WO2025227701A1 - Communication method and related apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

A communication method and a related apparatus. In the method, a first signal which is sent by a first communication apparatus and is used for random access can be used for bearing first indication information, the first indication information being used for determining first pre-coding information among N pieces of pre-coding information. In this way, a receiver of the first signal can determine the first pre-coding information on the basis of the first indication information, and the receiver can perform data transmission on the basis of the first pre-coding information. Therefore, in a random access process, a data transmission process based on pre-coding information can be achieved by means of pre-coding information indicated by a random access initiator, and data transmission performance of the random access process can be improved. In addition, the first signal used for random access can indicate the pre-coding information to the receiver of the first signal, thereby avoiding or reducing an increase in overhead and the occupation of transmission resources caused by transmission of a reference signal, thereby reducing the power consumption of the device, and improving communication efficiency.

Description

A communication method and related apparatus

This application claims priority to Chinese Patent Application No. 202410564477.6, filed with the State Intellectual Property Office of China on April 30, 2024, entitled “A Communication Method and Related Device”, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.

Technical Field

This application relates to the field of communications, and more particularly to a communication method and related apparatus.

Background Technology

Wireless communication can be a transmission communication between two or more communication devices that does not propagate through conductors or cables. Terminal devices can obtain wireless communication services through a random access procedure. During the random access procedure, different communication devices can achieve data transmission through early data transmission (EDT).

Taking the random access process between a terminal device and a network device as an example, EDT can include mobile-originating early data transmission (MO-EDT) and mobile-terminated early data transmission (MT-EDT). The data transmitted in MO-EDT can be uplink data sent from the terminal device to the network device, while the data transmitted in MT-EDT can be downlink data sent from the network device to the terminal device.

However, improving data transmission performance during random access is a technical problem that urgently needs to be solved.

Summary of the Invention

This application provides a communication method and related apparatus for improving the data transmission performance of random access procedures.

This application provides a communication method executed by a first communication device. The first communication device can be a communication equipment (such as a terminal device or network device), or it can be a component of a communication equipment (such as a processor, chip, or chip system), or it can be a logic module or software capable of implementing all or part of the functions of the communication equipment. In this method, the first communication device determines a first signal for random access; wherein the first signal carries a first indication information among N indication information, each of the N indication information corresponding to N precoded information, and the first indication information is used to determine the first precoded information among the N precoded information, where N is a positive integer; the first communication device transmits the first signal.

Based on the above scheme, the first signal sent by the first communication device for random access can be used to carry first indication information, which is used to determine the first precoded information among the N precoded information. In this way, the receiver of the first signal can determine the first precoded information based on the first indication information, and the receiver can perform data transmission based on the first precoded information. Therefore, during random access, data transmission based on precoded information can be achieved through the precoded information indicated by the random access initiator, thus improving the data transmission performance of the random access process.

Furthermore, compared to the traditional method of obtaining precoded information through the transmission and measurement of reference signals, in the above scheme, the first signal used for random access can indicate the precoded information to the receiver of the first signal, which can avoid or reduce the increased overhead and transmission resource occupation caused by the transmission of reference signals, thereby reducing device power consumption and improving communication efficiency.

In this application, the precoding information may include one or more of the following: a precoding matrix, an indicator of a precoding matrix, the number of streams corresponding to a precoding matrix, a digital precoding matrix, an indicator of a digital precoding matrix, the number of streams corresponding to a digital precoding matrix, an analog precoding matrix, and an indicator of the number of streams corresponding to an analog precoding matrix.

It should be understood that the first signal used for random access can be understood as a random access signal, or a signal sent by the terminal device during the random access process. For example, the first signal can be message 1 (MSG1), message A (MSGA), message 3 (MSG3), or scheduled uplink transmission, etc.

It should be understood that the N indication information corresponds to the N precoded information respectively. This can be understood as a one-to-one correspondence between the N indication information and the N precoded information, or that the i-th indication information among the N indication information is used to determine/indicate the i-th precoded information among the N precoded information, where i is from 1 to N.

In one possible implementation of the first aspect, the N precoding information correspond to N regions respectively, and the precoding information at different locations within any of the N regions is the same; wherein, the location of the first communication device is located within a first region of the N regions, and the first indication information is used to indicate the first region, which corresponds to the first precoding information.

Based on the above scheme, after the first communication device determines the first region in N regions based on its own location, the first indication information carried by the first signal sent by the first communication device can be used to indicate the first region, so that the receiver of the first signal determines that the first region corresponds to the first precoding information as the precoding information corresponding to the first signal based on the correspondence between N precoding information and N regions.

It should be understood that the N precoding information pieces correspond to N regions, which can be interpreted as a one-to-one correspondence between the N precoding information pieces and the N regions, or that the precoding information of the i-th region among the N precoding information pieces is the i-th precoding information piece among the N precoding information pieces, where i is from 1 to N. As mentioned above, the N indicator information pieces correspond to the N precoding information pieces; therefore, there is a correlation between the N indicator information pieces, the N regions, and the N precoding information pieces. For example, the i-th indicator information piece among the N indicator information pieces is used to indicate that the precoding information of the i-th region among the N regions is the i-th precoding information piece among the N precoding information pieces.

It should be understood that since the signal transmission characteristics of different locations within adjacent or nearby areas may be the same, different locations within the same area may share the same precoding information and other parameters. For example, these other parameters may include one or more of the following: path loss information, signal fading information, interference information, beam indication, beam angle, beam direction, and modulation and coding scheme level (MCS level). Correspondingly, the precoding information can be replaced with these other parameters.

In one possible implementation of the first aspect, the N regions correspond to N sets of leading sequences, and the first region corresponds to a first set of leading sequences in the N sets of leading sequences; wherein the first indication information includes one of the leading sequences in the first set of leading sequences.

Based on the above scheme, the first indication information carried by the first signal may include a preamble sequence in the first preamble sequence set, so that the receiver of the first signal determines the precoding information corresponding to the first signal as the first precoding information based on the preamble sequence and the correspondence between the N regions and the N preamble sequence sets.

In this application, the term "preceding sequence set" can be replaced with other terms, such as "preceding set," "preceding group," or "preceding set group."

It should be understood that the N regions correspond to the N sets of preamble sequences. This can be interpreted as a one-to-one correspondence between the N regions and the N sets of preamble sequences, or that the preamble sequence used by the i-th region among the N regions is one of the preamble sequences in the i-th set of the N preamble sequences, where i is from 1 to N. As shown above, there is a correlation between the N indication information, the N regions, the N precoding information, and the N sets of preamble sequences. For example, the i-th indication information among the N indication information includes one of the preamble sequences in the i-th set of the N preamble sequences, and any preamble sequence in this i-th set is used to indicate that the precoding information for the i-th region among the N regions is the i-th precoding information among the N precoding information.

In one possible implementation of the first aspect, the method further includes: the first communication device receiving first information, the first information being used to indicate the correspondence between the N regions and the N sets of preamble sequences.

Based on the above scheme, before sending the first signal, the first communication device can also receive first information, so that the first communication device can send the first signal based on the correspondence configured in the first information.

In one possible implementation of the first aspect, the first indication information includes the identifier or index of the first region.

Based on the above scheme, since the N precoded information correspond to N regions respectively, the first indication information carried by the first signal may include the identifier or index of the first region, so that the receiver of the first signal can determine the precoded information corresponding to the first signal as the first precoded information based on the identifier or index of the first region and the correspondence between the N precoded information and the N regions.

It should be noted that when the first indication information includes the identifier of the first area, the first indication information is used to determine the first area among the N areas indicated by the first relevant map information. In other words, the first indication information is used to determine the first area among the N areas indicated by the existing first relevant map information.

Optionally, in this application, "existing" can be replaced with other terms, such as: deployed, configured, or pre-configured.

In one possible implementation of the first aspect, the N regions are determined based on first relevance map information, and the method further includes: the first communication device receiving first broadcast information for configuring the first signal; wherein the first broadcast information is used to indicate a first map version, the first map version being the same as the map version of the first relevance map information.

Based on the above scheme, the first communication device can receive first broadcast information for configuring the first signal. Thereafter, the first communication device can determine the N areas based on the map version indicated by the first broadcast information, and send the first signal based on the location of the first communication device and the N locations, so that different communication devices can communicate based on the same version of the relevant map information.

In this application, the term "coherence map" can be replaced with other terms, such as precoded map, precoded coherence map, map information, coherence information, coherence environment information, environment information, or coherence area information.

In one possible implementation of the first aspect, the N regions are determined based on first relevance map information, and the method further includes: the first communication device receiving M broadcast messages, the M broadcast messages being used to configure M signals respectively, the M signals being used for random access, and M being a positive integer; wherein the M broadcast messages respectively indicate M map versions, and the first signal satisfies any one of the following:

The map version of the second broadcast information in the M broadcast information is the same as the map version of the first related map information, and the first signal is configured based on the second broadcast information;

The M map versions correspond to M related map information. The relevance of the location of the first communication device in the second related map information among the M related map information is greater than or equal to the relevance of the location of the first communication device in the other M-1 related map information. The first signal is configured based on the broadcast information corresponding to the second related map information.

Based on the above scheme, the first communication device can receive M broadcast messages for configuring M random access signals, whereby each of the M broadcast messages indicates one of the M map versions. Subsequently, the first communication device can select a map version from the M map versions that matches the first relevance map information already existing in the first communication device, and transmit the first signal based on the configuration of the broadcast messages corresponding to that map version, enabling different communication devices to communicate based on the same version of the relevance map information.

Alternatively, the first communication device can determine the location of the first communication device in M correlations corresponding to M map versions, and transmit the first signal based on the configuration of the broadcast information corresponding to the map version with the highest (or greatest) correlation. Specifically, in the M correlation maps indicated by the M map versions, the higher the correlation of the first communication device's location in a certain correlation map, the more accurate the pre-coded information of the first communication device's location in that correlation map, and/or the better the communication performance based on the pre-coded information in that correlation map. Therefore, the above method can improve communication performance.

In one possible implementation of the first aspect, the first indication information is used to indicate the first precoded information.

Based on the above scheme, N indication information can be used to indicate N precoded information respectively. Correspondingly, the first indication information carried by the first signal can be used to indicate the first precoded information, so that the receiver of the first signal can quickly determine the first precoded information based on the first indication information.

Optionally, when the first indication information is used to indicate the first precoding information, the first indication information may include the first precoding information, the index of the first precoding information, or the identifier of the first precoding information, etc.

In one possible implementation of the first aspect, the method further includes: the first communication device receiving second information for instructing the transmission of a random access signal for determining precoded information.

Based on the above scheme, the first communication device can receive the second information, so that the first communication device can send a first signal for determining the first precoded information based on the second information.

Optionally, the second information is a system message used to configure the first signal; or, the second information is paging information corresponding to the first signal.

In one possible implementation of the first aspect, the method further includes: the first communication device sending third information, the third information being used to instruct the first communication device to support the transmission of a random access signal for determining precoded information.

Based on the above scheme, the first communication device can send third information, so that the recipient of the third information can know that the first communication device supports sending random access signals for determining precoded information, and subsequently determine the corresponding precoded information based on the first signal sent by the first communication device.

In one possible implementation of the first aspect, the method further includes: the first communication device receiving a second signal, the second signal being a response signal to the first signal; the first communication device sending a third signal corresponding to the second signal; and the first communication device receiving a fourth signal corresponding to the third signal; wherein the third signal is generated based on the first precoding information, and/or the fourth signal is generated based on the first precoding information.

Based on the above scheme, when the first signal is MSG1 (or preamble signal), the first communication device and the second communication device can transmit MSG3 and message 4 (MSG4). MSG3 can carry uplink data and/or MSG4 can carry downlink data. Correspondingly, the uplink data and/or downlink data can be transmitted through the first precoded information to improve data transmission performance.

Optionally, the first precoding information may include uplink precoding information and/or downlink precoding information. For example, uplink data can be transmitted using the uplink precoding information included in the first precoding information. Similarly, downlink data can be transmitted using the downlink precoding information included in the first precoding information.

A second aspect of this application provides a communication method executed by a second communication device. The second communication device can be a communication equipment (e.g., a terminal device or a network device), or it can be a component of a communication equipment (e.g., a processor, chip, or chip system), or it can be a logic module or software capable of implementing all or part of the functions of the communication equipment. In this method, the second communication device receives a first signal for random access; wherein the first signal carries a first indication information among N indication information, each of the N indication information corresponding to N precoded information, and the first indication information is used to determine the first precoded information among the N precoded information, where N is a positive integer; the second communication device transmits a signal based on the first precoded information.

Based on the above scheme, the first signal received by the second communication device for random access can be used to carry first indication information, which is used to determine the first precoded information among the N precoded information. In this way, the second communication device can determine the first precoded information based on the first indication information, and the second communication device can perform data transmission based on the first precoded information. Therefore, during the random access process, by using the precoded information indicated by the random access initiator, data transmission based on precoded information can be realized, thereby improving the data transmission performance of the random access process.

Furthermore, compared to the traditional method of obtaining precoded information through the transmission and measurement of reference signals, in the above scheme, the first signal used for random access can indicate the precoded information to the receiver of the first signal, which can avoid or reduce the increased overhead and transmission resource occupation caused by the transmission of reference signals, thereby reducing device power consumption and improving communication efficiency.

In one possible implementation of the second aspect, the N precoding information correspond to N regions respectively, and the precoding information at different locations within any of the N regions is the same; wherein, the location of the first communication device is located within the first region of the N regions, and the first indication information is used to indicate the first region, which corresponds to the first precoding information.

Based on the above scheme, after the first communication device determines the first region in N regions based on its own location, the first indication information carried by the first signal sent by the first communication device can be used to indicate the first region, so that the second communication device determines that the first region corresponds to the first precoding information corresponding to the first signal based on the correspondence between N precoding information and N regions.

In one possible implementation of the second aspect, the N regions correspond to N sets of leading sequences, and the first region corresponds to a first set of leading sequences in the N sets of leading sequences; wherein the first indication information includes one of the leading sequences in the first set of leading sequences.

Based on the above scheme, the first indication information carried by the first signal may include a preamble sequence in the first preamble sequence set, so that the second communication device determines the precoding information corresponding to the first signal as the first precoding information based on the preamble sequence and the correspondence between the N regions and the N preamble sequence set.

In one possible implementation of the second aspect, the method further includes: the second communication device sending first information, the first information being used to indicate the correspondence between the N regions and the N sets of preamble sequences.

Based on the above scheme, the second communication device can also send first information to the first communication device, so that the first communication device can send the first signal based on the correspondence configured in the first information.

In one possible implementation of the second aspect, the first indication information includes the identifier or index of the first region.

Based on the above scheme, since N precoded information corresponds to N regions respectively, the first indication information carried by the first signal may include the identifier or index of the first region, so that the second communication device can determine the precoded information corresponding to the first signal as the first precoded information based on the identifier or index of the first region and the correspondence between the N precoded information and the N regions.

In one possible implementation of the second aspect, the N regions are determined based on first relevance map information, and the method further includes: the second communication device sending first broadcast information for configuring the first signal; wherein the first broadcast information is used to indicate a first map version, which is the same as the map version of the first relevance map information.

Based on the above scheme, the first communication device can receive first broadcast information for configuring the first signal. Thereafter, the first communication device can determine the N areas based on the map version indicated by the first broadcast information, and send the first signal based on the location of the first communication device and the N locations, so that different communication devices can communicate based on the same version of the relevant map information.

In one possible implementation of the second aspect, the first indication information is used to indicate the first precoded information.

Based on the above scheme, N indication information can be used to indicate N precoded information respectively. Correspondingly, the first indication information carried by the first signal can be used to indicate the first precoded information, so that the second communication device can quickly determine the first precoded information based on the first indication information.

Optionally, when the first indication information is used to indicate the first precoding information, the first indication information may include the first precoding information, the index of the first precoding information, or the identifier of the first precoding information, etc.

In one possible implementation of the second aspect, the method further includes: the second communication device sending second information for instructing the transmission of a random access signal for determining precoded information.

Based on the above scheme, the second communication device can send second information to the first communication device, so that the first communication device sends a first signal for determining the first precoded information based on the second information.

Optionally, the second information is a system message used to configure the first signal; or, the second information is paging information corresponding to the first signal.

In one possible implementation of the second aspect, the method further includes: the second communication device receiving third information, the third information being used to instruct the first communication device to support the transmission of a random access signal for determining precoded information.

Based on the above scheme, the second communication device can receive third information, enabling the second communication device to determine, based on the third information, that the first communication device supports sending a random access signal for determining precoded information, and subsequently determine the corresponding precoded information based on the first signal sent by the first communication device.

In one possible implementation of the second aspect, the method further includes: the second communication device sending a second signal, the second signal being a response signal to the first signal; the second communication device receiving a third signal corresponding to the second signal; and the second communication device sending a fourth signal corresponding to the third signal; wherein the third signal is generated based on the first precoding information, and/or the fourth signal is generated based on the first precoding information.

Based on the above scheme, when the first signal is MSG1 (or preamble signal), the first communication device and the second communication device can transmit MSG3 and message 4 (MSG4). MSG3 can carry uplink data and/or MSG4 can carry downlink data. Correspondingly, the uplink data and/or downlink data can be transmitted through the first precoded information to improve data transmission performance.

Optionally, the first precoding information may include uplink precoding information and/or downlink precoding information. For example, uplink data can be transmitted using the uplink precoding information included in the first precoding information. Similarly, downlink data can be transmitted using the downlink precoding information included in the first precoding information.

A third aspect of this application provides a communication device, which is a first communication device, comprising a transceiver unit and a processing unit; the processing unit is used to determine a first signal, the first signal being used for random access; wherein the first signal is used to carry a first indication information among N indication information, the N indication information respectively corresponding to N precoded information, the first indication information being used to determine the first precoded information among the N precoded information, where N is a positive integer; the transceiver unit is used to transmit the first signal.

In the third aspect of this application, the constituent modules of the communication device can also be used to execute the steps performed in various possible implementations of the first aspect and achieve the corresponding technical effects. For details, please refer to the first aspect, which will not be repeated here.

A fourth aspect of this application provides a communication device, which is a second communication device. The device includes a transceiver unit and a processing unit. The transceiver unit is used to receive a first signal for random access. The first signal is used to carry a first indication information among N indication information, each of the N indication information corresponding to N precoded information. The first indication information is used to determine the first precoded information among the N precoded information, where N is a positive integer. The processing unit is used to send a signal based on the first precoded information.

In the fourth aspect of this application, the constituent modules of the communication device can also be used to perform the steps executed in various possible implementations of the second aspect and achieve the corresponding technical effects. For details, please refer to the second aspect, which will not be repeated here.

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

The sixth aspect of this application provides a communication device including at least one logic circuit and an input/output interface; the logic circuit is used to perform the method as described in any one of the possible implementations of the first to second aspects described above.

The seventh aspect of this application provides a communication system, which includes the first communication device and the second communication device described above.

An eighth aspect of this application provides a computer-readable storage medium for storing one or more computer-executable instructions, which, when executed by a processor, perform the method as described in any possible implementation of any of the first to second aspects described above.

The ninth aspect of this application provides a computer program product (or computer program) that, when executed by a processor, performs the method described in any possible implementation of any of the first to second aspects described above.

The tenth aspect of this application provides a chip or chip system including at least one processor for supporting a communication device in implementing the methods described in any possible implementation of any of the first to second aspects. For example, the chip may be a baseband chip, a modem chip, a system-on-chip (SoC) chip containing a modem core, a system-in-package (SIP) chip, or a communication module, etc.

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

The technical effects of any of the design methods in aspects three through ten can be found in the technical effects of the different design methods in aspects one through two above, and will not be repeated here.

Attached Figure Description

Figures 1a to 1c are schematic diagrams of the communication system provided in this application;

Figures 1d, 1e, and 2a to 2c are schematic diagrams of the AI processing involved in this application;

Figures 3a and 3b are schematic diagrams of the random access process involved in this application;

Figure 4 is a schematic diagram of the communication method provided in this application;

Figures 5a to 5d are some schematic diagrams of the relevance map information provided in this application;

Figure 6 is another schematic diagram of the relevance map information provided in this application;

Figures 7 to 11 are schematic diagrams of the communication device provided in this application.

Detailed Implementation

First, some terms used in the embodiments of this application will be explained to facilitate understanding by those skilled in the art.

(1) Terminal device: can be a wireless terminal device that can receive network device scheduling and instruction information. The wireless terminal device can be a device that provides voice and/or data connectivity to the user, or a handheld device with wireless connection function, or other processing device connected to a wireless modem.

Terminal devices can communicate with one or more core networks or the Internet via a radio access network (RAN). Terminal devices can be mobile terminal devices, such as mobile phones (or "cellular" phones), computers, and data cards. For example, they can be portable, pocket-sized, handheld, computer-embedded, or vehicle-mounted mobile devices that exchange voice and/or data with the RAN. Examples include personal communication service (PCS) phones, cordless phones, Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) phones, wireless local loop (WLL) stations, personal digital assistants (PDAs), tablets, and computers with wireless transceiver capabilities. Wireless terminal equipment can also be referred to as a system, subscriber unit, subscriber station, mobile station, mobile station (MS), remote station, access point (AP), remote terminal, access terminal, user terminal, user agent, subscriber station (SS), customer premises equipment (CPE), terminal, user equipment (UE), mobile terminal (MT), etc.

By way of example and not limitation, in this embodiment, the terminal device can also be a wearable device. Wearable devices, also known as wearable smart devices or smart wearable devices, are a general term for devices that utilize wearable technology to intelligently design and develop everyday wearables, such as glasses, gloves, watches, clothing, and shoes. Wearable devices are portable devices that are worn directly on the body or integrated into the user's clothing or accessories. Wearable devices are not merely hardware devices, but also achieve powerful functions through software support, data interaction, and cloud interaction. Broadly speaking, wearable smart devices include those that are feature-rich, large in size, and can achieve complete or partial functions without relying on a smartphone, such as smartwatches or smart glasses, as well as those that focus on a specific type of application function and require the use of other devices such as smartphones, such as various smart bracelets, smart helmets, and smart jewelry for vital sign monitoring.

Terminals can also be drones, robots, devices in device-to-device (D2D) communication, vehicles to everything (V2X) communication, virtual reality (VR) terminal devices, augmented reality (AR) terminal devices, wireless terminals in industrial control, wireless terminals in self-driving, wireless terminals in remote medical care, wireless terminals in smart grids, wireless terminals in transportation safety, wireless terminals in smart cities, and wireless terminals in smart homes, etc.

Furthermore, terminal devices can also be terminal devices in communication systems evolved from fifth-generation (5G) communication systems (such as sixth-generation (6G) communication systems) or in future public land mobile networks (PLMNs). For example, 6G networks can further expand the form and function of 5G communication terminals; 6G terminals include, but are not limited to, vehicles, cellular network terminals (integrating satellite terminal functions), drones, and Internet of Things (IoT) devices.

In this embodiment, the terminal device can also obtain AI services provided by the network device. Optionally, the terminal device can also have AI processing capabilities.

(2) Network equipment: This can be equipment in a wireless network. For example, network equipment can be a RAN node (or device) that connects terminal devices to the wireless network, and can also be called a base station. Currently, some examples of RAN equipment include: base station, evolved NodeB (eNodeB), gNB (gNodeB) in 5G communication systems, transmission reception point (TRP), evolved Node B (eNB), radio network controller (RNC), Node B (NB), home base station (e.g., home evolved Node B, or home Node B, HNB), base band unit (BBU), or wireless fidelity (Wi-Fi) access point (AP), etc. In addition, in a network structure, network equipment can include centralized unit (CU) nodes, distributed unit (DU) nodes, or RAN equipment including CU nodes and DU nodes.

Optionally, RAN nodes can also be macro base stations, micro base stations or indoor stations, relay nodes or donor nodes, or radio controllers in cloud radio access network (CRAN) scenarios. RAN nodes can also be servers, wearable devices, vehicles, or in-vehicle equipment. For example, the access network equipment in vehicle-to-everything (V2X) technology can be a roadside unit (RSU).

In another possible scenario, multiple RAN nodes collaborate to assist the terminal in achieving wireless access, with each RAN node performing a portion of the base station's functions. For example, RAN nodes can be central units (CUs), distributed units (DUs), CU-control plane (CPs), CU-user plane (UPs), or radio units (RUs). CUs and DUs can be separate entities or included in the same network element, such as a baseband unit (BBU). RUs can be included in radio frequency equipment or radio frequency units, such as remote radio units (RRUs), active antenna units (AAUs), or remote radio heads (RRHs).

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

Communication between access network devices and terminal devices follows a specific protocol layer structure. This protocol layer may include a control plane protocol layer and a user plane protocol layer. The control plane protocol layer may include at least one of the following: radio resource control (RRC) layer, packet data convergence protocol (PDCP) layer, radio link control (RLC) layer, media access control (MAC) layer, or physical (PHY) layer, etc. The user plane protocol layer may include at least one of the following: service data adaptation protocol (SDAP) layer, PDCP layer, RLC layer, MAC layer, or physical layer, etc.

The correspondence between network elements and their achievable protocol layer functions in the ORAN system can be found in Table 1 below.

Table 1

Network devices can be other devices that provide wireless communication functions for terminal devices. The embodiments of this application do not limit the specific technology or form of the network device. For ease of description, the embodiments of this application are not limited.

Network equipment may also include core network equipment, such as the Mobility Management Entity (MME), Home Subscriber Server (HSS), Serving Gateway (S-GW), Policy and Charging Rules Function (PCRF), and Public Data Network Gateway (PDN Gateway) in 4G networks; and access and mobility management function (AMF), user plane function (UPF), or session management function (SMF) in 5G networks. Furthermore, this core network equipment may also include other core network equipment in 5G networks and next-generation networks of 5G networks.

In this embodiment of the application, the network device may also have network nodes with AI capabilities, which can provide AI services to terminals or other network devices. For example, it may be an AI node, computing node, RAN node with AI capabilities, or core network element with AI capabilities on the network side (access network or core network).

In this application embodiment, the device for implementing the function of the network device can be the network device itself, or it can be a device capable of supporting the network device in implementing that function, such as a chip system, which can be installed in the network device. In the technical solutions provided in this application embodiment, the example of a network device being used to implement the function of the network device is used to describe the technical solutions provided in this application embodiment.

(3) Configuration and Pre-configuration: In this application, both configuration and pre-configuration are used. Configuration refers to the network device and/or server sending configuration information or parameter values to the terminal via messages or signaling, so that the terminal can determine communication parameters or resources for transmission based on these values or information. Pre-configuration is similar to configuration; it can be parameter information or parameter values pre-negotiated between the network device and/or server and the terminal device, or parameter information or parameter values specified by standard protocols for use by the base station/network device or terminal device, or parameter information or parameter values pre-stored in the base station and/or server or terminal device. This application does not limit this.

Furthermore, these values and parameters can be changed or updated.

(4) The terms "system" and "network" in the embodiments of this application can be used interchangeably. "Multiple" refers to two or more. "And/or" describes the relationship between related objects, indicating that there can be three relationships. For example, A and/or B can mean: A exists alone, A and B exist simultaneously, or B exists alone, where A and B can be singular or plural. The character "/" generally indicates that the related objects before and after are in an "or" relationship. "At least one of the following" or similar expressions refer to any combination of these items, including any combination of single or plural items. For example, "at least one of A, B and C" includes A, B, C, AB, AC, BC or ABC. And, unless otherwise specified, the ordinal numbers such as "first" and "second" mentioned in the embodiments of this application are used to distinguish multiple objects and are not used to limit the order, sequence, priority or importance of multiple objects.

(5) In the embodiments of this application, "send" and "receive" indicate the direction of signal transmission. For example, "send information to XX" can be understood as the destination of the information being XX, which may include sending directly through the air interface or sending indirectly through the air interface by other units or modules. "Receive information from YY" can be understood as the source of the information being YY, which may include receiving directly from YY through the air interface or receiving indirectly from YY through the air interface by other units or modules. "Send" can also be understood as the "output" of the chip interface, and "receive" can also be understood as the "input" of the chip interface.

In other words, sending and receiving can occur between devices, such as between network devices and terminal devices, or within a device, such as between components, modules, chips, software modules, or hardware modules within the device via buses, wiring, or interfaces.

It is understandable that information may undergo necessary processing, such as encoding and modulation, between the source and destination, but the destination can understand the valid information from the source. Similar statements in this application can be interpreted in a similar way and will not be elaborated further.

(6) In the embodiments of this application, "instruction" may include direct instruction and indirect instruction, as well as explicit instruction and implicit instruction. The information indicated by a certain piece of information (as described below, the instruction information) is called the information to be instructed. In the specific implementation process, there are many ways to indicate the information to be instructed, such as, but not limited to, directly indicating the information to be instructed, such as the information to be instructed itself or its index. It can also indirectly indicate the information to be instructed by indicating other information, where there is an association between the other information and the information to be instructed; or it can only indicate a part of the information to be instructed, while the other parts of the information to be instructed are known or pre-agreed upon. For example, the instruction can be implemented by using a pre-agreed (e.g., protocol predefined) arrangement order of various information, thereby reducing the instruction overhead to a certain extent. This application does not limit the specific method of instruction. It is understood that for the sender of the instruction information, the instruction information can be used to indicate the information to be instructed, and for the receiver of the instruction information, the instruction information can be used to determine the information to be instructed.

In this application, unless otherwise specified, the same or similar parts between the various embodiments can be referred to each other. In the various embodiments of this application, and the various methods/designs/implementations within each embodiment, unless otherwise specified or logically conflicting, the terminology and/or descriptions between different embodiments and between the various methods/designs/implementations within each embodiment are consistent and can be mutually referenced. The technical features in different embodiments and the various methods/designs/implementations within each embodiment can be combined to form new embodiments, methods, or implementations based on their inherent logical relationships. The following descriptions of the embodiments of this application do not constitute a limitation on the scope of protection of this application.

This application can be applied to long-term evolution (LTE) systems, new radio (NR) systems, or communication systems evolving after 5G (such as 6G). The communication system includes at least one network device and/or at least one terminal device.

Please refer to Figure 1a, which is a schematic diagram of a communication system according to this application. Figure 1a exemplarily shows one network device and six terminal devices, namely terminal device 1, terminal device 2, terminal device 3, terminal device 4, terminal device 5, and terminal device 6. In the example shown in Figure 1a, terminal device 1 is a smart teacup, terminal device 2 is a smart air conditioner, terminal device 3 is a smart gas pump, terminal device 4 is a vehicle, terminal device 5 is a mobile phone, and terminal device 6 is a printer.

As shown in Figure 1a, the entity sending AI configuration information can be a network device. The entity receiving AI configuration information can be terminal devices 1-6. In this case, the network device and terminal devices 1-6 form a communication system. In this communication system, terminal devices 1-6 can send data to the network device, and the network device needs to receive the data sent by terminal devices 1-6. At the same time, the network device can send configuration information to terminal devices 1-6.

For example, in Figure 1a, terminal devices 4 to 6 can also form a communication system. Terminal device 5 acts as a network device, i.e., the entity sending AI configuration information; terminal devices 4 and 6 act as terminal devices, i.e., the entities receiving AI configuration information. For instance, in a vehicle-to-everything (V2X) system, terminal device 5 sends AI configuration information to terminal devices 4 and 6 respectively, and receives data sent by terminal devices 4 and 6; correspondingly, terminal devices 4 and 6 receive the AI configuration information sent by terminal device 5 and send data back to terminal device 5.

Taking the communication system shown in Figure 1a as an example, in addition to performing communication-related services, different devices (including network devices and network devices, network devices and terminal devices, and/or terminal devices and terminal devices) may also perform AI-related services.

As shown in Figure 1b, taking a network device as a base station as an example, the base station can perform communication-related services and AI-related services with one or more terminal devices, and different terminal devices can also perform communication-related services and AI-related services.

As shown in Figure 1c, taking terminal devices including televisions and mobile phones as an example, communication-related services and AI-related services can also be performed between televisions and mobile phones.

The technical solutions provided in this application can be applied to wireless communication systems (such as the systems shown in Figures 1a, 1b, or 1c). For example, AI network elements can be introduced into the communication system provided in this application to realize some or all AI-related operations. AI network elements can also be called AI nodes, AI devices, AI entities, AI modules, AI models, or AI units, etc. The AI network element can be built into a network element within the communication system. For example, the AI network element can be an AI module built into: access network equipment, core network equipment, cloud server, or operation, administration, and maintenance (OAM) management system, to implement AI-related functions. The OAM can be the management system of the core network equipment and/or the management system of the access network equipment. Alternatively, the AI network element can also be an independently set network element in the communication system. Optionally, the terminal or its built-in chip can also include an AI entity to implement AI-related functions.

The following is a brief introduction to the artificial intelligence (AI) that may be involved in this application.

Artificial intelligence (AI) enables machines to possess human-like intelligence, such as allowing them to use computer hardware and software to simulate certain intelligent human behaviors. To achieve AI, machine learning methods can be employed. In machine learning, machines learn (or train) a model using training data. This model represents the mapping between inputs and outputs. The learned model can be used for reasoning (or prediction), that is, it can be used to predict the output corresponding to a given input. This output can also be called the reasoning result (or prediction result).

Machine learning can include supervised learning, unsupervised learning, and reinforcement learning. Unsupervised learning can also be called learning without supervision.

Supervised learning, based on collected sample values and labels, uses machine learning algorithms to learn the mapping relationship between sample values and labels, and then expresses this learned mapping relationship using an AI model. The process of training the machine learning model is the process of learning this mapping relationship. During training, sample values are input into the model to obtain the model's predicted values, and the model parameters are optimized by calculating the error between the model's predicted values and the sample labels (ideal values). After the mapping relationship is learned, it can be used to predict new sample labels. The mapping relationship learned in supervised learning can include linear or non-linear mappings. Based on the type of label, the learning task can be divided into classification tasks and regression tasks.

Unsupervised learning relies on collected sample values to discover inherent patterns within the samples themselves. One type of unsupervised learning algorithm uses the samples themselves as supervisory signals, meaning the model learns the mapping relationship from sample to sample; this is called self-supervised learning. During training, model parameters are optimized by calculating the error between the model's predictions and the samples themselves. Self-supervised learning can be used for signal compression and decompression recovery applications; common algorithms include autoencoders and generative adversarial networks.

Reinforcement learning, unlike supervised learning, is a type of algorithm that learns problem-solving strategies through interaction with the environment. Unlike supervised and unsupervised learning, reinforcement learning problems do not have explicit "correct" action labels. The algorithm needs to interact with the environment to obtain reward signals from the environment, and then adjust its decision actions to obtain a larger reward signal value. For example, in downlink power control, the reinforcement learning model adjusts the downlink transmission power of each user based on the total system throughput feedback from the wireless network, aiming to achieve a higher system throughput. The goal of reinforcement learning is also to learn the mapping relationship between the environment state and a better (e.g., optimal) decision action. However, because the label of the "correct action" cannot be obtained in advance, the network cannot be optimized by calculating the error between the action and the "correct action." Reinforcement learning training is achieved through iterative interaction with the environment.

Neural networks (NNs) are a specific model in machine learning techniques. According to the general approximation theorem, neural networks can theoretically approximate any continuous function, thus enabling them to learn arbitrary mappings. Traditional communication systems rely on extensive expert knowledge to design communication modules, while deep learning communication systems based on neural networks can automatically discover hidden pattern structures from large datasets, establish mapping relationships between data, and achieve performance superior to traditional modeling methods.

The idea behind neural networks comes from the neuronal structure of the brain. For example, each neuron performs a weighted summation of its input values and outputs the result through an activation function.

Figure 1d shows a schematic diagram of a neuron structure. Assume the neuron's input is x = [ _x0 , _x1 , ..., _xn ], and the corresponding weights for each input are w = [ _w0 , _w1 , ..., _wn ], where n is a positive integer, and w _{_i} and _xi can be decimals, integers (e.g., 0, positive integers, or negative integers), or complex numbers, etc. _{w_i} serves as the weight for _xi , used to weight the input _values . The bias for the weighted summation of the input values based on the weights is, for example, b. The activation function can take many forms. Assuming a neuron's activation function is y = f(z) = max(0, z), then the neuron's output is: For example, if the activation function of a neuron is y = f(z) = z, then the output of that neuron is: Here, b can be any possible type, such as a decimal, an integer (e.g., 0, a positive integer, or a negative integer), or a complex number. The activation functions of different neurons in a neural network can be the same or different.

Furthermore, neural networks generally consist of multiple layers, each of which may include one or more neurons. Increasing the depth and/or width of a neural network can improve its expressive power, providing more powerful information extraction and abstract modeling capabilities for complex systems. The depth of a neural network can refer to the number of layers it includes, and the number of neurons in each layer can be called the width of that layer. In one implementation, a neural network includes an input layer and an output layer. The input layer processes the received input information through neurons and passes the processing result to the output layer, which then obtains the output of the neural network. In another implementation, a neural network includes an input layer, hidden layers, and an output layer. The input layer processes the received input information through neurons and passes the processing result to the hidden layer. The hidden layer calculates the received processing result and passes the calculation result to the output layer or the next adjacent hidden layer, ultimately obtaining the output of the neural network. A neural network may include one hidden layer or multiple sequentially connected hidden layers, without limitation.

Neural networks, for example, are deep neural networks (DNNs). Depending on how the network is constructed, DNNs can include feedforward neural networks (FNNs), convolutional neural networks (CNNs), and recurrent neural networks (RNNs).

Figure 1e is a schematic diagram of an FNN network. A characteristic of FNN networks is that neurons in adjacent layers are completely connected pairwise. This characteristic makes FNNs typically require a large amount of storage space, resulting in high computational complexity.

CNNs are neural networks specifically designed to process data with a grid-like structure. For example, time-series data (discrete sampling along the time axis) and image data (two-dimensional discrete sampling) can both be considered grid-like data. CNNs do not use all the input information at once for computation; instead, they use a fixed-size window to extract a portion of the information for convolution operations, which significantly reduces the computational cost of model parameters. Furthermore, depending on the type of information extracted by the window (such as people and objects in an image representing different types of information), each window can use different convolution kernels, allowing CNNs to better extract features from the input data.

Recurrent Neural Networks (RNNs) are a type of distributed neural network (DNN) that utilizes feedback time-series information. Their input includes the current input value and their own output value from the previous time step. RNNs are well-suited for acquiring temporally correlated sequence features, and are particularly applicable to applications such as speech recognition and channel coding/decoding.

In the model training process described above for machine learning, a loss function can be defined. The loss function describes the difference or discrepancy between the model's output value and the ideal target value. The loss function can be expressed in various forms, and there are no restrictions on its specific form. The model training process can be viewed as follows: by adjusting some or all of the model's parameters, the value of the loss function is made to be less than a threshold value or to meet the target requirement.

A model can also be called an AI model, a rule, or other names. An AI model can be considered a specific method for implementing AI functions. An AI model represents the mapping relationship or function between the model's input and output. AI functions can include one or more of the following: data collection, model training (or model learning), model information dissemination, model inference (or model reasoning, inference, or prediction, etc.), model monitoring or model validation, or inference result publication, etc. AI functions can also be called AI (related) operations or AI-related functions.

The implementation process of a fully connected neural network will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. A fully connected neural network is also called a multilayer perceptron (MLP).

As shown in Figure 2a, an MLP consists of an input layer (left side), an output layer (right side), and multiple hidden layers (middle). Each layer of an MLP contains several nodes, called neurons. Neurons in adjacent layers are connected pairwise.

Optionally, considering neurons in two adjacent layers, the output h of a neuron in the next layer is the weighted sum of all neurons x in the previous layer connected to it, after passing through an activation function, and can be expressed as:
h = f(wx + b).

Where w is the weight matrix, b is the bias vector, and f is the activation function.

Alternatively, the output of the neural network can be recursively expressed as:
y=f _n (w _n f _n-1 (…)+b _n ).

Where n is the index of the neural network layer, 1 <= n <= N, and N is the total number of layers in the neural network.

In other words, a neural network can be understood as a mapping from an input data set to an output data set. Neural networks are typically initialized randomly; the process of obtaining this mapping from random values w and b using existing data is called training the neural network.

Optionally, the training process can involve using a loss function to evaluate the output of the neural network.

As shown in Figure 2b, the error can be backpropagated, and the neural network parameters (including w and b) can be iteratively optimized using gradient descent until the loss function reaches its minimum value, which is the "better point (e.g., the optimal point)" in Figure 2b. It can be understood that the neural network parameters corresponding to the "better point (e.g., the optimal point)" in Figure 2b can be used as the neural network parameters in the trained AI model information.

Alternatively, the gradient descent process can be represented as:

Where θ represents the parameters to be optimized (including w and b), L is the loss function, and η is the learning rate, controlling the step size of gradient descent. This represents the differentiation operation. This indicates taking the derivative of θ with respect to L.

Alternatively, the backpropagation process can utilize the chain rule for partial derivatives.

As shown in Figure 2c, the gradient of the parameters in the previous layer can be recursively calculated from the gradient of the parameters in the next layer, and can be expressed as:

Where w _{_ij} is the weight connecting node j to node i, and s _{_i} is the weighted sum of the inputs at node i.

Embodiments of this application may involve random access (RA) procedures, which will be described exemplarily below.

In LTE and NR, terminal devices synchronize uplink time with network devices through a random access procedure and establish an RRC connection with the network device through the same procedure. Once the RRC connection is established, uplink and downlink data transmission can proceed. Generally, before initiating uplink random access, the terminal device must also detect and receive downlink synchronization signals from the network device to complete downlink time and frequency synchronization. The downlink synchronization signals typically include a primary synchronization signal (PSS) and a secondary synchronization signal (SSS). In NR, the PSS and SSS can be carried in the synchronization/broadcast block (SS/PBCH block, SSB).

Currently, in NR, there are two types of random access procedures: Type-1 RA and Type-2 RA. Type-1 RA is also known as 4-step RA, and Type-2 RA is also known as 2-step RA. Depending on whether there are conflicts in the transmission of preambles between different terminal devices, Type-1/Type-2 RA procedures include contention-based random access (CBRA) and contention-free random access (CFRA). The CBRA and CFRA procedures are basically the same.

As an example, the contention-based random access procedure will be described below using the example shown in Figure 3a.

Msg1 transmission: Based on the received system message and the selected SSB index, the terminal device randomly selects a RO (RO can be understood as a time-frequency resource used for random access; the network device pre-configures the association between RO and SSB index) associated with that SSB index to send the preamble sequence (i.e., the preamble, which is Msg1).

Furthermore, after determining the time-frequency resources (ROs), the terminal device can select a preamble sequence from the chosen ROs (generally, a maximum of 64 preamble sequences can be transmitted simultaneously on a single RO, and the terminal device selects one of these 64 preamble sequences for transmission). The terminal device then sends the preamble sequence to the network device, which is carried by PRACH.

Msg2 transmission: After receiving the preamble sequence, the network device sends a random access response (RAR) message to the terminal device. The RAR (i.e., Msg2) may include one or more of the scheduling information of Msg3 (i.e., random access response uplink grant (RAR UL grant) information), timing advance command (TAC) information, and temporary cell radio access network temporary identifier (TC-RNTI).

For the terminal device, after sending Msg1, the terminal device starts a random access response window and listens for Msg2 sent by the network side within the window.

For example, if the terminal device successfully detects its own RAR, the random access is successful. The terminal device continues to send Msg3 according to the instructions of the RAR. The function of Msg3 can include an indication of the RRC connection establishment request.

For example, if the terminal device determines that it has not received its own RAR, the random access will fail. The terminal device will then re-initiate the random access process according to the fallback parameters indicated by the network device until the maximum number of random access attempts is reached.

Msg3 transmission: Msg3 is transmitted on the time-frequency resources specified by Msg2 and is carried by the physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH).

Msg4 transmission: Msg4 is mainly used for conflict resolution. When multiple terminal devices access the network simultaneously, it is necessary to determine which terminal device to select for access in this random access.

Specifically, after sending Msg3, the terminal device listens for and receives Msg4 from the network side. Msg4 carries a conflict resolution flag and air interface parameter configurations specific to the terminal device. If the terminal device successfully receives Msg4, the random access is successful; otherwise, the random access fails. If successful, the terminal device continues to send Msg5, which is primarily used to send the RRC establishment completion command. If it fails, the terminal device re-initiates the random access process according to the fallback parameters indicated by the network device until the maximum number of random access attempts is reached.

For example, as shown in Figure 3b, taking CBRA as an example, the Type-2 RA process combines the first four steps of the Type-1 RA process into two steps. The terminal device simultaneously sends Msg1 and Msg3, referred to as MsgA. After detecting MsgA, the network device provides feedback and sends MsgB.

The technical solution provided in this application can be applied to wireless communication systems (such as the systems shown in Figure 1a, 1b, or 1c). In wireless communication systems, MIMO technology is typically used to increase system capacity, that is, multiple antennas are used simultaneously at both the transmitting and receiving ends. Theoretically, the use of multiple antennas combined with spatial multiplexing can multiply the system capacity. However, in practice, the use of multiple antennas also brings the problem of increased interference. Therefore, it is often necessary to process the signal to suppress the effects of interference. This method of interference suppression through signal processing can be implemented at either the receiving or transmitting end. When implemented at the transmitting end, the signal to be transmitted can be preprocessed before being transmitted through the MIMO channel; this transmission method is called precoding. Generally, different communication devices can determine the precoding information through the measurement results of a reference signal, and subsequently, high-speed data transmission can be performed using this precoding information.

Generally, terminal devices can obtain wireless communication services through a random access procedure. During this random access procedure, different communication devices can transmit data using early data transmission (EDT). Taking the random access procedure between a terminal device and a network device as shown in Figure 3a or Figure 3b as an example, the EDT can include MO-EDT transmitted via MSG3 and MT-EDT transmitted via MSG3. The data transmitted via MO-EDT can be uplink data sent from the terminal device to the network device, and the data transmitted via MT-EDT can be downlink data sent from the network device to the terminal device.

However, during random access, the lack of reference signals and the absence of exchange of measurement results between different communication devices means that precoding information is unavailable. Therefore, improving data transmission performance during random access is a pressing technical problem that needs to be solved.

To address the aforementioned problems, this application provides a communication method and related apparatus, which will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

Please refer to Figure 4, which is a schematic diagram of an implementation of the communication method provided in this application. The method includes the following steps.

It should be noted that Figure 4 uses the first and second communication devices as examples to illustrate the method, but this application does not limit the execution subject of the interaction. For example, in Figure 4, the execution subject of the method can be replaced by a chip, chip system, processor, logic module, or software in the communication device.

As an example, the first communication device can be a terminal device and the second communication device can be a network device.

As another example, both the first and second communication devices are terminal devices, meaning that the scheme shown in Figure 4 can be applied to side link communication scenarios.

S401. The first communication device sends a first signal, and correspondingly, the second communication device receives the first signal. The first signal is used for random access; the first signal carries a first indication information among N indication information, each of the N indication information corresponding to N precoded information, and the first indication information is used to determine the first precoded information among the N precoded information, where N is a positive integer.

It should be understood that the first signal used for random access can be understood as a random access signal, or a signal sent by the terminal device during the random access process. For example, the first signal can be message 1 (MSG1), message A (MSGA), message 3 (MSG3), or a scheduled uplink transmission, etc.

S402. The second communication device sends a signal based on the first precoded information.

It should be understood that the N indication information corresponds to the N precoded information respectively. This can be understood as a one-to-one correspondence between the N indication information and the N precoded information, or that the i-th indication information among the N indication information is used to determine/indicate the i-th precoded information among the N precoded information, where i is from 1 to N.

Based on the scheme shown in Figure 4, the first signal for random access sent by the first communication device in step S401 can be used to carry first indication information, which is used to determine the first precoded information among the N precoded information. In this way, the receiver of the first signal can determine the first precoded information based on the first indication information, and the receiver can perform data transmission based on the first precoded information. Therefore, during the random access process, data transmission based on precoded information can be achieved through the precoded information indicated by the random access initiator, thus improving the data transmission performance of the random access process.

Furthermore, compared to the traditional method of obtaining precoded information through the transmission and measurement of reference signals, in the above scheme, the first signal used for random access can indicate the precoded information to the receiver of the first signal, which can avoid or reduce the increased overhead and transmission resource occupation caused by the transmission of reference signals, thereby reducing device power consumption and improving communication efficiency.

In the method shown in Figure 4, the first indication information carried by the first signal can be implemented in a variety of ways, which will be described below with reference to some implementation examples.

In one implementation method, the first indication information is used to indicate the first region among N regions, and the first region corresponds to the first pre-encoded information.

In the first implementation, N precoding information correspond to N regions, and the precoding information at different locations within any of the N regions is the same; wherein, the location of the first communication device is within the first region of the N regions, and the first indication information is used to indicate the first region, which corresponds to the first precoding information.

In other words, after the first communication device determines the first region in N regions based on its own location, the first indication information carried by the first signal sent by the first communication device can be used to indicate the first region, so that the receiver of the first signal determines that the first region corresponds to the first precoding information corresponding to the first signal based on the correspondence between N precoding information and N regions.

It should be understood that the N precoding information pieces correspond to N regions, which can be interpreted as a one-to-one correspondence between the N precoding information pieces and the N regions, or that the precoding information of the i-th region among the N precoding information pieces is the i-th precoding information piece among the N precoding information pieces, where i is from 1 to N. As mentioned above, the N indicator information pieces correspond to the N precoding information pieces; therefore, there is a correlation between the N indicator information pieces, the N regions, and the N precoding information pieces. For example, the i-th indicator information piece among the N indicator information pieces is used to indicate that the precoding information of the i-th region among the N regions is the i-th precoding information piece among the N precoding information pieces.

It should be understood that since the signal transmission characteristics of different locations within adjacent or nearby areas may be the same, different locations within the same area may share the same precoding information and other parameters. For example, these other parameters may include one or more of the following: path loss information, signal fading information, interference information, beam indication, beam angle, beam direction, and modulation and coding scheme level (MCS level). Correspondingly, the precoding information can be replaced with these other parameters.

In implementation method one, the first indication information can indicate the first area in a variety of ways, which will be explained below with some examples.

Example A: The first indication information includes one of the leading sequences in the first leading sequence set. The N regions each correspond to one of the N leading sequence sets, and the first region corresponds to the first leading sequence set among the N leading sequence sets.

In Example A, the first indication information carried by the first signal may include a preamble sequence in the first preamble sequence set, such that the receiver of the first signal determines the precoding information corresponding to the first signal as the first precoding information based on the preamble sequence and the correspondence between the N regions and the N preamble sequence sets.

In this application, the term "preceding sequence set" can be replaced with other terms, such as "preceding set," "preceding group," or "preceding set group."

It should be understood that the N regions correspond to the N sets of preamble sequences. This can be interpreted as a one-to-one correspondence between the N regions and the N sets of preamble sequences, or that the preamble sequence used by the i-th region among the N regions is one of the preamble sequences in the i-th set of the N preamble sequences, where i is from 1 to N. As shown above, there is a correlation between the N indication information, the N regions, the N precoding information, and the N sets of preamble sequences. For example, the i-th indication information among the N indication information includes one of the preamble sequences in the i-th set of the N preamble sequences, and any preamble sequence in this i-th set is used to indicate that the precoding information for the i-th region among the N regions is the i-th precoding information among the N precoding information.

Optionally, the method further includes: the first communication device receiving first information, the first information indicating the correspondence between the N regions and the N sets of preamble sequences. In other words, before sending the first signal, the first communication device may also receive the first information, enabling the first communication device to send the first signal based on the correspondence configured in the first information. For example, the first information may be system information/system message, such as a system information block (SIB), a master information block (MIB), or other broadcast information.

For example, the first information can indicate the correspondence between the N regions and the set of N preceding sequences in various ways, such as tables, formulas, matrices, and different field meanings. Taking the first information indicated by a table as an example, as shown in Table 2 below.

Table 2

As shown in Table 2, the first information can indicate the two columns of information: "Region Identifier or Index" and "Index of the Preceding Sequences Included in the Preceding Sequence Set". These two columns of information can be used to indicate the correspondence between N regions and N sets of preceding sequences.

Optionally, in Table 2, the first information may also indicate the correspondence between N regions and N sets of preceding sequences in the relevance maps of different versions in one or more versions (as shown in the first column of Table 2). For example, "Version 1" may include the sets of preceding sequences corresponding to regions A1, A2, A3, etc., and "Version 2" may include the sets of preceding sequences corresponding to regions B1, B2, B3, etc.

Optionally, the number of leading sequences contained in the leading sequence sets corresponding to different regions can be the same (as in version 2) or different (as in version 1). For example, taking version 1 as an example, the area range in region A1 may be relatively large or the number of terminal devices may be relatively large. Therefore, the number of leading sequences contained in the available leading sequence set in region A1 can be set to 16 (i.e., indices 0-15); while the area range in region A3 may be relatively small or the number of terminal devices may be relatively small. Therefore, the number of leading sequences contained in the available leading sequence set in region A3 can be set to 5 (i.e., indices 26-30). For details, please refer to the process of determining the relevance map information in the examples shown in Figures 5a to 5d below.

Example B: The first indication information includes the identifier or index of the first region.

In Example B, since the N precoded information pieces correspond to the N regions respectively, the first indication information carried by the first signal may include the identifier or index of the first region, so that the receiver of the first signal can determine the precoded information corresponding to the first signal as the first precoded information based on the identifier or index of the first region and the correspondence between the N precoded information pieces and the N regions.

It should be noted that when the first indication information includes the identifier of the first area, the first indication information is used to determine the first area among the N areas indicated by the first relevant map information. In other words, the first indication information is used to determine the first area among the existing N areas indicated by the first relevant map information.

Optionally, in this application, "existing" can be replaced with other terms, such as: deployed, configured, or pre-configured.

The relevance maps involved in this application will be described below.

In a communication environment, a precoding resource block group (PRG) can comprise a set of frequency-contiguous resource blocks (RBs). The communication system calculates precoding information in the frequency domain at the PRG granularity, meaning these contiguous RBs share the same precoding information. Precoding information obtained with large-granularity PRGs (e.g., PRG size = 128 RB, 256 RB), or "statistical weights," exhibits better robustness and spatial continuity compared to precoding information obtained with small-granularity PRGs (e.g., PRG size = 1 RB, 8 RB). Therefore, precoding information obtained at a certain location can be used for other "nearby" users; that is, the transmissions of other "nearby" users also use the precoding information previously obtained by this user. This method primarily utilizes the characteristic that statistical weights are correlated "nearby."

Generally, precoding information primarily utilizes the diversity gain of multipath signals; therefore, it is related to the multipath component (MPC) information of the communication environment in which the signal is transmitted. Using methods such as ray tracing or AI models, MPC information can be obtained for a given communication scenario (e.g., environmental information, network device locations, terminal device locations, etc.). Furthermore, obtaining the MPC information for each point in space allows for the creation of a highly correlated spatial range, i.e., a correlation map. This correlation map divides the area into highly correlated regions, meaning different locations within the same region are strongly correlated. Therefore, within this region, the measurement results from a reference point are used, and the corresponding precoding information is applied to other users accessing the area.

As an example, the process of determining a relevance map based on MPC information will be described below.

In the following example, the communication scenario is represented by the rectangular region in Figure 5a, with its four vertices A, B, C, and D. Within this rectangular region, the physical outlines of scattering objects such as buildings and signal obstructions are represented by rectangles X, Y, and Z. It should be understood that Figure 5a is merely an implementation example. In practical applications, the communication environment and the outlines of scattering objects may not be rectangular regions; for example, they may be circles, triangles, or irregular shapes, etc., which are not limited here.

Step 1. Obtain MPC information in the communication environment.

Specifically, MPC information for one or more paths corresponding to the communication scenario can be obtained through a multipath composition module (e.g., by using ray tracing simulation or AI model prediction).

Optionally, the MPC information for each path may include one or more of the following:

Direction of departure (DoD) information indicates the departure angle of the path, such as azimuth angle of departure (AOD) and zenith angle of departure (ZOD).

Angle of arrival (DoA) information indicates the angle of arrival of the path, such as azimuth angle of arrival (AOA) and zenith angle of arrival (ZOA).

Path loss information (psthloss) indicates the path loss of this route;

Delay information indicates the path's time of travel, distance traveled, or time of arrival (TOA).

For example, taking Figure 5b as an example, in the scenario shown in Figure 5b, for one of the points O, through step 1, the MPC information of one or more paths of the signal sent or received by point O can be obtained.

Step 2. Determine the correlation of different locations in the communication environment based on MPC information to obtain correlation map information.

For example, correlation calculation can be based on various data (e.g., cosine similarity can be calculated for any vector; correlation can be represented by the cosine similarity of MPC parameters, such as the cosine similarity of multipath angles; MPC can be transformed to the frequency domain channel and then the cosine similarity of the frequency domain channel can be calculated, or the covariance matrix of the frequency domain channel can be calculated and then the cosine similarity of the covariance matrix can be calculated). Here, we mainly introduce the calculation of correlation based on the precoding matrix as an example, including the following process:

Step A. Calculate the covariance matrix of the frequency domain channel;

Step B. Perform singular value decomposition (SVD) on the covariance matrix to obtain the right singular matrix, which is the precoding matrix;

Step C. Calculate the cosine similarity of the precoding matrices of the two points to obtain the correlation between the two points.

By implementing steps 1 and 2 above, the correlation between any two points in the rectangular region ABCD can be determined, and the set of points with strong correlation can be described as a region. Therefore, the division results of different regions in the rectangular region ABCD can be obtained.

As an example, as shown in Figure 5c, the rectangular region ABCD can be divided into 7 regions, represented as regions 1 to 7 in Figure 5c. It should be understood that any one of the 7 regions shown in Figure 5c can be a regular or irregular shape, and any two regions can be of equal or unequal size.

It should be noted that after step 2, the division results of different regions in the rectangular region ABCD can be obtained. In subsequent communication processes, the precoding information used in the correlation calculation process in step 2 can be used as the precoding information for communication with communication devices in each region. Alternatively, the precoding information obtained from the measurement process of the reference signal by the communication device at a certain point in the region can be used as the precoding information for communication with communication devices in that region. There is no limitation here.

As can be seen from the above process, in the seven regions shown in Figure 5c, according to the traditional method of determining precoding information, a communication device located at any position within the rectangular region ABCD needs to transmit a reference signal and the measurement result of the reference signal with another communication device to determine its precoding information. However, based on the method shown in Figure 5b, the precoding information at different positions within the same region is the same. Therefore, for a given communication device, it can communicate with other communication devices located at the same or different positions within the same region using the same precoding information, without needing to go through the reference signal measurement process. This reduces the overhead and power consumption of the communication device.

Optionally, during the implementation of steps 1 and 2 above, by adjusting the relevant parameters, various granularities of division can be achieved for the rectangular region ABCD, resulting in different region division results.

As an example, in step 2, different region division results can be obtained by using different correlation thresholds. Specifically, the correlation map obtained based on a lower correlation threshold indicates weaker correlation of precoded information at different locations, thus requiring a larger division granularity and resulting in fewer regions. Conversely, the correlation map obtained based on a higher correlation threshold indicates stronger correlation of precoded information at different locations, thus requiring a smaller division granularity and resulting in more regions.

For example, based on a lower correlation threshold, the rectangular region ABCD can be divided into 7 regions as shown in Figure 5c, and based on a lower correlation threshold, the rectangular region ABCD can be divided into 26 regions as shown in Figure 5d.

Alternatively, besides different correlation thresholds leading to different region segmentation results, other parameters may also produce similar effects. These other parameters could include antenna configuration, stream number, PRG size, and the altitude of the communication equipment's location.

It should be noted that in the process shown in Figure 4, different communication devices may transmit first correlation map information (for example, in addition to indicating the correspondence between the N regions and the N preamble sequence sets, the first information may also indicate the first correlation map information; or, the second communication device may send the first correlation map information to the first communication device through other information/messages/signaling). The first correlation map information may be generated by processing by the first communication device and/or the second communication device (the processing may be the processing in steps 1 and 2 above), or it may be provided (instructed or issued) by a network device or server to the first communication device and/or the second communication device. No limitation is made here.

In one possible implementation, the first relevance map information may include at least one of the following information A to information G.

Information A indicates the coordinate range of the environmental map where the N regions are located;

Information B is an indication of the correlation between precoded information in some or all of the N regions.

Information C is used to indicate the numerical value N;

Information D indicates the coordinate range information of each of the N regions;

Information E is used to indicate the map information of the environment map where the N regions are located, wherein the map information includes the values of the pixels corresponding to the N regions; in the N regions, the values of the pixels in the same region are the same, and the values of the pixels in at least two different regions are different;

Information F indicates the version information of the first relevant map information;

Information G is used to indicate the precoding information of each of the N regions (wherein, the precoding information can be the precoding information used by the signal transmitted by the first communication device, for example, if the transmitted signal is uplink information, the precoding information can be uplink precoding information, such as the transmission precoding matrix indicator (TPMI)).

Optionally, if the first communication device has stored (or configured) the first relevant map information, the first communication device may obtain information G through the first relevant map information, and accordingly, the first communication device may communicate based on the precoded information indicated by the information G.

For example, taking the communication environment corresponding to the first relevant map information as rectangle ABCD in Figure 5c above, the above-mentioned indication information can be implemented in the following ways.

Information A indicates the coordinate range of rectangle ABCD. For example, information A may include the coordinates of the four vertices of the rectangular area (i.e., points A, B, C, and D); or information A may include the coordinates of the two diagonally opposite vertices of the rectangular area (e.g., points A and C).

Information B indicates the degree of correlation of some or all of the 7 (N=7) regions contained in rectangle ABCD in Figure 5c.

Information C indicates that the number of regions divided by rectangle ABCD in Figure 5c is 7 (N=7).

Information D is used to indicate the coordinate range of each of the 7 (N=7) regions contained in rectangle ABCD in Figure 5c. For example, it can indicate the range of coordinate points of the boundary of each region.

Information E can indicate map information for rectangle ABCD in Figure 5c. For example, as shown in Figure 6, this map information includes one or more pixels in each of 7 (N=7) regions, and the values of pixels within the same region are the same, so as to indicate the correlation between different locations within the same region through the values of the pixels.

In one possible implementation of Method 1, the N regions are determined based on first relevance map information. The method further includes: the first communication device receiving first broadcast information for configuring the first signal; wherein the first broadcast information indicates a first map version (e.g., the first broadcast information may include the aforementioned information F), and the first map version is the same as the map version of the first relevance map information. In other words, the first communication device can receive the first broadcast information for configuring the first signal, and thereafter, the first communication device can determine the N regions based on the map version indicated by the first broadcast information, and send the first signal based on the location of the first communication device and the N locations, enabling different communication devices to communicate based on the same version of the relevance map information.

In this application, the term "coherence map" can be replaced with other terms, such as precoded map, precoded coherence map, map information, coherence information, coherence environment information, environment information, or coherence area information.

In another possible implementation of the first method, the N regions are determined based on first relevance map information. The method further includes: the first communication device receiving M broadcast messages, which are used to configure M signals respectively, and the M signals are used for random access, where M is a positive integer; wherein the M broadcast messages respectively indicate M map versions, and the first signal satisfies any one of the following:

The map version of the second broadcast information in the M broadcast information is the same as the map version of the first relevant map information, and the first signal is configured based on the second broadcast information (for example, the M broadcast information may include the preceding information F);

The M map versions correspond to M related map information. The relevance of the location of the first communication device to the second related map information in the M related map information (for example, the M broadcast information may include the aforementioned information B) is greater than or equal to the relevance of the location of the first communication device to the other M-1 related map information; wherein, the first signal is configured based on the broadcast information corresponding to the second related map information.

Specifically, the first communication device can receive M broadcast messages for configuring M random access signals, each broadcast message indicating one of the M map versions. Subsequently, the first communication device can select a map version from the M map versions that matches the first relevance map information already existing in the first communication device, and transmit the first signal based on the configuration of the broadcast messages corresponding to that map version, enabling different communication devices to communicate based on the same version of the relevance map information.

Alternatively, the first communication device can determine the location of the first communication device in M correlations corresponding to M map versions, and transmit the first signal based on the configuration of the broadcast information corresponding to the map version with the highest (or greatest) correlation. Specifically, in the M correlation maps indicated by the M map versions, the higher the correlation of the first communication device's location in a certain correlation map, the more accurate the pre-coded information of the first communication device's location in that correlation map, and/or the better the communication performance based on the pre-coded information in that correlation map. Therefore, the above method can improve communication performance.

Optionally, the broadcast information mentioned above can be system information/system messages, such as system information block (SIB), master information block (MIB), or other broadcast information.

In the second implementation method, the first indication information is used to indicate the first precoded information.

In the second implementation method, the N indication information can be used to indicate the N precoded information respectively. Correspondingly, the first indication information carried by the first signal can be used to indicate the first precoded information, so that the receiver of the first signal can quickly determine the first precoded information based on the first indication information.

Optionally, when the first indication information is used to indicate the first precoding information, the first indication information may include the first precoding information, the index of the first precoding information, or the identifier of the first precoding information, etc.

In one possible implementation of the method shown in Figure 4, the method further includes: the first communication device receiving second information, the second information being used to instruct the transmission of a random access signal for determining precoded information. Specifically, the first communication device may receive the second information, causing the first communication device to transmit a first signal for determining first precoded information based on the second information.

Optionally, the second information may indicate whether to send a random access signal for determining precoded information in other ways. For example, the second information may indicate whether the terminal device (e.g., UE) initializes environment-based transmission (EBT) mode or sends an EBT mode random access signal after connecting to the network (e.g., the core network).

Optionally, the second information is a system message used to configure the first signal; or, the second information is paging information corresponding to the first signal.

In one possible implementation of the method shown in Figure 4, the method further includes: the first communication device sending third information, the third information indicating that the first communication device supports sending a random access signal for determining precoded information. Specifically, the first communication device may send third information such that the recipient of the third information can clearly understand, based on the third information, that the first communication device supports sending a random access signal for determining precoded information, and subsequently determine the corresponding precoded information based on the first signal sent by the first communication device.

Optionally, the third information may indicate whether it supports sending random access signals for determining precoded information in other ways. For example, the third information may indicate whether the terminal device (e.g., UE) supports communication via EBT after connecting to the network, or whether it supports sending random access signals via EBT.

In one possible implementation of the method shown in Figure 4, the method further includes: the first communication device receiving a second signal, the second signal being a response signal to the first signal; the first communication device sending a third signal corresponding to the second signal; and the first communication device receiving a fourth signal corresponding to the third signal; wherein the third signal is generated based on the first precoding information, and/or the fourth signal is generated based on the first precoding information. Specifically, when the first signal is MSG1 (or a preamble signal), the first communication device and the second communication device can transmit MSG3 and message 4 (MSG4), where MSG3 can carry uplink data and/or MSG4 can carry downlink data. Correspondingly, the uplink data and/or downlink data can be transmitted through the first precoding information to improve data transmission performance.

Optionally, the first precoding information may include uplink precoding information and/or downlink precoding information. For example, uplink data can be transmitted using the uplink precoding information included in the first precoding information. Similarly, downlink data can be transmitted using the downlink precoding information included in the first precoding information.

Optionally, if the third signal (e.g., MSG3) is generated based on the first precoded information, the third signal can be used to initialize the EBT process's RRC message, such as an environment-based RRC request message.

Optionally, if the fourth signal (e.g., MSG4) is generated based on the first precoded information, the third signal can be used to carry an RRC message that confirms the successful completion of the EBT process, such as an environment-based RRC completion message.

Please refer to Figure 7. This application embodiment provides a communication device 700, which can realize the functions of the second communication device or the first communication device in the above method embodiments, and thus can also achieve the beneficial effects of the above method embodiments. In this application embodiment, the communication device 700 can be the first communication device (or the second communication device), or it can be an integrated circuit or component inside the first communication device (or the second communication device), such as a chip.

It should be noted that the transceiver unit 702 may include a transmitting unit and a receiving unit, which are used to perform transmitting and receiving respectively.

In one possible implementation, when the device 700 is used to execute the method performed by the first communication device in the aforementioned embodiments, the device 700 includes a processing unit 701 and a transceiver unit 702; the processing unit 701 is used to determine a first signal, the first signal being used for random access; wherein, the first signal is used to carry a first indication information among N indication information, the N indication information respectively corresponding to N precoded information, the first indication information being used to determine the first precoded information among the N precoded information, where N is a positive integer; the transceiver unit 702 is used to transmit the first signal.

In one possible implementation, when the device 700 is used to execute the method performed by the second communication device in the aforementioned embodiments, the device 700 includes a processing unit 701 and a transceiver unit 702; the transceiver unit 702 is used to receive a first signal, which is used for random access; wherein, the first signal is used to carry a first indication information among N indication information, the N indication information respectively corresponding to N precoded information, the first indication information being used to determine the first precoded information among the N precoded information, where N is a positive integer; the processing unit 701 is used to send a signal based on the first precoded information.

It should be noted that the information execution process of the unit of the above-mentioned communication device 700 can be specifically described in the method embodiment shown above in this application, and will not be repeated here.

Please refer to Figure 8, which is another schematic structural diagram of the communication device 800 provided in this application. The communication device 800 includes a logic circuit 801 and an input/output interface 802. The communication device 800 can be a chip or an integrated circuit.

In this context, the transceiver unit 702 shown in Figure 7 can be a communication interface, which can be the input/output interface 802 in Figure 8, and the input/output interface 802 can include an input interface and an output interface. Alternatively, the communication interface can also be a transceiver circuit, which can include an input interface circuit and an output interface circuit.

Optionally, the logic circuit 801 is used to determine a first signal, which is used for random access; wherein, the first signal is used to carry the first indication information among N indication information, the N indication information respectively corresponding to N precoded information, the first indication information is used to determine the first precoded information among the N precoded information, and N is a positive integer; the input/output interface 802 is used to send the first signal.

Optionally, the input/output interface 802 receives a first signal for random access; wherein the first signal carries a first indication information among N indication information, the N indication information corresponding to N precoded information, the first indication information being used to determine the first precoded information among the N precoded information, where N is a positive integer; the logic circuit 801 is used to send a signal based on the first precoded information.

The logic circuit 801 and the input/output interface 802 can also perform other steps performed by the first or second communication device in any embodiment and achieve corresponding beneficial effects, which will not be elaborated here.

In one possible implementation, the processing unit 701 shown in FIG7 can be the logic circuit 801 in FIG8.

Optionally, the logic circuit 801 can be a processing device, the functions of which can be partially or entirely implemented in software.

Optionally, the processing apparatus may include a memory and a processor, wherein the memory is used to store a computer program, and the processor reads and executes the computer program stored in the memory to perform the corresponding processing and/or steps in any of the method embodiments.

Optionally, the processing device may consist of only a processor. A memory for storing computer programs is located outside the processing device, and the processor is connected to the memory via circuitry/wires to read and execute the computer programs stored in the memory. The memory and processor may be integrated together or physically independent of each other.

Optionally, the processing device may be one or more chips, or one or more integrated circuits. For example, the processing device may be one or more field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs), system-on-chips (SoCs), central processing units (CPUs), network processors (NPs), digital signal processors (DSPs), microcontroller units (MCUs), programmable logic devices (PLDs), or other integrated chips, or any combination of the above chips or processors.

Please refer to Figure 9, which shows the communication device 900 involved in the above embodiments provided in the embodiments of this application. Specifically, the communication device 900 can be the communication device as a terminal device in the above embodiments. The example shown in Figure 9 is that the terminal device is implemented through the terminal device (or the components in the terminal device).

The present invention provides a possible logical structure diagram of the communication device 900, which may include, but is not limited to, at least one processor 901 and a communication port 902.

In Figure 7, the transceiver unit 702 can be a communication interface, which can be the communication port 902 in Figure 9. The communication port 902 can include an input interface and an output interface. Alternatively, the communication port 902 can also be a transceiver circuit, which can include an input interface circuit and an output interface circuit.

Further optionally, the device may also include at least one of a memory 903 and a bus 904. In the embodiments of this application, the at least one processor 901 is used to control the operation of the communication device 900.

Furthermore, the processor 901 can be a central processing unit, a general-purpose processor, a digital signal processor, an application-specific integrated circuit, a field-programmable gate array, or other programmable logic devices, transistor logic devices, hardware components, or any combination thereof. It can implement or execute the various exemplary logic blocks, modules, and circuits described in conjunction with the disclosure of this application. The processor can also be a combination that implements computing functions, such as a combination of one or more microprocessors, a combination of a digital signal processor and a microprocessor, etc. Those skilled in the art will clearly understand that, for the sake of convenience and brevity, the specific working processes of the systems, devices, and units described above can be referred to the corresponding processes in the foregoing method embodiments, and will not be repeated here.

It should be noted that the communication device 900 shown in Figure 9 can be used to implement the steps implemented by the terminal device in the aforementioned method embodiments and to achieve the corresponding technical effects of the terminal device. The specific implementation of the communication device shown in Figure 9 can be referred to the description in the aforementioned method embodiments, and will not be repeated here.

Please refer to Figure 10, which is a schematic diagram of the structure of the communication device 1000 involved in the above embodiments provided in the embodiments of this application. The communication device 1000 can specifically be a communication device as a network device in the above embodiments. The example shown in Figure 10 is that the network device is implemented through a network device (or a component in the network device). The structure of the communication device can refer to the structure shown in Figure 10.

The communication device 1000 includes at least one processor 1011 and at least one network interface 1014. Optionally, the communication device further includes at least one memory 1012, at least one transceiver 1013, and one or more antennas 1015. The processor 1011, memory 1012, transceiver 1013, and network interface 1014 are connected, for example, via a bus. In this embodiment, the connection may include various interfaces, transmission lines, or buses, etc., and this embodiment is not limited thereto. The antenna 1015 is connected to the transceiver 1013. The network interface 1014 enables the communication device to communicate with other communication devices through a communication link. For example, the network interface 1014 may include a network interface between the communication device and core network equipment, such as an S1 interface; the network interface may also include a network interface between the communication device and other communication devices (e.g., other network devices or core network equipment), such as an X2 or Xn interface.

In this context, the transceiver unit 702 shown in Figure 7 can be a communication interface, which can be the network interface 1014 in Figure 10. The network interface 1014 can include an input interface and an output interface. Alternatively, the network interface 1014 can also be a transceiver circuit, which can include an input interface circuit and an output interface circuit.

The processor 1011 is primarily used to process communication protocols and communication data, control the entire communication device, execute software programs, and process data from these programs, for example, to support the actions described in the embodiments of the communication device. The communication device may include a baseband processor and a central processing unit (CPU). The baseband processor is primarily used to process communication protocols and communication data, while the CPU is primarily used to control the entire terminal device, execute software programs, and process data from these programs. The processor 1011 in Figure 10 can integrate the functions of both a baseband processor and a CPU. Those skilled in the art will understand that the baseband processor and CPU can also be independent processors interconnected via technologies such as buses. Those skilled in the art will understand that a terminal device can include multiple baseband processors to adapt to different network standards, and multiple CPUs to enhance its processing capabilities. Various components of the terminal device can be connected via various buses. The baseband processor can also be described as a baseband processing circuit or a baseband processing chip. The CPU can also be described as a central processing circuit or a central processing chip. The function of processing communication protocols and communication data can be built into the processor or stored in memory as a software program, which is then executed by the processor to implement the baseband processing function.

The memory is primarily used to store software programs and data. The memory 1012 can exist independently or be connected to the processor 1011. Optionally, the memory 1012 can be integrated with the processor 1011, for example, integrated within a single chip. The memory 1012 can store program code that executes the technical solutions of the embodiments of this application, and its execution is controlled by the processor 1011. The various types of computer program code being executed can also be considered as drivers for the processor 1011.

Figure 10 shows only one memory and one processor. In actual terminal devices, there may be multiple processors and multiple memories. Memory can also be called storage medium or storage device, etc. Memory can be a storage element on the same chip as the processor, i.e., an on-chip storage element, or it can be a separate storage element; this application does not limit this.

Transceiver 1013 can be used to support the reception or transmission of radio frequency (RF) signals between a communication device and a terminal. Transceiver 1013 can be connected to antenna 1015. Transceiver 1013 includes a transmitter Tx and a receiver Rx. Specifically, one or more antennas 1015 can receive RF signals. The receiver Rx of transceiver 1013 is used to receive the RF signals from the antennas, convert the RF signals into digital baseband signals or digital intermediate frequency (IF) signals, and provide the digital baseband signals or IF signals to processor 1011 so that processor 1011 can perform further processing on the digital baseband signals or IF signals, such as demodulation and decoding. In addition, the transmitter Tx in transceiver 1013 is also used to receive modulated digital baseband signals or IF signals from processor 1011, convert the modulated digital baseband signals or IF signals into RF signals, and transmit the RF signals through one or more antennas 1015. Specifically, the receiver Rx can selectively perform one or more stages of downmixing and analog-to-digital conversion on the radio frequency signal to obtain a digital baseband signal or a digital intermediate frequency (IF) signal. The order of these downmixing and IF conversion processes is adjustable. The transmitter Tx can selectively perform one or more stages of upmixing and digital-to-analog conversion on the modulated digital baseband signal or digital IF signal to obtain a radio frequency signal. The order of these upmixing and IF conversion processes is also adjustable. The digital baseband signal and the digital IF signal can be collectively referred to as digital signals.

The transceiver 1013 can also be called a transceiver unit, transceiver, transceiver device, etc. Optionally, the device in the transceiver unit that performs the receiving function can be regarded as the receiving unit, and the device in the transceiver unit that performs the transmitting function can be regarded as the transmitting unit. That is, the transceiver unit includes a receiving unit and a transmitting unit. The receiving unit can also be called a receiver, input port, receiving circuit, etc., and the transmitting unit can be called a transmitter, transmitter, or transmitting circuit, etc.

It should be noted that the communication device 1000 shown in Figure 10 can be used to implement the steps implemented by the network device in the aforementioned method embodiments and to achieve the corresponding technical effects of the network device. The specific implementation of the communication device 1000 shown in Figure 10 can be referred to the description in the aforementioned method embodiments, and will not be repeated here.

Please refer to Figure 11, which is a schematic diagram of the structure of the communication device involved in the above embodiments provided in the embodiments of this application.

It is understood that the communication device 110 includes, for example, modules, units, elements, circuits, or interfaces, which are appropriately configured together to execute the technical solutions provided in this application. The communication device 110 may be the terminal device or network device described above, or a component (e.g., a chip) within these devices, used to implement the methods described in the following method embodiments. The communication device 110 includes one or more processors 111. The processor 111 may be a general-purpose processor or a dedicated processor, for example, a baseband processor or a central processing unit. The baseband processor can be used to process communication protocols and communication data, and the central processing unit can be used to control the communication device (e.g., a RAN node, terminal, or chip), execute software programs, and process data from the software programs.

Optionally, in one design, the processor 111 may include a program 113 (sometimes also referred to as code or instructions) that can be executed on the processor 111 to cause the communication device 110 to perform the methods described in the embodiments below. In yet another possible design, the communication device 110 includes circuitry (not shown in FIG11).

Optionally, the communication device 110 may include one or more memories 112 storing a program 114 (sometimes referred to as code or instructions), which can be run on the processor 111 to cause the communication device 110 to perform the methods described in the above method embodiments.

Optionally, the processor 111 and/or memory 112 may include AI modules 117 and 118, which are used to implement AI-related functions. The AI modules can be implemented through software, hardware, or a combination of both. For example, the AI module may include a radio intelligence control (RIC) module. For example, the AI module may be a near real-time RIC or a non-real-time RIC.

Optionally, the processor 111 and/or memory 112 may also store data. The processor and memory may be configured separately or integrated together.

Optionally, the communication device 110 may further include a transceiver 115 and/or an antenna 116. The processor 111, sometimes referred to as a processing unit, controls the communication device (e.g., a RAN node or terminal). The transceiver 115, sometimes referred to as a transceiver unit, transceiver, transceiver circuit, or transceiver, is used to realize the transmission and reception functions of the communication device through the antenna 116.

In this context, the processing unit 701 shown in Figure 7 can be a processor 111. The transceiver unit 702 shown in Figure 7 can be a communication interface, which can be the transceiver 115 in Figure 11. The transceiver 115 can include an input interface and an output interface. Alternatively, the transceiver 115 can also be a transceiver circuit, which can include an input interface circuit and an output interface circuit.

This application also provides a computer-readable storage medium for storing one or more computer-executable instructions. When the computer-executable instructions are executed by a processor, the processor performs the method described in the possible implementations of the first or second communication device in the foregoing embodiments.

This application also provides a computer program product (or computer program) that, when executed by a processor, executes the method described above for the possible implementation of the first or second communication device.

This application also provides a chip system including at least one processor for supporting a communication device in implementing the functions involved in the possible implementations of the communication device described above. Optionally, the chip system further includes an interface circuit that provides program instructions and/or data to the at least one processor. In one possible design, the chip system may also include a memory for storing the program instructions and data necessary for the communication device. The chip system may be composed of chips or may include chips and other discrete devices, wherein the communication device may specifically be the first communication device or the second communication device in the aforementioned method embodiments.

This application also provides a communication system, the network system architecture of which includes a first communication device and a second communication device in any of the above embodiments.

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

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

Furthermore, the functional units in the various embodiments of this application can be integrated into one processing unit, or each unit can exist physically separately, or two or more units can be integrated into one unit. The integrated unit can be implemented in hardware or as a software functional unit. If the integrated unit is implemented as a software functional unit and sold or used as an independent product, it can be stored in a computer-readable storage medium. Based on this understanding, the technical solution of this application, in essence, or the part that contributes, or all or part of the technical solution, can be embodied in the form of a software product. This computer software product is stored in a storage medium and includes several instructions to cause a computer device (which may be a personal computer, server, or network device, etc.) to execute all or part of the steps of the methods described in the various embodiments of this application. The aforementioned storage medium includes various media capable of storing program code, such as USB flash drives, portable hard drives, read-only memory (ROM), random access memory (RAM), magnetic disks, or optical disks.

Claims (28)

A communication method, characterized in that it includes: A first signal is determined, which is used for random access; wherein, the first signal is used to carry the first indication information among N indication information, the N indication information respectively corresponding to N precoded information, and the first indication information is used to determine the first precoded information among the N precoded information, where N is a positive integer; Send the first signal. According to the method of claim 1, the N precoding information corresponds to N regions respectively, and the precoding information at different positions in any region of the N regions is the same; The location of the first communication device is within the first region of the N regions, and the first indication information is used to indicate the first region, which corresponds to the first pre-encoded information. According to the method of claim 2, the N regions respectively correspond to N sets of leader sequences, and the first region corresponds to the first set of leader sequences in the N sets of leader sequences; The first indication information includes one of the leader sequences in the first set of leader sequences. The method according to claim 3, characterized in that the method further comprises: Receive first information, which is used to indicate the correspondence between the N regions and the N sets of leader sequences. The method according to claim 2, wherein the first indication information includes the identifier of the first area. The method according to any one of claims 2 to 5, characterized in that the N regions are determined based on first relevance map information, and the method further includes: Receive first broadcast information, the first broadcast information being used to configure the first signal; wherein, the first broadcast information is used to indicate a first map version, the first map version being the same as the map version of the first related map information. The method according to any one of claims 2 to 5, characterized in that the N regions are determined based on first relevance map information, and the method further includes: Receive M broadcast messages, each of which is used to configure M signals, and the M signals are used for random access, where M is a positive integer; wherein each of the M broadcast messages indicates one of the M map versions, and the first signal satisfies any one of the following: The map version of the second broadcast information in the M broadcast information is the same as the map version of the first related map information, and the first signal is configured based on the second broadcast information; The M map versions correspond to M related map information. The relevance of the location of the first communication device in the second related map information among the M related map information is greater than or equal to the relevance of the location of the first communication device in the other M-1 related map information. The first signal is configured based on the broadcast information corresponding to the second related map information. The method according to claim 1, wherein the first indication information is used to indicate the first precoded information. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 8, characterized in that the method further comprises: Receive second information, which is used to instruct the transmission of a random access signal for determining precoded information. The method according to claim 9, characterized in that, The second information is a system message used to configure the first signal; or, The second information is the paging information corresponding to the first signal. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 10, characterized in that the method further comprises: Send a third message, which is used to instruct the first communication device to support sending a random access signal for determining precoded information. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 11, characterized in that the method further comprises: Receive a second signal, which is a response signal to the first signal; Send the third signal corresponding to the second signal; Receive the fourth signal corresponding to the third signal; The third signal is generated based on the first precoding information, and/or the fourth signal is generated based on the first precoding information. A communication method, characterized in that it includes: A first signal is received, which is used for random access; wherein, the first signal is used to carry a first indication information among N indication information, the N indication information respectively corresponding to N precoded information, and the first indication information is used to determine the first precoded information among the N precoded information, where N is a positive integer; Signals are sent based on the first precoded information. According to the method of claim 13, the N precoding information corresponds to N regions respectively, and the precoding information at different positions in any region of the N regions is the same; The location of the first communication device is within the first region of the N regions, and the first indication information is used to indicate the first region, which corresponds to the first pre-encoded information. According to the method of claim 14, the N regions respectively correspond to N sets of leader sequences, and the first region corresponds to the first set of leader sequences in the N sets of leader sequences; The first indication information includes one of the leader sequences in the first set of leader sequences. The method according to claim 15, characterized in that the method further comprises: Send first information, which is used to indicate the correspondence between the N regions and the N sets of leader sequences. The method according to claim 14, wherein the first indication information includes an identifier of the first area. The method according to any one of claims 14 to 17, characterized in that the N regions are determined based on first relevance map information, and the method further includes: Send a first broadcast message, which is used to configure the first signal; wherein the first broadcast message is used to indicate a first map version, which is the same as the map version of the first related map information. The method according to claim 13, wherein the first indication information is used to indicate the first precoded information. The method according to any one of claims 13 to 19, characterized in that the method further comprises: Send a second message, which instructs the transmission of a random access signal for determining precoded information. The method according to claim 20, characterized in that, The second information is a system message used to configure the first signal; or, The second information is the paging information corresponding to the first signal. The method according to any one of claims 13 to 21, characterized in that the method further comprises: Receive third information, the third information being used to instruct the first communication device to support sending a random access signal for determining precoded information. The method according to any one of claims 13 to 22, characterized in that the method further comprises: Send a second signal, which is a response signal to the first signal; Receive the third signal corresponding to the second signal; Send the fourth signal corresponding to the third signal; The third signal is generated based on the first precoding information, and/or the fourth signal is generated based on the first precoding information. A communication device, characterized in that it includes a module for performing the method as described in any one of claims 1 to 23. A communication device, characterized in that it includes at least one processor, said at least one processor being configured to perform the method as described in any one of claims 1 to 23. The communication device according to claim 25 is characterized in that the communication device is a chip or a chip system. A computer-readable storage medium, characterized in that the computer-readable storage medium stores a computer program or instructions that, when executed by a communication device, implement the method as described in any one of claims 1 to 23. A computer program product, characterized in that it includes a computer program or instructions, which, when executed by a computer, implement the method as described in any one of claims 1 to 23.