Channel estimation method, coherent combining method, circuit, sensor, and device

Abstract

The present application relates to the technical field of wireless ranging. Disclosed are a channel estimation method, a coherent combining method, a circuit, a sensor, and a device. The channel estimation method for ultra-wideband ranging comprises: separately performing channel estimation on at least two segments, so as to obtain channel impulse responses for the at least two segments, wherein the at least two segments are from the same MMS data packet; and accumulating the channel impulse responses for the at least two segments, so as to obtain a channel impulse response for the MMS data packet. Channel estimation is achieved on the basis of a ranging packet having several segments, thereby increasing the energy of a channel impulse response, improving ranging sensitivity, and fully utilizing the advantages of the ranging packet having several segments.

Description

Channel estimation methods, coherent combining methods, circuits, sensors and devices Cross-references to related applications

[0001] This application is based on and claims priority to Chinese Patent Application No. 202410970217.9, filed on July 18, 2024, and Chinese Patent Application No. 202510957003.2, filed on July 10, 2025, the entire contents of which are hereby incorporated herein by reference. Technical Field

[0002] This application relates to the field of wireless ranging technology, and in particular to a channel estimation method, a coherent combining method, circuit, sensor and device. Background Technology

[0003] Ultra-wideband (UWB) is a wireless carrier communication technology that does not use sinusoidal carriers but instead transmits data using nanosecond-level non-sinusoidal narrow pulses. Therefore, it occupies a very wide spectrum and has advantages such as low system complexity, low transmitted signal power spectral density, insensitivity to channel fading, low interception capability, and high positioning accuracy. It is particularly suitable for high-speed wireless access in dense, multipath-rich environments such as indoors. Therefore, it has wide applications in the field of wireless ranging technology.

[0004] However, with the advent of the multi-millisecond (MMS) packet format, existing signal processing schemes cannot fully leverage the advantages of MMS. Summary of the Invention

[0005] This application provides a channel estimation method, a coherent combining method, a circuit, a sensor, and a device, which realizes channel estimation based on several segments of ranging packets, increases the energy of the channel impulse response, improves ranging sensitivity, and fully utilizes the advantages of several segments of ranging packets.

[0006] According to some embodiments of this application, a channel estimation method for ultra-wideband ranging is provided, comprising: performing channel estimation on at least two segments respectively to obtain the channel impulse response of the at least two segments, wherein the at least two segments come from the same MMS data packet; and accumulating the channel impulse response of the at least two segments to obtain the channel impulse response of the MMS data packet.

[0007] The channel estimation method for ultra-wideband (UWB) ranging implemented in this application can obtain the channel impulse response (CIR) of each segment by performing channel estimation on at least two segments from the same MMS data packet, wherein the segment can be a ranging sequence segment (RSF) or a ranging integrity check segment (RIF); and then the CIR of the sub-segments or MMRS symbols within each segment is accumulated to obtain the combined CIR of the MMS data packet.

[0008] According to some embodiments of this application, a channel estimation method for wireless ranging is also provided, comprising: performing channel estimation on at least two segments respectively to obtain the channel impulse response of the at least two segments, wherein the at least two segments come from the same ranging packet; and accumulating the channel impulse response of the at least two segments to obtain the channel impulse response of the ranging packet.

[0009] According to some embodiments of this application, a method for CIR coherent combining is also provided, applied to UWB ranging using a frame data packet format, wherein the frame data packet includes several discontinuous segments. The method includes: for any segment, the total time window for CIR estimation of the segment includes several sub-segment time windows, such as uniformly dividing the total time window for CIR estimation into several sub-segment time windows (in this case, due to uniform division, the window lengths of the sub-segment time windows are the same); performing CIR estimation within the sub-segment time windows to obtain the sub-segment CIR; obtaining the segment frequency offset and / or segment time offset based on the sub-segment CIR within the segment; and using the segment frequency offset and / or the sub-segment time offset... The process involves: compensating for the CIR of the sub-segment by time offset; performing coherent combining based on the compensated sub-segment CIR to obtain the total CIR of the segment; and / or, for any frame, the total time window for CIR estimation includes several sub-frame time windows in segments, which can be obtained by dividing the total time window for CIR estimation into several sub-frame time windows in segments; performing CIR estimation within the sub-frame time windows to obtain the sub-frame CIR; obtaining the frame frequency offset and / or frame time offset based on the sub-frame CIR within the frame; compensating for the sub-frame CIR using the frame frequency offset and / or the frame time offset; and performing coherent combining based on the compensated sub-frame CIR to obtain the total CIR of the frame. Optionally, the compensation operation in the coherent accumulation of this application can perform carrier frequency offset compensation (CFO) for intra-segment accumulation, and further compensate for time offset (SOF) and clock drift for inter-segment accumulation.

[0010] According to some embodiments of this application, an integrated circuit is also provided, including a radio frequency module, an analog signal processing module, and a digital signal processing module connected in sequence; wherein, the radio frequency module is used to receive analog signals; the analog signal processing module is used to down-convert the received analog signals to obtain intermediate frequency signals; the digital signal processing module is used to perform analog-to-digital conversion on the intermediate frequency signals, and to perform digital signal processing on the data obtained from the analog-to-digital conversion, wherein the digital signal processing performed by the digital signal processing module includes: a channel estimation method for ultra-wideband ranging as described in any embodiment of this application, or a channel estimation method for wireless ranging as described in any embodiment of this application, or a CIR coherent combining method as described in any embodiment of this application.

[0011] According to some embodiments of this application, an electromagnetic wave sensor is also provided, including: a carrier; an integrated circuit as described above, disposed on the carrier; an antenna, disposed on the carrier, or the antenna and the integrated circuit are integrated into a single device disposed on the carrier; wherein the integrated circuit is connected to the antenna for transmitting and receiving signals.

[0012] According to some embodiments of this application, a terminal device is also provided, including: a device body; and an electromagnetic wave sensor as described above disposed on the device body; wherein the electromagnetic wave sensor is used for target detection and / or communication to provide reference information for the operation of the device body.

[0013] The technical solution provided in this application has at least the following advantages:

[0014] Instead of performing subsequent digital signal processing on each segment of the channel impulse response individually, the channel impulse responses of at least two segments in the ranging packet are accumulated (also known as "merging") after acquiring the channel impulse responses of at least two segments, and used as the channel impulse response of the ranging packet. This results in a channel impulse response with higher signal energy, which makes the subsequent ranging and other functions more sensitive and fully utilizes the advantages of several segments of the ranging packet. Attached Figure Description

[0015] One or more embodiments are illustrated by way of example with reference numerals in the accompanying drawings. These illustrations do not constitute a limitation on the embodiments. Elements with the same reference numerals in the drawings are denoted as similar elements. Unless otherwise stated, the figures in the drawings are not to be limited by scale.

[0016] Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of the application scenarios of UWB technology in automobiles;

[0017] Figure 2 is a schematic diagram of a structure of an ultra-wideband MMS data packet provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0018] Figure 3 is a schematic diagram of another structure of the ultra-wideband MMS data packet provided in the embodiments of this application;

[0019] Figure 4 is a flowchart of a channel estimation method for ultra-wideband ranging provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0020] Figure 5 is a flowchart of the channel estimation method for ultra-wideband ranging provided in the embodiments of this application;

[0021] Figure 6 is a flowchart of the channel estimation method for ultra-wideband ranging provided in the embodiments of this application;

[0022] Figure 7 is a flowchart of the channel estimation method for ultra-wideband ranging provided in the embodiments of this application;

[0023] Figure 8 is a flowchart of the channel estimation method for ultra-wideband ranging provided in the embodiments of this application;

[0024] Figure 9 is a flowchart of the channel estimation method for ultra-wideband ranging provided in the embodiments of this application;

[0025] Figure 10 is a flowchart of a channel estimation method for wireless ranging provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0026] Figure 11 is a schematic diagram of the integrated circuit provided in the embodiment of this application. Detailed Implementation

[0027] To make the objectives, technical solutions, and advantages of the embodiments of this application clearer, the various embodiments of this application will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings. However, those skilled in the art will understand that many technical details have been presented in the various embodiments of this application to enable readers to better understand this application. However, the technical solutions claimed in this application can be implemented even without these technical details and various changes and modifications based on the following embodiments.

[0028] The division of the following embodiments is for ease of description and should not constitute any limitation on the specific implementation of this application. The various embodiments can be combined with and referenced by each other without contradiction.

[0029] The CCC (Car Connectivity Consortium) protocol is a scheme for exchanging UWB ranging data packets (i.e., ranging packets) based on the 802.15.4z standard. It defines two types of messages: SP0 and SP3. SP0 is used for ranging control messages (pre-polling) and ranging report messages (final data), while SP3 is used for RFRAMEs (polling / response / final). An initiator and responder exchange RFRAMEs three times. The transmission time, communication delay, and synchronization accuracy of the SP0 signal are key factors affecting ranging accuracy, making SP0 a bottleneck for ranging distance.

[0030] Taking automotive applications as an example, if multi-millisecond levels are introduced in this scenario, it is expected that an 18 dB improvement in link budget can be achieved through NBA-MMS (Narrow Band Assisted). Figure 1 shows a comparison of link budget under different conditions for three methods: offset-Quadrature Phase Shift Keying (O-QPSK), Ultra Wide Band Base Pulse Repetition Frequency Non-Data (UWB BPRF ND), and NBA-MMS, especially the performance improvement when MMS is introduced. In Figure 1, TxPwr represents the transmit power in dBm; Theoretical Sensitivity in dBm; Implementation Loss in dB; Actual Sensitivity in dBm; Path Loss in dB; and Link Budget in dB. As shown in Figure 1, the 18dB link budget improvement primarily targets RFRAME without data. However, in the CCC scenario, SP0 control and reporting messages with data must be exchanged during the ranging round. With the NBA-MMS time increasing from 1ms to 8ms, the link budget significantly improves, increasing from 99.6dB to 108.2dB. Compared to O-QPSK and UWB BPRF ND, NBA-MMS significantly improves sensitivity. Despite its lower transmit power, it still achieves a higher link budget, indicating that this improvement is particularly pronounced with the introduction of MMS.

[0031] If SP0 is used for control and reporting messages during the control and reporting phase, calculations show that only a data rate of 110 kbps (kilobits per second) can satisfy a 1 ms MMS gain. In other words, the link budget gain of UWB-driven MMS is limited by the control and reporting phase. Methods utilizing MMS gain include, but are not limited to, NBA-MMS and OOB (Out of Band) assisted MMS; OOB-assisted MMS means that the link overhead of the control and reporting phase is transferred to OOB (such as BLE (Bluetooth Low Energy)). However, due to the unclear spectrum regulations of UNII-3 and UNII-5 (e.g., in China), NBA-MMS does not yet have a mature market, and it requires support from both the user end (car key or smartphone) and the vehicle end. Given the relatively long technology upgrade process for automakers, NBA-MMS may take longer to become practical, while BLE already exists. Therefore, OOB-assisted MMS will play a very important role in achieving MMS link budget gain in ranging distance.

[0032] Since UWB is a power-limited system, its maximum transmit power is -41.3 dBm / MHz. This means that within a 1 MHz bandwidth, the maximum transmit power of a UWB device is -41.3 dBm. dBm is a unit of power, representing decibels based on milliwatts (mW). Therefore, within a 500 MHz bandwidth, the maximum transmit power of a UWB device is -14.3 dBm, or -14.3 dBm / 500 MHz. The test uses a 1 ms period to statistically analyze the received power. Therefore, within 1 ms, the energy transmitted by -14.3 dBm of power is 37 nanojoules (nJ), i.e., -14.3 dBm * 1 ms = 37 nJ. For a power-limited UWB system, the number of pulses and the power output are both limited.

[0033] To improve sensitivity, the IEEE 802.15.4ab protocol mentions a strategy of transmitting a fragment every 1200 RSTU (Ranging Scheduled Time Unit) (1200 RSTU is 1 millisecond), and transmitting multiple fragments every 1 millisecond (ms), i.e., multi-millisecond UWB technology. In UWB systems, due to power limitations, the power of each transmitted fragment is also limited. This means that a single fragment may not provide sufficient signal strength to achieve high-precision distance measurement. Therefore, to improve system sensitivity, the number of fragments or the repetition frequency of fragments can be increased to increase the received signal energy. For example, transmitting one fragment every 1 ms, or multiple fragments every 1 ms.

[0034] Simultaneously, time synchronization (SYNC) signals and start frame delimiters (SFDs) need to be exchanged between the first and second UWB devices in UWB ranging to ensure accurate time synchronization and correct identification of data frames. The purpose of the SYNC signal is to synchronize the clocks of the first and second UWB devices before UWB ranging begins, while the SFD allows the second UWB device to correctly identify and locate the start of a data frame for accurate decoding and processing of received data. Based on this, this application proposes a ranging packet format that allows for the exchange of SYNC signals and SFDs between the first and second UWB devices in UWB ranging without affecting UWB ranging performance.

[0035] In other words, to ensure the accuracy and reliability of UWB ranging, this application provides an MMS data packet, which is exchanged between the first and second UWB devices for UWB ranging. The packet includes a SYNC signal and an SFD (Self-Distributed Frequency) to achieve ultra-wideband signal synchronization, ensuring accurate time synchronization and correct data frame identification. Specifically, this ranging packet enables the exchange of SYNC and SFD between the first and second UWB devices for UWB ranging without affecting UWB ranging performance, ensuring accurate time synchronization and correct data frame identification, thereby guaranteeing the accuracy and reliability of UWB ranging.

[0036] In one exemplary instance, during the ranging phase of UWB MMS ranging, this MMS data packet should include one or more SYNC signals and SFDs (hereinafter referred to as SYNC+SFD segments) exchanged between the first UWB device (initiating the ranging) and the second UWB device (responding) starting from the first segment. This achieves time synchronization between the initiator and responder, ensuring the accuracy and reliability of UWB ranging.

[0037] In one embodiment, during the ranging phase of UWB MMS ranging, the MMS data packet should include: the initiator and responder of UWB ranging continuously interacting with one or more SYNC+SFD segments starting from the first segment, each segment including one SYNC+SFD segment.

[0038] In one embodiment, during the ranging phase of UWB MMS ranging, the MMS data packet should include a SYNC+SFD segment exchanged between the initiator and responder of the UWB ranging process via the first segment. That is, during the ranging phase of UWB MMS ranging, the initiator sends the SYNC+SFD segment as the first segment to the responder; the responder sends the SYNC+SFD segment as the first segment to the initiator, thus enabling the exchange of the SYNC signal and SFD between the initiator and responder. In this way, without affecting UWB ranging performance, the exchange of SYNC and SFD between the initiator and responder through the aforementioned MMS data packet ensures accurate time synchronization and correct data frame identification, guaranteeing the accuracy and reliability of UWB ranging.

[0039] During the control phase of UWB MMS ranging, the MMS data packet may include auxiliary information exchanged between the initiator and responder of UWB ranging via OOB to help them determine whether to receive SYNC+SFD segments from each other during the ranging phase.

[0040] In one exemplary instance, the auxiliary information may include one or any combination of the following:

[0041] Time offset information is used to determine the time offset by which the initiator and responder begin receiving the first segment after entering the ranging phase of UWB MMS ranging.

[0042] Sequence configuration information is used to determine the length of the SYNC+SFD segment, i.e., the duration of the SYNC+SFD segment. Sequence configuration information can also be used to determine the SYNC length or the SFD length. It should be noted that the SYNC length is determined based on the configuration information, and the SFD length can be calculated from the SYNC length. Therefore, it can be assumed that the SFD length and the length of the SYNC+SFD segment are also determined based on the configuration information.

[0043] In one embodiment, the sequence configuration information may include, but is not limited to, the sequence length, which determines the duration of the SYNC+SFD segment, and may also include, a spreading factor that affects the signal's anti-interference capability and ranging accuracy. The sequence length refers to the total length of the signal sequence constituting the SYNC segment, expressed in the number of chips or bits. For example, if the SYNC segment has a sequence length of N chips and the SFD segment has a sequence length of M chips, then the total length of the SYNC+SFD segment is N+M chips. The spreading factor determines how the signal spreads in the frequency domain. By configuring the spreading factor, the system can adjust the anti-interference capability of the SYNC+SFD segment. For instance, a higher spreading factor will spread the signal across a wider frequency band, thereby enhancing anti-interference capability and enabling the system to detect and synchronize signals more reliably in noisy or heavily interfered environments.

[0044] The time domain correspondence is used because the control phase of UWB MMS ranging is transmitted through OOB such as BLE signals, and the ranging phase of UWB MMS ranging is based on UWB signals. Therefore, the time domain correspondence is used to represent the time correspondence between the control phase and the ranging phase in different time domains. In one embodiment, the time domain correspondence is the correspondence between BLE time and UWB time.

[0045] In one exemplary instance, the MMS data packet may further include: during the ranging phase, after time synchronization is completed, ranging segments are exchanged between the initiator and the responder, so that the MMS data packet supports ranging implementation.

[0046] In one exemplary instance, the MMS data packet may also include: after all segments have been sent and received in a ranging polling round, i.e., after the ranging phase has ended, the initiator and responder send / receive ranging reports during the Report Phase.

[0047] Of course, since the reporting phase is not enabled, such as when the ranging report is transmitted via the OOB mechanism, a round of ranging polling will end after all segments have been sent and received, and the MMS data packet may not include the ranging report.

[0048] In one embodiment, as shown in Figure 2, the High Rate Pulse Advanced Responder Device (HRP-ADEV) based on High Rate Pulse Repetition Frequency (HRP UWB PHY) supports UWB MMS packet mode to improve UWB ranging sensitivity. The HRP UWB PHY MMS packet (i.e., ranging packet) may include a SYNC+SFD segment in the first segment, with a time interval A of 1 ms. Here, time interval A is the time interval between the start of the control phase packet and the start of the ranging phase MMS packet. In Figure 2, X represents the number of RSF segments, Y represents the number of RIF segments, and the values ​​of X and / or Y can be zero.

[0049] [Corrected according to Rule 91, 05.08.2025] In one embodiment, the multi-millisecond UWB technology in the positioning implementation of the CCC protocol distributes the UWB ultra-wideband signal across multiple 1-millisecond short pulses (i.e., fragments). Therefore, MMS UWB can include a combination of multiple ranging sequence fragments (RSF) and / or multiple ranging integrity fragments (RIF) to improve UWB ranging sensitivity. As shown in Figure 3, the format of the UWB MMS ranging packet is first synchronization (SYNC), obtaining synchronization and frequency offset, followed by RSF within 1ms and RIF within 1ms, as shown in Figure 3 as RSF1, RSF2…RSFx, RIF1, RIF2…RSFy.

[0050] The SYNC (Synchronization Field), located at the beginning of the UWB frame structure, is used to achieve time-domain synchronization between transceiver devices. It helps the receiver lock the signal's starting position and adjust the clock phase by repeating a predefined pulse sequence (such as ternary codes: 1, 0, and -1 represent a positive pulse, no pulse, and negative pulse, respectively) a specific number of times. In the IEEE 802.15.4z standard, the length of the SYNC field can be configured to 16, 64, 1024, or 4096 preamble symbols, corresponding to four synchronization modes: short, default, medium, and long. This low cross-correlation code sequence design allows multiple devices to operate in parallel without interference on the same channel.

[0051] The SFD, immediately following the SYNC field, identifies the formal start of the physical layer frame, triggering the receiver to begin parsing the physical layer header (PHR, PHY Header) and subsequent payload. The specific symbol sequence of the SFD (e.g., 8 or 64 symbol lengths) is unique, facilitating accurate frame boundary detection. For example, a short frame SFD sequence is [0, +1, 0, –1, +1, 0, 0, –1], suitable for high-speed transmission (>800kbps); a long frame SFD is used for low-speed, long-distance scenarios (110kbps). In ranging applications, the detection time of the SFD serves as the start and end trigger points for the signal time-of-flight (ToF), directly affecting ranging accuracy.

[0052] RSF (Ranging Sequence Fragment) is a core parameter in the 802.15.4HRP UWB protocol for configuring multi-millisecond signals. It's used to segment the ranging sequence for transmission to improve sensitivity and anti-interference capabilities. For details, please refer to: https: / / mentor.ieee.org / 802.15 / dcn / 24 / 15-24-0403-01-04ab-proposed-resolution-for-uwb-driven-mms-and-oob-assisted-mms.docx. The number of RSF fragments can be configured to 0, 1, 2, 4, or 8, with gaps between fragments to optimize average signal power calculation. Each RSF can repeat the MMRS sequence (e.g., 32, 40, 48 times), supporting flexible link budget adjustments. In the NBA-UWB scheme, multiple RSFs are combined to achieve coherent superposition, significantly improving the ranging signal-to-noise ratio.

[0053] MMRS (Multi-Millisecond Ranging Sequence) is a key sequence type in NBA-UWB multi-user bandwidth sharing (MMS) operations, used to generate highly robust ranging signals. The sequence length can be selected from 128, 91, or 127 symbols, and is designed based on complementary or ternary codes to reduce cross-correlation (e.g., the code index of a -128 length complementary code is 33-48). It employs a zero-insertion interval configuration (e.g., inserting 0 or more zero pulses) to further optimize spectral efficiency and interference suppression. Typical applications include hybrid MMS configurations (RSF and RIF pulse counts are consistent) and pure UWB-MMS configurations (based on the IEEE 802.15.4z HPRF (High Pulse Repetition Frequency) set).

[0054] RIF (Ranging Integrity Fragment) enhances the security of the ranging process by preventing distance-shortening attacks (such as delay injection attacks) through encryption and integrity verification. RIF works in conjunction with RSF: RSF determines the Time of Arrival (ToA), and RIF verifies the integrity of ToA. Configuration parameters include the number of fragments, their length, and the interval between fragments and the last RSF (typically 1ms). It also supports AES (Advanced Encryption Standard)-128 encryption to ensure the signal cannot be forged.

[0055] In the 802.15.4ab standard draft, the RIF design is still under discussion, and it may adopt the STS (Scrambled timestamp sequence) waveform or introduce a new scheme.

[0056] As can be seen from Figures 2 and 3, the ranging sequence segments (also known as ranging sequence segments) and ranging integrity segments (also known as ranging integrity check segments) are discontinuous. Here, "continuous" means that after one segment is transmitted / received, a certain time interval is elapsed before the next segment is transmitted / received. This is because there is a certain idle time between segment transmission and reception. To reduce power consumption or better support scheduling between higher-layer users, the receiver may be temporarily shut down. Therefore, the Channel Impulse Response (CIR) of each segment is generated at intervals.

[0057] Based on this, embodiments of this application further propose a channel estimation method, a coherent combining method, a circuit, a sensor, and a device to improve sensitivity by combining channel impulse responses. Specifically, based on the characteristic that UWB MMS technology in the positioning implementation of the CCC protocol distributes the UWB ultra-wideband signal in multiple 1ms short pulses (i.e., fragments), a scheme is further proposed to improve UWB ranging sensitivity by combining multiple ranging sequence fragments and / or multiple ranging integrity fragments.

[0058] This application provides a channel estimation method for ultra-wideband ranging, which accumulates the channel impulse responses of several segments in an MMS data packet, thereby merging the channel impulse responses and increasing the signal energy of the channel impulse responses. This results in higher-sensitivity ranging based on the higher-energy channel impulse responses. The following will illustrate this method with different flowcharts.

[0059] In some embodiments, as shown in FIG4, the channel estimation method for ultra-wideband ranging includes the following steps:

[0060] Step 401: Perform channel estimation on at least two segments to obtain the channel impulse response of at least two segments, wherein at least two segments come from the same MMS data packet.

[0061] Step 402: Accumulate the channel impulse responses of at least two segments to obtain the channel impulse response of the MMS data packet.

[0062] In the embodiment shown in Figure 4, instead of directly performing subsequent digital signal processing on the channel impulse responses of each segment, after acquiring the channel impulse responses of at least two segments, the channel impulse responses of at least two segments in the ranging packet are accumulated as the channel impulse response of the ranging packet. This results in a channel impulse response with higher signal energy, which makes the subsequent ranging and other functions more sensitive and fully utilizes the advantages of the ranging packet with multiple segments.

[0063] For ease of understanding, the steps of the embodiment shown in Figure 4 will be explained below.

[0064] In step 401, channel estimation is performed on at least two segments to obtain the channel impulse responses of at least two segments, wherein the at least two segments originate from the same MMS data packet. In this embodiment, as described above, the MMS data packet includes segments consisting of a synchronization field and a start frame delimiter; wherein the segment consisting of the synchronization field and the start frame delimiter is the segment exchanged between the ranging initiator and the responder during the ranging phase in a one-to-many multi-millisecond ranging process and an out-of-band channel multi-millisecond ranging process.

[0065] In some embodiments, the structure of the MMS data packet can be as shown in Figure 3, including: ranging sequence fragments (RSF)1...ranging sequence fragment X, and ranging integrity fragments (RIF)1...ranging integrity fragment Y. Wherein, X and Y are positive integers.

[0066] As mentioned earlier, the receiver is shut down during the segment transmission and reception intervals, resulting in gaps in the channel impulse responses of the segments. Of course, even if the receiver is not shut down during the segment transmission and reception intervals, channel estimation is still performed for at least two segments separately. Therefore, processing does not need to wait until the complete MMS data packet is acquired, resulting in more efficient time utilization, higher processing efficiency, higher real-time output, and a better user experience.

[0067] It should be noted that the number of segments to be estimated by the channel is not limited in the embodiments of this application. It can be 2, 5, 10, or even all segments.

[0068] It should be noted that each segment in step 401 is treated as a separate received signal for channel estimation. Therefore, the methods described in related technologies for performing channel estimation based on received signals are also applicable to the implementation of step 401, and will not be elaborated upon here.

[0069] In step 402, the channel impulse responses of at least two segments are accumulated to obtain the channel impulse response of the MMS data packet. As mentioned earlier, the channel impulse responses of several segments of the same MMS data packet are generated at intervals. However, through the accumulation process in this step, the channel impulse responses of different segments are merged, thereby obtaining the channel impulse response of the MMS data packet. Furthermore, compared to simple direct splicing, the channel impulse response will have higher energy through accumulation, thus supporting higher sensitivity ranging.

[0070] It should be noted that due to the time interval between the transmission and reception of different segments, there may be offsets, and these offsets are not necessarily completely consistent. Directly merging them would be detrimental to subsequent processing and would affect the accuracy and reliability of the processing. Furthermore, considering that the ranging sequence segment is mainly used for ranging and has high ranging accuracy, while the ranging integrity check segment uses encryption and other processing, has high security, and is mainly used for secure ranging detection, they have different purposes. Therefore, they are usually not merged. Thus, channel estimation can be performed on all segments of the same MMS data packet, but the channel impulse responses of all segments are not accumulated together. Instead, the channel impulse responses of the ranging sequence segment and the ranging integrity check segment are accumulated separately for subsequent processing.

[0071] Therefore, the embodiments of this application actually break through the conventional processing ideas described above, and accumulate (also known as "merge") the channel impulse responses of at least two segments in the ranging packet as the channel impulse response of the ranging packet, thereby obtaining a channel impulse response with higher signal energy, which makes the subsequent ranging and other processes more sensitive and fully utilizes the advantages of several segments of the ranging packet.

[0072] It should also be noted that in this step, the channel impulse responses accumulated together can all come from the channel impulse responses of the ranging sequence segment, or they can all come from the channel impulse responses of the ranging integrity check segment. However, it is not recommended that the channel impulse responses accumulated together come partly from the channel impulse responses of the ranging sequence segment, partly from the channel impulse responses of the ranging integrity check segment, or from different MMS data packets.

[0073] In some embodiments, at least two segments include all ranging sequence segments of the MMS data packet, or at least two segments include all ranging integrity check segments of the MMS data packet. This enables more comprehensive and accurate ranging, positioning, or secure ranging detection processes to be performed using the information carried by the MMS data packet.

[0074] In some embodiments, the channel impulse responses of at least two ranging sequence segments of the same MMS data packet can be accumulated, and / or the channel impulse responses of at least two ranging integrity check segments of the same MMS data packet can be accumulated. This yields the channel impulse response of the MMS data packet used for ranging, and / or the channel impulse response used for secure ranging detection.

[0075] It should also be noted that accumulation includes both coherent and non-coherent accumulation, both of which are applicable to this step. Non-coherent accumulation is simple, efficient, and offers good real-time performance; coherent accumulation suffers less performance loss. Configuration can be tailored to the application scenario and user needs.

[0076] Taking coherent accumulation as an example, the accumulation of at least two segments of the channel impulse response can be achieved using the following expression:

[0077]

[0078] Among them, CIR final For the channel impulse response (CIR) of MMS data packets k′ Let K be the channel impulse response of the k′th segment, K be the total number of segments of the channel impulse response accumulated, 2≤K≤K1, and K1 be the total number of ranging sequence segments or ranging integrity check segments included in an MMS data packet.

[0079] Based on the aforementioned embodiments, and considering the small performance loss of correlation accumulation, coherent accumulation can be used to process the channel impulse response of different segments to reduce the signal performance loss of MMS data packets. Further analysis reveals that since the segments in MMS data packets are discontinuous, the offsets of different segments may differ, which is detrimental to ranging. Therefore, in some embodiments, as shown in Figure 5, the channel estimation method for ultra-wideband ranging includes the following steps:

[0080] Step 501: Perform channel estimation on at least two segments to obtain the channel impulse response of at least two segments, wherein at least two segments come from the same MMS data packet.

[0081] Step 502: Compensate for the offset between at least two segments of the channel impulse response.

[0082] Step 503: Perform coherent accumulation on the channel impulse responses of at least two compensated segments to obtain the channel impulse response of the MMS data packet.

[0083] Based on the aforementioned embodiments, coherent accumulation is further employed to reduce performance loss. Furthermore, by using coherent accumulation and offset compensation before accumulation, the ranging sensitivity of the channel impulse response is improved, and a better ranging effect is achieved. At the same time, the offset interference problem caused by discontinuous transmission and reception is avoided, making the accumulation more accurate. Based on this, the ranging, positioning and other processing are also more accurate and reliable.

[0084] To facilitate understanding of the embodiment shown in Figure 5, its steps will be explained below. Steps 501 and 503 are largely the same as steps 401-402 in the aforementioned embodiment, and will not be repeated here.

[0085] In step 502, the offset between at least two channel impulse responses is compensated. In this embodiment, the compensated channel impulse responses can all come from the channel impulse responses of the ranging sequence segment, or they can all come from the channel impulse responses of the ranging integrity check segment. However, the compensated channel impulse responses cannot come from the channel impulse responses of different MMS data packet segments, nor is it recommended that they come from the channel impulse responses of the ranging sequence segment and the ranging integrity check segment of the same MMS data packet.

[0086] It should be noted that, based on the characteristics of ultra-wideband, offset compensation can be divided into two aspects: instantaneous offset compensation and frequency offset compensation. That is, in some embodiments, as shown in Figure 6, offset compensation can be achieved through the following steps:

[0087] Step 601: Determine the frequency offset estimate.

[0088] Step 602: Determine the time offset estimate based on the frequency offset estimate and the pre-allocated carrier frequency.

[0089] Step 603: Perform frequency offset compensation based on frequency offset estimation, and / or perform time offset compensation based on time offset estimation.

[0090] To facilitate understanding of the embodiment shown in Figure 6, the steps will be explained below.

[0091] In step 601, the frequency offset estimate is determined. This application embodiment does not limit the implementation method of the frequency offset estimate. Related technologies have described schemes for frequency offset estimation for two or more signals, and these schemes are also applicable to this step, so they will not be elaborated here. The following mainly provides examples of spectrum estimation from two perspectives: the difference method and the Discrete Fourier Transform (DFT) method.

[0092] In the finite difference method, firstly, the channel impulse response of the segment participating in frequency offset compensation is determined, along with the correlation coefficient at each tap position. This can be achieved using the following expression:

[0093]

[0094] Among them, D (t) Let K be the correlation coefficient at the t-th tap, and K be the total number of segments involved in frequency offset compensation. Let K be the channel impulse response of the k′-th segment participating in frequency offset compensation at the t-th tap, where 2 ≤ K ≤ K1, and K1 is the total number of segments included in an MMS data packet. for conjugate, The value of the channel impulse response at the t-th tap for the k′-1 segment involved in frequency offset compensation.

[0095] Then, determine the tap position where the correlation is highest. This can be achieved using the following expression:

[0096] t * =argmax t′ |D (t) |;

[0097] Among them, t * The tap position where the correlation is highest, argmax t′ |D (t) |Indicates confirmation|D (t) The operation of t′ when it has the maximum value, |D (t) |For D (t) The absolute value of D (t) As already explained, it will not be repeated here.

[0098] Finally, according to t * The frequency offset estimate is determined. This can be achieved using the following expression:

[0099]

[0100] Among them, f c The result of spectrum estimation, for The corresponding angle value, The meaning of T has already been explained. gap This is a preset parameter representing the CIR time interval.

[0101] In the Discrete Fourier Transform (DFT) method, firstly, a Discrete Fourier Transform is performed based on the taps at the same position of the signal impulse response of the segment involved in frequency offset compensation, and then the peak position and amplitude of the Discrete Fourier Transform result are determined. This can be achieved through the following expression:

[0102]

[0103]

[0104] Among them, I (t) This indicates the position of the peak value corresponding to the t-th tap. Indicates confirmation In the range 1≤k≤K l The value of k when it is at its maximum. Indicates to Take the absolute value. A represents the result of the discrete Fourier transform of the channel impulse response at the t-th tap for all segments involved in offset compensation. (t) This indicates the amplitude position corresponding to the t-th tap. express In the range 1≤k≤K l The innermost value is K. l The length of the channel impulse response obtained after zero-padding the channel impulse response of the segment involved in offset compensation.

[0105] It should be noted that the above description uses zero padding to improve resolution as an example. In some embodiments, zero padding may not be used. When zero padding is not used, the relevant processing is roughly the same as described here, except that the data length (or "range") is different, which will not be elaborated on here.

[0106] Then, based on the tap position corresponding to the maximum amplitude, the peak position corresponding to that tap position is determined. This can be achieved as follows:

[0107] t * =argmax t |A (t) |;

[0108] Among them, t * argmax represents the tap position corresponding to the maximum amplitude. t′ |A (t) |Indicates confirmation|A (t) The value of t at its maximum, |A (t) | indicates that A (t) Take the absolute value.

[0109] Finally, based on the peak position determined in the previous step, the frequency offset estimation result is determined. This can be achieved as follows:

[0110]

[0111] Among them, f c For the frequency offset estimation results, T gap This is a preset parameter representing the CIR time interval.

[0112] It should be noted that the above are merely examples and do not imply that frequency offset estimation can only be achieved in the above manner in the embodiments of this application.

[0113] In step 602, the time offset estimate is determined based on the frequency offset estimate and the pre-allocated carrier frequency. Various implementations of time offset estimation have been described in related technologies, and these are also applicable to this step; therefore, they will not be elaborated upon here. For ease of understanding, an example will be provided below.

[0114] In some embodiments, the time offset estimate is determined based on the frequency offset estimate and the pre-allocated carrier frequency, which can be achieved in the following manner:

[0115]

[0116] Among them, C offs f represents the time-biased estimation result. c f represents the result of frequency offset estimation. s This indicates the pre-allocated carrier frequency.

[0117] In step 603, frequency offset compensation is performed based on the frequency offset estimation, and / or time offset compensation is performed based on the time offset estimation. Various methods for performing frequency offset compensation and time offset compensation after determining the results of the frequency offset estimation and time offset estimation have been described in related technologies, and these methods are also applicable to this step, so they will not be elaborated upon here. The following is just one example for ease of understanding.

[0118] In some embodiments, frequency offset compensation based on frequency offset estimation can be achieved using the following expression:

[0119] CIR k =CIR k ·exp(-j2πf c T gap (k-1));

[0120] Among them, CIR k CIR represents the result of frequency offset compensation for the channel impulse response of the k-th segment involved in offset compensation. k f represents the channel impulse response of the k-th segment involved in offset compensation. c For the result of frequency offset estimation, Tgap (k-1) is the CIR time interval corresponding to the channel impulse response of the (k-1)th segment participating in offset compensation.

[0121] In some embodiments, time offset compensation can be achieved using a Farrow filter, wherein the time offset estimation result C is used to compensate for the time offset. offs Alternatively, the result of further processing can be used as a parameter to configure the Farrow filter, so that the channel impulse response of each segment participating in offset compensation is adjusted to -(k-1)C in the time domain after passing through the Farrow filter. offs This yields the corresponding time-biased compensation result.

[0122] Based on the foregoing embodiments, it can also be understood that, as shown in Figure 3, each ranging sequence segment includes several MMRS (Multi-Millisecond Ranging Sequences). Similar to the ranging sequence segments and ranging integrity check segments, MMRS, as sub-segments, can also be accumulated to increase the total signal energy, thereby further improving ranging sensitivity. Therefore, in some embodiments, as shown in Figure 7, the channel estimation method for ultra-wideband ranging includes the following steps:

[0123] Step 701: Perform channel estimation on at least two MMRS of the same ranging sequence segment to obtain the channel impulse response of at least two MMRS, wherein a ranging sequence segment includes several MMRS.

[0124] Step 702: Accumulate the channel impulse responses of at least two MMRS to obtain the channel impulse response of the ranging sequence segment.

[0125] Step 703: Accumulate the channel impulse responses of at least two ranging sequence segments to obtain the channel impulse response of the MMS data packet, wherein at least two ranging sequence segments come from the same MMS data packet.

[0126] Based on the aforementioned embodiments, by further accumulating the channel impulse responses of at least two MMRSs of the same ranging sequence segment, a higher energy channel impulse response of the ranging sequence segment is obtained, thereby further improving the energy of the channel impulse response of the MMS data packet, which is beneficial for achieving higher sensitivity ranging and other processing.

[0127] Furthermore, since the MMRS is automatically generated within the ranging sequence segment, no additional segmentation step is required, resulting in greater efficiency and speed. Since the MMRS is not generated through additional segmentation, the results are less susceptible to subjective factors such as segmentation length, making them more accurate and reliable.

[0128] To facilitate understanding of the embodiment shown in Figure 7, its steps will be explained below. Step 703 is largely the same as step 402 described above, and will not be repeated here.

[0129] In step 701, channel estimation is performed on at least two MMRSs of the same ranging sequence segment to obtain the channel impulse response of at least two MMRSs. A ranging sequence segment includes several MMRSs. This application embodiment does not limit the number of MMRSs to be channel estimated; it can be 2, 5, 10, or even all MMRSs of the same ranging sequence segment.

[0130] Furthermore, it is understood that each MMRS in step 701 is used for channel estimation as a separate received signal. Therefore, the schemes for channel estimation based on received signals described in related technologies are also applicable to the implementation of step 501, and will not be elaborated upon here.

[0131] In step 702, the channel impulse responses of at least two MMRSs are accumulated to obtain the channel impulse response of the ranging sequence segment. As mentioned earlier, the channel impulse responses of at least two MMRSs for the same ranging sequence segment are generated separately. However, through the accumulation process in this step, the channel impulse responses of different MMRSs are merged, thereby obtaining the channel impulse response of the ranging sequence segment. Furthermore, compared to simple direct splicing, the channel impulse response will have higher energy through accumulation, thus supporting higher sensitivity ranging.

[0132] It should also be noted that accumulation includes both coherent and non-coherent accumulation, both of which are applicable to this step. Non-coherent accumulation is simple, efficient, and offers good real-time performance; coherent accumulation suffers less performance loss. Configuration can be tailored to the application scenario and user needs.

[0133] Therefore, the accumulation process in this step is largely the same as that in step 402, with the main difference being the object of accumulation. Thus, the implementation of this step can refer to the implementation of step 402. For example, before accumulating the channel impulse responses of at least two MMRS, the following step can be introduced: compensating for the offset between the channel impulse responses of at least two MMRS. This eliminates the offset between signals, further improving sensitivity and avoiding interference from inconsistent offsets, resulting in more accurate and reliable subsequent processing. Correspondingly, the accumulation of the channel impulse responses of at least two MMRS can be achieved by performing coherent accumulation on the compensated channel impulse responses of at least two MMRS. This will not be elaborated further here.

[0134] Furthermore, Figure 7 is only one example. In some embodiments, considering that the interval time of the MMRS in the same ranging sequence segment is extremely short, its impact can be ignored in some scenarios. Therefore, it is not necessary to perform offset compensation on the channel impulse response of different MMRS in a single ranging sequence segment, but to directly accumulate them, or to directly treat a single ranging sequence segment as a whole for channel estimation, etc., which will not be elaborated here.

[0135] Based on the foregoing embodiments, it is understood that, as shown in Figure 3, although each ranging integrity check segment is a scrambled timestamp sequence segment, the total energy of the channel impulse response of the scrambled timestamp sequence can still be increased through accumulation to further improve ranging sensitivity. Therefore, in some embodiments, as shown in Figure 8, the channel estimation method for ultra-wideband ranging includes the following steps:

[0136] Step 801: Divide the same ranging integrity check segment into several sub-segments. When dividing the RIF into sub-segments, this can be achieved using RMARRKER delimiters, ensuring that each sub-segment corresponds to an independent integrity check window.

[0137] Step 802: Perform channel estimation on at least two sub-segments of the same ranging integrity check segment to obtain the channel impulse response of at least two sub-segments.

[0138] Step 803: Accumulate the channel impulse responses of at least two sub-segments to obtain the channel impulse response of the ranging integrity check segment.

[0139] Step 804: Accumulate the channel impulse responses of at least two ranging integrity check segments to obtain the channel impulse response of the MMS data packet, wherein at least two ranging integrity check segments come from the same MMS data packet.

[0140] Based on the aforementioned embodiments, by further dividing the same ranging integrity check segment and accumulating the channel impulse responses of at least two sub-segments obtained from the division, a higher energy ranging integrity check segment channel impulse response is obtained, thereby further improving the energy of the MMS data packet channel impulse response and achieving higher sensitivity ranging.

[0141] Furthermore, by creating sub-fragments through additional divisions, the division becomes more flexible and adaptable, better suited to various scenarios and user needs, resulting in a better user experience.

[0142] To facilitate understanding of the embodiment shown in Figure 8, its steps will be explained below. Step 604 is largely the same as step 402 described above, and will not be repeated here.

[0143] In step 801, the same ranging integrity check segment is divided into several sub-segments. In this embodiment, the divided sub-segments have essentially the same length, thus enabling accumulation based on sub-segments of the same length.

[0144] It should be noted that the embodiments of this application do not limit the specific length of the divided sub-segments, which can be set according to the application scenario, user requirements, etc. In some embodiments, the length of the sub-segment can be set to be the same as the length of the MMRS of the ranging sequence segment, so that the channel impulse response of the accumulated ranging sequence segment can have the same length as the channel impulse response of the ranging integrity check segment, thereby enabling subsequent secure ranging detection. Of course, the length of the sub-segment does not necessarily have to be the same as the length of the MMRS of the ranging integrity check segment; the channel impulse response can still be aligned through other processing methods, which will not be elaborated here.

[0145] It should also be noted that if, during the final partitioning, there is a sub-segment that meets the required length and another sub-segment that is shorter than the required length, the sub-segment that is shorter than the required length can be discarded. This will not be elaborated on further here.

[0146] In step 802, channel estimation is performed on at least two sub-segments of the same ranging integrity check segment to obtain the channel impulse response of at least two sub-segments. This application embodiment does not limit the number of sub-segments to be channel estimated; it can be 2, 5, 10, etc., or even all sub-segments of the same ranging integrity check segment.

[0147] Furthermore, it is understood that each sub-segment in step 802 is treated as a separate received signal for channel estimation. Therefore, the schemes described in related technologies for performing channel estimation based on received signals are also applicable to the implementation of step 802, and will not be elaborated upon here.

[0148] In step 803, the channel impulse responses of at least two sub-segments are accumulated to obtain the channel impulse response of the ranging integrity check segment. As mentioned earlier, the channel impulse responses of at least two sub-segments of the same ranging integrity check segment are generated separately. However, through the accumulation process in this step, the channel impulse responses of different sub-segments are merged, thereby obtaining the channel impulse response of the ranging integrity check segment. Furthermore, compared to simple direct splicing, the channel impulse response will have higher energy through accumulation, thus supporting higher sensitivity ranging.

[0149] It should also be noted that accumulation includes both coherent and non-coherent accumulation, both of which are applicable to this step. Non-coherent accumulation is simple, efficient, and offers good real-time performance; coherent accumulation suffers less performance loss. Configuration can be tailored to the application scenario and user needs.

[0150] Therefore, the accumulation process in this step is largely the same as that in step 402, with the main difference being the object of accumulation. Thus, the implementation of this step can refer to the implementation of step 402. For example, before accumulating the channel impulse responses of at least two sub-segments, the following step can be introduced: compensating for the offset between the channel impulse responses of at least two sub-segments. This eliminates the offset between signals, further improving sensitivity and avoiding interference from inconsistent offsets, resulting in more accurate and reliable subsequent processing. Correspondingly, the accumulation of the channel impulse responses of at least two sub-segments can be achieved by performing coherent accumulation on the compensated channel impulse responses of at least two sub-segments. This will not be elaborated further here.

[0151] Building upon the aforementioned embodiments, to further achieve flexible channel impulse response accumulation, the ranging sequence segment can be directly treated as a whole, without considering the MMRS division within it. Based on this, in some embodiments, as shown in Figure 9, the channel estimation method for ultra-wideband ranging includes the following steps:

[0152] Step 901: Divide the same ranging sequence segment into several sub-segments.

[0153] Step 902: Perform channel estimation on at least two sub-segments of the same ranging sequence segment to obtain the channel impulse response of at least two sub-segments.

[0154] Step 903: Accumulate the channel impulse responses of at least two sub-segments to obtain the channel impulse response of the ranging sequence segment.

[0155] Step 904: Accumulate the channel impulse responses of at least two ranging sequence segments to obtain the channel impulse response of the MMS data packet, wherein at least two ranging sequence segments come from the same MMS data packet.

[0156] Based on the aforementioned embodiments, the existing MMRS division of the ranging sequence segment is not considered, but it is divided as a whole, making the division more flexible and conducive to achieving better division results. Based on the better division, a more accurate and reliable channel impulse response of the segment is obtained, which in turn yields a more accurate and reliable channel impulse response of the MMS data packet, thus achieving more accurate and reliable ranging.

[0157] It is not difficult to see that steps 901-904 are largely the same as steps 801-804 in the aforementioned embodiments, with the main difference being the different objects of division and accumulation. Therefore, the implementation of steps 901-904 can refer to the implementation of steps 801-804 above. For example, steps 901-904 can also be combined with offset compensation, that is, before accumulating the channel impulse responses of at least two sub-segments, the following step can be introduced: compensating for the offset between the channel impulse responses of at least two sub-segments. This eliminates the offset between signals, further improving sensitivity and avoiding interference from offset inconsistencies, resulting in more accurate and reliable subsequent processing. Correspondingly, the accumulation of the channel impulse responses of at least two sub-segments can be achieved by performing coherent accumulation of the compensated channel impulse responses of at least two sub-segments. This will not be elaborated further here.

[0158] To facilitate understanding of the effectiveness of the channel estimation method for ultra-wideband ranging provided in the above embodiments, the following explanation will be based on relevant simulation experiments.

[0159] The ranging packets transmitted in the simulation experiment included 8 ranging sequence segments and 8 ranging integrity check segments. The RF receiver sensitivity degradation was 10 dB, meaning the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) of each segment was higher than the sensitivity. Furthermore, no offset was introduced in the 8 ranging sequence segments, while a random phase offset was introduced in the 8 ranging integrity check segments. The MMS data packets were transmitted according to the relevant protocol. Because the offset was introduced in the ranging integrity check segments, a detection method used in secure ranging was also introduced at the receiving end to detect the offset in the ranging integrity check segments.

[0160] At the receiving end, ranging is processed using the channel estimation method for ultra-wideband ranging that employs coherent accumulation as provided in the above embodiments. For the eight received ranging sequence segments, the channel impulse response module reports correct results with low noise floor; however, for the eight ranging integrity check segments, they cannot be merged normally, the channel impulse response module reports an anomaly, and returns a failure response indicating that the safe ranging detection has failed.

[0161] It is also understood that the above description is mainly aimed at the field of ultra-wideband technology. In the field of wireless ranging, Wi-Fi ranging, Bluetooth ranging, etc., use the same or similar principles as ultra-wideband ranging. Therefore, the above scheme can also be applied to ranging schemes in these fields. That is to say, in some embodiments, as shown in Figure 10, the channel estimation method for wireless ranging may include the following steps:

[0162] Step 1001: Perform channel estimation on at least two segments to obtain the channel impulse response of at least two segments, wherein at least two segments come from the same ranging packet.

[0163] Step 1002: Accumulate the channel impulse responses of at least two segments to obtain the channel impulse response of the ranging packet.

[0164] Its effects and specific implementation are roughly the same as the channel estimation method for ultra-wideband ranging described in the foregoing embodiments, and will not be repeated here.

[0165] Based on the above embodiments, a CIR coherent combining method can also be determined, which can be applied to UWB ranging using a frame data packet format, where the frame data packet includes several discontinuous segments. This will be described below with reference to different embodiments.

[0166] In some embodiments, the CIR coherent combining method may include the following steps: for any segment, dividing the total time window used for CIR estimation into several sub-segment time windows (e.g., uniformly dividing), or, for the obtained total time window of CIR containing several sub-segment time windows (e.g., time windows of the same length); performing CIR estimation within the sub-segment time windows to obtain the sub-segment CIR; further obtaining segment frequency offset and / or segment time offset based on the sub-segment CIR within the segment; compensating the sub-segment CIR using the segment frequency offset and / or segment time offset; and performing coherent combining based on the sub-segment CIR or at least the partially compensated sub-segment CIR to obtain the total CIR of the segment.

[0167] In some embodiments, the CIR coherent combining method may include the following steps: for any frame, dividing the total time window used for CIR estimation into several subframe time windows with segments as the basic unit; performing CIR estimation within the subframe time windows to obtain the subframe CIR; obtaining frame frequency offset and / or frame time offset based on the subframe CIR within the frame; compensating the subframe CIR using the frame frequency offset and / or frame time offset; and performing coherent combining based on the compensated subframe CIR to obtain the total CIR of the frame.

[0168] It is not difficult to see that the above-described CIR coherent combining method embodiments are corresponding to the aforementioned channel estimation method embodiments, and they are implemented in conjunction with each other. The relevant technical details mentioned in the method embodiments corresponding to the aforementioned channel estimation method embodiments remain valid in the CIR coherent combining method embodiments, and will not be repeated here to avoid repetition. Correspondingly, the relevant technical details mentioned in the CIR coherent combining method embodiments can also be applied to the method embodiments corresponding to the aforementioned channel estimation method embodiments.

[0169] Optionally, when performing coherent merging for any frame, the CIRs of subsequent frames can also be merged based on the total CIR of the sub-segment obtained through the coherent merging of sub-segments.

[0170] Optionally, the CIR coherent combining scheme in this application embodiment can be applied to receivers such as UWB, WiFi, and Bluetooth. That is, for scenarios or systems that require ranging based on channel estimation results, if the effect of direct coherent combining is affected by factors such as frequency offset and / or time offset due to a long time span, the relevant CIR-related technical solutions in this application can be combined with the technical content that should be mastered by those skilled in the art to solve the above problems.

[0171] The steps of the various methods described above are only for clarity. In practice, they can be combined into one step or some steps can be split into multiple steps. As long as they include the same logical relationship, they are all within the scope of protection of this patent. Adding insignificant modifications or introducing insignificant designs to the algorithm or process, but without changing the core design of the algorithm and process, are also within the scope of protection of this patent.

[0172] This application also provides an integrated circuit, as shown in FIG11, which includes a radio frequency module, an analog signal processing module and a digital signal processing module connected in sequence.

[0173] The radio frequency module is used to receive analog signals; the analog signal processing module is used to down-convert the received analog signals to obtain intermediate frequency signals; the digital signal processing module is used to perform analog-to-digital conversion on the intermediate frequency signals, and to perform digital signal processing on the data obtained from the analog-to-digital conversion. The digital signal processing performed by the digital signal processing module includes: a channel estimation method for ultra-wideband ranging as described in any embodiment of this application, or a channel estimation method for wireless ranging as described in any embodiment of this application, or a CIR coherent combining method as described in any embodiment of this application.

[0174] It is not difficult to see that this embodiment is a circuit embodiment corresponding to the method embodiment, and this embodiment can be implemented in conjunction with the method embodiment. The relevant technical details mentioned in the method embodiment are still valid in this embodiment, and will not be repeated here to reduce repetition. Correspondingly, the relevant technical details mentioned in this embodiment can also be applied to the method embodiment.

[0175] Furthermore, in order to highlight the innovative aspects of this application, no units that are not closely related to solving the technical problems proposed in this application are introduced in this embodiment, but this does not mean that there are no other units in this embodiment.

[0176] This application embodiment also provides an electromagnetic wave sensor, including: a carrier; an integrated circuit as described above, disposed on the carrier; an antenna, disposed on the carrier, or the antenna and the integrated circuit are integrated into one device disposed on the carrier; wherein, the integrated circuit is connected to the antenna for transmitting and receiving signals.

[0177] This application also provides a terminal device, including: a device body; and an electromagnetic wave sensor as described above disposed on the device body; wherein the electromagnetic wave sensor is used for target detection and / or communication to provide reference information for the operation of the device body.

[0178] Those skilled in the art will understand that the above embodiments are specific embodiments for implementing this application, and in practical applications, various changes can be made to them in form and detail without departing from the spirit and scope of this application.

Claims

1. A method for channel estimation of ultra-wideband ranging, comprising: channel estimation on at least two segments respectively to obtain channel impulse responses of the at least two segments, wherein the at least two segments are from a same MMS packet; accumulation on the channel impulse responses of the at least two segments to obtain a channel impulse response of the MMS packet.

2. The method for channel estimation for ultra-wideband ranging according to claim 1, wherein, Before the accumulation on the channel impulse responses of the at least two segments, the method further comprises: compensation on offsets between the channel impulse responses of the at least two segments; the accumulation on the channel impulse responses of the at least two segments comprises: coherent accumulation on the compensated channel impulse responses of the at least two segments.

3. The method for channel estimation for ultra-wideband ranging of claim 1, wherein, The at least two segments comprise a ranging sequence segment, one ranging sequence segment comprises a plurality of repeated MMRSs, and the channel estimation on the at least two segments to obtain the channel impulse responses of the at least two segments comprises: channel estimation on at least two MMRSs of a same ranging sequence segment respectively to obtain channel impulse responses of the at least two MMRSs; accumulation on the channel impulse responses of the at least two MMRSs to obtain a channel impulse response of the ranging sequence segment.

4. The method for channel estimation for ultra-wideband ranging according to claim 3, wherein, Before the accumulation on the channel impulse responses of the at least two MMRSs, the method further comprises: compensation on offsets between the channel impulse responses of the at least two MMRSs; the accumulation on the channel impulse responses of the at least two MMRSs comprises: coherent accumulation on the compensated channel impulse responses of the at least two MMRSs.

5. The method for channel estimation for ultra-wideband ranging of claim 1, wherein, The at least two segments comprise a ranging integrity check segment, and the channel estimation on the at least two segments respectively to obtain the channel impulse responses of the at least two segments comprises: division of a same ranging integrity check segment into a plurality of sub-segments; channel estimation on at least two sub-segments of a same ranging integrity check segment respectively to obtain channel impulse responses of the at least two sub-segments; accumulation on the channel impulse responses of the at least two sub-segments to obtain a channel impulse response of the ranging integrity check segment.

6. The method for channel estimation for ultra-wideband ranging according to claim 5, wherein, Before the accumulation on the channel impulse responses of the at least two sub-segments, the method further comprises: compensation on offsets between the channel impulse responses of the at least two sub-segments; the accumulation on the channel impulse responses of the at least two sub-segments comprises: coherent accumulation on the compensated channel impulse responses of the at least two sub-segments.

7. The method for channel estimation for ultra-wideband ranging of claim 1, wherein, The at least two segments comprise a ranging sequence segment, and the channel estimation on the at least two segments to obtain the channel impulse responses of the at least two segments comprises: division of a same ranging sequence segment into a plurality of sub-segments; channel estimation on at least two sub-segments of a same ranging sequence segment respectively to obtain channel impulse responses of the at least two sub-segments; accumulation on the channel impulse responses of the at least two sub-segments to obtain a channel impulse response of the ranging sequence segment.

8. The method for channel estimation for ultra-wideband ranging according to claim 7, wherein, Before the accumulation on the channel impulse responses of the at least two sub-segments, the method further comprises: compensate for a shift between channel impulse responses of at least two of the subsegments; the accumulation of the channel impulse responses of at least two of the subsegments comprises: the coherent accumulation of the compensated channel impulse responses of at least two of the subsegments.

9. The method for channel estimation for ultra-wide band ranging according to claim 4, 6 or 8, wherein, the compensation for the shift comprises: determining a frequency offset estimate; determining a time offset estimate based on the frequency offset estimate and a carrier frequency of the MMS packet; performing frequency offset compensation based on the frequency offset estimate and / or time offset compensation based on the time offset estimate.

10. The method for channel estimation for ultra-wide band ranging according to any one of claims 1 to 9, wherein, the at least two segments comprise all ranging sequence segments of the MMS packet, or the at least two segments comprise all ranging integrity check segments of the MMS packet.

11. The method for channel estimation for ultra-wide band ranging according to any one of claims 1 to 10, wherein, the MMS packet comprises a synchronization header (SHR) segment including a synchronization field (SYNC) and a start frame delimiter (SFD); wherein the synchronization header (SHR) segment is exchanged between an initiator and a responder during a ranging phase in a one-to-many multi-millisecond ranging procedure and an out-of-band channel multi-millisecond ranging procedure.

12. A channel estimation method for wireless ranging, comprising: performing channel estimation for at least two segments to obtain channel impulse responses of the at least two segments, wherein the at least two segments are from a same ranging packet; accumulating the channel impulse responses of the at least two segments to obtain a channel impulse response of the ranging packet.

13. A method for CIR coherent combining applied to UWB ranging using frame packet format, wherein the frame packet comprises a plurality of discontinuous segments, the method comprising: for any segment, a total time window for CIR estimation of the segment comprises a plurality of subsegment time windows; performing CIR estimation in the subsegment time windows to obtain subsegment CIRs; obtaining segment frequency offset and / or segment time offset based on the subsegment CIRs within the segment; compensating the subsegment CIRs using the segment frequency offset and / or the segment time offset; and coherently combining the compensated subsegment CIRs to obtain a total CIR of the segment; and / or for any frame, a total time window for CIR estimation of the frame comprises a plurality of subframe time windows in segment units; performing CIR estimation in the subframe time windows to obtain subframe CIRs; obtaining frame frequency offset and / or frame time offset based on the subframe CIRs within the frame; compensating the subframe CIRs using the frame frequency offset and / or the frame time offset; and coherently combining the compensated subframe CIRs to obtain a total CIR of the frame.

14. An integrated circuit comprising a radio frequency module, an analog signal processing module and a digital signal processing module connected in sequence; the radio frequency module is configured to receive an analog signal; wherein, the analog signal processing module is configured to down-convert the received analog signal to obtain an intermediate frequency signal; ​ The digital signal processing module is configured to perform analog-to-digital conversion on the intermediate frequency signal, and perform digital signal processing on data obtained through the analog-to-digital conversion, wherein the digital signal processing performed by the digital signal processing module comprises the channel estimation method for ultra-wideband ranging as claimed in claims 1 to 11, or the channel estimation method for wireless ranging as claimed in claim 12, or the CIR coherent combining method as claimed in claim 13.

15. An electromagnetic wave sensor comprising: a carrier body; the integrated circuit as claimed in claim 14, disposed on the carrier body; an antenna, disposed on the carrier body, or integrated with the integrated circuit as an integrated device on the carrier body; wherein the integrated circuit is connected with the antenna, configured to transmit and receive signals.

16. A terminal device comprising: a device body; and the electromagnetic wave sensor as claimed in claim 15, disposed on the device body; wherein the electromagnetic wave sensor is configured to detect a target and / or communicate, to provide reference information for operation of the device body.

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