Communication method and apparatus

Abstract

Embodiments of the present application provide a communication method and apparatus, used to reduce the air interface overhead of positioning reference signals. The method comprises: a first apparatus receives first data; and on the basis of the first data, reconstructing transmission information of the first data, the transmission information and reception information of the first data being used to determine at least one time of arrival, and the at least one time of arrival being used to determine a location of a first terminal.

Description

A communication method and apparatus

[0001] Cross-reference of related applications

[0002] This application claims priority to Chinese Patent Application No. 202510221426.8, filed on February 26, 2025, entitled "A Communication Method and Apparatus", the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference. Technical Field

[0003] This application relates to the field of communication technology, and in particular to a communication method and apparatus. Background Technology

[0004] Non-terrestrial networks (NTNs) refer to networks or network segments that utilize satellite radio frequency (RF) signals. A typical NTN network provides communication services via satellite. These satellites can be, for example, unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) or high-altitude platforms.

[0005] Satellite communication boasts advantages such as wide coverage, long communication distance, high reliability, high flexibility, and high throughput. Unaffected by geographical environment, climate conditions, or natural disasters, it has been widely applied in positioning and navigation, aviation communications, maritime communications, and military communications. Satellites can provide communication services to areas difficult for terrestrial networks to cover, such as oceans and forests, enhancing the reliability of 5G communications. For example, they can provide more stable and higher-quality communication services for users on trains, airplanes, and other modes of transportation. Furthermore, they can provide more data transmission resources and support a greater number of connections.

[0006] Satellite positioning typically employs positioning technologies such as time difference of arrival (TDOA) and multi-round trip time (Multi-RTT), which measure multiple times of arrival (TOA) using multiple positioning reference signals to obtain the location of the terminal device, resulting in significant air interface overhead. Summary of the Invention

[0007] This application provides a communication method and apparatus for reducing the air interface overhead of positioning reference signals.

[0008] Firstly, a communication method is provided, which can be applied to a first device. Optionally, the first device is a terminal-side device, also referred to as a terminal device. The terminal device is, for example, a terminal equipment, or other equipment including terminal equipment functions, or a circuit, or a system-on-a-chip (or chip, such as a modem chip, also known as a baseband chip, or a system-on-a-chip (SoC) chip containing a modem core, or a system-in-package (SIP) chip) or other functional module, which can implement the functions of the terminal equipment, and is, for example, disposed in the terminal equipment. Alternatively, the first device is optionally a network-side device, also referred to as a network device. The network device is, for example, a network device, or other equipment including network device functions, or a circuit, or a system-on-a-chip (or chip), or other functional module, which can implement the functions of the network device, and is, for example, disposed in the network device. The network device includes, for example, core network equipment and / or access network equipment. The method includes: a first device receiving first data; reconstructing transmission information of the first data based on the first data, wherein the transmission information and the reception information of the first data are used to determine at least one arrival time, and the at least one arrival time is used to determine the location of a first terminal.

[0009] In this embodiment of the application, after obtaining the first data, the first device can reconstruct the transmission information of the first data (e.g., time-domain information and / or frequency-domain information of the signal used to carry the first data) based on the first data, and determine at least one arrival time based on the transmission information and the reception information of the first data (e.g., time-domain information and / or frequency-domain information of the received signal used to carry the first data). That is, the first device can determine at least one arrival time based on the signal used for data transmission, which can reduce the number of positioning reference signals and reduce air interface overhead.

[0010] In one possible implementation, the first data is carried on a first resource, and reconstructing the transmission information of the first data based on the first data includes: reconstructing the transmission information of the first data based on the first data and first information, wherein the first information is used to indicate a resource in the first resource for reconstructing the transmission information of the first data.

[0011] In the above technical solution, the first information is used to indicate the resources in the first resource used to reconstruct the transmission information of the first data. That is, the first device does not need to use all the time units included in the first resource to reconstruct the transmission information of the first data. For example, the first device can only use some time units on the first resource to reconstruct the transmission information of the first data. This can reduce the amount of information used by the first device to reconstruct the transmission information of the first data, which helps to improve the efficiency of the first device in reconstructing the transmission information of the first data, thereby improving the positioning efficiency.

[0012] In one possible implementation, the first information is used to indicate the resources in the first resource used to reconstruct the transmission information of the first data, including: the first resource includes N time units, the first information includes first indication information and / or second indication information, the first indication information is used to indicate M time units in the N time units used to reconstruct the transmission information of the first data, and the second indication information is used to indicate sub-time units in the time units used to reconstruct the transmission information of the first data, where M and N are positive integers.

[0013] In the above technical solution, the first indication information indicates M time units in N time units used to reconstruct the transmission information of the first data, and / or the second indication information indicates sub-time units in the time units used to reconstruct the transmission information of the first data. That is, the first device does not need to use all time units included in the first resource to reconstruct the transmission information of the first data. For example, the first device can only use some time units (or some sub-time units) included in the first resource to reconstruct the transmission information of the first data. This can reduce the amount of information in the reconstructed transmission information, help improve the efficiency of the first device in reconstructing the transmission information of the first data, and thus improve the positioning efficiency.

[0014] In one possible implementation, the first indication information is used to indicate M time units among the N time units for reconstructing the transmission information of the first data, including: the first indication information is used to indicate a first quantity, the first quantity being M; or, the first indication information is used to indicate a first period, the first period being used to determine M.

[0015] In the above technical solution, M is indicated directly by a first quantity or indirectly by a first cycle, making the indication method of M more flexible.

[0016] In one possible implementation, the method further includes: a first device receiving the first information, or receiving a first index, the first index being used to indicate the first information.

[0017] In the above technical solution, the first information can be indicated by other devices, such as a second device. When the second device indicates the first information, it can directly indicate the first information or indicate an index of the first information, making the indication method of the first information more flexible. In addition, by indicating the first information, the first device does not need to pre-store the information, which can reduce the storage resource occupation of the first device; indicating the index of the first information helps to reduce the transmission overhead of the first information.

[0018] In one possible implementation, the first information is related to the location information of the first terminal and / or the positioning accuracy required by the first terminal.

[0019] In the above technical solution, the first information is related to the location of the first terminal and / or the positioning accuracy required by the first terminal, which can improve positioning efficiency while ensuring the positioning requirements of the first terminal.

[0020] In one possible implementation, the method further includes: a first device receiving a positioning reference signal and obtaining a first arrival time based on the positioning reference signal; the at least one arrival time is used to determine the location of a first terminal, including: the at least one arrival time and the first arrival time are used to determine the location of the first terminal.

[0021] In the above technical solution, by combining the signal used for data transmission and the positioning reference signal to locate the first terminal, the data of the positioning reference signal can be reduced while ensuring positioning accuracy, thereby reducing air interface overhead.

[0022] Secondly, a communication method is provided, which can be applied to a second device. Optionally, the second device is a terminal-side device, also referred to as a terminal device. This terminal device is, for example, a terminal equipment, or other equipment including terminal equipment functions, or a circuit, or a system-on-a-chip (or chip, such as a modem chip, also known as a baseband chip, or a system-on-a-chip (SoC) chip containing a modem core, or a system-in-package (SIP) chip) or other functional module, which can implement the functions of the terminal equipment, and is, for example, disposed in the terminal equipment. Alternatively, the first device is optionally a network-side device, also referred to as a network device. This network device is, for example, a network device, or other equipment including network device functions, or a circuit, or a system-on-a-chip (or chip), or other functional module, which can implement the functions of the network device, and is, for example, disposed in the network device. The network device includes, for example, core network equipment and / or access network equipment. In this method, the second device and the first device are different devices. For example, if the first device is a terminal-side device, then the second device is a network-side device; if the first device is a network-side device, then the second device is a terminal-side device. The method includes: the second device sending first data, the first data being used by the first device to reconstruct the transmission information of the first data, the transmission information and reception information being used to determine at least one arrival time, the at least one arrival time being used to determine the location of a first terminal, and the reception information being information about the first device receiving the first data.

[0023] In one possible implementation, the first data is carried on a first resource, and the first data is used by a first device to reconstruct the transmission information of the first data, including: the first data and first information are used to reconstruct the transmission information of the first data, and the first information is used to indicate a resource in the first resource used to reconstruct the transmission information of the first data.

[0024] In one possible implementation, the first information is used to indicate the resources in the first resource used to reconstruct the transmission information of the first data, including: the first resource includes N time units, the first information includes first indication information and / or second indication information, the first indication information is used to indicate M time units in the N time units used to reconstruct the transmission information of the first data, and the second indication information is used to indicate sub-time units in the time units used to reconstruct the transmission information of the first data, where M and N are positive integers.

[0025] In one possible implementation, the first indication information is used to indicate M time units among the N time units for reconstructing the transmission information of the first data, including: the first indication information is used to indicate a first quantity, the first quantity being M; or, the first indication information is used to indicate a first period, the first period being used to determine M.

[0026] In one possible implementation, the method further includes: a second device sending the first information, or sending a first index, the first index being used to indicate the first information.

[0027] In one possible implementation, the first information is related to the location information of the first terminal and / or the positioning accuracy required by the first terminal.

[0028] In one possible implementation, the method further includes: a second device sending a positioning reference signal, the positioning reference signal being used by the first device to obtain a first arrival time; the at least one arrival time being used to determine the location of the first terminal, including: the at least one arrival time and the first arrival time being used to determine the location of the first terminal.

[0029] For the technical effects of the second aspect or various alternative implementation methods, please refer to the introduction of the technical effects of the first aspect or corresponding implementation methods.

[0030] Thirdly, a communication device is provided. The communication device can be the first device described in the first or second aspect above. The communication device possesses the functions of the first device. For example, the communication device can implement the functions described in the first or second aspect above. For instance, the communication device includes modules, units, or means corresponding to the operations described in the first or second aspect above. These modules, units, or means can be implemented in software, hardware, or a combination of software and hardware. The communication device is, for example, a terminal device, or other device including terminal device functions, or a chip system (or chip or circuit) or other functional module capable of implementing the terminal device functions, and is, for example, disposed in the terminal device. Alternatively, the communication device is, for example, a network device, or other device including network device functions, or a chip system (or chip or circuit) or other functional module capable of implementing the network device functions, and is, for example, disposed in the network device. The network device includes, for example, core network equipment and / or access network equipment. In an optional implementation, the communication device includes a baseband device and a radio frequency device. In another optional implementation, the communication device includes a processing unit (sometimes also called a processing module) and a transceiver unit (sometimes also called a transceiver module). The transceiver unit is capable of both sending and receiving functions. When the transceiver unit performs the sending function, it can be called a sending unit (sometimes also called a sending module); when the transceiver unit performs the receiving function, it can be called a receiving unit (sometimes also called a receiving module). The sending unit and the receiving unit can be the same functional module, which is called the transceiver unit and can perform both sending and receiving functions; alternatively, the sending unit and the receiving unit can be different functional modules, and the transceiver unit is a collective term for these functional modules.

[0031] In one optional implementation, the transceiver unit (or the receiving unit) is configured to receive first data; the processing unit is configured to reconstruct the transmission information of the first data based on the first data, the transmission information and the reception information of the first data being used to determine at least one arrival time, the at least one arrival time being used to determine the location of the first terminal.

[0032] In an alternative embodiment, the communication device further includes a storage unit (sometimes also called a storage module), and the processing unit is configured to couple with the storage unit and execute programs or instructions in the storage unit to enable the communication device to perform the functions of the first device described in the first or second aspect above.

[0033] Fourthly, a communication device is provided. The communication device may be the second device described in the first or second aspect above. The communication device possesses the functions of the second device. For example, the communication device may implement the functions described in the first or second aspect above. For instance, the communication device includes modules, units, or means corresponding to the operations described in the first or second aspect above. These modules, units, or means may be implemented in software, hardware, or a combination of software and hardware. The communication device may be, for example, a terminal device, or other device including terminal device functions, or a chip system (or chip or circuit) or other functional module capable of implementing the functions of a terminal device, and such chip system or functional module may be disposed in a terminal device. Alternatively, the communication device may be, for example, a network device, or other device including network device functions, or a chip system (or chip or circuit) or other functional module capable of implementing the functions of a network device, and such chip system or functional module may be disposed in a network device. The network device may include, for example, core network equipment and / or access network equipment. In one optional implementation, the communication device includes a baseband device and a radio frequency device. In another optional implementation, the communication device includes a processing unit (sometimes also called a processing module) and a transceiver unit (sometimes also called a transceiver module). The transceiver unit is capable of both transmitting and receiving functions; when the transceiver unit performs the transmitting function, it can be called a transmitting unit (sometimes also called a transmitting module). For details on the implementation of the transceiver unit, please refer to the relevant description in the third aspect. The second device and the first device are different devices; for example, if the first device is a terminal-side device, then the second device is a network-side device; if the first device is a network-side device, then the second device is a terminal-side device.

[0034] In one optional implementation, the transceiver unit (or the sending unit) is configured to send first data, the first data being used by the first device to reconstruct the transmission information of the first data, the transmission information and the reception information being used to determine at least one arrival time, the at least one arrival time being used to determine the location of the first terminal, and the reception information being information about the first device receiving the first data.

[0035] In an alternative embodiment, the communication device further includes a storage unit (sometimes also called a storage module), and the processing unit is configured to couple with the storage unit and execute programs or instructions in the storage unit to enable the communication device to perform the functions of the second device described in any one of the first to second aspects above.

[0036] Fifthly, a communication device is provided, the communication device comprising a memory and one or more processors. The memory is used to store part or all of a computer program or instructions necessary for implementing the functions involved in the first or second aspect described above. The one or more processors are capable of executing the computer program or instructions, such that when the computer program or instructions are executed, the communication device implements the methods in any possible design or implementation of the first or second aspect described above.

[0037] In one possible design, the communication device may further include an interface circuit, wherein the processor is used to communicate with other devices or components through the interface circuit.

[0038] In one possible design, the communication device may also include the memory.

[0039] The aforementioned communication device may be a terminal, a communication module within a terminal, or a chip within a terminal responsible for communication functions, such as a modem chip (also known as a baseband chip), or a SoC or SIP chip containing a modem module. Optionally, the terminal may implement any of the possible designs or implementations described in the first aspect.

[0040] The aforementioned communication device may be a network device or server, a communication module within a network device or server, or a chip within a network device or server responsible for communication functions, such as a modem chip (also known as a baseband chip) or a SoC or SIP chip containing a modem module. Optionally, the network device or server may implement the methods in any possible design or implementation of the first aspect, or may implement the methods in any possible design or implementation of the second aspect.

[0041] A sixth aspect provides a communication system, including a terminal-side device and a network-side device, wherein the terminal-side device is configured to perform the method executed by the first device as described in any one of the first to second aspects, and the network-side device is configured to perform the method executed by the second device as described in any one of the first to second aspects; or, the network-side device is configured to perform the method executed by the first device as described in any one of the first to second aspects, and the terminal-side device is configured to perform the method executed by the second device as described in any one of the first to second aspects.

[0042] In a seventh aspect, a computer-readable storage medium is provided for storing a computer program or instructions that, when executed, cause the method performed by the first or second means in the preceding aspects to be implemented.

[0043] Eighthly, a computer program product containing instructions is provided, which, when the computer program or instructions are run on a computer, causes the methods described in the above aspects to be implemented.

[0044] Ninthly, a chip system is provided, including a processor and an interface, the processor being configured to call and execute instructions from the interface to enable the chip system to implement the methods of the above aspects. Attached Figure Description

[0045] Figure 1A is a schematic diagram of a network architecture of a communication system applicable to an embodiment of this application;

[0046] Figure 1B is a schematic diagram of the network architecture of another communication system applicable to the embodiments of this application;

[0047] Figure 1C is a schematic diagram of the network architecture of another communication system applicable to the embodiments of this application;

[0048] Figure 1D is a schematic diagram of the network architecture of another communication system applicable to the embodiments of this application;

[0049] Figure 1E is a schematic diagram of the network architecture of another communication system applicable to the embodiments of this application;

[0050] Figure 2 is a flowchart of a communication method provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0051] Figure 3A is a schematic diagram of a first data transmission process provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0052] Figure 3B is a schematic diagram of a first data receiving process provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0053] Figure 3C is a schematic diagram of a method for reconstructing the transmission information of the first data according to an embodiment of this application;

[0054] Figure 3D is a schematic diagram of cross-correlation of time-domain signal 2 and time-domain signal 3 provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0055] Figure 4 is a schematic diagram of a sub-resource in a first resource used to reconstruct the transmission information of the first data, provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0056] Figure 5 is a flowchart of another communication method provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0057] Figure 6 is a schematic diagram of a device provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0058] Figure 7 is a schematic diagram of another device provided in an embodiment of this application. Detailed Implementation

[0059] To make the objectives, technical solutions, and advantages of the embodiments of this application clearer, the embodiments of this application will be further described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0060] In this application embodiment, the number of nouns, unless otherwise specified, refers to "singular nouns or plural nouns," that is, "one or more." "At least one" means one or more, and "more than one" means two or more. "And / or" describes the relationship between related objects, indicating that three relationships can exist. For example, A and / or B can mean: A exists alone, A and B exist simultaneously, or B exists alone, where A and B can be singular or plural. The character " / " generally indicates that the related objects before and after are in an "or" relationship. For example, A / B means: A or B. "At least one of the following" or similar expressions refer to any combination of these items, including any combination of single or plural items. For example, at least one of a, b, or c means: a, b, c, a and b, a and c, b and c, or a and b and c, where a, b, and c can be single or multiple.

[0061] The ordinal numbers such as "first" and "second" mentioned in the embodiments of this application are used to distinguish multiple objects, and are not used to limit the size, content, order, timing, priority, or importance of the multiple objects. Furthermore, the numbering of steps in the various embodiments described in this application is only to distinguish different steps and is not used to limit the order in which the steps are performed.

[0062] The following explanations of some terms or concepts used in the embodiments of this application are provided to facilitate understanding by those skilled in the art.

[0063] In this embodiment of the application, the terminal device is a device with wireless transceiver function, which may be a fixed device, a mobile device, a handheld device (e.g., a mobile phone), a wearable device, an in-vehicle device, or a wireless device (e.g., a communication module, a modem, or a chip system, etc.) built into the above devices. The terminal devices are used to connect people, objects, and machines, and can be widely used in various scenarios, including but not limited to the following: sensing scenarios, cellular communication, device-to-device (D2D) communication, vehicle-to-everything (V2X) communication, machine-to-machine / machine-type (M2M / MTC) communication, Internet of Things (IoT), virtual reality (VR), augmented reality (AR), industrial control, self-driving, remote medical care, smart grid, smart furniture, smart office, smart wearables, smart transportation, smart city, drones, robots, indoor commercial scenarios (such as mobile phone screen mirroring, file sharing, and mobile phone to VR glasses video transmission), satellite communication, and other scenarios. When the terminal equipment is applied to V2X, it can also be called a V2X device, such as a smart car, digital car, unmanned car, driverless car, pilotless car, or automobile, self-driving car, or autonomous car, pure electric vehicle (EV), hybrid electric vehicle (HEV), range-extended electric vehicle (REEV), plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV), new energy vehicle, or roadside unit (RSU). The terminal equipment can also be a device used in D2D communication, such as an electricity meter or water meter.

[0064] Furthermore, in this embodiment of the application, the terminal device can also be a terminal device in an Internet of Things (IoT) system. IoT is an important component of the future development of information technology. Its main technical feature is to connect objects to the network through communication technology, thereby realizing an intelligent network of human-machine interconnection and object-to-object interconnection.

[0065] The various terminal devices described above, if located in a vehicle (e.g., placed inside or installed inside a vehicle), can all be considered in-vehicle terminal devices, also known as on-board units (OBUs). The terminal device of this application can also be an in-vehicle module, in-vehicle component, in-vehicle chip, or in-vehicle unit built into a vehicle as one or more components or units. The vehicle can implement the methods of this application through the built-in in-vehicle module, in-vehicle component, in-vehicle chip, or in-vehicle unit.

[0066] The terminal equipment may sometimes be referred to as user equipment (UE), terminal, access station, UE station, remote station, wireless communication equipment, or user device, etc.

[0067] In this application embodiment, the communication device used to implement the terminal device function can be the terminal device itself, or it can be a device capable of supporting the terminal device in implementing the function, such as a chip system. This device can be installed in the terminal device. In the technical solutions provided in this application embodiment, the terminal device is used as an example to describe the technical solutions provided in this application embodiment. Furthermore, for ease of description, the terminal device in this application embodiment is described using a UE as an example.

[0068] The network devices in this application embodiment include, for example, access network devices and / or core network devices. The access network devices are devices with wireless transceiver capabilities, used to communicate with the terminal devices. The access network devices include, but are not limited to, base stations (base transceiver stations (BTS), Node B, evolved Node B (eNodeB) / eNB, or the next generation Node B (gNodeB) / gNB), transmission reception points (TRPs), base stations evolved from the 3rd generation partnership project (3GPP), access nodes in wireless fidelity (Wi-Fi) systems, wireless relay nodes, wireless backhaul nodes, etc. The base stations can be: macro base stations, micro base stations, pico base stations, small cells, relay stations, satellite-based base stations, satellite ground stations, etc. Multiple base stations can support networks using the same access technology or networks using different access technologies. A base station can contain one or more co-located or non-co-located transmission and reception points. The access network device can also be a radio controller, centralized unit (CU), and / or distributed unit (DU) in a cloud radio access network (CRAN) scenario. The access network device can also be a server, etc. For example, the network device in V2X technology can be a roadside unit (RSU). For ease of description, this application embodiment uses a base station as an example to illustrate the access network device.

[0069] Base stations can communicate with terminal devices, or they can communicate with terminal devices through relay stations. Terminal devices can communicate with multiple base stations in different access technologies. The core network equipment is used to implement functions such as mobility management, data processing, session management, policy and charging. The names of the equipment implementing core network functions may differ in systems using different access technologies, and this application does not limit this. Taking the 5th generation (5G) mobile communication technology system as an example, the core network equipment may include, for example, access and mobility management functions (AMF), session management functions (SMF), policy control functions (PCF), or user plane functions (UPF), etc.

[0070] In the CU-DU architecture, access network equipment can include one or more logical network elements such as a central unit (CU), a distributed unit (DU), a CU-control plane (CP), a CU-user plane (UP), or a radio unit (RU). CUs and DUs can be separate entities or included in the same network element, such as a baseband unit (BBU). RUs can be included in radio equipment or radio units, such as remote radio units (RRUs), active antenna units (AAUs), or remote radio heads (RRHs).

[0071] In different systems, CU (or CU-CP and CU-UP), DU, or RU may have different names, but those skilled in the art will understand their meaning. For example, in an open RAN (ORAN) system, CU can also be called open CU (open CU, O-CU), DU can also be called open DU (open DU, O-DU), CU-CP can also be called open CU-CP (open CU-CP, O-CU-CP), CU-UP can also be called open CU-UP (open CU-CP, O-CU-UP), and RU can also be called open RU (open RU, O-RU). For ease of description, the embodiments of this application use CU, CU-CP, CU-UP, DU, and RU as examples. Any of the units among CU (or CU-CP, CU-UP), DU, and RU in the embodiments of this application can be implemented by a software module, a hardware module, or a combination of a software module and a hardware module.

[0072] Optionally, in various embodiments of this application, if the network device is a distributed architecture, such as the network device including CU and DU, or including CU-CP, CU-UP and DU, then the network device sends information to the UE, specifically the DU included in the network device sends information to the UE; the network device receives information from the UE, specifically the DU included in the network device receives information from the UE.

[0073] In this application embodiment, the communication device used to implement the network device function can be a network device or a device capable of supporting the network device to implement the function, such as a chip system, which can be installed in the network device. In the technical solutions provided in the embodiments of this application, the technical solutions provided in the embodiments of this application are described with the example of a network device being used to implement the function of a network device (for example, an access network device being used to implement the function of an access network device, or a core network device being used to implement the function of a core network device).

[0074] The technical features involved in the embodiments of this application are described below.

[0075] Satellite communication boasts advantages such as wide coverage, long communication distance, high reliability, high flexibility, and high throughput. Unaffected by geographical environment, climate conditions, or natural disasters, it has been widely applied in fields such as aviation, maritime, and military communications. Satellites can provide communication services to areas difficult for terrestrial networks to cover, such as oceans and forests, enhancing the reliability of 5G communications. This includes providing more stable and higher-quality communication services for users on trains, airplanes, and other modes of transportation. Furthermore, satellites can provide more data transmission resources and support a greater number of connections.

[0076] Satellite orbits can be classified according to altitude into low Earth orbit (LEO), medium Earth orbit (MEO), geosynchronous Earth orbit (GEO), and non-geosynchronous orbit (NGSO). NGSO includes low Earth orbit with an altitude of approximately 300 km to 1500 km and medium Earth orbit with an altitude of approximately 7000 km to 25000 km.

[0077] Currently, satellite-based positioning mainly includes positioning based on the Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) and positioning based on radio access technology (RAT).

[0078] GNSS-based positioning determines the UE's location based on the distance between the satellite and the UE. For example, a satellite can send GNSS signals to the UE, which can receive these signals and obtain the satellite's ephemeris information from them. The UE's location is then determined based on the GNSS signal transmission duration and the satellite's ephemeris information (e.g., the satellite's position), thus achieving UE positioning.

[0079] Positioning reference signal (PRS)-based positioning determines the UE's location based on measurement information from a positioning reference signal. This measurement information may include, for example, round-trip time (RTT), multi-round trip time (Multi-RTT), time of arrival (TOA), or time difference of arrival (TDOA). For instance, a satellite (e.g., a base station on a satellite) can send a positioning reference signal (PRS) to the UE, allowing the UE to determine its location based on the PRS measurement information.

[0080] Among these methods, GNSS-based positioning requires the UE to have a GNSS module to obtain satellite ephemeris information. Therefore, UEs without a GNSS module cannot perform positioning via GNSS. Furthermore, GNSS-based positioning is susceptible to interference and obstructions, resulting in lower positioning accuracy. RAT-based positioning requires configuring positioning reference signal resources, leading to significant air interface overhead.

[0081] In view of this, in the embodiments of this application, the transmission information of the first data (e.g., time domain information and / or frequency domain information of the signal used to carry the first data) can be reconstructed based on the received first data, and at least one arrival time can be determined based on the transmission information and the reception information of the first data (e.g., time domain information and / or frequency domain information of the received signal used to carry the first data). That is, at least one arrival time can be determined based on the signal used for data transmission, which can reduce the number of positioning reference signals and reduce air interface overhead.

[0082] The technical solutions provided in this application can be applied to fourth-generation (4G) mobile communication systems, such as Long Term Evolution (LTE) systems, or to 5G systems, such as New Radio (NR) systems, or to next-generation mobile communication systems or other similar communication systems, or to existing satellite mobile communication technology systems; no specific limitations are imposed. The technical solutions provided in this application can be applied to NTN (Network-to-Network) networks, or to non-NTN (Network-to-Network) networks, such as terrestrial cellular networks. For example, these embodiments can be applied to scenarios where multiple network devices or multiple cells need to perform joint transmission. Furthermore, the technical solutions provided in this application can also be applied to D2D (Data-to-Device) scenarios, such as NR-D2D scenarios, or to V2X (Video-to-Everything) scenarios, such as NR-V2X scenarios. For example, these embodiments can be used in fields such as factory manufacturing, smart homes, intelligent driving, assisted driving, intelligent connected vehicles, or indoor commercial scenarios.

[0083] Figure 1A exemplarily illustrates an architecture diagram of a communication system 1000 applicable to an embodiment of this application. As shown in Figure 1A, the communication system includes a wireless access network 100 and a core network 200. Optionally, the communication system 1000 may also include an Internet 300. The wireless access network 100 may include at least one wireless access network device (110a and 110b in Figure 1A) and at least one terminal device (120a-120j in Figure 1A). The terminal device is wirelessly connected to the wireless access network device, and the wireless access network device is wirelessly or wiredly connected to the core network. The core network device and the wireless access network device may be independent and different physical devices, or the functions of the core network device and the logical functions of the wireless access network device may be integrated on the same physical device, or a single physical device may integrate some of the functions of the core network device and some of the functions of the wireless access network device. Terminal devices and wireless access network devices may be interconnected via wired or wireless means. Figure 1A is just a schematic diagram. The communication system may also include other network devices, such as wireless relay devices and wireless backhaul devices, which are not shown in Figure 1A.

[0084] Please refer to Figure 1B, which is a schematic diagram of an O-RAN system architecture provided in an embodiment of this application. The O-RAN system in the embodiments provided in this application may include components other than those shown in Figure 1B. As shown in Figure 1B, the access network equipment (RAN, for example, may be an eNB, gNB, or next-generation access network equipment) communicates with the core network (CN) equipment via a backhaul link and with the user equipment (UE) via an air interface. For example, the baseband unit (BBU) in the access network equipment communicates with the core network via a backhaul link, and the radio unit (RU) in the access network equipment communicates with at least one UE via an air interface. The BBU communicates with at least one RU via a fronthaul link; the BBU and RU may or may not be co-located. The BBU includes at least one control unit (CU) and at least one distributed unit (DU), which can communicate via at least one midhaul link. In the embodiments of this application, the first communication device can configure information of the auxiliary communication device to the terminal device (e.g., UE), and can also send signaling to the terminal device for activating or deactivating one or more communication devices. The sending of these signaling messages can be sent to the terminal device by the CU and / or DU in the first communication device.

[0085] Base stations and terminal equipment can be fixed or mobile. They 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 stations and terminal equipment.

[0086] The roles of base stations and terminal devices can be relative. For example, the helicopter or drone 120i in Figure 1A can be configured as a mobile base station. For terminal devices 120j that access the wireless access network 100 through 120i, terminal device 120i is a base station; however, for base station 110a, 120i is a terminal device, meaning that 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 terminal devices can be collectively referred to as communication devices. 110a and 110b in Figure 1A can be called communication devices with base station functions, and 120a-120j in Figure 1A can be called communication devices with terminal device functions.

[0087] Communication between base stations and terminal devices, between base stations, and between terminal devices can be conducted using licensed spectrum, unlicensed spectrum, or both simultaneously. Communication can be conducted 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.

[0088] 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 device can be executed by modules (such as chips or modems) within the terminal device, or by a device that includes terminal device functions.

[0089] In this application, the base station sends downlink signals or downlink information to the terminal device, with the downlink information carried on the downlink channel; the terminal device sends uplink signals or uplink information to the base station, with the uplink information carried on the uplink channel. In order to communicate with the base station, the terminal device needs to establish a radio connection with a cell controlled by the base station. The cell with which the terminal device has established a radio connection is called the serving cell of the terminal device. When the terminal device communicates with this serving cell, it is also subject to interference from signals from neighboring cells.

[0090] Figure 1A is only a schematic diagram. The wireless communication system may also include other devices, such as core network devices, wireless relay devices and / or wireless backhaul devices, which are not shown in Figure 1A.

[0091] Please refer to Figures 1C and 1D, which are schematic diagrams of network architectures for several communication systems applicable to embodiments of this application. The communication system may include satellites, network devices, and terminal devices. The communication system may also include gateways and core network devices. Figures 1C and 1D exemplarily illustrate a converged network architecture of NTN and terrestrial networks. A description follows with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0092] The satellite can be a highly elliptical orbit (HEO) satellite, a geostationary earth orbit (GEO) satellite, a medium earth orbit (MEO) satellite, or a low-earth orbit (LEO) satellite. In the embodiments of this application, the satellite's operating mode can be transparent mode, as shown in Figure 1C; alternatively, the satellite's operating mode can also be regenerative mode, as shown in Figure 1D. This application does not limit the specific mode used.

[0093] When a satellite operates in transparent relay mode, it provides transparent forwarding functionality. A gateway functions as a network device (e.g., a base station) or partially functions as one, and in this case, the gateway can be considered a network device (e.g., a base station). Alternatively, the network device (e.g., the base station) can be deployed separately from the gateway. In this case, the feeder link latency includes both the latency from the satellite to the gateway and the latency from the gateway to the gNB. The transparent relay mode discussed later assumes that the gateway and gNB are located together or close to each other. For cases where the gateway and gNB are far apart, the feeder link latency is simply the sum of the latency from the satellite to the gateway and the latency from the gateway to the gNB.

[0094] When a satellite is operating in regeneration mode, it has data processing capabilities and functions as a network device (such as a base station) or partially functions as a network device (such as a base station). In this case, the satellite can be regarded as a network device (such as a base station).

[0095] Satellites can communicate wirelessly with terminals via broadcast communication signals and navigation signals. Optionally, each satellite can provide communication, navigation, and positioning services to terminal devices through multiple beams. For example, each satellite uses multiple beams to cover the service area, and the relationship between different beams can be one or more of time-division, frequency-division, and space-division.

[0096] A gateway (also known as a ground station, earth station, or gateway) is a network device used to connect satellites and ground-based networks (such as ground base stations). One or more satellites can connect to one or more ground-based network devices (such as ground base stations) through one or more gateways; this is not a limitation. The link between a satellite and a terminal is called a service link, and the link between a satellite and a gateway is called a feeder link. Network devices can be deployed separately from gateways; therefore, the latency of the feeder link can include both the latency from the satellite to the gateway and the latency from the gateway to the network device.

[0097] The network devices in this application embodiment may include network devices deployed on satellites (such as satellite base stations), network devices deployed on gateways, or network devices deployed on the ground (such as ground base stations). For example, the network devices may be RAN nodes as shown in Figures 1A and 1B above. Related details are as described above and will not be repeated here.

[0098] Core network equipment is a device located on the ground that can communicate with NTN equipment in the NTN system. For example, the CN can be the CN involved in Figures 1A and 1B, as described above, and will not be repeated here.

[0099] The terminal can be the terminal involved in Figure 1A and Figure 1B. For relevant details, please refer to the above description and we will not repeat them here.

[0100] The embodiments of this application can also be applied to other communication system architectures, such as air-to-ground (ATG) communication systems, which include at least one network device and at least one high-altitude terminal. High-altitude terminals include, for example, high-altitude aircraft and onboard terminals. The satellites in Figures 1C and 1D can be replaced with other relay devices, such as high-altitude platform stations (HAPS) or other NTN devices. The communication system shown in Figure 1C or 1D is an example and does not limit the communication systems to which the methods provided in the embodiments of this application are applicable. For example, please refer to Figure 1E, which is a schematic diagram of the network architecture of another communication system to which the embodiments of this application are applicable. This communication system includes at least one network device and at least one high-altitude terminal device. High-altitude terminal devices include, for example, high-altitude aircraft and onboard terminal devices.

[0101] The methods provided in the embodiments of this application are described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the accompanying drawings corresponding to the various embodiments of this application, all steps indicated by dashed lines are optional steps. The various embodiments herein can be applied to the architectures shown in Figures 1A to 1E. For example, the first device described in the various embodiments herein can be a first terminal, which can be the terminal device shown in Figures 1A to 1E. Alternatively, the first device can also be a serving network device for the first terminal, for example, the first device can be the serving satellite of the first terminal, or located on the serving satellite of the first terminal, or located on other devices that are communicatively connected to the serving satellite of the first terminal. The network device is, for example, the network device shown in Figures 1A to 1E.

[0102] This application provides a communication method, please refer to Figure 2, which is a flowchart of the method.

[0103] S201: The second device sends first data to the first device. Accordingly, the first device receives the first data.

[0104] The second device can be the first terminal described below, or it can be a network device, and the second device is related to the first device. For example, if the first device is the first terminal, the second device can be a network device; if the first device is a network device, the second device can be the first terminal.

[0105] Optionally, if the first device is a network device, the first data is uplink data, for example, the first data can be carried on a physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH); if the first device is a first terminal, the first data is downlink data, for example, the first data can be carried on a physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH). In this embodiment, the first device is the first terminal, the second device is a network device, and the first data is carried on a PDSCH as an example.

[0106] For example, please refer to Figures 3A and 3B for an example of the transmission process of the first data. As shown in Figure 3A, when the second device needs to send data (e.g., the first data) to the first device, it can perform the following operations on the first data in sequence: coding and modulation, subcarrier mapping, inverse fast fourier transform (IFFT), and adding a cyclic prefix (CP) to obtain a baseband orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) symbol (e.g., time domain signal 1 in Figure 3A). Then, the second device can up-convert the time domain signal 1 and transmit it through an antenna. Subcarrier mapping, for example, maps the coded and modulated bitstream onto at least one frequency domain unit, which can be, for example, a resource block (RB) or a resource element (RE).

[0107] As shown in Figure 3B, the first device can perform down-conversion processing on the received radio frequency signal to obtain the baseband received signal (e.g., time domain signal 2 in Figure 3B). Then, the second device can perform the following operations on the time domain signal 2 in sequence: remove CP, perform fast fourier transform (FFT), channel equalization, and demodulation decoding to obtain the first data.

[0108] S202: The first device reconstructs the transmission information of the first data based on the first data.

[0109] The transmitted information may be, for example, frequency domain information of the signal carrying the first data, such as the frequency domain signal obtained after sequentially performing coding modulation and subcarrier mapping on the first data in FIG3A; or the transmitted information may be time domain information of the signal carrying the first data, such as time domain signal 1 shown in FIG3A, or the time domain signal obtained after the second device in FIG3A sequentially performs coding modulation, subcarrier mapping and IFFT on the first data. This application embodiment does not limit this to any particular type. In this application embodiment, the transmitted information is taken as time domain signal 1 shown in FIG3A as an example.

[0110] The reconstructed transmission information of the first data by the first device can be, for example, information obtained after the first device processes the first data according to the processing method of the second device. For example, please refer to Figure 3C, which shows an example of the first device reconstructing the transmission information of the first data. In Figure 3C, the transmission information is the time-domain signal 1 shown in Figure 3A. As shown in Figure 3C, the first device can perform the following operations on the first data sequentially: coding and modulation, subcarrier mapping, IFFT, and adding CP to obtain a baseband OFDM symbol (e.g., time-domain signal 3 in Figure 3C). This time-domain signal 3 is the time-domain signal 1 reconstructed by the first device.

[0111] It is understood that the encoding and modulation of the first data by the first device in Figure 3C is the same as that of the encoding and modulation of the first data by the second device in Figure 3A, and the CP added by the first device in Figure 3C is the same as that added by the second device in Figure 3A.

[0112] After reconstructing the transmission information of the first data based on the first data, the first device can determine at least one arrival time based on the reconstructed transmission information and the reception information of the first data. The at least one arrival time can be used to determine the location of the first terminal.

[0113] Optionally, the received information of the first data is related to the transmitted information of the first data reconstructed by the first device. For example, if the transmitted information of the first data reconstructed by the first device is the frequency domain signal obtained after the first device sequentially performs coding modulation and subcarrier mapping on the first data in FIG3C, the received information of the first data can be the frequency domain signal obtained after the first device sequentially performs CP removal and FFT removal on the time domain signal 2 in FIG3B; or, the received information of the first data can also be the frequency domain signal obtained after the first device sequentially performs CP removal, FFT removal and channel equalization removal on the time domain signal 2 in FIG3B.

[0114] If the transmission information of the first data reconstructed by the first device is the time-domain signal 3 shown in Figure 3C, the reception information of the first data can be the time-domain signal 2 shown in Figure 3B. If the transmission information of the first data reconstructed by the first device is the time-domain signal obtained after the first device sequentially performs coding modulation, subcarrier mapping and IFFT on the first data in Figure 3C, the reception information of the first data can be the time-domain signal obtained after the first device sequentially performs CP removal and FFT on the time-domain signal 2 in Figure 3B.

[0115] Taking the transmitted information of the first data reconstructed by the first device as time-domain signal 3 as shown in Figure 3C, and the received information of the first data as time-domain signal 2 as shown in Figure 3B, as an example, the first device can perform cross-correlation on time-domain signal 2 and time-domain signal 3 (i.e., perform correlation operations on the waveforms of time-domain signal 1 and time-domain signal 2), and determine the time corresponding to the peak value obtained by cross-correlation as the arrival time of the signal used to carry the first data. For example, please refer to Figure 3D, which is an example of cross-correlation of time-domain signal 2 and time-domain signal 3. TOA in Figure 3D is the arrival time determined by the first device.

[0116] Optionally, the first device can reconstruct the transmission information of the first data based on a portion of the first data, or it can reconstruct the transmission information of the first data based on all the data in the first data. For example, if the first data is carried on a first resource, the first device can reconstruct the transmission information of the first data based on some or all of the data carried on the first resource. It is understood that the transmission information of the first data reconstructed by the first device based on a portion of the first data is the transmission information corresponding to that portion of data. For example, the transmission information of the first data reconstructed by the first device based on a first sub-data in the first data is the transmission information corresponding to that first sub-data. For example, the transmission information corresponding to all the data in the first data is time-domain signal 1, and the transmission information corresponding to the first sub-data is a portion of the signal in time-domain signal 1, such as a portion of the waveform in the time-domain waveform corresponding to time-domain signal 1.

[0117] When the first device reconstructs the transmission information of the first data based on the data carried on a portion of the resources of the first resource (e.g., the aforementioned first sub-data), the first device can also determine the resources (e.g., sub-resources, i.e., the aforementioned portion of the resources) within the first resource used to reconstruct the transmission information of the first data. Optionally, the first device can randomly determine the sub-resource, or it can determine the sub-resource based on first information, whereby the first information is used to indicate the sub-resources within the first resource used to reconstruct the transmission information of the first data. This application embodiment does not limit this. The first device reconstructing the transmission information of the first data based on the data carried on a portion of the resources of the first resource, and determining the portion of the resource based on the first information, can be understood as the first device reconstructing the transmission information of the first data based on the first data and the first information. Taking the first resource as a time-domain resource as an example, the sub-resource can be a time unit, which can be, for example, a symbol, a slot, a mini-slot, a sub-frame, or a frame.

[0118] Optionally, the first resource includes N time units, and the first information includes first indication information and / or second indication information. The first indication information is used to indicate M time units in the N time units for reconstructing the transmission information of the first data, where M and N are positive integers. The second indication information is used to indicate the sub-time units in each time unit for reconstructing the transmission information of the first data. For example, the second indication information can be used to indicate the number of sub-time units in each time unit for reconstructing the transmission information of the first data.

[0119] Wherein, if the time unit is a frame, the sub-time unit can be a subframe, a time slot, a mini-time slot, or a symbol; if the time unit is a subframe, the sub-time unit can be a time slot, a mini-time slot, or a symbol; if the time unit is a time slot, the sub-time unit can be a mini-time slot or a symbol. It is understood that if the time unit is a symbol, since there is no corresponding sub-time unit for the symbol, the first information may only include first indication information, used to indicate the M time units among the N time units used to reconstruct the transmission information of the first data. In this embodiment, a time slot is used as the time unit and a symbol is used as the sub-time unit.

[0120] Optionally, if the first information includes first indication information, the first indication information may be used to indicate a first quantity, which is M, for example, the first indication information may be M; or, the first indication information may also be used to indicate a first period, which is used to determine M.

[0121] Wherein, if the first indication information is M, the M time units determined by the first device based on the first information can be any M time units from the N time units. The M time units can be continuous, discrete, or partially continuous and partially discrete. This application embodiment does not limit the continuity of the M time units. In this application embodiment, the first indication information is used to indicate the first period as an example.

[0122] For example, please refer to Figure 4, which shows an example of a sub-resource in the first resource used to reconstruct the transmission information of the first data. In Figure 4, the first information includes a first indication information and a second indication information, and the first indication information is used to indicate the first period. As shown in Figure 4, each time slot includes 7 symbols, the first resource includes 7 time slots (i.e., time slot 0 to time slot 6), the first period is 2, and the sub-time unit indicated by the second indication information is 3. That is, the sub-resource in the first resource used to reconstruct the transmission information of the first data indicated by the first information is the resource in the shaded area.

[0123] Optionally, the first information may be predefined by the protocol, indicated by the second device, or determined by the first device; this embodiment does not limit this. If the first information is indicated by the second device, the second device may send the first information to the first device before executing S201; or, the second device may send a first index to the first device, which indicates the first information. For example, the correspondence shown in Table 1 may be pre-configured, and the second device may indicate the index corresponding to the first information when determining it. In Table 1, the first information includes first indication information and second indication information, and the first indication information is used to indicate the first cycle, as an example.

[0124] Table 1

[0125] In Table 1, 'a' in {a,b} indicates the first period, meaning 'a' in {a,b} is the first indication information; 'b' in {a,b} indicates the sub-time unit (i.e., symbol) used to reconstruct the transmission information of the first data in each time unit, meaning 'b' in {a,b} is the second indication information. It is understood that this first information or first index can be carried in the aforementioned PDSCH, or it can be carried in other channels, such as the physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) used to schedule the PDSCH, or it can be other signaling. This application does not limit the signaling carrying the first information.

[0126] In some embodiments, the first resource may include a large number of time units, i.e., N may be large. Therefore, in order to reduce the latency of reconstructing the transmission information of the first data, i.e. improve the efficiency of reconstructing the transmission information of the first data, the first information may also include third indication information, which is used to indicate the first L time units among the N time units, M≤L≤N, where L is an integer.

[0127] Optionally, the first information is related to the location information of the first terminal and / or the positioning accuracy required by the first terminal. For example, if the location information of the first terminal indicates that the first terminal is located in a location with many obstructions, it indicates that the positioning of the first terminal is more difficult. Therefore, more data can be used to reconstruct the transmission information of the first data to improve the positioning accuracy of the first terminal. That is, the number of time units indicated by the first indication information, the second indication information, or the third indication information included in the first information is larger.

[0128] For example, if the first terminal requires high positioning accuracy, more data can be used to reconstruct the transmission information of the first data to improve the positioning accuracy of the first terminal. That is, the number of time units indicated by the first indication information, second indication information, or third indication information included in the first information is larger. Optionally, if the first information is indicated by the second device, and the second device is a network device, i.e., the first device is the first terminal, the first device can also send the location information and / or the required positioning accuracy to the second device before the second device sends the first information or the first index to the second device. The location information may, for example, include latitude and longitude information or three-dimensional coordinates.

[0129] Optionally, the first device may also receive a positioning reference signal from the second device and measure the first time of arrival based on the positioning reference signal. The method for measuring the first time of arrival based on the positioning reference signal can refer to existing methods for obtaining arrival time based on positioning reference signals, and will not be elaborated further here.

[0130] The positioning reference signal can be any of the following: channel state information-reference signal (CSI-RS), synchronization signal block (SSB), positioning reference signal (PRS), or sounding reference signal (SRS). The SRS can be a multi-input multi-output (MIMO) SRS or a positioning SRS, etc.

[0131] Optionally, the first device may determine the location of the first terminal based on the first arrival time and at least one arrival time obtained from the reconstructed first data transmission information and first data reception information. Alternatively, the first device may send the first arrival time and the at least one arrival time to the second device, and the second device may determine the location of the first terminal. This embodiment of the application does not limit this approach.

[0132] In the above technical solution, after obtaining the first data, the first device can reconstruct the transmission information of the first data (e.g., time-domain information and / or frequency-domain information of the signal used to carry the first data) based on the first data, and determine at least one arrival time based on the transmission information and the reception information of the first data (e.g., time-domain information and / or frequency-domain information of the received signal used to carry the first data). That is, the first device can determine at least one arrival time based on the signal used for data transmission, which can reduce the number of positioning reference signals and reduce air interface overhead.

[0133] The following describes an embodiment using Figure 5, which is an example of the communication method described in the embodiment shown in Figure 2. Please refer to Figure 5, which is a flowchart illustrating an example of the communication method described in the embodiment shown in Figure 2. In the embodiment shown in Figure 5, the first device is taken as the first terminal, and the second device as a network device.

[0134] S501: The first terminal sends its location information and / or the required positioning accuracy to the network device. Correspondingly, the network device receives the location information and / or the required positioning accuracy of the first terminal.

[0135] The relevant information regarding the location information of the first terminal and / or the positioning accuracy required by the first terminal can be found in the relevant content in S202, and will not be repeated here.

[0136] S502: The network device determines the first information based on the location information of the first terminal and / or the positioning accuracy required by the first terminal.

[0137] The description of the first information can be found in section S202, and will not be repeated here. Taking the first information as including first indication information and second indication information as an example, the network device can determine the size of M indicated by the first indication information and the number of sub-time units indicated by the second indication information based on the location information of the first terminal and / or the positioning accuracy required by the first terminal. For example, if the location information of the first terminal indicates that the first terminal is located in a location with many obstructions, the network device can determine a larger M and more sub-time units. Or, if the first terminal requires higher positioning accuracy, the network device can determine a larger M and more sub-time units.

[0138] S503: The network device sends first information or a first index to the first terminal, the first index being used to indicate the first information. Accordingly, the first terminal receives the first information or the first index.

[0139] Since the first information can be predefined by the protocol or determined by the first terminal based on the positioning accuracy, steps S501 to S503 are all optional.

[0140] S504: The network device sends first data to the first terminal. Correspondingly, the first terminal receives the first data.

[0141] For a description of S504, please refer to the description of the relevant content in S201, which will not be repeated here.

[0142] It is understood that the first data and the first information or first index in S503 can be carried in the same channel, such as both in the PDSCH, or the first data and the first information or first index in S503 can be carried in different channels. This application embodiment does not limit this. When the first data and the first information or first index in S503 are carried in different channels, S503 and S504 can be executed simultaneously, or S503 can be executed before S504, or S503 can be executed after S504. This application embodiment does not limit the execution order of S503 and S504.

[0143] S505: The first terminal reconstructs the transmission information of the first data based on the first data and the first information, and determines at least one arrival time based on the transmission information of the first data and the reception information of the first data.

[0144] The relevant description of S505 can be found in the corresponding description of S202, and will not be repeated here.

[0145] The above technical solution can reduce air interface overhead while meeting the positioning accuracy requirements of the first terminal.

[0146] Figure 6 shows a schematic diagram of a communication device provided in an embodiment of this application. The communication device 600 can be a terminal device or its circuit system as shown in the embodiments of Figure 2 or Figure 5, used to implement the method corresponding to the terminal device in the above method embodiments. Alternatively, the communication device 600 can be a network device or its circuit system as shown in the embodiments of Figure 2 or Figure 5, used to implement the method corresponding to the network device in the above method embodiments. For example, one type of circuit system is a chip system.

[0147] The communication device 600 includes at least one processor 601. The processor 601 can be used for internal processing within the device to implement certain control processing functions. Optionally, the processor 601 includes instructions. Optionally, the processor 601 can store data. Optionally, different processors can be independent devices, located in different physical locations, or located on different integrated circuits. Optionally, different processors can be integrated into one or more processors, for example, integrated on one or more integrated circuits.

[0148] Optionally, the communication device 600 includes one or more memories 603 for storing instructions. Optionally, the memories 603 may also store data. The processor and the memories may be separate or integrated together.

[0149] Optionally, the communication device 600 includes a communication line 602 and at least one communication interface 604. Since the memory 603, communication line 602, and communication interface 604 are all optional, they are all represented by dashed lines in Figure 6.

[0150] Optionally, the communication device 600 may further include a transceiver and / or an antenna. The transceiver can be used to send information to or receive information from other devices. The transceiver may be referred to as a transceiver unit, transceiver circuit, input / output interface, etc., and is used to realize the transmission and reception functions of the communication device 600 via the antenna. Optionally, the transceiver includes a transmitter and a receiver. For example, the transmitter can be used to generate a radio frequency (RF) signal from a baseband signal, and the receiver can be used to convert the RF signal back into a baseband signal.

[0151] Processor 601 may include a general-purpose central processing unit (CPU), a microprocessor, an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), or one or more integrated circuits for controlling the execution of programs according to the present application.

[0152] Communication line 602 may include a path for transmitting information between the aforementioned components.

[0153] Communication interface 604 uses any transceiver-like device for communicating with other devices or communication networks, such as Ethernet, radio access network (RAN), wireless local area network (WLAN), wired access network, etc.

[0154] The memory 603 may be a read-only memory (ROM) or other type of static storage device capable of storing static information and instructions, random access memory (RAM) or other type of dynamic storage device capable of storing information and instructions, or electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), compact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM) or other optical disc storage, optical disc storage (including compressed optical discs, laser discs, optical discs, digital universal optical discs, Blu-ray discs, etc.), magnetic disk storage media or other magnetic storage devices, or any other medium capable of carrying or storing desired program code in the form of instructions or data structures and accessible by a computer, but not limited thereto. The memory 603 may exist independently and be connected to the processor 601 via communication line 602. Alternatively, the memory 603 may be integrated with the processor 601.

[0155] The memory 603 stores computer execution instructions for implementing the scheme of this application, and the processor 601 controls the execution of these instructions. The processor 601 executes the computer execution instructions stored in the memory 603 to implement the steps performed by the terminal device or network device in the embodiments shown in FIG2 or FIG5.

[0156] Optionally, the computer execution instructions in the embodiments of this application may also be referred to as application code, and the embodiments of this application do not specifically limit this.

[0157] In a specific implementation, as one example, processor 601 may include one or more CPUs, such as CPU0 and CPU1 in FIG6.

[0158] In a specific implementation, as one embodiment, the communication device 600 may include multiple processors, such as processor 601 and processor 605 in FIG. 6. Each of these processors may be a single-core (single-CPU) processor or a multi-core (multi-CPU) processor. Here, a processor may refer to one or more devices, circuits, and / or processing cores for processing data (e.g., computer program instructions).

[0159] When the device shown in Figure 6 is a chip, such as a chip for a terminal device or a chip for a network device, the chip includes a processor 601 (and may also include a processor 605), a communication line 602, and a communication interface 604. Optionally, it may include a memory 603. Specifically, the communication interface 604 may be an input interface, pins, or circuits, etc. The memory 603 may be a register, cache, etc. The processor 601 and processor 605 may be a general-purpose CPU, microprocessor, ASIC, or one or more integrated circuits for controlling the execution of a program that controls the communication method of any of the above embodiments.

[0160] This application embodiment can divide the device into functional modules according to the above method examples. For example, each function can be divided into its own functional modules, or two or more functions can be integrated into one processing module. The integrated modules can be implemented in hardware or software functional modules. It should be noted that the module division in this application embodiment is illustrative and only represents one logical functional division. In actual implementation, there may be other division methods. For example, when dividing each functional module according to its own function, Figure 7 is a schematic diagram of a device. This device 700 can be the terminal device or network device involved in the above method embodiments, or a chip in a terminal device or a chip in a network device. The device 700 includes a processing unit 702 and a transceiver unit 701.

[0161] It should be understood that the device 700 can be used to implement the steps performed by the terminal device or network device in the communication method of the embodiments of this application. The relevant features can be referred to the embodiments shown in Figure 2 or Figure 5 above, and will not be repeated here.

[0162] Optionally, the functions / implementation processes of the transceiver unit 701 and processing unit 702 in Figure 7 can be implemented by the processor 601 in Figure 6 calling computer execution instructions stored in memory 603. Alternatively, the functions / implementation processes of the processing unit 702 in Figure 7 can be implemented by the processor 601 in Figure 6 calling computer execution instructions stored in memory 603, and the functions / implementation processes of the transceiver unit 701 in Figure 7 can be implemented by the communication interface 604 in Figure 6.

[0163] Optionally, when the device 700 is a chip or circuit, the function / implementation process of the transceiver unit 701 can also be implemented through pins or circuits. Optionally, the transceiver unit 701 may include a transmitting unit and / or a receiving unit, whereby the transmitting unit implements the transmitting function and the receiving unit implements the receiving function; or, the transceiver unit 701 may be an integral module capable of implementing both transmitting and / or receiving functions. Optionally, the transceiver unit 701 can be implemented using a transceiver.

[0164] This application also provides a computer-readable storage medium storing a computer program or instructions that, when executed, implement the methods performed by a terminal device or network device in the aforementioned method embodiments. Thus, the functions described in the above embodiments can be implemented as software functional units and sold or used as independent products. Based on this understanding, the technical solution of this application, in essence, or the part that contributes to it, or a part of the technical solution, can be embodied in the form of a software product. This computer software product is stored in a storage medium and includes several instructions to cause a computer device (which may be a personal computer, a server, or a network device, etc.) to execute all or part of the steps of the methods described in the various embodiments of this application. The storage medium includes various media capable of storing program code, such as USB flash drives, portable hard drives, ROM, RAM, magnetic disks, or optical disks.

[0165] This application also provides a computer program product comprising: computer program code, which, when run on a computer, causes the computer to perform the method executed by a terminal device or a network device in any of the foregoing method embodiments.

[0166] This application also provides a processing apparatus, including a processor and an interface; the processor is used to execute the methods performed by the terminal device or network device involved in any of the above method embodiments.

[0167] In the above embodiments, implementation can be achieved entirely or partially through software, hardware, firmware, or any combination thereof. When implemented using software, it can be implemented entirely or partially in the form of a computer program product. The computer program product includes one or more computer instructions. When the computer program instructions are loaded and executed on a computer, all or part of the processes or functions described in the embodiments of this application are generated. The computer can be a general-purpose computer, a special-purpose computer, a computer network, or other programmable device. The computer instructions can be stored in a computer-readable storage medium or transmitted from one computer-readable storage medium to another. For example, the computer instructions can be transmitted from one website, computer, server, or data center to another website, computer, server, or data center via wired (e.g., coaxial cable, fiber optic, digital subscriber line (DSL)) or wireless (e.g., infrared, wireless, microwave, etc.) means. The computer-readable storage medium can be any available medium that a computer can access or a data storage device such as a server or data center that integrates one or more available media. The available medium can be a magnetic medium (e.g., floppy disk, hard disk, magnetic tape), an optical medium (e.g., DVD), or a semiconductor medium (e.g., solid-state disk (SSD)).

[0168] The various illustrative logic units and circuits described in the embodiments of this application can be implemented or operate the described functions using a general-purpose processor, digital signal processor (DSP), ASIC, field-programmable gate array (FPGA), or other programmable logic device, discrete gate or transistor logic, discrete hardware components, or any combination thereof. The general-purpose processor can be a microprocessor; alternatively, it can be any conventional processor, controller, microcontroller, or state machine. The processor can also be implemented using a combination of computing devices, such as a digital signal processor and a microprocessor, multiple microprocessors, one or more microprocessors combined with a digital signal processor core, or any other similar configuration.

[0169] The steps of the methods or algorithms described in the embodiments of this application can be directly embedded in hardware, software units executed by a processor, or a combination of both. The software units can be stored in RAM, flash memory, ROM, erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM), EEPROM, registers, hard disks, removable disks, CD-ROMs, or any other form of storage medium in the art. Exemplarily, the storage medium can be connected to the processor so that the processor can read information from the storage medium and write information to the storage medium. Optionally, the storage medium can also be integrated into the processor. The processor and storage medium can be disposed in an ASIC, which can be disposed in the terminal device. Optionally, the processor and storage medium can also be disposed in different components of the terminal device.

[0170] These computer program instructions may also be loaded onto a computer or other programmable data processing apparatus to cause a series of operational steps to be performed on the computer or other programmable apparatus to produce a computer-implemented process, such that the instructions, which execute on the computer or other programmable apparatus, provide steps for implementing the functions specified in one or more flowcharts and / or one or more block diagrams.

[0171] The contents of the various embodiments of this application can be referenced to each other. Unless otherwise specified or there is a logical conflict, the terms and / or descriptions between different embodiments are consistent and can be referenced to each other. The technical features in different embodiments can be combined to form new embodiments according to their inherent logical relationship.

[0172] It is understood that in the embodiments of this application, the terminal device and / or network device may execute some or all of the steps in the embodiments of this application. These steps or operations are merely examples. In the embodiments of this application, other operations or variations of various operations may also be performed. Furthermore, the steps may be performed in different orders as presented in the embodiments of this application, and it is not necessary to perform all the operations in the embodiments of this application.

Claims

1. A communication method, characterized in that, Applied to a first device, the method includes: Receive the first data; The transmission information of the first data is reconstructed based on the first data, and the transmission information and the reception information of the first data are used to determine at least one arrival time, and the at least one arrival time is used to determine the location of the first terminal.

2. The method as described in claim 1, characterized in that, The first data is carried on a first resource. Reconstructing the transmission information of the first data based on the first data includes: The transmission information of the first data is reconstructed based on the first data and the first information, wherein the first information is used to indicate the resource in the first resource used to reconstruct the transmission information of the first data.

3. The method as described in claim 2, characterized in that, The first information is used to indicate the resource in the first resource used to reconstruct the transmission information of the first data, including: The first resource includes N time units, and the first information includes first indication information and / or second indication information. The first indication information is used to indicate M time units in the N time units for reconstructing the transmission information of the first data, and the second indication information is used to indicate sub-time units in each time unit for reconstructing the transmission information of the first data. M and N are positive integers.

4. The method as described in claim 3, characterized in that, The first indication information is used to indicate M time units out of the N time units for reconstructing the transmission information of the first data, including: The first indication information is used to indicate a first quantity, wherein the first quantity is M; or, The first indication information is used to indicate a first cycle, and the first cycle is used to determine the M.

5. The method according to any one of claims 2 to 4, characterized in that, The method further includes: The first information is received, or a first index is received, wherein the first index is used to indicate the first information.

6. The method according to any one of claims 2 to 5, characterized in that, The first information is related to the location information of the first terminal and / or the positioning accuracy required by the first terminal.

7. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that, The method further includes: Receive a positioning reference signal and obtain a first arrival time based on the positioning reference signal; The at least one arrival time is used to determine the location of the first terminal, including: the at least one arrival time and the first arrival time are used to determine the location of the first terminal.

8. A communication device, characterized in that, It includes a processor and a memory, the memory and the processor being coupled, the processor being configured to invoke computer instructions in the memory to execute the method as described in any one of claims 1 to 7.

9. A computer-readable storage medium, characterized in that, Includes a computer program that, when run on a computer, causes the computer to perform the method as described in any one of claims 1 to 7.

10. A computer program product, characterized in that, When it is run on a computer, it causes the computer to perform the method as described in any one of claims 1 to 7.

11. A chip system, characterized in that, Includes: a processor for calling and running a computer program from memory, such that the method described in any one of claims 1 to 7 is implemented.

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