Non-terrestrial network communication method and apparatus, terminal, and network device

Abstract

Embodiments of the present application disclose a non-terrestrial network communication method, apparatus, terminal, and network device. The method includes: a terminal receiving configuration information for a cell from a network device; the terminal determining beam ground distribution information according to the configuration information, where the beam ground distribution information is used to represent the beam distribution on the ground of signals sent by the satellite to which the cell belongs. It can be seen that in the embodiments of the present application, since the beam ground distribution information is used to represent the beam distribution on the ground of signals sent by the satellite to which the cell belongs, the signal coverage of a certain area on the earth's surface by the satellite to which the cell belongs is determined through the beam ground distribution information. Thus, it is not only beneficial to configure beam ground distribution information for a cell from the network device to the terminal, but also beneficial to implement beam management, cell handover, or cell reselection for the non-terrestrial network communication system.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This application relates to the field of communication technologies, and in particular, to a non-terrestrial network communication method and apparatus, a terminal, and a network device. Background Art

[0002] Currently, the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) is formulating protocol standards for non-terrestrial network (NTN) communication, and its protocol standards mainly involve spaceborne vehicles or airborne vehicles, such as geostationary earth orbit satellites, low earth orbit satellites, highly elliptical orbit satellites, high-altitude platform stations (HAPS), etc.

[0003] Satellites in the NTN communication system usually generate one or more beams (or beam footprints) on the ground, and the one or more beams form a cell on the ground. At the same time, the beam distribution between the one or more beams is called the beam pattern (or beam layout) for the cell. However, how the NTN communication system provides the beam pattern for the cell, so as to facilitate beam management, cell handover, or cell reselection in the NTN communication system, still needs further research. Summary of the Invention

[0004] Embodiments of this application provide a non-terrestrial network communication method and apparatus, a terminal, and a network device, in order to configure beam pattern information for a cell from a network device to a terminal, and to implement beam management, cell handover, or cell reselection for the non-terrestrial network communication system.

[0005] In a first aspect, embodiments of this application provide a non-terrestrial network communication method, which is applied to a terminal in a non-terrestrial network communication system, and the non-terrestrial network communication system includes the terminal and a network device; the method includes:

[0006] Receiving configuration information for a cell from the network device;

[0007] Determining beam pattern information according to the configuration information, where the beam pattern information is used to represent the beam distribution on the ground of the signal sent by the satellite to which the cell belongs.

[0008] Second aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a non-terrestrial network communication method, which is characterized in that it is applied to a network device in a non-terrestrial network communication system, and the non-terrestrial network communication system includes the network device and a terminal; the method includes:

[0009] Sending configuration information for a cell to the terminal, where the configuration information is used to determine beam ground distribution information, and the beam ground distribution information is used to represent the beam distribution on the ground of the signal sent by the satellite to which the cell belongs.

[0010] Third aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a non-terrestrial network communication device, which is applied to a terminal in a non-terrestrial network communication system, and the non-terrestrial network system includes the terminal and a network device; the device includes a processing unit and a communication unit, and the processing unit is used for:

[0011] Receiving, through the communication unit, configuration information for a cell from the network device;

[0012] Determining beam ground distribution information according to the configuration information, where the beam ground distribution information is used to represent the beam distribution on the ground of the signal sent by the satellite to which the cell belongs.

[0013] Fourth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a non-terrestrial network communication device, which is applied to a network device in a non-terrestrial network communication system, and the non-terrestrial network communication system includes the network device and a terminal; the device includes a processing unit and a communication unit, and the processing unit is used for:

[0014] Sending, through the communication unit, configuration information for a cell to the terminal, where the configuration information is used to determine beam ground distribution information, and the beam ground distribution information is used to represent the beam distribution on the ground of the signal sent by the satellite to which the cell belongs.

[0015] Fifth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a terminal, which includes a processor, a memory, a communication interface, and one or more programs. Among them, the one or more programs are stored in the memory and are configured to be executed by the processor, and the programs include instructions for executing the steps in any method of the first aspect of the embodiments of the present application.

[0016] Sixth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a network device, which includes a processor, a memory, a communication interface, and one or more programs. Among them, the one or more programs are stored in the memory and are configured to be executed by the processor, and the programs include instructions for executing the steps in any method of the second aspect of the embodiments of the present application.

[0017] In a seventh aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a chip, including: a processor, configured to call and run a computer program from a memory, such that a device installed with the chip executes some or all of the steps described in any of the methods of the first aspect or the second aspect of the embodiments of the present application.

[0018] In an eighth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a computer-readable storage medium, wherein the computer-readable storage medium stores a computer program for electronic data exchange, and the computer program causes a computer to execute some or all of the steps described in any of the methods of the first aspect or the second aspect of the embodiments of the present application.

[0019] In a ninth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a computer program, wherein the computer program is operable to cause a computer to execute some or all of the steps described in any of the methods of the first aspect or the second aspect of the embodiments of the present application. The computer program may be a software installation package.

[0020] It can be seen that in the embodiments of the present application, a network device sends configuration information for a cell to a terminal; then, the terminal receives the configuration information and determines beam ground distribution information according to the configuration information. Since the beam ground distribution information is used to represent the beam distribution on the ground of the signal sent by the satellite to which the cell belongs, the signal coverage of a certain area on the earth's surface by the satellite to which the cell belongs is determined through the beam ground distribution information, which is not only conducive to implementing the configuration of the beam ground distribution information for the cell from the network device to the terminal, but also conducive to implementing beam management, cell handover, or cell reselection for the non-terrestrial network communication system. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0021] To more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present application, the following briefly introduces the drawings required for use in the embodiments or the description of the prior art. Obviously, the drawings in the following description are only some embodiments of the present application. For those of ordinary skill in the art, other drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without creative efforts.

[0022] Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of the architecture of a non-terrestrial network communication system provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0023] Figure 2 is a schematic diagram of the architecture of a transparent satellite communication system provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0024] Figure 3 is a schematic diagram of the structure of a beam ground distribution method of an NTN communication system provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0025] Figure 4It is a schematic flowchart of non-terrestrial network communication provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0026] Figure 5 It is a schematic structural diagram of a preset beam ground distribution map provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0027] Figure 6 It is a schematic structural diagram of a beam numbering method provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0028] Figure 7 It is a schematic structural diagram of beam ground distribution information of a current serving cell and beam ground distribution information of subsequent neighboring cells provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0029] Figure 8 It is another schematic structural diagram of beam ground distribution information of a current serving cell and beam ground distribution information of subsequent neighboring cells provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0030] Figure 9 It is another schematic structural diagram of beam ground distribution information of a current serving cell and beam ground distribution information of subsequent neighboring cells provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0031] Figure 10 It is another schematic structural diagram of beam ground distribution information of a current serving cell and beam ground distribution information of subsequent neighboring cells provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0032] Figure 11 It is another schematic structural diagram of beam ground distribution information of a current serving cell and beam ground distribution information of subsequent neighboring cells provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0033] Figure 12 It is a block diagram of functional units of a non-terrestrial network communication device provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0034] Figure 13 It is another block diagram of functional units of a non-terrestrial network communication device provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0035] Figure 14 It is a schematic structural diagram of a terminal provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0036] Figure 15 It is a schematic structural diagram of a network device provided by an embodiment of the present application. Detailed implementation manners

[0037] Next, the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present application will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings in the embodiments of the present application. Obviously, the described embodiments are part of the embodiments of the present application, rather than all the embodiments. For the embodiments in the present application, all other embodiments obtained by those of ordinary skill in the art without creative efforts shall fall within the protection scope of the present application.

[0038] The technical solution of the embodiment of the present application can be applied to a non-terrestrial network (NTN) communication system, and the NTN communication system generally uses satellite communication to provide communication services to ground terminals.

[0039] Exemplarily, the non-terrestrial network communication system applied in the embodiment of the present application is as Figure 1 shown. The non-terrestrial network communication system 10 may include a terminal 110, a reference point 120 within a cell, a satellite 130, a non-terrestrial network gateway (NTN gateway) 140, and a network device 150. Among them, the terminal 110, the non-terrestrial network gateway 140, and the network device 150 are located on the Earth's surface, while the satellite 130 is located in the Earth's orbit. The satellite 130 can provide communication services to the geographical area covered by the signal and can communicate with the terminal 110 located within the signal coverage area. At the same time, the terminal 110 is located within a certain cell, and the cell includes a reference point 120 within the cell. In addition, the wireless communication link between the terminal 110 and the satellite 130 is called a service link, and the wireless communication link between the satellite 130 and the non-terrestrial network gateway (NTN gateway) 140 is called a feeder link. It should be noted that the non-terrestrial network gateway (NTN gateway) 140 and the network device 150 may be integrated into the same device or may be separate different devices.

[0040] The embodiments of the present application describe each embodiment in combination with the terminal, the satellite, and the network device. The following is a specific introduction to them.

[0041] Specifically, the terminal in the embodiments of the present application may be a user equipment (UE), access terminal, user unit, user station, mobile station, mobile device, remote station, remote terminal, mobile device, user terminal, intelligent terminal, wireless communication device, user agent or user device. The terminal may also be a cellular phone, cordless phone, session initiation protocol (SIP) phone, wireless local loop (WLL) station, personal digital assistant (PDA), handheld device with wireless communication function, computing device or other processing device connected to a wireless modem, relay device, vehicle-mounted device, wearable device, terminal in a next-generation communication system such as an NR network, or a terminal in a future evolved public land mobile network (PLMN), etc., and no specific limitation is made thereto.

[0042] Furthermore, the terminal may be a mobile phone, tablet computer (Pad), computer with wireless transceiver function, virtual reality (VR) terminal device, augmented reality (AR) terminal device, wireless terminal device in industrial control, vehicle-mounted device in self-driving, wireless terminal device in remote medical, wireless terminal device in smart grid, wireless terminal device in transportation safety, wireless terminal device in smart city or wireless terminal device in smart home, etc.

[0043] Specifically, the satellite in the embodiments of the present application can be regarded as a spacecraft carrying a bent pipe payload or a regenerative payload signal transmitter, which usually operates in a low earth orbit (LEO) at an altitude between 300 and 1500 km, a medium earth orbit (MEO) at an altitude between 7000 and 25000 km, a geostationary earth orbit (GEO) at an altitude of 35786 km, or a high elliptical orbit (HEO) at an altitude between 400 and 50000 km. That is to say, satellites can be LEO satellites, MEO satellites, GEO satellites, or HEO satellites, etc. according to different orbital altitudes.

[0044] Furthermore, the signals sent by the satellites in the embodiments of the present application usually generate one or more beams (or beam footprints) on a given service area bounded by their field of view. At the same time, the shape of a beam on the ground can be elliptical, and the field of view of the satellite depends on the antenna and the minimum elevation angle, etc.

[0045] Specifically, the non-terrestrial network gateway in the embodiments of the present application can be regarded as an earth station or gateway located on the earth's surface and capable of providing sufficient radio frequency (RF) power and RF sensitivity to connect to the satellite. At the same time, the non-terrestrial network gateway can be a transport network layer (TNL) node.

[0046] Specifically, the network device in the embodiments of the present application may be a base transceiver station (BTS) in a global system of mobile communication (GSM) communication system or a code division multiple access (CDMA) communication system, a node B (NB) in a wideband code division multiple access (WCDMA) communication system, an evolutional node B (eNB or eNodeB) in a long term evolution (LTE) communication system, or a gNB in a new radio (NR) communication system. The network device may also be an access point (AP) in a wireless local area network (WLAN), a relay station, a network device in a future evolved PLMN network, or a network device in an NTN communication system, etc.

[0047] It should be noted that in some network deployments, a gNB may include a centralized unit (CU) and a distributed unit (DU), and a gNB may also include an active antenna unit (AAU). Among them, the CU can implement some functions of the gNB, and the DU can also implement some functions of the gNB. For example, the CU is responsible for processing non-real-time protocols and services, and implementing the functions of the radio resource control (RRC) layer and the packet data convergence protocol (PDCP) layer; the DU is responsible for processing physical layer protocols and real-time services, and implementing the functions of the radio link control (RLC) layer, the media access control (MAC) layer, and the physical (PHY) layer. In addition, the AAU implements some physical layer processing functions, radio frequency processing, and related functions of the active antenna. Since the information of the RRC layer will ultimately become the information of the PHY layer, or is transformed from the information of the PHY layer, the high-layer signaling (such as RRC layer signaling) can be considered to be sent by the DU, or sent by the DU + AAU. It can be understood that the network device may include one or more devices among the CU node, the DU node, and the AAU node. In addition, the CU can be classified as a network device in the radio access network (RAN), or the CU can be classified as a network device in the core network (CN), and no specific restrictions are made on this.

[0048] Exemplarily, the embodiment of the present application provides a schematic architecture diagram of a communication system with a transparent satellite, as Figure 2 shown. Among them, the terminal, the non-terrestrial network gateway, and the gNB are located on the earth's surface, while the satellite is located in the earth's orbit. At the same time, the satellite, the non-terrestrial network gateway, and the gNB can serve as a 5G radio access network (NG-radio access network, NG-RAN), and the NG-RAN is connected to the 5G core network through the NG interface. It should be noted that the satellite payload implements frequency conversion and radio frequency amplifiers in both the uplink and downlink directions, and the satellite corresponds to an analog RF repeater. In addition, different transparent satellites can be connected to the same gNB on the ground.

[0049] Before introducing the non-terrestrial network communication method provided by the embodiment of the present application in detail, the related communication technologies involved in the present application will be introduced.

[0050] 1. Coverage Pattern of NTN

[0051] Satellites in an NTN communication system usually generate one or more beams (or beam footprints) on the ground, and the shape of a beam on the ground can be elliptical. At the same time, the beam moves on the ground as the satellite moves in its orbit. For example, please refer to Figure 3 , Figure 3 which illustrates two beam ground distribution methods of NTN communication systems. Among them, in Figure 3 (a) of, the satellite 310 in the transparent relay mode (bent pipe mode) generates at least one beam 320 on the ground, and the at least one beam 320 forms a cell on the ground. At this time, the terminal 330 located in this cell can measure one beam among all the beams of this cell and establish a communication connection with the satellite 310 through this beam. Similarly, in Figure 3 (b) of, the satellite 340 carrying a base station (regenerative signal mode) generates at least one beam 350 on the ground, and the at least one beam 350 can form a cell. At this time, the terminal 360 located in this cell can measure one beam among all the beams of this cell and establish a communication connection with the satellite 340 through this beam.

[0052] 2. Beam Management, Cell Handover, and Cell Reselection in NTN Communication Systems

[0053] Cells in an NTN communication system are usually composed of one or more beams generated by a satellite on the ground, and a terminal located in this cell can only measure one beam most of the time.

[0054] For cell handover or cell reselection in an NTN communication system, a terminal usually switches from one beam of a source cell to one beam of a target cell. In addition, since the near - far effect of satellite signals at the cell edge and center on the ground is not obvious, cell reselection or cell handover based on measurements such as reference signal receiving power (RSRP) and reference signal receiving quality (RSRQ) cannot work properly. Therefore, cell reselection or cell handover needs to be based on the terminal location and cell movement on the ground.

[0055] Compared with terrestrial communication systems, due to the longer propagation delay in NTN communication systems, conditional handover (CHO) needs to be introduced in the handover process of NTN communication systems. In addition, conditional beam management needs to be adopted for beam management in NTN communication systems. When the terminal location is used as a CHO condition, a beam ground distribution map for the cell needs to be provided, such as the beam ground distribution map of the serving cell, the target cell, and the neighboring cell.

[0056] In summary, in order to facilitate beam management, cell handover, and cell reselection in NTN communication systems, further research on the beam ground distribution map for the cell is needed.

[0057] Currently, the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) is formulating protocol standards for non-terrestrial network (NTN) communication, and its protocol standards mainly involve spaceborne vehicles or airborne vehicles, such as geostationary earth orbit satellites, low earth orbit satellites, highly elliptical orbit satellites, high-altitude platform stations (HAPS), etc.

[0058] Satellites in NTN communication systems usually generate one or more beams (or beam footprints) on the ground, and the one or more beams form a cell on the ground. At the same time, the beam distribution between the one or more beams is called the beam ground distribution map (beam pattern or beam layout) for the cell. However, how NTN communication systems provide the beam ground distribution map for the cell to facilitate beam management, cell handover, or cell reselection in NTN communication systems still needs further research.

[0059] Combined with the above description, the embodiments of the present application provide a schematic flowchart of a non-terrestrial network communication method. Please refer to Figure 4 . This method is applied to a non-terrestrial network communication system, and the non-terrestrial network communication system may include a terminal and a network device. This method includes:

[0060] S410. The network device sends configuration information for the cell to the terminal.

[0061] Among them, the configuration information can be used to determine the beam ground distribution information, and the beam ground distribution information can be used to represent the beam distribution on the ground of the signal sent by the satellite to which the cell belongs.

[0062] It should be noted that the technical solution in the embodiment of this application is applicable to both the transparent relay mode and the regenerative signal mode. In the transparent relay mode, the configuration information comes from a network device located on the ground. In the regenerative signal mode, since the network device is located on the satellite, the configuration information comes from a network device located on the satellite.

[0063] Furthermore, it should be noted that the signal sent by a certain satellite in the NTN communication system will generate at least one beam in a given service area bounded by its field of view, and this given service area can be understood as a cell on the ground. In other words, the at least one beam will form this cell on the ground. At the same time, in this application, this satellite is referred to as the satellite to which the cell belongs, and the beam distribution information between the at least one beam is referred to as the beam ground distribution map for this cell.

[0064] Specifically, the configuration information can be transmitted by a system message. It can be understood that the network device can send a system message to the terminal to provide the configuration information for the cell to the terminal.

[0065] Specifically, the cell can include the current serving cell and at least one subsequent neighboring cell for subsequent coverage of the current serving cell.

[0066] It should be noted that when at least one beam generated by a certain satellite on the ground forms a cell, a terminal located within this cell can measure one beam among all the beams of this cell and establish a communication connection with the satellite through this beam. At this time, this cell serves as the current serving cell.

[0067] Further, it should be noted that since the satellite will keep moving on its orbit, at least one beam generated by the satellite on the ground will move along with the movement of the satellite. That is to say, the cell formed by the at least one beam will also keep moving. It can be seen that, different from the situation in terrestrial communication where the positions of the source base station and the target base station are often fixed when the terminal switches from the source base station in the source cell to the target base station in the target cell, since the satellite moves along the preset orbit and the movement of the terminal on the ground can be basically ignored compared with the movement of the satellite, that is to say, the terminal is basically stationary. Therefore, when studying cell handover or cell reselection in the NTN communication system, the neighboring cell to which the terminal in the embodiment of the present application switches from the current serving cell is mainly at least one subsequent neighboring cell used to cover the current serving cell subsequently. At the same time, since the satellite moves along the preset orbit, at least one subsequent neighboring cell that can cover the current serving cell subsequently can be estimated through various information such as the movement direction and speed of the satellite and the movement trajectory of the beam generated by the satellite on the ground.

[0068] S420. The terminal receives configuration information from the network device.

[0069] S430. The terminal determines beam ground distribution information according to the configuration information.

[0070] In a possible example, determining the beam ground distribution information according to the configuration information may include the following operations: determining the beam ground distribution information of the current serving cell and at least one subsequent neighboring cell according to the configuration information; or; determining the beam ground distribution information of the current serving cell and at least one subsequent neighboring cell according to the configuration information and a preset beam ground distribution map.

[0071] Wherein, the preset beam ground distribution map is used to represent the beam ground distribution map of the satellite in the preset non-terrestrial network communication system, and each beam in the preset beam ground distribution map has a beam number.

[0072] It should be noted that in the embodiment of the present application, the beam distribution of the signals sent by multiple satellites in the NTN communication system on the ground is determined in advance to obtain the preset beam ground distribution map. In addition, the beam number can be used to represent the unique identity (ID) information of the beam.

[0073] Exemplarily, please refer to Figure 5 and Figure 6 . Figure 5 Fig. shows a schematic structural diagram of a preset beam ground distribution map, wherein the hexagonal block diagram is used to represent the ground area formed by 19 beams. Figure 6 Fig. shows the beam numbers of each beam in the ground area formed by 19 beams, and the beams between different hexagonal block diagrams have different beam numbers.

[0074] It can be seen that in the embodiments of the present application, the network device sends configuration information for a cell to the terminal; then, the terminal receives the configuration information and determines the beam ground distribution information according to the configuration information. Since the beam ground distribution information is used to represent the beam distribution on the ground of the signal sent by the satellite to which the cell belongs, the signal coverage of a certain area on the earth's surface by the satellite to which the cell belongs can be determined through the beam ground distribution information. Therefore, it is not only beneficial to realize the configuration of the beam ground distribution information for the cell from the network device to the terminal, but also beneficial to realize beam management, cell handover or cell reselection for the non-terrestrial network communication system.

[0075] Next, the embodiments of the present application will specifically introduce the configuration information.

[0076] In a possible example, the configuration information may include beam center point coordinate information or beam number information.

[0077] Among them, the beam center point coordinate information can be used to represent the beam center point coordinates on the ground of the signal sent by the satellite to which the cell belongs, and the beam number information can be used to represent the beam number on the ground of the signal sent by the satellite to which the cell belongs.

[0078] Specifically, the beam center point can be used to represent the point where the main lobe direction (the beam maximum radiation direction) in the beam antenna pattern intersects the ground.

[0079] Furthermore, the configuration information further includes beam basic shape information; or, the beam basic shape information is pre-configured.

[0080] Among them, the beam basic shape information can be used to represent the beam shape irradiated on the ground by the signal sent by the satellite to which the cell belongs when the beam center point on the ground of the signal sent by the satellite to which the cell belongs coincides with the projection point of the satellite to which the cell belongs on the ground.

[0081] It should be noted that since the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present application are applicable to both the transparent relay mode and the regenerative signal mode. In the transparent relay mode, the beam basic shape information comes from the network device located on the ground. In the regenerative signal mode, since the network device is located on the satellite, the beam basic shape information comes from the network device located on the satellite. In addition, the configuration information can also be pre-configured. Among them, pre-configuration can be understood as being configured at the factory or the terminal is outside the signal coverage of the satellite to continue to retain the configuration of the original network device, etc., and no specific restrictions are imposed on this.

[0082] It should be further noted that in the embodiments of the present application, in addition to being determined according to the beam basic shape information, the beam shape of the signal transmitted by the satellite to which the cell belongs irradiated on the ground can also be calculated by the angle between the signal transmitted by the satellite and the ground and the propagation delay of the signal to the ground, etc. Therefore, on the premise that the terminal obtains the beam center point coordinate information, the terminal can either determine the beam ground distribution information of the current serving cell and at least one subsequent neighboring cell according to the beam center point coordinate information and the beam basic shape information, or determine the beam ground distribution information of the current serving cell and at least one subsequent neighboring cell according to the beam center point coordinate information and the true shape of the beam. No specific limitation is made thereto.

[0083] Specifically, the beam center point coordinate information may include at least one of the following: the beam center point coordinates of all beams (or referred to as beam footprints) of the current serving cell, and the beam center point coordinates of all beams of each subsequent neighboring cell in at least one subsequent neighboring cell.

[0084] It should be noted that when at least one beam generated by a certain satellite forms a cell on the ground, and a terminal located in the cell establishes a communication connection with the satellite through one of all beams of the cell, the cell serves as the current serving cell. Therefore, by determining the beam center point of each beam in the at least one beam generated by the satellite, the beam center point coordinates of all beams of the current serving cell are obtained. Similarly, the beam center point coordinates of all beams of each subsequent neighboring cell in at least one subsequent neighboring cell are estimated through information such as the running direction and speed of the satellite along the preset orbit and the movement trajectory of the at least one beam generated by the satellite.

[0085] Specifically, the beam number information may include at least one of the following: the beam numbers of all beams of the current serving cell, and the beam numbers of all beams of each subsequent neighboring cell in at least one subsequent neighboring cell.

[0086] Next, the embodiments of the present application will specifically describe how to determine the beam center point coordinates.

[0087] Specifically, the beam center point coordinates of all beams of the current serving cell are distributed on the first two-dimensional coordinate system, and the coordinate origin of the first two-dimensional coordinate system is the projection point of the satellite to which the current serving cell belongs on the ground.

[0088] It should be noted that in the embodiments of the present application, first, the projection point of the satellite to which the current serving cell belongs on the ground is used as the coordinate origin to construct a two-dimensional coordinate system, and then the distribution of the beam center points of all the beams of the current serving cell in this two-dimensional coordinate system is determined, and finally the beam center point coordinates of all the beams of the current serving cell are obtained. In addition, the projection point of the satellite on the ground can be understood as the intersection point between the perpendicular line from the satellite to the ground and the ground.

[0089] Further, if the satellite to which the current serving cell belongs is the same as the satellite to which the first subsequent neighboring cell belongs, the beam center point coordinates of all the beams of the first subsequent neighboring cell are distributed on the first two-dimensional coordinate system; where the first subsequent neighboring cell is used to represent one of at least one subsequent neighboring cell; or, if the satellite to which the current serving cell belongs is different from the satellite to which the first subsequent neighboring cell belongs, the beam center point coordinates of all the beams of the first subsequent neighboring cell are distributed on the second two-dimensional coordinate system, and the coordinate origin of the second two-dimensional coordinate system is the projection point of the satellite to which the first subsequent neighboring cell belongs on the ground.

[0090] It should be noted that since at least one subsequent neighboring cell that subsequently covers the current serving cell includes both subsequent neighboring cells generated by the satellite to which the current serving cell belongs and subsequent neighboring cells generated by another satellite, the beam center point coordinates of all the beams of each subsequent neighboring cell need to be adjusted accordingly according to the difference of the satellite to which each subsequent neighboring cell belongs.

[0091] Exemplarily, please refer to Figure 7 and Figure 8 . In Figure 7 , the area 710 represents the current serving cell, and the area 720 represents a subsequent neighboring cell for subsequently covering the current serving cell. At the same time, Figure 7 it is exemplified that when the satellite to which the current serving cell belongs is the same as the satellite to which the subsequent neighboring cell belongs, the number of beam center point coordinates of all the beams of the current serving cell is 10, and the number of beam center point coordinates of all the beams of the subsequent neighboring cell is 10, and the beam center point coordinates of all the beams of the current serving cell and the beam center point coordinates of all the beams of the subsequent neighboring cell are both distributed in the two-dimensional coordinate system constructed with the projection point 730 of the satellite to which the current serving cell belongs on the ground as the coordinate origin. Similarly, in Figure 8 , the area 810 represents the current serving cell, and the area 820 represents a subsequent neighboring cell for subsequently covering the current serving cell. At the same time, Figure 8When the satellite to which the current serving cell belongs is different from the satellite to which the subsequent neighboring cell belongs, the number of beam center point coordinates of all beams of the current serving cell is 10, the number of beam center point coordinates of all beams of the subsequent neighboring cell is 10, and the beam center point coordinates of all beams of the current serving cell and the beam center point coordinates of all beams of the subsequent neighboring cell are all distributed in a two-dimensional coordinate system constructed with the projection point 830 of the satellite to which the current serving cell belongs on the ground as the coordinate origin, while the beam center point coordinates of all beams of the subsequent neighboring cell are distributed in a two-dimensional coordinate system constructed with the projection point 840 of the satellite to which the subsequent neighboring cell belongs on the ground as the coordinate origin.

[0092] Further, if the satellite to which the current serving cell belongs is different from the satellite to which the first subsequent neighboring cell belongs, the configuration information further includes the satellite number of the satellite to which the first subsequent neighboring cell belongs.

[0093] Specifically, the satellite number can be used to represent the unique identification information of the satellite.

[0094] It should be noted that when the satellite to which a certain subsequent neighboring cell belongs is different from the satellite to which the current serving cell belongs, the network device also needs to inform the terminal which satellite this subsequent neighboring cell belongs to, which is conducive to the terminal switching from the satellite to which the current serving cell belongs to the satellite to which this subsequent neighboring cell belongs.

[0095] Based on the above description of the configuration information, the following will give examples from two specific embodiments on how the terminal determines the beam ground distribution information according to the configuration information.

[0096] Embodiment 1:

[0097] First, multiple beams generated by Satellite 1 in the NTN communication system on the ground form a cell, and a terminal located in this cell establishes a communication connection with Satellite 1 through one of all the beams of this cell. At this time, this cell is the current serving cell.

[0098] Second, the network device in the NTN communication system sends a system message to the terminal through the relay forwarding of Satellite 1.

[0099] Then, the terminal receives the system information to obtain configuration information. Among them, when all the subsequent neighboring cells that will subsequently cover the current serving cell belong to satellite 1, the configuration information includes the beam center point coordinates of all the beams of the current serving cell, the beam center point coordinates and beam basic shape information of all the beams for subsequently covering all the subsequent neighboring cells of the current serving cell, and all the beam center point coordinates are distributed in a two-dimensional coordinate system constructed with the projection point of satellite 1 on the ground as the coordinate origin; when there is a subsequent neighboring cell among all the subsequent neighboring cells that will subsequently cover the current serving cell and the satellite to which it belongs is satellite 2, the configuration information includes the beam center point coordinates of all the beams of the current serving cell, the beam center point coordinates of all the beams for subsequently covering all the subsequent neighboring cells of the current serving cell, the beam basic shape information, and the satellite number of satellite 2, and the beam center point coordinates of all the beams of the subsequent neighboring cell corresponding to satellite 2 are distributed in a two-dimensional coordinate system constructed with the projection point of satellite 2 on the ground as the coordinate origin, while the coordinates of the center points of the remaining beams are distributed in a two-dimensional coordinate system constructed with the projection point of satellite 1 on the ground as the coordinate origin.

[0100] Finally, the terminal determines the beam ground distribution information of the current serving cell and the beam ground distribution information of all the subsequent neighboring cells according to the configuration information, which is conducive to realizing the handover of the terminal between the current serving cell and all the subsequent neighboring cells according to the beam ground distribution information of the current serving cell and the beam ground distribution information of all the subsequent neighboring cells.

[0101] Embodiment 2:

[0102] Please refer to Figure 9 , first, the terminal is configured with a preset beam ground distribution map, and each beam in the preset beam ground distribution map has a beam number, that is, beam numbers from 1 to 19.

[0103] Secondly, multiple beams generated by satellite 3 in the NTN communication system on the ground form a cell, and the terminal located in this cell establishes a communication connection with satellite 3 through one of all the beams of this cell. At this time, this cell is the current serving cell.

[0104] Thirdly, the network device in the NTN communication system sends system messages to the terminal through the relay forwarding of satellite 3.

[0105] In addition, the terminal receives the system information to obtain configuration information. Among them, when all the subsequent neighbor cells that will cover the current serving cell in the future belong to Satellite 3, the configuration information includes the beam numbers (1, 2, and 5) of all the beams of the current serving cell, and the beam numbers (4, 7, 9, 10, 12, and 15) of all the beams of all the subsequent neighbor cells that will cover this cell in the future; when there is a subsequent neighbor cell among all the subsequent neighbor cells that will cover this cell in the future and the satellite to which this subsequent neighbor cell belongs is Satellite 4, the configuration information includes the beam numbers of all the beams of the current serving cell, the beam numbers of all the beams of all the subsequent neighbor cells that will cover this cell in the future, and the satellite number of Satellite 4.

[0106] Finally, the terminal determines the beam ground distribution maps of the current serving cell and all the subsequent neighbor cells according to the configuration information, which is beneficial to realizing the handover of the terminal between the current serving cell and all the subsequent neighbor cells according to the beam ground distribution maps of the current serving cell and all the subsequent neighbor cells.

[0107] In the above embodiment, the beam ground distribution map of the satellite in the NTN communication system can achieve signal coverage of a certain area on the earth's surface. However, when the LEO satellite or the HEO satellite moves continuously along the preset orbit, the corresponding cell of the LEO satellite or the HEO satellite will move continuously on the ground. Since the satellites near the equator are relatively sparse and the satellites in the high-latitude regions are relatively dense, when the beam ground distribution maps of multiple satellites near the equator are used to achieve full coverage of the earth's surface, when these multiple satellites move to the high-latitude regions, there will be a large number of beams overlapping in the beam ground distribution map. At this time, it is necessary to turn off some satellites or some beams of some satellites among these multiple satellites to avoid beam overlap and reduce frequency interference. In addition, since the relative positions of satellites to each other will change continuously, it is also necessary to continuously adjust the beam center points of the signals sent by the satellites on the ground.

[0108] Based on the above embodiment, in the embodiment of the present application, it is also necessary for the network device to send a system message to the terminal to notify that the beam center point has changed or the beam number has changed.

[0109] In a possible example, the configuration information further includes beam change information, which is used to indicate that the beam center point has changed or the beam number has changed.

[0110] For example, please refer to Figure 10 and Figure 11 . Figure 10 It is exemplified when Figure 7When the satellite to which the current serving cell in [the relevant context] moves from a low latitude to a high latitude, the number of beam center point coordinates of all beams of the current serving cell 1010 changes from 10 to 6, and the number of beam center point coordinates of all beams of the subsequent neighboring cell 1020 also changes from 10 to 6. Therefore, the system message sent by the network device to the terminal is used to notify the terminal that the beam center point coordinates of all beams of the current serving cell 1010 and the beam center point coordinates of all beams of the subsequent neighboring cell 1020 have changed. Similarly, Figure 11 illustrates when Figure 9 in [the relevant context], when the satellite to which the current serving cell moves from a low latitude to a high latitude, the beam numbers of all beams of the current serving cell change from {1, 2, 5} to {2, 5}, and the beam numbers of all beams of one subsequent neighboring cell change from {4, 7, 9} to {7, 9}, while the beam numbers of all beams of another subsequent neighboring cell remain unchanged. Therefore, the system message sent by the network device to the terminal is used to notify the terminal that the beam numbers of all beams of the current serving cell and the beam numbers of all beams of the subsequent neighboring cell 1020 have changed.

[0111] The above mainly introduces the solution of the embodiment of the present application from the perspective of the interaction between various network elements on the method side. It can be understood that in order for the terminal to implement the above functions, it includes the corresponding hardware structure and / or software module for executing each function. Those skilled in the art should easily realize that, in combination with the units and 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 certain function is executed in the way of hardware or computer software driving hardware depends on the specific application and design constraints of the technical solution. Those skilled in the art 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.

[0112] The embodiment of the present application can divide the functions of the terminal according to the above method examples. For example, each function unit can be divided corresponding to each function, or two or more functions can be integrated into one processing unit. The above integrated unit can be implemented in the form of hardware or in the form of a software program module. It should be noted that the division of units in the embodiment of the present application is illustrative, only a logical function division, and there may be other division methods in actual implementation.

[0113] In the case of adopting an integrated unit, Figure 12A functional unit composition block diagram of a non-terrestrial network communication device is provided. The non-terrestrial network communication device 1200 is applied to a terminal in a non-terrestrial network communication system and specifically includes: a processing unit 1202 and a communication unit 1203. The processing unit 1202 is used to control and manage the actions of the terminal. For example, the processing unit 1202 is used to support the terminal to execute Figure 4 some of the steps in and other processes for the technical solutions described in this application. The communication unit 1203 is used to support the communication between the terminal and other devices in the non-terrestrial network communication system. The non-terrestrial network communication device 1200 may further include a storage unit 1201 for storing the program code and data of the terminal.

[0114] Among them, the processing unit 1202 may be a processor or a controller. For example, it may be a central processing unit (CPU), a general-purpose processor, a digital signal processor (DSP), an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field programmable gate array (FPGA), or other programmable logic devices, transistor logic devices, hardware components, or any combination thereof. It can implement or execute various exemplary logic blocks, modules, and circuits described in connection with the disclosure of this application. The processing unit 1202 may also be a combination that implements computing functions, such as a combination of one or more microprocessors, a combination of a DSP and a microprocessor, and so on. The communication unit 1203 may be a communication interface, a transceiver, a transceiver circuit, etc., and the storage unit 1201 may be a memory. When the processing unit 1202 is a processor, the communication unit 1203 is a communication interface, and the storage unit 1201 is a memory, the non-terrestrial network communication device 1200 involved in the embodiments of this application may be Figure 14 the terminal shown.

[0115] In specific implementation, the processing unit 1202 is used to execute any step executed by the terminal in the above method embodiments, and when performing data transmission such as sending, it can optionally call the communication unit 1203 to complete the corresponding operation. The following is a detailed description.

[0116] The processing unit 1202 is used to: receive configuration information of a cell from a network device; determine beam ground distribution information according to the configuration information, and the beam ground distribution information is used to represent the beam distribution of the signal sent by the satellite to which the cell belongs on the ground.

[0117] It can be seen that in the embodiments of the present application, by receiving the configuration information of the cell from the network device and determining the beam ground distribution information according to the configuration information. Since the beam ground distribution information is used to represent the beam distribution on the ground of the signal transmitted by the satellite to which the cell belongs, the signal coverage of a certain area on the earth's surface by the satellite to which the cell belongs is determined through the beam ground distribution information, which is not only conducive to the network device to configure the beam ground distribution information for the cell to the terminal, but also conducive to the beam management, cell handover or cell reselection of the non-terrestrial network communication system.

[0118] In a possible example, the configuration information is transmitted by the system message.

[0119] In a possible example, the cell includes the current serving cell and at least one subsequent neighboring cell for covering the current serving cell subsequently.

[0120] In a possible example, in terms of determining the beam ground distribution information according to the configuration information, the processing unit 1202 is specifically configured to: determine the beam ground distribution information of the current serving cell and at least one subsequent neighboring cell according to the configuration information; or; determine the beam ground distribution information of the current serving cell and at least one subsequent neighboring cell according to the configuration information and the preset beam ground distribution map.

[0121] In a possible example, the preset beam ground distribution map is used to represent the beam ground distribution map of the satellites in the preset non-terrestrial network communication system; wherein, each beam in the preset beam ground distribution map has a beam number.

[0122] In a possible example, the configuration information includes beam center point coordinate information or beam number information; wherein, the beam center point coordinate information is used to represent the beam center point coordinates on the ground of the signal transmitted by the satellite to which the cell belongs, and the beam number information is used to represent the beam number on the ground of the signal transmitted by the satellite to which the cell belongs.

[0123] In a possible example, the configuration information further includes beam basic shape information; or, the beam basic shape information is pre-configured; wherein, the beam basic shape information is used to represent the beam shape irradiated on the ground when the beam center point on the ground of the signal transmitted by the satellite to which the cell belongs coincides with the projection point of the satellite to which the cell belongs on the ground.

[0124] In a possible example, the beam center point coordinate information includes at least one of the following: the beam center point coordinates of all beams of the current serving cell, the beam center point coordinates of all beams of each subsequent neighboring cell in at least one subsequent neighboring cell; the beam number information includes at least one of the following: the beam numbers of all beams of the current serving cell, the beam numbers of all beams of each subsequent neighboring cell in at least one subsequent neighboring cell.

[0125] In a possible example, the beam center point coordinates of all beams of the current serving cell are distributed on a first two-dimensional coordinate system, and the coordinate origin of the first two-dimensional coordinate system is the projection point of the satellite to which the current serving cell belongs on the ground.

[0126] In a possible example, if the satellite to which the current serving cell belongs is the same as the satellite to which the first subsequent neighboring cell belongs, the beam center point coordinates of all beams of the first subsequent neighboring cell are distributed on the first two-dimensional coordinate system; wherein, the first subsequent neighboring cell is used to represent one of the at least one subsequent neighboring cell; or, if the satellite to which the current serving cell belongs is different from the satellite to which the first subsequent neighboring cell belongs, the beam center point coordinates of all beams of the first subsequent neighboring cell are distributed on a second two-dimensional coordinate system, and the coordinate origin of the second two-dimensional coordinate system is the projection point of the satellite to which the first subsequent neighboring cell belongs on the ground.

[0127] In a possible example, if the satellite to which the current serving cell belongs is different from the satellite to which the first subsequent neighboring cell belongs, the configuration information further includes the satellite number of the satellite to which the first subsequent neighboring cell belongs.

[0128] In the case of adopting an integrated unit, Figure 13 A functional unit composition block diagram of another non-terrestrial network communication device is provided. The non-terrestrial network communication device 1300 is applied to a network device in a non-terrestrial network communication system, and specifically includes: a processing unit 1302 and a communication unit 1303. The processing unit 1302 is used to control and manage the actions of the network device. For example, the processing unit 1302 is used to support the network device to execute Figure 4 some of the steps in and other processes for the technical solutions described in this application. The communication unit 1303 is used to support the communication between the network device and other devices in the non-terrestrial network communication system. The non-terrestrial network communication device 1300 may further include a storage unit 1301, which is used to store the program code and data of the network device.

[0129] Among them, the processing unit 1302 can be a processor or a controller. For example, it can be a CPU, a DSP, an ASIC, an FPGA, or other programmable logic devices, transistor logic devices, hardware components, or any combination thereof. It can implement or execute various exemplary logical blocks, modules, and circuits described in connection with the disclosure of this application. The processing unit 1302 can also be a combination that implements computing functions, such as a combination of one or more microprocessors, a combination of a DSP and a microprocessor, and so on. The communication unit 1303 can be a communication interface, a transceiver, a transceiver circuit, etc., and the storage unit 1301 can be a memory. When the processing unit 1302 is a processor, the communication unit 1303 is a communication interface, and the storage unit 1301 is a memory, the non-terrestrial network communication device 1300 involved in the embodiments of this application can be Figure 15 the network device shown.

[0130] Specifically, the processing unit 1302 is used to execute any step performed by the network device in the above method embodiments, and when performing data transmission such as sending, it can optionally call the communication unit 1303 to complete the corresponding operation. Details are described below.

[0131] The processing unit 1302 is used to: send configuration information for a cell to a terminal, where the configuration information is used to determine beam ground distribution information, and the beam ground distribution information is used to represent the beam distribution on the ground of the signal sent by the satellite to which the cell belongs.

[0132] It can be seen that in the embodiments of this application, the non-terrestrial network communication device sends configuration information for a cell to the terminal. Since the beam ground distribution information is used to represent the beam distribution on the ground of the signal sent by the satellite to which the cell belongs, the signal coverage of a certain area of the earth's surface by the satellite to which the cell belongs can be determined through the beam ground distribution information. Therefore, it is not only beneficial to implement the configuration of the beam ground distribution information for the cell by the network device to the terminal, but also beneficial to implement beam management, cell handover, or cell reselection for the non-terrestrial network communication system.

[0133] In a possible example, the configuration information is transmitted by a system message.

[0134] In a possible example, the cell includes a current serving cell and at least one subsequent neighboring cell for covering the current serving cell subsequently.

[0135] In a possible example, the configuration information includes beam center point coordinate information or beam number information; among them, the beam center point coordinate information is used to represent the beam center point coordinates on the ground of the signal sent by the satellite to which the cell belongs, and the beam number information is used to represent the beam number on the ground of the signal sent by the satellite to which the cell belongs.

[0136] In a possible example, the configuration information further includes beam basic shape information; alternatively, the beam basic shape information is pre-configured; wherein, the beam basic shape information is used to represent the beam shape on the ground when the beam center of the signal sent by the satellite to which the cell belongs coincides with the projection point of the beam sent by the satellite to which the cell belongs on the ground.

[0137] In a possible example, the beam center point coordinate information includes at least one of the following: the beam center point coordinates of all beams of the current serving cell, the beam center point coordinates of all beams of each subsequent neighboring cell in at least one subsequent neighboring cell; the beam number information includes at least one of the following: the beam numbers of all beams of the current serving cell, the beam numbers of all beams of each subsequent neighboring cell in at least one subsequent neighboring cell.

[0138] In a possible example, the beam center point coordinates of all beams of the current serving cell are distributed on a first two-dimensional coordinate system, and the coordinate origin of the first two-dimensional coordinate system is the projection point of the satellite to which the current serving cell belongs on the ground.

[0139] In a possible example, if the satellite to which the current serving cell belongs is the same as the satellite to which the first subsequent neighboring cell belongs, the beam center point coordinates of all beams of the first subsequent neighboring cell are distributed on the first two-dimensional coordinate system; wherein, the first subsequent neighboring cell is used to represent one of the at least one subsequent neighboring cells; alternatively, if the satellite to which the current serving cell belongs is different from the satellite to which the first subsequent neighboring cell belongs, the beam center point coordinates of all beams of the first subsequent neighboring cell are distributed on a second two-dimensional coordinate system, and the coordinate origin of the second two-dimensional coordinate system is the projection point of the satellite to which the first subsequent neighboring cell belongs on the ground.

[0140] In a possible example, if the satellite to which the current serving cell belongs is different from the satellite to which the first subsequent neighboring cell belongs, the configuration information further includes the satellite number of the satellite to which the first subsequent neighboring cell belongs.

[0141] Please refer to Figure 14 , Figure 14 FIG. is a schematic structural diagram of a terminal provided by an embodiment of the present application. Among them, the terminal 1400 includes a processor 1410, a memory 1420, a communication interface 1430, and at least one communication bus for connecting the processor 1410, the memory 1420, and the communication interface 1430.

[0142] The memory 1420 includes, but is not limited to, a random access memory (RAM), a read-only memory (ROM), an erasable programmable read-only memory (PROM), or a compact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM). The memory 1420 is used for storing relevant instructions and data.

[0143] The communication interface 1430 is used for receiving and sending data.

[0144] The processor 1410 can be one or more CPUs. When the processor 1410 is a single CPU, the CPU can be a single-core CPU or a multi-core CPU.

[0145] The processor 1410 in the terminal 1400 is used to read one or more programs 1421 stored in the memory 1420 and perform the following operations: receiving configuration information for a cell from a network device; determining beam ground distribution information according to the configuration information, where the beam ground distribution information is used to represent the beam distribution of signals sent by a satellite to which the cell belongs on the ground.

[0146] It should be noted that the specific implementation of each operation can be the corresponding description in the method embodiments shown above. The terminal 1400 can be used to execute the method on the terminal side in the method embodiments of the present application, which will not be elaborated here. Figure 4 Please refer to

[0147] Please refer to Figure 15 , Figure 15 FIG. is a schematic structural diagram of a network device provided by an embodiment of the present application. Among them, the network device 1500 includes a processor 1510, a memory 1520, a communication interface 1530, and at least one communication bus for connecting the processor 1510, the memory 1520, and the communication interface 1530.

[0148] The memory 1520 includes, but is not limited to, a RAM, a ROM, a PROM, or a CD-ROM. The memory 1520 is used for storing relevant instructions and data.

[0149] The communication interface 1530 is used for receiving and sending data.

[0150] The processor 1510 can be one or more CPUs. When the processor 1510 is a single CPU, the CPU can be a single-core CPU or a multi-core CPU.

[0151] The processor 1510 in the network device 1500 is configured to read one or more programs 1521 stored in the memory 1520 and perform the following operations: sending configuration information for a cell to a terminal, where the configuration information is used to determine beam ground distribution information, and the beam ground distribution information is used to represent the beam distribution on the ground of signals transmitted by a satellite to which the cell belongs.

[0152] It should be noted that the specific implementation of each operation can be based on the corresponding description of the method embodiments shown above. The network device 1500 can be used to execute the method on the network device side of the method embodiments of the present application, which will not be specifically elaborated here. Figure 4 The embodiments of the present application also provide a chip. The chip includes a processor configured to call and run a computer program from a memory, so that a device installed with the chip performs some or all of the steps described in the terminal or network device in the above method embodiments.

[0153] The embodiments of the present application also provide a computer-readable storage medium. The computer-readable storage medium stores a computer program for electronic data exchange. The computer program causes a computer to perform some or all of the steps described in the terminal or network device in the above method embodiments.

[0154] The embodiments of the present application also provide a computer program product. The computer program product includes a computer program that is operable to cause a computer to perform some or all of the steps described in the terminal or network device in the above method embodiments. The computer program product can be a software installation package.

[0155] The steps of the methods or algorithms described in the embodiments of the present application can be implemented in a hardware manner or by a processor executing software instructions. The software instructions can be composed of corresponding software modules. The software modules can be stored in a RAM, flash memory, ROM, erasable programmable ROM (EPROM), electrically erasable programmable ROM (EEPROM), register, hard disk, removable hard disk, CD-ROM, or any other form of storage medium well-known in the art. An exemplary storage medium is coupled to the processor, enabling the processor to read information from the storage medium and write information to the storage medium. Of course, the storage medium can also be a component of the processor. The processor and the storage medium can be located in an ASIC. Additionally, the ASIC can be located in a terminal or a network device. Of course, the processor and the storage medium can also exist as discrete components in a terminal or a network device.

[0156] ​

[0157] Those skilled in the art should be able to realize that in one or more of the above examples, the functions described in the embodiments of the present application can be implemented in whole or in part by software, hardware, firmware, or any combination thereof. When implemented using software, 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 processes or functions described in the embodiments of the present application are generated in whole or in part. The computer can be a general-purpose computer, a special-purpose computer, a computer network, or other programmable devices. The computer instructions can be stored in a computer-readable storage medium or transmitted from one computer-readable storage medium to another. For example, the computer instructions can be transmitted from a website, computer, server, or data center to another website, computer, server, or data center by wire (such as coaxial cable, optical fiber, digital subscriber line (DSL)) or wirelessly (such as infrared, wireless, microwave, etc.). 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 or data center that includes one or more integrated available media. The available medium can be a magnetic medium (such as a floppy disk, hard disk, magnetic tape), an optical medium (such as a digital video disc (DVD)), or a semiconductor medium (such as a solid state disk (SSD)), etc.

[0158] The specific embodiments described above further elaborate on the objectives, technical solutions, and beneficial effects of the embodiments of the present application. It should be understood that the above is only the specific embodiments of the embodiments of the present application and is not used to limit the protection scope of the embodiments of the present application. Any modifications, equivalent replacements, improvements, etc. made on the basis of the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present application should be included in the protection scope of the embodiments of the present application.

Claims

1. A non-terrestrial network communication method, characterized in that, A terminal applied to a non-terrestrial network communication system, the non-terrestrial network communication system including the terminal and a network device; the method includes: Receiving configuration information for a cell from the network device, the configuration information including beam center point coordinate information and beam basic shape information, or the configuration information including beam number information; wherein, the beam center point coordinate information is used to represent the coordinates of the beam center point on the ground of the signal transmitted by the satellite to which the cell belongs, and the beam center point is used to represent the main lobe direction in the beam antenna pattern or the point where the beam maximum radiation direction intersects the ground; the beam basic shape information is used to represent the beam shape irradiated on the ground by the signal transmitted by the satellite to which the cell belongs when the beam center point on the ground of the signal transmitted by the satellite to which the cell belongs coincides with the projection point of the satellite to which the cell belongs on the ground; the beam number information is used to represent the beam number of the signal transmitted by the satellite to which the cell belongs on the ground; Determining beam ground distribution information according to the configuration information, the beam ground distribution information being used to represent the beam distribution on the ground of the signal transmitted by the satellite to which the cell belongs.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein The configuration information is transmitted by a system message.

3. The method according to claim 1, wherein The cell includes a current serving cell and at least one subsequent neighboring cell for subsequently covering the current serving cell.

4. The method according to claim 3, wherein The determining the beam ground distribution information according to the configuration information includes: Determining the beam ground distribution information of the current serving cell and the at least one subsequent neighboring cell according to the configuration information; or; Determining the beam ground distribution information of the current serving cell and the at least one subsequent neighboring cell according to the configuration information and a preset beam ground distribution map.

5. The method according to claim 4, wherein The preset beam ground distribution map is used to represent the beam ground distribution map of the satellites in the preset non-terrestrial network communication system; wherein, each beam in the preset beam ground distribution map has a beam number.

6. The method according to claim 3, characterized in that The beam center point coordinate information includes at least one of the following: the beam center point coordinates of all beams of the current serving cell, the beam center point coordinates of all beams of each subsequent neighboring cell in the at least one subsequent neighboring cell; The beam number information includes at least one of the following: the beam numbers of all beams of the current serving cell, the beam numbers of all beams of each subsequent neighboring cell in the at least one subsequent neighboring cell.

7. The method according to claim 6, characterized in that, The beam center point coordinates of all beams of the current serving cell are distributed on a first two-dimensional coordinate system, and the coordinate origin of the first two-dimensional coordinate system is the projection point of the satellite to which the current serving cell belongs on the ground.

8. The method according to claim 7, characterized in that If the satellite to which the current serving cell belongs is the same as the satellite to which a first subsequent neighboring cell belongs, then the beam center point coordinates of all beams of the first subsequent neighboring cell are distributed on the first two-dimensional coordinate system; wherein, the first subsequent neighboring cell is used to represent one subsequent neighboring cell in the at least one subsequent neighboring cell; or, If the satellite to which the current serving cell belongs is different from the satellite to which the first subsequent neighbor cell belongs, the beam center point coordinate distributions of all beams of the first subsequent neighbor cell are on a second two-dimensional coordinate system, and the coordinate origin of the second two-dimensional coordinate system is the projection point of the satellite to which the first subsequent neighbor cell belongs on the ground.

9. The method according to claim 8, wherein If the satellite to which the current serving cell belongs is different from the satellite to which the first subsequent neighbor cell belongs, the configuration information further includes the satellite number of the satellite to which the first subsequent neighbor cell belongs.

10. A non-terrestrial network communication method, characterized in that, A network device applied to a non-terrestrial network communication system, the non-terrestrial network communication system including the network device and a terminal; the method includes: Sending configuration information for a cell to the terminal, the configuration information being used to determine beam ground distribution information, and the beam ground distribution information being used to represent the beam distribution on the ground of a signal sent by the satellite to which the cell belongs; The configuration information includes beam center point coordinate information and beam basic shape information, or the configuration information includes beam number information; wherein, the beam center point coordinate information is used to represent the beam center point coordinates on the ground of a signal sent by the satellite to which the cell belongs, and the beam center point is used to represent the main lobe direction in the beam antenna pattern or the point where the beam maximum radiation direction intersects the ground; the beam basic shape information is used to represent the beam shape irradiated on the ground by a signal sent by the satellite to which the cell belongs when the beam center point on the ground of the signal sent by the satellite to which the cell belongs coincides with the projection point of the satellite to which the cell belongs on the ground; the beam number information is used to represent the beam numbers on the ground of signals sent by the satellite to which the cell belongs.

11. The method according to claim 10, characterized in that, The configuration information is transmitted by a system message.

12. The method according to claim 10, characterized in that, The cell includes a current serving cell and at least one subsequent neighbor cell for subsequently covering the current serving cell.

13. The method according to claim 12, wherein The beam center point coordinate information includes at least one of the following: the beam center point coordinates of all beams of the current serving cell, the beam center point coordinates of all beams of each subsequent neighbor cell in the at least one subsequent neighbor cell; The beam number information includes at least one of the following: the beam numbers of all beams of the current serving cell, the beam numbers of all beams of each subsequent neighbor cell in the at least one subsequent neighbor cell; 14. The method according to claim 13, wherein The beam center point coordinate distributions of all beams of the current serving cell are on a first two-dimensional coordinate system, and the coordinate origin of the first two-dimensional coordinate system is the projection point of the satellite to which the current serving cell belongs on the ground.

15. The method according to claim 14, wherein If the satellite to which the current serving cell belongs is the same as the satellite to which the first subsequent neighbor cell belongs, the beam center point coordinate distributions of all beams of the first subsequent neighbor cell are on the first two-dimensional coordinate system; wherein, the first subsequent neighbor cell is used to represent one subsequent neighbor cell in the at least one subsequent neighbor cell; or, If the satellite to which the current serving cell belongs is different from the satellite to which the first subsequent neighbor cell belongs, the beam center point coordinate distributions of all beams of the first subsequent neighbor cell are on a second two-dimensional coordinate system, and the coordinate origin of the second two-dimensional coordinate system is the projection point of the satellite to which the first subsequent neighbor cell belongs on the ground.

16. The method according to claim 15, characterized in that If the satellite to which the current serving cell belongs is different from the satellite to which the first subsequent neighbor cell belongs, the configuration information further includes the satellite number of the satellite to which the first subsequent neighbor cell belongs.

17. A non-terrestrial network communication device, characterized in that, Applied to a terminal in a non-terrestrial network communication system, the non-terrestrial network communication system includes the terminal and a network device; the device includes a processing unit and a communication unit, and the processing unit is configured to: Receive, through the communication unit, configuration information for a cell from the network device, where the configuration information includes beam center point coordinate information and beam basic shape information, or the configuration information includes beam number information; wherein, the beam center point coordinate information is used to represent the beam center point coordinates on the ground of the signal sent by the satellite to which the cell belongs, and the beam center point is used to represent the main lobe direction in the beam antenna pattern or the point where the beam maximum radiation direction intersects the ground; the beam basic shape information is used to represent the beam shape on the ground irradiated by the signal sent by the satellite to which the cell belongs when the beam center point on the ground of the signal sent by the satellite to which the cell belongs coincides with the projection point of the satellite to which the cell belongs on the ground; the beam number information is used to represent the beam number of the signal sent by the satellite to which the cell belongs on the ground; Determine beam ground distribution information according to the configuration information, where the beam ground distribution information is used to represent the beam distribution on the ground of the signal sent by the satellite to which the cell belongs.

18. The device according to claim 17, characterized in that, The configuration information is transmitted by a system message.

19. The device according to claim 17, characterized in that, The cell includes a current serving cell and at least one subsequent neighbor cell for subsequently covering the current serving cell.

20. The device according to claim 19, characterized in that, For determining the beam ground distribution information according to the configuration information, the processing unit is specifically configured to: Determine the beam ground distribution information of the current serving cell and the at least one subsequent neighbor cell according to the configuration information; or; Determine the beam ground distribution information of the current serving cell and the at least one subsequent neighbor cell according to the configuration information and a preset beam ground distribution map.

21. The device according to claim 20, characterized in that, The preset beam ground distribution map is used to represent the beam ground distribution map of the satellites in the preset non-terrestrial network communication system; wherein, each beam in the preset beam ground distribution map has a beam number.

22. The device according to claim 21, wherein, The beam center point coordinate information includes at least one of the following: the beam center point coordinates of all beams of the current serving cell, the beam center point coordinates of all beams of each subsequent neighbor cell in the at least one subsequent neighbor cell; The beam number information includes at least one of the following: the beam numbers of all beams of the current serving cell, the beam numbers of all beams of each subsequent neighbor cell in the at least one subsequent neighbor cell.

23. The device according to claim 22, characterized in that, The beam center point coordinates of all beams of the current serving cell are distributed on a first two-dimensional coordinate system, and the coordinate origin of the first two-dimensional coordinate system is the projection point of the satellite to which the current serving cell belongs on the ground.

24. The device according to claim 23, characterized in that, If the satellite to which the current serving cell belongs is the same as the satellite to which the first subsequent neighbor cell belongs, the beam center point coordinates of all beams of the first subsequent neighbor cell are distributed on the first two-dimensional coordinate system; wherein, the first subsequent neighbor cell is used to represent one of the at least one subsequent neighbor cell; or, If the satellite to which the current serving cell belongs is different from the satellite to which the first subsequent neighbor cell belongs, the beam center point coordinates of all beams of the first subsequent neighbor cell are distributed on the second two-dimensional coordinate system, and the coordinate origin of the second two-dimensional coordinate system is the projection point of the satellite to which the first subsequent neighbor cell belongs on the ground.

25. The device according to claim 24, wherein If the satellite to which the current serving cell belongs is different from the satellite to which the first subsequent neighbor cell belongs, the configuration information further includes the satellite number of the satellite to which the first subsequent neighbor cell belongs.

26. A non-terrestrial network communication device, characterized in that, Applied to a network device in a non-terrestrial network communication system, the non-terrestrial network system includes the network device and a terminal; the device includes a processing unit and a communication unit, and the processing unit is configured to: Send, through the communication unit, configuration information for a cell to the terminal, where the configuration information is used to determine beam ground distribution information, and the beam ground distribution information is used to represent the beam distribution of the signal sent by the satellite to which the cell belongs on the ground; The configuration information includes beam center point coordinate information and beam basic shape information, or the configuration information includes beam number information; wherein, the beam center point coordinate information is used to represent the beam center point coordinates of the signal sent by the satellite to which the cell belongs on the ground, and the beam center point is used to represent the main lobe direction in the beam antenna pattern or the point where the beam maximum radiation direction intersects the ground; the beam basic shape information is used to represent the beam shape of the signal sent by the satellite to which the cell belongs irradiated on the ground when the beam center point of the signal sent by the satellite to which the cell belongs on the ground coincides with the projection point of the satellite to which the cell belongs on the ground; the beam number information is used to represent the beam numbers of the signals sent by the satellite to which the cell belongs on the ground.

27. The device according to claim 26, characterized in that, The configuration information is transmitted by a system message.

28. The device according to claim 26, characterized in that, The cell includes a current serving cell and at least one subsequent neighbor cell for subsequently covering the current serving cell.

29. The device according to claim 28, wherein, The beam center point coordinate information includes at least one of the following: the beam center point coordinates of all beams of the current serving cell, the beam center point coordinates of all beams of each subsequent neighbor cell in the at least one subsequent neighbor cell; The beam number information includes at least one of the following: the beam numbers of all beams of the current serving cell, the beam numbers of all beams of each subsequent neighbor cell in the at least one subsequent neighbor cell.

30. The device according to claim 29, characterized in that, The beam center point coordinates of all beams of the current serving cell are distributed on the first two-dimensional coordinate system, and the coordinate origin of the first two-dimensional coordinate system is the projection point of the satellite to which the current serving cell belongs on the ground.

31. The device according to claim 30, characterized in that, If the satellite to which the current serving cell belongs is the same as the satellite to which the first subsequent neighboring cell belongs, the beam center point coordinates of all the beams of the first subsequent neighboring cell are distributed on the first two-dimensional coordinate system; wherein, the first subsequent neighboring cell is used to represent one of the at least one subsequent neighboring cell; or, If the satellite to which the current serving cell belongs is different from the satellite to which the first subsequent neighboring cell belongs, the beam center point coordinates of all the beams of the first subsequent neighboring cell are distributed on a second two-dimensional coordinate system, and the coordinate origin of the second two-dimensional coordinate system is the projection point of the satellite to which the first subsequent neighboring cell belongs on the ground.

32. The device according to claim 31, wherein If the satellite to which the current serving cell belongs is different from the satellite to which the first subsequent neighboring cell belongs, the configuration information further includes the satellite number of the satellite to which the first subsequent neighboring cell belongs.

33. A terminal, characterized in that, It includes a processor, a memory, a communication interface, and one or more programs. The one or more programs are stored in the memory and are configured to be executed by the processor. The programs include instructions for performing the steps in the method according to any one of claims 1-9.

34. A network device, characterized in that, It includes a processor, a memory, a communication interface, and one or more programs. The one or more programs are stored in the memory and are configured to be executed by the processor. The programs include instructions for performing the steps in the method according to any one of claims 10-16.

35. A computer-readable storage medium, characterized in that, It stores a computer program for electronic data exchange, wherein the computer program causes a computer to execute the method according to any one of claims 1-9 or 10-16.

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