WO2024082967A1

WO2024082967A1 - Communication method and apparatus

Info

Publication number: WO2024082967A1
Application number: PCT/CN2023/123230
Authority: WO
Inventors: 陈冬明; 蒋金弟; 李少华; 陈雍珏
Original assignee: 华为技术有限公司
Priority date: 2022-10-21
Filing date: 2023-10-07
Publication date: 2024-04-25
Also published as: CN117917670A

Abstract

The present application relates to the technical field of communications. Provided are a communication method and apparatus, which can reduce the antenna idling delay of a reader-writer, such that the time that the reader-writer takes to inventory labels is shortened, and the inventory rate is increased during an inventory process. The method may comprise: sending query signaling by means of first antenna; and if first information from a first device is not detected in 2Q slots, switching to a second antenna to send the query signaling, wherein the query signaling is used for indicating a first slot-count parameter (Q) value, the first Q value is 0, and the Q value is used for testing the first device.

Description

Communication method and device

This application claims priority to the Chinese patent application filed with the State Intellectual Property Office of China on October 21, 2022, with application number 202211296381.3 and application name “Communication Method and Device”, all contents of which are incorporated by reference in this application.

Technical Field

The present application relates to the field of communication technology, and in particular to a communication method and device.

Background technique

Radio frequency identification (RFID) technology is a contactless automatic identification technology. RFID systems usually include readers and tags. The reader can send a selection signal to select one or more tags for inventory. The reader can also send a query signal to the tag to initiate an inventory cycle.

The query signaling may include a slot-count parameter (Q) value. An inventory cycle may include 2 ^Q slots. The reader may determine whether there is a tag in each slot. When the tag receives the query signaling, it may generate a random number belonging to [0, 2 ^Q -1] as a slot counter based on the Q value. Each time a query repetition (QueryRep) signaling is received, the slot counter is reduced by 1. When the slot counter is equal to 0, the tag may send a random number. If the reader successfully receives the random number sent by the tag, the reader may send a confirmation message to the tag. When the reader finishes the inventory of a tag, it may also send a query repetition signaling to trigger the inventory of the next tag.

To reduce costs, readers usually support multiple antennas, and different antennas can use time division multiplexing to inventory tags. When each antenna of the reader takes inventory of tags, if there are no tags to be inventoried within the coverage of the current antenna, the antenna will be idle.

How to reduce the antenna idling delay of the reader during the inventory process and shorten the inventory time of the reader for tags has become a technical problem that needs to be solved urgently.

Summary of the invention

The present application provides a communication method and device, which can reduce the antenna idling delay of a reader during an inventory process, achieve rapid switching of the antenna, reduce the inventory time of the reader for tags, and improve the inventory rate.

In a first aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication method, which can be applied to a second device, and the method may include: sending a query signaling through a first antenna; if the first information from the first device is not detected in 2 ^Q time slots, switching to the second antenna to send a query signaling; wherein the query signaling is used to indicate a first time slot counting parameter Q value, the first Q value is 0, and the Q value is used to detect the first device.

Based on the first aspect, since an inventory cycle is 2 ^Q time slots, the second device (such as a reader) sets the first Q value to 0, that is, the second device sets an inventory cycle to 1 time slot. If there is a first device to be inventoried (such as a tag) within the coverage of the first antenna, the second device will receive the first information sent by the first device in the 1 time slot. If there is no first device to be inventoried within the coverage of the first antenna, the second device will not receive the first information sent by the first device in the 1 time slot, so that it can quickly detect whether there is a first device to be inventoried within the coverage of the first antenna. If there is no first device to be inventoried, the second device can directly switch to the second antenna, thereby reducing the idling delay of the first antenna, reducing invalid inventory time, and reducing the inventory time of the second device for the first device, so as to achieve rapid inventory of the first device and improve inventory efficiency.

In a possible design, if the first information is not detected in 2 ^Q time slots, the collision probability is set to 0; wherein the collision probability is the collision probability between one or more first devices.

In a possible design, if the collision probability is 0, the query signaling is switched to the second antenna.

Based on the above two possible designs, the second device can also set the collision probability to 0 when the first information is not detected in 2 ^Q time slots, to indicate that there is no first device to be inventoried within the coverage of the first antenna, and then the second device can switch to the second antenna for inventory, thereby realizing switching between antennas.

In one possible design, if at least two conflicting first information are detected in 2 ^Q time slots, a query adjustment signaling is sent; wherein, the at least two conflicting first information are at least two first information detected in the same time slot; the query adjustment signaling includes a second Q value, and the second Q value is greater than the first Q value.

Based on this possible design, if the second device detects at least two conflicting first information in 2 ^Q time slots, it can indicate that there are multiple first devices to be inventoried within the coverage of the first antenna. The second device can adjust the Q value to the second Q value, thereby reducing the probability that different first devices determine the same initial value of the time slot counter according to the second Q value, thereby reducing the collision between the first devices, thereby Rapidly inventory a large number of first devices to improve the success rate of the inventory of the first devices.

In one possible design, for the i-th time slot, where ^1≤i≤2Q ; if at least two conflicting first information are detected in the i-th time slot, the collision probability is adjusted once; if at least two conflicting first information are not detected in the i-th time slot, the collision probability is not adjusted. Wherein, ^1≤i≤2Q can also be described as i traversing 1 to ^2Q .

Based on this possible design, when the second device detects at least two conflicting first information in 2 ^Q time slots, it may adjust the collision probability to indicate that there is a first device to be inventoried within the coverage of the first antenna.

In one possible design, if there is no conflict between the first information detected in 2 ^Q time slots, a confirmation message is sent to the first device associated with the first information; if the second information from the first device associated with the first information is not successfully detected, a query adjustment signaling is sent; wherein the query adjustment signaling includes a second Q value, and the second Q value is greater than the first Q value.

Based on this possible design, if the second device fails to successfully detect the second information from the first device associated with the first information, it may indicate that there are multiple first devices to be inventoried within the coverage of the first antenna. The second device may adjust the Q value to the second Q value, thereby reducing the probability that different first devices have the same initial value of the time slot counter determined according to the second Q value, reducing collisions between first devices, thereby quickly inventorying a large number of first devices and improving the success rate of the inventory of first devices.

In one possible design, for the i-th time slot, where 1≤i≤2 ^Q ; if the first information without conflict is detected in the i-th time slot, but the second information from the first device associated with the first information is not successfully detected, the collision probability is adjusted once; if the first information without conflict is detected in the i-th time slot, and the second information from the first device associated with the first information is successfully detected, the collision probability is not adjusted. Wherein, 1≤i≤2 ^Q can also be described as i traversing 1 to 2 ^Q .

Based on this possible design, the second device may also adjust the collision probability when failing to successfully detect the second information from the first device associated with the first information to indicate that there is a first device to be inventoried within the coverage of the first antenna.

In a possible design, after the first information is detected in 2 ^Q time slots, if the collision probability is not 0, a query adjustment signaling is sent.

Based on this possible design, if the collision probability is not 0, it may indicate that there is a first device to be inventoried within the coverage range of the first antenna, and then the second device can adjust the Q value to the second Q value, thereby reducing the probability that different first devices have the same initial value of the time slot counter determined according to the second Q value, reducing collisions between first devices, thereby quickly inventorying a large number of first devices and improving the inventory success rate of the first devices.

In a possible design, the second Q value is determined according to the collision probability.

Based on this possible design, the second device can determine the second Q value according to the collision probability so that the second Q value matches the number of first devices to be inventoried within the coverage of the first antenna as much as possible, thereby improving the success rate of the first device inventory.

In the second aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication method, which can be applied to a first device, and the method may include: receiving query information from a second device; wherein; the query information includes a first time slot counting parameter Q value, and the first Q value is 0; based on the first Q value, determining the initial value of the time slot counter; when the value of the time slot counter is updated to 0, sending the first information to the second device.

In one possible design, a query adjustment signaling is received from a second device, wherein the query adjustment signaling includes a second Q value, and the second Q value is greater than the first Q value; and based on the second Q value, an initial value of the time slot counter is updated.

Based on this possible design, if there is a first device to be inventoried within the coverage of the first antenna, the second device can adjust the Q value to the second Q value, thereby reducing the probability that different first devices have the same initial value of the time slot counter determined according to the second Q value, reducing collisions between first devices, thereby quickly inventorying a large number of first devices and improving the success rate of the inventory of first devices.

In a third aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication device, which can be applied to the second device in the first aspect or a possible design of the first aspect to implement the function performed by the second device. The communication device can be a second device, or a chip or system on chip of the second device, etc. The communication device can execute the function performed by the second device through hardware, or execute the corresponding software implementation through hardware. The hardware or software includes one or more modules corresponding to the above functions. For example, a transceiver module and a processing module. The transceiver module is used to send query signaling through the first antenna; wherein the query signaling is used to indicate the first time slot count parameter Q value, ... A Q value is 0, and the Q value is used to detect the first device; the transceiver module is also used to switch to the second antenna to send the query signaling if the processing module fails to detect the first information from the first device in 2 ^Q time slots.

In one possible design, the processing module is further used to set the collision probability to 0 if the first information is not detected in 2 ^Q time slots; wherein the collision probability is the collision probability between one or more first devices.

In a possible design, the transceiver module is specifically configured to switch to the second antenna to send the query signaling if the collision probability is 0.

In one possible design, the transceiver module is also used to send a query adjustment signaling if the processing module detects at least two conflicting first information in 2 ^Q time slots; wherein the at least two conflicting first information are at least two first information detected in the same time slot; and the query adjustment signaling includes a second Q value, and the second Q value is greater than the first Q value.

In one possible design, for the i-th time slot, 1≤i≤2 ^Q ; the processing module is further configured to adjust the collision probability once if at least two conflicting first information are detected in the i-th time slot; the processing module is further configured to not adjust the collision probability if at least two conflicting first information are not detected in the i-th time slot. 1≤i≤2 ^Q can also be described as i traversing from 1 to 2 ^Q .

In one possible design, the transceiver module is also used to send confirmation information to the first device associated with the first information if there is no conflict between the first information detected by the processing module in 2 ^Q time slots; the transceiver module is also used to send query adjustment signaling if the processing module fails to successfully detect the second information from the first device associated with the first information; wherein the query adjustment signaling includes a second Q value, and the second Q value is greater than the first Q value.

In one possible design, for the i-th time slot, 1≤i≤2 ^Q ; the processing module is further configured to adjust the collision probability once if the first information without conflict is detected in the i-th time slot, but the second information from the first device associated with the first information is not successfully detected; the processing module is further configured to not adjust the collision probability if the first information without conflict is detected in the i-th time slot, and the second information from the first device associated with the first information is successfully detected. 1≤i≤2 ^Q can also be described as i traversing 1 to 2 ^Q .

In a possible design, the transceiver module is also used to send a query adjustment signaling if the collision probability is not 0 when the processing module detects the first information in 2 ^Q time slots.

In a possible design, the processing module is further used to determine a second Q value based on the collision probability.

It should be noted that the modules involved in the third aspect or the possible design of the third aspect can perform the corresponding functions in the method example of the first aspect mentioned above. For details, please refer to the detailed description in the method example. The beneficial effects can also refer to the relevant description of the first aspect mentioned above, which will not be repeated here.

In a fourth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication device, which can be applied to the first device in the second aspect or the possible design of the second aspect to implement the function performed by the first device. The communication device can be the first device, or it can be a chip or system on chip of the first device, etc. The communication device can perform the function performed by the first device through hardware, or it can perform the corresponding software implementation through hardware. The hardware or software includes one or more modules corresponding to the above functions. For example, a transceiver module and a processing module. The transceiver module is used to receive query information from the second device; wherein the query information includes a first time slot counting parameter Q value, and the first Q value is 0; the processing module is used to determine the initial value of the time slot counter according to the first Q value; the transceiver module is also used to send the first information to the second device when the value of the time slot counter is updated to 0.

In one possible design, the transceiver module is also used to receive query adjustment signaling from a second device; wherein the query adjustment signaling includes a second Q value, and the second Q value is greater than the first Q value; the processing module is also used to update the initial value of the time slot counter according to the second Q value.

It should be noted that the modules involved in the fourth aspect or the possible design of the fourth aspect can perform the corresponding functions in the method example of the second aspect mentioned above. For details, please refer to the detailed description in the method example. The beneficial effects can also refer to the relevant description of the second aspect mentioned above, which will not be repeated here.

In a fifth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication device, which includes one or more processors; one or more processors are used to run computer programs or instructions, and when the one or more processors execute the computer instructions or instructions, the communication device executes the communication method described in any one of the first aspect to the second aspect.

In one possible design, the communication device further includes one or more memories, the one or more memories are coupled to one or more processors, and the one or more memories are used to store the above-mentioned computer programs or instructions. In one possible implementation, the memory is located outside the communication device. In another possible implementation, the memory is located inside the communication device. In an embodiment of the present application, the processor and the memory may also be integrated into one device, that is, the processor and the memory may also be integrated together. In one possible implementation, the communication device further includes a transceiver, and the transceiver is used to receive information and/or send information.

In one possible design, the communication device also includes one or more communication interfaces, the one or more communication interfaces are coupled to the one or more processors, and the one or more communication interfaces are used to communicate with other modules outside the communication device.

In a sixth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication device, which includes an input/output interface and a logic circuit; the input/output interface is used to input and/or output information; the logic circuit is used to execute the communication method described in any one of the first to second aspects, and process and/or generate information based on the information.

In the seventh aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a computer-readable storage medium, which stores computer instructions or programs. When the computer instructions or programs are run on a computer, the communication method described in any one of the first to second aspects is executed.

In an eighth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a computer program product comprising computer instructions, which, when executed on a computer, enables the communication method described in any one of the first to second aspects to be executed.

In a ninth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a computer program, which, when executed on a computer, enables the communication method described in any one of the first to second aspects to be executed.

Among them, the technical effects brought about by any design method in the fifth to ninth aspects can refer to the technical effects brought about by any design method in the first to second aspects mentioned above.

In a tenth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication system, which may include the second device as described in the third aspect and the first device as described in the fourth aspect.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG1 is a schematic diagram of a communication principle of an RFID system provided in an embodiment of the present application;

FIG2 is a flow chart of a reader/writer providing an embodiment of the present application for selecting, inventorying, and accessing tags;

FIG3 is a schematic diagram of a reader-writer communication principle provided in an embodiment of the present application;

FIG4 is a schematic diagram of a multi-door entry and exit scenario provided in an embodiment of the present application;

FIG5 is a schematic diagram of a communication system provided in an embodiment of the present application;

FIG6 is a schematic diagram of a communication system provided in an embodiment of the present application;

FIG7 is a schematic diagram of a communication system provided in an embodiment of the present application;

FIG8 is an interaction diagram of a communication system provided in an embodiment of the present application;

FIG9 is a schematic diagram of the structure of a communication device provided in an embodiment of the present application;

FIG10 is a flow chart of a communication method provided in an embodiment of the present application;

FIG11 is a flow chart of a communication method provided in an embodiment of the present application;

FIG12 is a flow chart of a communication method provided in an embodiment of the present application;

FIG13 is a schematic diagram of a link timing provided in an embodiment of the present application;

FIG14 is a schematic diagram of the composition of a communication device provided in an embodiment of the present application;

FIG15 is a structural diagram of a communication device provided in an embodiment of the present application.

Detailed ways

The implementation of the embodiments of the present application will be described in detail below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

Radio frequency identification (RFID) technology: It is a contactless automatic recognition technology, or described as a technology that performs contactless two-way data communication via radio frequency. It is mainly used for identity recognition, and can also be used to read and write user data. RFID systems usually include readers and tags.

Among them, in 1937, RFID technology was derived due to the development and progress of radar technology. In 1948, Harry Stockman's "communication using reflected power" laid the theoretical foundation for RFID technology. In the classification of the International Organization for Standardization, RFID technology belongs to the field of automatic identification and data capture (AIDC) in information technology, and is formulated by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) and the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC). RFID standardization work can be traced back to the 1980s. In 1987, the International Organization for Standardization and the International Electrotechnical Commission jointly established JTC-1 on the basis of the original Information Processing System Technical Committee (ISO TC-97), the Microprocessor Sub-Technical Committee (IEC TC-47/SC47B) and the Information Technology Equipment Technical Committee (IEC TC-83). Automatic identification and data collection technology brings high efficiency, high reliability and automation to information management. It is a technology commonly used in international commodity circulation and even the entire supply chain management, which needs to be standardized and normalized. Automatic identification technology has developed into an independent Since then, the production cost of RFID-related products has further decreased, and the application areas have gradually increased. RFID technology is recognized as one of the major application technologies in the 21st century.

Reader/Writer: A device with reading and writing functions, for example, a handheld or fixed device that reads or writes tag information. Alternatively, it can also be understood as a device that communicates with a tag.

Tag: It can also be called an electronic tag or an RFID tag. From the tag properties, it can be divided into passive tags, semi-active tags, and active tags according to whether it needs to have its own battery.

For passive tags, there is no battery inside, and the energy for their operation can be provided by the reader. That is, the reader can emit energy to stimulate the tag, and the tag reflects the excitation energy and carries information at the same time, which is then received and demodulated by the reader. For example, part of the energy of the continuous wave (CW) sent by the reader can be used for internal processing such as encoding and decoding, modulation and demodulation of the tag. In addition, the continuous wave can also be used as a carrier to carry the uplink information of the tag. Passive tags can also be called passive Internet of Things devices (passive IOT). Based on this working mode, the cost of passive tags can be made lower and the working life is longer.

For semi-active tags, a battery may be included inside, and internal processing such as encoding, decoding, modulation and demodulation may be powered by the battery, but the continuous wave of the reader is still required as a carrier.

Active tags may include batteries inside. Active tags can use their own batteries to actively transmit information. They are relatively expensive and their working life is limited by the battery capacity and frequency of use.

For example, as shown in Figure 1, in RFID technology, the device with both transmitting and receiving capabilities is an integrated design, which can generate a signal waveform in the reader, transmit the signal through the antenna, and propagate the signal through the air interface to reach the tag. The tag collects energy based on the received signal. If the power is greater than the excitation threshold, the tag will be excited, sense the signal and backscatter the signal to the reader, which receives the signal to complete the communication between the reader and the tag.

Due to the poor receiving sensitivity and small reflection energy of the tag, the communication distance between the reader and the tag is relatively short. For example, the reading and writing distance of low frequency (LF) RFID is less than 0.1 meters, the reading distance of high frequency (HF) RFID is 0.1 to 0.2 meters, and the reading distance of ultra high frequency (UHF) RFID is less than 15 meters (such as passive tags).

In the RFID system, the reader can perform operations such as selection, inventory, and access on tags. The selection operation is used to select one or a group of tags for inventory and access. The inventory operation can be understood as the process of the reader identifying the tag. The access operation can be understood as the process of the reader interacting with the tag. The tag needs to be identified by the reader before access.

Exemplarily, the process of selecting, inventorying, and accessing tags by a reader/writer may be shown in FIG2. Referring to FIG2, the process includes the following steps:

Step 201: The reader sends a select signaling.

The reader can select one or more tags based on one or more values in the tag memory, and tags that meet the selection conditions are selected to enter the inventory state. Step 201 is an optional step. For example, when the tags to be inventoried are all the tags stored in the current tag memory, step 201 may not be performed.

Step 202: The reader sends a query signal.

The query signaling sent by the reader can be used to initiate an inventory cycle.

Among them, query signaling can notify the tag of the inventory rate, encoding method and slot count parameter (slot-count parameter, Q) value.

The Q value refers to a parameter used by the reader to adjust the probability of a tag responding. An inventory cycle can include 2 ^Q time slots, and the reader can determine whether there is a tag in each time slot.

For multiple tags selected by the reader, the inventory access can be performed in a time-division multiplexing manner, that is, after the reader finishes the inventory access to one tag, it starts the inventory access to the next tag. The following steps are described using the inventory access to one tag as an example.

Step 203: The tag sends a random number (RN) to the reader.

Exemplarily, the random number may be a 16-bit random number (RN16).

Specifically, when the tag receives the query signaling, it can generate a random number belonging to [0, 2 ^Q -1] as a time slot counter according to the Q value.

If the value of the time slot counter is 0, the tag can send a 16-bit random number to the reader as a handshake message. If the value of the time slot counter is not 0, the tag does not need to send any response message to the reader.

When the value of the slot counter is not 0, the tag can also reduce the slot counter by 1 each time it receives a query repeat (QueryRep) signaling. When the slot counter is equal to 0, the tag sends RN16 to the reader.

When the value of the time slot counter is not 0, the tag may also adjust the initial value of the time slot counter according to the Q value in the query adjustment signaling when receiving the query adjustment signaling including the Q value.

Step 204: The reader sends an acknowledgment (ACK) message to the tag.

If the reader successfully receives the random number sent by the tag, the reader can send confirmation information to the tag, and the confirmation information can include the random number sent by the tag to the reader.

After the tag receives the confirmation information carrying the random number sent by itself within the specified time, the following step 205 can be executed.

Step 205: The tag sends the electronic product code (EPC) information to the reader.

When the tag receives the confirmation information sent by the reader, it means that the reader and the tag have successfully handshaked. The tag can report the EPC information to the reader and the tag enters the confirmation state.

Step 206: The reader sends a random number request command to the tag.

The random number request command may be used to request the tag to re-report a new random number.

When the reader receives the EPC information sent by the tag, it may send a random number request command to the tag, and the random number request command may include RN16 reported by the tag.

Step 207: The tag sends a 16-bit random number handle to the reader.

Among them, after the tag receives the request random number command, if the RN16 included in the request random number command is the same as the RN16 of the tag itself, the tag can generate and store a new 16-bit random number handle, and send it to the reader, entering the open state or the safe state or the accessed state. If the RN16 included in the request random number command is different from the RN16 of the tag itself, the tag does not need to respond to the request random number command.

Step 208: The reader sends an access command to the tag.

When the reader receives the 16-bit random number handle sent by the tag, it can carry it in the access command and send it to the tag.

Step 209: The tag responds to the access command.

When receiving an access command, the tag may verify the 16-bit random number handle in the access command. If they match, the tag may respond to the access command. If they do not match, the tag may not respond to the access command.

When the reader finishes taking inventory of a tag, it can also send a query repeat signaling to trigger the inventory of the next tag.

In order to reduce costs, as shown in Figure 3, the reader can usually support multiple antennas (such as 4 to 8 antennas). Since the reader chip has only a single channel for transceiver link, different antennas (or antenna ports) use time division multiplexing (or time division scheduling), which results in a longer inventory time for the reader.

In addition, when each antenna of the reader/writer takes inventory of tags, if there are no tags to be inventoried within the coverage of the current antenna, the antenna will idle.

For example, as shown in Figure 4, in a multi-door warehouse entry and exit scenario, there may not be any tags within the coverage range of the antenna that is currently taking inventory in the reader/writer. If there are no tags within the coverage range of the current antenna, the antenna will cause the antenna to idle. If there are tags within the coverage range of other antennas, due to the time division multiplexing method used between different antennas, it is necessary to wait for the current antenna to complete the inventory (such as idling completion) before the other antennas can start to inventory the tags within their coverage range, which will result in a longer inventory time for the reader/writer.

In summary, how to reduce the antenna idling delay of the reader during the inventory process, reduce the inventory time of the reader, and realize the rapid inventory of tags has become a technical problem that needs to be solved urgently.

In order to solve the above technical problems, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication method, in which the second device sends a query signaling through a first antenna. If the first information from the first device is not detected in 2 ^Q time slots, the second device switches to the second antenna to send a query signaling; wherein the query signaling is used to indicate the first time slot counting parameter Q value, the first Q value is a smaller value such as 0 or 1 or 2, and the Q value is used to detect the first device.

In the embodiment of the present application, since one inventory cycle is 2 ^Q time slots, the second device (such as a reader) sets the first Q value to a smaller value such as 0, 1 or 2, that is, the second device can set one inventory cycle to 1 time slot or fewer time slots. If there is a first device (such as a tag) to be inventoried within the coverage of the first antenna, the second device will receive the first information sent by the first device in the 1 or fewer time slots. If there is no first device to be inventoried within the coverage of the first antenna, the second device will not receive the first information sent by the first device in the 1 or fewer time slots, so that it can quickly detect whether there is a first device to be inventoried within the coverage of the first antenna. If there is no first device to be inventoried, the second device can directly switch to the second antenna, thereby reducing the idling delay of the first antenna, reducing invalid inventory time, and reducing the inventory time of the second device for the first device, so as to achieve a fast inventory of the first device and improve the inventory efficiency.

The communication method provided in the embodiment of the present application can be used in any communication system, and the communication system can be a third generation partnership project (Third Generation Partnership Project). The present invention relates to a fifth generation partnership project (3GPP) communication system, such as an RFID system, a long term evolution (LTE) system, a fifth generation (5G) mobile communication system, a new radio (NR) communication system, and a vehicle to everything (V2X) system. It can also be applied to a system in which LTE and 5G are hybrid networks, or a non-terrestrial network (NTN) system, a device-to-device (D2D) communication system, a machine-to-machine (M2M) communication system, an Internet of Things (IoT), a near field communication (NFC) system, a microwave communication (uWave) system, and other next generation communication systems, such as 6G and future 3GPP-defined passive Internet of Things and other future communication systems, and can also be a non-3GPP communication system, such as a wireless local area network (WLAN), etc., without limitation.

Exemplarily, the communication method provided in the embodiments of the present application can be applied to RFID scenarios, X-IoT (X can be passive, semi-passive Internet of Things, etc.), warehousing, logistics, manufacturing, retail, asset management, checkpoints or production lines, etc., without limitation.

It should be noted that the above-mentioned communication systems and communication scenarios applicable to the present application are merely examples, and the communication systems applicable to the present application are not limited to these. They are uniformly described here and will not be repeated below.

The following describes the communication system provided in an embodiment of the present application by taking Figure 5 as an example.

FIG5 is a schematic diagram of a communication system provided in an embodiment of the present application. As shown in FIG5 , the communication system may include one or more first devices and one or more second devices.

The first device may be a device that communicates with a device having a read/write function (i.e., a second device). The energy and/or carrier required for the first device to work may be provided by the second device. The first device may communicate with the second device via the carrier provided by the second device.

Exemplarily, the first device may be a tag, or a terminal device capable of implementing a tag function, or the first device may be a module or chip capable of implementing a tag function, etc., without limitation.

The second device may be a device with read/write functions, and may be a handheld or fixed device that reads or writes information of the first device. The second device may include multiple antennas, and the second device may transmit, excite, and demodulate RFID tag signals (or described as excitation signals, RFID signals) through each antenna to implement inventory of the first device. The second device may also dynamically adjust the Q value to improve the inventory success rate of the first device while ensuring that the idle delay of the antenna of the second device is small.

Exemplarily, the second device may be a reader/writer, or a terminal device capable of reading and writing, or a network device capable of reading and writing. Alternatively, the second device may be a module or chip capable of reading and writing, etc., without limitation.

The first device may be located within the coverage provided by the second device. When the second device is a terminal device capable of reading and writing functions, the communication between the first device and the second device may be regarded as communication between terminal devices. When the second device is a network device capable of reading and writing functions, the communication between the first device and the second device may be regarded as air interface communication, that is, the first device and the second device communicate through the Uu interface.

For the reader/writer, the reader/writer can be an integrated architecture as shown in (a) of Figure 6, or a wireless transceiver separation architecture as shown in (b) of Figure 6, or a wired transceiver separation architecture as shown in (c) of Figure 6, without limitation.

Exemplarily, in a separated architecture, the reader/writer may include a helper and a receiver. The helper can communicate downlink with the first device (such as a tag), and can communicate uplink and downlink with the receiver through an air interface or a wired connection. The receiver can manage the helper, and can also receive the signal reflected by the first device, or be described as receiving the uplink signal sent by the first device. The helper can send an excitation signal to the first device within its coverage range according to the signaling sent by the receiver. The helper may also be called an excitation source, an exciter, an excitation node, etc., without limitation.

The assistant may be a terminal device, or a base station or a small station. There is only downlink between the assistant and the first device, and uplink and downlink data transmission between the assistant and the receiver, which may be through an air interface or a wired connection.

For example, as shown in (b) of FIG6 , the receiver can perform downlink communication with the assistant, such as the receiver can send downlink control signaling to the assistant; the assistant can send an excitation signal to the tag according to the downlink control signaling, and the tag can send an uplink signal to the receiver according to the excitation signal, thereby realizing communication with the receiver.

For terminal equipment, the terminal equipment can be a device with wireless transceiver function or a chip or chip system that can be set in the device. The terminal equipment can also be called user equipment (UE) or terminal (terminal) or mobile station (MS) or mobile terminal (MT), etc. Exemplarily, the terminal equipment can be a handheld device with wireless connection function, a vehicle-mounted device, etc., such as a mobile phone, a tablet computer, a notebook, a PDA or a computer with wireless transceiver function. The terminal equipment can also be a mobile Internet device (MID), a wearable device, a virtual reality (VR) terminal, an augmented reality (AR) terminal, a wireless terminal in industrial control (industrial control), a wireless Wireless terminals used in self-driving, remote medical surgery, smart grids, transportation safety, smart cities, smart homes, vehicle-mounted terminals, vehicles with vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) communication capabilities, smart connected vehicles, drones with UAV to UAV (U2U) communication capabilities, etc. are not restricted.

For network equipment, the network equipment can be any equipment deployed in the access network that can communicate wirelessly with the terminal equipment, and is mainly used to implement wireless physical control functions, resource scheduling and wireless resource management, wireless access control, and mobility management. Specifically, the network equipment can be a device that supports wired access or a device that supports wireless access. Exemplarily, the network equipment can be an access network (AN)/radio access network (RAN) device, which is composed of multiple AN/RAN nodes. The AN/RAN node may be: a base station (nodeB, NB), a macro base station, a micro base station, a relay station, an enhanced base station (enhance nodeB, eNB), a next-generation base station (NR nodeB, gNB), a radio network controller (radio network controller, RNC), a base station controller (base station controller, BSC), a base transceiver station (base transceiver station, BTS), a home base station (for example, a home evolved nodeB, a home base station (home nodeB, HNB)), a base band unit (base band unit, BBU), an access point (access point, AP), or a wireless fidelity AP (wireless fidelity AP, Wi-Fi AP), a transmission reception point (transmission reception point, TRP), a transmission point (transmission point, TP), a wireless relay node or a wireless backhaul node in an integrated access and backhaul (IAB) (i.e., an IAB node) or some other access node or reader, read-write device, etc., without limitation.

Optionally, the network device may also be a centralized unit (CU)/distributed unit (DU) architecture. In this case, the network device may include a CU, or a DU, or a CU and a DU. The network device including the CU and the DU may separate the protocol layer of the eNB in the LTE, 5G, and even future 6G communication systems, with the functions of some protocol layers being centrally controlled by the CU, and the functions of the remaining part or all of the protocol layers being distributed in the DU, which is centrally controlled by the CU. Furthermore, the DU may be split at the physical layer into a DU and a radio unit (RU). Depending on the splitting method, the interface between the DU and the RU may be a common public radio interface (CPRI) interface, an enhanced common public radio interface (eCPRI) interface, or a fronthaul interface in an open radio access network (O-RAN or ORAN).

Based on the above description, exemplarily, as shown in (a) of FIG. 7 , taking the first device as a tag and the second device as a base station as an example, the base station may be a micro BS, which may communicate with the tag through a Uu interface. As shown in (b) of FIG. 7 , taking the first device as a tag and the second device as a terminal device as an example, the terminal device may communicate with the tag through a sidelink (SL). As shown in (c) of FIG. 7 , taking the first device as a tag and the second device as a base station as an example, the base station may be an IAB node, which may communicate with a macro BS through a Uu interface, and communicate with the tag through a Uu interface.

In another example, the communication between the first device and the second device can also support a separate architecture. As shown in Figure 8, taking the tag as the first device and the terminal device as the excitation source (helper) of the second device as an example, the terminal device and the base station can perform uplink communication or downlink communication. As shown in (a) in Figure 8, the base station 1 can provide a carrier signal for the tag, and the base station 1 and the tag can perform uplink communication, and the tag and the terminal device can perform downlink communication. Alternatively, as shown in (b) in Figure 8, the terminal device can provide a carrier signal for the tag, and the base station 1 and the tag can perform downlink communication, and the tag and the terminal device can perform uplink communication. Alternatively, as shown in (c) in Figure 8, the terminal device can provide a carrier signal for the tag, and the base station 1 and the tag can perform uplink communication, and the tag and the terminal device can perform downlink communication. Alternatively, as shown in (d) in Figure 8, the base station 1 can provide a carrier signal for the tag, and the base station 1 and the tag can perform downlink communication, and the tag and the terminal device can perform uplink communication.

It should be noted that in FIG8 , a base station that can communicate with both a tag and a terminal device can be referred to as a co-station of the tag and the terminal device (such as base station 1). A base station that can only communicate with a tag or a base station that can only communicate with a terminal device can be referred to as a different station of the tag and the terminal device (such as base station 2).

It should be noted that the first device and the second device of the embodiment of the present application can be one or more chips, or a system on chip (SOC), etc. FIG. 5 is only an exemplary figure, and the number of devices included therein is not limited. In addition, in addition to the devices shown in FIG. 5 , the communication system may also include other devices. The names of the various devices and the names of the various links in FIG. 5 are not limited. In addition to the names shown in FIG. 5 , the various devices and the various links may also be named with other names without limitation.

In the specific implementation, as shown in Figure 5, Figure 6, Figure 7 or Figure 8, for example, each first device and second device can adopt the composition structure shown in Figure 9, or include the components shown in Figure 9. Figure 9 is a schematic diagram of the composition of a communication device 900 provided in an embodiment of the present application. The communication device 900 may be a first device or a chip or system on chip in the first device; or a second device or a chip or system on chip in the second device. As shown in FIG9 , the communication device 900 includes a processor 901 , a transceiver 902 and a communication line 903 .

Furthermore, the communication device 900 may also include a memory 904. The processor 901, the memory 904 and the transceiver 902 may be connected via a communication line 903.

The processor 901 is a central processing unit (CPU), a general-purpose processor, a network processor (NP), a digital signal processor (DSP), a microprocessor, a microcontroller, a programmable logic device (PLD), or any combination thereof. The processor 901 may also be other devices with processing functions, such as circuits, devices, or software modules, without limitation.

The transceiver 902 is used to communicate with other devices or other communication networks. The other communication networks may be Ethernet, radio access network (RAN), wireless local area networks (WLAN), etc. The transceiver 902 may be a module, a circuit, a transceiver or any device capable of achieving communication.

The communication line 903 is used to transmit information between the components included in the communication device 900.

The memory 904 is used to store instructions, where the instructions may be computer programs.

Among them, the memory 904 can be a read-only memory (ROM) or other types of static storage devices that can store static information and/or instructions, or a random access memory (RAM) or other types of dynamic storage devices that can store information and/or instructions, or an electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), a compact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM) or other optical disc storage, optical disc storage (including compressed optical disc, laser disc, optical disc, digital versatile disc, Blu-ray disc, etc.), magnetic disk storage media or other magnetic storage devices, etc., without limitation.

It should be noted that the memory 904 can exist independently of the processor 901, or can be integrated with the processor 901. The memory 904 can be used to store instructions or program codes or some data, etc. The memory 904 can be located in the communication device 900, or can be located outside the communication device 900, without limitation. The processor 901 is used to execute the instructions stored in the memory 904 to implement the communication method provided in the following embodiments of the present application.

In one example, the processor 901 may include one or more CPUs, such as CPU0 and CPU1 in FIG. 9 .

As an optional implementation manner, the communication device 900 includes multiple processors. For example, in addition to the processor 901 in FIG. 9 , it may also include a processor 907 .

As an optional implementation, the communication device 900 further includes an output device 905 and an input device 906. Exemplarily, the input device 906 is a device such as a keyboard, a mouse, a microphone or a joystick, and the output device 905 is a device such as a display screen and a speaker.

It should be noted that the communication device 900 may be a desktop computer, a portable computer, a network server, a mobile phone, a tablet computer, a wireless terminal, an embedded device, a chip system, or a device having a similar structure as shown in FIG9. In addition, the composition structure shown in FIG9 does not constitute a limitation on the communication device. In addition to the components shown in FIG9, the communication device may include more or fewer components than shown in the figure, or combine certain components, or arrange the components differently.

In the embodiment of the present application, the chip system may be composed of a chip, or may include a chip and other discrete devices.

In addition, the actions, terms, etc. involved in the various embodiments of the present application can refer to each other without limitation. The message name or parameter name in the message exchanged between the various devices in the embodiments of the present application is only an example, and other names can also be used in the specific implementation without limitation.

In conjunction with the communication system shown in Figures 5 to 8, the communication method provided in the embodiment of the present application is described with reference to Figure 10 below, wherein the first device may be any first device in the communication system shown in Figures 5 to 8, and the second device may be any second device in the communication system shown in Figures 5 to 8. The first device and the second device described in the following embodiments may both have the components shown in Figure 9. The processing performed by a single execution subject (first device or second device) shown in the embodiment of the present application may also be divided into executions by multiple execution subjects, and these execution subjects may be logically and/or physically separated without restriction.

FIG10 is a communication method provided in an embodiment of the present application. As shown in FIG10 , the method may include:

Step 1001: The second device sends a query signaling via the first antenna.

The query signaling may be used to indicate a first Q value, the first Q value may be 0, and the Q value may be used to detect (or be described as querying) the first device.

Alternatively, the first Q value may be 1 or 2 or other smaller values. In the embodiment of the present application, the first Q value is described as 0 as an example. The description of the first Q value being 1 or 2 or other smaller values may refer to the relevant description of the first Q value being 0, and no further details are given.

Exemplarily, the Q value can be used by the first device that receives the Q value to generate a random number belonging to [0, 2 ^Q -1] as the initial value of the time slot counter according to the Q value. When the value of the time slot counter is updated to 0, the first device can send the first information to the second device.

Since the first Q value is 0, the inventory period of the second device through the first antenna is 2 ^{Q = 0} = 1 time slot, that is, the second device can detect whether there is the first device within the coverage of the first antenna through the first antenna in the 1 time slot, or it can be described as the second device can detect whether the first information sent by the first device can be received in the 1 time slot through the first antenna, or it can be described as the second device can detect whether there is the first information sent by the first device in the 1 time slot through the first antenna.

Optionally, the second device uses a round-robin algorithm to determine the first antenna from multiple antennas of the second device, or the second device uses other algorithms (such as a timed round-robin algorithm, a weighted scheduling algorithm, etc.) to determine the first antenna from multiple antennas of the second device, or the second device randomly selects one antenna from multiple antennas of the second device as the first antenna, without restriction.

Optionally, as shown in FIG. 11 , before the second device sends the query signaling through the first antenna, it sends the selection signaling through the first antenna to select one or more first devices, and the first devices meeting the selection conditions are selected to enter the inventory waiting state.

Optionally, as shown in FIG. 11 , before the second device sends the selection signaling through the first antenna, the second device may receive first indication information, select a first antenna from multiple antennas based on the first indication information, and send the selection signaling through the first antenna.

The first indication information may be used to instruct the second device to initiate an inventory of the first device.

Optionally, the network device sends the first indication information to the second device.

Step 1002: If the second device does not detect the first information from the first device in 2 ^Q time slots, the second device switches to the second antenna to send a query signaling.

The first information may indicate a 16-bit random number, or the first information may be described as RN16 or RN16 information, etc., without limitation.

After the second device sends the query signaling through the first antenna, it can detect in each of the 2 ^Q time slots whether the first information sent by the first device is received.

Optionally, the second device sends a query repetition signaling to trigger the second device to detect the first information in each time slot of 2 ^Q time slots.

The query repetition signaling may also trigger the first device to reduce the value of the time slot counter by 1.

Exemplarily, after detecting whether the first information exists in the first time slot among 2 ^Q time slots, the second device can send a query repetition signaling to trigger the second device to detect whether the first information exists in the second time slot among 2 ^Q time slots, and then send a query repetition signaling to trigger the second device to detect whether the first information sent by the first device exists in the third time slot among 2 ^Q time slots, ... and then send a query repetition signaling to trigger the second device to detect whether the first information exists in the second ^Q time slot among the 2 ^Q time slots.

Optionally, the second device detects whether the first information exists in each time slot of 2 ^Q time slots based on a round-robin algorithm.

For example, as shown in FIG11 , the second device may detect whether the first information exists in the i-th time slot of 2 ^Q time slots, and determine whether the i-th time slot is the last time slot of the 2 ^Q time slots. If yes, the detection of the 2 ^Q time slots is completed. If not, the query repetition signaling is sent to detect whether the first information exists in the next time slot. Wherein, 1≤i≤2 ^Q ; or described as i traversing 1 to 2 ^Q .

When the Q value in the query signaling is the first Q value, if there is no first device within the coverage of the first antenna, the second device will not detect the first information sent by the first device in the 2 ^{Q = 0} = 1 time slot. If there are one or more first devices within the coverage of the first antenna, the one or more first devices can generate a random number belonging to [0, 2 ^{Q = 0} -1] as a time slot counter according to the first Q value, that is, the initial value of the time slot counter determined by the one or more first devices is 0, and then the first information can be sent to the second device in the 1 time slot, that is, the second device can detect the first information sent by one or more first devices in the 2 ^{Q = 0} = 1 time slot. In this way, it is possible to quickly detect whether there is a first device to be inventoried within the coverage of the first antenna.

When there is no first device to be inventoried within the coverage of the first antenna, the second device can directly switch to the second antenna for inventory. In this application, the description of the process of the second device taking inventory of the first device through the second antenna can refer to the description of the process of the second device taking inventory of the first device through the first antenna, and will not be repeated.

Optionally, if the second device does not detect the first information in 2 ^Q time slots, the second device sets the collision probability to 0.

Optionally, when the collision probability is 0, the second device switches to the second antenna to send the query signaling.

The collision probability may be a collision probability between one or more first devices.

Based on the method shown in FIG. 10 , since one inventory cycle is 2 ^Q time slots, the second device sets the first Q value to a smaller value such as 0, 1, or 2, that is, the second device sets one inventory cycle to 1 time slot or less time slots. If there is a first device to be inventoried within the coverage of the first antenna, the second device will receive the first information sent by the first device in the 1 or less time slots, such as If there is no first device to be inventoried within the coverage of the first antenna, the second device will not receive the first information sent by the first device in the one or fewer time slots, so that it can quickly detect whether there is a first device to be inventoried within the coverage of the first antenna. If there is no first device to be inventoried, the second device can directly switch to the second antenna, thereby reducing the idling delay of the first antenna, reducing the invalid inventory time, reducing the inventory time of the second device for the first device, realizing a fast inventory of the first device, and improving the inventory efficiency.

In the method shown in FIG. 10 above, when it is uncertain whether there is a first device in the antenna coverage of the second device and there are certain requirements for the inventory rate, by preferentially sending a query signaling with a Q value of 0, it is possible to quickly detect whether there is a first device to be inventoried in the antenna coverage. If there is no first device to be inventoried in the coverage of the current antenna (such as the first antenna), it is possible to quickly switch to other antennas (such as the second antenna) for inventory. However, if there are many first devices to be inventoried in the coverage of the current antenna, setting the Q value to 0 will not enable a fast inventory of the first device.

That is, when each antenna of the second device starts the inventory, if the Q value in the query signaling is set to a large value, the probability that different first devices have the same initial value of the time slot counter determined according to the Q value will be reduced, that is, the collision between the first devices will be reduced, and the second device can quickly inventory a large number of first devices, thereby improving the success rate of the inventory of the first devices. However, for scenarios with a small number of first devices, the idling delay of the antenna can be large. If the Q value in the query signaling is set to a small value, the idling delay of the antenna can be reduced, thereby achieving rapid switching of the antenna. However, for scenarios with a large number of first devices, the probability that different first devices have the same initial value of the time slot counter determined according to the Q value will be increased, that is, the collision between the first devices will increase, thereby reducing the success rate of the inventory of the first device.

Therefore, how to set the Q value during the inventory process to improve the inventory success rate of the first device while ensuring that the antenna idle delay of the second device is small has become a technical problem that needs to be solved urgently.

To solve the above technical problems, in a first possible implementation method, the initial Q value can be set to a larger value (for example, the Q value is 4, and can also be adjusted according to the number of first devices). According to the idleness, collision probability and success rate of the first device, the Q value is adaptively adjusted during the inventory process, and finally the Q value converges to 0, completing the inventory of the current antenna, and then switching to other antennas for inventory, so as to achieve a relative balance between the inventory success rate and the inventory time.

However, in this possible implementation, even if the first device is not within the coverage range of the antenna, the second device needs to go through [2 ^Q , 2 ^Q+ 2 ^Q-1 +...+2 ⁰ ] inventory time slots to switch to the next antenna. The idling time of a single antenna takes tens to hundreds of millimeter, and the idling delay of multiple antennas may reach hundreds of milliseconds. In scenarios with high time requirements such as warehousing time or assembly line time, the inconsistency of the remaining idle antennas of the second device due to the first device entering the antenna coverage range may easily lead to unstable inventory results.

Based on this, in a second possible implementation, the initial Q value may be set to a smaller value (for example, the Q value may be set to 0, or the Q value may be set to 1 or 2, etc., without limitation) to achieve rapid switching of antennas when the first device is not within the coverage of the antenna of the second device. When the first device is within the coverage of the antenna of the second device, the Q value may be increased to achieve an inventory of the first device.

Exemplarily, compared to the idling delay of a single antenna of tens to hundreds of milliseconds in the first possible implementation method mentioned above, when the initial Q value is set to 0, the idling delay of the single antenna can be reduced to one to five milliseconds, and when the initial Q value is set to 1 or 2, the idling delay of the single antenna can be reduced to five to twelve milliseconds.

In the second possible implementation, taking the example of the second device taking inventory of the first device through the first antenna, when the first device exists within the coverage range of the first antenna of the second device, the second device may increase the Q value by referring to the method shown in FIG. 12 below to implement an inventory of the first device.

FIG12 is a flow chart of a communication method provided in an embodiment of the present application. As shown in FIG12 , the second device may adjust the Q value by the method shown in the following step 1203, or may adjust the Q value by the method shown in the following steps 1204 to 1206:

Step 1201: The second device communicates with the first antenna to send a query signaling; correspondingly, the first device receives the query signaling sent by the second device.

The query information may include a first Q value, and the first Q value may be 0.

Step 1202: The first device sends first information to the second device.

The first device may generate a random number belonging to [0, 2 ^Q -1] as the initial value of the time slot counter according to the first Q value, and when the value of the time slot counter is updated to 0, send the first information to the second device.

Optionally, after the second device sends the query signaling through the first antenna, it can also send a query repetition signaling through the first antenna to trigger the first device to reduce the value of the time slot counter by 1. When the value of the time slot counter is updated to 0, the first device sends the first information to the second device.

Among them, the description of the first information can refer to the description of the first information in the above-mentioned Figure 10, and will not be repeated here.

Step 1203: If the second device detects at least two conflicting first information in 2 ^Q time slots, the second device sends a query adjustment signaling.

The at least two conflicting first information may be at least two first information detected in the same time slot; the query adjustment signaling may include a second Q value, and the second Q value may be greater than the first Q value.

Among them, if the second device detects at least two conflicting first information in 2 ^Q time slots, it may indicate that there are multiple first devices to be inventoried within the coverage of the first antenna. The second device can adjust the Q value to the second Q value, thereby reducing the probability that different first devices have the same initial value of the time slot counter determined according to the second Q value, reducing collisions between first devices, thereby quickly inventorying a large number of first devices and improving the inventory success rate of the first devices.

Optionally, after the second device sends the query signaling through the first antenna, it can detect whether there are at least two conflicting first information in each time slot of 2 ^Q time slots.

Exemplarily, after the second device detects whether there are at least two conflicting first information in the first time slot among the 2 ^Q time slots, it may send a query repetition signaling to trigger the second device to detect whether there are at least two conflicting first information in the second time slot among the 2 ^Q time slots, and then send a query repetition signaling to trigger the second device to detect whether there are at least two conflicting first information in the third time slot among the 2 ^Q time slots, ... and then send a query repetition signaling to trigger the second device to detect whether there are at least two conflicting first information in the second ^Q time slot among the 2 ^Q time slots.

Optionally, the second device detects whether there are at least two conflicting first information in each time slot of 2 ^Q time slots based on a round-robin algorithm.

For example, as shown in FIG11 , the second device may detect whether there are at least two conflicting first information in the i-th time slot of 2 ^Q time slots, and determine whether the i-th time slot is the last time slot of the 2 ^Q time slots, if yes, complete the detection of the 2 ^Q time slots, if no, send query repetition signaling to detect whether there are at least two conflicting first information in the next time slot. Wherein, 1≤i≤2 ^Q .

Optionally, for each time slot in which at least two conflicting first information can be detected, the second device may adjust the collision probability once; for each time slot in which at least two conflicting first information are not detected, the second device may not adjust the collision probability.

Optionally, the second device determines whether to adjust the collision probability in each of the 2 ^Q time slots based on a round-robin algorithm.

For example, as shown in FIG11 , the second device may detect whether there are at least two conflicting first information in the i-th time slot of 2 ^Q time slots, and if so, adjust the collision probability once, and if not, do not adjust the collision probability. The second device may also determine whether the i-th time slot is the last time slot of the 2 ^Q time slots, and if so, complete the detection of the 2 ^Q time slots, and if not, send a query repetition signaling to detect whether there are at least two conflicting first information in the next time slot. Wherein, 1≤i≤2 ^Q . It can also be described as i traversing 1 to 2 ^Q .

Optionally, the second device determines the collision probability according to the amount of conflicting first information.

Among them, when the number of first devices within the coverage of the first antenna is constant, the more conflicting first information detected by the second device, the greater the collision probability, and the fewer conflicting first information detected by the second device, the smaller the collision probability.

Optionally, when the second device detects the first information in 2 ^Q time slots, if the collision probability is not 0, it indicates that there is a first device to be inventoried within the coverage of the first antenna, and the second device can send a query adjustment signaling through the first antenna to inventory the first device to be inventoried.

Optionally, the second device determines a second Q value according to the collision probability.

The greater the collision probability, the greater the second Q value, and the smaller the collision probability, the smaller the second Q value.

Step 1204: If there is no conflict between the first information detected by the second device in the 2 ^Q time slots, the second device sends confirmation information to the first device associated with the first information.

When the first information indicates RN16, the confirmation information sent by the second device to the first device associated with the first information may include the RN16.

Step 1205: The first device that receives the confirmation information sends second information to the second device.

The second information may include EPC information.

Step 1206: If the second device fails to successfully detect the second information from the first device associated with the first information, the second device sends Query adjustment signaling.

The query adjustment signaling may include a second Q value, and the second Q value is greater than the first Q value.

Exemplarily, the second device failing to successfully detect the second information from the first device associated with the first information may include: the second device failing to detect the second information from the first device associated with the first information, or the second device detecting the second information from the first device associated with the first information but failing to demodulate the second information.

Among them, if the second device fails to successfully detect the second information from the first device associated with the first information, it may indicate that there is a first device to be inventoried within the coverage of the first antenna. The second device can adjust the Q value to the second Q value, thereby reducing the probability that different first devices have the same initial value of the time slot counter determined according to the second Q value, reducing collisions between first devices, thereby quickly inventorying a large number of first devices and improving the inventory success rate of the first devices.

Optionally, for each time slot in which the first information without conflict can be detected, if the second device fails to successfully detect the second information sent by the first device associated with the first information in the time slot, the second device may adjust the collision probability once. If the second device successfully detects the second information sent by the first device associated with the first information, the collision probability does not need to be adjusted.

Optionally, the second device determines whether to adjust the collision probability in each time slot in which the first information without conflict can be detected based on a round-robin algorithm.

For example, as shown in FIG11, taking the case where the second device detects the first information without conflict in the i-th time slot as an example, if the second device fails to successfully detect the second information sent by the first device associated with the first information in the i-th time slot, the second device can adjust the collision probability once. If the second device successfully detects the second information sent by the first device associated with the first information, the collision probability does not need to be adjusted. The second device can also determine whether the i-th time slot is the last time slot of 2 ^Q time slots. If so, the detection of 2 ^Q time slots is completed. If not, a query repetition signaling is sent to detect the first information in the next time slot. Wherein, 1≤i≤2 ^Q.

Optionally, the second device may determine the collision probability according to the amount of undetected second information.

Among them, when the number of first information detected by the second device within the coverage range of the first antenna is certain, the more second information the second device fails to detect successfully, the greater the collision probability, and the fewer second information the second device fails to detect successfully, the smaller the collision probability.

Optionally, when the second device detects the first information and the second information in 2 ^Q time slots, if the collision probability is not 0, it indicates that there is a first device to be inventoried within the coverage of the first antenna, and the second device can send a query adjustment signaling through the first antenna to inventory the first device to be inventoried.

Step 1207: The first device sends the first information to the second device according to the second Q value in the query adjustment signaling.

The first device may update the initial value of the time slot counter according to the second Q value, and send the first information to the second device when the value of the time slot counter is updated to 0.

Optionally, different from the above step 1206, if the second device successfully detects the second information from the first device associated with the first information, the second device can send a random number request command to the first device, and the first device sends a 16-bit random number handle to the second device, and then the second device can access the first device by sending an access command to the first device.

Optionally, if there is no conflict between the first information detected by the second device in 2 ^Q time slots, and the second device successfully detects the second information from the first device associated with the first information, the second device can set the collision probability to 0, and then switch to the second antenna to implement inventory of the first device.

Based on the method shown in FIG. 12 above, illustratively, as shown in FIG. 13, the second device and a single first device may communicate with each other with reference to the link timing shown in (a) of FIG. 13. The second device and multiple first devices may communicate with each other with reference to the link timing shown in (b) of FIG. 13. Among them, T1 may represent the time from the second device transmitting a signal to the first device responding; T2 may represent the time from the first device responding to the second device transmitting a signal; T3 may represent the waiting time of the second device after T1 until it transmits the next signal; and T4 may represent the minimum time interval between signals transmitted by the second device.

When the second device sends a query signaling carrying the first Q value through the first antenna, if the second device does not detect the first information within T1, the second device may consider that there is no first device to be inventoried within the coverage of the first antenna, and the second device may directly switch to the second antenna for inventory. If the second device detects the first information within T1, the second device may normally inventory the first device with reference to the method shown in FIG. 12 above.

Based on the method shown in FIG. 10 to FIG. 13, each time the second device switches the antenna, it can preferentially send the query with a Q value of 0. The query command is used to quickly detect whether there is a first device to be inventoried within the coverage of the antenna of the second device. If there is no first device to be inventoried, the second device can directly switch to the next antenna for inventory. If there is a first device to be inventoried, the second device can normally inventory the first device. If a collision occurs with the first device, the second device can also increase the Q value to reduce the collision between the first devices and implement the inventory of the first device.

Optionally, based on the description of the first possible implementation method and the second possible implementation method, when the second device takes inventory of the first device, the first possible implementation method may be adopted to set the initial Q value to a larger value, and the Q value may be adaptively adjusted during the inventory process, and the Q value may eventually converge to 0, thereby reducing the probability of collision between first devices, quickly taking inventory of a large number of first devices, and improving the success rate of the inventory of first devices. The second possible implementation method may also be adopted to set the initial Q value to a smaller value, and quickly detect whether there is a first device to be inventoried within the coverage of the first antenna. If there is no first device to be inventoried, directly switch to the second antenna, reduce the idling delay of the first antenna, and improve the inventory efficiency. If there is a first device to be inventoried, the Q value may be increased to reduce the probability of collision between first devices, implement the inventory of the first device, and improve the success rate of the inventory.

Optionally, the second device further includes a first switch, and when the first switch is in an on state, the second device uses the first possible implementation method to inventory the first device, and when the first switch is in an off state, the second device uses the second possible implementation method to inventory the first device. Alternatively, when the first switch is in an on state, the second device uses the second possible implementation method to inventory the first device, and when the first switch is in an off state, the second device uses the first possible implementation method to inventory the first device, without limitation.

It should be noted that the various methods provided in the embodiments of the present application can be implemented separately or in combination without limitation.

It is understandable that in the embodiments of the present application, the execution subject may execute some or all of the steps in the embodiments of the present application, and these steps or operations are only examples, and the embodiments of the present application may also execute other operations or variations of various operations. In addition, the various steps may be executed in different orders presented in the embodiments of the present application, and it is possible that not all operations in the embodiments of the present application need to be executed.

The above mainly introduces the solution provided by the embodiment of the present application from the perspective of interaction between devices. It is understandable that, in order to realize the above functions, each device includes a hardware structure and/or software module corresponding to each function. Those skilled in the art should easily realize that, in combination with the algorithm steps of each example described in the embodiments disclosed herein, the present application can be implemented in the form of hardware or a combination of hardware and computer software. Whether a function is executed in the form of hardware or computer software driving hardware depends on the specific application and design constraints of the technical solution. Professional and technical personnel can use different methods to implement the described functions for each specific application, but such implementation should not be considered to exceed the scope of the present application.

The embodiment of the present application can divide the functional modules of each device according to the above method example. For example, each functional module can be divided according to each function, or two or more functions can be integrated into one processing module. The above integrated module can be implemented in the form of hardware or in the form of software functional modules. It should be noted that the division of modules in the embodiment of the present application is schematic and is only a logical function division. There may be other division methods in actual implementation.

In the case of dividing each functional module according to each function, Figure 14 shows a communication device 140, which can execute the actions performed by the first device in Figures 10 to 13 above, or execute the actions performed by the second device in Figures 10 to 13 above, without limitation.

Wherein, the communication device 140 may include a transceiver module 1401 and a processing module 1402. Exemplarily, the communication device 140 may be a software module, a hardware circuit, or a software module plus a hardware circuit, or may be a chip applied to a communication device or other combined devices, components, etc. having the functions of the above-mentioned communication device. When the communication device 140 is a hardware device, the transceiver module 1401 may be a transceiver, and the transceiver may include an interface circuit, a pin, or an antenna and a radio frequency circuit, etc.; the processing module 1402 may be a processor (or a processing circuit), such as a baseband processor, and the baseband processor may include one or more CPUs. When the communication device 140 is a component having the functions of the above-mentioned communication device, the transceiver module 1401 may be a radio frequency unit; the processing module 1402 may be a processor (or a processing circuit), such as a baseband processor. When the communication device 140 is a chip system, the transceiver module 1401 may be an input and output interface of a chip (such as a baseband chip); the processing module 1402 may be a processor (or a processing circuit) of the chip system, and may include one or more central processing units. It should be understood that the transceiver module 1401 in the embodiment of the present application can be implemented by a transceiver or a transceiver-related circuit component; the processing module 1402 can be implemented by a processor or a processor-related circuit component (or, referred to as a processing circuit).

For example, the transceiver module 1401 can be used to perform all transceiver operations performed by the communication device in the embodiments shown in Figures 10 to 13, and/or to support other processes of the technology described in this document; the processing module 1402 can be used to perform all operations except the transceiver operations performed by the communication device in the embodiments shown in Figures 10 to 13, and/or to support other processes of the technology described in this document.

As another possible implementation, the transceiver module 1401 in FIG14 may be replaced by a transceiver, which may integrate the functions of the transceiver module 1401; the processing module 1402 may be replaced by a processor, which may integrate the functions of the processing module 1402. Furthermore, the communication device 140 shown in FIG14 may also include a memory.

Alternatively, when the processing module 1402 is replaced by a processor and the transceiver module 1401 is replaced by a transceiver, the communication device 140 involved in the embodiment of the present application may also be the communication device 150 shown in FIG15 , wherein the processor may be a logic circuit 1501 and the transceiver may be an interface circuit 1502. Further, the communication device 150 shown in FIG15 may also include a memory 1503.

The embodiments of the present application also provide a computer program product, which can implement the functions of any of the above method embodiments when executed by a computer.

The embodiments of the present application also provide a computer program, which can implement the functions of any of the above method embodiments when executed by a computer.

The embodiment of the present application also provides a computer-readable storage medium. All or part of the processes in the above method embodiments can be completed by a computer program to instruct the relevant hardware, and the program can be stored in the above computer-readable storage medium. When the program is executed, it can include the processes of the above method embodiments. The computer-readable storage medium can be an internal storage unit of the terminal (including the data sending end and/or the data receiving end) of any of the above embodiments, such as the hard disk or memory of the terminal. The above computer-readable storage medium can also be an external storage device of the above terminal, such as a plug-in hard disk equipped on the above terminal, a smart memory card (smart media card, SMC), a secure digital (secure digital, SD) card, a flash card (flash card), etc. Further, the above computer-readable storage medium can also include both the internal storage unit of the above terminal and an external storage device. The above computer-readable storage medium is used to store the above computer program and other programs and data required by the above terminal. The above computer-readable storage medium can also be used to temporarily store data that has been output or is to be output.

It should be noted that the terms "first" and "second" in the specification, claims and drawings of the present application are used to distinguish different objects rather than to describe a specific order. In addition, the terms "including" and "having" and any variations thereof are intended to cover non-exclusive inclusions. For example, a process, method, system, product or device that includes a series of steps or units is not limited to the listed steps or units, but may optionally include steps or units that are not listed, or may optionally include other steps or units that are inherent to these processes, methods, products or devices.

It should be understood that in the present application, "at least one (item)" means one or more, "more than one" means two or more, "at least two (items)" means two or three and more than three, and "and/or" is used to describe the association relationship of associated objects, indicating that three relationships may exist. For example, "A and/or B" can mean: only A exists, only B exists, and A and B exist at the same time, where A and B can be singular or plural. The character "/" generally indicates that the objects associated before and after are in an "or" relationship. "At least one of the following items" or similar expressions refers to any combination of these items, including any combination of single items or plural items. For example, at least one of a, b or c can mean: a, b, c, "a and b", "a and c", "b and c", or "a and b and c", where a, b, c can be single or multiple.

Through the description of the above implementation methods, technical personnel in the relevant field can clearly understand that for the convenience and simplicity of description, only the division of the above-mentioned functional modules is used as an example. In actual applications, the above-mentioned functions can be assigned to different functional modules as needed, that is, the internal structure of the device can be divided into different functional modules to complete all or part of the functions described above.

In the several embodiments provided in the present application, it should be understood that the disclosed devices and methods can be implemented in other ways. For example, the device embodiments described above are only schematic. For example, the division of the modules or units is only a logical function division. There may be other division methods in actual implementation, such as multiple units or components can be combined or integrated into another device, or some features can be ignored or not executed. Another point is that the mutual coupling or direct coupling or communication connection shown or discussed can be through some interfaces, indirect coupling or communication connection of devices or units, which can be electrical, mechanical or other forms.

The units described as separate components may or may not be physically separated, and the components shown as units may be one physical unit or multiple physical units, that is, they may be located in one place or distributed in multiple different places. Some or all of the units may be selected according to actual needs to achieve the purpose of the present embodiment.

In addition, each functional unit in each embodiment of the present application may be integrated into one processing unit, or each unit may exist physically separately, or two or more units may be integrated into one unit. The above-mentioned integrated unit may be implemented in the form of hardware or in the form of software functional units.

If the integrated unit is implemented in the form of a software functional unit and sold or used as an independent product, it can be stored in a readable storage medium. Based on this understanding, the technical solution of the embodiment of the present application is essentially or all or part of the technical solution. It can be embodied in the form of a software product, which is stored in a storage medium and includes a number of instructions for enabling a device (which may be a single-chip microcomputer, chip, etc.) or a processor to execute all or part of the steps of the method described in each embodiment of the present application. The aforementioned storage medium includes: U disk, mobile hard disk, ROM, RAM, disk or optical disk and other media that can store program codes.

Claims

A communication method, comprising:

Sending a query signaling through the first antenna; wherein the query signaling is used to indicate a first time slot counting parameter Q value, the first Q value is 0, and the Q value is used to detect the first device;

If the first information from the first device is not detected in 2 Q time slots, the second antenna is switched to send the query signaling.
The method according to claim 1, characterized in that the method further comprises:

If the first information is not detected in 2 Q time slots, the collision probability is set to 0; wherein the collision probability is a collision probability between one or more of the first devices.
The method according to claim 2, characterized in that the switching to the second antenna to send the query signaling comprises:

If the collision probability is 0, switching to the second antenna to send the query signaling.
The method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that the method further comprises:

If at least two conflicting first information are detected in the 2 Q time slots, a query adjustment signaling is sent; wherein the at least two conflicting first information are at least two first information detected in the same time slot; the query adjustment signaling includes a second Q value, and the second Q value is greater than the first Q value.
The method according to claim 4, characterized in that the method further comprises:

For the i-th time slot, where 1≤i≤2 Q ;

If at least two conflicting first information are detected in the i-th time slot, the collision probability is adjusted once;

If at least two conflicting first information are not detected in the i-th time slot, the collision probability is not adjusted.
The method according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that the method further comprises:

If there is no conflict between the first information detected in the 2 Q time slots, sending confirmation information to the first device associated with the first information;

If the second information from the first device associated with the first information is not successfully detected, sending a query adjustment signaling;

The query adjustment signaling includes a second Q value, and the second Q value is greater than the first Q value.
The method according to claim 6, characterized in that the method further comprises:

For the i-th time slot, where 1≤i≤2 Q ;

If a non-conflicting first message is detected in the i-th time slot, but a second message from a first device associated with the first message is not successfully detected, adjusting the collision probability once;

If non-conflicting first information is detected in the i-th time slot, and second information from a first device associated with the first information is successfully detected, no adjustment is made to the collision probability.
The method according to claim 5 or 7, characterized in that the sending of the query adjustment signaling comprises:

When the first information is detected in the 2 Q time slots, if the collision probability is not 0, the query adjustment signaling is sent.
The method according to claim 8, characterized in that the method further comprises:

The second Q value is determined according to the collision probability.
A communication method, comprising:

Receive query information from a second device; wherein the query information includes a first time slot count parameter Q value, and the first Q value is 0;

Determining an initial value of a time slot counter according to the first Q value;

When the value of the time slot counter is updated to 0, first information is sent to the second device.
The method according to claim 10, characterized in that the method further comprises:

receiving a query adjustment signaling from the second device; wherein the query adjustment signaling includes a second Q value, and the second Q value is greater than the first Q value;

According to the second Q value, an initial value of the time slot counter is updated.
A communication device, comprising:

A transceiver module, configured to send a query signaling through a first antenna; wherein the query signaling is used to indicate a first time slot counting parameter Q value, the first Q value is 0, and the Q value is used to detect a first device;

The transceiver module is further configured to switch to the second antenna to send the query signaling if the processing module fails to detect the first information from the first device in 2 Q time slots.
The device according to claim 12, characterized in that

The processing module is further configured to set the collision probability to 0 if the first information is not detected in 2 Q time slots; wherein the collision probability is a collision probability between one or more of the first devices.
The device according to claim 13, characterized in that

The transceiver module is specifically configured to switch to the second antenna to send the query signaling if the collision probability is 0.
The device according to any one of claims 12 to 14, characterized in that

The transceiver module is also used to send a query adjustment signaling if the processing module detects at least two conflicting first information in the 2 Q time slots; wherein the at least two conflicting first information are at least two first information detected in the same time slot; the query adjustment signaling includes a second Q value, and the second Q value is greater than the first Q value.
The device according to claim 15, characterized in that

For the i-th time slot, where 1≤i≤2 Q ;

The processing module is further configured to adjust the collision probability once if at least two conflicting first information are detected in the i-th time slot;

The processing module is further configured to not adjust the collision probability if at least two conflicting first information are not detected in the i-th time slot.
The device according to any one of claims 12 to 16, characterized in that

The transceiver module is further configured to send confirmation information to the first device associated with the first information if there is no conflict between the first information detected by the processing module in the 2 Q time slots;

The transceiver module is further configured to send a query adjustment signaling if the processing module fails to successfully detect the second information from the first device associated with the first information;

The query adjustment signaling includes a second Q value, and the second Q value is greater than the first Q value.
The device according to claim 17, characterized in that

For the i-th time slot, where 1≤i≤2 Q ;

The processing module is further configured to adjust the collision probability once if first information without conflict is detected in the i-th time slot, but second information from the first device associated with the first information is not successfully detected;

The processing module is further configured to not adjust the collision probability if non-conflicting first information is detected in the i-th time slot and second information from a first device associated with the first information is successfully detected.
The device according to claim 16 or 18, characterized in that

The transceiver module is further configured to send the query adjustment signaling if the collision probability is not 0 when the processing module detects the first information in the 2 Q time slots.
The device according to claim 19, characterized in that

The processing module is further used to determine the second Q value according to the collision probability.
A communication device, comprising:

A transceiver module, configured to receive query information from a second device; wherein the query information includes a first time slot counting parameter Q value, and the first Q value is 0;

A processing module, used to determine an initial value of a time slot counter according to the first Q value;

The transceiver module is further configured to send first information to the second device when the value of the time slot counter is updated to 0.
The device according to claim 21, characterized in that

The transceiver module is further used to receive a query adjustment signaling from the second device; wherein the query adjustment signaling includes a second Q value, and the second Q value is greater than the first Q value;

The processing module is further used to update the initial value of the time slot counter according to the second Q value.
A communication device, characterized in that the communication device comprises a processor; the processor is used to run a computer program or instruction so that the communication device executes the communication method as described in any one of claims 1-9.
A communication device, characterized in that the communication device comprises a processor; the processor is used to run a computer program or instruction so that the communication device executes the communication method as described in any one of claims 10-11.
A computer-readable storage medium, characterized in that the computer-readable storage medium stores computer instructions or programs, and when the computer instructions or programs are run on a computer, the communication method according to any one of claims 1 to 9 is executed, or the communication method according to any one of claims 1 to 9 is executed. The communication method described in any one of items 10-11 is executed.
A computer program product, characterized in that the computer program product includes computer instructions; when part or all of the computer instructions are run on a computer, the communication method as described in any one of claims 1 to 9 is executed, or the communication method as described in any one of claims 10 to 11 is executed.
A communication system, characterized by comprising the communication device described in any one of claims 12-20 and 23 and the communication device described in claim 21, 22 or 24.