Communication method, communication apparatus, and system

Abstract

Provided in the present application are a communication method, a communication apparatus, and a system. The method comprises: a first communication apparatus determining at least one first time period and at least one second time period, and sending a first signal on the basis of the at least one first time period and the at least one second time period, the first signal comprising a sensing signal, wherein a time period adjacent to each first time period is a second time period, the first communication apparatus does not send the sensing signal on at least one first time-domain resource within each first time period, and sends the sensing signal on at least one second time-domain resource within each second time period, and the at least one first time-domain resource and the at least one second time-domain resource are determined on the basis of a cycle of the sensing signal. In this way, a reduction in the power consumption of a first communication apparatus is facilitated.

Description

Communication method, communication apparatus and system

[0001] This application claims priority to the Chinese Patent Application No. 202411353683.9, filed on September 25, 2024, and entitled "Communication method, communication apparatus and system", the content of which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety. TECHNICAL FIELD

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

[0003] Communication and sensing integration is widely considered as a key application scenario for future communication networks, for example, unmanned aerial vehicle delivery, short-distance unmanned aerial vehicle transportation, etc. Specifically, communication and sensing integration means that the wireless signal sent by the sending end has the ability of sensing and communication.

[0004] Currently, when devices communicate wirelessly, the sending end transmits data / signaling by sending a communication signal and senses target features such as target moving speed, distance, etc. by sending a sensing signal. The sensing signal is usually sent periodically. However, always sending the sensing signal periodically can cause high power consumption of the sending end. SUMMARY

[0005] The present application provides a communication method, a communication apparatus and a system, which are beneficial to save the power consumption of the sending end.

[0006] In a first aspect, a communication method is provided, which can be executed by a first communication apparatus. The first communication apparatus can be a communication device, such as a network device or a terminal device, or the first communication apparatus can also be implemented as a component (such as a processor, a chip, a chip system, etc.) in the communication device, or the first communication apparatus can also be a logic module or software capable of implementing all or part of the functions of the method.

[0007] The method comprises: determining, by the first communication apparatus, at least one first time period and at least one second time period, not sending a sensing signal on at least one first time domain resource in each first time period, and sending the sensing signal on at least one second time domain resource in each second time period, the at least one first time domain resource and the at least one second time domain resource being determined based on a period of the sensing signal, and each first time period being adjacent to a second time period; and sending, by the first communication apparatus, a first signal based on the at least one first time period and the at least one second time period, the first signal comprising the sensing signal.

[0008] Based on the above scheme, the first communication device can determine two adjacent time periods (for example, the first time period and the second time period), and the number of the two time periods can be one or more, the first communication device does not transmit the sensing signal on at least one first time domain resource in the first time period, and transmits the sensing signal on at least one second time domain resource in the second time period. When the first communication device cannot sense the target object, the first communication device is converted from periodically transmitting the sensing signal to transmitting the sensing signal in time periods, so that the first communication device cannot sense the target object, and the power consumption of the first communication device is reduced.

[0009] In a possible implementation, the method further includes: determining, by the first communication device, the at least one first time period and the at least one second time period when the first communication device does not sense the target object in the third time period.

[0010] When the first communication device does not sense the target object in the third time period, the first communication device can determine the at least one first time period and the at least one second time period after the third time period, so as to convert the first communication device from periodically transmitting the sensing signal to transmitting the sensing signal in time periods. In this way, the first communication device cannot sense the target object, and the power consumption of the first communication device is reduced.

[0011] In a possible implementation, at least one of the length of the first time period, the length of the second time period, or the length of the third time period is preset. The length of the preset time period can be adjusted according to a specific application scenario, which is beneficial to improving the signal transmission efficiency of the system.

[0012] In a possible implementation, the method further includes: periodically transmitting, by the first communication device, the sensing signal when the first communication device senses the target object.

[0013] When the first communication device senses the target object, the first communication device can be converted from transmitting the sensing signal in time periods (which can be referred to as sparse transmission of the sensing signal) to periodically transmitting the sensing signal (which can be referred to as dense transmission of the sensing signal), so that the first communication device can timely identify the target object, and the timeliness of sensing identification is improved.

[0014] In a possible implementation, the first time period and the fourth time period are different, the second communication device does not transmit the sensing signal on at least one third time domain resource in the fourth time period, and the first communication device and the second communication device are included in the same communication network. In this way, the time periods in which the communication devices in the communication network do not transmit the sensing signal are staggered, which is beneficial to reducing the situation of missing identification of the sensing target object.

[0015] In a possible implementation, the method further includes: when the first communication device senses the target object, sending indication information, the indication information being used to instruct at least one communication device in the communication networking, except the first communication device, to periodically send the sensing signal.

[0016] When the moving speed of the target object is too fast, the first communication device is converted from sending the sensing signal in a sparse manner to sending the sensing signal in a dense manner, which can affect the identification of the target object. In this case, the first communication device can send indication information to a neighboring communication device (for example, a second communication device) in the same communication networking, and the second communication device, after receiving the indication information, can be converted from sending the sensing signal in a sparse manner to sending the sensing signal in a dense manner, thereby facilitating the timeliness of the sensing identification.

[0017] In a second aspect, a communication method is provided, which can be executed by the third communication device. The third communication device can be a communication device, such as a network device or a terminal device, or the third communication device can also be implemented as a component (such as a processor, a chip, a chip system, etc.) in the communication device, or the third communication device can also be a logic module or software capable of implementing all or part of the functions of the method. Wherein.

[0018] The method includes: receiving, by the third communication device, a first signal sent by the first communication device based on at least one first time period and at least one second time period, not sending a sensing signal on at least one first time domain resource in each first time period, sending a sensing signal on at least one second time domain resource in each second time period, the at least one first time domain resource and the at least one second time domain resource being determined based on a period of the sensing signal, and each first time period being adjacent to a second time period; and determining, by the third communication device, the sensing signal in the first signal.

[0019] In a possible implementation, the at least one first time period and the at least one second time period are determined by the first communication device when the first communication device does not sense the target object in a third time period.

[0020] In a possible implementation, at least one of a length of the first time period, a length of the second time period, or a length of the third time period is preset.

[0021] In a possible implementation, the third communication device periodically receives the sensing signal.

[0022] In a third aspect, a communication device is provided, which can implement the communication method in any possible implementation of the first or second aspect. The device includes one or more functional units or modules for executing the above method. The functional units or modules included in the device can be implemented in a software and / or hardware manner.

[0023] In a fourth aspect, a communication apparatus is provided, which comprises at least one processor configured to implement a method recited in any of the possible implementation manners of the first or second aspect.

[0024] Optionally, the apparatus can further include a memory for storing instructions and data. The memory is coupled to the processor, and the processor implements the method described in the above aspects when executing the instructions stored in the memory.

[0025] Optionally, the apparatus can further include a communication interface for the apparatus to communicate with other devices. Exemplarily, the communication interface can be a transceiver, a circuit, a bus, a module or other types of communication interface.

[0026] In a fifth aspect, a chip system is provided, which comprises at least one processor configured to support the functions recited in any of the possible implementation manners of the first or second aspect, such as receiving or processing data and / or information involved in the above method.

[0027] In a possible design, the chip system further includes a memory for storing program instructions and data, which is located in or out of the processor.

[0028] In a possible design, the chip system further includes an interface circuit for transmitting data and / or a power supply circuit for supplying power to the chip system.

[0029] The chip system can be composed of a chip, or include a chip and other discrete devices.

[0030] In a sixth aspect, a communication system is provided, which includes the first communication apparatus and the third communication apparatus as described above.

[0031] In a seventh aspect, a computer readable storage medium is provided, which includes a computer program, which when executed on a computer, causes the computer to implement the method recited in any of the possible implementation manners of the first or second aspect.

[0032] In an eighth aspect, a computer program product is provided, which includes a computer program (also referred to as code or instructions), which when executed, causes a computer to implement the method recited in any of the possible implementation manners of the first or second aspect.

[0033] The above second to eighth aspects and the possible implementation manners have the beneficial effects as described in the first aspect and the possible implementation manners of the first aspect, which will not be repeated here. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0034] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a communication system according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0035] FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of periodically transmitting a sensing signal according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0036] FIG. 3 is a schematic flowchart of a communication method according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0037] FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram of sparsely transmitting a sensing signal according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0038] FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram of sparsely transmitting a sensing signal in a communication network according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0039] FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram of distribution of communication devices in a communication network according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0040] FIG. 7 is a schematic block diagram of a communication device according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0041] FIG. 8 is another schematic block diagram of a communication device according to an embodiment of the present application. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0042] The technical solutions provided by the present application will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0043] For the convenience of understanding the embodiments of the present application, the following points are first explained:

[0044] First, in the present application, indication includes explicit indication (also referred to as direct indication) and implicit indication (also referred to as indirect indication). Among them, explicit indication information A means including the information A; implicit indication information A means indicating information A through the correspondence between information A and information B and directly indicating information B, the correspondence between information A and information B can be predefined, pre-stored, pre-burned, or pre-configured; or, it can also mean indicating information A through information B and a preset rule.

[0045] Second, in the present application, information C is used for determining information D, which includes that information D is determined based on information C only, and also includes that information D is determined based on information C and other information. In addition, information C used for determining information D can also be indirectly determined, such as the case that information D is determined based on information E, and information E is determined based on information C.

[0046] Third, in the present application, "at least one" means one or more, and "multiple" means two or more. The "and / or" describes the association relationship of the associated objects, which means that there can be three 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. The character " / " generally represents an "or" relationship between the associated objects before and after it, but does not rule out the case that the associated objects before and after it represent an "and" relationship. The specific meaning can be understood in combination with the context. "At least one of the following" or similar expressions means any combination of these items, including any combination of single or multiple items. For example, at least one of a, b, or c can represent: a, b, c; a and b; a and c; b and c; or a and b and c. Where a, b, and c can be single or multiple.

[0047]

[0048] Fourth, in the present application, the use of prefixes such as "first", "second", etc. is only for the convenience of distinguishing different things belonging to the same name category for description, and does not constrain the order, size or quantity of the things. For example, "first time period" and "second time period" are only different time periods, and there is no time sequence, size relationship or priority relationship between them. For example, "first communication device" and "second communication device" are only different communication devices, and there is no time sequence, size relationship or priority relationship between them.

[0049] Fifth, in the embodiments of the present application, "when", "if" and "if" all mean that the device will make corresponding processing under certain objective circumstances, not limited to time, and also does not require the device to have a judgment action when it is implemented. It also does not mean that there are other limitations.

[0050] Sixth, in the present application, the words "example", "exemplarily", "for example" or "such as" are used to represent as an example, illustration or explanation. Any embodiment or design scheme described as "example", "exemplarily", "for example" or "such as" in the present application should not be interpreted as more preferred or more advantageous than other embodiments or design schemes. Rather, the use of "example", "exemplarily", "for example" or "such as" is intended to present the relevant concept in a specific way.

[0051] ​The technical solutions provided in the present application can be applied to various communication systems, for example, a long term evolution (LTE) system, an LTE frequency division duplex (FDD) system, an LTE time division duplex (TDD) system, a sidelink (SL) communication system, a universal mobile telecommunication system (UMTS), a worldwide interoperability for microwave access (WiMAX) communication system, a 5th generation (5G) mobile communication system or a new radio access technology (NR). The 5G mobile communication system can include non-standalone (NSA) and / or standalone (SA). The technical solutions provided in the present application can also be applied to future communication networks. The present application is not limited in this regard.

[0052] FIG. 1 shows a schematic diagram of a communication system 100 according to an embodiment of the present application. As shown in FIG. 1, the communication system 100 can include at least one network device (for example, a network device 110), at least one sensing target object (for example, a sensing target object 120, a sensing target object 130, a sensing target object 140, and the like), and at least one terminal device (for example, a terminal device 150). The sensing target object is not limited to a vehicle, a low-altitude unmanned aerial vehicle, a ship, and can also include other moving or stationary objects.

[0053] The network device 110 sends a sensing signal, and the sensing signal can be reflected as a reflected signal on the surface of at least one sensing target object. The reflected signal can also be referred to as a sensing signal because it is obtained by reflecting the sensing signal via a target object on a propagation path. The receiving end of the reflected signal can be, for example, the network device 110. The network device 110 can send a communication signal to the terminal device 150, and the terminal device 150 can demodulate the communication signal to obtain information.

[0054] It should be understood that the receiving end of the reflected signal can also be another device, and the device receiving the communication signal and the device receiving the reflected signal can be the same device or different devices, which is not limited in this regard.

[0055] In summary, communication is that the sending end modulates information on radio waves and sends it to the receiving end, and the receiving end demodulates the signal carried on the radio waves to obtain information. Perception requires the sending end to send radio waves in a specific direction, and when the radio waves irradiate the target surface, they will form reflected waves, so that the receiving end obtains the position, speed and type of the target by receiving and processing the reflected waves. Therefore, the technical principle of perception is different from that of communication.

[0056] It should be understood that the network device or the terminal device described above can be configured with multiple antennas, which can include at least one transmitting antenna for transmitting signals and at least one receiving antenna for receiving signals. In addition, the network device or the terminal device also includes a transmitter chain and a receiver chain, which can include a plurality of components related to signal transmission and reception (such as processors, modulators, multiplexers, demodulators, demultiplexers, or antennas, etc.) as understood by those skilled in the art. Therefore, the network device and the terminal device can communicate through multiple antenna technology.

[0057] It should be understood that the communication system shown in FIG. 1 is only a schematic diagram, and other terminal devices and network devices can also be included in the communication system, such as wireless relay devices and wireless backhaul devices, which are not shown in FIG. 1. The number of network devices and terminal devices included in the communication system is not limited in the embodiments of the present application.

[0058] In the embodiments of the present application, the terminal device can also be referred to as a user equipment (UE), an access terminal, a user unit, a user station, a mobile station, a mobile station, a remote station, a remote terminal, a mobile device, a user terminal, a terminal, a wireless communication device, a user agent or a user device.

[0059] The terminal device can be a device providing voice / data, for example, a handheld device with wireless connection function, a vehicle-mounted device, etc. At present, some examples of terminals are: mobile phone, tablet computer, notebook computer, palm computer, mobile internet device (MID), wearable device, virtual reality (VR) device, augmented reality (AR) device, wireless terminal in industrial control, wireless terminal in self-driving, wireless terminal in remote medical surgery, wireless terminal in smart grid, wireless terminal in transportation safety, wireless terminal in smart city, wireless terminal in smart home, cellular phone, cordless phone, session initiation protocol (SIP) phone, wireless local loop (WLL) station, personal digital assistant (PDA), handheld device with wireless communication function, computing device or other processing device connected to a wireless modem, wearable device, terminal device in a 5G network, or terminal device in a future evolved public land mobile network (PLMN), etc. The embodiments of the present application are not limited thereto.

[0060] By way of example and not limitation, in the embodiments of the present application, the terminal device can also be a wearable device. The wearable device can also be referred to as a wearable smart device, which is a general term for devices that are designed and developed by applying wearable technology to daily wear, such as glasses, gloves, watches, clothing, and shoes. The wearable device is a portable device that is directly worn on the body or integrated into the user's clothes or accessories. The wearable device is not only a hardware device, but also a device that realizes powerful functions through software support and data interaction and cloud interaction. The general wearable smart device includes devices with full functions, large size, and the ability to realize complete or partial functions without relying on a smart phone, such as smart watches or smart glasses, and devices that focus on a certain application function and need to be used in cooperation with other devices, such as smart phones, such as various smart wristbands and smart jewelry for monitoring vital signs.

[0061] In the embodiments of the present application, the apparatus for implementing the function of the terminal device can be a terminal device, or can be an apparatus capable of supporting the terminal device to implement the function, for example, a chip system, which can be installed in the terminal device or used in matching with the terminal device. In the embodiments of the present application, the chip system can be composed of a chip, or can include the chip and other discrete devices. In the embodiments of the present application, only the apparatus for implementing the function of the terminal device is taken as an example for description, and the scheme of the embodiments of the present application is not limited in this way.

[0062] The network device in the embodiments of the present application can be a device for communicating with a terminal device, and the network device can also be referred to as an access network device or a radio access network device, for example, the network device can be a base station. The network device in the embodiments of the present application can refer to a radio access network (RAN) node (or device) for accessing a terminal device to a wireless network. The base station can broadly cover various names in the following or be replaced by the following names, such as: Node B (NodeB), evolved Node B (eNB), next generation Node B (gNB), relay station, access point, transmitting and receiving point (TRP), transmitting point (TP), primary station, secondary station, multi-standard radio (MSR) node, home base station, network controller, access node, wireless node, access point (AP), transmission node, transceiver node, baseband unit (BBU), remote radio unit (RRU), active antenna unit (AAU), remote radio head (RRH), central unit (CU), distributed unit (DU), radio unit (RU), positioning node, satellite base station, cellular base station, etc. The base station can be a macro base station, a micro base station, a relay node, a donor node or the like, or a combination thereof. The base station can also refer to a communication module, modem or chip used in the foregoing devices or apparatuses. The base station can also be a mobile switching center and a device assuming a base station function in D2D, V2X, M2M communication, a network side device in a future communication network, a device assuming a base station function in a future communication system, etc. The base station can support networks of the same or different access technologies. Optionally, the RAN node can also be a server, a wearable device, a vehicle or a vehicle-mounted device, etc. For example, the access network device in vehicle to everything (V2X) technology can be a road side unit (RSU). The embodiments of the present application do not limit the specific technology and specific device form of the network device.

[0063] In some deployments, the network device mentioned by embodiments of the present application can be a device including a CU, or a DU, or a device including a CU and a DU, or a control plane CU node (central unit-control plane (CU-CP)) and a user plane CU node (central unit-user plane (CU-UP)) and a DU node. For example, the network device can include a gNB-CU-CP, a gNB-CU-UP and a gNB-DU.

[0064] In some deployments, wireless access by a terminal is assisted by cooperation of multiple RAN nodes, and different RAN nodes respectively implement part of the functions of a base station. For example, the RAN node can be a CU, a DU, a CU-CP, a CU-UP, or an RU, etc. The CU and the DU can be separately arranged, or can also be included in the same network element, for example, in a BBU. The RU can be included in a radio frequency device or a radio frequency unit, for example, included in an RRU, an AAU or an RRH.

[0065] The RAN node can support one or more types of front-haul interfaces, and different front-haul interfaces respectively correspond to DUs and RUs having different functions. If the front-haul interface between the DU and the RU is a common public radio interface (CPRI), the DU is configured to implement one or more of the baseband functions, and the RU is configured to implement one or more of the radio frequency functions. If the front-haul interface between the DU and the RU is another interface, compared with the CPRI, part of the baseband functions of the downlink and / or the uplink, such as one or more of precoding, digital beamforming (BF), or inverse fast Fourier transform (IFFT) / adding a cyclic prefix (CP) for the downlink, or one or more of digital beamforming (BF), or fast Fourier transform (FFT) / removing a cyclic prefix (CP) for the uplink, are moved from the DU to the RU for implementation. In a possible implementation, the interface can be an enhanced common public radio interface (eCPRI). Under the eCPRI architecture, the splitting manner between the DU and the RU is different, corresponding to different categories (Cat) of eCPRI, such as eCPRI Cat A, B, C, D, E, F.

[0066] Taking eCPRI Cat A as an example, for downlink transmission, the DU is configured to implement layer mapping and one or more functions (i.e., one or more of encoding, rate matching, scrambling, modulation, layer mapping) before layer mapping, while other functions (e.g., one or more of RE mapping, digital beamforming (BF), or inverse fast Fourier transform (IFFT) / adding cyclic prefix (CP)) after layer mapping are implemented in the RU. For uplink transmission, the DU is configured to implement de-mapping and one or more functions (i.e., one or more of decoding, de-rate matching, de-scrambling, de-modulation, inverse discrete Fourier transform (IDFT), channel equalization, de-RE mapping) before de-mapping, while other functions (e.g., one or more of digital BF or fast Fourier transform (FFT) / CP removal) after de-mapping are implemented in the RU. It can be understood that the function description of the DU and the RU corresponding to various types of eCPRI can refer to the eCPRI protocol, which is not described here.

[0067] In a possible design, the processing unit in the BBU for implementing baseband functions is referred to as a base band high (BBH) unit, and the processing unit in the RRU / AAU / RRH for implementing baseband functions is referred to as a base band low (BBL) unit.

[0068] In different systems, the CU (or CU-CP and CU-UP), DU, or RU can also have different names, but those skilled in the art can understand their meanings. For example, in an ORAN system, the CU can also be referred to as an O-CU (open CU), the DU can also be referred to as an O-DU, the CU-CP can also be referred to as an O-CU-CP, the CU-UP can also be referred to as an O-CU-UP, and the RU can also be referred to as an O-RU. Any of the CU (or CU-CP, CU-UP), DU, and RU in this application can be implemented by a software module, a hardware module, or a combination of a software module and a hardware module.

[0069] In the embodiments of the present application, the apparatus for implementing the function of the network device can be the network device, or can be an apparatus capable of supporting the network device to implement the function, such as a chip system, a hardware circuit, a software module, or a hardware circuit plus a software module. The apparatus can be installed in the network device or used in combination with the network device. In the embodiments of the present application, only the apparatus for implementing the function of the network device is taken as an example for description, and the present application is not limited in this regard.

[0070] The network device and / or the terminal device can be deployed on land, including indoors or outdoors, handheld or vehicle-mounted; can also be deployed on water surface; and can also be deployed on airplanes, balloons and satellites in the air. The scenarios in which the network device and the terminal device are located are not limited in the embodiments of the present application. In addition, the terminal device and the network device can be hardware devices, or software functions running on special hardware, software functions running on general hardware, such as virtualized functions instantiated on a platform (for example, a cloud platform), or entities including special or general hardware devices and software functions. The specific forms of the terminal device and the network device are not limited in the present application.

[0071] For the convenience of understanding the technical solutions of the present application, the multi-station networking involved in the present application is exemplarily described.

[0072] The multi-station networking can refer to continuous deployment and continuous coverage of multiple network devices (for example, base stations) with sensing capability.

[0073] The current base station evolution of NR supports sensing and communication integration, which can not only perform traditional wireless communication services, but also has sensing and identification functions. Among them, the sensing signals and communication signals sent by the sending end usually occupy different time domain resources, and the sensing signals are periodically sent signals, as shown in FIG. 2.

[0074] When the radio frequency module of the sending end works in the sensing and communication integration scene, even if there is no target object (for example, a drone), the periodic sending of the sensing signal will not be stopped, which may cause high power consumption of the sending end.

[0075] Therefore, the present application provides a communication method, the sending end can determine two adjacent time periods, and the number of the two time periods can be one or more, the sending end does not send the sensing signal in one of the two adjacent time periods, and sends the sensing signal in the other time period. In this way, when there is no target object, the sending end can be converted from periodically sending the sensing signal to sending the sensing signal in time periods, so that the sending end not only does not affect the sensing of the target object, but also reduces the power consumption of the sending end.

[0076] The method provided by the present application will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings. It should be understood that the technical solutions of the present application can be applied to a communication system as shown in FIG. 1.

[0077] It should be understood that the following is only for the convenience of understanding and illustration, and the method provided by the embodiments of the present application is described in detail taking the interaction between the first communication device and the third communication device as an example.

[0078] The first communication device may, for example, be a network device or a terminal device, and the third communication device may, for example, be a network device or a terminal device. The first communication device and the third communication device may be implemented as the same communication device or deployed in the same network device. For example, the first communication device may correspond to the network device 110 in FIG. 1, and the third communication device may correspond to the terminal device 150 in FIG. 1.

[0079] However, it should be understood that this should not constitute any limitation on the execution subject of the method provided by the present application. As long as it can be executed according to the method provided by the embodiments of the present application by running the program in which the code of the method provided by the embodiments of the present application is recorded, it can be the execution subject of the method provided by the embodiments of the present application. For example, the first communication device shown in the following embodiments can also be replaced by a component in the first communication device, such as a chip, a chip system or other functional modules capable of calling and executing programs. The third communication device can also be replaced by a component in the third communication device, such as a chip, a chip system or other functional modules capable of calling and executing programs.

[0080] FIG. 3 shows a communication method 300 provided by an embodiment of the present application, which includes steps 310 to 330. Each step in the method 300 will be described in detail below.

[0081] In step 310, the first communication device determines at least one first time period and at least one second time period, does not transmit a sensing signal on at least one first time domain resource in each first time period, transmits a sensing signal on at least one second time domain resource in each second time period, the at least one first time domain resource and the at least one second time domain resource are determined based on a period of the sensing signal, and each first time period is adjacent to a second time period.

[0082] The period of the sensing signal can be pre-agreed, such as agreed by a protocol or configured by the network device. Based on the period of the sensing signal, multiple sending positions of the sensing signal in the time domain, i.e., multiple time domain resources for sending the sensing signal, can be determined. The first time period can cover (or include) one or more first time domain resources of the multiple time domain resources occupied by the sensing signal; and the second time period can cover (or include) one or more second time domain resources of the multiple time domain resources occupied by the sensing signal. Generally, the first time period and the second time period do not overlap, and thus the first time domain resources and the second time domain resources are different time domain resources of the multiple time domain resources occupied by the sensing signal.

[0083] Before the first communication device determines to send the sensing signal in the time division manner, the first communication device can periodically send the sensing signal, and the position of the time domain resource occupied by the sensing signal is fixed. After the first communication device determines to send the sensing signal in the time division manner, the one or more time domain resources on which the sensing signal is supposed to be sent in the first time period do not send the sensing signal, and the one or more time domain resources on which the sensing signal is supposed to be sent in the second time period send the sensing signal. Therefore, the at least one first time domain resource and the at least one second time domain resource are determined based on the period of the sensing signal.

[0084] The sensing signal sent in the time division manner can be sparse sensing, and the sensing signal sent periodically can be dense sensing, which is not limited.

[0085] For example, the at least one first time period and the at least one second time period can be alternately arranged, that is, one second time period is arranged between every two first time periods, or one first time period is arranged between every two second time periods. For example, the time periods are sequentially arranged in the time domain as follows: a first first time period, a first second time period, a second first time period, a second second time period, and so on. The time periods can be separated by a time interval in the time domain, or the time periods can be continuous, which is not limited in the present application.

[0086] Optionally, the at least one first time period can be a preset time period, or the length of the at least one first time period can be a preset length. The lengths of different first time periods can be the same or different, which is not limited in the present application. The at least one second time period is similar, and is not described herein for brevity. The length of the first time period and the length of the second time period can be the same or different, which is not limited in the present application.

[0087] The first communication device does not transmit the sensing signal on the at least one first time domain resource in each first time period, or in other words, the first communication device stops transmitting the sensing signal on the at least one first time domain resource in each first time period, or in other words, the first communication device performs sensing muting on the at least one first time domain resource in each first time period, without limitation.

[0088] The first communication device can not transmit the sensing signal on the at least one first time domain resource in each first time period, and it should be noted that the at least one first time domain resource on which the sensing signal is not transmitted in the first time period can be part or all of all first time domain resources covered by the first time period, that is, all first time domain resources falling within the first time period among the time domain resources determined based on the periodicity of the sensing signal do not transmit the sensing signal, or part of the first time domain resources falling within the first time period do not transmit the sensing signal. The first communication device can transmit the sensing signal on the at least one second time domain resource in each second time period. Based on this, sparse transmission of the sensing signal can be achieved, and the first communication device that sparsely transmits the sensing signal can be referred to as being in a sparse state.

[0089] In a possible case, the first time period can include time domain resources other than the at least one first time domain resource, and other signals (for example, communication signals) other than the sensing signal can be transmitted on the time domain resources other than the first time period. The second time period can include time domain resources other than the at least one second time domain resource, and other signals (for example, communication signals) other than the sensing signal can be transmitted on the time domain resources other than the second time period.

[0090] Exemplarily, FIG. 4 shows a schematic diagram of sparse transmission of the sensing signal, taking one sensing signal transmission period as the first time period and the second time period (for example, 5 milliseconds (ms)), as shown in FIG. 4, the time period of sparse transmission of the sensing signal can include 1 first time period and 1 second time period, which are sequentially distributed in time domain order: first time period, second time period, the first communication device performs sensing muting on 1 first time domain resource in the first time period, and can transmit communication signals on 4 time domain resources other than the 1 first time domain resource in the first time period; the first communication device transmits the sensing signal on 1 second time domain resource in the second time period, and transmits communication signals on 4 time domain resources other than the 1 second time domain resource in the second time period.

[0091] It should be understood that the time domain order of the above-mentioned first time period and second time period can also be second time period, first time period, without limitation.

[0092] To ensure the reduction of power consumption of the first communication device, in some embodiments, it is required to determine whether to perform sparse sensing based on the sensing condition of the target object by the first communication device.

[0093] Exemplarily, when the first communication device does not sense the target object in the third time period, it can be determined that the at least one first time period and the at least one second time period.

[0094] It should be understood that the details about the third time period are similar to the above-mentioned first time period and second time period, and are not repeated here. The duration of the third time period, the duration of the first time period and the duration of the second time period can be the same or different, for example, the duration of the first time period and the duration of the second time period can be 10 seconds (s) respectively, and the duration of the third time period can be 10 minutes (min). This is not limited. The duration of each time period (such as the first time period, the second time period and the third time period) is not limited in the present application.

[0095] The above-mentioned target object can include low-altitude unmanned aerial vehicles, vehicles and the like, and other moving or stationary objects, which are not limited.

[0096] The first communication device can periodically send sensing signals in the third time period, in which the first communication device does not sense the target object, or in other words, the first communication device does not receive the sensing signals reflected on the surface of the target object. Based on this, the first communication device can determine at least one first time period and at least one second time period in order to reduce the transmission density of the sensing signals, that is, to sparsely transmit the sensing signals. The at least one first time period and the at least one second time period can be time periods located after the third time period, and the time period adjacent to the third time period can be the first time period or the second time period, such as sequentially distributed in time domain order: third time period, first time period, second time period, or third time period, second time period, first time period, which is not limited.

[0097] In step 320, the first communication device transmits a first signal to the third communication device based on the at least one first time period and the at least one second time period, and the first signal includes the sensing signal. Correspondingly, the third communication device can receive the first signal from the first communication device.

[0098] Optionally, the first signal can also include a communication signal, and the communication signal and the sensing signal in the first signal can occupy different time domain resources and the same frequency domain resources, or can occupy the same time domain resources and different frequency domain resources, which is not limited.

[0099] It should be understood that the receiving end of the communication signal and the receiving end of the perception signal can be the same communication device or different communication devices, and no limitation is made thereto.

[0100] In one possible example, the receiving end of the communication signal and the receiving end of the perception signal are the third communication device, i.e., the third communication device can receive the communication signal in the at least one first time period and the at least one second time period; and the third communication device receiving the perception signal can be divided into several different cases:

[0101] In the first possible case, when there is at least one perception target object in the at least one second time period, the third communication device can receive the perception signal in the at least one second time period.

[0102] In this case, the third communication device receives the perception signal in the at least one second time period, in other words, the third communication device perceives the target object in the at least one second time period, and can send the first indication information to the first communication device, the first indication information being used to instruct the first communication device to switch from sparse sending of the perception signal to dense sending of the perception signal, or in other words, the first communication device exits the sparse state. In this way, the third communication device can timely identify the target object, and the timeliness of the perception identification is improved.

[0103] In the second possible case, when there is at least one target object in the at least one second time period, the moving speed of the at least one target object can be too fast, so that the third communication device cannot receive the perception signal in the at least one second time period, i.e., there can be no any target object in the propagation path of the perception signal.

[0104] In the third possible case, when there is no at least one perception target object in the at least one second time period, the third communication device cannot receive the perception signal in the at least one second time period, i.e., there can be no any target object in the propagation path of the perception signal.

[0105] In another possible example, the receiving end of the perception signal is the third communication device, and the receiving end of the communication signal is the fourth communication device, i.e., the fourth communication device can receive the communication signal in the at least one first time period and the at least one second time period; and the third communication device receiving the perception signal is similar to the first possible case described above, and will not be described herein.

[0106] In step 330, the third communication device determines the perception signal in the first signal.

[0107] The third communication device determines the sensing signal in the first signal, that is, the third communication device can determine whether the sensing signal is received in the at least one second time period, for example, can include two possible cases that the sensing signal is received in the at least one second time period and the sensing signal is not received in the at least one second time period, as follows.

[0108] In one possible case, the third communication device can receive the sensing signal in the at least one second time period, and the third communication device can process the sensing signal to obtain information such as the position, speed, angle and type of the target object.

[0109] In another possible case, the third communication device does not receive the sensing signal in the at least one second time period.

[0110] As mentioned above, the first signal can also include a communication signal, in one possible case, the third communication device can receive the communication signal in the first signal in the at least one first time period and the at least one second time period, and the third communication device can demodulate the communication signal, and the demodulated information can be converted into usable information such as sound, image or data.

[0111] As described in detail in the above step 320, the first communication device can also convert the sparse transmission of the sensing signal into the dense transmission of the sensing signal, therefore, the third communication device can receive the sensing signal in each transmission period of the sensing signal, which can include that the sensing signal is not received in part or all of the transmission period of the sensing signal, and the sensing signal can be received in part or all of the transmission period of the sensing signal. Therefore, the third communication device can determine the sensing signal in each transmission period of the sensing signal. The third communication device determines the sensing signal in each transmission period of the sensing signal, which is similar to the above third communication device determining the sensing signal in the first signal, and will not be described here.

[0112] Based on the above scheme, the first communication device can determine two adjacent time periods (for example, the first time period and the second time period), and the number of the two time periods can be one or more, the first communication device does not transmit the sensing signal on the at least one first time domain resource in the first time period, and transmits the sensing signal on the at least one second time domain resource in the second time period. When the first communication device does not sense the target object, the first communication device converts the periodic transmission of the sensing signal into the time period transmission of the sensing signal, so that not only does not affect the first communication device to sense the target object, but also can reduce the power consumption of the first communication device.

[0113] If the first communication device and the other communication devices are included in the same communication network, when multiple communication devices in the communication network simultaneously perform the sparse sending of the sensing signal, in other words, the time periods in which the multiple communication devices do not send the sensing signal are the same, there may be a situation of missing identification of the target object. Therefore, it is necessary to stagger the time periods in which the multiple communication devices in the communication network do not send the sensing signal.

[0114] It should be understood that when the communication devices in the communication network are network devices or are deployed in network devices, the communication network can be a multi-station network, and there is no limitation thereto.

[0115] In a possible example, when the communication network includes two communication devices, for example, the first communication device and the second communication device, the time period in which the second communication device does not send the sensing signal is different from the time period in which the first communication device does not send the sensing signal, or in other words, the time period in which the second communication device does not send the sensing signal is different from the time period in which the first communication device does not send the sensing signal. For example, the first communication device does not send the sensing signal on at least one first time-domain resource in at least one first time period, and the second communication device does not send the sensing signal on at least one third time-domain resource in at least one fourth time period. The period in which the second communication device sends the sensing signal and the period in which the first communication device sends the sensing signal can be the same or different, and there is no limitation thereto.

[0116] The fourth time period can cover (or in other words, include) one or more third time-domain resources in the multiple time-domain resources occupied by the sensing signal. Details of the fourth time period are similar to those of the first time period, and can be referred to the details of the first time period in step 310, which will not be described herein. Generally, the first time period and the fourth time period do not overlap, and therefore, the first time-domain resource and the third time-domain resource are different time-domain resources in the multiple time-domain resources occupied by the sensing signal.

[0117] The fourth time period and the first time period can be two adjacent time periods, for example, the first time period, the fourth time period, or the fourth time period, the first time period. There can be a time interval between the first time period and the fourth time period, or there can be no time interval, that is, two continuous time periods, and there is no limitation thereto.

[0118] The time periods in which the first communication device and the second communication device in the communication network do not send the sensing signal can be determined in a variety of possible ways, for example, a modulo operation or a random number.

[0119] For example, the first communication device and the second communication device can correspond to a randomly generated random number, which can take a value in a preset range (for example, 0 to 2) for the network device, and each random number can correspond to a time period in which the communication device does not send a sensing signal. For example, the random number corresponding to the first communication device is 0, and the random number 0 corresponds to the first time period. Therefore, the first communication device can not send a sensing signal in the first time period. The random number corresponding to the second communication device is 1, and the random number 1 corresponds to the fourth time period. Therefore, the second communication device can not send a sensing signal in the fourth time period.

[0120] In yet another possible example, the communication networking includes a plurality of communication devices, for example, the first communication device, the second communication device, and the fifth communication device, etc. The time period in which the fifth communication device does not send a sensing signal can be the same as the time period in which the first communication device does not send a sensing signal, or different from the time period in which the first communication device does not send a sensing signal, or the time period in which the fifth communication device does not send a sensing signal can be the same as the time region covered by the time period in which the first communication device does not send a sensing signal, or different from the time region covered by the time period in which the first communication device does not send a sensing signal. The time period in which the fifth communication device does not send a sensing signal can be the same as the time period in which the second communication device does not send a sensing signal, or different from the second communication device, or the time period in which the fifth communication device does not send a sensing signal can be the same as the time region covered by the time period in which the second communication device does not send a sensing signal, or different from the time region covered by the time period in which the second communication device does not send a sensing signal. For example, the first communication device does not send a sensing signal on at least one first time domain resource in at least one first time period, the second communication device does not send a sensing signal on at least one third time domain resource in at least one fourth time period, and the fifth communication device does not send a sensing signal on at least one fourth time domain resource in a fifth time period.

[0121] The above-mentioned fifth time period can cover (or include) one or more fourth time domain resources in the plurality of time domain resources occupied by the sensing signal. For details of the fourth time period, please refer to the details of the first time period in step 310. In general, the first time period, the fourth time period, and the time period do not overlap, so the first time domain resource, the third time domain resource, and the fourth time domain resource are different time domain resources in the plurality of time domain resources occupied by the sensing signal.

[0122] The above-mentioned first time period, fourth time period, and fifth time period can be three time periods adjacent to each other, and the order of the first time period, the fourth time period, and the fifth time period is not limited. There can be a time interval between the first time period, the fourth time period, and the fifth time period, or there can be no time interval, that is, three continuous time periods, which are not limited.

[0123] The time period in which the plurality of communication devices in the communication network do not transmit the sensing signal can be determined in a number of possible ways, for example, modulo processing or random numbers.

[0124] For example, each of the plurality of communication devices can correspond to a respective physical cell identity (PCI), and the plurality of communication devices in the communication network can be divided into three groups by modulo processing the PCI value (PCI_value), for example, by calculating "PCI value % 3", each group corresponding to a time period, and the communication devices in each group do not transmit the sensing signal in the corresponding time period. For example, the communication devices with group identity (group_id) = 0 are the first group of communication devices (for example, including the first communication device), and the corresponding time period is the first time period, so the first group of communication devices do not transmit the sensing signal in the first time period; the communication devices with group identity = 1 are the second group of communication devices (for example, including the second communication device), and the corresponding time period is the fourth time period, so the second group of communication devices do not transmit the sensing signal in the fourth time period; the communication devices with group identity = 2 are the third group of communication devices (for example, including the fifth communication device), and the corresponding time period is the fifth time period, so the third group of communication devices do not transmit the sensing signal in the fifth time period.

[0125] For example, FIG. 5 shows a schematic diagram of sparse transmission of the sensing signal in the communication network, taking the first time period, the fourth time period, the fifth time period, the sixth time period, and the seventh time period as one sensing signal transmission period (for example, 5 ms) for example, as shown in (a) of FIG. 5, the time period in which the first group of communication devices sparsely transmit the sensing signal can include 1 first time period and 2 second time periods, for example, distributed in time domain order: first time period, 1st second time period, 2nd second time period. The first group of communication devices performs sensing muting on 1 first time domain resource in the first time period, i.e., do not transmit the sensing signal, and transmit communication signals on 4 other time domain resources in the first time period except for the 1 first time domain resource; the first group of communication devices transmit the sensing signal on 1 second time domain resource in the 1st second time period, and transmit communication signals on 4 other time domain resources in the 1st second time period except for the 1 second time domain resource; the first communication device transmits the sensing signal on 1 second time domain resource in the 2nd second time period, and transmits communication signals on 4 other time domain resources in the 2nd second time period except for the 1 second time domain resource.

[0126] As shown in (b) of FIG. 5, the time period in which the second group of communication apparatuses sparsely sends the sensing signal can include 2 sixth time periods and 1 fourth time period, which are sequentially distributed in time domain order as: a first sixth time period, a fourth time period, a second sixth time period. The second group of communication apparatuses sends the sensing signal on 1 fifth time domain resource in the first sixth time period, and sends the communication signal on 4 other time domain resources in the first sixth time period except for the 1 fifth time domain resource; the second group of communication apparatuses performs sensing muting on 1 third time domain resource in the fourth time period, and sends the communication signal on 4 other time domain resources in the fourth time period except for the 1 third time domain resource; the second group of communication apparatuses sends the sensing signal on 1 fifth time domain resource in the second sixth time period, and sends the communication signal on 4 other time domain resources in the second sixth time period except for the 1 fifth time domain resource.

[0127] As shown in (c) of FIG. 5, the time period in which the third group of communication apparatuses sparsely sends the sensing signal can include 2 seventh time periods and a fifth time period, which are sequentially distributed in time domain order as: a first seventh time period, a fifth time period, a second seventh time period. The third group of communication apparatuses sends the sensing signal on 1 sixth time domain resource in the first seventh time period, and sends the communication signal on 4 other time domain resources in the first seventh time period except for the 1 sixth time domain resource; the third group of communication apparatuses sends the sensing signal on 1 sixth time domain resource in the second seventh time period, and sends the communication signal on 4 other time domain resources in the second seventh time period except for the 1 sixth time domain resource; the third group of communication apparatuses performs sensing muting on 1 fourth time domain resource in the fifth time period, and sends the communication signal on 4 other time domain resources in the fifth time period except for the 1 fourth time domain resource.

[0128] The sixth time period and the seventh time period are similar to the second time period, and details of the second time period in step 310 can be referred to, and will not be described herein again. The second time period, the sixth time period and the seventh time period can cover the same time region, and therefore, the time domain resources in the second time period, the sixth time period and the seventh time period can be partially the same, for example, the first second time period and the second seventh time period cover the same time region, and the time domain resources in the two time periods are the same; the second second time period and the second sixth time period cover the same time region, and the time domain resources in the two time periods are the same.

[0129] If the communication network includes multiple communication devices, and the multiple communication devices are all in the sparse state, when one of the multiple communication devices senses a target object in the sparse state, and the moving speed of the target object is too fast, the first communication device may be converted from sparse sending of the perception signal to dense sending of the perception signal, which may affect the identification of the target object. In this case, the first communication device can send indication information to at least one communication device in the same communication network, and the at least one communication device receiving the indication information can be converted from sparse sending of the perception signal to dense sending of the perception signal, thereby facilitating the timeliness of perception identification.

[0130] For example, if the communication network includes multiple communication devices, when the first communication device senses a target object, the first communication device can send indication information to at least one communication device (e.g., a second communication device) in the communication network, and the indication information is used to instruct the at least one communication device in the communication network other than the first communication device to periodically send the perception signal.

[0131] The first communication device senses a target object, in other words, the first communication device receives a perception signal. The at least one communication device in the communication network other than the first communication device can be referred to as a neighboring communication device, which is a communication device that can receive the indication information, and this is not limited.

[0132] For example, FIG. 6 shows a distribution diagram of communication devices in a communication network, as shown in FIG. 6, the communication devices in the communication network can include a communication device (e.g., a first communication device) that senses a target object, a communication device (e.g., a second communication device) that is woken up from the sparse state, and a communication device in the sparse state. Among them, the communication device that is woken up from the sparse state can be the above-mentioned neighboring communication device.

[0133] The first communication device can send the indication information to the neighboring communication device (e.g., the second communication device) in a variety of possible ways, as follows.

[0134] In one possible implementation, when the first communication device senses a target object, the first communication device can send (or broadcast) the indication information to the second communication device in the communication network through the Xn interface with the second communication device, and the second communication device receiving the indication information can be converted from sparse sending of the perception signal to dense sending of the perception signal.

[0135] In another possible implementation, when the first communication device senses a target object, the first communication device can report the indication information to a network management system deployed on a network device, and the network management system sends the indication information to the second communication device in the communication network, and the second communication device receiving the indication information can be converted from sparse sending of the perception signal to dense sending of the perception signal.

[0136] It should be understood that the flow shown in FIG. 3 is only an example, and should not constitute any limitation to the present application. In other embodiments, the flow can also include more or fewer steps.

[0137] It should also be understood that the size of the serial number of the above processes does not mean the order of execution, and the execution order of the processes should be determined according to their functions and internal logic, and should not constitute any limitation to the implementation process of the embodiments of the present application.

[0138] The communication method provided by the embodiments of the present application is described in detail above in combination with the drawings. The apparatus provided by the embodiments of the present application is described in detail below in combination with the drawings.

[0139] FIGS. 7 to 8 are schematic block diagrams of possible communication apparatuses provided by the embodiments of the present application. The communication apparatuses can be used to implement the functions of the first communication apparatus in the above method embodiments, and thus can also achieve the beneficial effects possessed by the above method embodiments.

[0140] A communication apparatus provided by the present application is shown in FIG. 7, and the communication apparatus 700 includes a communication unit 710 and a processing unit 720. The communication unit 710 can be used to perform the actions of receiving or sending, and the processing unit 720 can be used to perform actions other than receiving and sending, such as generating information or messages, processing received information or messages, etc.

[0141] A possible design is that the communication apparatus 700 is used to implement the functions of the first communication apparatus in the above method embodiment shown in FIG. 3. For example, the communication apparatus can be the first communication apparatus, or a component (such as a chip, a chip system, a processor, etc.) configured in the first communication apparatus, or a logic module or software capable of implementing part or all of the functions of the first communication apparatus.

[0142] Exemplarily, when the communication apparatus 700 is used to implement the functions of the first communication apparatus in the method 300, the processing unit 720 is configured to determine at least one first time period and at least one second time period, not to send a sensing signal on at least one first time domain resource in each of the first time periods, and to send the sensing signal on at least one second time domain resource in each of the second time periods, the at least one first time domain resource and the at least one second time domain resource being determined based on a period of the sensing signal, and each of the first time periods being adjacent to the second time periods; and the communication unit 710 is configured to send a first signal based on the at least one first time period and the at least one second time period, the first signal including the sensing signal.

[0143] Optionally, the processing unit 720 is further configured to determine the at least one first time period and the at least one second time period when the target object is not sensed in a third time period.

[0144] Optionally, at least one of a length of the first time period, a length of the second time period, or a length of the third time period is preset.

[0145] Optionally, the communication unit 710 is further configured to periodically transmit the sensing signal when the target object is sensed.

[0146] Optionally, the first time period and the fourth time period are different, the second communication device does not transmit the sensing signal on at least one third time domain resource in the fourth time period, and the first communication device and the second communication device are included in the same communication network.

[0147] Optionally, the communication unit 710 is further configured to transmit indication information when the target object is sensed, the indication information being used to instruct at least one communication device other than the first communication device in the communication network to periodically transmit the sensing signal.

[0148] Another possible design is that the communication device 700 is configured to implement the functions of the third communication device in the above-described method embodiment shown in FIG. 3. For example, the communication device can be the third communication device, or a component (such as a chip, a chip system, a processor, etc.) configured in the third communication device, or a logic module or software capable of implementing part or all of the functions of the third communication device.

[0149] For example, when the communication device 700 is configured to implement the functions of the third communication device in the method 300, the communication unit 710 is configured to receive a first signal transmitted by the first communication device based on at least one first time period and at least one second time period, not transmit a sensing signal on at least one first time domain resource in each of the first time periods, and transmit the sensing signal on at least one second time domain resource in each of the second time periods, the at least one first time domain resource and the at least one second time domain resource being determined based on a period of the sensing signal, and each of the first time periods being adjacent to the second time periods; and the processing unit 720 is configured to determine the sensing signal in the first signal.

[0150] Optionally, the at least one first time period and the at least one second time period are determined by the first communication device when the target object is not sensed in a third time period.

[0151] Optionally, at least one of a length of the first time period, a length of the second time period, or a length of the third time period is preset. Optionally, the communication unit 710 is further configured to periodically receive the sensing signal.

[0152] It should also be understood that the communication unit 710 in the communication device 700 can also be referred to as a transceiving unit. The communication unit 710 can include a transmitting module and not include a receiving module. Alternatively, the communication unit 710 can include a receiving module and not include a transmitting module. Whether the communication unit 710 includes a transmitting module or a receiving module depends on whether the communication device 700 performs the transmitting action or the receiving action in the above-mentioned solutions. The receiving module can be used to perform the receiving action in the above-mentioned solutions, and the transmitting module can be used to perform the transmitting action in the above-mentioned solutions.

[0153] It can be understood that the division of the units in the above device is only a logical function division. Each function can correspond to a functional unit, or two or more functions can be integrated into one functional unit. In actual implementation, all or part of the units can be integrated onto one physical entity, or can be distributed on different physical entities. In addition, the functional units can be implemented in the form of hardware, or in the form of software, or in the form of hardware combined with software. Whether a certain function is implemented in the form of hardware or software depends on the specific application and design constraints of the technical solution. Professional technicians can use different methods to implement the described functions for each specific application, but such implementation should not be considered beyond the scope of the present application.

[0154] Another communication device provided in the present application is shown in FIG. 8. The communication device 800 includes at least one processor 810. The at least one processor 810 can be used to execute computer programs or instructions in the memory to implement the steps performed by the first communication device or the third communication device in the method embodiment shown in FIG. 3.

[0155] Optionally, the communication device 800 can further include at least one memory 820 for storing instructions executed by the processor 810 or storing input data required by the processor 810 to run instructions or storing data generated after the processor 810 runs instructions. The at least one processor 810 and the at least one memory 820 can be separately arranged. For example, each memory can be connected with one or more processors, so that the connected processors can read information from the memory, store and / or write information in the memory. Alternatively, the at least one processor 810 and the at least one memory 820 can be integrated together, for example, one or more memories can be integrated in one processor.

[0156] Optionally, the communication device 800 further includes an interface circuit 830, which can be used to transmit data and / or signaling. The at least one processor 810 and the interface circuit 830 are coupled with each other. It can be understood that the interface circuit 830 can be a transceiver, an input / output circuit, a bus, a module, a pin or other types of communication interfaces, wherein the input circuit in the input / output circuit can be used for receiving, and the output interface can be used for transmitting.

[0157] Optionally, the communication apparatus 800 further comprises a power supply circuit 840, which can be used to supply power for the communication apparatus 800.

[0158] When the communication apparatus 800 is used to implement the method shown in the method embodiment shown in Fig. 3, the processor 810 is used to perform the functions of the processing unit, and the interface circuit 820 is used to perform the functions of the receiving unit and / or the sending unit. Whether the interface circuit 820 is used for sending or receiving can be determined according to whether the communication apparatus 800 is used to perform a sending action or a receiving action in the scheme.

[0159] It can be understood that when the communication apparatus 800 is a communication device (such as the first communication apparatus or the third communication apparatus), the interface circuit 820 can be a transceiver, which can specifically include a transmitter and a receiver, the transmitter is used to send signals, and the receiver is used to receive signals. When the communication apparatus 800 is a chip applied to a communication device, the interface circuit 820 can be an input / output circuit, a bus, a module, a pin or other types of communication interfaces, wherein the input circuit in the input / output circuit can be used for receiving, and the output interface can be used for sending.

[0160] It should be understood that in the communication apparatus 800 shown in Fig. 8, the processor 810 can correspond to the processing unit 720 in the communication apparatus 700 above, and the interface circuit 820 can correspond to the communication unit 710 in the communication apparatus 700 above.

[0161] It should also be understood that the coupling in the embodiments of the present application is an indirect coupling or communication connection between devices, units or modules, which can be electrical, mechanical or other forms, and is used for information interaction between devices, units or modules. The specific connection medium between the at least one processor 810, the at least one memory 820, the interface circuit 830 and the power supply circuit 840 is not limited in the embodiments of the present application. In Fig. 8, the processor 810, the memory 820, the interface circuit 830 and the power supply circuit 840 are connected through the bus 850. The bus 850 is represented by a thick line in Fig. 8, and the connection mode between other components is only schematically illustrated and is not limited. The bus can be a peripheral component interconnect (PCI) bus or an extended industry standard architecture (EISA) bus, etc. The bus can be divided into an address bus, a data bus, a control bus, etc. For convenience of representation, only one thick line is used to represent the bus in Fig. 8, but it does not mean that there is only one bus or only one type of bus.

[0162] It can be appreciated 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.

[0163] The memory in the embodiments of the present application can be a volatile memory or a non-volatile memory, or can include both volatile and non-volatile memory. Among them, the non-volatile memory can be a read-only memory (ROM), a programmable read-only memory (PROM), an erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM), an electrically EPROM (EEPROM) or a flash memory. The volatile memory can be a random access memory (RAM) used as an external cache. By way of example, but not limitation, many forms of RAM can be used, such as static random access memory (SRAM), dynamic random access memory (DRAM), synchronous dynamic random access memory (SDRAM), double data rate SDRAM (DDR SDRAM), enhanced SDRAM (ESDRAM), synchlink DRAM (SLDRAM) and direct rambus RAM (DR RAM). It should be noted that the memory of the system and method described herein is intended to include, but not limited to, these and any other suitable types of memory.

[0164] The present application also provides a communication system, which includes the first communication device and the third communication device described above.

[0165] The application further provides a computer program product, comprising a computer program (also referred to as code or instructions), which, when executed, causes a computer to perform the method performed by the first communication device or the third communication device in the embodiment shown in Fig. 3.

[0166] The application further provides a computer readable storage medium, which stores a computer program (also referred to as code or instructions). When the computer program is executed, it causes a computer to perform the method performed by the first communication device or the third communication device in the embodiment shown in Fig. 3.

[0167] The terms "unit", "module" and the like used in the specification can be used to represent computer-related entities, hardware, combinations of hardware and software, software, or software in execution.

[0168] Those of ordinary skill in the art can realize that the various illustrative logical blocks and steps described in connection with the embodiments disclosed herein can be implemented or performed with electronic hardware, or a combination of computer software and electronic hardware. The choice of hardware or software implementation depends on the specific application and design constraints of the technical solution. Those skilled in the art can use different methods to implement the described functions for each specific application, but such implementation should not be considered beyond the scope of the application. In several embodiments provided in the application, it should be understood that the disclosed devices, apparatuses and methods can be implemented in other ways. For example, the above-described device embodiments are only illustrative, for example, the division of the units is only a logical functional division, and actual implementation can have another division, for example, multiple units or components can be combined or integrated into another system, or some features can be omitted or not implemented. In addition, the coupling or direct coupling or communication connection between the displayed or discussed units can be indirect coupling or communication connection through some interfaces, devices or units, which can be electrical, mechanical or other forms.

[0169] The units described as separate components can or can not be physically separated, and the components shown as units can or can not be physical units, i.e. they can be located in one place or distributed on multiple network units. Some or all of the units can be selected according to actual needs to achieve the purpose of the embodiment.

[0170] In addition, the functional units in each embodiment of the application can be integrated into one processing unit, or each unit can exist physically, or two or more units can be integrated into one unit.

[0171] In the above embodiments, the functions of the various functional units can be implemented in whole or in part by software, hardware, firmware, or any combination thereof. When implemented in software, the functions can be implemented in the form of one or more computer programs that run on a computer. When the computer programs are loaded and executed on the computer, the whole or part of the flow or function described in the embodiments of the present application is produced. The computer can be a general-purpose computer, a special-purpose computer, a computer network, or other programmable apparatus. The computer programs 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 can be transmitted from one website, computer, server, or data center to another website, computer, server, or data center through wired (such as coaxial cable, optical fiber, digital subscriber line (DSL)) or wireless (such as infrared, wireless, microwave, etc.) manner. The computer-readable storage medium can be any available medium accessible by a computer or a data storage device such as a server, data center, etc. that includes one or more available media sets. The available medium can be a magnetic medium (for example, floppy disk, hard disk, magnetic tape), an optical medium (for example, digital video disc (DVD)), or a semiconductor medium (for example, solid state disk (SSD)), etc.

[0172] If the function is implemented in the form of a software functional unit and sold or used as an independent product, it can be stored in a computer-readable storage medium. Based on this understanding, the technical solutions of the present application essentially or the part that contributes to the prior art or part of the technical solutions can be embodied in the form of a software product. The computer software product is stored in a storage medium and includes a number of instructions for causing a computer device (which can be a personal computer, a server, or a network device, etc.) to execute all or part of the steps of the methods of the various embodiments of the present application. The aforementioned storage medium includes: a U disk, a mobile hard disk, a ROM, a RAM, a magnetic disk or an optical disk, and various media that can store program codes.

[0173] The above is only a specific implementation of the present application, but the protection scope of the present application is not limited thereto. Any person skilled in the art can easily think of changes or replacements within the technical scope disclosed in the present application, which should be covered within the protection scope of the present application. Therefore, the protection scope of the present application should be subject to the protection scope of the claims.

Claims

1. A communication method characterized by comprising: The method applied to a first communication device comprises: determining at least one first time period and at least one second time period, no sensing signal being transmitted on at least one first time domain resource in each of the first time periods, the sensing signal being transmitted on at least one second time domain resource in each of the second time periods, the at least one first time domain resource and the at least one second time domain resource being determined based on a period of the sensing signal, each of the first time periods being adjacent to the second time periods; transmitting a first signal based on the at least one first time period and the at least one second time period, the first signal comprising the sensing signal.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein, The method further comprises: determining the at least one first time period and the at least one second time period when no target object is sensed in a third time period.

3. The method according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that, At least one of a length of the first time period, a length of the second time period, or a length of the third time period is preset.

4. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that, The method further comprises: periodically transmitting the sensing signal when the target object is sensed.

5. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that, The first time period and a fourth time period are different, no sensing signal being transmitted by a second communication device on at least one third time domain resource in the fourth time period, the first communication device and the second communication device being included in a same communication network.

6. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that, The method further comprises: transmitting indication information when the target object is sensed, the indication information being used to instruct at least one communication device other than the first communication device in a communication network to periodically transmit the sensing signal.

7. A communication method characterized by comprising: The method applied to a third communication device comprises: receiving a first signal transmitted by a first communication device based on at least one first time period and at least one second time period, no sensing signal being transmitted on at least one first time domain resource in each of the first time periods, the sensing signal being transmitted on at least one second time domain resource in each of the second time periods, the at least one first time domain resource and the at least one second time domain resource being determined based on a period of the sensing signal, each of the first time periods being adjacent to the second time periods; determining the sensing signal in the first signal.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein, The at least one first time period and the at least one second time period are determined by the first communication device when no target object is sensed in a third time period.

9. The method according to claim 7 or 8, characterized in that, At least one of a length of the first time period, a length of the second time period, or a length of the third time period is preset.

10. The method according to any one of claims 7 to 9, characterized in that, The method further comprises: periodically receiving the sensing signal.

11. A communications device, characterized by The apparatus comprises a unit for performing the method of any one of claims 1 to 6, or a unit for performing the method of any one of claims 7 to 10.

12. A communications device, characterized by The apparatus comprises one or more processors for executing computer programs or instructions in a memory, so that the communication device performs the method of any one of claims 1 to 6, or performs the method of any one of claims 7 to 10.

13. A computer readable storage medium having stored thereon a computer program, characterized in that, The computer program, which when executed by a processor, causes the method of any one of claims 1 to 6 to be performed, or causes the method of any one of claims 7 to 10 to be performed.

14. A computer program product, characterised in that, A computer program product comprising a computer program which, when executed by a processor, causes the method of any one of claims 1 to 6 to be performed, or causes the method of any one of claims 7 to 10 to be performed.

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