Sensing method and apparatus

Abstract

A terminal receives a first reference signal, and the terminal sends first information, the first information being used for indicating a first antenna port, and the first antenna port being an antenna port receiving the first reference signal on a first transmission path. The terminal may send an antenna port indicating that there is a transmission path, so that a network device may detect a signal from the first antenna port, and can perform sensing according to the signal. Indication by the terminal enables the network device to detect a signal sent on an antenna port having a transmission path, thereby improving the success rate of signal reception of the network device, and helping to improve sensing accuracy.

Description

A sensing method and apparatus

[0001] Cross Reference to Related Applications

[0002] The present application claims priority to the Chinese Patent Application No. 202411586998.8, filed on November 7, 2024, and entitled "A Sensing Method and Apparatus", the content of which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety. TECHNICAL FIELD

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

[0004] For sensing services, such as environmental imaging or reconstruction application scenarios, the reflection, scattering or diffraction of signals transmitted by a user equipment (UE) or a base station on a sensing target when the signals propagate in space can be used to sense the position or shape of the sensing target in the environment. For example, for a sensing scenario in which the UE transmits signals and the base station receives signals, the UE transmits a sensing signal, the sensing signal is reflected, scattered or diffracted by the sensing target and reaches the base station, and the base station obtains measurement results by measuring the sensing signal. A sensing network element can perform sensing according to the measurement results.

[0005] If the UE has no beamforming capability, the energy of the sensing signal transmitted by the UE is weak, or the sensing signal is greatly attenuated during transmission, which causes the base station to be unable to detect the transmission path of the sensing signal, thereby reducing the sensing accuracy. SUMMARY

[0006] Embodiments of the present application provide a sensing method and apparatus for improving sensing accuracy. The sensing method and apparatus can also be considered as a communication method and apparatus, or a sensing and communication integrated method and apparatus.

[0007] In a first aspect, a first sensing method is provided, which can be applied to a first device. The first device is, for example, a terminal-side device, also referred to as a terminal device. The terminal device is, for example, a terminal equipment, or other equipment including terminal equipment functions, or a circuit, or a system-on-a-chip (or, a chip, such as a modem chip, also known as a baseband chip, or a system-on-a-chip (SoC) chip containing a modem core, or a system-in-package (SIP) chip) or other functional module, which is capable of implementing the functions of the terminal equipment, and which is, for example, disposed in the terminal equipment. The method includes: receiving a first reference signal; and transmitting first information, the first information indicating a first antenna port, the first antenna port being an antenna port that receives the first reference signal on a first transmission path.

[0008] In this embodiment, the terminal can send first information indicating the first antenna port corresponding to the first transmission path. This can be understood as the first information indicating the antenna port where the transmission path exists. Thus, the network device can detect signals from the first antenna port and perform sensing based on those signals. Through the terminal's instruction, the network device can detect signals transmitted from the antenna port where the transmission path exists, improving the signal reception success rate of the network device and contributing to improved sensing accuracy.

[0009] In one optional implementation, the received power of the first reference signal received through the first antenna port on the first transmission path is greater than a first threshold. For example, if the received power of the first reference signal on a transmission path received by the first antenna port is greater than the first threshold, the terminal considers that a transmission path exists on that antenna port, or considers that a first reference signal has been received on that antenna port, or considers that a sensing target exists in the direction corresponding to that antenna port. The terminal can use this method to determine the antenna port with a transmission path, or to determine the antenna port that may correspond to a sensing target.

[0010] In one alternative implementation, the first transmission path is a Loss path, or a transmission path through which the first reference signal is reflected, scattered, or diffracted by the sensing target.

[0011] In an optional implementation, the first information is further used to indicate a second antenna port and / or a third antenna port, wherein the second antenna port is the antenna port that receives the first reference signal on the first transmission path, and the third antenna port is the antenna port that receives the first reference signal on the second transmission path. If the terminal determines that one or more antenna ports exist on a transmission path, the terminal can indicate these one or more antenna ports to the network device using the first information.

[0012] In one alternative implementation, the first transmission path corresponds to one or more antenna ports, where the first antenna port is the one or more antenna ports that receives the first reference signal with the highest power on the first transmission path. A transmission path may be received by one or more antenna ports. For this transmission path, the first information may indicate the one or more antenna ports, or the first information may also indicate the antenna port with the highest received power for this transmission path, thereby reducing the transmission overhead of the first information.

[0013] In an alternative implementation, the first information is further used to indicate the power delay spectrum of the first reference signal received by the first antenna port. For example, the network device can determine a preferred antenna port based on the power delay spectrum and information of the first antenna port (e.g., port number), so that the terminal can transmit a sensing signal through the antenna port.

[0014] In an optional implementation, the method further includes: receiving second information, the second information being used to configure reference signal resources and to indicate a fourth antenna port corresponding to the reference signal resources, the fourth antenna port being one or more of the first antenna port, the second antenna port, or the third antenna port. For example, if a network device determines a fourth antenna port to transmit signals for sensing, the network device can configure the reference signal resources and the fourth antenna port for the terminal, and the terminal can then transmit signals for sensing through the fourth antenna port.

[0015] In an alternative implementation, the method further includes: transmitting a first signal over the reference signal resource via the fourth antenna port, the first signal being used for sensing.

[0016] Secondly, a second sensing method is provided, which can be applied to a second device. The second device is, for example, a network-side device, also referred to as a network device. This network device is, for example, an access network device, or other device including access network device functions, or a circuit, or a system-on-a-chip (or chip), or other functional module capable of implementing the functions of the network device, and is, for example, disposed within the network device. The access network device can be a non-ORAN architecture or an ORAN architecture; or, the access network device can be a CU, DU, or RU under an ORAN architecture. The access network device is, for example, located on the ground, or the access network device is, for example, a satellite, or located on a satellite. The method includes: transmitting a first reference signal; receiving first information, the first information indicating a first antenna port, the first antenna port being an antenna port receiving the first reference signal on a first transmission path.

[0017] In one alternative implementation, the received power of the first reference signal received through the first antenna port on the first transmission path is greater than a first threshold.

[0018] In one alternative implementation, the first transmission path is a Loss path, or a transmission path through which the first reference signal is reflected, scattered, or diffracted by the sensing target.

[0019] In an optional implementation, the first information is further used to indicate a second antenna port and / or a third antenna port, wherein the second antenna port is an antenna port that receives the first reference signal on the first transmission path, and the third antenna port is an antenna port that receives the first reference signal on the second transmission path.

[0020] In one alternative implementation, the first transmission path corresponds to one or more antenna ports, wherein the first antenna port is the one or more antenna ports that receives the first reference signal with the highest received power on the first transmission path.

[0021] In an optional implementation, the method further includes: sending second information for configuring a reference signal resource and for indicating a fourth antenna port corresponding to the reference signal resource, wherein the fourth antenna port is one or more of the first antenna port, the second antenna port, or the third antenna port.

[0022] In one alternative implementation, a first signal is received on the reference signal resource, the first signal being used for sensing.

[0023] In an optional implementation, the first information is further used to indicate the power delay spectrum of the first reference signal received by the first antenna port. Optionally, the first information is further used to indicate the power delay spectrum of the first reference signal received by the second antenna port and / or the power delay spectrum of the first reference signal received by the third antenna port.

[0024] In an optional implementation, the method further includes: inputting the power delay spectrum and the information of the first antenna port into an AI model; and obtaining the antenna port information output by the AI ​​model.

[0025] In an optional implementation, the method further includes: inputting one or more of the power delay spectrum of the first reference signal received at the first antenna port, the power delay spectrum of the first reference signal received at the second antenna port, the power delay spectrum of the first reference signal received at the third antenna port, information of the first antenna port, information of the second antenna port, or information of the third antenna port into an AI model; and obtaining antenna port information output by the AI ​​model.

[0026] For the technical effects of the second aspect or various alternative implementation methods, please refer to the introduction of the technical effects of the first aspect or corresponding implementation methods.

[0027] Thirdly, a third sensing method is provided, which can be applied to a third device. The third device is, for example, a network-side device, also referred to as a network device. A description of the network device can be found in the second aspect. The method includes: receiving a second reference signal; transmitting third information, the third information being used to configure reference signal resources, and indicating a fifth antenna port corresponding to the reference signal resources, the fifth antenna port being an antenna port that receives the second reference signal on a third transmission path, wherein the received power of the second reference signal received through the fifth antenna port on the third transmission path is greater than a first threshold.

[0028] In this embodiment, the network device performs measurement sensing using an uplink reference signal (second signal). This embodiment also determines the corresponding antenna port by measuring the uplink reference signal (second reference signal), thereby improving the accuracy of the determined antenna port. The fifth antenna port can be an antenna port where a transmission path may exist. The network device can then detect signals transmitted from antenna ports with transmission paths, improving the signal reception success rate of the network device and contributing to improved sensing accuracy.

[0029] In one alternative implementation, the third transmission path is a Loss path, or a transmission path through which the third reference signal is reflected, scattered, or diffracted by the sensing target.

[0030] In one alternative implementation, the third transmission path corresponds to one or more antenna ports, and the fifth antenna port is the antenna port among the one or more antenna ports where the received power of the second reference signal on the third transmission path is the highest.

[0031] In an alternative implementation, the method further includes receiving a second signal on the reference signal resource, the second signal being used for sensing.

[0032] For the technical effects of the various alternative implementations of the second aspect, please refer to the description of the technical effects of the first aspect or the corresponding implementation.

[0033] Fourthly, a fourth sensing method is provided, which can be applied to a fourth device. The fourth device is, for example, a terminal-side device, also referred to as a terminal device. A description of the terminal device can be found in the first aspect. The method includes: transmitting a second reference signal, the second reference signal being used to determine an antenna port, the antenna port being used to transmit a signal for sensing.

[0034] In an optional implementation, the method further includes: receiving third information, the third information being used to configure a reference signal resource and to indicate a fifth antenna port corresponding to the reference signal resource.

[0035] In an alternative implementation, the method further includes transmitting a second signal over the reference signal resource via the fifth antenna port, the second signal being used for sensing.

[0036] For the technical effects of the fourth aspect or various alternative implementation methods, please refer to the introduction of the technical effects of the third aspect or corresponding implementation methods.

[0037] Fifthly, a fifth sensing method is provided, which can be applied to a fifth device. The fifth device is, for example, a terminal-side device, also referred to as a terminal device. For a description of the terminal device, please refer to the first aspect. The method includes: receiving a third reference signal; receiving fourth information, the fourth information being used to configure reference signal resources; transmitting a third signal on the reference signal resources using a sixth antenna port, the third signal being used for sensing, the sixth antenna port being an antenna port for receiving the third reference signal on a fourth transmission path, wherein the received power of the third reference signal received through the sixth antenna port on the fourth transmission path is greater than a first threshold.

[0038] The solution provided in this application allows for improved transmission quality of the third signal even if the terminal cannot perform beamforming. Since the terminal can pre-determine which antenna ports may have transmission paths, it can concentrate transmission power on these ports to transmit the third signal. This improves the transmission quality of the third signal and the success rate of network device reception of the third signal, thereby enhancing sensing accuracy. Furthermore, in this application, the terminal does not need to indicate the determined antenna ports to the network device, and the network device does not need to configure antenna ports for the terminal, thus saving transmission overhead and increasing the terminal's implementation flexibility.

[0039] In one alternative implementation, the fourth transmission path is a Loss path, or a transmission path through which the fifth reference signal is reflected, scattered, or diffracted by the sensing target.

[0040] In one alternative implementation, the fourth transmission path corresponds to one or more antenna ports, and the sixth antenna port is the antenna port among the one or more antenna ports where the received power of the third reference signal on the third transmission path is the highest.

[0041] For the technical effects of the various alternative implementations of the fifth aspect, please refer to the description of the technical effects of the first aspect or the corresponding implementation.

[0042] A sixth aspect provides a sixth sensing method, which can be applied to a sixth device. The sixth device is, for example, a network-side device, also referred to as a network device. A description of the network device can be found in the second aspect. The method includes: transmitting a third reference signal for determining an antenna port, the antenna port for transmitting a signal for sensing.

[0043] In an alternative implementation, the method further includes: sending fourth information, the fourth information being used to configure reference signal resources, the reference signal resources corresponding to signals used for sensing.

[0044] In an alternative implementation, the method further includes receiving a third signal on the reference signal resource, the third signal being used for sensing.

[0045] For the technical effects of the sixth aspect or various alternative implementations, please refer to the description of the technical effects of the fifth aspect or corresponding implementations.

[0046] In a seventh aspect, an apparatus is provided. The apparatus may be a terminal device as described in the first, fourth, or fifth aspects above. The apparatus possesses the functions of the aforementioned terminal device. For example, the apparatus may implement the functions described in the first, fourth, or fifth aspects above. For instance, the apparatus includes modules, units, or means corresponding to performing the operations involved in the first, fourth, or fifth aspects above. These modules, units, or means may be implemented through software, hardware, or a combination of software and hardware. The apparatus may be, for example, a terminal device, or other device including the functions of a terminal device, or a chip system (or chip or circuit) or other functional module capable of implementing the functions of a terminal device, and may be, for example, disposed within a terminal device. In one optional implementation, the apparatus includes a baseband device and a radio frequency device. In another optional implementation, the apparatus includes a processing unit (sometimes also called a processing module) and a transceiver unit (sometimes also called a transceiver module). A transceiver unit can perform both sending and receiving functions. When the transceiver unit performs the sending function, it can be called a sending unit (sometimes also called a sending module), and when it performs the receiving function, it can be called a receiving unit (sometimes also called a receiving module). The sending unit and the receiving unit can be the same functional module, which is called the transceiver unit and can perform both sending and receiving functions; or, the sending unit and the receiving unit can be different functional modules, and the transceiver unit is a collective term for these functional modules.

[0047] In one optional implementation, the transceiver unit (or the receiving unit) is configured to receive a first reference signal; the transceiver unit (or the transmitting unit) is configured to transmit first information, the first information being used to indicate a first antenna port, the first antenna port being an antenna port that receives the first reference signal on a first transmission path.

[0048] In one alternative implementation, the transceiver unit (or the transmitting unit) is configured to transmit a second reference signal, the second reference signal being used to determine an antenna port, the antenna port being used to transmit a signal for sensing.

[0049] In one optional implementation, the transceiver unit (or the receiving unit) is configured to receive a third reference signal; the transceiver unit (or the receiving unit) is configured to receive fourth information, the fourth information being used to configure reference signal resources; the transceiver unit (or the transmitting unit) is configured to transmit a third signal on the reference signal resources using a sixth antenna port, the third signal being used for sensing, the sixth antenna port being an antenna port for receiving the third reference signal on a fourth transmission path, and the received power of the third reference signal received through the sixth antenna port on the fourth transmission path being greater than a first threshold.

[0050] In an alternative embodiment, the device further includes a storage unit (sometimes also called a storage module), and the processing unit is configured to couple with the storage unit and execute programs or instructions in the storage unit to enable the device to perform the functions of the terminal device described in the first, fourth, or fifth aspects above.

[0051] Eighthly, an apparatus is provided. The apparatus may be a network device as described in the second, third, or sixth aspects above. The apparatus possesses the functions of the aforementioned network device. For example, the apparatus may implement the functions described in the second, third, or sixth aspects. For instance, the apparatus includes modules, units, or means corresponding to the operations involved in the second, third, or sixth aspects above. These modules, units, or means may be implemented in software, hardware, or a combination of software and hardware. The apparatus may be, for example, a network device, or other device including network device functions, or a chip system (or chip or circuit) or other functional module capable of implementing the functions of a network device. This chip system or functional module may be, for example, disposed within a network device. The network device may include, for example, core network equipment and / or access network equipment. In one optional implementation, the apparatus includes a baseband device and a radio frequency device. In another optional implementation, the apparatus includes a processing unit (sometimes also called a processing module) and a transceiver unit (sometimes also called a transceiver module). For details on the implementation of the transceiver unit, please refer to the relevant description in the seventh aspect.

[0052] In one optional implementation, the transceiver unit (or the transmitting unit) is configured to transmit a first reference signal; the transceiver unit (or the receiving unit) is configured to receive first information, the first information being used to indicate a first antenna port, the first antenna port being an antenna port that receives the first reference signal on a first transmission path.

[0053] In one optional implementation, the transceiver unit (or the receiving unit) is configured to receive a second reference signal; the transceiver unit (or the transmitting unit) is configured to transmit third information, the third information being configured to configure reference signal resources and to indicate a fifth antenna port corresponding to the reference signal resources, the fifth antenna port being an antenna port for receiving the second reference signal on a third transmission path, wherein the received power of the second reference signal received through the fifth antenna port on the third transmission path is greater than a first threshold.

[0054] In one alternative implementation, the transceiver unit (or the transmitting unit) is configured to transmit a third reference signal, the third reference signal being used to determine an antenna port, the antenna port being used to transmit a signal for sensing.

[0055] In an alternative embodiment, the device further includes a storage unit (sometimes also called a storage module), and the processing unit is configured to couple with the storage unit and execute programs or instructions in the storage unit to enable the device to perform the functions of the network device described in the second, third, or sixth aspects above.

[0056] A ninth aspect provides an apparatus comprising a memory and one or more processors. The memory is used to store part or all of a computer program or instructions necessary for implementing the functions described in the first, fourth, or fifth aspects above. The one or more processors are executable to carry out the computer program or instructions, such that, when executed, the apparatus implements the methods in any possible design or implementation of the first, fourth, or fifth aspects above.

[0057] In one possible design, the device may further include interface circuitry, wherein the processor is configured to communicate with other devices or components via the interface circuitry.

[0058] In one possible design, the device may also include the memory.

[0059] The aforementioned device may be a terminal device, a communication module in a terminal device, or a chip in a terminal device that is responsible for communication functions, such as a modem chip (also known as a baseband chip) or a SoC or SIP chip that contains a modem module.

[0060] A tenth aspect provides an apparatus comprising a memory and one or more processors. The memory is used to store part or all of a computer program or instructions necessary for implementing the functions described in the second, third, or sixth aspects above. The one or more processors are executable to carry out the computer program or instructions, such that, when executed, the apparatus implements the methods in any possible design or implementation of the second, third, or sixth aspects above.

[0061] In one possible design, the device may further include interface circuitry, wherein the processor is configured to communicate with other devices or components via the interface circuitry.

[0062] In one possible design, the device may also include the memory.

[0063] The aforementioned device may be a network device, a communication module in a network device, or a chip in a network device that is responsible for communication functions, such as a modem chip (also known as a baseband chip) or a SoC or SIP chip that contains a modem module.

[0064] Eleventhly, a sensing system is provided, including a network device. The network device is used to perform the methods described in the second, third, or sixth aspects above, which are executed by network apparatuses. For example, the network device can be implemented using the apparatus described in the eighth or tenth aspects.

[0065] Optionally, the sensing system may further include a terminal device. The terminal device is used to perform the methods described in the first, fourth, or fifth aspects above, executed by the terminal apparatus. For example, the terminal device can be implemented using the apparatus described in the seventh or ninth aspect.

[0066] In a twelfth aspect, a computer-readable storage medium is provided for storing a computer program or instructions that, when executed, cause the methods performed by the terminal device or network device in the above aspects to be implemented.

[0067] In a thirteenth aspect, a computer program product containing instructions is provided, which, when the computer program or instructions are run on a computer, causes the methods described in the above aspects to be implemented.

[0068] In a fourteenth aspect, a chip system is provided, including a processor and an interface, the processor being configured to call and execute instructions from the interface to enable the chip system to implement the methods of the above aspects. Attached Figure Description

[0069] Figure 1A is a schematic diagram of the access network equipment structure under the ORAN architecture;

[0070] Figure 1B is a schematic diagram of one structure of the RAN chip;

[0071] Figures 2A and 2B are schematic diagrams of single-station sensing mode and dual-station sensing mode, respectively.

[0072] Figures 3 and 4 are schematic diagrams of two network architectures applied in the embodiments of this application;

[0073] Figures 5, 9, and 10 are flowcharts of several sensing methods provided in the embodiments of this application;

[0074] Figure 6 shows an example of a network device sending a first reference signal and a UE receiving the first reference signal in an embodiment of this application.

[0075] Figure 7 shows an example of the measurement results of the UE on the first reference signal in an embodiment of this application;

[0076] Figure 8 shows an example of a UE transmitting a first signal in an embodiment of this application;

[0077] Figure 11 is a schematic diagram of a device provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0078] Figure 12 is a schematic diagram of another device provided in an embodiment of this application. Detailed Implementation

[0079] To make the objectives, technical solutions, and advantages of the embodiments of this application clearer, the embodiments of this application will be further described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0080] In this application embodiment, the number of nouns, unless otherwise specified, refers to "singular nouns or plural nouns," that is, "one or more." "At least one" means one or more, and "more than one" means two or more. "And / or" describes the relationship between related objects, indicating that three relationships can exist. For example, A and / or B can mean: A exists alone, A and B exist simultaneously, or B exists alone, where A and B can be singular or plural. The character " / " generally indicates that the related objects before and after are in an "or" relationship. For example, A / B means: A or B. "At least one of the following" or similar expressions refer to any combination of these items, including any combination of single or plural items. For example, at least one of a, b, or c means: 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.

[0081] The ordinal numbers such as "first" and "second" mentioned in the embodiments of this application are used to distinguish multiple objects, and are not used to limit the size, content, order, timing, priority, or importance of the multiple objects. Furthermore, the numbering of steps in the various embodiments described in this application is only to distinguish different steps and is not used to limit the order in which the steps are performed.

[0082] The following explanations of some terms or concepts used in the embodiments of this application are provided to facilitate understanding by those skilled in the art.

[0083] In this embodiment, the terminal device is a device with wireless transceiver capabilities, which can be a fixed device, a mobile device, a handheld device (e.g., a mobile phone), a wearable device, an in-vehicle device, or a wireless device (e.g., a communication module, a modem, or a chip system, etc.) built into the aforementioned devices. The terminal device is used to connect people, objects, machines, etc., and can be widely used in various scenarios, including but not limited to the following: sensing scenarios, cellular communication, device-to-device (D2D) communication, vehicle-to-everything (V2X) communication, machine-to-machine / machine-type communications (M2M / MTC) communication, Internet of Things (IoT), virtual reality (VR), augmented reality (AR), industrial control, self-driving, remote medical care, smart grid, smart furniture, smart office, smart wearables, smart transportation, smart city, drones, robots, and indoor commercial scenarios (such as mobile phone screen mirroring, file sharing, and mobile phone to VR glasses video transmission). When the terminal equipment is applied to V2X, it can also be called a V2X device, such as a smart car, digital car, unmanned car, driverless car, pilotless car, or automobile, self-driving car, or autonomous car, pure electric vehicle (EV), hybrid electric vehicle (HEV), range-extended electric vehicle (REEV), plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV), new energy vehicle, or roadside unit (RSU). The terminal equipment can also be a device used in D2D communication, such as an electricity meter or water meter.

[0084] Furthermore, in this embodiment of the application, the terminal device can also be a terminal device in an Internet of Things (IoT) system. IoT is an important component of the future development of information technology. Its main technical feature is to connect objects to the network through communication technology, thereby realizing an intelligent network of human-machine interconnection and object-to-object interconnection.

[0085] The various terminal devices described above, if located in a vehicle (e.g., placed inside or installed inside a vehicle), can all be considered in-vehicle terminal devices, also known as on-board units (OBUs). The terminal device of this application can also be an in-vehicle module, in-vehicle component, in-vehicle chip, or in-vehicle unit built into a vehicle as one or more components or units. The vehicle can implement the methods of this application through the built-in in-vehicle module, in-vehicle component, in-vehicle chip, or in-vehicle unit.

[0086] The terminal equipment may sometimes be referred to as user equipment (UE), terminal, access station, UE station, remote station, wireless communication equipment, or user device, etc.

[0087] In this application embodiment, the device for implementing the terminal device function can be a terminal device, which can be a terminal device or a device capable of supporting the terminal device in implementing the function, such as a chip system. This device can be installed in the terminal device. In the technical solutions provided in this application embodiment, the example of a terminal device being used to implement the terminal device function is used to describe the technical solutions provided in this application embodiment.

[0088] The network devices in this application embodiment include, for example, access network devices (or access network elements) and / or core network devices (or core network elements). The access network devices are devices with wireless transceiver capabilities, used to communicate with the terminal devices. The access network devices include, but are not limited to, base stations (base transceiver stations, BTS, Node B, evolved Node B (eNodeB) / eNB, or the next generation Node B (gNodeB) / gNB), transmission reception points (TRPs), base stations evolved from the 3rd generation partnership project (3GPP), access nodes in wireless fidelity (Wi-Fi) systems, wireless relay nodes, wireless backhaul nodes, etc. The base stations can be: macro base stations, micro base stations, pico base stations, small cells, relay stations, etc. Multiple base stations can support networks using the same access technology or networks using different access technologies. A base station can contain one or more co-located or non-co-located transmission and reception points. The access network equipment can also be a radio controller, centralized unit (CU), and / or distributed unit (DU) in a cloud radio access network (CRAN) scenario. The access network equipment can also be a server, etc. For example, the network equipment in V2X technology can be a roadside unit (RSU). The following description uses a base station as an example to illustrate the access network equipment. A base station can communicate with a terminal device, or it can communicate with a terminal device through a relay station. A terminal device can communicate with multiple base stations in different access technologies. The core network equipment is used to implement functions such as mobility management, data processing, session management, policy and billing. The names of the equipment implementing core network functions may differ in systems using different access technologies; this application does not limit this.Taking the 5th generation (5G) mobile communication technology system as an example, the core network equipment includes, for example, access and mobility management function (AMF), session management function (SMF), policy control function (PCF), or user plane function (UPF), etc.

[0089] In a CU-DU architecture, or in an open RAN (ORAN) system, access network equipment can include one or more logical network elements such as a central unit (CU), a distributed unit (DU), a CU-control plane (CP), a CU-user plane (UP), or a radio unit (RU). CUs and DUs can be separate entities or included in the same network element, such as a baseband unit (BBU). RUs can be included in radio equipment or radio units, such as remote radio units (RRUs), active antenna units (AAUs), or remote radio heads (RRHs). One possible structure for access network equipment is shown in Figure 1A. In this structure, core network equipment and access network equipment can communicate via a backhaul link; within the access network equipment, CUs and DUs can communicate via a midhaul link, and DUs and RUs can communicate via a fronthaul link.

[0090] Alternatively, another architecture for the access network device can be seen in Figure 1B, which illustrates an access network device implemented using a chip, such as a RAN chip. The RAN chip may include a CU, DU, and RU. The CU can perform L2 and L3 functions, etc.; the DU can perform L1 functions and some L2 functions, etc.; and the RU can perform L1 computation and radio frequency (RF) digital functions, etc. The CU communicates with the core network device via a backhaul interface, which carries the traffic between the CU and the core network device. The CU may include a central processing unit (CPU) based on x86 or ARM architecture, and may include a field-programmable gate array (FPGA), graphics processing unit (GPU), or other accelerators. The CPU can communicate with the FPGA, GPU, or other accelerators via a peripheral component interconnect express (PCIe) interface.

[0091] The CU and DU communicate via a midhaul interface, which carries the traffic between the CU and DU. The DU may include an x86 or ARM architecture CPU, as well as FPGAs, GPUs, or other accelerators, which can communicate with the FPGA, GPU, or other accelerators via a PCIe interface.

[0092] The DU and RU communicate via a fronthaul interface, which carries the traffic between the DU and RU. If the access network equipment uses an integrated DU, the integrated DU can include the functions of both the DU and RU, and the RAN may no longer need to include a separate RU. The RU may include a RAN fronthaul processing unit, a digital processing unit, and an RF processing unit. The RAN fronthaul processing unit is implemented, for example, using an FPGA or an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC). The digital processing unit is implemented, for example, using an FPGA or an ASIC.

[0093] The RU can be connected to an antenna to communicate with the UE via the antenna.

[0094] In different systems, CU (or CU-CP and CU-UP), DU, or RU may have different names, but those skilled in the art will understand their meaning. For example, in an ORAN system, CU can also be called an open CU (O-CU), DU can also be called an open DU (O-DU), CU-CP can also be called an open CU-CP (O-CU-CP), CU-UP can also be called an open CU-UP (O-CU-CP), and RU can also be called an open RU (O-RU). For ease of description, this application uses CU, CU-CP, CU-UP, DU, and RU as examples in its embodiments. Any of the units among CU (or CU-CP, CU-UP), DU, and RU in the embodiments of this application can be implemented through software modules, hardware modules, or a combination of software modules and hardware modules.

[0095] The CU and DU can be configured according to the protocol layer functions of the wireless network they implement. For example, the CU can be configured to implement the functions of the Packet Data Convergence Protocol (PDCP) layer and above (such as the Radio Resource Control (RRC) layer and / or the Service Data Adaptation Protocol (SDAP) layer); the DU can be configured to implement the functions of protocol layers below the PDCP layer (such as one or more of the Radio Link Control (RLC) layer, Media Access Control (MAC) layer, or Physical (PHY) layer). As another example, the CU can be configured to implement the functions of protocol layers above the PDCP layer (such as the RRC and / or SDAP layers), and the DU can be configured to implement the functions of protocol layers below the PDCP layer (such as one or more of the RLC, MAC, or PHY layers).

[0096] The above CU and DU configurations are merely examples; the functions of the CU and DU can be configured as needed. For instance, the CU or DU can be configured to have more protocol layer functions, or only some protocol layer processing functions. For example, some RLC layer functions and protocol layer functions above the RLC layer can be placed in the CU, while the remaining RLC layer functions and protocol layer functions below the RLC layer can be placed in the DU. Furthermore, the functions of the CU or DU can be divided according to service type or other system requirements, such as by latency. Functions that require low latency can be placed in the DU, while functions that do not require low latency can be placed in the CU.

[0097] DU and RU can cooperate to implement the functions of the PHY layer. A DU can be connected to one or more RUs. The functions of DU and RU can be configured in various ways depending on the design. For example, a DU can be configured to implement baseband functions, and an RU can be configured to implement mid-RF functions. Another example is that a DU can be configured to implement higher-level functions in the PHY layer, and an RU can be configured to implement lower-level functions in the PHY layer, or to implement both lower-level and RF functions. Higher-level functions in the physical layer can include a portion of the physical layer's functions that are closer to the MAC layer, while lower-level functions in the physical layer can include another portion of the physical layer's functions that are closer to the mid-RF side.

[0098] In this application embodiment, the apparatus for implementing the functions of a network device can be referred to as a network apparatus. This network apparatus can be a network element, a network device, or an apparatus capable of supporting the network device or network element in implementing the function, such as a chip system. This apparatus can be installed within the network device. In the technical solutions provided in this application embodiment, the apparatus for implementing the functions of a network device is described as a network apparatus (for example, an apparatus for implementing the functions of an access network apparatus is an access network apparatus, and an apparatus for implementing the functions of a core network apparatus is a core network apparatus).

[0099] A sensing signal is a signal used to sense (or detect) a target (or object). Sensing signals can also be called detection signals, linear frequency modulated signals, radar signals, radar sensing signals, radar detection signals, or environmental sensing signals, etc. Sensing signals can be pulse signals or signals from wireless communication systems. For example, a sensing signal can be an orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) signal obtained by modulating a specific sequence on a subcarrier. This specific sequence can be any of the following sequences: Zadoff-Chu sequence (ZC sequence), pseudo-random sequence, or predefined sequence. Pseudo-random sequences include any of the following sequences: longest linear feedback shift register sequence (m-sequence) or Gold sequence. Predefined sequences can be, for example, random data symbols, such as random data symbols modulated by quadrature phase shift keying (QPSK) or quadrature amplitude modulation (QAM).

[0100] An echo signal is a signal generated when a sensed signal is reflected by a target. Both the echo signal and the sensed signal can reflect the parameters of the target. For example, the time delay of the echo signal relative to the sensed signal can reflect the distance of the target relative to the transmitter, and the Doppler shift of the echo signal relative to the sensed signal can reflect the velocity of the target.

[0101] Communication-sensing fusion signals, also known as synthetic-sensing fusion signals, synthetic signals, or integrated synthetic-sensing signals, are signals used for both communication and sensing. When used for communication, the fusion signal carries the communication data or reference signal sequence that needs to be transmitted between communication devices. When used for sensing, the fusion signal can be understood as being used to sense (or detect) targets.

[0102] For example, the signals used for sensing described herein (such as the first signal described below) may include sensing signals and / or synesthetic fusion signals, etc.

[0103] The target can be any tangible object in the environment that can reflect electromagnetic waves, such as mountains, forests, or buildings, and can also include mobile objects such as vehicles, drones, pedestrians, and terminal devices. The target can also be referred to as a sensing target, detection target, perceived target, detected target, perceived object, detected object, or sensed device, etc., and the embodiments of this application do not limit it.

[0104] For a long time, wireless sensing has been an independently developed technology. Sensing services are provided by various specialized sensing devices, such as conventional radar, lidar, computed tomography (CT), and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). In 5G and earlier communication systems, positioning was the sensing service that mobile communication systems could provide. In future mobile communication systems, general sensing services other than positioning will be integrated into the communication system, becoming a completely new function, thereby opening up entirely new services, such as high-precision positioning, environmental reconstruction, and gesture and motion recognition.

[0105] Among them, sensing network elements can reconstruct the environment of a target area through means such as lasers, radars, or base stations. For example, sensing network elements can reconstruct the real physical environment based on the measurement results reported by devices such as lasers, radars, or base stations. For example, based on the measurement results, sensing network elements can reconstruct environmental information using methods such as scattering polygons to characterize various scattering objects in the environment, such as walls and furniture (also known as sensing targets, targets, or target objects).

[0106] For sensing, based on the different senders and receivers of the sensing signal, sensing modes can be divided into two types: single-site sensing and dual-site sensing. Single-site sensing mode, also known as self-transmitting and self-receiving mode, single-end sensing mode, or monocentric sensing mode, refers to the same device transmitting the sensing signal and receiving the echo signal reflected from the target, as shown in Figure 2A, where both the transmitting and receiving devices are device 1. Dual-site sensing mode, also known as A-transmitting and B-receiving mode or self-transmitting and other-receiving mode, refers to different devices transmitting the sensing signal and receiving the echo signal reflected from the target, as shown in Figure 2B, where the transmitting device is device 2 and the receiving device is device 3. Figures 2A and 2B both use a vehicle as an example of the sensing target. For example, in Figure 2A, device 1 is a base station or UE. In single-site sensing mode, device 1 transmits the sensing signal, and device 1 receives the echo signal generated by the reflection, scattering, or diffraction of the sensing signal by a sensing target in the environment (e.g., the vehicle in Figure 2A) for environmental sensing. For example, in Figure 2B, device 2 is a base station or UE, and device 3 is a base station or UE. In the dual-station sensing mode, device 1 sends a sensing signal, and device 2 receives the echo signal generated by the reflection, scattering or diffraction of the sensing signal by a scatterer in the environment (such as a vehicle in Figure 2B) to perform environmental sensing.

[0107] In a sensing scenario where the UE transmits signals and the base station receives signals, the UE transmits sensing signals. These signals are reflected, scattered, or diffracted by the sensing target before reaching the base station. The base station measures these sensing signals to obtain measurement results, and sensing network elements can perform sensing operations based on these results, such as reconstructing the sensing target. When transmitting sensing signals, the UE can perform beamforming (BF) on sensing signals along different transmission paths to maximize the energy of the scattering paths, thereby improving sensing accuracy.

[0108] However, some UEs may lack beamforming capabilities and be unable to perform beamforming. For example, if a target exists in the direction corresponding to a certain antenna port of the UE, but the UE cannot beamform the sensing signal transmitted from that antenna port, the sensing signal may be weak or attenuated significantly during transmission. This could cause the network device to fail to detect the sensing signal in that direction, or the network device may have insufficient receiving power for the sensing signal in that direction, leading the network device to believe that there is no transmission path or sensing target in that direction. Therefore, the inability of the UE to perform beamforming reduces sensing accuracy.

[0109] Therefore, in this embodiment, the UE can send first information indicating the first antenna port corresponding to the first transmission path. This can be understood as the first information indicating the antenna port where the transmission path exists. Thus, the network device can detect signals from the first antenna port and perform sensing based on those signals. Through the UE's indication, the network device can detect signals from the antenna port where the transmission path exists, improving the signal reception success rate of the network device and contributing to improved sensing accuracy.

[0110] Referring to Figure 3, which is a schematic diagram of a potential sensing network architecture, Figure 3 is based on a 5G core network (5G core, 5GC). The network architecture shown in Figure 3 can also be an application scenario of an embodiment of this application.

[0111] In the architecture shown in Figure 3, a new sensing function (SF) network element has been added, which can also be simply referred to as the sensing network element. This SF can be a device or component that provides sensing functionality to the network; it can also be called a sensing management function (SMF), or have other names. This SF can be deployed on the core network side or the RAN side; Figure 3 shows an example of deployment on the core network. In the network architecture shown in Figure 3, the SF can reuse the interfaces between the location management function (LMF) and other 5GC network elements such as the AMF, network exposure function (NEF), unified data management (UDM), network data analytics function (NWDAF), and PCF for sensing interaction. Sensing signaling between the SF and the radio access network (RAN) or UE can be transmitted through the AMF; sensing measurement data acquired by the RAN or UE can be transmitted to the SF via the control plane, for example, by using the reused long term evolution (LTE) positioning protocol (LPP) or new radio (NR) positioning protocol annex (NRPPa) protocol, or it can be transmitted through the user plane, forwarded to the SF via the UPF, or directly transmitted to the SF.

[0112] The newly added SF in this network architecture can realize basic sensing functions, such as sensing authorization, sensing control, sensing measurement data processing, or result output. Specifically, interfaces are set up and interaction is established between the SF and 5GC network elements such as AMF, NEF, UDM, NWDAF, PCF, LMF, and UPF, as defined below.

[0113] NS1: A new interface between SF and AMF, which can transmit sensing and control signaling. Additionally, this interface can also transmit sensing measurement data in scenarios where sensing measurement data is uploaded to the control plane.

[0114] NS2: A new interface between SF and NEF. This interface can transmit signaling messages between sensing network elements relayed through NEF and application functions (AF) on the service side, and at the same time open the sensing results to the AF.

[0115] NS3: A new interface between SF and UDM. This interface can be used for authentication or authorization, and to obtain UE-aware subscription information, service AMF information, or other information.

[0116] NS4: A new interface between SF and NWDAF. Through this interface, SF and NWDAF can jointly complete artificial intelligence (AI) processing related to perception services.

[0117] NS5: A new interface between SF and PCF. Through this interface, SF can transmit information such as sensing requirements, quality of service (QoS) requirements, or sensing results of sensing services to PCF. PCF can then make decisions to generate policy control and charging (PCC) policies related to sensing services.

[0118] NS6: A new interface between SF and LMF. Through this interface, SF can obtain location-related information, such as the sensing area, the RAN information of the sensing target, and the location information of the sensed UE.

[0119] NS7: A new interface between SF and UPF. Sensing measurement data can be directly transmitted from (R)AN to SF via UPF, or indirectly forwarded to SF via UPF. In scenarios where (R)AN performs sensing, forwarding via UPF can improve the functionality of UPF to support data transmission at the (R)AN granularity.

[0120] In addition to the newly added interfaces mentioned above, existing interfaces (such as N1, N2, N5, N8, N33, etc.) can also support the transmission of information related to sensing services, such as authentication information, sensing service type, sensing service quality requirements, sensing measurement data, or sensing results, etc.

[0121] Figure 3 illustrates an example where the SF (Sensitive Detection) is an independent device. Alternatively, the SF and LMF (Local Management Detector) can be co-located, meaning the network element handling sensing services and the network element handling location services can be the same. Alternatively, the SF can be co-located with other core network elements, such as the AMF (Auxiliary Location Detector). The LMF is the core network element in the 5GC that provides control plane positioning. It can calculate and feedback location information in the 5G network, providing functions such as positioning process management, UE capability acquisition, auxiliary data provision, and UE location estimation. Optionally, if the SF and LMF are co-located, the LMF and the gateway mobile location center (GMLC) can be functionally enhanced to support basic sensing functions. The GMLC can be the first network element within the operator's network to process sensing requests, performing privacy checks or authorization functions, routing sensing requests to the AMF, or performing LMF selection, etc.

[0122] For example, if the SF and LMF are co-located, an additional interface can be added between the LMF and GMLC to transmit information related to awareness services, such as adding an NL9 interface. Additionally, interfaces related to the LMF and GMLC (such as one or more of the following: NL1 interface between AMF and LMF, NL2 interface between AMF and GMLC, NL5 interface between NEF and GMLC, or NL6 interface between UDM and GMLC) can also support the transmission of information related to awareness services, as detailed below.

[0123] N33: The interface between AF and NEF, through which information such as the type of sensing business, business requirements, and sensing results can be transmitted.

[0124] NL5: The interface between NEF and GMLC, through which information such as the type of sensing business, business requirements, and sensing results can be transmitted.

[0125] NL6: The interface between GMLC and UDM, through which privacy inspection data can be transferred.

[0126] NL2: The interface between NEF and AMF, through which information such as the perceived business type, business requirements, and perceived results can be transmitted.

[0127] NL1: The interface between AMF and LMF, through which information such as perceived business type, business requirements, and perceived results can be transmitted.

[0128] NL9: A new interface between GMLC and LMF, through which information such as the type of sensing business, business requirements, and sensing results can be transmitted.

[0129] Referring again to Figure 4, which is a schematic diagram of another potential sensing network architecture based on 5GC, the network architecture shown in Figure 4 can also be another application scenario of the embodiments of this application.

[0130] In the network architecture shown in Figure 4, the SF (Sensitive Detection) is relatively independent of the existing core network elements. The SF does not need to interact with the core network elements, or only needs to perform minimal interaction. For scenarios where there is only a sensing requirement within a specific area, or scenarios where there is only a sensing requirement, this network architecture can provide sensing services without requiring 5GC control or only requiring some network elements to participate in control. Furthermore, by deploying the SF locally, sensing measurement data or results can remain within the campus, thus meeting the enterprise's requirements for the security and privacy of sensing measurement data or results, and reducing sensing latency. This network architecture is relatively simple, flexible, efficient, has few transmission nodes, and is easy to deploy. Optionally, this network architecture can support UE-related sensing requirements, and implementation schemes for functions such as authorization, mobility management, and billing can be considered as needed.

[0131] In this network architecture, the SF can directly establish a connection with the RAN node. Control plane sensing signaling and user plane sensing measurement data can be transmitted via the newly defined interface NS1. When the UE participates in sensing, control plane signaling can be forwarded to the SF via the AMF, and sensing measurement data can be transmitted via NS1. Furthermore, there can also be an interface between the SF and 5GC network elements (such as AMF, NEF, or NWDAF) to control the AF to provide sensing service requirements to the SF through core network functions. The interface between the SF and 5GC network elements is described below.

[0132] NS1: A new interface between the SF and (R)AN, which can transmit sensing control signaling or sensing measurement data. In one implementation, the SF can also be deployed on the RAN side; for example, the SF can be co-located with access network equipment (e.g., a base station), or the SF can be a standalone device within the access network.

[0133] NS2: A new interface that may be added between SF and AMF. This interface can receive awareness service requirements from UE, or transmit signaling between SF and other network elements in the core network, such as transmitting interaction messages between SF and UDM.

[0134] NS3: A potential new interface between SF and NEF. This interface can transmit signaling between SF and the service-side AF via NEF, and can also expose the sensing results to the AF. The interaction between SF and AF may not go through NEF. In actual deployment, NS2 and NS3 may be chosen as one of the two options. That is, the AF can send sensing service requests indirectly to SF or directly to SF (without NEF) via NS2 (NEF); or, the AF can send sensing service requests to SF via N33 (NEF) and NS2 (AMF).

[0135] NS4: A potential new interface between SF and NWDAF, through which SF and NWDAF can jointly perform intelligent analysis and prediction to generate perception results.

[0136] Figure 3 or Figure 4 both use a network that includes SF as an example. Alternatively, the network may not include SF, but rather other network elements implement the sensing-related functions, such as AMF and / or LMF.

[0137] The technical solutions provided in this application can be applied to fourth-generation (4G) mobile communication systems, such as LTE systems, or to 5G systems, such as NR systems, or to next-generation mobile communication systems or other similar communication systems, such as 6G systems, or to existing satellite mobile communication technology systems. No specific limitations are imposed. For example, Figures 3 and 4 are based on 5G. In addition, SF can also be deployed in other networks, such as 6G networks, or other future communication networks.

[0138] The embodiments of this application can be applied to the scenarios shown in Figure 2B, Figure 3 or Figure 4, or they can also be used in other scenarios, such as any scenario involving sensing services.

[0139] The method provided in the embodiments of this application is described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. In various embodiments of this application, the signal used to implement the sensing function or sensing service is referred to as a sensing signal. The sensing signal is transmitted through reflection, scattering, or diffraction, and the sensing device (e.g., a network device) can determine relevant characteristics of the sensing target based on the received sensing signal. For example, it can estimate time delay, Doppler, or angular spectrum information based on the received sensing signal to determine information such as the distance, angle, or velocity of the sensing target. Additionally, the network device can also send measurement results, such as point cloud data, distance, angle, or velocity information of the sensing target, to the sensing network element. In the accompanying drawings corresponding to the various embodiments of this application, steps indicated by dashed lines are optional steps.

[0140] The various embodiments described herein can be applied to the network architectures shown in Figures 2B, 3, or 4. For example, the network device described in the various embodiments of this document can be device 3 shown in Figure 2B, and the UE described in the various embodiments of this document can be device 2 shown in Figure 2B. As another example, the network device described in the various embodiments of this document can be (R)AN shown in Figure 3 or 4; and the UE described in the various embodiments of this document can be the UE shown in Figure 3 or 4.

[0141] This application provides a first sensing method, please refer to Figure 5, which is a flowchart of the method.

[0142] S501, The network device sends a first reference signal. Correspondingly, the UE receives the first reference signal.

[0143] The first reference signal may include one or more of the following: channel state information reference signal (CSI-RS), synchronization signal and PBCH block (SSB), positioning reference signal (PRS), or demodulation reference signal (DMRS), or may include other reference signals transmitted by network devices.

[0144] The UE can measure a first reference signal. For example, the UE has multiple antenna ports, and the UE can measure the first reference signal received at each of the multiple antenna ports. The first reference signal may have one or more transmission paths, and the first reference signal on one of these transmission paths may be received by at least one antenna port of the UE. For example, if the one or more transmission paths include the first transmission path, the UE's first antenna port can receive the first reference signal on the first transmission path, and the UE's second antenna port can also receive the first reference signal on the first transmission path. Each of the multiple antenna ports can receive the first reference signal from at least one of the one or more transmission paths. For example, if the one or more transmission paths include the second transmission path, the UE's third antenna port can receive the first reference signal on the second transmission path; optionally, the third antenna port can also receive the first reference signal on other transmission paths; optionally, the first reference signal on the second transmission path may also include signals received by other antenna ports of the UE. The first transmission path is, for example, a line-of-sight (LoS) path or a non-line-of-sight (NLoS) path; the second transmission path is, for example, a LoS path or an NLoS path. The NLoS path is, for example, a transmission path that is reflected, scattered, or diffracted by the perceived target.

[0145] Please refer to Figure 6, which illustrates an example of a network device transmitting a first reference signal and a UE receiving the first reference signal. Since there may be a sensing target in the environment, the first reference signal transmitted by the network device will become a multipath signal after passing through the sensing target. The UE can receive this multipath signal through some or all of its antenna ports. For example, in Figure 6, the first reference signal corresponds to transmission paths 1 to 4, and the UE's four antenna ports (antenna ports 0 to 3 in Figure 6) receive the first reference signal as a multipath signal. Each of these four antenna ports can receive the first reference signal on one or more of the transmission paths; and the first reference signal on each of the four transmission paths may also be received by at least one of the four antenna ports.

[0146] The UE can determine whether a transmission path exists on its antenna port, whether the first reference signal has been received on its antenna port, or whether a sensing target exists in the direction corresponding to the antenna port based on measurements of the first reference signal. For example, by measuring the first reference signal received on each antenna port, the UE can obtain a power delay profile (PDP). Based on the PDP corresponding to each antenna port, the UE can determine whether a transmission path exists on each antenna port, whether the first reference signal has been received on each antenna port, or whether a sensing target exists in the direction corresponding to each antenna port. For example, the PDP of an antenna port can include the correspondence between the power and delay of the signal received at that antenna port. For the PDP corresponding to a certain antenna port of the UE, it can include at least one peak power. As an optional implementation for the UE to determine whether a transmission path exists on the antenna port (or as an optional implementation for the UE to determine whether a first reference signal has been received on the antenna port, or as an optional implementation for the UE to determine whether a sensing target exists in the direction corresponding to the antenna port), if any of the at least one peak power has a peak power greater than a first threshold, the UE considers that a transmission path exists on the antenna port (the transmission path corresponds to the peak power greater than the first threshold, for example, the peak power is the received power of the transmission path), or considers that a first reference signal has been received on the antenna port, or considers that a sensing target exists in the direction corresponding to the antenna port. Alternatively, if none of the at least one peak power has a peak power greater than the first threshold, that is, if all at least one peak power is less than or equal to the first threshold, the UE considers that no transmission path exists on the antenna port, or considers that no first reference signal has been received on the antenna port, or considers that a sensing target exists in the direction corresponding to the antenna port.

[0147] In various embodiments of this application, the first threshold may be configured by the network device, set by the UE itself, or predefined by the protocol.

[0148] S502, the UE sends the first information. Correspondingly, the network device receives the first information.

[0149] The first information may indicate M antenna ports of the UE, where M is a positive integer. The M antenna ports may be determined by the UE based on measurements of a first reference signal. The M antenna ports may be some or all of the UE's antenna ports. Optionally, the first information may indicate the M antenna ports in one manner, for example, by including the port numbers of the M antenna ports; or, the first information may also indicate the M antenna ports in other ways.

[0150] Each of the M antenna ports can be an antenna port that receives the first reference signal on one or more transmission paths. For example, for each antenna port, the UE considers that a transmission path exists on that antenna port, or that the first reference signal has been received on that antenna port, or that a sensing target exists in the direction corresponding to that antenna port. The UE's determination method can be found in the relevant description in S501. In essence, if the UE determines, through measurement of the first reference signal, that a transmission path exists on its M antenna ports, or that the first reference signal has been received on those M antenna ports, or that a sensing target exists in the direction corresponding to those M antenna ports, then the UE can indicate those M antenna ports to the network device.

[0151] Optionally, any one of the M antenna ports may be, for example, an antenna port with a transmission path, an antenna port that has received a first reference signal, or an antenna port where a sensing target exists in the corresponding direction. For example, if the peak power included in the PDP of an antenna port is greater than a first threshold, then that antenna port may belong to the M antenna ports; if the peak power included in the PDP of an antenna port is all less than or equal to the first threshold, then that antenna port may not belong to the M antenna ports. The first reference signal on a transmission path may be received by one or more antenna ports of the UE. In this case, the M antenna ports may include the one or more antenna ports. For example, if both the first antenna port and the second antenna port of the UE receive the first reference signal on the first transmission path, and the UE determines by measurement that both the first antenna port and the second antenna port have a transmission path, or determines that a sensing target exists in the direction corresponding to both the first antenna port and the second antenna port, then the M antenna ports may include the first antenna port and the second antenna port. This can be understood as the UE informing the network device of all antenna ports that may have transmission paths, enabling the network device to receive signals from the UE on these antenna ports to perform sensing, thereby improving sensing accuracy.

[0152] Alternatively, for a transmission path, the M antenna ports may include one antenna port corresponding to the transmission path, which is the antenna port with the highest received power corresponding to the transmission path; the M antenna ports may not include other antenna ports corresponding to the transmission path. For example, a first transmission path corresponds to a first antenna port and a second antenna port of the UE. The M antenna ports may include the first antenna port, where the received power of the first reference signal received by the UE through the first antenna port on the first transmission path is greater than the received power of the first reference signal received by the UE through the second antenna port on the first transmission path; that is, the first antenna port is the antenna port with the highest received power corresponding to the first transmission path. Optionally, the first antenna port is the antenna port with the highest received power corresponding to the first transmission path, and the received power of the first reference signal received through the first antenna port on the first transmission path is greater than a first threshold.

[0153] For a transmission path, the UE may not report to the network device if the antenna port with the lower received power corresponding to that transmission path, thereby saving the transmission overhead of the first information. If the received power of a transmission path is highest at a certain antenna port, it indicates that the direction corresponding to that antenna port is most likely to contain a sensing target, thus ensuring sensing accuracy. Optionally, the first information may indicate the correspondence between the transmission path and the antenna port; for example, the first information may indicate that the first transmission path corresponds to the first antenna port. Alternatively, the first information may not indicate the transmission path, but only the antenna port; for example, the first information may indicate the first antenna port without indicating that the first antenna port corresponds to the first transmission path.

[0154] Please refer to Figure 7, which shows an example of the measurement results of the UE on the first reference signal. In Figure 7, a row represents an antenna port, and the arrows in that row indicate the peak power (PDP) included in the antenna port's signal strength (PSP). Arrows in a column of Figure 7 represent the same transmission path; that is, the first reference signal on a transmission path may be received by at least one antenna port of the UE. For example, in Figure 7, antenna port 0 of the UE can receive the first reference signal on transmission paths 1 through 4, while the first reference signal on transmission path 1 can be received by antenna ports 1 through 3, in addition to antenna port 0. The horizontal dashed line in Figure 7 represents the first threshold, and the vertical line represents the received power. It can be seen that the received power of the first reference signal on transmission path 1 received at antenna port 0 is greater than the first threshold, while the received power of the first reference signal on transmission path 1 received at antenna ports 1 through 3 is less than the first threshold. Alternatively, it can be understood that the received power of the first reference signal on transmission path 1 received at antenna port 0 is greater than the received power of the first reference signal on transmission path 1 received at other antenna ports. The first information sent by the UE for transmission path 1 can indicate antenna port 0, but not antenna ports 1 to 3. Similarly, the first information for transmission path 2 can indicate antenna port 2, but not antenna ports 0, 1, and 3; the first information for transmission path 3 can indicate antenna port 0, but not antenna ports 1 to 3; and the first information for transmission path 4 can indicate antenna port 3, but not antenna ports 0 to 2.

[0155] Optionally, the first information may also indicate the measurement result of the first reference signal received on each of the M antenna ports, the measurement result including, for example, a PDP. For example, if the UE measures the first reference signal received on each of the M antenna ports and determines a total of M PDPs, then the first information may indicate the M PDPs.

[0156] Optionally, the method may further include S503, whereby the network device sends second information, and the UE receives the second information accordingly. The second information can be used to configure reference signal resources, and the second information may also indicate N antenna ports corresponding to the reference signal resources, where N is a positive integer. This is equivalent to the network device allocating N antenna ports to the reference signal resources, or configuring the reference signal resources for the N antenna ports. For example, the second information may configure N reference signal resources, with each of the N reference signal resources corresponding one-to-one with the N antenna ports. The second information may indicate, for example, the correspondence between the N reference signal resources and the N antenna ports. The N antenna ports are the antenna ports of the UE.

[0157] This reference signal resource can correspond to a first signal, which can be used for sensing. For example, the first signal may include a channel sounding reference signal (SRS) and / or a DMRS, or it may include other reference signals transmitted by the UE. Since the signal configured in this reference signal resource is for sensing, it can also be referred to as a sensing signal resource, etc.

[0158] The N antenna ports may be determined by the network device based on the first information. The N antenna ports may include some or all of the M antenna ports, or they may not include the M antenna ports; there is no limitation in this regard. For example, since there may be a sensing target in the direction corresponding to the M antenna ports, the network device can configure reference signal resources for some or all of the M antenna ports, allowing the UE to transmit signals for sensing on those antenna ports. The network device can then determine the sensing target based on the received signals.

[0159] For example, a network device can input first information into a first model and obtain the output information of the first model. This output information may include, for example, the port numbers of the N antenna ports. For instance, if the first information includes the port numbers of M antenna ports and the M PDPs corresponding to those M antenna ports, the network device can input both the M port numbers and the M PDPs into the first model to obtain the output information of the first model, which may include, for example, the port numbers of the N antenna ports. The first model can be used to determine the antenna ports used for sensing signals. The first model may be, for example, an artificial intelligence (AI) model, or it could be other models, such as a statistical model. By using the first model to determine the antenna ports, the network device can improve the accuracy of the determined antenna ports.

[0160] Optionally, the AI ​​model can be, for example, a neural network model, a support vector machine (SVM) model, or a decision tree model. A neural network model is a computational model that simulates the human brain, consisting of interconnected nodes that process information by learning and adjusting the weights between nodes. Embodiments of this application can utilize a neural network model to learn and predict the optimal or near-optimal antenna port for transmitting signals for sensing in different environments and scenarios.

[0161] SVM is a classification and regression method based on statistical learning theory, which is well-suited for handling high-dimensional data and complex classification problems. In the embodiments of this application, the SVM model can be used to predict the optimal or relatively optimal antenna port for transmitting signals for sensing based on historical multipath measurement information (such as PDP information obtained by the UE) and antenna port information (such as the antenna port number determined by the UE).

[0162] Decision trees are a tree-structured classification and regression method that constructs a model by recursively partitioning a dataset. In this embodiment, the decision tree model can be used to predict the optimal or near-optimal antenna port for transmitting signals for sensing based on multipath measurement information (e.g., PDP information obtained by the UE) and antenna port information (e.g., the antenna port number determined by the UE).

[0163] Statistical models, based on statistical principles and methods, predict future trends by analyzing and modeling historical data. In this embodiment, the statistical model can be used to predict the optimal or near-optimal antenna port for transmitting signals for sensing based on historical multipath measurement information (e.g., PDP information obtained by the UE) and antenna port information (e.g., the antenna port number determined by the UE).

[0164] The first model is trained, for example, by a first device, which may be a network device, a Subsystem (SU) or a CU, a third-party device, or a sensing element. Alternatively, the first model can be trained by a first device and a second device, where the first device is, for example, a network device and the second device is, for example, a User Equipment (UE). Taking the training of the first model by a network device as an example: The network device can obtain at least one sample data and input it into the first model to obtain the output information of the first model. Any sample data may include a Device Port (PDP) and the antenna port information (e.g., the port number of the antenna port) corresponding to the PDP. The output information corresponding to the sample data may include the antenna port information (e.g., the port number of the antenna port). Based on the output information corresponding to at least one sample data and a loss function, the network device can optimize the first model until the maximum number of training iterations is reached or until the model converges, at which point training is complete. The loss function is, for example, a function between the output information of the first model and the antenna port information corresponding to the sample data, and this loss function characterizes the accuracy of the antenna port information output by the first model.

[0165] Let's take the first model trained by the UE and the network device as an example. The network device sends a reference signal, and the UE can measure the reference signal received on each of its antenna ports and report the measurement information to the network device. This measurement information may include the antenna port information determined by the UE (e.g., information about the antenna port where the UE believes a sensing target exists, such as the port number), and the PDP corresponding to that antenna port. The network device inputs the measurement information into the first model to obtain the output information of the first model. This output information may include the corresponding antenna port information (e.g., the port number of the antenna port). Based on the output information of the first model and the loss function, the network device can optimize the first model until the maximum number of training iterations is reached or until the model converges, at which point training is complete. The loss function, for example, is a function between the output information of the first model and the antenna port information reported by the UE, and this loss function characterizes the accuracy of the antenna port information output by the first model.

[0166] Alternatively, the N antenna ports may be determined by the network device based on first information and / or other information, such as sensing-related information. In this case, the N antenna ports may include some or all of the M antenna ports, or the N antenna ports may exclude the M antenna ports; there is no limitation in this regard. The sensing-related information may be determined by the network device itself, or it may come from an indication from a sensing network element. For example, one type of sensing-related information may be a sensing area of ​​interest and / or a sensing target of interest.

[0167] For example, the network device determines Q ports based on the first information, as described above, where Q is a positive integer. These Q antenna ports may include some or all of the M antenna ports, or they may not include the M antenna ports. If some of the Q antenna ports are located in directions not within the area of ​​interest, the network device may not configure reference signal resources for those antenna ports. For example, the reference signal resources configured by the network device may not correspond to those antenna ports, and in this case, the N antenna ports do not include those antenna ports. As another example, if some of the Q antenna ports are located in directions where the target being sensed is not within the area of ​​interest, the network device may not configure reference signal resources for those antenna ports, and in this case, the N antenna ports do not include those antenna ports. As yet another example, if, in addition to the Q antenna ports, the other antenna ports of the UE are located in directions within the area of ​​interest... If the target being sensed within the sensing area, or in that direction, is a target of interest, then the network device can configure reference signal resources for the Q antenna ports as well as the other antenna ports. In this case, the N antenna ports include the Q antenna ports and the other antenna ports. For another example, if the direction corresponding to the other antenna ports of the UE is within the sensing area of ​​interest, while the direction corresponding to the Q antenna ports is not, then the network device can configure reference signal resources for the other antenna ports, but may not configure reference signal resources for the Q antenna ports. In this case, the N antenna ports include the other antenna ports but do not include the Q antenna ports. Therefore, the N antenna ports may include some or all of the Q antenna ports, or may not include the Q antenna ports.

[0168] The above is just an example of determining N antenna ports for a network device. How to determine N antenna ports may vary depending on the implementation of the network device, and this application does not impose any restrictions.

[0169] Optionally, the network device may independently determine whether to perform sensing and send the second information to the UE; alternatively, the network device may receive a request from a sensing network element and send the second information to the UE based on the request. For example, the request could be a sensing measurement request, which may request the performance of sensing and / or request the configuration of signals for sensing by the UE. Upon receiving the sensing measurement request, the network device can then send the second information to the UE.

[0170] Optionally, the method may further include S504, whereby the UE transmits a first signal on the reference signal resource through the N antenna ports, and the network device receives the first signal accordingly.

[0171] Please refer to Figure 8 for an example of a UE transmitting a first signal. For instance, the first information reported by the UE indicates antenna port 0, antenna port 2, and antenna port 3, but does not indicate antenna port 1. The network device determines N antenna ports based on the first information. These N antenna ports include, for example, antenna port 0, antenna port 2, and antenna port 3, but do not include antenna port 1. The UE transmits the first signal through antenna ports 0, 2, and 3. The first signal reaches the network device after being reflected, scattered, or diffracted by the corresponding sensing target.

[0172] The network device receives the first signal and can use it to perform sensing. For example, the network device can determine relevant characteristics of the sensed target based on the first signal, such as estimating time delay, Doppler, or angular spectrum information to determine the target's distance, angle, or velocity. Optionally, the network device can also send measurement or sensing results to the sensing network element, such as sending point cloud data, distance, angle, or velocity information of the sensed target. The sensing network element can then perform sensing based on the received measurement or sensing results, such as reconstructing the sensed target.

[0173] The network device indicates the reference signal resources and the N antenna ports through the second information. The UE can then transmit a first signal through these N antenna ports on the reference signal resources. Since the N antenna ports are determined by the network device based on the first information, they are antenna ports in directions where a sensing target may exist. Therefore, the network device can detect signals from these antenna ports and perform sensing based on them. Through the solution provided in this application embodiment, even if the UE cannot achieve beamforming, the network device can improve the detection success rate by detecting on antenna ports where transmission paths may exist, reducing the probability that the network device will ignore signals on antenna ports where a sensing target may exist, thus helping to improve sensing accuracy. Furthermore, this application embodiment is equivalent to filtering out N antenna ports. For antenna ports other than these N antenna ports that the UE has, the network device does not need to configure reference signal resources for them, and the UE does not need to transmit the first signal on these antenna ports. Therefore, the UE's transmission power can be concentrated on these N antenna ports. This allows the UE's transmission power to be concentrated on a portion of the antenna ports, rather than being spread across more antenna ports, thereby increasing the transmission power on each antenna port in that portion of the antenna ports and thus improving the transmission quality of the first signal.

[0174] This application provides a second sensing method, please refer to Figure 9, which is a flowchart of the method.

[0175] S901, the UE sends a second reference signal. Correspondingly, the network device receives the second reference signal.

[0176] The second reference signal may include, for example, SRS and / or DMRS, or may include other reference signals transmitted by the UE.

[0177] Optionally, the network device may send fifth information, which can be used to configure the first reference signal resource; this step, for example, occurs before S901. In S901, the UE may send a second reference signal based on the first reference signal resource.

[0178] For example, the first reference signal resource may include at least one reference signal resource. The fifth information may indicate the correspondence between the at least one reference signal resource and P1 antenna ports of the UE through an SRS resource indicator (SRI). For example, each of the at least one reference signal resource may correspond to one antenna port of the UE. P1 is a positive integer. The UE may transmit a second reference signal on the first reference signal resource through the P1 antenna ports indicated by the fifth information. Optionally, the P1 antenna ports may be all or some of the antenna ports of the UE. For example, if the P1 antenna ports are all the antenna ports of the UE, the network device can more accurately determine which antenna ports(s) have a transmission path.

[0179] Please refer to Figure 9 for an example of a UE transmitting a second reference signal and a network device receiving the second reference signal. The fifth information transmitted by the network device indicates the reference signal resources corresponding to antenna ports 0 through 4 of the UE. Since there may be sensing targets in the environment, the second reference signal transmitted by the UE will become a multipath signal after passing through the sensing targets, and the network device can receive this multipath signal. For example, in Figure 9, the UE uses antenna ports 0 through 4 to transmit the second reference signal on the first reference signal resources, and the second reference signal corresponds to transmission paths 1 through 4. Each of the four antenna ports can transmit the second reference signal on one or more of the transmission paths; and the second reference signal on each of the four transmission paths may also be transmitted by at least one of the four antenna ports.

[0180] S902, The network device sends third information. Correspondingly, the UE receives the third information.

[0181] The third information can be used to configure reference signal resources. To distinguish it from the first reference signal resource, the reference signal resource configured by the third information can also be referred to as the second reference signal resource. The third information can also indicate P2 antenna ports corresponding to the second reference signal resource, which is equivalent to the network device allocating P2 antenna ports to the second reference signal resource, or configuring the second reference signal resource for these P2 antenna ports, where P2 is a positive integer. For example, the third information can configure P2 reference signal resources, which correspond one-to-one with the P2 antenna ports. The third information, for example, indicates the correspondence between the P2 reference signal resources and the P2 antenna ports. These P2 antenna ports may be some or all of the UE's antenna ports.

[0182] The second reference signal resource can correspond to a second signal, which can be used for sensing. For example, the second signal includes SRS and / or DMRS, or it may also include other reference signals transmitted by the UE. Since the signal configured in the second reference signal resource is a sensing signal, the second reference signal resource can also be called a sensing signal resource, etc.

[0183] The P2 antenna ports can be determined by the network device based on measurements of the second reference signal. The network device can measure the second reference signal, which originates from the P1 antenna ports of the UE. For example, the network device can measure the second reference signal from each of the P1 antenna ports separately. The first reference signal can have one or more transmission paths, and the second reference signal on one of these transmission paths may be transmitted by at least one of the P1 antenna ports. For example, the one or more transmission paths may include a third transmission path; the UE's fifth antenna port can transmit the second reference signal on the third transmission path, and the other antenna ports of the UE can also transmit the second reference signal on the first transmission path. Each of the P1 antenna ports can transmit the first reference signal on at least one of the one or more transmission paths. The third transmission path may be, for example, a Loss path or an NLoS path.

[0184] The network device can determine whether a transmission path exists on the antenna port of the UE, whether a first reference signal has been transmitted on the antenna port of the UE, or whether a sensing target exists in the direction corresponding to the antenna port of the UE, based on the measurement of the second reference signal. For example, the network device can obtain a PDP by measuring the second reference signal from each of the P antenna ports. Based on the PDP corresponding to each antenna port, the network device can determine whether a transmission path exists on each antenna port, whether a first reference signal has been transmitted on each antenna port, or whether a sensing target exists in the direction corresponding to each antenna port. For example, the PDP of an antenna port may include the correspondence between the power and delay of the signal received by the antenna port. For the PDP corresponding to a certain antenna port among the P1 antenna ports, it may include at least one peak power. As an optional implementation for a network device to determine whether a transmission path exists on an antenna port (or as an optional implementation for a network device to determine whether a first reference signal has been transmitted on the antenna port of a UE, or as an optional implementation for a network device to determine whether a sensing target exists in the direction corresponding to the antenna port of a UE), if any of the at least one peak power has a peak power greater than a first threshold, the network device considers that a transmission path exists on the antenna port (the transmission path corresponds to the peak power greater than the first threshold, for example, the peak power is the received power of the transmission path), or considers that a first reference signal has been transmitted on the antenna port, or considers that a sensing target exists in the direction corresponding to the antenna port. Alternatively, if none of the at least one peak power has a peak power greater than the first threshold, that is, if all at least one peak power is less than or equal to the first threshold, the network device considers that no transmission path exists on the antenna port, or considers that no first reference signal has been transmitted on the antenna port, or considers that a sensing target exists in the direction corresponding to the antenna port.

[0185] Each of the P2 antenna ports can be an antenna port that transmits a first reference signal on one or more transmission paths. For example, for each antenna port, the network device considers that a transmission path exists on that antenna port, or that a first reference signal has been transmitted on that antenna port, or that a sensing target exists in the direction corresponding to that antenna port. The network device's identification method can be found in the relevant description in S902. In essence, the network device determines, through measurement of the second reference signal, that a transmission path exists on the P2 antenna ports of the UE, or that a first reference signal has been transmitted on that antenna port, or that a sensing target exists in the direction corresponding to the P2 antenna ports. Then, the network device can configure second reference signal resources for those P2 antenna ports.

[0186] Optionally, any one of the P2 antenna ports can be, for example, an antenna port with a transmission path, an antenna port that has transmitted a first reference signal, or an antenna port where a sensing target exists in the corresponding direction. For example, if the peak power included in the PDP of an antenna port is greater than a first threshold, then that antenna port can belong to the P2 antenna ports; if the peak power included in the PDP of an antenna port is all less than or equal to the first threshold, then that antenna port may not belong to the P2 antenna ports. The first reference signal on a transmission path may be transmitted by one or more antenna ports of the UE. In this way, the P2 antenna ports can include these one or more antenna ports. It can be understood that the network device can configure second reference signal resources for all antenna ports that may have transmission paths, enabling the network device to receive signals from the UE on these antenna ports to perform sensing, thereby improving sensing accuracy.

[0187] Alternatively, for a transmission path, the P2 antenna ports may include one antenna port corresponding to the transmission path, which is the antenna port with the highest received power corresponding to the transmission path; the P2 antenna ports may not include other antenna ports corresponding to the transmission path. For example, the third transmission path corresponds to antenna port 1 and antenna port 2 of the UE. The P2 antenna ports may include antenna port 1, where the received power of the first reference signal received by the UE through antenna port 1 on the third transmission path is greater than the received power of the first reference signal received by the UE through antenna port 2 on the third transmission path; that is, antenna port 1 is the antenna port with the highest received power corresponding to the first transmission path. Optionally, antenna port 1 is the antenna port with the highest received power corresponding to the third transmission path, and the received power of the first reference signal received through antenna port 1 on the third transmission path is greater than a first threshold.

[0188] For a transmission path, the antenna port with lower received power corresponding to that transmission path can be excluded from the P2 antenna ports. This saves on the transmission overhead of the third information and allows the UE's transmit power to be more concentrated on a few antenna ports. The fact that a transmission path has the highest received power at a certain antenna port indicates that the direction corresponding to that antenna port is most likely to contain a sensing target, thus ensuring sensing accuracy. Optionally, the third information can indicate the correspondence between the transmission path and the antenna port, for example, the third information indicates that the third transmission path corresponds to the fifth antenna port; or, the third information can not indicate the transmission path, but only the antenna port, for example, the third information indicates the fifth antenna port, but does not indicate that the fifth antenna port corresponds to the third transmission path.

[0189] Alternatively, the P2 antenna ports can be determined by the network device based on measurements of the second reference signal and / or other information, such as sensing-related information. This sensing-related information can be determined by the network device itself or derived from an indication from a sensing element. For example, one type of sensing-related information is the sensing region of interest and / or the sensing target of interest. For instance, if the network device determines P3 antenna ports (P3 being a positive integer) based on measurements of the second reference signal, and some of these P3 antenna ports correspond to directions not within the sensing region of interest, the network device may not configure second reference signal resources for these antenna ports. For example, the second reference signal resources configured by the network device may not correspond to these antenna ports, and in this case, the P2 antenna ports do not include these antenna ports. As another example, if some of the P3 antenna ports correspond to sensing targets that are not the sensing targets of interest, the network device may not configure second reference signal resources for these antenna ports, and in this case, the P2 antenna ports do not include these antenna ports. As yet another example, besides the P3 antenna ports... If the directions corresponding to the other antenna ports of the UE are located within the sensing area of ​​interest, or if the sensing target in that direction belongs to the sensing target of interest, then the network device can configure reference signal resources for both the P3 antenna ports and the other antenna ports. In this case, the P2 antenna ports include the P3 antenna ports and the other antenna ports. Alternatively, if the directions corresponding to the other antenna ports of the UE are located within the sensing area of ​​interest, but the directions corresponding to the P3 antenna ports are not located within the sensing area of ​​interest, then the network device can configure reference signal resources for the other antenna ports but may not configure reference signal resources for the P3 antenna ports. In this case, the P2 antenna ports include the other antenna ports but do not include the P3 antenna ports. Therefore, the P2 antenna ports may include some or all of the P3 antenna ports, or may not include the P3 antenna ports.

[0190] The above is just an example of how a network device determines P2 antenna ports. How to determine P2 antenna ports may vary depending on the implementation of the network device, and this application does not impose any restrictions.

[0191] Optionally, the network device may independently determine whether to perform sensing and send third information to the UE; alternatively, the network device may receive a request from a sensing network element and send second information to the UE based on the request. For example, the request could be a sensing measurement request, which might request the performance of sensing and / or request the configuration of signals for sensing by the UE. Upon receiving the sensing measurement request, the network device can then send third information to the UE.

[0192] Optionally, the method may further include S903, whereby the UE transmits a second signal on the second reference signal resource through the P2 antenna ports, and the network device receives the second signal accordingly. For example, if the P2 antenna ports include a fifth antenna port, the UE can use the fifth antenna port to transmit the second signal on the reference signal resource, and the network device can receive the second signal accordingly.

[0193] The network device receives the second signal and can use it to perform sensing. For example, the network device can determine relevant characteristics of the sensed target based on the second signal, such as estimating time delay, Doppler, or angular spectrum information to determine the target's distance, angle, or velocity. Optionally, the network device can also send measurement or sensing results to the sensing network element, such as sending point cloud data, distance, angle, or velocity information of the sensed target. The sensing network element can then perform sensing based on the received measurement or sensing results, such as reconstructing the sensed target.

[0194] In this embodiment, the network device performs measurement sensing using an uplink reference signal (second signal). This embodiment also determines the corresponding antenna port by measuring the uplink reference signal (second reference signal), thereby improving the accuracy of the determined antenna port. Furthermore, the bandwidth occupied by the second reference signal can be relatively small. The network device in this embodiment can perform long-period, small-bandwidth measurements, which can determine the transmitting antenna port corresponding to the second signal with a larger bandwidth, making the measurement process more flexible. With the solution provided by this embodiment, even if the UE cannot perform beamforming, the network device can detect the second signal in the direction of these antenna ports because it can pre-determine which antenna ports may have transmission paths. This reduces the probability of the network device ignoring signals on antenna ports where sensing targets may exist, thus helping to improve sensing accuracy. In addition, since the UE and network device pre-determine which antenna ports may have transmission paths, the network device does not need to configure reference signal resources for antenna ports in directions where transmission paths may not exist, and the UE does not need to transmit the second signal on these antenna ports. Therefore, the UE's transmission power can be concentrated on the antenna ports indicated by the network device. This allows the UE's transmission power to be concentrated on a portion of the antenna ports, increasing the transmission power on each antenna port in that portion, thereby improving the transmission quality of the second signal.

[0195] This application provides a third sensing method, please refer to Figure 10, which is a flowchart of the method.

[0196] S1001, The network device sends a third reference signal. Correspondingly, the UE receives the third reference signal.

[0197] The third reference signal may include one or more of CSI-RS, SSB, PRS, or DMRS, or may include other reference signals transmitted by network devices.

[0198] The UE can measure the third reference signal, thereby determining whether a transmission path exists at the UE's antenna port, whether the first reference signal has been received at the UE's antenna port, or whether a sensing target exists in the direction corresponding to the UE's antenna port. For details on this, please refer to the description of S501 in the embodiment shown in Figure 5.

[0199] S1002, The network device sends the fourth information. Correspondingly, the UE receives the fourth information.

[0200] The fourth piece of information can be used to configure reference signal resources. However, this fourth piece of information only configures the reference signal resources and does not indicate the antenna port corresponding to those resources.

[0201] This reference signal resource can correspond to a third signal that can be used for sensing. For example, the third signal may include SRS and / or DMRS, or it may include other reference signals transmitted by the UE. Since this reference signal resource corresponds to a signal used for sensing, it can also be referred to as a sensing signal resource, etc.

[0202] S1003. The UE uses K antenna ports to transmit a third signal on the reference signal resource, and the network device receives the third signal accordingly. For example, if the K antenna ports include a sixth antenna port, the UE can use the sixth antenna port to transmit the third signal on the reference signal resource, and the network device can receive the third signal accordingly. The K antenna ports can be some or all of the UE's antenna ports, and K is a positive integer.

[0203] The K antenna ports are determined by the UE, for example, based on measurements of a third reference signal. Each of the K antenna ports can be an antenna port that receives the third reference signal on one or more transmission paths. For example, for each antenna port, the UE considers that a transmission path exists on that antenna port, or that a third reference signal has been received on that antenna port, or that a sensing target exists in the direction corresponding to that antenna port. The UE's determination method can be found in the relevant description of S501 in the embodiment shown in Figure 5. In other words, the UE determines, through measurements of the third reference signal, that a transmission path exists on its K antenna ports, or that a third reference signal has been received on those K antenna ports, or that a sensing target exists in the direction corresponding to those K antenna ports.

[0204] Optionally, any one of the K antenna ports can be, for example, an antenna port with a transmission path, an antenna port that has received a third reference signal, or an antenna port where a sensing target exists in the corresponding direction. For example, if the peak power included in the PDP of an antenna port is greater than a first threshold, then that antenna port can belong to the K antenna ports; if the peak power included in the PDP of an antenna port is all less than or equal to the first threshold, then that antenna port may not belong to the K antenna ports. The third reference signal on a transmission path may be received by one or more antenna ports of the UE. In this way, the K antenna ports can include these one or more antenna ports. This can be understood as the UE transmitting a third signal on antenna ports where a transmission path may exist, enabling the network device to receive the third signal from the UE on these antenna ports to perform sensing, thereby improving sensing accuracy.

[0205] Alternatively, for a transmission path, the K antenna ports may include one antenna port corresponding to the transmission path, which is the antenna port with the highest received power corresponding to the transmission path; the K antenna ports may not include other antenna ports corresponding to the transmission path. For example, the fourth transmission path corresponds to antenna port 1 and antenna port 2 of the UE. The K antenna ports may include antenna port 1, where the received power of the first reference signal received by the UE through antenna port 1 on the fourth transmission path is greater than the received power of the first reference signal received by the UE through antenna port 2 on the first transmission path. That is, antenna port 1 is the antenna port with the highest received power corresponding to the fourth transmission path. Optionally, antenna port 1 is the antenna port with the highest received power corresponding to the fourth transmission path, and the received power of the third reference signal received through antenna port 1 on the fourth transmission path is greater than a first threshold.

[0206] For a given transmission path, the UE can avoid transmitting sensing signals at antenna ports with lower received power, thus saving transmission overhead for sensing signals and concentrating the UE's transmission power on certain antenna ports. The highest received power at a particular antenna port along a transmission path indicates that a sensing target is most likely to exist in the direction corresponding to that antenna port, thereby ensuring sensing accuracy.

[0207] Network devices receive third signals and can use these signals to perform sensing operations. For example, a network device can determine relevant characteristics of a target based on the third signal, such as estimating time delay, Doppler, or angular spectrum information to determine the target's distance, angle, or velocity. Optionally, the network device can also send measurement or sensing results to the sensing network element, such as sending point cloud data, distance, angle, or velocity information of the target. The sensing network element can then perform sensing operations based on the received measurement or sensing results, such as reconstructing the target.

[0208] The network device indicates the reference signal resource through the fourth information, and the UE determines the K antenna ports. The UE can then use these K antenna ports to transmit a third signal on the reference signal resource. Since the K antenna ports are determined by the UE through measurement, they are antenna ports in directions where a sensing target may exist. Therefore, the network device can detect the third signal from these K antenna ports and perform sensing based on the third signal. Through the solution provided in this application embodiment, even if the UE cannot implement beamforming, since the UE can pre-determine which antenna ports may have transmission paths, it can concentrate the transmission power on these antenna ports to transmit the third signal, which helps improve the transmission quality of the third signal and also improves the success rate of the network device in receiving the third signal, thereby improving the sensing accuracy. Furthermore, in this application embodiment, the UE does not need to indicate the determined antenna ports to the network device, and the network device does not need to configure antenna ports for the UE, thus saving transmission overhead and improving the implementation flexibility of the UE.

[0209] Figure 11 shows a schematic diagram of a device provided in an embodiment of this application. The device 1100 can be a UE or its circuit system as shown in the embodiments of Figures 5, 9, and 10, used to implement the method corresponding to the UE in the above method embodiments. Alternatively, the device 1100 can be a network device or its circuit system as shown in any of the figures 5, 9, and 10, used to implement the method corresponding to the network device in the above method embodiments. For example, one type of circuit system is a chip system.

[0210] Since the device 1100 in the embodiments of this application can implement the sensing method, the device 1100 can also be called a sensing device. In implementation, the device 1100 may have sensing function but no communication function, or it may have both sensing function and communication function. If the device 1100 has communication function, it may also be called a communication device, etc., without limitation.

[0211] The device 1100 includes at least one processor 1101. The processor 1101 can be used for internal processing within the device to implement certain control processing functions. Optionally, the processor 1101 includes instructions. Optionally, the processor 1101 can store data. Optionally, different processors can be independent devices, located in different physical locations, or located on different integrated circuits. Optionally, different processors can be integrated into one or more processors, for example, integrated on one or more integrated circuits.

[0212] Optionally, the device 1100 includes one or more memories 1103 for storing instructions. Optionally, the memories 1103 may also store data. The processor and the memories may be separate or integrated together.

[0213] Optionally, the device 1100 includes a communication line 1102 and at least one communication interface 1104. Since the memory 1103, communication line 1102, and communication interface 1104 are all optional, they are all represented by dashed lines in FIG11.

[0214] Optionally, device 1100 may further include a transceiver and / or an antenna. The transceiver can be used to send information to or receive information from other devices. The transceiver may be referred to as a transceiver unit, transceiver circuit, input / output interface, etc., and is used to realize the transmission and reception functions of device 1100 via the antenna. Optionally, the transceiver includes a transmitter and a receiver. For example, the transmitter can be used to generate a radio frequency (RF) signal from a baseband signal, and the receiver can be used to convert the RF signal back into a baseband signal.

[0215] Processor 1101 may include a general-purpose central processing unit (CPU), a microprocessor, an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), or one or more integrated circuits for controlling the execution of programs according to the present application.

[0216] Communication line 1102 may include a path for transmitting information between the aforementioned components.

[0217] Communication interface 1104 uses any transceiver-like device for communicating with other devices or communication networks, such as Ethernet, radio access network (RAN), wireless local area network (WLAN), wired access network, etc.

[0218] The memory 1103 may be a read-only memory (ROM) or other type of static storage device capable of storing static information and instructions, random access memory (RAM) or other type of dynamic storage device capable of storing information and instructions, or electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), compact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM) or other optical disc storage, optical disc storage (including compressed optical discs, laser discs, optical discs, digital universal optical discs, Blu-ray discs, etc.), magnetic disk storage media or other magnetic storage devices, or any other medium capable of carrying or storing desired program code in the form of instructions or data structures and accessible by a computer, but not limited thereto. The memory 1103 may exist independently and be connected to the processor 1101 via communication line 1102. Alternatively, the memory 1103 may be integrated with the processor 1101.

[0219] The memory 1103 stores computer execution instructions for implementing the present application scheme, and its execution is controlled by the processor 1101. The processor 1101 executes the computer execution instructions stored in the memory 1103, thereby implementing the steps performed by the network device or UE in any of the embodiments shown in Figures 5, 9, and 10.

[0220] Optionally, the computer execution instructions in the embodiments of this application may also be referred to as application code, and the embodiments of this application do not specifically limit this.

[0221] In a specific implementation, as one embodiment, processor 1101 may include one or more CPUs, such as CPU0 and CPU1 in FIG11.

[0222] In a specific implementation, as one embodiment, device 1100 may include multiple processors, such as processor 1101 and processor 1105 in FIG. 11. Each of these processors may be a single-core (single-CPU) processor or a multi-core (multi-CPU) processor. Here, a processor may refer to one or more devices, circuits, and / or processing cores for processing data (e.g., computer program instructions).

[0223] When the device shown in Figure 11 is a chip, such as a UE chip or a network device chip, the chip includes a processor 1101 (and may also include a processor 1105), a communication line 1102, and a communication interface 1104. Optionally, it may include a memory 1103. Specifically, the communication interface 1104 may be an input interface, pins, or circuits, etc. The memory 1103 may be a register, cache, etc. The processor 1101 and processor 1105 may be a general-purpose CPU, microprocessor, ASIC, or one or more integrated circuits for controlling the execution of a program for controlling the sensing method of any of the above embodiments.

[0224] This application embodiment can divide the device into functional modules according to the above method examples. For example, each function can be divided into a separate functional module, or two or more functions can be integrated into one processing module. The integrated module can be implemented in hardware or software. The module division in this application embodiment is illustrative and only represents one logical functional division; other division methods may exist in actual implementation. For example, when dividing the functional modules according to each function, Figure 12 is a schematic diagram of a device. This device 1200 can be the UE or network device involved in the above method embodiments, or a chip in the UE or a chip in the network device. The device 1200 includes a processing unit 1202 and a transceiver unit 1201. Since the device 1200 in this application embodiment can implement the sensing method, the device 1200 can also be called a sensing device. In implementation, the device 1200 may have sensing functions but no communication functions, or it may have both sensing and communication functions. If the device 1200 has communication functions, it can also be called a communication device, etc., without limitation.

[0225] It should be understood that the device 1200 can be used to implement the steps performed by the UE or network device in the sensing method of the embodiments of this application. The relevant features can be referred to the embodiments shown in any of the above figures 5, 9 and 10, which will not be repeated here.

[0226] Optionally, the functions / implementation processes of the transceiver unit 1201 and processing unit 1202 in Figure 12 can be implemented by the processor 1101 in Figure 11 calling computer execution instructions stored in memory 1103. Alternatively, the functions / implementation processes of the processing unit 1202 in Figure 12 can be implemented by the processor 1101 in Figure 11 calling computer execution instructions stored in memory 1103, and the functions / implementation processes of the transceiver unit 1201 in Figure 12 can be implemented by the communication interface 1104 in Figure 11.

[0227] Optionally, when the device 1200 is a chip or circuit, the function / implementation process of the transceiver unit 1201 can also be implemented through pins or circuits. Optionally, the transceiver unit 1201 may include a transmitting unit and / or a receiving unit, wherein the transmitting unit is used to implement the transmitting function and the receiving unit is used to implement the receiving function; or, the transceiver unit 1201 may be an integral module capable of implementing the transmitting and / or receiving functions. Optionally, the transceiver unit 1201 may be implemented using a transceiver.

[0228] This application also provides a computer-readable storage medium storing a computer program or instructions that, when executed, implement the methods performed by the UE or network device in the aforementioned method embodiments. Thus, the functions described in the above embodiments can be implemented as software functional units and sold or used as independent products. Based on this understanding, the technical solution of this application, in essence, or the part that contributes to it, or a part of the technical solution, can be embodied in the form of a software product. This computer software product is stored in a storage medium and includes several instructions to cause a computer device (which may be a personal computer, a server, or a network device, etc.) to execute all or part of the steps of the methods described in the various embodiments of this application. The storage medium includes various media capable of storing program code, such as USB flash drives, portable hard drives, ROM, RAM, magnetic disks, or optical disks.

[0229] This application also provides a computer program product comprising: computer program code, which, when run on a computer, causes the computer to perform the method executed by the UE or network device in any of the foregoing method embodiments.

[0230] This application also provides a processing apparatus, including a processor and an interface; the processor is used to execute the methods performed by the UE or network device involved in any of the above method embodiments.

[0231] In the above embodiments, implementation can be achieved entirely or partially through software, hardware, firmware, or any combination thereof. When implemented using software, it can be implemented entirely or partially in the form of a computer program product. The computer program product includes one or more computer instructions. When the computer program instructions are loaded and executed on a computer, all or part of the processes or functions described in the embodiments of this application are generated. The computer can be a general-purpose computer, a special-purpose computer, a computer network, or other programmable device. The computer instructions can be stored in a computer-readable storage medium or transmitted from one computer-readable storage medium to another. For example, the computer instructions can be transmitted from one website, computer, server, or data center to another website, computer, server, or data center via wired (e.g., coaxial cable, fiber optic, digital subscriber line (DSL)) or wireless (e.g., infrared, wireless, microwave, etc.) means. The computer-readable storage medium can be any available medium that a computer can access or a data storage device such as a server or data center that integrates one or more available media. The available medium can be a magnetic medium (e.g., floppy disk, hard disk, magnetic tape), an optical medium (e.g., DVD), or a semiconductor medium (e.g., solid-state disk (SSD)).

[0232] The various illustrative logic units and circuits described in the embodiments of this application can be implemented or operate the described functions using a general-purpose processor, digital signal processor (DSP), ASIC, field-programmable gate array (FPGA), or other programmable logic device, discrete gate or transistor logic, discrete hardware components, or any combination thereof. The general-purpose processor can be a microprocessor; alternatively, it can be any conventional processor, controller, microcontroller, or state machine. The processor can also be implemented using a combination of computing devices, such as a digital signal processor and a microprocessor, multiple microprocessors, one or more microprocessors combined with a digital signal processor core, or any other similar configuration.

[0233] The steps of the methods or algorithms described in the embodiments of this application can be directly embedded in hardware, software units executed by a processor, or a combination of both. The software units can be stored in RAM, flash memory, ROM, erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM), EEPROM, registers, hard disks, removable disks, CD-ROMs, or any other form of storage medium in the art. Exemplarily, the storage medium can be connected to the processor so that the processor can read information from the storage medium and write information to the storage medium. Optionally, the storage medium can also be integrated into the processor. The processor and storage medium can be disposed in an ASIC, which can be disposed in the terminal device. Optionally, the processor and storage medium can also be disposed in different components of the terminal device.

[0234] These computer program instructions may also be loaded onto a computer or other programmable data processing apparatus to cause a series of operational steps to be performed on the computer or other programmable apparatus to produce a computer-implemented process, such that the instructions, which execute on the computer or other programmable apparatus, provide steps for implementing the functions specified in one or more flowcharts and / or one or more block diagrams.

[0235] The contents of the various embodiments of this application can be referenced to each other. Unless otherwise specified or there is a logical conflict, the terms and / or descriptions between different embodiments are consistent and can be referenced to each other. The technical features in different embodiments can be combined to form new embodiments according to their inherent logical relationship.

[0236] It is understood that in the embodiments of this application, the UE and / or network device may perform some or all of the steps in the embodiments of this application. These steps or operations are merely examples. In the embodiments of this application, other operations or variations of various operations may also be performed. Furthermore, the steps may be performed in different orders as presented in the embodiments of this application, and it is not necessary to perform all the operations in the embodiments of this application.

Claims

1. A sensing method, characterized in that, The method includes: Receive the first reference signal; Send first information, the first information being used to indicate a first antenna port, the first antenna port being the antenna port that receives the first reference signal on the first transmission path.

2. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that, The received power of the first reference signal received through the first antenna port on the first transmission path is greater than the first threshold.

3. The method according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that, The first transmission path is the line-of-sight (LoS) path, or the transmission path of the first reference signal through reflection, scattering, or diffraction by the sensing target.

4. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that, The first information is also used to indicate the second antenna port and / or the third antenna port, wherein the second antenna port is the antenna port that receives the first reference signal on the first transmission path, and the third antenna port is the antenna port that receives the first reference signal on the second transmission path.

5. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that, The first transmission path corresponds to one or more antenna ports, and the first antenna port is the one or more antenna ports that receives the first reference signal with the highest power on the first transmission path.

6. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that, The first information is also used to indicate the power delay spectrum of the first reference signal received by the first antenna port.

7. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that, The method further includes: Receive second information, the second information being used to configure reference signal resources and to indicate a fourth antenna port corresponding to the reference signal resources, the fourth antenna port being one or more of the first antenna port, the second antenna port, or the third antenna port.

8. The method according to claim 7, characterized in that, The method further includes: A first signal is transmitted on the reference signal resource through the fourth antenna port, the first signal being used for sensing.

9. A sensing method, characterized in that, The method includes: Send the first reference signal; Receive first information, the first information being used to indicate a first antenna port, the first antenna port being the antenna port that receives the first reference signal on the first transmission path.

10. The method according to claim 9, characterized in that, The received power of the first reference signal received through the first antenna port on the first transmission path is greater than the first threshold.

11. The method according to claim 9 or 10, characterized in that, The first transmission path is a Loss path, or a transmission path of the first reference signal reflected, scattered, or diffracted by the sensing target.

12. The method according to any one of claims 9 to 11, characterized in that, The first information is also used to indicate the second antenna port and / or the third antenna port, wherein the second antenna port is the antenna port that receives the first reference signal on the first transmission path, and the third antenna port is the antenna port that receives the first reference signal on the second transmission path.

13. The method according to any one of claims 9 to 12, characterized in that, The first transmission path corresponds to one or more antenna ports, and the first antenna port is the one or more antenna ports that receives the first reference signal with the highest power on the first transmission path.

14. The method according to any one of claims 9 to 13, characterized in that, The method further includes: Send a second message, which is used to configure a reference signal resource and to indicate a fourth antenna port corresponding to the reference signal resource, wherein the fourth antenna port is one or more of the first antenna port, the second antenna port, or the third antenna port.

15. The method according to claim 14, characterized in that, The method further includes: A first signal is received on the reference signal resource, the first signal being used for sensing.

16. The method according to any one of claims 9 to 15, characterized in that, The first information is also used to indicate the power delay spectrum of the first reference signal received by the first antenna port.

17. The method according to claim 16, characterized in that, The method further includes: The power delay spectrum and the information of the first antenna port are input into the artificial intelligence (AI) model. The antenna port information output by the AI ​​model is obtained.

18. A sensing method, characterized in that, The method includes: Receive the second reference signal; Send third information, which is used to configure reference signal resources and to indicate a fifth antenna port corresponding to the reference signal resources. The fifth antenna port is an antenna port that receives the second reference signal on a third transmission path. The received power of the second reference signal received through the fifth antenna port on the third transmission path is greater than a first threshold.

19. The method according to claim 18, characterized in that, The third transmission path is the LoS path, or the transmission path of the third reference signal via reflection, scattering, or diffraction from the sensing target.

20. The method according to claim 18 or 19, characterized in that, The third transmission path corresponds to one or more antenna ports, and the fifth antenna port is the antenna port with the highest received power of the second reference signal on the third transmission path among the one or more antenna ports.

21. The method according to any one of claims 18 to 20, characterized in that, The method further includes: A second signal is received on the reference signal resource, the second signal being used for sensing.

22. A sensing method, characterized in that, The method includes: Receive the third reference signal; Receive fourth information, which is used to configure reference signal resources; A third signal is transmitted on the reference signal resource using a sixth antenna port. The third signal is used for sensing. The sixth antenna port is an antenna port that receives the third reference signal on the fourth transmission path. The received power of the third reference signal received through the sixth antenna port on the fourth transmission path is greater than a first threshold.

23. The method according to claim 22, characterized in that, The fourth transmission path is the Loss-of-Sight (LoS) path, or the transmission path of the fifth reference signal via reflection, scattering, or diffraction from the sensing target.

24. The method according to claim 22 or 23, characterized in that, The fourth transmission path corresponds to one or more antenna ports, and the sixth antenna port is the antenna port with the highest received power of the third reference signal on the third transmission path among the one or more antenna ports.

25. An apparatus, characterized in that, The apparatus includes a module for performing the method as described in any one of claims 1 to 8, or a module for performing the method as described in any one of claims 9 to 17, or a module for performing the method as described in any one of claims 18 to 21, or a module for performing the method as described in any one of claims 22 to 24.

26. An apparatus, characterized in that, The apparatus includes a processor configured to perform the method as described in any one of claims 1 to 8, or the method as described in any one of claims 9 to 17, or the method as described in any one of claims 18 to 21, or the method as described in any one of claims 22 to 24.

27. A computer-readable storage medium, characterized in that, The computer-readable storage medium is used to store a computer program that, when run on a computer, causes the method as described in any one of claims 1 to 8 to be performed, or causes the method as described in any one of claims 9 to 17 to be performed, or causes the method as described in any one of claims 18 to 21 to be performed, or causes the method as described in any one of claims 22 to 24 to be performed.

28. A computer program product, characterized in that, The computer program product includes a computer program that, when run on a computer, causes the computer to perform the method as described in any one of claims 1 to 8, or causes the computer to perform the method as described in any one of claims 9 to 17, or causes the computer to perform the method as described in any one of claims 18 to 21, or causes the computer to perform the method as described in any one of claims 22 to 24.

29. A sensing system, characterized in that, The sensing system includes network devices and terminals, wherein... The terminal is used to perform the method as described in any one of claims 1 to 8; The network device is used to perform the method as described in any one of claims 9 to 17.

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