Communication methods and communication apparatus

Abstract

Communication methods and a communication apparatus. A method comprises: acquiring a reference signal, wherein the reference signal can be used for data channel demodulation, the reference signal is determined on the basis of a first sequence and a first mask sequence, the first mask sequence comprises a second mask sequence and a third mask sequence, the third mask sequence comprises N mask sequences, N is an integer greater than or equal to 1, the first mask sequence is the Kronecker product of the second mask sequence and the third mask sequence, the second mask sequence is one in a first mask sequence set, mask sequences in the first mask sequence set are pairwise orthogonal, the N mask sequences comprised in the third mask sequence are N mask sequences in M second mask sequence sets, mask sequences in each of the M second mask sequence sets are not orthogonal, and M≤N; and sending the reference signal. The present application can expand reference signal ports and improve the channel estimation accuracy.

Description

A communication method and a communication device

[0001] The present application claims priority to the Chinese patent application No. 202410996787.5, filed on July 23, 2024, with the State Intellectual Property Office of China, and the Chinese patent application No. 202410996787.5 has the title of “A communication method and a communication device”, the content of which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety. TECHNICAL FIELD

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

[0003] In order to enable the antenna architecture to provide more stream transmission, while supporting further increase of the number of users, i.e., potential increase of the number of MU paired users, it can be understood that more users occupy the same time-frequency resource to send or receive signals, and therefore more demodulation reference signal (DMRS) ports are needed.

[0004] Since different DMRS ports rely on frequency division multiplexing, time division multiplexing or code division multiplexing to achieve orthogonality. The number of orthogonal DMRS ports can usually be expanded by increasing the time-frequency resources occupied by DMRS, however, this method will cause an increase in DMRS overhead, thereby reducing the uplink throughput. Therefore, how to increase the number of DMRS ports without increasing the resource overhead of DMRS ports is a problem to be solved. SUMMARY

[0005] Embodiments of the present application provide a communication method and a communication device, and embodiments of the present application can increase the number of reference signal ports without increasing the resource overhead of reference signal ports.

[0006] In a first aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication method, which can be executed by a terminal device, a module (for example, a processor, a chip, or a chip system) applied to the terminal device, a logic node, a logic module, or software capable of realizing all or part of the functions of the terminal device. The method can include: obtaining a reference signal, which can be used for data channel demodulation, the reference signal being determined based on a first sequence and a first mask sequence, the first mask sequence including a second mask sequence and a third mask sequence, the third mask sequence including N mask sequences, where N is an integer greater than or equal to 1; the first mask sequence is a Kronecker product of the second mask sequence and the third mask sequence; the second mask sequence is one of a first mask sequence set, the mask sequences in the first mask sequence set being pairwise orthogonal, the third mask sequence including N mask sequences that are N mask sequences in M second mask sequence sets, the mask sequences in each second mask sequence set in the M second mask sequence sets being not orthogonal, and M≤N; and transmitting the reference signal.

[0007] In the scheme provided in the present application, the terminal device obtains the reference signal based on multiple different sequences maintaining low cross-correlation, which can increase the number of reference signal ports without increasing the reference signal port resource overhead, and the design (N mask sequences) of the third mask sequence can achieve low cross-correlation, thereby improving the anti-interference capability of the reference signal and the channel estimation performance.

[0008] In a possible implementation, for the N mask sequences included in the third mask sequence, the third mask sequence is a Kronecker product of the N mask sequences.

[0009] In a possible implementation, each mask sequence in the N mask sequences included in the third mask sequence is an m-sequence or a Z4 sequence. By implementing this possible implementation, the existing m-sequence or Z4 sequence is used as the third mask sequence, which can make the design of the reference signal more general and simple and enable the sequences used by different reference signal ports to maintain low cross-correlation.

[0010] In a possible implementation, the method can further include: receiving indication information from a network device, the indication information being used to indicate the value of the N. By implementing this possible implementation, the network device can dynamically select the number of sequences used to generate the reference signal according to the required reference signal capacity, and can flexibly adjust the priority of the requirements for the channel estimation accuracy and the capacity.

[0011] In a possible implementation, the first sequence is a gold sequence. By implementing this possible implementation, the existing gold sequence can be used as the first sequence, which can make the design of the reference signal more general and simple.

[0012] In a possible implementation, the second cover sequence is a Hadamard sequence or a discrete fourier transform (DFT) sequence. By implementing the possible implementation, the existing Hadamard sequence or DFT sequence can be used as the second cover sequence, and the design of the reference signal can be more universal and simple.

[0013] In a second aspect, a communication method is provided. The method can be performed by a network device, a module (e.g., a processor, a chip, or a chip system) applied to the network device, or a logic node, a logic module, or software that can implement all or part of the functions of the network device. The method can include: receiving a reference signal, the reference signal being used for data channel demodulation, the reference signal being determined based on a first sequence and a first cover sequence, the first cover sequence including a second cover sequence and a third cover sequence, the third cover sequence including N cover sequences, N being an integer greater than or equal to 1; wherein the first cover sequence is a Kronecker product of the second cover sequence and the third cover sequence; the second cover sequence is one of a first cover sequence set, cover sequences in the first cover sequence set are pairwise orthogonal, and the third cover sequence includes N cover sequences in M second cover sequence sets, cover sequences in each of the M second cover sequence sets are not orthogonal, and M ≤ N.

[0014] In the scheme provided in the present application, the network device can receive the reference signal from the terminal device, the reference signal can be obtained based on multiple different sequences that maintain low cross-correlation, so that the number of reference signal ports can be increased without increasing the reference signal port resource overhead, and the design of the third cover sequence (N cover sequences) can achieve low cross-correlation and improve the anti-interference capability of the reference signal, thereby improving the channel estimation performance.

[0015] It should be understood that the execution subject of the second aspect can be the network device, the specific content of the second aspect corresponds to the content of the first aspect, and the corresponding features and beneficial effects of the second aspect can be referred to the description of the first aspect. To avoid repetition, the detailed description is appropriately omitted here.

[0016] In a possible implementation, for the N cover sequences included in the third cover sequence, the third cover sequence is a Kronecker product of the N cover sequences.

[0017] In a possible implementation, each cover sequence in the N cover sequences included in the third cover sequence is an m-sequence or a Z4 sequence.

[0018] In a possible implementation, the method further includes: determining the value of N according to the capacity of the reference signal; and sending indication information to the terminal device, the indication information being used to indicate the value of N.

[0019] In a possible implementation, the first sequence is a gold sequence.

[0020] In a possible implementation, the second mask sequence is a Hadamard sequence or a DFT sequence.

[0021] In a third aspect, the present application provides a communication apparatus, which includes modules / units for performing the method in the first aspect and any possible implementation thereof. The apparatus can be a terminal device, a module (for example, a chip, a chip system, or a processor) applied to a terminal device, and also can be a logic node, a logic module, or software capable of realizing all or part of the functions of a terminal device.

[0022] In a fourth aspect, the present application provides a communication apparatus, which includes modules / units for performing the method in the second aspect and any possible implementation thereof. The apparatus can be a network device, a module (for example, a chip, a chip system, or a processor) applied to a network device, and also can be a logic node, a logic module, or software capable of realizing all or part of the functions of a network device.

[0023] In a fifth aspect, the present application provides a communication apparatus, which can be a terminal device, a chip, a chip system, or a processor supporting a terminal device to implement the above method, and also can be a logic node, a logic module, or software capable of realizing all or part of the functions of a terminal device. The communication apparatus can also be a chip system. The communication apparatus can execute the method in the first aspect. The functions of the communication apparatus can be realized by hardware, or by hardware executing corresponding software. The hardware or software includes one or more units corresponding to the above functions. The unit can be software and / or hardware. The operations and beneficial effects of the communication apparatus can be referred to the method in the first aspect and the beneficial effects, and details are not repeated here.

[0024] In a sixth aspect, the present application provides a communication apparatus, which can be a network device, a chip, a chip system, or a processor supporting the network device to implement the method described above, or a logic node, a logic module, or software capable of implementing all or part of the functions of the network device. The communication apparatus can also be a chip system. The communication apparatus can execute the method described in the second aspect. The functions of the communication apparatus can be implemented by hardware or by hardware executing corresponding software. The hardware or software includes one or more units corresponding to the functions described above. The units can be software and / or hardware. The operations and advantages of the communication apparatus can be found in the method described in the second aspect and the advantages described above, and will not be repeated here.

[0025] In a seventh aspect, the present application provides a computer readable storage medium for storing computer execution instructions, when the computer execution instructions are executed, the method executed by the terminal in the method described in the first aspect is implemented; or the method executed by the network device in the method described in the second aspect is implemented.

[0026] In an eighth aspect, the present application provides a computer program product including a computer program, when the computer program is executed, the method executed by the terminal device in the method described in the first aspect is implemented; or the method executed by the network device in the method described in the second aspect is implemented.

[0027] In a ninth aspect, the present application provides a communication system, which includes a communication apparatus (such as a terminal device) for executing the method described in the first aspect and a communication apparatus (such as a network device) for executing the method described in the second aspect. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0028] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of the architecture of a communication system 1000 to which embodiments of the present application are applied;

[0029] FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of a time-frequency resource mapping method provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0030] FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram of port expansion provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0031] FIG. 4 is an interaction schematic diagram of a communication method provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0032] FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram of the basic structure of a feedback shift register provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0033] FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram of the expansion of a Type1 DMRS based on three sequences provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0034] FIG. 7 is an expansion diagram of a Type 1 DMRS based on four sequences according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0035] FIG. 8 and FIG. 9 are structural diagrams of possible communication apparatuses according to embodiments of the present application. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0036] The specific embodiments of the present application will be further described with reference to the drawings.

[0037] The terms "first" and "second" and the like in the description, claims and drawings of the present application are used for distinguishing between similar elements and not necessarily described in a particular sequence. Furthermore, the terms "comprise", "include", "contain" and "have" and any variations thereof are intended to cover a non-exclusive inclusion. For example, a process, method, system, product or apparatus that comprises a list of steps or units is not necessarily limited to the listed steps or units, but can optionally further include additional steps or units not expressly listed or can also include additional steps or units inherent to such process, method, system, product or apparatus.

[0038] Reference herein to "an embodiment" means that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic described in connection with the embodiment can be included in at least one embodiment of the application. The appearances of the phrase "in an embodiment" in various places in the specification are not necessarily all referring to the same embodiment, nor are they necessarily mutually exclusive of one another. It is expressly understood that any of the embodiments described herein can be incorporated in to another embodiment.

[0039] In the present application, "at least one" means one or more, "multiple" means two or more, "at least two" means two or three or more, and "and / or" is used to describe the relationship between associated objects, indicating that there can be three relationships, for example, "A and / or B" can mean: only A, only B, and A and B exist at the same time, where A and B can be singular or plural. The character " / " generally represents an "or" relationship between the associated objects. "At least one of the following" or the like means any combination of these items, including any combination of single or multiple items. For example, at least one of a, b or c can mean: a, b, c, "a and b", "a and c", "b and c", or "a and b and c", where a, b, and c can be single or multiple.

[0040] In this application, "sending information" can be understood as that one device sends information to another device, or can also be understood as that one logical module in a device sends information to another logical module. For example, "the access network device sending information" can be understood as that the access network device sends information to another device (such as a terminal device), or can be understood as that a logical module 1 in the access network device sends information to a logical module 2 in the access network device.

[0041] In this application, "receiving information" can be understood as that one device receives information from another device, or can also be understood as that one logical module in a device receives information from another logical module. For example, "the network device receiving information" can be understood as that the network device receives information from another device (such as a terminal device), or can be understood as that a logical module 1 in the network device receives information from a logical module 2 in the network device.

[0042] In this application, "sending information to … (such as a terminal device)" can be understood as that the destination of the information is the terminal device. It can include directly or indirectly sending information to the terminal device. "Receiving information from … (such as a terminal device)" or "receiving information from … (such as a terminal device)" can be understood as that the source of the information is the terminal device, and can include directly or indirectly receiving information from the terminal device. The information can be processed as necessary between the source and the destination of the information sending, such as format change, etc., but the destination can understand the valid information from the source. Similar expressions in this application can be similarly understood, and will not be repeated here.

[0043] In order to better understand the embodiments of the present application, first, the system architecture related to the embodiments of the present application will be introduced as follows:

[0044] Embodiments of the present application can be applied to a long term evolution (LTE) system, a 5th generation mobile communication (5G) system, a 6th generation mobile communication (6G) system and other communication systems evolved after 5G, a satellite communication system and a short-range wireless communication system. Among them, the wireless communication system mentioned in the embodiments of the present application includes but is not limited to three application scenarios of 5G / 6G mobile communication system: enhanced mobile broadband (eMBB), ultra-reliable low latency communication (URLLC) and massive machine type of communication (mMTC), long range (LoRa) system or vehicle networking system. The wireless communication system can include one or more network devices and one or more terminal devices.

[0045] The following is an exemplary explanation of the system architecture shown in FIG. 1. As shown in FIG. 1, the communication system 1000 includes a radio access network (RAN) 100 and a core network (CN) 200. The RAN 100 includes at least one network device (e.g., 110a and 110b in FIG. 1, collectively referred to as 110) and at least one terminal device (e.g., 120a-120j in FIG. 1, collectively referred to as 120). The RAN 100 can also include other RAN nodes, such as a wireless relay device and / or a wireless backhaul device (not shown in FIG. 1), etc. The terminal device 120 is connected to the network device 110 in a wireless manner. The network device 110 is connected to the core network 200 in a wireless or wired manner. The core network device in the core network 200 and the network device 110 in the RAN 100 can be different physical devices respectively, or can be the same physical device integrated with the logical functions of the core network and the radio access network.

[0046] It should be noted that the RAN 100 can be a 3rd generation partnership project (3GPP) related cellular system, such as a 4G, 5G mobile communication system, or an evolved system after 5G (e.g., a 6G mobile communication system). The RAN 100 can also be an open RAN (O-RAN or ORAN), a cloud radio access network (CRAN), and the like. The RAN 100 can also be a communication system in which two or more of the above systems are fused. It should be stated that the number of network devices and terminal devices in FIG. 1 is only illustrative and should not be considered as a specific limitation of the present application. The terminal device and network device involved in the system architecture will be described in detail below.

[0047] I. Terminal device

[0048] The terminal device can also be referred to as a user equipment (UE), a mobile station (MS), a mobile terminal (MT), and the like, or a device for providing voice or data connectivity to a user, or an Internet of Things device. For example, the terminal device includes a handheld device having a wireless connection function, a vehicle-mounted device, and the like. At present, the terminal device can be a mobile phone, a tablet computer, a notebook computer, a palm computer, a mobile Internet device (MID), a wearable device (e.g., a smart watch, a smart bracelet, a pedometer, and the like), a vehicle-mounted device (e.g., a car, a bicycle, an electric vehicle, an airplane, a ship, a train, a high-speed rail, and the like), a satellite terminal, a virtual reality (VR) device, an augmented reality (AR) device, a smart point of sale (POS) machine, a customer-premises equipment (CPE), a wireless terminal in industrial control, a smart home device (e.g., a refrigerator, a television, an air conditioner, an electricity meter, and the like), a smart robot, a mechanical arm, a workshop device, a wireless terminal in unmanned driving, a wireless terminal in telemedicine, a wireless terminal in a smart grid, a wireless terminal in transportation safety, a wireless terminal in a smart city, or a wireless terminal in a smart home, a flight device (e.g., a smart robot, a hot air balloon, a drone, an airplane), and the like. The terminal device can also be other devices with terminal functions, for example, the terminal device can also be a device that plays a terminal function in D2D communication.

[0049] Embodiments of the present application do not limit the form of the terminal device, and the device for implementing the function of the terminal device can be a terminal device; or can be a device capable of supporting the terminal device to implement the function, such as a chip system. The device can be installed in the terminal device or used in matching with the terminal device. In embodiments of the present application, the chip system can be composed of a chip, or can include a chip and other discrete devices.

[0050] II. Network device

[0051] The network device is a node in a radio access network (RAN), which can also be referred to as a RAN node (or device). The network device is used to help the terminal device to implement wireless access. The plurality of network devices 110 in the communication system 1000 can be nodes of the same type or nodes of different types. In some scenarios, the roles of the network device 110 and the terminal device 120 are relative, for example, the network element 120i in FIG. 1 can be a helicopter or a drone, which can be configured as a mobile base station. For a terminal device 120j that accesses the RAN 100 through the network element 120i, the network element 120i is a base station; but for the base station 110a, the network element 120i is a terminal device. The network device 110 and the terminal device 120 are sometimes both referred to as communication apparatuses, for example, the network elements 110a and 110b in FIG. 1 can be understood as communication apparatuses with base station functions, and the network elements 120a-120j can be understood as communication apparatuses with terminal device functions.

[0052] In a possible scenario, the network device can be a base station, an evolved NodeB (eNodeB), a transmitting and receiving point (TRP), a transmitting point (TP), a next generation NodeB (gNB), a next generation base station in a 6th generation (6G) mobile communication system, a base station in a future mobile communication system, a satellite, an integrated access and backhaul (IAB) node, a network device in a non-terrestrial network (NTN) communication system, i.e., can be deployed on a high-altitude platform or a satellite, etc. The network device can be a macro base station (such as 110a in FIG. 1), a micro base station or an indoor station (such as 110b in FIG. 1), a relay node or a donor node, or a wireless controller in a CRAN scenario. The network device can also be a device assuming a base station function in device to device (D2D) communication, vehicle-to-everything (V2X) communication, unmanned aircraft communication, or machine communication. Alternatively, the network device can also be a server, a wearable device, a vehicle or a vehicle-mounted device, etc. For example, the network device in the V2X technology can be a road side unit (RSU).

[0053] All or part of the functions of the network device in this application can also be implemented by software functions running on hardware, or by virtualized functions instantiated on a platform (such as a cloud platform). The network device in this application can also be a logical node, a logical module or software that can implement all or part of the functions of the network device.

[0054] In another possible scenario, multiple network devices collaborate to assist terminal devices in achieving wireless access, with each network device performing a portion of the base station's functions. For example, network devices can be central units (CUs), distributed units (DUs), CU-control plane (CPs), CU-user plane (UPs), or radio units (RUs), etc. CUs and DUs can be configured separately or included in the same network element, such as a baseband unit (BBU). RUs can be included in radio equipment or radio units, such as remote radio units (RRUs), active antenna units (AAUs), or remote radio heads (RRHs). It is understood that network devices can be CU nodes, DU nodes, or devices comprising both CU and DU nodes. Furthermore, CUs can be classified as network devices within the RAN (RAN) or the core network (CN), without limitation.

[0055] In different systems, CU (or CU-CP and CU-UP), DU, or RU may have different names, but those skilled in the art will understand their meaning. For example, in an ORAN system, CU can also be called O-CU (open CU), DU can also be called O-DU, CU-CP can also be called O-CU-CP, CU-UP can also be called O-CU-UP, and RU can also be called O-RU. For ease of description, this application uses CU, CU-CP, CU-UP, DU, and RU as examples. Any of the units among CU (or CU-CP, CU-UP), DU, and RU in this application can be implemented through software modules, hardware modules, or a combination of software and hardware modules.

[0056] In this embodiment, the form of the network device is not limited. The device used to implement the function of the network device can be the network device itself, or it can be a device that supports the network device in implementing the function, such as a chip system. The device can be installed in the network device or used in conjunction with the network device.

[0057] To facilitate understanding of the content of this solution, some terms used in the embodiments of this application will be explained below, so that those skilled in the art can understand them. This part is only for the purpose of understanding and should not be regarded as a specific limitation of this application.

[0058] 1. Antenna port

[0059] An antenna port, often simply called a port, can be understood as a transmitting antenna that is recognized by the receiving end, or a spatially distinguishable transmitting antenna. Each virtual antenna can be configured with one antenna port, and each virtual antenna can be a weighted combination of multiple physical antennas. Each antenna port can correspond to a reference signal port. Depending on the signal it carries, antenna ports can be divided into reference signal ports and data ports. Reference signal ports may include, but are not limited to, demodulation reference signal (DMRS) ports and channel state information reference signal (CSI-RS) ports.

[0060] This application includes existing ports and new ports. Existing ports refer to ports in existing protocols or ports that support technical solutions in existing protocols; new ports refer to ports that can support the technical solutions of this application.

[0061] 2. Demodulation Reference Signal (DMRS)

[0062] The DMRS can be a reference signal used by the receiver for equivalent channel estimation. Specifically, the DMRS is used to estimate the equivalent channel matrix experienced by the data channel (such as the physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH)) or the control channel (such as the physical downlink control channel (PDCCH)), thereby enabling data detection and demodulation. For example, assuming the DMRS is s, typically, the DMRS undergoes the same precoding process as the transmitted data (using the same precoding matrix P), and the equivalent received signal at the receiver is y = HPs + n. Based on the DMRS, the equivalent channel HP is estimated for data detection.

[0063] Taking the data channel PDSCH as an example, the DMRS is usually precoded in the same way as the transmitted data signal to ensure that the DMRS and data signal have the same equivalent channel. Assuming the DMRS vector transmitted by the transmitter is s, and the transmitted data symbol vector is x, and the DMRS and data undergo the same precoding operation (multiplied by the same precoding matrix P), the received data signal vector y and DMRS vector r can be represented as follows:

[0064] in, The equivalent channel traversed by the data signal and DMRS can be represented, where n represents additive noise. The receiver can obtain the equivalent channel based on the known DMRS vector s using channel estimation algorithms, such as least squares (LS) channel estimation and minimum mean square error (MMSE) channel estimation. The estimation is based on the equivalent channel, which allows for the demodulation of the data signal.

[0065] With the introduction of Multiple Input Multiple Output (MIMO) technology into wireless communication systems, the transmitter can transmit multiple streams of data on the same time-frequency resources, and the receiver can recover all of them. In this case, DMRS is used to estimate the equivalent channel matrix, whose dimension can be N. R ×R, where N R R represents the number of receive antennas, and R represents the number of transport streams (rank, also known as the number of transport layers or spatial layers). Typically, one DMRS port corresponds to one transport stream, or one DMRS port corresponds to one spatial layer. Therefore, for a MIMO transmission with R transport streams, R DMRS ports are required. To ensure the quality of channel estimation, the DMRS ports corresponding to multiple transport streams are orthogonal ports.

[0066] Different DMRS ports correspond to orthogonal DMRS symbols in the frequency, time-frequency, or code domains. Currently, two DMRS resource mapping types and two DMRS symbol quantity configurations are supported. For single-symbol DMRS configurations, Type 1 DMRS supports a maximum of 4 orthogonal ports; for Type 2 DMRS, a maximum of 6 orthogonal ports are supported. Therefore, currently, a single-symbol DMRS can support a maximum of 6-stream MIMO transmission. With the future deployment of more dense wireless communication devices and the further increase in the number of terminal devices, higher demands are placed on the number of MIMO transmission streams. Furthermore, the continuous evolution of Massive MIMO systems, with the further increase in the number of transmit and receive antennas (network devices support 128T or 256T transmit antennas, and terminals have 8R receive antennas), and more accurate channel information acquisition, can further support higher transmission stream numbers to improve the spectral efficiency of MIMO systems. All of these aspects inevitably require more DMRS ports to support higher transmission stream numbers (more than 6 streams per symbol).

[0067] DMRS is a crucial reference signal for detection at the user receiver. DMRS is transmitted along with the transmitted data channel (PDSCH). NR DMRS ports are orthogonal DMRS ports, meaning that the DMRS symbols corresponding to different DMRS ports are frequency-division multiplexed and code-division multiplexed. For a single DMRS port, to perform channel estimation on different time-frequency resources and ensure the quality of channel estimation, multiple DMRS symbols need to be transmitted across multiple time-frequency resources. DMRS can occupy at least one OFDM symbol in the time domain, and its bandwidth in the frequency domain is the same as the scheduling bandwidth of the scheduled data signal.

[0068] For a single DMRS port, multiple DMRS signals need to be transmitted on different time-frequency resources to perform channel estimation. Multiple DMRS signals corresponding to one port constitute a DMRS sequence. A DMRS sequence comprises multiple DMRS sequence elements. Taking the DMRS reference signal sequence generated from a gold sequence as an example, the nth DMRS sequence element in the DMRS sequence r(n) can be generated using the following formula:

[0069] Where c(n) represents a pseudo-random sequence, and c(n) can be a gold sequence of length 31; for an output length of M PN The sequence c(n), n = 0, 1, ..., M PN -1 can be determined by the following formula: c(n)=(x1(n+N) C )+x2(n+N C ))mod2 x1(n+31)=(x1(n+3)+x1(n))mod2 x2(n+31)=(x2(n+3)+x2(n+2)+x2(n+1)+x2(n))mod2

[0070] Where, N C =1600, the first m-sequence x1(n) can be initialized as x1(0)=1, x1(n)=0, n=1,2,…,30, and the second m-sequence x2(n) can be initialized by parameter c. init Initialization, c init It can be determined by the following formula:

[0071] Where l represents the index of orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) symbols contained in a time slot. This represents the number of symbols contained in an internship. This represents a slot index within a system frame. This represents the initialization parameter, which can take the value 0 or 1. It can be configured by higher-level signaling. It is related to the cell identifier (ID) and can usually be equal to the cell ID. (Initial access phase is generally the cell ID). λ represents the code division multiplexing (CDM) group index corresponding to the DMRS port.

[0072] A DMRS reference signal sequence corresponding to a port is mapped to the corresponding time-frequency resource by multiplying it with the corresponding mask sequence according to a preset time-frequency resource mapping rule. The current protocol defines two types of DMRS configuration methods: Type 1 DMRS and Type 2 DMRS.

[0073] For communication port p (corresponding to DMRS port p), the m-th sequence element r(m) in the corresponding DMRS sequence is mapped to the index (k, l) according to the following rule. p,u On the resource element (RE). Where the index is (k, l) p,u The RE corresponds to an OFDM symbol with index l in the time domain and a subcarrier with index k in the frequency domain. The mapping rule satisfies:

[0074] Where μ represents the subcarrier spacing parameter, This indicates a mapping to index (k, l). p,u The DMRS modulation symbol corresponding to port p of the RE, The symbol index of the starting OFDM symbol or the symbol index of the reference OFDM symbol occupied by the DMRS modulation symbol. w represents the power scaling factor. t (l′) represents the time-domain mask element corresponding to the OFDM symbol with index l′, w f (k′) is the frequency domain mask element corresponding to the subcarrier with index k′, m=2n+k′, and Δ is the subcarrier offset factor.

[0075] For configuration type 1 (Type 1 DMRS) mapping rules, the DMRS port p corresponds to w f (k′), w t The values ​​of (l′) and Δ can be determined according to Table 1.

[0076] Table 1. Type 1 DMRS Parameter Values

[0077] For configuration type 2 (Type 2 DMRS) mapping rules, the w corresponding to DMRS port pf (k′), w t The values ​​of (l′) and Δ can be determined according to Table 2.

[0078] Table 2 Type 2DMRS parameter values

[0079] As shown in Tables 1 and 2, λ represents the index of the orthogonal multiplexing (CDM) group to which port p belongs. DMRS ports within the same orthogonal multiplexing group occupy the same time and frequency resources.

[0080] The time-frequency resource mapping method for Type 1 DMRS is shown in Figure 2(a). For a single-symbol DMRS (corresponding to l′=0), a maximum of 4 ports are supported, and the DMRS resource occupies one OFDM symbol. The 4 DMRS ports are divided into 2 code division multiplexing groups (CDM groups), where CDM group 0 contains port 0 and port 1; CDM group 1 contains port 2 and port 3. CDM group 0 and CDM group 1 are frequency division multiplexed (mapped on different frequency domain resources). The DMRS ports contained in a CDM group are mapped on the same time-frequency resources. The reference signals corresponding to the DMRS ports contained in a CDM group are distinguished by an orthogonal cover code (OCC), thereby ensuring the orthogonality of the DMRS ports within the CDM group and suppressing interference between DMRS transmitted on different antenna ports. Specifically, port 0 and port 1 are located in the same resource particle (RE), and the resources are mapped in the frequency domain in a comb-like manner, that is, the adjacent frequency domain resources occupied by port 0 and port 1 are separated by a subcarrier. For a DMRS port, the two adjacent REs occupied correspond to an OCC codeword sequence of length 2. For example, for subcarrier 0 and subcarrier 2, port 0 and port 1 use a set of OCC codeword sequences of length 2 (+1+1 and +1-1). Similarly, port 2 and port 3 are located in the same resource particles (REs) and are mapped in the frequency domain in a comb-like manner onto the unoccupied REs of port 0 and port 1. For subcarrier 1 and subcarrier 3, port 2 and port 3 use a set of OCC codeword sequences of length 2 (+1+1 and +1-1). For dual-symbol DMRS, a maximum of 8 ports are supported. The 8 DMRS ports are divided into 2 code division multiplexing groups (CDM groups), where CDM group 0 contains port 0, port 1, port 4, and port 5; and CDM group 1 contains port 2, port 3, port 6, and port 7. CDM group 0 and CDM group 1 are frequency division multiplexing (FDM). The reference signals corresponding to the DMRS ports within a CDM group are distinguished by OCC (Optical Code Classification). Specifically, ports 0, 1, 4, and 5 are located within the same resource element (RE), and resource mapping in the frequency domain is performed in a comb-like manner. That is, adjacent frequency domain resources occupied by ports 0, 1, 4, and 5 are separated by a subcarrier. For a DMRS port, the two adjacent subcarriers and two OFDM symbols occupying the port correspond to an OCC codeword sequence of length 4.For example, for subcarriers 0 and 2 corresponding to OFDM symbols 1 and 2, ports 0, 1, 4, and 5 use a set of OCC codes of length 4 (+1+1+1+1 / +1+1-1-1 / +1-1+1-1 / +1-1-1+1). Similarly, ports 2, 3, 6, and 7 are located within the same resource particles (REs) and are mapped in the frequency domain in a comb-like manner onto the unoccupied subcarriers of ports 0, 1, 4, and 5. For subcarriers 1 and 3 corresponding to OFDM symbols 1 and 2, ports 2, 3, 6, and 7 use a set of OCC codes of length 4 (+1+1+1+1 / +1+1-1-1 / +1-1+1-1 / +1-1-1+1).

[0081] For configuration type 2, the time-frequency resource mapping method is shown in Figure 2(b). For single-symbol Type 2 DMRS, a maximum of 6 ports are supported. The 6 DMRS ports are divided into 3 code division multiplexing groups (CDM groups). Frequency division multiplexing is used between CDM groups, and the reference signals corresponding to the DMRS ports within a CDM are guaranteed to be orthogonal through OCC. CDM group 0 includes port 0 and port 1; CDM group 1 includes port 2 and port 3; and CDM group 2 includes port 4 and port 5. Frequency division multiplexing is used between CDM groups (mapped onto different frequency domain resources). The reference signals corresponding to the DMRS ports within a CDM group are mapped onto the same time-frequency resources. The reference signals corresponding to the DMRS ports within a CDM group are distinguished through OCC. For a DMRS port, its corresponding DMRS reference signal is mapped in the frequency domain into multiple resource sub-blocks containing two consecutive subcarriers, with adjacent resource sub-blocks spaced 4 subcarriers apart in the frequency domain. Specifically, port 0 and port 1 are located within the same resource particle (RE) and are mapped in a comb-like manner. Taking a frequency domain resource granularity of 1 RB as an example, port 0 and port 1 occupy subcarriers 0, 1, 6, and 7. Port 2 and port 3 occupy subcarriers 2, 3, 8, and 9. Port 4 and port 5 occupy subcarriers 4, 5, 10, and 11. For two DMRS ports contained within a CDM group, there are corresponding OCC codeword sequences of length 2 (+1+1 and +1-1) within two adjacent subcarriers.

[0082] For dual-symbol DMRS, a maximum of 12 ports are supported. These 12 DMRS ports are divided into 3 CDM groups. Frequency division multiplexing is used between CDM groups, and the reference signals corresponding to the DMRS ports within a CDM are ensured orthogonality through OCC. CDM group 0 includes ports 0, 1, 6, and 7; CDM group 1 includes ports 2, 3, 8, and 9; and CDM group 2 includes ports 4, 5, 10, and 11. Frequency division multiplexing is used between CDM groups (mapped onto different frequency domain resources). The reference signals corresponding to the DMRS ports within a CDM group are mapped onto the same time-frequency resources. The reference signals corresponding to the DMRS ports within a CDM group are distinguished through OCC. For a single DMRS port, its corresponding DMRS reference signal is mapped in the frequency domain into multiple resource sub-blocks containing two consecutive subcarriers, with adjacent resource sub-blocks spaced four subcarriers apart in the frequency domain. Specifically, ports within a CDM group reside within the same resource particle (RE), and are mapped in the frequency domain using a comb-like manner. Taking a frequency domain resource granularity of 1 RB as an example, ports 0, 1, 6, and 7 occupy subcarriers 0, 1, 6, and 7 corresponding to OFDM symbol 1 and OFDM symbol 2, respectively. Ports 2, 3, 8, and 9 occupy subcarriers 2, 3, 8, and 9 corresponding to OFDM symbol 1 and OFDM symbol 2, respectively. Ports 4, 5, 10, and 11 occupy subcarriers 4, 5, 10, and 11 corresponding to OFDM symbol 1 and OFDM symbol 2, respectively. For a CDM group containing 4 DMRS ports, there is an OCC codeword sequence of length 4 in the two adjacent subcarriers corresponding to the 2 OFDM symbols (+1+1+1+1 / +1+1-1-1 / +1-1+1-1 / +1-1-1+1).

[0083] R18 further expands the number of DMRS ports. As shown in Figure 3, it uses 4-length OCC codewords in the frequency domain (4-length codewords use DFT sequences, which can construct 4 orthogonal ports, while 2-length codewords can only construct 2 orthogonal ports), enabling the number of ports to double. That is, Type 1 DMRS supports up to 16 ports, and Type 2 DMRS supports up to 24 ports.

[0084] Future antenna architectures offer greater flexibility (e.g., 128T on the network device side, 8R and 16R on the network device side) to enable more stream transmissions. At the same time, the number of users will increase further in the future (potentially increasing the number of MU paired users, i.e., multiple users occupying the same time and frequency resources to send or receive signals), thus requiring more DMRS ports.

[0085] Since different DMRS ports rely on frequency division multiplexing, time division multiplexing, or code division multiplexing to achieve orthogonality, and time-frequency resources and the set of orthogonal codewords are finite, expanding the number of existing orthogonal DMRS ports can generally be achieved by increasing the time-frequency resources occupied by the DMRS. This method ensures that the number of DMRS symbol resources corresponding to each DMRS port remains unchanged; however, the increased DMRS overhead will also reduce the spectral efficiency of the system. If a longer frequency domain OCC evolution approach is followed, the effective DMRS distribution in the frequency domain will become increasingly sparse, leading to a loss of channel estimation accuracy. Another approach is to reuse more DMRS symbols corresponding to non-orthogonal DMRS ports while maintaining the same time-frequency resources (overhead). Currently, the protocol supports using different initial values ​​of the gold sequence to construct non-orthogonal sequences (…). The initialization parameter can take the value 0 or 1. However, in actual configurations, considering the frequency domain resources to be scheduled, the gold sequence needs to be truncated, resulting in high cross-correlation between the two base sequences, and c init Other parameters and time-frequency resources are related to the CDM group, and only two sets of base sequences can be configured, which is a small number and cannot effectively eliminate DMRS interference between multiple users. Therefore, the problem to be solved is how to introduce new DMRS ports on the basis of existing NR DMRS ports without increasing additional time-frequency resource overhead, while ensuring minimal loss of channel estimation performance.

[0086] This application proposes a communication method that can increase the number of reference signal ports without increasing the resource overhead of the reference signal ports. The following embodiments will describe these methods. In the various embodiments of this application, unless otherwise specified or logically conflicting, the terminology and / or descriptions between different embodiments are consistent and can be mutually referenced. Technical features in different embodiments can be combined to form new embodiments based on their inherent logical relationships.

[0087] The communication method provided in the embodiments of this application is described below. It should be understood that this application uses a network device and a terminal device as examples to illustrate the execution of this interaction. It should be understood that the network device in the following method can correspond to, for example, network device 110 in Figure 1, and the terminal device can be any one of multiple terminal devices communicatively connected to the network device, such as any one of terminal devices 120 in Figure 1. This application does not limit the execution subject of the interaction. For example, the method executed by the network device in this application can also be executed by a module applied to the network device (e.g., a chip, chip system, or processor), or by a logical node, logical module, or software capable of implementing all or part of the functions of the network device; similarly, the method executed by the terminal device in this application can also be executed by a module applied to the terminal device (e.g., a chip, chip system, or processor), or by a logical node, logical module, or software capable of implementing all or part of the functions of the terminal device.

[0088] The following describes the communication method of this application embodiment using DMRS as an example, in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. It should be noted that the description of the technical solution of this application embodiment using DMRS as an example should not constitute any limitation on this application. The reference signal in this application can be any reference signal that can be used for channel estimation, such as a cell-specific reference signal (CRS), or other reference signals that can be used to achieve the same or similar functions. In future communication systems, the name of this reference signal may change, but as long as it is essentially no different from DMRS, the technical solution of this application should be applicable.

[0089] It is understood that the "codeword" in the embodiments of this application can also be called a "sequence", and the two can be used interchangeably, which will be explained uniformly here.

[0090] Please refer to Figure 4, which is an interactive schematic diagram of a communication method provided in an embodiment of this application. As shown in Figure 4, the communication method may include at least the following steps.

[0091] S401. The terminal device acquires a reference signal, which is used for data channel demodulation. The reference signal is determined based on a first sequence and a first mask sequence, wherein the first mask sequence includes a second mask sequence and a third mask sequence.

[0092] The terminal device can acquire (or generate) a reference signal, which can be used for data channel demodulation. For example, the reference signal could be a DMRS.

[0093] The reference signal can be determined based on a first sequence and a first mask sequence. The first mask sequence includes a second mask sequence and a third mask sequence. The third mask sequence includes N mask sequences, where N is an integer greater than or equal to 1. The first mask sequence is the Kronecker product of the second and third mask sequences. The second mask sequence is one of the sets of first mask sequences, and all mask sequences in the first mask sequence set are pairwise orthogonal. The N mask sequences included in the third mask sequence are N mask sequences from M sets of second mask sequences, and the mask sequences in each of the M sets of second mask sequences are not orthogonal to each other, where M ≤ N. For the N mask sequences included in the third mask sequence, the third mask sequence is the Kronecker product of the N mask sequences.

[0094] Specifically, for the first set of mask sequences, all mask sequences in the first set of mask sequences have the same sequence length, and the second mask sequence can be any mask sequence in the first set of mask sequences.

[0095] For a set of M second mask sequences:

[0096] If M = N, then the third mask sequence includes N mask sequences that correspond one-to-one with M sets of second mask sequences. That is, one mask sequence is any one of the mask sequences in one of the sets of second mask sequences, and the N mask sequences are selected from each of the M sets of second mask sequences. For example, if M = N = 2, meaning the third mask sequence includes 2 mask sequences and there are 2 sets of second mask sequences, then the first mask sequence can be selected from the first set of second mask sequences, and the second mask sequence can be selected from the second set of second mask sequences; or the first mask sequence can be selected from the second set of second mask sequences, and the second mask sequence can be selected from the first set of second mask sequences.

[0097] If M < N, then the N mask sequences included in the third mask sequence have a one-to-many or many-to-many correspondence with the M sets of second mask sequences. For example, the N mask sequences are selected from the same set of second mask sequences, or certain mask sequences can be selected from the same set of second mask sequences. Furthermore, for the same set of second mask sequences, all mask sequences in the set have the same sequence length. For the M sets of second mask sequences, the sequence lengths of the mask sequences included in different sets can be the same or different. For example, M=2, N=3, meaning the third mask sequence includes 3 mask sequences and there are 2 sets of second mask sequences. Then, the first to third mask sequences can all be selected from the first set of second mask sequences; or the first to second mask sequences can all be selected from the first set of second mask sequences, and the third mask sequence can be selected from the second set of second mask sequences; or the first mask sequence can be selected from the first set of second mask sequences, and the second to third mask sequences can be selected from the second set of second mask sequences.

[0098] The third mask sequence may include one or more mask sequences (i.e., N≥1). For example, if the third mask sequence includes two mask sequences, such as [f1,f2] and [f3,f4], then the third mask sequence can be sent at the reference signal ports p=1000 and p=1008 respectively.

[0099] It can be seen that the reference signal can be constructed based on multiple sequences, or it can be understood as constructing a multi-level nested structure for the reference signal. For example, the first level is the first sequence, which is the base sequence; the second level is the second mask sequence; and the third to N+2 levels are the N mask sequences included in the third mask sequence, as shown in the following formula, where the first sequence is surrounded by multiple layers of mask sequences (including the second and third mask sequences):

[0100] Among them, reference signal It can be based on the first sequence r(n), the second mask sequence d(g1), and the third mask sequence including c(g2), e(g3), ..., f(g... n+2 Composed of ) the first mask sequence. The second mask sequence d(g1) and the third mask sequences c(g2), e(g3), ..., f(g) are given. n+2 The Kronecker product of ) and the third mask sequence It is the Kronecker product of N mask sequences.

[0101] For example, if the first sequence is [a,b,c,d], the second mask sequence is [e1,e2], and the third mask sequence is [f1,f2], then the reference signal sequence can be [ae1f1,be2f1,ce1f2,de2f2].

[0102] The design principles for the reference signal sequence can be:

[0103] The first sequence ensures high capacity to guarantee interference randomization in time-frequency resources (specifically, the first sequence needs to carry time-frequency resource information; for example, the first sequence can be a gold sequence, with some registers carrying the current slot number, OFDM index, etc. during sequence initialization). Further optionally, for maximum DMRS capacity, the first sequence can be an NR gold sequence or an m-sequence pair. For both m-sequences in the m-sequence pair, cyclic shifting is used; one m-sequence maintains the existing design (see the description of m-sequences below), while the cyclic shift of the other m-sequence is used to construct multiple DMRS ports. It should be noted that maximum DMRS capacity here can be understood as accommodating a larger number of streams. For example, for Massive MIMO scenarios, unlike the current DMRS ports which support a maximum of 48 DMRS ports, the future number of transmitted streams will approach 100, requiring nearly 100 DMRS ports.

[0104] The second mask sequence can be an orthogonal OCC codeword. For example, the second mask sequence can be a Hadamard sequence or a DFT sequence, where the Hadamard sequence can represent each row / column of the Hadamard matrix, and the DFT sequence can represent each row / column of the DFT matrix.

[0105] The third mask sequence comprises N mask sequences that can be low cross-correlated phase sequences. For example, a sequence with the value set {1, -1, j, -j} guarantees low despreading complexity. This low complexity stems from the value set; multiplying by 1 / -1 represents inversion, and multiplying by j / -j represents inverting / interchanging the real and imaginary parts. The elements of the sequence with the value set {1, -1, j, -j} can be viewed as 0 / 1 bits modulated using binary phase shift keying (BPSK) or quadrature phase shift keying (QPSK).

[0106] For example, the third mask sequence can be an m-sequence or a Z4 sequence, etc.

[0107] Furthermore, due to frequency selection, the N mask sequences included in the third mask sequence cannot be completely orthogonal. Therefore, a low cross-correlation sequence can be selected as the N mask sequences in the third mask sequence.

[0108] The m sequence and Z4 sequence are described below:

[0109] The m-sequence is short for the longest linear feedback shift register sequence, which is the longest-period sequence generated by a shift register with linear feedback. Generally, the longest period generated by an n-stage linear feedback shift register is 2^n. n -1. Please refer to Figure 5, which is a schematic diagram of the basic structure of a feedback shift register provided in an embodiment of this application. As shown in Figure 5, the bit data used for initialization is stored in memory, and new values ​​are generated and added to memory through a feedback function. Assume the feedback function performs an XOR operation on all bits in memory. Then the output sequence is:

[0110] The m-sequence is determined by the initial bit values ​​stored in the register and the primitive polynomial, where the order of the primitive polynomial is the highest power of the polynomial. For example, f(x) = x 7 The recursive formula corresponding to +x+1 is s(t)+s(t-6)+s(t-7)=0. For binary addition, it is defined as modulo 2 addition, that is, -1=1, 1+1=0, 1+0=1, 0+0=0. Therefore, the above formula can be transformed into the recursive formula s(t)=s(t-6)+s(t-7).

[0111] Generally, for multivariate or binary sequences, consider the primitive polynomial: a i For any ∈{0,1,2,…M}, if it is a binary sequence, M=1; if it is a quaternion sequence, M=3, and so on. The recursive formula is: For a quaternion sequence, the operations are defined on {0,1,2,3}, meaning the result of the operation must be modulo 4, i.e., -1 = 3, -2 = 2, -3 = 1.

[0112] The Z4 sequence has the same period as the binary gold sequence of the same length, with a value set of {0, 1, 2, 3}. It can be obtained as a complex signal using QPSK modulation. Similar to the gold sequence, the Z4 sequence can be generated using a circular shift register. The generation of the Z4 sequence is similar to that of the m-sequence, except that the Z4 sequence is defined on a four-element ring of {0, 1, 2, 3}. Therefore, addition and subtraction must be modulo 4. The specific recursive formula for the sequence can be found in the description above.

[0113] For example, in a Type 1 DMRS mapping rule, the DMRS port p corresponds to w f (k′), w t (l′), and the value of the third mask sequence, can be determined according to Tables 3 and 4. In Table 3, the third mask sequence can include one mask sequence (i.e., N=1), and in Table 4, the third mask sequence can include multiple mask sequences, such as two mask sequences (i.e., N=2). Specifically:

[0114] Table 3 Type 1 DMRS Parameter Values

[0115] As shown in Table 3, for port p = 1000, the first sequence is the base sequence using the gold sequence, the second mask sequence is [+1,+1], and the third mask sequence is [+1,-1,-1]. For port p = 1001, the first sequence is the base sequence using the gold sequence, the second mask sequence is [+1,-1], and the third mask sequence is [1,-1,-1].

[0116] Table 4 Type 1 DMRS Parameter Values

[0117] As shown in Table 3, for port p = 1000, the first sequence is the base sequence using the gold sequence, the second mask sequence is [+1,+1], and the third mask sequence is [+1,-1,-1] and [1,1,j,-1,-j,j,j]. For port p = 1001, the first sequence is the base sequence using the gold sequence, the second mask sequence is [+1,-1], and the third mask sequence is [1,-1,-1] and [1,1,j,-1,-j,j,j].

[0118] For configuration type 2 (Type 2 DMRS) mapping rules, the DMRS port p corresponds to w f (k′), w t The values ​​of (l′) and the third mask sequence can be determined according to Tables 5 and 6. In Table 5, the third mask sequence can include one mask sequence (i.e., N=1), and in Table 6, the third mask sequence can include multiple mask sequences, such as two mask sequences (i.e., N=2). Specifically:

[0119] Table 5 Type 2 DMRS Parameter Values

[0120] As shown in Table 5, for port p = 1000, the first sequence is the base sequence using the gold sequence, the second mask sequence is [+1,+1,+1,+1], and the third mask sequence is [1,-1,-1]. For port p = 1001, the first sequence is the base sequence using the gold sequence, the second mask sequence is [+1,-1,+1,+1], and the third mask sequence is [1,-1,-1].

[0121] Table 6 Type 2 DMRS Parameter Values

[0122] As shown in Table 6, for port p = 1000, the first sequence is the base sequence using the gold sequence, the second mask sequence is [+1,+1,+1,+1], and the third mask sequence is [+1,-1,-1] and [1,1,j,-1,-j,j,j]. For port p = 1001, the first sequence is the base sequence using the gold sequence, the second mask sequence is [+1,-1,+1,+1], and the third mask sequence is [1,-1,-1] and [1,1,j,-1,-j,j,j].

[0123] It should be understood that the second and third mask sequences provided in this application are for DMRS sequences transmitted within one OFDM symbol. If the system is configured with two OFDM symbols for transmitting DMRS, the number of DMRS ports on different OFDM symbols can be further increased through the TD-OCC protocol in the existing protocol.

[0124] In summary, regarding the reference signals acquired by the terminal device, the following are examples of two types of reference signals:

[0125] For example, please refer to Figure 6, which is a schematic diagram of a Type 1 DMRS based on three sequences provided in an embodiment of this application. As shown in Figure 6, the first sequence is the base sequence r, such as the gold sequence, the second mask sequence d is the frequency domain orthogonal cover code (FD-OCC) 2 codeword, and the third mask sequence c uses the m sequence [-1,1,-1] (different ports can use the cyclic shift of this sequence [1,-1,-1] and [-1,-1,1]). For example, r = [r(0),…,r(7)], d = [1,1], c = [-1,1,-1], d×c = [-1,-1,1,1,-1,-1].

[0126] For example, please refer to Figure 7, which is a schematic diagram of a Type 1 DMRS expansion based on four sequences provided in an embodiment of this application. As shown in Figure 7, the first sequence r is the base sequence, such as the gold sequence, the second mask sequence d is the FD-OCC 2 codeword, and the third mask sequence includes two mask sequences c and e, which can be Z4 sequence and m sequence respectively. For example, r = [r(0),…,r(7)], d = [1,1], c = [1,-1], e = [1,j], d×c = [1,1,-1,-1], d×c×e = [1,1,-1,-1,j,j,-j,-j].

[0127] Optionally, the terminal device can also receive indication information from the network device, which can be used to indicate the value of N. The network device can determine the value of N based on the capacity of the reference signal and indicate it to the terminal device. That is, the network device can dynamically select the number of reference signal sequences to generate based on the required reference signal capacity, and can flexibly adjust the priority of channel estimation accuracy and capacity requirements. It is understood that this step can be sent before S401 or simultaneously with S401. This embodiment of the application does not limit the execution order of this step and S401.

[0128] S402. The terminal device sends a reference signal to the network device. Correspondingly, the network device receives the reference signal from the terminal device.

[0129] After obtaining the reference signal, the terminal device can send the reference signal to the network device.

[0130] It is understood that the various numerical designations used in the embodiments of this application are merely for descriptive convenience and are not intended to limit the scope of the embodiments of this application. The order of the process numbers described above does not imply the order of execution; the execution order of each process should be determined by its function and internal logic.

[0131] In this embodiment, the terminal device can increase the number of reference signal ports without increasing the resource overhead of the reference signal ports by acquiring reference signals based on multiple different sequences that maintain low cross-correlation. In this embodiment, the initial value of the first sequence (e.g., the gold sequence) does not need to be changed, and the design based on the third mask sequence (N mask sequences) can achieve lower cross-correlation than the truncated gold sequence, thereby improving the anti-interference capability of the reference signal and improving the channel estimation performance.

[0132] It is understood that, in order to implement the functions in the above embodiments, the terminal device and network device include hardware structures and / or software modules corresponding to perform each function. Those skilled in the art should readily recognize that, based on the units and method steps of the various examples described in conjunction with the embodiments disclosed in this application, this application can be implemented in hardware or a combination of hardware and computer software. Whether a function is executed in hardware or by computer software driving hardware depends on the specific application scenario and design constraints of the technical solution.

[0133] Figures 8 and 9 are schematic diagrams of possible communication devices provided in embodiments of this application. These communication devices can be used to implement the functions of terminal devices or network devices in the above method embodiments, and thus can also achieve the beneficial effects of the above method embodiments. The communication device can be a terminal device or a network device. The communication device includes modules or units corresponding to the methods / operations / steps / actions performed by the terminal devices or network devices in the above method embodiments. The unit can be a hardware circuit, software, or a combination of hardware circuit and software. In the embodiments of this application, the communication device can be one or more of the terminal devices 120 shown in Figure 1, or one or more of the network devices 110 shown in Figure 1, or a module (such as a chip) applied to a terminal device or network device.

[0134] As shown in Figure 8, the communication device 800 may include a processing unit 801 and a transceiver unit 802. The communication device 800 is used to implement the functions of the terminal device or network device in the method embodiment shown in Figure 4 above.

[0135] When the communication device 800 is used to implement the functions of the terminal device in the method embodiment shown in FIG4:

[0136] Processing unit 801 is used to acquire a reference signal, which is used for data channel demodulation. The reference signal is determined based on a first sequence and a first mask sequence. The first mask sequence includes a second mask sequence and a third mask sequence. The third mask sequence includes N mask sequences, where N is an integer greater than or equal to 1. The first mask sequence is the Kronecker product of the second and third mask sequences. The second mask sequence is one of the first mask sequence sets, and each mask sequence in the first mask sequence set is pairwise orthogonal. The N mask sequences included in the third mask sequence are N mask sequences from M sets of second mask sequences, and the mask sequences in each of the M sets of second mask sequences are not orthogonal to each other, where M ≤ N.

[0137] The transceiver unit 802 is used to transmit reference signals.

[0138] Optionally, for the N mask sequences included in the third mask sequence, the third mask sequence is the Kronecker product of the N mask sequences.

[0139] Optionally, each of the N mask sequences included in the third mask sequence is an m-sequence or a Z4 sequence.

[0140] Optionally, the transceiver unit 802 is also configured to receive indication information from the network device, the indication information being used to indicate the value of N.

[0141] Optionally, the first sequence is the gold sequence.

[0142] Optionally, the second mask sequence can be a Hadamard sequence or a DFT sequence.

[0143] When the communication device 800 is used to implement the function of the network device in the method embodiment shown in FIG4:

[0144] The transceiver unit 802 is used to receive a reference signal, which is used for demodulation of the data channel. The reference signal is determined based on a first sequence and a first mask sequence. The first mask sequence includes a second mask sequence and a third mask sequence. The third mask sequence includes N mask sequences, where N is an integer greater than or equal to 1. The first mask sequence is the Kronecker product of the second and third mask sequences. The second mask sequence is one of the first mask sequence sets, and each mask sequence in the first mask sequence set is pairwise orthogonal. The N mask sequences included in the third mask sequence are N mask sequences from M sets of second mask sequences, and the mask sequences in each of the M sets of second mask sequences are not orthogonal to each other, where M ≤ N.

[0145] Optionally, for the N mask sequences included in the third mask sequence, the third mask sequence is the Kronecker product of the N mask sequences.

[0146] Optionally, each of the N mask sequences included in the third mask sequence is an m-sequence or a Z4 sequence.

[0147] Optionally, the processing unit 801 is also configured to determine the value of N based on the capacity of the reference signal;

[0148] The transceiver unit 802 is also used to send indication information to the terminal device, the indication information being used to indicate the value of N.

[0149] Optionally, the first sequence is the gold sequence.

[0150] Optionally, the second mask sequence can be a Hadamard sequence or a DFT sequence.

[0151] For a more detailed description of the above-mentioned processing unit 801 and transceiver unit 802, please refer to the relevant description in the method embodiment shown in Figure 4.

[0152] Figure 9 shows a communication device 900 used to implement the functions of the aforementioned terminal device or network device. This device can be a communication device or a device used within a communication device. The communication device can be a terminal device or a network device. The device used within the communication device can be a chip system or a chip within the communication device. The chip system can be composed of chips or can include chips and other discrete components.

[0153] The communication device 900 includes at least one processor 910 for implementing the processing functions of the device (e.g., a terminal device or a network device) in the methods provided in this application embodiment. The communication device 900 may also include a communication interface 920 for implementing the transmit and receive operations of the device (e.g., a terminal device or a network device) in the methods provided in this application embodiment. In this application embodiment, the communication interface may be a transceiver, circuit, bus, module, or other type of communication interface for communicating with other devices via a transmission medium. For example, the communication interface 920 enables the device in the communication device 900 to communicate with other devices. The processor 910 uses the communication interface 920 to transmit and receive data and is used to implement the methods described in the above method embodiments.

[0154] The communication device 900 may further include at least one memory 930 for storing program instructions and / or data. The memory 930 is coupled to the processor 910. The coupling in this embodiment is an indirect coupling or communication connection between devices, units, or modules, and may be electrical, mechanical, or other forms, for information exchange between devices, units, or modules. The processor 910 may operate in conjunction with the memory 930. The processor 910 may execute program instructions stored in the memory 930. At least one of the at least one memories may be included in the processor.

[0155] This embodiment does not limit the specific connection medium between the communication interface 920, processor 910, and memory 930. In Figure 9, the memory 930, processor 910, and communication interface 920 are connected via a bus, indicated by a thick line. The connection methods between other components are merely illustrative and not intended to be limiting. The bus can be categorized as an address bus, data bus, control bus, etc. For ease of illustration, only one thick line is used in Figure 9, but this does not imply that there is only one bus or one type of bus.

[0156] When the communication device 900 is specifically a device for use with equipment (such as terminal equipment or network equipment), for example, when the communication device 900 is specifically a chip or chip system, the communication interface 920 may output or receive baseband signals. When the communication device 900 is specifically a device (such as terminal equipment or network equipment), the communication interface 920 may output or receive radio frequency signals. In the embodiments of this application, the processor may be a general-purpose processor, a digital signal processor, an application-specific integrated circuit, a field-programmable gate array or other programmable logic device, a discrete gate or transistor logic device, or a discrete hardware component, which can implement or execute the various methods, steps, and logic block diagrams disclosed in the embodiments of this application. The general-purpose processor may be a microprocessor or any conventional processor, etc. The steps of the methods disclosed in the embodiments of this application can be directly manifested as being executed by a hardware processor, or being executed by a combination of hardware and software modules in the processor.

[0157] It should be noted that the aforementioned communication interface 920 can be used to perform the functions of the aforementioned transceiver unit 802, and the aforementioned processor 910 can be used to perform the functions of the aforementioned processing unit 801, which will not be elaborated further here.

[0158] When the aforementioned communication device is a chip applied to a terminal device, the terminal chip implements the functions of the terminal device in the above method embodiments, and the terminal chip receives information from other network elements; or, the terminal chip sends information to other network elements.

[0159] When the aforementioned communication device is a chip used in a network device, the network device chip implements the functions of the network device in the above method embodiments. The network device chip receives information from other network elements; or, the network device chip sends information to other network elements.

[0160] It is understood that the processor in the embodiments of this application can be a central processing unit (CPU), or other general-purpose processors, digital signal processors (DSPs), application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs), field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), or other programmable logic devices, transistor logic devices, hardware components, or any combination thereof. A general-purpose processor can be a microprocessor or any conventional processor.

[0161] The method steps in the embodiments of this application can be implemented in hardware or by a processor executing software instructions. The software instructions can consist of corresponding software modules, which can be stored in random access memory (RAM), flash memory, read-only memory (ROM), programmable read-only memory (PROM), erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM), electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), registers, hard disks, portable hard disks, CD-ROMs, or any other form of storage medium known in the art. An exemplary storage medium is coupled to a processor, enabling the processor to read information from and write information to the storage medium. Of course, the storage medium can also be a component of the processor. The processor and storage medium can reside in an ASIC. Alternatively, the ASIC can reside in an access network device or terminal. Of course, the processor and storage medium can also exist as discrete components in the terminal or access network device.

[0162] In the above embodiments, implementation can be achieved entirely or partially through software, hardware, firmware, or any combination thereof. When implemented using software, it can be implemented entirely or partially in the form of a computer program product. The computer program product includes one or more computer programs or instructions. When the computer program or instructions are loaded and executed on a computer, the processes or functions described in the embodiments of this application are performed entirely or partially. The computer can be a general-purpose computer, a special-purpose computer, a computer network, or other programmable devices. The computer program or instructions can be stored in a computer-readable storage medium or transmitted through the computer-readable storage medium. The computer-readable storage medium can be any available medium that a computer can access or a data storage device such as a server that integrates one or more available media. The available medium can be a magnetic medium, such as a floppy disk, hard disk, or magnetic tape; it can also be an optical medium, such as a DVD; or it can be a semiconductor medium, such as a solid-state disk (SSD).

[0163] In the various embodiments of this application, unless otherwise specified or in case of logical conflict, the terminology and / or descriptions of different embodiments are consistent and can be referenced by each other. The technical features of different embodiments can be combined to form new embodiments according to their inherent logical relationship.

[0164] It is understood that the various numerical designations used in the embodiments of this application are merely for descriptive convenience and are not intended to limit the scope of the embodiments of this application. The order of the process numbers described above does not imply the order of execution; the execution order of each process should be determined by its function and internal logic.

[0165] This application also provides a computer-readable storage medium storing computer-executable instructions. When the computer-executable instructions are executed, the method executed by the terminal device or network device in the above method embodiments is implemented.

[0166] This application also provides a computer program product, which includes a computer program that, when executed, causes the method executed by the terminal device or network device in the above method embodiments to be implemented.

[0167] This application also provides a communication system, which includes a terminal device and a network device. The terminal device is used to execute the method described in the above method embodiments, and the network device is used to execute the method described in the above method embodiments.

[0168] It should be noted that, for the sake of simplicity, the foregoing method embodiments are all described as a series of actions. However, those skilled in the art should understand that this application is not limited to the described order of actions, as some steps may be performed in other orders or simultaneously according to this application. Furthermore, those skilled in the art should also understand that the embodiments described in the specification are preferred embodiments, and the actions and modules involved are not necessarily essential to this application.

[0169] The descriptions of the various embodiments provided in this application can be referenced mutually. Each embodiment has its own emphasis, and parts not described in detail in a certain embodiment can be referred to the relevant descriptions of other embodiments. For the sake of convenience and brevity, for example, the functions and execution steps of the various devices and equipment provided in the embodiments of this application can be referred to the relevant descriptions of the method embodiments of this application. The method embodiments and the device embodiments can also be referenced, combined or cited from each other.

[0170] Finally, it should be noted that the above embodiments are only used to illustrate the technical solutions of this application, and are not intended to limit them. Although this application has been described in detail with reference to the foregoing embodiments, those skilled in the art should understand that modifications can still be made to the technical solutions described in the foregoing embodiments, or equivalent substitutions can be made to some or all of the technical features therein. Such modifications or substitutions do not cause the essence of the corresponding technical solutions to deviate from the scope of the technical solutions of the embodiments of this application.

Claims

1. A communication method characterized by comprising: The method comprises: obtaining a reference signal, the reference signal being used for data channel demodulation, the reference signal being determined based on a first sequence and a first mask sequence, the first mask sequence comprising a second mask sequence and a third mask sequence, the third mask sequence comprising N mask sequences, N being an integer greater than or equal to 1; wherein the first mask sequence is a Kronecker product of the second mask sequence and the third mask sequence; the second mask sequence is one of a first mask sequence set, mask sequences in the first mask sequence set are pairwise orthogonal, the third mask sequence comprises N mask sequences in M second mask sequence sets, mask sequences in each second mask sequence set in the M second mask sequence sets are not orthogonal, and M ≤ N; sending the reference signal.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein, For the N mask sequences included in the third mask sequence, the third mask sequence is a Kronecker product of the N mask sequences.

3. The method according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that, Each mask sequence in the N mask sequences included in the third mask sequence is an m sequence or a Z4 sequence.

4. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that, The method further comprises: receiving indication information from a network device, the indication information being used to indicate the value of N.

5. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that, The first sequence is a gold sequence.

6. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that, The second mask sequence is a Hadamard sequence or a discrete Fourier transform (DFT) sequence.

7. A communication method characterized by comprising: The method comprises: receiving a reference signal, the reference signal being used for data channel demodulation, the reference signal being determined based on a first sequence and a first mask sequence, the first mask sequence comprising a second mask sequence and a third mask sequence, the third mask sequence comprising N mask sequences, N being an integer greater than or equal to 1; wherein the first mask sequence is a Kronecker product of the second mask sequence and the third mask sequence; the second mask sequence is one of a first mask sequence set, mask sequences in the first mask sequence set are pairwise orthogonal, the third mask sequence comprises N mask sequences in M second mask sequence sets, mask sequences in each second mask sequence set in the M second mask sequence sets are not orthogonal, and M ≤ N.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein, For the N mask sequences included in the third mask sequence, the third mask sequence is a Kronecker product of the N mask sequences.

9. The method according to claim 7 or 8, characterized in that, Each mask sequence in the N mask sequences included in the third mask sequence is an m sequence or a Z4 sequence.

10. The method according to any one of claims 7-9, characterized in that, The method further comprises: determining the value of N according to the capacity of the reference signal; sending indication information to a terminal device, the indication information being used to indicate the value of N.

11. The method according to any one of claims 7-10, characterized in that, The first sequence is a gold sequence.

12. The method according to any one of claims 7-11, characterized in that, The second mask sequence is a Hadamard sequence or a discrete Fourier transform (DFT) sequence.

13. A communications device, characterized by The method comprises: a processing unit, configured to obtain a reference signal, the reference signal being used for data channel demodulation, the reference signal being determined based on a first sequence and a first mask sequence, the first mask sequence comprising a second mask sequence and a third mask sequence, the third mask sequence comprising N mask sequences, N being an integer greater than or equal to 1; The first mask sequence is a Kronecker product of the second mask sequence and the third mask sequence. The second mask sequence is one of a first mask sequence set, each mask sequence in the first mask sequence set is orthogonal to each other, and the third mask sequence includes N mask sequences in M second mask sequence sets, each mask sequence in each second mask sequence set in the M second mask sequence sets is not orthogonal to each other, and M is less than or equal to N. The transceiver is configured to send the reference signal.

14. The apparatus of claim 13, wherein, For the N mask sequences included in the third mask sequence, the third mask sequence is a Kronecker product of the N mask sequences.

15. The apparatus of claim 13 or 14, wherein, Each mask sequence in the N mask sequences included in the third mask sequence is an m sequence or a Z4 sequence.

16. The apparatus of any one of claims 13-15, wherein, The transceiver is further configured to receive indication information from the network device, the indication information being used to indicate the value of the N.

17. The apparatus of any of claims 13-16, wherein, The first sequence is a gold sequence.

18. The apparatus of any of claims 13-17, wherein, The second mask sequence is a Hadamard sequence or a discrete Fourier transform (DFT) sequence.

19. A communications device, characterized by The transceiver is configured to receive a reference signal, the reference signal being used for data channel demodulation, the reference signal being determined based on a first sequence and a first mask sequence, the first mask sequence including a second mask sequence and a third mask sequence, the third mask sequence including N mask sequences, and the N being an integer greater than or equal to 1. The first mask sequence is a Kronecker product of the second mask sequence and the third mask sequence. The second mask sequence is one of a first mask sequence set, each mask sequence in the first mask sequence set is orthogonal to each other, and the third mask sequence includes N mask sequences in M second mask sequence sets, each mask sequence in each second mask sequence set in the M second mask sequence sets is not orthogonal to each other, and M is less than or equal to N. For the N mask sequences included in the third mask sequence, the third mask sequence is a Kronecker product of the N mask sequences.

20. The apparatus of claim 19, wherein, Each mask sequence in the N mask sequences included in the third mask sequence is an m sequence or a Z4 sequence.

21. The apparatus of claim 19 or 20, wherein, The apparatus further includes:

22. The apparatus of any of claims 19-21, wherein, The processing unit is configured to determine the value of the N according to a capacity of the reference signal. The transceiver is further configured to send indication information to the terminal device, the indication information being used to indicate the value of the N. The first sequence is a gold sequence.

23. The apparatus of any of claims 19-22, wherein, The second mask sequence is a Hadamard sequence or a discrete Fourier transform (DFT) sequence.

24. The apparatus of any of claims 19-23, wherein, The apparatus includes a processor, a memory, an input interface, and an output interface, the input interface is configured to receive information from other communication apparatuses outside the communication apparatus, the output interface is configured to output information to other communication apparatuses outside the communication apparatus, and when a stored computer program stored in the memory is called by the processor, the method according to any one of claims 1-12 is implemented.

25. A communications device, characterized by ​ 26. A computer readable storage medium, characterized in that, The computer readable storage medium stores a computer program or computer instructions, which, when executed by a processor, causes the method of any one of claims 1-12 to be implemented.

27. A computer program product, characterised in that, The computer program product comprises instructions, which, when executed by a processor, causes the method of any one of claims 1-12 to be implemented.

28. A chip system, characterized by The computer program product comprises instructions, which, when executed by a processor, causes the method of any one of claims 1-12 to be implemented.

29. A communication system, characterized by The computer program product comprises instructions, which, when executed by a processor, causes the method of any one of claims 1-12 to be implemented. The computer program product comprises instructions, which, when executed by a processor, causes the method of any one of claims 1-12 to be implemented.

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