Method and apparatus for configuring cross link sensing and communications in a mobile network

Abstract

A radio access network resource scheduling entity for configuring multiple transmission-reception points in a mobile network to support passive object sensing and communications, wherein at least one of the points is configured to concurrently serve data communication with a respective user equipment the entity being configured to: receive information of full duplex capabilities of each of the points; and determine a direction of data communication for one or more of the at least one points and their respective user equipment in dependence on the received information. This may enable cross link sensing and communications to be effectively performed at the same time.

Description

[0001] METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR CONFIGURING CROSS LINK SENSING AND COMMUNICATIONS IN A

[0002] MOBILE NETWORK

[0003] TECHNICAL FIELD

[0004] Embodiments of the present disclosure generally relate to the field of mobile networks, in particular to simultaneous sensing and communications in a mobile network.

[0005] BACKGROUND

[0006] For passive object sensing, received reflections from an object which have been illuminated by a transmitting source are used for determining various characteristics of the object, such as size, shape, position and movement.

[0007] To perform such sensing in a mobile communication system, sensing can be performed in the following exemplary ways:

[0008] 1) Downlink (DL) sensing, where the transmitter is a transmission-reception point (TRP), such as a base station, and the receiver(s) is / are user equipments) (UE(s));

[0009] 2) Uplink (UL) sensing, where the transmitter is a UE and the receivers) is / are TRPl's ):

[0010] 3) Sidelink (SL) sensing, where the transmitter is a UE and the receiver(s) is / are another UE(s); or

[0011] 4) Cross link (CL) sensing, where the transmitter is a TRP and the receivers) is / are other TRP(s).

[0012] In all of the above sensing approaches, each sensing node can be a TRP, such as a next generation node (gNodeB, gNB) or a remote radio head (RRH).

[0013] An example of a typical arrangement for CL sensing is shown in Figure 1. In this example, in a mobile network 100 there is one transmitting sensing TRP 101 and two receiving sensing TRPs 102 and 103. In this example, the transmitting TRP 101 is configured to transmit a sensing signal 104 and is also configured to receive sensing signals reflected by object 105. The sensing signal 104 transmitted by TRP 101 is reflected by object 105 and reflected sensing signals 106, 107, 108 are received by TRPs 101, 102, 103 respectively.

[0014] CL sensing has certain advantages compared to the other methods of sensing. Compared to UL sensing, the transmission power and transmitting antenna spatial resolution at the TRP is much higher than that available at transmitting UEs. In contrast to UL, DL or SL sensing, both the transmitting and receiving nodes at the TRPs for CL sensing are both at a fixed location with known positions and angular orientation. For CL sensing, all the receiving TRPs are directly connected to the radio access network (RAN) and core network (CN). It is therefore easy to perform multi-node and multi-view fusion with subsequent network processing with extensive processing capabilities.

[0015] Although this form of sensing has key advantages as described above, there are also certain practical challenges for CL sensing. For example, sensing should preferably be performed with minimum impact to the communication link. Since the cooperating nodes for CL sensing operate in different directions (DL and UL), one of the challenges is how CL sensing can be performed without: a) causing cross-link interference (i.e. a transmitting UE (UL) from a cell 1 causing interference to a receiving UE (DL) in an adjacent cell 2), or b) deciding to avoid the cross-link interference by choosing not to serve UEs in one of the cells and consequently causing a large reduction in communications throughput. This is very undesirable. If some TRP nodes have full duplex capability, the challenge is how to organize sensing and communication to result in minimum impact to the communication link. One problem in such mobile networks, as described above, is that with CL sensing, at least one TRP needs to be transmitting (i.e. TRP 1) while at least one surrounding TRP needs to be receiving, as shown in Figure 2, which illustrates a basic problem of UE-to-UE interference caused by co-scheduling CL sensing with communications.

[0016] Generally, TRPs will transmit reference signals, such as downlink position reference symbols (DL PRS) for position sensing in downlink slots. Depending upon the bandwidth assigned for this PRS, the TRP could also be assigned to transmit normal data to other UEs in the serving cells in other PRBs and DL beam directions (for concurrent transmission of sensing and communications).

[0017] However, since one or more surrounding TRPs need to be configured for receiving, it will also be serving uplink (UL) data from uplink UE in their respective cells. Such a situation is very problematic, since the UEs transmitting UL data interfere with the UEs in the adjacent cells which are receiving DL data.

[0018] In the mobile network 200 of Figure 2, the TRP 201 is configured to transmit a DL PRS 202 and also transmit DL data signals 203 and 204 to UEs 205 and 206 respectively. The object 207 causes reflection of the transmitted PRS 202 into signals 208 and 209 which are received at TRPs 210 and 211 respectively.

[0019] TRPs 210 and 211 are also configured for communication with UEs 212 and 213 respectively, which send uplink data signals 214 and 215 to TRPs 210 and 211 respectively .

[0020] The UEs 212, 213 transmitted UL data signals 214, 215 can interfere with the UEs 205, 206 in the adjacent cells which are receiving DL data 203, 204. This is shown as UE-to-UE interference 216, 217 in Figure 2.

[0021] It is desirable to develop an approach for sensing and communications in a mobile network that may overcome at least some of the above issues.

[0022] SUMMARY

[0023] According to a first aspect, there is provided a radio access network resource scheduling entity for configuring multiple transmission-reception points in a mobile network to support passive object sensing and communications, wherein one or more of the transmission-reception points are configured to transmit sensing signals and one or more of the transmission-reception points are configured to receive sensing signals for passive object sensing, wherein at least one of the transmission-reception points is configured to concurrently serve data communication with a respective user equipment device in a respective coverage area of the respective transmission-reception point, the resource scheduling entity being configured to determine a schedule for transmission of one or more sensing signals and for data communication between the at least one of the transmission-reception points and its respective user equipment device by: receiving information of full duplex capabilities of each of the multiple transmission-reception points; and determining a direction of data communication for one or more of the at least one transmission-reception points and their respective user equipment device in dependence on the received information of full duplex capabilities of the multiple transmission-reception points.

[0024] This may enable both cross link sensing and communications to be effectively performed at the same time, depending upon the capability of each of the participating network nodes.

[0025] The sensing signal may comprise downlink position reference symbols. This may allow the approach to be used to determine the position of the object. The resource scheduling entity may be configured to request information indicating the respective full duplex capabilities of each of the multiple transmission-reception points in response to a requirement to co-schedule communications and sensing by the multiple transmission-reception points. The resource scheduling entity may be configured to request information indicating the respective full duplex capabilities of each of the multiple transmission-reception points in response to receiving sensing requirements and communications requirements from one or more other entities in the mobile network, where the sensing requirements and the communications requirements indicate that communications and sensing are required to be co-scheduled. This may allow the resource scheduling entity to request the capabilities in the event that it is required to co-schedule sensing and communications, which may be more efficient.

[0026] The full duplex capabilities may comprise one or more modes, the one or more modes comprising one or more of full duplex in a same sector, full duplex between different sectors, sub-band full duplex in a same sector, sub-band full duplex between different sectors, and corresponding parameters for each mode. This may allow the scheduling entity to be informed of the precise full duplex capabilities of the communication and sensing nodes in the mobile network and allow the most appropriate nodes to be used.

[0027] The parameters may include one or more of dynamic range, cancellation level, supported frequency band, bandwidth, supported directions, guard bands and the applicable sectors. This may provide relevant information for the selection of the transmissionreception points for sensing.

[0028] The direction of data communication may comprise one or more of:

[0029] (i) downlink slots and uplink slots in all of the multiple transmission-reception points;

[0030] (ii) downlink slots only in the transmission-reception point(s) configured to transmit sensing signals and uplink slots only in the transmission-reception point(s) configured to receive sensing signals;

[0031] (iii) downlink slots in the transmission-reception point(s) configured to transmit sensing signals and in one or more sectors of the transmission-reception point(s) configured to receive sensing signals and uplink slots only in the transmission-reception point(s) configured to receive sensing signals; and

[0032] (iv) uplink slots in the transmission-reception point(s) configured to receive sensing signals and in one or more sectors of the transmission-reception point(s) configured to transmit sensing signals and downlink slots only in the transmission-reception point(s) configured to transmit sensing signals.

[0033] This may allow the directions of communication to be chosen appropriately dependent on the capabilities of the transmission reception points.

[0034] The multiple transmission-reception points may have coverage in a spatial area defined in a sensing request to perform sensing received by the radio access network scheduling entity. This may allow the network to concurrently perform communications and sensing for passive objections in the spatial area.

[0035] The resource scheduling entity may be configured to receive requirements for serving user equipment devices for communications, wherein the requirements for serving user equipment devices for communications comprise one or more of data rate, number of users and required reliability. This may allow the resource scheduling entity to select transmissionreception points for sensing based on the requirements for communication of the possible transmission-reception points.

[0036] The resource scheduling entity may be configured to receive requirements for sensing, wherein the requirements for sensing comprise an indication of a sensing area or zone. This may allow the resource scheduling entity to select transmission-reception points for sensing that are appropriate for the sensing requirements. Based on the received requirements for sensing and / or serving user equipment devices for communications, the resource scheduling entity may be configured to select the multiple transmission-reception points to perform passive object sensing. This may allow appropriate transmission and reception points to be selected based on the requirements.

[0037] The resource scheduling entity may be configured to inform a sensing function of the mobile network of the multiple transmission-reception points which are configured to perform passive object sensing. This may enable the sensing function to more effectively perform computations of sensing results from the received reflected sensed signals, since it has information of the participating transmission-reception points.

[0038] The resource scheduling entity may be configured to set up respective transmission and / or receiving configurations of each of the multiple transmission-reception points. This may allow the selected points to be appropriately configured to allow them to perform sensing and communications.

[0039] The multiple transmission-reception points and / or the coverage areas may not be collocated. This may enable the sensing of objects to be performed from different spatial perspectives or ‘views’. This is especially useful for large objects.

[0040] The multiple transmission-reception points may be base stations, remote radio heads, gNodeBs or access points. This may allow the approach to be used for different types of transmission-reception points in a mobile network.

[0041] One or more of the transmission-reception points configured to transmit sensing signals may be one or more of the one or more transmission-reception points configured to receive sensing signals. That is, one or more of the transmission-reception points may act as both a transmitter and receiver for sensing. This may allow a transmission-reception point to transmit a sensing signal and receive a reflected signal from an object. This may allow for the use of fewer points in the network for sensing and also allow for the easing of addition synchronization methods when the transmitter and receiver for sensing are located at different transmission and reception points.

[0042] According to a second aspect, there is provided a transmission-reception point in a mobile network, the transmission-reception point being configured to serve data communication with a user equipment device in a coverage area and being configured to: receive a request from a radio access network resource scheduling entity of the mobile network for full duplex capabilities of the transmission-reception point; and in response to the request, send the full duplex capabilities of the transmission-reception point to the resource scheduling entity. This may allow the transmission-reception point to provide its capabilities to a resource scheduling entity and allow appropriate transmission-reception points to be configured for communications and / or sensing.

[0043] The transmission-reception point may be configured to perform passive object sensing and send results of the passive object sensing to a sensing function of the mobile network. This may allow the sensing function to process the results of the sensing to determine a property of the object.

[0044] According to a third aspect, there is provided a sensing function for a mobile network, the sensing function being configured to: send sensing requirements to a radio access network resource scheduling entity of the mobile network; receive a notification of multiple transmission-reception points of the mobile network selected to perform passive object sensing, and the one or more transmission-reception points configured to receive sensing signals; receive sensing results from the one or more transmissionreception points configured to receive sensing signals; and process the sensing results to determine a property of the passive object. This may allow the resource scheduling entity to select appropriate transmission-reception points for sensing and communications and for the sensing function to process the results. According to a fourth aspect, there is provided a mobile network comprising the radio access resource scheduling entity having an of the features described herein, multiple transmission-reception points having an of the features described herein and the sensing function having any of the features described herein. This may allow passive object sensing and communications to be concurrently performed in the mobile network.

[0045] According to a fifth aspect, there is provided a method for configuring multiple transmission-reception points in a mobile network to support passive object sensing and communications, wherein one or more of the transmission-reception points are configured to transmit sensing signals and one or more of the transmission-reception points are configured to receive sensing signals for passive object sensing, wherein at least one of the transmission-reception points is configured to concurrently serve data communication with a respective user equipment device in a respective coverage area of the respective transmissionreception point, the method comprising: receiving information of full duplex capabilities of each of the multiple transmissionreception points; and determining a direction of data communication for one or more of the at least one transmission-reception points and their respective user equipment device in dependence on the received information of full duplex capabilities of the multiple transmission-reception points. This method may enable both cross link sensing and communications to be effectively performed at the same time, depending upon the capability of each of the participating network nodes.

[0046] According to a sixth aspect, there is provided a method for implementation at a transmission-reception point in a mobile network, the transmission-reception point being configured to serve data communication with a user equipment device in a coverage area, the method comprising: receiving a request from a radio access network resource scheduling entity of the mobile network for full duplex capabilities of the transmission-reception point; and in response to the request, sending the full duplex capabilities of the transmission-reception point to the resource scheduling entity. This method may allow the transmissionreception point to provide its capabilities to a resource scheduling entity and allow appropriate transmission-reception points to be configured for communications and / or sensing.

[0047] According to a seventh aspect, there is provided a method for passive object sensing in mobile network, the method comprising: sending sensing requirements to a radio access network resource scheduling entity of the mobile network; receiving a notification of multiple transmission-reception points of the mobile network selected to perform passive object sensing, and the one or more transmission-reception points configured to receive sensing signals; receiving sensing results from the one or more transmission-reception points configured to receive sensing signals; and processing the sensing results to determine a property of the passive object. This method may allow the resource scheduling entity to select appropriate transmissionreception points for sensing and communications and for the results of the sensing to be processed.

[0048] According to a further aspect, there is provided one or more computer programs for instructing a computer comprising one or more processors to implement the methods above.

[0049] According to a further aspect there is provided a data carrier storing in non-transitory form the one or more computer programs above.

[0050] The above aspects may allow the mobile network to perform integrated sensing and communications.

[0051] The transmission-reception points may be at fixed locations with known positions and / or angular orientations. The transmission-reception points may be connected to the radio access network (or part thereof) and / or core network of the mobile network. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

[0052] Embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings:

[0053] Figure 1 schematically illustrates an example of cross link sensing.;

[0054] Figure 2 schematically illustrates a problem of UE-to-UE interference caused by co-scheduling cross link sensing with communications;

[0055] Figure 3a schematically illustrates an example of full duplex in the same sector;

[0056] Figure 3b schematically illustrates an example of sub-band full duplex in the same sector;

[0057] Figure 3c schematically illustrates an example of full duplex between sectors;

[0058] Figure 3d schematically illustrates an example of sub-band full duplex between different sectors;

[0059] Figure 4 schematically illustrates an example where a transmitting TRP for sensing has full duplex capabilities;

[0060] Figure 5 schematically illustrates an example where a transmitting TRP for sensing has sub-band full duplex capabilities;

[0061] Figure 6 schematically illustrates top level flow and signalling for an example of the approach described herein;

[0062] Figure 7 schematically illustrates an example of signalling to support sensing and communications where only a transmitting sensing TRP has full duplex or sub-band duplex capability;

[0063] Figure 8 schematically illustrates an example of signalling to support sensing and communications where only receiving sensing TRPs have full duplex or sub-band duplex capability;

[0064] Figure 9 schematically illustrates an example of signalling to support sensing and communications for uplink UEs in all cells where neither the transmitting sensing TRPs or the receiving sensing TRPs have full duplex or sub-band duplex capability;

[0065] Figure 10 schematically illustrates an example of signalling to support sensing and communications for the case that the transmitting sensing TRP has full duplex or sub-band duplex capability between sectors;

[0066] Figure 11 schematically illustrates an example of signal directions for each sector of a transmitting sensing TRP which has full duplex or sub-band full duplex capability between sectors;

[0067] Figure 12 schematically illustrates an exemplary method for configuring multiple TRPs in a mobile network to support passive object sensing;

[0068] Figure 13 schematically illustrates an exemplary method for implementation at a TRP in a mobile network;

[0069] Figure 14 schematically illustrates the steps of an exemplary method for passive object sensing in a mobile network.

[0070] DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0071] The present disclosure concerns how to facilitate or schedule cross link sensing and communications at the same time, with TRPs of different capability.

[0072] The described examples may be implemented in, for example, a 5G network or different communication networks that are currently available or developed in the future. The mobile network may comprise a plurality of network entities (NEs). The NEs may be network function (NFs), which may be software-based. The NEs may alternatively be network apparatus (hardware-based) .

[0073] A mobile network comprises a Radio Access Network (RAN) and a Core Network (CN). The RAN handles the wireless aspects, while the CN handles the management and control aspects. Both the RAN and CN have a User Plane (UP) to transmit traffic. A Control Plane (CP) can carry signalling traffic.

[0074] The mobile network comprises multiple transmission-reception points. In the implementations described herein, the TPS are gNodeBs (gNBs). However, the TPRs may alternatively be other suitable entities, such as other base stations or access points. A gNB is a RAN node providing new radio (NR) user plane and control plane protocol terminations towards the UE. In the 5G system, a gNB is connected via the NG interface to the 5GC. The gNB may in some implementations operate as defined in 3GPP TS 38.300. Other implementations are possible, for example according to future specifications.

[0075] The full duplex capability of a TRP may be full duplex capable in same sector, sub-band full duplex in same sector, full duplex capable between different sectors, sub-band full duplex between different sectors, or no full duplex capability at all.

[0076] As used herein, full duplex (FD) means that the TRP can transmit and receive at the same time and on the same frequency band. Sub-band full duplex (SBFD) means that the TRP can transmit and receive at the same time on different frequency subbands.

[0077] The full duplex capability of a TRPs may comprise one or more modes, the one or more modes comprising one or more of full duplex in a same sector, full duplex between different sectors, sub-band full duplex in a same sector, sub-band full duplex between different sectors, and corresponding parameters for each mode. The parameters may include one or more of dynamic range, cancellation level, supported frequency band, bandwidth, supported directions, guard bands and the applicable sectors.

[0078] Examples of different TRP full duplex capabilities are schematically illustrated in Figures 3a-3d. An array panel for a sector 1 is shown at 301 and an array panel for a sector 2 is shown at 302. Figure 3a illustrates full duplex in the same sector, where the signal shown at 303 is a transmitted communication signal in a frequency sub-band 1 and the signal shown at 304 is a received communication signal in the frequency sub-band 1. Figure 3b illustrates sub-band full duplex in the same sector, where the signal shown at 305 is a received communication signal in the frequency sub-band 2. Figure 3c illustrates full duplex between sectors, where the signal shown at 306 is a received communication signal in the frequency sub-band 1 . Figure 3d illustrates sub-band full duplex between different sectors, where the signal shown at 307 is a received communication signal in the frequency sub-band 2. These examples use 60 degrees sectors, but any other angular separation can be used (such as 120 degree sectors).

[0079] If the transmitting TRP is full duplex or sub-band full duplex capable, it may transmit DL-PRS in an uplink slot. In this way, all TRPs can use uplink slots for the served UEs and there is no cross-link interference. As a result, communications and sensing can be used at the same time.

[0080] Depending upon whether the TRP is full duplex capable (as shown in Figure 4) or sub-band full duplex capable (as shown in Figure 5), determines whether the transmitting sensing TRP can also receive the reflections from the passive object or not.

[0081] In the mobile network 400 of Figure 4, TRP 401 has full duplex capabilities. Transmitting sensing TRP 401 is configured to transmit a sensing signal 402 and also receive a sensing signal 403 reflected by object 404. TRP 401 is also configured to receive UL data 405 and 406 from UEs 407 and 408 respectively. Signals 409 and 410 are other sensing signals reflected by the object 404 when the transmitted signal 402 interacts with the object 404 and are received by TRPs 411 and 412 respectively. Receiving sensing TRPs 411 and 412 are also configured for communication with respective UEs 415 and 416 and can receive UL signals 413 and 414 respectively. In this example, TRPs 411 and 412 are not full duplex.

[0082] In the mobile network 500 of Figure 5, TRP 501 has sub-band full duplex capabilities. TRP 501 is configured to transmit a sensing signal 502 that is reflected by object 503. TRP 501 is also configured to receive UL data 504 and 505 from UEs 506 and 507 respectively. Signals 508 and 509 are other sensing signals reflected by the object 503 when the transmitted signal 502 interacts with the object 503 and are received by TRPs 510 and 511 respectively. TRPs 510 and 511 are also configured for communication with respective UEs 512 and 513 and can receive UL signals 514 and 515 respectively. In this example, TRPs 510 and 511 are not sub-band full duplex.

[0083] The exemplary top level signalling and the interaction between different network entities (in the RAN and system architecture) are shown in the communication flow of Figure 6. Entity 601 is a RAN resource scheduling entity in the mobile network 600, which will also be referred to herein as a RAN resource scheduler (RSS). Entity 602 is a sensing function (SF) in the mobile network 600.

[0084] Different exemplary steps are described below.

[0085] Step 1 :

[0086] Requirements for serving UEs for communications and for sensing are received by the RRS 601, as shown at 603 and 604 respectively.

[0087] In this example, the sensing requirements 604 come from the SF 602. The sensing requirements may alternatively come from an entity with a similar function, such as a sensing management function (SMF) or other entity. The sensing requirements 604 may include the area (or zone) where the sensing is to be performed, in addition to one or more parameters such as the latency and accuracy. The communications requirements 603 may include one or more parameters such as data rate, number of users and required reliability.

[0088] Step 2:

[0089] As indicated at 605, based on the requirements for serving UEs for communications and for performing sensing, the RRS 601 can select a set of possible TRPs to support sensing in the required area (which may be indicated in the sensing request) and determine if cross link sensing and communicated are needed at the same time (co-scheduled). This may depend on the exact requirements (for example, latency for communications and sensing) and the area of sensing needed.

[0090] If cross link sensing is needed, the RRS can request the FD capabilities of the TRPs which have coverage in the required sensing area (which may be indicated in the sensing request).

[0091] Step 3:

[0092] In Figure 6, the RSS 601 requests and receives the FD capabilities of a plurality of TRPs in the mobile network, TRP 1, ... , TRP N. The plurality of TRPs 1 -N may be TRPs in the mobile network which have transmitting and / or receiving coverage in the sensing area. The request sent to TRP 1 is shown at 606 and to TRP N at 607. The information of FD capabilities received from TRP 1 is shown at 608 and from TRP N at 609.

[0093] For the capability reporting of the TRPs, the full duplex capabilities of TRPs may contain the following parameters as part of the capability report: a) No FD or SBFD capability b) FD capable, with one or more of the following parameters: i) dynamic range or cancellation level of the full duplex transceiver ii) supported frequency band(s) for full duplex iii) Supported bandwidth(s) for the supported frequency bands in i). c) SBFD capable in the same sector, with one or more of the following parameters: i) dynamic range or cancellation level of the SBFD transceiver ii) supported frequency bands for SBFD transmission and reception iii) supported bandwidth(s) for supported frequency bands in ii) iv) Guard bands for SBFD d) FD or SBFD capable between different sectors, with one or more of the following parameters: i) Applicable sectors ii) mode (FD or SBFD) iii) dynamic range or cancellation level of the SBFD / FD transceiver iv) supported bandwidth(s) for supported frequency bands in iii) v) Guard bands for SBFD (if SBFD mode is used)

[0094] Step 4

[0095] Based on the received capability information (from step 3) received from the set of possible TRPs, the RRS 601 can select TRPs in the required area which are the best suited for communications and sensing and it will set their respective transmission and receiving configurations accordingly. The selected multiple transmission-reception points may have coverage in a spatial area defined in the sensing request 604 received by the RRS 601.

[0096] At 610, the RSS 601 selects the M TRPs to be used for sensing (where M < N) and sets their respective configurations for communications and sensing. The sensing and communications configurations are sent to TRP 1 at 611 and 612 respectively and to TRP M at 613 and 614 respectively.

[0097] Table 1 below shows exemplary configurations to support communications (DL or uplink UL) and CL sensing at the same time and in the same TRPs (or cells) for different capabilities of TRPs which are used as transmitters and receiver for sensing, based on their FD capability (FD, SBFD or none).

[0098] Each row shows the possible configurations for different combinations of transmitting (Tx) and receiving (Rx) TRP (node) capabilities. Additionally, more details for some rows (capability combinations) are further described later. The third column shows the communications modes that can be supported at the same time as CL sensing.

[0099] Table 1: Possible communication modes that can be supported on all cooperating TRPs (nodes).

[0100]

[0101] Table 2 shows further communication configurations that would be possible to ‘partially ’ support communication and sensing at the same time for a further set of capability combinations. More details for some rows (capability combinations) are also provided later in the description.

[0102] Table 2: Examples of communication modes for each TRP serving cell, where UEs can be partially served.

[0103] In dependence on the full duplex capabilities of the TRPs, the direction of data communication may therefore comprise one or more of:

[0104] (i) downlink slots and uplink slots in all of the multiple transmission-reception points; (ii) downlink slots only in the transmission-reception point(s) configured to transmit sensing signals and uplink slots only in the transmission-reception point(s) configured to receive sensing signals;

[0105] (iii) downlink slots in the transmission-reception point(s) configured to transmit sensing signals and in one or more sectors of the transmission-reception point(s) configured to receive sensing signals and uplink slots only in the transmission-reception point(s) configured to receive sensing signals; and (iv) uplink slots in the transmission-reception point(s) configured to receive sensing signals and in one or more sectors of the transmission-reception point(s) configured to transmit sensing signals and downlink slots only in the transmission-reception point(s) configured to transmit sensing signals.

[0106] Step 5 After the TRP nodes have been configured for sensing and communications at 610 in step 4, the SF 602 can be informed which TRPs have been configured as sensing transmitters and sensing receivers at 615. The respective TRP nodes can then perform their configured transmission or receptions at 616 and the TRPs which are configured as sensing receivers can pass their results to the SF 602 at 617. The results may be post-processed by the TRPs before sending to the SF.

[0107] Specific examples are described in the following sub-sections. These are described for different combinations of TRP capabilities for the sensing transmitter and receivers, as described in Tables 1 and 2.

[0108] In a first embodiment, the transmitting TRP for sensing has FD or SBFD capability. This corresponds to row 3 and row 7 respectively of Table 1 above.

[0109] Figure 7 shows exemplary signalling for this case. The general steps are the same as in Figure 6 and may include any of the features of that implementation. Figure 7 shows more details with regard to step 5. Tx and Rx refer to the direction of CL sensing by the TRPs (transmitting and receiving respectively).

[0110] For this case, the mobile network 700 comprises an RRS 701 and an SF 702. In this example, the nodes are TRPs, which may be gNBs. The RAN comprises a TRP 703 which is configured to transmit sensing signals and two TRPs 704 and 705 configured to receive sensing signals. The sensing signals received by TRPs 704 and 705 are reflected components of the sensing signal transmitted by TRP 703. Transmitting TRP 703 is FD or SBFD capable. TRPs 704 and 705 have no FD or SBFD capability.

[0111] At 706, the requirements for sensing are sent from the SF 702 to the RRS 701. The RSS 701 may also receive requirements for communications, as discussed above. At 707, the process of selecting possible nodes (TRPs) begins. If CL sensing and communications are to be co-scheduled, the FD capabilities of each of the TRPs is requested, shown at 708, 709 and 710 for TRPs 703, 704 and 705 respectively.

[0112] The FD capabilities of the TRPs 703, 704 and 705 are sent to the RSS 701 at 711, 712 and 713 respectively.

[0113] At 714, the nodes (TRPs) are selected and the configurations for sensing and communications are set. At 715, the RSS 701 informs the SF 702 which nodes (TRPs) have been selected.

[0114] The RSS 701 configures the TRPs 703, 704 and 705 for sensing and communications at 716, 717 and 718 respectively.

[0115] Concurrent sensing and communications can then be performed. At 719, the transmitting TRP 703 sends a sensing signal 719 which is reflected by object 720. TRPs 704 and 705 receive reflected signals 721 and 722 respectively. The sensing results are passed to SF 702 at 723.

[0116] UEs 724, 726 and 728 are in communication with TRPs 703, 704 and 705 respectively. The each send uplink communication signals 725, 727 and 729 to their respective TRPs 703, 704 and 705.

[0117] The transmitting sensing TRP 703 transmits the sensing signal 719 (for example, a DL PRS) to the passive object to be sensed 720 and at the same time it receives signal 725 from uplink UE 724. If the transmitting TRP 703 is only sub-band full duplex capable, its transmission to the passive object 720 and the simultaneous reception of the uplink communication signal 725 from UE 724 are frequency multiplexed (on different frequency resources.) In this example, all TRPs can serve their uplink UEs. The receiving sensing nodes 704 and 705 for this case are receiving reflections from the passive object 720 and send their received sensing signals 721 and 722 respectively to the SF 702, as shown at 723.

[0118] In a second embodiment, the receiving TRP for sensing has FD or SBFD capabilities. This corresponds to row 4 and row 8 respectively of Table 1 above.

[0119] Figure 8 shows the detailed signalling for this case, the general steps are the same as in Figure 6. Figure 8 shows more details with regards to step 5.

[0120] For this case, the mobile network 800 comprises an RRS 801 and an SF 802. In this example, the nodes are TRPs, which may be gNBs. The RAN comprises a TRP 803 which is configured to transmit sensing signals and two TRPs 804 and 805 configured to receive sensing signals. The sensing signals received by TRPs 804 and 805 are reflected components of the sensing signal transmitted by TRP 803. Transmitting TRP 803 is not FD or SBFD capable. TRPs 804 and 805 have FD or SBFD capability.

[0121] At 806, the requirements for sensing are sent from the SF 802 to the RRS 801. The RSS 801 may also receive requirements for communications, as discussed above. At 807, the process of selecting possible nodes (TRPs) begins. If CL sensing and communications are to be co-scheduled, the FD capabilities of each of the TRPs is requested, shown at 808, 809 and 810 for TRPs 803, 804 and 805 respectively. The FD capabilities of the TRPs 803, 804 and 805 are sent to the RSS 801 at 811, 812 and 813 respectively.

[0122] At 814, the nodes (TRPs) are selected and the configurations for sensing and communications are set. At 815, the RSS 801 informs the SF 802 which nodes (TRPs) have been selected.

[0123] The RSS 801 configures the TRPs 803, 804 and 805 for sensing and communications at 816, 817 and 818 respectively.

[0124] Concurrent sensing and communications can then be performed. At 819, the transmitting TRP 803 sends a sensing signal 819 which is reflected by object 820. TRPs 804 and 805 receive reflected signals 821 and 822 respectively. The sensing results are passed to SF 802 at 823.

[0125] UEs 824, 826 and 828 are in communication with TRPs 803, 804 and 805 respectively. TRPs 803, 804 and 805 send downlink communication signals 825, 827 and 829 to their respective UEs 824, 826 and 828.

[0126] In particular for this case, the receiving sensing nodes (TRPs) 804, and 805 will be receiving reflected sensing signals 821 and 822 respectively from the passive object to be sensed 820 and at the same time can transmits communications signals 827 and 829 to downlink UEs 826 and 828 respectively. If a receiving TRP is only sub-band full duplex capable, its receptions from the passive object and the simultaneous transmissions to downlink UEs can be frequency multiplexed (on different frequency resources.) In this example, all TRPs 803, 804, 805 can serve their downlink UEs 824, 826, 828.

[0127] The receiving sensing nodes 804, 805 can send their sensing results to the SF 802. The transmitting sensing node 803 is transmitting sensing signals to the passive object 820 and also at the same time transmitting communications signals 825 to the downlink UE 824.

[0128] In a third embodiment, both the sensing transmitting TRP and the sensing receiving TRPs do not have FD or SBFD capability. This corresponds to rows 1 and 2 of Table 2 above. For this case, it is possible to schedule only uplink communications UEs in the cells corresponding to sensing receiving nodes (TRPs) or downlink UEs in the cells corresponding to transmitting nodes (TRPs).

[0129] Figure 9 shows an example of signalling to support communication (for uplink UEs in all cells) when neither the transmitting sensing TRP(s) or the receiving sensing TRPs have FD or SBFD capability. Figure 9 shows the example that only uplink communications UE are scheduled in the cells corresponding to receiving sensing TRPs. This corresponds specifically to row 1 of Table 2.

[0130] For this case, the mobile network 900 comprises an RRS 901 and an SF 902. In this example, the nodes are TRPs, which may be gNBs. The RAN comprises a TRP 903 which is configured to transmit sensing signals and two TRPs 904 and 905 configured to receive sensing signals. The sensing signals received by TRPs 904 and 905 are reflected components of the sensing signal transmitted by TRP 903. Transmitting TRP 903 and receiving TRPs 904 and 905 are not FD or SBFD capable.

[0131] At 906, the requirements for sensing are sent from the SF 902 to the RRS 901. The RSS 901 may also receive requirements for communications, as discussed above. At 907, the process of selecting possible nodes (TRPs) begins. If CL sensing and communications are to be co-scheduled, the FD capabilities of each of the TRPs is requested, shown at 908, 909 and 910 for TRPs 903, 904 and 905 respectively. The FD capabilities of the TRPs 903, 904 and 905 are sent to the RSS 901 at 911, 912 and 913 respectively.

[0132] At 914, the nodes (TRPs) are selected and the configurations for sensing and communications are set. At 915, the RSS 901 informs the SF 902 which nodes (TRPs) have been selected.

[0133] The RSS 901 configures the TRPs 903, 904 and 905 for sensing and communications at 916, 917 and 918 respectively.

[0134] At 919, the transmitting TRP 903 sends a sensing signal 919 which is reflected by object 920. TRPs 904 and 905 receive reflected signals 921 and 922 respectively. The sensing results are passed to SF 902 at 923.

[0135] UEs 924 cannot communicate with TRP 903. UEs 925 and 927 are in communication with TRPs 904 and 905 respectively. UEs 925 and 927 send uplink communication signals 926 and 928 to their respective TRPs 904 and 905.

[0136] The sensing receiving TRPs 904, 905 each receive signals from respective uplink communication UEs and also receive reflected sensing signals from the passive object. The sensing measurements are passed to the sensing function, as shown at 923.

[0137] For this case, the sensing transmitting TRP 903 only transmits sensing signals to the passive object. It does not serve any UEs in its coverage area.

[0138] In a fourth embodiment, the transmitting TRP for sensing nodes has only FD or SBFD capability between sectors. This corresponds to rows 5 and 6 of Table 2 above.

[0139] For this case, it is possible to schedule sensing with communications in the following two modes: i) uplink communications UEs in the cells corresponding to sensing receiving nodes (TRPs) and uplink UE in selected sectors of the sensing transmitting node (TRPs), corresponding to row 5 of Table 2: or ii) only downlink communication UEs in the cells corresponding to the sensing transmitting node, corresponding to row 6 of Table 2. Figure 10 shows the example for the sub-case i) above (row 5 of Table 2) whereby the sensing transmitting node only transmits sensing signals to the passive objects in different sectors to the sector where the signals from uplink communications UEs are received.

[0140] For this case, the mobile network 1000 comprises an RRS 1001 and an SF 1002. In this example, the nodes are TRPs, which may be gNBs. The RAN comprises a TRP 1003 which is configured to transmit sensing signals and two TRPs 1004 and 1005 configured to receive sensing signals. The sensing signals received by TRPs 1004 and 1005 are reflected components of the sensing signal transmitted by TRP 1003. Transmitting TRP 1003 is FD or SBFD capable between sectors and receiving TRPs 1004 and 1005 are not FD or SBFD capable.

[0141] At 1006, the requirements for sensing are sent from the SF 1002 to the RRS 1001. The RSS 1001 may also receive requirements for communications, as discussed above. At 1007, the process of selecting possible nodes (TRPs) begins. If CL sensing and communications are to be co-scheduled, the FD capabilities of each of the TRPs is requested, shown at 1008, 1009 and 1010 for TRPs 1003, 1004 and 1005 respectively. The FD capabilities of the TRPs 1003, 1004 and 1005 are sent to the RSS 1001 at 1011, 1012 and 1013 respectively.

[0142] At 1014, the nodes (TRPs) are selected and the configurations for sensing and communications are set. At 1015, the RSS 1001 informs the SF 1002 which nodes (TRPs) have been selected.

[0143] The RSS 1001 configures the TRPs 1003, 1004 and 1005 for sensing and communications at 1016, 1017 and 1018 respectively.

[0144] At 1019, the transmitting TRP 1003 sends a sensing signal 1019 which is reflected by object 1020. TRPs 1004 and 1005 receive reflected signals 1021 and 1022 respectively. The sensing results are passed to SF 1002 at 1023.

[0145] UE 1024 can communicate with TRP 903 in selected sectors and sends uplink communication signal 1025. UEs 1026 and 1028 are in communication with TRPs 1004 and 1005 respectively. UEs 1026 and 1028 send uplink communication signals 1027 and 1029 to their respective TRPs 1004 and 1005.

[0146] A further example of how this can be implemented with 120-degree sectors is shown in Figure 11, showing an example of signal directions for each sector 1101, 1102, 1103 of the sensing transmitting TRP 1100 which has FD or SBFD between sectors. The TRP can receive UL communications signals 1153 and 1154 from UEs 1151 and 1152 in sectors 1101 and 1102 respectively and transmit sensing signal 1155 from sector 1103.

[0147] In the approach described herein, the sensing receiving nodes can receive signals from uplink communication UEs and also the reflected sensing signals from the passive object, which are passed to the sensing function.

[0148] The RAN resource scheduler entity may be for multiple TRPs, may be a centralised entity between TRPs, or may be outside of the TPR, such as in the CN or an access management function (AMF) of a mobile network.

[0149] Figure 12 shows exemplary steps of a method 1200 for configuring multiple transmission-reception points in a mobile network to support passive object sensing and communications. As described herein, one or more of the transmission-reception points are configured to transmit sensing signals and one or more of the transmission-reception points are configured to receive sensing signals for passive object sensing, wherein at least one of the transmission-reception points is configured to concurrently serve data communication with a respective user equipment device in a respective coverage area of the respective transmissionreception point. At step 1201, the method comprises receiving information of full duplex capabilities of each of the multiple transmission-reception points. At step 1202, the method comprises determining a direction of data communication for one or more of the at least one transmission-reception points and their respective user equipment device in dependence on the received information of full duplex capabilities of the multiple transmission-reception points.

[0150] Figure 13 shows exemplary steps of a method for implementation at a transmission-reception point in a mobile network. The transmission-reception point is configured to serve data communication with a user equipment device in a coverage area. The method comprises, at step 1301, receiving a request from a radio access network resource scheduling entity of the mobile network for full duplex capabilities of the transmission-reception point. At step 1302, the method comprises, in response to the request, sending the full duplex capabilities of the transmission-reception point to the resource scheduling entity.

[0151] Figure 14 shows exemplary steps of a method for passive object sensing inmobile network. At step 1401 , the method comprises sending sensing requirements to a radio access network resource scheduling entity of the mobile network. At step 1402, the method comprises receiving a notification of multiple transmission-reception points of the mobile network selected to perform passive object sensing, and one or more transmission-reception points configured to receive sensing signals. At step 1403, the method comprises receiving sensing results from the one or more transmission-reception points configured to receive sensing signals. At step 1404, the method comprises processing the sensing results to determine a property of the passive object.

[0152] Integrated sensing and communications (ISAC) is expected to be an important feature for future mobile network systems. The approach described herein can enable both cross link sensing and communications to be effectively performed at the same time, depending upon the capability of each of the participating network nodes.

[0153] When cross link sensing between TRPs is prioritized between cooperating TRPs, this can advantageously enable Uplink (UL) and Downlink (DL) users to be supported at the same time in the corresponding cells. This may minimize impact to communications throughout.

[0154] When serving UEs for UL and / or DL communications is prioritized, this may enable cross link sensing to be performed at the same time as communications. This may provide improved sensing performance, due to additional sensing links and spatial views, provided by cross link sensing.

[0155] The approach described herein may also provide additional flexibility in enabling high performance sensing and communication at the same time.

[0156] The applicant hereby discloses in isolation each individual feature described herein and any combination of two or more such features, to the extent that such features or combinations are capable of being carried out based on the present specification as a whole in the light of the common general knowledge of a person skilled in the art, irrespective of whether such features or combinations of features solve any problems disclosed herein. The applicant indicates that aspects of the present invention may consist of any such individual feature or combination of features. In view of the foregoing description, it will be evident to a person skilled in the art that various modifications may be made within the scope of the invention.

Claims

CLAIMS1. A radio access network resource scheduling entity (601, 701, 801, 901, 1001) for configuring multiple transmission-reception points (401, 411, 412, 501, 510, 511, 703, 704, 705, 803, 804, 805, 903, 904, 905, 1003, 1004, 1005, 1100) in a mobile network (400, 500, 600, 700, 800, 900, 1000) to support passive object sensing and communications, wherein one or more of the transmission-reception points (401, 501, 703, 803, 903, 1003) are configured to transmit sensing signals (402, 502, 719, 819, 919, 1019, 1155) and one or more of the transmission-reception points (401, 411, 412, 510, 511, 704, 705, 804, 805, 904, 905, 1004, 1005) are configured to receive sensing signals (403, 409, 410, 508, 509, 721, 722, 821, 822, 921, 922, 1021, 1022) for passive object sensing, wherein at least one of the transmission-reception points (401, 411, 412, 501, 510, 511, 703, 704, 705, 803, 804, 805, 904, 905, 1003, 1004, 1005, 1100) is configured to concurrently serve data communication with a respective user equipment device (407, 408, 415, 416, 506, 507, 512, 513, 724, 726, 728, 824, 826, 828, 925, 927, 1024, 1026, 1028) in a respective coverage area of the respective transmission-reception point, the resource scheduling entity being configured to determine a schedule for transmission of one or more sensing signals (402, 502, 719, 819, 919, 1019, 1155) and for data communication between the at least one of the transmission-reception points and its respective user equipment device by: receiving (1201) information of full duplex capabilities of each of the multiple transmission-reception points; and determining (1202) a direction of data communication for one or more of the at least one transmission-reception points and their respective user equipment device in dependence on the received information of full duplex capabilities of the multiple transmission-reception points.

2. The radio access network resource scheduling entity as claimed in claim 1, wherein the resource scheduling entity is configured to request information indicating the respective full duplex capabilities of each of the multiple transmissionreception points in response to a requirement to co-schedule communications and sensing by the multiple transmissionreception points.

3. The radio access network resource scheduling entity as claimed in claim 1 or claim 2, wherein the full duplex capabilities comprise one or more modes, the one or more modes comprising one or more of full duplex in a same sector, full duplex between different sectors, sub-band full duplex in a same sector, sub-band full duplex between different sectors, and corresponding parameters for each mode.

4. The radio access network resource scheduling entity as claimed in claim 3, where the parameters include one or more of dynamic range, cancellation level, supported frequency band, bandwidth, supported directions, guard bands and the applicable sectors.

5. The radio access network resource scheduling entity as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the direction of data communication comprises one or more of:(i) downlink slots and uplink slots in all of the multiple transmission-reception points;(ii) downlink slots only in the transmission-reception point(s) configured to transmit sensing signals and uplink slots only in the transmission-reception point(s) configured to receive sensing signals;(iii) downlink slots in the transmission-reception point(s) configured to transmit sensing signals and in one or more sectors of the transmission-reception point(s) configured to receive sensing signals and uplink slots only in the transmission-reception point(s) configured to receive sensing signals; and(iv) uplink slots in the transmission-reception point(s) configured to receive sensing signals and in one or more sectors of the transmission-reception point(s) configured to transmit sensing signals and downlink slots only in the transmission-reception point(s) configured to transmit sensing signals.

6. The radio access network resource scheduling entity as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the multiple transmissionreception points have coverage in a spatial area defined in a sensing request to perform sensing received by the radio access network scheduling entity.

7. The radio access network resource scheduling entity as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the resource scheduling entity is configured to receive requirements for serving user equipment devices for communications, wherein the requirements for serving user equipment devices for communications comprise one or more of data rate, number of users and required reliability.

8. The radio access network resource scheduling entity as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the resource scheduling entity is configured to receive requirements for sensing (604, 706, 806, 906, 1006), wherein the requirements for sensing comprise an indication of a sensing area or zone.

9. The radio access network resource scheduling entity as claimed in claim 7 or claim 8, wherein based on the received requirements for sensing (604, 706, 806, 906, 1006) and / or serving user equipment devices for communications (603), the resource scheduling entity is configured to select the multiple transmission-reception points to perform passive object sensing.

10. The radio access network resource scheduling entity as claimed in claim 9, wherein the resource scheduling entity is configured to inform a sensing function of the mobile network of the multiple transmission-reception points to perform passive object sensing.

11. The radio access network resource scheduling entity as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the resource scheduling entity is configured to set up respective transmission and / or receiving configurations of each of the multiple transmissionreception points.

12. The radio access network resource scheduling entity as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the multiple transmissionreception points and / or the coverage areas are not collocated.

13. The radio access network resource scheduling entity as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the multiple transmissionreception points are base stations, gNodeBs remote radio heads or access points.

14. The radio access network resource scheduling entity as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein one or more of the transmission-reception points configured to transmit sensing signals (401 ) is / are one or more of the one or more transmissionreception points configured to receive sensing signals.

15. A transmission-reception point (401, 411, 412, 501, 510, 511, 703, 704, 705, 803, 804, 805, 903, 904, 905, 1003, 1004, 1005, 1100) in a mobile network (400, 500, 600, 700, 800, 900, 1000), the transmission-reception point being configured to serve data communication with a user equipment device (407, 408, 415, 416, 506, 507, 512, 513, 724, 726, 728, 824, 826, 828, 925, 927, 1024, 1026, 1028) in a coverage area and being configured to: receive (1301) a request from a radio access network resource scheduling entity (601, 701, 801, 901, 1001) of the mobile network for full duplex capabilities of the transmission-reception point; and in response to the request, send (1302) the full duplex capabilities of the transmission-reception point to the resource scheduling entity.

16. The transmission-reception point as claimed in claim 15, wherein the transmission-reception point is configured to perform passive object sensing and send results of the passive object sensing to a sensing function (602, 702, 802, 902, 1002) of the mobile network.

17. A sensing function (602, 702, 802, 902, 1002) for a mobile network (400, 500, 600, 700, 800, 900, 1000), the sensing function being configured to: send (1401) sensing requirements to a radio access network resource scheduling entity (601, 701, 801, 901, 1001) of the mobile network; receive (1402) a notification of multiple transmission-reception points of the mobile network selected to perform passive object sensing for a passive object, and one or more transmission-reception points configured to receive sensing signals; receive (1403) sensing results from the one or more transmission-reception points configured to receive sensing signals; and process (1404) the sensing results to determine a property of the passive object.

18. A mobile network (400, 500, 600, 700, 800, 900, 1000) comprising the radio access resource scheduling entity (601, 701, 801, 901, 1001) of any of claims 1 to 14, multiple transmission-reception points (401, 411, 412, 501, 510, 511, 703, 704, 705,803, 804, 805, 903, 904, 905, 1003, 1004, 1005, 1100) as claimed in claim 15 or claim 16 and the sensing function as claimed in claim 17.

19. A method (1200) for configuring multiple transmission-reception points (401, 411, 412, 501, 510, 511, 703, 704, 705, 803,804, 805, 903, 904, 905, 1003, 1004, 1005, 1100) in a mobile network (400, 500, 600, 700, 800, 900, 1000) to support passive object sensing and communications, wherein one or more of the transmission-reception points (401, 501, 703, 803, 903, 1003) are configured to transmit sensing signals (402, 502, 719, 819, 919, 1019, 1155) and one or more of the transmission-reception points (401, 411, 412, 510, 511, 704, 705, 804, 805, 904, 905, 1004, 1005) are configured to receive sensing signals (403, 409, 410, 508, 509, 721, 722, 821, 822, 921, 922, 1021, 1022) for passive object sensing, wherein at least one of the transmissionreception points (401, 411, 412, 501, 510, 511, 703, 704, 705, 803, 804, 805, 904, 905, 1003, 1004, 1005, 1100) is configured to concurrently serve data communication with a respective user equipment device (407, 408, 415, 416, 506, 507, 512, 513, 724, 726, 728, 824, 826, 828, 925, 927, 1024, 1026, 1028) in a respective coverage area of the respective transmission-reception point, the method comprising: receiving (1201) information of full duplex capabilities of each of the multiple transmission-reception points; and determining (1202) a direction of data communication for one or more of the at least one transmission-reception points and their respective user equipment device in dependence on the received information of full duplex capabilities of the multiple transmission-reception points.

20. A method (1300) for implementation at a transmission-reception point (401, 411, 412, 501, 510, 511, 703, 704, 705, 803, 804, 805, 903, 904, 905, 1003, 1004, 1005, 1100) in a mobile network (400, 500, 600, 700, 800, 900, 1000), the transmissionreception point being configured to serve data communication with a user equipment device (407, 408, 415, 416, 506, 507, 512, 513, 724, 726, 728, 824, 826, 828, 925, 927, 1024, 1026, 1028) in a coverage area, the method comprising: receiving (1301) a request from a radio access network resource scheduling entity (601, 701, 801, 901, 1001) of the mobile network for full duplex capabilities of the transmission-reception point; and in response to the request, sending (1302) the full duplex capabilities of the transmission-reception point to the resource scheduling entity.

21. A method (1400) for passive object sensing in mobile network (400, 500, 600, 700, 800, 900, 1000), the method comprising: sending (1401) sensing requirements (604, 706, 806, 906, 1006) to a radio access network resource scheduling entity (601, 701, 801, 901, 1001) of the mobile network; receiving (1402) a notification of multiple transmission-reception points of the mobile network selected to perform passive object sensing, and one or more transmission-reception points configured to receive sensing signals; receiving (1403) sensing results from the one or more transmission-reception points configured to receive sensing signals; and processing (1404) the sensing results to determine a property of the passive object.

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