Communication methods, communication apparatuses, communication system and storage medium

Abstract

Provided in the embodiments of the present application are communication methods, communication apparatuses, a communication system and a storage medium, which are aimed at improving the quality of service of a terminal device. A communication method provided in the present application comprises: when an NTN network device identifies that it is necessary to switch from a normal mode to a store-and-forward mode, if a terminal device has a store-and-forward capability, sending an information query request to the terminal device; receiving an information query response message from the terminal device, wherein the information query response message comprises a store-and-forward state parameter; and on the basis of the store-and-forward state parameter, determining whether it is suitable to provide a store-and-forward service for the terminal device. In the solution, the NTN network device acquires the store-and-forward state parameter of the terminal device, and evaluates, on the basis of the store-and-forward state parameter, whether it is suitable to provide the store-and-forward service for the terminal device, so that, when it is suitable to provide the store-and-forward service for the terminal device, the NTN network device can communicate with the terminal device on the basis of the store-and-forward mode, thereby improving the quality of service of the terminal device.

Description

Communication method, communication device, communication system and storage medium

[0001] The present application claims priority to the Chinese patent application No. 202411168857.4, filed on August 23, 2024, and entitled "A communication method, a communication device, a communication system and a storage medium", the content of which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety. TECHNICAL FIELD

[0002] The present application relates to the field of communication technology, in particular to a communication method, a communication device, a communication system and a storage medium. BACKGROUND

[0003] Due to the advantages of global coverage and flexible deployment, Non-Terrestrial Network (NTN) has been widely used in various communication scenarios. When communication is performed using a satellite communication network in the NTN in the communication scenario, since the coverage range of the ground station is limited, as the satellite moves, the feeder link between the satellite and the ground station will be forced to be interrupted. When the feeder link between the satellite and the ground station is about to be disconnected or has been disconnected, the NTN network device usually directly switches the communication mode between the NTN network device and the terminal device from a normal mode to a store-and-forward mode.

[0004] However, if the NTN network device directly switches the communication mode between the NTN network device and the terminal device from the normal mode to the store-and-forward mode, it may cause the service of the terminal device to be interrupted, and thus the Quality of Service (QoS) of the terminal device is poor. SUMMARY

[0005] The present application provides a communication method, a communication device and a storage medium, which aims to improve the Quality of Service of the terminal device.

[0006] In order to achieve the above-mentioned purpose, the present application provides the following technical solutions:

[0007] The first aspect of the present application provides a communication method applied to an NTN network device, the method comprising:

[0008] When the NTN network device identifies that the situation of switching from a normal mode to a store-and-forward mode needs to occur, if the terminal device has a store-and-forward capability, the NTN network device sends an information query request to the terminal device;

[0009] receiving an information query response message from the terminal device, the information query response message comprising a store-and-forward state parameter of the terminal device;

[0010] determine whether the terminal device is suitable for the store-and-forward service based on the store-and-forward state parameter.

[0011] In the implementation scheme, in order to improve the service quality of the terminal device, when the NTN network device identifies that the switching from the normal mode to the store-and-forward mode needs to occur, if the terminal device has the store-and-forward capability, the NTN network device can further acquire the store-and-forward state parameter of the terminal device, and can evaluate whether the terminal device is suitable for the store-and-forward service based on the store-and-forward state parameter, so as to communicate with the terminal device based on the store-and-forward mode when it is determined that the terminal device is suitable for the store-and-forward service, thereby avoiding the service interruption caused by the NTN network device directly switching the communication mode between the NTN network device and the terminal device from the normal mode to the store-and-forward mode and the terminal device being unsuitable for the store-and-forward service, and improving the service quality of the terminal device.

[0012] In a possible implementation manner of the first aspect of the application, the method further includes: if it is determined that the terminal device is suitable for the store-and-forward service based on the store-and-forward state parameter, the NTN network device switches to the store-and-forward mode to provide communication services for the terminal device. In the implementation scheme, if the NTN network device determines that the terminal device is suitable for the store-and-forward service based on the store-and-forward state parameter, the NTN network device can switch the communication mode from the normal mode to the store-and-forward mode, and then communicate with the terminal device based on the store-and-forward mode, thereby avoiding the service interruption caused by the NTN network device directly switching the communication mode between the NTN network device and the terminal device from the normal mode to the store-and-forward mode and the terminal device being unsuitable for the store-and-forward service, and improving the service quality of the terminal device.

[0013] In a possible implementation manner of the first aspect of the application, the NTN network device identifies that the switching from the normal mode to the store-and-forward mode needs to occur includes: the NTN network device identifies that the feeder link between the NTN network device and the ground core network device is about to be disconnected or has been disconnected. In the implementation scheme, when the feeder link between the NTN network device and the ground core network device is about to be disconnected or has been disconnected, the NTN network device can determine that the communication mode needs to be switched from the normal mode to the store-and-forward mode.

[0014] In a possible implementation of the first aspect of the application, the storage and forwarding state parameter comprises first indication information and pending data parameter, the first indication information is used to indicate whether the terminal device allows storage and forwarding, and the pending data parameter comprises a total data amount of pending data of the terminal device and a maximum delay value allowed by the pending data. In the implementation, the storage and forwarding state parameter received by the NTN network device comprises the first indication information and the pending data parameter, and the pending data parameter comprises the total data amount of the pending data of the terminal device and the maximum delay value allowed by the pending data. That is, the NTN network device can evaluate whether it is suitable to provide storage and forwarding service for the terminal device based on the first indication information and the pending data parameter, so as to communicate with the terminal device based on the storage and forwarding mode when it is determined that it is suitable to provide storage and forwarding service for the terminal device, thereby avoiding the service interruption caused by the NTN network device directly switching the communication mode between the NTN network device and the terminal device from the normal mode to the storage and forwarding mode and the NTN network device being unsuitable to provide storage and forwarding service for the terminal device, and improving the service quality of the terminal device.

[0015] In a possible implementation of the first aspect of the application, the determining whether it is suitable to provide storage and forwarding service for the terminal device based on the storage and forwarding state parameter comprises: if the first indication information indicates that the terminal device allows storage and forwarding, and the total data amount is less than or equal to a first threshold value and the maximum delay value is greater than or equal to a second threshold value, it is determined that it is suitable to provide storage and forwarding service for the terminal device; and if the first indication information indicates that the terminal device does not allow storage and forwarding, or the total data amount is greater than the first threshold value or the maximum delay value is less than the second threshold value, it is determined that it is not suitable to provide storage and forwarding service for the terminal device. In the implementation, when the first indication information in the storage and forwarding state parameter sent by the terminal device indicates that the terminal device allows storage and forwarding at this time, and the total data amount of the pending data of the terminal device in the storage and forwarding state parameter is less than or equal to the first threshold value and the maximum delay value allowed by the pending data in the storage and forwarding state parameter is greater than or equal to the second threshold value, the NTN network device can determine that the state of the terminal device at this time is suitable for storage and forwarding service, and can communicate with the terminal device based on the storage and forwarding mode, thereby avoiding the service interruption caused by the NTN network device directly switching the communication mode between the NTN network device and the terminal device from the normal mode to the storage and forwarding mode and the NTN network device being unsuitable to provide storage and forwarding service for the terminal device, and improving the service quality of the terminal device.

[0016] In a possible implementation of the first aspect of the application, the first threshold comprises a storage space size of the NTN network device or a size determined by a memory of the NTN network device, and the second threshold is a time delay threshold for data transmission of the NTN network device. In the implementation, the first threshold can be determined based on the storage space size of the NTN network device or the size determined by the memory of the NTN network device, and the second threshold can be determined based on the time delay threshold for data transmission of the NTN network device.

[0017] In a possible implementation of the first aspect of the application, before the terminal information query request is sent to the terminal device, the method further comprises: sending a capability query request to the terminal device; and receiving a capability query response message from the terminal device, wherein the capability query response message comprises second indication information, and the second indication information is used to indicate whether the terminal device has the store-and-forward capability. In the implementation, before the terminal information query request is sent to the terminal device, the NTN network device can determine whether the terminal device has the store-and-forward capability by sending the capability query request and obtaining the second indication information from the capability query response message returned by the terminal device, so that the NTN network device can further obtain the store-and-forward state parameter of the terminal device when the terminal device has the store-and-forward capability, and can evaluate whether it is suitable to provide the store-and-forward service for the terminal device based on the store-and-forward state parameter, so as to communicate with the terminal device based on the store-and-forward mode when it is determined that it is suitable to provide the store-and-forward service for the terminal device, thereby avoiding the service interruption caused by the NTN network device directly switching the communication mode between the NTN network device and the terminal device from the normal mode to the store-and-forward mode and not suitable to provide the store-and-forward service for the terminal device, and thereby improving the service quality of the terminal device.

[0018] In a possible implementation of the first aspect of the application, if the second indication information indicates that the terminal device has the store-and-forward capability, the capability query response message further comprises third indication information, the third indication information being used to indicate whether the terminal device can report the store-and-forward state parameter; if the third indication information indicates that the terminal device can report the store-and-forward state parameter, an information query request is sent to the terminal device; if the third indication information indicates that the terminal device cannot report the store-and-forward state parameter, the NTN network device switches to the store-and-forward mode to provide communication services for the terminal device. In the above implementation, if the second indication information in the capability query response message returned by the terminal device indicates that the terminal device has the store-and-forward capability, the third indication information in the capability query response message can also be attached to indicate whether the terminal device can report the store-and-forward state parameter, so that the NTN network device can further determine the state and capability of the terminal device, so that the NTN network device can make a decision in a timely manner based on the state and capability of the terminal device; and when the third indication information in the capability query response message returned by the terminal device indicates that the terminal device can report the store-and-forward state parameter, it means that the NTN network device can obtain the store-and-forward state parameter from the terminal device, that is, the NTN network device can evaluate whether it is suitable to provide the store-and-forward service for the terminal device, at this time, the NTN network device can send an information query request to the terminal device to obtain the store-and-forward state parameter of the terminal device; when the third indication information in the capability query response message returned by the terminal device indicates that the terminal device cannot report the store-and-forward state parameter, it means that the NTN network device cannot obtain the store-and-forward state parameter from the terminal device, that is, the NTN network device cannot evaluate whether it is suitable to provide the store-and-forward service for the terminal device. At this time, the NTN network device can default to provide the store-and-forward service for the terminal device, and can directly switch to the store-and-forward mode to communicate with the terminal device, avoiding the situation that the communication mode between the NTN network device and the terminal device is directly switched from the normal mode to the store-and-forward mode, and the NTN network device is not suitable to provide the store-and-forward service for the terminal device, causing the service interruption, thereby improving the service quality of the terminal device.

[0019] In a possible implementation of the first aspect of the application, if the second indication information indicates that the terminal device has the store-and-forward capability, the method further includes: if the capability query response message does not include third indication information, the NTN network device switches to a store-and-forward mode to provide communication services for the terminal device; and the third indication information is used to indicate whether the terminal device can report store-and-forward state parameters. In the above implementation, if the second indication information carried in the capability query response message indicates that the terminal device has the store-and-forward capability, and the third indication information used to indicate whether the terminal device can report store-and-forward state parameters is not carried in the capability query response message, the NTN network device can determine that the terminal device cannot report store-and-forward state parameters, which means that the NTN network device cannot obtain the store-and-forward state parameters from the terminal device, and the NTN network device cannot evaluate whether it is suitable to provide store-and-forward services for the terminal device. At this time, the NTN network device can default to providing store-and-forward services for the terminal device, and can directly switch to the store-and-forward mode to communicate with the terminal device, thereby avoiding the situation of service interruption caused by directly switching the communication mode between the NTN network device and the terminal device from the normal mode to the store-and-forward mode and unsuitable to provide store-and-forward services for the terminal device, and improving the service quality of the terminal device.

[0020] In a possible implementation of the first aspect of the application, the method further includes: if the terminal device does not have the store-and-forward capability, disconnecting the connection with the terminal device; and if the terminal device is unsuitable to provide store-and-forward services, disconnecting the connection with the terminal device. In the above implementation, if the NTN network device determines that the terminal device does not have the store-and-forward capability, it can directly determine that the terminal device is unsuitable to provide store-and-forward services, and at this time, the connection between the NTN network device and the terminal device can be disconnected; and if the NTN network device determines that the terminal device is unsuitable to provide store-and-forward services, the connection between the NTN network device and the terminal device can also be disconnected at this time, so that the terminal device can perform data transmission through other NTN network devices, thereby avoiding the situation of service interruption caused by directly switching the communication mode between the NTN network device and the terminal device from the normal mode to the store-and-forward mode and unsuitable to provide store-and-forward services for the terminal device, and improving the service quality of the terminal device.

[0021] In a possible implementation of the first aspect of the application, the signaling for carrying the information query request comprises one of radio resource control signaling, system message, downlink control information signaling, and medium access control layer control element signaling; and the signaling for carrying the information query response message comprises one of radio resource control response message, medium access control layer control element signaling, physical random access channel message, and physical uplink shared channel message. In the above implementation, the information query request can be carried by any one of the radio resource control signaling, the system message, the downlink control information signaling, and the medium access control layer control element signaling, and the information query response message can be carried by any one of the radio resource control response message, the medium access control layer control element signaling, the physical random access channel message, and the physical uplink shared channel message.

[0022] In a possible implementation of the first aspect of the application, the terminal device comprises a new radio (NR) device or an Internet of Things (IOT) terminal device, and the NTN network device comprises any one of an NTN base station, a satellite base station, an unmanned aerial vehicle network device, a high-altitude platform network device, an aircraft network device, and a communication balloon network device.

[0023] The second aspect of the application provides a communication method applied to a terminal device, and the method comprises the following steps.

[0024] receiving an information query request from an NTN network device;

[0025] sending an information query response message to the NTN network device, wherein the information query response message comprises a store-and-forward state parameter, so that the NTN network device determines whether to provide store-and-forward service for the terminal device according to the store-and-forward state parameter.

[0026] In the above implementation, in order to improve the service quality of the terminal device, when the terminal device has a store-and-forward capability, the terminal device can send the store-and-forward state parameter to the NTN network device through the information query response message, so that the NTN network device can obtain the store-and-forward state parameter of the terminal device, and can evaluate whether to provide store-and-forward service for the terminal device based on the store-and-forward state parameter, so as to communicate with the terminal device based on the store-and-forward mode when it is determined that the store-and-forward service is suitable for the terminal device, thereby avoiding the situation of service interruption caused by the NTN network device directly switching the communication mode between the NTN network device and the terminal device from a normal mode to a store-and-forward mode and the NTN network device being unsuitable for providing store-and-forward service for the terminal device, thereby improving the service quality of the terminal device.

[0027] In a possible implementation of the second aspect of the application, if the NTN network device determines, according to the store-and-forward state parameter, that it is suitable to provide the store-and-forward service for the terminal device, the method further comprises:

[0028] In a possible implementation of the second aspect of the application, the store-and-forward state parameter comprises first indication information and pending data parameter, the first indication information is used to indicate whether the terminal device allows store-and-forward, and the pending data parameter comprises a total data amount of pending data of the terminal device and a maximum delay value allowed by the pending data.

[0029] In a possible implementation of the second aspect of the application, before the information query request is received from the NTN network device, the method further comprises:

[0030] receiving a capability query request from the NTN network device;

[0031] sending a capability query response message to the NTN network device, the capability query response message comprising second indication information, the second indication information being used to indicate whether the terminal device has store-and-forward capability.

[0032] In a possible implementation of the second aspect of the application, if the second indication information indicates that the terminal device has store-and-forward capability, the capability query response message further comprises third indication information, the third indication information being used to indicate whether the terminal device can report the store-and-forward state parameter;

[0033] if the third indication information indicates that the terminal device can report the store-and-forward state parameter, receiving the information query request from the NTN network device;

[0034] if the third indication information indicates that the terminal device cannot report the store-and-forward state parameter, communicating with the NTN network device in the store-and-forward mode.

[0035] In a possible implementation of the second aspect of the application, if the second indication information indicates that the terminal device has store-and-forward capability, the method further comprises:

[0036] if the capability query response message does not comprise the third indication information, switching to the store-and-forward mode to communicate with the NTN network device;

[0037] wherein the third indication information is used to indicate whether the terminal device can report the store-and-forward state parameter.

[0038] In a possible implementation of the second aspect of the application, the method further comprises:

[0039] If the terminal device does not have the store-and-forward capability, disconnect the connection with the NTN network device.

[0040] In a possible implementation manner of the second aspect of the application, the signaling for carrying the information query request comprises one of radio resource control signaling, system message, downlink control information signaling, and medium access control layer control element signaling; and the signaling for carrying the information query response message comprises one of radio resource control response message, medium access control layer control element signaling, physical random access channel message, and physical uplink shared channel message.

[0041] In a possible implementation manner of the second aspect of the application, the terminal device is a terminal device in an Internet of Things terminal access technology based on a non-terrestrial network, and the NTN network device is a network device in the Internet of Things terminal access technology based on the non-terrestrial network.

[0042] The third aspect of the application provides a communication method, applied to a terminal device and an NTN network device, and the terminal device performs the following method:

[0043] If the terminal device has the store-and-forward capability, the NTN network device sends an information query request to the terminal device when it is identified that a switch from a normal mode to a store-and-forward mode needs to occur.

[0044] An information query response message is received from the terminal device, and the information query response message comprises a store-and-forward state parameter of the terminal device.

[0045] It is determined whether the terminal device is suitable for being provided with a store-and-forward service according to the store-and-forward state parameter.

[0046] The NTN network device performs the following method:

[0047] An information query request is received from a non-terrestrial network (NTN) network device.

[0048] An information query response message is sent to the NTN network device, and the information query response message comprises a store-and-forward state parameter, so that the NTN network device determines whether the terminal device is suitable for being provided with a store-and-forward service according to the store-and-forward state parameter.

[0049] The fourth aspect of the application provides a communication apparatus, specifically an NTN network device, which comprises:

[0050] The sending module is configured to send an information query request to the terminal device if the terminal device has a store-and-forward capability when it is identified that a switch from a normal mode to a store-and-forward mode needs to occur.

[0051] receiving a message query response from the terminal device, the message query response comprising a store-and-forward state parameter of the terminal device;

[0052] determining whether to provide store-and-forward service for the terminal device according to the store-and-forward state parameter.

[0053] A fifth aspect of the present application provides a communication device, specifically a terminal device, comprising:

[0054] receiving a message query request from an NTN network device;

[0055] sending a message query response to the NTN network device, the message query response comprising a store-and-forward state parameter, so that the NTN network device determines whether to provide store-and-forward service for the terminal device according to the store-and-forward state parameter.

[0056] A sixth aspect of the present application provides a communication device, comprising a memory and at least one processor. The memory is used to store programs, and the at least one processor is used to execute computer programs or computer instructions stored in the memory, so that the communication device implements any one of the communication methods provided in the first aspect of the present application.

[0057] A seventh aspect of the present application provides a communication device, comprising a memory and at least one processor. The memory is used to store programs, and the at least one processor is used to execute computer programs or computer instructions stored in the memory, so that the communication device implements any one of the communication methods provided in the second aspect of the present application.

[0058] An eighth aspect of the present application provides a communication system, comprising a terminal device and an NTN network device:

[0059] The terminal device is used to execute any one of the communication methods provided in the first aspect of the present application, and the NTN network device is used to execute any one of the communication methods provided in the second aspect of the present application.

[0060] A ninth aspect of the present application provides a computer storage medium, used to store a computer program, which is executed to implement any one of the communication methods provided in the first aspect or the second aspect of the present application.

[0061] A tenth aspect of the present application provides a computer program product comprising instructions which, when executed on a computer, cause the computer to perform any one of the communication methods of the first aspect or the second aspect.

[0062] An eleventh aspect of the present application provides a chip system, which includes a processor for supporting a terminal device or an NTN network device to implement functions involved in the above aspects, e.g., transmitting or processing data and / or information involved in the above methods. In a possible design, the chip system further includes a memory, and the memory is configured to store necessary program instructions and data of the terminal device or the NTN network device. The chip system can be composed of a chip, or include a chip and other discrete devices. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0063] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a system architecture of a communication system according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0064] FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of a structure of a satellite communication network according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0065] FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram of another structure of a satellite communication network according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0066] FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram of an interaction process between an NTN network device and a terminal device according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0067] FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram of another interaction process between an NTN network device and a terminal device according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0068] FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram of a communication method according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0069] FIG. 7 is a schematic diagram of another communication method according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0070] FIG. 8 is a schematic diagram of a process at a base station side of a communication method according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0071] FIG. 9 is a schematic diagram of a structure of a communication apparatus according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0072] FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram of another structure of a communication apparatus according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0073] FIG. 11 is a structural example diagram of an electronic device disclosed by an embodiment of the present application;

[0074] FIG. 12 is a structural example diagram of another electronic device disclosed by an embodiment of the present application. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0075] The technical solutions in the embodiments of the present application will be described clearly and completely in the following with reference to the drawings in the embodiments of the present application. The terms used in the following embodiments are only for the purpose of describing the specific embodiments and are not intended to be limiting to the present application. As used in the specification and the appended claims of the present application, the singular forms “a,” “an” and “the” are intended to include the plural forms as well, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. It will be further understood that the terms “one or more” as used in the embodiments of the present application refer to one, two, or more than two; “and / or” describes the associated objects in the association relationship, which means that there can be three kinds of relationships; for example, A and / or B can mean that A exists alone, A and B exist together, and B exists alone, where A and B can be singular or plural. The character “ / ” generally represents an “or” relationship between the associated objects.

[0076] In the present specification, the reference to “one embodiment” or “some embodiments” means that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic described in connection with the embodiment is included in at least one embodiment of the present application. Thus, the appearances of the phrases “in one embodiment”, “in some embodiments”, “in other embodiments”, “in additional embodiments”, etc. in various places in the specification are not necessarily all referring to the same embodiment, but can refer to one or more but not all embodiments, unless otherwise specifically stated. The terms “comprising”, “including”, “having” and their conjugates mean “including but not limited to”, unless otherwise specifically stated.

[0077] The plurality referred to in the embodiments of the present application means greater than or equal to two. It should be noted that in the description of the embodiments of the present application, the terms “first”, “second”, etc. are only used for the purpose of distinguishing the description and cannot be understood as indicating or implying relative importance, nor can it be understood as indicating or implying order.

[0078] The embodiments of the present application are applied to a communication system, which can be a second generation (2G) communication system, a third generation (3G) communication system, can be an LTE system, can be a fifth generation (5G) communication system, can be an LTE and 5G hybrid architecture, can be a 5G new radio (5G NR) system, and can be a new communication system in future communication development, etc.

[0079] The satellite communication system comprises a first device and a second device. The first device can be a device for providing network communication function on the network side, also referred to as a network device, network element in some cases, which can generally be a base station (including a functional unit of the base station or a combination of functional units of the base station) or a core network unit, wherein the core network unit can be a functional unit in the core network, including but not limited to an Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF) unit or a Session Management Function (SMF) unit. The second device can be a device accessing the network, which can generally be a terminal device. An example of the communication system is shown in FIG. 1, which includes a base station 11 and a terminal 12. For example, the first device can be a terminal device in the satellite communication system, and the second device can be an NTN network device in the satellite communication system.

[0080] In the embodiments provided in the present application, the base station can be any kind of device with wireless transceiving function, including but not limited to: an evolved Node B (eNB or e-NodeB) in long term evolution (LTE), a base station (gNodeB or gNB) or transmission reception point (TRP) in new radio (NR), a base station in subsequent evolution of 3GPP, an access node in a Wi-Fi system, a wireless relay node, a wireless backhaul node, etc. The base station can be: a macro base station, a micro base station, a pico base station, a small station, a relay station, or a balloon station, etc. The base station can include one or more co-sited or non-co-sited transmission reception points (TRPs). The base station can also be a radio controller, a centralized unit (CU), and / or a distributed unit (DU) in a cloud radio access network (CRAN) scenario. The base station can communicate with the terminal device, or communicate with the terminal device through the relay station. The terminal device can communicate with multiple base stations of different technologies, for example, the terminal device can communicate with a base station supporting an LTE network, and can also communicate with a base station supporting a 5G network, and can also communicate with a base station supporting an LTE network and a base station supporting a 5G network in dual connectivity. For another example, the network device is specifically a network device in a satellite communication system, i.e., an NTN network device, for example, the NTN network device includes any one of an NTN base station (gNB), a unmanned aerial vehicle network device, a high altitude platform network device, an aircraft network device, a communication balloon network device, and the present application does not limit the specific implementation of the NTN network device, which is only an example in a possible scenario.

[0081] In the embodiments provided in the present application, the terminal device can be various forms, for example, a mobile phone, a tablet computer (Pad), a computer with wireless transceiver function, a virtual reality (VR) terminal device, an augmented reality (AR) terminal device, a wireless terminal device in industrial control, a vehicle-mounted terminal device, a wireless terminal device in self-driving, a wireless terminal device in remote medical treatment, a wireless terminal device in smart grid, a wireless terminal device in transportation safety, a wireless terminal device in smart city, a wireless terminal device in smart home, a wearable terminal device, and the like. The terminal device can also be referred to as a terminal device, a user equipment (UE), an access terminal device, a vehicle-mounted terminal device, an industrial control terminal device, a UE unit, a UE station, a mobile station, a mobile station, a remote station, a remote terminal device, a mobile device, a UE terminal device, a terminal device, a wireless communication device, a UE agent, or a UE apparatus, and the like. The terminal device can also be a fixed terminal device or a mobile terminal device. The terminal device can also be a new radio (NR) device or an Internet of Things (IOT) terminal device.

[0082] In a communication system, Non-Terrestrial Network (NTN) technology is one of the technical directions of direct satellite communication for mobile phones, and is an important supplement to ground cellular communication technology. By utilizing the integration of satellite communication networks and ground 5G networks, NTN technology can provide ubiquitous coverage without being limited by topography, connect multi-dimensional space of air, sky, land, and sea, form an integrated ubiquitous access network, and provide full-scenario on-demand access. Non-Terrestrial Network can not be limited by geographical location, and can realize seamless communication in a global range; and satellite communication networks can be flexibly deployed and quickly respond to various communication needs. Due to the advantages of global coverage and flexible deployment of Non-Terrestrial Network, it has been widely applied to various communication scenarios.

[0083] In addition, the Internet of Things-Non-Terrestrial Network (IoT-NTN) is an important branch of non-terrestrial network technology, which aims to provide connection services for Internet of Things devices through satellite communication and other non-terrestrial network means. With the rapid development of Internet of Things technology, more and more devices need to access the network to achieve interconnection. However, in some remote areas or oceans, airspace and other areas that are difficult to cover through traditional ground networks, the connection of Internet of Things devices has become a problem. The emergence of IoT-NTN technology is to solve this problem, through satellite and other non-terrestrial network means to achieve wide-area coverage and remote connection of Internet of Things devices.

[0084] Please refer to FIG. 2, when the communication scenario uses satellite communication network in non-terrestrial network for communication, due to the limited coverage of ground station, as the satellite moves, the same satellite often cannot provide service link to terminal device while providing feeder link to ground station. Wherein the feeder link refers to a radio link from an earth station located at a specified fixed point to a space station (such as a satellite), or from a space station to an earth station located at a fixed point. This link is mainly used for space radio communication services other than satellite fixed services. Specifically, the feeder link plays an important role in the satellite communication system, which is the communication link between the ground station (or gateway, gateway station) and the satellite. The service link is used to connect the terminal device and the NTN network device in the satellite communication network to realize the transmission of data and the interaction of services.

[0085] Referring to FIG. 3, when the satellite is in state A, the NTN network device on the satellite maintains a feeder link with the ground station and a service link with the terminal device, and the communication mode of the NTN network device on the satellite is normal mode. In the case of maintaining the connected state, as the satellite moves, when the satellite moves from state A to state B, the NTN network device on the satellite still maintains a service link with the terminal device, and the feeder link between the NTN network device and the ground station is disconnected, at which time the NTN network device needs to switch the communication mode from normal mode to store and forward (S&F) mode to continue data transmission. However, if the NTN network device does not know the amount of data to be sent and the data delay of the terminal device, i.e., the NTN network device is not aware of whether it is suitable to provide store and forward service for the terminal device, and directly switches the communication mode between the NTN network device and the terminal device from normal mode to store and forward mode, it may cause the service of the terminal device to be interrupted, and thus the quality of service (QoS) of the terminal device is poor.

[0086] The communication mode between the NTN network device and the terminal device can be distinguished as normal mode and store and forward mode according to whether the store and forward technology is used. When the communication mode between the NTN network device and the terminal device is normal mode, the NTN network device and the terminal device are in normal working or active state, which means that the hardware and software systems of the NTN network device and the terminal device are normally running and are ready to respond to communication requests at any time; and the NTN network device and the terminal device can normally send and receive data, and the real-time performance of communication is usually high, which means that the NTN network device and the terminal device can respond to communication requests faster and complete data transmission faster.

[0087] When the communication mode between the NTN network device and the terminal device is store and forward mode, the NTN network device and the terminal device will first store the received data locally, and then forward the data to the target device according to network conditions or other factors. That is, once the conditions allow, the NTN network device and the terminal device will forward the data stored locally to the target device. The store and forward mode usually has high reliability, because it allows the terminal device and the NTN network device to temporarily store data when the network condition is not good, and continues transmission after the condition improves, which helps to reduce the risk of data loss and transmission failure.

[0088] In order to make the technical solutions of the present application clearer and easier to understand, the communication method of the embodiments of the present application will be introduced below in combination with the drawings. The embodiments of the present application are applicable to the data transmission process in a wireless communication scenario. In the embodiments of the present application, data transmission between a terminal device and an NTN network device is taken as an example, for example, data transmission between a single terminal device and an NTN network device. The NTN network device can include an eNB or a gNB. The data transmission between the terminal device and the NTN network device described above is only an example, and the embodiments of the present application can be applied to data transmission between terminal devices, or data transmission between NTN network devices, or data transmission between two network elements in a wireless communication network.

[0089] Please refer to FIG. 4, which is an interaction flow diagram between an NTN network device and a terminal device provided by the embodiments of the present application. The communication method provided by the embodiments of the present application mainly includes the following steps:

[0090] 401. When the NTN network device identifies that the situation of switching from the normal mode to the store-and-forward mode needs to occur, if the terminal device has the store-and-forward capability, the NTN network device sends an information query request to the terminal device.

[0091] In the embodiments of the present application, when the NTN network device identifies that the communication mode needs to be switched from the normal mode to the store-and-forward mode, the NTN network device can first determine whether the terminal device has the store-and-forward capability. It can be understood that whether the terminal device has the store-and-forward capability is the basis for whether the terminal device can provide store-and-forward service. If the terminal device does not have the store-and-forward capability, it is not suitable to provide the terminal device with store-and-forward service; if the terminal device has the store-and-forward capability and the terminal device has the capability of reporting the store-and-forward parameter, the NTN network device can send an information query request to the terminal device in order to obtain the store-and-forward state parameter of the terminal device, and then evaluate whether it is suitable to provide the terminal device with store-and-forward service based on the store-and-forward state parameter, so as to communicate with the terminal device based on the store-and-forward mode when it is determined that it is suitable to provide the terminal device with store-and-forward service, thereby avoiding the situation of service interruption caused by the NTN network device directly switching the communication mode between the NTN network device and the terminal device from the normal mode to the store-and-forward mode and not suitable to provide the terminal device with store-and-forward service, thereby improving the service quality of the terminal device. It can be understood that the information query request can carry a query field of the store-and-forward state parameter of the terminal device. When the communication technology between the NTN network device and the terminal device adopts the NTN technology, the information query request can be specifically a terminal information request message (UE Information Request Message); when the communication technology between the NTN network device and the terminal device adopts the IoT-NTN technology, the information query request can be specifically a terminal information request narrowband message (UE Information Request-NarrowBand Message). Specifically, the NTN network device can send the information query request to the terminal device through a Uu interface, wherein the Uu interface is an interface between the terminal device and the fixed network part of the wideband code division multiple access system, and is an important open interface in the wideband code division multiple access system.

[0092] In the embodiments of the present application, the terminal information request message or the terminal information request narrowband message can be modified to carry the query field of the store-and-forward state parameter of the terminal device. Specifically, taking the terminal information request narrowband message as an example, the modified terminal information request narrowband message can be specifically as follows:

[0093] Among them, the terminal information request narrowband message can be added with the "UEInformationRequest-NB-r19-IEs" field and the "UEInformationRequest-NB-r19-Ies::=SEQUENCE{

[0094] StoreAndForward-r19 BOOLEAN,

[0095] nonCriticalExtension SEQUENCE{}OPTIONAL

[0096] }” field, so that the terminal device can obtain the corresponding store and forward state parameters according to the received terminal information request narrowband message, and report to the NTN network device.

[0097] In addition, the store and forward (Store and Forward, S&F) technology is a data transmission method, in which data is first stored completely in the buffer of the intermediate node (such as router, switch, etc.) during transmission, until the entire data packet is completely received and verified to be error-free, and then forwarded to the next node. This method ensures the integrity and reliability of data, but may introduce certain transmission delay. The store and forward technology is widely used in various communication networks, including local area network (LAN), wide area network (WAN), Internet and satellite communication, etc. Especially in satellite communication, due to the long propagation delay and high bit error rate of the communication link between satellite and ground station, the store and forward technology is usually adopted to improve the reliability and integrity of data transmission.

[0098] In a possible implementation manner of the embodiment of the present application, the signaling for carrying the information query request can include one of radio resource control signaling, system message, downlink control information signaling, and media access control layer control element signaling. In the embodiment of the present application, the information query request can be carried by any one of radio resource control (RRC) signaling, system information (SI), downlink control information (DCI) signaling, and media access control control element (MAC CE) signaling. It can be understood that the RRC signaling is mainly responsible for managing, configuring and controlling the radio resources in the wireless communication system. The SI contains a series of configuration information and control information broadcasted by the network device to the terminal device, which is crucial for the user equipment to correctly access the network, communicate data and maintain the network connection. The DCI signaling is mainly used to transmit various control information of the downlink from the network device to the terminal device. The MAC CE signaling is a control element in the MAC layer, which is used to transmit the control information of the MAC layer between the terminal device and the network device.

[0099] In a possible implementation manner of the embodiment of the present application, the case that the NTN network device identifies that the switching from the normal mode to the store-and-forward mode needs to occur includes the case that the feeder link between the NTN network device and the ground core network device is about to be disconnected or has been disconnected. In the embodiment of the present application, when the feeder link between the NTN network device and the ground core network device is about to be disconnected or has been disconnected, the NTN network device can determine that the communication mode needs to be switched from the normal mode to the store-and-forward mode.

[0100] In a possible implementation manner of the embodiment of the present application, the method further includes:

[0101] A1, if the terminal device does not have the store-and-forward capability, the NTN network device disconnects the connection with the terminal device.

[0102] In the embodiment of the present application, if the NTN network device determines that the terminal device does not have the store-and-forward capability, it can directly determine that the terminal device is not suitable for being provided with the store-and-forward service. At this time, the NTN network device can disconnect the connection with the terminal device, so that the terminal device can perform data transmission through other NTN network devices, thereby avoiding the case of service interruption caused by the NTN network device directly switching the communication mode between the terminal device from the normal mode to the store-and-forward mode and the terminal device being unsuitable for being provided with the store-and-forward service, thereby improving the service quality of the terminal device.

[0103] 402、The terminal device receives an information query request from the NTN network device.

[0104] In the embodiments of the present application, the terminal device can receive an information query request from the NTN network device, so as to report the store-and-forward state parameter of the terminal device to the NTN network device based on the information query request, evaluate whether it is suitable to provide store-and-forward service for the terminal device based on the store-and-forward state parameter, and communicate with the terminal device based on the store-and-forward mode when it is determined that it is suitable to provide store-and-forward service for the terminal device, thereby avoiding the situation of service interruption caused by the NTN network device directly switching the communication mode between the NTN network device and the terminal device from the normal mode to the store-and-forward mode and not suitable to provide store-and-forward service for the terminal device, and improving the service quality of the terminal device.

[0105] 403、The terminal device sends an information query response message to the NTN network device.

[0106] The information query response message includes a store-and-forward state parameter.

[0107] In the embodiments of the present application, when the terminal device receives an information query request from the NTN network device, the terminal device can obtain the store-and-forward state parameter of the terminal device itself, and report the store-and-forward state parameter to the NTN network device based on the information query response message, so that the NTN network device can evaluate whether it is suitable to provide store-and-forward service for the terminal device based on the store-and-forward state parameter, and communicate with the terminal device based on the store-and-forward mode when it is determined that it is suitable to provide store-and-forward service for the terminal device, thereby avoiding the situation of service interruption caused by the NTN network device directly switching the communication mode between the NTN network device and the terminal device from the normal mode to the store-and-forward mode and not suitable to provide store-and-forward service for the terminal device, and improving the service quality of the terminal device. It can be understood that the store-and-forward state parameter is a parameter required for evaluating whether it is suitable to provide store-and-forward service for the terminal device when the terminal device has store-and-forward capability. The information query response message can carry a field for indicating the store-and-forward state parameter of the terminal device. When the communication technology between the NTN network device and the terminal device adopts NTN technology, the information query response message can be a terminal information response message (UE Information Response Message); when the communication technology between the NTN network device and the terminal device adopts IoT-NTN technology, the information query request can be a terminal information response narrowband message (UE Information Response-NarrowBand Message).

[0108] In a possible implementation manner of the embodiment of the present application, the storage and forwarding state parameter includes first indication information and pending data parameter, the first indication information is used to indicate whether the terminal device allows to perform storage and forwarding, and the pending data parameter includes a total data amount of pending data of the terminal device and a maximum delay value allowed by the pending data. In the embodiment of the present application, the storage and forwarding state parameter reported by the terminal device to the NTN network device can specifically include the first indication information used to indicate whether the terminal device allows to perform storage and forwarding and the pending data parameter, and the pending data parameter can include the total data amount of the pending data of the terminal device and the maximum delay value allowed by the pending data, so that the NTN network device can accurately evaluate whether it is suitable to provide the terminal device with storage and forwarding service based on the first indication information and the pending data parameter, so as to communicate with the terminal device based on the storage and forwarding mode when it is determined that it is suitable to provide the terminal device with storage and forwarding service, thereby avoiding the service interruption caused by the NTN network device directly switching the communication mode between the terminal device from the normal mode to the storage and forwarding mode and the terminal device not being suitable to be provided with storage and forwarding service, thereby improving the service quality of the terminal device.

[0109] Specifically, the terminal device can first evaluate whether to allow to perform storage and forwarding based on the state of the terminal device and the specific situation of the transmitted service data, and can generate the first indication information according to the evaluation result. And the terminal device can query the total data amount of the data to be sent, that is, the pending data, and the maximum delay value allowed by the pending data, and finally can report the first indication information, the total data amount of the pending data and the maximum delay value allowed by the pending data and other storage and forwarding state parameters to the NTN network device through the information query response message.

[0110] In the embodiment of the present application, the terminal information response message or the terminal information response narrowband message can be modified to carry the storage and forwarding state parameter reported by the terminal device. Specifically, taking the terminal information response narrowband message as an example, the modified terminal information response narrowband message can be specifically as follows:

[0111] In the terminal information response narrowband message, the “UEInformationResponse-NB-r19-IEs” field and the “UEInformationResponse-NB-r19-IEs::=SEQUENCE{

[0112] storeAndForward-Report-r19 StoreAndForward-Report-r19 OPTIONAL,

[0113] ​lateNonCriticalExtension OCTET STRING OPTIONAL,

[0114] nonCriticalExtension SEQUENCE{}OPTIONAL,

[0115] }

[0116] StoreAndForward-Report-r19 ::= SEQUENCE {

[0117] prohibits-r19 BOOLEAN,

[0118] dataToBeSent-r19 INTEGER (0..100000),

[0119] delayMax-r19 INTEGER (0..7200),

[0120] }

[0121] In a possible implementation of the embodiments of the present application, the signaling for carrying the information query response message can include one of a radio resource control response message, a medium access control layer control element signaling, a physical random access channel message, and a physical uplink shared channel message. In the embodiments of the present application, the information query response message can be carried by any one of a radio resource control response message (RRC response message), a medium access control layer control element signaling (MAC CE signaling), a physical random access channel (PRACH) message, and a physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH) message. It can be understood that the PRACH is a key channel for initial connection between a terminal device and a network device, and is used to implement uplink synchronization and a random access process. The PUSCH is a physical channel used to carry uplink user data in a mobile communication system such as LTE and 5G, and is a shared channel in the uplink, allowing multiple users to share resources on the same physical channel in time, thereby improving the transmission efficiency of the network.

[0122] 404. The NTN network device receives the information query response message from the terminal device.

[0123] The information query response message includes a store-and-forward state parameter of the terminal device.

[0124] In the embodiments of the present application, after the terminal device sends the information query response message to the NTN network device, the NTN network device can receive the information query response message including the store-and-forward state parameter from the terminal device, so that the NTN network device can evaluate whether it is suitable to provide the store-and-forward service for the terminal device based on the store-and-forward state parameter, so as to communicate with the terminal device based on the store-and-forward mode when it is determined that it is suitable to provide the store-and-forward service for the terminal device, thereby avoiding the situation of service interruption caused by the NTN network device directly switching the communication mode between the NTN network device and the terminal device from the normal mode to the store-and-forward mode and the NTN network device being unsuitable to provide the store-and-forward service for the terminal device, thereby improving the service quality of the terminal device.

[0125] 405. The NTN network device determines whether it is suitable to provide the store-and-forward service for the terminal device according to the store-and-forward state parameter.

[0126] In the embodiments of the present application, after the NTN network device obtains the store-and-forward state parameter sent by the terminal device, whether it is suitable to provide the store-and-forward service for the terminal device can be evaluated based on the store-and-forward state parameter. It can be understood that, based on the store-and-forward state parameter sent by the terminal device, the NTN network device can accurately evaluate whether it is suitable to provide the store-and-forward service for the terminal device, so that the NTN network device can communicate with the terminal device based on the store-and-forward mode when it is determined that it is suitable to provide the store-and-forward service for the terminal device, avoiding the situation of service interruption caused by the NTN network device directly switching the communication mode between the NTN network device and the terminal device from the normal mode to the store-and-forward mode and not suitable to provide the store-and-forward service for the terminal device, thereby improving the service quality of the terminal device.

[0127] In a possible implementation manner of the embodiments of the present application, the step 405 of determining whether it is suitable to provide the store-and-forward service for the terminal device according to the store-and-forward state parameter includes:

[0128] B1, if the first indication information indicates that the terminal device allows to perform store-and-forward, and the total data volume is less than or equal to the first threshold value, and the maximum delay value is greater than or equal to the second threshold value, it is determined that it is suitable to provide the store-and-forward service for the terminal device;

[0129] B2, if the first indication information indicates that the terminal device does not allow to perform store-and-forward, or the total data volume is greater than the first threshold value, or the maximum delay value is less than the second threshold value, it is determined that it is not suitable to provide the store-and-forward service for the terminal device.

[0130] In the embodiments of the present application, the storage forwarding state parameter sent by the terminal device can specifically include first indication information for indicating whether the terminal device allows storage forwarding and data to be sent parameter, and the data to be sent parameter can include the total data amount of data to be sent by the terminal device and the maximum delay value allowed by the data to be sent. After receiving the storage forwarding state parameter sent by the terminal device, the NTN network device can determine whether the terminal device allows storage forwarding according to the first indication information in the storage forwarding state parameter, and can also compare the total data amount of data to be sent in the storage forwarding state parameter with a first threshold value for judgment, compare the maximum delay value allowed by the data to be sent in the storage forwarding state parameter with a second threshold value for judgment, to evaluate whether the current state of the terminal device is suitable for providing storage forwarding service. The first threshold value and the second threshold value can be set by the NTN network device according to actual conditions. Specifically, if the NTN network device determines that the first indication information indicates that the terminal device allows storage forwarding, and the total data amount of data to be sent by the terminal device is less than or equal to the first threshold value, and the maximum delay value of the data to be sent is greater than or equal to the second threshold value, the NTN network device can determine that it is suitable to provide storage forwarding service for the terminal device, otherwise it can be determined that it is not suitable to provide storage forwarding service for the terminal device, that is, if the NTN network device determines that the first indication information indicates that the terminal device does not allow storage forwarding, or the total data amount of data to be sent by the terminal device is greater than the first threshold value, or the maximum delay value of the data to be sent is less than the second threshold value, the NTN network device can determine that it is not suitable to provide storage forwarding service for the terminal device.

[0131] In a possible implementation manner of the embodiments of the present application, the first threshold value includes the storage space size of the NTN network device or the size determined by the memory of the NTN network device, and the second threshold value is the delay threshold value of the NTN network device for sending data. In the above implementation scheme, the first threshold value can be determined based on the storage space size of the NTN network device or the size determined by the memory of the NTN network device, and the second threshold value can be determined based on the delay threshold value of the NTN network device for sending data.

[0132] In a possible implementation manner of the embodiments of the present application, after performing step 405, the NTN network device determines whether it is suitable to provide storage forwarding service for the terminal device according to the storage forwarding state parameter, the following step can also be performed:

[0133] 406. If it is determined according to the storage forwarding state parameter that it is suitable to provide storage forwarding service for the terminal device, the NTN network device switches to the storage forwarding mode to provide communication service for the terminal device.

[0134] In the embodiment of the present application, if the NTN network device determines that it is suitable to provide the terminal device with the store-and-forward service, the communication mode between the NTN network device and the terminal device can be switched from the normal mode to the store-and-forward mode, and the NTN network device communicates with the terminal device based on the store-and-forward mode, thereby avoiding the service interruption caused by the NTN network device directly switching the communication mode between the NTN network device and the terminal device from the normal mode to the store-and-forward mode and the NTN network device being unsuitable to provide the terminal device with the store-and-forward service, and improving the service quality of the terminal device. It can be understood that when the NTN network device communicates with the terminal device based on the store-and-forward mode, the NTN network device can first completely receive and store the data from the terminal device, and then forwards the data to the next target node after processing, such as checking and encoding.

[0135] In a possible implementation manner of the embodiment of the present application, if it is determined according to the store-and-forward state parameter that the terminal device is not suitable to be provided with the store-and-forward service, the NTN network device disconnects the connection with the terminal device. In the embodiment of the present application, if the NTN network device determines that the terminal device is not suitable to be provided with the store-and-forward service, the NTN network device can disconnect the connection with the terminal device, so that the terminal device can perform data transmission through other NTN network devices, thereby avoiding the service interruption caused by the NTN network device directly switching the communication mode between the NTN network device and the terminal device from the normal mode to the store-and-forward mode and the NTN network device being unsuitable to provide the terminal device with the store-and-forward service, and improving the service quality of the terminal device.

[0136] In a possible implementation manner of the embodiment of the present application, the step 406 that the NTN network device switches to the store-and-forward mode to provide the terminal device with the communication service includes:

[0137] C1, the NTN network device switches the communication mode from the normal mode to the store-and-forward mode.

[0138] C2, the NTN network device communicates with the terminal device based on the store-and-forward mode.

[0139] In the embodiment of the present application, when the NTN network device determines that it is suitable to provide the terminal device with the store-and-forward service, the NTN network device can first switch the communication mode from the normal mode to the store-and-forward mode, and then communicate with the terminal device based on the store-and-forward mode, thereby avoiding the service interruption caused by the NTN network device directly switching the communication mode between the NTN network device and the terminal device from the normal mode to the store-and-forward mode and the NTN network device being unsuitable to provide the terminal device with the store-and-forward service, and improving the service quality of the terminal device.

[0140] In a possible implementation manner of the embodiment of the present application, the terminal device is a terminal device in Internet of Things terminal access technology based on a non-terrestrial network, and the NTN network device is a network device in Internet of Things terminal access technology based on a non-terrestrial network. In the embodiment of the present application, the communication technology between the NTN network device and the terminal device can adopt IoT-NTN technology, that is, the communication method can be applied to IoT-NTN technology.

[0141] As can be known from the foregoing embodiments, in order to improve the service quality of the terminal device, when the terminal device has a store-and-forward capability, the NTN network device can further acquire the store-and-forward state parameter of the terminal device, and can evaluate whether it is suitable to provide store-and-forward service for the terminal device based on the store-and-forward state parameter, so as to communicate with the terminal device based on the store-and-forward mode when it is determined that it is suitable to provide store-and-forward service for the terminal device, thereby avoiding the situation of service interruption caused by the NTN network device directly switching the communication mode between the NTN network device and the terminal device from a normal mode to a store-and-forward mode and not suitable to provide store-and-forward service for the terminal device, thereby improving the service quality of the terminal device.

[0142] Referring to FIG. 5, FIG. 5 is a second interaction flow diagram between the NTN network device and the terminal device provided by the embodiment of the present application. Another communication method provided by the embodiment of the present application mainly includes the following steps:

[0143] 501. The NTN network device sends a capability query request to the terminal device.

[0144] In the embodiment of the present application, after the NTN network device and the terminal device establish a radio resource control (RRC) connection, the NTN network device can send a capability query request to the terminal device to learn the various capabilities of the terminal device. Specifically, when the communication technology between the NTN network device and the terminal device adopts NTN technology, the capability query request can be a terminal capability query message (UE Capability Enquiry Message); when the communication technology between the NTN network device and the terminal device adopts IoT-NTN technology, the capability query request can be a terminal capability query request narrowband message (UE Capability Enquiry-NarrowBand Message).

[0145] It can be understood that, in order to improve the service quality of the terminal device, the protocol can be modified based on the 3GPP TS36.306-i10 protocol, which can be as follows:

[0146] 4 UE radio access capability parameters

[0147] …

[0148] The following UE radio access capability parameters specified in clause 4 are applicable in NB-IoT:

[0149] - ue-Category-NB in NB-IoT (clause 4.1C)

[0150] …

[0151] - locationInfo-r16 (clause 4.3.12.5)

[0152] - storeAndFowardInfo-r19 (clause 4.3.12.6)

[0153] Among them, the "storeAndFowardInfo-r19 (clause 4.3.12.6)" part is newly added, and the 4.3.12.6 subsection can be newly added to explain the capability of "storeAndForwardInfo-r19". Specifically, it can be:

[0154] 4.3.12.6 storeAndForwardInfo-r19

[0155] This field indicates whether the UE supports reporting of storing and forwarding information in StoreAndForward-Report upon request from the network as specified in TS 36.331[5]. This feature is only applicable if the UE supports any ue-Category-NB.

[0156] It can be understood that, by making the above modification based on the 3GPP TS36.306-i10 protocol, the terminal device can report the information and parameters related to store-and-forward to the NTN network device, so that the NTN network device can obtain the information and parameters related to store-and-forward of the terminal device, thereby being able to accurately evaluate whether it is suitable to provide store-and-forward service for the terminal device, and when it is determined that it is suitable to provide store-and-forward service for the terminal device, then communicate with the terminal device based on the store-and-forward mode, thereby avoiding the situation of service interruption caused by the NTN network device directly switching the communication mode between the terminal device from the normal mode to the store-and-forward mode and not suitable to provide store-and-forward service for the terminal device, thereby improving the service quality of the terminal device.

[0157] In a possible implementation manner of the embodiment of the application, the signaling for carrying the capability query request can include one of radio resource control signaling, system message, downlink control information signaling, and medium access control layer control element signaling. In the embodiment of the application, the capability query request can be carried by any one of the radio resource control signaling, the system message, the downlink control information signaling, and the medium access control layer control element signaling.

[0158] 502. The terminal device receives the capability query request from the NTN network device.

[0159] In the embodiment of the application, after the NTN network device establishes a radio resource control connection with the terminal device, the terminal device can receive the capability query request from the NTN network device, so as to be able to report its own capabilities to the NTN network device, so that the NTN network device can know the various capabilities possessed by the terminal device.

[0160] 503. The terminal device sends a capability query response message to the NTN network device.

[0161] The capability query response message includes second indication information, and the second indication information is used to indicate whether the terminal device has the store-and-forward capability.

[0162] In the embodiments of the present application, after receiving the capability query request from the NTN network device, the terminal device can determine whether it has the store-and-forward capability, and generate second indication information indicating whether the terminal device has the store-and-forward capability. The second indication information can be sent to the NTN network device based on the capability query response message, so that the NTN network device can determine whether the terminal device has the store-and-forward capability based on the second indication information carried in the capability query response message, so that the NTN network device can perform subsequent operations based on whether the terminal device has the store-and-forward capability. It can be understood that when the communication technology between the NTN network device and the terminal device adopts NTN technology, the capability query response message can be a terminal capability information message (UE Capability Information Message); when the communication technology between the NTN network device and the terminal device adopts IoT-NTN technology, the capability query response message can be a terminal capability information narrowband message (UE Capability Information-NarrowBand Message).

[0163] In a possible implementation manner of the embodiments of the present application, if the second indication information indicates that the terminal device has the store-and-forward capability, the capability query response message further includes third indication information, and the third indication information is used to indicate whether the terminal device can report the store-and-forward state parameter. In the embodiments of the present application, if the second indication information carried in the capability query response message sent by the terminal device to the NTN network device indicates that the terminal device has the store-and-forward capability, the capability query response message sent by the terminal device to the NTN network device can further carry third indication information indicating whether the terminal device can report the store-and-forward state parameter. That is, if the terminal device has the store-and-forward capability, the terminal device can further report to the NTN network device whether it can further report the store-and-forward state parameter, that is, report whether the terminal device has the capability of reporting the store-and-forward state parameter, so that the NTN network device can further determine the state and capability of the terminal device, so that the NTN network device can make decisions in a timely manner based on the state and capability of the terminal device, avoiding the situation of service interruption caused by the NTN network device directly switching the communication mode between the terminal device from the normal mode to the store-and-forward mode and not suitable for providing the store-and-forward service for the terminal device, thereby improving the service quality of the terminal device.

[0164] Specifically, the terminal capability information message or the terminal capability information narrowband message can be modified to carry the third indication information reported by the terminal device. Specifically, taking the terminal capability information narrowband message as an example, the modified terminal capability information narrowband message can be as follows:

[0165] UE-EUTRA-Capability-v16f0-IEs::=SEQUENCE{

[0166] son-Parameters-v16f0 SON-Parameters-NB-v16f0,

[0167] nonCriticalExtension SON-Parameters-NB-v19 OPTIONAL

[0168] }

[0169] SON-Parameters-NB-v19::=SEQUENCE{

[0170] storeAndForwardInfo-r19 ENUMERATED{supported} OPTIONAL

[0171] nonCriticalExtension SEQUENCE{}OPTIONAL

[0172] }

[0173] Wherein, the terminal capability information narrowband message can be added "SON-Parameters-NB-v19" field and "SON-Parameters-NB-v19::=SEQUENCE{

[0174] storeAndForwardInfo-r19 ENUMERATED{supported}OPTIONAL

[0175] nonCriticalExtension SEQUENCE{}OPTIONAL

[0176] }" field, wherein "SON-Parameters-NB-v19" field can be the third indication information.

[0177] In a possible implementation manner of the embodiment of the application, further comprising:

[0178] D1, if the third indication information indicates that the terminal device can report the store-and-forward state parameter, receiving an information query request from the NTN network device;

[0179] D2, if the third indication information indicates that the terminal device cannot report the store-and-forward state parameter, the terminal device switches to the store-and-forward mode to communicate with the NTN network device.

[0180] In the embodiments of the present application, if the capability query response message reported by the terminal device carries not only the second indication information but also third indication information for indicating whether the terminal device can report the store-and-forward state parameter, and when the third indication information in the capability query response message returned by the terminal device indicates that the terminal device can report the store-and-forward state parameter, it means that the NTN network device can obtain the store-and-forward state parameter from the terminal device, that is, the NTN network device can evaluate whether it is suitable to provide the store-and-forward service for the terminal device. At this time, the NTN network device can send an information query request to the terminal device to obtain the store-and-forward state parameter of the terminal device, that is, the terminal device can receive the information query request from the NTN network device and report the store-and-forward state parameter. If the third indication information indicates that the terminal device cannot report the store-and-forward state parameter, it means that the NTN network device cannot obtain the store-and-forward state parameter from the terminal device, that is, the NTN network device cannot evaluate whether it is suitable to provide the store-and-forward service for the terminal device. At this time, the NTN network device can default to be suitable to provide the store-and-forward service for the terminal device, and the terminal device can directly communicate with the NTN network device based on the store-and-forward mode, avoiding the situation of service interruption caused by the NTN network device directly switching the communication mode between the terminal device from the normal mode to the store-and-forward mode and not being suitable to provide the store-and-forward service for the terminal device, thereby improving the service quality of the terminal device.

[0181] In a possible implementation manner of the embodiments of the present application, the signaling for carrying the capability query response message can include one of a radio resource control response message, a medium access control layer control element signaling, a physical random access channel message, and a physical uplink shared channel message. In the embodiments of the present application, the capability query response message can be carried by any one of a radio resource control response message (RRC response message), a medium access control layer control element signaling (MAC CE signaling), a physical random access channel message, and a physical uplink shared channel message.

[0182] 504、The NTN network device receives the capability query response message from the terminal device.

[0183] The capability query response message includes second indication information, and the second indication information is used to indicate whether the terminal device has the store-and-forward capability.

[0184] In the embodiments of the present application, after the terminal device sends the capability query response message to the NTN network device, the NTN network device can receive the capability query response message from the terminal device, so that the NTN network device can determine the capability of the terminal device based on the capability query response message, so as to facilitate the NTN network device to perform subsequent operations based on the capability of the terminal device.

[0185] In a possible implementation of the embodiments of the present application, the method further includes the following steps.

[0186] E1, if the third indication information indicates that the terminal device can report the store-and-forward state parameter, receiving an information query request from the NTN network device.

[0187] E2, if the third indication information indicates that the terminal device cannot report the store-and-forward state parameter, the NTN network device switches to the store-and-forward mode to provide communication services for the terminal device.

[0188] In the embodiments of the present application, if the capability query response message received by the NTN network device carries not only the second indication information but also third indication information for indicating whether the terminal device can report the store-and-forward state parameter, and the third indication information indicates that the terminal device can report the store-and-forward state parameter, it means that the NTN network device can obtain the store-and-forward state parameter from the terminal device, that is, the NTN network device can evaluate whether it is suitable to provide the store-and-forward service for the terminal device. At this time, the NTN network device can send an information query request to the terminal device to obtain the store-and-forward state parameter of the terminal device. If the third indication information indicates that the terminal device cannot report the store-and-forward state parameter, the NTN network device can determine that it cannot obtain the store-and-forward state parameter of the terminal device from the terminal device, that is, the NTN network device cannot evaluate whether it is suitable to provide the store-and-forward service for the terminal device. At this time, the NTN network device can default to be suitable to provide the store-and-forward service for the terminal device, can switch the communication mode between the terminal device from the normal mode to the store-and-forward mode, and can communicate with the terminal device based on the store-and-forward mode, thereby avoiding the situation of service interruption caused by the NTN network device directly switching the communication mode between the terminal device from the normal mode to the store-and-forward mode and not being suitable to provide the store-and-forward service for the terminal device, and thereby improving the service quality of the terminal device.

[0189] In a possible implementation of the embodiments of the present application, if the second indication information indicates that the terminal device has the store-and-forward capability, the method further includes the following steps.

[0190] F1, if the capability query response message does not include the third indication information, the NTN network device switches to the store-and-forward mode to provide communication services for the terminal device.

[0191] The third indication information is used to indicate whether the terminal device can report the store-and-forward state parameter.

[0192] In the embodiment of the present application, if the second indication information carried in the capability query response message indicates that the terminal device has the store-and-forward capability, and the third indication information indicating whether the terminal device can report the store-and-forward state parameter is not simultaneously carried in the capability query response message, the NTN network device can determine that the terminal device cannot report the store-and-forward state parameter, which means that the NTN network device cannot obtain the store-and-forward state parameter from the terminal device, that is, the NTN network device cannot evaluate whether it is suitable to provide the store-and-forward service for the terminal device. At this time, the NTN network device can default to provide the store-and-forward service for the terminal device, and can directly communicate with the terminal device based on the store-and-forward mode, thereby avoiding the situation of service interruption caused by the NTN network device directly switching the communication mode between the NTN network device and the terminal device from the normal mode to the store-and-forward mode and not suitable to provide the store-and-forward service for the terminal device, thereby improving the service quality of the terminal device.

[0193] After step 504, the NTN network device learns whether the terminal device has the store-and-forward capability.

[0194] In one possible implementation manner of the embodiment of the present application, when the NTN network device identifies that it is necessary to send the normal mode to the store-and-forward mode, the following steps 505-510 are performed.

[0195] In another possible implementation manner of the embodiment of the present application, when the NTN network device is in the store-and-forward mode, the following steps 505-510 are performed.

[0196] 505. If the terminal device has the store-and-forward capability, the NTN network device sends an information query request to the terminal device.

[0197] 506. The terminal device receives the information query request from the NTN network device.

[0198] 507. The terminal device sends an information query response message to the NTN network device.

[0199] 508. The NTN network device receives the information query response message from the terminal device.

[0200] 509. The NTN network device determines whether it is suitable to provide the store-and-forward service for the terminal device according to the store-and-forward state parameter.

[0201] 510. If it is determined according to the store-and-forward state parameter that it is suitable to provide the store-and-forward service for the terminal device, the NTN network device switches to the store-and-forward mode to provide the communication service for the terminal device.

[0202] The steps 505 to 510 are similar to the steps 401 to 406 in the foregoing embodiment, and will not be described in detail here.

[0203] As can be seen from the foregoing examples, in order to improve the service quality of the terminal device, after the NTN network device and the terminal device establish a radio resource control connection, the NTN network device can send a capability query request to the terminal device to obtain the various capabilities of the terminal device. When the terminal device has a store-and-forward capability, the NTN network device can further obtain the store-and-forward state parameter of the terminal device, and evaluate whether it is suitable to provide store-and-forward service for the terminal device based on the store-and-forward state parameter. When it is determined that it is suitable to provide store-and-forward service for the terminal device, the NTN network device communicates with the terminal device based on the store-and-forward mode, thereby avoiding the situation of service interruption caused by the NTN network device directly switching the communication mode between the NTN network device and the terminal device from the normal mode to the store-and-forward mode and the NTN network device being unsuitable to provide store-and-forward service for the terminal device, thereby improving the service quality of the terminal device.

[0204] Please refer to FIG. 6, which is a flowchart of a communication method. The method is executed by an NTN network device. The NTN network device can execute the steps 601 to 604 in the following method. The communication method provided in the embodiments of the present application can include:

[0205] 601. When the NTN network device identifies that the situation of switching from the normal mode to the store-and-forward mode needs to occur, if the terminal device has a store-and-forward capability, the NTN network device sends an information query request to the terminal device.

[0206] 602. The NTN network device receives an information query response message from the terminal device.

[0207] 603. The NTN network device determines whether it is suitable to provide store-and-forward service for the terminal device according to the store-and-forward state parameter.

[0208] The step 601 is similar to the step 401 in the foregoing embodiment, the step 602 is similar to the step 404 in the foregoing embodiment, and the step 603 is similar to the step 405 in the foregoing embodiment, and will not be described in detail here.

[0209] As illustrated by the examples in the foregoing embodiments, in order to improve the service quality of terminal devices, when a terminal device has store-and-forward capability, the NTN network device can further obtain the store-and-forward status parameters of the terminal device, and can evaluate whether it is suitable to provide store-and-forward services to the terminal device based on the store-and-forward status parameters. This allows the network device to communicate with the terminal device based on the store-and-forward mode only when it is determined that it is suitable to provide store-and-forward services to the terminal device. This avoids the situation where the NTN network device directly switches the communication mode with the terminal device from the normal mode to the store-and-forward mode, and is not suitable to provide store-and-forward services to the terminal device, which would cause service interruption. This improves the service quality of the terminal device.

[0210] Please refer to Figure 7, which is a flowchart illustrating a communication method. This method is executed by a terminal device, which can perform steps 701 to 704 of the following method. The communication method provided in this application embodiment may include:

[0211] 701. The terminal device receives an information query request from the NTN network device.

[0212] 702. The terminal device sends an information query response message to the NTN network device.

[0213] Step 701 is similar to step 402 in the previous embodiment, and step 702 is similar to step 403 in the previous embodiment, so it will not be described in detail here.

[0214] As illustrated by the foregoing examples, in order to improve the service quality of terminal devices, when a terminal device has store-and-forward capability, it can send store-and-forward status parameters to the NTN network device through an information query response message. This allows the NTN network device to obtain the store-and-forward status parameters of the terminal device and evaluate whether it is suitable to provide store-and-forward services to the terminal device based on these parameters. This ensures that when it is determined that the terminal device is suitable for providing store-and-forward services, it can then communicate with the terminal device based on the store-and-forward mode. This avoids service interruptions caused by the NTN network device directly switching the communication mode with the terminal device from normal mode to store-and-forward mode, and the terminal device being unsuitable for providing store-and-forward services. Therefore, the service quality of the terminal device is improved.

[0215] To make the technical solution of this application clearer and easier to understand, the positioning method of this application will be explained in detail below with reference to specific data transmission scenarios of NTN network devices and terminal devices.

[0216] Figure 8 is a flowchart illustrating a communication method provided in this application at the base station side. The communication method in this application includes:

[0217] S1, if the UE is in an RRC connected state with the base station, the base station determines whether the UE has S&F capability; if the UE is not in an RRC connected state with the base station, the base station ends the process.

[0218] In a possible implementation manner of the embodiment of the application, when the base station is about to switch from the normal mode to the store-and-forward mode, the following steps after S2 are performed in the case that the terminal device UE is in an RRC connected state, or when the base station has switched from the normal mode to the store-and-forward mode, the following steps after S2 are performed, or when the base station has been in the store-and-forward mode, the following steps after S2 are performed.

[0219] In the preferred embodiment of the application, the base station is a satellite gNB or an NTN gNB.

[0220] S2, if the UE has S&F capability, the base station determines whether the UE has the capability of reporting store-and-forward state parameters, wherein the store-and-forward state parameters include first indication information and pending data parameters, the first indication information is used to indicate whether the UE allows store-and-forward, and the pending data parameters include the total data amount of the pending data of the terminal device and the maximum delay allowed by the pending data; if the UE does not have S&F capability, the base station disconnects the RRC connection between the base station and the UE.

[0221] S3, if the UE has the capability of reporting store-and-forward state parameters, the base station starts a query process of the store-and-forward state parameters of the UE side, which is performed on the Uu interface and is independent of the mobility management entity (MME); the signaling for querying the bearer can be UEInformationRequest or UEInformationRequest-NB. The S&F-ReportReq information element can be added in the signaling for querying the bearer; the UE side reports the store-and-forward state parameters of the UE side through UEInformationResponse or UEInformationResponse-NB.

[0222] S4, after the base station receives the store-and-forward state parameters from the UE, the base station can perform policy selection according to the store-and-forward state parameters. Specifically, the following steps are included:

[0223] S4.1, if the UE side does not allow S&F store-and-forward, that is, the first indication information indicates that the UE does not allow store-and-forward, the RRC release release process is directly started, that is, the RRC connection between the base station and the UE is disconnected.

[0224] S4.2, if the UE side does not prohibit S&F store and forward, that is, the first indication information indicates that the UE allows to perform store and forward, the base station can evaluate whether it is suitable to provide store and forward service for the UE according to the total data amount of data to be sent and the tolerable delay of data to be sent in the store and forward state parameter reported by the UE side. If it can be provided, the base station switches to the S&F mode to communicate with the UE, otherwise the RRC release process is started.

[0225] In a possible implementation manner of the embodiment of the present application, the base station can evaluate whether it is suitable to provide store and forward service for the UE according to the total data amount of data to be sent and the tolerable delay of data to be sent in the store and forward state parameter reported by the UE side, including:

[0226] 1) The base station judges according to the total data amount of data to be sent. If the total data amount of data to be sent exceeds the threshold of transmittable data amount, the base station evaluates that the UE is not suitable to provide store and forward service for the UE. The UE can replace other satellite base stations to provide data transmission service, or fall back to 4G or other modes to perform the transmission service of the data to be sent. The threshold of transmittable data amount is the storage space size of the base station, or is determined by the storage space of the base station. The base station is a satellite gNB or NTN gNB, and the data amount space for store and forward is limited by the memory. When the total data amount of data to be sent exceeds the storage space size of the base station, the base station cannot provide store and forward service for the UE. The first threshold value described above is the threshold of transmittable data amount.

[0227] 2) The base station judges according to the delay of data to be sent. If the tolerable delay of data to be sent is less than the delay threshold, the base station evaluates that the UE is not suitable to provide store and forward service for the UE. The UE can replace other satellite base stations to provide data transmission service, or fall back to 4G or other modes to perform the transmission service of the data to be sent. The delay threshold is determined by the data stored by the base station. The storage space of the base station stores data, and performs store and forward service after a certain delay threshold. The base station stores data for a period of time and then performs store and forward service. The maximum value of the acceptable end time of the base station can be the delay threshold. When the tolerable delay of data to be sent is less than the delay threshold of the base station for store and forward data, the base station cannot provide store and forward service for the UE. The second threshold value described above is the delay threshold, and the maximum value of the delay is the tolerable delay of data to be sent.

[0228] 3) if the total data amount of the pending data does not exceed the threshold of the transmittable data amount, and the tolerable time delay of the pending data is greater than the time delay threshold, the base station evaluates that the UE is suitable for providing the store-and-forward service for the UE. When the UE transmits the pending data, the pending data is expected to be transmitted to the opposite end within a certain time, and the maximum value of the certain time is the tolerable time delay of the pending data.

[0229] As can be known from the foregoing examples, in order to improve the service quality of the UE, when the UE has the store-and-forward capability, the base station can further acquire the store-and-forward state parameter of the UE, and can evaluate whether the UE is suitable for providing the store-and-forward service based on the store-and-forward state parameter, and finally, when it is determined that the UE is suitable for providing the store-and-forward service, the base station communicates with the UE based on the store-and-forward mode, thereby avoiding the situation of service interruption caused by the direct switching of the communication mode between the base station and the UE from the normal mode to the store-and-forward mode and the inability of the UE to provide the store-and-forward service, and improving the service quality of the UE.

[0230] FIG. 9 is a structural schematic diagram of a communication device provided by an embodiment of the present application. The communication device can be specifically an NTN network device, and the communication device specifically includes:

[0231] The sending module 901 is configured to, when the NTN network device identifies that the situation of switching from the normal mode to the store-and-forward mode needs to occur, if the terminal device has the store-and-forward capability, send an information query request to the terminal device.

[0232] The receiving module 902 is configured to receive an information query response message from the terminal device, and the information query response message includes a store-and-forward state parameter of the terminal device.

[0233] The determining module 903 is configured to determine whether it is suitable to provide the store-and-forward service for the terminal device according to the store-and-forward state parameter.

[0234] In a possible implementation manner of the embodiment of the present application, the device further includes:

[0235] The communication module is configured to, if it is determined according to the store-and-forward state parameter that it is suitable to provide the store-and-forward service for the terminal device, the NTN network device switches to the store-and-forward mode to provide communication service for the terminal device.

[0236] In a possible implementation manner of the embodiment of the present application, the situation that the NTN network device identifies that the situation of switching from the normal mode to the store-and-forward mode needs to occur includes:

[0237] The situation that the feeder link between the NTN network device and the ground core network device is about to be disconnected or has been disconnected.

[0238] In a possible implementation of the embodiments of the present application, the storage and forwarding state parameter includes first indication information and pending data parameter, the first indication information is used to indicate whether the terminal device allows storage and forwarding, and the pending data parameter includes a total data amount of pending data of the terminal device and a maximum delay value allowed by the pending data.

[0239] In a possible implementation of the embodiments of the present application, the determining module 903 is specifically configured to:

[0240] if the first indication information indicates that the terminal device allows storage and forwarding, and the total data amount is less than or equal to a first threshold value and the maximum delay value is greater than or equal to a second threshold value, it is determined that it is suitable to provide storage and forwarding service for the terminal device;

[0241] if the first indication information indicates that the terminal device does not allow storage and forwarding, or the total data amount is greater than the first threshold value, or the maximum delay value is less than the second threshold value, it is determined that it is not suitable to provide storage and forwarding service for the terminal device.

[0242] In a possible implementation of the embodiments of the present application, the apparatus further includes:

[0243] The sending module 901 is further configured to send a capability query request to the terminal device.

[0244] The receiving module 902 is further configured to receive a capability query response message from the terminal device, the capability query response message including second indication information, the second indication information being used to indicate whether the terminal device has storage and forwarding capability.

[0245] In a possible implementation of the embodiments of the present application, if the second indication information indicates that the terminal device has storage and forwarding capability, the capability query response message further includes third indication information, the third indication information being used to indicate whether the terminal device can report storage and forwarding state parameter; the apparatus further includes:

[0246] The sending module 901 is further configured to send an information query request to the terminal device if the third indication information indicates that the terminal device can report storage and forwarding state parameter.

[0247] The communication module is configured to switch the NTN network device to a storage and forwarding mode to provide communication service for the terminal device if the third indication information indicates that the terminal device cannot report storage and forwarding state parameter.

[0248] In a possible implementation of the embodiments of the present application, if the second indication information indicates that the terminal device has storage and forwarding capability, the method further includes:

[0249] The communication module is further configured to switch to a store-and-forward mode to provide communication services for the terminal device if the capability query response message does not include third indication information, wherein the third indication information is used to indicate whether the terminal device can report a store-and-forward state parameter.

[0250] In a possible implementation manner of the embodiment of the application, the apparatus further includes:

[0251] The communication module is configured to disconnect the connection with the terminal device if the terminal device does not have the store-and-forward capability.

[0252] The communication module is further configured to disconnect the connection with the terminal device if it is determined that the terminal device is not suitable for being provided with the store-and-forward service according to the store-and-forward state parameter.

[0253] In a possible implementation manner of the embodiment of the application, the signaling used to carry the information query request includes one of radio resource control signaling, system message, downlink control information signaling, and medium access control layer control element signaling.

[0254] The signaling used to carry the information query response message includes one of radio resource control response message, medium access control layer control element signaling, physical random access channel message, and physical uplink shared channel message.

[0255] In a possible implementation manner of the embodiment of the application, the terminal device includes a new radio (NR) device or an Internet of Things (IOT) terminal device, and the NTN network device includes any one of an NTN base station, a satellite base station, an unmanned aerial vehicle network device, a high-altitude platform network device, an aircraft network device, and a communication balloon network device.

[0256] As can be known from the foregoing embodiments, in order to improve the service quality of the terminal device, when the terminal device has the store-and-forward capability, the NTN network device can further acquire the store-and-forward state parameter of the terminal device, and can evaluate whether it is suitable to provide the terminal device with the store-and-forward service based on the store-and-forward state parameter, so as to communicate with the terminal device based on the store-and-forward mode when it is determined that it is suitable to provide the terminal device with the store-and-forward service, thereby avoiding the service interruption caused by the NTN network device directly switching the communication mode between the NTN network device and the terminal device from the normal mode to the store-and-forward mode and the NTN network device being unsuitable to provide the terminal device with the store-and-forward service, and improving the service quality of the terminal device.

[0257] Fig. 10 is a structural schematic diagram of a communication device provided in an embodiment of the present application. The communication device can be a terminal device in particular, and the communication device specifically comprises:

[0258] The receiving module 1001 is configured to receive an information query request from an NTN network device.

[0259] The sending module 1002 is configured to send an information query response message to the NTN network device, where the information query response message comprises a store-and-forward state parameter, so that the NTN network device determines whether to provide store-and-forward service for the terminal device according to the store-and-forward state parameter.

[0260] In a possible implementation manner of the embodiment of the present application, the device further comprises:

[0261] The communication module 1003 is configured to switch to a store-and-forward mode to communicate with the NTN network device if the NTN network device determines to provide store-and-forward service for the terminal device according to the store-and-forward state parameter.

[0262] In a possible implementation manner of the embodiment of the present application, the store-and-forward state parameter comprises first indication information and pending data parameters, the first indication information is used to indicate whether the terminal device allows to perform store-and-forward, and the pending data parameters comprise a total data amount of pending data of the terminal device and a maximum value of delay allowed by the pending data.

[0263] In a possible implementation manner of the embodiment of the present application, the device further comprises:

[0264] The receiving module 1001 is further configured to receive a capability query request from an NTN network device.

[0265] The sending module 1002 is further configured to send a capability query response message to the NTN network device, where the capability query response message comprises second indication information, and the second indication information is used to indicate whether the terminal device has store-and-forward capability.

[0266] In a possible implementation manner of the embodiment of the present application, if the second indication information indicates that the terminal device has store-and-forward capability, the capability query response message further comprises third indication information, and the third indication information is used to indicate whether the terminal device can report store-and-forward state parameters, and the device further comprises:

[0267] The receiving module 1001 is further configured to receive an information query request from an NTN network device if the third indication information indicates that the terminal device can report store-and-forward state parameters.

[0268] The communication module is configured to switch to a store-and-forward mode to communicate with the NTN network device if the third indication information indicates that the terminal device is unable to report a store-and-forward state parameter.

[0269] In a possible implementation manner of the embodiment of the application, if the second indication information indicates that the terminal device has the store-and-forward capability, the apparatus further includes:

[0270] The communication module 1003 is further configured to switch to a store-and-forward mode to communicate with the NTN network device if the capability query response message does not include third indication information, where the third indication information is used to indicate whether the terminal device is capable of reporting a store-and-forward state parameter.

[0271] In a possible implementation manner of the embodiment of the application, the apparatus further includes:

[0272] The communication module 1003 is further configured to disconnect the connection with the NTN network device if the terminal device does not have the store-and-forward capability.

[0273] In a possible implementation manner of the embodiment of the application, the signaling used to carry the information query request includes one of radio resource control signaling, system message, downlink control information signaling, and medium access control layer control element signaling.

[0274] The signaling used to carry the information query response message includes one of a radio resource control response message, medium access control layer control element signaling, a physical random access channel message, and a physical uplink shared channel message.

[0275] In a possible implementation manner of the embodiment of the application, the terminal device includes a new radio (NR) device or an Internet of Things (IOT) terminal device, and the NTN network device includes any one of an NTN base station, a satellite base station, an unmanned aerial vehicle network device, a high-altitude platform network device, an aircraft network device, and a communication balloon network device.

[0276] As can be known from the foregoing examples, in order to improve the service quality of the terminal device, when the terminal device has a store-and-forward capability, the terminal device can send the store-and-forward state parameter to the NTN network device through the information query response message, so that the NTN network device can obtain the store-and-forward state parameter of the terminal device, and can evaluate whether it is suitable to provide store-and-forward service for the terminal device based on the store-and-forward state parameter, so as to communicate with the terminal device based on the store-and-forward mode when it is determined that it is suitable to provide store-and-forward service for the terminal device, thereby avoiding the service interruption caused by the NTN network device directly switching the communication mode between the terminal device from the normal mode to the store-and-forward mode and not suitable to provide store-and-forward service for the terminal device, thereby improving the service quality of the terminal device.

[0277] In the preferred embodiments of the present application, the NTN network device includes a satellite base station or a satellite gNB, and the described communication method includes a communication method between the terminal device UE and the satellite base station / satellite gNB. The described communication system includes a communication system between the terminal device UE and the satellite base station / satellite gNB. The described terminal device is an NR device or an IOT terminal device.

[0278] FIG. 11 is an example of an electronic device according to an embodiment of the present application. The electronic device can be a first device, including but not limited to a base station, a core network unit. FIG. 11 shows a simplified base station structure diagram. The base station includes a 1110 part, a 1120 part, and a 1130 part. The 1110 part is mainly used for baseband processing, controlling the base station, etc.; the 1110 part is usually the control center of the base station, which can be referred to as a processor, and is used to control the base station to perform the processing operations of the first device side in the above method embodiments. The 1120 part is mainly used for storing computer program codes and data. The 1130 part is mainly used for transceiving radio frequency signals and converting radio frequency signals and baseband signals; the 1130 part can be referred to as a transceiver module, a transceiver, a transceiver circuit, or a transceiver, etc. The transceiver module of the 1130 part, which can also be referred to as a transceiver or a transceiver, etc., includes an antenna 1133 and a radio frequency circuit (not shown in the figure), wherein the radio frequency circuit is mainly used for radio frequency processing. Optionally, the devices in the 1130 part for realizing the receiving function can be regarded as a receiver, and the devices for realizing the transmitting function can be regarded as a transmitter, i.e., the 1130 part includes a receiver 1132 and a transmitter 1131. The receiver can also be referred to as a receiving module, a receiver, or a receiving circuit, etc., and the transmitter can be referred to as a transmitting module, a transmitter, or a transmitting circuit, etc.

[0279] The 1110 part and the 1120 part can include one or more single boards, each of which can include one or more processors and one or more memories. The processors are configured to read and execute programs in the memories to implement baseband processing functions and control the base station. If there are multiple single boards, the single boards can be interconnected to enhance processing capability. As an optional implementation, the multiple single boards can also share one or more processors, or share one or more memories, or share one or more processors and one or more memories at the same time.

[0280] For example, in an implementation, the transceiver module of the 1130 part is configured to perform the transceiver-related processes performed by the base station (the first device) in the foregoing method embodiments. The processor of the 1110 part is configured to perform the processing-related processes performed by the base station in the foregoing method embodiments.

[0281] It should be understood that FIG. 11 is merely an example but not a limitation. The NTN network device described above including the processor, the memory, and the transceiver can not depend on the structure shown in FIG. 11.

[0282] FIG. 12 is an example of the structure of another electronic device provided by the embodiments of the present application. The electronic device can be a second device, which can be a terminal device, including but not limited to a mobile phone, a smart wearable device (such as a smart watch), and the like. Taking a mobile phone as an example, the electronic device can include a processor 310, an external memory interface 320, an internal memory 321, a display screen 330, a camera 340, an antenna 1, an antenna 2, a mobile communication module 350, a wireless communication module 360, and the like.

[0283] It can be understood that the structure shown in the embodiments is not a specific limitation on the electronic device. In other embodiments, the electronic device can include more or fewer components than those shown, or combine certain components, or split certain components, or different arrangement of components. The components shown can be implemented in hardware, software, or a combination of software and hardware.

[0284] The processor 310 can include one or more processing units, for example: the processor 310 can include an application processor (AP), a modem processor, a graphics processing unit (GPU), an image signal processor (ISP), a controller, a video codec, a digital signal processor (DSP), a baseband processor, and / or a neural-network processing unit (NPU), etc. Among them, different processing units can be independent devices, or can be integrated in one or more processors.

[0285] It can be understood that the interface connection relationship between the modules shown in the embodiments is only illustrative and does not constitute a structural limitation of the electronic device. In other embodiments of the present application, the electronic device can also use different interface connection modes or combinations of multiple interface connection modes in the above embodiments.

[0286] The external memory interface 320 can be used to connect an external memory card, such as a Micro SD card, to expand the storage capacity of the electronic device. The external memory card communicates with the processor 310 through the external memory interface 320 to realize the data storage function. For example, files such as music and video are saved in the external memory card.

[0287] The internal memory 321 can be used to store computer executable program codes, and the executable program codes include instructions. The processor 310 executes various function applications and data processing of the electronic device by running the instructions stored in the internal memory 321. The internal memory 321 can include a program storage area and a data storage area. The program storage area can store an operating system, at least one application program required by a function (such as a sound playing function, an image playing function, etc.), etc. The data storage area can store data created during the use of the electronic device (such as audio data, a phone book, etc.), etc. In addition, the internal memory 321 can include a high-speed random access memory, and can also include a non-volatile memory, such as at least one magnetic disk storage device, a flash memory device, a universal flash storage (UFS), etc. The processor 310 executes various function applications and data processing of the electronic device by running the instructions stored in the internal memory 321 and / or the instructions stored in the memory arranged in the processor.

[0288] The wireless communication function of the electronic device can be implemented by the antenna 1, the antenna 2, the mobile communication module 350, the wireless communication module 360, the modem processor, the baseband processor, and the like.

[0289] The antenna 1 and the antenna 2 are used for transmitting and receiving electromagnetic wave signals. Each antenna in the electronic device can be used to cover a single or multiple communication frequency bands. Different antennas can also be multiplexed to improve the utilization of the antennas. For example, the antenna 1 can be multiplexed as a diversity antenna of a wireless local area network. In some other embodiments, the antennas can be used in combination with a tuning switch.

[0290] The mobile communication module 350 can provide a solution including 2G / 3G / 4G / 5G wireless communication applied to the electronic device. The mobile communication module 350 can include at least one filter, a switch, a power amplifier, a low noise amplifier (LNA), and the like. The mobile communication module 350 can receive electromagnetic waves by the antenna 1, and perform filtering, amplification, and the like on the received electromagnetic waves, and transmit the processed electromagnetic waves to the modem processor for demodulation. The mobile communication module 350 can also amplify the signals modulated by the modem processor, and convert the signals into electromagnetic waves radiated by the antenna 1. In some embodiments, at least part of the functional modules of the mobile communication module 350 can be arranged in the processor 310. In some embodiments, at least part of the functional modules of the mobile communication module 350 and at least part of the modules of the processor 310 can be arranged in the same device.

[0291] In some embodiments, the electronic device initiates or receives a call request by the mobile communication module 350 and the antenna 1.

[0292] In addition, an operating system such as an iOS operating system, an Android operating system, a Windows operating system, and the like is run on the above-mentioned components. Application programs can be installed and run on the operating system. Those skilled in the art can clearly understand that, for the convenience and brevity of description, the explanation and beneficial effects of the above-mentioned related content in any of the electronic devices can refer to the corresponding method embodiments provided above, and will not be repeated here.

[0293] The present application also provides a communication system, which can include a first device (such as an NTN network device) as shown in FIG. 11 and a second device (such as a terminal device) as shown in FIG. 12.

[0294] In the present application, the terminal device or the NTN network device can include a hardware layer, an operating system layer running on the hardware layer, and an application layer running on the operating system layer. Among them, the hardware layer can include central processing unit (CPU), memory management module (MMU), and memory (also known as main memory) and other hardware. The operating system of the operating system layer can be any one or more computer operating systems that implement business processing through processes, such as Linux operating system, Unix operating system, Android operating system, iOS operating system, or windows operating system, etc. The application layer can include browsers, address books, word processing software, instant messaging software, etc.

[0295] Those skilled in the art can clearly understand that, for the convenience and brevity of description, the specific working process of the above-described system, device and module can refer to the corresponding process in the foregoing method embodiments, which will not be repeated here.

[0296] In several embodiments provided in the present application, it should be understood that the disclosed system, device and method can be implemented in other ways. For example, the device embodiments described above are only schematic, for example, the division of the modules is only a logical function division, and actual implementation can have another division manner, for example, a plurality of modules or components can be combined or integrated into another system, or some features can be ignored or not executed. In addition, the coupling or direct coupling or communication connection between the displayed or discussed modules can be indirect coupling or communication connection through some interfaces, devices or modules, which can be electrical, mechanical or other forms.

[0297] The modules described as separate components can or can not be physically separated, and the components displayed as modules can or can not be physical modules, that is, they can be located in one place, or can be distributed on multiple network modules. Part or all of the modules can be selected according to actual needs to achieve the purpose of the present embodiment.

[0298] In addition, the functional modules in each embodiment of the present application can be integrated in one processing module, or each module can exist physically, or two or more modules can be integrated in one module. The above integrated module can be realized in the form of hardware or in the form of software functional module.

[0299] The integrated module, if implemented in the form of a software function module and sold or used as an independent product, can be stored in a computer readable storage medium. Based on such understanding, the part of the technical solutions of the present application that essentially makes contributions or the whole or part of the technical solutions can be embodied in the form of a software product. The computer software product is stored in a storage medium and includes a plurality of instructions for causing a computer device (which can be a personal computer, a server, or an NTN network device, etc.) to execute all or part of the processes of the methods described in the various embodiments of the present application. The aforementioned storage medium includes various media that can store program codes, such as a U disk, a mobile hard disk, a read-only memory, a random access memory, a magnetic disk or an optical disk.

[0300] The above-described embodiments are merely used to illustrate the technical solutions of the present application, rather than limit them; although the present application has been described in detail with reference to the foregoing embodiments, those of ordinary skill in the art should understand that they can still make modifications to the technical solutions recorded in the foregoing embodiments, or make equivalent replacements to some of the technical features; and these modifications or replacements do not cause the essence of the corresponding technical solutions to deviate from the scope of the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present application.

Claims

1. A communication method characterized by comprising: The method is applied to a non-terrestrial network (NTN) network device, and the method comprises: When the NTN network device identifies that a situation of switching from a normal mode to a store-and-forward mode needs to occur, if a terminal device has a store-and-forward capability, the NTN network device sends an information query request to the terminal device; An information query response message from the terminal device is received, and the information query response message comprises a store-and-forward state parameter of the terminal device; Whether the terminal device is suitable for being provided with a store-and-forward service is determined according to the store-and-forward state parameter.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein, The method further comprises: If the terminal device is determined to be suitable for being provided with the store-and-forward service according to the store-and-forward state parameter, the NTN network device switches to the store-and-forward mode to provide communication services for the terminal device.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein, The NTN network device identifies that a situation of switching from the normal mode to the store-and-forward mode needs to occur, which comprises: A situation that a feeder link between the NTN network device and a ground core network device is about to be disconnected or has been disconnected.

4. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that, The store-and-forward state parameter comprises first indication information and pending data parameters, the first indication information is used to indicate whether the terminal device allows store-and-forward, and the pending data parameters comprise a total data amount of pending data of the terminal device and a maximum delay value allowed by the pending data.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein, Whether the terminal device is suitable for being provided with the store-and-forward service is determined according to the store-and-forward state parameter, which comprises: If the first indication information indicates that the terminal device allows store-and-forward, and the total data amount is less than or equal to a first threshold value, and the maximum delay value is greater than or equal to a second threshold value, it is determined that the terminal device is suitable for being provided with the store-and-forward service; If the first indication information indicates that the terminal device does not allow store-and-forward, or the total data amount is greater than the first threshold value, or the maximum delay value is less than the second threshold value, it is determined that the terminal device is not suitable for being provided with the store-and-forward service.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein, The first threshold value comprises a storage space size of the NTN network device or a size determined by a memory of the NTN network device; The second threshold value is a delay threshold value of data sent by the NTN network device.

7. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that, Before the terminal information query request is sent to the terminal device, the method further comprises: A capability query request is sent to the terminal device; A capability query response message from the terminal device is received, and the capability query response message comprises second indication information, which is used to indicate whether the terminal device has a store-and-forward capability.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein, If the second indication information indicates that the terminal device has the store-and-forward capability, the capability query response message further comprises third indication information, which is used to indicate whether the terminal device can report the store-and-forward state parameter; If the third indication information indicates that the terminal device can report the store-and-forward state parameter, the information query request is sent to the terminal device; If the third indication information indicates that the terminal device cannot report the store-and-forward state parameter, the NTN network device switches to the store-and-forward mode to provide communication services for the terminal device.

9. The method of claim 7, wherein, If the second indication information indicates that the terminal device has the store-and-forward capability, the method further comprises: If the capability query response message does not include the third indication information, the NTN network device switches to a store-and-forward mode to provide communication services for the terminal device; The third indication information is used to indicate whether the terminal device can report the store-and-forward state parameter.

10. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that, The method further comprises: If the terminal device does not have the store-and-forward capability, the connection with the terminal device is disconnected; If it is determined according to the store-and-forward state parameter that it is not suitable to provide store-and-forward services for the terminal device, the connection with the terminal device is disconnected.

11. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that, The signaling used to carry the information query request includes one of radio resource control signaling, system message, downlink control information signaling, and medium access control layer control element signaling. The signaling used to carry the information query response message includes one of radio resource control response message, medium access control layer control element signaling, physical random access channel message, and physical uplink shared channel message.

12. The method of any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein, The terminal device includes a new radio (NR) device or an Internet of Things (IOT) terminal device. The NTN network device includes any one of an NTN base station, a satellite base station, a unmanned aerial vehicle network device, a high-altitude platform network device, an aircraft network device, and a communication balloon network device.

13. A communication method, comprising: Applied to a terminal device, the method comprises: Receiving an information query request from a non-terrestrial network (NTN) network device; Sending an information query response message to the NTN network device, the information query response message including a store-and-forward state parameter, so that the NTN network device determines whether it is suitable to provide store-and-forward services for the terminal device according to the store-and-forward state parameter.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein, The method further comprises: If the NTN network device determines that it is suitable to provide store-and-forward services for the terminal device according to the store-and-forward state parameter, switching to a store-and-forward mode to communicate with the NTN network device.

15. The method according to claim 13 or 14, characterized in that, The store-and-forward state parameter includes first indication information and pending data parameter, the first indication information is used to indicate whether the terminal device allows store-and-forward, and the pending data parameter includes a total data amount of pending data of the terminal device and a maximum delay value allowed by the pending data.

16. The method according to claim 13 or 14, characterized in that Before the receiving of the information query request from the NTN network device, the method further comprises: Receiving a capability query request from the NTN network device; Sending a capability query response message to the NTN network device, the capability query response message including second indication information, the second indication information being used to indicate whether the terminal device has the store-and-forward capability.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein, If the second indication information indicates that the terminal device has the store-and-forward capability, the capability query response message further includes third indication information, the third indication information being used to indicate whether the terminal device can report the store-and-forward state parameter; If the third indication information indicates that the terminal device can report the store-and-forward state parameter, receiving the information query request from the NTN network device; If the third indication information indicates that the terminal device cannot report the store-and-forward state parameter, switching to the store-and-forward mode to communicate with the NTN network device.

18. The method of claim 16, wherein, If the second indication information indicates that the terminal device has the store-and-forward capability, the method further includes: If the capability query response message does not include the third indication information, switching to the store-and-forward mode to communicate with the NTN network device; The third indication information is used to indicate whether the terminal device can report the store-and-forward state parameter.

19. The method of any one of claims 13 or 14, wherein, The method further includes: If the terminal device does not have the store-and-forward capability, disconnecting the connection with the NTN network device.

20. The method of any one of claims 13 or 14, wherein, The signaling used to carry the information query request includes one of radio resource control signaling, system message, downlink control information signaling, and medium access control layer control element signaling. The signaling used to carry the information query response message includes one of radio resource control response message, medium access control layer control element signaling, physical random access channel message, and physical uplink shared channel message.

21. The method of any one of claims 13 or 14, wherein, The terminal device includes a new radio (NR) device or an Internet of Things (IOT) terminal device. The NTN network device includes any one of an NTN base station, a satellite base station, a UAV network device, a high-altitude platform network device, an aircraft network device, and a communication balloon network device.

22. A method of communication, comprising: The terminal device executes the following method: If the terminal device has the store-and-forward capability, the NTN network device sends an information query request to the terminal device when it is identified that the switching from the normal mode to the store-and-forward mode needs to occur. An information query response message is received from the terminal device, and the information query response message includes a store-and-forward state parameter of the terminal device. It is determined whether it is suitable to provide the store-and-forward service for the terminal device according to the store-and-forward state parameter. The NTN network device executes the following method: An information query request is received from the NTN network device. An information query response message is sent to the NTN network device, and the information query response message includes a store-and-forward state parameter, so that the NTN network device determines whether it is suitable to provide the store-and-forward service for the terminal device according to the store-and-forward state parameter.

23. A communications device, characterized by The communication device is specifically an NTN network device, and the communication device includes: If the terminal device has the store-and-forward capability, the NTN network device sends an information query request to the terminal device when it is identified that the switching from the normal mode to the store-and-forward mode needs to occur. An information query response message is received from the terminal device, and the information query response message includes a store-and-forward state parameter of the terminal device. It is determined whether it is suitable to provide the store-and-forward service for the terminal device according to the store-and-forward state parameter.

24. A communications device, characterized by The communication device is specifically a terminal device, and the communication device includes: An information query request is received from the NTN network device. The sending module is configured to send an information query response message to the NTN network device, the information query response message comprising a store-and-forward state parameter, so that the NTN network device determines whether to provide store-and-forward service for the terminal device according to the store-and-forward state parameter.

25. A communications device, characterized by The communication device comprises: a memory for storing computer programs or computer instructions; a processor for executing the computer programs or computer instructions stored in the memory, so that the communication device executes the method according to any one of claims 1 to 12, or so that the communication device executes the method according to any one of claims 13 to 21.

26. A communication system, characterized by The communication system comprises a terminal device and an NTN network device: wherein the terminal device is configured to execute the method according to any one of claims 1 to 12, and the NTN network device is configured to execute the method according to any one of claims 13 to 21.

27. A computer storage medium for storing a computer program, the computer program being executed to implement the method according to any one of claims 1 to 12, or to implement the method according to any one of claims 13 to 21.

Images