A time-slot-free measurement method and device

Abstract

The present application discloses a time-slotless measurement method and device, which relates to the field of communication technology and solves the problem that a terminal device cannot perform time-slotless measurement on a neighboring cell. The specific scheme is as follows: the terminal device receives configuration information from an access network device for instructing the terminal device to perform time-slotless measurement on a neighboring cell of a service cell of the terminal device; the terminal device determines, based on the configuration information, that the radio frequency path of the resource unit to be measured in the neighboring cell is part or all of the radio frequency paths in the radio frequency path of a second resource unit, the second resource unit is included in a first resource unit combination, and the first resource unit combination is included in a resource unit combination configured for the terminal device and in an activated state; the terminal device performs time-slotless measurement on the first cell on part or all of the radio frequency paths in the radio frequency path of the second resource unit. The embodiment of the present application is used for the process in which a terminal device performs time-slotless measurement on a cell of an access network device.

Description

[0001] This application claims the priority of the Chinese patent application filed with the State Intellectual Property Office on April 3, 2020, with application number 202010259696.5 and invention name “A time-slotless measurement method and device”, the entire contents of which are incorporated by reference in this application. Technical Field

[0002] The present application relates to the field of communication technology, and in particular to a time slot-free measurement method and device. Background Art

[0003] In mobile communications, measurement is a common and important process. For example, in the radio resource control (RRC) RRC_CONNECTED state, when a terminal device needs to measure the neighboring cells of a serving cell, if measurement without measurement gap is not supported, an accurate measurement gap needs to be configured for the terminal device so that the terminal device can measure the neighboring cells according to the measurement gap.

[0004] In the prior art, in the RRC_CONNECTED state, when the terminal device measures the neighboring cells of the terminal device's service cell according to the measurement time slot, if the neighboring cells are not synchronized, resulting in the measurement time slot configured by the base station not including some or all of the neighboring cell synchronization signals, such as NR's SSB (synchronization signal block), the terminal device will not be able to measure some or all of the neighboring cells. If the terminal can support time slot-free measurement, the terminal device can measure the neighboring cell SSB within a sufficiently long window and will be able to measure all neighboring cells. Therefore, ensuring that the terminal device supports time slot-free measurement becomes an urgent problem to be solved. Summary of the invention

[0005] The present application provides a time-slot-free measurement method and device, which solves the problem in the prior art that the terminal device has no radio frequency path to receive the signal of the neighboring cell, resulting in the terminal device being unable to perform time-slot-free measurement on the neighboring cell.

[0006] In order to achieve the above objectives, this application adopts the following technical solutions:

[0007] In a first aspect, a time-slot-free measurement method is provided, the time-slot-free measurement method comprising: a terminal device receives configuration information from an access network device for instructing the terminal device to perform time-slot-free measurement on a neighboring area of ​​a service cell of the terminal device. The terminal device determines, based on the configuration information, that part or all of the radio frequency paths of a second resource unit are radio frequency paths of a resource unit to be measured in a neighboring area of ​​the service cell of the terminal device, wherein the second resource unit is included in a first resource unit combination of resource units configured for the terminal device and in an activated state. The terminal device performs time-slot-free measurement on a neighboring area of ​​the service cell of the terminal device on part or all of the radio frequency paths of the second resource unit.

[0008] Based on the time-slot-free measurement method provided in the first aspect, after the terminal device receives the configuration information for instructing the terminal device to perform time-slot-free measurement on the neighboring cell of the terminal device's service cell, the terminal device can determine, based on the configuration information, that part or all of the radio frequency paths of the second resource unit in the first resource unit combination of the resource unit in the activated state configured for the terminal device are the radio frequency paths of the resource unit to be measured in the neighboring cell of the service cell. In this way, the terminal device can receive the signal of the neighboring cell on the radio frequency path of the resource unit to be measured, so that the terminal device can perform time-slot-free measurement on the neighboring cell, which solves the problem in the prior art that when the terminal device has no radio frequency path to receive the signal of the neighboring cell, it is impossible to perform time-slot-free measurement on the neighboring cell.

[0009] In one possible implementation, in combination with the first aspect, the configuration information is also used to indicate the multi-input multi-output (MIMO) capability of the second resource unit combination and each resource unit in the second resource unit combination, wherein the second resource unit combination includes the updated first resource unit combination, the updated first resource unit combination does not include the second resource unit, or the MIMO capability of the second resource unit in the updated first resource unit combination is lower than the MIMO capability of the second resource unit in the first resource unit combination.

[0010] Based on this possible implementation method, the terminal device can accurately determine the resource unit to be tested and the radio frequency path of the resource unit to be tested in the neighboring area of ​​the terminal device's service cell according to the configuration information. The terminal device does not need to spend time to determine the radio frequency paths of other resource units to be tested, thereby reducing the power consumption of the terminal device.

[0011] In one possible implementation, in combination with the first aspect or any possible design of the first aspect, the terminal device sends capability information to the access network device, including the resource unit combination capability supported by the terminal device and the MIMO capability corresponding to each resource unit in the resource unit combination supported by the terminal.

[0012] Based on this possible implementation method, the terminal device sends the capability information of the terminal device to the access network, so that the access network device can determine the resource unit combination capability supported by the terminal device and the MIMO capability corresponding to each resource unit in the resource unit combination supported by the terminal device according to the capability information of the terminal device, so as to avoid the problem that the resource unit combination determined by the access network device is a resource unit combination not supported by the terminal device, or the MIMO capability corresponding to the resource unit in the resource unit combination determined by the access network device is greater than the MIMO capability corresponding to the resource unit supported by the terminal device, resulting in the terminal device being unable to perform time-slot-free measurement of the neighboring area.

[0013] In one possible implementation, in combination with the first aspect or any possible design of the first aspect, the configuration information is also used to indicate at least one resource unit included in the first resource unit combination, and the radio frequency path of each resource unit included in the at least one resource unit can be used as the radio frequency path of the first resource unit.

[0014] Based on this possible implementation method, the terminal device can obtain the radio frequency path of the first resource unit from the configuration information sent by the access network device, thereby avoiding the terminal device selecting the radio frequency path of the first resource unit from the radio frequency paths of resource units in a combination of other resource units, thereby reducing the time spent by the terminal device in determining the radio frequency path of the first resource unit.

[0015] In a possible implementation, in combination with the first aspect or any possible design of the first aspect, the terminal device uses all radio frequency paths of the second resource unit that meets one or more of the following conditions in at least one resource unit as the radio frequency paths of the first resource unit: the second resource unit is the resource unit with the largest identity (ID) among the resource units in an activated state; the second resource unit is the resource unit with the lowest data transmission rate among the resource units in an activated state; the second resource unit is the resource unit with the smallest reference signal receiving power (RSRP) or reference signal receiving quality (RSRQ) or signal to interference plus noise ratio (SINR) or rank indication (RI) among the resource units in an activated state; the second resource unit is the resource unit with the smallest bandwidth among the resource units in an activated state; the second resource unit is the resource unit with the smallest MIMO capability among the resource units in an activated state.

[0016] Based on this possible implementation method, the terminal device can more accurately determine the second resource unit, so that the terminal device can accurately use all the radio frequency paths of the second resource unit that meet the multiple conditions as the radio frequency paths of the first resource unit, thereby improving the accuracy of the terminal device in determining the radio frequency paths of the first resource unit.

[0017] In one possible implementation, in combination with the first aspect or any possible design of the first aspect, the terminal device uses a partial radio frequency path of a second resource unit that meets one or more of the following conditions in at least one resource unit combination as the radio frequency path of the first resource unit: the second resource unit is a resource unit whose RI is less than or equal to a preset value among the resource units in an activated state; the second resource unit is a resource unit with the smallest bandwidth among the resource units in an activated state; the second resource unit is a resource unit with the smallest RSRP, RSRQ or SINR among the resource units in an activated state; the second resource unit is a resource unit with the lowest data transmission rate among the resource units in an activated state; the second resource unit is a resource unit with the largest ID among the resource units in an activated state.

[0018] Based on this possible implementation method, the terminal device can more accurately determine the second resource unit, so that the terminal device can accurately use part of the radio frequency path of the second resource unit that meets the multiple conditions as the radio frequency path of the first resource unit, thereby improving the accuracy of the terminal device in determining the radio frequency path of the first resource unit.

[0019] In a possible implementation, in combination with the first aspect or any possible design of the first aspect, the terminal device sends a configuration completion response to the access network device for indicating the second resource unit and / or the MIMO capability of the second resource unit.

[0020] Based on this possible implementation method, the terminal device sends a configuration completion response indicating the second resource unit and / or the MIMO capability of the second resource unit to the access network device, so that the access network device determines the radio frequency path of the resource unit to be tested in the neighboring area of ​​the service cell of the terminal device according to the configuration completion response, thereby avoiding the problem that the access network device sends a signal of the neighboring area to the terminal device through the radio frequency path of other resource units, causing the terminal device to be out of synchronization with the access network device.

[0021] In one possible implementation, in combination with the first aspect or any possible design of the first aspect, the terminal device continuously monitors a synchronization signal block (SSB) on the radio frequency path of the first resource unit for a preset time that is greater than the duration occupied by the SSB.

[0022] Based on this possible implementation method, the terminal device can continuously monitor the SSB of the neighboring cell for a preset time that is greater than the duration occupied by the SSB, thereby solving the problem in the prior art that the terminal device cannot monitor the SSB of the neighboring cell within the measurement time slot or cannot monitor the SSB of all neighboring cells, resulting in the terminal device being unable to accurately measure the neighboring cells of the service cell.

[0023] In a possible implementation, in combination with the first aspect or any possible design of the first aspect, the preset time is SMTC.

[0024] Based on this possible implementation method, on the one hand, since the SMTC period is greater than or equal to the SSB period of the neighboring cells, the terminal device can monitor the SSB of all neighboring cells within the SMTC period; on the other hand, it avoids the terminal device from using a longer measurement duration to perform time-slotless measurement of the neighboring cells, thereby reducing the power consumption of the terminal device.

[0025] In one possible implementation, in combination with the first aspect or any possible design of the first aspect, when the radio frequency path of the resource unit to be tested in the neighboring cell of the service cell of the terminal device is a partial radio frequency path of the second resource unit, the terminal device has reduced MIMO capability to receive or send uplink and downlink signals on the second resource unit.

[0026] Based on this possible implementation, the terminal device can receive signals from neighboring cells on part of the radio frequency path of the second resource unit, and then the terminal device can perform time-slot-free measurement of the neighboring cells. At the same time, uplink and downlink signals can still be continuously received or sent on the second resource unit to maintain data transmission.

[0027] In one possible implementation, in combination with the first aspect or any possible design of the first aspect, when the radio frequency path of the resource unit to be tested in the neighboring area of ​​the service cell of the terminal device is all the radio frequency paths of the second resource unit, the terminal device stops receiving or sending uplink and downlink signals on the second resource unit.

[0028] Based on this possible implementation, the terminal device can receive signals from neighboring cells on all radio frequency paths of the second resource unit, and thus the terminal device can perform time-slot-free measurement of the neighboring cells.

[0029] In a second aspect, a time-slot-free measurement device is provided. The time-slot-free measurement device is applied to a terminal device or a chip or a system on chip in the terminal device, and can also be a functional module in the terminal device for implementing the method described in the first aspect or any possible design of the first aspect. The time-slot-free measurement device can implement the functions performed by the terminal device in the above aspects or possible designs, and the functions can be implemented by hardware executing corresponding software. The hardware or software includes one or more modules corresponding to the above functions. For example, the time-slot-free measurement device includes a communication unit and a processing unit.

[0030] A communication unit is configured to receive configuration information from an access network device for instructing a terminal device to perform non-slotted measurement on a neighboring cell of a service cell of the terminal device. A processing unit is configured to determine, based on the configuration information, that part or all of the radio frequency paths of a second resource unit are radio frequency paths of a resource unit to be measured in the neighboring cell, the second resource unit being included in a first resource unit combination of resource units configured for the terminal device and in an activated state. The processing unit is further configured to perform non-slotted measurement on the neighboring cell on part or all of the radio frequency paths of the second resource unit.

[0031] Among them, the specific implementation method of the time-slot-free measurement device can refer to the behavior function of the terminal device in the time-slot-free measurement method provided by the first aspect or any possible design of the first aspect, and will not be repeated here. Therefore, the provided time-slot-free measurement device can achieve the same beneficial effect as the first aspect or any possible design of the first aspect.

[0032] In a third aspect, a time-slot-free measurement device is provided, which may be a terminal device or a chip or a system on chip in the terminal device. The time-slot-free measurement device may implement the functions performed by the terminal device in the above aspects or possible designs, and the functions may be implemented by hardware, such as: In one possible design, the time-slot-free measurement device may include: a processor and a communication interface, the processor is used to run a computer program or instruction to implement the time-slot-free measurement method described in the first aspect and any possible implementation of the first aspect.

[0033] In another possible design, the time-slot-free measurement device may further include a memory, the memory being used to store computer-executable instructions and data necessary for the time-slot-free measurement device. When the time-slot-free measurement device is running, the processor executes the computer-executable instructions stored in the memory, so that the time-slot-free measurement device performs the time-slot-free measurement method described in the first aspect or any possible design of the first aspect.

[0034] In a fourth aspect, a computer-readable storage medium is provided, which may be a readable non-volatile storage medium, and which stores computer instructions or programs. When the computer-readable storage medium is run on a computer, the computer can execute the time-slot-free measurement method described in the first aspect or any possible design of the above aspects.

[0035] In a fifth aspect, a computer program product comprising instructions is provided, which, when executed on a computer, enables the computer to execute the time-slot-free measurement method described in the first aspect or any possible design of the above aspects.

[0036] In a sixth aspect, a time-slot-free measurement device is provided, which may be a terminal device or a chip or a system on chip in the terminal device, and the time-slot-free measurement device includes one or more processors and one or more memories. The one or more memories are coupled to the one or more processors, and the one or more memories are used to store computer program codes, and the computer program codes include computer instructions, and when the one or more processors execute the computer instructions, the terminal device executes the time-slot-free measurement method as described in the first aspect or any possible design of the first aspect.

[0037] In a seventh aspect, a chip system is provided, the chip system including a processor and a communication interface, the chip system can be used to implement the functions performed by the terminal device in the above-mentioned first aspect or any possible design of the first aspect, such as the communication interface receiving configuration information from the access network device for instructing the terminal device to perform time-slot-free measurement of the neighboring area of ​​the terminal device's service cell on the first resource unit. In one possible design, the chip system also includes a memory, and the memory is used to store program instructions and / or data. The chip system can be composed of chips, and can also include chips and other discrete devices, without limitation.

[0038] Among them, the technical effects brought about by any design method from the second aspect to the seventh aspect can refer to the technical effects brought about by the above-mentioned first aspect or any possible design of the first aspect, and will not be repeated here.

[0039] In an eighth aspect, a time-slot-free measurement method is provided, the time-slot-free measurement method comprising: an access network device determines that a radio frequency path of a resource unit to be measured in a neighboring area of ​​a service cell of a terminal device is a part or all of a radio frequency path of a second resource unit included in a first resource unit combination of resource units configured for the terminal device and in an activated state. The access network device sends to the terminal device a signal for instructing the terminal device to perform time-slot-free measurement on a neighboring area of ​​the service cell of the terminal device, and for indicating a second resource unit combination and a MIMO capability of each resource unit in the second resource unit combination, wherein the second resource unit combination includes an updated first resource unit combination, the updated first resource unit combination does not include the second resource unit, or the MIMO capability of the second resource unit in the updated first resource unit combination is lower than the MIMO capability of the second resource unit in the first resource unit combination.

[0040] Based on the time-slot-free measurement method provided in the eighth aspect, after determining the radio frequency path of the resource unit to be measured in the neighboring area of ​​the service cell of the terminal device, the access network device sends to the terminal device information for instructing the terminal device to perform time-slot-free measurement on the neighboring area of ​​the service cell of the terminal device, as well as configuration information for indicating the second resource unit combination and the MIMO capability of each resource unit in the second resource unit combination, so that the terminal device can determine the radio frequency path of the first resource unit according to the configuration information, and then the terminal device can perform time-slot-free measurement on the neighboring area on the radio frequency path of the resource unit to be measured. Thus, the problem in the prior art that the terminal device cannot perform time-slot-free measurement on the neighboring area when there is no radio frequency path to receive the signal of the neighboring area is solved.

[0041] In one possible implementation, in combination with the eighth aspect or any possible design of the eighth aspect, the access network device uses part of the radio frequency path of the second resource unit that meets one or more of the following conditions as the radio frequency path of the first resource unit: the second resource unit is a resource unit whose RI is less than or equal to a preset value among the resource units in an activated state; the second resource unit is a resource unit with the smallest bandwidth among the resource units in an activated state; the second resource unit is a resource unit with the smallest RSRP, RSRQ or SINR among the resource units in an activated state; the second resource unit is a resource unit with the lowest data transmission rate among the resource units in an activated state; the second resource unit is a resource unit with the largest ID among the resource units in an activated state.

[0042] Based on this possible implementation method, the access network device can provide a more accurate second resource unit for the terminal device so that the terminal device can accurately use part of the radio frequency path of the second resource unit that meets the multiple conditions as the radio frequency path of the first resource unit, thereby improving the accuracy of the access network device in determining the radio frequency path of the first resource unit.

[0043] In one possible implementation, in combination with the eighth aspect or any possible design of the eighth aspect, the access network device uses all radio frequency paths of the second resource unit that meets one or more of the following conditions as the radio frequency paths of the first resource unit: the second resource unit is the resource unit with the largest ID among the resource units in the activated state; the second resource unit is the resource unit with the lowest data transmission rate among the resource units in the activated state; the second resource unit is the resource unit with the smallest RSRP or RSRQ or SINR or RI among the resource units in the activated state; the second resource unit is the resource unit with the smallest bandwidth among the resource units in the activated state; the second resource unit is the resource unit with the smallest MIMO capability among the resource units in the activated state.

[0044] Based on this possible implementation method, the access network device can provide a more accurate second resource unit for the terminal device so that the terminal device can accurately use all the radio frequency paths of the second resource unit that meet the multiple conditions as the radio frequency paths of the first resource unit, thereby improving the accuracy of the access network device in determining the radio frequency paths of the first resource unit.

[0045] In one possible implementation, in combination with the eighth aspect or any possible design of the eighth aspect, when the access network device determines that the third resource unit combination capability is greater than the resource unit combination capability supported by the terminal device, or when the access network device determines that the MIMO capability of the third resource unit combination is greater than the MIMO capability of the resource unit combination supported by the terminal device, the RF path of the first resource unit is determined according to the capability information of the terminal device; wherein the third resource unit combination is a resource unit combination after adding the first resource unit to the first resource unit combination.

[0046] Based on this possible implementation method, when the access network device determines that the resource unit combination capability after adding the first resource unit to the first resource combination is greater than the resource unit combination capability supported by the terminal device, or when the MIMO capability of the resource unit combination after adding the first resource unit to the first resource combination is greater than the MIMO capability of the resource unit combination supported by the terminal device, the access network device determines the radio frequency path of the first resource unit according to the capability information of the terminal device, thereby avoiding the problem that the access network device determines, according to the capability information of the terminal device, that the resource unit combination capability including the first resource unit is greater than the resource unit combination capability supported by the terminal device, or that the MIMO capability of the resource unit combination including the first resource unit is greater than the MIMO capability of the resource unit combination supported by the terminal device, resulting in the terminal device being unable to perform time-slotless measurement of the neighboring cells of the service cell on the radio frequency path of the first resource unit, thereby improving the accuracy of the terminal device performing time-slotless measurement of the neighboring cells of the service cell.

[0047] In one possible implementation, in combination with the eighth aspect or any possible design of the eighth aspect, the access network device receives capability information from the terminal device, including a resource unit combination supported by the terminal device and the MIMO capability corresponding to each resource unit in the resource unit combination supported by the terminal device.

[0048] Based on this possible implementation, the access network device can obtain the capability information of the terminal device through the existing signaling interaction with the terminal device, which is simple and easy.

[0049] In one possible implementation, in combination with the eighth aspect or any possible design of the eighth aspect, when the radio frequency path of the resource unit to be tested in the neighboring cell of the service cell of the terminal device is a partial radio frequency path of the second resource unit, the access network device receives or sends uplink and downlink signals on the second resource unit according to the reduced MIMO capability.

[0050] Based on this possible implementation, the access network device sends uplink and downlink signals to the terminal device on the second resource unit with reduced MIMO capability, so that the terminal device can receive signals from neighboring cells through part of the radio frequency path of the second resource unit, so that the terminal device can perform time-slot-free measurement of neighboring cells. At the same time, uplink and downlink signals can still be continuously received or sent on the second resource unit to maintain data transmission.

[0051] In one possible implementation, in combination with the eighth aspect or any possible design of the eighth aspect, when the RF path of the first resource unit is all the RF paths in the RF path of the second resource unit, the access network device stops receiving or sending uplink and downlink signals on the second resource unit.

[0052] Based on this possible implementation method, the access network device stops sending uplink and downlink signals to the terminal device on the second resource unit, so that the terminal device can receive signals from neighboring cells through the radio frequency path of the second resource unit, so that the terminal device can perform time-slot-free measurement of neighboring cells.

[0053] In the ninth aspect, a time-slot-free measurement device is provided, which is applied to an access network device or a chip or system on chip in the access network device, and can also be a functional module in the access network device for implementing the method described in the eighth aspect or any possible design of the eighth aspect. The time-slot-free measurement device can implement the functions performed by the access network device in the above aspects or possible designs, and the functions can be implemented by hardware executing corresponding software. The hardware or software includes one or more modules corresponding to the above functions. For example, the time-slot-free measurement device includes a communication unit and a processing unit.

[0054] The processing unit is used to determine that the radio frequency path of the resource unit to be tested in the neighboring area of ​​the service cell of the terminal device is part or all of the radio frequency path of the second resource unit in the first resource unit combination of resource units configured for the terminal device and in an activated state.

[0055] A communication unit, used to send to a terminal device a signal for instructing the terminal device to perform time-slot-free measurement on a neighboring area of ​​a service cell of the terminal device, and for indicating a second resource unit combination and a MIMO capability of each resource unit in the second resource unit combination, wherein the second resource unit combination includes an updated first resource unit combination, the updated first resource unit combination does not include the second resource unit, or the MIMO capability of the second resource unit in the updated first resource unit is lower than the MIMO capability of the second resource unit in the first resource unit.

[0056] In a tenth aspect, a time-slot-free measurement device is provided, which may be a terminal device or a chip or system on chip in the terminal device. The time-slot-free measurement device may implement the functions performed by the terminal device in the above aspects or possible designs, and the functions may be implemented by hardware, such as: In a possible design, the time-slot-free measurement device may include: a processor and a communication interface. The communication interface is coupled to the processor, and the processor is used to run a computer program or instruction to implement the time-slot-free measurement method described in the eighth aspect and any possible implementation of the eighth aspect.

[0057] In another possible design, the time-slot-free measurement device may further include a memory, and the memory is used to store computer-executable instructions and data necessary for the time-slot-free measurement device. When the time-slot-free measurement device is running, the processor executes the computer-executable instructions stored in the memory, so that the time-slot-free measurement device performs the time-slot-free measurement method described in the eighth aspect or any possible design of the eighth aspect.

[0058] In the eleventh aspect, a computer-readable storage medium is provided, which may be a readable non-volatile storage medium, and which stores computer instructions or programs. When the computer-readable storage medium is run on a computer, the computer can execute the time-slot-free measurement method described in the eighth aspect or any possible design of the eighth aspect.

[0059] In a twelfth aspect, a computer program product comprising instructions is provided, which, when executed on a computer, enables the computer to execute the time-slot-free measurement method described in the eighth aspect or any possible design of the eighth aspect.

[0060] In a thirteenth aspect, a time-slot-free measurement device is provided, which can be a first access network device or a chip or a system on chip in the first access network device, and the time-slot-free measurement device includes one or more processors and one or more memories. The one or more memories are coupled to the one or more processors, and the one or more memories are used to store computer program codes, and the computer program codes include computer instructions, and when the one or more processors execute the computer instructions, the terminal device executes the time-slot-free measurement method described in the eighth aspect or any possible design of the eighth aspect.

[0061] In the fourteenth aspect, a chip is provided, comprising: a processor and a communication interface, wherein the processor is coupled to a memory through the communication interface, and when the processor executes a computer program or instruction in the memory, the time-slot-free measurement method described in the eighth aspect and any possible implementation of the eighth aspect is executed.

[0062] Among them, the technical effects brought about by any design method in the ninth to fourteenth aspects can refer to the technical effects brought about by the above-mentioned eighth aspect or any possible design of the eighth aspect, and will not be repeated here.

[0063] In a fifteenth aspect, a time-slot-free measurement method is provided, the time-slot-free measurement method comprising: an access network device sends to a terminal device configuration information for instructing the terminal device to perform time-slot-free measurement on a neighboring cell of a service cell of the terminal device and for indicating at least one resource unit including a radio frequency channel that can be used as a resource unit to be measured in the neighboring cell. The access network device receives a configuration completion response from the terminal device for indicating a second resource unit including at least one resource unit and / or a MIMO capability of the second resource unit.

[0064] Based on the time-slot-free measurement method provided in the fifteenth aspect, the access network device sends to the terminal device configuration information for instructing the terminal device to perform time-slot-free measurement on the neighboring cell of the terminal device's service cell and for indicating at least one resource unit that can be used as the radio frequency path of the resource unit to be measured in the neighboring cell, so that the terminal device determines the radio frequency path of the resource unit to be measured in the neighboring cell according to the configuration information, and the terminal device can receive the information of the neighboring cell on the radio frequency path of the resource unit to be measured, and then the terminal device can perform time-slot-free measurement on the neighboring cell. This solves the problem in the prior art that when the terminal device has no radio frequency path to receive the signal of the neighboring cell, the terminal device cannot perform time-slot-free measurement on the neighboring cell.

[0065] In one possible implementation, in combination with the fifteenth aspect or any possible design of the fifteenth aspect, when the radio frequency path of the resource unit to be tested in the neighboring area of ​​the service cell of the terminal device is a partial radio frequency path of the second resource unit, the access network device receives or sends uplink and downlink signals on the second resource unit according to the reduced MIMO capability.

[0066] Based on this possible implementation, the access network device sends uplink and downlink signals to the terminal device on the second resource unit with reduced MIMO capability, so that the terminal device can receive signals from neighboring cells through part of the radio frequency path of the second resource unit, so that the terminal device can perform time-slot-free measurement of neighboring cells. At the same time, uplink and downlink signals can still be continuously received or sent on the second resource unit to maintain data transmission.

[0067] In one possible implementation, in combination with the fifteenth aspect or any possible design of the fifteenth aspect, when the radio frequency paths of the neighboring cells of the service cell of the terminal device are all the radio frequency paths in the radio frequency paths of the second resource unit, the access network device stops receiving or sending uplink and downlink signals on the second resource unit.

[0068] Based on this possible implementation method, the access network device stops sending uplink and downlink signals to the terminal device on the second resource unit. In this way, the access network device can send the signal of the neighboring cell to the terminal device through the radio frequency path of the second resource unit, so that the terminal device can perform time-slot-free measurement of the neighboring cell.

[0069] In the sixteenth aspect, a time-slot-free measurement device is provided, which is applied to an access network device or a chip or system on chip in the access network device, and can also be a functional module in the access network device for implementing the method described in the fifteenth aspect or any possible design of the fifteenth aspect. The time-slot-free measurement device can implement the functions performed by the terminal device in the above-mentioned aspects or possible designs, and the functions can be implemented by hardware executing corresponding software. The hardware or software includes one or more modules corresponding to the above-mentioned functions. For example, the time-slot-free measurement device includes a communication unit and a processing unit.

[0070] A communication unit, used to send to a terminal device configuration information for instructing the terminal device to perform time-slot-free measurement on a neighboring cell of a service cell of the terminal device and for indicating at least one resource unit including a radio frequency channel that can be used as a resource unit to be measured in the neighboring cell; and also used to receive a configuration completion response from the terminal device for indicating a second resource unit and / or a MIMO capability of the second resource unit included in at least one resource unit.

[0071] Among them, the specific implementation method of the time-slot-free measurement device can refer to the behavior function of the terminal device in the time-slot-free measurement method provided by the fifteenth aspect or any possible design of the fifteenth aspect, and will not be repeated here. Therefore, the provided time-slot-free measurement device can achieve the same beneficial effect as the fifteenth aspect or any possible design of the fifteenth aspect.

[0072] In the seventeenth aspect, a time-slot-free measurement device is provided, which may be an access network device or a chip or a system on chip in the access network device. The time-slot-free measurement device may implement the functions performed by the access network device in the above aspects or possible designs, and the functions may be implemented by hardware, such as: In one possible design, the time-slot-free measurement device may include: a processor and a communication interface, the processor is used to run a computer program or instruction to implement the time-slot-free measurement method described in the fifteenth aspect and any possible implementation of the fifteenth aspect.

[0073] In another possible design, the time-slot-free measurement device may further include a memory for storing computer-executable instructions and data necessary for the time-slot-free measurement device. When the time-slot-free measurement device is running, the processor executes the computer-executable instructions stored in the memory so that the time-slot-free measurement device performs the time-slot-free measurement method described in the fifteenth aspect or any possible design of the fifteenth aspect.

[0074] In the eighteenth aspect, a computer-readable storage medium is provided, which may be a readable non-volatile storage medium, and which stores computer instructions or programs. When the computer-readable storage medium is run on a computer, the computer can execute the time-slot-free measurement method described in the fifteenth aspect or any possible design of the above aspects.

[0075] In the nineteenth aspect, a computer program product comprising instructions is provided, which, when executed on a computer, enables the computer to execute the time-slot-free measurement method described in the fifteenth aspect or any possible design of the above aspects.

[0076] In a twentieth aspect, a time-slot-free measurement device is provided, which may be an access network device or a chip or a system on chip in the access network device, and the time-slot-free measurement device includes one or more processors and one or more memories. The one or more memories are coupled to the one or more processors, and the one or more memories are used to store computer program codes, and the computer program codes include computer instructions, and when the one or more processors execute the computer instructions, the terminal device executes the time-slot-free measurement method as described in the fifteenth aspect or any possible design of the fifteenth aspect.

[0077] In the twenty-first aspect, a chip system is provided, which includes a processor and a communication interface. The chip system can be used to implement the functions performed by the terminal device in the above-mentioned aspect 15 or any possible design of the fifteenth aspect, for example, the processor is used to send to the terminal device through the communication interface configuration information for instructing the terminal device to perform time-slot-free measurement of the neighboring area of ​​the terminal device's service cell on the first resource unit. In one possible design, the chip system also includes a memory, and the memory is used to store program instructions and / or data. The chip system can be composed of chips, and can also include chips and other discrete devices, without limitation.

[0078] Among them, the technical effects brought about by any design method from the sixteenth to the twenty-first aspects can refer to the technical effects brought about by the above-mentioned fifteenth aspect or any possible design of the fifteenth aspect, and will not be repeated here.

[0079] In the twenty-second aspect, the present application provides a communication system, including an access network device, and a terminal device communicating with the access network device, the access network device is used to execute the time-slot-free measurement method described in the first aspect and any possible implementation of the first aspect, or the access network device is used to execute the time-slot-free measurement method described in the fifteenth aspect and any possible implementation of the fifteenth aspect, and the terminal device is used to execute the time-slot-free measurement method described in the eighth aspect and any possible implementation of the eighth aspect. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0080] Figure 1 A schematic diagram of a dual connection scenario provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0081] Figure 2 A schematic diagram of a measurement time slot configured by a base station provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0082] Figure 3 A schematic diagram of a measurement time slot structure of a base station configuration provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0083] Figure 4 A simplified schematic diagram of a communication system architecture provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0084] Figure 5 A schematic diagram of the structure of a measurement time slot configured by a base station provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0085] Figure 6 A simplified schematic diagram of a communication system architecture provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0086] Figure 7 A schematic diagram of the composition of a time-slot-free measurement device provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0087] Figure 8 A schematic diagram of another time-slot-free measurement device provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0088] Fig. 9 A flowchart of a time-slot-free measurement method provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0089] Fig.10 A schematic diagram of a software architecture provided for an embodiment of the present application;

[0090] Fig.11 A flowchart of another time-slot-free measurement method provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0091] Fig.12 A flowchart of another time-slot-free measurement method provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0092] Fig.13 A schematic diagram of the composition of a time-slot-free measurement device provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0093] Fig.14 A schematic diagram of another time-slot-free measurement device provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0094] Fig.15 A simplified schematic diagram of another communication system architecture provided in an embodiment of the present application. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0095] Before introducing the embodiments of the present application, some terms involved in the embodiments of the present application are explained:

[0096] Resource units may refer to frequency resources used to transmit data, such as: a terminal device may transmit uplink data and / or downlink data to an access network device through a resource unit. Resource units may include frequency resources such as component carriers (CC), bandwidth parts (BWP), bandwidths (bands), cells, and other frequency resources of other granularities, without limitation.

[0097] The terminal device may transmit uplink data and / or downlink data with the access network device on one resource unit, or may transmit uplink data and / or downlink data with the access network device on multiple resource units in order to improve the spectrum efficiency and user throughput of the system. In the present application, the transmission of uplink data and / or downlink data between the terminal device and the access network device on multiple resource units is described as an example.

[0098] Among them, multiple resource units can be combined together to form a resource unit combination. The resource unit combination may include multiple resource units and the MIMO capability corresponding to each resource unit. Multiple resource units can be resource units of the same cell group, such as: multiple CCs in the case of carrier aggregation (CA). Multiple resource units can also be resource units of different cell groups accessed by the terminal device in dual connectivity (DC) mode, without restriction.

[0099] Cell: may refer to an area used to provide wireless communication services for terminal devices, wherein the access network device provides wireless communication services for terminal devices in the area. Among them, one access network device can manage a cell. Each cell corresponds to a cell identifier (cell ID), which uniquely identifies the cell. If the terminal device resides in a cell and is to access the cell, the cell may be referred to as the resident cell or serving cell of the terminal device, and the cells around the serving cell and adjacent to the serving cell may be referred to as the neighbor cells or neighboring areas of the serving cell.

[0100] Carrier Aggregation (CA): Aggregate two or more CCs together to support a larger transmission bandwidth (e.g., 100 MHz). Each CC corresponds to an independent cell, and one CC can be equated with one cell. The 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) protocol stipulates that a terminal device can be configured with multiple CCs (e.g., up to 5 CCs or 32 CCs, etc.). Among the multiple CCs configured for the terminal device, one CC can be called the primary cell (PCell), which is the cell where the terminal device establishes the initial connection, or the cell where the radio resource control (RRC) connection is reestablished, or the primary cell designated during the handover process. PCell is responsible for RRC communication with the terminal device. The remaining CCs are called secondary cells (SCells), which are added during the RRC reconfiguration of the terminal device to provide additional wireless resources.

[0101] The two or more CCs are CCs in the same radio access technology. For example, the radio access technology may be long term evolution (LTE) or new radio (NR), and the radio access technology may also be other radio access technologies without limitation.

[0102] In one example, taking CA including two CCs (eg, CC1 and CC2), CA may be expressed in the form of: CA_[band indication][bandwidth level]-[band indication][bandwidth level].

[0103] In the above CA representation, “_” is used as a separator to divide CA into two parts: the first part “CA” indicates that this combination is a CA combination; the second part “[band indication][bandwidth level]-[band indication][bandwidth level]” indicates the combination of CC1 and CC2, and each CC may include “[band indication][bandwidth level]”.

[0104] Among them, the band indication indicates the band where the CC is located. The band can be represented by numbers or characters, and the carriers corresponding to different wireless access technologies can be represented by different symbols. For example, the band where the carrier in LTE is located can be represented by numbers, such as 1 indicates that the band where the CC of LTE is located is band1, and 2 indicates that the band where the CC of LTE is located is band2. The band in NR can be represented by a combination of characters and numbers. For example, n1 indicates that the band where the CC of NR is located is band1, and n78 indicates that the band where the CC of NR is located is band78. In the embodiments of the present application, the band can also be represented in other forms without limitation.

[0105] The broadband level refers to the number of consecutive CCs in the band where the CC is located.

[0106] In one example, the bandwidth level of NR and the broadband level of LTE are shown in Table 1, and the bandwidth level of NR may include: A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H, I, and J. The broadband level of LTE may include: A, B, C, D, E, F, and I. The number of continuous CCs supported by the carrier corresponding to each broadband level may refer to Table 1.

[0107] Table 1

[0108]

[0109] It should be noted that in Table 1, when the broadband level of NR is "A", it means that the number of consecutive CCs supported by the band is 1. When the broadband level of NR is "B", it means that the number of consecutive CCs supported by the band is 2. When the broadband level of LTE is "A", it means that the number of consecutive CCs supported by the band is 1. When the broadband level of LTE is "B", it means that the number of consecutive CCs supported by the band is 2. The consecutive CCs supported by the broadband levels "C" to "J" of NR and the broadband levels "C" to "I" of LTE can be referred to Table 1 and will not be repeated here.

[0110] In the embodiment of the present application, the bandwidth level of NR and the broadband level of LTE may also include other broadband levels without limitation. The representation of the broadband level is only exemplary and may also be represented in other forms, such as Roman numerals, without limitation. The number of consecutive CCs supported within the band by each broadband level may also be other values ​​without limitation.

[0111] In one example, in combination with Table 1, for the combination CA_n1A-n3C, "CA" indicates that the carrier combination is a CA combination, and "n1A-n3C" indicates that the carrier combination is composed of CC1 and CC2, CC1 and CC2 are NR CCs, and band1 where CC1 is located supports 1 CC in the band, and band3 where CC2 is located supports 2 consecutive CCs in the band. Band1 is the main carrier in the carrier combination, and band3 is the secondary carrier component (SCC) in the carrier combination.

[0112] In another example, in combination with Table 1, for the combination CA_1A-3C, "CA" indicates that the carrier combination is a CA combination, "1A-3C" indicates that the carrier combination is composed of CC1 and CC2 of LTE, and band1 where CC1 is located supports 1 CC in the band, and band3 where CC2 is located supports 2 consecutive CCs in the band.

[0113] Among them, CC1 is the main carrier in the carrier combination, and CC2 is the SCC in the carrier combination.

[0114] Dual connectivity (DC): can refer to supporting two access network devices to provide data transmission services for one terminal device at the same time; the access network device where the PCell is located is called the primary access network device (such as Master gNB, abbreviated as MgNB), and the other access network device (that is, the access network device where the primary secondary cell (PSCell) is located) is called the secondary access network device (such as Secondary gNB, abbreviated as SgNB), where the primary access network device is the control plane anchor point, that is, the terminal device establishes an RRC connection with the primary access network device, and a control plane connection is established between the primary access network device and the core network, and RRC messages are transmitted between the primary access network device and the terminal device. In subsequent enhanced technologies, some RRC messages (such as configuration information, measurement reports, etc.) can also be sent between the secondary access network device and the terminal device.

[0115] DC can exist within the same access technology or between different access technologies. For example, two groups of LTE can constitute LTE DC, two groups of NR can constitute NR DC, one group of LTE and one group of NR can constitute E-UTRA and NR dual connectivity (E-UTRANNR-dual connectivity, EN-DC) or NR and LTE dual connectivity (NR E-UTRAN-dual connectivity, NE-DC).

[0116] Under DC, the two access network devices connected to the terminal device can be the main access network device and the auxiliary access network device. The cells covered by each access network device can form a CA group. The two access network devices can be regarded as two CA groups, among which the CA group covered by the main access network device can be the master cell group (MCG). The MCG can carry the control plane and user plane of the terminal device, and can be responsible for sending services to the terminal device, and can also be responsible for sending control signaling to the terminal device. The CA group covered by the auxiliary access network device can be called the secondary cell group (SCG). The SCG can carry the user plane of the terminal device and can be responsible for sending services to the terminal device.

[0117] For example, for EN-DC, the access network device of LTE is MCG, and the access network device of NR is SCG. For NE-DC, the access network device of NR is MCG, and the access network device of LTE is SCG.

[0118] For example, Figure 1As shown, the terminal device can communicate with access network device 1 and access network device 2 at the same time. Assuming that the cells covered by access network device 1 form CA group 1, and the cells covered by access network device 2 form CA group 2, CA group 1 is MCG, and CA group 2 is SCG, then access network device 1 can send control signaling and transmission services to the terminal device on CA group 1, and access network device 2 can transmit services to the terminal device on CA group 2. Access network device 1 can be the main access network device, and access network device 2 can be the auxiliary access network device. Access network device 1 can be the auxiliary access network device, and access network device 1 can be the main access network device, without restriction.

[0119] As an example, taking the resource unit as a carrier, DC can be expressed as: DC_[band indication][bandwidth level]-[band indication][bandwidth level]_[band indication][bandwidth level]-[band indication][bandwidth level].

[0120] In the above DC representation, "_" is used as a separator to divide DC into three parts: the first part "DC" indicates that this combination is a DC combination; the second part "[band indication][bandwidth level]-[band indication][bandwidth level]" indicates the carrier combination of MCG, and the carrier combination of MCG includes one or more carriers; the third part "[band indication][bandwidth level]-[band indication][bandwidth level]" indicates the carrier combination of SCG, and the carrier combination of SCG includes one or more.

[0121] Among them, the specific description of the band indication and broadband level in the second part and the third part can refer to the description of the band indication and broadband level of CA, which will not be repeated here.

[0122] An example, combined with Table 1, for the carrier combination DC_1A-3C_n78C, "DC" means that the carrier combination is a DC combination, "1A-3C" means that the MCG in the carrier combination is composed of CC1 and CC2 of LTE, the band where CC1 is located is band 1, and the band where CC2 is located is band 3, which is composed of 2 consecutive CCs in the band; "n78C" means that the SCG in the carrier combination is composed of CC3 of NR, the band where CC3 is located is band 78, and is composed of 2 consecutive CCs in the band.

[0123] It should be noted that CA and DC can be collectively referred to as BC (band combination).

[0124] It should be noted that, whether supporting CA or DC combination, the terminal device needs to work on multiple carriers (service cells) at the same time. Therefore, the CA and DC combinations supported by the terminal device are limited by the design of the terminal device's RF path (or receiver). Different bands may require different RF paths, or they may share the same RF path, depending on the specific design of the terminal device. Generally speaking, the more RF paths a terminal device has, the more CA or DC combinations it can support.

[0125] At the same time, LTE and NR also support multi-input multi-output (MIMO) multi-antenna technology. On a CC, if the terminal device supports 4 receptions, that is, 4 antennas are used for reception on the CC, 4 RF channels need to be occupied accordingly. It can be seen that the MIMO capability of each CC under different CA or DC combinations is also limited by the design of the RF channel (or receiver) of the terminal device. The more RF channels a terminal device has, the higher the MIMO capability that can be supported theoretically under the same CA / DC. The downlink MIMO capability is usually expressed as xR, where "x" can be a number 1, 2, 4, etc. For example, 4R means 4 receptions. Generally, each CC has at least 2R capability. Under a CA / DC, the combination of the MIMO capabilities of each CC is called the MIMO capability combination of the CA / DC. For example, the MIMO capability combination of DC_1A_3A_7A-n78 is 4R+2R+4R+4R, that is, CCs of band 1, band 7, and band n78 support 4R MIMO capability, while CCs of band 3 support 2R MIMO capability. When the RF path design of the terminal device is certain, the maximum MIMO capability combination under each CA / DC is also determined.

[0126] Therefore, when the RF path design of the terminal device is certain, when the terminal device works under the CA / DC combination composed of CCs with different MIMO capabilities, the ability to measure the time slot for the measurement of the inter-frequency or inter-system neighboring cells on a certain band is also different. For example, the terminal device has the capability of DC_1A_3A-n78 (of course, it also supports DC_1A-n78). Among them, the CCs of band1, band3 and band n78 all support 4R, but do not support DC_1A_3C-n78 and DC_1A_3A_3A-n78. When the terminal device works under DC_1A-n78, it can support the measurement of the inter-frequency neighboring cells on band 3 without measuring the time slot; but when the terminal device works on DC_1A_3A-n78, and the base station configures band 3 as 4R, and then measures the inter-frequency neighboring cells of band 3, at this time, since there is no remaining RF channel for receiving the inter-frequency neighboring cell signals of band 3, the terminal device only supports the measurement that requires the measurement of the time slot.

[0127] In one example, when a terminal device accesses a base station, the base station can be informed of the CA and DC combinations supported by the terminal device and the MIMO capability combinations under each combination through RRC signaling (such as the capability information of the terminal device (UECapabilityInformation)). The base station can configure CCs for the terminal device to form a CA or DC combination and configure the MIMO capability of each CC through RRC signaling (such as RRC connection reconfiguration (ConnectionReconfiguration)). In the LTE capability part of UECapabilityInformation, it can also indicate whether the measurement of each band (including 2G, 3G, and 4G bands) under each LTE CA requires the ability to measure time slots. However, the R15 protocol stipulates that time slots need to be measured when the hetero-frequency or hetero-system neighboring cells are NR cells. Therefore, there is no field in the RRC signaling (CapabilityInformation) to indicate whether time slots need to be measured for measuring each NR band under different CA / DC.

[0128] When the terminal device does not support measurement without measurement time slots, the base station needs to configure the measurement time slots when configuring the measurement of the terminal device. The configuration of the measurement time slots can be as follows: Figure 2 As shown in Figure 1, the configuration mainly includes three parameters: measurement gap repetition period (MGRP) configures the measurement period; measurement gap length (MGL) configures the length of the measurement slot, the maximum of which can be 6ms; gap offset configures the starting position of the measurement slot. Based on these three parameters, the terminal device can determine the starting position of the measurement slot on the system frame number (SFN) and subframe that meet the following conditions:

[0129] SFN mod T=FLOOR(gapOffset / 10);

[0130] subframe=gap Offset mod 10;

[0131] The measurement period T=MGRP / 10.

[0132] It should be noted that when the terminal device measures the NR cell to be measured, it can measure based on SSB. If the terminal device adopts the measurement method of measuring time slots, the base station needs to configure the accurate measurement time slot position for the terminal device, which needs to include the SSB of the NR cell to be measured.

[0133] Synchronization signal block (SSB): contains the primary synchronization signal (PSS), secondary synchronization signal (SSS) and physical broadcast bhannel (PBCH). It can be used for synchronization, time-frequency tracking, and wireless resource measurement.

[0134] In one example, Figure 3 As shown, the SSB of the NR cell to be tested can be sent according to a time period (also referred to as an SSB period), where the time period can be set as needed, for example, it can be 5ms, 10ms, 20ms, 40ms, 80ms or 160ms, without restriction. The NR cell to be tested can send multiple SSBs within a period, and the multiple SSBs can be sent within a time period, that is, multiple SSBs within a time period can be called an SSB pulse group (Burst Set). For example, the SSB period of the NR cell to be tested is 20ms, and the SSB period includes 4 5ms. An SSB Burst Set of the NR cell is concentrated in one 5ms and no SSB occurs in the other three 5ms. Therefore, when the base station configures a measurement time slot for the terminal device, the configured measurement time slot needs to include the SSB transmission time ( Figure 3 Otherwise, the terminal device will not receive the SSB of the NR cell to be measured in the measurement time slot ( Figure 3 The measurement time slot is indicated by the dotted line in the middle), so that the NR cell to be measured cannot be measured.

[0135] Furthermore, in order to measure the NR cell to be measured, the base station may also configure a measurement time configuration (SS / PBCH block measurement time configuration, SMTC) for each frequency point to be measured.

[0136] SMTC: is a window with a maximum period of 160ms and a maximum window length of 5ms. The R15 protocol stipulates that the terminal equipment only performs SSB measurement where the SMTC window and the measurement time slot overlap, and the SMTC period configured by the base station is greater than the SSB period.

[0137] Therefore, when the base station configures the measurement time slot of the NR cell to be tested, it is necessary to ensure that the configured measurement time slot contains a complete SSB Burst Set of the NR cell to be tested. However, there are certain difficulties in practice. Specifically, the position of the measurement time slot configured by the base station is based on the timing of the serving cell, and the position of the SSB of the NR cell to be tested is based on the timing of the NR cell. If the serving cell and the NR cell to be tested are not synchronized, the base station needs to know the timing deviation between the serving cell and the NR cell to be tested in order to correctly configure the position of the measurement time slot for the terminal device. Secondly, even if the base station determines the timing deviation between the serving cell and each neighboring cell, it is impossible to configure a suitable measurement time slot in some cases. For example, Figure 4 As shown in the figure, the terminal device accesses cell 1. Cell 2 and cell 3 are inter-frequency neighboring cells of cell 1, and cell 1 is not synchronized with cell 2 and cell 3. Therefore, the SSB of cell 2 and cell 3 are not in the same position. If the base station cannot determine whether the terminal device is at the edge of cell 2 or cell 3, the base station cannot determine whether the measurement time slot should be configured at the SSB position of cell 2 or the SSB position of cell 3. Figure 5 As shown, if the terminal device is at the edge of cell 3, and the measurement time slot configured by the base station only includes the SSB position of cell 2, the terminal device will not be able to detect cell 3 and will not be able to switch to cell 3.

[0138] RF path: In the embodiments of the present application, it specifically refers to a receiving RF path, which may also be called a receiver or RF channel. The RF path of the terminal device is used to receive signals from the access network device, and the RF path of the access network device is used to receive signals from the terminal device.

[0139] The number of radio frequency paths of the terminal device may determine whether the terminal device supports time slot-free measurement.

[0140] For example, in the RRC_CONNECTED state, if the RF path of the terminal device can receive the signal of the serving cell and the signal of the neighboring cell at the same time, the terminal device can complete the measurement of the neighboring cell without measuring the time slot, that is, the terminal device can perform non-time slot measurement of the neighboring cell. If the RF path of the terminal device cannot receive the signal of the serving cell and the signal of the neighboring cell at the same time, that is, the terminal device does not have an additional RF path to receive the signal of the neighboring cell, then a period of time is required to perform time slot measurement. During the time slot measurement process, the terminal device can stop the RF path used to receive the signal of the serving cell from receiving the signal of the serving cell, and make the RF path work at the frequency of the neighboring cell to receive the signal of the neighboring cell, thereby completing the measurement of the neighboring cell.

[0141] It should be noted that for both CA and DC, the terminal device needs to work on multiple carriers (service cells) at the same time. Therefore, the CA and DC combinations supported by the terminal device are limited by the RF path design of the terminal device. Different carrier frequencies may require different RF paths or the same RF path, which is related to the specific design of the terminal device. The more RF paths a terminal device has, the more CA or DC combinations it can support.

[0142] MIMO capability: usually expressed as xR, where "x" is a number, such as 1, 2, 4, etc. Each CC has at least 2R capability. For example, a CC's MIMO capability is 4R, indicating that the CC supports 4 receptions. The MIMO capability of each resource unit in the resource unit combination supported by the terminal device refers to the number of antennas or RF paths used by the terminal device to receive signals on each resource unit in the resource unit combination. The resource unit combination can be the above-mentioned CA or DC.

[0143] For CCs with different CA or DC, the MIMO capability of the CC is also limited by the design of the RF path. The more RF paths a terminal device has, the higher the MIMO capability of the terminal device under the same CA or DC.

[0144] The combination of the MIMO capabilities of each CC in a CA or a DC is called the MIMO combined capability of the CA / DC. When the number of RF channels of a terminal device is fixed, when the terminal device works in a CA or DC composed of CCs with different MIMO capabilities, the measurement of the neighboring cells corresponding to a certain band requires different capabilities of the measurement time slot.

[0145] For example, the terminal device supports DC_1A_3A-n78. The MIMO capability of CCs of band 1, band 3, and band n78 in DC_1A_3A-n78 is 4R. The terminal device does not support DC_1A_3A_7A-n78. The MIMO capability of CCs of band 1, band 7, and band n78 in DC_1A_3A_7A-n78 is 4R, and the MIMO capability of CCs of band 3 is 2R. When the terminal device works under DC_1A-n78, it can perform non-slot measurement on the neighboring cell corresponding to band 3; when the terminal device works under DC_1A_3A-n78, when performing non-slot measurement on the neighboring cell corresponding to band 7, the terminal device cannot perform non-slot measurement on the neighboring cell corresponding to band 7 because the terminal device has no remaining RF path for receiving the signal of the neighboring cell corresponding to band 7.

[0146] In an embodiment of the present application, in order to solve the problem in the prior art that the terminal device has no radio frequency path to receive the signal of the neighboring cell, resulting in the terminal device being unable to perform time-slotless measurement on the neighboring cell, a time-slotless measurement method is provided, including: the terminal device receives configuration information from the access network device for instructing the terminal device to perform time-slotless measurement on the neighboring cell of the terminal device's service cell. Based on the configuration information, the terminal device determines that part or all of the radio frequency paths in the radio frequency path of the second resource unit are the radio frequency paths of the resource unit to be measured in the neighboring cell. The second resource unit is included in the first resource unit combination of resource units configured for the terminal device and in an activated state. In this way, the terminal device can perform time-slotless measurement on the neighboring cell of the terminal device's service cell on part or all of the radio frequency paths of the second resource unit.

[0147] The implementation of the embodiments of the present application will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0148] The time slot-free measurement method provided in the embodiment of the present application can be used for any communication system supporting communication, and the communication system can be a 3GPP communication system, for example, an LTE communication system, a 5G mobile communication system, a new radio (NR) system, an NR vehicle-to-everything (V2X) system, and other next-generation communication systems, or a non-3GPP communication system without limitation. Figure 6 Taking as an example, the time slot-free measurement method provided in an embodiment of the present application is described.

[0149] It should be noted that the communication system described in the embodiment of the present application is to more clearly illustrate the technical solution of the embodiment of the present application, and does not constitute a limitation on the technical solution provided in the embodiment of the present application. Ordinary technicians in this field can know that with the evolution of communication systems and the emergence of other communication systems, the technical solution provided in the embodiment of the present application is also applicable to similar technical problems.

[0150] Figure 6 FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a communication system provided by an embodiment of the present application. Figure 6 As shown, the communication system may include multiple access network devices and multiple terminal devices, such as user equipment (UE). The UE may be located within the coverage of the access network device and connected to the access network device via a Uu port. Figure 6In the system shown, each access network device can cover one or more cells, the terminal device can work under CA or DC, the terminal device can be located in one or more cells covered by the access network device, and the terminal device can receive services provided by the access network device through the cell where it is located, or it can be described as the access network device can provide services to the terminal device through the cell it covers. In the embodiment of the present application, the cell that provides services to the terminal device can be called a service cell. For example, Figure 6 As shown, access network device 1 covers cell 1.1 and cell 1.2, UE1 can be located in cell 1.1 and cell 1.2, and can receive services provided by access network device 1 through cell 1.1 and cell 1.2, so cell 1.1 and cell 1.2 can be called service cells for UE1. Access network device 2 covers cell 2.1 and cell 2.2, UE2 can be located in cell 1.1 and cell 2.1, and can receive services provided by access network device 1 through cell 1.1 and receive services provided by access network device 2 through cell 2.2, so cell 1.1 and cell 2.1 can be called service cells for UE2.

[0151] It should be noted that Figure 6 This is just an exemplary framework diagram. Figure 6 The number of access network devices, the number of UEs, and the number of cells covered by the access network devices are not limited, and the names of the devices are not limited, except Figure 6 In addition to the functional nodes shown, other nodes may also be included, such as core network equipment, gateway equipment, application servers, etc., without limitation.

[0152] in, Figure 6 The access network equipment is mainly used to implement functions such as resource scheduling, wireless resource management, and wireless access control of terminal equipment. Specifically, the access network equipment can be any node in a small base station, a wireless access point, a transmission receive point (TRP), a transmission point (TP), and some other access nodes. In the embodiment of the present application, the device for implementing the function of the access network device can be an access network device, or it can be a device that can support the access network device to implement the function, such as a chip system. The following takes the device for implementing the function of the access network device as an example, which is an access network device, to describe the time slot-free measurement method provided in the embodiment of the present application.

[0153] Figure 6The UE in the description may be a terminal equipment, a mobile station (MS), or a mobile terminal (MT), etc. Specifically, the UE may be a mobile phone, a tablet computer, or a computer with wireless transceiver function, or a virtual reality (VR) device, an augmented reality (AR) device, a wireless terminal in industrial control, a wireless terminal in unmanned driving, a wireless terminal in telemedicine, a wireless terminal in a smart grid, a wireless terminal in a smart city, a smart home, a vehicle-mounted terminal, etc. In an embodiment of the present application, the device for realizing the function of the terminal device may be a terminal device, or may be a device that can support the terminal device to realize the function, such as a chip system. The following takes the case where the device for realizing the function of the terminal device is a terminal device as an example to describe the time slot-free measurement method provided in an embodiment of the present application.

[0154] The access network equipment and terminal equipment can be deployed on land, including indoors or outdoors, handheld or vehicle-mounted; they can also be deployed on the water surface; they can also be deployed on airplanes, balloons and artificial satellites in the air. The embodiments of the present application do not limit the application scenarios of the access network equipment and terminal equipment.

[0155] In a specific implementation, Figure 6 Each network element shown, such as a terminal device and an access network device, may have Figure 7 Parts shown. Figure 7 A schematic diagram of the composition of a communication device 700 provided in an embodiment of the present application. When the communication device 700 has the function of the terminal device described in the embodiment of the present application, the communication device 700 can be a terminal device or a chip or system on chip in the terminal device. When the communication device 700 has the function of the access network device described in the embodiment of the present application, the communication device 700 can be an access network device or a chip or system on chip in the access network device.

[0156] like Figure 7 As shown, the communication device 700 may include: a memory, a processor, a transmit (TX) signal processing unit and a receive (RX) signal processing unit. The memory, the processor, the TX signal processing unit and the RX signal processing unit are connected via a communication line.

[0157] The memory may include a static memory for storing executable code and data, or a dynamic memory for storing instructions and dynamic data.

[0158] The processor is used to control the TX signal processing unit to generate a signal in a predefined manner, and is used to control the RX signal processing unit to receive a signal in a predefined manner.

[0159] The TX signal processing unit is used to implement various signal processing functions for signal transmission, including channel coding, scrambling, modulation, layer mapping, precoding and antenna mapping.

[0160] The RX signal processing unit implements various signal processing functions for signal reception, including synchronization, time-frequency tracking, measurement, channel estimation, equalization, demodulation, descrambling, decoding and other processes.

[0161] The TX signal processing unit and the RX signal processing unit are connected to the antenna through the TX RF path and the RX RF path respectively. The TX RF path modulates the baseband signal to the carrier frequency and sends it out through the antenna; the RX RF path demodulates the RF signal received from the antenna into a baseband signal and sends it to the RX signal processing unit for processing. Some antennas can be configured to send and receive at the same time (such as Figure 7 1 and 2 in Figure 1), and are therefore connected to both the TX RF path and the RX RF path; some antennas are configured to be used only for reception (e.g. Figure 7 Antenna s and antenna m in the figure), so it is only connected to the RX RF path. The TX RF path and the RX RF path can be connected to any antenna, such as TX RF path 1 and RX RF path 1 are connected to antenna 3. The RX RF path and the TX RF path are not necessarily connected to the antenna. If the current RF path is not in use, the RF path is not connected to the antenna. And the same antenna can be connected to multiple RX RF paths and / or TX RF paths, and the antenna can work at multiple frequencies at the same time. During downlink reception, the signals of multiple frequencies received by the antenna are separated by a filter and sent to the RX signal processing unit for processing through different RX RF paths; during uplink transmission, signals of different frequencies from different TX RF paths are combined through a combiner and sent on the same antenna. All of the above can be flexibly configured according to business needs.

[0162] In another specific implementation, Figure 6 The components shown, such as terminal equipment and access network equipment, can be used Figure 7 The structure shown may include Figure 8 Parts shown. Figure 8A schematic diagram of the composition of a time-slot-free measurement device 800 provided in an embodiment of the present application. When the time-slot-free measurement device 800 has the function of the terminal device described in the embodiment of the present application, the time-slot-free measurement device 800 can be a terminal device or a chip or system on chip in the terminal device. When the time-slot-free measurement device 800 has the function of the access network device described in the embodiment of the present application, the time-slot-free measurement device 800 can be an access network device or a chip or system on chip in the access network device. Figure 8 As shown, the time-slotless measurement device 800 includes a processor 801 , a communication interface 802 and a communication line 803 .

[0163] Furthermore, the time-slot-free measurement device 800 may further include a memory 804 . The processor 801 , the memory 804 and the communication interface 802 may be connected via a communication line 803 .

[0164] The processor 801 is a central processing unit (CPU), a general-purpose processor, a network processor (NP), a digital signal processor (DSP), a microprocessor, a microcontroller, a programmable logic device (PLD), or any combination thereof. The processor 801 may also be other devices with processing functions, such as circuits, devices, or software modules, without limitation.

[0165] The communication interface 802 is used to communicate with other devices or other communication networks. The other communication networks may be Ethernet, radio access network (RAN), wireless local area network (WLAN), etc. The communication interface 802 may be a module, a circuit, a communication interface or any device capable of implementing communication.

[0166] The communication line 803 is used to transmit information between the components included in the time-slotless measurement device 800.

[0167] The memory 804 is used to store instructions, where the instructions may be computer programs.

[0168] Among them, the memory 804 can be a read-only memory (ROM) or other types of static storage devices that can store static information and / or instructions, or a random access memory (RAM) or other types of dynamic storage devices that can store information and / or instructions, or an electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), a compact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM) or other optical disc storage, optical disc storage (including compressed optical disc, laser disc, optical disc, digital versatile disc, Blu-ray disc, etc.), magnetic disk storage medium or other magnetic storage devices, etc., without limitation.

[0169] It should be noted that the memory 804 can exist independently of the processor 801, or can be integrated with the processor 801. The memory 804 can be used to store instructions or program codes or some data, etc. The memory 804 can be located in the time-slot-free measurement device 800, or can be located outside the time-slot-free measurement device 800, without limitation. The processor 801 is used to execute the instructions stored in the memory 804 to implement the time-slot-free measurement method provided in the following embodiments of the present application.

[0170] In one example, the processor 801 may include one or more CPUs, such as Figure 8 CPU0 and CPU1 in.

[0171] As an optional implementation, the time-slot-free measurement device 800 includes multiple processors, for example, Figure 8 In addition to the processor 801, a processor 807 may also be included.

[0172] As an optional implementation, the time-slot-free measurement device 800 further includes an output device 805 and an input device 806. Exemplarily, the input device 806 is a keyboard, a mouse, a microphone, a joystick, and the output device 805 is a display screen, a speaker, and the like.

[0173] It should be noted that the time-slot-free measurement device 800 can be a desktop computer, a portable computer, a network server, a mobile phone, a tablet computer, a wireless terminal, an embedded device, a chip system or a Figure 8 In addition, Figure 8 The components shown in the figure do not constitute a limitation on the terminal device, except Figure 8In addition to the components shown, the terminal device may include more or fewer components than shown, or combine certain components, or arrange the components differently.

[0174] In the embodiment of the present application, the chip system may be composed of a chip, or may include a chip and other discrete devices.

[0175] In addition, the actions, terms, etc. involved in the various embodiments of the present application can refer to each other without limitation. The message name or parameter name in the message exchanged between the various devices in the embodiments of the present application is only an example, and other names can also be used in the specific implementation without limitation.

[0176] The terms "first", "second", "third", etc. in the specification and claims of this application and the above-mentioned drawings are used to distinguish different objects rather than to limit a specific order.

[0177] In the embodiments of the present application, words such as "exemplary" or "for example" are used to indicate examples, illustrations or descriptions. Any embodiment or design described as "exemplary" or "for example" in the embodiments of the present application should not be interpreted as being more preferred or more advantageous than other embodiments or designs. Specifically, the use of words such as "exemplary" or "for example" is intended to present related concepts in a specific way.

[0178] Combine the following Figure 6 The communication system shown in the figure describes the time slot-free measurement method provided in the embodiment of the present application. Among them, the access network device and the terminal device described in the following embodiment may have Figure 7 or Figure 8 The components shown are not described in detail. The message names or parameter names in the messages exchanged between the devices in the embodiments of the present application are only examples, and other names may also be used in the specific implementation without limitation. The actions involved in the embodiments of the present application are only examples, and other names may also be used in the specific implementation, such as: "carried in" described in the embodiments of the present application can also be replaced by "borne on" or "included in", etc.

[0179] Fig. 9 A flowchart of a time-slot-free measurement method provided in an embodiment of the present application is shown in FIG. Fig. 9 As shown, including:

[0180] Step 901: The access network device sends configuration information to the terminal device, and correspondingly, the terminal device receives the configuration information from the access network device.

[0181] The terminal device can be Figure 6 For any terminal device, the access network device may be a device that provides network services for the terminal device, and the access network device is an access network device corresponding to a service cell of the terminal device.

[0182] The configuration information may be used to instruct the terminal device to perform non-slot measurement on the first cell, or may be replaced by the description that the configuration information is used to instruct the terminal device to perform non-slot measurement on the first resource unit corresponding to the first cell, or the configuration information is used to instruct the terminal device to perform non-slot measurement on the SSB on the first resource unit. The first cell may be a neighboring cell of the service cell of the terminal device. The first resource unit may be a resource unit to be measured in the first cell.

[0183] The service cell and the first cell may be cells covered by the same access network device, or may be cells covered by different access network devices.

[0184] For example, when the serving cell and the first cell are cells covered by the same access network device, the terminal device can be Figure 6 In UE1, the access network device can be Figure 6 The access network device 1 in the service cell can be Figure 6 In the cell 1.1, the first cell can be Figure 6 The first resource unit is the resource unit to be measured of cell 1.2. When the serving cell and the first cell are cells covered by different access network devices, the terminal device can be Figure 6 In UE2, the access network device can be Figure 6 Access network device 1 or access network device 2 in the Figure 6 When the access network device 1 in the service area can be Figure 6 In the cell 1.1, the first cell can be Figure 6 The first resource unit is the resource unit to be tested of cell 2.1. Figure 6 When the access network device 2 in the service area can be Figure 6 The first cell is cell 2.1. Figure 6 In the cell 1.1, the first resource unit is the resource unit to be tested of the cell 1.1.

[0185] Exemplarily, when the access network device determines that the terminal device is located at the edge of the service cell, the access network device is triggered to send configuration information to the terminal device.

[0186] Among them, the access network equipment can determine that the terminal equipment is located at the edge of the service cell based on the signal quality of the service cell reported by the terminal equipment.

[0187] For example, when the signal quality of the serving cell reported by the terminal device is lower than a threshold, the access network device may determine that it is located at the edge of the serving cell. The threshold may be a preset value.

[0188] The access network device may send the configuration information to the terminal device via an RRC message. For example, the configuration information may be carried in an RRC message and sent to the terminal device.

[0189] Among them, the RRC message may be an RRC connection reconfiguration message or an RRC connection recovery message, the RRC connection reconfiguration message may be referred to as the RRC reconfiguration message, and the RRC connection recovery message may be referred to as the RRC recovery message.

[0190] In one example, Fig.10 The figure shows a software block diagram provided by an embodiment of the present application. Both the terminal device and the access network device may include an RRC layer, an L2 layer and a PHY layer. Fig.10 The dashed line can be used to represent the control signaling flow, and the solid line can be used to represent the data flow. Both the terminal device and the access network device can configure the L2 layer and the PHY layer through the RRC layer, and the L2 layer and the PHY layer can indicate the configuration structure and status information to the RRC layer. The RRC information and L2 information between the terminal device and the access network device are transmitted through the PHY layer. For the PHY layer, the RRC information and L2 information between the access network device and the terminal device are transmitted in the form of data.

[0191] The following example takes the access network device sending configuration information to the terminal device through an RRC message, and the terminal device sending the measurement result to the access network device after receiving the configuration information as an example. Fig. 9 The schematic diagram is used to illustrate.

[0192] The access network device encapsulates the RRC message into a data packet in the form of an L2 group, and sends the data packet to the terminal device through the PHY layer of the access network device. Correspondingly, the terminal device can receive the data packet from the access network device through the PHY layer of the terminal device. The PHY layer of the terminal device sends the data packet to the L2 layer of the terminal device. After the L2 layer of the terminal device receives the data packet from the PHY layer of the terminal device, it decapsulates the data packet to obtain the RRC message. The L2 layer of the terminal device sends the RRC message to the RRC layer of the terminal device. After the RRC layer of the terminal device receives the RRC message from the L2 layer of the terminal device, it parses the RRC message and obtains the configuration information sent from the access network device. After obtaining the configuration information sent from the access network device, the RRC layer of the terminal device can send an internal configuration message to the PHY layer of the terminal device. The internal configuration message can be used to instruct the PHY layer of the terminal device to perform a time-slot-free measurement on the first cell. After performing a time-slot-free measurement on the cell to be measured, the PHY layer of the terminal device reports the measurement result to the RRC layer of the terminal device. After receiving the measurement result of the PHY layer of the terminal device, the RRC layer of the terminal device can generate a measurement report (MeasurementReport). The RRC layer of the terminal device can send the measurement report to the PHY layer of the access network device through the L2 layer and PHY layer of the terminal device. After receiving the measurement report from the PHY layer of the terminal device, the PHY layer of the access network device can pass it to the RRC layer of the access network device through the L2 layer of the access network device.

[0193] It should be noted that the access network device may also send configuration information to the terminal device through other messages without restriction.

[0194] In addition to being used to instruct the terminal device to perform time-slot-free measurement on the first cell, the configuration information can also be used to indicate other information. For example, in one example, the configuration information can also be used to indicate the MIMO capability of the second resource unit combination and each resource unit in the second resource unit combination.

[0195] The second resource unit combination includes the updated first resource unit, the updated first resource unit does not include the second resource unit, or the MIMO capability of the second resource unit in the updated first resource unit combination is lower than the MIMO capability of the second resource unit in the first resource unit combination.

[0196] The second resource unit combination may be determined by the access network device and indicated only to the terminal device. The configuration information may include the second resource unit combination and the MIMO capability of each resource unit in the second resource unit combination.

[0197] It should be noted that the second resource unit combination and the MIMO capability of each resource unit in the second resource unit combination can be carried in the configuration information and sent to the terminal device to reduce signaling overhead. The second resource unit combination and the MIMO capability of each resource unit in the second resource unit combination can also be sent to the terminal device without being carried in the configuration information, such as: the access network device can send the second resource unit combination and the MIMO capability of each resource unit in the second resource unit combination to the terminal device through separate signaling to reduce the power consumption caused by the terminal device parsing the signaling.

[0198] For example, the first resource unit combination is CA_1A-3A-7A, the second resource unit is band3, the first resource unit is band78, and band78 is a resource unit of NR. Then the updated first resource unit combination is CA_1A-7A.

[0199] For another example, the first resource unit combination is CA_1A-3A-7A, the second resource unit is band3, and the MIMO capability of the first resource unit combination is 4R+4R+4R. The first resource unit is band78, band78 is a NR resource unit, and the second resource unit is band3, and the MIMO capability of band3 is 4R. Then the updated first resource combination is CA_1A-3A-7A. The updated MIMO capability of the first resource unit combination is 4R+2R+4R.

[0200] Specifically, the implementation of this example can refer to the following Figure 6 shown.

[0201] In another example, the configuration information can also be used to indicate at least one resource unit, at least one resource unit is included in the first resource unit combination, and at least one resource unit includes a resource unit whose RF channel can be used as the RF channel of the first resource unit, so that the terminal device selects a second resource unit from the at least one resource unit and uses part or all of the RF channel of the second resource unit as the RF channel of the first resource unit.

[0202] For example, the first resource unit combination is CA_1A-3A-7A, and the at least one resource unit may include one or more of band1, band3, and band7. Alternatively, the at least one resource unit may include band3 and / or band7.

[0203] Step 902: The terminal device determines a radio frequency path of the first resource unit according to the configuration information.

[0204] Among them, the RF path of the first resource unit is part or all of the RF path of the second resource unit, the second resource unit is included in the first resource unit combination in an activated state configured for the terminal device, and the first resource unit combination includes one or more resource units in an activated state.

[0205] It should be noted that, in the present application, a resource unit being in an activated state may mean that uplink and downlink signals can be received or sent in the resource unit. For example, a terminal device may send an uplink signal to an access network device through a radio frequency path of an activated resource unit, and may receive a downlink signal from an access network device through a radio frequency path of an activated resource unit.

[0206] For example, assuming that the resource unit combination configured for the terminal device and in an activated state is CA_1A-3A-7A, the resource units in the resource unit in an activated state may include band1, band3, and band7. Among them, when the second resource unit may be one or more of band1, band3, and band7, the RF path of the first resource unit is part of the RF path of the second resource unit. When the second resource unit is band3 and / or band7, the RF path of the first resource unit is all of the RF paths of the second resource unit.

[0207] Exemplarily, step 902 may include the following two methods:

[0208] Mode 1: The configuration information is used to indicate the second resource unit combination and the MIMO capability of each resource unit in the second resource unit combination, and the terminal device determines the radio frequency channel of the first resource unit according to the configuration information, which may include:

[0209] The terminal device compares the first resource unit combination and the second resource unit combination, and uses the radio frequency path of the resource unit included in the first resource combination but not included in the second resource combination as the radio frequency path of the first resource unit; or uses part of the radio frequency path of the radio frequency path of the same resource unit with different MIMO capabilities in the first resource combination and the second resource unit combination as the radio frequency path of the first resource unit.

[0210] For example, the first resource unit combination is CA_1A-3A-7A, the second resource unit combination is DC_1A-7A, and the first resource unit combination includes band 3. The second resource unit combination does not include band 3. The terminal device can use all radio frequency paths of band 3 as radio frequency paths of the first resource unit.

[0211] For another example, the first resource unit combination is CA_1A-3A-7A, the second resource unit combination is DC_1A-3A-7A, the MIMO capability of band3 in the first resource unit combination is 4R, and the MIMO capabilities of band1 and band7 are both 4R. The MIMO capability of band3 in the second resource unit combination is 2R, and the MIMO capabilities of band1 and band7 are both 4R. The terminal device can use part of the RF path of band3 as the RF path of the first resource unit.

[0212] Specifically, this method can refer to Fig.11 as shown in .

[0213] Mode 2: The configuration information is used to indicate at least one resource unit, and the terminal device determines the radio frequency channel of the first resource unit according to the configuration information, which may include the following situation 1 or situation 2:

[0214] Case 1: In a possible implementation, the terminal device uses a portion of a radio frequency path of at least one resource unit that satisfies one or more of the following conditions 1 to 5 in at least one resource unit as a radio frequency path of the first resource unit:

[0215] Condition 1: A resource unit whose rank indication (RI) among the activated resource units is less than or equal to a preset value.

[0216] The preset value may be a preset value without limitation. For example, the preset value may be 2.

[0217] Continuing with the example of step 902, the resource unit combination configured for the terminal device and in an activated state is CA_1A-3A-7A, if the RI of band1 is 1, the RI of band3 is 2, and the RI of band7 is 4, the preset value is 2. The terminal device can use part of the RF path of band1 as the RF path of the first resource unit.

[0218] Condition 2: The resource unit with the smallest bandwidth among the resource units in the activated state.

[0219] Continuing with the example in the above condition 1, the bandwidth of band 1 is greater than the bandwidth of band 3, and the bandwidth of band 3 is greater than the bandwidth of band 7. The terminal device may use part of the radio frequency path of band 7 as the radio frequency path of the first resource unit.

[0220] Condition 3: The resource unit with the lowest signal quality among the resource units in the activated state.

[0221] The signal quality may include RSRP or RSRQ or SINR or other parameters without limitation.

[0222] Continuing with the example in condition 1 above, if the RSRP of band 1 is greater than the RSRP of band 3, and the RSRP of band 3 is greater than the RSRP of band 7, the terminal device may use part of the radio frequency path of band 7 as the radio frequency path of the first resource unit.

[0223] If the RSRQ of band 1 is greater than the RSRQ of band 3, and the RSRQ of band 3 is greater than the RSRP of band 7, the terminal device may use part of the radio frequency path of band 7 as the radio frequency path of the first resource unit.

[0224] If the SINR of band 1 is greater than the SINR of band 3, and the SINR of band 3 is greater than the SINR of band 7, the terminal device may use part of the radio frequency path of band 7 as the radio frequency path of the first resource unit.

[0225] It should be noted that if the RSRP of band1 is the smallest RSRP among the above bands, and the RSRP of band3 is the smallest RSRQ among the above bands, and the SINR of band7 is the smallest SINR among the above bands, then the terminal device can use part of the RF path of any one of the above three bands as the RF path of the first resource unit, and the terminal device can also select one band from the above three bands according to the preset priority. For example, the priority of RSRP is higher than that of RSRQ, and the priority of RSRQ is higher than that of SINR. In combination with the above description, the terminal device can use part of the RF path of band1 as the RF path of the first resource unit. Among them, the preset priority is a pre-set priority and is not restricted.

[0226] Condition 4: The resource unit with the lowest data transmission rate among the resource units in the activated state.

[0227] Continuing with the example in condition 1 above, if the data transmission rate of band 1 is greater than the data transmission rate of band 3, and the data transmission rate of band 3 is greater than the data transmission rate of band 7, the terminal device can use part of the RF path of band 7 as the RF path of the first resource unit.

[0228] Condition 5: The resource unit with the largest ID among the activated resource units.

[0229] Continuing with the example in condition 1 above, if band 3 is the resource unit with the largest ID among the above three bands, the terminal device can use part of the radio frequency path of band 3 as the radio frequency path of the first resource unit.

[0230] The terminal device may deactivate the at least one resource unit according to the configuration information, so that the terminal device stops transmitting data with the serving cell on all radio frequency paths of the at least one deactivated resource unit. The terminal device may use all radio frequency paths of the at least one resource unit that stops transmitting data with the serving cell as the radio frequency paths of the first resource unit.

[0231] For example, in combination with the example in step 902, the resource unit combination configured for the terminal device and in an activated state is CA_1A-3A-7A, and the at least one resource unit may include one or more of band3 and band7. The terminal device may deactivate band3 and / or band7. For example, the terminal device deactivates band3, and the terminal device may stop data transmission with the serving cell on the band3. The terminal device may use all radio frequency paths of band3 as the radio frequency paths of the first resource unit.

[0232] Case 2: In a possible implementation, the terminal device uses all radio frequency paths of the second resource unit that meets one or more of the following conditions 6 to 10 in at least one resource unit as the radio frequency paths of the first resource unit:

[0233] Condition 6: The resource unit with the largest ID among the activated resource units.

[0234] Among them, the specific description of condition 6 can refer to the above condition 5, which will not be repeated here.

[0235] Condition 7: The resource unit with the lowest data transmission rate among the resource units in the activated state.

[0236] Among them, the specific description of condition 7 can refer to the above condition 2 and will not be repeated here.

[0237] Condition 8: The resource unit with the smallest signal quality or RI among the resource units in the activated state.

[0238] The signal quality may include RSRP or RSRQ or SINR or other parameters, without limitation. For the specific description of RSRP or RSRQ or SINR in the signal quality, refer to the above condition 3, and for the specific description of RI, refer to the above condition 1. No further details will be given here.

[0239] Condition 9: The resource unit with the smallest bandwidth among the resource units in the activated state.

[0240] Among them, the specific description of condition 9 can refer to the above condition 2 and will not be repeated here.

[0241] Condition 10: The resource unit with the largest MIMO capability among the resource units in the activated state.

[0242] Continuing with the example in condition 1 above, the MIMO capability of band 3 is 4R, and the MIMO capability of band 7 is 8R. The terminal device can use all the radio frequency paths of band 7 as the radio frequency paths of the first resource unit.

[0243] It should be noted that if the MIMO capabilities of multiple resource units in a resource unit combination configured for the terminal device and in an activated state are the same, the terminal device can randomly or in a preset order use all RF paths of any one or more of the multiple resource units as the RF paths of the first resource unit.

[0244] The preset order may be pre-set. For example, the preset order is from left to right or from right to left, without limitation. For example, the resource unit combination configured for the terminal device and in an activated state is CA_1A-3A-7A, and the MIMO capabilities of band 3 and band 7 in the resource unit combination are the same. The terminal device may use all radio frequency paths of band 3 and / or band 7 as the radio frequency paths of the first resource unit.

[0245] In this way, the terminal device can reduce the MIMO capability in at least one resource unit so that the terminal device stops transmitting data with the serving cell on part of the radio frequency paths in the radio frequency paths of the at least one resource unit. The terminal device can use the part of the radio frequency paths that stop transmitting data with the serving cell as the radio frequency paths of the first resource unit.

[0246] For example, in combination with the example in step 902, the resource unit combination configured for the terminal device and in an activated state is CA_1A-3A-7A, and the at least one resource unit may include one or more of band1, band3, and band7. Among them, the MIMO capability of band1, the MIMO capability of band3, and the MIMO capability of band7 are all 4R. That is, the number of radio frequency paths for the terminal device to perform data transmission with the serving cell on band1, band3, and band7 is 4.

[0247] The terminal device may reduce the MIMO capability of band1 from 4R to 2R; and / or, the terminal device may reduce the MIMO capability of band3 from 4R to 2R; and / or, the terminal device may reduce the MIMO capability of band7 from 4R to 2R, so that the number of radio frequency paths for data transmission between the terminal device and the service cell on band1 is reduced from 4 to 2, and / or, so that the number of radio frequency paths for data transmission between the terminal device and the service cell on band3 is reduced from 4 to 2, and / or, so that the number of radio frequency paths for data transmission between the terminal device and the service cell on band7 is reduced from 4 to 2. In this way, the terminal device may use the two radio frequency paths on band1 that stop data transmission with the service cell as the radio frequency paths of the first resource unit, and / or, use the two radio frequency paths on band3 that are used for data transmission with the service cell as the radio frequency paths of the first resource unit, and / or, use the two radio frequency paths on band7 that are used for data transmission with the service cell as the radio frequency paths of the first resource unit.

[0248] Further optionally, in method two, the terminal device can send a configuration completion response to the access network device, and the configuration completion response can be used to indicate the second resource unit, so that the access network device can determine that the RF path of the first resource unit is the entire RF path of the second resource unit based on the configuration completion response.

[0249] The configuration completion response may include the identifier of the second resource unit. The configuration completion response may also include other information, such as the identifier of the terminal device, etc., which is not limited.

[0250] It should be noted that, when part of the RF channel of the second resource unit is used as the RF channel of the first resource, the configuration completion response can also be used to indicate the MIMO capability of the second resource unit, so that the access network device can determine that the RF path of the first resource unit is part of the RF path of the second resource unit based on the configuration completion response.

[0251] Specifically, the second method can refer to the following Fig.12 As described in.

[0252] Step 903: The terminal device performs non-slot measurement on the first cell on the radio frequency path of the first resource unit.

[0253] Exemplarily, the terminal device may continuously monitor the SSB on the radio frequency path of the first resource unit according to a preset time.

[0254] The preset time can be set to be greater than or equal to the SSB period of the first cell.

[0255] In one example, the preset time may be an SMTC period.

[0256] In the embodiment of the present application, since the SMTC period is greater than the SSB period, the terminal device can receive signals from neighboring cells of the service cell within the SMTC period, that is, the terminal device can perform time-slot-free measurement of neighboring cells of the service cell, thereby solving the problem in the prior art that the terminal device cannot measure neighboring cells of the service cell within the 6ms measurement time slot.

[0257] It should be noted that Fig. 9 The method shown is described by taking the example of a terminal device performing a non-slot measurement on a first cell or a first resource unit of the first cell. It is understandable that the terminal device can refer to Fig. 9 The method shown performs time slot-free measurement on multiple resource units to be measured, which will not be described in detail. Fig. 9 The method shown is Figure 6 The resource units to be measured in cells 1.1, 1.2, 2.1 and 2.2 are measured without time slots.

[0258] Based on the time-slot-free measurement method provided in the embodiment of the present application, after the terminal device receives the configuration information for indicating time-slot-free measurement of the neighboring cell of the service cell of the terminal device on the first resource unit, the terminal device can determine, according to the configuration information, that part or all of the radio frequency paths of the second resource unit in the first resource unit combination of resource units in the activated state configured for the terminal device are the radio frequency paths of the first resource unit. In this way, the terminal device can receive the signal of the neighboring cell on the radio frequency path of the first resource unit, thereby solving the problem in the prior art that when the terminal device has no radio frequency path to receive the signal of the neighboring cell, it is impossible to perform time-slot-free measurement of the neighboring cell.

[0259] Optional, in Fig. 9 In a first implementation of the method shown, the method further includes:

[0260] The access network device sends the first query information to the terminal device. Correspondingly, the terminal device receives the first query information from the access network device.

[0261] The first query information is used to query the capability information of the terminal device. The capability information of the terminal device may include the resource unit combination supported by the terminal device and the MIMO capability corresponding to each resource unit in the resource unit combination supported by the terminal device. The resource unit combination capability supported by the terminal device refers to the set of all resource unit combinations supported by the terminal device.

[0262] For example, the resource unit combinations supported by the terminal device include: CA_1A-3A-7A, DC_1A-3A_n78A, DC_1A-7A_n78A, DC_3A-7A_n78. In other words, the resource unit combination capabilities supported by the terminal device are CA_1A-3A-7A, DC_1A-3A_n78A, DC_1A-7A_n78A, DC_3A-7A_n78.

[0263] For another example, the MIMO capability of the resource unit combination CA_1A-3A-7A supported by the terminal device is 4R+4R+4R. That is, the resource unit combination includes band1, band3 and band7. Among them, the MIMO capability corresponding to band1 is 4R, the MIMO capability corresponding to band3 is 4R, and the MIMO capability corresponding to band7 is 4R.

[0264] For example, the first query information may be RRC information, such as the first query information is a terminal device capability query (UECapability Enqiry). The terminal device may return the terminal device capability information to the access network device through RRC response information, such as the terminal device capability information (UECapability Information).

[0265] The RRC response information may include multiple information elements, each of which may carry capability information of one or more terminal devices.

[0266] For example, the LTE CA combination supported by the terminal device and the MIMO capability of each resource unit in the LTE CA combination may be included in the information element UE-EUTRA-Capability; the NR CA combination supported by the terminal device and the MIMO capability of each resource unit in the NR CA combination may be included in the information element UE-NR-Capability; the EN-DC combination supported by the terminal device and the MIMO capability of each resource unit in the EN-DC combination are included in the information element UE-MRDC-Capability.

[0267] Based on this implementation, the access network device can obtain the capability information of the terminal device through signaling interaction with the terminal device, which is simple and easy.

[0268] Optional, in Fig. 9 In a second implementation of the method shown, the method further includes:

[0269] When the radio frequency path of the first resource unit is a partial radio frequency channel of the second resource unit, the access network device and the terminal device receive or send uplink and downlink signals on the second resource unit according to the reduced MIMO capability.

[0270] Based on this implementation, the terminal device can receive the signal of the neighboring cell on part of the radio frequency path of the second resource unit, and then the terminal device can perform time-slot-free measurement of the neighboring cell.

[0271] When the radio frequency path of the first resource unit is all the radio frequency channels of the second resource unit, the access network device and the terminal device stop receiving or sending uplink and downlink signals on the second resource unit.

[0272] Based on this implementation, the terminal device can receive signals from neighboring cells on all radio frequency paths of the second resource unit, and thus the terminal device can perform time-slot-free measurement of the neighboring cells.

[0273] Optional, in Fig. 9 In a third implementation of the method shown, the method further includes:

[0274] The terminal device sends a measurement report to the access network device. Correspondingly, the access network device receives the measurement report from the terminal device.

[0275] In an embodiment of the present application, the terminal device can send a measurement report to the access network device when the terminal device's measurement of neighboring cells and serving cells meets the trigger measurement conditions, or the measurement duration of the terminal device is greater than or equal to a preset measurement period.

[0276] The trigger measurement condition may be a pre-set condition. For example, the signal quality of the neighboring cell is stronger than the signal quality of the serving cell, or the signal quality of the serving cell is lower than the first preset threshold, or the signal quality of the neighboring cell is greater than the second preset threshold, etc. The first preset threshold and the second preset threshold may be pre-set thresholds without restriction.

[0277] The preset measurement period may be a preset time length and is not limited.

[0278] Based on this implementation, the access network device can accurately determine whether the terminal device needs to perform cell switching according to the measurement report, thereby avoiding affecting the use of the terminal device when the signal quality of the service cell of the terminal device is poor.

[0279] Combine the following Figure 6 In the system shown in FIG. 1 , an access network device determines a radio frequency channel of a first resource unit and indicates it to a terminal device as an example. Fig. 9 The method shown is described in detail:

[0280] Fig.11 A flowchart of a time-slot-free measurement method provided in an embodiment of the present application is shown in FIG. Fig.11 As shown, the method may include:

[0281] Step 1101: The terminal device sends the capability information of the terminal device to the access network device. Correspondingly, the access network device receives the capability information from the terminal device.

[0282] Among them, the specific description of the capability information of the terminal device can refer to the description of the capability information of the terminal device in the above step 902, which will not be repeated here.

[0283] Step 1102: The access network device determines a radio frequency path of a first resource unit.

[0284] Among them, the radio frequency path of the first resource unit can refer to the description of the radio frequency path of the first resource unit in the above step 902, which will not be repeated here.

[0285] Exemplarily, step 1102 may include the following two situations:

[0286] Case 3: The access network device uses part of the radio frequency path of the second resource unit that meets one or more of the following conditions as the radio frequency path of the first resource unit:

[0287] Condition 11: resource units whose RI is less than or equal to a preset value among the resource units in the activated state;

[0288] Condition 12: the resource unit with the smallest bandwidth among the resource units in the activated state;

[0289] Condition 13: The resource unit with the smallest RSRP, RSRQ or SINR among the resource units in the activated state;

[0290] Condition 14: the resource unit with the lowest data transmission rate among the resource units in the activated state;

[0291] Condition 15: The resource unit with the largest ID among the resource units in the activated state.

[0292] Among them, conditions 11 to 15 can refer to conditions 1 to 5 for details, and will not be repeated here.

[0293] Case 4: The access network device uses all radio frequency paths of the second resource unit that meet one or more of the following conditions as the radio frequency paths of the first resource unit:

[0294] Condition 16: The resource unit with the largest ID among the resource units in the activated state.

[0295] Condition 17: The resource unit with the lowest data transmission rate among the resource units in the activated state.

[0296] Condition 18: The resource unit with the lowest signal quality among the resource units in the activated state.

[0297] The signal quality may include RSRP or RSRQ or SINR, without limitation.

[0298] Condition 19: The resource unit with the smallest bandwidth among the resource units in the activated state.

[0299] Condition 20: The resource unit with the smallest MIMO capability among the resource units in the activated state.

[0300] Among them, conditions 16 to 20 can refer to conditions 6 to 10 for details and will not be repeated here.

[0301] In a possible embodiment, step 1102 may be implemented by the following steps:

[0302] Step 11021: The access network device determines the radio frequency path of the first resource unit according to the capability information of the terminal device.

[0303] Furthermore, when the access network device determines that the capability of the third resource unit combination is greater than the capability of the resource unit combination supported by the terminal device, or when the access network device determines that the MIMO capability of the third resource unit combination is greater than the MIMO capability of the resource unit combination supported by the terminal device, the RF path of the first resource unit is determined according to the capability information of the terminal device.

[0304] The third resource unit combination is a resource unit combination obtained by adding the first resource unit to the first resource unit combination.

[0305] It should be noted that the third resource unit combination capability is greater than the resource unit combination supported by the terminal device, which means that the third resource unit combination is not included in the resource unit combination supported by the terminal device.

[0306] The following describes, with reference to specific examples, that the third resource unit combination capability is greater than the resource unit combination supported by the terminal device and that the MIMO capability of the third resource unit combination is greater than the MIMO capability of the resource unit combination supported by the terminal device:

[0307] 1. The third resource unit combination capability is greater than the resource unit combination supported by the terminal device.

[0308] In one example, the resource combination capabilities supported by the terminal device are CA_1A-3A-7A, DC_1A-3A_n78A, DC_1A-7A_n78A, and DC_3A-7A_n78. The resource combination not supported by the terminal device is DC_3A-7A_n78_n67.

[0309] For example, the first resource unit is n67, the first resource unit combination is DC_3A-7A_n78, and the third resource unit combination is DC_3A-7A_n78_n67. The third resource unit combination is not included in the resource unit combination not supported by the terminal device. In other words, the third resource unit combination is greater than the resource unit combination supported by the terminal device.

[0310] For example, if the first resource unit is n78 and the first resource unit combination is CA_1A-3A, then the third resource unit combination is DC_1A-3A_n78. The third resource unit combination is included in the resource combination supported by the terminal device. That is, the third resource unit combination capability is less than or equal to the resource unit combination supported by the terminal device.

[0311] 2. The MIMO capability of the third resource unit is greater than the MIMO capability of the resource unit combination supported by the terminal device.

[0312] In one example, the resource unit combinations supported by the terminal device include: CA_1A-3A-7A and DC_1A-3A-7A_n78A. The MIMO capability combination of CA_1A-3A-7A is 4R+4R+4R; the MIMO capability combination of DC_1A-3A-7A_n78A is 4R+2R+2R+4R, 2R+4R+2R+4R or 2R+2R+4R+4R.

[0313] For example, the first resource unit is n78, and the MIMO capability of the first resource unit is 2R. The first resource unit combination is CA_1A-3A-7A, and the MIMO capability of the first resource unit combination is 4R+4R+4R. Then the third resource unit combination is DC_1A-3A-7A_n78A, and the MIMO capability of the third resource unit combination is 4R+4R+4R+2R. The MIMO capability of the third resource unit combination is greater than the MIMO capability of the resource unit combination supported by the terminal device.

[0314] In an embodiment of the present application, since the terminal device supports a large number of resource unit combinations, if the resource combination of the terminal device obtained by the access network device is not all resource combinations supported by the terminal device, when the access network device determines the radio frequency path of the first resource unit based on the radio frequency path of the second resource unit, it may cause the determined radio frequency path of the first resource unit to be not optimal.

[0315] Step 1103: The access network device sends configuration information to the terminal device. Correspondingly, the terminal device receives the configuration information from the access network device.

[0316] The specific description of step 1103 may refer to the above step 901 and will not be repeated here.

[0317] Step 1104: The terminal device determines the radio frequency path of the first resource unit according to the configuration information.

[0318] The specific description of step 1104 can refer to the above step 902 and will not be repeated here.

[0319] Step 1105: The terminal device performs non-slot measurement on the first cell on the radio frequency path of the first resource unit.

[0320] The specific description of step 1105 can refer to the above step 903 and will not be repeated here.

[0321] It should be noted that Fig.11 Step 1101 is an optional step, and step 1102, step 1103, step 1104 and step 1150 are mandatory steps.

[0322] Combine the following Figure 6 The system shown is Fig. 9 As an example, for the second method described in Fig. 9 The method shown is described in detail:

[0323] Fig.12 A flowchart of a time-slot-free measurement method provided in an embodiment of the present application is shown in FIG. Fig.12 As shown, the method may include:

[0324] Step 1201: The terminal device sends the capability information of the terminal device to the access network device. Correspondingly, the terminal device receives the capability information from the terminal device.

[0325] The specific description of step 1201 may refer to the above step 1101 and will not be repeated here.

[0326] Step 1202: The access network device sends configuration information to the terminal device. Correspondingly, the terminal device receives the configuration information from the access network device.

[0327] The specific description of step 1202 can refer to step 901 and will not be repeated here.

[0328] Step 1203: The terminal device determines the radio frequency path of the first resource unit according to the configuration information.

[0329] The specific description of step 1203 may refer to the above step 902 and will not be repeated here.

[0330] Step 1204: The terminal device sends a configuration completion response to the access network device. Correspondingly, the access network device receives the configuration completion response from the terminal device.

[0331] The configuration completion response is used to indicate the second resource unit. The configuration completion response may include an identifier of the second resource unit. The configuration completion response may also include other information, such as an identifier of the terminal device, etc., which is not limited.

[0332] In the embodiment of the present application, when the radio frequency path of the first resource unit is the entire radio frequency path of the second resource unit, the configuration completion response may include an identifier of the second resource unit; when the radio frequency path of the first resource unit is a partial radio frequency path of the second resource unit, the configuration completion response may include an identifier of the second resource unit and the MIMO capability of the second resource unit. The MIMO capability of the second resource unit is the reduced MIMO capability of the second resource unit.

[0333] The identifier of the second resource unit is used to uniquely identify the second resource unit, so that the access network device can obtain the second resource unit according to the identifier of the second resource unit. Exemplarily, the identifier of the second resource unit can be a number or a character, or a combination of a number and a character, or a bit map, etc., without limitation.

[0334] For example, the identifier of the first resource unit is n78, and the identifier of the second resource unit is 3A. When the radio frequency path of the first resource unit is all the radio frequency paths of the second resource unit, the configuration completion response may include 3A.

[0335] For example, when the first resource unit combination is DC_1A-3A-7A, and the RF path of the first resource unit is all the RF paths of the second resource unit, each resource unit in the first resource unit combination is represented by a bit of the bitmap. When the bit is set to 1, it indicates that the corresponding resource unit is the second resource unit. If the second resource unit is 7A, the configuration completion response includes the bitmap 001.

[0336] Exemplarily, the reduced MIMO capability of the second resource unit may be a number, a combination of numbers and characters, or a bit map, etc., without limitation.

[0337] For example, the identifier of the first resource unit is n78, and the identifier of the second resource unit is 3A. When the RF path of the first resource unit is a partial RF path of the RF path of the second resource unit, the configuration completion response may include 3A{2R} or 3A{2}, where 2R or 2 indicates that the reduced MIMO capability of the second resource unit 3A is 2R.

[0338] For example, when the first resource unit combination is DC_1A-3A-7A, and the RF path of the first resource unit is a partial RF path of the second resource unit, each resource unit in the first resource unit combination is represented by a bit in the bitmap. When the bit is set to 1, it indicates that the MIMO capability of the corresponding resource unit is reduced to 2R. If the second resource unit is 7A, the configuration completion response includes the bitmap 001.

[0339] Based on this implementation, in an embodiment of the present application, the terminal device sends a configuration completion response indicating the second resource unit to the access network device, so that the access network device determines the second resource unit and the MIMO capability of the second resource unit according to the configuration completion response. This avoids the problem that the access network device sends a signal to the terminal device through the second resource unit, or sends a signaling exceeding the MIMO capability of the second resource unit to the terminal device through the second resource unit, causing the terminal device to be out of sync with the access network device.

[0340] Step 1205: The terminal device performs non-slot measurement on the first cell on the radio frequency path of the first resource unit.

[0341] The specific description of step 1205 can refer to step 903 and will not be repeated here.

[0342] Step 1206: The terminal device sends a measurement report to the access network device. Correspondingly, the access network device receives the measurement report from the terminal device.

[0343] The specific description of step 1206 can refer to the above Fig. 9 The third implementation method shown will not be described in detail here.

[0344] Step 1207: The access network device sends first indication information to the terminal device. Correspondingly, the terminal device receives the first indication information from the access network device.

[0345] The first indication information is used to instruct the terminal device to switch from the serving cell to the first cell.

[0346] In an embodiment of the present application, after receiving a measurement report from a terminal device, the access network device can determine whether to instruct the terminal device to switch cells based on the measurement report.

[0347] Exemplarily, the access network device may determine whether to instruct the terminal device to switch cells based on the signal quality of the first cell in the measurement report. For example, when the signal quality of the first cell is higher than the signal quality of the serving cell, the access network device may determine to instruct the terminal device to switch cells, such as instructing the terminal device to switch from the serving cell to the first cell.

[0348] After receiving the measurement results of multiple neighboring cells sent by the terminal device, the access network device can determine to instruct the terminal device to switch to the target neighboring cell based on the measurement results of the multiple neighboring cells. The target neighboring cell can be a cell of the multiple neighboring cells. For example, the target neighboring cell can be the cell with the best signal quality among the multiple neighboring cells, or the target neighboring cell can be the cell with the highest priority among the multiple neighboring cells, or the target neighboring cell can be the cell with the smallest load among the multiple neighboring cells, or the target cell can be the cell with the largest bandwidth among the multiple neighboring cells, etc., without limitation.

[0349] In a possible implementation, when the access network device determines that the measurement result of the first cell meets a preset condition, the access network device sends first indication information to the terminal device.

[0350] The preset condition may be a condition pre-configured by the access network device. For example, the preset condition may be that the signal quality of the first cell is higher than the signal quality of the serving cell.

[0351] In a possible embodiment, after the access network device determines that the terminal device switches to the first cell, the access network device and the terminal device activate the second resource unit and restore the MIMO capability of the second resource unit.

[0352] Based on this technical solution, in an embodiment of the present application, when the access network device activates the second resource unit and restores the MIMO capability of the second resource unit, the access network device does not affect the subsequent measurement of other neighboring cells of the service cell of the terminal device.

[0353] It should be noted that Fig.12 Step 1201, step 1206, and step 1207 are optional steps, and step 1202 to step 1205 are required steps.

[0354] The various solutions in the above embodiments of the present application can be combined without contradiction.

[0355] In the embodiments provided by the present application above, the methods provided by the embodiments of the present application are introduced from the perspectives of access network equipment, terminal equipment, and the interaction between access network equipment and terminal equipment. It is understandable that, in order to implement the functions in the methods provided by the embodiments of the present application above, each network element, such as access network equipment and terminal equipment, includes hardware structures and / or software modules corresponding to the execution of each function. It should be easily appreciated by those skilled in the art that, in combination with the algorithm steps of each example described in the embodiments disclosed herein, the present application can be implemented in the form of hardware or a combination of hardware and computer software. Whether a function is executed in the form of hardware or computer software driving hardware depends on the specific application and design constraints of the technical solution. Professional and technical personnel can use different methods to implement the described functions for each specific application, but such implementation should not be considered to exceed the scope of the present application.

[0356] The embodiment of the present application can divide the functional modules of the access network device and the terminal device according to the above method example. For example, each functional module can be divided according to each function, or two or more functions can be integrated into one processing module. The above integrated module can be implemented in the form of hardware or in the form of software functional modules. It should be noted that the division of modules in the embodiment of the present application is schematic and is only a logical function division. There may be other division methods in actual implementation.

[0357] In the case of an integrated unit, Fig.13 A possible structural diagram of a time-slot-free measurement device (denoted as time-slot-free measurement device 130 ) involved in the above embodiment is shown. The time-slot-free measurement device 130 includes a communication unit 1302 and a processing unit 1301 , and may further include a storage unit 1303 . Fig.13 The structural schematic diagram shown can be used to illustrate the structure of the terminal device involved in the above embodiment.

[0358] when Fig.13 The schematic diagram of the structure shown is used to illustrate the structure of the terminal device involved in the above embodiment. The processing unit 1301 is used to control and manage the actions of the terminal device. For example, the processing unit 1301 is used to execute Fig. 9 Steps 902 and 903 in Fig.11 Steps 1104 and 1105 in the above are performed by the communication unit 1302. Fig.11 In step 1101, Fig.11 The processing unit 1301 may communicate with other network entities through the communication unit 1302, for example, with Figure 6The storage unit 1303 is used to store program codes and data of the terminal device.

[0359] when Fig.13 When the structural schematic diagram shown is used to illustrate the structure of the terminal device involved in the above embodiment, the non-time slot measurement device 130 can be the terminal device or a chip in the terminal device.

[0360] Wherein, when the time-slot-free measurement device 130 is a terminal device, the processing unit 1301 may be a processor or a controller, and the communication unit 1302 may be a communication interface, a transceiver, a transceiver, a transceiver circuit, a transceiver device, etc. Wherein, the communication interface is a general term and may include one or more interfaces. The storage unit 1303 may be a memory. When the time-slot-free measurement device 130 is a chip in a terminal device, the processing unit 1301 may be a processor or a controller, and the communication unit 1302 may be an input interface and / or an output interface, a pin or a circuit, etc. The storage unit 1303 may be a storage unit in the chip (for example, a register, a cache, etc.), or may be a storage unit located outside the chip in the terminal device or the first access network device (for example, a read-only memory (ROM), a random access memory (RAM), etc.).

[0361] In the case of an integrated unit, Fig.14 A possible structural diagram of a time-slot-free measurement device (denoted as time-slot-free measurement device 140 ) involved in the above embodiment is shown. The time-slot-free measurement device 140 includes a communication unit 1402 , and may also include a processing unit 1401 and a storage unit 1403 . Fig.14 The structural schematic diagram shown can be used to illustrate the structure of the access network device involved in the above embodiments.

[0362] when Fig.14 The structural schematic diagram shown is used to illustrate the structure of the access network device involved in the above embodiment. The processing unit 1401 is used to control and manage the actions of the access network device. For example, the processing unit 1401 is used to execute through the communication unit 1402 Fig. 9 Step 901 in Fig.11 Step 1103 in Fig.12 The processing unit 901 may communicate with other network entities through the communication unit 1402, for example, with Figure 6 The storage unit 1403 is used to store program codes and data of the first access network device.

[0363] when Fig.14 When the structural schematic diagram shown is used to illustrate the structure of the access network device involved in the above embodiment, the non-time slot measurement device 140 can be the access network device or a chip in the access network device.

[0364] Wherein, when the time-slot-free measurement device 140 is a first access network device, the processing unit 1401 may be a processor or a controller, and the communication unit 1402 may be a communication interface, a transceiver, a transceiver, a transceiver circuit, a transceiver device, etc. Wherein, the communication interface is a general term and may include one or more interfaces. The storage unit 1403 may be a memory. When the time-slot-free measurement device 140 is a chip in the first access network device, the processing unit 1401 may be a processor or a controller, and the communication unit 1402 may be an input interface and / or an output interface, a pin or a circuit, etc. The storage unit 1403 may be a storage unit in the chip (for example, a register, a cache, etc.), or may be a storage unit located outside the chip in the terminal device or the first access network device (for example, a read-only memory (ROM), a random access memory (RAM), etc.).

[0365] Among them, the communication unit can also be called a transceiver unit. The antenna and control circuit with transceiver functions in the time-slotless measurement device 130 and the time-slotless measurement device 140 can be regarded as the communication unit of the time-slotless measurement device, and the processor with processing function can be regarded as the processing unit of the time-slotless measurement device. Optionally, the device used to implement the receiving function in the communication unit can be regarded as a receiving unit, and the receiving unit is used to perform the receiving steps in the embodiment of the present application. The receiving unit can be a receiver, a receiver, a receiving circuit, etc. The device used to implement the sending function in the communication unit can be regarded as a sending unit, and the sending unit is used to perform the sending steps in the embodiment of the present application. The sending unit can be a transmitter, a transmitter, a sending circuit, etc.

[0366] Fig.13 and Fig.14If the integrated unit is implemented in the form of a software function module and sold or used as an independent product, it can be stored in a computer-readable storage medium. Based on this understanding, the technical solution of the embodiment of the present application is essentially or the part that contributes to the prior art or all or part of the technical solution can be embodied in the form of a software product, and the computer software product is stored in a storage medium, including a number of instructions to enable a computer device (which can be a personal computer, a server, or a first access network device, etc.) or a processor (processor) to perform all or part of the steps of the method described in each embodiment of the present application. The storage medium for storing computer software products includes: various media that can store program codes, such as USB flash drives, mobile hard disks, read-only memories, random access memories, magnetic disks or optical disks.

[0367] Fig.13 and Fig.14 A unit in may also be referred to as a module, for example, a processing unit may be referred to as a processing module.

[0368] like Fig.15 As shown, Fig.15 An example diagram of a communication system provided in an embodiment of the present application is shown, including an access network device 11 and a terminal device 12.

[0369] The access network device 11 is used to execute the actions executed by the access network device in the above embodiment. For example, the access network device 11 is used to execute Fig. 9 Step 901 in Fig.11 Step 1102 and step 1103 in Fig.12 Step 1204, step 1206, and step 1207 in .

[0370] The terminal device 12 is used to execute the actions executed in the terminal device in the above embodiment. For example, the terminal device 12 is used to execute Fig. 9 Step 902 and step 903 in Fig.11 Step 1101, step 1104, step 1105, Fig.12 Step 1203, step 1204, and step 1205 in .

[0371] In the implementation process, each step in the method provided in this embodiment can be completed by an integrated logic circuit of hardware in a processor or by instructions in the form of software. The steps of the method disclosed in the embodiment of the present application can be directly embodied as being executed by a hardware processor, or by a combination of hardware and software modules in a processor.

[0372] The processor in the present application may include but is not limited to at least one of the following: a central processing unit (CPU), a microprocessor, a digital signal processor (DSP), a microcontroller unit (MCU), or an artificial intelligence processor and other types of computing devices that run software, each of which may include one or more cores for executing software instructions to perform operations or processing. The processor may be a separate semiconductor chip, or it may be integrated into a semiconductor chip together with other circuits. For example, it may form a SoC (system on chip) with other circuits (such as a codec circuit, a hardware acceleration circuit, or various buses and interface circuits), or it may be integrated into the ASIC as a built-in processor of an ASIC. The ASIC with the integrated processor may be packaged separately or with other circuits. In addition to the core for executing software instructions for operations or processing, the processor may further include necessary hardware accelerators, such as field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), PLDs (programmable logic devices), or logic circuits that implement dedicated logic operations.

[0373] The memory in the embodiments of the present application may include at least one of the following types: read-only memory (ROM) or other types of static storage devices that can store static information and instructions, random access memory (RAM) or other types of dynamic storage devices that can store information and instructions, and may also be electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM). In some scenarios, the memory may also be a compact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM) or other optical disc storage, optical disc storage (including compressed optical disc, laser disc, optical disc, digital versatile disc, Blu-ray disc, etc.), magnetic disk storage medium or other magnetic storage device, or any other medium that can be used to carry or store the desired program code in the form of instructions or data structures and can be accessed by a computer, but is not limited to this.

[0374] An embodiment of the present application also provides a computer-readable storage medium, including instructions, which, when executed on a computer, enable the computer to execute any of the above methods.

[0375] The embodiment of the present application also provides a computer program product including instructions, which, when executed on a computer, enables the computer to execute any of the above methods.

[0376] An embodiment of the present application also provides a communication system, including: the above-mentioned access network device and terminal device.

[0377] An embodiment of the present application also provides a chip, which includes a processor and an interface circuit, the interface circuit is coupled to the processor, the processor is used to run a computer program or instruction to implement the above method, and the interface circuit is used to communicate with other modules outside the chip.

[0378] In the above embodiments, it can be implemented in whole or in part by software, hardware, firmware or any combination thereof. When implemented using a software program, it can be implemented in whole or in part in the form of a computer program product. The computer program product includes one or more computer instructions. When the computer program instructions are loaded and executed on a computer, the process or function described in the embodiment of the present application is generated in whole or in part. The computer can be a general-purpose computer, a special-purpose computer, a computer network, or other programmable device. The computer instructions can be stored in a computer-readable storage medium, or transmitted from one computer-readable storage medium to another computer-readable storage medium. For example, the computer instructions can be transmitted from a website site, computer, server or data center by wired (e.g., coaxial cable, optical fiber, digital subscriber line (DSL)) or wireless (e.g., infrared, wireless, microwave, etc.) mode to another website site, computer, server or data center. The computer-readable storage medium can be any available medium that can be accessed by a computer or a data storage device such as a server, data center, etc. that contains one or more servers that can be integrated with the medium. The available medium may be a magnetic medium (eg, a floppy disk, a hard disk, a magnetic tape), an optical medium (eg, a DVD), or a semiconductor medium (eg, a solid state disk (SSD)).

[0379] Although the present application is described herein in conjunction with various embodiments, in the process of implementing the claimed application, those skilled in the art may understand and implement other changes to the disclosed embodiments by viewing the drawings, the disclosure, and the appended claims. In the claims, the word "comprising" does not exclude other components or steps, and "one" or "an" does not exclude multiple situations. A single processor or other unit may implement several functions listed in the claims. Certain measures are recorded in different dependent claims, but this does not mean that these measures cannot be combined to produce good results.

[0380] Although the present application has been described in conjunction with specific features and embodiments thereof, it is obvious that various modifications and combinations may be made thereto without departing from the spirit and scope of the present application. Accordingly, this specification and the drawings are merely exemplary illustrations of the present application as defined by the appended claims, and are deemed to have covered any and all modifications, variations, combinations or equivalents within the scope of the present application. Obviously, those skilled in the art may make various modifications and variations to the present application without departing from the spirit and scope of the present application. Thus, if these modifications and variations of the present application fall within the scope of the claims of the present application and their equivalents, the present application is also intended to include these modifications and variations.

Claims

1. A time-slot-free measurement method, characterized in that: The time-slot-free measurement method comprises: The terminal device receives configuration information from the access network device, where the configuration information is used to instruct the terminal device to perform non-slot measurement on a first cell, where the first cell is a neighboring cell of a serving cell of the terminal device; The terminal device determines, according to the configuration information, a radio frequency path of a first resource unit, where the first resource unit is a resource unit to be tested of the first cell, the radio frequency path of the first resource unit is part or all of a radio frequency path of a second resource unit, and the second resource unit is included in a first resource unit combination configured for the terminal device and in an activated state; The terminal device performs non-slot measurement on the first cell on the radio frequency path of the first resource unit.

2. The time-slot-free measurement method according to claim 1, characterized in that: The configuration information is further used to indicate a second resource unit combination and a multiple-input multiple-output MIMO capability of each resource unit in the second resource unit combination; The second resource unit combination includes the updated first resource unit combination, the updated first resource unit combination does not include the second resource unit, or the MIMO capability of the second resource unit in the updated first resource unit combination is lower than the MIMO capability of the second resource unit in the first resource unit combination before the update.

3. The time-slot-free measurement method according to claim 2, characterized in that: The time-slot-free measurement method further comprises: The terminal device sends the capability information of the terminal device to the access network device, where the capability information of the terminal device includes the resource unit combination supported by the terminal device and the MIMO capability corresponding to each resource unit in the resource unit combination supported by the terminal device.

4. The time-slot-free measurement method according to claim 1, characterized in that: The configuration information is further used to indicate at least one resource unit, the at least one resource unit is included in the first resource unit combination, and the at least one resource unit includes: a resource unit whose radio frequency channel can be used as a radio frequency channel of the first resource unit.

5. The time-slot-free measurement method according to claim 4, characterized in that: The terminal device determines the radio frequency path of the first resource unit according to the configuration information, including: the terminal device uses all radio frequency paths of the second resource unit that meets one or more of the following conditions in the at least one resource unit as the radio frequency path of the first resource unit: The second resource unit is a resource unit with the largest identification ID among the resource units in the activated state; The second resource unit is a resource unit having the lowest data transmission rate among the resource units in the activated state; The second resource unit is a resource unit having the smallest reference signal received power RSRP, reference signal received quality RSRQ, signal to interference plus noise ratio SINR, or rank indication RI among the resource units in an activated state; The second resource unit is a resource unit with the smallest bandwidth among the resource units in the activated state; The second resource unit is a resource unit with the smallest MIMO capability among the resource units in the activated state.

6. The time-slot-free measurement method according to claim 4, characterized in that: The terminal device determines the radio frequency path of the first resource unit according to the configuration information, including: the terminal device uses part of the radio frequency path of the second resource unit that meets one or more of the following conditions in the at least one resource unit as the radio frequency path of the first resource unit: The second resource unit is a resource unit whose RI is less than or equal to a preset value among the resource units in an activated state; The second resource unit is a resource unit with the smallest bandwidth among the resource units in the activated state; The second resource unit is a resource unit having the smallest RSRP, RSRQ or SINR among the resource units in the activated state; The second resource unit is a resource unit having the lowest data transmission rate among the resource units in the activated state; The second resource unit is a resource unit with the largest ID among the resource units in the activated state.

7. The time-slot-free measurement method according to any one of claims 4 to 6, characterized in that: The time-slot-free measurement method further comprises: The terminal device sends a configuration completion response to the access network device, where the configuration completion response is used to indicate the second resource unit and / or the MIMO capability of the second resource unit.

8. The time-slot-free measurement method according to any one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that: The terminal device performs non-slot measurement on the first cell on the radio frequency path of the first resource unit, including: The terminal device continuously monitors the synchronization signal block SSB on the radio frequency path of the first resource unit according to a preset time, and the preset time is greater than the SSB period of the first cell.

9. The time-slot-free measurement method according to claim 8, characterized in that: The preset time is the synchronization signal block measurement time configuration SMTC period.

10. The time-slot-free measurement method according to any one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that: The time-slot-free measurement method further comprises: When the radio frequency path of the first resource unit is a partial radio frequency path of the radio frequency path of the second resource unit, the terminal device receives or sends uplink and downlink signals on the second resource unit with a reduced MIMO capability; When the radio frequency paths of the first resource unit are all the radio frequency paths in the radio frequency paths of the second resource unit, the terminal device stops receiving or sending uplink and downlink signals on the second resource unit.

11. A time-slot-free measurement method, characterized in that: The time-slot-free measurement method comprises: The access network device determines a radio frequency path of a first resource unit, where the first resource unit is a resource unit to be tested of a first cell, the first cell is a neighboring cell of a serving cell of a terminal device, the radio frequency path of the first resource unit is part or all of the radio frequency paths of a second resource unit, and the second resource unit is included in a first resource unit combination configured for the terminal device and in an activated state; The access network device sends configuration information to the terminal device, where the configuration information is used to instruct the terminal device to perform time-slotless measurement on the first cell, and to indicate a second resource unit combination and a multiple-input multiple-output MIMO capability of each resource unit in the second resource unit combination, where the second resource unit combination includes the updated first resource unit combination, the updated first resource unit combination does not include the second resource unit, or the MIMO capability of the second resource unit in the updated first resource unit combination is lower than the MIMO capability of the second resource unit in the first resource unit combination before the update.

12. The time-slot-free measurement method according to claim 11, characterized in that: The access network device determines the radio frequency path of the first cell, including: the access network device uses all radio frequency paths of the second resource unit that meet one or more of the following conditions as the radio frequency paths of the first resource unit: The second resource unit is a resource unit with the largest identification ID among the resource units in the activated state; The second resource unit is a resource unit having the lowest data transmission rate among the resource units in the activated state; The second resource unit is a resource unit having the smallest reference signal received power RSRP, reference signal received quality RSRQ, signal to interference plus noise ratio SINR, or rank indication RI among the resource units in an activated state; The second resource unit is a resource unit with the smallest bandwidth among the resource units in the activated state; The second resource unit is a resource unit with the smallest MIMO capability among the resource units in the activated state.

13. The time-slot-free measurement method according to claim 11, characterized in that: The access network device determines a radio frequency path of a first resource unit corresponding to a first cell, including: the access network device uses a part of the radio frequency paths of a second resource unit that meets one or more of the following conditions as the radio frequency paths of the first resource unit: The second resource unit is a resource unit whose RI is less than or equal to a preset value among the resource units in an activated state; The second resource unit is a resource unit with the smallest bandwidth among the resource units in the activated state; The second resource unit is a resource unit having the smallest RSRP, RSRQ or SINR among the resource units in the activated state; The second resource unit is a resource unit having the lowest data transmission rate among the resource units in the activated state; The second resource unit is a resource unit with the largest ID among the resource units in the activated state.

14. The time-slot-free measurement method according to any one of claims 11 to 13, characterized in that: The access network device determines a radio frequency path of a first resource unit, including: When the access network device determines that the third resource unit combination capability is greater than the resource unit combination supported by the terminal device, or when the access network device determines that the MIMO capability of the third resource unit combination is greater than the MIMO capability of the resource unit combination supported by the terminal device, determining the radio frequency path of the first resource unit according to the capability information of the terminal device; The third resource unit combination is a resource unit combination obtained by adding the first resource unit to the first resource unit combination.

15. The time-slot-free measurement method according to claim 14, characterized in that: The time-slot-free measurement method further comprises: The access network device receives capability information from the terminal device, where the capability information of the terminal device includes a resource unit combination supported by the terminal device and a MIMO capability corresponding to each resource unit in the resource unit combination supported by the terminal device.

16. The time-slot-free measurement method according to any one of claims 11 to 13, characterized in that: The time-slot-free measurement method further comprises: When the radio frequency path of the first resource unit is a part of the radio frequency path of the second resource unit, the access network device receives or sends uplink and downlink signals on the second resource unit with a reduced MIMO capability; When the radio frequency paths of the first resource unit are all the radio frequency paths of the second resource unit, the access network device stops receiving or sending uplink and downlink signals on the second resource unit.

17. A time-slot-free measurement method, characterized in that: The time-slot-free measurement method comprises: The access network device sends configuration information to the terminal device, where the configuration information is used to instruct the terminal device to perform non-slot measurement on the first cell and to indicate at least one resource unit, where the first cell is a neighboring cell of a serving cell of the terminal device, and the at least one resource unit is included in a first resource unit combination configured for the terminal device and in an activated state, and the at least one resource unit includes a resource unit whose radio frequency channel can be used as a radio frequency channel of a first resource unit, and the first resource unit is a resource unit to be measured of the first cell; The access network device receives a configuration completion response from the terminal device, where the configuration completion response is used to indicate a second resource unit and / or a MIMO capability of the second resource unit, and the second resource unit is included in the at least one resource unit.

18. The time-slot-free measurement method according to claim 17, characterized in that: The time-slot-free measurement method further comprises: When the radio frequency path of the first resource unit is a partial radio frequency path of the radio frequency path of the second resource unit, the access network device receives or sends uplink and downlink signals on the second resource unit with a reduced MIMO capability; When the radio frequency paths of the first resource unit are all the radio frequency paths in the radio frequency paths of the second resource unit, the access network device stops receiving or sending uplink and downlink signals on the second resource unit.

19. A time-slot-free measurement device, characterized in that: The time-slot-free measurement device includes one or more processors and one or more memories; the one or more memories are coupled to the one or more processors, and the one or more memories are used to store computer program codes or computer instructions; When one or more processors execute computer instructions, the time-slot-free measurement device executes the time-slot-free measurement method as described in any one of claims 1 to 10, or the time-slot-free measurement device executes the time-slot-free measurement method as described in any one of claims 11 to 16, or the time-slot-free measurement device executes the time-slot-free measurement method as described in claim 17 or 18.

20. A computer-readable storage medium, characterized in that: The computer-readable storage medium stores computer instructions or programs. When the computer instructions or programs are executed on a computer, the computer executes the time-slot-free measurement method as described in any one of claims 1 to 10, or the computer executes the time-slot-free measurement method as described in any one of claims 11 to 16, or the computer executes the time-slot-free measurement method as described in claim 17 or 18.

21. A chip, characterized in that: include: A processor and a communication interface, wherein the processor is coupled to a memory via the communication interface, and when the processor executes a computer program or instruction in the memory, the time-slot-free measurement method as described in any one of claims 1 to 10 is executed, or the time-slot-free measurement method as described in any one of claims 11 to 16 is executed, or the time-slot-free measurement method as described in claim 17 or 18 is executed.

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