Electronic device and method for wireless communication, and computer-readable storage medium

Abstract

The present invention provides an electronic device, method and computer-readable storage medium for wireless communication, the electronic device comprising: a processing circuit configured to: generate a group switching request when a first nomadic IAB node currently serving a group of user devices can no longer serve the group of user devices; and provide the group switching request to a second nomadic IAB node as a switching target, the second nomadic IAB node continuing to provide services for the group of user devices in response to the group switching request, wherein the group switching request includes current resource configuration information and synchronization information of the group of user devices.

Description

[0001] This application claims priority to a Chinese patent application filed with the Chinese Patent Office on December 17, 2019, with application number 201911302045.3 and invention name “Electronic device and method for wireless communication, computer-readable storage medium”, the entire contents of which are incorporated by reference into this application. Technical Field

[0002] The present application relates to the field of wireless communication technology, and more particularly to a handover technology in an Integrated Access and Backhaul (IAB) network, and more particularly to an electronic device and method for wireless communication and a computer-readable storage medium. Background Art

[0003] In the IAB network, there are nomadic IAB nodes, which provide communication capabilities similar to relays, and their availability in time and space is uncertain. For example, a nomadic IAB node may not be able to continue to provide communication services due to reasons such as movement away. Many devices such as cars can be used as nomadic IAB nodes, for example, they can be used in scenarios such as emergency communications. By including nomadic IAB nodes, the network can be flexibly arranged according to factors such as traffic, business, and coverage requirements, so as to better meet various communication needs.

[0004] For example, when a nomadic IAB node moves away, the user equipment (UE) currently served by the nomadic IAB node needs to be switched to another IAB node. Figure 1 An example of a scenario where switching is required is shown. There are two nomadic IAB nodes 1 and 2 in the predetermined area defined by the small ellipse. At a certain moment, the nomadic IAB node 1 moves away, and the UE served by it will be switched to the nomadic IAB node 2. When the IAB network has multiple hops, the delay caused by switching may be large, thereby affecting the communication quality. Summary of the invention

[0005] A brief overview of the present invention is provided below in order to provide a basic understanding of certain aspects of the present invention. It should be understood that this overview is not an exhaustive overview of the present invention. It is not intended to identify key or important parts of the present invention, nor is it intended to limit the scope of the present invention. Its purpose is merely to present certain concepts in a simplified form as a prelude to a more detailed description discussed later.

[0006] According to one aspect of the present application, an electronic device for wireless communication is provided, comprising: a processing circuit, configured to: generate a group switching request when a first nomadic IAB node that is currently serving a group of user devices can no longer serve the group of user devices; and provide the group switching request to a second nomadic IAB node that is a switching target, the second nomadic IAB node continuing to provide services for the group of user devices in response to the group switching request, wherein the group switching request includes current resource configuration information and synchronization information of the group of user devices.

[0007] According to one aspect of the present application, a method for wireless communication is provided, comprising: generating a group switching request when a first nomadic IAB node that is currently serving a group of user devices can no longer serve the group of user devices; and providing the group switching request to a second nomadic IAB node that serves as a switching target, the second nomadic IAB node continuing to provide services for the group of user devices in response to the group switching request, wherein the group switching request includes current resource configuration information and synchronization information of the group of user devices.

[0008] According to another aspect of the present application, an electronic device for wireless communication is provided, comprising: a processing circuit configured to: receive a group switching request from a first nomadic IAB node that is currently serving a group of user devices, and the first nomadic IAB node can no longer serve the group of user devices; and determine that a second nomadic IAB node will continue to provide services for the group of user devices in response to the group switching request, wherein the group switching request includes current resource configuration information and synchronization information of the group of user devices.

[0009] According to another aspect of the present application, a method for wireless communication is provided, including: receiving a group switching request from a first nomadic IAB node that is currently serving a group of user equipment, and the first nomadic IAB node can no longer serve the group of user equipment; and determining that a second nomadic IAB node will respond to the group switching request and continue to provide services for the group of user equipment, wherein the group switching request includes current resource configuration information and synchronization information of the group of user equipment.

[0010] The electronic device and method according to the present application can implement fast switching of a group of user equipment between these nomadic IAB nodes through direct signaling interaction between different nomadic IAB nodes, thereby reducing the delay caused by switching.

[0011] According to other aspects of the present invention, there are also provided computer program codes and computer program products for implementing the above method for wireless communication, and a computer-readable storage medium having the computer program codes for implementing the above method for wireless communication recorded thereon.

[0012] These and other advantages of the present invention will become more apparent through the following detailed description of the preferred embodiments of the present invention in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0013] In order to further illustrate the above and other advantages and features of the present invention, the specific embodiments of the present invention are further described in detail below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. The accompanying drawings together with the following detailed description are included in this specification and form a part of this specification. Elements with the same function and structure are represented by the same reference numerals. It should be understood that these drawings only describe typical examples of the present invention and should not be regarded as limiting the scope of the present invention. In the accompanying drawings:

[0014] Figure 1 An example of a scenario where switching is required is shown;

[0015] Figure 2 A functional module block diagram of an electronic device for wireless communication according to an embodiment of the present application is shown;

[0016] Figure 3 Examples of different wireless communication system parameters are shown;

[0017] Figure 4 A functional module block diagram of an electronic device for wireless communication according to an embodiment of the present application is shown;

[0018] Figure 5 A functional module block diagram of an electronic device for wireless communication according to another embodiment of the present application is shown;

[0019] Figure 6 A functional module block diagram of an electronic device for wireless communication according to another embodiment of the present application is shown;

[0020] Figure 7 A schematic diagram showing a switching process according to an embodiment of the present application is shown;

[0021] Figure 8 A flow chart of a method for wireless communication according to an embodiment of the present application is shown;

[0022] Fig. 9 A flowchart of a method for wireless communication according to another embodiment of the present application is shown;

[0023] Fig.10 is a block diagram showing a first example of a schematic configuration of an eNB or gNB to which the technology of the present disclosure can be applied;

[0024] Fig.11 is a block diagram showing a second example of a schematic configuration of an eNB or gNB to which the technology of the present disclosure can be applied; and

[0025] Fig.12 is a block diagram of an exemplary structure of a general personal computer in which the method and / or apparatus and / or system according to the embodiments of the present invention can be implemented. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0026] Exemplary embodiments of the present invention will be described below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. For the sake of clarity and conciseness, not all features of actual implementations are described in the specification. However, it should be understood that many implementation-specific decisions must be made in the process of developing any such actual implementation in order to achieve the developer's specific goals, such as meeting those constraints related to the system and business, and these constraints may vary from implementation to implementation. In addition, it should be understood that although the development work may be very complex and time-consuming, it is only a routine task for those skilled in the art who benefit from the present disclosure.

[0027] It is also necessary to explain here that, in order to avoid obscuring the present invention due to unnecessary details, only the device structure and / or processing steps closely related to the solution according to the present invention are shown in the accompanying drawings, while other details that are not closely related to the present invention are omitted.

[0028] <First Embodiment>

[0029] Figure 2 FIG. 1 shows a functional module block diagram of an electronic device 100 for wireless communication according to an embodiment of the present application. Figure 2 As shown, the electronic device 100 includes: a generating unit 101, configured to generate a group switching request when a first nomadic IAB node that is currently serving a group of user devices can no longer serve the group of user devices; and a providing unit 102, configured to provide the group switching request to a second nomadic IAB node that is a switching target, and the second nomadic IAB node continues to provide services for the group of user devices in response to the group switching request, wherein the group switching request includes current resource configuration information and synchronization information of the group of user devices.

[0030] The generating unit 101 and the providing unit 102 may be implemented by one or more processing circuits, which may be implemented as a chip, for example. Figure 2 The various functional units in the device shown in the figure are only logical modules divided according to the specific functions implemented by them, and are not used to limit the specific implementation method.

[0031] The electronic device 100 can be set on a first nomadic IAB node (base station), for example. For example, the electronic device 100 can be set on the IAB base station side or can be communicatively connected to the IAB base station. Here, it should also be pointed out that the electronic device 100 can be implemented at the chip level, or it can also be implemented at the device level. For example, the electronic device 100 can work as the IAB base station itself, and can also include external devices such as memory, transceiver (not shown). The memory can be used to store programs and related data information that need to be executed by the base station to implement various functions. The transceiver may include one or more communication interfaces to support communication with different devices (e.g., user equipment, other IAB base stations, core network devices, etc.), and the implementation form of the transceiver is not specifically limited here.

[0032] For example, when the first nomadic IAB node moves out of the current service range, a group of UEs currently served by it needs to be switched to other nomadic IAB nodes or switched to other IAB nodes to continue communication. In this embodiment, the group of UEs will be switched to the second nomadic IAB node as a whole. Note that the group of UEs described here also includes the case of only one UE.

[0033] The first nomadic IAB node directly sends a group switching request to the second nomadic IAB node to initiate a group switching process. In order to enable the second nomadic IAB node to normally serve the group of UEs, the group switching request includes the current resource configuration information and synchronization information of the group of UEs. Among them, the first nomadic IAB node is also called the source node, and the second nomadic IAB node is also called the target node. The second nomadic IAB node can be a newly enabled IAB node.

[0034] The second nomadic IAB node will continue to provide communication services to the group of UEs at a timing obtained based on the synchronization information, wherein the group of UEs continues to use the resources indicated in the resource configuration information. Therefore, in this embodiment, the UE that is switched does not need to perform measurement and random access procedures for the new nomadic IAB node (i.e., the second nomadic IAB node), reducing signaling overhead and latency. In addition, the UE that is switched continues to use the previously allocated resources for communication, and the new nomadic IAB node does not need to reconfigure resources for it. In other words, the target node completely copies the configuration of the source node, and the switching process from the source node to the target node is transparent to the UE, and the UE can continue to communicate without noticing.

[0035] In one example, the resource configuration information may include the capability information of the UE and the complete radio resource configuration of the UE, and the synchronization information may include a sending timestamp and a time offset between the first nomadic IAB node and the second nomadic IAB node. For example, the resource configuration information may be represented as a field Nomadic-source-totarget-tranparentContainer, which includes the UE capability information field UE-CapbilityRAT-Container and the complete radio resource configuration field as-config. The synchronization information may include a sending timestamp Source-time field and a time offset field Source-target-offset.

[0036] The second nomadic IAB node copies the wireless resource configuration of the UE, and sets the wireless resources to be used by the UE next based on the wireless resource configuration. In addition, the second nomadic IAB node aligns the timing of the second nomadic IAB node with the timing of the first nomadic IAB node based on the delay between the time when the resource configuration information is received and the time stamp when the timestamp is sent and the time offset between the two nomadic IAB nodes, so that the timing of the second nomadic IAB node is aligned with the timing of the group of UEs to maintain synchronization between the UE and the base station. For example, the second nomadic IAB node can determine the downlink timing as follows:

[0037]

[0038] in, It is determined by the delay between the first nomadic IAB node and the second nomadic IAB node determined based on the sending timestamp Source-Timer and the frame boundary determined by detecting the synchronization signal block SSB of the first nomadic IAB node (wherein the frame boundary determines the base point and the delay determines the offset). TT offset Represents the time offset field Source-target-offset, the default value is 0, and if the node capability allows, various algorithms such as artificial intelligence (AI) can be used to more accurately know the time offset between the target node and the source node and the UE and set the value of Source-target-offset. The final TT down It can be used to represent the starting time point of the node's uplink and downlink.

[0039] In addition, the group handover request may further include one or more of the following: an identifier of a group of user equipments, an identifier of the second nomadic IAB node, an indicator indicating that the handover type is a group handover, and information of content to be transmitted of the user equipments.

[0040] The identifier of a group of user equipment is represented as, for example, a Package-UE-IDs field, which includes, for example, the index of each UE in the group at the core network. The identifier of the second nomadic IAB node can be represented as a Target-ID field, which is used to verify the second nomadic IAB node. The indicator indicating that the handover type HO-type is a group handover, such as group-nomadic-handover, represents a new handover type. The information of the content to be transmitted of the user equipment is represented as, for example, an SN statustransfer field, which is used to notify the second nomadic IAB node of the information of the content that has not been transmitted yet, so as to ensure service continuity.

[0041] It should be noted that the description of the fields in this embodiment is only exemplary and not restrictive. In addition, the group switching request may also be included in more than one signaling, and is not necessarily sent through a single signaling.

[0042] The second nomadic IAB node as a successor may be determined through interaction between the first nomadic IAB node and the core network. As an example, a specific description will be given below.

[0043] In the case where the first nomadic IAB node can no longer serve the group of UEs, the providing unit 102 is configured to provide the core network side with request information that the first nomadic IAB node can no longer provide services, and the generating unit 101 is configured to obtain information of a candidate node that can replace the first nomadic IAB node from the core network side and determine a second nomadic IAB node from the candidate nodes. The core network side here may refer to, for example, a donor IAB node or a core network.

[0044] For example, the request information may include an indicator indicating that the handover type (e.g., HO-type) is a group handover and an identifier of the first nomadic IAB node. In this way, after receiving the request information, the core network side determines that the first nomadic IAB node is to perform a group handover, and the core network side needs to provide information about possible successors.

[0045] For example, the core network side may select a nomadic IAB node that is spatially close to the first nomadic IAB node as a candidate node, and provide its information to the first nomadic IAB node. In this case, the first nomadic IAB node (specifically, the generation unit 101) may determine the second nomadic IAB node as a switching target from the candidate nodes based on factors such as distance, signal quality, etc. or in a random manner.

[0046] In addition, the core network side may also determine the second nomadic IAB node and provide information of the determined second nomadic IAB node to the first nomadic IAB node.

[0047] The second nomadic IAB node determined by the candidate node or the core network side needs to be able to replace the first nomadic IAB node to provide services for a group of UEs. Since the group of UEs does not perform random access during the switching process, and the second nomadic IAB node is synchronized with the group of UEs by timing alignment with the first nomadic IAB node, in order to ensure the synchronization of the UE with the second nomadic IAB node, the second nomadic IAB node should be within a predetermined range around the first nomadic IAB node. The size of the predetermined range can be determined, for example, by wireless communication system parameters, and the parameters of the wireless communication system include, for example, subcarrier spacing, parameter sets (numerology), cyclic prefix (CP) duration, etc.

[0048] Figure 3 Examples of different wireless communication system parameters are shown. If all possible wireless communication system parameters are taken into account, it can be seen that the minimum CP duration is 0.29 μs, which means that the synchronization of nodes within a range of 80 m can be guaranteed, that is, the distance between the second nomadic IAB node and the first nomadic IAB node should not exceed a predetermined threshold of 80 m.

[0049] It should be noted that the wireless communication system parameters used to determine the size of the predetermined range can be set. For example, in order to expand the selection range of candidate nodes, it can be set to be calculated based on a larger CP duration, such as 0.57 μs.

[0050] Accordingly, this embodiment discloses an electronic device on the core network side, including: a processing circuit configured to determine a candidate node that can replace the first nomadic IAB node based on the set wireless communication system parameters. For example, the processing circuit can determine the size of the range from which the candidate node can be selected based on the set wireless communication system parameters, and determine the nomadic IAB node within the range as the candidate node.

[0051] In one example, the core network side stores all nomadic IAB nodes within the above determined range as a node group. That is, the core network side maintains information of the node group, wherein each nomadic IAB node in the node group can replace other nomadic IAB nodes to provide services for the same group of UEs. For example, the distance between each nomadic IAB node in the node group does not exceed a predetermined threshold, which is determined based on wireless communication system parameters such as subcarrier spacing.

[0052] The information of the node group includes, for example, one or more of the following: an identifier of the node group, such as a group identifier GroupID, used to distinguish different node groups; a member identifier of each node in the node group, such as a member number, used to distinguish different nodes in a group; information of currently active nodes, such as an active member ID, used to identify which nodes are working; and candidate members, used to identify which nodes can be used for switching.

[0053] In this example, the request information sent by the first nomadic IAB node may include an indicator indicating that the handover type is a group handover (e.g., group-nomadic-handover) and an identifier of the node group in which the first nomadic IAB node is located (i.e., group identifier Group ID). In addition, the request information may also include a member identifier such as a member number indicating the first nomadic IAB node in the node group.

[0054] In response to the request information, the core network side provides information of one or more nomadic IAB nodes other than the first nomadic IAB node in the node group indicated by the group identifier as information of the candidate nodes.

[0055] After receiving the information of the candidate node, the first nomadic IAB node determines the second nomadic IAB node and sends a group switching request to it. At this time, the group switching request may include the member identification of the second nomadic IAB node in the node group, such as the member number, to verify the second nomadic IAB node.

[0056] In addition, if Figure 4 As shown, the electronic device 100 also includes an acquisition unit 103, which is configured to acquire a group switching request confirmation from the second nomadic IAB node to confirm that the group of UEs is switched to the second nomadic IAB node. Similarly, the acquisition unit 103 can also be implemented by one or more processing circuits, which can be implemented as a chip, for example.

[0057] In other words, after the second nomadic IAB node successfully receives the group switching request, it sends confirmation information to the first nomadic node.

[0058] In summary, the electronic device 100 according to this embodiment enables a group of UEs to quickly switch between these nomadic IAB nodes through direct signaling interaction between different nomadic IAB nodes, thereby reducing the delay caused by the switch. In addition, the switching process is invisible to the group of UEs, and the group of UEs does not need to repeatedly perform measurement and random access processes.

[0059] <Second Embodiment>

[0060] Figure 5FIG. 2 shows a functional module block diagram of an electronic device 200 according to another embodiment of the present application. Figure 5 As shown, the electronic device 200 includes: a receiving unit 201, configured to receive a group switching request from a first nomadic IAB node that is currently serving a group of user equipment, and the first nomadic IAB node can no longer serve the group of user equipment; and a determining unit 202, configured to determine that the second nomadic IAB node will respond to the group switching request and continue to provide services for the group of user equipment, wherein the group switching request includes current resource configuration information and synchronization information of the group of user equipment.

[0061] The receiving unit 201 and the determining unit 202 may be implemented by one or more processing circuits, which may be implemented as a chip, for example. Figure 5 The various functional units in the device shown in the figure are only logical modules divided according to the specific functions implemented by them, and are not used to limit the specific implementation method.

[0062] The electronic device 200 can be set on the second nomadic IAB node (base station), for example. For example, the electronic device 200 can be set on the IAB base station side or can be communicatively connected to the IAB base station. Here, it should also be pointed out that the electronic device 200 can be implemented at the chip level, or it can also be implemented at the device level. For example, the electronic device 200 can work as the IAB base station itself, and can also include external devices such as memory, transceiver (not shown). The memory can be used to store programs and related data information that need to be executed by the base station to implement various functions. The transceiver may include one or more communication interfaces to support communication with different devices (e.g., user equipment, other IAB base stations, core network devices, etc.), and the implementation form of the transceiver is not specifically limited here.

[0063] In this embodiment, the second nomadic IAB node can replace the first nomadic IAB node to provide communication services for the group of UEs. The second nomadic IAB node is determined by the core network side or by the core network side and the first nomadic IAB node as described in the first embodiment.

[0064] Similar to the first embodiment, the group switching request may also include one or more of the following: an identifier of the group of UEs, an identifier of the second nomadic IAB node, an indicator indicating that the switching type is group switching, and information about the content to be transmitted of the UE.

[0065] Wherein, in the case where the information of the node group is maintained on the core network side, each nomadic IAB node in the node group can replace other nomadic IAB nodes to provide services for the UE, the first nomadic IAB node and the second nomadic IAB node are in the same node group, and the identifier of the second nomadic IAB node can be a member identifier of the second nomadic IAB node in the node group, such as a member number. A detailed description of the group switching request and the information of the node group has been given in the first embodiment and will not be repeated here.

[0066] The determining unit 202 is further configured to achieve time alignment with the first nomadic IAB node based on the synchronization information so as to maintain synchronization with the group of UEs, and continue to provide services for the group of UEs on the radio resources indicated by the resource configuration information. Therefore, the group of UEs does not need to access the second nomadic IAB node through a random access process, and the second nomadic IAB node does not need to reconfigure radio resources for the group of UEs. The second nomadic IAB node obtains all information required for the switched service by receiving the group switching request.

[0067] The resource configuration information may include, for example, capability information of the UE and a complete wireless resource configuration of the UE, and the synchronization information may include a transmission timestamp and a time offset between the first nomadic IAB node and the second nomadic IAB node. For example, the determination unit 202 may determine the delay between the first nomadic IAB node and the second nomadic IAB node based on the transmission timestamp in the synchronization information, and adjust the downlink time of the second nomadic IAB node based on the delay and a frame boundary determined by detecting a synchronization signal block (SSB) of the first nomadic IAB node. For details, see formula (1) and its description in the first embodiment.

[0068] In addition, if Figure 6 As shown, the electronic device 200 further includes a sending unit 203 configured to send a group switching request confirmation to the first nomadic IAB node to confirm that the group of UEs are switched to the second nomadic IAB node.

[0069] The sending unit 203 may also be configured to send a notification to the core network side, the notification being used to update the node information stored on the core network side. In the case where the core network side maintains the information of the node group as described above, the notification is used to update the information of the node group, such as updating the node group members, the activation status of each member, or the candidate members. The notification includes, for example, a group identifier of the group to which the second nomadic IAB node belongs and a member identifier of the second nomadic IAB node in the group, such as a member number.

[0070] In summary, the electronic device 200 according to this embodiment enables a group of UEs to quickly switch between these nomadic IAB nodes through direct signaling interaction between different nomadic IAB nodes, thereby reducing the delay caused by the switch. In addition, the switching process is invisible to the group of UEs, and the group of UEs does not need to repeatedly perform measurement and random access processes.

[0071] For ease of understanding, Figure 7 A schematic diagram of a switching process according to an embodiment of the present application is shown.

[0072] First, the first nomadic IAB node serves a group of UEs, and user data is transmitted between the two. Next, for example, because the first nomadic IAB node is moving away and cannot continue to provide services for the group of UEs, the first nomadic IAB node sends a request message to the core network side about the first nomadic IAB node being unable to continue to provide services. It can be seen that in the case of multiple hops, the request message is sent to the core network side via the parent node. In response to the request message, the core network side sends candidate node information to the first nomadic IAB node, and the candidate node is, for example, one or more other nomadic IAB nodes in the node group. The first nomadic IAB node determines the second nomadic IAB node from the candidate nodes to perform switching. Among them, the first nomadic IAB node generates a group switching request including the current resource configuration information and synchronization information of the group of UEs, and sends it to the second nomadic IAB node. The second nomadic IAB node performs synchronization with the group of UEs and copies the wireless resource configuration of the group of UEs based on the information in the group switching request, thereby completing the switching. Next, the second nomadic IAB node sends a group switching request confirmation to the first nomadic IAB node to confirm that the group of UEs is switched to the second nomadic IAB node. Then, the second nomadic IAB node sends a notification to the core network side, for example, to update information such as node status in the node group.

[0073] according to Figure 7 The information flow shown only requires signaling interaction between the source node and the target node during the switching process, that is, two types of signaling, group switching request and group switching request confirmation, without the need for the node to interact with the core network side, reducing latency and signaling overhead, and the UE side does not need to perform any additional operations, and the switching process is transparent to the UE.

[0074] It should be noted that the above information flow is only illustrative and not restrictive.

[0075] <Third Embodiment>

[0076] In the process of describing the electronic device for wireless communication in the above embodiments, it is obvious that some processes or methods are also disclosed. Below, an overview of these methods is given without repeating some of the details discussed above, but it should be noted that although these methods are disclosed in the process of describing the electronic device for wireless communication, these methods do not necessarily use the components described or are not necessarily performed by those components. For example, the embodiments of the electronic device for wireless communication can be partially or completely implemented using hardware and / or firmware, and the methods for wireless communication discussed below can be completely implemented by a computer executable program, although these methods can also use the hardware and / or firmware of the electronic device for wireless communication.

[0077] Figure 8 A flowchart of a method for wireless communication according to an embodiment of the present application is shown, the method comprising: generating a group switching request (S13) when a first nomadic IAB node currently serving a group of user equipment can no longer serve the group of user equipment; and providing the group switching request to a second nomadic IAB node as a switching target (S14), the second nomadic IAB node continuing to provide services for the group of user equipment in response to the group switching request, wherein the group switching request includes current resource configuration information and synchronization information of the group of user equipment. The method can be performed, for example, on the first nomadic IAB node side.

[0078] For example, the group handover request may also include one or more of the following: an identifier of the group of user equipment, an identifier of the second nomadic IAB node, an indicator indicating that the handover type is a group handover, and information about the content to be transmitted of the user equipment. The resource configuration information may include, for example, capability information of the user equipment and a complete wireless resource configuration of the user equipment, and the synchronization information may include a sending timestamp and a time offset between the first nomadic IAB node and the second nomadic IAB node.

[0079] In addition, if Figure 8 As shown in the dotted box in , the above method may also include the following steps: providing request information to the core network side that the first nomadic IAB node cannot continue to provide services (S11); obtaining information about candidate nodes that can replace the first nomadic IAB node from the core network side, and determining the second nomadic IAB node from the candidate nodes (S12).

[0080] The core network side may maintain information of the node group, each nomadic IAB node in the node group can replace other nomadic IAB nodes to provide services for the user equipment, wherein the candidate node is in the same node group as the first nomadic IAB node. The request information may include an indicator indicating that the switching type is a group switching and an identifier of the node group in which the first nomadic IAB node is located. In this case, the group switching request may include a member identifier of the second nomadic IAB node in the node group.

[0081] The distance between each nomadic IAB node in the node group does not exceed a predetermined threshold value, which is determined based on wireless communication system parameters such as subcarrier spacing, for example.

[0082] The above method may further include step S15: obtaining a group switching request confirmation from the second nomadic IAB node to confirm that the group of user equipments are switched to the second nomadic IAB node.

[0083] Fig. 9 A flowchart of a method for wireless communication according to another embodiment of the present application is shown, the method comprising: receiving a group switching request from a first nomadic IAB node currently serving a group of user equipment, the first nomadic IAB node can no longer serve the group of user equipment (S21); and determining that a second nomadic IAB node will respond to the group switching request and continue to provide services for the group of user equipment (S22), wherein the group switching request includes current resource configuration information and synchronization information of the group of user equipment. The method can be performed, for example, on the second nomadic IAB node side.

[0084] Similarly, the group handover request also includes one or more of the following: an identifier of the group of user equipment, an identifier of the second nomadic IAB node, an indicator indicating that the handover type is a group handover, and information about the content to be transmitted of the user equipment. The resource configuration information may include capability information of the user equipment and a complete wireless resource configuration of the user equipment, and the synchronization information may include a sending timestamp and a time offset between the first nomadic IAB node and the second nomadic IAB node.

[0085] The second nomadic IAB node can achieve time alignment with the first nomadic IAB node based on the synchronization information so as to maintain synchronization with the group of user equipments, and continue to provide services for the group of user equipments on the wireless resources indicated by the resource configuration information. For example, the second nomadic IAB node determines the delay between the first nomadic IAB node and the second nomadic IAB node based on the transmission timestamp in the synchronization information, and adjusts the downlink time of the second nomadic IAB node based on the delay and the frame boundary determined by detecting the SSB of the first nomadic IAB node.

[0086] In addition, if Fig. 9 As shown in the dotted box in , the method further includes step S23: sending a group switching request confirmation to the first nomadic IAB node to confirm that the group of user equipments are switched to the second nomadic IAB node.

[0087] The above method may also include step S24: sending a notification to the core network side, wherein the core network side maintains information of the node group, each nomadic IAB node in the node group can replace other nomadic IAB nodes to provide services for the user equipment, wherein the first nomadic IAB node and the second nomadic IAB node are in the same node group, and the notification is used to update the information of the node group. The information of the node group may include one or more of the following: an identifier of the node group, a member identifier of each node in the node group, information of the currently active node, and candidate members.

[0088] The above methods correspond to the device 100 described in the first embodiment and the device 200 described in the second embodiment respectively, and the specific details thereof can be found in the description of the corresponding positions above, which will not be repeated here. Note that the above methods can be used in combination or alone.

[0089] The technology of the present disclosure can be applied to various products.

[0090] For example, the electronic devices 100 and 200 may be implemented as various base stations. The base station may be implemented as any type of evolved Node B (eNB) or gNB (5G base station). The eNB includes, for example, a macro eNB and a small eNB. A small eNB may be an eNB that covers a cell smaller than a macro cell, such as a pico eNB, a micro eNB, and a home (femto) eNB. A similar situation may also be present for gNB. Alternatively, the base station may be implemented as any other type of base station, such as a NodeB and a base transceiver station (BTS). The base station may include: a main body (also referred to as a base station device) configured to control wireless communications; and one or more remote radio heads (RRHs) arranged at a different place from the main body.

[0091] In addition, various types of user equipment can work as a base station by temporarily or semi-permanently performing base station functions. The user equipment can be implemented as a mobile terminal (such as a smart phone, a tablet personal computer (PC), a notebook PC, a portable game terminal, a portable / dongle type mobile router, and a digital camera) or a vehicle terminal (such as a car navigation device). The user equipment can also be implemented as a terminal that performs machine-to-machine (M2M) communication (also referred to as a machine type communication (MTC) terminal). In addition, the user equipment can be a wireless communication module (such as an integrated circuit module including a single chip) installed on each of the above-mentioned terminals. In this case, the functions of the electronic devices 100 and 200 are implemented, for example, by the processing circuit of the user equipment.

[0092] [Application examples for base stations]

[0093] (First application example)

[0094] Fig.10 800 is a block diagram showing a first example of a schematic configuration of an eNB or gNB to which the technology of the present disclosure can be applied. Note that the following description takes eNB as an example, but can also be applied to gNB. The eNB 800 includes one or more antennas 810 and a base station device 820. The base station device 820 and each antenna 810 can be connected to each other via an RF cable.

[0095] Each of the antennas 810 includes a single or multiple antenna elements (such as multiple antenna elements included in a multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) antenna) and is used for the base station device 820 to transmit and receive wireless signals. Fig.10 As shown, the eNB 800 may include multiple antennas 810. For example, the multiple antennas 810 may be compatible with multiple frequency bands used by the eNB 800. Fig.10 An example is shown in which the eNB 800 includes a plurality of antennas 810 , but the eNB 800 may also include a single antenna 810 .

[0096] The base station device 820 includes a controller 821 , a memory 822 , a network interface 823 , and a wireless communication interface 825 .

[0097] The controller 821 may be, for example, a CPU or a DSP, and operates various functions of the higher layers of the base station device 820. For example, the controller 821 generates a data packet based on the data in the signal processed by the wireless communication interface 825, and transmits the generated packet via the network interface 823. The controller 821 may bundle data from a plurality of baseband processors to generate a bundled packet, and transmit the generated bundled packet. The controller 821 may have a logical function to perform the following control: the control may be such as radio resource control, radio bearer control, mobility management, admission control, and scheduling. The control may be performed in conjunction with a nearby eNB or core network node. The memory 822 includes a RAM and a ROM, and stores programs executed by the controller 821 and various types of control data (such as a terminal list, transmission power data, and scheduling data).

[0098] The network interface 823 is a communication interface for connecting the base station device 820 to the core network 824. The controller 821 can communicate with the core network node or another eNB via the network interface 823. In this case, the eNB 800 and the core network node or other eNBs can be connected to each other through a logical interface (such as an S1 interface and an X2 interface). The network interface 823 can also be a wired communication interface or a wireless communication interface for a wireless backhaul line. If the network interface 823 is a wireless communication interface, the network interface 823 can use a higher frequency band for wireless communication compared to the frequency band used by the wireless communication interface 825.

[0099] The wireless communication interface 825 supports any cellular communication scheme (such as long term evolution (LTE) and LTE-Advanced), and provides a wireless connection to a terminal located in a cell of the eNB 800 via an antenna 810. The wireless communication interface 825 may generally include, for example, a baseband (BB) processor 826 and an RF circuit 827. The BB processor 826 may perform, for example, encoding / decoding, modulation / demodulation, and multiplexing / demultiplexing, and perform various types of signal processing of layers (e.g., L1, medium access control (MAC), radio link control (RLC), and packet data convergence protocol (PDCP)). Instead of the controller 821, the BB processor 826 may have a part or all of the above-mentioned logical functions. The BB processor 826 may be a memory storing a communication control program, or a module including a processor configured to execute a program and related circuits. Updating the program may change the function of the BB processor 826. The module may be a card or a blade inserted into a slot of the base station device 820. Alternatively, the module may also be a chip mounted on a card or a blade. Meanwhile, the RF circuit 827 may include, for example, a mixer, a filter, and an amplifier, and transmits and receives a wireless signal via the antenna 810 .

[0100] like Fig.10As shown, the wireless communication interface 825 may include multiple BB processors 826. For example, the multiple BB processors 826 may be compatible with multiple frequency bands used by the eNB 800. Fig.10 As shown, the wireless communication interface 825 may include multiple RF circuits 827. For example, the multiple RF circuits 827 may be compatible with multiple antenna elements. Fig.10 An example is shown in which the wireless communication interface 825 includes a plurality of BB processors 826 and a plurality of RF circuits 827 , but the wireless communication interface 825 may also include a single BB processor 826 or a single RF circuit 827 .

[0101] exist Fig.10 In the eNB 800 shown, the providing unit 102, the acquiring unit 103, the receiving unit 201, the sending unit 203, and the transceiver of the electronic devices 100 and 200 may be implemented by the wireless communication interface 825. At least part of the functions may also be implemented by the controller 821. For example, the controller 821 may implement the function of a group of UEs switching between different nomadic IAB nodes without re-executing the measurement and random access procedures by executing the functions of the generating unit 101, the providing unit 102, and the acquiring unit 103; or may implement the function of a group of UEs switching between different nomadic IAB nodes without re-executing the measurement and random access procedures by executing the functions of the receiving unit 201, the determining unit 202, and the sending unit 203.

[0102] (Second application example)

[0103] Fig.11 830 is a block diagram showing a second example of a schematic configuration of an eNB or gNB to which the technology of the present disclosure can be applied. Note that similarly, the following description takes the eNB as an example, but can also be applied to the gNB. The eNB 830 includes one or more antennas 840, a base station device 850, and an RRH 860. The RRH 860 and each antenna 840 can be connected to each other via an RF cable. The base station device 850 and the RRH 860 can be connected to each other via a high-speed line such as an optical fiber cable.

[0104] Each of the antennas 840 includes a single or multiple antenna elements (such as multiple antenna elements included in a MIMO antenna) and is used for the RRH 860 to transmit and receive wireless signals. Fig.11 As shown, the eNB 830 may include multiple antennas 840. For example, the multiple antennas 840 may be compatible with multiple frequency bands used by the eNB 830. Fig.11 An example is shown in which the eNB 830 includes a plurality of antennas 840 , but the eNB 830 may also include a single antenna 840 .

[0105] The base station device 850 includes a controller 851, a memory 852, a network interface 853, a wireless communication interface 855, and a connection interface 857. The controller 851, the memory 852, and the network interface 853 are similar to the reference Fig.10 The controller 821, memory 822 and network interface 823 described are the same.

[0106] The wireless communication interface 855 supports any cellular communication scheme (such as LTE and LTE-Advanced), and provides wireless communication to a terminal located in a sector corresponding to the RRH 860 via the RRH 860 and the antenna 840. The wireless communication interface 855 may generally include, for example, a BB processor 856. In addition to the BB processor 856 being connected to the RF circuit 864 of the RRH 860 via the connection interface 857, the BB processor 856 is connected to the reference RF circuit 864 of the RRH 860. Fig.10 The same as the BB processor 826 described above. Fig.11 As shown, the wireless communication interface 855 may include multiple BB processors 856. For example, the multiple BB processors 856 may be compatible with multiple frequency bands used by the eNB 830. Fig.11 An example is shown in which the wireless communication interface 855 includes a plurality of BB processors 856 , but the wireless communication interface 855 may also include a single BB processor 856 .

[0107] The connection interface 857 is an interface for connecting the base station device 850 (wireless communication interface 855) to the RRH 860. The connection interface 857 may also be a communication module for connecting the base station device 850 (wireless communication interface 855) to the RRH 860 for communication in the above-mentioned high-speed line.

[0108] The RRH 860 includes a connection interface 861 and a wireless communication interface 863 .

[0109] The connection interface 861 is an interface for connecting the RRH 860 (wireless communication interface 863) to the base station device 850. The connection interface 861 may also be a communication module for communication in the above-mentioned high-speed line.

[0110] The wireless communication interface 863 transmits and receives wireless signals via the antenna 840. The wireless communication interface 863 may generally include, for example, an RF circuit 864. The RF circuit 864 may include, for example, a mixer, a filter, and an amplifier, and transmits and receives wireless signals via the antenna 840. Fig.11 As shown, the wireless communication interface 863 may include multiple RF circuits 864. For example, the multiple RF circuits 864 may support multiple antenna elements. Fig.11An example is shown in which the wireless communication interface 863 includes a plurality of RF circuits 864 , but the wireless communication interface 863 may also include a single RF circuit 864 .

[0111] exist Fig.11 In the eNB 830 shown, the providing unit 102, the acquiring unit 103, the receiving unit 201, the sending unit 203, and the transceiver of the electronic devices 100 and 200 may be implemented by the wireless communication interface 855 and / or the wireless communication interface 863. At least part of the functions may also be implemented by the controller 851. For example, the controller 851 may implement the function of a group of UEs switching between different nomadic IAB nodes without re-executing the measurement and random access procedures by executing the functions of the generating unit 101, the providing unit 102, and the acquiring unit 103; or may implement the function of a group of UEs switching between different nomadic IAB nodes without re-executing the measurement and random access procedures by executing the functions of the receiving unit 201, the determining unit 202, and the sending unit 203.

[0112] The basic principles of the present invention are described above in conjunction with specific embodiments. However, it should be pointed out that for those skilled in the art, it is understandable that all or any steps or components of the method and device of the present invention can be implemented in any computing device (including a processor, storage medium, etc.) or a network of computing devices in the form of hardware, firmware, software, or a combination thereof. This can be achieved by those skilled in the art using their basic circuit design knowledge or basic programming skills after reading the description of the present invention.

[0113] Furthermore, the present invention also provides a program product storing machine-readable instruction codes. When the instruction codes are read and executed by a machine, the method according to the embodiment of the present invention can be executed.

[0114] Accordingly, the storage medium for carrying the program product storing the machine-readable instruction code is also included in the disclosure of the present invention, including but not limited to a floppy disk, an optical disk, a magneto-optical disk, a memory card, a memory stick, and the like.

[0115] When the present invention is implemented by software or firmware, the data is transferred from a storage medium or a network to a computer (eg, Fig.12 The general-purpose computer 1200 shown in the figure is installed with the programs constituting the software, and when the various programs are installed, the computer can execute various functions, etc.

[0116] exist Fig.12In the embodiment of the present invention, a central processing unit (CPU) 1201 performs various processes according to a program stored in a read-only memory (ROM) 1202 or a program loaded from a storage section 1208 to a random access memory (RAM) 1203. In the RAM 1203, data required when the CPU 1201 performs various processes and the like is also stored as needed. The CPU 1201, the ROM 1202, and the RAM 1203 are connected to each other via a bus 1204. An input / output interface 1205 is also connected to the bus 1204.

[0117] The following components are connected to the input / output interface 1205: an input section 1206 (including a keyboard, a mouse, etc.), an output section 1207 (including a display such as a cathode ray tube (CRT), a liquid crystal display (LCD), etc., and a speaker, etc.), a storage section 1208 (including a hard disk, etc.), a communication section 1209 (including a network interface card such as a LAN card, a modem, etc.). The communication section 1209 performs communication processing via a network such as the Internet. A drive 1210 may also be connected to the input / output interface 1205 as needed. A removable medium 1211 such as a magnetic disk, an optical disk, a magneto-optical disk, a semiconductor memory, etc. is installed on the drive 1210 as needed, so that a computer program read therefrom is installed in the storage section 1208 as needed.

[0118] In the case where the above-described series of processing is realized by software, a program constituting the software is installed from a network such as the Internet or a storage medium such as the removable medium 1211 .

[0119] It should be understood by those skilled in the art that such storage media is not limited to Fig.12 The removable medium 1211 shown has a program stored therein and is distributed separately from the device to provide the program to the user. Examples of the removable medium 1211 include magnetic disks (including floppy disks (registered trademark)), optical disks (including compact disk read-only memory (CD-ROM) and digital versatile disks (DVD)), magneto-optical disks (including minidiscs (MD) (registered trademark)), and semiconductor memories. Alternatively, the storage medium may be the ROM 1202, a hard disk included in the storage section 1208, or the like, in which the program is stored and distributed to the user together with the device containing them.

[0120] It should also be noted that in the apparatus, method and system of the present invention, each component or each step can be decomposed and / or recombined. These decompositions and / or recombinations should be regarded as equivalent solutions of the present invention. In addition, the steps of performing the above series of processes can naturally be performed in chronological order according to the order of description, but do not necessarily need to be performed in chronological order. Some steps can be performed in parallel or independently of each other.

[0121] Finally, it should be noted that the terms "comprises", "includes" or any other variations thereof are intended to cover non-exclusive inclusion, so that a process, method, article or device that includes a series of elements includes not only those elements, but also includes other elements that are not explicitly listed, or also includes elements that are inherent to such process, method, article or device. In addition, in the absence of more restrictions, the elements defined by the sentence "comprises a ..." do not exclude the existence of other identical elements in the process, method, article or device that includes the elements.

[0122] Although the embodiments of the present invention are described in detail above in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, it should be understood that the above-described embodiments are only used to illustrate the present invention and do not constitute a limitation of the present invention. For those skilled in the art, various modifications and changes can be made to the above-mentioned embodiments without departing from the essence and scope of the present invention. Therefore, the scope of the present invention is limited only by the attached claims and their equivalent meanings.

Claims

1. An electronic device for wireless communication, comprising: The processing circuit is configured to: generating a group handover request in a case where a first nomadic IAB node currently serving a group of user equipments can no longer serve the group of user equipments; as well as providing the group switching request to a second nomadic IAB node as a switching target, wherein the second nomadic IAB node continues to provide services for the group of user equipments in response to the group switching request, The group switching request includes current resource configuration information and synchronization information of the group of user equipment, and The resource configuration information includes capability information of the user equipment and complete wireless resource configuration of the user equipment, and the synchronization information includes a sending timestamp and a time offset between the first nomadic IAB node and the second nomadic IAB node.

2. The electronic device according to claim 1, wherein: The group handover request further includes one or more of the following: an identifier of the group of user equipments, an identifier of the second nomadic IAB node, an indicator indicating that the handover type is a group handover, and information of content to be transmitted of the user equipments.

3. The electronic device according to claim 1, wherein: The processing circuit is further configured to: Providing request information to the core network side that the first nomadic IAB node cannot continue to provide services; Acquire information of a candidate node capable of replacing the first nomadic IAB node from the core network side; as well as The second nomadic IAB node is determined from the candidate nodes.

4. The electronic device according to claim 3, wherein: The core network side maintains information of a node group, each nomadic IAB node in the node group can replace other nomadic IAB nodes to provide services for user equipment, wherein the candidate node and the first nomadic IAB node are in the same node group.

5. The electronic device according to claim 4, wherein: The request information includes an indicator indicating that the handover type is a group handover and an identifier of a node group to which the first nomadic IAB node belongs.

6. The electronic device according to claim 4, wherein: The distance between each nomadic IAB node in the node group does not exceed a predetermined threshold.

7. The electronic device according to claim 6, wherein: The predetermined threshold is determined based on wireless communication system parameters, wherein the wireless communication system parameters include subcarrier spacing.

8. The electronic device according to claim 1, wherein: The processing circuit is further configured to obtain a group handover request confirmation from the second nomadic IAB node to confirm that the group of user equipments are handed over to the second nomadic IAB node.

9. The electronic device according to claim 4, wherein: The group switching request includes a member identifier of the second nomadic IAB node in the node group.

10. An electronic device for wireless communication, comprising: The processing circuit is configured to: receiving a group handover request from a first nomadic IAB node currently serving a group of user equipments, the first nomadic IAB node being unable to serve the group of user equipments any more; as well as determining that the second nomadic IAB node will continue to provide services for the group of user equipment in response to the group switching request, The group switching request includes current resource configuration information and synchronization information of the group of user equipment, and The resource configuration information includes capability information of the user equipment and complete wireless resource configuration of the user equipment, and the synchronization information includes a sending timestamp and a time offset between the first nomadic IAB node and the second nomadic IAB node.

11. The electronic device according to claim 10, wherein: The group handover request further includes one or more of the following: an identifier of the group of user equipments, an identifier of the second nomadic IAB node, an indicator indicating that the handover type is a group handover, and information of content to be transmitted of the user equipments.

12. The electronic device according to claim 10, wherein: The processing circuit is further configured to send a group handover request confirmation to the first nomadic IAB node to confirm that the group of user equipments are handed over to the second nomadic IAB node.

13. The electronic device according to claim 10, wherein: The processing circuit is also configured to send a notification to the core network side, wherein the core network side maintains information of a node group, each nomadic IAB node in the node group can replace other nomadic IAB nodes to provide services for user equipment, wherein the first nomadic IAB node and the second nomadic IAB node are in the same node group, and the notification is used to update the information of the node group.

14. The electronic device according to claim 13, wherein: The information of the node group includes one or more of the following: an identifier of the node group, a member identifier of each node in the node group, information of currently active nodes, and candidate members.

15. The electronic device according to claim 10, wherein: The processing circuit is configured to achieve time alignment with the first nomadic IAB node based on the synchronization information so as to maintain synchronization with the group of user equipments, and continue to provide services for the group of user equipments on the wireless resources indicated by the resource configuration information.

16. The electronic device according to claim 15, wherein: The processing circuit is configured to determine the delay between the first nomadic IAB node and the second nomadic IAB node based on the transmission timestamp in the synchronization information, and adjust the downlink time of the second nomadic IAB node based on the delay and the frame boundary determined by detecting the synchronization signal block of the first nomadic IAB node.

17. A method for wireless communication, comprising: generating a group handover request in a case where a first nomadic IAB node currently serving a group of user equipments can no longer serve the group of user equipments; as well as providing the group switching request to a second nomadic IAB node as a switching target, wherein the second nomadic IAB node continues to provide services for the group of user equipments in response to the group switching request, The group switching request includes current resource configuration information and synchronization information of the group of user equipment, and The resource configuration information includes capability information of the user equipment and complete wireless resource configuration of the user equipment, and the synchronization information includes a sending timestamp and a time offset between the first nomadic IAB node and the second nomadic IAB node.

18. A method for wireless communication, comprising: receiving a group handover request from a first nomadic IAB node currently serving a group of user equipments, the first nomadic IAB node being unable to serve the group of user equipments any more; as well as determining that the second nomadic IAB node will continue to provide services for the group of user equipment in response to the group switching request, The group switching request includes current resource configuration information and synchronization information of the group of user equipment, and The resource configuration information includes capability information of the user equipment and complete wireless resource configuration of the user equipment, and the synchronization information includes a sending timestamp and a time offset between the first nomadic IAB node and the second nomadic IAB node.

19. A computer-readable storage medium having computer-executable instructions stored thereon, and when the computer-executable instructions are executed, the method for wireless communication according to claim 17 or 18 is executed.

20. A computer program product comprising a computer program / instructions, wherein: When the computer program / instructions are executed by a processor, the steps of the method according to claim 17 or 18 are implemented.

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