WO2025213846A1

WO2025213846A1 - Sensing signal transmission

Info

Publication number: WO2025213846A1
Application number: PCT/CN2024/140406
Authority: WO
Inventors: Jianfeng Wang
Original assignee: Lenovo Beijing Ltd
Current assignee: Lenovo Beijing Ltd
Priority date: 2024-12-18
Filing date: 2024-12-18
Publication date: 2025-10-16
Anticipated expiration: 2027-06-18

Abstract

Various aspects of the present disclosure relate to sensing signal transmission. In an aspect, a first device transmits a first signal for a sensing service, wherein the first signal is indicative of a request for sensing assistance. The first device receives a reflected first signal. The first device monitors a response for the request from a second device.

Description

SENSING SIGNAL TRANSMISSION

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present disclosure relates to wireless communications, and more specifically to devices, processors, and methods for sensing signal transmission.

BACKGROUND

A wireless communications system may include one or multiple network communication devices, such as base stations, which may be otherwise known as an eNodeB (eNB) , a next-generation NodeB (gNB) , or other suitable terminology. Each network communication devices, such as a base station may support wireless communications for one or multiple user communication devices, which may be otherwise known as user equipment (UE) , or other suitable terminology. The wireless communications system may support wireless communications with one or multiple user communication devices by utilizing resources of the wireless communication system (e.g., time resources (e.g., symbols, slots, subframes, frames, or the like) or frequency resources (e.g., subcarriers, carriers) . Additionally, the wireless communications system may support wireless communications across various radio access technologies including third generation (3G) radio access technology, fourth generation (4G) radio access technology, fifth generation (5G) radio access technology, among other suitable radio access technologies beyond 5G (e.g., sixth generation (6G) ) .

In radio sensing or wireless sensing techniques, similar with Radar, the radio information obtained during signal processing can be utilized to detect environmental changes caused by the motion of objects and people. Integrating sensing capability into cellular wireless communication systems is one of the promising techniques in next-generation radio access networks (RAN) , e.g., beyond 5G (B5G) /6G. Enhancements on the sensing signal transmission in a RAN of an integrated sensing and communication (ISAC) system are still needed.

SUMMARY

The present disclosure relates to methods, apparatuses, and systems that support sensing signal transmission. By transmitting a mono-static sensing signal which is indicative of a request for sensing assistance, the sensing interruption due to a mode switching from a mono-static sensing mode to a bi-static sensing mode may be avoided, thereby maintaining consistent and reliable sensing performance.

In a first aspect of the solution, a first device transmits a first signal for a sensing service, wherein the first signal is indicative of a request for sensing assistance. The first device receives a reflected first signal. The first device monitors a response for the request from a second device. In this way, the transmitting node of the sensing service may perform mono-static sensing and request sensing assistance simultaneously, thus avoiding sensing interruption due to sensing mode switching.

Some implementations of the method and apparatuses described herein may further include: transmitting a second signal for the sensing service; receiving a reflected second signal; obtaining sensing results for the sensing service based on measurements on the received reflected second signal; and determining that sensing assistance is needed.

Some implementations of the method and apparatuses described herein may further include: determining that sensing assistance is needed based on a comparison between the measurements on the received reflected second signal and a threshold associated with a measurement quantity. In some implementations of the method and apparatuses described herein, the threshold is pre-defined and/or network configured, and the measurement quantity is pre-defined or network configured and comprises at least a received signal strength.

In some implementations of the method and apparatuses described herein, the second signal comprises at least one of the following: a primary synchronization signal (PSS) ; a second synchronization signal (SSS) ; or a first type of sequence associated with at least one of the following: at least one first predefined root value, a first predefined length, or a first predefined resource element (RE) mapping.

In some implementations of the method and apparatuses described herein, the first type of sequence is associated with mono-static sensing.

Some implementations of the method and apparatuses described herein may further include: obtaining sensing results for the sensing service based on measurements on the received reflected first signal.

Some implementations of the method and apparatuses described herein may further include: obtaining sensing results for the sensing service based on measurements on the received reflected first signal and measurements on the received reflected second signal.

In some implementations of the method and apparatuses described herein, the first signal comprises at least one of the following: a signal for downlink synchronization comprising an identity, wherein the identity is indicative of at least one of the following: the request for sensing assistance, or a support of the first device for sensing functionality; or a signal carrying a second type of sequence, wherein the second type of sequence is associated with at least one of the following: at least one second predefined root value, a second predefined length, or a second predefined RE mapping.

In some implementations of the method and apparatuses described herein, the second type of sequence is associated with mono-static sensing and sensing assistance requesting.

Some implementations of the method and apparatuses described herein may further include: transmitting, to the second device, system information comprising at least one of the following: an indication that the first signal is to be transmitted, or a resource configuration of the first signal.

In some implementations of the method and apparatuses described herein, a time offset between a time domain resource for the response and a time domain resource for the first signal is predefined, or is associated with a sequence carried in the first signal.

In some implementations of the method and apparatuses described herein, a frequency domain resource for the response is predefined, or is associated with a sequence carried in the first signal or a frequency domain resource for the first signal.

Some implementations of the method and apparatuses described herein may further include: transmitting, to the second device, a resource configuration of the response, wherein the resource configuration of the response is carried in system information.

In some implementations of the method and apparatuses described herein, the response is received from the second device. Some implementations of the method and apparatuses described herein may further include: determining a link quality between the first device and the second device based on the response; and one of the following: continue transmitting the first signal within a time window, wherein the link quality is below a threshold; or terminate the sensing service, wherein the link quality is below the threshold and a time window expires; or set up a connection with the second device, wherein the link quality is above the threshold.

Some implementations of the method and apparatuses described herein may further include one of the following: continue transmitting the first signal within a time window, wherein no response for the request is received; or terminate the sensing service, wherein no response for the request is received and a time window expires; or set up a connection with the second device, wherein the response is received from the second device.

Some implementations of the method and apparatuses described herein may further include: determining a link quality between the first device and the second device; and transmitting, to the second device, a configuration for a third signal for the sensing service, wherein the link quality is above a threshold; or continuing transmitting the first signal within the time window, wherein the link quality is below the threshold.

In some implementations of the method and apparatuses described herein, the response is received from the second device. Some implementations of the method and apparatuses described herein may further include: transmitting, to the second device, a configuration for a third signal for the sensing service; and transmitting to or receiving from, the second device, the third signal for the sensing service based on the configuration.

In some implementations of the method and apparatuses described herein, the response is carried in message 1 (Msg1) for a random access procedure of the second device, the configuration for the third signal is carried in at least one of the following: message 2 (Msg2) for the random access procedure, message 4 (Msg4) for the random access procedure, or a signaling after the random access procedure.

In some implementations of the method and apparatuses described herein, the response is carried in a signal with a third type of sequence associated with at least one of the following: at least one third predefined root value, a third predefined length, or a third predefined RE mapping.

In some implementations of the method and apparatuses described herein, the third type of sequence is associated with sensing assistance response.

In some implementations of the method and apparatuses described herein, the response is received from the second device. Some implementations of the method and apparatuses described herein may further include: transmitting, to the second device, requirements associated with the sensing service; receiving, from the second device, a configuration for a third signal for the sensing service; and transmitting to or receiving from, the second device, the third signal for the sensing service.

In some implementations of the method and apparatuses described herein, the requirements associated with the sensing service comprises at least one of the following: a Doppler estimation resolution and accuracy, a position estimation resolution and accuracy, or a sensing target successful detection rate.

In some implementations of the method and apparatuses described herein, the first signal is carried in Msg1 for a random access procedure of the first device, the response is carried in Msg2 for the random access procedure, the requirements associated with the sensing service is carried in Msg3 for the random access procedure, and the configuration for the third signal is carried in Msg4 for the random access procedure or a signaling after the random access procedure.

In some implementations of the method and apparatuses described herein, the third signal comprises at least one of the following: a channel state information -reference signal (CSI-RS) ; a demodulation reference signal (DMRS) ; a probe reference signal (PRS) ; a sounding reference signal (SRS) ; or a reference signal with a fourth type of sequence associated with at least one of the following: at least one fourth predefined root value, a fourth predefined length, or a fourth predefined RE mapping.

In some implementations of the method and apparatuses described herein, the fourth type of sequence is associated with mono-static sensing.

In some implementations of the method and apparatuses described herein, the first device is a network entity and the second device is a user equipment.

In some implementations of the method and apparatuses described herein, the first device is a user equipment and the second device is a network entity.

In a second aspect of the solution, a second device receives, from a first device, a first signal indicative of a request for sensing assistance, wherein the first signal is associated with sensing for a sensing service. The first device transmits, to the first device, a response for the request.

Some implementations of the method and apparatuses described herein may further include: determining whether to assist the first device for the sensing service.

In some implementations of the method and apparatuses described herein, the first signal comprises one of the following: a signal for downlink synchronization comprising an identity, wherein the identity is indicative of at least one of the following: the request for sensing assistance, or a support of the second device for sensing functionality; or a signal carrying a second type of sequence, wherein the second type of sequence is associated with at least one of the following: at least one second predefined root value, a second predefined length, or a second predefined RE mapping.

Some implementations of the method and apparatuses described herein may further include: receiving, from the first device, system information comprising at least one of the following: an indication that the first signal is to be transmitted, or a resource configuration of the first signal.

Some implementations of the method and apparatuses described herein may further include: receiving, from the first device, a resource configuration of the response, wherein the resource configuration of the response is carried in system information.

Some implementations of the method and apparatuses described herein may further include: receiving, from the first device, a configuration for a third signal for the sensing service; and transmitting to or receiving from, the first device, the third signal for the sensing service based on the configuration.

In some implementations of the method and apparatuses described herein, the response is carried in message 1 (Msg1) for a random access procedure of the first device, and the configuration for the third signal is carried in at least one of the following: message 2 (Msg2) for the random access procedure, or message 4 (Msg4) for the random access procedure, or a signaling after the random access procedure.

Some implementations of the method and apparatuses described herein may further include: receiving, from the first device, requirements associated with the sensing service; transmitting, to the first device, a configuration for a third signal for the sensing service, wherein the configuration for the third signal is determined based on the requirements; and transmitting to or receiving from, the first device, the third signal for the sensing service.

In some implementations of the method and apparatuses described herein, the first signal is carried in Msg1 for a random access procedure of the second device, the response is carried in Msg2 for the random access procedure, the requirements associated with the sensing service is carried in Msg3 for the random access procedure, and the configuration for the third signal is carried in Msg4 for the random access procedure or a signaling after the random access procedure.

In some implementations of the method and apparatuses described herein, the third signal comprises at least one of the following: a channel state information -reference signal (CSI-RS) ; a demodulation reference signal (DMRS) ; a probe reference signal (PRS) ; a sounding reference signal (SRS) ; or a reference signal with a fourth type of sequence associated with at least one of the following: at least one fourth predefined root value, a fourth predefined length, or a fourth predefined RE mapping,

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1A illustrates an example of a wireless communications system that supports sensing signal transmission in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure.

FIG. 1B illustrates example sensing modes in a RAN of an ISAC system associated with aspects of the present disclosure.

FIG. 1C illustrates an example scenario of gNB/transmission and reception point (TRP) -based sensing associated with aspects of the present disclosure.

FIG. 2 illustrates an example of a signalling procedure of sensing signal transmission in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure.

FIG. 3 illustrates an example procedure for a sensing transmitting node to switch from a mono-static sensing mode to a bi-static sensing mode in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure.

FIG. 4 illustrates an example of sensing signal transmissions in gNB/TRP-based sensing in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure.

FIG. 5 illustrates an example signalling procedure of switching from a gNB mono-static sensing mode to a gNB-UE/UE-gNB bi-static sensing mode in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure.

FIG. 6A illustrates an example diagram of an association between resources for sensing signal transmission and resources for response reception in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure.

FIG. 6B illustrates an example diagram of a resource configuration for sensing signal transmission and for response reception in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure.

FIG. 7 illustrates an example of sensing signal transmissions in UE-based sensing in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure.

FIG. 8 illustrates an example signalling procedure of switching from a UE mono-static sensing mode to a gNB-UE/UE-gNB bi-static sensing mode in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure.

FIG. 9 illustrates an example of a device that supports sensing signal transmission in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure.

FIG. 10 illustrates an example of a processor that supports sensing signal transmission in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure.

FIGS. 11 through 12 illustrate flowcharts of methods that support sensing signal transmission in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

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

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

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

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

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

As used herein, the term “communication network” refers to a network following any suitable communication standards, such as, 5G new radio (NR) , long term evolution (LTE) , LTE-advanced (LTE-A) , wideband code division multiple access (WCDMA) , high-speed packet access (HSPA) , narrow band internet of things (NB-IoT) , and so on. Further, the communications between a terminal device and a network device in the communication network may be performed according to any suitable generation communication protocols, including but not limited to, the first generation (1G) , the second generation (2G) , 2.5G, 2.75G, the third generation (3G) , the fourth generation (4G) , 4.5G, the fifth generation (5G) communication protocols, and/or any other protocols either currently known or to be developed in the future. Embodiments of the present disclosure may be applied in various communication systems. Given the rapid development in communications, there will also be future type communication technologies and systems in which the present disclosure may be embodied. It should not be seen as limiting the scope of the present disclosure to only the aforementioned systems.

As used herein, the term “network device” generally refers to a node in a communication network via which a terminal device can access the communication network and receive services therefrom. The network device may refer to a base station (BS) or an access point (AP) , for example, a node B (NodeB or NB) , a radio access network (RAN) node, an evolved NodeB (eNodeB or eNB) , a NR NB (also referred to as a gNB) , a remote radio unit (RRU) , a radio header (RH) , an infrastructure device for a V2X (vehicle-to-everything) communication, a transmission and reception point (TRP) , a reception point (RP) , a remote radio head (RRH) , a relay, an integrated access and backhaul (IAB) node, a low power node such as a femto BS, a pico BS, and so forth, depending on the applied terminology and technology.

As used herein, the term “terminal device” generally refers to any end device that may be capable of wireless communications. By way of example rather than a limitation, a terminal device may also be referred to as a communication device, a user equipment (UE) , an end user device, a subscriber station (SS) , an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) , a portable subscriber station, a mobile station (MS) , or an access terminal (AT) . The terminal device may include, but is not limited to, a mobile phone, a cellular phone, a smart phone, a voice over IP (VoIP) phone, a wireless local loop phone, a tablet, a wearable terminal device, a personal digital assistant (PDA) , 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, a vehicle-mounted wireless terminal device, a wireless endpoint, a mobile station, laptop-embedded equipment (LEE) , laptop-mounted equipment (LME) , a USB dongle, a smart device, wireless customer-premises equipment (CPE) , an internet of things (loT) device, a watch or other wearable, a head-mounted display (HMD) , a vehicle, a drone, a medical device (for example, a remote surgery device) , an industrial device (for example, a robot and/or other wireless devices operating in an industrial and/or an automated processing chain contexts) , a consumer electronics device, a device operating on commercial and/or industrial wireless networks, and the like. In the following description, the terms: “terminal device, ” “communication device, ” “terminal, ” “user equipment” and “UE, ” may be used interchangeably.

Aspects of the present disclosure are described in the context of a wireless communications system. FIG. 1A illustrates an example of a wireless communications system 100 that supports sensing signal transmission accordance with aspects of the present disclosure. The wireless communications system 100 may include one or more network entities 102 (also referred to as network equipment (NE) ) , one or more UEs 104, a core network 106, and a packet data network 108. The wireless communications system 100 may support various radio access technologies. In some implementations, the wireless communications system 100 may be a 4G network, such as an LTE network or an LTE-advanced (LTE-A) network. In some other implementations, the wireless communications system 100 may be a 5G network, such as an NR network. In other implementations, the wireless communications system 100 may be a combination of a 4G network and a 5G network, or other suitable radio access technology including institute of electrical and electronics engineers (IEEE) 802.11 (Wi-Fi) , IEEE 802.16 (WiMAX) , IEEE 802.20. The wireless communications system 100 may support radio access technologies beyond 5G. Additionally, the wireless communications system 100 may support technologies, such as time division multiple access (TDMA) , frequency division multiple access (FDMA) , or code division multiple access (CDMA) , etc.

The one or more network entities 102 may be dispersed throughout a geographic region to form the wireless communications system 100. One or more of the network entities 102 described herein may be or include or may be referred to as a network node, a base station, a network element, a radio access network (RAN) , a base transceiver station, an access point, a NodeB, an eNodeB (eNB) , a next-generation NodeB (gNB) , or other suitable terminology. A network entity 102 and a UE 104 may communicate via a communication link 110, which may be a wireless or wired connection. For example, a network entity 102 and a UE 104 may perform wireless communication (e.g., receive signaling, transmit signaling) over a Uu interface.

A network entity 102 may provide a geographic coverage area 112 for which the network entity 102 may support services (e.g., voice, video, packet data, messaging, broadcast, etc. ) for one or more UEs 104 within the geographic coverage area 112. For example, a network entity 102 and a UE 104 may support wireless communication of signals related to services (e.g., voice, video, packet data, messaging, broadcast, etc. ) according to one or multiple radio access technologies. In some implementations, a network entity 102 may be moveable, for example, a satellite associated with a non-terrestrial network. In some implementations, different geographic coverage areas 112 associated with the same or different radio access technologies may overlap, but the different geographic coverage areas 112 may be associated with different network entities 102. Information and signals described herein may be represented using any of a variety of different technologies and techniques. For example, data, instructions, commands, information, signals, bits, symbols, and chips that may be referenced throughout the description may be represented by voltages, currents, electromagnetic waves, magnetic fields or particles, optical fields or particles, or any combination thereof.

The one or more UEs 104 may be dispersed throughout a geographic region of the wireless communications system 100. A UE 104 may include or may be referred to as a mobile device, a wireless device, a remote device, a remote unit, a handheld device, or a subscriber device, or some other suitable terminology. In some implementations, the UE 104 may be referred to as a unit, a station, a terminal, or a client, among other examples. Additionally, or alternatively, the UE 104 may be referred to as an internet-of-things (IoT) device, an internet-of-everything (IoE) device, or machine-type communication (MTC) device, among other examples. In some implementations, a UE 104 may be stationary in the wireless communications system 100. In some other implementations, a UE 104 may be mobile in the wireless communications system 100.

The one or more UEs 104 may be devices in different forms or having different capabilities. Some examples of UEs 104 are illustrated in FIG. 1A. A UE 104 may be capable of communicating with various types of devices, such as the network entities 102, other UEs 104, or network equipment (e.g., the core network 106, the packet data network 108, a relay device, an integrated access and backhaul (IAB) node, or another network equipment) , as shown in FIG. 1A. Additionally, or alternatively, a UE 104 may support communication with other network entities 102 or UEs 104, which may act as relays in the wireless communications system 100.

A UE 104 may also be able to support wireless communication directly with other UEs 104 over a communication link 114. For example, a UE 104 may support wireless communication directly with another UE 104 over a device-to-device (D2D) communication link. In some implementations, such as vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) deployments, vehicle-to-everything (V2X) deployments, or cellular-V2X deployments, the communication link 114 may be referred to as a sidelink. For example, a UE 104 may support wireless communication directly with another UE 104 over a PC5 interface.

A network entity 102 may support communications with the core network 106, or with another network entity 102, or both. For example, a network entity 102 may interface with the core network 106 through one or more backhaul links 116 (e.g., via an S1, N2, N2, or another network interface) . The network entities 102 may communicate with each other over the backhaul links 116 (e.g., via an X2, Xn, or another network interface) . In some implementations, the network entities 102 may communicate with each other directly (e.g., between the network entities 102) . In some other implementations, the network entities 102 may communicate with each other or indirectly (e.g., via the core network 106) . In some implementations, one or more network entities 102 may include subcomponents, such as an access network entity, which may be an example of an access node controller (ANC) . An ANC may communicate with the one or more UEs 104 through one or more other access network transmission entities, which may be referred to as a radio heads, smart radio heads, or transmission-reception points (TRPs) .

In some implementations, a network entity 102 may be configured in a disaggregated architecture, which may be configured to utilize a protocol stack physically or logically distributed among two or more network entities 102, such as an integrated access backhaul (IAB) network, an open radio access network (O-RAN) (e.g., a network configuration sponsored by the O-RAN Alliance) , or a virtualized RAN (vRAN) (e.g., a cloud RAN (C-RAN) ) . For example, a network entity 102 may include one or more of a CU, a DU, a radio unit (RU) , a RAN intelligent controller (RIC) (e.g., a near-real time RIC (Near-RT RIC) , a non-real time RIC (Non-RT RIC) ) , a service management and orchestration (SMO) system, or any combination thereof.

An RU may also be referred to as a radio head, a smart radio head, a remote radio head (RRH) , a remote radio unit (RRU) , or a transmission reception point (TRP) . One or more components of the network entities 102 in a disaggregated RAN architecture may be co-located, or one or more components of the network entities 102 may be located in distributed locations (e.g., separate physical locations) . In some implementations, one or more network entities 102 of a disaggregated RAN architecture may be implemented as virtual units (e.g., a virtual CU (VCU) , a virtual DU (VDU) , a virtual RU (VRU) ) .

Split of functionality between a CU, a DU, and an RU may be flexible and may support different functionalities depending upon which functions (e.g., network layer functions, protocol layer functions, baseband functions, radio frequency functions, and any combinations thereof) are performed at a CU, a DU, or an RU. For example, a functional split of a protocol stack may be employed between a CU and a DU such that the CU may support one or more layers of the protocol stack and the DU may support one or more different layers of the protocol stack. In some implementations, the CU may host upper protocol layer (e.g., a layer 3 (L3) , a layer 2 (L2) ) functionality and signaling (e.g., radio resource control (RRC) , service data adaption protocol (SDAP) , packet data convergence protocol (PDCP) ) . The CU may be connected to one or more DUs or RUs, and the one or more DUs or RUs may host lower protocol layers, such as a layer 1 (L1) (e.g., physical (PHY) layer) or an L2 (e.g., radio link control (RLC) layer, medium access control (MAC) layer) functionality and signaling, and may each be at least partially controlled by the CU 160.

Additionally, or alternatively, a functional split of the protocol stack may be employed between a DU and an RU such that the DU may support one or more layers of the protocol stack and the RU may support one or more different layers of the protocol stack. The DU may support one or multiple different cells (e.g., via one or more RUs) . In some implementations, a functional split between a CU and a DU, or between a DU and an RU may be within a protocol layer (e.g., some functions for a protocol layer may be performed by one of a CU, a DU, or an RU, while other functions of the protocol layer are performed by a different one of the CU, the DU, or the RU) .

A CU may be functionally split further into CU control plane (CU-CP) and CU user plane (CU-UP) functions. A CU may be connected to one or more DUs via a midhaul communication link (e.g., F1, F1-c, F1-u) , and a DU may be connected to one or more RUs via a fronthaul communication link (e.g., open fronthaul (FH) interface) . In some implementations, a midhaul communication link or a fronthaul communication link may be implemented in accordance with an interface (e.g., a channel) between layers of a protocol stack supported by respective network entities 102 that are in communication via such communication links.

The core network 106 may support user authentication, access authorization, tracking, connectivity, and other access, routing, or mobility functions. The core network 106 may be an evolved packet core (EPC) , or a 5G core (5GC) , which may include a control plane entity that manages access and mobility (e.g., a mobility management entity (MME) , an access and mobility management functions (AMF) ) and a user plane entity that routes packets or interconnects to external networks (e.g., a serving gateway (S-GW) , a packet data network (PDN) gateway (P-GW) , or a user plane function (UPF) ) . In some implementations, the control plane entity may manage non-access stratum (NAS) functions, such as mobility, authentication, and bearer management (e.g., data bearers, signal bearers, etc. ) for the one or more UEs 104 served by the one or more network entities 102 associated with the core network 106.

The core network 106 may communicate with the packet data network 108 over one or more backhaul links 116 (e.g., via an S1, N2, N2, or another network interface) . The packet data network 108 may include an application server 118. In some implementations, one or more UEs 104 may communicate with the application server 118. A UE 104 may establish a session (e.g., a protocol data unit (PDU) session, or the like) with the core network 106 via a network entity 102. The core network 106 may route traffic (e.g., control information, data, and the like) between the UE 104 and the application server 118 using the established session (e.g., the established PDU session) . The PDU session may be an example of a logical connection between the UE 104 and the core network 106 (e.g., one or more network functions of the core network 106) .

In the wireless communications system 100, the network entities 102 and the UEs 104 may use resources of the wireless communications system 100 (e.g., time resources (e.g., symbols, slots, subframes, frames, or the like) or frequency resources (e.g., subcarriers, carriers) ) to perform various operations (e.g., wireless communications) . In some implementations, the network entities 102 and the UEs 104 may support different resource structures. For example, the network entities 102 and the UEs 104 may support different frame structures. In some implementations, such as in 4G, the network entities 102 and the UEs 104 may support a single frame structure. In some other implementations, such as in 5G and among other suitable radio access technologies, the network entities 102 and the UEs 104 may support various frame structures (i.e., multiple frame structures) . The network entities 102 and the UEs 104 may support various frame structures based on one or more numerologies.

One or more numerologies may be supported in the wireless communications system 100, and a numerology may include a subcarrier spacing and a cyclic prefix. A first numerology (e.g., μ=0) may be associated with a first subcarrier spacing (e.g., 15 kHz) and a normal cyclic prefix. In some implementations, the first numerology (e.g., μ=0) associated with the first subcarrier spacing (e.g., 15 kHz) may utilize one slot per subframe. A second numerology (e.g., μ=1) may be associated with a second subcarrier spacing (e.g., 30 kHz) and a normal cyclic prefix. A third numerology (e.g., μ=2) may be associated with a third subcarrier spacing (e.g., 60 kHz) and a normal cyclic prefix or an extended cyclic prefix. A fourth numerology (e.g., μ=3) may be associated with a fourth subcarrier spacing (e.g., 120 kHz) and a normal cyclic prefix. A fifth numerology (e.g., μ=4) may be associated with a fifth subcarrier spacing (e.g., 240 kHz) and a normal cyclic prefix.

A time interval of a resource (e.g., a communication resource) may be organized according to frames (also referred to as radio frames) . Each frame may have a duration, for example, a 10 millisecond (ms) duration. In some implementations, each frame may include multiple subframes. For example, each frame may include 10 subframes, and each subframe may have a duration, for example, a 1 ms duration. In some implementations, each frame may have the same duration. In some implementations, each subframe of a frame may have the same duration.

Additionally or alternatively, a time interval of a resource (e.g., a communication resource) may be organized according to slots. For example, a subframe may include a number (e.g., quantity) of slots. The number of slots in each subframe may also depend on the one or more numerologies supported in the wireless communications system 100. For instance, the first, second, third, fourth, and fifth numerologies (i.e., μ=0, μ=1, μ=2, μ=3, μ=4) associated with respective subcarrier spacings of 15 kHz, 30 kHz, 60 kHz, 120 kHz, and 240 kHz may utilize a single slot per subframe, two slots per subframe, four slots per subframe, eight slots per subframe, and 16 slots per subframe, respectively. Each slot may include a number (e.g., quantity) of symbols (e.g., OFDM symbols) . In some implementations, the number (e.g., quantity) of slots for a subframe may depend on a numerology. For a normal cyclic prefix, a slot may include 14 symbols. For an extended cyclic prefix (e.g., applicable for 60 kHz subcarrier spacing) , a slot may include 12 symbols. The relationship between the number of symbols per slot, the number of slots per subframe, and the number of slots per frame for a normal cyclic prefix and an extended cyclic prefix may depend on a numerology. It should be understood that reference to a first numerology (e.g., μ=0) associated with a first subcarrier spacing (e.g., 15 kHz) may be used interchangeably between subframes and slots.

In the wireless communications system 100, an electromagnetic (EM) spectrum may be split, based on frequency or wavelength, into various classes, frequency bands, frequency channels, etc. By way of example, the wireless communications system 100 may support one or multiple operating frequency bands, such as frequency range designations FR1 (410 MHz –7.125 GHz) , FR2 (24.25 GHz –52.6 GHz) , FR3 (7.125 GHz –24.25 GHz) , FR4 (52.6 GHz –114.25 GHz) , FR4a or FR4-1 (52.6 GHz –71 GHz) , and FR5 (114.25 GHz –300 GHz) . In some implementations, the network entities 102 and the UEs 104 may perform wireless communications over one or more of the operating frequency bands. In some implementations, FR1 may be used by the network entities 102 and the UEs 104, among other equipment or devices for cellular communications traffic (e.g., control information, data) . In some implementations, FR2 may be used by the network entities 102 and the UEs 104, among other equipment or devices for short-range, high data rate capabilities.

FR1 may be associated with one or multiple numerologies (e.g., at least three numerologies) . For example, FR1 may be associated with a first numerology (e.g., μ=0) , which includes 15 kHz subcarrier spacing; a second numerology (e.g., μ=1) , which includes 30 kHz subcarrier spacing; and a third numerology (e.g., μ=2) , which includes 60 kHz subcarrier spacing. FR2 may be associated with one or multiple numerologies (e.g., at least 2 numerologies) . For example, FR2 may be associated with a third numerology (e.g., μ=2) , which includes 60 kHz subcarrier spacing; and a fourth numerology (e.g., μ=3) , which includes 120 kHz subcarrier spacing.

Integrating sensing capability into cellular wireless communication systems has the benefit of sharing the same spectrum and infrastructure, particularly in industries requiring both communication and sensing. Some examples of ubiquitous radio sensing services include safe autonomous vehicles and unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) , environment mapping to improve positioning accuracy and enable environment related applications and real-time monitoring for intrusion detection, etc.

In the RAN of an ISAC system, there may be various sensing modes for different scenarios to satisfy various sensing services. FIG. 1B illustrates example sensing modes in a RAN of an ISAC system associated with aspects of the present disclosure. Example sensing modes in a RAN as shown in FIG. 1B may include: 1) gNB mono-static sensing, 2) gNB-gNB bi-static sensing, 3) gNB-UE bi-static sensing (i.e., gNB as Tx node, UE as Rx node) , 4) UE-gNB bi-static sensing (i.e., UE as Tx node, gNB as Rx node) , 5) UE-UE bi-static sensing and 6) UE mono-static sensing. In the gNB mono-static sensing mode, the gNB transmits and receives the echoed (i.e., reflected) mono-static sensing signal to derive the measurement results. In the gNB-gNB bi-static sensing mode, a gNB transmits the bi-static sensing signal to another gNB to derive the measurement results. In the gNB-UE bi-static sensing mode, a gNB transmits the bi-static sensing signal to UE (s) to derive the measurement results. In the UE-gNB bi-static sensing mode, a UE transmits the bi-static sensing signal to gNB (s) to derive the measurement results. In the UE-UE bi-static sensing mode, a UE transmits the bi-static sensing signal to another UE to derive the measurement results. In the UE mono-static sensing mode, the gNB transmits and receives the echoed mono-static sensing signal to derive the measurement results. Different sensing modes may have different requirements on the sensing signals, which have different applicable scenarios.

For example, for mono-static sensing, a good ambiguity function (AF) performance of mono-static sensing signals is needed to assist in estimating the range, position and/or velocity of a target, thus a Radar-like sequence is preferred. In addition, due to the path loss and reflection of mono-static sensing signals, the sensing area with such mono-static sensing signals would be small, particularly when a UE operates with low transmission power. Furthermore, mono-static sensing signals can be effectively deployed by a gNB using proprietary solutions, provided dedicated slots are allocated for the sensing function. The mono-static sensing signals may be sensing signals for the mono-static sensing mode and may be referred to as Type 1 sensing signals herein. It should be understood that the Type 1 sensing signal described herein are applicable for the all mono-static sensing modes in 6G to support the ISAC.

For bi-static sensing, the accurate channel state information (CSI) and/or CSI-related estimation is needed, e.g., angle of arrival (AoA) , angle of departure (AoD) , Doppler spreading, delay spread, and signal strength, to assist in tracking a target, thus the reference signal sequence used for CSI estimation in the legacy communication system can be re-used with some enhancement for sensing. In addition, due to the signal processing (e.g., synchronization, channel estimation) at the receiver, the sensing area with such bi-static sensing signals would be as large as the communication coverage. Furthermore, though the reference signals for communication can be re-used as such bi-static sensing signal, the sensing service might impose additional requirements on the configurations and patterns of these reference signals. The bi-static sensing signals may be sensing signals for the bi-static sensing mode and may be referred to as Type 2 sensing signals herein. It should be understood that the Type 2 sensing signal described herein are applicable for the all bi-static sensing modes in 6G to support the ISAC.

FIG. 1C illustrates an example scenario of gNB/transmission and reception point (TRP) -based sensing associated with aspects of the present disclosure. The typical sensing areas for a gNB/TRP with mono-static and bi-static sensing modes may be different. As shown in FIG. 1C, the Area A (within the long dashed line) is the sensing area with mono-static sensing signal for the TRP, and the Area B (within the solid line) is the area with bi-static sensing for the TRP with the serving UEs.

In some cases, it is necessary for the gNB to switch from the mono-static sensing mode to the bi-static model and to switch to corresponding sensing signals. In an example case, the sensing target might move from Area A to Area B, or opposite, as illustrated in FIG. 1C, where the sensing target moves into a transition area (within the short dashed line) . In another example case, the radio link for the gNB with the UE in the bi-sensing mode (either gNB-UE or UE-gNB) may be expected to be better than the gNB mono-static link.

However, in order to switch from mono-static to the bi-static sensing mode, especially to switch the sensing signals, the gNB needs to setup a connection with a UE via a series of interactions and signaling. This process interrupts the sensing service, potentially degrading sensing performance. In view of the above, some embodiments of the present disclosure propose a type of heuristic sensing signal to avoid sensing service interruptions during the sensing modes switching from mono-static sensing to bi-static sensing, thereby maintaining consistent and reliable sensing performance.

FIG. 2 illustrates an example of signalling procedure 200 for sensing signal transmission in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure. The procedure 200 may involve a first device 210 and a second device 220. It is to be understood that the steps and the order of the steps in FIG. 2 are merely for illustration, and not for limitation. It is to be understood that procedure 200 may further include additional blocks not shown and/or omit some shown blocks, and the scope of the present disclosure is not limited in this regard. The procedure 200 may be implemented in the wireless communications system 100 in FIG. 1A or other communications systems. In some implementations, the first device 210 may be a network entity (e.g., a network entity 102 in FIG. 1A) and the second device 220 may be a UE (e.g., a UE 104 in FIG. 1A) . Alternatively, the first device 210 may be a UE (e.g., a UE 104 in FIG. 1A) and the second device 220 may be a network entity (e.g., a network entity 102 in FIG. 1A) .

As shown in FIG. 2, the first device 210 transmits (202) a first signal for a sensing service. The first device 210 subsequently receives (206) a reflected first signal. The first signal is also indicative of a request for sensing assistance. A second device 220 may receive (204) the first signal from the first device 210. Then, the second device 220 transmits (208) a response 212 for the request to the first device 210. Accordingly, the first device 210 monitors (214) the response 212 for the request from the second device 220. In this way, a seamless transition from mono-static sensing to bi-static sensing may be enabled avoiding interruptions in the sensing service. As used herein, the first signal may be regarded as a heuristic sensing signal, which is a kind of mono-static sensing signal specified over the air interface to heuristically trigger bi-static sensing signal transmission. As used herein, such heuristic sensing signal may be referred to as a Type 3 sensing signal. It should be understood that the Type 3 sensing signal described herein are applicable for the all sensing mode switching from a mono-static sensing mode to a bi-static sensing mode in 6G to support the ISAC.

In some embodiments, the first device 210 may obtain sensing results for the sensing service based on measurements on the received reflected first signal. For example, based on the received reflected Type 3 sensing signal, the transmitting node of the sensing service may derive the measurement results for sensing, such as the received signal strength (RSS) , channel state information (CSI) and Doppler value, which can be used to detect and estimate the distance, presence and/or velocity of the sensing target.

In some embodiments, the first device 210 may transmit a second signal for the sensing service. The first device 210 may receive a reflected second signal, and obtain sensing results for the sensing service based on measurements on the received reflected second signal. In addition, the first device 210 may determine that sensing assistance is needed. The second signal may be the Type 1 sensing signal for mono-static sensing. In other words, the transmitting node of the sensing service may perform mono-static sensing based on the Type 1 sensing signal and also monitor the sensing performance during the mono-static sensing based on Type 1 sensing signal.

In some embodiments, the second signal may include a primary synchronization signal (PSS) . Alternatively or additionally, the second signal may include a second synchronization signal (SSS) . Alternatively or additionally, the second signal may include a first type of sequence. The first type of sequence may be associated with at least one of the following: at least one first predefined root value, a first predefined length, or a first predefined resource element (RE) mapping. The first type of sequence may be associated with mono-static sensing. In other words, the sensing signal for mono-static sensing (i.e., Type 1 sensing signal) may be PSS and/or SSS and/or a dedicated sequence (e.g., a Zadoff-Chu (ZC) sequence with some predefined root values, length and RE mapping in the time/frequency resources) .

In some implementations, the first device 210 may determine that sensing assistance is needed based on a comparison between the measurements on the received reflected second signal and a threshold associated with a measurement quantity. In other words, the transmitting node of the sensing service may monitor a sensing performance by measuring the reflected Type 1 sensing signal and comparing the signal measurements with a threshold, and determine whether sensing assistance is needed based on the comparison.

In some examples, the measurement quantity may be pre-defined. In some examples, the measurement quantity may be network configured. In a specific example implementation, the first device 210 may be a network entity (e.g., a gNB) , and may determine the measurement quantity for the sensing performance monitoring. In another specific example implementation, the first device 210 may be a UE, and may receive, from the network entity, an indication of the measurement quantity for the sensing performance monitoring. In some implementations, the measurement quantity is pre-defined or network configured may at least include a received signal strength (RSS) . For example, the first device 210 may determine whether sensing assistance is needed based on a comparison between the measured RSS of the reflected second signal and a RSS threshold. Other measurement quantities are also possible.

In some examples, the threshold may be pre-defined. In some examples, the threshold may be network configured. In a specific example implementation, the first device 210 may be a network entity (e.g., a gNB) , and may determine the threshold for the sensing performance monitoring. In another specific example implementation, the first device 210 may be a UE, and may receive, from the network entity, an indication of the threshold for the sensing performance monitoring.

In some embodiments, after receiving the reflected first signal, the first device 210 may obtain sensing results for the sensing service based on measurements on the received reflected first signal and measurements on the received reflected second signal. For example, if the transmitting node of the sensing service determines that sensing assistance is needed, the transmitting node may derive the measurement results for sensing (e.g., RSS, CSI and Doppler value) by converging the measurements on the reflected Type 3 sensing signal and the measurements on the reflected Type 1 sensing signal.

In some embodiments, the first signal may include a signal carrying a second type of sequence. The second type of sequence may be associated with at least one of the following: at least one second predefined root value, a second predefined length, or a second predefined RE mapping. The second type of sequence may be associated with mono-static sensing and sensing assistance requesting. In other words, the Type 3 sensing signal may carry a dedicated sequence, e.g., a ZC sequence with some predefined root values, length and RE mapping in the time/frequency resources. The dedicated sequence carried in the Type 3 sensing signal may implicitly indicate the sensing assistance request.

Alternatively or additionally, the first signal may include a signal for downlink synchronization. The signal for downlink synchronization may include an identity (ID) indicative of at least one of the following: the request for sensing assistance, or a support of the first device 210 for sensing functionality. In a specific example implementation, a Type 3 sensing signal transmitted by a gNB may be implemented as a downlink synchronization signal used in a RAN with dedicated IDs, such as some special cell IDs to indicate that the cell can support sensing functionality and need assistance from a UE. The downlink synchronization signal may be specified for both communication and sensing.

In some embodiments, the first device 210 may transmit system information to the second device 220, and the system information may include at least one of the following: an indication that the first signal is to be transmitted, or a resource configuration of the first signal. The second device 220 may monitor the first signal based on the system information. In some implementations, after receiving the first signal indicative the sensing assistance request, the second device 220 may determine whether to assist the first device 210 for the sensing service. If yes, the second device 220 may transmit a response for the sensing assistance request to the first device 210; otherwise, the second device 220 may not respond to the sensing assistance request. Alternatively, once receiving the first signal indicative the sensing assistance request, the second device 220 may transmit a response for the sensing assistance request to the first device 210. In other words, it is mandatory for the second device 220 receiving the sensing assistance request to respond.

In some embodiments, the first device 210 may transmit a resource configuration of the response to the second device 220. The second device 220 may transmit the response for the sensing assistance request to the first device 210 based on the resource configuration. The resource configuration of the response may be carried in system information. In some implementations, the resource configuration of the response and the resource configuration of the first signal may be carried in the same system information. Alternatively, the resource configuration of the response and the resource configuration of the first signal may be carried in different system information.

In some embodiments, a time offset between a time domain resource for the response and a time domain resource for the first signal may be predefined. Alternatively, a time offset between a time domain resource for the response and a time domain resource for the first signal may be associated with a sequence carried in the first signal. In some embodiments, a frequency domain resource for the response may be predefined. Alternatively, a frequency domain resource for the response may be associated with a sequence carried in the first signal or a frequency domain resource for the first signal. The second device 220 may transmit the response for the sensing assistance request to the first device 210 based on the predefined or network-configured association between the response and the sensing assistance request.

In some embodiments, the first device 210 may receive the response from the second device 220 and may determine a link quality between the first device 210 and the second device 220 based on the response. In some implementations, if the link quality is below a threshold, the first device 210 may continue transmitting the first signal within a time window. Alternatively, if the link quality is below the threshold and the time window expires, the first device 210 may terminate the sensing service. Alternatively, if the link quality is above the threshold, the first device 210 may set up a connection with the second device 220. In other words, if no node responds to the Type 3 sensing signal, the transmitting node (e.g., a gNB) of the sensing service would continue sending the Type 3 sensing signal if a pre-defined timer is not expired. Otherwise, if the pre-defined timer is expired, the sensing procedure would be terminated. If any node (e.g., a UE) responds to the Type 3 sensing signal, the quality of the link to the responding node may be measured to decide whether the quality is good enough for the sensing requirement. If not, the transmitting node may check the timer to continue sending the Type 3 sensing signal or terminate the sensing service. If the link quality can satisfy the sensing requirements, e.g., the signal quality is larger than a threshold, the connection between the transmitting node and the responding node can be set up for the bi-static sensing. For example, the transmitting node may transmit a configuration for the bi-static sensing (e.g., a configuration of Type 2 sensing resources) to the responding node to switch to the bi-static sensing.

In some embodiments, if no response for the sensing assistance request is received, the first device 210 may continue transmitting the first signal within a time window. Alternatively, if no response for the sensing assistance request is received and the time window expires, the first device 210 may terminate the sensing service. Alternatively, if the first device 210 receives a response for the sensing assistance request from the second device 220, the first device 210 may set up a connection with the second device 220. The first device 210 may determine a link quality between the first device and the second device. If the link quality is above a threshold, the first device 210 may transmit a configuration for a third signal for the sensing service to the second device 220. If the link quality is below the threshold, the first device 210 may continue transmitting the first signal within the time window. In other words, if no node responds to the Type 3 sensing signal, the transmitting node (e.g., a gNB) of the sensing service would continue sending the Type 3 sensing signal if a pre-defined timer is not expired. Otherwise, if the pre-defined timer is expired, the sensing procedure would be terminated. If any node (e.g., a UE) responds to the Type 3 sensing signal, the transmitting node would set up a connection with the responding node and measure the quality of the link to the responding node so as to decide whether the quality is good enough for the sensing requirement. If not, the transmitting node may check the timer to continue sending the Type 3 sensing signal or terminate the sensing service. If the link quality can satisfy the sensing requirements, e.g., the signal quality is larger than a threshold, the transmitting node would transmit a configuration for the bi-static sensing (e.g., a configuration of Type 2 sensing resources) to the responding node to switch to the bi-static sensing.

In some embodiments, the first device 210 may receive the response from the second device 220, and transmit a configuration for a third signal for the sensing service to the second device 220. The first device 210 may transmit to or receive from, the second device 220, the third signal for the sensing service based on the configuration. Accordingly, the second device 220 may receive the configuration for the third signal for the sensing service from the second device 220 and may receive from or transmit to, the first device 210, the third signal for the sensing service based on the configuration. The third signal may be the Type 2 sensing signal for bi-static sensing. For example, the first device 210 may be a network entity and the second device 220 may be a UE. The network entity may transmit a configuration for the Type 2 sensing signal after receiving a response for the sensing assistance request indicated by the Type 3 sensing signal from the UE, and the network entity may thus switch to transmitting or receiving the Type 2 sensing signal. The sensing service may thus be switched from a gNB-based mono-static sensing mode to a gNB-UE or UE-gNB bi-static sensing mode with no interruption.

In some embodiments, the response may be carried in message 1 (Msg1) for a random access procedure of the second device 220. For example, if the UE agrees to assist the sensing service of a gNB, the UE, if not connected, may initiate a random access procedure with the confirmation on the sensing assistance. The configuration for the third signal may be carried in at least one of the following: message 2 (Msg2) for the random access procedure, message 4 (Msg4) for the random access procedure, or a signaling after the random access procedure.

In some embodiments, the response may be carried in a signal with a third type of sequence. The third type of sequence may be associated with at least one of the following: at least one third predefined root value, a third predefined length, or a third predefined RE mapping. In some embodiments, the third type of sequence is associated with sensing assistance response. For example, the confirmation on the sensing assistance may be implicitly indicated by a Msg1, with a dedicated sequence defined as the response to confirm the sensing assistance, e.g., with a set of root values when generating the sequence.

In some embodiments, if no response for the sensing assistance request is received, the first device 210 may continue transmitting the first signal within a time window. Alternatively, if no response for the sensing assistance request is received and the time window expires, the first device 210 may terminate the sensing service. Alternatively, if the first device 210 receives a response for the sensing assistance request from the second device 220, the first device 210 may set up a connection with the second device 220. The first device 210 may transmit, to the second device 220, requirements associated with the sensing service. In some implementations, the requirements associated with the sensing service may include at least one of the following: a Doppler estimation resolution and accuracy, a position estimation resolution and accuracy, or a sensing target successful detection rate. In other words, if no node responds to the Type 3 sensing signal, the transmitting node (e.g., a UE) of the sensing service would continue sending the Type 3 sensing signal if a pre-defined timer is not expired. Otherwise, if the pre-defined timer is expired, the sensing procedure would be terminated. If any node (e.g., a gNB) responds to the Type 3 sensing signal, the transmitting node would set up a connection with the responding node to switch to the bi-static sensing. To facilitate the serving gNB to configure the Type 2 sensing signal, the UE (i.e., the transmitting node in the mono-static sensing of the sensing service) may report the requirements on the sensing service, such as the Doppler estimation resolution, position resolution, successful detection rate, which can be used to decide the physical resources for Type 2 sensing signals.

In some embodiments, the first device 210 may receive, from the second device 220, a configuration for a third signal for the sensing service. For example, the second device 220 may receive the requirements associated with the sensing service from the first device 210, determine the configuration for the third signal based on the requirements, and transmit the configuration for the third signal for the sensing service to the first device 210. The first device 210 may transmit to or receive from, the second device 220, the third signal for the sensing service. For example, the serving gNB may provide the configurations on the Type 2 sensing signal to the UE based on the requirements on the sensing service. The sensing service may thus be switched from a UE-based mono-static sensing mode to a gNB-UE or UE-gNB bi-static sensing mode with no interruption.

In some implementations, the first signal may be carried in Msg1 for a random access procedure of the first device 210, the response may be carried in Msg2 for the random access procedure, the requirements associated with the sensing service may be carried in Msg3 for the random access procedure, the configuration for the third signal may be carried in Msg4 for the random access procedure or a signaling after the random access procedure.

In some embodiments, the third signal may include at least one of the following: a CSI reference signal (CSI-RS) , a demodulation reference signal (DMRS) , a probe reference signal (PRS) , a sounding reference signal (SRS) , or a reference signal with a fourth type of sequence. The fourth type of sequence may be associated with at least one of the following: at least one fourth predefined root value, a fourth predefined length, or a fourth predefined RE mapping. The fourth type of sequence is associated with mono-static sensing. In some examples, the Type 2 sensing signal may be implemented as physical reference signals used in a RAN for downlink data transmission, such as CSI-RS, DMRS and PRS, or the uplink transmission, such as SRS, DMRS. In some other examples, the Type 2 sensing signal may be implemented as a reference sequence, e.g., a Golden sequence, with some predefined root sequences, length and RE mapping in the time/frequency resources.

With some embodiments of the present disclosure, a sensing signal design is proposed to support sensing mode switching from a mono-static sensing mode to a bi-static sensing mode avoiding sensing service interruption. A heuristic sensing signal (termed as a Type 3 sensing signal herein) may be deployed as a kind of mono-static sensing signals for the transmitting node and is specified over the air interface. In some implementations, considering the legacy reference signals and waveform designs for communication, a ZC sequence may be applied for the heuristic sensing signal.

The heuristic sensing signal may be broadcasted to cover an area around the transmitting node. For example, the heuristic sensing signal may be broadcasted by the transmitting node in the sensing area, similar with the broadcast channel transmission for the gNB. The transmission configurations of the heuristic sensing signal, such as periodicity, bandwidth and power, may depend on the requirements of the sensing service.

Furthermore, the heuristic sensing signal may be generated with an associated ID to identify the transmitting node. The associated ID is used for the receiver to identify the transmitting node (i.e., sensing area of this node) and initiate a connection request to the transmitting node, such as the cell ID in the communication system.

In addition, the heuristic sensing signal may indicate some basic configurations for setting up the connection. After receiving the heuristic sensing signal, the receiver may obtain the transmission resources and configurations to set up the connection with the transmitting node. In other words, the heuristic sensing signal may indicate that the cell transmitting the heuristic sensing signal is a cell supporting bi-static sensing. The heuristic sensing signal may be transmitted as a broadcasting signalling. The configurations indicated by the heuristic sensing signal may be the associated resource configurations for connection setup for bi-static sensing, which is different with the legacy random access for data transmission. The configurations indicated by the heuristic sensing signal may also include the resources for the bi-static signal. The connection setup may be unnecessary if the responding node only assists sensing.

In following, the sensing mode switching procedure with the proposed heuristic sensing signal and detailed impacts on the air interface will be illustrated with reference to examples in FIGS. 3-8. FIG. 3 illustrates an example procedure 300 for a sensing transmitting node to switch from a mono-static sensing mode to a bi-static sensing mode in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure. It should be understood that the procedure 300 is merely an example of a general sensing mode switching procedure. It is to be understood that procedure 300 may further include additional blocks not shown and/or omit some shown blocks, and the scope of the present disclosure is not limited in this regard.

As shown in FIG. 3, at 301, a transmitting node uses Type 1 sensing signals to perform mono-static sensing and monitor the sensing performance. At 302, the transmitting node determines whether the sensing performance satisfies the sensing requirements. If the performance is good enough to satisfy the requirements (YES at step 302) , the transmitting node continues the mono-static sensing with Type 1 sensing signal (i.e., the procedure 300 proceeds to step 301) . If the performance is degraded, e.g., the received sensing signal quality is less than a threshold (NO at step 302) , the transmitting node switches to use Type 3 sensing signal for mono-static sensing (i.e., the procedure 300 proceeds to step 303) . After transmitting the Type 3 sensing signal, at 304, the transmitting node checks whether any node responds according to the pre-defined configuration, e.g., based on the associated resources for connections requests from any responding node. If no node responds (i.e., NO at step 304) , the transmitting node would continue sending the Type 3 sensing signal if a pre-defined timer is not expired (i.e., the procedure 300 proceeds to step 303 if NO at step 305) . Otherwise, the sensing procedure would be terminated (i.e., the procedure 300 ends if YES at step 305) . If any node responds (i.e., YES at step 304) , at 306, the quality of the link to the responding node would be measured to decide whether the quality is good enough for the sensing requirement. If not (i.e., NO at step 306) , the procedure 300 proceeds to step 305, i.e., the timer would be checked to determine whether to continue transmitting the Type 3 sensing signal or terminate the sensing service.

If the link quality may satisfy the requirements, e.g., the signal quality is larger than a threshold (i.e., YES at step 306) , at 307, the connection between the transmitting node and the responding node may be set up. At 308, the Type 2 sensing signal may be used to perform bi-static sensing to continue the sensing service.

In some implementations, step 307 may be performed before step 306. In other words, if any node responds, the connection between the transmitting node and the responding node may be set up. The transmitting node may then evaluate whether the quality of the link to the responding node is good enough for the sensing requirement. If not, the procedure 300 proceeds to step 305, i.e., the timer would be checked to determine whether to continue transmitting the Type 3 sensing signal or terminate the sensing service. If the link quality may satisfy the requirements, e.g., the signal quality is larger than a threshold, the Type 2 sensing signal may be used to perform bi-static sensing to continue the sensing service.

In some implementations, step 306 may be omitted. In other words, if any node responds, the connection between the transmitting node and the responding node may be set up, and the Type 2 sensing signal may be used to perform bi-static sensing to continue the sensing service.

In some implementations, the transmitting node may always use Type 3 sensing signals to perform mono-static sensing. In other words, steps 301 and 302 may be omitted.

With the procedure 300, the transmitting node may switch from the mono-static sensing mode to the bi-static sensing mode by utilizing the heuristic sensing signal. The heuristic sensing signal and the corresponding procedure may be applied for the downlink (starting from gNB-based mono-static sensing) or for the uplink (starting from UE-based mono-static sensing) , which would have different impacts on the air interface with different signaling designs.

FIG. 4 illustrates an example of sensing signal transmissions in gNB/TRP-based sensing in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure. As shown in FIG. 4, if the target is located within the mono-static sensing area 401, the TRP may use Type 1 sensing signals 411 to perform mono-static sensing. When the target within the mono-static sensing area 401 moves to the transition area 403, the TRP may use Type 3 sensing signals 413 to perform mono-static sensing and request sensing assistance. If the UE responds to the sensing assistance request and the link quality between the UE and the TRP satisfies the sensing requirement, the TRP may switch to use Type 2 sensing signals 412 to perform bi-static sensing with the UE. If the target continues moving into the bi-static sensing area 402, the TRP may continue using Type 2 sensing signals 412 to perform bi-static sensing with the UE.

FIG. 5 illustrates an example signalling procedure 500 of switching from a gNB mono-static sensing mode to a gNB-UE/UE-gNB bi-static sensing mode in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure. For the purpose of discussion, the procedure 500 will be described with reference to FIG. 1A, and the procedure 500 may involve a UE 104 and a network entity 102 as shown in FIG. 1A. The network entity 102 may be implemented as a gNB. It is to be understood that the steps and the order of the steps in FIG. 5 are merely for illustration, and not for limitation. It is to be understood that procedure 500 may further include additional blocks not shown and/or omit some shown blocks, and the scope of the present disclosure is not limited in this regard. The procedure 500 may be regarded as a specific example of the process 200 in FIG. 2. The gNB 102 may be a specific example of the first device 210 in FIG. 2, and the UE 104 may be a specific example of the second device 220 in FIG. 2.

As shown in FIG. 5, at 501, the gNB 102 transmits and receives the Type 1 sensing signal for mono-static sensing. In some examples, the Type 1 sensing signal may be the PSS and/or SSS used in a RAN for downlink synchronization. In some other examples, the Type 1 sensing signal may be a dedicated sequence, e.g., a ZC sequence with some predefined root values, length and RE mapping in the time/frequency resources. In some implementations, although some UEs might receive the Type 1 sensing signal, there will be not any associated sensing-related action for those UEs.

Based on the received (echoed) Type 1 sensing signal, the gNB 102 may derive the measurement results for sensing, such as the RSS, CSI and Doppler value, which may be used to detect and estimate the distance, presence and/or velocity of the sensing target in some use cases.

At 502, the gNB 102 monitors the sensing performance to decide whether any UE is needed for sensing assistance. In some examples, the sensing performance is monitored via measuring the RSS of the received sensing signals. A lower RSS of the received sensing signals means a worse sensing performance. Thus, a pre-defined RSS value may be defined as a threshold to indicate the un-acceptable sensing performance with the Type 1 sensing signal and trigger the Type 3 sensing signal transmission.

At 503, the gNB 102 transmits the Type 3 sensing signal for mono-static sensing, and waits for the response from any UE to assist sensing. The Type 3 sensing signal is not only a mono-static sensing signal for the gNB 102, but also a request for sensing assistance from a UE.

In some examples, the Type 3 sensing signal may be designed as a specified downlink synchronization signal used in a RAN with dedicated IDs, such as some special cell IDs, to indicate the cell may support sensing functionality and need assistance from a UE. The downlink synchronization signal may be specified for both communication and sensing.

In some other examples, the Type 3 sensing signal may be designed as a dedicated and broadcasting sequence, e.g., a ZC sequence with some predefined root values, length and RE mapping in the time/frequency resources. In some implementations, the configurations of such dedicated sequence may be indicated in a system information block (SIB) for a UE to detect.

In some implementations, the Type 3 sensing signal transmission may be associated with some time/frequency resources for receiving the response from any UE. FIG. 6A illustrates an example diagram of an association between resources for sensing signal transmission and resources for response reception in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure. In the example shown in FIG. 6A, the physical resources for receiving the response are associated with the sensing signal transmissions with a pre-defined time offset. The physical resource blocks and time offset to the signal transmissions may be predefined. For example, the 2nd OFDM symbol in the following 4th subframe with the same number of PRBs as the Type 3 sensing signal may be used for transmitting the response for the Type 3 sensing signal. The Type 3 sensing signal may be a specified downlink synchronization signal or a specified downlink synchronization signal with a dedicated ID.

In some implementations, the gNB 102 may configure the physical resources for transmitting the Type 3 sensing signal and receiving the response from a UE. The responding UE may transmit the response for the Type 3 sensing signal based on the resource configuration. FIG. 6B illustrates an example diagram of a resource configuration for sensing signal transmission and for response reception in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure. In the example shown in FIG. 6B, a resource configuration for the response may be transmitted within the same or different SIBs as the configuration of the Type 3 sensing signal.

Turning back to FIG. 5, the signals for the UE to response the sensing assistance request may be realized to enhance the initial random access preamble, Msg1, with dedicated sequences for the response, e.g., with a set of root values when generating the sequence, which may be used in step 506 within the random access procedure.

In some implementations, the Type 3 sensing signal may be periodically broadcasted in the defined time/frequency resources as the same as the Type 1 sensing signal. The sensing performance may be always monitored to decide whether to continue or terminate the sensing. If the time window for receiving a response from any UE is expired, the sensing would be terminated.

At 504, the gNB 102 receives the Type 3 sensing signal and derives the measurement results. Based on the received/echoed Type 3 sensing signal, the gNB 102 continues deriving the measurement results for sensing, such as the RSS, CSI and Doppler value, which may be used to detect and estimate the distance, presence and/or velocity of the target in some use cases. In some implementations, the measurement results derived from the Type 3 sensing signal may be converged with those derived from Type 1 sensing signal receiving for better sensing performance.

At 505, a UE 104 receives the Type 3 sensing signal, and decides whether to assist sensing or not. In some implementations, once receiving the Type 3 sensing signal, the UE may decide to assist sensing or not. In some other implementations, it is mandatory for a UE receiving the Type 3 sensing signal to respond and assist sensing.

At 506, the UE 104 initiates the random access procedure with the confirmation on the sensing assistance. If the UE 104 agrees to assist sensing, the random access procedure needs to be initiated if the UE 104 is not connected, i.e., in RRC_IDLE or RRC_INACTIVE mode. The initial random access preamble, Msg1, with dedicated sequences may be defined as the response to confirm the sensing assistance, e.g., with a set of root values when generating the sequence.

At 507, the gNB 102 transmits the configurations to the UE 104 for the Type 2 sensing signal after setting up the connection. If the link quality measured by the Msg1 transmission is good enough, the gNB 102 may further continue the random access procedure to set up the connection. The configurations on the following Type 2 sensing signal for bi-static sensing may be transmitted to the UE 104 after random access procedure via a RRC signaling or may be transmitted to the UE 104 during the random access procedure via Msg2 or Msg4.

In some implementations, the Type 2 sensing signal may be physical reference signals used in a RAN for downlink data transmission, such as CSI-RS, DMRS and PRS, or the uplink transmission, such as SRS, DMRS.

In some other implementations, the Type 2 sensing signal may be a reference sequence, e.g., a Golden sequence with some predefined root sequences, length and RE mapping in the time/frequency resources.

At 508, the Type 2 sensing signal is transmitted and received by the gNB 102 and UE 104 for the bi-static sensing. According to the configurations, the Type 2 sensing signal may be transmitted from the gNB 102 to UE 104 as the downlink reference signal or from UE 104 to the gNB 102 as the uplink reference signal.

In some implementations, if the UE 104 is in connected mode, the Type 3 sensing signal may still be used to promote the UE 104 to send some sequence to measure the link quality for bi-static sensing.

With the procedure 500, the interactions between gNB and UE with the heuristic sensing signal to support mode seamless switching from gNB mono-static to gNB-UE/UE-gNB bi-static sensing are designed.

FIG. 7 illustrates an example of sensing signal transmissions in UE-based sensing in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure. As shown in FIG. 7, if the target is located within the mono-static sensing area 701, the UE may use Type 1 sensing signals 711 to perform mono-static sensing. When the target within the mono-static sensing area 701 moves to the transition area 703, the UE may use Type 3 sensing signals 713 to perform mono-static sensing and request sensing assistance. If the TRP responds to the sensing assistance request, the UE may switch to use Type 2 sensing signals 712 to perform bi-static sensing with the TRP. If the target continues moving into the bi-static sensing area 702, the UE may continue using Type 2 sensing signals 712 to perform bi-static sensing with the TRP.

FIG. 8 illustrates an example signalling procedure of switching from a UE mono-static sensing mode to a gNB-UE/UE-gNB bi-static sensing mode in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure. For the purpose of discussion, the procedure 800 will be described with reference to FIG. 1A, and the procedure 800 may involve a UE 104 and a network entity 102 as shown in FIG. 1A. The network entity 102 may be implemented as a gNB. It is to be understood that the steps and the order of the steps in FIG. 8 are merely for illustration, and not for limitation. It is to be understood that procedure 800 may further include additional blocks not shown and/or omit some shown blocks, and the scope of the present disclosure is not limited in this regard. The procedure 800 may be regarded as a specific example of the process 200 in FIG. 2. The UE 104 may be a specific example of the first device 210 in FIG. 2, and the gNB 102 may be a specific example of the second device 220 in FIG. 2.

At 801, a UE 104 transmits and receives the Type 1 sensing signal for mono-static sensing. In some examples, the Type 1 sensing signal may be an enhanced sounding reference signal (SRS) used in a RAN for channel sounding. In some other examples, the Type 1 sensing signal may be a dedicated sequence, e.g., a ZC sequence with some predefined root values, length and RE mapping in the time/frequency resources. In some implementations, although the serving gNB 102 might receive the Type 1 sensing signal, there will be not any associated sensing-related action for the gNB 102.

Based on the received (echoed) Type 1 sensing signal, the UE 104 may derive the measurement results for sensing, such as the RSS, CSI and Doppler value, which may be used to detect and estimate the distance, presence and/or velocity of the target in some use cases.

At 802, the UE 104 monitors the sensing performance to decide whether any gNB 102 is needed for assistance. In some examples, the sensing performance is monitored via measuring the RSS of the received sensing signals. A lower RSS of the received sensing signals means a worse sensing performance. Thus, a pre-defined RSS value may be defined as a threshold to indicate the un-acceptable sensing performance with the Type 1 sensing signal and trigger the Type 3 sensing signal transmission.

At 803, the UE 104 transmits the Type 3 sensing signal for mono-static sensing, and waits for the response from the serving gNB 102 to assist sensing. The Type 3 sensing signal is not only a mono-static sensing signal for the UE 104s, but also a request for sensing assistance from the serving gNB 102.

In some examples, the Type 3 sensing signal may be designed as a dedicated sequence, e.g., a ZC sequence with some predefined root values, length and RE mapping in the time/frequency resources, as similar with the Msg1 in random access procedure.

In some implementations, the Type 3 sensing signal may be periodically broadcasted in the defined time/frequency resources as the same as the Type 1 sensing signal. The sensing performance may be always monitored to decide whether to continue or terminate the sensing. If the time window for receiving a response from the serving gNB 102 is expired, the sensing would be terminated.

At 804, the UE 104 receives the Type 3 sensing signal and derives the measurement results. Based on the received/echoed Type 3 sensing signal, the UE 104 continues deriving the measurement results for sensing, such as the RSS, CSI and Doppler value, which may be used to detect and estimate the distance, presence and/or velocity of the target in some use cases. In some implementations, the measurement results derived from the Type 3 sensing signal may be converged with those derived from Type 1 sensing signal receiving for better sensing performance.

At 805, the gNB 102 acknowledges the request to assist sensing. The serving gNB 102 may confirm the request with an acknowledgement information to the UE 104, which may be transmitted in the Msg2 in random access procedure, with some additional information if needed. For example, the information may include the physical resources indications for the Msg3 transmission, time advance values and the recommended transmission power.

At 806, the UE 104 may further provide the requirements on the sensing service. To facilitate the serving gNB 102 to configure the Type 2 sensing signal, the UE 104 may report the requirements on the sensing service, such as the Doppler estimation resolution, position resolution, successful detection rate, which may be used by the serving gNB 102 to decide the physical resources for Type 2 sensing signals. In some examples, the requirement information may be transmitted in the Msg3 in the random access procedure.

At 807, the gNB 102 transmits the configurations on the Type 2 sensing signal to the UE 104. For example, the serving gNB 102 provides the configurations on the Type 2 sensing signal to the UE 104 based on the requirements received at step 806. These configurations may be provided via Msg4 in the random access procedure or some RRC signalings after the random access procedure.

At 808, the Type 2 sensing signal is transmitted and received by the gNB 102 and UE 104 for the bi-static sensing. According to the configurations, the Type 2 sensing signal may be transmitted from gNB 102 to UE 104 as the downlink reference signal or from UE 104 to gNB 102 as the uplink reference signal.

With the procedure 800, the interactions between gNB and UE with the heuristic sensing signal to support mode seamless switching from UE mono-static to gNB-UE/UE-gNB bi-static sensing are designed.

FIG. 9 illustrates an example of a device 900 that supports sensing signal transmission in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure. The device 900 may be an example of a first device 210 or a second device 220 as described herein. The device 900 may support wireless communication with one or more network entities 102, UEs 104, or any combination thereof. The device 900 may include components for bi-directional communications including components for transmitting and receiving communications, such as a processor 902, a memory 904, a transceiver 906, and, optionally, an I/O controller 908. These components may be in electronic communication or otherwise coupled (e.g., operatively, communicatively, functionally, electronically, electrically) via one or more interfaces (e.g., buses) .

The processor 902, the memory 904, the transceiver 906, or various combinations thereof or various components thereof may be examples of means for performing various aspects of the present disclosure as described herein. For example, the processor 902, the memory 904, the transceiver 906, or various combinations or components thereof may support a method for performing one or more of the operations described herein.

In some implementations, the processor 902, the memory 904, the transceiver 906, or various combinations or components thereof may be implemented in hardware (e.g., in communications management circuitry) . The hardware may include a processor, a digital signal processor (DSP) , an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC) , a field-programmable gate array (FPGA) or other programmable logic device, a discrete gate or transistor logic, discrete hardware components, or any combination thereof configured as or otherwise supporting a means for performing the functions described in the present disclosure. In some implementations, the processor 902 and the memory 904 coupled with the processor 902 may be configured to perform one or more of the functions described herein (e.g., executing, by the processor 902, instructions stored in the memory 904) .

For example, the processor 902 may support wireless communication at the device 900 in accordance with examples as disclosed herein. The processor 902 may be configured to operable to support a means for transmitting a first signal for a sensing service, wherein the first signal is indicative of a request for sensing assistance; a means for receiving a reflected first signal; and a means for monitoring a response for the request from a second device.

In another example, the processor 902 may support wireless communication at the device 900 in accordance with examples as disclosed herein. The processor 902 may be configured to operable to support a means for receiving, from a first device, a first signal indicative of a request for sensing assistance, wherein the first signal is associated with sensing for a sensing service; and a means for transmitting, to the first device, a response for the request.

The processor 902 may include an intelligent hardware device (e.g., a general-purpose processor, a DSP, a CPU, a microcontroller, an ASIC, an FPGA, a programmable logic device, a discrete gate or transistor logic component, a discrete hardware component, or any combination thereof) . In some implementations, the processor 902 may be configured to operate a memory array using a memory controller. In some other implementations, a memory controller may be integrated into the processor 902. The processor 902 may be configured to execute computer-readable instructions stored in a memory (e.g., the memory 904) to cause the device 900 to perform various functions of the present disclosure.

The memory 904 may include random access memory (RAM) and read-only memory (ROM) . The memory 904 may store computer-readable, computer-executable code including instructions that, when executed by the processor 902 cause the device 900 to perform various functions described herein. The code may be stored in a non-transitory computer-readable medium such as system memory or another type of memory. In some implementations, the code may not be directly executable by the processor 902 but may cause a computer (e.g., when compiled and executed) to perform functions described herein. In some implementations, the memory 904 may include, among other things, a basic I/O system (BIOS) which may control basic hardware or software operation such as the interaction with peripheral components or devices.

The I/O controller 908 may manage input and output signals for the device 900. The I/O controller 908 may also manage peripherals not integrated into the device M02. In some implementations, the I/O controller 908 may represent a physical connection or port to an external peripheral. In some implementations, the I/O controller 908 may utilize an operating system such as or another known operating system. In some implementations, the I/O controller 908 may be implemented as part of a processor, such as the processor 906. In some implementations, a user may interact with the device 900 via the I/O controller 908 or via hardware components controlled by the I/O controller 908.

In some implementations, the device 900 may include a single antenna 910. However, in some other implementations, the device 900 may have more than one antenna 910 (i.e., multiple antennas) , including multiple antenna panels or antenna arrays, which may be capable of concurrently transmitting or receiving multiple wireless transmissions. The transceiver 906 may communicate bi-directionally, via the one or more antennas 910, wired, or wireless links as described herein. For example, the transceiver 906 may represent a wireless transceiver and may communicate bi-directionally with another wireless transceiver. The transceiver 906 may also include a modem to modulate the packets, to provide the modulated packets to one or more antennas 910 for transmission, and to demodulate packets received from the one or more antennas 910. The transceiver 906 may include one or more transmit chains, one or more receive chains, or a combination thereof.

A transmit chain may be configured to generate and transmit signals (e.g., control information, data, packets) . The transmit chain may include at least one modulator for modulating data onto a carrier signal, preparing the signal for transmission over a wireless medium. The at least one modulator may be configured to support one or more techniques such as amplitude modulation (AM) , frequency modulation (FM) , or digital modulation schemes like phase-shift keying (PSK) or quadrature amplitude modulation (QAM) . The transmit chain may also include at least one power amplifier configured to amplify the modulated signal to an appropriate power level suitable for transmission over the wireless medium. The transmit chain may also include one or more antennas 910 for transmitting the amplified signal into the air or wireless medium.

A receive chain may be configured to receive signals (e.g., control information, data, packets) over a wireless medium. For example, the receive chain may include one or more antennas 910 for receive the signal over the air or wireless medium. The receive chain may include at least one amplifier (e.g., a low-noise amplifier (LNA) ) configured to amplify the received signal. The receive chain may include at least one demodulator configured to demodulate the receive signal and obtain the transmitted data by reversing the modulation technique applied during transmission of the signal. The receive chain may include at least one decoder for decoding the processing the demodulated signal to receive the transmitted data.

FIG. 10 illustrates an example of a processor 1000 that supports sensing signal transmission in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure. The processor 1000 may be an example of a processor configured to perform various operations in accordance with examples as described herein. The processor 1000 may include a controller 1002 configured to perform various operations in accordance with examples as described herein. The processor 1000 may optionally include at least one memory 1004, such as L1/L2/L3 cache. Additionally, or alternatively, the processor 1000 may optionally include one or more arithmetic-logic units (ALUs) 1006. One or more of these components may be in electronic communication or otherwise coupled (e.g., operatively, communicatively, functionally, electronically, electrically) via one or more interfaces (e.g., buses) .

The processor 1000 may be a processor chipset and include a protocol stack (e.g., a software stack) executed by the processor chipset to perform various operations (e.g., receiving, obtaining, retrieving, transmitting, outputting, forwarding, storing, determining, identifying, accessing, writing, reading) in accordance with examples as described herein. The processor chipset may include one or more cores, one or more caches (e.g., memory local to or included in the processor chipset (e.g., the processor 1000) or other memory (e.g., random access memory (RAM) , read-only memory (ROM) , dynamic RAM (DRAM) , synchronous dynamic RAM (SDRAM) , static RAM (SRAM) , ferroelectric RAM (FeRAM) , magnetic RAM (MRAM) , resistive RAM (RRAM) , flash memory, phase change memory (PCM) , and others) .

The controller 1002 may be configured to manage and coordinate various operations (e.g., signaling, receiving, obtaining, retrieving, transmitting, outputting, forwarding, storing, determining, identifying, accessing, writing, reading) of the processor 1000 to cause the processor 1000 to support various operations of a base station in accordance with examples as described herein. For example, the controller 1002 may operate as a control unit of the processor 1000, generating control signals that manage the operation of various components of the processor 1000. These control signals include enabling or disabling functional units, selecting data paths, initiating memory access, and coordinating timing of operations.

The controller 1002 may be configured to fetch (e.g., obtain, retrieve, receive) instructions from the memory 1004 and determine subsequent instruction (s) to be executed to cause the processor 1000 to support various operations in accordance with examples as described herein. The controller 1002 may be configured to track memory address of instructions associated with the memory 1004. The controller 1002 may be configured to decode instructions to determine the operation to be performed and the operands involved. For example, the controller 1002 may be configured to interpret the instruction and determine control signals to be output to other components of the processor 1000 to cause the processor 1000 to support various operations in accordance with examples as described herein. Additionally, or alternatively, the controller 1002 may be configured to manage flow of data within the processor 1000. The controller 1002 may be configured to control transfer of data between registers, arithmetic logic units (ALUs) , and other functional units of the processor 1000.

The memory 1004 may include one or more caches (e.g., memory local to or included in the processor 1000 or other memory, such RAM, ROM, DRAM, SDRAM, SRAM, MRAM, flash memory, etc. In some implementation, the memory 1004 may reside within or on a processor chipset (e.g., local to the processor 1000) . In some other implementations, the memory 1004 may reside external to the processor chipset (e.g., remote to the processor 1000) .

The memory 1004 may store computer-readable, computer-executable code including instructions that, when executed by the processor 1000, cause the processor 1000 to perform various functions described herein. The code may be stored in a non-transitory computer-readable medium such as system memory or another type of memory. The controller 1002 and/or the processor 1000 may be configured to execute computer-readable instructions stored in the memory 1004 to cause the processor 1000 to perform various functions. For example, the processor 1000 and/or the controller 1002 may be coupled with or to the memory 1004, and the processor 1000, the controller 1002, and the memory 1004 may be configured to perform various functions described herein. In some examples, the processor 1000 may include multiple processors and the memory 1004 may include multiple memories. One or more of the multiple processors may be coupled with one or more of the multiple memories, which may, individually or collectively, be configured to perform various functions herein.

The one or more ALUs 1006 may be configured to support various operations in accordance with examples as described herein. In some implementation, the one or more ALUs 1006 may reside within or on a processor chipset (e.g., the processor 1000) . In some other implementations, the one or more ALUs 1006 may reside external to the processor chipset (e.g., the processor 1000) . One or more ALUs 1006 may perform one or more computations such as addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division on data. For example, one or more ALUs 1006 may receive input operands and an operation code, which determines an operation to be executed. One or more ALUs 1006 be configured with a variety of logical and arithmetic circuits, including adders, subtractors, shifters, and logic gates, to process and manipulate the data according to the operation. Additionally, or alternatively, the one or more ALUs 1006 may support logical operations such as AND, OR, exclusive-OR (XOR) , not-OR (NOR) , and not-AND (NAND) , enabling the one or more ALUs 1006 to handle conditional operations, comparisons, and bitwise operations.

For example, the processor 1000 may support wireless communication in accordance with examples as disclosed herein. The processor 1000 may be configured to or operable to support a means for transmitting a first signal for a sensing service, wherein the first signal is indicative of a request for sensing assistance; a means for receiving a reflected first signal; and a means for monitoring a response for the request from a second device.

In another example, the processor 1000 may support wireless communication in accordance with examples as disclosed herein. The processor 1000 may be configured to or operable to support a means for receiving, from a first device, a first signal indicative of a request for sensing assistance, wherein the first signal is associated with sensing for a sensing service; and a means for transmitting, to the first device, a response for the request.

FIG. 11 illustrates a flowchart of a method 1100 that supports sensing signal transmission in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure. The operations of the method 1100 may be implemented by a device or its components as described herein. For example, the operations of the method 1100 may be performed by the first device 210 as described herein. In some implementations, the device may execute a set of instructions to control the function elements of the device to perform the described functions. Additionally, or alternatively, the device may perform aspects of the described functions using special-purpose hardware.

At 1105, the method may include transmitting a first signal for a sensing service, wherein the first signal is indicative of a request for sensing assistance. The operations of 1105 may be performed in accordance with examples as described herein. In some implementations, aspects of the operations of 1105 may be performed by a device as described with reference to FIG. 1A.

At 1110, the method may include receiving a reflected first signal. The operations of 1110 may be performed in accordance with examples as described herein. In some implementations, aspects of the operations of 1110 may be performed by a device as described with reference to FIG. 1A.

At 1115, the method may include monitoring a response for the request from a second device. The operations of 1115 may be performed in accordance with examples as described herein. In some implementations, aspects of the operations of 1115 may be performed by a device as described with reference to FIG. 1A.

FIG. 12 illustrates a flowchart of a method 1200 that supports sensing signal transmission in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure. The operations of the method 1200 may be implemented by a device or its components as described herein. For example, the operations of the method 1200 may be performed by the second device 220 as described herein. In some implementations, the device may execute a set of instructions to control the function elements of the device to perform the described functions. Additionally, or alternatively, the device may perform aspects of the described functions using special-purpose hardware.

At 1205, the method may include receiving, from a first device, a first signal indicative of a request for sensing assistance, wherein the first signal is associated with sensing for a sensing service. The operations of 1205 may be performed in accordance with examples as described herein. In some implementations, aspects of the operations of 1205 may be performed by a device as described with reference to FIG. 1A.

At 1210, the method may include transmitting, to the first device, a response for the request. The operations of 1210 may be performed in accordance with examples as described herein. In some implementations, aspects of the operations of 1210 may be performed by a device as described with reference to FIG. 1A.

It should be noted that the methods described herein describes possible implementations, and that the operations and the steps may be rearranged or otherwise modified and that other implementations are possible. Further, aspects from two or more of the methods may be combined.

The various illustrative blocks and components described in connection with the disclosure herein may be implemented or performed with a general-purpose processor, a DSP, an ASIC, a CPU, an FPGA or other programmable logic device, discrete gate or transistor logic, discrete hardware components, or any combination thereof designed to perform the functions described herein. A general-purpose processor may be a microprocessor, but in the alternative, the processor may be any processor, controller, microcontroller, or state machine. A processor may also be implemented as a combination of computing devices (e.g., a combination of a DSP and a microprocessor, multiple microprocessors, one or more microprocessors in conjunction with a DSP core, or any other such configuration.

The functions described herein may be implemented in hardware, software executed by a processor, firmware, or any combination thereof. If implemented in software executed by a processor, the functions may be stored on or transmitted over as one or more instructions or code on a computer-readable medium. Other examples and implementations are within the scope of the disclosure and appended claims. For example, due to the nature of software, functions described herein may be implemented using software executed by a processor, hardware, firmware, hardwiring, or combinations of any of these. Features implementing functions may also be physically located at various positions, including being distributed such that portions of functions are implemented at different physical locations.

Computer-readable media includes both non-transitory computer storage media and communication media including any medium that facilitates transfer of a computer program from one place to another. A non-transitory storage medium may be any available medium that may be accessed by a general-purpose or special-purpose computer. By way of example, non-transitory computer-readable media may include RAM, ROM, electrically erasable programmable ROM (EEPROM) , flash memory, compact disk (CD) ROM or other optical disk storage, magnetic disk storage or other magnetic storage devices, or any other non-transitory medium that may be used to carry or store desired program code means in the form of instructions or data structures and that may be accessed by a general-purpose or special-purpose computer, or a general-purpose or special-purpose processor.

As used herein, including in the claims, an article “a” before an element is unrestricted and understood to refer to “at least one” of those elements or “one or more” of those elements. The terms “a, ” “at least one, ” “one or more, ” and “at least one of one or more” may be interchangeable. As used herein, including in the claims, “or” as used in a list of items (e.g., a list of items prefaced by a phrase such as “at least one of” or “one or more of” or “one or both of” ) indicates an inclusive list such that, for example, a list of at least one of A, B, or C means A or B or C or AB or AC or BC or ABC (i.e., A and B and C) . Also, as used herein, the phrase “based on” shall not be construed as a reference to a closed set of conditions. For example, an example step that is described as “based on condition A” may be based on both a condition A and a condition B without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. In other words, as used herein, the phrase “based on”shall be construed in the same manner as the phrase “based at least in part on. Further, as used herein, including in the claims, a “set” may include one or more elements.

The description herein is provided to enable a person having ordinary skill in the art to make or use the disclosure. Various modifications to the disclosure will be apparent to a person having ordinary skill in the art, and the generic principles defined herein may be applied to other variations without departing from the scope of the disclosure. Thus, the disclosure is not limited to the examples and designs described herein but is to be accorded the broadest scope consistent with the principles and novel features disclosed herein.

Claims

A first device, comprising:

a processor; and

a transceiver coupled to the processor,

wherein the processor is configured to:

transmit, via the transceiver, a first signal for a sensing service, wherein the first signal is indicative of a request for sensing assistance;

receive, via the transceiver, a reflected first signal; and

monitor, via the transceiver, a response for the request from a second device.
The first device of claim 1, wherein the processor is further configured to:

transmit, via the transceiver, a second signal for the sensing service;

receive, via the transceiver, a reflected second signal;

obtain sensing results for the sensing service based on measurements on the received reflected second signal; and

determine that sensing assistance is needed.
The first device of claim 2, wherein the processor is further configured to:

determine that sensing assistance is needed based on a comparison between the measurements on the received reflected second signal and a threshold associated with a measurement quantity,

wherein the threshold is pre-defined and/or network configured, and

wherein the measurement quantity is pre-defined or network configured and comprises at least a received signal strength.
The first device of claim 1, wherein the first signal comprises at least one of the following:

a signal for downlink synchronization comprising an identity, wherein the identity is indicative of at least one of the following: the request for sensing assistance, or a support of the first device for sensing functionality; or

a signal carrying a second type of sequence, wherein the second type of sequence is associated with at least one of the following:

at least one second predefined root value,

a second predefined length, or

a second predefined RE mapping.
The first device of claim 4, wherein the second type of sequence is associated with mono-static sensing and sensing assistance requesting.
The first device of claim 1, wherein the processor is further configured to:

transmit, to the second device via the transceiver, system information comprising at least one of the following:

an indication that the first signal is to be transmitted, or

a resource configuration of the first signal.
The first device of claim 1, wherein a time offset between a time domain resource for the response and a time domain resource for the first signal is predefined, or is associated with a sequence carried in the first signal; and

wherein a frequency domain resource for the response is predefined, or is associated with a sequence carried in the first signal or a frequency domain resource for the first signal.
The first device of claim 1, wherein the processor is further configured to:

transmit, to the second device via the transceiver, a resource configuration of the response, wherein the resource configuration of the response is carried in system information.
The first device of claim 1, wherein the response is received from the second device, and the processor is further configured to:

determine a link quality between the first device and the second device based on the response; and

one of the following:

continue transmitting the first signal within a time window, wherein the link quality is below a threshold; or

terminate the sensing service, wherein the link quality is below the threshold and a time window expires; or

set up a connection with the second device, wherein the link quality is above the threshold.
The first device of claim 1, the processor is further configured to one of the following:

continue transmitting the first signal within a time window, wherein no response for the request is received; or

terminate the sensing service, wherein no response for the request is received and a time window expires; or

set up a connection with the second device, wherein the response is received from the second device.
The first device of claim 1, wherein the response is received from the second device, and the processor is further configured to:

transmit, to the second device via the transceiver, a configuration for a third signal for the sensing service; and

transmit to or receive from, the second device via the transceiver, the third signal for the sensing service based on the configuration.
The first device of claim 11, wherein the response is carried in message 1 (Msg1) for a random access procedure of the second device, the configuration for the third signal is carried in at least one of the following:

message 2 (Msg2) for the random access procedure,

message 4 (Msg4) for the random access procedure, or

a signaling after the random access procedure.
The first device of claim 1, wherein the response is received from the second device, and the processor is further configured to:

transmit, to the second device via the transceiver, requirements associated with the sensing service;

receive, from the second device via the transceiver, a configuration for a third signal for the sensing service; and

transmit to or receive from, the second device via the transceiver, the third signal for the sensing service.
The first device of claim 13, wherein the first signal is carried in Msg1 for a random access procedure of the first device,

wherein the response is carried in Msg2 for the random access procedure,

wherein the requirements associated with the sensing service is carried in Msg3 for the random access procedure, and

wherein the configuration for the third signal is carried in Msg4 for the random access procedure or a signaling after the random access procedure.
The first device of claim 1, wherein the first device is a network entity and the second device is a user equipment, or

wherein the first device is a user equipment and the second device is a network entity.
A second device, comprising:

a processor; and

a transceiver coupled to the processor,

wherein the processor is configured to:

receive, from a first device via the transceiver, a first signal indicative of a request for sensing assistance, wherein the first signal is associated with sensing for a sensing service; and

transmit, to the first device via the transceiver, a response for the request.
The second device of claim 16, wherein the processor is further configured to:

receive, from the first device via the transceiver, a configuration for a third signal for the sensing service; and

transmit to or receive from, the first device via the transceiver, the third signal for the sensing service based on the configuration.
The second device of claim 16, wherein the processor is further configured to:

receive, from the first device via the transceiver, requirements associated with the sensing service;

transmit, to the first device via the transceiver, a configuration for a third signal for the sensing service, wherein the configuration for the third signal is determined based on the requirements; and

transmit to or receive from, the first device via the transceiver, the third signal for the sensing service.
A processor for wireless communication, comprising:

at least one memory; and

a controller coupled with the at least one memory and configured to cause the processor to:

receive, from a first device, a first signal indicative of a request for sensing assistance, wherein the first signal is associated with sensing for a sensing service; and

transmit, to the first device, a response for the request.
A method performed by a second device, the method comprising:

receiving, from a first device, a first signal indicative of a request for sensing assistance, wherein the first signal is associated with sensing for a sensing service; and

transmitting, to the first device, a response for the request.