Communication method and apparatus

Abstract

A communication method and apparatus, the method comprising: a network apparatus determining a first collaborative node for executing a first sensing service, sending a sensing measurement configuration to another apparatus, and determining sensing information, wherein the first collaborative node comprises an RIS, and the RIS can be used for reflecting and / or refracting a received signal; the sensing measurement configuration comprises an operating parameter of the RIS, the operating parameter of the RIS comprises a target phase, and the target phase is used for indicating the phase of the RIS reflecting and / or refracting the received signal; and the sensing information is related to information of the first collaborative node, and can be used for determining a sensing result. In the method, the factor of a collaborative node is taken into consideration when the sensing information is determined, so that a sensing data deviation caused by the collaborative node can be reduced, thereby improving the accuracy of the sensing result to the greatest possible extent.

Description

Communication method and apparatus

[0001] Cross-reference to Related Applications

[0002] This application claims priority to the Chinese Patent Application No. 202411046070.0, filed on July 31, 2024, and entitled "A Communication Method and Apparatus", the content of which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety. TECHNICAL FIELD

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

[0004] With the development of communication technology, communication sensing fusion technology is proposed. The core idea of the communication sensing fusion technology is to add sensing capability on the mobile communication network, so that the communication and sensing capabilities are fused in one network system. The principle of the sensing technology is that the sending end sends a signal (also called a sensing signal), the sensing signal reaches the sensing target, is reflected by the sensing target, the receiving end receives the reflected sensing signal (also called a return signal), and processes the received return signal to obtain information such as the position, speed or type of the sensing target.

[0005] Considering the limited coverage, a cooperative communication technology is often introduced. The cooperative communication technology refers to completing the communication task by the sending end and the receiving end through cooperation of other devices. For example, the sending end can send a signal to other devices, and the signal is transmitted to the receiving end through other devices. For example, other devices have the functions of forwarding and / or processing signals, and can forward the signal from the sending end to the receiving end.

[0006] A reconfigurable intelligent meta-surface (RIS) has the function of reflecting signals and is often used for cooperative communication. In the future, RIS will be involved in sensing, and the involvement of RIS may cause the sensing data used to determine the sensing result to be biased, thereby causing the accuracy of the sensing result to be low. SUMMARY

[0007] Embodiments of the present application provide a communication method and apparatus for controlling RIS to participate in sensing, determining reasonable sensing information according to RIS to obtain a sensing result, so as to improve the accuracy of the sensing result as much as possible.

[0008] To achieve the above-mentioned purpose, the embodiments of the present application adopt the following technical solutions:

[0009] In a first aspect, a communication method is provided, which can be applied to a network side, for example, the method is applied to a network device. Wherein the network device can be responsible for sensing-related management, or the network device has a sensing management function (SMF) and / or a sensing control function (SCF). For example, the network device can implement sensing authorization / control, sensing data processing, etc. The network device can be a functional unit of an access network device, for example, the network device is a newly added sensing unit (SU) in the access network device. Or the network device is a communication node (for example, it can be called a sensing control (SC) node) independent of the access network device, and the communication node is deployed on the access network side. Or the network device is a circuit, or a chip system / chip or other functional module, which can implement sensing-related functions.

[0010] The communication method includes: determining, by the network device, a first cooperative node for performing a first sensing service, the first cooperative node including an RIS, which can be used for reflecting and / or refracting a received signal; and sending, by the network device, a sensing measurement configuration to determine sensing information. Wherein the sensing measurement configuration includes working parameters of the RIS, and the working parameters of the RIS include a target phase, which is used to indicate a phase of the received signal reflected and / or refracted by the RIS. The sensing information is related to information of the first cooperative node, and is used to determine a sensing result.

[0011] In the case of cooperative sensing of the cooperative node, the presence of the cooperative node can cause the sensing data used to determine the sensing result to be biased, thereby reducing the accuracy of the sensing result. In this method, the sensing information used to determine the sensing result is related to the cooperative node, or the sensing information is determined according to the cooperative node. In other words, the determination of the sensing information takes into account the factors of the cooperative node, so as to reduce the bias of the sensing data caused by the cooperative node, and to improve the accuracy of the sensing result as much as possible.

[0012] In a possible implementation, the sensing information includes one or more biases, which are determined according to the information of the first cooperative node.

[0013] The bias can be regarded as the bias caused by the absence of the cooperative node and the presence of the cooperative node to one or more sensing information. The bias can compensate for the bias of the sensing information caused by the cooperative node, so that a more accurate sensing result can be obtained based on the sensing information.

[0014] In a possible implementation, the information of the first cooperation node comprises one or more of the following: position information of the first cooperation node, phase information of the first cooperation node.

[0015] In a possible implementation, the method further comprises: sending, by the network device, the awareness information.

[0016] In a possible implementation, the awareness information comprises awareness data, and a processing level of the awareness data is related to the first cooperation node.

[0017] The processing level of the awareness data represents a processing degree of the original awareness data, and different processing degrees correspond to different levels. It is considered that if the network device or the terminal device does not know that the cooperation node assists in awareness, the awareness result cannot be determined based on the most original awareness data. Therefore, the processing level of the reported awareness data is configured, so that the network device or the terminal device can determine the awareness result as much as possible.

[0018] In a possible implementation, the method further comprises: receiving, by the network device, capability information from at least one neighboring node, the at least one neighboring node comprising the first cooperation node. The capability information of the first cooperation node comprises one or more of the following: the first information, the second information, or RIS information. The first information can be used to indicate whether the first cooperation node supports participating in the awareness service. The second information can be used to indicate the position of the first cooperation node. The RIS information comprises one or more of the following: a supported reflection angle range, a phase change range, a number of RIS units, a horizontal distance and / or a vertical distance between two adjacent RIS units.

[0019] Through the scheme, the network device can determine whether the neighboring node can cooperate in awareness as a cooperation node based on the capability of the neighboring node, thereby avoiding selecting an inappropriate neighboring node as a cooperation node, so as to ensure that the selected neighboring node meets the awareness requirement as much as possible.

[0020] In a possible implementation, the method further comprises: sending, by the network device, a first message, the first message being used to request the capability of the neighboring node.

[0021] In the scheme, the network device can request the capability of the neighboring node when needed, thereby reducing unnecessary signaling overhead without the neighboring node actively reporting the capability.

[0022] In a possible implementation, determining, by the network device, the first cooperation node for performing the first awareness service comprises: receiving, by the network device, identification information of the first cooperation node.

[0023] In a second aspect, the embodiments of the present application provide a communication method, which can be executed by a first communication device and a second communication device. The first communication device has the functions of implementing the behaviors in the method instances of the first aspect. For example, the first communication device includes means or modules or units for executing the method of the first aspect, which can be implemented by software and / or hardware. For example, the first communication device is a network device. The second communication device has the function of cooperative communication, for example, the second communication device is a first cooperative node, and the first cooperative node includes an RIS, which is configured to reflect and / or refract a received signal.

[0024] The communication method includes: a network device determines a first cooperative node for performing a first sensing service, and sends a first sensing measurement configuration to the first cooperative node, the first sensing measurement configuration including working parameters of the RIS, the working parameters including a target phase, the target phase being used to indicate a phase of the RIS reflecting and / or refracting the received signal; the first cooperative node reflects and / or refracts the received signal according to the working parameters of the RIS; and the network device further determines sensing information, the sensing information being related to information of the first cooperative node, and the sensing information being used to determine a sensing result.

[0025] The beneficial effects of the second aspect can refer to the beneficial effects of the first aspect and the various implementation manners thereof, which will not be repeated here.

[0026] In a third aspect, the embodiments of the present application provide a communication device, which has the functions of implementing the behaviors in the method instances of the first aspect. The beneficial effects can refer to the related description of the first aspect, which will not be repeated here. For example, the communication device can be the network device in the first aspect, or the communication device can be a device that can support the functions required by the device or node to implement the method provided by the first aspect, for example, the communication device can be a chip or chip system in the network device.

[0027] In one possible design, the communication device includes a baseband device and a radio frequency device.

[0028] In a possible design, the communication apparatus includes corresponding means or modules or units for performing the methods of the first aspect, which can be implemented by software, or by hardware, or by a combination of software and hardware. For example, the communication apparatus includes a processing unit (also referred to as a processing module or a processor) and / or a transceiving unit (also referred to as a transceiving module or a transceiver). The transceiving unit can implement the sending function and the receiving function. When the transceiving unit implements the sending function, it can be referred to as a sending unit (also referred to as a sending module). When the transceiving unit implements the receiving function, it can be referred to as a receiving unit (also referred to as a receiving module). The sending unit and the receiving unit can be the same functional unit, which is referred to as a transceiving unit and can implement the sending function and the receiving function. Alternatively, the sending unit and the receiving unit can be different functional units, and the transceiving unit refers to both of the functional units. The units (modules) can perform the corresponding functions in the method examples of the first aspect, details of which are described in the method examples, and will not be repeated here.

[0029] For example, the communication apparatus includes a processing module and a transceiving module. The processing module is configured to determine a first cooperating node for performing a first sensing service, the first cooperating node including an RIS, the RIS being operable to reflect and / or refract a received signal. The transceiving module is configured to send a sensing measurement configuration, the sensing measurement configuration including an operating parameter of the RIS, the operating parameter of the RIS including a target phase, the target phase being indicative of a phase of the RIS reflecting and / or refracting the received signal. The processing module is further configured to determine sensing information, the sensing information being related to information of the first cooperating node and being operable to determine a sensing result.

[0030] In a possible implementation, the sensing information includes one or more biases, the one or more biases being determined according to the information of the first cooperating node.

[0031] In a possible implementation, the information of the first cooperating node includes one or more of the following: location information of the first cooperating node, phase information of the first cooperating node.

[0032] In a possible implementation, the transceiving module is further configured to send the sensing information.

[0033] In a possible implementation, the sensing information includes sensing data, a processing level of the sensing data being related to the first cooperating node.

[0034] In a possible implementation, the transceiving module is further configured to receive capability information from at least one neighboring node, the at least one neighboring node comprising the first cooperating node. The capability information of the first cooperating node comprises one or more of the following: the first information, the second information, or RIS information. The first information can be used to indicate whether the first cooperating node supports participating in the sensing service. The second information can be used to indicate a location of the first cooperating node. The RIS information comprises one or more of the following: a supported reflection angle range, a phase variation range, a number of RIS units, a horizontal distance between two adjacent RIS units, and / or a vertical distance between two adjacent RIS units.

[0035] In a possible implementation, the transceiving module is further configured to send a first message, the first message being used to request capability of a neighboring node.

[0036] In a possible implementation, the transceiving module is further configured to receive identification information of the first cooperating node.

[0037] In a fourth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication apparatus. The communication apparatus can be the communication apparatus in the third aspect of the above-described embodiments, or a chip or chip system arranged in the communication apparatus in the third aspect. The communication apparatus comprises a communication interface and a processor, and optionally comprises a memory. The memory is used to store a computer program or instruction or data. The processor is coupled with the memory and the communication interface. When the processor reads the computer program or instruction or data, the communication apparatus performs the method performed by the network apparatus in the above-described method embodiments. For example, the communication apparatus can be a network apparatus or a device comprising the network apparatus or a functional module in the network apparatus, for example, a baseband chip and a radio frequency chip.

[0038] In a fifth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a chip system. The chip system comprises a processor and can comprise a communication interface. The communication interface is used to implement the method in the first aspect. Optionally, the chip system further comprises a memory. The memory is used to store a computer program (also referred to as code or instruction). The processor is used to call and run the computer program from the memory, so that a device installed with the chip system performs the method in the first aspect and any possible implementation manner thereof. The chip system can be composed of a chip, or can comprise a chip and other discrete devices.

[0039] In a sixth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication apparatus. The communication apparatus comprises an input / output interface and a logic circuit. The input / output interface is used to input and / or output information. The input / output interface can be an interface circuit, an output circuit, an input circuit, a pin, or a related circuit, etc. The logic circuit is used to perform the method in the first aspect.

[0040] In the implementation process, the communication device can be a chip, the input circuit can be an input pin, the output circuit can be an output pin, and the logic circuit can be a transistor, a gate circuit, a flip-flop, and various logic circuits. The input signal received by the input circuit can be received and input by, for example but not limited to, a receiver, the output signal output by the output circuit can be output to and transmitted by, for example but not limited to, a transmitter, and the input circuit and the output circuit can be the same circuit which is used as the input circuit and the output circuit at different times. The specific implementation of the input / output interface and the logic circuit is not limited in the present application.

[0041] In a seventh aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication system, the communication system comprising a network device, a cooperating node and a terminal device. The network device is configured to implement the functions of the method in the first aspect. The cooperating node is configured to reflect and / or refract a received signal, or the cooperating node is configured to forward a received signal. The terminal device is configured to transmit a sensing signal and / or receive a back echo signal of the sensing signal.

[0042] In an eighth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a computer readable storage medium for storing a computer program or instructions, which when executed, cause the method in the first aspect and any implementation manner thereof to be implemented.

[0043] In a ninth aspect, an embodiment of the present application further provides a computer program product comprising instructions which, when executed on a computer, cause the method in the first aspect and any implementation manner thereof to be implemented.

[0044] The beneficial effects of the third aspect to the ninth aspect and the implementation manners thereof can refer to the beneficial effects of the first aspect and any implementation manner thereof. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0045] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of the working principle of an RIS module according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0046] FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of a structure of a cooperating node provided with an RIS according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0047] FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram of multiple sensing modes according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0048] FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram of a network architecture of a communication system according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0049] FIG. 5 is a typical application scenario of sensing according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0050] FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram of a core network architecture according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0051] FIG. 7 is a schematic diagram of two typical architectures for introducing a sensing-related function at the RAN side according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0052] FIG. 8 is a schematic diagram of possible communication interfaces of a SU according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0053] FIG. 9 is a schematic diagram of a network architecture according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0054] FIG. 10 is a flowchart of a communication method 1000 according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0055] FIG. 11 is a flowchart of a communication method 1100 according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0056] FIG. 12 is a schematic diagram of a structure of a communication apparatus according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0057] FIG. 13 is a schematic diagram of another structure of a communication apparatus according to an embodiment of the present application. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0058] To facilitate understanding of the technical solutions provided by the embodiments of the present application, the following first explains related technical terms and the like involved in the embodiments of the present application. It should be noted that these explanations are provided to facilitate understanding of the embodiments of the present application, and should not be regarded as limiting the scope of protection claimed by the present application.

[0059] (1) RIS

[0060] A RIS is a digital reconfigurable artificial electromagnetic surface formed by a large number of subwavelength digital reconfigurable artificial electromagnetic units arranged in a certain macroscopic arrangement (periodic or aperiodic) to form an artificial composite structure that can reflect and / or refract incident infinite waves. The basic electromagnetic unit (also referred to as a RIS unit) and the arrangement of electromagnetic units of the RIS can be designed arbitrarily, and the emission direction of electromagnetic waves can be controlled by changing the spatial arrangement of electromagnetic units, thereby changing the reflection angle of the radio wave. The RIS can reflect and / or refract the received signal, and for ease of description, the reflection and / or refraction of the RIS will be referred to as reflection in this paper. That is, in this paper, when referring to the RIS, reflection refers to reflection and / or refraction.

[0061] For example, please refer to FIG. 1, which is a schematic diagram of working principle of the RIS module. As shown in FIG. 1, the RIS includes a plurality of RIS units, and different RIS units are connected through diodes, such as PIN diodes, varactor diodes, etc. The RIS can reflect or refract the received wireless waves, thereby changing the reflection phase difference of the wireless waves, so that the wireless waves follow the generalized Snell's law on the reflection or refraction interface or the reflection angle of the wireless waves can not be equal to the incidence angle. Compared with the traditional surface (the reflection angle of the wireless waves is reflection angle 1), the reflection angle of the wireless waves can be reflection angle 2. In other words, compared with the traditional surface, the RIS has the ability to shape the wireless waves according to the generalized Snell's law.

[0062] By controlling the on-off state (on state or off state) of the PIN diode connected to the electromagnetic unit, the electromagnetic unit can control the amplitude and / or phase adjustment of the received signal, thereby adjusting the reflection angle or refraction angle of the RIS to the wireless waves, and cooperatively realizing the beam forming for directional signal enhancement. For example, by applying different bias voltages to the PIN diode, the PIN diode is in an on state or an off state, so that the electromagnetic unit connected to the PIN diode is in an on state or an off state. The plurality of electromagnetic units included in the RIS are in different states, the adjustment amount of the amplitude and / or phase of the received signal by the RIS is different, so that the reflection coefficient of the RIS is also different, and the reflection angle or refraction angle of the wireless waves is also different.

[0063] Please refer to FIG. 2, which is a schematic diagram of a structure of a cooperative node provided with the RIS according to an embodiment of the present application. In FIG. 2, the cooperative node is provided with the RIS and an RIS control module connected to the RIS. The RIS control module can be a circuit or a chip independent of the RIS, or a functional module or an algorithm module integrated in the RIS.

[0064] The RIS control module can be used to adjust the beam forming parameters of the RIS, to realize the amplitude and / or phase adjustment of the RIS, thereby changing the angle of the reflected and / or refracted signal of the RIS, so that the RIS points to a certain direction after reflecting the received signal. For example, the RIS control module can generate a control signal for adjusting the beam forming parameters of the RIS, and the control signal can control the opening and closing of one or more electromagnetic units of the RIS, so that the RIS points to a certain direction after reflecting the received signal. The beam forming parameters of the RIS can also be referred to as RIS parameters, working parameters of the RIS, phase parameters of the RIS, etc. By adjusting the beam forming parameters of the RIS, the phase of the RIS can be changed, and the angle of the reflected signal of the RIS can be changed. In the embodiments of the present application, the phase and the angle / reflection angle can be replaced when referring to the RIS. For example, the target phase of the RIS can be replaced with the target angle of the RIS.

[0065] For example, the control signal can be an electrical signal including multiple amplitudes, and different amplitudes correspond to different phases and / or amplitudes. Assuming that the control signal occupies 1 bit, the control signal corresponds to 2 amplitude voltage signals (which can be referred to as levels). Among them, the phase offset corresponding to the high level is 90°, and the phase offset corresponding to the low level is 180°. It should be understood that the high level and the low level here are relative, for example, a level greater than 1V can be defined as a high level, and a level less than or equal to 1V can be defined as a low level. When the control signal is a high level signal, the RIS can offset the phase of the received signal by 90°, and the reflection angle of the incident signal can be changed. Assuming that the control signal occupies 2 bits, it can correspond to 4 amplitude levels respectively. For example, the 4 amplitudes are amplitude 1, amplitude 2, amplitude 3, and amplitude 4, wherein the phase offset corresponding to amplitude 1 is 45°, the phase offset corresponding to amplitude 2 is 135°, the phase offset corresponding to amplitude 3 is 225°, and the phase offset corresponding to amplitude 4 is 270°. When the amplitude of the control signal is amplitude 1, the RIS can offset the phase of the received signal by 45°; when the amplitude of the control signal is amplitude 4, the RIS can offset the phase of the received signal by 270°, thereby changing the reflection angle of the incident signal.

[0066] (2) Sensing

[0067] Sensing can also be replaced by: sensing process, sensing operation, sensing detection, or detection process.

[0068] Sensing can be understood as a technology capable of obtaining environmental and / or object feature information in the environment. The object feature information in the environment includes but is not limited to shape, size, direction, speed, position, distance between objects, or relative motion, etc. The working principle of sensing is that the sending end sends a sensing signal, the receiving end receives a signal reflected by a sensing target (also referred to as a return signal) after receiving the sensing signal, and obtains a sensing result such as speed, distance, shape, size, etc. according to the return signal. The sensing target can also be referred to as a target, a detected target, a sensed object, a detected object, or a sensed target, without limitation. The sensing target can be various tangible objects in the environment that can reflect electromagnetic waves. For example, the sensing target can be a stationary object such as a building. For another example, the sensing target can also be a movable object such as a vehicle, a drone, or a terminal device.

[0069] (3) Sensing signal and return signal

[0070] Sensing signal: a signal used for sensing (or probing) a sensed target (or called target object). The sensing signal is also called a probing signal, a chirp signal, a radar signal, a radar sensing signal, a radar probing signal, an environmental sensing signal, etc. The sensing signal can be a pulsed signal or a possible signal in a wireless communication system, such as an orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) signal. For example, the sensing signal includes (or is) a sounding reference signal (SRS), a demodulation reference signal (DMRS), a positioning reference signal (PRS), a sidelink positioning reference signal (SL-PRS), a channel state information reference signal (CSI) reference signal (RS), a synchronization signal block (SSB), a synchronization signal / physical broadcast channel block (SS / PBCH block), or a tracking reference signal (TRS), a phase tracking reference signal (PTRS), a beam manager reference signal (BMRS), or a cell reference signal (CRS), etc. The sensing signal can also include a communication information, such as a signal carried on a physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH) or a physical sidelink shared channel (PSSCH).

[0071] Echo signal: the echo signal refers to a signal reflected back to the receiver after the sensing signal is transmitted from the transmitter to the target object. Autocorrelation processing is performed on the echo signal and the sensing signal, and then conversion can be performed to analyze the time delay of the echo signal in the time domain relative to the sensing signal, so as to reflect the distance of the sensing target relative to the transmission source. By comparing the echo signals reflected back by different transmission signals to the same target, the Doppler domain can be converted. The combination of the Doppler domain and the distance domain can analyze the distance and speed of the sensing target. In addition, through the beam direction of the antenna transmitting the sensing signal, the direction of the sensing target relative to the transmission source can be obtained. The echo signal can be understood as the reflected sensing signal, and therefore the echo signal can also be referred to as the sensing signal.

[0072] (4) Sensing data

[0073] Sensing data, also referred to as sensing measurement data, refers to data obtained after processing of the echo signal. The processing of the echo signal involves multiple links, and the data obtained by each processing link can be referred to as sensing data. For example, the processing flow of the echo signal can include the following processing links: (1) symbol extraction, cyclic prefix (CP) removal, etc. are performed on the echo signal to obtain time domain data of a radar frame, and in-phase (I) and quadrature (Q) data are separated; (2) time-frequency conversion, effective subcarrier extraction, signal estimation, and inverse fast fourier transform (IFFT) are performed on the IQ data to obtain a range (R) spectrum; (3) inter-symbol windowing and fast fourier transform (FFT) are performed on the R spectrum to obtain a range / doppler (RD) spectrum; (4) FFT is performed on the RD spectrum in the channel dimension to obtain a range / Doppler / angle (RDA) spectrum; (5) all valid point target information is detected from the RD spectrum or the RDA spectrum to obtain a plurality of data points, and a set composed of the plurality of data points is also referred to as a point cloud, wherein each data point is used to represent a relative position or an absolute position relative to the sensing device; (6) the plurality of data points are clustered to obtain the centroid of the real target.

[0074] Correspondingly, the perception data can represent one or more of time delay, Doppler, angle, and intensity of the sampling points, or one or more of position, distance, velocity, and intensity of the sampling points. For example, the perception data includes but is not limited to one or more of the following: IQ data, RD spectrum, RDA spectrum, distance / velocity (DV) spectrum, distance / velocity / angle (DVA) spectrum, range / velocity (RV) spectrum, range / velocity / angle (RVA) spectrum, a set of coordinate points, a point cloud, a centroid of a real target, and the like.

[0075] (5) Perception result

[0076] The perception result refers to a result related to a service function and performance, which is obtained based on processing such as calculation and analysis on the perception data. For example, the perception result includes whether there is a target to be perceived, some information of the target to be perceived (such as speed, distance, angle, orientation, acceleration, position, moving path, imaging result, expression, breathing / heartbeat frequency, and the like). Some perception results can also be regarded as perception data, for example, the information of speed and distance can also be regarded as perception data. The perception result is different according to different targets to be perceived. For example, the target to be perceived is air, and the perception result includes air quality, gas components included in the air, and the like; for another example, the target to be perceived is a vehicle, and the perception result includes the number of vehicles, the position of the vehicle, the moving path of the vehicle, and the like.

[0077] (6) Network device

[0078] In the embodiments of the present application, the network device refers to a (radio) access network ((R)AN) device / RAN node. In the embodiments of the present application, the (R)AN and the RAN are replaceable. In future scenarios, the RAN node can also have other evolved forms, for example, the node can not be divided into a core network device, and is collectively referred to as a network device.

[0079] The RAN can be a 3rd generation partnership project (3GPP)-related cellular system, e.g., a 5G / new radio (NR) mobile communication system, or a future-oriented evolved system / network. The RAN can also be an open RAN (O-RAN or ORAN), a cloud radio access network (CRAN), or a virtualized RAN (vRAN), a non terrestrial network (NTN), etc. The RAN can also be a communication system that combines two or more of the above systems. The RAN device can also be referred to as a RAN node, a RAN entity, or an access node, etc.

[0080] In a possible scenario, the RAN node can be a base station, an evolved NodeB (eNodeB), a next generation NodeB (gNB), a base station in a future communication network, an access point (AP), a transmission reception point (TRP), a satellite, etc. The RAN node can be a macro base station, a micro base station, an indoor station, a relay node, a donor node / host, or a radio controller, etc. The RAN node can also be a server, a wearable device, a vehicle or a vehicle-mounted device, etc. For example, the RAN node in vehicle to everything (V2X) technology can be a road side unit (RSU).

[0081] In another possible scenario, a RAN node can be a module or unit that completes part of functions of a base station; or multiple RAN nodes cooperate to assist a terminal device to implement wireless access, and different RAN nodes respectively implement part of functions of a base station. For example, a RAN node can be a centralized unit (CU), a distributed unit (DU), or a radio unit (RU), etc. The functions of a CU can be implemented by one entity, or also can be implemented by different entities. For example, the functions of a CU can be further divided, i.e., the control plane and the user plane are separated and implemented by different entities, respectively, as a control plane CU entity (i.e., a CU-control plane (CP) entity) and a user plane CU entity (i.e., a CU-user plane (UP) entity). The CU-CP entity and the CU-UP entity can be coupled with a DU to jointly complete the functions of a RAN node. The CU and the DU can be separately configured, or also can be included in the same network element, such as a baseband unit (BBU). Any one of the CU (or CU-CP, CU-UP), the DU, and the RU in this application can be implemented by a software module, a hardware module, or a combination of a software module and a hardware module.

[0082] The CU and the DU can be configured according to the protocol layer functions of the wireless network they implement: for example, the CU is configured to implement functions of a packet data convergence protocol (PDCP) layer and above protocol layers (such as an RRC layer and / or a service data adaptation protocol (SDAP) layer, etc.); and the DU is configured to implement functions of a protocol layer below the PDCP layer (such as a radio link control (RLC) layer, a MAC layer, and / or a physical (PHY) layer, etc.). For specific descriptions of the above-mentioned various protocol layers, refer to the relevant technical specifications of 3GPP or the technical specifications of other applicable communication protocols.

[0083] The above-mentioned processing functions of the CU and the DU are merely examples according to the division of protocol layers, and can be divided in other manners, which is not limited in the present application. For example, in one design, the CU or the DU can also be divided into partial processing functions with protocol layers. In one design, partial functions of the RLC layer and functions of protocol layers above the RLC layer are arranged in the CU, and the remaining functions of the RLC layer and functions of protocol layers below the RLC layer are arranged in the DU. In some examples, the CU can have no PDCP layer, i.e., only include the RRC layer. The CU-CP has no PDCP-C. The CU-UP can have no PDCP-U, or have no CU-UP at all. In some examples, the DU can have no RLC layer, only have the MAC and higher PHY layers. In addition, in some examples, there can be no CU, only DU.

[0084] When the RAN is an O-RAN, it can also have an artificial intelligence (AI) function, for example, the O-RAN includes an intelligent controller. The intelligent controller can be a non-real-time RAN intelligent controller (non-real time RAN intelligent controller, non-RT RIC / NRT RIC), or a near-real-time RAN intelligent controller (near-real time RAN intelligent controller, near-RT RIC / nRT RIC). The non-real-time RIC can be used to implement non-real-time intelligent management of the RAN function, can implement a workflow including model training and model updating, and guide applications / functions in the nRT RIC based on a policy. The near-real-time RIC can be used to implement near-real-time intelligent management of the RAN. Through data collection and related operations on the E2 interface, near-real-time control and optimization of modules and resources of the O-RAN are implemented.

[0085] (7) Terminal device

[0086] All terminal devices capable of data communication with a base station can be regarded as terminal devices. Terminal devices are also referred to as terminals, terminal apparatuses, user equipment (UE), user devices, mobile stations, or mobile terminals, etc. Terminal devices can be widely applied to various scenarios, for example, terminal devices can be: mobile phones, computers, mobile internet devices (MIDs), wearable devices, virtual reality (VR) devices, augmented reality (AR) devices, stations (STAs), mechanical arms, cameras, robots, vehicles, drones, helicopters, airplanes, ships, or smart home devices (such as televisions, air conditioners, sweeping machines, sound boxes, set-top boxes), relays, customer premise equipment (CPE), or terminal devices in an internet of things (IoT) system, such as water meters, electricity meters, etc.

[0087] Among them, when the terminal device is applied to V2X, it can also be referred to as a V2X device, for example, a smart car or an intelligent car, a digital car, a new energy vehicle, an RSU. As introduced above, various terminal devices can be considered as vehicle-mounted terminal devices if they are located on a vehicle (for example, placed / installed in the vehicle). The vehicle-mounted terminal device can be built-in as one or more components or units in the vehicle-mounted module, vehicle-mounted module, vehicle-mounted component, vehicle-mounted chip, or vehicle-mounted unit of the vehicle. The vehicle can implement the method of the present application through the built-in vehicle-mounted module, vehicle-mounted module, vehicle-mounted component, vehicle-mounted chip, or vehicle-mounted unit. The vehicle-mounted terminal device can be a whole vehicle device, a vehicle-mounted module, a vehicle, an on-board unit (OBU), an RSU, a telematics box (T-box), a chip, or a system on chip (SoC), etc. The above-mentioned chip or SoC can be installed in the vehicle, OBU, RSU, or T-box.

[0088] (8) Perception mode

[0089] The perception can be generally divided into two modes: single-station perception and double-station perception. In the single-station perception mode, the transmitting device of the perception signal and the receiving device of the echo signal of the perception signal are the same device. In other words, in the single-station perception mode, the transmitting device transmits the perception signal and receives the echo signal of the perception signal reflected on the surface of the perception target. Therefore, the single-station perception mode can also be referred to as self-transmitting and self-receiving mode without limitation. In the double-station perception mode, the transmitting device of the perception signal and the receiving device of the echo signal of the perception signal are different devices. In other words, the perception station A transmits the perception signal, and the echo signal of the perception signal reflected on the surface of the perception target is received by the perception station B. Therefore, the double-station perception mode can also be referred to as A-transmitting and B-receiving mode. It should be noted that the echo signal of the perception signal is obtained by reflecting the perception signal on the surface of the perception target, and therefore, the echo signal can still be referred to as the perception signal. The perception station can be a network device or a terminal device.

[0090] For example, referring to FIG. 3, a schematic diagram of various perception modes provided by the embodiments of the present application is shown. In FIG. 3, the perception target is a vehicle, and six perception modes are provided. The six perception modes are: the network device A self-transmitting and self-receiving mode shown in (1) of FIG. 3, i.e., the mode in which the network device A transmits the perception signal and receives the echo signal; the terminal device A self-transmitting and self-receiving mode shown in (2) of FIG. 3, i.e., the mode in which the terminal device A transmits the perception signal and receives the echo signal; the mode in which the network device A transmits the perception signal and the network device B receives the echo signal shown in (3) of FIG. 3; the mode in which the terminal device A transmits the perception signal and the terminal device B receives the echo signal shown in (4) of FIG. 3; the mode in which the network device A transmits the perception signal and the terminal device A receives the echo signal shown in (5) of FIG. 3; and the mode in which the terminal device A transmits the perception signal and the network device A receives the echo signal shown in (6) of FIG. 3. In FIG. 3, the terminal device is a smart phone.

[0091] The perception processes of the six perception modes shown in FIG. 3 each include perception measurement configuration and reporting of perception data. Optionally, the perception process further includes reporting of perception capability. The perception capability mainly includes whether to support perception, whether to support a certain perception method / perception mode, whether to have a function of processing the perception signal, and the like. The perception capability is usually reported by the perception device to the perception management device. The perception device refers to a device performing a perception service / perception business. The perception device can be used to transmit the perception signal and / or receive the echo signal. The perception management device refers to a device or unit having a management function of each perception node participating in the perception process. The perception management device determines the perception measurement configuration according to the perception capability reported by the perception device, and configures the perception device. The perception device performs the perception according to the perception measurement configuration, obtains the perception data, and transmits the perception data to the perception management device.

[0092] According to different perception modes, the interaction process between the network elements involved in the perception process is also different, as shown in Table 1. In Table 1, SF refers to a network element with a perception management function. The first table in Table 1 indicates the perception mode, the second table indicates the interaction between SF and gNB (gNB A and / or gNB B), the third table indicates the interaction between SF and UE, the fourth table indicates the interaction between gNB and UE, and the fifth table indicates the interaction between UE and UE. Optionally, SF and UE can interact through non-access layer signaling, in which case the interaction between SF and UE is transparent to gNB, and the complexity is lower than the mutual interaction between SF, gNB and UE. It should be noted that the gNB in the gNB perception capability reporting in Table 1 includes gNB A and / or gNB B; the gNB in the gNB perception measurement reporting includes gNB A and / or gNB B; the UE in the UE perception capability reporting includes UE A and / or UE B; and the gNB in the UE perception measurement reporting includes UE A and / or UE B.

[0093] Table 1

[0094] (9) In the embodiments of the present application, “sending” and “receiving” represent the direction of signal transmission. For example, “sending information to XX” can be understood as that the destination of the information is XX, which can include direct transmission through the air interface, and also includes indirect transmission through the air interface by other units or modules. “Receiving information from YY” can be understood as that the sending end of the information is YY, which can include direct reception from YY through the air interface, and also can include indirect reception from YY through the air interface from other units or modules. “Sending” can also be understood as the “output” of the chip interface, and “receiving” can also be understood as the “input” of the chip interface. In other words, sending and receiving can be carried out between devices, for example, between network devices and terminal devices, or can be carried out within a device, for example, between components, modules, chips, software modules or hardware modules within a device through a bus, wire or interface.

[0095] In the embodiments of this application, the number of nouns, unless otherwise specified, represents "a singular noun or a plural noun", that is, "one or more". "At least one" refers to one or more, and "multiple" refers to two or more. "And / or" describes the association relationship of the associated objects, which means that there can be three kinds of relationships, for example, A and / or B can represent: A exists alone, A and B exist together, and B exists alone, where A / B can be singular or plural. The character " / " generally represents that the associated objects before and after it are in an "or" relationship. For example, A / B represents: A or B. "At least one of the following" or similar expressions refer to any combination of these items, including any combination of single item or multiple items. For example, at least one of a, b, or c represents: 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.

[0096] In the embodiments of this application, "when", "if" and "if" all refer to the objective situation that the device will make corresponding processing, not limited by time, and also does not require the device to have a judgment action when it is implemented, nor does it mean that there are other limitations. Unless otherwise specified, "if" and "if" can be replaced, "when" and "in the case" can be replaced. "When" and "if" / "if" can be replaced.

[0097] In the embodiments of this application, the words such as "exemplary" or "for example" are used to indicate an example, illustration or description. Any embodiment or design scheme described as "exemplary" or "for example" in this application should not be interpreted as more preferred or more advantageous than other embodiments or design schemes. Rather, the use of words such as "exemplary" or "for example" is intended to present the relevant concept in a specific manner.

[0098] The ordinal numbers "first", "second" and the like mentioned in the embodiments of this application are used to distinguish a plurality of objects, and are not used to limit the size, content, order, timing, priority or importance of the plurality of objects. For example, the first cooperation node and the second cooperation node refer to two different cooperation nodes, and do not mean that the priority or importance of the two cooperation nodes is different.

[0099] As introduced above, the technical terms related to the embodiments of this application, the network architecture applicable to the embodiments of this application is introduced below.

[0100] The technical solutions of the embodiments of the present application can be applied to an integrated sensing and communication (ISAC) system. The integrated sensing and communication system refers to a system in which communication and sensing are integrated, also known as a harmonized communication and sensing (HCS) system. The core idea of the integrated sensing and communication is to add sensing-related capabilities to the communication system to build the capabilities of target detection, tracking, and imaging, so that the two capabilities of communication and sensing are integrated in the same network. The communication system can be a long term evolution (LTE) system, a 5th generation (5G) mobile communication system / NR communication system, or a future communication system or other similar communication system. Other similar communication systems can include wireless fidelity (WIFI), V2X, IoT system, and the like.

[0101] Please refer to FIG. 4, which is a schematic diagram of a network architecture of a communication system to which the embodiments of the present application are applicable. The network architecture includes four components, namely a terminal device, an access network, a core network (CN), and a data network (DN). Among them, the terminal device, the access network, and the core network are the main parts of the above-mentioned network architecture, and logically they can be divided into user plane and control plane. The control plane is responsible for the management of the mobile network, and the user plane is responsible for the transmission of service data. For example, as shown in FIG. 4, in the 5G communication system, the N2 interface is located between the access network control plane and the core network control plane, the N3 interface is located between the access network user plane and the core network user plane, and the N6 interface point is located between the core network user plane and the data network.

[0102] In order to realize the sensing service, the functions related to sensing (such as sensing management function (SMF) and / or sensing control function (SCF)) can be integrated into the network architecture shown in FIG. 4 to realize the integrated sensing and communication. As a typical application scenario of sensing, as shown in FIG. 5. FIG. 5 takes an example of an environment including one network device and multiple terminal devices, and takes the terminal device as a smartphone, and takes the sensing target as a drone, a pedestrian, and a vehicle as an example. FIG. 5 takes an example of communication represented by a solid line and sensing represented by a dashed line.

[0103] In possible implementation manners, the sensing related function can be introduced at the core network side or the access network side to implement basic sensing functions such as sensing authorization, sensing control, sensing measurement data processing or result output, and the like. The potential possible sensing network architecture is introduced below with reference to FIGS. 6-8.

[0104] Please refer to FIG. 6, which is a schematic diagram of a core network architecture provided by an embodiment of the present application. FIG. 6 takes the 5G core network (5G core, 5GC) as an example and introduces the sensing related function at the core network side.

[0105] As shown in FIG. 6, the sensing function (SF) network element is newly added at the core network side, and meanwhile, the interface between the SF network element and one or more 5GC network elements is newly added, so that the SF network element can interact with the RAN or the UE through the 5GC network element to exchange sensing signaling and the like. For example, in FIG. 7, the SF can interact with the interface between the location management function (LMF), the access and mobility management function (AMF), the network exposure function (NEF), the UDM, the network data analytics function (NWDAF), the policy control function (PCF) network element and other 5GC network elements. Among them, the sensing data obtained by the RAN or the UE can be transmitted to the SF network element through the control plane or the user plane. When the sensing data is transmitted to the SF network element through the user plane, it can be forwarded to the SF network element through the UPF or directly transmitted to the SF network element. The interface between the SF and the 5GC network elements such as the AMF, the NEF, the UDM, the NWDAF, the PCF, the LMF and the UPF is defined as follows.

[0106] NS1: the newly added interface between the SF and the AMF, which can transmit the sensing control signaling. In addition, for the scenario of transmitting the sensing measurement data through the control plane, the interface can also transmit the sensing measurement data.

[0107] NS2: the newly added interface between the SF and the NEF, which can transmit the signaling message exchanged between the sensing network element and the application function (AF) through the NEF, and at the same time, the sensing result is exposed to the AF.

[0108] NS3: the newly added interface between the SF and the UDM, through which the authentication or authorization, the UE sensing subscription information, the service AMF information or other information can be obtained.

[0109] NS4: the newly added interface between SF and NWDAF, through which the SF can jointly complete the AI processing related to the sensing service with the NWDAF.

[0110] NS5: the newly added interface between SF and PCF, through which the SF can deliver information such as sensing requirements, quality of service (QoS) requirements, or sensing results of the sensing service to the PCF, and the PCF can generate policy control and charging (PCC) policies related to the sensing service.

[0111] NS6: the newly added interface between SF and LMF, through which the SF can obtain location-related information such as sensing areas, RAN information of sensing targets, and location information of sensed UEs.

[0112] NS7: the newly added interface between SF and UPF, through which the sensing measurement data can be transmitted directly from the (R)AN to the SF via the UPF, or indirectly forwarded to the SF via the UPF. In the scenario where the (R)AN performs sensing via the UPF, the function of the UPF can be improved to support (R)AN-granularity data transmission.

[0113] In addition to the above-mentioned newly added interfaces, existing interfaces (such as N1, N2, N5, N8, N33, etc.) can also support the delivery of one or more of the information related to the sensing service, such as authentication information, sensing service type, sensing service quality requirement, sensing measurement data, or sensing result. It should be noted that the above-mentioned interface "NSX (for example, NS1-NS6)" is only an example, and the name of the interface between the SF network element and other network elements is not limited in the embodiments of the present application.

[0114] Please refer to FIG. 7, which shows two typical architectures of introducing sensing-related functions on the RAN side. The name of the sensing-related function introduced on the RAN side is not limited in the embodiments of the present application, for example, the function can be called SU.

[0115] As shown in (a) of FIG. 7, the SU can be an entity independent of the RAN device, and can be connected with the base station through an interface similar to the Xn interface. For ease of distinction, the interface between the SU and the base station can be called the Xn-S interface. If the base station is of a CU-DU structure, the SU can communicate with the CU through the Xn-S interface. When the SU is an entity independent of the RAN device, the SU can also be regarded as a communication node (for example, called SC node) independent of the RAN device.

[0116] As shown in (b) of FIG. 7, the SU can be a functional unit in the base station, and can communicate with the CU through an interface similar to F1. For the sake of distinction, the interface between the SU and the CU can be referred to as an F1-S-C interface.

[0117] The SU is introduced in the RAN side in FIG. 7, and has the function of managing the sensing of the UE. Therefore, the base station can communicate with both the normal UE and the sensing UE.

[0118] Referring to FIG. 8, possible communication interfaces of the SU are shown. FIG. 8 shows possible interfaces of the SU in dashed lines. As shown in FIG. 8, the SU can directly communicate with the DU or directly communicate with the UE. The SU can be directly connected to one or more core network elements, for example, the SU can be directly connected to the SF, the AMF or the UPF. The SU can also be indirectly connected to one or more core network elements, for example, the SU can be connected to the SF through the AMF or the UPF. Alternatively, the SU can be connected to the AMF through the CU, and then connected to the SF through the AMF.

[0119] In the embodiments of the present application, the SU is deployed in the RAN side, and can directly interact with the CU and interact with the core network through the CU. In the sensing measurement process, the SU / CU can configure the sensing measurement configuration for the UE, and the transmission path of the sensing measurement configuration can be: DU→CU / SU→UE. Similarly, the DU obtains the sensing data, and can send the sensing data to the SU / SC. The transmission path of the sensing data can be DU→SU / SC, or DU→CU→SU / SC.

[0120] It should be noted that the network architectures shown in FIGS. 4-8 are only schematic. The communication system described in the embodiments of the present application is used to more clearly illustrate the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present application, and does not constitute a limitation on the communication system to which the embodiments of the present application are applicable. It can be known by those skilled in the art that, with the evolution of the network architecture, the technical solutions provided by the embodiments of the present application are also applicable to similar technical problems. When the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present application are applied to other communication systems, the devices, components, modules, etc. in the embodiments can be replaced by corresponding devices, components, modules in other communication systems, without limitation.

[0121] For example, in order to improve the quality of wireless transmission link and enhance coverage, the network architecture shown in FIGS. 4-8 can also introduce a cooperative communication technology. The cooperative communication technology refers to the completion of the communication task by the sending end and the receiving end through the cooperation of other devices. For example, the sending end can send a signal to other devices, and the signal is transmitted to the receiving end through other devices. For example, other devices have the functions of forwarding and / or processing signals, and can forward the signals from the sending end to the receiving end. For example, other devices can be relay devices, such as relay nodes (RN), network controlled repeaters (NCR), or integrated access and backhaul (IAB) nodes. Alternatively, other devices have the functions of reflecting and / or refracting signals, and can reflect and / or refract the signals received from the sending end to the receiving end. For example, other devices include (or are) RIS.

[0122] The so-called other device can also be called a cooperative node. In the embodiments of the present application, the cooperative node has the function of communicating with the terminal device and / or the network device. When the cooperative node includes the RIS, it can be understood that the cooperative node includes not only the RIS but also a component that communicates with the network device. The specific name and specific implementation form of the component are not limited in the embodiments of the present application.

[0123] For example, the component can be implemented in the form of a mobile terminal (MT), so that the cooperative node includes not only the RIS but also the MT, which is equivalent to the structure of the RIS-MT cooperative node. The MT can be understood as a component similar to a terminal in the cooperative node, and the MT is called a function subordinate to the cooperative node. Since the MT has a function similar to a general terminal, it can be considered that the MT can be used for communication between the cooperative node and the network device. Alternatively, the cooperative node can also include a component that communicates with the terminal device.

[0124] Alternatively, the component can be a Bluetooth module or a WIFI module, as long as it can enable the cooperative node to communicate with the network device / terminal device. It should be noted that the number and type of communication interfaces provided on the cooperative node are not limited in the embodiments of the present application. For example, the network device supports LTE technology, so the communication interface can be a communication interface supported by the LTE system. If the network device supports NR technology, the communication interface can be a communication interface supported by the NR system. For example, the network device supports NR technology and Bluetooth communication technology, so the communication interface can include a communication interface supported by the NR system and a Bluetooth communication interface.

[0125] For convenience of description, the cooperative node in the embodiments of the present application is taken as an example including an RIS. It should be understood that the cooperative node including an RIS can also be replaced by an NCR, or in other words, the behavior of the cooperative node including an RIS is also applicable to the NCR.

[0126] The cooperative node can also be used to assist sensing. For example, referring to FIG. 9, a network architecture diagram provided by the embodiments of the present application is shown. In FIG. 9, a cooperative node is taken as an example to assist a network device and a terminal device to implement a sensing service (for example, to detect whether a vehicle exists). For example, the network device sends a sensing signal, the sensing signal is reflected by the cooperative node to obtain a reflected signal, the reflected signal is transmitted to the vehicle, and a backwave signal obtained by reflection of the vehicle can be received by the terminal device. However, the presence of the cooperative node can cause the sensing data used to determine the sensing result to be biased, thereby causing the accuracy of the sensing result to be low. For example, compared with the case where there is no cooperative node, due to the participation of the cooperative node, the actual time delay of the sensing signal between the terminal device and the network device is increased, and if the sensing data is used to calculate the distance between the target and the terminal device, the additional time delay can cause the distance to deviate greatly from the actual distance. If the current sensing data is still used to determine the sensing result, the accuracy of the obtained sensing result is low.

[0127] In order to solve the above problems, the scheme provided by the embodiments of the present application is provided. In the embodiments of the present application, when the cooperative node participates in sensing, the sensing information used to determine the sensing result is related to the cooperative node, or in other words, the sensing information is determined according to the cooperative node. For example, the sensing information can be sensing data, or the sensing information includes a bias in addition to the sensing data, the bias can be regarded as the deviation caused by the cooperative node and the absence of the cooperative node to one or more sensing data, and the deviation of the sensing data caused by the cooperative node can be compensated by the bias. In this way, in the case where the cooperative node participates in sensing, the sensing information includes the sensing data and the bias, and a more accurate sensing result can be obtained based on the sensing information.

[0128] The scheme provided by the embodiments of the present application is described in detail below in combination with the network architecture shown in FIGS. 1-9, taking one or more sensing scenarios shown in FIG. 4 as an example.

[0129] For convenience of description, in the following introduction, the communication method provided by the embodiments of the present application is taken as an example which is executed by a network device, a first cooperation node and a terminal device. The network device can be an access network device, or a CU or a DU which completes part of the function of the access network device. In this case, an SF network element can be introduced on the CN side. Alternatively, the network device has a sensing function, including a sensing control function and / or a sensing management function, and is responsible for executing functions related to sensing. For example, the network device is an SU, which is deployed on the access network side, and can be a functional unit or component independent of the RAN device, or can be deployed in the RAN device. If the network device is deployed in the RAN device, it can also be considered that the network device is the RAN device, and the RAN device has a sensing function. Alternatively, the network device can be a core network element, for example, the network device is an SF network element. The first cooperation node can concentrate signals in a specific direction for participating in sensing or assisting sensing. For example, the first cooperation node can be a relay device (such as an NCR), or the first cooperation node includes an RIS, for example, the first cooperation node is an RIS-MT structure.

[0130] The steps executed by the network device can be implemented by the network device itself, or by a device including the network device, or by a component (such as a processing unit / processor, etc.) in the network device. For example, the network device is an SU, and the steps executed by the network device can be implemented by the SU itself, or by an access network device in which the SU is located. For another example, the network device is an access network device, and the steps executed by the network device can be implemented by an SU for implementing part of the function of the access network device. The steps executed by the terminal device can be implemented by the terminal device itself, or by a device including the terminal device, for example, by a component (such as a baseband chip, or other processing unit or processor, etc.) in the terminal device. The methods mentioned in the embodiments of the present application can execute all or part of the steps, which does not constitute a limitation. In the embodiments of the present application, “the cooperation node forwards the signal” and “the cooperation node reflects and / or refracts the signal” belong to the same concept, and the two can be replaced. Similarly, “the cooperation node forwards the received signal” and “the cooperation node reflects and / or refracts the received signal” also belong to the same concept, and the two can be replaced.

[0131] The method provided by the embodiments of the present application is applicable to one or more sensing modes shown in FIG. 3. For example, the method provided by the embodiments of the present application is applicable to the sensing mode shown in (5) in FIG. 3. For example, the sensing signal can be sent by the network device, and the first cooperation node concentrates the sensing signal to a specific direction, which is received by the terminal device. Alternatively, the method provided by the embodiments of the present application is applicable to the sensing mode shown in (6) in FIG. 3. The sensing signal is sent by the terminal device, and the first cooperation node concentrates the sensing signal to a specific direction, which is received by the network device.

[0132] In actual scenarios, there can be multiple neighboring nodes in the network, some of which can serve as cooperative nodes and some of which cannot. For example, if a neighboring node is provided with an RIS, the node can serve as a cooperative node; if a neighboring node is not provided with an RIS, that is, has no RIS capability, the node can not serve as a cooperative node. It should be understood that a neighboring node herein refers to a device within a certain distance range from a source node, or can also be considered as a device that can receive signals sent by the source node (for example, a network device).

[0133] Further, due to different positions, some neighboring nodes can serve as cooperative nodes and some neighboring nodes cannot. For example, if the distance between a neighboring node and a network device enables the neighboring node to receive information of the network device, the neighboring node can serve as a cooperative node; if the distance between a neighboring node and a network device causes the neighboring node to be unable to receive information of the network device, the neighboring node cannot serve as a cooperative node. Alternatively, an RIS in a neighboring node can be unable to cause signals to be concentrated in a certain direction or certain directions due to a limited number of controllable RIS units or a limited controllable phase, and the neighboring node cannot serve as a cooperative node.

[0134] To avoid the network device blindly selecting a neighboring node as a first cooperative node, resulting in the inability to complete a sensing service, the network device can first determine a cooperative node for performing a sensing service. For ease of description, a first cooperative node for performing a first sensing service is determined by the network device as an example.

[0135] In an embodiment of the present application, the first cooperative node can be determined by the SU itself; or the first cooperative node can be determined by a core network side device (for example, an SF network element) and then notified to the SU; or the first cooperative node can be determined by the CU and then notified to the SU. Depending on the device that determines the first cooperative node, the sensing process is also different. The communication method provided in the embodiments of the present application is described in detail below. The methods mentioned in the embodiments can perform all or part of the steps and do not constitute a limitation.

[0136] Embodiment one: the first cooperative node is determined by the SU itself.

[0137] Please refer to FIG. 10, which is a flowchart of a communication method 1000 provided by an embodiment of the present application. As shown in FIG. 10, the flow of the communication method 1000 provided by an embodiment of the present application includes the following steps. In the flow shown in FIG. 10, the network device refers to a network device with a sensing-related function (for example, a sensing management function), for example, the network device can be a RAN device with a sensing-related function, or a device with a sensing-related function on the RAN side, for example, a SU deployed on the RAN side. In the following introduction, the network device is taken as an example of a SU-CU-DU architecture.

[0138] S1001, the network device sends a first message, which is used to determine the capabilities of a plurality of adjacent nodes.

[0139] When there is a sensing service request, the network device can determine a first cooperative node capable of assisting sensing from the plurality of adjacent nodes. For example, when there is a sensing service request, the core network element can send a first message to the CU, the CU receives the first message, and can send the first message to the SU. The SU receives the first request and determines the first cooperative node. Alternatively, when there is a sensing service request, the core network element can send a first message to the SU, and the SU determines the first cooperative node. The specific name of the first message is not limited in the embodiments of the present application. For example, the first message can be called a sensing service request message.

[0140] Considering that the capabilities of different adjacent nodes are different, there can be nodes in the plurality of adjacent nodes that are not suitable as the first cooperative node. Therefore, the network device can obtain the capabilities of the plurality of adjacent nodes to select an adjacent node as the first cooperative node from the plurality of adjacent nodes. For example, the network device can send a first message, which can be used to request the capabilities of the plurality of adjacent nodes. It should be understood that for any adjacent node receiving the first message, the first message is considered to be used to request the energy of the adjacent node.

[0141] Optionally, the network device is a SU, or at least one of a CU or a DU. The SU can send the first message through one or more of a plurality of communication interfaces provided by the SU. For example, the SU can be provided with a Bluetooth module, a WI-FI module, a communication interface supported by LTE technology, a communication interface supported by NR technology, etc., and the SU can send the first message through, for example, a communication interface supported by NR technology. Wherein, the SU sending the first message includes the SU broadcasting the first message. The specific name of the first message is not limited in the embodiments of the present application. For example, the first message can be called a sensing capability request message.

[0142] Optionally, the first message can be used to request the capability of the neighboring node satisfying a certain condition. The network device can select one neighboring node satisfying the certain condition as the cooperative node from the neighboring nodes. The neighboring nodes not satisfying the certain condition do not need to report the capability of the neighboring nodes, which can avoid unnecessary signaling overhead.

[0143] For example, the neighboring node satisfying the certain condition can be the neighboring node with RIS, and the network device can request the capability of the neighboring node with RIS. For example, the first message can include first indication information, the first indication information being used to indicate that the first message requests the capability of the neighboring node with RIS. Wherein, the first indication information can be an indication field, as long as the first message includes the first indication information, the first message is used to request the capability of the neighboring node with RIS. If the first message does not include the first indication information, the first message requests the capability of the neighboring node, without distinguishing whether the neighboring node has RIS. Alternatively, the first indication information is 1 bit information, for example, when the value of the 1 bit is 1, the first message is used to request the capability of the neighboring node with RIS. In contrast, the value of the 1 bit is 0, the first message requests the capability of the neighboring node, without distinguishing whether the neighboring node has RIS.

[0144] The number and content of the certain condition related to the perception requirement are not limited in the embodiments of the present application, for example, the certain condition can include the range of the perception area. Accordingly, the neighboring node satisfying the certain condition can be the neighboring node in a certain location area, and the SU can request the capability of the neighboring node in the certain location area. For example, the first message includes first location information, the first location information indicating the first location area, and the first message is used to request the capability of the neighboring node in the first location area.

[0145] The first message can include one or more certain conditions, and the embodiments of the present application do not limit the certain conditions.

[0146] S1002, the M neighboring nodes respectively send second messages to the network device, and the network device receives the second messages from the M neighboring nodes.

[0147] The M cooperative nodes are the cooperative nodes that receive the first message, and M is an integer greater than or equal to 1. For any one of the neighboring nodes, the second message sent to the network device includes the capability information of the neighboring node. It should be understood that the network device receives the second message from the M neighboring nodes, which can be replaced by the network device receiving the capability information of the M neighboring nodes. The neighboring nodes can send the second message through one or more of the set communication interfaces. For example, the neighboring nodes can be provided with a Bluetooth module, a WI-FI module, a communication interface supported by LTE technology, a communication interface supported by NR technology, etc., and the neighboring nodes can send the second message through, for example, a communication interface supported by NR technology. The specific name of the second message is not limited in the embodiments of the present application. For example, the second message can be called a sensing capability message.

[0148] The capability information of the neighboring nodes will be introduced below taking the first cooperative node as an example.

[0149] The capability information of the first cooperative node can include one or more of the following: the first information, the second information, or the RIS information. Of course, the capability information of the first cooperative node can also include other possible information, for example, the capability information of the first cooperative node can also include the strength of the reflection signal of the first cooperative node. The first information, the second information, or the RIS information will be introduced in turn below.

[0150] (1) The first information

[0151] The first information can indicate whether the first cooperative node supports participating in the sensing service. Alternatively, the first information can indicate whether the first cooperative node has the capability of assisting sensing. Among the neighboring nodes existing in the network, some neighboring nodes can cooperatively complete a certain service, and if the neighboring nodes assist in sensing, it can affect the service. In this case, even if the neighboring nodes have the capability of assisting sensing, they are not suitable as cooperative nodes. Therefore, through the first information, the SU can determine which one or which ones of the neighboring nodes can be used as cooperative nodes, thereby avoiding selecting inappropriate neighboring nodes as cooperative nodes.

[0152] (2) The second information

[0153] The second information can indicate the location of the first cooperative node. For sensing, it can be necessary to sense a target in a certain location area, and if the neighboring nodes do not meet the requirements for the location area, the neighboring nodes are not suitable as cooperative nodes. For example, it is necessary to sense a target in a location area, and if the neighboring nodes are not sufficient to concentrate the signal in the location area, the neighboring nodes are not suitable as cooperative nodes. Therefore, through the second information, the network device can also determine which one or which ones of the neighboring nodes can be used as cooperative nodes, thereby avoiding selecting inappropriate neighboring nodes as cooperative nodes.

[0154] The position of the first cooperating node can be a relative position. For example, the position of the first cooperating node can be the position of the first cooperating node relative to the SU, and the second information can include distance information of the first cooperating node relative to the SU. The position of the first cooperating node can also be the position of the first cooperating node relative to the terminal device, and the second information can include distance information of the first cooperating node relative to the terminal device. Alternatively, the position of the first cooperating node can be an absolute position, and the second information can include position coordinate information of the first cooperating node.

[0155] (3) RIS information

[0156] The RIS information can include one or more of the following: supported reflection angle range, phase change range, number of RIS units, horizontal distance and / or vertical distance between adjacent two RIS units.

[0157] When the RIS participates in sensing, factors affecting sensing performance can include the supported reflection angle range of the RIS, the phase change range of the RIS, the number of RIS units, the horizontal distance and / or vertical distance between adjacent two RIS units, etc. In order to make the first cooperating node finally selected by the SU meet the sensing requirement as much as possible, when the neighboring node is an RIS, the RIS information can also be reported. The number of RIS units includes the number of rows and the number of columns of RIS units.

[0158] For example, the RIS supports different reflection angle ranges, and the coverage range of the beam direction that the RIS can reach is different. If the RIS assists in sensing, RIS units with different reflection angle ranges will result in different sensing area ranges. Similarly, factors affecting the sensing area range also include the phase change range of the RIS, etc.

[0159] If the RIS includes a large number of RIS units, the RIS can reflect a large number of signals, and the ability / strength of the reflected signals is stronger, and the sensing result obtained by extracting sensing data from the reflected signals is more accurate, and the sensing performance is better. Conversely, if the RIS includes a small number of RIS units, the sensing performance is poor.

[0160] Considering that the RIS is a passive device, the signal will attenuate during transmission, and if the horizontal distance between adjacent two RIS units is close, the signal attenuation is less, and a higher sensing resolution can be achieved. Conversely, if the horizontal distance between adjacent two RIS units is far, the sensing resolution is low. Similarly, if the vertical distance between adjacent two RIS units is close, the sensing resolution is high; if the vertical distance between adjacent two RIS units is far, the sensing resolution is low.

[0161] It should be noted that S1001 and S1002 are optional steps, that is, S1001 and S1002 are not necessarily executed steps, and therefore, in FIG. 10, they are illustrated in dashed lines.

[0162] S1003, the network device determines the first cooperative node from the M adjacent nodes.

[0163] The network device can select the first cooperative node from the M adjacent nodes to meet the sensing requirement as much as possible. Alternatively, there are multiple adjacent nodes that meet the sensing requirement, and then the adjacent node with the strongest reflected signal strength is selected as the cooperative node from the multiple adjacent nodes.

[0164] For example, the sensing requirement includes a first location area, and the first cooperative node is an adjacent node that can assist sensing in the first location area. For another example, the sensing requirement includes a first angle range, and the first cooperative node is an adjacent node that can assist sensing in the first angle range. For another example, the sensing requirement includes a first sensing resolution, and the first cooperative node includes RIS in which the horizontal distance and / or vertical distance between two adjacent RIS units is closer. Alternatively, the network device can also determine the first cooperative node from the multiple adjacent nodes according to the distance between the terminal device and the adjacent nodes.

[0165] It should be noted that FIG. 10 illustrates that the network device requests the adjacent nodes to report the capabilities, and then determines the first cooperative node according to the capabilities of the M adjacent nodes. In a possible implementation, the network device can also request the SF network element to obtain the capabilities of the adjacent nodes. In this case, any adjacent node can store its capability information in the SF network element in advance.

[0166] S1004, the first cooperative node receives the first sensing measurement configuration.

[0167] The sensing measurement configuration can also be referred to as a sensing configuration, which can be used to configure the related configuration of the sensing measurement. When the first cooperative node includes RIS, the first sensing measurement configuration can include the working parameters of the RIS, so that the RIS concentrates the signal in a specific direction. For example, the working parameters of the RIS can include a target phase / target angle, which indicates the phase / angle of the RIS reflected and / or refracted signal received. For another example, the working parameters of the RIS include the number of RIS units in the on state, which is used to indicate the number of reflection points of the RIS to the signal.

[0168] The first sensing measurement configuration can be determined by the SU, or can be determined by the CU, or can be determined by the DU. According to the different subjects of determining the first sensing measurement configuration, the transmission process of the first sensing measurement configuration is also different, which will be introduced below.

[0169] (1) The first sensing measurement configuration is determined by the SU.

[0170] After determining the first cooperating node, the SU can determine the first perception measurement configuration and send the first perception measurement configuration to the first cooperating node.

[0171] Optionally, the SU can send the first perception measurement configuration to the first cooperating node through the CU and the DU. For example, the SU sends the first perception measurement configuration to the CU, the CU receives the first perception measurement configuration, sends the first perception measurement configuration to the DU, and the DU sends the first perception measurement configuration to the first cooperating node. The transmission path of the first perception measurement configuration can be: SU→CU→DU→the first cooperating node.

[0172] Optionally, the SU receives the first perception measurement configuration and can send the first perception measurement configuration directly to the first cooperating node. The transmission path of the first perception measurement configuration can be: SU→the first cooperating node.

[0173] (2) The first perception measurement configuration is determined by the CU.

[0174] After determining the first cooperating node, the SU can send information of the first cooperating node to the CU. After determining the first cooperating node, the CU determines the first perception measurement configuration and sends the first perception measurement configuration to the first cooperating node. The CU can send the first perception measurement configuration to the first cooperating node through the DU. For example, the CU sends the first perception measurement configuration to the DU, and the DU sends the first perception measurement configuration to the first cooperating node. The transmission path of the first perception measurement configuration can be: CU→DU→the first cooperating node.

[0175] Optionally, the CU determines the first perception measurement configuration based on a request of the SU. For example, the SU determines the first cooperating node and can request the CU to determine the first perception measurement configuration of the first cooperating node.

[0176] Optionally, the CU can determine a plurality of perception measurement configurations, and the SU determines the first perception measurement configuration from the plurality of perception measurement configurations.

[0177] (3) The first perception measurement configuration is determined by the DU.

[0178] The DU can determine the first perception measurement configuration of the first cooperating node based on a request of the SU or the CU. For example, the SU can request the first perception measurement configuration from the CU, and the CU responds to the request of the SU and requests the first perception measurement configuration from the DU. The DU receives the request from the CU, determines the first perception measurement configuration, and sends the first perception measurement configuration to the CU or the SU.

[0179] The SU receives the first sensing measurement configuration, and can send the first sensing measurement configuration to the first cooperative node through the CU and the DU. For example, the transmission path of the first sensing measurement configuration can be: DU→SU→CU→DU→the first cooperative node. Alternatively, the SU receives the first sensing measurement configuration, and can send the first sensing measurement configuration directly to the first cooperative node.

[0180] The CU receives the first sensing measurement configuration, and can send the first sensing measurement configuration to the first cooperative node through the DU. For example, the transmission path of the first sensing measurement configuration can be: DU→CU→DU→the first cooperative node.

[0181] It can be understood that the network device also sends a second sensing measurement configuration to the terminal device. For the terminal device, the second sensing measurement configuration includes one or more of, for example: a configuration of sending a sensing signal, a configuration of receiving a backhaul signal, a sensing data reporting manner, a QoS requirement of sensing, a sensing mode, a sensing time, or a configuration of sending sensing data. The configuration of sending a sensing signal includes a configuration of a sensing resource used for sending a sensing signal, including a time domain resource, a frequency domain resource, a space domain resource, a code domain resource, etc. Similarly, the configuration of receiving a backhaul signal also includes a configuration of a sensing resource. The sensing data reporting manner is used to configure the reporting manner of sensing data, for example, including a periodic reporting manner or an event triggered reporting manner. The reporting period of the sensing data can be (pre)configured or protocol predefined. The specific triggering event is not limited, and the triggering event is different according to different application scenarios. For example, monitoring whether a drone appears, the triggering event can be the appearance of an unallowed drone; for example, detecting the speed of a road vehicle, the triggering event can be the appearance of a speeding vehicle on the road. The QoS requirement of sensing can include sensing accuracy and sensing delay requirement. The sensing mode includes one or more of the sensing modes shown in FIG. 3. The sensing time is used for the time of the first terminal performing sensing, for example, including a sensing time length, a sensing period, or a sensing starting time, etc. It should be noted that the above-mentioned second sensing measurement configuration is only an example, and the second sensing measurement configuration can also include more configurations, for example, the second sensing measurement configuration can also include a sensing service type, for example, object positioning, which will not be listed one by one here.

[0182] S1005, The network device determines sensing information, which is related to the information of the first cooperative node.

[0183] The sensing information can be used to determine a sensing result, for example, the sensing information includes sensing data. The sensing data can be one or more of IQ data, RD spectrum, RDA spectrum, DV spectrum, DVA spectrum, RV spectrum, RVA spectrum, a point cloud of multiple data points, or a centroid of a real target, depending on the processing degree of the backhaul signal.

[0184] In the embodiments of the present application, due to the reflection or forwarding of the sensing signal by the first cooperative node, an additional transmission delay is introduced between the terminal device and the network device, which affects the accuracy of the sensing result. For example, compared with the case without the first cooperative node, the actual delay between the terminal device and the network device is increased due to the participation of the first cooperative node. If the sensing data is used to calculate the distance between the target and the terminal device, the additional delay will cause a large deviation between the distance and the actual distance.

[0185] Therefore, in the embodiments of the present application, the sensing information includes one or more biases in addition to the sensing data. The sensing result is determined according to the sensing data and the one or more biases.

[0186] The one or more biases are determined according to the information of the first cooperative node. The information of the first cooperative node includes information affecting the accuracy of the sensing data. For example, the information of the first cooperative node includes the position information of the first cooperative node, the phase information of the first cooperative node, etc.

[0187] For example, when the sensing data includes data representing the delay, the sensing information further includes one or more delay biases. One delay bias corresponds to one transmission path of the sensing signal. The delay bias can be the difference between the first delay and the second delay. The first delay is the sum of the delay of the sensing signal from the network device to the first cooperative node and the delay of the sensing signal from the first cooperative node to the terminal device. The second delay is the delay of the sensing signal between the network device and the terminal device. It can be understood that the first delay is different according to the different positions of the first cooperative node. The first delay is also different according to the different phases of the first cooperative node. The first delay can be determined according to the position and / or phase of the first cooperative node.

[0188] When the sensing data includes data representing the distance, the sensing information further includes one or more distance biases. One distance bias corresponds to one transmission path of the sensing signal. The distance bias can be the difference between the first distance and the second distance. The first distance is the sum of the distance of the sensing signal from the network device to the first cooperative node and the distance of the sensing signal from the first cooperative node to the terminal device. The second distance is the distance of the sensing signal between the network device and the terminal device. It can be understood that the first distance is different according to the different positions of the first cooperative node. The first distance can be determined according to the position and / or phase of the first cooperative node.

[0189] When the sensing data comprises data characterizing a speed, the sensing information further comprises one or more speed biases. In this case, one speed bias corresponds to one transmission path of the sensing signal, and the speed bias can be the difference between a first speed and a second speed, the first speed being determined by the sensing signal from the network device to the first cooperating node to the terminal device, and the second speed being determined by the sensing signal from the network device to the terminal device. It can be understood that the first speed is different according to the position of the first cooperating node. According to the phase of the first cooperating node, the first distance is also different. The first speed can be determined according to the position and / or phase of the first cooperating node.

[0190] According to different sensing modes, the source of the sensing data is also different. For example, in the scenario shown in (5) in FIG. 3, the sensing signal is sent by the network device (for example, SU / CU / DU), and the signal reflected / forwarded by the first cooperating node is received by the terminal device, and the sensing data comes from the terminal device. Accordingly, the network device receives the sensing information from the terminal device. Alternatively, for example, in the scenario shown in (6) in FIG. 3, the sensing signal is sent by the terminal device, and the signal reflected / forwarded by the first cooperating node is received by the network device (for example, SU / CU / DU), and the sensing information comes from the network device.

[0191] In addition, the sensing data and one or more biases can be determined by the same device, or can be determined by different devices. Taking the above two sensing scenarios as examples, the network device determining the sensing information can include the following two cases.

[0192] Case 1, the network device determines the sensing information according to the sensing data from the terminal device; or the network device receives the sensing information from the terminal device.

[0193] The sensing data can be determined by the terminal device, and one or more biases can also be determined by the terminal device. In this case, the terminal device sends the sensing data and one or more biases to the network device as sensing information. Alternatively, the network device is an SU, and the terminal device sends the sensing information to the SU through the CU or the DU. For example, the transmission path of the sensing information can be: terminal device→CU→SU, or terminal device→DU→CU→SU, or terminal device→DU→SU.

[0194] Alternatively, the perception data is determined by the terminal device, and the one or more biases are determined by the network device. In this case, the terminal device sends the perception data to the network device, and the network device determines the perception information according to the perception data and the one or more biases. The specific implementation of the terminal device sending the perception data to the network device can refer to the specific implementation of the terminal device sending the perception information to the network device. Alternatively, the network device can send the perception information to the core network device. In this case, the network device can send the generated perception information to the core network device, or the network device can forward the perception data received from the terminal device and the one or more biases to the core network device.

[0195] Case 2: The network device generates the perception data or the perception information.

[0196] According to different specific implementation forms of the network device, the network device generates the perception data or the perception information in multiple cases, which are illustrated as follows.

[0197] Case 2-1: The network device is the SU.

[0198] The perception data can be determined by the DU, and the one or more biases can be determined by the DU, the CU, the SU, or the terminal device.

[0199] When the perception data is determined by the DU, and the one or more biases are determined by the DU, the DU can send the perception data and the one or more biases to the SU, and the SU generates the perception information. Alternatively, the DU can generate the perception information according to the perception data and the one or more biases, and send the perception information to the SU.

[0200] When the perception data is determined by the DU, and the one or more biases are determined by the terminal device. In this case, the DU can send the perception data to the SU, and the terminal device sends the one or more biases to the SU, and the SU generates the perception information according to the received perception data and the one or more biases. In this case, the DU can send the perception data to the SU through the CU. That is, the transmission path of the perception data is: DU—>CU—>SU.

[0201] When the perception data is determined by the DU, and the one or more biases are determined by the SU. In this case, the DU sends the perception data to the SU, and the SU determines the perception information according to the perception data and the one or more biases.

[0202] When the perception data is determined by the DU, and the one or more biases are determined by the DU. In this case, the DU sends the perception data and the one or more biases to the SU, and the SU determines the perception information according to the perception data and the one or more biases. Alternatively, the DU can generate the perception information according to the perception data and the one or more biases, and send the perception information to the SU. The DU can send the perception information to the SU through the CU.

[0203] When the sensing data is determined by the DU, the one or more biases are determined by the CU. In this case, the DU sends the sensing data to the SU through the CU, and the CU sends the one or more biases to the SU, and the SU determines the sensing information according to the sensing data and the one or more biases. Alternatively, the CU can send the one or more biases to the DU, and the DU generates the sensing information according to the sensing data and the one or more biases, and sends the sensing information to the SU.

[0204] Case 2-2: The network device is the DU.

[0205] The sensing data can be determined by the DU, and the one or more biases can be determined by the DU, the CU, the SU, or the terminal device.

[0206] When the sensing data is determined by the DU, and the one or more biases are determined by the DU, the DU can generate the sensing information according to the sensing data and the one or more biases. When the sensing data is determined by the DU, and the one or more biases are determined by the terminal device, the terminal device can send the one or more biases to the DU, and the DU can generate the sensing information according to the sensing data and the one or more biases. When the sensing data is determined by the DU, and the one or more biases are determined by the CU, the CU can send the one or more biases to the DU, and the DU can generate the sensing information according to the sensing data and the one or more biases. When the sensing data is determined by the DU, and the one or more biases are determined by the SU, the SU can send the one or more biases to the DU, and the DU can generate the sensing information according to the sensing data and the one or more biases.

[0207] Case 2-3: The network device is the CU.

[0208] The sensing data can be determined by the DU, and the one or more biases can be determined by the DU, the CU, the SU, or the terminal device.

[0209] When the sensing data is determined by the DU and the one or more biases are determined by the DU, the DU can generate the sensing information according to the sensing data and the one or more biases, and send the sensing information to the CU. Alternatively, when the sensing data is determined by the DU and the one or more biases are determined by the DU, the DU can send the sensing data and the one or more biases to the CU, and the CU can generate the sensing information according to the sensing data and the one or more biases. Alternatively, when the sensing data is determined by the DU and the one or more biases are determined by the terminal device, the terminal device can send the one or more biases to the DU, and the DU can generate the sensing information according to the sensing data and the one or more biases, and send the sensing information to the CU. Alternatively, when the sensing data is determined by the DU and the one or more biases are determined by the terminal device, the DU can send the sensing data to the CU, and the terminal device can send the one or more biases to the CU, and the CU can generate the sensing information according to the sensing data and the one or more biases. Alternatively, when the sensing data is determined by the DU and the one or more biases are determined by the CU, the DU can send the sensing data to the CU, and the CU can generate the sensing information according to the sensing data and the one or more biases. When the sensing data is determined by the DU and the one or more biases are determined by the SU, the SU can send the one or more biases to the CU, and the DU can send the sensing data to the CU, and the CU can generate the sensing information according to the sensing data and the one or more biases.

[0210] The network device determines the sensing information, and can determine the sensing result according to the sensing information. Alternatively, the network device determines the sensing information, and notifies the SF network element of the sensing information, and the SF network element determines the sensing result according to the sensing information. In this case, the network device obtains the sensing data, and can further process the obtained sensing data. For example, the sensing data sent by the terminal device to the network device is R-spectrum, and the network device can further process the R-spectrum to obtain R-V-spectrum. The network device sends the R-V-spectrum and the one or more biases to the SF network element. It can be understood that it is not necessary for the SF network element to determine the sensing result, and therefore, the network device and the SF network element are connected by a dashed line in FIG. 10.

[0211] It should be noted that if the device that determines the sensing result does not know that the first cooperative node assists sensing, the sensing result cannot be determined based on the most original sensing data. For example, the sensing result is determined by the SF network element, and when the SF network element does not know that the first cooperative node assists sensing, and the sensing information obtained by the SF network element is the original sensing data (for example, IQ data), the sensing result determined by the SF network element according to the sensing data can be incorrect.

[0212] To this end, in the embodiments of the present application, in order to obtain more accurate sensing results, the processing level of the reported sensing data can also be configured. For example, the terminal device reports sensing information, and the SF network element determines the sensing result. When the SF network element does not determine that there is a first cooperative node assisting in sensing, the network device can send a third sensing measurement configuration to the terminal device, and the third sensing measurement configuration includes the processing level of the sensing data. In this way, the terminal device reports the sensing information according to the third sensing measurement configuration, which is processable by the SF network element, so that the SF network element can determine the sensing result according to the sensing information reported by the terminal device. The third sensing measurement configuration and the second sensing measurement configuration can be carried in the same signaling or different signaling.

[0213] The embodiments of the present application do not limit the division manner of the processing level of the sensing data and the number of the processing levels. For example, please refer to Table 2, which shows a processing level of the sensing data. In Table 2, the processing level of the sensing data includes the first level to the third level. Alternatively, the processing level of the sensing data can be more. For example, in the first row of Table 2, the sensing original signal can be regarded as a processing level, and the operation result of the sensing original signal can be regarded as a processing level. In the second row of Table 2, the sensing preliminary data can be regarded as a processing level, and the sensing intermediate data can be regarded as a processing level.

[0214] Table 2

[0215] The sensing data of one processing level can also be regarded as a sensing data type. Therefore, the second sensing measurement configuration including the processing level of the sensing data can also be replaced by the second sensing measurement configuration including the type information of the sensing data.

[0216] In possible scenarios, the sensing data can be reported by the terminal device to the SF network element, or can be reported by the network device to the SF network element. According to whether the RIS participates in the sensing task, the processing level of the sensing data or the type of the sensing data is different. The following will be introduced in different cases.

[0217] Case 1: The terminal device reports the sensing data.

[0218] In case 1, the network device can configure the terminal device to report the processing level / type of the sensing data. For example, the network device sends a third sensing measurement configuration to the terminal device, and the third sensing measurement configuration includes the first level, which indicates that the terminal device reports the sensing data of the first level.

[0219] Alternatively, when the RIS participates in the sensing task, the processing level of the sensing data configured by the network device does not include the first level. Or, when the RIS participates in the sensing task, the network device configures the terminal device to report the type of the sensing data, which is not the sensing original data.

[0220] Optionally, when the RIS participates in the sensing task, and the terminal device reports the sensing data to the SF network element through the user plane, the processing level of the sensing data configured by the network device does not include the first level. Or, when the RIS participates in the sensing task, the terminal device reports the sensing data to the SF network element through the user plane, and the network device configures the reporting type of the sensing data to the terminal device is not the sensing raw data. Wherein, the terminal device reports the sensing data to the SF network element through the user plane includes: the terminal device reports the sensing data to the SF network element through the DRB, or the terminal device reports the sensing data to the SF network element through the PDU session, or the network device does not interpret the sensing data, but forwards the sensing data of the terminal device.

[0221] Wherein, the network device can configure one or more processing levels of the sensing data. When the network device configures multiple processing levels of the sensing data, the terminal device can report the sensing data according to one of the processing levels. Optionally, the terminal device can report the sensing data according to the highest level or the lowest level in the multiple processing levels.

[0222] Case 2, the network device reports the sensing data.

[0223] In possible scenarios, the SF network element can request the sensing data from the network device. Optionally, the SF network element can also request the sensing data of a specific processing level / type from the network device. In this case, the network device can report the sensing data to the SF network element according to the actual situation, or refuse to report the sensing data.

[0224] For example, the SF network element requests the first level of sensing data / sensing raw data from the network device, and the network device determines that the RIS participates in the sensing task, then the SF network element may not be able to process the sensing raw data, and the network device can refuse to report the sensing raw data to the SF network element. The network device refuses to report the sensing raw data to the SF network element, which can be considered as that the SF network element requests the sensing data fails, or the network device response fails.

[0225] Optionally, the network device can inform the SF network element of the reason for refusing to report the sensing data. For example, the network device can send a reason value for refusing to report the sensing data to the SF network element, which can be that the type / processing level of the sensing data is not appropriate, the type / processing level of the sensing data is not matched, the type / processing level of the sensing data is not reasonable, the type / processing level of the sensing data is inconsistent, or there is a cooperative node participating in the sensing.

[0226] Embodiment two: the first cooperative node is determined by the SF network element and informed to the network device.

[0227] Please refer to FIG. 11, which is a flowchart of a communication method 1100 provided by an embodiment of the present application. As shown in FIG. 11, the flow of the communication method 1100 provided by an embodiment of the present application includes the following steps. In the flow shown in FIG. 11, the network device is taken as an example of a SU-CU-DU. It should be understood that the network device in FIG. 11 refers to a network device with sensing-related functions (e.g., sensing management functions).

[0228] S1101, the first cooperating node sends capability information to an SF network element, where the capability information is used to indicate the capability of the first cooperating node.

[0229] The first cooperating node is one of the plurality of neighboring nodes. Any one of the neighboring nodes can send its capability information to the SF network element. S1101 can be replaced by: the plurality of neighboring nodes respectively send capability information to the SF network element. The neighboring nodes send the capability information to the SF network element, similar to the UE sending the capability information to the core network element. For example, the capability information can be transmitted through a non-access stratum (NAS) message. The access network device forwards the NAS message to the SF network element through the AMF, or the access network device directly sends the NAS message to the SF network element. The neighboring nodes can also update the capability information through the NAS message or the RRC message.

[0230] The content of the capability information about the first cooperating node can refer to the related content in the foregoing S1002, which will not be described here again.

[0231] S1102, the SF network element determines the first cooperating node from the plurality of neighboring nodes.

[0232] When the SF network element receives a sensing service request, it can determine the first cooperating node from the plurality of cooperating nodes according to the capability information of the plurality of cooperating nodes. For example, the sensing service request can include a sensing requirement, and the SF network element can determine the first cooperating node from the plurality of cooperating nodes according to the sensing requirement. The SF determines the first cooperating node from the plurality of neighboring nodes, similar to the SU determining the first cooperating node from the plurality of neighboring nodes, and the specific process can refer to the related content in the foregoing S1003, which will not be described here again.

[0233] S1103, the SF network element sends identification information of the first cooperating node to the network device.

[0234] Correspondingly, the network device receives the identification information of the first cooperating node from the SF network element, so as to determine to assist sensing through the first cooperating node.

[0235] S1104, the first cooperating node receives a first sensing measurement configuration.

[0236] S1104 can refer to the related content in the foregoing S1004, which will not be described here again.

[0237] The network device determines sensing information related to the information of the first cooperation node.

[0238] S1105 can refer to the related content in the foregoing S1005, and details are not described herein.

[0239] In the communication method 1000 and the communication method 1100, considering that the cooperation node participating in sensing may cause the sensing result to be biased, in addition to determining the sensing data, bias information (i.e., one or more biases in this document) caused by the cooperation node is also determined. Based on the bias information, the bias of the sensing result caused by the cooperation node can be compensated, so as to ensure the sensing result to be as accurate as possible.

[0240] The above describes the method provided by the embodiments of the present application by taking the network device, the terminal device, the first cooperation node, and the SF network element as examples. In the present application, each embodiment can be independently implemented or implemented based on certain internal relations; in each embodiment, different implementation manners can be combined or independently implemented. In order to implement each function in the method provided by the embodiments of the present application, each device can include a hardware structure and / or a software module, and the above functions are implemented in the form of hardware structure, software module, or hardware structure plus software module. Whether a certain function in the above functions is implemented in the form of hardware structure, software module, or hardware structure plus software module depends on the specific application of the technical solution and the design constraint conditions.

[0241] Based on the same inventive concept as the method embodiments, the embodiments of the present application provide a communication device. The communication device used to implement the above method in the embodiments of the present application is introduced below with reference to the accompanying drawings. The content in the foregoing can be used in the subsequent embodiments, and details are not described herein.

[0242] FIG. 12 is a schematic block diagram of a communication apparatus 1200 provided by the embodiments of the present application. The communication apparatus 1200 can implement the functions of the network apparatus, the terminal apparatus, or the first cooperation node in the above-described embodiments. The communication apparatus 1200 can include a processing module 1210 and a transceiver module 1220. Optionally, it can also include a storage module, which can be used to store instructions (codes or programs) and / or data. The storage module can be, for example, a memory. The processing module 1210 and the transceiver module 1220 can be coupled with the storage module. For example, the processing module 1210 can read the instructions (codes or programs) and / or data in the storage module to implement corresponding methods. When the communication apparatus 1200 is a terminal device or a network device or a chip in an SU, the storage module can be a storage module in the chip, such as a register, a cache, etc. For example, the storage module can also be a storage module outside the chip in the terminal device or the network device or the first cooperation node or the SU, such as a read-only memory (ROM) or other types of static storage devices that can store static information and instructions, a random access memory (RAM), etc. The above-described various units can be independently arranged, or partially or entirely integrated.

[0243] The processing module 1210 can be a processor or a controller, which can be, for example, a general-purpose central processing unit (CPU), a general-purpose processor, a digital signal processing (DSP), an application specific integrated circuits (ASIC), a field programmable gate array (FPGA) or other programmable logic devices, transistor logic devices, hardware components, or any combination thereof. It can implement or execute the various exemplary logical blocks, modules, and circuits described in connection with the disclosure of the present application. The processor can also be a combination implementing computing functions, such as a combination of one or more microprocessors, a combination of a DSP and a microprocessor, etc. The transceiver module 1220 is a transceiver, an interface circuit, a bus, a pin, or other possible communication interfaces, which is used to receive signals from other apparatuses. For example, when the apparatus is implemented in the form of a chip, the transceiver module 1220 is an interface circuit of the chip for receiving signals from other chips or apparatuses, or is an interface circuit of the chip for transmitting signals to other chips or apparatuses.

[0244] In an implementation form, the communication device 1200 is capable of corresponding to the behavior and functions of the communication device 1200 in the above method embodiments. The communication device 1200 can be a unit or device or node with sensing function, for example, the communication device 1200 is a SU or a base station, or the communication device 1200 is a chip (system) in the SU or the base station; or the communication device 1200 is a software module of the SU or the base station. Or, the communication device 1200 can also be a part of a chip or circuit or chip set for executing related method functions, or a software module in the communication device 1200 capable of implementing the above communication method, which is not limited. For details, reference can be made to the related contents of the foregoing method embodiments, which will not be described here.

[0245] For example, the processing module 1210 is configured to determine a first cooperation node for performing a first sensing service, the first cooperation node comprising an RIS, the RIS being configured to reflect and / or refract a received signal. The transceiver module 1220 is configured to send a sensing measurement configuration, wherein the sensing measurement configuration comprises an operation parameter of the RIS, the operation parameter of the RIS comprising a target phase, the target phase being configured to indicate a phase of the RIS reflecting and / or refracting the received signal. The processing module 1210 is further configured to determine sensing information. The sensing information is related to information of the first cooperation node, and is configured to determine a sensing result.

[0246] As an optional implementation form, the sensing information comprises one or more biases, the one or more biases being determined according to the information of the first cooperation node.

[0247] As an optional implementation form, the information of the first cooperation node comprises one or more of the following: position information of the first cooperation node, phase information of the first cooperation node.

[0248] As an optional implementation form, the transceiver module 1220 is further configured to send the sensing information.

[0249] As an optional implementation form, the sensing information comprises sensing data, a processing level of the sensing data being related to the first cooperation node.

[0250] As an optional implementation form, the transceiver module 1220 is further configured to receive capability information from at least one neighboring node, the at least one neighboring node comprising the first cooperation node. The capability information of the first cooperation node comprises one or more of the following: first information, second information, or RIS information. The first information is configured to indicate whether the first cooperation node supports participating in the sensing service. The second information is configured to indicate a position of the first cooperation node. The RIS information comprises one or more of the following: a supported reflection angle range, a phase variation range, a number of RIS units, a horizontal distance and / or a vertical distance between two adjacent RIS units.

[0251] As an optional implementation, the transceiver module 1220 is further configured to send a first message, where the first message is used to request the capability of the neighboring node.

[0252] As an optional implementation, the transceiver module 1220 is further configured to receive the identification information of the first cooperating node.

[0253] When the communication apparatus 1200 is a chip type apparatus or circuit, the transceiver module can be an input / output circuit and / or a communication interface; and the processing module can be an integrated processor or microprocessor or integrated circuit.

[0254] FIG. 13 is a schematic block diagram of a communication apparatus 1300 according to an embodiment of the present application. The communication apparatus 1300 can be a network apparatus, a terminal apparatus, or a first cooperating node in the embodiments described above. For example, the communication apparatus 1300 can be a SU or a base station in FIG. 7 or FIG. 8; or the communication apparatus 1300 can be a chip (system) in a SU or a base station in FIG. 7 or FIG. 8. For another example, the communication apparatus 1300 can be a CU or a base station in FIG. 7 or FIG. 8. For yet another example, the communication apparatus 1300 can be a terminal device or a chip (system) in a 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. For specific functions, refer to the description in the method embodiments. In embodiments of the present application, the chip system can be composed of a chip, or can include a chip and other discrete devices. For specific functions, refer to the description in the method embodiments.

[0255] The communication apparatus 1300 includes one or more processors 1301 configured to implement or support implementation of the method(s) provided by the present application. For example, the processor 1301 can implement or support implementation of the functions of a network apparatus / SU, SF network element, terminal apparatus, or first cooperating node. For details, refer to the description of the method embodiments. The processor 1301 can also be referred to as a processing unit or a processing module. The processor 1301 can implement certain control functions. The processor 1301 can be a general processor or a special purpose processor. For example, the processor 1301 can include a baseband processor, a central processing unit, an application processor, a modem processor, a graphics processor, an image signal processor, a digital signal processor, a video coding processor, a controller, a memory, and / or a neural network processor, etc. The baseband processor can be configured to process communication protocols and communication data. The central processing unit can be configured to control the communication apparatus 1300, execute software programs, and / or process data. Different processors can be independent devices, or can be integrated into one or more processors, for example, integrated into one or more application specific integrated circuits.

[0256] In one design, the processor 1301 can include programs 1303 (which can also be referred to as code or instructions) that can be run on the processor 1301 to cause the communication apparatus 1300 to perform the methods described in the following embodiments. In yet another possible design, the communication apparatus 1300 includes circuits (not shown in FIG. 13) for implementing the functions of the network device / SU, SF network element, terminal device, or first cooperation node in the above-described embodiments.

[0257] In one design, the communication apparatus 1300 can include one or more memories 1302 having programs 1304 (which can also be referred to as code or instructions) stored thereon that can be run on the processor 1301 to cause the communication apparatus 1300 to perform the methods described in the above-described method embodiments.

[0258] In one design, the processor 1301 and / or memory 1302 can include an artificial intelligence (AI) module 1307, which is used to implement AI-related functions. The AI module can be implemented in software, hardware, or a combination of software and hardware. For example, the AI module can include a RAN intelligent controller (RIC) module. For example, the AI module can be a near-real-time RIC or a non-real-time RIC.

[0259] In one possible design, the processor 1301 and / or memory 1302 can also store data. The processor and memory can be separately arranged or integrated together.

[0260] In one possible design, the communication apparatus 1300 can also include a transceiver 1305 and / or an antenna 1306. The processor 1301 can also be referred to as a processing unit, which controls the communication apparatus 1300. The transceiver 1305 can also be referred to as a transceiving unit, transceiver, transceiving circuit, or transceiver, which is used to implement the transceiving functions of the communication apparatus 1300 through the antenna 1306.

[0261] In a possible design, the communication apparatus 1300 can further include one or more of the following components: a wireless communication module, an audio module, an external storage interface, an internal storage, a universal serial bus (USB) interface, a power management module, an antenna, a speaker, a microphone, an input / output (I / O) interface, a sensor module, a motor, a camera, or a display screen, etc. It can be understood that, in some embodiments, the communication apparatus 1300 can include more or less components, or some components can be integrated, or some components can be split into multiple components. These components can be implemented by hardware, software, or a combination of hardware and software.

[0262] The communication apparatus in the above embodiments can be a base station or an SC node, can be a circuit, and can be a chip or other combination device, component, etc. with the above first access network apparatus applied in the base station or the SC node. Alternatively, the communication apparatus in the above embodiments can be a network device, can be a circuit, and can be a chip or other combination device, component, etc. with the above access network apparatus applied in the network device. When the communication apparatus is a base station or an SC node including a SU, the transceiver module can be a transceiver and can include an antenna and a radio frequency circuit, etc., and the processing module can be a processor, for example, a CPU. When the communication apparatus is a chip system, the communication apparatus can be an FPGA, can be a dedicated ASIC, can be a SoC, can be a CPU, can be a network processor (NP), can be a DSP, can be a micro controller unit (MCU), can be a programmable logic device (PLD), or can be another integrated chip. The processing module can be a processor of the chip system. The transceiver module or the communication interface can be an input / output interface or an interface circuit of the chip system. For example, the interface circuit can be a code / data read / write interface circuit. The interface circuit can be used to receive code instructions (the code instructions are stored in a memory and can be directly read from the memory or can be read from the memory through another device) and transmit the code instructions to the processor. The processor can be used to run the code instructions to perform the methods in the above method embodiments. For another example, the interface circuit can also be a signal transmission interface circuit between a communication processor and a transceiver.

[0263] The embodiments of the present application further provide a communication system, which comprises at least one terminal device and an access network device, and a SU or SC node deployed at the access network side. The SU or SC node is a first access network device for implementing the functions related to the above communication method, and the access network device is a second access network device and / or a third access network device for implementing the functions related to the above communication method. The embodiments of the present application further provide a computer readable storage medium comprising instructions, which, when executed on a computer, cause the computer to perform the method executed by the SU, the terminal device, the first cooperation node or the SF network element in the above communication method.

[0264] The embodiments of the present application further provide a computer program product comprising computer program codes, which, when executed, cause a computer to perform the method executed by the SU, the terminal device, the first cooperation node or the SF network element in the above communication method.

[0265] The embodiments of the present application provide a chip system, which comprises a processor and can further comprise a memory for implementing the functions of the SU, the terminal device, the first cooperation node or the SF network element in the above communication method. The chip system can be composed of a chip or can comprise a chip and other discrete devices.

[0266] In order to implement the functions of the communication device in FIG. 12 and FIG. 13, the embodiments of the present application further provide a chip comprising a processor for supporting the communication device to implement the functions related to the SU, the terminal device, the first cooperation node or the SF network element in the above method embodiments. In a possible design, the chip is connected with a memory or the chip comprises a memory, and the memory is used to save the computer programs or instructions and data necessary for the communication device.

[0267] It should be understood that, in various embodiments of the present application, the size of the serial number of each process does not mean the execution order, and the execution order of each process should be determined according to its function and inherent logic, and should not constitute any limitation on the implementation process of the embodiments of the present application.

[0268] Those of ordinary skill in the art can realize that the various illustrative logical blocks and steps described in connection with the embodiments disclosed herein can be implemented by electronic hardware, or a combination of computer software and electronic hardware. Whether the functions are implemented in hardware or software depends on the specific application and design constraints of the technical solution. Those skilled in the art can use different methods to implement the described functions for each specific application, but such implementation should not be considered beyond the scope of the present application.

[0269] Those skilled in the art can clearly understand that, for the convenience and brevity of description, the specific working process of the system, device and unit described above can refer to the corresponding process in the foregoing method embodiments, and will not be repeated here.

[0270] In several embodiments provided in the present application, it should be understood that the disclosed system, device and method can be implemented in other ways. For example, the device embodiments described above are only schematic, for example, the division of the units is only a logical function division, and actual implementation can have another division manner, for example, a plurality of units or components can be combined or integrated into another system, or some features can be ignored or not executed. In addition, the coupling or direct coupling or communication connection between the units shown or discussed can be indirect coupling or communication connection through some interface, device or unit, and can be electrical, mechanical or other forms.

[0271] The units described as separate components can or can not be physically separated, and the components shown as units can or can not be physical units, that is, they can be located in one place, or can be distributed on a plurality of network units. Part or all of the units can be selected according to actual needs to achieve the purpose of the embodiment scheme.

[0272] If the functions are realized in the form of software function units and sold or used as independent products, they can be stored in a computer readable storage medium. Based on this understanding, the part essentially contributed by the technical scheme of the present application or part of the technical scheme can be embodied in the form of a software product, which is stored in a storage medium and includes a plurality of instructions for causing a computer device (which can be a personal computer, a server, or a network device, etc.) to execute all or part of the steps of the method described in the various embodiments of the present application. The foregoing storage medium includes: U disk, mobile hard disk, ROM, RAM, magnetic disk or optical disk, and various program code storage media.

[0273] Obviously, those skilled in the art can make various modifications and variations to the present application without departing from the scope of the present application. Thus, if these modifications and variations of the present application belong to the scope of the claims of the present application and their equivalents, the present application also intends to include these modifications and variations.

Claims

1. A communication method characterized by comprising: The method comprises: determining a first collaboration node for performing a first sensing service, the first collaboration node comprising a reconfigurable intelligent surface (RIS) configured to reflect and / or refract a received signal; sending a first sensing measurement configuration to the first collaboration node, the first sensing measurement configuration comprising an operation parameter of the RIS, the operation parameter comprising a target phase, the target phase being configured to indicate a phase of the RIS reflecting and / or refracting the received signal; determining sensing information related to information of the first collaboration node, the sensing information being configured to determine a sensing result.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein, The sensing information comprises one or more biases determined according to the information of the first collaboration node.

3. The method of claim 1 or 2, wherein, The information of the first collaboration node comprises one or more of: position information of the first collaboration node, phase information of the first collaboration node.

4. The method of any one of claims 1-3, wherein, The method further comprises: sending the sensing information.

5. The method of any one of claims 1-4, wherein, The method further comprises: sending a second sensing measurement configuration to a terminal device, the second sensing measurement configuration comprising a processing level of sensing data, the processing level of the sensing data being related to the first collaboration node.

6. The method of any one of claims 1-5, wherein, The method further comprises: receiving capability information from at least one neighboring node, the at least one neighboring node comprising the first collaboration node, the capability information of the first collaboration node comprising one or more of: first information indicating whether the first collaboration node supports participating in the sensing service; second information indicating a position of the first collaboration node; RIS information comprising one or more of: a supported reflection angle range, a phase variation range, a number of RIS units, a horizontal distance and / or a vertical distance between two adjacent RIS units.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein, The method further comprises: sending a first message for requesting the capability of the neighboring node.

8. The method of any one of claims 1-7, wherein, Determining a first collaboration node for performing a first sensing service comprises: receiving identification information of the first collaboration node.

9. A communication system, characterized by The network device and the first collaboration node, The network device determines a first collaboration node for performing a first sensing service, sends a first sensing measurement configuration to the first collaboration node, and determines sensing information; wherein the first collaboration node comprises a reconfigurable intelligent surface (RIS) configured to reflect and / or refract a received signal, the first sensing measurement configuration comprises an operation parameter of the RIS, the operation parameter comprises a target phase, the target phase is configured to indicate a phase of the RIS reflecting and / or refracting the received signal; the sensing information is related to information of the first collaboration node, and the sensing information is configured to determine a sensing result. The first collaboration node reflects and / or refracts the received signal according to the operation parameter of the RIS.

10. A communications device, characterized by The method comprises: a processing module configured to determine a first collaboration node for performing a first sensing service, the first collaboration node comprising a reconfigurable intelligent surface (RIS) configured to reflect and / or refract a received signal; transmitting, by a transceiver module, a first sensing measurement configuration to the first cooperating node, the first sensing measurement configuration comprising operational parameters of the RIS, the operational parameters comprising a target phase, the target phase being used to indicate a phase of a reflected and / or refracted received signal by the RIS; determining, by the processing module, sensing information, the sensing information being related to information of the first cooperating node, the sensing information being used to determine a sensing result.

11. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein, The sensing information comprises one or more biases, the one or more biases being determined according to the information of the first cooperating node.

12. The apparatus of claim 10 or 11, wherein, The information of the first cooperating node comprises one or more of the following: position information of the first cooperating node, phase information of the first cooperating node.

13. The apparatus of any one of claims 10-12, wherein, The transceiver module is further configured to transmit the sensing information.

14. The apparatus of any one of claims 10-13, wherein, The transceiver module is further configured to: transmit, by a transceiver module, a second sensing measurement configuration to a terminal device, the second sensing measurement configuration comprising a processing level of sensing data, the processing level of sensing data being related to the first cooperating node.

15. The apparatus of any one of claims 10-14, wherein, The transceiver module is further configured to: receive, by a transceiver module, capability information from at least one neighboring node, the at least one neighboring node comprising the first cooperating node, the capability information of the first cooperating node comprising one or more of the following information: first information indicating whether the first cooperating node supports participating in a sensing service; second information indicating a position of the first cooperating node; RIS information comprising one or more of the following: a supported reflection angle range, a phase change range, a number of RIS units, a horizontal distance and / or a vertical distance between two adjacent RIS units.

16. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein, The transceiver module is further configured to: transmit, by a transceiver module, a first message, the first message being used to request a capability of the neighboring node.

17. The apparatus of any one of claims 10-16, wherein, The transceiver module is further configured to: receive, by a transceiver module, identification information of the first cooperating node.

18. A communications device, characterized by The communication device comprises at least one processor and at least one memory, the at least one memory being configured to store a computer program, and the at least one processor being configured to execute the computer program stored in the memory, so that the communication device performs the method according to any one of claims 1-8.

19. A computer-readable storage medium, characterized in that, The computer readable storage medium is configured to store a computer program, when the computer program is run on a computer, the computer program causes the computer to perform the method according to any one of claims 1-8.

20. A computer program product, characterised in that, The computer program product comprises a computer program, when the computer program is run on a computer, the computer program causes the computer to perform the method according to any one of claims 1-8.

21. A chip or chip system, characterized by The chip or chip system comprises: at least one processor and an interface, the at least one processor being configured to call and run instructions from the interface, when the at least one processor executes the instructions, the method according to any one of claims 1-8 is implemented.

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