Communication Method and Device

Abstract

An embodiment of the present application provides a communication method and apparatus. The method includes: a relay device switches from a first cell to a second cell and establishes a connection with the second cell. Before successfully establishing a connection with the second cell, the relay device maintains a connection state with the first cell; the relay device sends indication information to a terminal device, and the indication information is used to indicate that the relay device establishes a connection with the second cell. The solution of the embodiment of the present application can enable the terminal device to know the completion status of the cell switching of the relay device, so that the terminal device can interact with the switched second cell through the relay device.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] Embodiments of the present application relate to the field of communication technologies, and in particular, to a communication method and apparatus. Background Art

[0002] In a wireless communication system, in order to improve the transmission coverage range, a relay device may be introduced between a terminal and a base station. The relay device can forward the data of the terminal to the base station and forward the data of the base station to the terminal.

[0003] Since the relay device is movable, when the connection between the relay device and the terminal remains unchanged and the relay device and the base station move relative to each other, a group handover will occur between the relay device and the base station, that is, both the relay device and the terminal need to switch from one base station to another base station, while the connection relationship between the relay device and the terminal remains unchanged. Currently, when the relay device needs to switch the connected base station due to movement, it usually disconnects the connection with the source base station first and then establishes a connection with the target base station, which will cause a period of service transmission interruption. To solve this problem, the current solution is that the relay device can first not disconnect the connection with the source base station and at the same time initiate a connection with the target base station, and then disconnect the connection with the source base station until the connection with the target base station is established.

[0004] The above solution can avoid the problem of service transmission interruption, but since the handover process is completed by the relay device, the terminal cannot know when the relay device switches to the target base station. Summary of the Invention

[0005] Embodiments of the present application provide a communication method and apparatus to solve the problem that the terminal device cannot know when the relay device performs a cell handover during the group handover process.

[0006] In a first aspect, embodiments of the present application provide a communication method, including:

[0007] The relay device switches from a first cell to a second cell and establishes a connection with the second cell. Before successfully establishing a connection with the second cell, the relay device maintains a connection state with the first cell;

[0008] The relay device sends indication information to the terminal device, and the indication information is used to indicate that the relay device establishes a connection with the second cell.

[0009] In a possible implementation manner, the relay device switches from a first cell to a second cell and establishes a connection with the second cell, including:

[0010] The relay device receives a handover command from the first cell;

[0011] The relay device switches from the first cell to the second cell according to the handover command and establishes a connection with the second cell.

[0012] In a possible implementation, the handover command includes an identifier of the second cell.

[0013] In a possible implementation, the handover command includes configuration information of the second cell.

[0014] In a possible implementation, before the relay device switches from the first cell to the second cell according to the handover command and establishes a connection with the second cell, the method further includes:

[0015] The relay device sends the handover command to the terminal device;

[0016] The relay device receives a response to the handover command from the terminal device.

[0017] In a possible implementation, the method further includes:

[0018] The relay device receives first data from the terminal device and sends the first data to the second cell.

[0019] In a possible implementation, the relay device receiving first data from the terminal device and sending the first data to the second cell includes:

[0020] After the relay device sends the indication information to the terminal device, the relay device receives the first data from the terminal device and sends the first data to the second cell.

[0021] In a possible implementation, the relay device receiving first data from the terminal device and sending the first data to the second cell includes:

[0022] After the relay device receives a handover command from the first cell, the relay device receives the first data from the terminal device;

[0023] After the relay device establishes a connection with the second cell, the relay device sends the first data to the second cell.

[0024] In a possible implementation, before the relay device establishes a connection with the second cell, the method further includes:

[0025] The relay device receives second data from the terminal device and sends the second data to the first cell.

[0026] Second aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication method, including:

[0027] The terminal device receives indication information from the relay device, where the indication information is used to instruct the relay device to switch from the first cell to the second cell and establish a connection with the second cell;

[0028] The terminal device stops sending the second data to the first cell through the relay device according to the indication information.

[0029] In a possible implementation manner, the method further includes:

[0030] The terminal device sends the first data to the second cell through the relay device.

[0031] In a possible implementation manner, before the terminal device receives the indication information from the relay device, the method further includes:

[0032] The terminal device receives a handover command from the relay device;

[0033] The terminal device sends a response to the handover command to the relay device.

[0034] In a possible implementation manner, the handover command includes an identifier of the second cell.

[0035] In a possible implementation manner, the handover command includes configuration information of the second cell.

[0036] In a possible implementation manner, the terminal device sending the first data to the second cell through the relay device includes:

[0037] After receiving the indication information from the relay device, the terminal device sends the first data to the relay device.

[0038] In a possible implementation manner, the terminal device sending the first data to the second cell through the relay device includes:

[0039] After receiving the handover command from the relay device, the terminal device sends the first data to the relay device.

[0040] Third aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication device, including:

[0041] A handover module, configured to switch from the first cell to the second cell, establish a connection with the second cell, and before successfully establishing a connection with the second cell, the relay device maintains a connection state with the first cell;

[0042] A sending module, configured to send indication information to a terminal device, where the indication information is used to indicate that the relay device establishes a connection with the second cell.

[0043] In a possible implementation manner, the handover module is specifically configured to:

[0044] Receive a handover command from the first cell;

[0045] According to the handover command, hand over from the first cell to the second cell and establish a connection with the second cell.

[0046] In a possible implementation manner, the handover command includes an identifier of the second cell.

[0047] In a possible implementation manner, the handover command includes configuration information of the second cell.

[0048] In a possible implementation manner, before the handover module hands over from the first cell to the second cell and establishes a connection with the second cell according to the handover command, the handover module is further configured to:

[0049] Send the handover command to the terminal device;

[0050] Receive a response to the handover command from the terminal device.

[0051] In a possible implementation manner, the sending module is further configured to:

[0052] Receive first data from the terminal device and send the first data to the second cell.

[0053] In a possible implementation manner, the sending module is specifically further configured to:

[0054] After the relay device sends the indication information to the terminal device, receive the first data from the terminal device and send the first data to the second cell.

[0055] In a possible implementation manner, the sending module is specifically further configured to:

[0056] After the relay device receives the handover command from the first cell, receive the first data from the terminal device;

[0057] After the relay device establishes a connection with the second cell, send the first data to the second cell.

[0058] In a possible implementation manner, the sending module is further configured to:

[0059] Receive second data from the terminal device and send the second data to the first cell.

[0060] In a fourth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication device, including:

[0061] A receiving module, configured to receive indication information from a relay device, where the indication information is used to indicate that the relay device switches from a first cell to a second cell and establishes a connection with the second cell;

[0062] A processing module, configured to cause the terminal device to stop sending second data to the first cell through the relay device according to the indication information.

[0063] In a possible implementation manner, it further includes a sending module, and the sending module is configured to:

[0064] Send first data to a second cell through the relay device.

[0065] In a possible implementation manner, before receiving the indication information from the relay device, the receiving module is further configured to:

[0066] Receive a handover command from the relay device;

[0067] Send a response to the handover command to the relay device.

[0068] In a possible implementation manner, the handover command includes an identifier of the second cell.

[0069] In a possible implementation manner, the handover command includes configuration information of the second cell.

[0070] In a possible implementation manner, the sending module is specifically configured to:

[0071] After receiving the indication information from the relay device, send the first data to the relay device.

[0072] In a possible implementation manner, the sending module is specifically configured to:

[0073] After receiving the handover command from the relay device, send the first data to the relay device.

[0074] In a fifth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a relay device, including: at least one processor and a memory;

[0075] The memory stores computer-executable instructions;

[0076] The at least one processor executes the computer-executable instructions stored in the memory, such that the at least one processor executes the communication method according to any one of the first aspect.

[0077] In a sixth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a terminal device, including: at least one processor and a memory;

[0078] The memory stores computer-executable instructions;

[0079] The at least one processor executes the computer-executable instructions stored in the memory, such that the at least one processor executes the communication method according to any one of the second aspect.

[0080] In a seventh aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a computer-readable storage medium, in which computer-executable instructions are stored. When a processor executes the computer-executable instructions, the communication method according to any one of the first aspect or the second aspect is implemented.

[0081] In the communication method and device provided by the embodiments of the present application, first, a relay device switches from a first cell to a second cell and establishes a connection with the second cell. Before the relay device successfully establishes a connection with the second cell, it maintains a connection state with the first cell, thereby avoiding interruption of services. After the relay device establishes a connection with the second cell, the relay device sends indication information to the terminal device. According to the indication information, the terminal device can learn that the relay device has switched from the first cell to the second cell and established a connection with the second cell. The solution of the embodiments of the present application can enable the terminal device to learn the completion status of the cell switching of the relay device, so that the terminal device can interact with the switched second cell through the relay device. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0082] In order to more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present invention or the prior art, the following will briefly introduce the drawings required for use in the description of the embodiments or the prior art. Obviously, the drawings in the following description are some embodiments of the present invention. For those of ordinary skill in the art, other drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without creative efforts.

[0083] Figure 1 It is a schematic diagram of the uplink, downlink, and sidelink provided by the embodiments of the present application;

[0084] Figure 2 It is a schematic diagram of the link connection of the relay provided by the embodiments of the present application;

[0085] Figure 3 It is a schematic diagram of group handover provided by the embodiments of the present application;

[0086] Figure 4Schematic diagram of relay device group switching provided by the prior art;

[0087] Figure 5 Signaling diagram of the communication method provided by the embodiment of the present application;

[0088] Figure 6 Signaling of the communication method provided by the embodiment of the present application Figure 1 ;

[0089] Figure 7 Signaling of the communication method provided by the embodiment of the present application Figure 2 ;

[0090] Figure 8 Flow schematic diagram of the communication method provided by another embodiment of the present application;

[0091] Figure 9 Structural schematic diagram of the communication device provided by the embodiment of the present application;

[0092] Figure 10 Structural schematic diagram of the communication device provided by the embodiment of the present application;

[0093] Figure 11 Hardware structural schematic diagram of the relay device provided by the embodiment of the present application;

[0094] Figure 12 Hardware structural schematic diagram of the terminal device provided by the embodiment of the present application. Detailed implementation manners

[0095] To make the objectives, technical solutions and advantages of the embodiments of the present application clearer, the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present application will be clearly and completely described below with reference to the accompanying drawings in the embodiments of the present application. Obviously, the described embodiments are some but not all of the embodiments of the present application. All other embodiments obtained by those of ordinary skill in the art based on the embodiments of the present application without creative efforts shall fall within the protection scope of the present application.

[0096] For ease of understanding, first, the concepts involved in the present application will be described.

[0097] Terminal device: Usually having wireless transceiver functions, the terminal device can be deployed on land, including indoors or outdoors, handheld, wearable or vehicle-mounted; it can also be deployed on water (such as ships, etc.); it can also be deployed in the air (such as airplanes, balloons, satellites, etc.). The terminal device can be a mobile phone, a tablet computer (Pad), a computer with wireless transceiver functions, a virtual reality (VR) terminal device, an augmented reality (AR) terminal device, a wireless terminal in industrial control, a vehicle-mounted terminal device, a wireless terminal in self-driving, a wireless terminal device in remote medical, a wireless terminal device in smart grid, a wireless terminal device in transportation safety, a wireless terminal device in smart city, a wireless terminal device in smart home, a wearable terminal device, etc. The terminal device involved in the embodiments of the present application can also be referred to as a terminal, a user equipment (UE), an access terminal device, a vehicle-mounted terminal, an industrial control terminal, a UE unit, a UE station, a mobile station, a mobile unit, a remote station, a remote terminal device, a mobile device, a UE terminal device, a wireless communication device, a UE agent or a UE device, etc. The terminal device can also be fixed or mobile.

[0098] Relay device: Also known as a relay, it is a transmission path between two switching centers. In the present application, in order to improve the transmission coverage range, a relay device can be introduced between the sending end and the receiving end. The relay device can forward the received data to the receiving end, thereby expanding the sending range of the sending end.

[0099] For example, in a cellular system, a relay device can be introduced between the base station and the terminal device. The relay device is responsible for forwarding the data of the terminal device to the base station, or forwarding the data of the base station to the terminal device.

[0100] Sidelink (SL) communication technology, also known as device-to-device direct communication technology, is a communication technology that is quite different from ordinary wireless cellular network communication. In a traditional cellular network, the terminal device communicates with the network device. At this time, the link between the terminal device and the network device is called the uplink or downlink, and the interface is called the Uu interface. In device-to-device direct communication, the terminal device communicates directly with the terminal device. The link between the terminal device and the terminal device is called the direct link, and the interface is called the PC5 interface. The sidelink can also be called the direct link.

[0101] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the uplink, downlink, and sidelink provided by an embodiment of the present application. As Figure 1 shown, it includes a base station 10, a terminal 11, and a terminal 12. Among them, there are an uplink and a downlink between the base station 10 and the terminal 11. The base station 10 can send downlink data to the terminal 11 through the downlink, and the terminal 11 can send uplink data to the base station 10 through the uplink.

[0102] There is a direct link between the terminal 11 and the terminal 12. Through this direct link, the terminal 11 can send data to the terminal 12, and the terminal 12 can also send data to the terminal 11.

[0103] The introduction of the sidelink was initially to enable relatively close terminal devices to communicate directly, without the need for the data to be relayed by the base station, reducing the transmission delay. Later, based on the introduction of the sidelink, sidelink relay was designed. The previous relay used the uplink and downlink for communication between the relay and the terminal device, while the sidelink relay uses the sidelink technology for the link between the relay device and the terminal device.

[0104] Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram of the link connection of the relay provided by an embodiment of the present application. As Figure 2 shown, it includes a base station 20, a relay device 21, and a terminal device 22.

[0105] The relay device 21 and the base station 20 use the uplink and downlink for communication. The base station 20 can send downlink data to the relay device 21 through the downlink, and the relay device 21 can send uplink data to the base station 20 through the uplink.

[0106] On the Figure 2 left side, the relay device 21 and the terminal device 22 also use the uplink and downlink for communication. The relay device 21 can send the downlink data sent by the base station 20 to the terminal device 22 through the downlink, and the terminal device 22 can send uplink data to the relay device 21 through the uplink and have it forwarded by the relay device 21 to the base station 20.

[0107] On the Figure 2 right side, the relay device 21 and the terminal device 22 use a direct link for communication and directly transmit data.

[0108] In a wireless communication system, when a base station is directly connected to a terminal device, since the terminal device is mobile and may move from the coverage area of one base station to that of another base station, the terminal device needs to perform a handover at this time. Similarly, for a relay device, the relay device is also mobile. When the connection between the relay device and the terminal device remains unchanged, but the relay device moves relative to the base station or cell, a phenomenon called group handover occurs, that is, both the relay device and the terminal device switch from one base station to another base station, or both the relay device and the terminal device switch from one cell to another cell, while the connection relationship between the relay device and the terminal device remains unchanged.

[0109] Figure 3 The schematic diagram of group handover provided by the embodiment of this application is shown in Figure 3 As shown, it includes a terminal device 31, a relay device 32, a base station 33, and a base station 34. The connection between the terminal device 31 and the relay device 32 remains unchanged. When the terminal device 31 and the relay device 32 move, they switch from the base station 33 to the base station 34, that is, a group handover occurs.

[0110] In a communication system that only includes a base station and a terminal device, when a handover is required, the source base station sends a handover command to the terminal device. When the terminal device performs a handover due to movement, it will first disconnect from the source base station and then establish a connection with the target base station. After the terminal device disconnects from the source base station and before establishing a connection with the target base station, it will cause an interruption in service transmission for a period of time. Therefore, when researching 5G, a new mechanism was introduced, that is, the terminal device does not first disconnect from the source base station, but simultaneously initiates the process of establishing a connection with the target base station. Until the connection with the target base station is established (for example, the random access process is completed), the terminal device will start to transmit data to the target base station and stop transmitting data to the source base station. This kind of handover is called Dual Active Protocol Stack (DAPS) handover.

[0111] Similarly, in the group handover of the relay device, when the relay device and the terminal device together switch from the first cell to the second cell, the DAPS handover method can also be adopted. The relay device does not first disconnect from the first cell, but simultaneously initiates the process of establishing a connection with the second cell until the connection with the second cell is established (for example, the random access process is completed).

[0112] Figure 4 The schematic diagram of the group handover of the relay device provided by the prior art is shown in Figure 4 As shown, it includes:

[0113] S41, the relay device sends a measurement result to the first cell.

[0114] S42, the first cell sends a handover request to the second cell.

[0115] S43, the second cell sends a handover command to the first cell.

[0116] After allowing the relay device to hand over to the second cell, the second cell sends a handover command to the first cell.

[0117] S44, the first cell sends a handover command to the relay device.

[0118] S45, the relay device sends a handover command to the terminal device.

[0119] S46, the terminal device sends a handover command response to the relay device.

[0120] S47, the relay device establishes a connection with the second cell.

[0121] For example, a connection with the second cell can be established through random access.

[0122] In the current group handover process, since the random access process is completed by the relay device, and the conversion of the uplink data submission is executed on the terminal device. Since the terminal device does not know the random access completion status of the relay device, the terminal device cannot perform subsequent operations after successful random access (for example, the terminal device needs to determine whether it can perform data packaging and sending operations according to the configuration of the second cell and submit data to the protocol entity corresponding to the second cell). Therefore, the embodiments of the present application provide a solution to enable the terminal device to know the completion status of the relay device's random access. This will be introduced below.

[0123] Figure 5 The signaling diagram of the communication method provided by the embodiments of the present application is as Figure 5 shown, and the method may include:

[0124] S51, the relay device hands over from the first cell to the second cell and establishes a connection with the second cell. Before successfully establishing a connection with the second cell, the relay device maintains a connection state with the first cell.

[0125] In the embodiments of the present application, the relay device is initially connected to the first cell. Through this relay device, data transmission can be performed between the terminal device and the first cell. The relay device and the terminal device are kept within a certain distance range so that the relay device and the terminal device can maintain a connection without the need for handover.

[0126] When the terminal device and the relay device move, cell handover may be required. For example, when the terminal device and the relay device move out of the coverage area of the first cell, at this time, the terminal device and the relay device need to switch to another cell, that is, the second cell. At this time, the connection relationship maintained between the terminal device and the relay device remains unchanged, and both the relay device and the terminal device need to switch from the first cell to the second cell, that is, perform a group handover.

[0127] To avoid interruption of service transmission during cell handover, in the embodiments of the present application, during the process of the relay device switching from the first cell to the second cell, the relay device maintains a connection state with the first cell. After the relay device successfully establishes a connection with the second cell, the relay device can disconnect from the first cell.

[0128] S52. The relay device sends indication information to the terminal device, where the indication information is used to indicate that the relay device establishes a connection with the second cell.

[0129] After the relay device switches from the first cell to the second cell and establishes a connection with the second cell, since the process of cell handover is completed on the relay device side at this time, the terminal device has not yet learned that the relay device has performed a cell handover. However, the data interaction between the terminal device and the cell needs to be completed through the terminal device, resulting in the terminal device still sending data to the first cell through the relay device after the relay device establishes a connection with the second cell and disconnects from the first cell.

[0130] Therefore, after the relay device switches to the second cell, the relay device can send indication information to the terminal device to indicate that the relay device has switched from the first cell to the second cell and established a connection with the second cell.

[0131] S53. The terminal device receives the indication information from the relay device, and according to the indication information, stops sending the second data to the first cell through the relay device.

[0132] After the terminal device receives the indication information from the relay device, according to the indication information, it can learn that the relay device has switched from the first cell to the second cell. Therefore, the terminal device can stop sending the second data to the first cell through the relay device. For example, the terminal device can stop sending data to the protocol entity corresponding to the first cell through the relay device. Optionally, the terminal device can send the first data to the second cell through the relay device.

[0133] In the communication method provided by the embodiment of the present application, first, the relay device switches from the first cell to the second cell and establishes a connection with the second cell. Before successfully establishing a connection with the second cell, the relay device maintains a connection with the first cell, thereby avoiding interruption of services. After the relay device establishes a connection with the second cell, the relay device sends indication information to the terminal device. According to this indication information, the terminal device can learn that the relay device has switched from the first cell to the second cell and established a connection with the second cell. The solution of the embodiment of the present application enables the terminal device to learn the completion status of the cell switch of the relay device, so that the terminal device can interact with the switched second cell through the relay device.

[0134] The solution of the present application will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0135] When the relay device and the terminal device need to perform cell switching due to reasons such as position changes, the relay device needs to receive a handover command from the first cell. Among them, when the relay device needs to switch from the first cell to the second cell, the first cell sends a handover request to the second cell. If the second cell allows the relay device to switch, the second cell will send a handover command to the first cell, and the first cell will send the handover command to the relay device.

[0136] Optionally, the handover command includes the identifier of the second cell. After receiving the handover command, the relay device can learn that it needs to switch from the first cell to the second cell according to the identifier of the second cell included in the handover command.

[0137] Optionally, before the relay device establishes a connection with the second cell, the relay device also sends the handover command to the terminal device. After receiving the handover command, the terminal device can learn that the relay device switches to the second cell after cell switching. After receiving the handover command, the terminal device can send a response to the handover command to the relay device. The relay device can attempt to establish a connection with the second cell after receiving the response to the handover command.

[0138] Optionally, before the relay device establishes a connection with the second cell, since the relay device and the first cell still maintain a connection, the terminal device can still communicate with the first cell through the relay device. For example, the terminal device can send second data for the first cell to the relay device. After receiving the second data, the relay device sends the second data to the first cell. For example, the second data can be data submitted by the protocol entity corresponding to the first cell. The terminal device can send the corresponding protocol entity submission data to the first cell according to the configuration information of the first cell.

[0139] Optionally, the handover command may further include configuration information of the second cell. After receiving the handover command, the terminal device may obtain the configuration information of the second cell included in the handover command. After obtaining the configuration information of the second cell, the terminal device may send first data for the second cell to the relay device according to the configuration information of the second cell. After establishing a connection with the second cell, the relay device may send the first data to the second cell. For example, the first data may be data submitted by a protocol entity corresponding to the second cell. The terminal device may send corresponding protocol entity submission data to the second cell according to the configuration information of the second cell.

[0140] In the above process, the terminal device learns through receiving the handover command that the relay device will subsequently switch from the first cell to the second cell, but the terminal device does not know when the relay device completes the handover. In this case, the terminal device may think that the relay device has not completed the handover all the time, so it will always try to interact with the first cell through the relay device. However, after the cell handover of the relay device is completed, the relay device disconnects from the first cell and establishes a connection with the second cell. At this time, the relay device cannot send the second data for the first cell to the first cell, resulting in waste of resources.

[0141] Based on this, in the embodiments of the present application, after the relay device establishes a connection with the second cell, the relay device will send indication information to the terminal device to inform the terminal device that the cell handover of the relay device has been completed and a connection with the second cell has been successfully established.

[0142] After the relay device establishes a connection with the second cell, the terminal device may communicate with the second cell through the relay device.

[0143] Optionally, the terminal device may send the first data for the second cell to the relay device after receiving the indication information. After receiving the first data, the relay device forwards the first data to the second cell.

[0144] Optionally, the terminal device may also send the first data for the second cell to the relay device after receiving the handover command. After receiving the first data, the relay device waits until it establishes a connection with the second cell and then can forward the first data to the second cell.

[0145] The solution of the present application will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0146] Figure 6 The signaling for the communication method provided in the embodiments of the present application Figure 1 , as Figure 6 shown, includes:

[0147] S601, the relay device reports measurement results to the first cell.

[0148] The relay device can obtain the measurement results of one or more nearby cells and report them to the first cell.

[0149] S602, The first cell receives the measurement results.

[0150] After the relay device reports the measurement results to the first cell, the first cell receives the measurement results and determines the cell to be switched, that is, the second cell, according to the received measurement results.

[0151] S603, The first cell sends a handover request to the second cell.

[0152] After determining that the relay device switches from the first cell to the second cell, the first cell sends a handover request to the second cell to inform the second cell that the relay device is going to switch from the first cell to the second cell.

[0153] S604, The second cell receives the handover request.

[0154] The second cell can receive the handover request. After receiving the handover request, it can judge whether to agree to the relay device to switch to the second cell according to the actual signal quality, connected terminals, etc. of the second cell.

[0155] S605, The second cell sends a handover command to the first cell.

[0156] S606, The first cell sends a handover command to the relay device.

[0157] S607, The relay device sends a handover command to the terminal device.

[0158] When the second cell agrees to the relay device to switch to the second cell, the second cell sends a handover command to the first cell, the first cell sends the handover command to the relay device, and the relay device also sends the handover command to the terminal device.

[0159] After receiving the handover command, the terminal device can learn that the relay device is about to perform a cell handover, from the first cell to the second cell.

[0160] S608, The terminal device sends a handover command response to the relay device.

[0161] S609, The relay device receives the handover command response.

[0162] S610, The relay device establishes a connection with the second cell.

[0163] After receiving the handover command response, the relay device starts to attempt to establish a connection with the second cell, for example, it can establish a connection through a random access process. Before the relay device successfully establishes a connection with the second cell, the relay device remains connected to the first cell.

[0164] S611. The relay device sends indication information to the terminal device.

[0165] After the relay device successfully connects to the second cell, the relay device sends indication information to the terminal device, indicating that the relay device has switched from the first cell to the second cell, that is, the relay device notifies the terminal device of the timing when the cell handover is completed.

[0166] S612. The terminal device receives the indication information.

[0167] After receiving the indication information, the terminal device learns that the relay device has established a connection with the second cell and can stop interacting with the first cell.

[0168] S613. The terminal device performs uplink data conversion and sends the first data to the second cell through the relay device.

[0169] After receiving the indication information, the terminal device can send the first data to the second cell through the relay device to interact with the second cell, or can also receive the data sent by the second cell through the relay device, etc. For example, the PDCP layer of the terminal device can deliver data to the RLC entity of the second cell through the relay device.

[0170] Figure 6 In the example of, before establishing a connection with the second cell, since the relay device does not disconnect from the first cell, the terminal device can always send the data that needs to be forwarded to the first cell to the relay device, that is, the PDCP layer of the terminal device delivers data to the RLC entity corresponding to the first cell. After the relay device completes the random access process and establishes a connection with the second cell, the terminal device can send the data that needs to be forwarded to the second cell to the relay device, that is, the PDCP layer of the terminal device starts to deliver data to the RLC entity corresponding to the second cell and stops delivering data to the RLC entity corresponding to the first cell. The above process is also called uplink data conversion.

[0171] Through the indication information sent by the relay device to the terminal device in the above embodiments, it is indicated that the terminal device can perform uplink data conversion, enabling the terminal device to timely learn the timing when the relay device's cell handover is completed.

[0172] In Figure 6In the example, before the relay device establishes a connection with the second cell, the terminal device only sends the second data for the first cell to the relay device. After the relay device establishes a connection with the second cell, the terminal device is informed through indication information. Although the relay device has already established a connection with the second cell at this time, since there is no cached data for the second cell in the relay device, the relay device can only wait until the terminal device sends the first data for the second cell after a certain period of time, resulting in a certain delay.

[0173] To solve this problem, in the embodiments of the present application, after the relay device sends a handover command to the terminal device, the terminal device can send the first data for the second cell to the relay device according to the configuration information of the second cell included in the handover command. When the relay device has not yet established a connection with the second cell, the relay device can cache the first data. After establishing a connection with the second cell, it can directly send the first data to the second cell without waiting.

[0174] The following combines Figure 7 to illustrate this solution.

[0175] Figure 7 The signaling for the communication method provided in the embodiments of the present application Figure 2 , as Figure 7 shown, includes:

[0176] S701, the relay device reports the measurement result to the first cell.

[0177] The relay device can obtain the measurement results of one or more nearby cells and report them to the first cell.

[0178] S702, the first cell receives the measurement result.

[0179] After the relay device reports the measurement result to the first cell, the first cell receives the measurement result and determines the cell to be handed over, that is, the second cell, according to the received measurement result.

[0180] S703, the first cell sends a handover request to the second cell.

[0181] After determining that the relay device is handed over from the first cell to the second cell, the first cell will send a handover request to the second cell to inform the second cell that the relay device is to be handed over from the first cell to the second cell.

[0182] S704, the second cell receives the handover request.

[0183] The second cell can receive the handover request. After receiving the handover request, it can determine whether to agree to the relay device to hand over to the second cell according to the actual signal quality, connected terminals, etc. of the second cell.

[0184] S705, The second cell sends a handover command to the first cell.

[0185] S706, The first cell sends a handover command to the relay device.

[0186] S707, The relay device sends a handover command to the terminal device.

[0187] After the second cell agrees that the relay device switches to the second cell, the second cell sends a handover command to the first cell, and the first cell sends this handover command to the relay device. The relay device also sends this handover command to the terminal device.

[0188] After receiving this handover command, the terminal device can learn that the relay device is about to perform a cell handover, from the first cell to the second cell.

[0189] S708, The terminal device sends a handover command response to the relay device.

[0190] S709, The relay device receives the handover command response.

[0191] S710, The terminal device sends the first data to the relay device.

[0192] After receiving the handover command, the terminal device can learn the second cell identifier in the handover command that the relay device is about to switch to the second cell, and can send the first data to the relay device according to the configuration information of the second cell. The relay device can receive the first data. Although it cannot send the first data to the second cell before establishing a connection with the second cell, the relay device can cache the first data and transmit the first data to the second cell after establishing a connection with the second cell.

[0193] S711, The relay device establishes a connection with the second cell.

[0194] After receiving the handover command response, the relay device starts to attempt to establish a connection with the second cell, for example, by a random access procedure. Before the relay device successfully establishes a connection with the second cell, the relay device remains connected to the first cell.

[0195] S712, The relay device sends indication information to the terminal device.

[0196] After the relay device successfully connects to the second cell, the relay device sends indication information to the terminal device, indicating that the relay device has switched from the first cell to the second cell, that is, the relay device notifies the terminal device of the timing when the cell handover is completed.

[0197] S713, The terminal device receives the indication information.

[0198] After receiving the indication information, the terminal device learns that the relay device has established a connection with the second cell and can stop interacting with the first cell.

[0199] S714. The terminal device performs uplink data conversion and sends the first data to the second cell through the relay device.

[0200] After receiving the indication information, the terminal device can send the first data to the second cell through the relay device to interact with the second cell, or can receive the data sent by the second cell through the relay device, etc. For example, the PDCP layer of the terminal device can deliver data to the RLC entity of the second cell through the relay device.

[0201] Figure 7 In the example of, after receiving the handover command, the terminal device immediately starts sending data for the second cell. However, since the connection with the first cell is not interrupted at this time, the terminal device still needs to send the second data for the first cell. When the second data is successfully received in the first cell, the transmission to the second cell can be terminated; otherwise, the radio resource is wasted. Therefore, the terminal device can inform the relay device which data does not need to be transmitted anymore according to the transmission success situation in the first cell.

[0202] When the relay device finally establishes a connection with the second cell, the terminal device can only retain the data transmission part to the second cell and stop the data transmission part to the first cell. Let the terminal device send the first data for the second cell in advance so that after the relay device successfully performs random access, it can immediately send the first data to the second cell in a targeted manner, reducing the latency.

[0203] Figure 8 It is a schematic flowchart of a communication method provided by another embodiment of the present application. As Figure 8 shown, the method may include:

[0204] S81. The terminal device receives indication information from the relay device, where the indication information is used to indicate that the relay device switches from the first cell to the second cell and establishes a connection with the second cell;

[0205] S82. The terminal device stops sending the second data to the first cell through the relay device according to the indication information.

[0206] In a possible implementation manner, the method further includes:

[0207] The terminal device sends the first data to the second cell through the relay device.

[0208] In a possible implementation manner, before the terminal device receives the indication information from the relay device, the method further includes:

[0209] The terminal device receives a handover command from the relay device;

[0210] The terminal device sends a response to the handover command to the relay device.

[0211] In a possible implementation manner, the handover command includes an identifier of the second cell.

[0212] In a possible implementation manner, the handover command includes configuration information of the second cell.

[0213] In a possible implementation manner, the terminal device sends first data to a second cell through the relay device, including:

[0214] After receiving the indication information from the relay device, the terminal device sends the first data to the relay device.

[0215] In a possible implementation manner, the terminal device sends first data to a second cell through the relay device, including:

[0216] After receiving the handover command from the relay device, the terminal device sends the first data to the relay device.

[0217] Figure 8 The solution of the exemplary embodiment is Figure 6 - Figure 7 The method on the terminal device side corresponding to the exemplary solution, the steps and principles of which have been introduced in the above embodiments. For specific implementation, reference can be made to the above embodiments and will not be elaborated here.

[0218] In the communication method provided by the embodiments of the present application, first, the relay device switches from a first cell to a second cell and establishes a connection with the second cell. Before successfully establishing a connection with the second cell, the relay device maintains a connection state with the first cell, thereby avoiding interruption of services. After the relay device establishes a connection with the second cell, the relay device sends indication information to the terminal device. According to this indication information, the terminal device can learn that the relay device has switched from the first cell to the second cell and established a connection with the second cell. The solution of the embodiments of the present application can enable the terminal device to learn the completion status of the cell handover of the relay device, so that the terminal device can interact with the switched second cell through the relay device.

[0219] Figure 9 The following is a schematic structural diagram of a communication device provided by the embodiments of the present application. As Figure 9 shown, the communication device 90 includes a handover module 91 and a sending module 92, where:

[0220] The handover module 91 is used to hand over from the first cell to the second cell, establish a connection with the second cell, and maintain a connection with the first cell before successfully establishing a connection with the second cell;

[0221] The sending module 92 is used to send indication information to the terminal device, and the indication information is used to indicate that the relay device establishes a connection with the second cell.

[0222] In a possible implementation manner, the handover module 91 is specifically used for:

[0223] Receive a handover command from the first cell;

[0224] According to the handover command, hand over from the first cell to the second cell and establish a connection with the second cell.

[0225] In a possible implementation manner, the handover command includes the identifier of the second cell.

[0226] In a possible implementation manner, the handover command includes the configuration information of the second cell.

[0227] In a possible implementation manner, the handover module 91 is further used to, before handing over from the first cell to the second cell and establishing a connection with the second cell according to the handover command:

[0228] Send the handover command to the terminal device;

[0229] Receive a response to the handover command from the terminal device.

[0230] In a possible implementation manner, the sending module 92 is further used for:

[0231] Receive first data from the terminal device and send the first data to the second cell.

[0232] In a possible implementation manner, the sending module 92 is specifically further used for:

[0233] After the relay device sends the indication information to the terminal device, receive the first data from the terminal device and send the first data to the second cell.

[0234] In a possible implementation manner, the sending module 92 is specifically further used for:

[0235] After the relay device receives a handover command from the first cell, receive the first data from the terminal device;

[0236] After establishing a connection with the second cell, the relay device sends the first data to the second cell.

[0237] In a possible implementation, the sending module 92 is further configured to:

[0238] Receive second data from the terminal device and send the second data to the first cell.

[0239] The device provided by the embodiments of the present application can be used to execute the technical solutions of the above method embodiments. The implementation principles and technical effects are similar and will not be elaborated here.

[0240] Figure 10 FIG. is a schematic structural diagram of a communication device provided by an embodiment of the present application. As Figure 10 shown, the communication device 100 includes a receiving module 101 and a processing module 102, where:

[0241] The receiving module 101 is configured to receive indication information from the relay device. The indication information is used to indicate that the relay device switches from the first cell to the second cell and establishes a connection with the second cell;

[0242] The processing module 102 is configured to cause the terminal device to stop sending second data to the first cell through the relay device according to the indication information.

[0243] In a possible implementation, it further includes a sending module. The sending module is configured to:

[0244] Send the first data to the second cell through the relay device.

[0245] In a possible implementation, before receiving the indication information from the relay device, the receiving module 101 is further configured to:

[0246] Receive a handover command from the relay device;

[0247] Send a response to the handover command to the relay device.

[0248] In a possible implementation, the handover command includes an identifier of the second cell.

[0249] In a possible implementation, the handover command includes configuration information of the second cell.

[0250] In a possible implementation, the sending module is specifically configured to:

[0251] After receiving the indication information from the relay device, send the first data to the relay device.

[0252] In a possible implementation manner, the sending module is specifically configured to:

[0253] After receiving the handover command from the relay device, send the first data to the relay device.

[0254] The device provided by the embodiments of the present application can be used to execute the technical solutions of the above method embodiments, and the implementation principles and technical effects are similar, which will not be elaborated here.

[0255] Figure 11 FIG. is a schematic hardware structure diagram of a relay device provided by an embodiment of the present application, as Figure 11 shown, the relay device includes: at least one processor 111 and a memory 112. Wherein, the processor 111 and the memory 112 are connected through a bus 113.

[0256] Optionally, the model determination further includes a communication component. For example, the communication component may include a receiver and / or a transmitter.

[0257] In a specific implementation process, at least one processor 111 executes computer-executable instructions stored in the memory 112, so that at least one processor 111 executes the communication method as described above.

[0258] For the specific implementation process of the processor 111, reference may be made to the above method embodiments, and the implementation principles and technical effects are similar, which will not be elaborated in this embodiment.

[0259] Figure 12 FIG. is a schematic hardware structure diagram of a terminal device provided by an embodiment of the present application, as Figure 12 shown, the terminal device includes: at least one processor 121 and a memory 122. Wherein, the processor 121 and the memory 122 are connected through a bus 123.

[0260] Optionally, the model determination further includes a communication component. For example, the communication component may include a receiver and / or a transmitter.

[0261] In a specific implementation process, at least one processor 121 executes computer-executable instructions stored in the memory 122, so that at least one processor 121 executes the communication method as described above.

[0262] For the specific implementation process of the processor 121, reference may be made to the above method embodiments, and the implementation principles and technical effects are similar, which will not be elaborated in this embodiment.

[0263] In the above Figure 11 or Figure 12In the illustrated embodiment, it should be understood that the processor may be a central processing unit (CPU), or may also be other general-purpose processors, digital signal processors (DSPs), application specific integrated circuits (ASICs), etc. The general-purpose processor may be a microprocessor or any conventional processor, etc. The steps of the method disclosed in combination with the application can be directly implemented by the execution of the hardware processor, or can be implemented by the combination of the hardware and software modules in the processor.

[0264] The memory may include high-speed RAM memory and may also include non-volatile storage NVM, such as at least one disk memory.

[0265] The bus may be an Industry Standard Architecture (ISA) bus, a Peripheral Component Interconnect (PCI) bus, an Extended Industry Standard Architecture (EISA) bus, etc. The bus can be divided into an address bus, a data bus, a control bus, etc. For the convenience of representation, the buses in the drawings of this application are not limited to only one bus or one type of bus.

[0266] This application also provides a computer-readable storage medium, in which computer-executable instructions are stored. When the processor executes the computer-executable instructions, the communication method described above is implemented.

[0267] For the above-mentioned computer-readable storage medium, the above-readable storage medium can be implemented by any type of volatile or non-volatile storage device or a combination thereof, such as static random access memory (SRAM), electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM), programmable read-only memory (PROM), read-only memory (ROM), magnetic memory, flash memory, a disk or an optical disc. The readable storage medium can be any available medium accessible by a general or special-purpose computer.

[0268] An exemplary readable storage medium is coupled to a processor, enabling the processor to read information from and write information to the readable storage medium. Of course, the readable storage medium can also be part of the processor. The processor and the readable storage medium can be located in an Application Specific Integrated Circuits (ASIC). Of course, the processor and the readable storage medium can also exist as discrete components in a device.

[0269] The division of the units is only a logical function division. In actual implementation, there may be other division methods. For example, multiple units or components can be combined or integrated into another system, or some features can be ignored or not executed. Additionally, the couplings or direct couplings or communication connections shown or discussed between each other can be indirect couplings or communication connections through some interfaces, devices or units, and can be in electrical, mechanical or other forms.

[0270] The units described as separate components may or may not be physically separated. The components shown as units may or may not be physical units, that is, they can be located in one place or distributed to multiple network units. Some or all of the units can be selected according to actual needs to achieve the purpose of the solution of this embodiment.

[0271] In addition, in each embodiment of the present application, the functional units can be integrated in a processing unit, or each unit can exist physically alone, or two or more units can be integrated in one unit.

[0272] If the functions are implemented in the form of software functional units and sold or used as independent products, they can be stored in a computer-readable storage medium. Based on this understanding, the technical solution of the present application, in essence, or the part that contributes to the prior art or part of this technical solution can be embodied in the form of a software product. This computer software product is stored in a storage medium and includes several instructions for causing a computer device (which can be a personal computer, a server, or a network device, etc.) to execute all or part of the steps of the methods described in each embodiment of the present application. The aforementioned storage medium includes: various media such as USB flash drives, mobile hard disks, read-only memories (ROM, Read-Only Memory), random access memories (RAM, Random Access Memory), magnetic disks, or optical discs that can store program codes.

[0273] Those of ordinary skill in the art can understand that all or part of the steps of implementing the above method embodiments can be completed by hardware related to program instructions. The foregoing program can be stored in a computer-readable storage medium. When the program is executed, it performs the steps of the above method embodiments; and the foregoing storage medium includes various media that can store program codes, such as ROM, RAM, magnetic disks, or optical discs.

[0274] Finally, it should be noted that the above embodiments are only used to illustrate the technical solutions of the present application, rather than to limit them; although the present application has been described in detail with reference to the foregoing embodiments, those of ordinary skill in the art should understand that they can still modify the technical solutions described in the foregoing embodiments, or perform equivalent replacements on some or all of the technical features; and these modifications or replacements do not cause the essence of the corresponding technical solutions to deviate from the scope of the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present application.

Claims

1. A communication method, characterized in that, Including: The relay device switches from the first cell to the second cell and establishes a connection with the second cell. Before successfully establishing a connection with the second cell, the relay device maintains a connection with the first cell; The relay device sends indication information to the terminal device, and the indication information is used to indicate that the relay device establishes a connection with the second cell, so that the terminal device stops sending second data to the first cell through the relay device according to the indication information and sends first data to the second cell through the relay device; the second data is data delivered by the protocol entity corresponding to the first cell; the first data is data delivered by the protocol entity corresponding to the second cell.

2. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that, The relay device switches from the first cell to the second cell and establishes a connection with the second cell, including: The relay device receives a handover command from the first cell; The relay device switches from the first cell to the second cell according to the handover command and establishes a connection with the second cell.

3. The method according to claim 2, characterized in that, The handover command includes the identifier of the second cell.

4. The method according to claim 2 or 3, characterized in that, The handover command includes the configuration information of the second cell.

5. The method according to claim 4, characterized in that, Before the relay device switches from the first cell to the second cell according to the handover command and establishes a connection with the second cell, the method further includes: The relay device sends the handover command to the terminal device; The relay device receives a response to the handover command from the terminal device.

6. The method according to claim 5, characterized in that, The method further includes: The relay device receives first data from the terminal device and sends the first data to the second cell.

7. The method according to claim 6, characterized in that, The relay device receives first data from the terminal device and sends the first data to the second cell, including: After the relay device sends the indication information to the terminal device, the relay device receives the first data from the terminal device and sends the first data to the second cell.

8. The method according to claim 6, characterized in that, The relay device receives first data from the terminal device and sends the first data to the second cell, including: After the relay device receives the handover command from the first cell, the relay device receives the first data from the terminal device; After the relay device establishes a connection with the second cell, the relay device sends the first data to the second cell.

9. The method according to any one of claims 1-3, 5-8, characterized in that, Before the relay device establishes a connection with the second cell, the method further includes: The relay device receives second data from the terminal device and sends the second data to the first cell.

10. A communication method, characterized in that, Including: The terminal device receives indication information from the relay device, and the indication information is used to indicate that the relay device switches from the first cell to the second cell and establishes a connection with the second cell. Before successfully establishing a connection with the second cell, the relay device maintains a connection with the first cell; The terminal device stops sending the second data to the first cell via the relay device according to the indication information; and sends the first data to the second cell via the relay device; the second data is the data submitted by the protocol entity corresponding to the first cell; and the first data is the data submitted by the protocol entity corresponding to the second cell.

11. The method according to claim 10, characterized in that, Before the terminal device receives the indication information from the relay device, the method further includes: The terminal device receives a handover command from the relay device; The terminal device sends a response to the handover command to the relay device.

12. The method according to claim 11, characterized in that, The handover command includes the identifier of the second cell.

13. The method according to claim 11, characterized in that, The handover command includes the configuration information of the second cell.

14. The method according to claim 13, characterized in that, The terminal device sending the first data to the second cell via the relay device includes: After receiving the indication information from the relay device, the terminal device sends the first data to the relay device.

15. The method according to claim 13, characterized in that, The terminal device sending the first data to the second cell via the relay device includes: After receiving the handover command from the relay device, the terminal device sends the first data to the relay device.

16. A communication device, characterized in that, Includes: A handover module, configured to hand over from the first cell to the second cell, establish a connection with the second cell, and before successfully establishing a connection with the second cell, the relay device maintains a connection state with the first cell; A sending module, configured to send indication information to the terminal device, where the indication information is used to instruct the relay device to establish a connection with the second cell, so that the terminal device stops sending the second data to the first cell via the relay device according to the indication information, and sends the first data to the second cell via the relay device; the second data is the data submitted by the protocol entity corresponding to the first cell; and the first data is the data submitted by the protocol entity corresponding to the second cell.

17. A communication device, characterized in that, Includes: A receiving module, configured to receive indication information from the relay device, where the indication information is used to instruct the relay device to hand over from the first cell to the second cell and establish a connection with the second cell, and before successfully establishing a connection with the second cell, the relay device maintains a connection state with the first cell; A processing module, configured to cause the terminal device to stop sending the second data to the first cell via the relay device according to the indication information; and send the first data to the second cell via the relay device; the second data is the data submitted by the protocol entity corresponding to the first cell; and the first data is the data submitted by the protocol entity corresponding to the second cell.

18. A relay device, characterized in that, Includes: At least one processor and a memory; The memory stores computer-executable instructions; The at least one processor executes the computer-executable instructions stored in the memory, so that the at least one processor executes the communication method according to any one of claims 1 to 9.

19. A terminal device, characterized in that, Includes: At least one processor and a memory; The memory stores computer-executable instructions; The at least one processor executes the computer-executable instructions stored in the memory, so that the at least one processor executes the communication method according to any one of claims 10 to 15.

20. A computer-readable storage medium, characterized in that, The computer-readable storage medium stores computer-executable instructions, and when the processor executes the computer-executable instructions, the communication method according to any one of claims 1 to 15 is implemented.

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