the reception results to BS1. Note that the sensing signals are repeatedly transmitted. WD2 feeds back the reception results to BS1 every time it receives a sensing signal and obtains a reception result.

[0017] In this embodiment, a first mode and a second mode are provided as operation modes for the sensing process. When set to the first mode, the WD2 feeds back N×M reception results directly to the BS1. For example, if P bits are required to indicate one reception result, the amount of information (number of bits) of feedback in the first mode is P×N×M bits. The feedback method in the second mode will be described later.

[0018] Fig. 3 is a sequence diagram according to this embodiment. Fig. 3 shows the sequence before and after switching the operation mode from the first mode to the second mode. Specifically, operation is in the first mode up to S3, and operation is in the second mode from S5 onwards. S4 corresponds to the process for switching the operation mode from the first mode to the second mode.

[0019] In S1, BS1 transmits a sensing signal to WD2 using each of N transmission beams, and WD2 obtains a total of N×M reception results. In S2, WD2 feeds back the total of N×M reception results to BS1 because it is operating in the first mode.

[0020] FIG. 4 shows N×M reception results acquired by WD2 in S1. In the following description, N=M=8. That is, BS1 is configured to transmit transmission beams T#1 to T#8, and WD2 is configured to receive reception beams R#1 to R#8. #nm (n and m are integers from 1 to 8) in FIG. 4 corresponds to the reception result of the sensing signal transmitted by transmission beam T#n and received by reception beam R#m. Hereinafter, the reception result indicated by #nm will be referred to as reception result #nm. Furthermore, "nm" in reception result #nm will be referred to as the "identifier" of the reception result. In this example, since the number of reception results is 64, the number of bits required to indicate the identifier of the reception result is 6 bits.

[0021] In Figure 4, the shaded reception results #32, #33, #34, #35, #42, #43, #44, #67, and #77 indicate reception results in which an obstacle is detected. Depending on the shape and size of the obstacle, a single obstacle may be detected in multiple reception results. As an example, in the state shown in Figure 5, the same obstacle 3 is detected in reception results #12 and #23. Therefore, in S3, BS1 executes a determination process to determine whether the obstacles detected in reception results #32, #33, #34, #35, #42, #43, #44, #67, and #77 are the same or different.

[0022] For the purpose of explaining the determination process, a reception result in which an obstacle is detected will also be referred to as a "detected reception result" below. Furthermore, two reception results whose transmission beam numbers or reception beam numbers differ by only one will be defined as "adjacent reception results." As shown in FIG. 4 , when N×M reception results are represented in a matrix with transmission beam numbers as rows and reception beam numbers as columns, reception results adjacent to a certain reception result are reception results located to the left, right, above, below, or diagonally of the reception result. Furthermore, if there are multiple groups of reception results, and for any two reception results (first and second reception results) within the group, there is a path that passes only through reception results within the group as a path from the first reception result to the second reception result via adjacent reception results, the multiple reception results within the group will be referred to as "consecutive reception results." For example, in FIG. 4 , the group of reception results #32, #33, #34, #35, #42, #43, and #44 is consecutive, and the group of reception results #67 and #77 is consecutive. However, the groups of reception results #32, #33, #34, #35, #42, #43, #44, #67 and #77 are not consecutive.

[0023] As described above, in this embodiment, there are no other transmission beams between two consecutively numbered transmission beams, and there are no other reception beams between two consecutively numbered reception beams. Therefore, the obstacle detection areas of consecutive reception results are also consecutive. Therefore, if the same obstacle is detected in multiple reception results, the multiple reception results are consecutive. In FIG. 4 , detection reception results #32, #33, #34, #35, #42, #43, and #44 are consecutive, so the obstacles detected in these detection reception results may be the same, but they may be different from the obstacles detected in detection reception result #67 or detection reception result #77. Furthermore, because detection reception result #67 and detection reception result #77 are consecutive, the obstacle detected in detection reception result #67 and the obstacle detected in detection reception result #77 may be the same.

[0024] Generally, if the same obstacle is detected in multiple detection reception results, the Doppler shift values ​​indicated by the multiple detection reception results will be similar. In other words, if the Doppler shift values ​​of two detection reception results are significantly different, it can be determined that the obstacles detected in the two detection reception results are different, even if the two detection reception results are consecutive.

[0025] Therefore, BS1 determines that the obstacle detected by multiple detection reception results that satisfy the following two conditions is the same. Condition 1: The multiple detection reception results are consecutive. Condition 2: The difference between the minimum and maximum values ​​of the Doppler shift amounts of the multiple detection reception results is equal to or less than a threshold.

[0026] In the following description, it is assumed that the detection reception results #32, #33, #34, #42, #43, and #44 enclosed by thick-lined rectangles in Figure 4 satisfy the above conditions #1 and #2. In the following description, the obstacle detected in the detection reception results #32, #33, #34, #42, #43, and #44 enclosed by thick-lined rectangles will be referred to as obstacle #1. The obstacles detected in the detection reception results #35, #67, and #77 are different, and in the following description, the obstacles detected in the detection reception results #35, #67, and #77 will be referred to as obstacles #2, #3, and #4.

[0027] If the same obstacle is detected in multiple reception results, the multiple reception results indicating the same obstacle will be duplicated information, and there is no need to individually feed back these multiple reception results to BS1. Therefore, when BS1 determines that the same obstacle has been detected in multiple reception results, it switches the operating mode to the second mode to reduce the amount of information fed back by WD2. Referring to the sequence of FIG. 3 , if BS1 determines based on the feedback in S2 that obstacle #1 has been detected in six detection reception results #32, #33, #34, #42, #43, and #44, BS1 notifies WD2 of the mode in S4 and sets the operating mode to the second mode. In the first mode, BS1 performs the determination process, but in the second mode, WD2 performs the determination process. Therefore, in S4, BS1 notifies WD2 of the threshold value used by WD2 in the determination process.

[0028] In S5, BS1 transmits a sensing signal using each of the N transmission beams, and WD2 acquires a total of N×M reception results. Since WD2 is operating in the second mode, WD2 performs a determination process in S6.

[0029] 6 shows the reception results of the sensing signals received in S5. At the timing of S5, obstacle #1 has moved into the detection area of ​​reception results #43, #44, #45, #53, #54, and #55, obstacle #2 has moved into the detection area of ​​reception result #26, obstacle #3 is in the same position as at the timing of S1, and obstacle #4 has moved out of the detection range.

[0030] In S6, the WD2 performs the above-described determination process using the threshold notified in S4. In this example, the WD2 determines through the determination process in S6 that the obstacles detected in the detection reception results #43, #44, #45, #53, #54, and #55 (plurality of first reception results) are the same.

[0031] Next, in S7, WD2 feeds back the reception results to BS1. Because WD2 determines through the determination process that the obstacle detected by reception results #43, #44, #45, #53, #54, and #55 is the same, WD2 does not feed back each of reception results #43, #44, #45, #53, #54, and #55 (plurality of first reception results) to BS1, but instead feeds back to BS1 information indicating one of reception results #43, #44, #45, #53, #54, and #55 (second reception result), along with information indicating the identifier of the remaining reception results (one or more first reception results) that detect the same obstacle as that one reception result. WD2 then does not feed back to BS1 the remaining reception results that detect the same obstacle as that one reception result.

[0032] For example, if P bits are required to indicate one reception result, then 6 × P bits are required to individually feed back six reception results indicating the detection of obstacle #1. Meanwhile, in this embodiment, for example, information indicating reception result #43 and information indicating the identifiers of reception results #44, #45, #53, #54, and #55, which are reception results indicating the same obstacle as reception result #43, are fed back to BS1. Since the information indicating reception result #43 is P bits and the identifier of one reception result is 6 bits, in this embodiment, the amount of information feedback regarding these six reception results is P + 6 × 5 = P + 30 bits. Generally, the number of bits P required to indicate the received power, propagation delay, and Doppler shift of the sensing signal is greater than 6, so the amount of information feedback is reduced.

[0033] In the second mode, WD2 individually feeds back reception results other than reception results #43, #44, #45, #53, #54, and #55, i.e., reception results (third reception results) among the N×M reception results that are different from the first reception results in which the same obstacle is detected. In the second mode, the WD2 may be configured not to feed back to the BS1 reception results in which no obstacle is detected among the third reception results. In this embodiment, in the first mode, WD2 feeds back each of the N×M reception results to the BS1. However, the WD2 may be configured to feed back only the reception results in which an obstacle is detected among the N×M reception results to the BS1, and not feed back the reception results in which no obstacle is detected to the BS1. In this case, in the first mode, WD2 determines whether an obstacle is detected based on the reception results, but does not determine whether the obstacles detected in each reception result are the same.

[0034] [Variations] Although not shown in Fig. 3, BS1 can switch the operation mode from the second mode to the first mode when any condition is satisfied at any timing. In addition, in the sequence of Fig. 3, BS1 notifies WD2 of a threshold value when switching the operation mode from the first mode to the second mode, but this threshold value can be a different value each time the operation mode is switched from the first mode to the second mode.

[0035] Alternatively, BS1 and WD2 may be configured to always operate in the second mode described in the above embodiment without providing the first mode. In this case, the threshold value used by WD2 in the determination process is notified to WD2 in advance by BS1. Note that BS1 may update the threshold value used by WD2 in the determination process as needed.

[0036] Second Embodiment Next, the second embodiment will be described, focusing on the differences from the first embodiment. In the first embodiment, when the WD2 determines that the same obstacle has been detected in multiple reception results, it notifies the BS1 of one of the multiple reception results and the identifiers of the remaining reception results. In the first embodiment, the number of bits required for the reception result identifier is determined according to the product of the number of transmission beams N and the number of reception beams M, and is, for example, 6 bits when N = M = 8. In this embodiment, the amount of information (number of bits) required to indicate the reception result identifier is reduced compared to the first embodiment. For this reason, a codebook is used in this embodiment.

[0037] 7A to 7C show three codebooks. In the following description, the codebook shown in FIG. 7A will be referred to as the first codebook, the codebook shown in FIG. 7B will be referred to as the second codebook, and the codebook shown in FIG. 7C will be referred to as the third codebook. In the following description, each rectangle in the codebook will be referred to as a "cell," and the size of the codebook will be represented by the "number of cells in the vertical direction" x "number of cells in the horizontal direction." The size of all three codebooks shown in FIGS. 7A to 7C is 3 x 3. In addition, cells marked with an "X" will be referred to as reference cells, and other cells will be referred to as normal cells. The 3-bit information shown in a normal cell is the identifier of the normal cell. The three codebooks shown in FIGS. 7A to 7C are pre-stored in BS1 and WD2.

[0038] For example, as shown in Figure 6, if it is determined that the obstacle detected by the detection reception results #43, #44, #45, #53, #54, and #55 is the same, WD2 maps the codebook to the reception results so that one of the detection reception results #43, #44, #45, #53, #54, and #55 corresponds to the reference cell, and each of the remaining detection reception results corresponds to one normal cell.

[0039] 8A to 8C show mapping examples. Fig. 8A shows a case where the first codebook is used, in which the reference cell is mapped to detection reception result #43, and detection reception results #44, #45, #53, #54, and #55 are mapped to normal cells with identifiers "000", "001", "010", "011", and "100", respectively. When mapping as in Fig. 8A, WD2 feeds back to BS1 information indicating the first codebook used for mapping, information indicating detection reception result #43 mapped to the reference cell, and information indicating the identifiers of the normal cells mapped to each of detection reception results #44, #45, #53, #54, and #55, as information indicating the identifiers of the detection reception results.

[0040] Therefore, if the information indicating the first codebook is 2 bits, the amount of feedback information is P + 3 × 5 + 2 = P + 17 bits, which is 13 bits less than the amount of information in the first embodiment. Note that Fig. 8B shows mapping when the second codebook is used, and Fig. 8C shows mapping when the third codebook is used.

[0041] The codebook is information for determining the identifier of the reception result to be mapped to the normal cell based on the combination of the transmission beam number and reception beam number that obtained reception result #43 to be mapped to the reference cell and the combination of the transmission beam number and reception beam number that obtained reception result to be mapped to the normal cell. For example, in Figure 8A, the difference between transmission beam number 4 that obtained reception result #43 and transmission beam number 5 that obtained reception result #55 is 1, and the difference between reception beam number 3 that obtained reception result #43 and reception beam number 5 that obtained reception result #55 is 2, and identifier "100" indicates the identifier of the reception result in which the difference in transmission beam is 1 and the difference in reception beam is 2 with respect to the reception result mapped to the reference cell. In other words, the codebook is information that indicates the relationship between the combination of the difference in transmission beam number and the difference in reception beam number between the reception result to be mapped to the reference cell and another reception result, and the identifier of the other reception result.

[0042] FIG. 9 is an explanatory diagram illustrating the reason for providing three codebooks. For example, suppose that the obstacles detected in reception results #12, #21, #22, #23, #31, #32, and #33 are determined to be the same. In this case, the first codebook and the third codebook cannot map one of reception results #12, #21, #22, #23, #31, #32, and #33 to a reference cell and each of the remaining detection reception results to a single normal cell, so the second codebook must be used. Also, suppose that the obstacles detected in reception results #47, #55, #56, #57, #65, #66, and #67 are determined to be the same. In this case, the first codebook and the second codebook cannot map one of reception results #12, #21, #22, #23, #31, #32, and #33 to a reference cell and each of the remaining detection reception results to a single normal cell, so the third codebook must be used.

[0043] Although the codebooks shown in Fig. 9 are all 3x3 in size, the codebooks do not need to be the same size, and codebooks of various sizes can be used. By using codebooks of various sizes, it is possible to deal with obstacles of various sizes.

[0044] Alternatively, only one codebook may be used, and instead, the condition that one of the multiple detection and reception results corresponds to the reference cell and each of the remaining detection and reception results corresponds to one normal cell may not be set. For example, as shown in FIG. 10, it is assumed that the obstacles detected in detection and reception results #35, #43, #44, #45, #53, #54, and #55 are determined to be the same. In FIG. 10, the first codebook is used, and the reference cell is mapped to detection and reception result #43, and detection and reception results #44, #45, #53, #54, and #55 are mapped to normal cells with identifiers "000", "001", "010", "011", and "100", respectively. However, detection and reception result #35 is not mapped to a cell in the first codebook.

[0045] In this case, WD2 feeds back to BS1 information indicating detection reception result #43 mapped to the reference cell, information indicating the identifiers of the normal cells mapped to detection reception results #44, #45, #53, #54, and #55, as well as information indicating detection reception result #35. Therefore, the amount of feedback information is P + 3 × 5 + P = 2P + 15 bits. Note that in this case, BS1 is notified by WD2 that the same obstacle has been detected in each of detection reception results #43, #44, #45, #53, #54, and #55, but is not notified by WD2 that the obstacle detected in detection reception result #35 and detection reception result #43 is the same. Therefore, in this case, BS1 also needs to perform a determination process to determine whether the obstacles detected in each detection reception result are different.

[0046] Also, assume that the obstacles detected in detection reception results #35, #45, #55, #56, #57, #65, #66, and #67 are determined to be the same, as shown in Figure 11. In this case, as shown in Figure 11, one first codebook can be mapped so that the reference cell corresponds to detection reception result #35, and another first codebook can be mapped so that the reference cell corresponds to detection reception result #65. In this case, the amount of feedback information is P + 3 × 4 + P + 3 × 2 = 2P + 18 bits.

[0047] In addition, when the first mode and the second mode are selectively used as the operation mode and codebooks of various sizes are used, the BS 1 can be configured to specify the codebook to be used by the WD 2 when switching from the first mode to the second mode. Specifically, the BS 1 can be configured to specify a codebook of a size that includes multiple detection reception results that have been determined to have detected the same obstacle in the determination process of S3 in Fig. 3, that is, a codebook of a size that includes the size of the detected obstacle.

[0048] <Configuration of WD2> FIG. 12 is a diagram showing an example configuration of WD2 according to this embodiment. The receiver 22 is configured to receive sensing signals from the BSs using each of M reception beams, from the first to the Mth. The receiver 22 acquires N×M reception results by receiving, using each of M reception beams, sensing signals transmitted by BS1 using each of N transmission beams. N×M is an integer greater than or equal to 2. The transmitter 21 is configured to transmit signals to BS1 using at least one transmission beam. The transmitter 21 is configured to transmit the reception results of the sensing signals to BS1. For example, when operating in the first mode, the transmitter 21 feeds back the N×M reception results to BS1. Alternatively, when operating in the first mode, the transmitter 21 feeds back each reception result that detects an obstacle among the N×M reception results to BS1. Obstacle detection is performed by the detector 20.

[0049] When operating in the second mode, the detection unit 20 determines whether the detected obstacles in the reception results in which an obstacle is detected are the same. If the detection unit 20 determines that the obstacles detected in multiple first reception results among the N×M reception results are the same, the transmission unit 21 transmits to the BS 1 one second reception result among the multiple first reception results and the identifiers of one or more other first reception results, but does not transmit to the BS 1 the contents of the one or more first reception results, i.e., the received power, propagation delay, and Doppler shift amount. Note that when operating in the second mode, the transmission unit 21 transmits to the BS 1 reception results in which no obstacle is detected and reception results in which an obstacle different from the other reception results is detected. Alternatively, when operating in the second mode, the transmission unit 21 transmits to the BS 1 reception results in which an obstacle different from the other reception results is detected, but does not transmit to the BS 1 reception results in which no obstacle is detected.

[0050] In one example, identifiers are assigned in advance to the N×M reception results, and the identifiers of one or more first reception results are the identifiers assigned in advance to the one or more first reception results. In one example, the transmitter 21 can determine the identifier of the first reception result based on a combination of the transmission beam number and reception beam number that obtained the second reception result and a combination of the transmission beam number and reception beam number that obtained the first reception result. More specifically, the transmitter 21 can determine the identifier of the first reception result based on a first difference between the transmission beam number that obtained the second reception result and the transmission beam number that obtained the first reception result, and a second difference between the reception beam number that obtained the second reception result and the reception beam number that obtained the first reception result.

[0051] For example, the transmitter 21 may determine the identifier of the first reception result based on a first codebook that indicates the relationship between the combination of the first difference and the second difference and the identifier. If the transmitter 21 has multiple codebooks including the first codebook, the transmitter 21 may further transmit information indicating the first codebook to the BS 1 when transmitting the second reception result and one or more identifiers of the first reception result to the BS 1. Alternatively, in one example, the first codebook that the transmitter 21 uses to determine the identifier of the first reception result may be notified by the BS 1 when switching the operation mode from the first mode to the second mode.

[0052] The N×M reception results include Doppler shift amounts of the sensing signals, and the detection unit 20 may use, as one of the conditions for determining that the obstacles detected in the first reception results are the same, that the difference between the maximum and minimum values ​​of the Doppler shift amounts of the first reception results is smaller than a threshold value. Furthermore, the detection unit 20 may use, as one of the conditions for determining that the obstacles detected in the first reception results are the same, that the detection areas of the obstacles detected in the first reception results are contiguous.

[0053] 13 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of BS1 according to this embodiment. The transmitter 11 is configured to transmit sensing signals using each of N transmission beams (first to Nth). The receiver 12 is configured to receive reception results of sensing signals from WD2, which receives sensing signals using each of M reception beams (first to Mth).

[0054] The processing unit 10 performs sensing processing. The sensing processing has a first mode and a second mode as operation modes. When operating in the first mode, the processing unit 10 receives from WD2 via the receiving unit 12 each of N×M reception results obtained by WD2 receiving, via M reception beams, sensing signals transmitted via N transmission beams. Alternatively, when operating in the first mode, the processing unit 10 receives from WD2, via the receiving unit 12, each of the N×M reception results indicating the detection of an obstacle.

[0055] When operating in the second mode, the processing unit 10 receives from WD2, for multiple first reception results among the N×M reception results in which the same obstacle is detected, a second reception result of one of the multiple first reception results and identifiers of one or more first reception results that are different from the second reception result among the multiple first reception results. Note that when operating in the second mode, the processing unit 10 may individually receive from WD2 each of the third reception results that are different from the multiple first reception results. Alternatively, when operating in the second mode, the processing unit 10 individually receives from WD2 each of the third reception results that are different from the multiple first reception results in which an obstacle is detected, and does not receive from WD2 any reception results in which no obstacle is detected. The processing unit 10 determines whether to operate in the first mode or the second mode, and when switching the operating mode, notifies WD2 of the operating mode after switching.

[0056] When notifying WD2 that it will operate in the second mode, the processing unit 10 may notify WD2 of information used by WD2 to determine the identifier of one or more first reception results, such as the codebook described above. For example, while operating in the first mode, the processing unit 10 may detect an obstacle based on the reception results obtained from WD2 and determine the size of the detected obstacle. Then, when notifying WD2 that it will operate in the second mode, the processing unit 10 may determine the information, such as the codebook, to be notified to WD2 from multiple pieces of information, such as multiple codebooks, based on the determined size of the obstacle detected in the first mode.

[0057] Note that BS1 may be realized by a single device, or may be composed of multiple devices located in different locations, such as a radio unit (RU), a distributed unit (DU), a central unit (CU), or a baseband unit (BBU) and a remote radio unit (RRU). Furthermore, while BS1 has been described as transmitting a sensing signal, the device transmitting the sensing signal is not limited to a base station device in a mobile communication network, but may be a wireless communication device such as a wireless LAN access point device. Furthermore, WD2 is not limited to a wireless device in a mobile communication network, but may be any wireless device that accesses a wireless communication device such as BS1 according to any wireless communication standard.

[0058] The present disclosure further provides a program executable on one or more processors. The program includes instructions that, when executed by one or more processors of an apparatus, cause the apparatus to function as, for example, a communications apparatus such as BS1 or a wireless device such as WD2. The present disclosure also provides a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium having the program stored thereon. The present disclosure also provides a sensing method according to the content described in FIG. 3. The present disclosure also provides a program for causing an apparatus having one or more processors to execute the method, and a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium having the program stored thereon.

[0059] The invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and various modifications and variations are possible within the scope of the gist of the invention.

[0060] This application claims priority based on Japanese Patent Application No. 2024-112630, filed July 12, 2024, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.

Claims

1. A wireless device comprising: a detection means configured to receive sensing signals transmitted from a communication device via each of N transmission beams (1st to Nth) via each of M reception beams (1st to Mth) to obtain N x M reception results and detect an obstacle, wherein one of N and M is an integer greater than or equal to 1 and the other is an integer greater than or equal to 2; and a transmission means configured to transmit the reception results of the sensing signals to the communication device; wherein, when the detection means determines that the obstacle detected in multiple first reception results among the N x M reception results is the same, the transmission means is configured to transmit to the communication device a second reception result of one of the multiple first reception results and an identifier of one or more first reception results that are different from the second reception result among the multiple first reception results.

2. The wireless device according to claim 1, wherein said transmitting means is configured not to transmit said one or more first reception results to said communication device.

3. A wireless device as described in claim 1 or 2, wherein the transmitting means is configured to determine an identifier of the first reception result based on a combination of the number of the transmitting beam and the number of the receiving beam that obtained the second reception result and a combination of the number of the transmitting beam and the number of the receiving beam that obtained the first reception result.

4. The wireless device of claim 3, wherein the transmitting means is configured to determine an identifier of the first reception result based on a first difference between the number of the transmission beam that obtained the second reception result and the number of the transmission beam that obtained the first reception result, and a second difference between the number of the reception beam that obtained the second reception result and the number of the reception beam that obtained the first reception result.

5. The wireless device according to claim 4, wherein the transmitting means is configured to determine the identifier of the first reception result based on a first codebook indicating the relationship between a combination of the first difference and the second difference and an identifier.

6. The wireless device according to claim 5, wherein the transmitting means has a plurality of codebooks including the first codebook, and is further configured to transmit to the communication device information indicating the first codebook used to determine the identifier of the one or more first reception results.

7. The wireless device according to claim 5, wherein the transmitting means has a plurality of codebooks including the first codebook, and the first codebook used to determine the identifier of the one or more first reception results is notified by the communication device.

8. A wireless device according to any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein the N x M reception results include the amount of Doppler shift of the sensing signal, and the detection means is configured to use as one of the conditions for determining that the obstacles detected in the plurality of first reception results are the same a difference between the maximum and minimum values ​​of the amount of Doppler shift of the plurality of first reception results being smaller than a threshold value.

9. A wireless device according to any one of claims 1 to 8, wherein the detection means is configured to use the fact that the obstacle detection areas of the respective plurality of first reception results are continuous as one of the conditions for determining that the obstacles detected in the respective plurality of first reception results are the same.

10. A wireless device as described in any one of claims 1 to 9, wherein the transmitting means is configured to, when the operating mode is set to a first mode, transmit each of the N x M reception results to the communication device, or transmit each of the N x M reception results in which an obstacle is detected to the communication device, and when the operating mode is set to a second mode, in response to the detection means determining that the obstacles detected in the plurality of first reception results are the same, transmit the second reception result and an identifier of the one or more first reception results to the communication device instead of transmitting each of the plurality of first reception results to the communication device.

11. A computer-readable storage medium storing a program that, when executed by one or more processors of a device having one or more processors, causes the device to function as a wireless device according to any one of claims 1 to 10.

12. A communications device comprising: transmitting means configured to transmit sensing signals via each of N transmission beams, from the first to Nth; receiving means configured to receive reception results of the sensing signals from a wireless device that receives the sensing signals via each of M reception beams, from the first to Mth; and processing means configured to perform processing to notify the wireless device of an operating mode, wherein the operating modes include a first mode in which N x M reception results obtained by the wireless device receiving the sensing signals transmitted via each of the N transmission beams via each of the M reception beams, or receiving from the wireless device each reception result that detects an obstacle among the N x M reception results, and a second mode in which, for a plurality of first reception results that detect the same obstacle among the N x M reception results, a second reception result of one of the plurality of first reception results and an identifier of one or more first reception results that differ from the second reception result among the plurality of first reception results, are received from the wireless device.

13. The communications apparatus of claim 12, wherein the processing means is configured to, when notifying the wireless device to operate in the second mode, notify the wireless device of a codebook that the wireless device uses to determine an identifier of the one or more first reception results.

14. The communication device according to claim 13, wherein the processing means is configured to determine the size of an obstacle based on reception results obtained from the wireless device while operating in the first mode, and when notifying the wireless device that it will operate in the second mode, to determine the codebook to be notified to the wireless device from a plurality of codebooks based on the size of the obstacle determined in the first mode.

15. A computer-readable storage medium storing a program that, when executed by one or more processors of a device having one or more processors, causes the device to function as a communication device according to any one of claims 12 to 14.

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