Communication method and apparatus

Abstract

A communication method and an apparatus. In different scenarios, a reader / writer uses different manners to indicate the end position of a PRDCH. For example, in a small packet scenario, the reader / writer may use manner 2 to indicate the length of the PDRCH; and in a large packet scenario, the reader / writer may use manner 1 to indicate the length of the PDRCH. Thus, advantages of manner 1 and manner 2 are comprehensively used, achieving compatibility between reliability and indication overheads. Further, the reader / writer may indicate to a tag the manner specifically used by the reader / writer and, on the basis of the indication of the reader / writer, the tag uses a corresponding manner to determine the end position of the PDRCH .

Description

Communication method and apparatus

[0001] Cross-reference to Related Applications

[0002] This application claims priority to the Chinese Patent Application No. 202411370733.4, filed on September 27, 2024, and entitled “A communication method and apparatus”, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference. TECHNICAL FIELD

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

[0004] With the popularity of machine-type communication (MTC) and Internet of things (IoT) communication, more and more IoT devices have been deployed in people's lives. For example: smart water meters, shared bicycles, and smart cities, environmental monitoring, smart homes, forest fire prevention, and other devices aimed at sensing and data collection, etc. In the future, IoT devices will be ubiquitous, possibly embedded in every piece of clothing, every package, every key, and almost all offline items will be interconnected under the empowerment of IoT technology. However, at the same time, due to the wide distribution and large number of IoT devices, the process of realizing the interconnection of all things also brings great challenges to the industry, the first of which is the power supply problem. At present, IoT is still mainly driven by operators, and IoT modules need to use cellular standard protocols to communicate with base stations. Since the base station needs to cover as large an area as possible, the IoT module needs to be able to communicate when it is far away from the base station, which makes the IoT device still need to consume a high current of 30mA when communicating wirelessly, so the current IoT module still needs to use a battery with high capacity to work, which also makes it difficult to make the size of the IoT module small, increasing the cost of the IoT device.

[0005] In addition, some low-power terminals play an important role in Internet of Things (IoT) applications such as medical treatment, smart home, industrial sensors, wearable devices, and the like. However, due to the limited size of such terminals, it is difficult to prolong the running time of these devices by simply increasing the battery capacity. Therefore, in order to prolong the terminal endurance time, the power consumption of wireless communication needs to be reduced, and the radio transceiver is one of the most power-consuming components. Therefore, in order to further popularize IoT, implant IoT modules into the human body, or smaller objects, it is difficult to match a higher capacity battery, and a smaller battery is used. Or design a method to reduce the power consumption of the radio transceiver, and then overcome the limitations of IoT devices in terms of cost, size, power consumption, and the like. The Ambient IoT (AIoT) device discussed in the current standard from release 19 (R19) is such a low-power device.

[0006] The current AIoT system is composed of a reader / writer and an AIoT device, and the AIoT device implements the function of a tag. The channel for communication between the reader / writer and the AIoT device is referred to as a physical reader to device channel (PRDCH). The reader / writer needs to indicate the end position of the PRDCH to the AIoT device. The current way of indicating the end position of the PRDCH by the reader / writer has a large indication overhead or low reliability, which may cause an increase in the power consumption of the AIoT device. SUMMARY

[0007] Embodiments of the present application provide a communication method and device, by associating the first indication information with the first synchronization signal or the first channel, the second device can indicate different ways to the first device for determining the end position of the first channel, thereby avoiding the problem of large indication overhead or low reliability caused by using a single way to determine the end position of the first channel, achieving the balance between reliability and indication overhead, and reducing the power consumption of the first device.

[0008] In a first aspect, a communication method is provided, the execution subject of the method is a first device, or a module, unit or component (for example, a chip, a chip system, a circuit, a processor, or the like) applied in the first device. It can be understood that the first device is a device with a tag function in an RFID system, and the method comprises: receiving a first synchronization signal and a first channel from a second device, the first synchronization signal being used to indicate a start position of the first channel; and determining an end position of the first channel according to first indication information, the first indication information being associated with the first synchronization signal or the first channel.

[0009] By the above design, the first indication information is associated with the first synchronization signal or the first channel, and different manners of determining the starting position of the first channel can be indicated through the first synchronization signal or the first channel; in the above design, the manner of determining the ending position of the first channel can be flexibly indicated, the balance between the reliability of indicating the ending position of the first channel and the indication overhead is ensured, and the power consumption of the first device is reduced.

[0010] In an implementation, the method further includes: receiving a second synchronization signal, the first indication information being the second synchronization signal, and a starting position of the second synchronization signal being the ending position of the first channel.

[0011] By the above design, the second synchronization signal can be a post-synchronization signal, for example, the second synchronization signal can be represented by 3 to 6 continuous high levels, and the ending position of the first channel is indicated by using the second synchronization signal, and the required indication overhead is small.

[0012] In a second aspect, a communication method is provided, an execution subject of the method is a second device, or a module, unit or component (for example, a chip, a chip system, a circuit, a processor or the like) applied in the second device; it can be understood that the second device can be a device with a reader function in an RFID system, for example, the second device can be an access network device or a terminal, and the like, and the method includes: determining first indication information (for example, determining the first indication information according to a number of bits included in a first channel), the first indication information being used to determine an ending position of the first channel; and transmitting a first synchronization signal and the first channel, the first synchronization signal being used to indicate a starting position of the first channel, and the first indication information being associated with the first synchronization signal or the first channel.

[0013] In an implementation, the method further includes: transmitting a second synchronization signal, the first indication information being the second synchronization signal, and a starting position of the second synchronization signal being the ending position of the first channel.

[0014] In combination with the first aspect or the second aspect, in an implementation, the first indication information is used to indicate a number of bits included in the first channel, and the first indication information is carried in the first channel.

[0015] By the above design, the first device can determine the ending position of the first channel according to the number of bits included in the first channel indicated by the first indication information and the starting position of the first channel indicated by the first synchronization signal, and the reliability is high.

[0016] In an implementation, the number of bits included in the first channel is greater than a threshold value, and the first indication information is a second synchronization signal; or, the number of bits included in the first channel is less than or equal to a threshold value, and the first indication information is used to indicate the number of bits included in the first channel.

[0017] Through the above design, the second device indicates the end position of the first channel in different ways in different scenarios. For example, in the case of a small packet (e.g., the number of bits included in the first channel is less than a threshold), the second device can indicate the end position of the first channel by using the second synchronization signal; in the case of a large packet (e.g., the number of bits included in the first channel is greater than or equal to the threshold), the end position of the first channel can be determined by using the length of the first channel indicated by the first indication information carried in the first channel; in different scenarios, the second device indicates the first device to determine the end position of the first channel in different ways, which can achieve a balance / compatibility between reliability and indication overhead.

[0018] In an implementation of the first aspect or the second aspect, the first indication information is associated with the first synchronization signal, including that the first indication information is associated with a format of the first synchronization signal.

[0019] Through the above design, on the one hand, the format of the first synchronization signal can be used to flexibly indicate different ways of determining the end position of the first channel, and a balance / compatibility between reliability and indication overhead can be achieved. On the other hand, the format of the first synchronization signal is used to indicate the way of determining the end position of the first channel, without introducing additional indication overhead.

[0020] In an implementation of the first aspect or the second aspect, the first indication information is associated with the first channel, including that the first indication information is associated with second indication information carried by the first channel, and the second indication information is used to indicate that the first indication information is the second synchronization signal, or the second indication information is used to indicate that the first indication information is used to indicate the number of bits included in the first channel.

[0021] Through the above design, the second indication information included in the first channel can be used to flexibly indicate different ways of determining the end position of the first channel, and a balance / compatibility between reliability and indication overhead can be achieved. On the other hand, the second indication information included in the first channel can be used to indicate the way of determining the end position of the first channel, which can ensure indication reliability.

[0022] In an implementation of the first aspect or the second aspect, the second indication information and the first indication information are both carried in the first channel, and the second indication information is located before the first indication information.

[0023] In an implementation of the first aspect or the second aspect, when the first indication information is used to indicate the number of bits included in the first channel, the first channel further carries third indication information, and the third indication information is used to indicate the number of bits included in the first indication information.

[0024] In an implementation of the first aspect or the second aspect, the third indication information occupies 1 bit, and the third indication information is used to indicate that the first indication information includes a first number of bits or a second number of bits, the second number of bits being greater than the first number of bits.

[0025] Through the above design, the indication overhead can be reduced when the first indication information includes the first number of bits.

[0026] In an implementation of the first aspect or the second aspect, the first channel further carries fourth indication information, the fourth indication information occupies 1 bit, and the fourth indication information is used to indicate that the first indication information includes a third number of bits or the second number of bits, the second number of bits being greater than the third number of bits.

[0027] Through the above design, the indication overhead can be further reduced when the first indication information includes the third number of bits.

[0028] In an implementation of the first aspect or the second aspect, when the first indication information is used to indicate the number of bits included in the first channel, the first channel further carries fifth indication information, and the fifth indication information and the first indication information are used to jointly indicate the number of bits included in the first channel.

[0029] In an implementation of the first aspect or the second aspect, an indication granularity of the first indication information is associated with a type of the first channel, and the indication granularity of the first indication information represents a number of bits included in each bit group of the first channel.

[0030] Through the above design, the first indication information can indicate the number of bits included in the first channel in a granularity of a bit group (e.g., a byte), and the overhead of the first indication information can be further reduced.

[0031] In an implementation of the first aspect or the second aspect, when the type of the first channel is broadcast or groupcast, the indication granularity of the first indication information is a first bit group; or when the type of the first channel is unicast, the indication granularity of the first indication information is a second bit group. For example, the number of bits included in the second bit group is greater than the number of bits included in the first bit group.

[0032] Through the above design, on one hand, the indication overhead of the first indication information is reduced, and on the other hand, because the data volume of unicast is usually large, for the transmission mode of unicast, the granularity of the bit group indicated by the first indication information is greater than the granularity of the bit group indicated when the transmission mode is broadcast or groupcast, and the indication overhead of the first indication information when the transmission mode is unicast can be further saved.

[0033] In a third aspect, an apparatus is provided, which is capable of implementing the method of the first aspect. For example, the apparatus comprises modules, units, or components corresponding to the method described in the first aspect. The modules, units, or components can be implemented by hardware, or by software, or by a combination of hardware and software.

[0034] In one design, the apparatus comprises units for performing the method of the first aspect.

[0035] In one design, the apparatus comprises a processor configured to implement the method of the first aspect. Optionally, the apparatus further comprises a memory coupled to the processor, and the processor is configured to execute computer programs or instructions stored in the memory, so that the apparatus implements the method of the first aspect.

[0036] In one design, the apparatus comprises a processor and an interface circuit configured to receive signals from other apparatuses outside the apparatus and transmit the signals to the processor, or transmit signals from the processor to other apparatuses outside the apparatus, and the processor is configured to implement the method of the first aspect by logic circuit or executing code instructions.

[0037] In one design, the apparatus can be the first apparatus, or a module, unit, or component (e.g., a chip, chip system, circuit, or processor, etc.) in the first apparatus that corresponds to each of the methods / operations / steps / actions described in the first aspect, or is capable of being used in matching with the first apparatus.

[0038] In a fourth aspect, an apparatus is provided, which is capable of implementing the method of the second aspect. For example, the apparatus comprises modules, units, or components corresponding to the method described in the second aspect. The modules, units, or components can be implemented by hardware, or by software, or by a combination of hardware and software.

[0039] In one design, the apparatus comprises units for performing the method of the second aspect.

[0040] In one design, the apparatus comprises a processor configured to implement the method of the second aspect. Optionally, the apparatus further comprises a memory coupled to the processor, and the processor is configured to execute computer programs or instructions stored in the memory, so that the apparatus implements the method of the second aspect.

[0041] In one design, the apparatus comprises a processor and an interface circuit configured to receive signals from other apparatuses outside the apparatus and transmit the signals to the processor, or transmit signals from the processor to other apparatuses outside the apparatus, and the processor is configured to implement the method of the second aspect by logic circuit or executing code instructions.

[0042] In one design, the apparatus can be a second apparatus, or a module, unit, or component (e.g., a chip, chip system, circuit, or processor, etc.) in the second apparatus that performs the methods / operations / steps / actions described in the second aspect, or is capable of being matched with the second apparatus.

[0043] In a fifth aspect, a computer readable storage medium is provided, which stores a computer program or instructions, when the computer program or instructions are run on a computer, the computer is caused to implement the method of the first aspect or the second aspect.

[0044] In a sixth aspect, a computer program product is provided, which includes a computer program or instructions, when the computer program or instructions are run on a computer, the method of the first aspect or the second aspect is caused to be executed.

[0045] In a seventh aspect, a chip is provided, which includes a processor, and is configured to implement the method of any one of the first aspect to the fifth aspect. Optionally, the chip further includes a memory, and the processor is coupled to the memory, and is configured to execute computer programs or instructions stored in the memory, so that the chip implements the method of the first aspect or the second aspect.

[0046] In an eighth aspect, a communication system is provided, which includes a first communication apparatus and a second communication apparatus; wherein the first communication apparatus is configured to implement the method of the first aspect; and the second communication apparatus is configured to implement the method of the second aspect. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0047] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of an RFID system according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0048] FIGS. 2 to 4 are schematic diagrams of network architectures according to embodiments of the present application;

[0049] FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram of an ORAN system according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0050] FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram of protocol layer division of an ORAN device according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0051] FIG. 7 is a schematic diagram of protocol layer division of an access network device according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0052] FIG. 8 is a schematic diagram of indicating the end position of a PRDCH (e.g., in a manner 1) according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0053] FIG. 9 is a schematic diagram of indicating the number of bits included in a PRDCH (e.g., in a manner 2) according to an embodiment of the present application;

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

[0055] FIG. 11 to FIG. 13 are schematic diagrams of pre-indication information (e.g., an identifier) and a TBS field according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0056] FIG. 14 and FIG. 15 are structural schematic diagrams of an apparatus according to an embodiment of the present application. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0057] For the purpose, technical solutions and advantages of the present application to be clearer, embodiments of the present application are further described in detail below with reference to the drawings. The specific operation methods, function descriptions, etc. in the method embodiments can also be applied to the apparatus embodiments or system embodiments.

[0058] In the embodiments of the present application, the number of a noun, unless otherwise specified, represents "a singular noun or a plural noun", i.e. "one or more". "At least one" means one or more, and "multiple" means 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 and B can be singular or plural. In the textual description of the present application, the character " / ", generally represents that the associated objects before and after are in an "or" relationship; in the formula of the present application, the character " / ", represents that the associated objects before and after are in a "division" relationship. "Including at least one of A, B or C" or similar expressions can represent: including A; including B; including C; including A and B; including A and C; including B and C; including A, B and C, where A, B, C can be singular or plural.

[0059] In the embodiments of the present application, various numbers involved are distinguished for the convenience of description, and are not used to limit the scope of the embodiments of the present application. The size of the serial number of the above processes does not mean the execution order, and the execution order of the processes should be determined according to its function and inherent logic. The ordinal numbers "first", "second", etc. involved in the embodiments of the present application are used to distinguish multiple objects, and do not limit the size, order, time sequence, priority or importance of the multiple objects.

[0060] A radio frequency identification (RFID) system includes a reader and a tag device. The reader can read information in the tag device or write information to be stored in the tag device. The reader and the tag device perform non-contact data communication. The tag device has a simple function and needs to rely on the excitation of the reader to send information, that is, the tag device converts the wireless signal transmitted by the reader into energy to drive itself to work. The tag device supports micro-watt or hundreds of micro-watt functions and cannot support complex designs. The tag device can also be referred to as an electronic tag, an RFID tag, or a tag. In the following description, the name "tag" is mainly taken as an example for illustration.

[0061] As shown in FIG. 1, the reader can send a carrier signal to the tag, and the tag receives the carrier signal through an antenna. The solid line in FIG. 1 represents the carrier signal sent by the reader, and the dashed line represents the signal reflected and transmitted by the tag based on the carrier signal. The tag can adjust the information to be transmitted in the reflected signal. In the above manner, the tag uses a low-precision low-power mid-low frequency ring oscillator or a completely non-oscillator to receive the downlink signal, which can further reduce the power consumption of the tag downlink reception. The tag is a miniature wireless transceiver device, mainly including a built-in tag device antenna, a coupling element, and a chip. The chip of the tag has a storage space that can support the reader to read or write tag data. After the tag receives the radio frequency signal sent by the reader through the antenna, the coupling element can be used to realize the coupling of the radio frequency signal, and then the chip of the tag can be provided with energy in the coupling channel, and the data stored in the chip can be fed back to the reader through the antenna.

[0062] With the development of communication technology, the 3rd generation partnership project (3GPP) defines ambient internet of things (A-IoT) technology. The A-IoT technology is an extremely low-power and extremely low-complexity internet of things technology, which can be understood as an extension of RFID in 3GPP. Although the A-IoT technology has some principles in common with the RFID technology, more value scenarios will be introduced in 3GPP.

[0063] In the A-IoT technology, both the reader and the tag can be implemented based on the infrastructure in the cellular network. In other words, both the reader and the tag can be devices in the cellular network. For example, the functions of the reader can be implemented by an access network device such as a base station, or can also be implemented by a conventional terminal such as a smartphone terminal in 3GPP Release 15 (R15) or Release 16 (R16), or a reduced capability (RedCap) terminal in Release 17 (R17). The tag can be implemented by a terminal in the cellular network, such as an extremely low power consumption, extremely low complexity Internet of Things terminal, and the tag can also be referred to as an AIoT terminal or AIoT device. Non-contact data communication can be performed between the access network device (or conventional terminal) and the tag, so as to read information from the tag and / or write information to be stored into the tag.

[0064] In the system (such as an AIoT system) corresponding to the AIoT technology, the reader and the tag can perform one or more of the following services: inventory, positioning, sensing, and command. It can be understood that the command service can include at least one of a read service, a write service, or a lock service. Typical application scenarios include logistics, warehousing, industrial manufacturing, identity recognition, environmental detection, etc. Among them, the inventory service: the inventory service can also be referred to as a stocktaking operation, which can obtain the identification information of the tag, for example, the reader can obtain the identification information of the tag through query, acknowledgment (ACK), etc. The read service: the read service can read the electronic product code (EPC), the tag identifier (TID), the content stored in the reserved area of the tag, or the content stored in the user storage area, etc. The write service: the write service can perform a write operation on the storage area of the tag. The kill service: the kill service can make the tag never work. The lock service: the lock service can lock the information of the tag, which can prevent the read service or the write service from being performed on the tag. Alternatively, the lock service can also lock the storage area, which can prevent or allow the read service or the write service to be performed on the storage area. The above are only examples, and the tag and the reader can also perform other services or operations, which will not be illustrated one by one here.

[0065] FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of a network topology (or architecture) to which the present application is applicable. As shown in FIG. 2, the access network device communicates directly with the AIoT device. The AIoT device can be a standalone device, or the AIoT device can be integrated with a terminal. The access network device can implement the function of a reader / writer, and the AIoT device can implement the function of a tag. The communication interface between the access network device and the AIoT device is a Uu interface (i.e., air interface). The channel through which the access network device sends data and / or signaling to the AIoT device can be referred to as a downlink channel, or a physical reader to device channel (PRDCH), or an ambient physical downlink shared channel (APDSCH). The channel through which the AIoT device sends data and / or signaling to the access network device can be referred to as an uplink channel, or a physical device to reader channel (PDRCH), or an ambient physical uplink shared channel (APUSCH).

[0066] Figure 3 is a schematic diagram of another network topology to which the present application is applicable. As shown in Figure 3, the access network device communicates with the AIoT device through an intermediate node, which can be considered as a relay node and mainly functions as a relay. For example, the intermediate node can forward the signaling and / or data sent by the access network device to the AIoT device, or forward the signaling and / or data sent by the AIoT device to the access network device. The intermediate node can be a repeater, an integrated access and backhaul (IAB) node, or a terminal, without limitation. The AIoT device can be a standalone device, or the AIoT device can be integrated with the terminal. The access network device is connected to the intermediate node through a Uu interface, and the intermediate node is directly connected to the AIoT device. In one understanding, the access network device can implement the function of a reader / writer, and the AIoT device can implement the function of a tag. The access network device can send data and / or signaling to the AIoT device through the intermediate node, and the AIoT device can send data and / or signaling to the access network device through the intermediate node. Alternatively, in another understanding, the intermediate node can implement the function of a reader / writer, and the AIoT device can implement the function of a tag. For example, the access network device can pre-configure the communication resources of the intermediate node, and the intermediate node communicates with the AIoT device using the pre-configured communication resources. The channel through which the intermediate node sends data and / or signaling to the AIoT device can be referred to as a downlink channel, or a PRDCH, or an APDSCH. The channel through which the AIoT device sends data and / or signaling to the intermediate node can be referred to as an uplink channel, or a PDRCH, or an APUSCH.

[0067] Figure 4 is a schematic diagram of yet another network architecture to which the present application is applicable. As shown in Figure 4, the terminal directly communicates with the AIoT device. The AIoT device can be a standalone device, or the AIoT device can be integrated with the terminal. The terminal and the AIoT device can communicate through a sidelink. The terminal can implement the function of a reader / writer, and the AIoT device can implement the function of a tag. The channel through which the terminal sends data and / or signaling to the AIoT device can be referred to as a downlink channel, or a PRDCH, or an APDSCH. The channel through which the AIoT device sends data and / or signaling to the terminal can be referred to as an uplink channel, or a PDRCH, or an APUSCH.

[0068] FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram of an open radio access network (O-RAN or ORAN) system to which the present application is applicable. As shown in FIG. 4, the ORAN system includes a core network device, an access network device, and a terminal. The access network device communicates with the core network device through a backhaul link and communicates with the terminal through an air interface. The access network device includes a baseband unit (BBU) and a radio unit (RU), and the BBU communicates with at least one RU through a fronthaul link. The BBU and the RU can be co-located or not co-located. Specifically, the BBU communicates with the core network device through the backhaul link, and the RU communicates with the terminal through the air interface. The BBU includes at least one CU and at least one DU, and they can communicate through at least one midhaul link. In the ORAN system, the CU can also be referred to as an open CU (O-CU), and the DU can also be referred to as an open DU (O-DU).

[0069] FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram of a network element function division and a protocol layer structure of an ORAN device to which the present application is applicable. It can be understood that the access network device adopts an ORAN architecture, and the access network device can be referred to as an ORAN device, which is used to implement wireless access of the terminal. The communication between the access network device and the terminal follows a certain protocol layer structure. The protocol layer structure can include a control plane protocol layer structure and a user plane protocol layer structure. For example, the control plane protocol layer structure can include the functions of the radio resource control (RRC) layer, the packet data convergence protocol (PDCP) layer, the radio link control (RLC) layer, the media access control (MAC) layer, and the physical layer. For example, the user plane protocol layer structure can include the functions of the PDCP layer, the RLC layer, the MAC layer, and the physical layer. In a possible implementation, the PDCP layer can further include a service data adaptation protocol (SDAP) layer.

[0070] As shown in FIG. 6, the access network device includes logical nodes such as a CU, a DU, and an RU. Among them, the CU can be connected to the core network through an interface, for example, the interface can be referred to as an E2 interface. Optionally, the CU can have part of the function of the core network. The CU can control at least one DU, and the CU can be connected to the DU through an interface, for example, the interface can be referred to as an F1 interface. Further, the control panel (CP) interface can be referred to as F1-C, and the user panel (UP) interface can be referred to as F1-U. The DU can control at least one RU, and the DU can be connected to the RU through an interface, for example, the interface can be a front interface.

[0071] 1. CU

[0072] The CU can be a logical node that carries the RRC layer, the SDAP layer, the PDCP layer, and other control functions of the access network device. That is, the CU can implement the functions of the RRC layer, the SDAP layer, the PDCP layer, and certain control functions.

[0073] Further, the CU can be split into a CU-CP and a CU-UP. Referring to FIG. 6, the CU-CP is a logical node that carries the control plane part of PDCP (PDCP-C) of the RRC layer and the PDCP layer, and is used to implement the control plane function of the CU. The CU-CP can interact with a network element in the core network for implementing the control plane function. The network element in the core network for implementing the control plane function can be an access and mobility function network element, for example, an access and mobility management function (AMF) in a 5G communication system. Continuing to refer to FIG. 6, the CU-UP is a logical node that carries the user plane part of PDCP (PDCP-U) layer of the SDAP layer and the PDCP layer, and is used to implement the user plane function of the CU. The CU-UP can interact with a network element in the core network for implementing the user plane function. The network element in the core network for implementing the user plane function, for example, a user plane function (UPF) in a 5G communication system.

[0074] 2. DU

[0075] The DU can be a logical node that carries an RLC layer, a MAC layer, a higher physical layer (Higher PHY), and other functions. For example, the higher physical layer can include partial processing functions of the PHY layer, such as forward error correction (FEC) encoding and decoding, scrambling, modulation and demodulation, and the like. That is, the DU can implement the functions of the RLC layer, the MAC layer, the higher physical layer, and other functions.

[0076] It can be understood that the above configuration of the CU and the DU is only an example, and the CU and the DU can be configured to have functions as needed. For example, the CU or the DU can be configured to have more protocol layer functions, or the CU or the DU can be configured to have partial processing functions of the protocol layer. For example, 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. For another example, the functions of the CU or the DU can be divided according to a service type or other system requirements, for example, according to a delay requirement. Functions that require a processing time to meet a relatively low delay requirement are arranged in the DU, and functions that do not require the delay requirement are arranged in the CU.

[0077] 3、RU

[0078] The RU can be a logical node that carries a lower physical layer (Lower PHY) and radio frequency (RF) chain processing. For example, the lower physical layer includes partial processing functions of the physical layer, such as fast Fourier transform (FFT), inverse fast Fourier transformation (IFFT), digital beamforming, and filtering. That is, the RU can implement the functions of the physical layer and the radio frequency.

[0079] In a possible implementation, the RU can be a 3GPP transmission reception point (TRP) or a remote radio head (RRH) or other similar functional entity. The RU communicates with one or more terminals through a wireless link.

[0080] The DU and the RU can be co-located or not co-located, without limitation. Referring to FIG. 6, the DU and the RU can include an O-RAN control user and synchronization (CUS-Plane) plane and an O-RAN management (M-Plane) plane. The O-RAN CUS plane can be referred to as a CUS plane, and the O-RAN management plane can be referred to as a management plane. Further, the CUS plane can be split into a control plane (C-Plane) and a user plane (U-Plane). Optionally, the control plane refers to a real-time control plane between the DU and the RU. The management plane refers to a non-real-time management operation between the DU and the RU.

[0081] Referring to FIG. 6, the DU and the RU exchange information of the control plane and the user plane via a lower-layer split CUS-Plane (LLS-CUS) interface through a fronthaul link. Further, the LLS-CUS interface can include a LLS-C interface corresponding to the control plane and a LLS-U interface corresponding to the user plane. The DU and the RU exchange information of the management plane via a LLS-M interface of the fronthaul link. Referring to FIG. 6, the LLS-M interface can also be connected to an external management system.

[0082] It can be understood that the DU and the RU can cooperate to jointly implement the functions of the physical layer. One DU can be connected to one or more RUs. The functions of the DU and the RU can be configured in multiple ways according to design. For example, the DU is configured to implement baseband functions, and the RU is configured to implement intermediate radio frequency functions. For another example, the DU is configured to implement high-layer functions in the physical layer, and the RU is configured to implement low-layer functions in the physical layer or implement the low-layer functions and radio frequency functions. The high-layer functions in the physical layer can include a part of functions of the physical layer that are closer to the MAC layer, and the low-layer functions in the physical layer can include another part of functions of the physical layer that are closer to the intermediate radio frequency side.

[0083] The following explains some terms related to the embodiments of the present application to facilitate understanding by those skilled in the art.

[0084] 1. Access network device

[0085] The access network device can be a device in a wireless network for helping terminals to access a wireless access. For example, the access network device is a radio access network (RAN) node for accessing terminals to a wireless network, which can also be referred to as a RAN node. The access network device includes but is not limited to: a base station, an evolved NodeB (eNodeB), a transmission reception point (TRP), a next generation NodeB (gNB) in a 5th generation (5G) mobile communication system, an access network device in an open radio access network (O-RAN), a next generation base station or base station in a future communication network, or an access node in a wireless fidelity (WiFi) system, etc. The access network device can be a macro base station, a micro base station or an indoor station, or a relay node or a donor node, etc. The specific technology and specific device form of the access network device are not limited in the present application.

[0086] Alternatively, the access network device can also be a device that implements the function of the access network device, for example, the access network device can be a module or unit that completes the function of the base station part, for example, can be a centralized unit (CU), a distributed unit (DU), a centralized unit control plane (CU-CP), or a centralized unit user plane (CU-UP), etc. As shown in FIG. 7, in some implementations, the access network device can include a centralized unit (CU) and a distributed unit (DU). The access network device including the CU node and the DU node splits the protocol layers of the gNB in the new radio (NR) system, the functions of part of the protocol layers are controlled by the CU in a centralized manner, and the remaining part or all of the protocol layers are distributed in the DU and controlled by the CU in a centralized manner. Further, the CU can be further divided into a control plane (CU-CP) and a user plane (CU-UP). The CU-CP is responsible for the control plane function, mainly including the radio resource control (RRC) and the packet data convergence protocol (PDCP) corresponding to the control plane (PDCP-C). The PDCP-C is mainly responsible for the encryption and decryption of the control plane data, the integrity protection, the data transmission, etc. The CU-UP is responsible for the user plane function, mainly including the service data adaptation protocol (SDAP) and the PDCP corresponding to the user plane (PDCP-U). The SDAP is mainly responsible for processing the data of the core network and mapping the flow to the bearer. The PDCP-U is mainly responsible for the encryption and decryption of the data plane, the integrity protection, the header compression, the sequence number maintenance, the data transmission, etc. The CU-CP and the CU-UP are connected through an E1 interface. The CU-CP represents the access network device to connect with the core network through a next generation (NG) interface, and to connect with the DU through an F1 interface control plane (F1-C). The CU-UP is connected with the DU through an F1 interface user plane (F1-U). Of course, there is also a possible implementation that the PDCP-C is also in the CU-UP.

[0087] It can be understood that in different systems, the CU (including CU-CP or CU-UP) or DU can also have different names, but those skilled in the art can understand their meanings. For example, in an O-RAN or ORAN system, the CU can also be referred to as an open CU (O-CU), the DU can also be referred to as an open DU (O-DU), the CU-CP can also be referred to as an O-CU-CP, and the CU-UP can also be referred to as an O-CU-UP. For ease of description, the CU, CU-CP, CU-UP and DU are taken as examples for description in the present application.

[0088] In some embodiments, the access network device can also include an active antenna unit (AAU). The CU implements part of the functions of the gNB, and the DU implements part of the functions of the gNB. For example, the CU is responsible for processing non-real-time protocols and services, and implementing the functions of the RRC layer. The DU is responsible for processing physical layer protocols and real-time services, and implementing the functions of the radio link control (RLC) layer, the media access control (MAC) layer and the physical (PHY) layer.

[0089] 2. Terminal

[0090] The terminal is a device with wireless transceiving function. For example, the terminal can be referred to as a terminal device, a user equipment (UE), a mobile station, a mobile terminal device, etc. The terminal can be widely applied to various scenarios, such as device-to-device (D2D) communication, vehicle to everything (V2X) communication, machine-type communication (MTC), internet of things (IoT), virtual reality, augmented reality, industrial control, autonomous driving, remote medical treatment, smart power grid, smart furniture, smart office, smart wear, smart transportation, smart city, etc. At present, some examples of the terminal are: a mobile phone, a tablet computer, a computer with wireless transceiving function, a wearable device, a vehicle, a drone, a helicopter, an airplane, a ship, a robot, a mechanical arm, a smart home device, etc. The terminal device form is not limited in the embodiments of the present application.

[0091] Alternatively, the terminal can also be an apparatus implementing terminal functions, for example, the terminal can be a module, unit or component implementing terminal functions, etc., such as a chip, chip system, circuit or processor applied to the terminal, etc. For example, the terminal can be a chip or system on chip (SOC), and the above-mentioned chip or system on chip can be installed in the terminal.

[0092] 3. AIoT device

[0093] An AIoT device is a device with receiving or reflecting function. For example, the AIoT device can be a terminal in an IoT system, which is an important component of future information technology development, and its main technical feature is to connect objects through communication technology and network, so as to realize the intelligent network of man-machine interconnection and object-object interconnection. The AIoT device can also be referred to as an AIoT terminal, and the AIoT device can be a terminal with extremely low power consumption and extremely low complexity. Some examples of AIoT devices are: smart speakers, train detectors, gas stations, inventory tags, etc. Sensors, the main functions of which include collecting data, receiving control information and downlink data of access network devices or terminals, and sending uplink data to access network devices or terminal devices.

[0094] In one classification manner, the types of AIoT devices can include passive AIoT devices, semi-passive AIoT devices, and active AIoT devices. Among them, passive AIoT devices and semi-passive AIoT devices can adopt a backscatter-based communication manner, for example, this type of AIoT device does not have the function of generating uplink signals and supports reflection. The access network device, auxiliary terminal or intermediate node, etc. can send a carrier signal to the AIoT device. The AIoT device reflects the signal according to the received carrier signal, thereby realizing the uplink transmission of the AIoT device. For example, the AIoT device can adjust the received carrier signal so that the carrier signal can carry certain uplink information, and the AIoT device reflects the adjusted carrier signal. The access network device or intermediate node can obtain the uplink information according to the received reflected signal. Or, in a period of time, the AIoT device reflects the carrier signal at some time, and the AIoT device does not reflect the carrier signal at some time. In this period of time, when the access network device or intermediate node receives the reflected signal, the access network device or intermediate node can identify the uplink signal as 1; when no reflected signal is received, the access network device or intermediate node identifies the uplink signal as 0, thereby achieving the purpose of uplink information transmission. The main difference between passive AIoT devices and semi-passive AIoT devices is that passive AIoT devices have no energy storage, and semi-passive AIoT devices have energy storage and support amplification of reflected signals. Active AIoT devices adopt a communication manner of actively generating a carrier, for example, active AIoT devices have energy storage and support amplification of uplink and / or downlink signals. The access network device or intermediate node can indicate the uplink transmission resource to the AIoT device, and the AIoT device can generate the uplink signal and send the uplink signal on the indicated uplink transmission resource.

[0095] In another classification manner, the AIoT device can be divided into the following three types:

[0096] Device A (device A) or device 1 (device 1): no energy storage, cannot independently generate signals, uses backscatter to transmit signals; its function is similar to that of a passive AIoT device.

[0097] Device B (device B) or device 2a (device 2a): has energy storage, but cannot independently generate signals, uses backscatter to transmit signals, and its stored energy can amplify reflected signals; its function is similar to that of a semi-passive AIoT device.

[0098] Device C (device C) or device 2b (device 2b): has energy storage, can independently generate signals, and has active radio frequency elements for transmission; its function is similar to that of an active AIoT device.

[0099] In one implementation, the AIoT device of device A (device A) or device 1 (device 1) has an output power consumption of about 1 μW and has a certain energy storage capability. The peak power of the AIoT device of device B (device B) or device 2a (device 2a) does not exceed a few hundred μW. The peak power of the AIoT device of device C (device C) or device 2b (device 2b) does not exceed a few hundred μW.

[0100] In one implementation, the initial sampling clock offset (SFO) of the AIoT device of device A (device A) or device 1a (device 1a) is at most 10 X1 ppm, and X1 can be 5 or 4 or 3 or 2. The initial sampling clock offset of the AIoT device of device B (device B) or device 2a (device 2a) is at most 10 X2 ppm, and X2 can be 5 or 4 or 3 or 2. The initial sampling clock offset of the AIoT device of device C (device C) or device 2b (device 2b) is at most 10 X3 ppm, and X3 can be 5 or 4 or 3 or 2.

[0101] Compared with NR terminals (e.g., terminals in R15, R16, R17), A-IoT devices have at least one of the following characteristics:

[0102] 1) Maximum bandwidth: The maximum bandwidth of the AIoT device can be less than the maximum bandwidth 100MHz of the terminal in R15 or R16. The maximum bandwidth of the AIoT device can be less than the maximum bandwidth 20MHz of the reduced capability (RedCap) terminal in R17. For example, the maximum bandwidth of the AIoT device is 1 resource block (RB), 1.44MHz, 1.5MHz, 2.88MHz, 3MHz, etc.

[0103] 2) Number of supported antennas: The number of supported antennas of the AIoT device is one transmit and one receive, or one transmit and two receives.

[0104] 3) The transmission channel of the device to the reader (uplink) is not aligned with the start and / or boundary of the slot, frame, symbol, etc. in NR.

[0105] 4) The transmission of the device to the reader (uplink) adopts a single-carrier waveform.

[0106] 5) The transmission channel of the reader to the device (downlink) is not aligned with the start and / or end boundary of the slot, frame, etc. of NR; the reader to the device (downlink) is aligned with the start and / or end boundary of the orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) symbol of NR.

[0107] 6) The transmission of the reader to the device (downlink) adopts an OFDM waveform.

[0108] 7) The supported modulation method includes at least one of the following: at least one of binary on-off keying (OOK), frequency-shift keying (FSK), binary phase shift keying (BPSK), and minimum shift keying (MSK). Among them, FSK can also be called binary frequency-shift keying (BFSK), 2FSK or OOK-FSK.

[0109] The method provided by the embodiments of the present application can be applied to a 3GPP related cellular system. For example, it can be an internet of things (IoT) system, a narrow band internet of things (NB-IoT) system, or an MTC system, and can also be a 4th generation (4 th generation, 4G), 5th generation (5th a 5th generation, 5G, mobile communication system, or a future-oriented evolved system, etc.

[0110] The reader can indicate the end position of the PRDCH to the tag in the following two ways:

[0111] Way 1: The reader sends a reader to device (R2D) message to the tag. As shown in FIG. 8, the frame structure of the R2D message includes a synchronization header (such as a preamble), a PRDCH, and a postamble. The synchronization header is used to indicate the start position of the PRDCH, and the postamble is used to indicate the end position of the PRDCH. The frame structure of FIG. 1 can also be described as a data transmission format from the reader to the tag. For example, one R2D transmission from the reader to the tag includes three parts, namely the synchronization header, the PRDCH, and the postamble.

[0112] In way 1, the postamble needs to be detected. On the one hand, the indication of the postamble is flexible, and the required overhead indication is small. For example, the postamble can be represented by 3 to 6 consecutive high levels. On the other hand, due to the false alarm rate and the missed detection rate of the postamble, the reliability of the tag detecting the postamble is poor, which is lower than that of way 2 described below.

[0113] Way 2: As shown in FIG. 9, the frame structure of the R2D message sent by the reader to the tag includes a synchronization header, control information, and a PRDCH. The transport block size (TBS) contained in the control information is used to indicate the number of bits included in the PRDCH. The tag can determine the end position of the PRDCH according to the start position of the PRDCH indicated by the synchronization header and the number of bits included in the PRDCH indicated by the TBS. It can be understood that the control information can be contained in the PRDCH or located outside the PRDCH (mainly described in FIG. 9). The frame structure of FIG. 9 can also be described as a data transmission format from the reader to the tag. For example, one R2D transmission from the reader to the tag includes three parts, namely the synchronization header, the control information, and the PRDCH.

[0114] In way 2, the indication overhead needs to be considered. For example, if the current way 2 design is followed without any improvement, the indication overhead of way 2 is large. For example, for a design of the PDRCH carrying a maximum of 1000 bits of binary data, the TBS in the control information can need to occupy 10 bits (2 10 = 1024) of indication information to indicate the number of bits actually carried in the PRDCH. After the 10 bits of indication information is encoded by a line code, the indication overhead of way 2 far exceeds that of way 1.

[0115] In view of the above, the embodiment of the present application provides a method: the reader indicates the end position of the PDRCH in different ways in different scenarios. For example, in the case of a small package, the reader can indicate the length of the PDRCH by using the above-mentioned method 2; in the case of a large package, the reader can indicate the length of the PDRCH by using the above-mentioned method 1, thereby comprehensively utilizing the advantages of the above-mentioned method 1 and method 2 to achieve a balance / compatibility between reliability and indication overhead. Further, the reader can indicate the specific method it uses to the tag, and the tag determines the end position of the PDRCH according to the indication of the reader.

[0116] In the following description, the first device and the second device are taken as examples for execution. The second device can be a device with reader function, and the first device can be a device with tag function. The method of the embodiment of the present application can be applied to various network architectures. For example, in the network architectures shown in FIGS. 2 to 4, the first device is an AIoT device, and the second device can be an access network device, an intermediate node, or a terminal. It can be understood that in the flowchart shown in FIG. 10 of the present application, the execution subject can be the first device and the second device, and can also be a module, unit, or component (for example, a chip, a chip system, a processor, a circuit, or other) in the first device or the second device. When the execution subject is a module, unit, or component in the first device / second device, the receiving / sending can be understood as input / output, that is, the module communicates with other modules or components of the first device, the second device. In addition, the processing performed by a single execution subject can also be divided into processing performed by multiple execution subjects, which can be logically and / or physically separated. For example, when the second device is an access network device, the processing performed by the access network device can be divided into processing performed by at least one of the CU, the DU, and the RU.

[0117] Embodiment One

[0118] As shown in FIG. 10, a flowchart is provided, which at least includes:

[0119] Step 1001: The second device sends a first synchronization signal and a first channel to the first device, and the first device receives the first synchronization signal and the first channel from the second device.

[0120] For example, the second device can implement the function of a reader, and the first device can implement the function of a tag. In a cellular network, the second device can be an access network device, an intermediate node, or a terminal, etc., and the first device can be an AIoT device, which can be referred to the foregoing description. The communication between the second device and the first device can be referred to as R2D communication or downlink communication, and the message sent by the second device to the first device can be referred to as an R2D message or a downlink message. Similarly, the communication between the first device and the second device can be referred to as D2R communication or uplink communication, and the message sent by the first device to the second device can be referred to as a D2R message or an uplink message. The application focuses on the process of communication between the second device and the first device.

[0121] In the application, in the process of communication between the second device and the first device, the second device sends a first synchronization signal and a first channel to the first device. The first synchronization signal and the first channel have an association relationship, and the first synchronization signal is used to indicate the starting position of the first channel. Wherein, the first synchronization signal and the first channel can be carried in one message or in different messages, which is not limited. For example, the R2D message sent by the second device to the first device includes the first synchronization signal and the first channel, and whether the R2D message includes other content is not limited. In the time domain, the first synchronization signal is adjacent to the first channel, and the first synchronization signal is located before the first channel, and the end position of the first synchronization signal is the start position of the first channel. The first synchronization signal can be a synchronization header signal, such as a preamble. Optionally, the synchronization header signal can include a start indication part and a clock reference part. The first channel is a channel for the second device to send signaling or data to the first device, and the first information can be referred to as a downlink channel, PRDCH, or APDSCH, etc.

[0122] Step 1002: The first device determines the end position of the first channel according to the first indication information, the first indication information being associated with the first synchronization signal or the first channel.

[0123] In an implementation, the first indication information is a second synchronization signal, and a start position of the second synchronization signal is an end position of the first channel. For example, in time domain, the first channel is adjacent to the second synchronization signal, and the second synchronization signal is located after the first channel, and the start position of the second synchronization signal is the start position of the first channel. The implementation can refer to the description of the above manner 1. For example, referring to FIG. 8, the frame structure of the R2D message sent by the first device to the second device includes: a first synchronization signal (such as a preamble), a first channel (such as a PRDCH), and a second synchronization signal (such as a postamble). The end position of the first synchronization signal is the start position of the first channel, the first synchronization signal can indicate the start position of the first channel, the start position of the second synchronization signal is the end position of the first channel, and the second synchronization signal can indicate the end position of the first channel. It can be understood that in the implementation, in addition to sending the first synchronization signal and the first channel to the first device, the second device also sends the second synchronization signal to the first device, and the second device correspondingly receives the second synchronization signal from the first device. For example, the first synchronization signal can be predefined, and the first device can obtain the specific content of the first synchronization signal. For example, the first device can first detect the first synchronization signal, and when the first synchronization signal is detected, the end position of the first synchronization signal can be determined; the end position of the first synchronization signal can be regarded as the start position of the first channel, and the first device can consider that the signal received thereafter is the signal carried by the first channel. Similarly, the second synchronization signal is predefined, and the first device can obtain the bit sequence contained in the second synchronization signal. When the first device detects the second synchronization signal, the start position of the second synchronization signal can be determined; the start position of the second synchronization signal can be regarded as the end position of the first channel.

[0124] In another implementation, the first indication information is used to indicate the number of bits included or carried by the first channel, and the first indication information is carried in the first channel. The implementation can refer to the description of the above manner 2. In the description of the present application, the number of bits included or carried by the first channel specifically refers to the number of data bits included or carried by the first channel, for example, the number of information bits before encoding included or carried by the first channel, or the number of coded bits after encoding included or carried by the first channel. The number of bits included or carried by the first channel can also be referred to as the length of the first channel, and the function of the first indication information can also be described as: the first indication information is used to indicate the length of the first channel. For the convenience of description, the description of the number of bits included or carried in the first information is uniformly described as: the number of bits included in the first channel, or the number of bits carried in the first channel.

[0125] In one understanding, referring to FIG. 9, the first device includes a first synchronization signal (e.g., a preamble) and a first channel (e.g., a PRDCH) in the R2D message sent to the second device. The first channel includes first indication information indicating the number of bits included in the first channel. For example, referring to FIG. 9, the first channel includes control information, and the control information includes the first indication information. Further, the control information includes a TBS field carrying the first indication information. It can be understood that TBS is used to indicate the number of bits carried by a transport block (TB). Since the data part of the first channel includes a TB, the number of bits carried by the first channel is the number of bits carried by a TB, and therefore, in this application, the first indication information carried by the TBS field is used to indicate the number of bits carried by the first channel. In another understanding, the control information in FIG. 9 can be located outside the PRDCH. At this time, the first channel can be understood as the PRDCH + control information. Similarly, the TBS included in the control information is used to indicate the number of bits carried by the first channel. It can be understood that in this implementation, the first device sends the first synchronization signal and the first channel to the second device, the first channel includes control information, and the control information includes first indication information indicating the number of bits carried by the first channel.

[0126] In this implementation, the first device receives the first synchronization signal, and the end position of the first synchronization signal is the start position of the first channel. According to the first indication information included in the first channel, the number of bits carried by the first channel can be determined; and according to the start position of the first channel and the number of bits carried by the first channel, the end position of the first channel can be determined. For example, the first indication information indicates that the number of bits carried by the first channel is 1000 bits. Then the first device starts counting at the start position of the first channel, and when 1000 bits of data are detected, it is considered that the transmission of the first channel ends, or described as the position of 1000 bits is the end position of the first channel.

[0127] In this application, before the second device sends the first synchronization signal and the first channel to the first device, the second device can determine how to indicate the end position of the first channel. For example, in this application, the second device can use the following two ways to indicate the end position of the first channel.

[0128] Method 1: using the second synchronization signal to indicate the end position of the first channel. In this method 1, the second device sends the first synchronization signal, the first channel and the second synchronization signal to the first device. Among them, the first synchronization signal is used to indicate the start position of the first channel, and the second synchronization signal is used to indicate the end position of the first channel. In one description, it can be described that the second synchronization signal is the first indication information.

[0129] Manner 2: using the first indication information included in the first channel to indicate the number of bits included in the first channel. For example, the second device sends the first synchronization signal and the first channel to the first device, the first channel includes the first indication information, and the first indication information is used to indicate the number of bits included in the first channel.

[0130] For example, the second device can determine the first indication information, such as the second device determines the first indication information according to the number of bits included in the first channel, and the first indication information is used to determine the end position of the first channel. For example, when the number of bits included in the first channel is greater than (or greater than or equal to) a threshold, the first indication information is the second synchronization signal; or when the number of bits included in the first channel is less than or equal to (or less than) the threshold, the first indication information is used to indicate the number of bits included in the first channel. The threshold can be predefined, such as specified by the protocol, or configured to the second device, without limitation. That is, in the case of a large packet (at this time, the number of bits included in the first channel is greater than the threshold), the second device can use the above-mentioned manner 1 to indicate the end position of the first channel. Since the overhead of the above-mentioned manner 1 is small, the indication overhead can be reduced. In the case of a small packet (at this time, the number of bits included in the first channel is less than or equal to the threshold), the first device can use the above-mentioned manner 2 to indicate the end position of the first channel. Since the above-mentioned manner 2 has high reliability, the reliability of indicating the end position of the first channel can be ensured.

[0131] In this application, the second device can indicate to the first device which of the above ways the second device specifically adopts to indicate the ending position of the first channel. For example, the second device can indicate that the second device adopts the above way 1 or way 2 to indicate the ending position of the first channel through the format of the first synchronization signal. For example, when the second device adopts the above way 1 to indicate the ending position of the first channel (the first indication information is the second synchronization signal), the format of the first synchronization signal can be format 1. When the second device adopts the above way 2 to indicate the ending position of the first channel (the first indication information is the number of bits included in the first channel), the format of the first synchronization signal can be format 2. In one description, it can be described that the first indication information is associated with the format of the first synchronization signal. For example, when the first indication information is the second synchronization signal, that is, the second device adopts the above way 1 to indicate the ending position of the first channel, the format of the first synchronization signal can be format 1; when the first indication information is the number of bits included in the first channel, that is, the second device adopts the above way 2 to indicate the ending position of the first channel, the format of the first synchronization signal can be format 2. It can be understood that the first synchronization signal of the above format 1 is not the same as the first synchronization signal of the format 2. For example, the first synchronization signal of the above format 1 is a first sequence, and the second synchronization signal of the above format 2 is a second sequence, the lengths of the first sequence and the second sequence can be the same, and the specific binary bits constituting the first sequence and the second sequence are different.

[0132] For the first device side, the first device receives the first synchronization signal and the first channel from the second device; when the first device detects that the first synchronization signal adopts the above format 1, the first device can determine to adopt the above way 1 to determine the ending position of the first channel. For example, the first device can detect or receive the second synchronization signal, and the position of the detected or received second synchronization signal is the ending position of the first channel. Or, when the first device detects that the first synchronization signal adopts the above format 2, the first device can determine to adopt the above way 2 to determine the ending position of the first channel. The first device can parse the TBS field included in the control information of the first channel to obtain the first indication information. The first device determines the ending position of the first channel according to the starting position of the first channel and the number of bits included in the first channel indicated by the first indication information.

[0133] In another implementation, the second device can display the second indication information to indicate that the second device indicates the ending position of the first channel in the above manner 1 or manner 2. For example, as shown in Table 1, the second indication information can occupy 1 bit, when the second indication information takes a first value, it can indicate that the second device indicates the ending position of the first channel in the above manner 1. Or, when the second indication information takes a second value, it can indicate that the second device indicates the ending position of the first channel in the above manner 2. For example, the first value can be 1, and the second value can be 0. In one description, it can be described that the first indication information is associated with the second indication information carried by the first channel, and the second indication information is used to indicate that the first indication information is the second synchronization signal (for example, the second device indicates the ending position of the first channel in the manner 1), or the second indication information is used to indicate that the first indication information is used to indicate the number of bits included in the first channel (for example, the second device indicates the ending position of the first channel in the manner 2).

[0134] Table 1: Indication manner of ending position of first channel

[0135] It can be understood that the first indication information and the second indication information can be carried in the first channel, and the second indication information can be located before the first indication information. For example, in one description, the first channel includes two fields, which are a first field and a second field, the first field is located before the second field, the first field is used to carry the second indication information, and the second field is used to carry the first indication information.

[0136] For the first device side, the first device receives the first synchronization signal and the first channel from the second device. The first channel includes the second indication information. When the second indication information takes a first value, the first device can determine that the second synchronization signal is used to indicate the ending position of the first channel. The first device can detect the second synchronization signal, and the position of the detected second synchronization signal is the ending position of the first channel. Or, when the second indication information takes a second value, the first device can determine that the first indication information in the first channel is used to indicate the ending position of the first channel. For example, the first device obtains the first indication information in the first channel, specifically, the first device parses the TBS field in the control information of the first channel to obtain the information (i.e. the first indication information) carried by the TBS field. The first device determines the number of bits included in the first channel according to the indication of the first indication information. The first device determines the ending position of the first channel according to the starting position of the first channel and the number of bits included in the first channel.

[0137] Through the above design, the second device can indicate the end position of the first channel in the above manner 1 or manner 2, and indicate the specific indication manner to the first device, and the first device can determine the end position of the first channel according to the indication of the second device, in the above manner 1 or manner 2; on the one hand, the second device indicates the end position of the first channel in a more flexible manner; on the other hand, the advantages of the above two indication manners can be fully utilized, and in different scenarios, the end position of the first channel is indicated in a corresponding manner, so that the compatibility of reliability and low overhead indication can be realized.

[0138] Embodiment Two

[0139] In the above manner 2, the first indication information is used to indicate the number of bits included in the first channel. In Embodiment Two, the manner in which the first indication information indicates the number of bits included in the first channel is improved to achieve the purpose of smaller indication overhead. It can be understood that the scheme of Embodiment Two can be implemented alone or in combination with Embodiment One, without limitation.

[0140] Scheme 1: As shown above, the first indication information is used to indicate the number of bits included in the first channel. In the current scheme, when indicating the number of bits included in the first channel, the first indication information can be indicated in a "full bit" manner. For example, the maximum value of the number of bits included in the first channel is 1000 bits, and the first indication information can occupy 10 bits (2 10 = 1024) to indicate the specific number of bits included in the first channel, and the indication overhead of the first indication information is large.

[0141] In this application, the number of bits included in the first channel is divided into multiple groups, each bit group includes at least two bits, and the first indication information can indicate the number of bit groups included in the first information. Following the above example, the maximum value of the number of bits included in the first channel is 1000 bits, which can be divided into 125 groups (1000 / 8 = 125) with 8 bits (i.e. one byte) as granularity, and the first indication information can occupy 7 bits (2 7 = 128) to indicate the number of bit groups included in the first channel, thereby reducing the number of bits occupied by the first indication information and saving the indication overhead of the first indication information. Correspondingly, the first device determines the number of bits included in the first channel according to the following manner after receiving the first indication information: the number of bits included in the first channel = the number of bit groups included in the first channel indicated by the first indication M * the number of bits included in each bit group N. For example, 1 bit group includes 8 bits (the value of N is equal to 8), and the first indication information indicates that the number of bit groups included in the first channel is 100 (the value of M is equal to 100), and the number of bits included in the first channel is equal to 800.

[0142] In an implementation, the indication granularity of the first indication information is associated with the type of the first channel, and the indication granularity of the first indication information indicates the number of bits contained in each bit group included in the first channel. For example, when the type of the first channel is broadcast or groupcast, the indication granularity of the first indication information is a first bit group. For instance, the first bit group has a value of 8 bits. That is, when the type of the first channel is broadcast or groupcast, the first indication information can indicate the number of bits included in the first channel with the first bit group as the granularity. For example, the number of bits included in the first channel is divided into at least one bit group with the first bit group as the granularity, and the first indication information can indicate the number of bit groups included in the first channel. Or, when the type of the first channel is unicast, the indication granularity of the first indication information is a second bit group, and the second bit group has a value greater than the first bit group. For instance, the second bit group has a value of 16 bits (2 bytes), 32 bits (4 bytes), or 64 bits (8 bytes). That is, when the type of the first channel is unicast, the first indication information can indicate the number of bits included in the first channel with the second bit group as the granularity. For example, the number of bits included in the first channel is divided into at least one bit group with the second bit group as the granularity, and the second indication information can indicate the number of bit groups included in the first channel. The reason for such design is that, on the one hand, it reduces the indication overhead of the first indication information, and on the other hand, since the data volume of unicast is usually larger, for the transmission mode of unicast, the granularity of the bit group indicated by the first indication information is greater than the granularity of the bit group indicated when the transmission mode is broadcast or groupcast, which can further save the indication overhead of the first indication information when the transmission mode is unicast.

[0143] It can be understood that the number of bits included in the first channel can be an integer multiple of N, where N is the number of bits contained in one bit group of the first channel. Or, whether the number of bits included in the first channel is an integer multiple of N is not limited. For example, when the number of bits included in the first channel is not an integer multiple of N, the bits included in the first channel can be processed, and the number of bits included in the first channel after processing is an integer multiple of N. For example, a zero padding operation can be performed on the bits included in the first channel, for example, the zero padding operation can be performed at any position (such as the start position or the tail position) of the bits included in the first channel, and after the zero padding operation, the number of bits included in the first channel is an integer multiple of N; or, an intercepting operation can be performed on the bits included in the first channel, for example, the intercepting operation can be performed at any position of the bits included in the first channel, and after the intercepting operation, the number of bits included in the first channel is an integer multiple of N.

[0144] In the above manner 2, the first indication information can indicate the number of bits included in the first channel in a manner of "full bits", or the first indication information can indicate the number of bits included in the first channel in a manner of "bit group" as granularity. Regardless of the above indication manner, if the current design is followed, the number of bits occupied by the first indication information is fixed, for example, 10 bits. In the present application, the number of bits occupied by the first indication information can no longer be fixed, and the first indication information can occupy corresponding bits to indicate the number of bits included in the first channel as needed. For example, in an actual application scenario, the number of bits included in the first channel is 15, and in the current design, the first indication information needs to occupy 10 bits to indicate that the number of bits included in the first information is specifically 15, for example, the first indication information can be specifically 0000001111. In the present application, the first indication information can occupy 4 bits to indicate that the number of bits included in the first information is specifically 15, for example, the first indication information can be specifically 1111. It can be seen that the present application saves the indication overhead of the first indication information, especially in the small packet scenario. Since the first device and the second device are asynchronous systems, the second device needs to inform or indicate the first device of the number of bits included or occupied by the first indication information (or the length of the first indication information). For example, the second device sends third indication information to the first device, and the third indication information can indicate the number of bits included in the first indication information. The third indication information can be referred to as pre-indication information (identification 1 below). The first indication information and the third indication information can be included in the control information of the first channel. For example, the third indication information can be located in front of the first indication information.

[0145] To further reduce the overhead of the indication, in one implementation, the third indication information can occupy 1 bit, and the third indication information is used to indicate that the first indication information includes (or occupies) a first value or a second value of the number of bits. In this implementation, the number of bits occupied by the first indication information can be fixed to the first value or the second value, the second value is greater than the first value, and the first value or the second value is less than 10. For example, the first value is equal to 4, and the second value is equal to 10. For specific examples of this implementation, see Example 1 or Example 2 below. Further, the second device can also send fourth indication information to the first device, and the fourth indication information is used to indicate that the first indication information includes a third value or a second value of the number of bits, and the second value is greater than the third value. For example, the third value is equal to 7, and the second value is equal to 10. For specific examples of this implementation, see Example 1 below. In one implementation, the first indication information, the third indication information, and the fourth indication information described above can all be carried in the control information of the first channel. That is, the control information of the first channel includes the third indication information, the fourth indication information, and the first indication information, and the third indication information is located in front of the fourth indication information, and the fourth indication information is located in front of the first indication information. The third indication information and the fourth indication information can be pre-indication information, such as the third indication information can be referred to as flag 1, the fourth indication information can be referred to as flag 2, and the first indication information can be carried in the TBS field of the control information.

[0146] Example 1: As shown in FIG. 11, the second device sends the first channel to the first device, and the first channel includes control information, and the control information includes flag 1 and TBS field. Optionally, the control information also includes flag 2.

[0147] In the TBS field, the information carried in the TBS field can be referred to as the first indication information, which is used to indicate the number of bits included in the first channel. For example, the first indication information can indicate the number of bits included in the first channel in the form of “all bits”. The flag 1 can be a specific example of the “third indication information” described above, and the flag 2 can be a specific example of the “fourth indication information” described above. The flag 1 can occupy 1 bit, and the value of 1 indicates that the number of bits included in the first channel is a first value (such as 4), and the value of 0 indicates that the number of bits included in the first channel is a second value (such as 10). The flag 2 occupies 1 bit, and the value of 1 indicates that the number of bits included in the first channel is a third value (such as 7), and the value of 0 indicates that the number of bits included in the first channel is a second value (such as 10).

[0148] For the second device side, the following design is adopted: the second device can determine the number of bits included in the first channel. If the number of bits included in the first information is 0 to 16, the TBS field can use 4-bit indication information to indicate any value in the 0 to 16. The TBS field can be allocated 4 bits, that is, the first indication information carried in the TBS field occupies 4 bits, and the 4-bit first indication information is used to indicate the number of bits included in the first channel. At this time, the value of the identifier 1 can be 1, and the identifier 2 can be default, that is, the control information of the first channel includes the first identifier and the TBS field, and does not include the identifier 2. For the first device side, when the control information of the first channel is received, the value of the identifier 1 included in the control information is obtained. When the value of the identifier 1 is 1, it can be determined that the first indication information carried in the TBS field occupies or includes 4 bits, that is, the length of the information carried in the TBS field is 4, or it is briefly described as the length of the TBS field is 4. The first device detects 4-bit information in the TBS field, determines the specific value of the 4-bit information, and determines the length of the first channel indicated by the 4-bit information. Further, according to the position of the first channel and the length of the first channel, the end position of the first channel is determined. In a specific example, if the number of bits included in the first channel is 15, the TBS field occupies 10 bits to indicate the number of bits included in the first channel according to the current design. In the scheme of the present application, the TBS field can occupy 4 bits to indicate that the number of bits included in the first channel is 15. Further, the identifier 1 occupies 1 bit (of course, the value of the identifier 1 is specifically 0), which is used to indicate that the number of bits occupied by the TBS field is 4. The above-mentioned identifier 1 occupies 1 bit, the TBS field occupies 4 bits, and a total of 5-bit indication information is occupied, which can save 5-bit indication overhead compared with the design that the TBS field occupies 10 bits in the current design.

[0149] It can be understood that the design of the scheme 2 can save the indication overhead in the case of a small packet. Of course, the design of the scheme 2 can also be applied to the case of a large packet. In the case of a large packet, the number of bits included in the first channel is greater than the threshold. For example, the first indication information carried in the TBS field can occupy 7 bits or 10 bits, which is used to indicate the number of bits included in the first channel. For example, taking the case that the first indication information occupies 7 bits: for the second device side of the sending end, the second device can allocate 7 bits to the TBS field, which can be referred to as the first indication information, for indicating the number of bits included in the first channel. The value of the identifier 1 is 1, and the value of the identifier 2 is 1. For the first device of the receiving end, when the first channel is received, the value of the identifier 1 and the identifier 2 included in the control information of the first channel can be used to determine that 7 bits are carried in the TBS field. The first device detects the information of 7 bits in the TBS field, and determines the number of bits included in the first channel according to the specific value indicated by the 7 bits. Further, the first device determines the end position of the first channel according to the start position of the first channel and the number of bits included in the first channel. As can be seen, in the above design, the TBS field occupies 7 bits, the identifier 1 and the identifier 2 each occupy 1 bit, and a total of 9 bits are used to indicate the number of bits included in the first channel. Compared with the current scheme in which the TBS field occupies 10 bits to indicate the number of bits included in the first channel, 1 bit of indication overhead is saved.

[0150] Example 2: This example 2 can be considered as a combination of the above-mentioned scheme 1 and scheme 2, and of course the above-mentioned scheme 1 and scheme 2 can be implemented separately without limitation. In example 1, the first indication information carried in the TBS field indicates the number of bits included in the first channel in the full bit manner. The difference between example 1 and example 2 is that in example 2, the first indication information carried in the TBS field indicates the number of bits included in the first channel in the "bit group" granularity manner, further saving the indication information overhead. For example, the number of bits included in the first channel is at most 1000 bits, and if the indication granularity of the first indication information is 8 bits (i.e. one byte), the first indication information can occupy 7 bits of indication information. For example, the number of bits included in the first channel is at most 1000 bits, and according to the granularity of 8 bits included in each group, the 1000 bits can be divided into 125 groups (1000 / 8=125), and each group can be considered as one byte. Then the first indication information can indicate any one of the 125 groups by using 7 bits (2 7If the indication granularity of the first indication information is 16 bits (i.e. 2 bytes), the first indication information can occupy 6 bits of the indication information. If the indication granularity of the first indication information is 32 bits (i.e. 4 bytes), the first indication information can occupy 5 bits of the indication information. It can be understood that the first indication information indicates the number of bits included in the first information in the granularity of a bit group, and can also be described as: the first indication information indicates the number of bits included in the first information in the granularity of one or more bytes. It can be seen that in the scenario where the number of bits included in the first channel is at most 1000 bits, when the first indication information indicates the number of bits included in the first channel in the granularity of one or more bytes, the first indication information occupies at most 7 bits. For example, the first indication information can occupy 5 bits, 6 bits, or 7 bits, etc. described above, to indicate the number of bits included in the first channel. In a specific example, as shown in FIG. 12, the control information of the first channel includes an identifier, which can also be described as identifier 1. The identifier occupies 1 bit, and when the value of the identifier is 1, it can represent a first value (such as 3), and when the value of the identifier is 0, it can represent a second value (such as 7).

[0151] For the second device on the sending side, the number of bit groups (or bytes) included in the first channel can be determined in the granularity of a bit group (or one or more bytes). Further, the number of bits occupied by the first indication information carried in the TBS field is determined. For example, the number of bits occupied by the TBS field can be a first value (such as 3) or a second value (such as 7). Further, the value of the identifier is determined according to the number of bits occupied by the first indication information. For example, if the first indication information carried in the TBS field occupies 3 bits, the value of the identifier is 1; if the first indication information carried in the TBS field occupies 7 bits, the value of the identifier is 0. For the first device on the receiving side, when the first channel including the control information is received, the first indication information carried in the TBS field is determined according to the identifier included in the first channel, and the number of bits included in the first channel is further determined according to the first indication information. It can be seen that in this design, the first indication information in the TBS field occupies at most 7 bits, plus 1 bit of the identifier, in the scheme of the present application, indicating that the number of bits included in the first channel occupies at most 8 bits, which can reduce the indication overhead compared with the current design of indicating the number of bits included in the first channel by 10 bits.

[0152] Scheme 3: The first channel also carries fifth indication information, which, together with the first indication information, indicates the number of bits included in the first channel. The fifth indication information can be referred to as pre-indication information, and the first indication information can be the information carried in the TBS field. The pre-indication information can be part of the TBS field, and together with the first indication information, it is used to indicate the number of bits included in the first channel.

[0153] For example, the information carried in the TBS field is referred to as the first indication information, which is used to indicate the number of bits included in the first channel. In the current design, the first indication information occupies 16 bits, which is used to indicate the number of bits included in the first channel. In this application, the first indication information can occupy 8 bits to indicate the number of bits included in the first channel. Alternatively, the first indication information can occupy 15 bits, plus 1 bit of pre-indication information (fifth indication information) to indicate the number of bits included in the first channel. As shown in FIG. 13, the control information of the first information sent by the second device to the first device includes an identifier and a TBS field. The identifier occupies 1 bit, which can be referred to as pre-indication information, and the identifier is a specific example of the fifth indication information described above. When the value of the identifier is 0, it indicates that the first indication information carried in the TBS field occupies 8 bits. When the value of the identifier is 1, it indicates that the first indication information carried in the TBS field can occupy 15 bits, and the 1-bit identifier and the 15-bit information carried in the TBS field together indicate the number of bits included in the first channel.

[0154] As can be seen, when the first indication information carried in the TBS field occupies 8 bits, the value of the 1-bit pre-indication information is 0, and a total of 9 bits are needed to indicate the number of bits included in the first channel, which can save 7 bits of indication overhead compared to the current design of using 16 bits to indicate the number of bits included in the first channel. Alternatively, when the first indication information carried in the TBS field occupies 15 bits, the value of the 1-bit pre-indication information is 1, and a total of 16 bits are needed to indicate the number of bits included in the first channel, which does not increase the indication overhead compared to the current design of using 16 bits to indicate the number of bits included in the first channel.

[0155] It can be understood that in scheme 3, the first indication information can indicate the number of bits included in the first channel in the form of full bits, or scheme 3 can be combined with scheme 1, and the first indication information can indicate the number of bits included in the first channel in the form of bit groups, further saving indication overhead.

[0156] In the embodiments of the present application, the method provided by the embodiments of the present application is introduced from the perspective of the interaction between the first device and the second device. In order to realize the functions in the method provided by the embodiments of the present application, the first device or the second device can include a hardware structure and / or a software module to realize the above-mentioned functions in the form of hardware structure, software module, or hardware structure plus software module. Whether a certain function in the above-mentioned functions is executed in the form of hardware structure, software module, or hardware structure plus software module depends on the design constraints of the specific application of the technical solution.

[0157] Based on the same concept as the above method embodiments, FIG. 14 and FIG. 15 are structural schematic diagrams of possible communication apparatuses provided by the embodiments of the present application. These communication apparatuses can realize the functions implemented by the first device or the second device in the above-mentioned method embodiments, and thus can realize the beneficial effects possessed by the above-mentioned method embodiments. In the embodiments of the present application, the communication apparatus can be the first device or the second device, or a unit, module or component (such as a chip, chip system, circuit, processor or other) applied in the first device or the second device. In the following description, the unit is taken as an example. For example, in the following description, the communication apparatus includes a processing unit and a transceiver unit. The processing unit in the following description can also be replaced by a processing module or a processing component, etc. The transceiver unit can also be replaced by a transceiver unit or a transceiver component. For example, the transceiver component can refer to a communication module.

[0158] As shown in FIG. 14, the communication apparatus 1400 includes a processing unit 1410 and a transceiver unit 1420. The communication apparatus 1400 is used to realize the functions of the first device or the second device in the above-mentioned FIG. 10.

[0159] Optionally, the transceiver unit 1420 can also be referred to as an output unit, an interface unit, or a communication unit, etc. In a possible implementation manner, the transceiver unit 1420 includes at least one of a sending unit or a receiving unit. The sending unit and the receiving unit can be integrated together, or be two independent units, etc.

[0160] When the communication apparatus 1400 is used to realize the functions of the first device in FIG. 10, specifically: the transceiver unit 1420 is configured to receive a first synchronization signal and a first channel from a second device, the first synchronization signal being used to indicate a starting position of the first channel; and the processing unit 1410 is configured to determine an ending position of the first channel according to first indication information, the first indication information being associated with the first synchronization signal or the first channel.

[0161] When the communication apparatus 1400 is used to implement the function of the second device in FIG. 10, specifically: the processing unit 1410 is configured to determine first indication information according to the number of bits included in the first channel, the first indication information being used to determine the ending position of the first channel; and the transceiver unit 1420 is configured to send the first synchronization signal and the first channel, the first synchronization signal being used to indicate the starting position of the first channel, and the first indication information being associated with the first synchronization signal or the first channel.

[0162] For specific implementation processes of the processing unit 1410 and the transceiver unit 1420, refer to the description of the method embodiment of FIG. 10, which is not repeated here.

[0163] It can be understood that the division of units in the embodiments of the present application is illustrative, and is only a logical function division. In actual implementation, another division manner can be used. In addition, each functional unit in the embodiments of the present application can be integrated in one physical device (for example, in a processor), or each functional unit can be a separate physical device, or two or more units can be integrated in one unit for implementation. The integrated unit can be implemented in the form of hardware, or in the form of a software functional module, etc.

[0164] As shown in FIG. 15, the communication apparatus 1500 includes a processor 1510 and an interface circuit 1520. The processor 1510 and the interface circuit 1520 are coupled to each other. It can be understood that the interface circuit 1520 can be a transceiver or an input / output interface. Optionally, the communication apparatus 1500 can further include a memory 1530, used to store instructions executed by the processor 1510 or to store input data required by the processor 1510 to run instructions or to store data generated after the processor 1510 runs instructions.

[0165] When the communication apparatus 1500 is used to implement the method shown in FIG. 10, the processor 1510 is used to implement the function of the processing unit 1410, and the interface circuit 1520 is used to implement the function of the transceiver unit 1420.

[0166] When the above communication apparatus is a chip applied to the first device (for example, the first device is an AIoT device), the chip implements the function of the first device in the above method embodiments. The chip receives information sent by the second device to the first device through other modules (for example, a radio frequency module or an antenna) in the first device; or the chip sends information to other modules (for example, a radio frequency module or an antenna) in the first device, and the information is sent by the first device to the second device.

[0167] When the communication apparatus is a module applied to the second device (for example, the second device is an access network device), the module implements the function of the second device in the method embodiments. For example, when the second device is an access network device, the module receives information from other modules (for example, a radio frequency module or an antenna) in the access network device, and the information is sent by the first device to the access network device; or the module sends information to other modules (for example, a radio frequency module or an antenna) in the access network device, and the information is sent by the access network device to the first device. The module of the access network device can be a chip of the access network device, or a DU or other modules. The DU can be a DU under the O-RAN architecture.

[0168] The embodiments of the present application further provide a communication apparatus, which comprises a processor configured to implement the function of the first device or the second device in FIG. 10. Optionally, the communication apparatus further comprises a memory, and the processor is coupled to the memory and configured to execute computer programs or instructions stored in the memory to implement the function of the first device or the second device in FIG. 10. Optionally, the communication apparatus can be a chip or a chip system.

[0169] The embodiments of the present application further provide a communication apparatus, which comprises a processor and an interface circuit configured to receive signals from other apparatuses outside the apparatus and transmit the signals to the processor or send signals from the processor to other apparatuses outside the apparatus, and the processor is configured to implement the function of the first device or the second device in FIG. 10 by means of a logic circuit or executing code instructions.

[0170] The embodiments of the present application further provide a computer readable storage medium, which stores instructions, and the instructions can also be referred to as computer programs, computer program codes, etc. The instructions run on a computer, so that the computer executes the function of the first device or the second device in FIG. 10.

[0171] The embodiments of the present application further provide a computer program product, which comprises computer programs or instructions, and when the computer programs or instructions run on a computer, the function of the first device or the second device in FIG. 10 is implemented.

[0172] It is to be understood that the processor in the embodiments of the present application can be a central processing unit (CPU), and can also be other general-purpose processors, digital signal processors (DSP), application specific integrated circuits (ASIC), field programmable gate arrays (FPGA) or other programmable logic devices, transistor logic devices, hardware components or any combination thereof. The general-purpose processor can be a microprocessor or any conventional processor.

[0173] The memory in the embodiments of the present application can be a random access memory (RAM), a flash memory, a read-only memory (ROM), a programmable read-only memory (PROM), an erasable PROM (EPROM), an electrically EPROM (EEPROM), a register, a hard disk, a mobile hard disk, a CD-ROM, or any other form of storage medium well known in the art.

[0174] The method steps in the embodiments of the present application can be implemented in hardware or in software instructions executable by a processor. The software instructions can be composed of corresponding software modules, which can be stored in a random access memory, a flash memory, a read-only memory, a programmable read-only memory, an erasable programmable read-only memory, an electrically erasable programmable read-only memory, a register, a hard disk, a mobile hard disk, a CD-ROM, or any other form of storage medium well known in the art. An exemplary storage medium is coupled to the processor, so that the processor can read information from and write information to the storage medium. The storage medium can also be an integral part of the processor. The processor and the storage medium can be located in an ASIC.

[0175] In the above embodiments, all or part of the embodiments can be implemented by software, hardware, firmware or any combination thereof. When implemented by software, all or part of the embodiments can be implemented in the form of a computer program product. The computer program product includes one or more computer programs or instructions. When the computer programs or instructions are loaded and executed on a computer, all or part of the processes or functions described in the embodiments of the present application are performed. The computer can be a general purpose computer, a special purpose computer, a computer network, a network device, a user equipment or other programmable apparatus. The computer programs or instructions can be stored in a computer readable storage medium or transmitted from one computer readable storage medium to another computer readable storage medium, for example, the computer programs or instructions can be transmitted from one website site, computer, server or data center to another website site, computer, server or data center through wired or wireless manner. The computer readable storage medium can be any available medium that can be accessed by a computer or a data storage device such as a server, data center and the like integrated with one or more available media. The available medium can be a magnetic medium, for example, a floppy disk, a hard disk, a magnetic tape; or an optical medium, for example, a digital video disc; or a semiconductor medium, for example, a solid state disk. The computer readable storage medium can be a volatile or non-volatile storage medium, or can include both volatile and non-volatile storage media.

[0176] In various embodiments of the present application, the terms and / or descriptions of different embodiments are consistent and can be referred to each other if there is no special description and logical conflict, and the technical features in different embodiments can be combined to form new embodiments according to their inherent logical relationship.

Claims

1. A communication method characterized by comprising: The method is applied to a first device, comprising: receiving a first synchronization signal and a first channel from a second device, the first synchronization signal being used to indicate a starting position of the first channel; determining an ending position of the first channel according to first indication information, the first indication information being associated with the first synchronization signal or the first channel.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein, Further comprising: receiving a second synchronization signal, the first indication information being the second synchronization signal, and a starting position of the second synchronization signal being the ending position of the first channel.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein, The first indication information is used to indicate a number of bits included in the first channel, and the first indication information is carried in the first channel.

4. The method of any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein, The first indication information is associated with the first synchronization signal, comprising that the first indication information is associated with a format of the first synchronization signal.

5. The method of any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein, The first indication information is associated with the first channel, comprising that the first indication information is associated with second indication information carried in the first channel, the second indication information being used to indicate that the first indication information is the second synchronization signal, or the second indication information being used to indicate that the first indication information is used to indicate the number of bits included in the first channel.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein, The second indication information and the first indication information are both carried in the first channel, and the second indication information is located before the first indication information.

7. The method of any one of claims 3 to 6, wherein, When the first indication information is used to indicate the number of bits included in the first channel, third indication information is further carried in the first channel, the third indication information being used to indicate the number of bits included in the first indication information.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein, The third indication information occupies 1 bit, and the third indication information is used to indicate that the number of bits included in the first indication information is a first value or a second value, the second value being greater than the first value.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein, Fourth indication information is further carried in the first channel, the fourth indication information occupying 1 bit, and the fourth indication information being used to indicate that the number of bits included in the first indication information is a third value or the second value, the second value being greater than the third value.

10. The method of any one of claims 3 to 6, wherein, When the first indication information is used to indicate the number of bits included in the first channel, fifth indication information is further carried in the first channel, the fifth indication information and the first indication information being used to indicate the number of bits included in the first channel.

11. The method of any one of claims 1 to 10, wherein, An indication granularity of the first indication information is associated with a type of the first channel, and the indication granularity of the first indication information represents a number of bits included in each bit group of the first channel.

12. A communication method characterized by comprising: The method is applied to a second device, comprising: determining first indication information, the first indication information being used to determine an ending position of a first channel; sending a first synchronization signal and the first channel, the first synchronization signal being used to indicate a starting position of the first channel, and the first indication information being associated with the first synchronization signal or the first channel.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein, Further comprising: sending a second synchronization signal, the first indication information being the second synchronization signal, and a starting position of the second synchronization signal being the ending position of the first channel.

14. The method of claim 12, wherein, The first indication information is used to indicate a quantity of bits included in the first channel.

15. The method of any one of claims 12 to 14, wherein, The first indication information is a second synchronization signal when the quantity of bits included in the first channel is greater than a threshold, or the first indication information is used to indicate the quantity of bits included in the first channel when the quantity of bits included in the first channel is less than or equal to the threshold.

16. The method of any one of claims 12 to 15, wherein, The first indication information is associated with the first synchronization signal, including that the first indication information is associated with a format of the first synchronization signal.

17. The method of any one of claims 12 to 15, wherein, The first indication information is associated with the first channel, including that the first indication information is associated with second indication information carried by the first channel, the second indication information being used to indicate that the first indication information is the second synchronization signal, or the second indication information being used to indicate that the first indication information is used to indicate the quantity of bits included in the first channel.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein, The second indication information and the first indication information are both carried in the first channel, and the second indication information is located before the first indication information.

19. The method of any one of claims 14 to 18, wherein, The first channel further carries third indication information when the first indication information is used to indicate the quantity of bits included in the first channel, the third indication information being used to indicate a quantity of bits included in the first indication information.

20. The method of claim 19, wherein, The third indication information occupies 1 bit, and the third indication information is used to indicate that the quantity of bits included in the first indication information is a first value or a second value, the second value being greater than the first value.

21. The method of claim 20, wherein, The first channel further carries fourth indication information, the fourth indication information occupying 1 bit, and the fourth indication information being used to indicate that the quantity of bits included in the first indication information is a third value or the second value, the second value being greater than the third value.

22. The method of any one of claims 14 to 18, wherein, The first channel further carries fifth indication information when the first indication information is used to indicate the quantity of bits included in the first channel, the fifth indication information and the first indication information being used to indicate the quantity of bits included in the first channel together.

23. The method of any one of claims 12 to 22, wherein, An indication granularity of the first indication information is associated with a type of the first channel, and the indication granularity of the first indication information indicates a quantity of bits included in each bit group of the first channel.

24. A communications device, characterized by A unit for implementing the method of any one of claims 1 to 11.

25. A communications device, characterized by A processor configured to cause the communication device to perform the method of any one of claims 1 to 11.

26. A communications device, characterized by A unit for implementing the method of any one of claims 12 to 23.

27. A communications device, characterized by A processor configured to cause the communication device to perform the method of any one of claims 12 to 23.

28. A computer-readable storage medium, characterized in that, The computer readable storage medium has stored instructions which, when executed, cause a communication device to perform the method of any one of claims 1 to 11, or to perform the method of any one of claims 12 to 23.

29. A computer program product, characterised in that, The computer program product comprises instructions which, when executed, cause the communication device to perform the method of any one of claims 1 to 11, or to perform the method of any one of claims 12 to 23.

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