CN119895977A

CN119895977A - Apparatus, method and computer program

Info

Publication number: CN119895977A
Application number: CN202280100047.8A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 吴大伟; J·L·巴特勒; B·P·塞比尔
Original assignee: Nokia Shanghai Bell Co Ltd; Nokia Solutions and Networks Oy
Current assignee: Nokia Shanghai Bell Co Ltd; Nokia Solutions and Networks Oy
Priority date: 2022-10-08
Filing date: 2022-10-08
Publication date: 2025-04-25
Also published as: WO2024073887A1; CN119895412A; WO2024074067A1

Abstract

There is provided an apparatus comprising means for determining, at a first device, location information associated with an object of interest and providing, from the first device, a discovery message for device-to-device communication, wherein the discovery message comprises the location information.

Description

Apparatus, method and computer program

Technical Field

The present application relates to a method, apparatus, system and computer program and in particular, but not exclusively, to location information in side link discovery for AR applications.

Background

A communication system may be considered a facility that enables communication sessions between two or more entities, such as user terminals, base stations, and/or other nodes, by providing carriers between the various entities involved in a communication path. The communication system may be provided, for example, by means of a communication network and one or more compatible communication devices. The communication session may include, for example, communications for carrying data such as voice, video, electronic mail (email), text messages, multimedia, and/or content data, among others. Non-limiting examples of services provided include two-way or multi-way calls, data communications or multimedia services, and access to data network systems such as the internet.

In a wireless communication system, at least a portion of a communication session between at least two stations occurs over a wireless link. Examples of wireless systems include Public Land Mobile Networks (PLMNs), satellite-based communication systems, and different wireless local networks, such as Wireless Local Area Networks (WLANs). Some wireless systems may be divided into cells and are therefore commonly referred to as cellular systems.

The user may access the communication system by means of a suitable communication device or terminal. The communication device of a user may be referred to as a User Equipment (UE) or user equipment. The communication device is provided with suitable signal receiving and transmitting means for enabling communication, e.g. enabling access to a communication network or communication directly with other users. A communication device may access a carrier provided by a station (e.g., a base station of a cell) and transmit and/or receive communications on the carrier.

Communication systems and associated devices typically operate in accordance with a given standard or specification which sets out what the various entities associated with the system are permitted to do and how that should be achieved. Communication protocols and/or parameters which shall be used for the connection are also typically defined. One example of a communication system is UTRAN (3G radio). Other examples of communication systems are the Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS) radio access technology and the Long Term Evolution (LTE) of so-called 5G or New Radio (NR) networks. NR is standardized by the third generation partnership project (3 GPP).

Disclosure of Invention

In a first aspect, an apparatus is provided that includes means for determining, at a first device, location information associated with an object of interest and providing, from the first device, a discovery message for device-to-device communication, wherein the discovery message includes the location information.

The location information may indicate a location of an object of interest, wherein the location of the object of interest is different from the location of the first device.

The location information may include at least one of an indication of a location of the first device, a distance between the first device and the object, or an orientation of the first device.

The apparatus may include a time-of-flight sensor and means for determining a distance using the time-of-flight sensor.

The discovery message may include an open discovery message.

The apparatus may include means for determining a transmission power based on the location information and providing a discovery message using the determined transmission power.

The first device may be performing a model B discovery process.

The discovery message may include at least one of a discovery request, a side link discovery request, or a proximity service ProSe, PC5 discovery request.

The apparatus may include means for receiving a discovery response message from the second device in response to the discovery message.

The apparatus may include means for receiving, at a first device, information associated with an object of interest from a second device.

The discovery message may also include an indication of the object of interest.

The indication of the object of interest may include at least one of metadata associated with the object or a classification code associated with the object.

In a second aspect, an apparatus is provided that includes means for receiving, at a second device, a discovery message from a first device for device-to-device communication, wherein the discovery message includes location information associated with an object of interest, means for determining that the second device is associated with the object of interest based on the location information, and means for providing, from the second device to the first device, a discovery response message in response to determining that the second device is associated with the object of interest.

The location information may indicate a location of an object of interest, wherein the object of interest location is different from a location of the first device.

The means for determining that the second device is associated with the object of interest based on the location information may comprise means for determining that the second device is in the region indicated by the location information.

The region may be based on the location information and a distance threshold.

The discovery response message may include an open discovery message.

The first device may be performing a model B discovery process.

The discovery response message may include at least one of a discovery response, a side link discovery response, or a proximity service ProSe, PC5 discovery response.

The apparatus may include means for providing information associated with the object of interest from the second device to the first device.

The discovery message may further include an indication of the object of interest, and the apparatus may include means for determining that the second device is associated with the object of interest based on the indication of the object of interest.

The apparatus may include means for receiving information related to the object of interest from the network and determining that the second device is associated with the object of interest based also on the received information.

In a third aspect, a method is provided that includes determining, at a first device, location information associated with an object of interest and providing, from the first device, a discovery message for device-to-device communication, wherein the discovery message includes the location information.

The method may include determining the distance using a time-of-flight sensor.

The discovery message may include an open discovery message.

The method may include determining a transmission power based on the location information and providing a discovery message using the determined transmission power.

The first device may be performing a model B discovery process.

The method may include receiving a discovery response message from the second device in response to the discovery message.

The method may include receiving, at a first device, information associated with an object of interest from a second device.

The discovery message may also include an indication of the object of interest.

In a fourth aspect, a method is provided that includes receiving, at a second device, a discovery message from a first device for device-to-device communication, wherein the discovery message includes location information associated with an object of interest, determining, based on the location information, that the second device is associated with the object of interest, and providing, from the second device to the first device, a discovery response message in response to determining that the second device is associated with the object of interest.

Determining that the second device is associated with the object of interest based on the location information may include determining that the second device is in an area indicated by the location information.

The region may be based on the location information and a distance threshold.

The discovery response message may include an open discovery message.

The first device may be performing a model B discovery process.

The method may include providing information associated with the object of interest from the second device to the first device.

The method may include receiving information related to the object of interest from the network and determining that the second device is associated with the object of interest based also on the received information.

In a fifth aspect, an apparatus is provided that includes at least one processor and at least one memory storing instructions that, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the apparatus to determine location information associated with an object of interest at least at a first device and provide a discovery message for device-to-device communication from the first device, wherein the discovery message includes the location information.

The apparatus may include a time-of-flight sensor and be caused to determine the distance using the time-of-flight sensor.

The discovery message may include an open discovery message.

The apparatus may be caused to determine a transmission power based on the location information and provide a discovery message using the determined transmission power.

The first device may be performing a model B discovery process.

The apparatus may be caused to receive a discovery response message from the second device in response to the discovery message.

The apparatus may be caused to receive, at a first device, information associated with an object of interest from a second device.

The discovery message may also include an indication of the object of interest.

In a sixth aspect, an apparatus is provided that includes at least one processor and at least one memory storing instructions that, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the apparatus to receive, at least at a second device, a discovery message from a first device for device-to-device communication, wherein the discovery message includes location information associated with an object of interest, determine that the second device is associated with the object of interest based on the location information, and provide a discovery response message from the second device to the first device in response to determining that the second device is associated with the object of interest.

The apparatus may be caused to determine that the second device is in the region indicated by the location information.

The region may be based on the location information and a distance threshold.

The discovery response message may include an open discovery message.

The first device may be performing a model B discovery process.

The apparatus may be caused to provide information associated with the object of interest from the second device to the first device.

The apparatus may be caused to receive information related to the object of interest from the network and determine that the second device is associated with the object of interest based also on the received information.

In a seventh aspect, a computer readable medium is provided, comprising instructions that, when executed by an apparatus, cause the apparatus to perform at least determining, at a first device, location information associated with an object of interest, and providing a discovery message for device-to-device communication from the first device, wherein the discovery message comprises the location information.

The apparatus may include a time-of-flight sensor and be caused to perform determining the distance using the time-of-flight sensor.

The discovery message may include an open discovery message.

The apparatus may be caused to perform determining a transmission power based on the location information and providing a discovery message using the determined transmission power.

The first device may be performing a model B discovery process.

The discovery message may also include an indication of the object of interest.

In an eighth aspect, a computer readable medium is provided, comprising instructions that when executed by an apparatus cause the apparatus to at least receive, at a second device, a discovery message for device-to-device communication from a first device, wherein the discovery message includes location information associated with an object of interest, determine that the second device is associated with the object of interest based on the location information, and provide, from the second device to the first device, a discovery response message in response to determining that the second device is associated with the object of interest.

The apparatus may be caused to perform determining that the second device is in an area indicated by the location information.

The region may be based on the location information and a distance threshold.

The discovery response message may include an open discovery message.

The first device may be performing a model B discovery process.

In a ninth aspect, there is provided a non-transitory computer readable medium comprising program instructions for causing an apparatus to perform at least the method according to the third or fourth aspect.

In the foregoing, many different embodiments have been described. It should be appreciated that additional embodiments may be provided by combinations of any two or more of the above embodiments.

Drawings

Embodiments will now be described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

Fig. 1 shows a schematic diagram of an example 5GS communication system;

FIG. 2 shows a schematic diagram of an example mobile communication device;

FIG. 3 illustrates a schematic diagram of an example control device;

FIG. 4 shows a schematic diagram for offline sharing in XR;

FIG. 5 shows a flow chart of a method according to an example embodiment;

FIG. 6 shows a flow chart of a method according to an example embodiment;

FIG. 7 shows a schematic diagram of an apparatus including a time-of-flight sensor;

FIG. 8 shows a schematic diagram of an example use case;

Fig. 9 shows a signaling flow of a use case according to an example embodiment;

Fig. 10 shows a signaling flow according to an example embodiment.

Detailed Description

Before explaining examples in detail, specific general principles of a wireless communication system and a mobile communication device are briefly explained with reference to fig. 1 to 3 to help understand the technology related to the described examples.

Examples of suitable communication systems are the 5G or NR concepts. The network architecture in the NR may be similar to that of LTE-advanced. The base station of the NR system may be referred to as a next generation node B (gNB). Changes to the network architecture may depend on the need to support various radio technologies and finer QoS support, as well as some on-demand requirements for supporting quality of service (QoS) levels, e.g., quality of experience (QoE) for users. Network aware services and applications and service and application aware networks may also bring about changes to the architecture. These relate to Information Centric Networking (ICN) and user centric content delivery networking (UC-CDN) approaches. NR may use multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) antennas, many more base stations or nodes than LTE (so-called small cell concept), including macro sites operating in cooperation with smaller stations, and possibly also employ various radio technologies for better coverage and enhanced data rates.

Future networks may utilize Network Function Virtualization (NFV), a network architecture concept that proposes virtualizing network node functions into "building blocks" or entities that may be operatively connected or linked together to provide services. A Virtualized Network Function (VNF) may comprise one or more virtual machines that run computer program code using standard or generic type servers instead of custom hardware. Cloud computing or data storage may also be utilized. In radio communications, this may mean that node operations are to be carried out at least in part in a server, host, or node operatively coupled to a remote radio head. It is also possible that node operations are distributed among multiple servers, nodes, or hosts. It should also be appreciated that the division between core network operation and base station operation may be different from or even non-existent than that of LTE.

Fig. 1 shows a schematic diagram of a 5G system (5 GS) 100. The 5GS may include a User Equipment (UE) 102 (which may also be referred to as a communication device or terminal), a 5G radio access network (5 GRAN) 104, a 5G core network (5 GCN) 106, one or more Application Functions (AFs) 108, and one or more Data Networks (DNs) 110.

An example 5G Core Network (CN) includes functional entities. The 5gcn 106 may include one or more access and mobility management functions (AMFs) 112, one or more Session Management Functions (SMFs) 114, an authentication server function (AUSF) 116, a Unified Data Management (UDM) 118, one or more User Plane Functions (UPFs) 120, a Unified Data Repository (UDRs) 122, and/or a Network Exposure Function (NEF) 124. The UPF is controlled by an SMF (session management function) that receives policies from the PCF (policy control function).

The CN is connected to the UE via a Radio Access Network (RAN). The 5GRAN may include one or more GNodeB (GNB) distributed cell functions connected to one or more GNodeB (GNB) centralized cell functions. The RAN may include one or more access nodes.

A User Plane Function (UPF), referred to as a PDU Session Anchor (PSA), may be responsible for transferring frames back and forth between the DN and the tunnel established over 5G towards the UE(s) exchanging traffic with the DN.

A possible mobile communication device will now be described in more detail with reference to fig. 2, fig. 2 showing a schematic, partial cross-sectional view of a communication device 200. Such communication devices are often referred to as User Equipment (UE) or terminals. A suitable mobile communication device may be provided by any device capable of transmitting and receiving radio signals. Non-limiting examples include a Mobile Station (MS) or mobile device such as a mobile phone or so-called smart phone, a computer equipped with a wireless interface card or other wireless interface facility (e.g., a USB dongle), a Personal Data Assistant (PDA) or tablet equipped with wireless communication capabilities, a voice over IP (VoIP) phone, a portable computer, a desktop computer, an image capture terminal device such as a digital camera, a gaming terminal device, a music storage and playback appliance, an in-vehicle wireless terminal device, a wireless endpoint, a mobile station, a laptop embedded device (LEE), a laptop mounted device (LME), a smart device, a wireless customer premises device (CPE), or any combination of these, or the like. A mobile communication device may provide, for example, communication for carrying data such as voice, electronic mail (email), text messages, multimedia, and the like. Thus, users can be given and provided with many services via their communication devices. Non-limiting examples of such services include two-way or multi-way calls, data communications or multimedia services, or simply accessing a data communications network system, such as the internet. Users may also be provided with broadcast or multicast data. Non-limiting examples of such content include downloaded content, television and radio programming, video, advertising, various alerts and other information.

A mobile device is typically equipped with at least one data processing entity 201, at least one memory 202 and possibly other components 203 for software and hardware assisted execution of tasks for which the mobile device is designed to perform, including access to and control of communications with access systems and other communication devices. The data processing, storage and other associated control means may be provided on a suitable circuit board and/or in a chipset. This feature is denoted by reference numeral 204. The user may control the operation of the mobile device by means of a suitable user interface, such as a keypad 205, voice commands, touch sensitive screen or tablet, combinations thereof, or the like. A display 208, speakers, and microphone may also be provided. In addition, the mobile communication device may include suitable connectors (wired or wireless) for connecting to other devices, and/or suitable connectors (wired or wireless) for connecting to external accessories (e.g., hands-free devices).

The mobile device 200 may receive signals over the air or radio interface 207 via suitable means for receiving and may transmit signals via suitable means for transmitting radio signals. In fig. 2, the transceiver device is schematically designated by block 206. The transceiver means 206 may be provided, for example, by means of a radio and an associated antenna arrangement. The antenna arrangement may be arranged inside or outside the mobile device.

Fig. 3 shows an example of a control apparatus 300 for a communication system, e.g. a station to be coupled to and/or for controlling an access system, such as a RAN node (e.g. a base station, eNB or gNB), a relay node or a core network node (such as an MME or S-GW or P-GW), or a core network function (such as an AMF/SMF), or a server or host. The method may be implemented in a single control device or across more than one control device. The control means may be integrated with or external to a node or module of the core network or RAN. In some embodiments, the base station includes a separate control device unit or module. In other embodiments, the control means may be another network element, e.g. a radio network controller or a spectrum controller, etc. In some embodiments, each base station may have such control means as well as control means provided in the radio network controller. The control means 300 may be arranged to provide control of the communication in the service area of the system. The control device 300 comprises at least one memory 301, at least one data processing unit 302, 303 and an input/output interface 304. Via this interface, the control means may be coupled to a receiver and a transmitter of the base station. The receiver and/or transmitter may be implemented as a radio front-end or a remote radio head.

Augmented Reality (AR) is an augmented version of the real physical world that is achieved through the use of digital visual elements, sounds, or other sensory stimuli delivered via technology. This is becoming an increasing trend, especially in companies involving mobile computing, gaming, and business applications.

One of the main goals of AR is to highlight specific features of the physical world, to increase understanding of these features, and to gain insight into the intelligence and accessibility that can be applied to real world applications. Retailers and other companies may use the AR to promote products or services, initiate marketing campaigns, and collect user data.

Augmented reality (XR) use cases can be broadly divided into (i) Augmented Reality (AR), (ii) Virtual Reality (VR), and (iii) Mixed Reality (MR), which refers to various types of augmented, virtual, and mixed environments in which person-to-machine and person-to-person communications are performed with the assistance of handheld and wearable end user devices (UEs). Many XR use cases are expected to be mobile and small-scale, so it is feasible to use side-link communication for XR services as UE-to-UE direct communication.

XR core use cases may use Side Links (SL) for e.g. communication between UEs. For example, offline sharing, as shown in fig. 4, is used to share 3D models/objects and 3D MR scenes between UE a and UE B. In fig. 4, UE a shares a 3D static/dynamic object with UE B. The 3D object may be a stored object downloaded by the UE a from the cloud or a stored object captured by the device. UE a may share additional information of the 3D object with UE B. In the example shown in fig. 4, MMS is used to share 3D objects and captured MR scenes between UEs.

An example use case for offline sharing may be when one person (a) purchases a commodity (e.g., a cap) from a merchant/retailer and a agrees that the merchant/retailer share information about the commodity (such as AR information) to interested third parties via their UEs. The merchant/retailer may pay a per interaction or otherwise (e.g., as a simple advertising program). In this example use case, when another party B sees a hat worn by a and B likes the hat, B may use B's mobile device to scan the hat and attempt to connect with a's mobile device to determine if a can provide more information (such as brand, material, size, price, merchant, etc.) for the hat. The UE of a (UE a) obtains a request from the UE of B (UE B) and shares the AR information of the cap to UE B. Thus, A is rewarded, B receives the requested information and merchants/retailers increase popularity and/or popularity of their goods. Such interactions may be considered micro-advertising using AR.

Because XR can be UE-to-UE and small-scale, and the UE has only limited battery power resources, performance may come at the expense of battery life. Thus, when operating XR services, power boosting may be required to reduce overall UE power consumption to extend effective UE battery life.

One way to reduce UE power consumption may be to utilize network coordination between UEs, e.g., by applying a specific DRX mechanism for XR services. However, it would be further beneficial if the UE could use a side link to communicate directly. In the offline sharing example described above, UE B connects with UE a to request UE a to share AR information. UE a and UE B may communicate using side-link communications because UE a and UE B are close to each other (in this example, B is close enough to see the cap of a). The only information UE B has about UE a is that the owner of UE a is wearing a cap. UE a does not have information about UE B. It is desirable for UE B to connect with the UE in an accurate, fast and power-saving manner.

ProSe direct discovery has been defined as a procedure at a UE for detecting and identifying another UE in proximity.

There are two types of ProSe found directly, open and restricted. Open is the case where explicit permission from the discovered UE is not required, whereas restricted discovery only occurs in the case of explicit permission from the discovered UE.

There are two models for ProSe direct discovery.

In model a (also referred to as "i am in this"), the advertising UE (UE a in the above use case) broadcasts discovery messages at predefined discovery intervals, and monitoring UEs interested in these messages (UE B in the above use case) read the discovery messages and process the discovery messages.

In model B (also called "who is there"? the discoverer UE (UE B in the above use case) transmits information about other UEs (discoveree UE in the above use case, such as UE a), the discoverer UE wants to receive responses from the other UEs.

The advertising UE in model a periodically broadcasts a discovery message, which means that the broadcast is always present, whether or not the monitoring UE is present. This may cause waste of resources and is power consuming. Thus, model a may be more suitable for devices with a stable power supply, which would be inadequate for the use case discussed above.

Model B may be better for the use case discussed above. The restricted discovery type is currently supported by model B. However, in the above use case, UE a and UE B do not have to have any prior knowledge about each other, such as ProSe-restricted codes.

Even though model B may be used, UE B still has to find UE a accurately and quickly. UE B knows that the owner of UE a has a cap. Sending "cap" information in the discovery message may be insufficient because UE a may not be accurately distinguished sufficiently (e.g., many people may have caps in surrounding areas). From the perspective of UE a, an inaccurate discovery message (e.g., a message from a UE interested in another cap but not providing enough detailed or clear information to distinguish the cap) may cause UE a to provide a response unnecessarily, which may waste UE a's power. Thus, unnecessary responses would waste power from the requester.

Fig. 5 shows a flow chart of a method according to an example embodiment. The method may be performed by a first device (e.g., a UE).

In S1, the method includes determining, at a first device, location information associated with an object of interest.

In S2, the method includes providing a discovery message from the first device for device-to-device communication, wherein the discovery message includes a location.

Fig. 6 shows a flow chart of a method according to an example embodiment. The method may be performed at a second device (e.g., a UE).

In T1, the method includes receiving, at the second device, a discovery message for device-to-device communication from the first device, wherein the discovery message includes location information associated with the object of interest.

In T2, the method includes determining, based on the location information, that the second device is associated with the object of interest.

In T3, the method includes transmitting a discovery response message from the second device to the first device in response to determining that the second device is associated with the object of interest.

The location information may be a location information IE. The location information may include at least one of an indication of a location of the first device, a distance between the first device and the object, or an orientation of the first device. The method may include determining, at the first device, location information based on a location of the first device. The location information may indicate a location of an object of interest, wherein the location of the object of interest is different from a location of the first device.

Based on the location information, determining that the second device is associated with the object of interest may comprise means for determining that the second device is in the region indicated by the location information. The region may be based on location information and a distance (or radius) threshold.

For location information it may comprise two parts, a reference system and coordinates in the system. The reference system may be the world geodetic system 1984 (WGS 84) or a local system, e.g. if both a and B are in a train or subway, they may use the local system in the train or subway, which means that the local reference system moves with the train or subway. Then, the movement of the train or subway does not affect the location of UE a or UE B. Because a and B are in line of sight, they can use the same reference system.

The method may include determining a distance between the first device and the second device using the time-of-flight sensor. For example, because UE a is in a close line of sight to UE B, UE B may perform distance measurement by, for example, time of flight (ToF) that calculates the distance of the current object from the source based on the time it takes for the measurement wave to travel from the source (time of flight sensor) to the object and back.

Fig. 7 shows a UE 700 that includes a time-of-flight sensor 704 as part of a camera 702 of the UE 700.

The first device may perform a model B discovery process. The discovery process may be an open discovery process. That is, the discovery message may include an open discovery message, and the discovery response message may include an open discovery response message.

The device-to-device communication may be a side link communication. The discovery process may be a ProSe PC5 discovery process. The discovery message may include at least one of a discovery request, a side link discovery request or proximity service ProSe, a PC5 discovery request for a limited 5G ProSe direct discovery solicitation.

The discovery message may also include an indication of the object of interest. The method may include determining, at the second device, that the second device is associated with the object of interest based on the indication of the object of interest and the location information.

The indication of the object of interest may comprise metadata related to, for example, the appearance of the object, such as color, outline, size, etc. The indication may include a classification code associated with the object, also referred to as an application ID, such as ProSe application code. The application code may be based on the classification of the object.

The method may include receiving, at the second device, information (e.g., an application ID and/or metadata) related to the object of interest from the network, and determining that the second device is associated with the object of interest based also on the received information.

The location information may be a main factor for indicating the UE associated with the object. The indication of the object (such as application ID and metadata) may be auxiliary. In other embodiments, both location information and an indication of an object may be used.

In an example embodiment in which the discovery message includes location information but does not include an indication of the object of interest, the connection may be established between the first device and the second device after the discovery process. Further communication (including an indication of the object of interest or a request for information) may then take place.

The second device may determine whether the direct discovery request from the first device is intended for the second device based on the location information and optionally also based on the indication of the object. In an example embodiment, if the location information and the indication of the object match the second device's own information, the second device may establish a direct communication link with the first device (e.g., by providing at least one of a discovery response, a side chain discovery response, or a proximity service ProSe, PC5 discovery response from the second device to the first device). Otherwise, the request may be ignored.

The method may comprise providing further information associated with the object of interest from the second device to the first device. After provision of the discovery response message, i.e. after the communication link between the first device and the second device has been established, further information may be provided, or if the discovery request comprises an indication of the object of interest, further information may be included in the discovery response message. This additional information may be referred to as AR information. The AR information may include at least one of information associated with the object of interest, information associated with merchant X, or information about where to find additional information.

In an example embodiment, the device is a discoverer UE (UE B in the use case described above). In this example embodiment, UE B adds the location information IE to the ProSe direct discovery message and supports an open discovery type in the model B discovery process, e.g., modifying the ProSe direct discovery solicitation message as shown in table 1 below.

TABLE 1

In the example shown in table 1, the modification includes changing the presence of ProSe query code from mandatory to optional, which means that ProSe query code does not exist when ProSe direct discovery PC5 message type is set to "open discovery", adding ProSe application code for commodity classification, adding location information about discoveree UE and adding metadata to the message.

The method may define a new direct discovery message instead of modifying an existing direct discovery message or use another name instead of using ProSe application ID for goods classification.

The method may reduce power consumption at both the first device and the second device by reducing unnecessary message exchanges and saving resource usage and correspondingly reducing interference.

The method may include determining a transmission power based on the location information and providing a discovery message using the determined transmission power. The method may include determining a beam direction based on the location information.

In an example use case, UE B may tailor the transmission power of the discoverer to reach UE a. UE B measures a distance and/or an orientation of an object of interest relative to UE B. The location information may be used to control power and possibly beam forming to reduce the likelihood that non-discoveree UEs receive undesired requests. Even if only UE a and UE B are present, the power consumption of UE B can be reduced because its UE B performs transmission and reception only in the measured direction and distance.

Fig. 8 shows a schematic diagram of a scenario in which the method may be applied. In this scenario, the first device is UE B, the second device is UE a, and the object of interest is a cap belonging to the owner of UE a. In addition to the cap of the owner of UE a, there are other caps in the vicinity of UE B. UE B can scan the cap of the owner of UE a and determine its distance.

When the owner of UE B sees the cap of the owner of UE a in a group of people (such as the one shown in fig. 8) and likes it, the owner of UE B uses UE B to scan the cap (because there is a distance between UE B and the cap, UE B may not be able to clearly scan the cap, which means that the ancillary information such as color, size, etc. may not be very accurate) and measure the distance from the cap of UE B. As UE B performs the scan (e.g., using accelerometers, gyroscopes, and gravitational sensors located in UE B), UE B may be aware of its orientation.

Fig. 9 shows a process of the example use case shown in fig. 8. At 901, the owner of UE a purchases a cap from merchant X and, at 902, makes a transaction with a merchant to share cap-related information (AR information) to interested parties. At 903, merchant X registers UE a in its database and asks the network to give UE a authorization to share specific object (cap) information. At 904, the network configures a specific application ID based on the cap's classification code to authorize UE a to share information about such merchandise. The classification code may be a commodity classification code commonly used in countries or regions. At 905, UE a receives a discovery request from UE B that includes location information and an indication of the cap (e.g., merchandise classification and metadata in the application ID), and may make a side-link connection with UE B according to the method described with reference to fig. 5-7 and described in more detail on fig. 10. At 906, UE a shares AR information with UE B and increases the sharing count. At 907, merchant X pays to UE a according to the shared number of UE a.

Fig. 10 shows signaling flows between UE a, UE B and UE C according to example embodiments.

As described with reference to fig. 8, at 1001, UE B scans the object of the owner of UE a and measures the location of UE a (e.g., the distance between UE a and UE B and the orientation of UE B).

At 1002, using the distance and the orientation of UE B, UE B may determine a location of UE a relative to UE B. In conjunction with the UE B's own location (most UEs' location services are currently on), UE B can determine the true location of UE a. UE B includes location information of UE a, a classification code of the cap in the application ID, and "cap" information in metadata in the direct discovery request, and transmits the direct discovery request.

At 1003, UE a receives the request and checks the location with its own location and "cap" information, and at 1004, if both match, UE a sends back a discovery response. UE C also receives the request but because the location information does not match the location of UE C, UE C does not provide a discovery response. Because UE B will not receive a response from UE C, power consumption is saved for both UE C and UE B'.

After UE a and UE B find each other, a side-chain connection may be established. As shown in fig. 9, UE a shares the cap AR information to UE B. UE a counts the number of shares and notifies merchant X. Merchant X will pay the owner of UE a based on the number of shares.

In alternative embodiments, the "location" element may be included in the model a discovery procedure. In this alternative embodiment, where location information is associated with the first device, the location information may be about the location of the advertising UE (the UE that sent "i am there") to tell the monitoring UE where to advertise the UE. For example, the vehicle may use the location information to tell the passenger their exact location.

The method may be used in situations other than micro-advertising situations, and the method may be used in any side link situation where a link to a particular device is required. For example, on a road, you find some other car in the vicinity to have some problem, such as the trunk lid being open, you can link directly to this car by using the invention instead of other cars to tell the car about the problem.

An apparatus may include means for determining, at a first device, location information associated with an object of interest and providing, from the first device, a discovery message for device-to-device communication, wherein the discovery message includes the location information.

Alternatively, an apparatus may include means for receiving, at a second device, a discovery message from a first device for device-to-device communication, wherein the discovery message includes location information associated with an object of interest, means for determining, based on the location information, that the second device is associated with the object of interest, and means for providing, from the second device to the first device, a discovery response message in response to determining that the second device is associated with the object of interest.

The apparatus may comprise a user device, such as a mobile phone, or a chipset for performing at least some actions of/for the user device.

It should be understood that the apparatus may comprise or be coupled to other units or modules or the like, such as a radio or a radio head, which are used in or for transmission and/or reception. Although the apparatus has been described as one entity, the different modules and memories may be implemented in one or more physical or logical entities.

Note that while some embodiments have been described with respect to 5G networks, similar principles may be applied with respect to other networks and communication systems. Thus, while particular embodiments are described above by way of example with reference to particular example architectures for wireless networks, technologies, and standards, embodiments may be applied to any other suitable form of communication system other than those shown and described herein.

It should also be noted herein that while the above describes exemplifying embodiments, there are several variations and modifications which may be made to the disclosed solution without departing from the scope of the present invention.

As used herein, at least one of the following terms < list of two or more elements > and "< list of two or more elements > and the like, wherein the list of two or more elements is combined by" and "or" means at least any one of the elements, or at least any two or more of the elements, or at least all of the elements.

In general, the various embodiments may be implemented in the same, software, logic, or any combination thereof, as hardware or dedicated circuitry. Some aspects of the disclosure may be implemented in hardware, while other aspects may be implemented in firmware or software which may be executed by a controller, microprocessor or other computing device, although the disclosure is not limited thereto. While various aspects of the embodiments of the disclosure are illustrated and described as block diagrams, flow charts, or using some other pictorial representation, it is well understood that these blocks, apparatus, systems, techniques or methods described herein may be implemented in, as non-limiting examples, hardware, software, firmware, special purpose circuits or logic, general purpose hardware or controller or other computing devices, or some combination thereof.

As used in this disclosure, the term "circuitry" may refer to one or more or all of the following:

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

(B) A combination of hardware circuitry and software, such as (as applicable):

(i) Combination of analog and/or digital hardware circuit(s) and software/firmware, and

(Ii) Any portion of the hardware processor(s) having software, including digital signal processor(s), software, and memory(s) that work together to cause a device such as a mobile phone or server to perform various functions, and

(C) Hardware circuit(s) and/or processor(s), such as microprocessor(s) or a portion of microprocessor(s), that require software (e.g., firmware) for operation, software may not be present when software is not required.

This definition of circuitry applies to all uses of this term in this application, including in any claims. As another example, as used in this disclosure, the term circuitry also encompasses hardware-only circuits or processor(s) or an implementation of a portion of a hardware circuit or processor and its accompanying software and/or firmware. For example, if applicable to the particular claim elements, the term circuitry also encompasses a baseband integrated circuit or processor integrated circuit or server for a mobile device, a cellular network device, or a similar integrated circuit in other computing or network devices.

Embodiments of the present disclosure may be implemented by computer software executable by a data processor of a mobile device, such as in a processor entity, or by hardware, or by a combination of software and hardware. Computer software or programs (also referred to as program products, including software routines, applets, and/or macros) can be stored in any apparatus-readable data storage medium and include program instructions to perform particular tasks. The computer program product may include one or more computer-executable components configured to perform embodiments when the program is run. The one or more computer-executable components may be at least one software code or portion thereof.

Further in this regard, it should be noted that any blocks of logic flows as in the figures may represent program steps, or interconnected logic circuits, blocks and functions, or a combination of program steps and logic circuits, blocks and functions. The software may be stored on physical media such as memory chips or memory blocks implemented within a processor, magnetic media such as hard or floppy disks, and optical media such as DVDs and their data variants CDs. The physical medium is a non-transitory medium. The term "non-transitory" as used herein is a limitation of the medium itself (i.e., tangible, rather than signal), rather than a limitation of data storage persistence (e.g., RAM versus ROM).

The memory may be of any type suitable to the local technical environment and may be implemented using any suitable data storage technology, such as semiconductor-based memory devices, magnetic memory devices and systems, optical memory devices and systems, fixed memory and removable memory. As non-limiting examples, the data processor may be of any type suitable to the local technical environment, and may include one or more of a general purpose computer, a special purpose computer, a microprocessor, a Digital Signal Processor (DSP), an Application Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC), an FPGA, a gate level circuit, and a processor based on a multi-core processor architecture.

Embodiments of the present disclosure may be practiced in various components such as integrated circuit modules. The design of integrated circuits is a highly automated process. Complex and powerful software tools are available for converting a logic level design into a semiconductor circuit design ready to be etched and formed on a semiconductor substrate.

The scope of protection sought for the various embodiments of the present disclosure is set forth in the independent claims. The embodiments and features (if any) described in this specification that do not fall within the scope of the independent claims should be construed as examples that facilitate an understanding of the various embodiments of the disclosure.

The foregoing description has provided by way of non-limiting examples a full and informative description of exemplary embodiments of the disclosure. However, various modifications and adaptations may become apparent to those skilled in the relevant arts in view of the foregoing description, when read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and the appended claims. However, all such and similar modifications of the teachings of this disclosure will still fall within the scope of this invention as defined in the appended claims. Indeed, there is another embodiment that includes a combination of one or more embodiments with any other embodiment previously discussed.

Claims

1. An apparatus comprising components for:

determining, at the first device, location information associated with the object of interest; and

A discovery message for device-to-device communication is provided from the first device, wherein the discovery message includes the location information.

2 . The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the location information indicates a location of the object of interest, wherein the location of the object of interest is different from a location of the first device.

3. An apparatus according to claim 1 or claim 2, wherein the location information comprises at least one of: an indication of the location of the first device, a distance between the first device and the object, or an orientation of the first device.

4. The apparatus of claim 3, comprising a time-of-flight sensor and means for determining the distance using the time-of-flight sensor.

5. The apparatus of any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the discovery message comprises an open discovery message.

6. The apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 5, comprising means for determining a transmission power based on the location information and providing the discovery message using the determined transmission power.

7. The apparatus of any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the first device is performing a Model B discovery process.

8. The apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein the discovery message comprises at least one of the following: a discovery request, a sidelink discovery request, or a proximity service ProSe, PC5 discovery request.

9. The apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 8, comprising: means for receiving a discovery response message from the second device in response to the discovery message.

10. The apparatus of claim 9, comprising means for receiving, at the first device, from the second device, information associated with the object of interest.

11. The apparatus of any one of claims 1 to 10, wherein the discovery message further comprises an indication of the object of interest.

12. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the indication of the object of interest comprises at least one of: metadata associated with the object or a classification code associated with the object.

13. An apparatus comprising components for:

receiving, at a second device, a discovery message for device-to-device communication from a first device, wherein the discovery message includes location information associated with an object of interest;

determining, based on the location information, that the second device is associated with the object of interest; and

In response to determining that the second device is associated with the object of interest, a discovery response message is provided from the second device to the first device.

14. The apparatus of claim 13, wherein the location information indicates a location of the object of interest, wherein the location of the object of interest is different from a location of the first device.

15. An apparatus according to claim 13 or claim 14, wherein means for determining, based on the position information, that the second device is associated with the object of interest comprises means for determining that the second device is in an area indicated by the position information.

The apparatus of claim 15 , wherein the area is based on the location information and a distance threshold.

17. An apparatus according to any one of claims 13 to 16, wherein the location information comprises at least one of: an indication of the location of the first device, a distance between the first device and the object, or an orientation of the first device.

18. The apparatus of any one of claims 13 to 17, wherein the discovery response message comprises an open discovery message.

19. The apparatus of any one of claims 13 to 18, wherein the first device is performing a Model B discovery process.

20. The apparatus according to any one of claims 13 to 19, wherein the discovery response message comprises at least one of the following: a discovery response, a sidelink discovery response, or a proximity service (ProSe), or a PC5 discovery response.

21. An apparatus according to any one of claims 13 to 20, comprising means for providing information associated with the object of interest from the second device to the first device.

22. An apparatus according to any one of claims 13 to 21, wherein the discovery message further comprises an indication of the object of interest, and comprises means for determining that the second device is associated with the object of interest based on the indication of the object of interest.

23. The apparatus of claim 22, wherein the indication of the object of interest comprises at least one of: metadata associated with the object or a classification code associated with the object.

24. An apparatus according to any one of claims 22 to 23, comprising means for receiving information related to the object of interest from a network and determining, further based on the received information, that the second device is associated with the object of interest.

25. A method comprising:

26. A method comprising:

27. An apparatus, comprising: at least one processor and at least one memory, wherein the at least one memory stores instructions, and when the instructions are executed by the at least one processor, the apparatus at least:

28. An apparatus, comprising: at least one processor and at least one memory, wherein the at least one memory stores instructions, and when the instructions are executed by the at least one processor, the apparatus at least:

29. A computer-readable medium comprising instructions which, when executed by a device, cause the device to perform at least the following:

30. A computer-readable medium comprising instructions which, when executed by a device, cause the device to perform at least the following: