WO2024239184A1

WO2024239184A1 - Sensing enhancements

Info

Publication number: WO2024239184A1
Application number: PCT/CN2023/095436
Authority: WO
Inventors: Yanni ZHOU; Jian Guo Liu; Fei Gao; Wen Jian WANG; Chao Jun XU
Original assignee: Nokia Shanghai Bell Co Ltd; Nokia Solutions and Networks Oy; Nokia Technologies Oy
Current assignee: Nokia Shanghai Bell Co Ltd; Nokia Solutions and Networks Oy; Nokia Technologies Oy
Priority date: 2023-05-22
Filing date: 2023-05-22
Publication date: 2024-11-28
Anticipated expiration: 2025-11-22
Also published as: CN121176115A

Abstract

Embodiments of the present disclosure relate to sensing enhancements. In an aspect, a first device receives a sensing request for a sensing area. The first device then determines, based on the sensing request, a reference signal for sensing towards the sensing area from (i) a first reference signal configured for communication of a communication device and for the sensing or (ii) a second reference signal configured for the sensing. Moreover, the first device transmits the reference signal towards the sensing area. As a result, sensing performance can be ensured and thus communication performance and communication efficiency can be improved.

Description

SENSING ENHANCEMENTS

FIELD

Various example embodiments relate to the field of telecommunication and in particular, to devices, methods, apparatuses, and computer readable storage media for sensing enhancements.

BACKGROUND

In communication technology, there is a constant evolution ongoing in order to provide efficient and reliable solutions for utilizing wireless communication networks. Each new generation has its own technical challenges for handling different situations and processes that are needed to connect and serve devices connected to wireless networks. To meet the demand for increased wireless data traffic since the deployment of 4th generation (4G) communication systems, efforts have been made to develop an improved 5th generation (5G) , pre-5G, or 5G-advanced communication system. The new communication systems can support various types of service applications for terminal devices.

Integrated sensing and communication (ISAC) as a key feature of beyond 5G (B5G) /6th generation (6G) networks attracts great attention. It brings significant improvements in spectral efficiency, reductions in hardware size, cost, and power consumption, and improved performance of both functions. Enabling passive sensing on the existing wide deployment of communication infrastructures can provide a more immersive human-machine interaction experience. Considering ongoing and potential use cases, it can be expected that ISAC will have a deep impact on industrial progress and standardization activities in the 6G era. However, there are still some open problems in ISAC that will be studied in the near future.

SUMMARY

In general, example embodiments of the present disclosure provide a solution related to sensing enhancements.

In a first aspect, there is provided a first device. The first device comprises at least one processor and at least one memory storing instructions that, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the first device at least to: receive a sensing request for a sensing area; determine, based on the sensing request, a reference signal for sensing towards the sensing area from (i) a first reference signal configured for communication of a communication device and for the sensing or (ii) a second reference signal configured for the sensing; and transmit the reference signal towards the sensing area.

In a second aspect, there is provided a second device. The second device comprises at least one processor and at least one memory storing instructions that, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the second device at least to: receive, from a first device, a configuration of a reference signal for sensing towards a sensing area, the reference signal being one of: (i) a first reference signal configured for communication of a communication device and for the sensing or (ii) a second reference signal configured for the sensing; and perform sensing towards the sensing area based on the configuration of the reference signal.

In a third aspect, there is provided a third device. The third device comprises at least one processor and at least one memory storing instructions that, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the third device at least to: receive, from a first device, configuration information of a second reference signal for sensing towards a sensing area, the second reference signal being configured for the sensing; and process communication data received from the first device based on the configuration information of the second reference signal.

In a fourth aspect, there is provided a method. The method comprises receiving, at a first device, a sensing request for a sensing area; determining, based on the sensing request, a reference signal for sensing towards the sensing area from (i) a first reference signal configured for communication of a communication device and for the sensing or (ii) a second reference signal configured for the sensing; and transmitting the reference signal towards the sensing area.

In a fifth aspect, there is provided a method. The method comprises receiving, at a second device from a first device, a configuration of a reference signal for sensing towards a sensing area, the reference signal being one of: (i) a first reference signal configured for communication of a communication device and for the sensing or (ii) a second reference signal configured for the sensing; and performing sensing towards the sensing area based on the configuration of the reference signal.

In a sixth aspect, there is provided a method. The method comprises receiving, at a third device from a first device, configuration information of a second reference signal for sensing towards a sensing area, the second reference signal being configured for the sensing; and processing communication data received from the first device based on the configuration information of the second reference signal.

In a seventh aspect, there is provided an apparatus. The apparatus comprises means for receiving, at a first device, a sensing request for a sensing area; means for determining, based on the sensing request, a reference signal for sensing towards the sensing area from (i) a first reference signal configured for communication of a communication device and for the sensing or (ii) a second reference signal configured for the sensing; and means for transmitting the reference signal towards the sensing area.

In an eighth aspect, there is provided an apparatus. The apparatus comprises means for receiving, at a second device from a first device, a configuration of a reference signal for sensing towards a sensing area, the reference signal being one of: (i) a first reference signal configured for communication of a communication device and for the sensing or (ii) a second reference signal configured for the sensing; and means for performing sensing towards the sensing area based on the configuration of the reference signal.

In a ninth aspect, there is provided an apparatus. The apparatus comprises means for receiving, at a third device from a first device, configuration information of a second reference signal for sensing towards a sensing area, the second reference signal being configured for the sensing; and processing communication data received from the first device based on the configuration information of the second reference signal.

In a tenth aspect, there is provided a non-transitory computer readable medium comprising program instructions for causing an apparatus to perform at least the method according to any one of the above fourth aspect to sixth aspect.

In an eleventh aspect, there is provided a computer program comprising instructions, which, when executed by an apparatus, cause the apparatus at least to perform at least the method according to any one of the above fourth aspect to sixth aspect.

In a twelfth aspect, there is provided a first device. The first device comprises receiving circuitry configured to receive a sensing request for a sensing area; determining circuitry configured to determine, based on the sensing request, a reference signal for sensing towards the sensing area from (i) a first reference signal configured for communication of a communication device and for the sensing or (ii) a second reference signal configured for the sensing; and transmitting circuitry configured to transmit the reference signal towards the sensing area.

In a thirteenth aspect, there is provided a second device. The second device comprises receiving circuitry configured to receive, from a first device, a configuration of a reference signal for sensing towards a sensing area, the reference signal being one of: (i) a first reference signal configured for communication of a communication device and for the sensing or (ii) a second reference signal configured for the sensing; and performing circuitry configured to perform sensing towards the sensing area based on the configuration of the reference signal.

In a fourteenth aspect, there is provided a third device. The third device comprises receiving circuitry configured to receive, from a first device, configuration information of a second reference signal for sensing towards a sensing area, the second reference signal being configured for the sensing; and processing circuitry configured to process communication data received from the first device based on the configuration information of the second reference signal.

It is to be understood that the summary section is not intended to identify key or essential features of embodiments of the present disclosure, nor is it intended to be used to limit the scope of the present disclosure. Other features of the present disclosure will become easily comprehensible through the following description.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Some example embodiments will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1A illustrates an example environment in which example embodiments of the present disclosure can be implemented;

FIG. 1B illustrates an example bistatic ISAC scenario associated with example embodiments of the present disclosure;

FIG. 2 illustrates a signaling flow among a first device, a second device, and a third device according to some example embodiments of the present disclosure;

FIG. 3A illustrates an example sensing configuration with the first reference signal (RS) according to some embodiments of the present disclosure;

FIG. 3B illustrates an example sensing configuration with the second RS according to some embodiments of the present disclosure;

FIG. 3C illustrates an example sensing configuration with the second RS at a specific sensing moment according to some embodiments of the present disclosure;

FIG. 3D illustrates an example line of sight (LoS) path configuration according to some embodiments of the present disclosure;

FIG. 3E is a first schematic diagram of example rate matching according to some embodiments of the present disclosure;

FIG. 3F is a second schematic diagram of example rate matching according to some embodiments of the present disclosure;

FIG. 3G is a third schematic diagram of example rate matching according to some embodiments of the present disclosure;

FIG. 4 illustrates an example communication process according to some embodiments of the present disclosure;

FIG. 5 illustrates another example communication process according to some other embodiments of the present disclosure;

FIG. 6 illustrates a flowchart of a method implemented at a first device according to some embodiments of the present disclosure;

FIG. 7 illustrates a flowchart of a method implemented at a second device according to some embodiments of the present disclosure;

FIG. 8 illustrates a flowchart of a method implemented at a third device according to some embodiments of the present disclosure;

FIG. 9 illustrates a simplified block diagram of a device that is suitable for implementing some example embodiments of the present disclosure; and

FIG. 10 illustrates a block diagram of an example of a computer readable medium in accordance with some example embodiments of the present disclosure.

Throughout the drawings, the same or similar reference numerals represent the same or similar element.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Principles of the present disclosure will now be described with reference to some example embodiments. It is to be understood that these embodiments are described only for the purpose of illustration and help those skilled in the art to understand and implement the present disclosure, without suggesting any limitation as to the scope of the disclosure. The disclosure described herein can be implemented in various manners other than the ones described below.

In the following description and claims, unless defined otherwise, all technical and scientific terms used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skills in the art to which this disclosure belongs.

References in the present disclosure to “one embodiment, ” “an embodiment, ” “an example embodiment, ” and the like indicate that the embodiment described may include a particular feature, structure, or characteristic, but it is not necessary that every embodiment includes the particular feature, structure, or characteristic. Moreover, such phrases are not necessarily referring to the same embodiment. Further, when a particular feature, structure, or characteristic is described in connection with an embodiment, it is submitted that it is within the knowledge of one skilled in the art to affect such feature, structure, or characteristic in connection with other embodiments whether or not explicitly described.

It shall be understood that although the terms “first” and “second” etc. may be used herein to describe various elements, these elements should not be limited by these terms. These terms are only used to distinguish one element from another. For example, a first element could be termed a second element, and similarly, a second element could be termed a first element, without departing from the scope of example embodiments. As used herein, the term “and/or” includes any and all combinations of one or more of the listed terms.

The terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments only and is not intended to be limiting of example embodiments. As used herein, the singular forms “a” , “an” and “the” are intended to include the plural forms as well, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. It will be further understood that the terms “comprises” , “comprising” , “has” , “having” , “includes” and/or “including” , when used herein, specify the presence of stated features, elements, and/or components etc., but do not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, elements, components and/or combinations thereof. As used herein, “at least one of the following: <a list of two or more elements>” and “at least one of <a list of two or more elements>” and similar wording, where the list of two or more elements are joined by “and” or “or” , mean at least any one of the elements, or at least any two or more of the elements, or at least all the elements.

As used in this application, the term “circuitry” may refer to one or more or all of the following:

(a) hardware-only circuit implementations (such as implementations in only analog and/or digital circuitry) and

(b) combinations of hardware circuits and software, such as (as applicable) :

(i) a combination of analog and/or digital hardware circuit (s) with software/firmware and

(ii) any portions of hardware processor (s) with software (including digital signal processor (s) ) , software, and memory (ies) that work together to cause an apparatus, such as a mobile phone or server, to perform various functions) and

(c) hardware circuit (s) and or processor (s) , such as a microprocessor (s) or a portion of a microprocessor (s) , that requires software (e.g., firmware) for operation, but the software may not be present when it is not needed for operation.

This definition of circuitry applies to all uses of this term in this application, including in any claims. As a further example, as used in this application, the term circuitry also covers an implementation of merely a hardware circuit or processor (or multiple processors) or portion of a hardware circuit or processor and its (or their) accompanying software and/or firmware. The term circuitry also covers, for example and if applicable to the particular claim element, a baseband integrated circuit or processor integrated circuit for a mobile device or a similar integrated circuit in server, a cellular network device, or other computing or network device.

As used herein, the term “communication network” refers to a network following any suitable communication standards, such as Long Term Evolution (LTE) , LTE-Advanced (LTE-A) , Wideband Code Division Multiple Access (WCDMA) , High-Speed Packet Access (HSPA) , Narrow Band Internet of Things (NB-IoT) and so on. Furthermore, the communications between a terminal device and a network device in the communication network may be performed according to any suitable generation communication protocols, including, but not limited to, the third generation (3G) , the fourth generation (4G) , 4.5G, the future fifth generation (5G) communication protocols, and/or any other protocols either currently known or to be developed in the future. Embodiments of the present disclosure may be applied in various communication systems. Given the rapid development in communications, there will of course also be future type communication technologies and systems with which the present disclosure may be embodied. It should not be seen as limiting the scope of the present disclosure to only the aforementioned system.

As used herein, the term “network device” refers to a node in a communication network via which a terminal device accesses the network and receives services therefrom. The network device may refer to a base station (BS) or an access point (AP) , for example, a node B (NodeB or NB) , an evolved NodeB (eNodeB or eNB) , a New Radio (NR) NB (also referred to as a gNB) , a Remote Radio Unit (RRU) , a radio header (RH) , a remote radio head (RRH) , a relay, a low power node such as a femto, a pico, and so forth, depending on the applied terminology and technology.

The term “terminal device” refers to any end device that may be capable of wireless communication. By way of example rather than limitation, a terminal device may also be referred to as a communication device, user equipment (UE) , a Subscriber Station (SS) , a Portable Subscriber Station, a Mobile Station (MS) , or an Access Terminal (AT) . The terminal device may include, but not limited to, a mobile phone, a cellular phone, a smart phone, voice over IP (VoIP) phones, wireless local loop phones, a tablet, a wearable terminal device, a personal digital assistant (PDA) , portable computers, desktop computer, image capture terminal devices such as digital cameras, gaming terminal devices, music storage and playback appliances, vehicle-mounted wireless terminal devices, wireless endpoints, mobile stations, laptop-embedded equipment (LEE) , laptop-mounted equipment (LME) , USB dongles, smart devices, wireless customer-premises equipment (CPE) , an Internet of Things (loT) device, a watch or other wearable, a head-mounted display (HMD) , a vehicle, a drone, a medical device and applications (e.g., remote surgery) , an industrial device and applications (e.g., a robot and/or other wireless devices operating in an industrial and/or an automated processing chain contexts) , a consumer electronics device, a device operating on commercial and/or industrial wireless networks, and the like. In the following description, the terms “terminal device” , “communication device” , “terminal” , “user equipment” and “UE” may be used interchangeably.

Hereinafter, principles and embodiments of the present disclosure will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

Reference is first made to FIG. 1A, which illustrates an example environment 100 in which example embodiments of the present disclosure can be implemented. The environment 100, which may be a part of a communication network, comprises a first device 110, a second device 120, and a third device 130. The communication among the first device 110, the second device 120 and the third device 130 may be direct or indirect. As an example, the first device 110, the second device 120, and/or the third device 130 may communicate with one or more further devices not shown in FIG. 1A.

The devices 110, 120, and 130 may be implemented by any suitable devices in the communication network. In some example embodiments, some of the devices 110, 120 and 130 may be implemented by one or more terminal devices and the others may be implemented by one or more network devices, or vice versa. In some other example embodiments, the devices 110, 120, and 130 may be all implemented by terminal devices or network devices.

In some example embodiments, the device 110 may be referred to as a transmitting (Tx) node. As an example, the first device 110 may be a network device, such as a gNB, which transmits a communication/sensing signal to a UE. As another example, the first device 110 may also be a terminal device, in which case a separate sensing management entity or element may be responsible for processing a request for sensing. Alternatively or additionally, the first device 110 may be any other device that has a transmitting module. In some examples, a sensing management function (SeMF) that serves as a functional entity within a core network for managing sensing functions, as a sensing management component may be located at the network edge, or as a functional entity within the first device 110. It may be expected to possess knowledge of sensing requirements and be capable of managing the coordination and scheduling of resources necessary for sensing operations.

In some example embodiments, the second device 120 may be referred to as a sensing node. The second device 120 may be either a gNB or a terminal device, such as a CPE. For example, the second device 120 may be a device that has a sensing processing capability/function or need to forward a calibrated channel impulse response (CIR) to a sensing management function/entity for sensing processing. As an example, the second device 120 may be a device that has a receiving module to receive an echo sensing signal that can enable sensing function.

In some example embodiments, the third device 130 may be a terminal device. Alternatively or additionally, the third device 130 may be any other mobile device or communication equipment receiving communication data. For example, the third device 130 may be a communication UE.

Just for the purpose of discussion, in some example embodiments, the device 110 will be taken as an example of a network device, such as a gNB in a 5G NR system, the device 120 will be taken as an example of a CPE or a UE in the 5G NR system, and the third device 130 will be taken as an example of a communication UE. Moreover, in this case, to transmit data and/or control information, the first device 110 may perform communications with the third device 130. A link from the first device 110 to the third device 130 is referred to as a downlink (DL) , while a link from the third device 130 to the first device 110 is referred to as an uplink (UL) .

In some example embodiments, the first device 110 may transmit an RS to the third device 130 for future data communication. As an example, a SeMF may serve as a functional entity within the first device 110 for managing sensing functions. The second device 120 may perform sensing based on an echo signal from the first device 110. For example, a sensing application on the second device 120 may report sensing assistance information for the sensing function to the first device 110.

Although the first device 110, the second device 120, and the third device 130 are described in the communication environment 100 of FIG. 1A, embodiments of the present disclosure may equally apply to any other suitable communication devices in communication with one another. That is, embodiments of the present disclosure are not limited to the exemplary scenarios of FIG. 1A. In this regard, it is noted that although the first device 110 is schematically depicted as a base station and the third device 130 is schematically depicted as a mobile phone in FIG. 1A, it is understood that these depictions are exemplary in nature without suggesting any limitation. In other embodiments, the first device 110, the second device 120, and the third device 130 may be any other communication devices, for example, any other wireless communication devices.

It is to be understood that the particular number of various communication devices and the particular number of various communication links as shown in FIG. 1A is for illustration purpose only without suggesting any limitations. The communication environment 100 may include any suitable number of communication devices and any suitable number of communication links for implementing embodiments of the present disclosure. In addition, it should be appreciated that there may be various wireless as well as wireline communications (if needed) among all of the communication devices.

The communications in the environment 100 may follow any suitable communication standards or protocols, which are already in existence or to be developed in the future, such as Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS) , long term evolution (LTE) , LTE-Advanced (LTE-A) , the fifth generation (5G) New Radio (NR) , Wireless Fidelity (Wi-Fi) and Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access (WiMAX) standards, and employs any suitable communication technologies, including, for example, Multiple-Input Multiple-Output (MIMO) , Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM) , time division multiplexing (TDM) , frequency division multiplexing (FDM) , code division multiplexing (CDM) , Bluetooth, ZigBee, and machine type communication (MTC) , enhanced mobile broadband (eMBB) , massive machine type communication (mMTC) , ultra-reliable low latency communication (URLLC) , Carrier Aggregation (CA) , Dual Connectivity (DC) , and New Radio Unlicensed (NR-U) technologies.

As stated above, ISAC as a key feature of B5G/6G networks can bring significant improvements in spectral efficiency, reductions in hardware size, cost, and power consumption, and improved performance of both functions. Enabling passive sensing on the existing wide deployment of communication infrastructures can provide a more immersive human-machine interaction experience. In the 5G NR system, the UE-based active sensing positioning scheme has been standardized via radio access technology (RAT) -dependent methods or RAT-independent methods. Besides active sensing where the target can transmit or receive a signal, passive sensing can also utilize the wireless signal to detect the target and conduct distance and velocity estimation. The application scenario may be classified as several major areas, such as smart transportation, smart city, smart home, industrial IoT, environmental sensing, and sensing-assisted communications. Considering the ongoing and potential use cases, it can be expected that ISAC will have a deep impact on industrial progress and standardization activities in the 6G era.

When realizing passive ISAC on the in-use communication facilities, bistatic design becomes one of the key options since most of the in-use facilities are half-duplex devices. In a passive bistatic sensing system, a transmitter keeps emitting signals to illuminate the targets while a sensing receiver receives echoes from the targets. In ISAC passive bistatic design, the illuminators can be communication RSs (e.g., a channel state information RS (CSI-RS) , a sounding RS (SRS) , a positioning RS (PRS) , a demodulation RS (DMRS) , a primary synchronization signal (PSS) /secondary synchronization signal (SSS) , etc. ) or data.

Wireless communication networks can provide sensing services for various applications in intelligent transportation, drone supervision, national railway perimeter security detection, smart homes, public safety, health monitoring, environmental monitoring, and other fields. The ISAC functions in a single system offers several benefits, including increased spectrum efficiency, reduced costs, and improved performance.

Sensing measurements may vary depending on the specific applications. The sensing target may be a stationary object, a moving object, or even the overall environmental information. More specially, key performance indicators (KPIs) (e.g. accuracy of positioning estimate, sensing resolution (range, velocity) ) for such use cases have also been discussed.

FIG. 1B illustrates an example bistatic ISAC scenario equipped with a transmitter and a sensing receiver associated with example embodiments of the present disclosure. As shown in FIG. 1B, the transmitter (shown as a gNB) transmits an RS or data to a UE. The sensing receiver receives an illuminator (for example, an echo) from the transmitter.

As mentioned before, the illuminators can be a communication RS or data. Since the sensing receiver requires the priori information about the illuminator to enable the sensing function, the RS shall be configured or known to the sensing receiver.

For the case of using the communication RS for sensing, it brings the problem of efficiency and complexity. If the sensing receiver needs to utilize UE-specific RS of a communication UE for sensing, the RS configuration needs to be frequently delivered to the sensing receiver due to changes of communication UEs. Therefore, the communication signaling overhead, and complexity are increased inevitably.

Moreover, inventors noticed that a dedicated/common RS may be configured for sensing to be transmitted with the communication data. However, it requires high-density resource allocation to configure each beam to achieve good sensing performance, which will reduce the resources available for communication.

Besides, the estimation accuracy problem is also an important issue. For example, the sensing receiver may utilize a CSI-RS for sensing. However, the inherent time synchronization and clock drift problems will influence the estimation accuracy. Especially, it puts forward higher demand for synchronization accuracy in ISAC systems compared with communication-only systems, as the range estimation accuracy may be affected by the time synchronization problem, and the velocity estimation accuracy may be degraded by the clock drift that introduces the carrier frequency offset. Currently, impacts of the time synchronization and clock drift cannot be avoided.

In addition, in ISAC, regarding the RS to be used for sensing, inventors further noticed that determining an RS for communication systems is primarily to meet communication service requirements, with time-frequency resource allocation constraints. However, using conventional RSs for sensing may not achieve ideal results for the reason that the density and/or bandwidth cannot meet sensing requirements (such as high Doppler resolution, multi-target, etc. ) . In other words, reusing existing communication RSs may improve resource utilization, but the accuracy and scope of sensing will be affected due to limitations such as differences in time-frequency domain resources, communication and sensing targets, and the number of detectable sensing targets. Introducing dedicated sensing signals regardless of whether sensing is required or not will occupy additional communication resources, affecting the communication rate. Thus, performing sensing based on the dedicated sensing signals depending on certain scenarios is beneficial. For example, for high-accuracy motion detection, there may be a need for a high-density and/or high-bandwidth design for the accurate Doppler feature. For most of the sensing use cases, a new specialized sensing RS may need to be designed for multi-node cooperative sensing, and sequences that support multiple user reuse and have good auto-correlation and poor cross-correlation (such as m-sequences, Gold sequences, etc. ) should be selected to complete perception of multiple targets.

Therefore, by now, there is no effective way to enable sensing. In view of the above, enhancements on sensing shall be considered.

According to embodiments of the present disclosure, there is provided a scheme for sensing enhancements. With this scheme, a first device receives a sensing request for a sensing area. The first device then determines, based on the sensing request, an RS for sensing towards the sensing area from (i) a first RS configured for communication of a communication device and for the sensing or (ii) a second RS configured for the sensing. Moreover, the first device transmits the RS towards the sensing area.

Selecting an RS from the first RS configured for communication of a communication device and the second RS configured for the sensing makes it possible to improve the flexibility of the RS to be used for sensing without causing additional resource overhead. In this way, sensing performance can be ensured and thus communication performance and communication efficiency can be improved.

Reference now is made to FIG. 2, which illustrates a signaling flow 200 among the first device, the second device, and the third device according to some example embodiments of the present disclosure. For the purpose of discussion, the signaling flow 200 will be described with reference to FIG. 1A.

As shown in FIG. 2, the first device 110 receives (205) a sensing request for a sensing area. The sensing area may be an area of interest, or it may be referred to as a sensing interesting area. As an example, the second device 120 may transmit (210) the sensing request to the first device 110. Alternatively or additionally, the sensing request may be obtained from a SeMF. The sensing area may be referred to as one or more or all areas of interest.

The sensing request may comprise sensing assistance information with one or more requirements. In other words, sensing assistance information may be provided as prior knowledge to the first device 110 for RS determination. For example, the sensing request may comprise information on the sensing area, for example, physical information of a sensing area where the sensing target is located, such as the direction of the sensing area. The sensing area may be a bedroom, a yard, a factory, etc. The sensing request may further comprise a sensing service type for the sensing area, for example, intrusion detection, gesture recognition, positioning, unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) tracking, etc. As another example, the sensing request may comprise a sensing requirement for the sensing area (i.e. a requirement on sensing quality) , such as velocity, ranging resolution, ranging accuracy, latency, period, refreshed frequency, etc. Different requirements may be coupled to the KPIs of different use cases in Rel-19. As a further example, the sensing request may comprise a sensing period. As yet a further example, the sensing request may comprise an RS configuration requirement for the sensing area (e.g., bandwidth, period, density, and/or the like) .

In some example embodiments, the SeMF may negotiate the sensing RS configurations with the first device 110. For example, the SeMF may determine the sensing RS type and the sensing RS configuration requirement (e.g., the bandwidth, period, density, etc. ) , and then send them to the first device 110 for determination of the sensing RS time/frequency resource configuration. The SeMF may request the first device 110 to configure the RS with assistance information.

For example, the assistance information may include bandwidth requirements for sensing RS configurations. Alternatively or additionally, the assistance information may include density requirements for sensing RS configurations. Alternatively or additionally, the assistance information may include an RS type, such as conventional Com-RS (e.g., PSS/SSS, DMRS for common physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) or/and UE-specific PDCCH/physical shared channel (PDSCH) decoding, CSI-RS, PRS) , dedicated RS design based on Com-RS or a new specific Sen-RS. The two last types are classified into Specific Sen-RS types. Alternatively or additionally, the assistance information may include time/frequency resource allocation requirements for RS transmission. Alternatively or additionally, the assistance information may include measurement parameters such as period, occasions, etc.

Then, as shown in FIG. 2, the first device 110 determines (215) , based on the sensing request, an RS for sensing towards the sensing area from (i) a first RS configured for communication of a communication device and for the sensing or (ii) a second RS configured for the sensing. The first RS may be an existing communication RS, for example, a PSS/SSS, a DMRS for common PDCCH or/and UE-specific PDCCH/PDSCH decoding, a CSI-RS, a PRS, etc. The second RS may be a dedicated RS or a specific RS, designed for the sensing towards the sensing area.

In some example embodiments, the first device 110 may determine whether the first RS meets the sensing requirement (s) , or in other words, determine whether to configure the second RS. Then, the first device 110 may determine whether to reuse the first RS or use the second RS. This decision may be based on the sensing request (i.e. sensing requirement (s) , which may vary depending on use cases and scenarios) . Alternatively or additionally, it may be determined by a first-period sensing result report whether the sensing requirement (s) are satisfied or not.

For example, in a scenario where a target in the sensing area is stationary, a low-density RS design of the first RS may suffice. However, in a scenario where the target is moving, a high-density RS design of the second RS may be necessary to support achieving Doppler speed resolution, as the high-density RS design of the second RS enable the second RS to be transmitted more frequently than the first reference signal to achieve better sensing performance. As another example, in an industrial environment with a lot of environmental interference, a high-bandwidth RS design of the second RS may be needed to support the high-range resolution, which is necessary to support the extraction of target information.

To meet the sensing requirement (s) , the first RS usually may not be sufficient because the allocation of time and frequency domain resources is limited mainly to meet the demand for communication services. However, the reuse of the first RS may be possible without additional communication resource occupation for still and single-target sensing. For example, a 5G NR DL RS, like PRS, may be suitable for localization.

If it is determined that the first RS meets the sensing requirement (s) , the first device 110 may determine to reuse the first RS for sensing towards the sensing area. In this case, if the first RS meets the sensing requirement (s) , it may be reused for performing the sensing function, and thus there is no need to configure the second RS. FIG. 3A illustrates an example sensing configuration with the first RS according to some embodiments of the present disclosure. As shown in FIG. 3A, the first device 110 may determine to reuse the first RS on beams towards the sensing area and also determine to use the first RS for communication on beams outside the sensing area. Thus, it is allowed to minimize the resource overhead of sensing without compromising perception performance

If it is determined that the first RS fails to meet the sensing requirement (s) , the first device 110 may determine to use the second RS. Then, the first device 110 may determine, based on the sensing request, a configuration of the second RS. As an example, if the first RS is not suitable for the sensing requirement (s) , e.g. if the density and/or bandwidth of the first RS cannot meet KPIs of the velocity (Doppler) resolution and/or range resolution (multi-target) in some use cases and scenarios, a specific RS (i.e. the second RS) may be configured to target the sensing area. For example, a high-density and/or high-bandwidth RS may be configured to improve sensing accuracy and/or resolution. In this case, the second RS may be configured with a density higher than a density for the first RS, which means that a period between consecutive transmissions of the second RS is shorter than a period between consecutive transmissions of the first RS. Alternatively or additionally, the second RS may be configured with a bandwidth wider than a bandwidth for the first RS.

FIG. 3B illustrates an example sensing configuration with the second RS according to some embodiments of the present disclosure. As shown in FIG. 3B, the first device 110 may configure the second RS with one or more beams towards the sensing area and also determine to use the first RS for communication with beams outside the sensing area. The one or more beams may be associated with the sensing area. In other words, the second RS may be configured to be transmitted in one or more specific directions, for example, towards the sensing area. This ensures optimal sensing performance without consuming excessive communication resources.

For example, the second RS may be configured to be transmitted at a specific sensing moment. FIG. 3C illustrates an example sensing configuration with the second RS at a specific sensing moment according to some embodiments of the present disclosure. As shown in FIG. 3C, the second RS may be configured to be transmitted at sensing moments with an interval Ts as the sensing result refreshed time towards the sensing area, and for the rest of the time (i.e. out of sensing moments) , the first RS may be transmitted. In other words, as shown, the first RS may be transmitted at sensing moments outside the sensing area and transmitted at communication-only moments.

Alternatively or additionally, the second RS may be deployed for every frame. In this case, the beam may carry the same signal (the second RS and communication data) throughout the entire sensing period.

The RS configuration of the second RS may be determined according to actual use cases. For example, the second RS may be designed depending on sensing KPIs for different use cases and scenarios. For example, the first device 110 may have the capability to configure the second RS according to different sensing KPIs.

Alternatively or additionally, the SeMF may make the decision of RS configuration, and then directly indicate the RS configuration to the first device 110. It is to be understood that in some example embodiments, the SeMF may be assumed to be within the first device 110, and in some other example embodiments, the first device 110 and the SeMF may be located at separate locations.

In the example embodiments where the determined RS is the second RS, the first device 110 may transmit (220) , to the third device 130 which is associated with reception of the second RS, configuration information of the second RS. Accordingly, the third device 130 may receive (225) the configuration information of a second RS from the first device 110.

The third device 130 that receives the configuration information may be determined in a variety of approaches. For example, the first device 110 may indicate the configuration information of the second RS to the communication UE within its vicinity. As another example, the first device 110 may indicate the configuration information of the second RS to the communication UE within the sensing area, such as a factory. As a further example, if beamforming and beam management are implemented at the first device 110, the sensing beam and communication beam may be spatially allocated. In this case, the first device 110 may indicate the configuration information of the second RS to the communication UE within a certain range of the target in the sensing area, which depends on the width of the sensing beam.

In some example embodiments, the first device 110 may pre-configure the third device 130 with one or more configuration modes of the second RS. The one or more configuration modes of the second RS may be associated with one or more configurations for the second RS. For example, different configuration modes of the one or more configuration modes may be associated with different sensing resource occupations on different time or frequency elements in a time slot. Different configuration modes may be associated with different sensing resource occupations on different time/frequency elements/blocks (e.g., ports, resource elements (REs) , physical resource blocks (PRBs) ) in a time slot.

The combination methods and the number of ports may be set in advance. For example, three distinct sensing resource occupation methods (indexed as 1, 2, and 3) may be defined by assigning different ports to satisfy diverse sensing resolution and accuracy requirements. These ports may be solely utilized for sensing once a signal is received to activate the specific sensing RS configuration.

Based on the above pre-configuration of the configuration modes of the second RS, the configuration information of the second RS may comprise an index of a target configuration mode of the second RS.

Alternatively or additionally, the configuration information of the second RS may indicate the configuration of the second RS. In this case, the configuration modes of the second RS may not be preconfigured, and thus the configuration information of the second RS may indicate the configuration of the second RS directly.

Thus, it is allowed to implement specific RS configuration design, for example, for meeting high-sensing KPIs without interfering communication UEs.

In some example embodiments, after determining the RS to be used for sensing, the first device 110 may transmit (230) the configuration of the RS (for example, the second RS) to the second device 120. For example, the first device 110 may inform the configuration of the RS towards the sensing area when there is a sensing instruction. The configuration of the RS may be critical for the second device 120 to perform its sensing function effectively. Accordingly, the second device 120 may receive (235) the configuration of the RS from the first device 110. Then, the second device 120 may perform (240) sensing towards the sensing area based on the configuration of the RS.

Then, referring back to FIG. 2, the first device 110 transmits (245) the RS towards the sensing area. Accordingly, the second device 120 may receive (250) the RS from the first device 110, and the third device 130 may receive (255) the RS from the first device 110.

In the example embodiments where the determined RS is the first RS, the first device 110 may transmit the first RS with the first density. In the example embodiments where the determined RS is the second RS, the first device 110 may transmit the second RS with the second density higher than the first density. In this case, the second RS may be transmitted (periodically) more frequently than the first RS. For example, a period between consecutive transmissions of the second RS may be shorter than a period between consecutive transmissions of the first RS.

In the example embodiments where the second RS is configured to be transmitted with one or more beams, for example, as shown in FIG. 3B, the second RS may be transmitted in one or more beams associated with the sensing area. In other words, the first device 110 may transmit the second reference signal in one or more specific directions based at least partly on information on the sensing area.

In the embodiments where a specific sensing moment is configured as shown in FIG. 3C, the second RS may be transmitted at a specific sensing moment. In the embodiments where a specific sensing moment period is configured, the second RS may be transmitted within a specific sensing moment period. Moreover, in this case, the first device 110 may further determine to use the first RS for communication outside the sensing area. The first device 110 may transmit the first RS outside the sensing area.

In some example embodiments, before transmitting the RS, the first device 110 may transmit, to the second device 120, an indication (or signaling) that the RS is to be transmitted for sensing towards the sensing area. For example, an indication may be transmitted to indicate that the transmission is intended for the sensing area. As another example, an indication may be transmitted to indicate that the transmitted beam of RS for sensing is directed towards the sensing area. Alternatively or additionally, the first device 110 may transmit, to the second device 120, an indication that the RS is to be transmitted at a specific sensing moment or within a specific sensing period for sensing towards the sensing area. Then, based on the reception of the indication, the second device 120 may perform sensing towards the sensing area.

For example, the indication may comprise a beam identifier (ID) of a beam for sensing towards the sensing area. The indication may comprise the mapping relationship between a beam and the sensing area (e.g. a beam ID towards the sensing area) . Such beam information may be useful, because the beam towards the sensing area may be always with the first RS serving for communication out of the sensing moment (i.e. communication-only moment) , and only at the sensing moment, the beam with the indicated beam ID towards the sensing area may be serving for sensing function.

As an example, a trigger bit sequence (e.g., a binary sequence, an ASCII character sequence, a specific modulation scheme, etc. ) may be defined as a header to differentiate the sensing area from other areas, for example, at the sensing moment. This may indicate that the beam with the beam ID from the first device 110 towards the sensing area is serving for sensing function, and thus the second device 120 may receive from the direction of the sensing area. If the second device 120 does not receive the indication, it may not need to receive the echo signal.

Alternatively or additionally, there may be no explicit indication for the RS transmission. In this case, the second device 120 may perform sensing towards the sensing area, based on determining that a received RS is the second RS. For example, if the second RS is configured towards the sensing area at the sensing moment, and the sensing node has the knowledge of this RS configuration, the second device 120 may receive the echo signal all the time, and only perform sensing when identifying the second RS. In this case, no trigger bit may be needed.

In the example embodiments where the first RS is reused, which means the first device 110 transmit the same RS all the time, the second device 120 may receive the echo signal at an arbitrary moment (for example, with the interval time Ts)

Thus, the first device 110 may set up the RS for sensing differently based on the area it is pointing towards, for example, at the sensing moment. The RS transmitted on a communication link can be the first RS, or the second RS dedicated for sensing. In some example embodiments, there may be no communication link between the first device 110 and the second device 120, or in other words, an LoS path may not exist (or is not available) on the communication link between the first device 110 and the second device 120. In this case, the first device 110 may allocate a beam on the LoS path to the second device 120. FIG. 3D illustrates an example LoS path configuration between the first device 110 and the second device 120 according to some embodiments of the present disclosure. Then, the first device 110 may transmit, to the second device 120, an RS based on the allocated beam on the LoS path. Accordingly, the second device 120 may receive the RS based on a beam on the LoS path from the first device 110 as a reference for time and frequency offset estimation and compensation. For example, the RS may be the first RS or the second RS. In this way, the impacts of the time synchronization and clock drift may be cancelled, and thus accurate sensing can be ensured.

As an example, if there is no LoS path on the communication link, the first device 110 may be triggered to allocate a beam of LoS path aligned to the second device 120, and the configuration may comprise the following information accordingly.

For the case where the Los path detection may not be ensured (no communication link between the first device 110 and the second device 120) , the following operations I and II may be performed.

Operation I: In the embodiments where the sensing moment is configured, for the sensing moment, a beam may be assigned on the LoS path to ensure the LoS path detection. The RS to be transmitted on this beam may be the first RS or the second RS, usually the same as the RS transmitted on the sensing beam.

As an example, the Tx beam may be a sidelobe of a primary Tx beam, which may be obtained through beamforming. It means that the first device 110 may pre-determine/pre-configure multiple primary beams through the beamforming approach. The side lobe per primary beam may be aligned to the second device 120. This example may be used for the case of a single radio-frequency chain. Based on beamforming, the first device 110 may transmit the same signal at both the side lobe and the main lobe. The main lobe towards the target/UE (for example, the third device 130) as the primary Tx beam may be used for communication/sensing, and the side lobe towards the second device 120 as the secondary Tx beam may be used for fine LoS path detection.

As another example, the secondary Tx beam may be a dedicated Tx beam, which may be obtained through subarray selection/allocation. For example, if there are enough subarrays, the first device 110 may reserve a dedicated beam for fine LoS detection by subarray allocation to provide a large antenna gain, and thus a relatively small power allocation is enough to guarantee fine LoS path detection.

Operation II: For the sensing moment, when the beam is targeted to the sensing area, the first device 110 may perform transmission by configuring specific RS (power, density, etc. ) , and when the beam is targeted to other areas, the RS may keep the existing configuration in the communication system.

For the case where Los path detection can be ensured, the above Operation I may be skipped, and Operation II may be directly performed.

In the example embodiments where the second RS is configured with a density higher than the density for the first RS, the second device 120 may receive, from the first device 110, the first RS with the first density. Alternatively or additionally, in the example embodiments where the second RS is configured with a bandwidth wider than the bandwidth for the first RS, the second device 120 may receive, from the first device 110, the second RS with the second density. For example, the second RS may be received at a specific sensing moment or within a specific sensing period.

Likewise, in some example embodiments, before transmitting the RS, the first device 110 may transmit, to the third device 130, an indication that the second RS is to be transmitted. Alternatively or additionally, the first device 110 may transmit, to the third device 130, an indication that the second RS is to be transmitted at a specific sensing moment or within a specific sensing period.

In the example embodiments where the second RS is deployed for every frame, the first device 110 may inform the third device 130 about the sensing resource occupation of the second RS within a certain time frame, depending on the sensing period.

In the example embodiments where the second RS is deployed at certain intervals (i.e. sensing moments) related to the required sensing refreshed time and the first RS is deployed during the rest of the time, as shown in FIG. 3C, the first device 110 may indicate to the third device 130 the sensing moment that the second RS is deployed. This indication may be a signal that is explicitly or implicitly configured to inform the third device 130 of the second RS transmission. One example of an explicit signal may be a control signal like PDCCH. As another example, a trigger bit (e.g., a binary sequence) may be defined as an implicit signal.

Such indication may be useful especially when the third device 130 is to receive the RS for sensing during the sensing moment or sensing period, which makes it possible to distinguish between the sensing and communication resources. By detecting the trigger indication, the third device 130 may identify which part of the resource is being used for sensing and which part is being used for communication. This helps to ensure that the sensing and communication operations do not interfere with each other and can coexist efficiently in the same system.

For example, the first device 110 may transmit, to the third device 130, the RS and communication data based on the configuration information. Accordingly, the third device 130 may receive, from the first device 110, the RS (for example, the second RS) and the communication data based on the indication. For example, the second RS may be received at a specific sensing moment or within a specific sensing period.

Then, as shown in FIG. 2, the third device 130 processes (260) communication data received from the first device 110 based on the configuration information of the second RS.

In some example embodiments, the third device 130 may perform rate matching on the received second RS and communication data based on the configuration information of the RS and the indication. The third device 130 may perform rate matching upon receiving an indication of sensing resource occupation from the first device 110. For example, the third device 130 may work on the rate matching with puncturing according to the sensing resource occupancy obtained from the indication. The rate matching process may involve adjusting the incoming data rate to match the rate at which it can be processed by puncturing the bits of the second RS. As a result, sensing bits may be punched out and removed from the bit sequence pattern.

FIG. 3E is a first schematic diagram of example rate matching according to some embodiments of the present disclosure. In this case, the modulation and coding scheme (MCS) may remain the same and the transmission block size (TBS) may be determined by the original resource allocation (i.e. for the resource allocation first RS) and the MCS. The third device 130 may decode data by not considering the overlapping resource (s) (or in other words, puncturing the received data information of the second RS (i.e. specific Sen-RS as shown in FIG. 3E) ) to remove the interference of the second RS to data decoding.

FIG. 3F is a second schematic diagram of example rate matching according to some embodiments of the present disclosure. In this case, the MCS may be increased, and the TBS may be determined by the original resource allocation and the updated MCS, and the information bits may remain the same. All the encoded information bits may be mapped to the non-overlapped area. The third device 130 may decode data by increasing the MCS to meet received the data at the same rate.

FIG. 3G is a third schematic diagram of example rate matching according to some embodiments of the present disclosure. In this case, the MCS may remain the same, and the TBS may be determined by the new resource allocation (i.e. reduced resource allocation for the second RS) and the same MCS, and the information bits may be reduced. All the encoded information bits may be mapped to the non-overlapped area. The third device 130 may decode data by the same MCS with the original packet error rate (PER) .

For example, these three solutions for referring rate matching may be pre-defined or pre-configured or be signaled to the third device 130, for example, when indicating transmission of the second RS. The precondition of these three solutions may be the third device 130 knows the configuration of the second RS, which thus may be signaled to the third device 130 in advance.

For instance, if the integrated sensing and communication system is receiving data at a rate of R_ISAC Mbps, but the communication system is designed to receive at a higher rate of αR_ISAC Mbps (where α is greater than 1) , then (α-1) R_ISAC Mb per second needs to be punctured to match the incoming data rate with the processprepreing rate. In this way, it is allowed to ensure the received data matches the expected rate and minimize errors in decoding and loss of information.

In view of the above, it is allowed to avoid resource overhead as the second RS is not transmitted with omnidirectional beams, but only beams towards the sensing interesting area, and the second RS is transmitted only at the sensing moment rather than all the time. Moreover, it is allowed to ensure sensing performance as the sensing quality can be ensured by using the existing first RS or highly specified second RS, with high autocorrelation and intercorrelation compared with the case of communication data. Besides, no matter whether there is a communication link between the first device and the second device, the LoS path detection can be guaranteed and leveraged to improve the performance of passive sensing. In addition, communication performance can also be ensured, as the first RS may be applied for most of the time and with most of the directions, and only for the sensing moment towards the sensing interesting area the second RS may be applied, and the third device can perform rate matching based on the indication from the first device.

Overall, these technical features and operations work together to optimize sensing performance while minimizing resource consumption and maintaining accurate sensing results, even in scenarios where the LoS path is unavailable.

FIG. 4 illustrates an example communication process 400 according to some embodiments of the present disclosure. It would be appreciated that the process flow 400 may be considered as an example of the signaling flow 200 as shown in FIG. 2. Accordingly, the Tx node (for example, gNB) 401 may be an example of the first device 110, the sensing node (for example, UE) 402 may be an example of the second device 120, and the communication UE 403 may be an example of the third device 130.

At 410, the Tx node 401 receives a sensing request with sensing assistance information. This information may comprise the direction of the sensing interesting area R (i.e., physical information of a sensing area where the sensing target is located) and sensing requirements on sensing quality (for example, target number, speed, velocity and range accuracy, resolution, etc. ) .

Then, an opportunity-based trigger mechanism needs to give a decision on the configuration of the RS. At 412, the Tx node 401 determines whether to configure a dedicated RS (i.e. specific RS) for sensing. In this case, it may be assumed that a SeMF within the gNB at the Tx node 401 has prior knowledge of sensing requirements achieved at 410. The SeMF has the capability to configure an RS (e.g. density and/or bandwidth) based on the sensing requirements to meet the KPIs. The Tx node 401 may judge the communication RS whether meets the KPIs or not, for example, based on its density and/or bandwidth.

If the communication RS can meet the sensing requirements, at 414, the communication RS is reused for sensing. Otherwise, if the communication RS fails to meet the sensing requirements, at 416, the Tx node 401 configures the dedicated RS towards R. For example, a high-density high-bandwidth RS may be configured to improve sensing accuracy and/or resolution. For example, the dedicated RS may be configured to be only transmitted at sensing moment (s) with an interval Ts as the sensing result refreshed time. For the rest of the time, the communication RS is used.

At 418, the Tx node 401 delivers the sensing pre-configuration information of the RS to the sensing node 402. The main purpose of this step is to inform the configuration of the RS towards the sensing interesting area R when there is a sensing instruction. This information is critical for the sensing node 402 to perform its sensing function effectively.

At 420, the Tx node 401 configures the RS and configures (either explicitly or implicitly) a signaling to indicate that the transmission is intended for the sensing interesting area R. At 422, The Tx node 401 transmits the RS to the sensing node 402, and prior to the transmission, the signaling may be transmitted. For example, a trigger bit sequence (e.g., a binary sequence, an ASCII character sequence, a specific modulation scheme, etc. ) may be defined as a header to differentiate the sensing area from other areas at the sensing moment. The signaling can comprise the mapping relationship between a beam and the sensing area (e.g. a beam ID towards the sensing interesting area R) . For example, an LoS path may not always exist on the communication link between the Tx node 401 and the sensing node 402, and if not, at 424, the Tx node 401 may allocate or assign a beam on the LoS path, for example, to ensure the sensing performance.

At 426, the sensing node 402 performs sensing when there is a sensing instruction. The sensing node 402 may distinguish the sensing moment of the sensing resource occupation by the signalling at 420. For example, as the sensing node 402 detects the trigger bits of the sensing RS, which means that the sensing beam is pointing at the sensing interesting area R, the sensing node 402 may start to perform the passive radar sensing. Moreover, the sensing node 402 may perform LoS path detection and use the LoS path as a reference for time/frequency offset estimation and compensation to ensure the passive radar sensing function.

At 428, the Tx node 401 transmits communication data to the communication UE 403 in the sensing interesting area R and indicates the occupation of sensing resources during the sensing time slot. At 430, the communication UE 403 receives data with work on rate matching. For example, the communication UE 403 may work on the rate matching with puncturing according to the sensing resource occupancy.

Operations and features as described above with reference to FIGS. 2 to 3D are likewise applicable to the process 400 and have similar effects. For the purpose of simplification, the details will be omitted.

FIG. 5 illustrates another example communication process 500 according to some other embodiments of the present disclosure. It would be appreciated that the process flow 500 may be considered as an example of the signaling flow 200 as shown in FIG. 2. Accordingly, the Tx node (for example, gNB) 501 may be an example of the first device 110, the sensing node (for example, UE) 502 may be an example of the second device 120, and the communication UE 503 may be an example of the third device 130.

As shown in FIG. 5, operation 510 is optional. In some examples, the Tx node 501 (can also be SeMF at the networks node) may pre-configure the communication UE 503 with different modes for sensing resource occupation on different time/frequency elements/blocks (e.g., port, RE, PRB) in a time slot. At 510, the Tx node 501 may transmit the pre-configuration of sensing-RS resource modes to the communication UE 503. The combination methods and the number of ports can be set in advance. For example, three distinct sensing resource occupation methods (indexed as 1, 2, and 3) may be defined by assigning different ports to satisfy diverse sensing resolution and accuracy requirements. These ports may be solely utilized for sensing once a signal is received to activate the specific Sen-RS configuration.

At 512, the Tx node 501 receives a sensing request with requirements, and then determines the RS configuration request. For example, the sensing request may comprise at least the following information: sensing service type (e.g., intrusion detection, gesture recognition, positioning, UAV tracking, etc. ) , sensing requirements/KPIs (e.g., velocity, ranging resolution and accuracy, latency, period, refreshed frequency etc. ) , sensing area (e.g., bedroom, yard, factory, etc. ) .

At 514, the RS configuration is determined by the Tx node 501, which then classifies it into either a communication RS (Com-RS) type or a specific sensing RS (Sen-RS) type. Once determined, at 516, the Tx node 501 transmits the RS configuration to the sensing node 502. This facilitates the sensing and measurement functions, which may include range, angle, Doppler measurement, LoS estimation, intrusion detection, proximity perception, and channel fluctuation detection, among others.

If the conventional Com-RS is deployed, at 518, the Tx node 501 transmits the Com-RS to the sensing node 502, and at 520, the Tx node 501 transmits the Com-RS with communication data to the communication UE 503.

If the specific Sen-RS is deployed, at 522, the Tx node 501 indicates the communication UE 503 the Sen-RS configuration. The message may comprise the activation of the configuration modes (e.g., the index number) of RE, RB or ports. For instance, if operation 510 is performed, the Tx node 501 may activate the Sen-RS configuration mode with index 2 as pre-configured at 510, for example, by radio resource control (RRC) or PDCCH. If operation 510 is not performed, the Tx node 501 may indicate to the communication UE 503 directly the specific Sen-RS configuration information. This activation and indication may be performed slot by slot.

At 524, the Tx node 501 transmits the Sen-RS signal with the communication data to the communication UE 503. At 526, the Tx node 501 transmits the Sen-RS signal to sensing node 502.

Once the communication UE 503 receives the indication that the specific Sen-RS is deployed, at 528, it performs rate matching by puncturing the received data bits of the specific Sen-RS. The rate matching process may involve adjusting the incoming data rate to match the rate at which it can be processed by puncturing the bits.

Operations and features as described above with reference to FIGS. 2 to 3D are likewise applicable to the process 500 and have similar effects. For the purpose of simplification, the details will be omitted.

FIG. 6 illustrates a flowchart 600 of a method implemented at a first device according to some embodiments of the present disclosure. For the purpose of discussion, the method 300 will be described from the perspective of the first device 110 with reference to FIG. 1A.

At block 610, the first device 110 receives a sensing request for a sensing area. At block 620, the first device 110 determines, based on the sensing request, a reference signal for sensing towards the sensing area from (i) a first reference signal configured for communication of a communication device and for the sensing or (ii) a second reference signal configured for the sensing. At block 630, the first device 110 transmits the reference signal towards the sensing area.

In some example embodiments, the sensing request may comprise information on the sensing area; a sensing service type for the sensing area; a sensing requirement for the sensing area; a sensing period; a reference signal configuration requirement for the sensing area, or any combination of the above-listed items.

In some example embodiments, to determine the reference signal for sensing towards the sensing area, the first device 110 may determine whether the first reference signal meets the sensing requirement; and based on determining that the first reference signal fails to meet the sensing requirement, determine to use the second reference signal, and determine, based on the sensing request, a configuration of the second reference signal. In some example embodiments, to transmit the reference signal, the first device 110 may transmit the second reference signal in a specific direction based at least partly on information on the sensing area. In some example embodiments, the second reference signal may be configured with a density higher than a density for the first reference signal, and/or configured with a bandwidth wider than a bandwidth for the first reference signal.

In some example embodiments, to determine the reference signal for sensing towards the sensing area, the first device 110 may determine whether the first reference signal meets the sensing requirement; and, based on determining that the first reference signal meets the sensing requirement, determine to reuse the first reference signal for sensing towards the sensing area.

In some example embodiments, the first device 110 may further transmit, to a second device 120, a configuration of the reference signal. In some example embodiments, the first device 110 may further transmit, to the second device 120, an indication that the reference signal is to be transmitted for sensing towards the sensing area, or transmit, to the second device 120, an indication that the reference signal is to be transmitted at a specific sensing moment or within a specific sensing period for sensing towards the sensing area. In some example embodiments, the indication may comprise a beam identifier of a beam for sensing towards the sensing area.

In some example embodiments, the first device 110 may further, based on determining that there is no communication link between the first device 110 and the second device 120, allocate a beam on a line of sight, LoS, path to the second device 120, and transmit, to the second device 120, a reference signal based on the allocated beam on the LoS path, the reference signal being one of the first reference signal or the second reference signal.

In the example embodiments where the determined reference signal is the second reference signal, and the first device 110 may further transmit, to a third device 130, configuration information of the second reference signal, wherein the third device 130 is associated with reception of the second reference signal. In some example embodiments, the configuration information of the second reference signal comprises an index of a target configuration mode of the second reference signal, and one or more configuration modes of the second reference signal comprising the target configuration mode of the second reference signal are preconfigured to the third device 130, and the one or more configuration modes of the second reference signal are associated with one or more configurations for the second reference signal. In some example embodiments, wherein different configuration modes of the one or more configuration modes are associated with different sensing resource occupations on different time or frequency elements in a time slot. In some example embodiments, the configuration information of the second reference signal may indicate the configuration of the second reference signal.

In some example embodiments, the first device 110 may further transmit, to the third device 130, an indication that the second reference signal is to be transmitted; or transmit, to the third device 130, an indication that the second reference signal is to be transmitted at a specific sensing moment or within a specific sensing period.

In some example embodiments, the first device 110 may further transmit, to the third device 130, the reference signal and communication data based on the configuration information.

In some example embodiments, to transmit the reference signal, the first device 110 may, based on the determined reference signal being the first reference signal, transmit the first reference signal with a first density; or, based on the determined reference signal being the second reference signal, transmit the second reference signal with a second density, the second density being higher than the first density. In some example embodiments, a period between consecutive transmissions of the second reference signal may be shorter than a period between consecutive transmissions of the first reference signal. In some example embodiments, the second reference signal may be transmitted at a specific sensing moment or within a specific sensing moment period. In some example embodiments, the second reference signal may be transmitted in a beam associated with the sensing area.

In some example embodiments, the first device 110 may further determine to use the first reference signal for communication outside the sensing area; and transmit the first reference signal outside the sensing area.

FIG. 7 illustrates a flowchart 700 of a method implemented at a second device according to some embodiments of the present disclosure. For the purpose of discussion, the method 700 will be described from the perspective of the second device 120 with reference to FIG. 1A.

At block 710, the second device 120 receives, from a first device 110, a configuration of a reference signal for sensing towards a sensing area, the reference signal being one of: (i) a first reference signal configured for communication of a communication device and for the sensing or (ii) a second reference signal configured for the sensing. At block 720, the second device 120 performs sensing towards the sensing area based on the configuration of the reference signal.

In some example embodiments, to perform sensing, the second device 120 may perform sensing towards the sensing area, based on receiving, from the first device 110, one of the following: an indication that the reference signal is to be transmitted for sensing towards the sensing area; or an indication that the reference signal is to be transmitted at a specific sensing moment or within a specific sensing period for sensing towards the sensing area. In some example embodiments, wherein the indication may comprise a beam identifier of a beam for sensing towards the sensing area.

In the example embodiments where the reference signal comprises the second reference signal, to perform sensing, the second device 120 may, based on determining that a received reference signal is the second reference signal, perform sensing towards the sensing area.

In some example embodiments, the second device 120 may further receive a reference signal based on a beam on a line of sight, LoS, path from the first device 110 as a reference for time and frequency offset estimation and compensation, the reference signal being one of the first reference signal or the second reference signal.

In some example embodiments, the second reference signal is configured with a density higher than a density for the first reference signal, and/or configured with a bandwidth wider than a bandwidth for the first reference signal. In some example embodiments, the second device 120 may further receive, from the first device 110, the first reference signal with a first density; or receive, from the first device 110, the second reference signal with a second density higher than the first density. In some example embodiments, a period between consecutive receptions of the second reference signal is shorter than a period between consecutive receptions of the first reference signal. In some example embodiments, the second reference signal may be received at a specific sensing moment or within a specific sensing period.

FIG. 8 illustrates a flowchart 800 of a method implemented at a third device according to some embodiments of the present disclosure. For the purpose of discussion, the method 800 will be described from the perspective of the third device 130 with reference to FIG. 1A.

At block 810, the third device 130 receives, from a first device 110, configuration information of a second reference signal for sensing towards a sensing area, the second reference signal being configured for the sensing. At block 820, the third device 130 processes communication data received from the first device 110 based on the configuration information of the second reference signal.

In some example embodiments, the configuration information of the second reference signal may comprise an index of a target configuration mode of the second reference signal, one or more configuration modes of second reference signal comprising the target configuration mode of the second reference signal are preconfigured to the third device 130, and wherein the one or more configuration modes of the second reference signal are associated with one or more configurations for the second reference signal. In some example embodiments, different configuration modes of the one or more configuration modes may be associated with different sensing resource occupations on different time or frequency elements in a time slot.

In some example embodiments, the configuration information of the second reference signal may indicate a configuration of the second reference signal.

In some example embodiments, the third device 130 may further receive, from the first device 110, an indication that the second reference signal is to be transmitted; or receive, from the first device 110, an indication that the second reference signal is to be transmitted at a specific sensing moment or within a specific sensing period. In some example embodiments, the third device 130 may further receive, from the first device 110, the second reference signal and the communication data based on the indication. In some example embodiments, to process the received communication data, the third device 130 may perform rate matching on the received second reference signal and communication data based on the configuration information of the reference signal and the indication.

In some example embodiments, the second reference signal may be received at a specific sensing moment or within a specific sensing period.

n some example embodiments, an apparatus capable of performing the method 600 (for example, the first device 110) may comprise means for performing the respective steps of the method 600. The means may be implemented in any suitable form. For example, the means may be implemented in a circuitry or software module.

In some example embodiments, the apparatus comprises means for receiving a sensing request for a sensing area; means for determining, based on the sensing request, a reference signal for sensing towards the sensing area from (i) a first reference signal configured for communication of a communication device and for the sensing or (ii) a second reference signal configured for the sensing; and means for transmitting the reference signal towards the sensing area.

In some example embodiments, the sensing request comprises at least one of the following: information on the sensing area; a sensing service type for the sensing area; a sensing requirement for the sensing area; a sensing period; or a reference signal configuration requirement for the sensing area.

In some example embodiments, the means for determining the reference signal for sensing towards the sensing area comprises means for determining whether the first reference signal meets the sensing requirement; and means for, based on determining that the first reference signal fails to meet the sensing requirement, determining to use the second reference signal; and means for, based on determining that the first reference signal fails to meet the sensing requirement, determining, based on the sensing request, a configuration of the second reference signal. In some example embodiments, the apparatus for transmitting the reference signal ciomprises means for transmitting the second reference signal in a specific direction based at least partly on information on the sensing area. In some example embodiments, the second reference signal is configured with a density higher than a density for the first reference signal, and/or configured with a bandwidth wider than a bandwidth for the first reference signal.

In some example embodiments, the means for determining the reference signal for sensing towards the sensing area comprises means for determining whether the first reference signal meets the sensing requirement; and means for, based on determining that the first reference signal meets the sensing requirement, determining to reuse the first reference signal for sensing towards the sensing area.

In some example embodiments, the apparatus further comprises means for transmitting, to a second device, a configuration of the reference signal. In some example embodiments, the apparatus further comprises means for transmitting, to the second device, an indication that the reference signal is to be transmitted for sensing towards the sensing area; or means for transmitting, to the second device, an indication that the reference signal is to be transmitted at a specific sensing moment or within a specific sensing period for sensing towards the sensing area. In some example embodiments, the indication comprises a beam identifier of a beam for sensing towards the sensing area.

In some example embodiments, the apparatus further comprises means for, based on determining that there is no communication link between the first device and the second device, allocating a beam on a line of sight, LoS, path to the second device; and means for transmitting, to the second device, a reference signal based on the allocated beam on the LoS path, the reference signal being one of the first reference signal or the second reference signal.

In some example embodiments, the determined reference signal is the second reference signal, and the apparatus further comprises means for transmitting, to a third device, configuration information of the second reference signal, wherein the third device is associated with reception of the second reference signal. In some example embodiments, the configuration information of the second reference signal comprises an index of a target configuration mode of the second reference signal, wherein one or more configuration modes of the second reference signal comprising the target configuration mode of the second reference signal are preconfigured to the third device, and wherein the one or more configuration modes of the second reference signal are associated with one or more configurations for the second reference signal. In some example embodiments, different configuration modes of the one or more configuration modes are associated with different sensing resource occupations on different time or frequency elements in a time slot. In some example embodiments, the configuration information of the second reference signal indicates the configuration of the second reference signal.

In some example embodiments, the apparatus further comprises means for transmitting, to the third device, an indication that the second reference signal is to be transmitted; or means for transmitting, to the third device, an indication that the second reference signal is to be transmitted at a specific sensing moment or within a specific sensing period.

In some example embodiments, the apparatus further comprises means for transmitting, to the third device, the reference signal and communication data based on the configuration information.

In some example embodiments, the means for transmitting the reference signal comprises one of the following: means for based on the determined reference signal being the first reference signal, transmitting the first reference signal with a first density; or means for, based on the determined reference signal being the second reference signal, transmitting the second reference signal with a second density, the second density being higher than the first density. In some example embodiments, a period between consecutive transmissions of the second reference signal is shorter than a period between consecutive transmissions of the first reference signal. In some example embodiments, the second reference signal is transmitted at a specific sensing moment or within a specific sensing moment period. In some example embodiments, the second reference signal is transmitted in a beam associated with the sensing area.

In some example embodiments, the apparatus further comprises means for determining to use the first reference signal for communication outside the sensing area; and means for transmitting the first reference signal outside the sensing area.

In some example embodiments, the apparatus further comprises means for performing other steps in some embodiments of the method 600. In some embodiments, the means comprises at least one processor and at least one memory including computer program code. The at least one memory and computer program code are configured to, with the at least one processor, cause the performance of the apparatus.

In some example embodiments, an apparatus capable of performing the method 700 (for example, the second device 120) may comprise means for performing the respective steps of the method 700. The means may be implemented in any suitable form. For example, the means may be implemented in a circuitry or software module.

In some example embodiments, the apparatus comprises means for receiving, from a first device, a configuration of a reference signal for sensing towards a sensing area, the reference signal being one of: (i) a first reference signal configured for communication of a communication device and for the sensing or (ii) a second reference signal configured for the sensing; and means for performing sensing towards the sensing area based on the configuration of the reference signal.

In some example embodiments, the means for performing sensing comprises means for performing sensing towards the sensing area, based on receiving, from the first device, one of the following: an indication that the reference signal is to be transmitted for sensing towards the sensing area; or an indication that the reference signal is to be transmitted at a specific sensing moment or within a specific sensing period for sensing towards the sensing area. In some example embodiments, the indication comprises a beam identifier of a beam for sensing towards the sensing area.

In some example embodiments, the reference signal comprises the second reference signal, and the means for performing sensing comprises means for, based on determining that a received reference signal is the second reference signal, performing sensing towards the sensing area.

In some example embodiments, the apparatus further comprises means for receiving a reference signal based on a beam on a line of sight, LoS, path from the first device as a reference for time and frequency offset estimation and compensation, the reference signal being one of the first reference signal or the second reference signal.

In some example embodiments, wherein the second reference signal is configured with a density higher than a density for the first reference signal, and/or configured with a bandwidth wider than a bandwidth for the first reference signal. In some example embodiments, the apparatus further comprises means for receiving, from the first device, the first reference signal with a first density; or means for receiving, from the first device, the second reference signal with a second density higher than the first densit. In some example embodiments, a period between consecutive receptions of the second reference signal is shorter than a period between consecutive receptions of the first reference signal. In some example embodiments, the second reference signal is received at a specific sensing moment or within a specific sensing period.

In some example embodiments, the apparatus further comprises means for performing other steps in some embodiments of the method 700. In some embodiments, the means comprises at least one processor and at least one memory including computer program code. The at least one memory and computer program code are configured to, with the at least one processor, cause the performance of the apparatus.

In some example embodiments, an apparatus capable of performing the method 800 (for example, the third device 130) may comprise means for performing the respective steps of the method 800. The means may be implemented in any suitable form. For example, the means may be implemented in a circuitry or software module.

In some example embodiments, the means for performing sensing comprises means for receiving, from a first device, configuration information of a second reference signal for sensing towards a sensing area, the second reference signal being configured for the sensing; and means for processing communication data received from the first device based on the configuration information of the second reference signal.

In some example embodiments, the configuration information of the second reference signal comprises an index of a target configuration mode of the second reference signal, wherein one or more configuration modes of second reference signal comprising the target configuration mode of the second reference signal are preconfigured to the third device, and wherein the one or more configuration modes of the second reference signal are associated with one or more configurations for the second reference signal. In some example embodiments, different configuration modes of the one or more configuration modes are associated with different sensing resource occupations on different time or frequency elements in a time slot.

In some example embodiments, the configuration information of the second reference signal indicates a configuration of the second reference signal.

In some example embodiments, the apparatus further comprises means for receiving, from the first device, an indication that the second reference signal is to be transmitted; or means for receiving, from the first device, an indication that the second reference signal is to be transmitted at a specific sensing moment or within a specific sensing period. In some example embodiments, the apparatus further comprises means for receiving, from the first device, the second reference signal and the communication data based on the indication. In some example embodiments, the means for processing the received communication data comprises means for performing rate matching on the received second reference signal and communication data based on the configuration information of the reference signal and the indication.

In some example embodiments, the second reference signal is received at a specific sensing moment or within a specific sensing period.

In some example embodiments, the apparatus further comprises means for performing other steps in some embodiments of the method 800. In some embodiments, the means comprises at least one processor and at least one memory including computer program code. The at least one memory and computer program code are configured to, with the at least one processor, cause the performance of the apparatus.

FIG. 9 illustrates a simplified block diagram of a device 900 that is suitable for implementing some example embodiments of the present disclosure. The device 900 may be provided to implement the communication device, for example, the terminal device 110, or the network device 120 as shown in FIG. 1A. As shown, the device 900 includes one or more processors 910, one or more memories 920 coupled to the processor 910, and one or more communication modules 940 coupled to the processor 910.

The communication module 940 is for bidirectional communications. The communication module 940 has at least one antenna to facilitate communication. The communication interface may represent any interface that is necessary for communication with other network elements.

The processor 910 may be of any type suitable to the local technical network and may include one or more of the following: general purpose computers, special purpose computers, microprocessors, digital signal processors (DSPs) and processors based on multicore processor architecture, as non-limiting examples. The device 900 may have multiple processors, such as an application specific integrated circuit chip that is slaved in time to a clock which synchronizes the main processor.

The memory 920 may include one or more non-volatile memories and one or more volatile memories. Examples of the non-volatile memories include, but are not limited to, a Read Only Memory (ROM) 924, an electrically programmable read only memory (EPROM) , a flash memory, a hard disk, a compact disc (CD) , a digital video disk (DVD) , and other magnetic storage and/or optical storage. Examples of the volatile memories include, but are not limited to, a random access memory (RAM) 922 and other volatile memories that will not last in the power-down duration.

A computer program 930 includes computer executable instructions that are executed by the associated processor 910. The program 930 may be stored in the ROM 924. The processor 910 may perform any suitable actions and processing by loading the program 930 into the RAM 922.

The embodiments of the present disclosure may be implemented by means of the program 930 so that the device 900 may perform any process of the disclosure as discussed with reference to FIG. 2. The embodiments of the present disclosure may also be implemented by hardware or by a combination of software and hardware.

In some example embodiments, the program 930 may be tangibly contained in a computer readable medium which may be included in the device 900 (such as in the memory 920) or other storage devices that are accessible by the device 900. The device 900 may load the program 930 from the computer readable medium to the RAM 922 for execution. The computer readable medium may include any types of tangible non-volatile storage, such as ROM, EPROM, a flash memory, a hard disk, CD, DVD, and the like.

FIG. 10 illustrates a block diagram of an example of a computer readable medium 1000 in accordance with some example embodiments of the present disclosure. The computer readable medium 1000 has the program 930 stored thereon. It is noted that although the computer readable medium 1000 is depicted in form of CD or DVD in FIG. 10, the computer readable medium 1000 may be in any other form suitable for carry or hold the program 930.

Generally, various embodiments of the present disclosure may be implemented in hardware or special purpose circuits, software, logic or any combination thereof. Some aspects may be implemented in hardware, while other aspects may be implemented in firmware or software which may be executed by a controller, microprocessor or other computing device. While various aspects of embodiments of the present disclosure are illustrated and described as block diagrams, flowcharts, or using some other pictorial representations, it is to be understood that the block, apparatus, system, technique or method described herein may be implemented in, as non-limiting examples, hardware, software, firmware, special purpose circuits or logic, general purpose hardware or controller or other computing devices, or some combination thereof.

The present disclosure also provides at least one computer program product tangibly stored on a non-transitory computer readable storage medium. The computer program product includes computer-executable instructions, such as those included in program modules, being executed in a device on a target real or virtual processor, to carry out the method as described above with reference to any of FIGS. 3-4. Generally, program modules include routines, programs, libraries, objects, classes, components, data structures, or the like that perform particular tasks or implement particular abstract data types. The functionality of the program modules may be combined or split between program modules as desired in various embodiments. Machine-executable instructions for program modules may be executed within a local or distributed device. In a distributed device, program modules may be located in both local and remote storage media.

Program code for carrying out methods of the present disclosure may be written in any combination of one or more programming languages. These program codes may be provided to a processor or controller of a general purpose computer, special purpose computer, or other programmable data processing apparatus, such that the program codes, when executed by the processor or controller, cause the functions/operations specified in the flowcharts and/or block diagrams to be implemented. The program code may execute entirely on a machine, partly on the machine, as a stand-alone software package, partly on the machine and partly on a remote machine or entirely on the remote machine or server.

In the context of the present disclosure, the computer program codes or related data may be carried by any suitable carrier to enable the device, apparatus or processor to perform various processes and operations as described above. Examples of the carrier include a signal, computer readable medium, and the like.

The computer readable medium may be a computer readable signal medium or a computer readable storage medium. A computer readable medium may include but not limited to an electronic, magnetic, optical, electromagnetic, infrared, or semiconductor system, apparatus, or device, or any suitable combination of the foregoing. More specific examples of the computer readable storage medium would include an electrical connection having one or more wires, a portable computer diskette, a hard disk, a random access memory (RAM) , a read-only memory (ROM) , an erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM or Flash memory) , an optical fiber, a portable compact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM) , an optical storage device, a magnetic storage device, or any suitable combination of the foregoing. The term “non-transitory, ” as used herein, is a limitation of the medium itself (i.e., tangible, not a signal) as opposed to a limitation on data storage persistency (e.g., RAM vs. ROM) .

Further, while operations are depicted in a particular order, this should not be understood as requiring that such operations be performed in the particular order shown or in sequential order, or that all illustrated operations be performed, to achieve desirable results. In certain circumstances, multitasking and parallel processing may be advantageous. Likewise, while several specific implementation details are contained in the above discussions, these should not be construed as limitations on the scope of the present disclosure, but rather as descriptions of features that may be specific to particular embodiments. Certain features that are described in the context of separate embodiments may also be implemented in combination in a single embodiment. Conversely, various features that are described in the context of a single embodiment may also be implemented in multiple embodiments separately or in any suitable sub-combination.

Although the present disclosure has been described in languages specific to structural features and/or methodological acts, it is to be understood that the present disclosure defined in the appended claims is not necessarily limited to the specific features or acts described above. Rather, the specific features and acts described above are disclosed as example forms of implementing the claims.

Claims

A first device comprising:

at least one processor; and

at least one memory storing instructions that, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the first device at least to:

receive a sensing request for a sensing area;

determine, based on the sensing request, a reference signal for sensing towards the sensing area from (i) a first reference signal configured for communication of a communication device and for the sensing or (ii) a second reference signal configured for the sensing; and

transmit the reference signal towards the sensing area.
The first device of claim 1, wherein the sensing request comprises at least one of the following:

information on the sensing area;

a sensing service type for the sensing area;

a sensing requirement for the sensing area;

a sensing period; or

a reference signal configuration requirement for the sensing area.
The first device of claim 2, wherein the first device is caused to determine the reference signal for sensing towards the sensing area by:

determining whether the first reference signal meets the sensing requirement; and

based on determining that the first reference signal fails to meet the sensing requirement:

determining to use the second reference signal; and

determining, based on the sensing request, a configuration of the second reference signal.
The first device of claim 3, wherein the first device is caused to transmit the reference signal by:

transmitting the second reference signal in a specific direction based at least partly on information on the sensing area.
The first device of claim 3 or 4, wherein the second reference signal is configured with a density higher than a density for the first reference signal, and/or configured with a bandwidth wider than a bandwidth for the first reference signal.
The first device of claim 2, wherein the first device is caused to determine the reference signal for sensing towards the sensing area by:

determining whether the first reference signal meets the sensing requirement; and

based on determining that the first reference signal meets the sensing requirement, determining to reuse the first reference signal for sensing towards the sensing area.
The first device of any of claims 1-6, wherein the first device is further caused to:

transmit, to a second device, a configuration of the reference signal.
The first device of claim 7, wherein the first device is further caused to:

transmit, to the second device, an indication that the reference signal is to be transmitted for sensing towards the sensing area; or

transmit, to the second device, an indication that the reference signal is to be transmitted at a specific sensing moment or within a specific sensing period for sensing towards the sensing area.
The first device of claim 8, wherein the indication comprises a beam identifier of a beam for sensing towards the sensing area.
The first device of any of claims 7-9, wherein the first device is further caused to:

based on determining that there is no communication link between the first device and the second device, allocate a beam on a line of sight, LoS, path to the second device; and

transmit, to the second device, a reference signal based on the allocated beam on the LoS path, the reference signal being one of the first reference signal or the second reference signal.
The first device of any of claims 7-10, wherein the determined reference signal is the second reference signal, and wherein the first device is further caused to:

transmit, to a third device, configuration information of the second reference signal, wherein the third device is associated with reception of the second reference signal.
The first device of claim 11, wherein the configuration information of the second reference signal comprises an index of a target configuration mode of the second reference signal, wherein one or more configuration modes of the second reference signal comprising the target configuration mode of the second reference signal are preconfigured to the third device, and wherein the one or more configuration modes of the second reference signal are associated with one or more configurations for the second reference signal.
The first device of claim 12, wherein different configuration modes of the one or more configuration modes are associated with different sensing resource occupations on different time or frequency elements in a time slot.
The first device of claim 11, wherein the configuration information of the second reference signal indicates the configuration of the second reference signal.
The first device of any of claims 11-14, wherein the first device is further caused to:

transmit, to the third device, an indication that the second reference signal is to be transmitted; or

transmit, to the third device, an indication that the second reference signal is to be transmitted at a specific sensing moment or within a specific sensing period.
The first device of any of claims 11-15, wherein the first device is further caused to:

transmit, to the third device, the reference signal and communication data based on the configuration information.
The first device of any of claims 1-16, wherein the first device is caused to transmit the reference signal by one of the following:

based on the determined reference signal being the first reference signal, transmitting the first reference signal with a first density; or

based on the determined reference signal being the second reference signal, transmitting the second reference signal with a second density, the second density being higher than the first density.
The first device of claim 17, wherein a period between consecutive transmissions of the second reference signal is shorter than a period between consecutive transmissions of the first reference signal.
The first device of claim 17 or 18, wherein the second reference signal is transmitted at a specific sensing moment or within a specific sensing moment period.
The first device of any of claims 17-19, wherein the second reference signal is transmitted in a beam associated with the sensing area.
The first device of any of claims 1-20, wherein the first device is further caused to:

determine to use the first reference signal for communication outside the sensing area; and

transmit the first reference signal outside the sensing area.
A second device comprising:

at least one processor; and

at least one memory storing instructions that, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the second device at least to:

receive, from a first device, a configuration of a reference signal for sensing towards a sensing area, the reference signal being one of: (i) a first reference signal configured for communication of a communication device and for the sensing or (ii) a second reference signal configured for the sensing; and

perform sensing towards the sensing area based on the configuration of the reference signal.
The second device of claim 22, wherein the second device is caused to perform sensing by:

performing sensing towards the sensing area, based on receiving, from the first device, one of the following:

an indication that the reference signal is to be transmitted for sensing towards the sensing area; or

an indication that the reference signal is to be transmitted at a specific sensing moment or within a specific sensing period for sensing towards the sensing area.
The second device of claim 23, wherein the indication comprises a beam identifier of a beam for sensing towards the sensing area.
The second device of claim 22, wherein the reference signal comprises the second reference signal, and wherein the second device is caused to perform sensing by:

based on determining that a received reference signal is the second reference signal, performing sensing towards the sensing area.
The second device of any of claims 22-25, wherein the second device is further caused to:

receive a reference signal based on a beam on a line of sight, LoS, path from the first device as a reference for time and frequency offset estimation and compensation, the reference signal being one of the first reference signal or the second reference signal.
The second device of any of claims 22-26, wherein the second reference signal is configured with a density higher than a density for the first reference signal, and/or configured with a bandwidth wider than a bandwidth for the first reference signal.
The second device of claim 26, wherein the second device is further caused to:

receive, from the first device, the first reference signal with a first density; or

receive, from the first device, the second reference signal with a second density higher than the first densit.
The second device of claim 28, wherein a period between consecutive receptions of the second reference signal is shorter than a period between consecutive receptions of the first reference signal.
The second device of claim 28 or 29, wherein the second reference signal is received at a specific sensing moment or within a specific sensing period.
A third device comprising:

at least one processor; and

at least one memory storing instructions that, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the third device at least to:

receive, from a first device, configuration information of a second reference signal for sensing towards a sensing area, the second reference signal being configured for the sensing; and

process communication data received from the first device based on the configuration information of the second reference signal.
The third device of claim 31, wherein the configuration information of the second reference signal comprises an index of a target configuration mode of the second reference signal, wherein one or more configuration modes of second reference signal comprising the target configuration mode of the second reference signal are preconfigured to the third device, and wherein the one or more configuration modes of the second reference signal are associated with one or more configurations for the second reference signal.
The third device of claim 32, wherein different configuration modes of the one or more configuration modes are associated with different sensing resource occupations on different time or frequency elements in a time slot.
The third device of claim 31, wherein the configuration information of the second reference signal indicates a configuration of the second reference signal.
The third device of any of claims 31-34, wherein the third device is further caused to:

receive, from the first device, an indication that the second reference signal is to be transmitted; or

receive, from the first device, an indication that the second reference signal is to be transmitted at a specific sensing moment or within a specific sensing period.
The third device of claim 35, wherein the third device is further caused to:

receive, from the first device, the second reference signal and the communication data based on the indication.
The third device of claim 35 or 36, wherein the third device is caused to process the received communication data by:

performing rate matching on the received second reference signal and communication data based on the configuration information of the reference signal and the indication.
The third device of any of claims 31-37, wherein the second reference signal is received at a specific sensing moment or within a specific sensing period.
A method comprising:

receiving, at a first device, a sensing request for a sensing area;

determining, based on the sensing request, a reference signal for sensing towards the sensing area from (i) a first reference signal configured for communication of a communication device and for the sensing or (ii) a second reference signal configured for the sensing; and

transmitting the reference signal towards the sensing area.
A method comprising:

receiving, at a second device, from a first device, a configuration of a reference signal for sensing towards a sensing area, the reference signal being one of: (i) a first reference signal configured for communication of a communication device and for the sensing or (ii) a second reference signal configured for the sensing; and

performing sensing towards the sensing area based on the configuration of the reference signal.
A method comprising:

receiving, at a third device, from a first device, configuration information of a second reference signal for sensing towards a sensing area, the second reference signal being configured for the sensing; and

processing communication data received from the first device based on the configuration information of the second reference signal.
An apparatus comprising:

means for receiving, at a first device, a sensing request for a sensing area;

means for determining, based on the sensing request, a reference signal for sensing towards the sensing area from (i) a first reference signal configured for communication of a communication device and for the sensing or (ii) a second reference signal configured for the sensing; and

means for transmitting the reference signal towards the sensing area.
An apparatus comprising:

means for receiving, at a second device, from a first device, a configuration of a reference signal for sensing towards a sensing area, the reference signal being one of: (i) a first reference signal configured for communication of a communication device and for the sensing or (ii) a second reference signal configured for the sensing; and

means for performing sensing towards the sensing area based on the configuration of the reference signal.
An apparatus comprising:

means for receiving, at a third device, from a first device, configuration information of a second reference signal for sensing towards a sensing area, the second reference signal being configured for the sensing; and

processing communication data received from the first device based on the configuration information of the second reference signal.
A non-transitory computer readable medium comprising program instructions for causing an apparatus to perform at least the method of any of claims 39-41.