Communication method and related apparatus

Abstract

Disclosed are a communication method and a related apparatus. The method comprises: a first communication apparatus receiving a first reference signal, and determining a first channel feature; and the first communication apparatus sending first information on the basis of the first channel feature and a clustering result set, wherein the first information is used for indicating an association relationship between the first channel feature and the clustering result set, the clustering result set comprising at least one clustering result, each of the at least one clustering result corresponding to a threshold, and the threshold being used for determining the association relationship between the first channel feature and the clustering result set. The first communication apparatus determines, on the basis of the threshold, the clustering result corresponding to the first channel feature, without reporting the channel feature, such that feedback overheads can be reduced, and the accuracy of the clustering result can be improved.

Description

A communication method and related apparatus

[0001] This application claims priority to Chinese Patent Application No. CN202411998207.2, filed with the State Intellectual Property Office of China on December 31, 2024, entitled "A Communication Method and Related Device", the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference. Technical Field

[0002] This application relates to the field of communications, and more particularly to a communication method and related apparatus. Background Technology

[0003] With the increasing system bandwidth, the proliferation of terminal antennas, the heavier network load, the surge in wireless channel dimensions (such as expanding to multiple dimensions like spatial, spatial-frequency, and frequency domains), and the limited pilot measurement resources, high-precision wireless channel measurement faces enormous challenges. Accurate wireless channel measurement is the cornerstone of mobile communication network research and is crucial for the design, analysis, and optimization of wireless communication networks.

[0004] However, traditional wireless channel measurement methods based on reference signals (such as pilot symbols) are insufficient to meet the demands of technologies requiring large bandwidth and multiple antennas. To address the limited resources for reference signal measurement in wireless communication systems, channel maps can be used to achieve low pilot overhead channel measurements. In one example, the channel map includes location-information-based channel features, which include, but are not limited to, channel statistical covariance matrix, angle spectrum, time delay spectrum, or path loss.

[0005] Currently, terminal devices report channel characteristics to network devices. The network devices then perform clustering based on these channel characteristics to determine the clustering results. Finally, the network devices construct a channel map based on the clustering results corresponding to these channel characteristics.

[0006] However, the accuracy of clustering results obtained by network devices from channel feature clustering is limited by the feedback accuracy of channel features from terminal devices and the signaling overhead required for feedback information. How to reduce feedback overhead, improve the accuracy of clustering results, and thus improve the accuracy of channel maps has become an urgent technical problem to be solved. Summary of the Invention

[0007] This application discloses a communication method and related apparatus. A terminal device sends first information based on a first channel feature and a clustering result set. The first information indicates the association between the first channel feature and the clustering result set. The terminal device determines the clustering result corresponding to the first channel feature based on a threshold, eliminating the need to report the channel feature and saving communication overhead. Furthermore, it effectively improves the accuracy of the clustering results.

[0008] In a first aspect, embodiments of this application propose a communication method applied to a first communication device.

[0009] The first communication device may be a terminal device, a device or apparatus with a chip, a device or apparatus with integrated circuits, or a chip, chip system, functional module, control unit, circuit, processor, or integrated circuit that can be applied to the aforementioned device or apparatus. This application does not limit the specific application.

[0010] The method includes: a first communication device acquiring a clustering result set, the clustering result set including at least one clustering result; the first communication device determining a first channel feature, the first channel feature being determined by the first communication device based on a received first reference signal; and the first communication device transmitting first information based on the first channel feature and the clustering result set, the first information indicating the association between the first channel feature and the clustering result set, wherein any one of the at least one clustering result corresponds to a threshold, the threshold being used to determine the association between the first channel feature and the clustering result set.

[0011] The first channel feature is a channel feature obtained by the first communication device measuring the first reference signal corresponding to the first cell. The first cell may be the serving cell of the first communication device.

[0012] In this embodiment of the application, "clustering result" can also be replaced with "grid", "anchor point", "association relationship", "correspondence relationship", "classification result" or "mapping relationship", and this embodiment of the application does not limit this.

[0013] In this embodiment of the application, "cell" can also be replaced with "coverage area", "signal coverage area", "region", or "range", and this embodiment of the application does not limit this. For example, the first cell can be replaced with: first coverage area, first signal coverage area, first region, or first range.

[0014] It should be noted that the first communication device receiving the first reference signal and determining the first channel characteristics includes: the first communication device receiving one or more first reference signals and determining one or more first channel characteristics.

[0015] In this embodiment, the clustering result corresponding to the first channel feature is referred to as the third clustering result. The association between the first channel feature and the clustering result set includes: the third clustering result belongs to the clustering result set, or the third clustering result does not belong to the clustering result set. If the third clustering result does not belong to the clustering result set, it is also called the first clustering result; if the third clustering result belongs to the clustering result set, it is also called the second clustering result. The terminal device can determine the third clustering result corresponding to the first channel feature by detecting the correlation between the channel feature of any clustering result in the clustering result set and the first channel feature.

[0016] In the above technical solution, after the first communication device measures the first channel feature, it determines first information based on the correlation between the first channel feature and each cluster result in the cluster result set. This first information indicates the association between the first channel feature and the cluster result set. The second communication device can determine the cluster result corresponding to the first channel feature based on the first information. Using this solution, the first device locally determines the cluster result corresponding to the first channel feature based on the first channel feature. Since the first channel feature is not quantized or compressed, the accuracy of the real communication environment reflected by the first channel feature can be improved, thereby improving the accuracy of the cluster result corresponding to the first channel feature. Furthermore, constructing a channel map based on the cluster result corresponding to the first channel feature can improve the accuracy of the channel map. In addition, since the first communication device determines the cluster result based on the correlation of the channel feature, it can avoid classifying channel features with low correlation to the cluster result as belonging to that cluster result, thus improving the accuracy of the cluster result.

[0017] In conjunction with the first aspect, in one possible implementation of the first aspect, the method further includes: receiving second information, the second information being used to indicate the clustering result set.

[0018] In the above technical solution, the second communication device can also send a clustering result set to the first communication device, so that the first communication device can determine whether the first channel feature belongs to the clustering result set. The first communication device can determine the clustering result corresponding to the first channel feature based on the existing clustering result set, which reduces computational complexity and improves the accuracy of the clustering results in reflecting the real communication environment.

[0019] In conjunction with the first aspect, in one possible implementation of the first aspect, the first information is used to indicate the correlation between the first channel feature and the clustering result set, including: the first information is used to indicate that the correlation between the first channel feature and the channel feature corresponding to the second clustering result in the clustering result set is greater than or equal to the threshold corresponding to the second clustering result. Alternatively, the first information is used to indicate that the correlation between the first channel feature and the second channel feature corresponding to any clustering result in the clustering result set is less than the threshold corresponding to any clustering result.

[0020] In the above technical solution, if the first information is used to indicate that the correlation between the first channel feature and the channel feature corresponding to the second clustering result in the clustering result set is greater than or equal to the threshold corresponding to the second clustering result, then the third clustering result corresponding to the first channel feature belongs to the clustering result set, and the first information may include the identification information of the second clustering result. If the first information is used to indicate that the correlation between the first channel feature and the second channel feature corresponding to any clustering result in the clustering result set is less than the threshold corresponding to any clustering result, then the third clustering result corresponding to the first channel feature does not belong to the clustering result set, and the first information may instruct the second communication device to generate the first clustering result based on the first channel feature. By using the first information, the association between the first channel feature and the clustering result set is flexibly indicated, so that the second communication device can determine the clustering result corresponding to the first channel feature based on the first information, thereby improving the implementation flexibility of the solution.

[0021] In conjunction with the first aspect, in one possible implementation of the first aspect, the first information includes: identification information of the first clustering result and the first channel feature. Accordingly, the second communication device determines, based on the first information, the clustering result corresponding to the first channel feature as the newly created first clustering result.

[0022] In this embodiment of the application, the clustering result generated by clustering based on the first channel features is referred to as the first clustering result. This first clustering result can be understood as a newly created clustering result.

[0023] In conjunction with the first aspect, in one possible implementation of the first aspect, the first information further includes at least one of the following: a first threshold, or a first correlation calculation method, wherein the first correlation calculation method is used to calculate the correlation between the channel feature to be clustered and the first channel feature, and the first threshold is the threshold corresponding to the first correlation calculation method.

[0024] In conjunction with the first aspect, in one possible implementation of the first aspect, the first information includes: identification information of at least one clustering result, and the correlation between the first channel feature and the second channel feature corresponding to each of the at least one clustering result.

[0025] In the above technical solution, the first information may specifically include a variety of information to indicate the first clustering result, thereby improving the flexibility of the solution implementation.

[0026] In conjunction with the first aspect, in one possible implementation of the first aspect, the method further includes: receiving third information, the third information instructing the first communication device to report the correlation between the first channel features and at least one clustering result.

[0027] In the above technical solution, the first communication device can also report the correlation between the first channel features and the clustering result set based on the third information. This allows the second communication device to determine the third clustering result based on the first information, for example, the third clustering result being the clustering result with the highest correlation to the first channel features in the clustering result set indicated by the first information. Indicating the third clustering result in multiple ways improves the flexibility of the solution implementation.

[0028] In conjunction with the first aspect, in one possible implementation of the first aspect, the first channel characteristics and / or the second channel characteristics include, but are not limited to: basis, delay, delay spread, k-factor, number of multipaths, angle of arrival, peak angle of arrival, departure angle, beam identification, beam angle, reference signal receiving power (RSRP), reference signal receiving quality (RSRQ), reference signal receiving indicator (RSRI), grid associated scatterer information, channel statistical covariance matrix, power azimuth spectrum (PAS), power delay profile (PDP), or path loss.

[0029] The basis can be of any of the following types: frequency domain, spatial domain, spatial frequency, spatial-time frequency, discrete cosine transform (DCT) basis, or discrete Fourier transform (DFT) basis. Spatial frequency refers to both the spatial and frequency domains, while spatial-time frequency refers to the spatial, time, and frequency domains.

[0030] For example, the first channel characteristic includes any one or more of the following: the delay of the first reference signal, the delay spread of the first reference signal, the k-factor associated with the first reference signal, the number of multipaths associated with the first reference signal, the angle of arrival of the first reference signal, the peak angle of arrival of the first reference signal, the departure angle of the first reference signal, the identifier of the beam carrying the first reference signal, the angle of the beam carrying the first reference signal, the reference signal received power of the first reference signal, the reference signal received quality of the first reference signal, the reference signal received indication of the first reference signal, the grid associated scatterer information corresponding to the first reference signal, the channel statistical covariance matrix corresponding to the first reference signal, the angular power spectrum of the first reference signal, the power delay spectrum of the first reference signal, or the path loss of the first reference signal.

[0031] In conjunction with the first aspect, in one possible implementation of the first aspect, the clustering result set includes at least one of the following information: identification information of at least one clustering result, a second channel feature corresponding to at least one clustering result, a threshold of at least one clustering result, or a correlation calculation method of at least one clustering result. The correlation calculation method of at least one clustering result is used to calculate the correlation between the channel feature to be clustered and the second channel feature corresponding to at least one clustering result. The threshold of at least one clustering result is the threshold corresponding to the correlation calculation method of at least one clustering result.

[0032] In the above technical solution, the clustering results in the clustering result set can be implemented in multiple ways, which improves the flexibility of the solution.

[0033] In conjunction with the first aspect, in one possible implementation of the first aspect, the first information is used to indicate the second clustering result in the clustering result set, wherein the correlation between the first channel feature and the channel feature of the second clustering result is greater than or equal to the threshold of the second clustering result, and the first information includes at least one of the following: the identification information of the second clustering result.

[0034] In conjunction with the first aspect, in one possible implementation of the first aspect, the second clustering result is: the clustering result in which the channel characteristics of each clustering result in the clustering result set have the highest correlation with the first channel characteristics.

[0035] Secondly, embodiments of this application propose a communication method applied to a second communication device.

[0036] The second communication device may be a network device, a device or apparatus with a chip, a device or apparatus with integrated circuits, or a chip, chip system, module, control unit, circuit, or processor applicable to the aforementioned device or apparatus, or at least one of a central unit (CU) or a distributed unit (DU), the specific of which is not limited in this application.

[0037] The method includes: a second communication device receiving first information, the first information indicating the association between a first channel feature and a clustering result set, the clustering result set including at least one clustering result, any one of the at least one clustering result corresponding to a threshold, the threshold being used to determine the association between the first channel feature and the clustering result set; the second communication device determining a third clustering result based on the first information, the third clustering result including the first channel feature.

[0038] In the above technical solution, the first communication device does not need to report the first channel feature to the second communication device, and then the second communication device determines the third clustering result corresponding to the first channel feature. This saves communication overhead between the first and second communication devices and reduces the computational load on the second device. Since the third clustering result is determined based on the correlation of the channel features, it improves the accuracy of the third clustering result in reflecting the real communication environment. Furthermore, the second communication device generates or updates the channel map based on the third clustering result, thus improving the accuracy of the channel map.

[0039] The second aspect provides some possible implementation methods and beneficial effects that can be referred to in the first aspect, and will not be repeated here.

[0040] In conjunction with the second aspect, in one possible implementation of the second aspect, the method further includes: sending a second message, the second message being used to indicate the clustering result set.

[0041] In conjunction with the second aspect, in one possible implementation of the second aspect, the method further includes: sending third information, the third information instructing the first communication device to report the correlation between the first channel features and at least one clustering result.

[0042] Thirdly, embodiments of this application propose a communication method applied to a first communication device.

[0043] The first communication device may be a terminal device, a device or apparatus with a chip, a device or apparatus with integrated circuits, or a chip, chip system, functional module, control unit, circuit, processor, or integrated circuit that can be applied to the aforementioned device or apparatus. This application does not limit the specific application.

[0044] The method includes: a first communication device receiving a first reference signal and determining a first channel feature; the first communication device sending first information based on the first channel feature and a clustering result set, the first information being used to instruct a second communication device whether to generate a first clustering result based on the first channel feature, wherein the first information is determined by the association between the first channel feature and the clustering result set, the first clustering result includes the first channel feature, the clustering result set includes at least one clustering result, any one of the at least one clustering result corresponds to a threshold, and the threshold is used to determine the association between the first channel feature and the clustering result set.

[0045] In the above technical solution, after the first communication device measures the first channel feature, it detects the correlation between the first channel feature and any clustering result in the existing clustering result set. Based on the correlation detection result, the first communication device sends first information, which instructs the second communication device whether to generate a first clustering result based on the first channel feature. Since the first information occupies relatively little communication overhead, the first communication device can notify the second communication device whether to generate a corresponding first clustering result based on the first channel feature subsequently reported by the first communication device without consuming a large amount of communication resources, thus improving communication efficiency.

[0046] The third aspect provides some possible implementation methods and beneficial effects that can be referred to in the first aspect, and will not be elaborated further.

[0047] In conjunction with the third aspect, in one possible implementation of the third aspect, if the correlation between the first channel feature and the second channel feature corresponding to any clustering result in the clustering result set is less than a first threshold, the first information is used to instruct the second communication device to generate the first clustering result based on the first channel feature; or, if the correlation between the first channel feature and the second channel feature corresponding to at least one clustering result in the clustering result set is greater than or equal to the first threshold, the first information is used to instruct the second communication device not to generate the first clustering result.

[0048] In conjunction with the third aspect, in one possible implementation of the third aspect, the method further includes: sending the first channel feature to the second communication device.

[0049] In conjunction with the third aspect, in one possible implementation of the third aspect, the first information includes a first field of length 1 bit; if the first field is a first value, then the first field instructs the second communication device to generate a first clustering result based on the first channel characteristics; if the first field is a second value, then the first field instructs the second communication device not to generate a first clustering result.

[0050] In conjunction with the third aspect, in one possible implementation of the third aspect, the method further includes: receiving second information, which is used to indicate the clustering result set.

[0051] In conjunction with the third aspect, in one possible implementation of the third aspect, the channel characteristics include at least one of the following:

[0052] Substrate, delay, delay spread, k-factor, number of multipaths, angle of arrival, peak angle of arrival, departure angle, beam identifier, beam angle, reference signal received power, reference signal received quality, reference signal received indication, grid associated scatterer information, channel statistical covariance matrix, angular power spectrum, power delay spectrum, or path loss.

[0053] In conjunction with the third aspect, in one possible implementation of the third aspect, the second information includes at least one of the following: identification information of at least one clustering result, a second channel feature corresponding to at least one clustering result, a threshold of at least one clustering result, or a correlation calculation method of at least one clustering result. The correlation calculation method of at least one clustering result is used to calculate the correlation between the channel feature to be clustered and the second channel feature corresponding to at least one clustering result. The threshold of at least one clustering result is the threshold corresponding to the correlation calculation method of at least one clustering result.

[0054] In conjunction with the third aspect, in one possible implementation of the third aspect, the first information is carried in uplink control information (UCI).

[0055] Fourthly, embodiments of this application propose a communication method applied to a second communication device.

[0056] The second communication device may be a network device, a device or apparatus with a chip, a device or apparatus with integrated circuits, or a chip, chip system, module, control unit, circuit, or processor applicable to the aforementioned device or apparatus, or at least one of a centralized unit (CU) or a distributed unit (DU), the specific of which is not limited in this application.

[0057] The method includes: a second communication device receiving first information, the first information indicating whether the second communication device generates a first clustering result based on a first channel feature, the first information being determined by the association between the first channel feature and a set of clustering results, the set of clustering results including at least one clustering result, any one of the at least one clustering result corresponding to a threshold, the threshold being used to determine the association between the first channel feature and the set of clustering results; the second communication device determining the first clustering result based on the first information, the first clustering result including the first channel feature.

[0058] The fourth aspect provides some possible implementation methods and beneficial effects, which can be referred to in the third aspect and will not be elaborated further.

[0059] In conjunction with the fourth aspect, in one possible implementation of the fourth aspect, determining the first clustering result based on the first information includes: receiving the first channel features; if the first information is used to instruct the second communication device to generate the first clustering result based on the first channel features, generating the first clustering result based on the first channel features.

[0060] In conjunction with the fourth aspect, in one possible implementation of the fourth aspect, if the correlation between the first channel feature and the second channel feature corresponding to any clustering result in the clustering result set is less than a first threshold, the first information is used to instruct the second communication device to generate the first clustering result based on the first channel feature; or, if the correlation between the first channel feature and the second channel feature corresponding to at least one clustering result in the clustering result set is greater than or equal to the first threshold, the first information is used to instruct the second communication device not to generate the first clustering result.

[0061] In conjunction with the fourth aspect, in one possible implementation of the fourth aspect, the first information includes a first field of length 1 bit; if the first field is a first value, then the first field instructs the second communication device to generate a first clustering result based on the first channel characteristics; if the first field is a second value, then the first field instructs the second communication device not to generate a first clustering result.

[0062] In conjunction with the fourth aspect, in one possible implementation of the fourth aspect, the method further includes: sending a second message, which is used to indicate the clustering result set.

[0063] In conjunction with the fourth aspect, in one possible implementation of the fourth aspect, the channel characteristics include at least one of the following: basis, delay, delay spread, k-factor, number of multipaths, angle of arrival, peak angle of arrival, departure angle, beam identifier, beam angle, reference signal received power, reference signal received quality, reference signal received indication, grid associated scatterer information, channel statistical covariance matrix, angular power spectrum, power delay spectrum, or path loss.

[0064] In conjunction with the fourth aspect, in one possible implementation of the fourth aspect, the second information includes at least one of the following: identification information of at least one clustering result, a second channel feature corresponding to at least one clustering result, a threshold of at least one clustering result, or a correlation calculation method of at least one clustering result. The correlation calculation method of at least one clustering result is used to calculate the correlation between the channel feature to be clustered and the second channel feature corresponding to at least one clustering result. The threshold of at least one clustering result is the threshold corresponding to the correlation calculation method of at least one clustering result.

[0065] In conjunction with the fourth aspect, in one possible implementation of the fourth aspect, the first information is carried on the uplink control information.

[0066] Fifthly, this application provides a communication device, which is a first communication device. The device includes a transceiver module and a processing module. The constituent modules of the communication device can also be used to perform the steps executed in various possible implementations of the first and / or third aspects and achieve the corresponding technical effects. For details, please refer to the first and / or third aspects, which will not be repeated here.

[0067] In a sixth aspect, this application provides a communication device, which is a second communication device. The communication device includes a transceiver module and a processing module. The constituent modules of the communication device can also be used to perform the steps performed in various possible implementations of the second aspect and / or the fourth aspect, and achieve the corresponding technical effects. For details, please refer to the second aspect and / or the fourth aspect, which will not be repeated here.

[0068] In a seventh aspect, this application provides a communication device including at least one processor coupled to a memory; the memory is used to store a program or instructions; the at least one processor is used to execute the program or instructions to cause the device to implement the method described in any possible implementation of any of the first and / or third aspects. Optionally, the communication device may include the memory.

[0069] In an eighth aspect, this application provides a communication device including at least one logic circuit and an input / output interface; the logic circuit is configured to perform the method described in any possible implementation of any of the first and / or third aspects described above.

[0070] A ninth aspect of this application provides a communication device including at least one processor coupled to a memory; the memory is used to store a program or instructions; the at least one processor is used to execute the program or instructions to cause the communication device to implement the method described in any possible implementation of any of the second and / or fourth aspects. Optionally, the communication device may include the memory.

[0071] In a tenth aspect, this application provides a communication device including at least one logic circuit and an input / output interface; the logic circuit is configured to perform the method described in any possible implementation of any of the second and / or fourth aspects described above.

[0072] In the eleventh aspect, this application provides a communication system, which includes the aforementioned first communication device and / or second communication device.

[0073] In a twelfth aspect, this application provides a computer-readable storage medium for storing one or more computer-executable instructions that, when executed by a processor, perform the method as described in any possible implementation of any of the first and / or third and / or second and / or fourth aspects described above.

[0074] In a thirteenth aspect, this application provides a computer program product (or computer program) that, when executed by a processor, performs the method described in any possible implementation of any of the first and / or third and / or second and / or fourth aspects.

[0075] In a fourteenth aspect, this application provides a chip or chip system including at least one processor for supporting a communication device in implementing the method described in any possible implementation of any of the first and / or third and / or second and / or fourth aspects.

[0076] In one possible design, the chip or chip system may further include a memory for storing program instructions and data necessary for the communication device. The chip system may be composed of chips or may include chips and other discrete devices. Optionally, the chip system may also include interface circuitry that provides program instructions and / or data to the at least one processor.

[0077] The technical effects of any of the design methods in aspects five through fourteen can be found in the technical effects of different design methods in aspects one, two, three and / or four above, and will not be repeated here. Attached Figure Description

[0078] Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of the architecture of the communication system 100 used in the embodiments of this application;

[0079] Figure 2 shows a schematic diagram of the communication network element structure between network devices and terminal devices in this application;

[0080] Figure 3 is another schematic diagram of a wireless communication system applicable to an embodiment of this application;

[0081] Figure 4 is a schematic diagram of a wireless communication system 400 applicable to an embodiment of this application;

[0082] Figure 5 is a schematic diagram of a wireless communication system 500 applicable to an embodiment of this application;

[0083] Figure 6 is a schematic diagram of constructing the channel map;

[0084] Figure 7 is a schematic diagram of a channel map construction;

[0085] Figure 8 is a schematic diagram of a communication scenario in an embodiment of this application;

[0086] Figure 9 is a flowchart illustrating one embodiment of the communication method in this application.

[0087] Figure 10 is a flowchart illustrating another embodiment of the communication method in this application.

[0088] Figure 11 is a schematic diagram of a communication device according to an embodiment of this application;

[0089] Figure 12 is a structural schematic diagram of a communication device according to an embodiment of this application;

[0090] Figure 13 is a schematic diagram of a communication device according to an embodiment of this application. Detailed Implementation

[0091] References to "one embodiment" or "some embodiments" as described in this application mean that one or more embodiments of this application include a specific feature, structure, or characteristic described in connection with that embodiment. Therefore, the phrases "in one embodiment," "in some embodiments," "in other embodiments," "in still other embodiments," etc., appearing in different parts of this specification do not necessarily refer to the same embodiment, but rather mean "one or more, but not all, embodiments," unless otherwise specifically emphasized. The terms "comprising," "including," "having," and variations thereof mean "including but not limited to," unless otherwise specifically emphasized.

[0092] In the description of this application, unless otherwise stated, " / " means "or". For example, A / B can mean A or B. "And / or" in this document is merely a description of the relationship between related objects, indicating that three relationships can exist. For example, A and / or B can represent: A alone, A and B simultaneously, and B alone. Furthermore, "at least one" means one or more, and "multiple" means two or more. "At least one of the following" or similar expressions refer to any combination of these items, including any combination of single or multiple items. For example, at least one of a, b, or c can represent: a, b, c, a and b, a and c, b and c, or a and b and c. Where a, b, and c can be single or multiple.

[0093] First, the communication system involved in the embodiments of this application is introduced. This application can be applied to long-term evolution (LTE) systems, new radio (NR) systems, or future communication systems. The communication system includes at least one of access network equipment or terminal equipment.

[0094] Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of the architecture of the communication system 100 used in the embodiments of this application.

[0095] As shown in Figure 1, the communication system includes a wireless access network and a core network. Optionally, the communication system 100 may also include the Internet. The wireless access network may include at least one access network device (also understood as a network device, as shown in Figure 1 110a and 110b), and at least one terminal (also understood as the terminal device described above, as shown in Figure 1 120a-120j). Furthermore, the access network device (or wireless access network device) may be a macro base station (as shown in Figure 1 110a), a micro base station or an indoor station (as shown in Figure 1 110b), or a relay node or donor node, etc. It is understood that all or part of the functions of the access network device in this application may also be implemented through software functions running on hardware, or through virtualization functions instantiated on a platform (e.g., a cloud platform). The embodiments of this application do not limit the specific technology or specific device form used in the wireless access network device.

[0096] For ease of description, the communication system illustrated in Figure 1 is described using the example of an access network device as a base station and terminal devices as terminals. It is understood that when the communication system includes an integrated access and backhaul (IAB) network, the base station can be an IAB node. It should be noted that in the embodiments of this application, the base station and the access network device can be interchanged.

[0097] In this application, the base station and the terminal can be fixed or mobile. The base station and the terminal can be deployed on land, including indoors or outdoors, handheld or vehicle-mounted, on water, or in the air on aircraft, balloons, and satellites. The embodiments of this application do not limit the application scenarios of the base station and the terminal.

[0098] The roles of base stations and terminals can be relative. For example, the helicopter or drone 120i in Figure 1 can be configured as a mobile base station. For terminals 120j that access the wireless access network 0 via 120i, terminal 120i is a base station. However, for base station 110a, 120i is a terminal; that is, 110a and 120i communicate via a wireless air interface protocol. Of course, 110a and 120i can also communicate via a base station-to-base station interface protocol. In this case, relative to 110a, 120i is also a base station. Therefore, both base stations and terminals can be collectively referred to as communication devices. 110a and 110b in Figure 1 can be called communication devices with base station functions, and 120a-120j in Figure 1 can be called communication devices with terminal functions.

[0099] Communication between base stations and terminals, between base stations, and between terminals can be conducted using licensed spectrum, unlicensed spectrum, or both simultaneously. Communication can be achieved using spectrum below 6 GHz, spectrum above 6 GHz, or both simultaneously. The embodiments of this application do not limit the spectrum resources used for wireless communication.

[0100] In the embodiments of this application, the functions of the base station can be executed by modules (such as chips) within the base station, or by a control subsystem that includes base station functions. This control subsystem, including base station functions, can be a control center in the aforementioned application scenarios such as smart grids, industrial control, intelligent transportation, and smart cities. Similarly, the functions of the terminal can be executed by modules (such as chips or modems) within the terminal, or by a device that includes terminal functions.

[0101] In this application, the base station sends downlink signals or downlink information to the terminal, with the downlink information carried on the downlink channel; the terminal sends uplink signals or uplink information to the base station, with the uplink information carried on the uplink channel. To communicate with the base station, the terminal needs to establish a radio connection on a cell controlled by the base station. The cell with which the terminal has established a radio connection is called the terminal's serving cell. When the terminal communicates with this serving cell, it is also susceptible to interference from signals from neighboring cells.

[0102] The technical solution of this application can be applied to cellular communication systems related to the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP). For example, 4th generation (4G) communication systems, 5G communication systems, and communication systems beyond the 5th generation. For example, future communication systems. For example, 4th generation communication systems may include Long Term Evolution (LTE) communication systems. 5th generation communication systems may include New Radio (NR) communication systems. The technical solution of this application can also be applied to Wireless Fidelity (WiFi) systems, communication systems supporting the convergence of multiple wireless technologies, device-to-device (D2D) systems, or vehicle-to-everything (V2X) communication systems.

[0103] The following describes the terminal equipment, access network equipment, sensing management function, and positioning management function involved in this application.

[0104] Terminal equipment, also known as user equipment (UE), mobile station (MS), mobile terminal (MT), fixed wireless access (FWA), customer premises equipment (CPE), etc., refers to devices that include wireless communication capabilities (providing voice / data connectivity to users). Examples include handheld devices with wireless connectivity, in-vehicle devices, and machine-type communication (MTC) terminals. Currently, terminal devices can include: mobile phones, tablets, laptops, PDAs, mobile internet devices (MIDs), wearable devices, virtual reality (VR) devices, augmented reality (AR) devices, wireless terminals in industrial control, wireless terminals in self-driving (e.g., drones, vehicles), wireless terminals in remote medical surgery, wireless terminals in smart grids, wireless terminals in transportation safety, wireless terminals in smart cities, and wireless terminals in smart homes. For example, wireless terminals in self-driving can be drones, helicopters, or airplanes. For example, wireless terminals in vehicle-to-everything (V2X) can be in-vehicle equipment, vehicle-mounted equipment, in-vehicle modules, vehicles, or ships. Wireless terminals in industrial control can be cameras, robots, or robotic arms. Wireless terminals in smart homes can be televisions, air conditioners, robot vacuums, speakers, or set-top boxes. The terminal device can also be a device or module that is connected to the communication system shown above and has corresponding communication functions. The terminal device usually contains a communication module, circuit or chip that performs the corresponding communication function, and the terminal device is also configured with program instructions for performing the corresponding communication function.

[0105] It should be noted that the terminal device can be a device or apparatus with a chip, or a device or apparatus with integrated circuitry, or a chip, chip system, module, or control unit in the device or apparatus shown above; this application does not limit the specific application. It should also be noted that in this application, when referring to a terminal device, it can refer to the terminal device itself, or to the chip, functional module, or integrated circuit within the terminal device that performs the method provided in this application; this application does not limit the specific application. An access network device is an apparatus deployed in a wireless access network to provide wireless communication functions for a terminal device. An access network device can connect a terminal device to a radio access network (RAN) node in a wireless network, and can also be called an access network device, RAN entity, access node, network node, or communication device, etc.

[0106] Specifically, access network equipment can be access network equipment for cellular systems related to the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP). For example, 4G communication systems, 5G communication systems, or future communication systems. Access network equipment can also be access network equipment in open RAN (open RAN, O-RAN, or ORAN) or cloud radio access network (CRAN). Alternatively, access network equipment can also be access network equipment in a communication system resulting from the integration of two or more of the above communication systems.

[0107] Access network equipment includes, but is not limited to: evolved Node B (eNB), radio network controller (RNC), Node B (NB), base station controller (BSC), base transceiver station (BTS), home base station (e.g., home evolved Node B, or home Node B, HNB), base band unit (BBU), access point (AP) in wireless fidelity (WIFI) systems, macro base station, micro base station, wireless relay node, donor node, radio controller in CRAN scenarios, wireless backhaul node, transmission point (TP), or transmission and reception point (TRP), etc., and can also be access network equipment in 5G mobile communication systems. For example, next-generation base station (gNB) in NR systems, TRP, TP; or one or a group of antenna panels (including multiple antenna panels) of a base station in a 5G mobile communication system; or, access network equipment can also be network nodes constituting gNB or transmission point. Examples include centralized units (CUs), distributed units (DUs), centralized unit control planes (CU-CPs), centralized unit user planes (CU-UPs), and radio units (RUs). CUs and DUs can be separate entities or included in the same network element, such as a 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). Alternatively, access network equipment can be servers, wearable devices, vehicles, or in-vehicle equipment. For example, in V2X technology, access network equipment can be roadside units (RSUs). It should be understood that the aforementioned TRPs can be devices or modules located on the network side of the communication system and possessing corresponding communication functions. TRPs typically contain communication modules, circuits, or chips that perform the corresponding communication functions.The TRP can also be configured with program instructions for the corresponding communication functions.

[0108] It should be noted that CU (or CU-CP and CU-UP), DU, or RU may have different names in different systems, but those skilled in the art will understand their meaning. For example, in an open radio access network (ORAN) system, CU can also be called an open centralized unit (O-CU) or an open CU, DU can also be called an open distributed unit (O-DU), CU-CP can also be called an open centralized unit control plane (O-CU-CP), CU-UP can also be called an open centralized unit user plane (O-CU-UP), and RU can also be called an open radio unit (O-RU). This application does not impose any specific limitations on these details. Any of the units CU, CU-CP, CU-UP, DU, and RU in this application can be implemented through software modules, hardware modules, or a combination of software and hardware modules.

[0109] Optionally, for network elements in the ORAN system, each network element can implement the protocol layer functions shown in Table 1-1 below.

[0110] Table 1-1

[0111] It should be noted that in the ORAN system, the access network device in this application can be one or more network elements listed in Table 1-1 above. For example, the RU receives first information from the terminal device, and the RU sends this first information to the CU through the DU. The first information received by the RU can be sent to the DU, or it can be sent to the CU through the DU. Based on the first information, the CU generates channel map information. The channel map includes a third clustering result, which is the clustering result corresponding to the first channel feature.

[0112] The architecture of the CU and DU of the access network equipment is described below. An access network equipment includes at least one CU and at least one DU. Optionally, the access network equipment may also include at least one RU.

[0113] The following description uses an access network device consisting of one CU and one DU as an example. The CU has some core network functions and may include CU-CP and CU-UP. The CU and DU can be configured according to the protocol layer functions of the wireless network they implement. For example, the CU may be configured to implement the functions of at least one layer of the Packet Data Convergence Protocol (PDCP) layer and above (e.g., at least one of the RRC or SDAP layers). The DU may be configured to implement the functions of at least one layer of the protocol layer below the PDCP layer (e.g., at least one of the RLC, MAC, or physical (PHY) layers). Alternatively, the CU may be configured to implement the functions of at least one layer of the protocol layer above the PDCP layer (e.g., at least one of the RRC or SDAP layers), and the DU may be configured to implement the functions of at least one layer of the protocol layer below the PDCP layer (e.g., at least one of the RLC, MAC, or PHY layers).

[0114] When a CU includes CU-CP and CU-UP, CU-CP is used to implement the control plane functions of the CU, and CU-UP is used to implement the user plane functions of the CU. For example, when a CU is configured to implement the functions of the PDCP layer, RRC layer, and SDAP layer, CU-CP is used to implement the RRC layer functions and the control plane functions of the PDCP layer, and CU-UP is used to implement the SDAP layer functions and the user plane functions of the PDCP layer.

[0115] The CU-CP can interact with network elements in the core network used to implement control plane functions. These network elements can be access and mobility function (AMF) network elements, such as the AMF in a 5G system. The AMF is responsible for mobility management in the mobile network, such as terminal device location updates, terminal device registration with the network, and terminal device handover.

[0116] CU-UP can interact with network elements in the core network used to implement user plane functions. These network elements, such as the user plane function (UPF) in a 5G system, are responsible for forwarding and receiving data in terminal devices.

[0117] Optionally, the ORAN architecture also includes a RAN Intelligent Controller (RIC) module.

[0118] It should be noted that the access network equipment can be a device or apparatus with a chip, or a device or apparatus with integrated circuits, or a chip, chip system, module, or control unit in the aforementioned device or apparatus; this application does not impose any specific limitation. It should also be noted that in this application, the term "access network equipment" can refer to the access network equipment itself, or to the chip, functional module, or integrated circuit within the access network equipment that performs the method provided in this application; this application does not impose any specific limitation.

[0119] Figure 2 illustrates a schematic diagram of the communication network element structure between the network device and the terminal device in this application. As shown in Figure 2(a), the terminal device 10 includes a processor 101, a memory 102, and a transceiver 103. The transceiver 103 includes a transmitter 1031, a receiver 1032, and an antenna 1033. As shown in Figure 2(b), the network device 20 includes a processor 201, a memory 202, and a transceiver 203. The transceiver 203 includes a transmitter 2031, a receiver 2032, and an antenna 2033. The receiver 1032 can be used to receive transmission control information through the antenna 1033, and the transmitter 1031 can be used to send transmission feedback information to the network device 20 through the antenna 1033. The transmitter 2031 can be used to send transmission control information to the terminal device 10 through the antenna 2033, and the receiver 2032 can be used to receive the transmission feedback information sent by the terminal device 10 through the antenna 2033.

[0120] The communication network element structure shown in Figure 2 is applicable to communication between network devices and terminal devices in the network system of Figure 1 above.

[0121] Referring to Figure 3, which is another schematic diagram of a wireless communication system applicable to embodiments of this application.

[0122] As shown in Figure 3, this wireless communication system may include core network equipment, access network equipment (such as RAN), terminal equipment, and service units (SUs). Access network equipment communicates with the core network equipment via a backhaul link and with the terminal equipment via an air interface. For example, the BBU in the access network equipment communicates with the core network via a backhaul link, and the RU in the access network equipment communicates with the terminal equipment via an air interface. The BBU can communicate with the RU via a fronthaul link; the BBU and RU may or may not be co-located. In some deployments, the BBU includes at least one CU and at least one DU, and the CU and DU communicate with each other via a midhaul link.

[0123] The Subsystem Unit (SU) can be a software module, a hardware device, or a combination of both. The SU communicates and collaborates with other ORAN components to achieve the overall radio access network functionality. For example, the SU may perform the following responsibilities: Protocol Processing: Handling radio access-related protocols, such as air interface protocols and MAC protocols. Data Processing: Processing uplink and downlink data, including encoding, decoding, modulation, and demodulation. Resource Management: Managing radio resources, such as spectrum, power, and time slots, to ensure efficient resource utilization. Security Functions: Providing security mechanisms, such as encryption, authentication, and authorization, to protect the security of wireless communication. Interface Functions: Interfacing with other ORAN components or external networks to achieve data exchange and collaborative operation.

[0124] It should be noted that the specific functions and definitions of the SU may vary depending on different ORAN implementations and application scenarios. For example, the SU can store channel maps and then transmit them to the CU / DU when needed.

[0125] Figure 4 is a schematic diagram of a wireless communication system 400 applicable to an embodiment of this application. The communication system 400 includes a terminal device (represented as UE in Figure 4), a radio access network (represented as next-generation radio access network (NG-RAN) in Figure 4), and a core network.

[0126] The radio access network (RAN) comprises one or more next-generation evolved node Bs (ng-eNBs) and gNBs. An ng-eNB represents an LTE base station accessing the 5G core network, and a gNB represents a 5G base station accessing the 5G core network. Communication between ng-eNBs and gNBs, or between two ng-eNBs, or between two gNBs, occurs via the Xn interface. The Xn interface can also be called the XnAP interface. The RAN connects to the core network via the NG control plane (NG-C) interface.

[0127] The core network includes access and mobility management functions (AMF) and location management functions (LMF), among other functions.

[0128] The AMF entity can receive location service requests related to the UE from the location services (LCS) entity of the 5G core network (5GC), or the AMF itself can initiate some location services on behalf of a specific UE and forward the location service requests to the LMF.

[0129] Terminal devices connect to the radio access network via the LTE-Uu interface of the LTE subscriber network through the ng-eNB. Terminal devices can also connect to the radio access network via the gNB through the NR-Uu interface of the NR subscriber network.

[0130] It should be understood that the communication system 400 may include one or more base stations (including ng-eNB or gNB). It should also be understood that the communication system 100 may include one or more terminal devices, such as one or more groups of terminal devices (UE set as shown in Figure 4). A gNB can send data or control signaling to one or more terminal devices. Multiple gNBs can also send data or control signaling to a single terminal device simultaneously.

[0131] Alternatively, the ng-eNB and gNB in ​​Figure 4 can be replaced with TRP, TP, reception point (RP), cell, etc.

[0132] Referring to Figure 5, as an example, Figure 5 is a schematic diagram of a wireless communication system 500 applicable to an embodiment of this application. As shown in Figure 5, the wireless communication system 500 may include at least one terminal device, such as UE101 shown in Figure 5. The wireless communication system 500 may also include multiple network devices (e.g., network devices may be base stations (BS) or TRPs, hereinafter referred to as base stations), wherein the multiple base stations include the base station of the serving cell of the terminal device 101 and the base stations of one or more neighboring cells of the serving cell. The base station of the serving cell (also referred to as the serving base station) is shown as 102 in Figure 5, and the base stations of the neighboring cells (also referred to as neighboring base stations) are shown as 103 and 104 in Figure 5. Both the network device and the terminal device can be configured with multiple antennas, and the network device and the terminal device can communicate using multi-antenna technology.

[0133] Optionally, the base station in Figure 5 can be replaced with TRP, TP, RP, cell, etc.

[0134] It should be noted that the architecture of the communication system shown in Figure 5 is only an example and is not limited to other architectures. For example, Figure 5 shows base station 102 of the serving cell and base stations 103 and 104 of two neighboring cells. Obviously, the communication system 500 can also include base stations of more neighboring cells.

[0135] The technical concept involved in the embodiments of this application is described below: channel map.

[0136] A channel map (or channel map information) is defined as a database used to store channel features. For example, channel map information divides physical cells into grid-level subdivisions, with each grid storing several channel features in the form of a matrix, vector, or scalar. Here, "grid" typically refers to a spatial partitioning method that divides continuous space into several small, discrete units (i.e., grids). Each grid is associated with a set of channel features that describe the channel information at that grid location. Exemplarily, in this application, "grid" is a term describing location or area division, but it can be replaced with similar terms, such as cell, grid point, region, range, or mesh, etc., and this application does not limit this usage.

[0137] The channel characteristics include, but are not limited to: basis, delay, delay spread, k-factor, number of multipaths, angle of arrival, peak angle of arrival, departure angle, beam identifier, beam angle, reference signal received power, reference signal received quality, reference signal received indication, grid associated scatterer information, channel statistical covariance matrix, angular power spectrum, power delay spectrum, or path loss.

[0138] Specifically, grid-associated scatterer information describes the type, location, size, and quantity of scatterers (such as buildings, mountains, trees, etc.) present at the grid location. These scatterers affect the propagation of wireless signals. The channel statistical covariance matrix describes the statistical characteristics of the channel impulse response. It contains correlation information of the channel at different times, frequencies, or spatial locations. The angular spectrum describes the directional distribution of signal arrival or departure. In multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) systems, the angular spectrum is crucial for beamforming and interference management. The time delay spectrum describes the multipath time delay distribution experienced by the signal during propagation. It reflects the differences in propagation time of the signal along different paths. Path loss describes the power attenuation of the signal during propagation. It is affected by various factors, such as distance, frequency, and scatterers.

[0139] Figure 6 illustrates the construction of a channel map. By perceiving the physical world, information such as fingerprints, location, distance, shape, and material can be obtained. A channel map can be constructed by building a twin environment corresponding to the physical world, utilizing the twin environment, ray tracing (RT) technology, and a historical database. Specifically, building the twin environment utilizes point cloud modeling and dynamic sensing technologies; ray tracing technology involves physical optics and full-wave simulation; and the historical database involves model interpolation, artificial intelligence (AI) / machine learning (ML), and virtual scatterer mapping technologies.

[0140] Currently, a commonly used method for constructing channel maps is as follows: Based on the physical location of the terminal devices, a uniformly divided physical grid is established. Here, "grid" usually refers to a spatial partitioning method that divides a continuous space into several small, discrete units (i.e., grids). Each grid is associated with a set of channel features, which describe the channel characteristics at that grid location. For example, physical cells can be divided into two-dimensional or three-dimensional grids, with each grid point storing several channel features in the form of a matrix, vector, or scalar. Terminal devices in each physical grid independently perform pilot measurements to obtain channel features. A mapping relationship is established between the location information of the terminal device and the channel features measured by the terminal device. Finally, the channel map of the physical grid is determined based on the multiple sets of mapping relationships included in the physical grid. For easier understanding, please refer to Figure 7, which is a schematic diagram of a channel map construction. The channel map of physical grid 1 shown in Figure 7 is obtained based on four sets of data in physical grid 1: channel features (Rhh), coordinates. The channel features included in the channel map of this physical grid are obtained by statistical averaging of the channel features corresponding to multiple sets of mapping relationships in the physical grid.

[0141] Besides grouping channel features with similar physical locations into the same grid based on their physical location, one or more channel features can also be grouped into the same grid based on their attributes. Grids obtained without physical location are called virtual grids or clustering results. Specifically: After the terminal device measures the channel features, it reports the channel features and the cell identification information associated with those features to the network device. The network device then performs clustering processing based on multiple channel features to obtain clustering results. Clustering (or simply clustering) refers to the process of dividing a set of physical or abstract objects into multiple classes composed of similar objects. The clusters generated by clustering are a set of data objects. Objects in the same cluster are similar to each other and different from objects in other clusters. An example is shown in Table 1-2.

[0142] Table 1-2

[0143] Referring to Table 1-2, taking cell 2 as an example, the network device clusters multiple channel features related to cell 2 to obtain virtual grid 2 and virtual grid 3. Virtual grid 2 includes channel feature 2, and virtual grid 3 includes channel feature 3. Since cells 2 and 3 have overlapping areas, the channel feature 3 measured in this overlapping area belongs to both cells 2 and 3. Therefore, virtual grid 3, determined by clustering the same channel feature 3, belongs to both cells 2 and 3.

[0144] In the aforementioned channel map construction method, the terminal device needs to report channel features to the network device. Then, the network device performs clustering processing based on the channel features to determine the clustering results. Finally, the network device constructs the channel map based on the clustering results corresponding to the channel features. The accuracy of the clustering results obtained by the network device from the channel features is limited by the feedback accuracy of the channel features from the terminal device. Since the data volume of channel features is large, reporting channel features to the network device by the terminal device consumes a significant amount of communication resources. Therefore, the terminal device often quantizes and compresses the channel features before reporting them to the network device. The clustering results determined by the network device based on the quantized and compressed channel features suffer from reduced accuracy, and consequently, the channel map determined based on these clustering results also suffers from reduced accuracy. Therefore, how to improve the accuracy of the clustering results, and thus improve the accuracy of the channel map, has become an urgent technical problem to be solved.

[0145] Based on this, this application proposes a communication method in which a terminal device receives a first reference signal and determines a first channel feature. The terminal device then sends first information based on the first channel feature and a clustering result set. The first information indicates the association between the first channel feature and the clustering result set. The clustering result set includes at least one clustering result, and any one of the at least one clustering result corresponds to a threshold. The threshold is used to determine the association between the first channel feature and the clustering result set. Using the communication method proposed in this application, after measuring the channel feature, the terminal device determines the first information based on the first channel feature and the clustering result set. This first information indicates the association between the first channel feature and the clustering result set. The clustering result corresponding to the first channel feature is called a third clustering result. The association between the first channel feature and the clustering result set includes: the third clustering result belongs to the clustering result set, or the third clustering result does not belong to the clustering result set. If the third clustering result does not belong to the clustering result set, it is also called the first clustering result; if the third clustering result belongs to the clustering result set, it is also called the second clustering result. The terminal device can determine the third clustering result corresponding to the first channel feature by detecting the correlation between the channel feature of any clustering result in the clustering result set and the first channel feature. The terminal device can determine the third clustering result corresponding to the first channel feature locally without reporting the first channel feature to the network device, saving communication resources and reducing communication overhead between the terminal device and the network device. Furthermore, in current solutions, to reduce communication overhead, the terminal device often needs to quantize and compress the channel feature before reporting it to the network device. Clustering based on the quantized and compressed channel feature by the network device suffers from reduced accuracy. In this solution, the terminal device performs clustering locally, without needing to quantize and compress the first channel feature. The terminal device can determine the third clustering result corresponding to the first channel feature based on the high-precision first channel feature, which not only reduces communication overhead but also improves the accuracy of the channel map.

[0146] Next, an embodiment of this application will be described using an example communication scenario. Please refer to Figure 8, which is a schematic diagram of a communication scenario according to an embodiment of this application. This communication scenario includes a first communication device and a second communication device. The first communication device may be a terminal device, or it may be a device or apparatus with a chip, or a device or apparatus with integrated circuits, or a chip, chip system, functional module, control unit, circuit, processor, or integrated circuit that can be applied to a terminal device or apparatus; the specifics are not limited in this application. The second communication device may be a network device, or it may be a device or apparatus with a chip, or a device or apparatus with integrated circuits, or a chip, chip system, functional module, control unit, circuit, processor, or integrated circuit that can be applied to a network device or apparatus; the specifics are not limited in this application. The cell managed by the second communication device includes the first cell. The first communication device is located in the first cell and can receive signals from the second communication device.

[0147] Based on the communication scenarios illustrated above, the communication method proposed in the embodiments of this application will be introduced next.

[0148] Please refer to Figure 9, which is a schematic flowchart of one embodiment of the communication method in this application. The communication method proposed in this application includes:

[0149] 901. The first communication device acquires the clustering result set.

[0150] In one possible implementation, the first communication device acquires a clustering result set, including: the first communication device receiving a clustering result set from a second communication device. This clustering result set can be carried in second information. Exemplarily, this second information can be carried in any of the following: downlink control information (DCI), medium access control element (MAC CE), or radio resource control (RRC). DCI is used to schedule various information for terminal devices, such as: frequency domain occupied resource blocks, time domain measured location, modulation scheme selection, etc. MAC CE is used to exchange control information. RRC is used to manage and control the allocation and use of radio resources to ensure efficient and stable network operation.

[0151] In another possible implementation, the first communication device acquires the clustering result set by: the first communication device acquiring the clustering result set from local second information. The second information is pre-configured in the first communication device, or the second information is information already stored by the first communication device.

[0152] The clustering result set includes at least one clustering result, and the at least one clustering result includes: the identification information of the clustering result and the second channel feature.

[0153] The at least one clustering result further includes at least one of the following: identification information of the second cell, a second correlation calculation method, or a second threshold corresponding to the second channel feature. The second channel feature is a channel feature obtained based on the measurement of the second reference signal; the second cell refers to the cell corresponding to the second reference signal; and the second correlation calculation method is used to calculate the correlation between the channel feature to be clustered and the second channel feature.

[0154] For example, the second channel characteristics include any one or more of the following: the delay of the second reference signal, the delay spread of the second reference signal, the k-factor associated with the second reference signal, the number of multipaths associated with the second reference signal, the angle of arrival of the second reference signal, the peak angle of arrival of the second reference signal, the departure angle of the second reference signal, the identifier of the beam carrying the second reference signal, the beam angle carrying the second reference signal, the reference signal received power (RSRP) of the second reference signal, the reference signal received quality (RSRQ) of the second reference signal, the reference signal received indication (RSRI) of the second reference signal, the grid associated scatterer information corresponding to the second reference signal, the channel statistical covariance matrix corresponding to the second reference signal, the angular power spectrum (PAS) of the second reference signal, the power delay spectrum (PDP) of the second reference signal, or the path loss of the second reference signal.

[0155] For example, the second reference signal includes, but is not limited to: channel state information-reference signal (CSI-RS), positioning reference signal (PRS), synchronization signal / physical broadcast channel block (SSB), phase tracking reference signal (PTRS), tracking reference signal (TRS), demodulation reference signal (DMRS), or sensing signal, etc.

[0156] In one example, the second correlation calculation method uses the Corr function, and for instance, it is calculated using the following formula:

[0157] Where a is the second channel feature, b is the channel feature to be clustered, and b H Let ||a|| be the conjugate transpose of b, ||a|| be the norm of a, and ||b|| be the norm of b. The larger the value of corr(a,b), the greater the correlation between the second channel feature and the channel feature to be clustered; conversely, the smaller the value of corr(a,b), the smaller the correlation between the second channel feature and the channel feature to be clustered.

[0158] In another example, the second correlation is calculated using the Dist function, for example, using the following formula:

[0159] Where 'a' represents the second channel feature, 'b' represents the channel feature to be clustered, Tr(a) represents the trace of the second channel feature (matrix), and Tr(b) represents the trace of the channel feature (matrix) to be clustered. The smaller the value of Dist(a,b), the greater the correlation between the second channel feature and the channel feature to be clustered; conversely, the larger the value of Dist(a,b), the smaller the correlation between the second channel feature and the channel feature to be clustered.

[0160] In one example, at least one clustering result in the clustering result set is shown in Table 2-1.

[0161] Table 2-1

[0162] A clustering result in the clustering result set shown in Table 2-1 can include a channel feature of a cell, such as clustering result 1-1, clustering result 1-2, clustering result 1-3, clustering result 1-4, and clustering result 2 illustrated in Table 2-1. Taking clustering result 1-1 as an example, clustering result 1-1 includes the second channel feature PAS1-1 of cell 1. The second correlation calculation method for the channel feature to be clustered and PAS1-1 in clustering result 1-1 is the Corr function, and the second threshold corresponding to the second channel feature PAS1-1 is 0.85. In an example scenario, the first communication device measures and determines the channel feature PAS-x. If the correlation between the channel feature PAS-x and PAS1-1 calculated using the Corr function is 0.9, since 0.9 is greater than 0.85, the clustering result corresponding to PAS-x is determined to be clustering result 1-1.

[0163] It should be noted that the cell corresponding to the channel feature to be clustered and the second cell corresponding to the second channel feature can be the same cell or different cells, and this application embodiment does not impose such restrictions. For example, the cell corresponding to the channel feature PAS-x can be cell 1 or other cells.

[0164] In another example, at least one clustering result in the clustering result set is shown in Table 2-2.

[0165] Table 2-2

[0166] A clustering result in the clustering result set shown in Table 2-2 can include multiple channel features of the same type in a cell, such as clustering result 3 illustrated in Table 2-2. Clustering result 3 includes the second channel features PAS3 and PAS4 of cell 1. The second correlation of PAS3 in clustering result 3 is calculated using the Corr function, and the second threshold corresponding to this second channel feature PAS3 is 0.85. Similarly, the second correlation of PAS4 in clustering result 3 is calculated using the Corr function, and the second threshold corresponding to this second channel feature PAS4 is 0.85. In an example scenario, during a first time period, a first communication device measures a reference signal to determine channel features PAS-x1 and PAS-x2. If the correlation between channel features PAS-x1 and PAS3 calculated using the Corr function is 0.9, and the correlation between channel features PAS-x2 and PAS4 calculated using the Corr function is 0.95. Since 0.9 is greater than 0.85 and 0.95 is greater than 0.85, the clustering result corresponding to PAS-x1 and PAS-x2 is determined to be clustering result 3.

[0167] Regarding the first time period, it can be assumed that the multiple reference signals received by the first communication device within the first time period are highly correlated and can be clustered. If the reception time difference between two reference signals is greater than the first time period, then the correlation between these two reference signals is considered to be low, and they should be clustered separately. For example, the first time period can be 5 minutes, 10 minutes, 30 minutes, or 120 minutes, etc.

[0168] In another example, at least one clustering result in the clustering result set is shown in Table 2-3.

[0169] Table 2-3

[0170] A clustering result in the clustering result set shown in Table 2-3 can include multiple different types of channel features of a cell, such as clustering result 4 illustrated in Table 2-3. Clustering result 4 includes the second channel features PAS5 and PDP1 of cell 1. In clustering result 4, the second correlation of PAS5 is calculated using the Corr function, and the second threshold corresponding to this second channel feature PAS5 is 0.85. Similarly, in clustering result 3, the second correlation of PDP1 is calculated using the Corr function, and the second threshold corresponding to this second channel feature PDP1 is 0.85. In an example scenario, during a first time period, a first communication device measures and determines channel features PAS-x1 and PDP-x1. If the correlation between channel features PAS-x1 and PAS5 calculated using the Corr function is 0.9, and the correlation between channel features PDP-x1 and PDP1 calculated using the Corr function is 0.95, since 0.9 is greater than 0.85 and 0.95 is greater than 0.85, the clustering result corresponding to PAS-x1 and PDP-x1 is determined as clustering result 4.

[0171] In another example, at least one clustering result in the clustering result set is shown in Table 2-4.

[0172] Table 2-4

[0173] A clustering result in the clustering result set shown in Table 2-4 can include multiple channel features from different cells, such as clustering result 5 and clustering result 6 illustrated in Table 2-4. Clustering result 5 includes the second channel feature PAS6 of cell 1 and the second channel feature PAS7 of cell 2. In clustering result 5, the second correlation of PAS6 is calculated using the Corr function, and the second threshold corresponding to this second channel feature PAS6 is 0.85. Similarly, the second correlation of PAS7 is calculated using the Corr function, and the second threshold corresponding to this second channel feature PAS7 is 0.85. In an example scenario, during a first time period, a first communication device measures and determines channel features PAS-x1 and PAS-x2, where PAS-x1 and PAS-x2 correspond to different cells. If the correlation between channel features PAS-x1 and PAS6 calculated using the Corr function is 0.9, and the correlation between channel features PAS-x2 and PAS7 calculated using the Corr function is 0.95. Since 0.9 is greater than 0.85 and 0.95 is greater than 0.85, the clustering result corresponding to PAS-x1 and PAS-x2 is determined as clustering result 5. Clustering result 6 includes the second channel feature PAS8 of cell 1 and the second channel feature PDP2 of cell 2. In clustering result 6, the second correlation of PAS8 is calculated using the Corr function, and the second threshold corresponding to this second channel feature PAS8 is 0.85. Similarly, the second correlation of PDP2 is calculated using the Corr function, and the second threshold corresponding to this second channel feature PDP2 is 0.85. In one example scenario, during a first time period, the first communication device measures and determines channel features PAS-x1 and PDP-x1, where PAS-x1 and PDP-x1 correspond to different cells. If the correlation between channel features PAS-x1 and PAS8 calculated using the Corr function is 0.9, and the correlation between channel features PDP-x1 and PDP2 calculated using the Corr function is 0.95. Since 0.9 is greater than 0.85 and 0.95 is greater than 0.85, the clustering result corresponding to PAS-x1 and PDP-x1 is determined to be clustering result 6.

[0174] It is understandable that the various clustering results shown in Tables 2-1 to 2-4 above can belong to the same clustering result set.

[0175] It should be noted that the execution order of steps 901 and steps 902 to 904 is not limited in the embodiments of this application.

[0176] 902. The second communication device sends third information to the first communication device, the third information being used to instruct the first communication device to report the correlation between the first channel feature and the clustering result set. For example, the third information may specifically instruct the first communication device to report the correlation between the first channel feature and at least one second channel feature corresponding to at least one clustering result in the clustering result set. Correspondingly, the first communication device receives the third information from the second communication device.

[0177] Step 902 is an optional step.

[0178] If step 902 is executed, then in step 905, the first information includes: the identification information of one or more clustering results in the clustering result set, and the correlation between the first channel feature and the second channel feature corresponding to the one or more clustering results.

[0179] If step 902 is not executed, then in step 905, the first information can be used to indicate either the first clustering result or the second clustering result. The first clustering result refers to the third clustering result obtained by the first communication device based on the first channel feature, where the first channel feature is the channel feature determined by the first communication device based on the received first reference signal. The first clustering result does not belong to the clustering result set. The second clustering result belongs to at least one clustering result included in the clustering result set, and the correlation between the first channel feature and the channel feature of the second clustering result is greater than or equal to the threshold corresponding to the second clustering result; that is, the third clustering result can be approximated by the second clustering result.

[0180] In one example, the third information is carried on the physical downlink control channel (PDCCH).

[0181] 903. The second communication device sends a first reference signal to the first communication device. Correspondingly, the first communication device receives the first reference signal from the second communication device.

[0182] In step 903, the first communication device receives a first reference signal from the second communication device, the first reference signal being a reference signal corresponding to the first cell.

[0183] For example, the first reference signal includes, but is not limited to: Channel State Information-Reference Signal (CSI-RS), Positioning Reference Signal (PRS), Synchronization Signal / Physical Layer Broadcast Channel Block (SSB), Phase Tracking Reference Signal (PTRS), Tracking Reference Signal (TRS), Demodulation Reference Signal (DMRS), or sensing signal, etc.

[0184] It should be noted that the execution order of steps 902 and 903 is not limited in this embodiment.

[0185] 904. The first communication device receives the first reference signal and determines the first channel characteristics.

[0186] In step 904, the first channel feature characterizes the features of the first reference signal propagating on the wireless channel.

[0187] For example, the first channel characteristic includes any one or more of the following: the delay of the first reference signal, the delay spread of the first reference signal, the k-factor associated with the first reference signal, the number of multipaths associated with the first reference signal, the angle of arrival of the first reference signal, the peak angle of arrival of the first reference signal, the departure angle of the first reference signal, the identifier of the beam carrying the first reference signal, the beam angle carrying the first reference signal, the reference signal received power (RSRP) of the first reference signal, the reference signal received quality (RSRQ) of the first reference signal, the reference signal received indication (RSRI) of the first reference signal, the grid associated scatterer information corresponding to the first reference signal, the channel statistical covariance matrix corresponding to the first reference signal, the angular power spectrum (PAS) of the first reference signal, the power delay spectrum (PDP) of the first reference signal, or the path loss of the first reference signal.

[0188] 905. The first communication device sends first information to the second communication device, the first information indicating the association between the first channel features and the clustering result set. Correspondingly, the second communication device receives the first information from the first communication device.

[0189] In one possible implementation, the first information can be used to indicate that the correlation between the first channel feature and the channel feature corresponding to a cluster result in the clustering result set is greater than or equal to a threshold corresponding to that cluster result. The clustering result set may include one or more of those cluster results.

[0190] In another possible implementation, the first information can be used to indicate that the correlation between the first channel feature and the channel feature corresponding to any cluster result in the clustering result set is less than the threshold corresponding to that cluster result. In other words, the correlation between the first channel feature and the channel feature corresponding to each of the cluster results is less than their respective thresholds.

[0191] In step 905, the first communication device processes the first channel feature to determine the clustering result corresponding to the first channel feature. This clustering result corresponding to the first channel feature is called the third clustering result. The third clustering result can be either the first clustering result or the second clustering result. The first clustering result is generated by the first communication device based on the first channel feature, and it does not belong to the clustering result set. It can be understood that the first clustering result is a newly created clustering result based on the first channel feature. The second clustering result belongs to the clustering result set. The second clustering result is a clustering result in the clustering result set whose correlation with the first channel feature satisfies the conditions of the second clustering result; for example, the correlation between the first channel feature and the second channel feature corresponding to the second clustering result is greater than or equal to the threshold of the second clustering result.

[0192] Optionally, if step 902 is performed, the first information includes: the identification information of one or more clustering results in the clustering result set, and the correlation between the first channel feature and the second channel feature corresponding to each of the one or more clustering results.

[0193] First, let's introduce the results of the first clustering:

[0194] In one possible implementation, the first clustering result includes at least one of the following: identification information of the first clustering result, a first channel feature, identification information of the first cell, a first correlation calculation method, or a first threshold corresponding to the first channel feature. The first correlation calculation method is used to calculate the correlation between the channel feature to be clustered and the first channel feature.

[0195] In one example, the first correlation calculation method uses the Corr function, and for example, it is calculated using the following formula:

[0196] Where a is the first channel feature, b is the channel feature to be clustered, and b H Let ||a|| be the conjugate transpose of b, ||a|| be the norm of a, and ||b|| be the norm of b. The larger the value of corr(a,b), the greater the correlation between the first channel feature and the channel features to be clustered; conversely, the smaller the value of corr(a,b), the smaller the correlation between the first channel feature and the channel features to be clustered.

[0197] In another example, the first correlation is calculated using the Dist function, for example, using the following formula:

[0198] Where 'a' represents the first channel feature and 'b' represents the channel feature to be clustered. The smaller the value of Dist(a,b), the greater the correlation between the first channel feature and the channel feature to be clustered; conversely, the larger the value of Dist(a,b), the smaller the correlation between the first channel feature and the channel feature to be clustered.

[0199] In one example, the results of the first clustering are shown in Table 3.

[0200] Table 3

[0201] As shown in Table 3, the first clustering results include: the first channel feature is PAS-x1, the first cell corresponding to the first channel feature is Cell1, the first correlation calculation method corresponding to the first channel feature is the Corr function, and the first threshold is 0.85.

[0202] Table 4

[0203] As shown in Table 4, the first clustering result includes two first channel features: PDP-x1 and PAS-x1. The first cell corresponding to PDP-x1 is Cell1, the first correlation calculation method for PDP-x1 is the Corr function, and the first threshold for PDP-x1 is 0.85. The first cell corresponding to PAS-x1 is Cell1, the first correlation calculation method for PAS-x1 is the Corr function, and the first threshold for PAS-x1 is 0.85.

[0204] Secondly, we will introduce the first piece of information, which includes several possible implementation methods, which will be explained below:

[0205] In implementation method A, the first information includes: the identifier information of the first clustering result, the first channel feature, the identifier information of the first cell, the first correlation calculation method, and the first threshold corresponding to the first channel feature. Alternatively, the first information includes: the identifier information of the first clustering result, the first channel feature, the first correlation calculation method, and the first threshold corresponding to the first channel feature.

[0206] In implementation method B, the first information includes: the identifier of the first clustering result, the first channel feature, the identifier of the first cell, and the first threshold. Alternatively, the first information includes: the identifier of the first clustering result, the first channel feature, and the first threshold corresponding to the first channel feature.

[0207] In implementation method B, the first correlation calculation method can be determined by the second communication device, or it can be a correlation calculation method predefined by the protocol, or it can be a correlation calculation method pre-configured in the first and / or second communication devices. Therefore, the first communication device does not need to report the first and second correlation calculation methods to the second communication device.

[0208] In implementation method C, the first information includes: the identifier information of the first clustering result, the first channel feature, and the identifier information of the first cell. Alternatively, the first information includes: the identifier information of the first clustering result and the first channel feature.

[0209] In implementation C, the first threshold and the first correlation calculation method can be determined by the second communication device, or the first threshold and the first correlation calculation method can be a correlation calculation method predefined by the protocol, or the first threshold and the first correlation calculation method can be a correlation calculation method pre-configured in the first communication device and / or the second communication device. Therefore, the first communication device does not need to report the first threshold and the first correlation calculation method to the second communication device.

[0210] In implementation method D, the first information includes: the identification information of the first clustering result.

[0211] In implementation D, the second communication device determines, based on the identifier information of the first clustering result, that the clustering result set does not include the first clustering result; therefore, the second communication device needs to generate the first clustering result. After sending the first information, the first communication device reports the first channel feature corresponding to the first information to the second communication device. Based on the first channel feature, the second communication device determines the identifier information, first threshold, and first correlation calculation method of the corresponding first clustering result, and generates the first clustering result. Then, the second communication device updates the clustering result set with the first clustering result, and the updated clustering result set includes the first clustering result.

[0212] Next, we will explain how the first communication device determines the first information:

[0213] First, the first communication device determines whether the clustering result corresponding to the first channel feature is included in the clustering result set (obtained in step 901). That is, the first communication device determines whether the correlation between the first channel feature and the second channel feature corresponding to any clustering result in the clustering result set meets the requirements of a second threshold, which is the threshold corresponding to the second channel feature. The clustering result corresponding to the first channel feature is also called the third clustering result.

[0214] If the correlation between the first channel feature and the second channel feature included in any clustering result in the clustering result set does not meet the requirement of the second threshold corresponding to the second channel feature, then it is considered that the third clustering result is not included in the clustering result set, and the process proceeds to branch A1.

[0215] If the correlation between the first channel feature and the second channel feature corresponding to a cluster result X in the clustering result set meets the requirement of the second threshold corresponding to the second channel feature, then the first communication device determines that the clustering result set includes a third clustering result, and this clustering result X is taken as the second clustering result and enters branch A2. The clustering result set may include one or more clustering results that meet the above correlation requirements.

[0216] In one possible implementation, the second clustering result can be the clustering result with the highest correlation among multiple clustering results that satisfy the above conditions. After the first communication device measures the first channel feature, it calculates the correlation between the first channel feature and each clustering result in the clustering result set, as shown in Table 5.

[0217] Table 5

[0218] As shown in Table 5 above, the clustering results with a correlation greater than or equal to the second threshold with the first channel feature include: clustering result 1, clustering result 2, and clustering result 3. The clustering result with the highest correlation to the first channel feature is clustering result 1; therefore, clustering result 1 is taken as the second clustering result.

[0219] Branches A1 and A2 are explained below:

[0220] Branch A1: If the clustering result set does not include the third clustering result, or the correlation between all clustering results in the clustering result set and the first channel feature does not meet the correlation requirement of the clustering result, or the clustering result set obtained by the first communication device is an empty set, then the third clustering result is also called the first clustering result. In this case, the first communication device determines that it needs to create a new first clustering result and report it to the second communication device; or, the first communication device needs to notify the second communication device to create the new first clustering result. In branch A1, the first information can be implemented using any one of the above implementation methods A to D.

[0221] The correlation between all clustering results in the clustering result set and the first channel feature does not meet the correlation requirement of the clustering result. Specifically, no clustering result in the clustering result set meets the following condition: the correlation between the first channel feature and the second channel feature corresponding to the clustering result is greater than or equal to the second threshold of the clustering result.

[0222] Branch A2: If the clustering result set includes the third clustering result, then the first information can be implemented as follows:

[0223] In this case, the correlation between the first channel feature of the first communication device and the second channel feature corresponding to the second clustering result in the clustering result set is greater than or equal to the corresponding second threshold.

[0224] In implementation method E, the first information includes: the identification information of the second clustering result.

[0225] Optionally, if step 903 is executed, the first communication device may report the correlation between the first channel feature and one or more clustering results in the clustering result set. Taking Table 5 as an example, the first communication device sends first information, which includes: "(1,0.95), (2,0.88), (3,0.85)", the meaning of which is: the correlation between the first channel feature and clustering result 1 in the clustering result set is 0.95, the correlation between the first channel feature and clustering result 2 in the clustering result set is 0.88, and the correlation between the first channel feature and clustering result 3 in the clustering result set is 0.85.

[0226] Referring to Table 2 above, an example scenario is as follows: the first channel feature is PAS-x1. The correlations (calculated using the second correlation calculation method, the Corr function) between PAS-x1 and PAS1-1, PAS1-2, PAS1-3, and PAS1-4 in Table 2 are 0.7 (PAS1-1), 0.6 (PAS1-2), 0.9 (PAS1-3), and 0.8 (PAS8), respectively. The first communication device determines that the correlation between the second channel feature of clustering result 1-3 and the first channel feature meets the requirements of the second threshold. Therefore, the first communication device determines the second clustering result as clustering result 1-3, and the first information includes the identification information "1-3" of the clustering result.

[0227] In step 905, after the second communication device receives the first information, the second communication device generates or updates the channel map based on the first information, and the channel map includes the first clustering result.

[0228] In one example, the service unit (SU) of the second communication device generates or updates the channel map based on the first clustering result.

[0229] Optionally, the channel map generation unit obtains the first clustering result, and then generates or updates the channel map based on the first clustering result. This channel map generation unit may be an entity or functional unit independent of the second communication device, or it may be integrated into the second communication device; this embodiment does not impose any limitations on this.

[0230] In this embodiment, after measuring the channel characteristics, the first communication device determines first information based on the first channel characteristics and the clustering result set. This first information indicates the association between the first channel characteristics and the clustering result set. The association between the first channel characteristics and the clustering result set includes: the clustering result corresponding to the first channel characteristics belongs to the clustering result set, or the clustering result corresponding to the first channel characteristics does not belong to the clustering result set. The first communication device determines the first clustering result or the second clustering result corresponding to the first channel characteristics by detecting the correlation between the channel characteristics of any clustering result in the clustering result set and the first channel characteristics. When the correlation between the channel characteristics corresponding to all clustering results in the clustering result set and the first channel characteristics does not meet the threshold requirement of the clustering result, the first communication device or the second communication device creates a new first clustering result based on the first channel characteristics. This first clustering result includes the first channel characteristics. When the first communication device determines that a second clustering result exists in the clustering result set, and the correlation between the second channel characteristics corresponding to the second clustering result and the first channel characteristics meets the threshold requirement of the second clustering result, the clustering result corresponding to the first channel characteristics is determined to be the second clustering result. Since the correlation between the first channel feature and the second channel feature corresponding to the second clustering result meets the threshold requirement of the second clustering result, the second clustering result has high accuracy. Furthermore, since the first communication device does not need to report the first channel feature to the second communication device, the first communication device can determine the first or second clustering result corresponding to the first channel feature based on the high-precision first channel feature, improving the accuracy of the first or second clustering result. The channel map generated based on the high-accuracy first clustering result improves the accuracy of the channel map. In addition, the first communication device can report the association between the first channel feature and the clustering result set in various ways to save communication overhead.

[0231] In conjunction with the foregoing embodiments, another implementation of the first information will be introduced next.

[0232] Please refer to Figure 10, which is a schematic flowchart of another embodiment of the communication method in this application. The communication method proposed in this application includes:

[0233] 1001. The first communication device acquires the clustering result set.

[0234] 1002. The second communication device sends a first reference signal to the first communication device. Correspondingly, the first communication device receives the first reference signal from the second communication device.

[0235] 1003. The first communication device receives the first reference signal and determines the first channel characteristics.

[0236] Steps 1001, 1002, and 1003 are similar to steps 901, 902, and 904 mentioned above, and will not be repeated here.

[0237] 1004. The first communication device sends first information to the second communication device, the first information being used to instruct the second communication device whether to generate a first clustering result based on the first channel characteristics. Correspondingly, the second communication device receives the first information from the first communication device.

[0238] Step 1004 is similar to the aforementioned step 905. First, the first communication device determines whether the third clustering result is included in the clustering result set (obtained in step 1001).

[0239] Specifically, the first communication device detects whether the correlation between the first channel feature and the second channel feature included in any clustering result in the clustering result set meets the requirements of the second threshold. The correlation calculation method between the first channel feature and the second channel feature adopts the second correlation calculation method corresponding to the second channel feature.

[0240] If the correlation between the first channel feature and the second channel feature included in any of the clustering results in the clustering result set does not meet the requirement of the second threshold corresponding to the second channel feature, then it is considered that the third clustering result is not included in the clustering result set, and the process proceeds to branch B1.

[0241] If the correlation between the first channel feature and the second channel feature corresponding to a cluster result X in the clustering result set meets the requirement of the second threshold corresponding to the second channel feature, then the first communication device determines that the clustering result set includes a third clustering result, and this clustering result X is taken as the second clustering result and enters branch B2. The clustering result set may include one or more clustering results that meet the above correlation requirement.

[0242] Branches B1 and B2 are explained below:

[0243] Branch B1: If the clustering result set does not include the third clustering result, or the clustering result set obtained by the first communication device is an empty set, then the first communication device determines that the third clustering result is a new clustering result. In this case, the third clustering result is also called the first clustering result. The first communication device needs to notify the second communication device to generate the first clustering result based on the first channel characteristics. Specifically, the first information may be implemented in the following ways:

[0244] In implementation F, the first information includes a first field, and this first field has a first value. The first field with the first value indicates that the second communication device generates a first clustering result based on the first channel characteristics. Alternatively, the first field with the first value indicates that the clustering result set does not include a third clustering result.

[0245] In implementation F, in addition to sending the first information, the first communication device also sends the first channel feature corresponding to the first information. The second communication device determines the corresponding first threshold and a first correlation calculation method based on the first channel feature, and generates a first clustering result.

[0246] Optionally, the first communication device may directly report the first channel feature to the second communication device, or the first communication device may quantify and report the first channel feature.

[0247] Optionally, the second communication device updates the clustering result set with the first clustering result, and the updated clustering result set includes the first clustering result. Then, the second communication device sends updated second information to the first communication device, and the updated second information indicates the updated clustering result set.

[0248] For example, the length of the first field is 1 bit, and the first value is "1".

[0249] Branch B2: If the clustering result set includes the third clustering result, then the first communication device notifies the second communication device that it is not necessary to generate the first clustering result based on the first channel feature. One possible implementation of this first information is as follows:

[0250] In this implementation, the first information includes a first field, and the first field has a second value. The first field taking the second value indicates that the second communication device does not need to generate a first clustering result based on the first channel characteristics. Alternatively, the first field taking the second value indicates that the clustering result set includes a third clustering result.

[0251] For example, the first field has a length of 1 bit and the second value is "0".

[0252] For example, the first information is carried in the uplink control information.

[0253] In one possible implementation of branch B2, after the first communication device determines that the clustering result set includes the third clustering result, the first communication device may not report the first channel feature to the second communication device.

[0254] In another possible implementation of branch B2, after the first communication device determines that the clustering result set includes the third clustering result, the first communication device reports the first channel feature to the second communication device. At this time, the first communication device instructs the second communication device not to generate the first clustering result based on the first channel feature received by the second communication device through first information.

[0255] In the above technical solution, after the first communication device measures the first channel feature, it detects the correlation between the first channel feature and any clustering result in the existing clustering result set. Based on the correlation detection result, the first communication device sends first information, which instructs the second communication device whether to generate a first clustering result based on the first channel feature. Since the first information occupies relatively little communication overhead, the first communication device can notify the second communication device through the first information that it does not need to generate a corresponding first clustering result based on the first channel feature subsequently reported by the first communication device without consuming a large amount of communication resources, thus improving communication efficiency.

[0256] In conjunction with the foregoing embodiments, it should be noted that the channel features in the clustering results can also be replaced with location information. Using a similar method to the above scheme, after the first communication device measures and obtains its own location information, it can determine the second clustering result corresponding to the location information of the first communication device. The Euclidean distance between the location information of the second clustering result and the location information of the first communication device is greater than or equal to a threshold value of the second clustering result.

[0257] Next, the communication device involved in the embodiments of this application will be described. This communication device can be used in at least one of the first communication device or the second communication device in the foregoing embodiments.

[0258] Figure 11 is a schematic diagram of a communication device according to an embodiment of this application. Referring to Figure 11, the communication device 1100 includes a transceiver module 1101 and a processing module 1102.

[0259] The communication device 1100 includes a first communication device or components (e.g., a chip or chip system), modules, or units within the first communication device. Alternatively, the communication device 1100 includes a second communication device or components (e.g., a chip or chip system), modules, or units within the second communication device.

[0260] The communication device 1100 can be used to perform all or part of the steps performed by the first communication device in the embodiments shown in FIG9 to FIG10. For details, please refer to the relevant descriptions in the embodiments shown in FIG9 to FIG10.

[0261] The communication device 1100 can be used to perform all or part of the steps performed by the second communication device in the embodiments shown in FIG9 to FIG10. For details, please refer to the relevant descriptions in the embodiments shown in FIG9 to FIG10.

[0262] The processing module 1102 is used for data processing. The transceiver module 1101 is used to implement the corresponding communication functions.

[0263] Optionally, the transceiver module 1101 may include a sending module and a receiving module. The sending module is used to perform the sending operation in the above method embodiments. The receiving module is used to perform the receiving operation in the above method embodiments.

[0264] Optionally, the communication device 1100 may include a transmitting module but not a receiving module. Alternatively, the communication device 1100 may include a receiving module but not a transmitting module. Specifically, it depends on whether the above-described scheme performed by the communication device 1100 includes both transmitting and receiving actions.

[0265] Optionally, the communication device 1100 may further include a storage module, which can be used to store at least one of the instructions or data. The processing module 1102 can read at least one of the instructions or data in the storage module so that the communication device 1100 can implement the aforementioned method embodiment.

[0266] The communication device 1100 can be used to perform the actions performed by the first communication device in the embodiments shown in Figures 9 and 10. The processing module 1102 is used to perform processing-related operations on the first communication device side in the embodiments shown in Figures 9 and 10. The transceiver module 1101 is used to perform receiving or transmitting-related operations on the first communication device side in the embodiments shown in Figures 9 and 10.

[0267] The communication device 1100 can be used to perform the actions performed by the second communication device in the embodiments shown in Figures 9 and 10. The processing module 1102 is used to perform processing-related operations on the second communication device side in the embodiments shown in Figures 9 and 10. The transceiver module 1101 is used to perform receiving or transmitting-related operations on the second communication device side in the embodiments shown in Figures 9 and 10.

[0268] For example, the communication device 1100 is used to execute the following scheme.

[0269] In one example, when communication device 1100 is applied to a first communication device, the communication device 1100 includes:

[0270] Transceiver module 1101 is used to receive a first reference signal and determine a first channel characteristic;

[0271] The transceiver module 1101 is further configured to send first information based on the first channel feature and the clustering result set, wherein the first information is used to indicate the association between the first channel feature and the clustering result set, the clustering result set includes at least one clustering result, and any one of the at least one clustering result corresponds to a threshold, the threshold being used to determine the association between the first channel feature and the clustering result set.

[0272] The possible implementation methods and descriptions of the first channel features, clustering result set, and first information can be found in the corresponding contents of the embodiments in Figures 9 and 10, and will not be repeated here.

[0273] In another example, communication device 1100 is applied to a second communication device, the communication device 1100 comprising:

[0274] The transceiver module 1101 is used to receive first information, which is used to indicate the association between a first channel feature and a clustering result set. The clustering result set includes at least one clustering result, and any one of the at least one clustering result corresponds to a threshold. The threshold is used to determine the association between the first channel feature and the clustering result set.

[0275] The transceiver module 1101 is further configured to determine a third clustering result based on the first information, wherein the third clustering result includes the first channel features.

[0276] For other implementation methods, please refer to the relevant descriptions in the embodiments shown in Figures 9 and 10 above, which will not be repeated here.

[0277] It should be understood that the specific procedures for each module to perform the above-mentioned corresponding processes have been described in detail in the above method embodiments, and will not be repeated here for the sake of brevity.

[0278] The processing module 1102 in the above embodiments can be implemented by at least one processor or processor-related circuitry. The transceiver module 1101 can be implemented by a transceiver or transceiver-related circuitry. The transceiver module 1101 can also be referred to as a communication module or communication interface. The storage module can be implemented by at least one memory.

[0279] This application also provides another communication device, and FIG12 is another structural schematic diagram of the communication device according to an embodiment of this application. Referring to FIG12, the communication device 1200 includes a processor 1201.

[0280] Optionally, the communication device 1200 may also include a memory 1202.

[0281] Optionally, the communication device 1200 may also include a transceiver 1203.

[0282] In one possible implementation, the processor 1201, memory 1202, and transceiver 1203 are connected via a bus, and the memory 1202 stores computer instructions.

[0283] In one possible implementation, when the communication device 1200 includes a second communication device, or a CU or DU included in the second communication device, or a component (e.g., a chip or chip system), module, or unit within the second communication device, the communication device 1200 can be used to perform the steps performed by the second communication device in the above method embodiments, and the relevant descriptions in the above method embodiments can be referred to.

[0284] Optionally, the processing module 1102 in the embodiment shown in FIG11 may be the processor 1201, and the transceiver module 1101 in the embodiment shown in FIG11 may be the transceiver 1203. Alternatively, the processing module 1102 in the embodiment shown in FIG11 may be the processor 1201, and the transceiver module 1101 in the embodiment shown in FIG11 may be the transceiver 1203.

[0285] This application also provides a communication device. Figure 13 is another structural schematic diagram of the communication device according to an embodiment of this application. Referring to Figure 13, the communication device 1300 can be the first communication device in the above method embodiments, or it can be a component (e.g., a chip or chip system), module, or unit of the first communication device in the above method embodiments. The communication device 1300 can be used to perform the steps performed by the first communication device in the above method embodiments, and can be referred to the relevant descriptions in the above method embodiments.

[0286] Processors are mainly used to process data or signals, control communication devices, execute corresponding software programs, and process data from software programs.

[0287] The memory is mainly used to store software programs and data. The radio frequency (RF) circuit is mainly used for the conversion between baseband signals and RF signals, as well as the processing of RF signals.

[0288] Antennas are primarily used for transmitting and receiving radio frequency signals in the form of electromagnetic waves.

[0289] Optionally, the communication device 1300 may also include input / output devices, such as a touch screen, a display screen, a keyboard, etc., primarily used to receive user input data and output data to the user.

[0290] When data needs to be transmitted, the processor performs baseband processing on the data to be transmitted and outputs the baseband signal to the radio frequency (RF) circuit. The RF circuit then processes the baseband signal and transmits it outward as electromagnetic waves through the antenna. When data is sent to the communication device, the RF circuit receives the RF signal through the antenna, converts it into a baseband signal, and outputs the baseband signal to the processor. The processor then converts the baseband signal back into data and processes it.

[0291] For ease of explanation, only one memory and processor are shown in Figure 13. In actual communication device products, there may be one or more processors and one or more memories. Memory may also be called storage medium or storage device, etc. Memory may be set up independently of the processor or integrated with the processor; this application embodiment does not limit this.

[0292] In this embodiment, the antenna and radio frequency circuit with transceiver functions can be regarded as the transceiver unit of the communication device, and the processor with processing functions can be regarded as the processing unit of the communication device. As shown in FIG13, the communication device 1300 includes a transceiver unit 1310 and a processing unit 1320. The transceiver unit can also be called a transceiver, transceiver machine, transceiver device, etc. The processing unit can also be called a processor, processing board, processing module, processing device, etc.

[0293] Optionally, the devices in transceiver unit 1310 used for receiving functions can be considered as receiving units, and the devices in transceiver unit 1310 used for transmitting functions can be considered as transmitting units. That is, transceiver unit 1310 includes both receiving and transmitting units. A transceiver unit can also be called a transceiver, transceiver circuit, etc. A receiving unit can also be called a receiver, receiver, or receiving circuit, etc. A transmitting unit can also be called a transmitter, transmitter, or transmitting circuit, etc.

[0294] It should be understood that the transceiver unit 1310 is used to perform the transmission and reception operations of at least one of the first communication devices in the above method embodiments, and the processing unit 1320 is used to perform other operations on at least one of the first communication devices in the above method embodiments besides the transmission and reception operations.

[0295] When the communication device is a chip or chip system, the chip or chip system includes a transceiver unit and a processing unit. The transceiver unit can be an input / output circuit or a communication interface; the processing unit is a processor, microprocessor, integrated circuit, or logic circuit integrated on the chip or chip system. In the above method embodiments, the sending operation corresponds to the output of the input / output circuit, and the receiving operation corresponds to the input of the input / output circuit.

[0296] This application also provides another communication system, which includes a second communication device and a first communication device. The second communication device is used to perform all or part of the steps performed by the second communication device in the embodiments shown in FIG9 to FIG10, and the first communication device is used to perform all or part of the steps performed by the first communication device in the embodiments shown in FIG9 to FIG10.

[0297] This application also provides a computer program product including computer instructions, which, when run on a computer, causes the computer to perform the method of the embodiments shown in Figures 9 to 10 above.

[0298] This application also provides a computer-readable storage medium including computer instructions that, when executed on a computer, cause the computer to perform the methods shown in the embodiments of Figures 9 and 10 above.

[0299] This application also provides a chip device, including a processor, for calling a computer program or computer instructions stored in a memory, so that the processor executes the method of the embodiments shown in Figures 9 to 10 above.

[0300] Optionally, the processor is coupled to the memory via an interface.

[0301] Optionally, the chip device may also include a memory in which computer programs or computer instructions are stored.

[0302] The processor mentioned above can be a general-purpose central processing unit, a microprocessor, an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), or one or more integrated circuits used to control the execution of a program for controlling the methods of the embodiments shown in Figures 9 and 10. The memory mentioned above can be read-only memory (ROM) or other types of static storage devices capable of storing static information and instructions, such as random access memory (RAM).

[0303] In the several embodiments provided in this application, it should be understood that the disclosed systems, apparatuses, and methods can be implemented in other ways. For example, the apparatus embodiments described above are merely illustrative; for instance, the division of units is only a logical functional division, and in actual implementation, there may be other division methods. For example, multiple units or components may be combined or integrated into another system, or some features may be ignored or not executed. Furthermore, the coupling or direct coupling or communication connection shown or discussed may be an indirect coupling or communication connection between apparatuses or units through some interfaces, and may be electrical, mechanical, or other forms.

[0304] The units described as separate components may or may not be physically separate. The components shown as units may or may not be physical units; that is, they may be located in one place or distributed across multiple network units. Some or all of the units can be selected to achieve the purpose of this embodiment according to actual needs.

[0305] Furthermore, the functional units in the various embodiments of this application can be integrated into one processing unit, or each unit can exist physically separately, or two or more units can be integrated into one unit. The integrated unit can be implemented in hardware or as a software functional unit.

[0306] If the integrated unit is implemented as a software functional unit and sold or used as an independent product, it can be stored in a computer-readable storage medium. Based on this understanding, the part of the technical solution that makes an essential contribution, or all or 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 second communication device, etc.) to execute all or part of the steps of the methods described in the various embodiments of this application.

[0307] The above-described embodiments are only used to illustrate the technical solutions of this application, and are not intended to limit it. Although this application has been described in detail with reference to the foregoing embodiments, those skilled in the art should understand that modifications can still be made to the technical solutions described in the foregoing embodiments, or equivalent substitutions can be made to some of the technical features. Such modifications or substitutions do not cause the essence of the corresponding technical solutions to deviate from the scope of the technical solutions of the embodiments of this application.

Claims

1. A communication method applied to a first communication device, characterized in that, The method includes: Obtain a clustering result set, wherein the clustering result set includes at least one clustering result; A first channel characteristic is determined, which is obtained based on a received first reference signal; Based on the first channel feature and the clustering result set, first information is sent, the first information being used to indicate the association between the first channel feature and the clustering result set, and any one of the at least one clustering result corresponds to a threshold, the threshold being used to determine the association between the first channel feature and the clustering result set.

2. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that, The method further includes: Receive second information, which indicates the clustering result set.

3. The method according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that, The first information is used to indicate the association between the first channel feature and the clustering result set, including: The first information is used to indicate that the correlation between the first channel feature and the channel feature corresponding to the second clustering result in the clustering result set is greater than or equal to the threshold corresponding to the second clustering result.

4. The method according to claim 3, characterized in that, The first information includes the identification information of the second clustering result.

5. The method according to claim 3 or 4, characterized in that, The second clustering result is the clustering result in which the channel feature corresponding to each clustering result in the clustering result set has the highest correlation with the first channel feature.

6. The method according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that, The first information is used to indicate the association between the first channel feature and the clustering result set, including: The first information is used to indicate that the correlation between the first channel feature and the second channel feature corresponding to any clustering result in the clustering result set is less than the threshold corresponding to any clustering result.

7. The method according to claim 6, characterized in that, The first information includes the identifier information of the first clustering result and the first channel feature, wherein the first clustering result is the clustering result corresponding to the first channel feature.

8. The method according to claim 7, characterized in that, The first information also includes: The first threshold or the first correlation calculation method, wherein the first correlation calculation method is used to calculate the correlation between the channel feature to be clustered and the first channel feature, and the first threshold is the threshold corresponding to the first correlation calculation method.

9. The method according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that, The first information includes: the identification information of the at least one clustering result and the correlation between the first channel feature and the second channel feature corresponding to each of the at least one clustering result.

10. The method according to claim 9, characterized in that, The method further includes: The third information is received, which instructs the first communication device to report the association between the first channel feature and the clustering result set.

11. The method according to any one of claims 1-10, characterized in that, The first channel feature and / or the second channel feature includes at least one of the following: Substrate, delay, delay spread, k-factor, number of multipaths, angle of arrival, peak angle of arrival, departure angle, beam identifier, beam angle, reference signal received power, reference signal received quality, reference signal received indication, grid associated scatterer information, channel statistical covariance matrix, angular power spectrum, power delay spectrum, or path loss.

12. The method according to any one of claims 1-11, characterized in that, The clustering result set includes at least one of the following: The at least one clustering result's respective identifier information, the at least one clustering result's corresponding second channel feature, the at least one clustering result's respective threshold, or the at least one clustering result's respective correlation calculation method. The correlation calculation method for each of the at least one clustering result is used to calculate the correlation between the channel feature to be clustered and the second channel feature corresponding to each of the at least one clustering result. The threshold for each of the at least one clustering results is the threshold corresponding to the correlation calculation method for each of the at least one clustering results.

13. A communication method applied to a second communication device, characterized in that, The method includes: Receive first information, the first information being used to indicate the association between a first channel feature and a clustering result set, the clustering result set including at least one clustering result, any one of the at least one clustering result corresponding to a threshold, the threshold being used to determine the association between the first channel feature and the clustering result set; Based on the first information, a third clustering result is determined, wherein the third clustering result includes the first channel features.

14. The method according to claim 13, characterized in that, The method further includes: Send a second message, which indicates the clustering result set.

15. The method according to claim 13 or 14, characterized in that, The first information is used to indicate the association between the first channel feature and the clustering result set, including: The first information is used to indicate that the correlation between the first channel feature and the channel feature corresponding to the second clustering result in the clustering result set is greater than or equal to the threshold corresponding to the second clustering result.

16. The method according to claim 15, characterized in that, The first information includes the identification information of the second clustering result.

17. The method according to claim 15 or 16, characterized in that, The second clustering result is the clustering result in which the channel feature corresponding to each clustering result in the clustering result set has the highest correlation with the first channel feature.

18. The method according to claim 13 or 14, characterized in that, The first information is used to indicate the association between the first channel feature and the clustering result set, including: The first information is used to indicate that the correlation between the first channel feature and the second channel feature corresponding to any clustering result in the clustering result set is less than the threshold corresponding to any clustering result.

19. The method according to claim 18, characterized in that, The first information includes the identifier information of the first clustering result and the first channel feature, wherein the first clustering result is the clustering result corresponding to the first channel feature.

20. The method according to claim 19, characterized in that, The first information also includes: The first threshold or the first correlation calculation method, wherein the first correlation calculation method is used to calculate the correlation between the channel feature to be clustered and the first channel feature, and the first threshold is the threshold corresponding to the first correlation calculation method.

21. The method according to claim 13 or 14, characterized in that, The first information includes: the identification information of the at least one clustering result and the correlation between the first channel feature and the second channel feature corresponding to each of the at least one clustering result.

22. The method according to claim 21, characterized in that, The method further includes: A third message is sent, which instructs the first communication device to report the association between the first channel feature and the clustering result set.

23. The method according to any one of claims 13-22, characterized in that, The first channel feature and / or the second channel feature includes at least one of the following: Substrate, delay, delay spread, k-factor, number of multipaths, angle of arrival, peak angle of arrival, departure angle, beam identifier, beam angle, reference signal received power, reference signal received quality, reference signal received indication, grid associated scatterer information, channel statistical covariance matrix, angular power spectrum, power delay spectrum, or path loss.

24. The method according to any one of claims 13-23, characterized in that, The clustering result set includes at least one of the following: The at least one clustering result's respective identifier information, the at least one clustering result's corresponding second channel feature, the at least one clustering result's respective threshold, or the at least one clustering result's respective correlation calculation method. The correlation calculation method for each of the at least one clustering result is used to calculate the correlation between the channel feature to be clustered and the second channel feature corresponding to each of the at least one clustering result. The threshold for each of the at least one clustering results is the threshold corresponding to the correlation calculation method for each of the at least one clustering results.

25. A communication device, characterized in that, Used to perform the method as described in any one of claims 1 to 12, or claims 13 to 24.

26. A communication device, characterized in that, Includes a processor, which uses logic circuitry or executable code instructions to implement the method as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 12, or claims 13 to 24.

27. The communication device according to claim 26, characterized in that, It also includes a memory for storing the code instructions.

28. A computer-readable storage medium, characterized in that, The computer-readable storage medium stores a computer program or instructions that, when executed, cause the method as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 12, or claims 13 to 24, to be implemented.

29. A computer program product, characterized in that, Includes instructions that, when executed, cause the method as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 12, or claims 13 to 24, to be implemented.

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