System and method for signaling transmission for sidelink relay communication

Abstract

Systems and methods for signaling transmission or exchange for performing wireless sidelink relay communications are described. In one embodiment, a method performed by a first network node is disclosed. The method includes: obtaining first indication information from a wireless communication device indicating that the wireless communication device supports sidelink relay communications involving the wireless communication device; sending second indication information generated based on the first indication information to a second network node; and obtaining third indication information from the second network node indicating whether the wireless communication device is authorized to perform sidelink relay communications.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure relates generally to wireless communications, and more particularly, to systems and methods for performing signaling transmission or exchange for wireless sidelink relay communications. Background Art

[0002] With the development of wireless multimedia services, the demand for high data rates and better user experience continues to increase, which puts higher requirements on the system capacity and coverage of traditional cellular networks. On the other hand, application scenarios such as public safety, social networks, short-range data sharing, and local advertising have gradually increased people's demand for proximity services to understand and communicate with people or things nearby. Traditional cellular networks with central base stations have obvious limitations in high data rates and supporting proximity services. Therefore, device-to-device (D2D) communication technology came into being. The application of D2D technology can reduce the burden on cellular networks, reduce the battery power consumption of user devices, increase data rates, and enhance the robustness of network infrastructure, which can well meet the requirements of high data rate services and proximity services. D2D communication can also be called proximity service (ProSe) or sidelink (SL) communication.

[0003] In order to support a wider range of applications and services, sidelink-based relay communication can expand coverage and improve power consumption, such as indoor relay communication, smart agriculture, smart factories, public safety, etc. Compared with long-term evolution (LTE) sidelink communication, the fifth generation (5G) new radio (NR) sidelink communication is very different in terms of, for example, frame structure, quality of service (QoS) processing, bearer configuration and establishment. Therefore, the technical solution of LTE-based sidelink relay communication is not suitable for 5G NR system. There is no existing technical solution for NR-based sidelink relay communication. Summary of the invention

[0004] The exemplary embodiments disclosed herein are intended to solve problems associated with one or more problems presented in the prior art, as well as to provide additional features that will become apparent by reference to the following detailed description in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. According to various embodiments, exemplary systems, methods, devices, and computer program products are disclosed herein. However, it should be understood that these embodiments are presented by way of example rather than limitation, and it will be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art who read this disclosure that various modifications may be made to the disclosed embodiments while remaining within the scope of this disclosure.

[0005] In one embodiment, a method performed by a first network node is disclosed. The method includes: obtaining first indication information from a wireless communication device, the first indication information indicating that the wireless communication device supports sidelink relay communication involving the wireless communication device. Sending second indication information generated based on the first indication information to a second network node; and obtaining third indication information from the second network node indicating whether the wireless communication device is authorized to perform sidelink relay communication.

[0006] In another embodiment, a method performed by a first network node is disclosed. The method includes: determining a handover handover of a wireless communication device from a source network node to a target network node; determining that the wireless communication device supports sidelink relay communication involving the wireless communication device; and sending indication information to the target network node indicating whether the wireless communication device is authorized to perform sidelink relay communication.

[0007] In yet another embodiment, a method performed by a primary network node is disclosed. The method includes: determining a secondary network node for establishing multiple connections between a wireless communication device and at least the primary network node and a secondary network node; determining that the wireless communication device supports sidelink relay communication involving the wireless communication device; and sending indication information to the secondary network node indicating whether the wireless communication device is authorized to perform sidelink relay communication.

[0008] In various embodiments, a method performed by a first network node is disclosed. The method includes: determining that a wireless communication device to be connected to a target network node supports sidelink relay communication involving the wireless communication device; obtaining, for each of a plurality of second network nodes, indication information indicating whether the second network node supports sidelink relay communication involving the wireless communication device; and selecting, based on the indication information from each of the plurality of second network nodes, at least one of the plurality of second network nodes as a target network node.

[0009] In another embodiment, a method performed by a first network node is disclosed. The method includes: obtaining first indication information from a second network node, the first indication information indicating that a wireless communication device associated with the second network node supports sidelink relay communication involving the wireless communication device; and sending second indication information to the second network node indicating whether the wireless communication device is authorized to perform sidelink relay communication.

[0010] In yet another embodiment, a method performed by a first network node is disclosed. The method includes: receiving indication information from a second network node indicating whether a wireless communication device is authorized to perform sidelink relay communication involving the wireless communication device. The first network node is a target network node, and is used to perform a handover of the wireless communication device from a source network node to the target network node.

[0011] In yet another embodiment, a method performed by a secondary network node is disclosed. The method includes: receiving indication information from a primary network node, the indication information indicating whether a wireless communication device is authorized to perform sidelink relay communication involving the wireless communication device, for establishing multiple connections between the wireless communication device and at least the primary network node and the secondary network node.

[0012] In yet another embodiment, a method performed by a first network node is disclosed. The method includes: determining whether the first network node supports sidelink relay communication for connecting a wireless communication device to a target network node; and sending indication information indicating whether the first network node supports sidelink relay communication involving the wireless communication device to a second network node, wherein the second network node determines whether the first network node is selected as the target network node based on the indication information.

[0013] In various embodiments, a communications node is disclosed that is configured to perform the methods disclosed in some embodiments.

[0014] In yet another embodiment, a non-transitory computer-readable medium having stored thereon computer-executable instructions for performing the methods disclosed in some embodiments is disclosed. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0015] Various exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure are described in detail below with reference to the following figures. The accompanying drawings are provided for illustrative purposes only and depict only exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure to facilitate the reader's understanding of the present disclosure. Therefore, the accompanying drawings should not be considered as limiting the breadth, scope or applicability of the present disclosure. It should be noted that for clarity and ease of description, these drawings are not necessarily drawn to scale.

[0016] Figure 1 An exemplary communication network according to some embodiments of the present disclosure is shown in which the techniques disclosed herein may be implemented.

[0017] Figure 2 An exemplary architecture diagram of a 5G system according to some embodiments of the present disclosure is shown, and the technology disclosed in this article can be implemented in the 5G system.

[0018] Figure 3 A block diagram of a network node according to some embodiments of the present disclosure is shown.

[0019] Figure 4 An exemplary method for signaling exchange during user equipment (UE) accessing a base station (BS) according to some embodiments of the present disclosure is shown.

[0020] Figure 5An exemplary method for signaling exchange during handover or connection establishment of a UE supporting sidelink relay communication according to some embodiments of the present disclosure is shown.

[0021] Figure 6 An exemplary method for signaling exchange during interface establishment of a UE supporting sidelink relay communications according to some embodiments of the present disclosure is shown. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0022] Various exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure are described below with reference to the accompanying drawings so that a person of ordinary skill in the art can make and use the present disclosure. As will be apparent to a person of ordinary skill in the art, after reading the present disclosure, various changes or modifications may be made to the examples described herein without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. Therefore, the present disclosure is not limited to the exemplary embodiments and applications described and illustrated herein. In addition, the specific order and / or hierarchy of steps in the methods disclosed herein are merely exemplary methods. Based on design preferences, the specific order or hierarchy of steps of the disclosed methods or processes may be rearranged while remaining within the scope of the present disclosure. Therefore, a person of ordinary skill in the art will understand that the methods and techniques disclosed herein present various steps or actions in an example order, and unless otherwise expressly stated, the present disclosure is not limited to the specific order or hierarchy presented.

[0023] A typical wireless communication network includes one or more base stations (commonly referred to as "BS"), each of which provides geographical wireless coverage; and one or more wireless user equipment devices (commonly referred to as "UE"), which can send and receive data within the wireless coverage. In a wireless communication network, the BS and the UE can communicate with each other via a communication link (for example, via a downlink radio frame from the BS to the UE or via an uplink radio frame from the UE to the BS). Two UEs can communicate with each other via a side link, which may include a relay. The 5G BS may be located on a network side that includes various network nodes, such as a next generation radio access network (NG-RAN) base station, a user plane function (UPF), a session management function (SMF), an access and mobility control function (AMF), etc.

[0024] In various embodiments, the BS in the present disclosure may be referred to as a network side, and may include or be implemented as a next generation node B (gNB), an E-UTRAN node B (eNB), a transmission / reception point (TRP), an access point (AP), etc., and the UE in the present disclosure may be referred to as a terminal, and may include or be implemented as a mobile station (MS), a station (STA), etc. The BS and the UE may be described herein as non-limiting examples of a “wireless communication node” and a “wireless communication device”, respectively, which may practice the methods disclosed herein according to various embodiments of the present disclosure, and may be capable of wireless and / or wired communication.

[0025] Figure 1 1 shows an exemplary communication network 100 in which the techniques disclosed herein may be implemented according to some embodiments of the present disclosure. Figure 1 As shown, exemplary communication network 100 includes base station (BS) 101 and multiple UEs, UE 1 124, UE 2 122, UE 3 134, UE 4 136, ... UE 5 132. BS 101 is located in cell 110, and each of the multiple UEs is located at the edge of cell 110 or outside of cell 110.

[0026] Although BS 101 can communicate with UE according to wireless protocol, two UEs can also communicate with each other based on sidelink relay to support a wider range of applications and services. There are two main application scenarios of sidelink relay communication: UE to network relay mode and UE to UE relay mode.

[0027] like Figure 1 As shown, in UE-to-network relay mode 120, UE 1 124 has a low-quality signal from BS network 101, but can communicate with network 101 through UE 2 122, which is near UE 1 124 and has network coverage of network 101. In this case, UE 2 122 is called UE-to-network relay; and UE 1 124 is called a remote UE. UE-to-network relay mode 120 can be used for relay communication of UEs with weak network coverage or no network coverage, which can help operators expand coverage and increase capacity. In one embodiment, there can be additional one or more relay UEs between BS network 101 and UE 1 124 to form a multi-hop UE-to-network side link relay communication between BS network 101 and UE 1 124. The interface between devices or UEs can be a PC5 interface. The interface between UE and the network can be a Uu interface.

[0028] like Figure 1 As shown, in the UE-to-UE relay mode 130, UE 3 134 and UE 4 136 can perform data communication through UE 5 132, wherein UE 5 132 is referred to as a UE-to-UE relay; UE 3 134 and UE 4 136 are referred to as remote UEs. In one embodiment, there may be additional one or more relay UEs between UE 3 134 and UE 4 136 to form a multi-hop UE-to-UE sidelink relay communication between UE 3 134 and UE 4 136. The UE-to-UE relay mode 130 can enable device-to-device sidelink communication through relay UEs to extend the sidelink communication range or handle emergency situations in which the cellular network cannot work properly, such as earthquakes.

[0029] Figure 2 FIG. 2 shows an exemplary architecture diagram of a 5G system 200 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, in which the technology disclosed herein may be implemented. Figure 2 As shown, the 5G system 200 includes at least one UE 210, a base station next generation radio access network (NG-RAN) 221, an access and mobility control function (AMF) 222, a session management function (SMF) 223, at least one user plane function (UPF) 224, a policy control function (PCF) 225, a unified data management (UDM) 226, an application function (AF) 230 and a data network (DN) 240.

[0030] The network nodes or elements in the architecture are described as follows. The terminal or UE 210 obtains services through the wireless air interface of the 5G network. The terminal 210 exchanges information with the base station 221 through the air interface, and exchanges information with the management entity of the core network (e.g., AMF 222, SMF 223) through non-access stratum (NAS) signaling. The 5G base station (NG-RAN) 221 is responsible for resource scheduling and connection management of the air interface for the terminal 210 to access the network. The next generation base station can be a new radio access technology (gNB) or an enhanced LTE technology (eLTE).

[0031] AMF 222 is a common control plane function in the core network. For 3GPP access, the user has only one AMF, which is responsible for authenticating, authorizing and subscribing the user to ensure that the user is a legitimate user. User mobility management includes location registration and temporary identity allocation. When the user initiates a request to establish a packet data unit (PDU) session, AMF 222 selects the appropriate SMF, forwards the non-access stratum (NAS) signaling between the UE and SMF 223, and forwards the access stratum (AS) signaling between the base station 221 and SMF 223.

[0032] SMF 223 interacts with terminal 210 and is mainly responsible for processing PDU session establishment, modification and deletion requests, selecting UPF, and establishing a user plane connection from UE to UPF, and determining QoS parameters for the session with PCF 225.

[0033] UPF 224 provides user plane processing functions, including data forwarding and QoS enforcement. UPF 224 also provides a user plane anchor during user mobility to ensure service continuity. There can be one or more UPFs on the path from UE 210 to DN 240. Media plane data between two UPFs and between UPF and 5G base station is encapsulated in GTP-U (GPRS Tunneling Protocol User Plane) protocol for transmission.

[0034] PCF 225 supports a unified policy framework, provides resource authorization, and provides policy rules to the control plane. UDM 226 stores user subscription data. AF 230 provides service functions and can request resource authorization from PCF 225.

[0035] DN 240 provides a data network for enterprises. In the context of this teaching, DN can be a network where industrial systems and vertical industry applications are located. The service data of industrial systems and vertical industry applications reaches the 5G network UPF through the N6 interface, and finally reaches the UE through the UPF and NG-RAN for downlink transmission, and vice versa for uplink transmission.

[0036] The QoS framework is defined in the 5G system. The UE 210 can request to establish a PDU session, in which a default QoS flow is established in the process. The UE or the network can then add a new dedicated QoS flow in the PDU session through the PDU session modification process. Each QoS flow has corresponding QoS parameters, such as a 5G QoS identifier (5QI), guaranteed bandwidth (for GBR type QoS flows), a packet delay budget (PDB) for the delay from the UE to the UPF at the ingress / egress of the 5G network (i.e., the UPF connected to the N6 interface), a packet error rate (PER), a filter set, etc.

[0037] During the process of the UE requesting to establish a PDU session, or during the PDU session modification process, the SMF 223 obtains the QoS parameters from the PCF 225, and sends at least part of the QoS parameters to the UE 210, the NG-RAN 221, and the UPF 224. For example, the filter set, uplink and downlink bandwidth are sent to the UPF 224; the uplink and downlink bandwidth, PDB, PER, etc. are sent to the NG-RAN 221; and the filter set, priority, uplink and downlink bandwidth, etc. are sent to the UE 210.

[0038] Time synchronization is required between network nodes in the TSN network, where each node needs to be synchronized with the master clock in the network through the gPTP protocol to achieve synchronization between nodes. After the internal network nodes (such as UPF, SMF, NG-RAN) and 5G UE of the 5G network are synchronized with the master clock, the local time of UPF, SMF, NG-RAN and UE is consistent, with negligible errors at most.

[0039] Figure 3 1 shows a block diagram of a network node 300 according to some embodiments of the present disclosure. The network node 300 is an example of a device that can be configured to implement the various methods described herein. Figure 3 As shown, the network node 300 includes a housing 340, which contains a system clock 302, a processor 304, a memory 306, a transceiver 310 including a transmitter 312 and a receiver 314, a power module 308, an indication information analyzer 320, an indication information generator 322, a switching and connection controller 324, a UE side link capability determiner 326, a target node selector 328, and a node side link capability determiner 329.

[0040] In the present embodiment, system clock 302 provides timing signals to processor 304 to control the timing of all operations of network node 300. Processor 304 controls the general operation of network node 300 and may include one or more processing circuits or modules, such as a central processing unit (CPU) and / or a general-purpose microprocessor, a microcontroller, a digital signal processor (DSP), a field programmable gate array (FPGA), a programmable logic device (PLD), a controller, a state machine, gated logic, discrete hardware components, a dedicated hardware finite state machine, or any combination of any other suitable circuits, devices, and / or structures that can perform calculations or other manipulations of data.

[0041] The memory 306, which may include both read-only memory (ROM) and random access memory (RAM), may provide instructions and data to the processor 304. A portion of the memory 306 may also include non-volatile random access memory (NVRAM). The processor 304 typically performs logical and arithmetic operations based on program instructions stored in the memory 306. The instructions (also referred to as software) stored in the memory 306 may be executed by the processor 304 to perform the methods described herein. The processor 304 and the memory 306 together form a processing system that stores and executes software. As used herein, "software" means any type of instruction, whether referred to as software, firmware, middleware, microcode, etc., which can configure a machine or device to perform one or more desired functions or processes. Instructions may include code (e.g., source code format, binary code format, executable code format, or any other suitable code format). Instructions, when executed by one or more processors, cause the processing system to perform the various functions described herein.

[0042] The transceiver 310 including a transmitter 312 and a receiver 314 allows the network node 300 to send data to a remote device (e.g., a BS or another UE) and receive data from the remote device. The antenna 350 is generally attached to the housing 340 and electrically coupled to the transceiver 310. In various embodiments, the network node 300 includes (not shown) multiple transmitters, multiple receivers, multiple transceivers and / or multiple antennas. The transmitter 312 can be configured to wirelessly transmit packets with different packet types or functions, such packets are generated by the processor 304. Similarly, the receiver 314 is configured to receive packets with different packet types or functions, and the processor 304 is configured to process packets of multiple different packet types. For example, the processor 304 can be configured to determine the type of packet and process the packet and / or the field of the packet accordingly.

[0043] The UE may establish access to a network node or base station by acting as a relay UE and / or a remote UE and having the capability to perform sidelink relay communication. According to various embodiments, the network node 300 may be a base station or a device performing network functions of a core network to support sidelink relay communication.

[0044] In one embodiment, the network node 300 is referred to as a first network node. The indication information analyzer 320 may obtain, via the receiver 314, from a UE associated with the first network node, first indication information indicating that the UE supports sidelink relay communication involving the UE, and analyze the first indication information. In one embodiment, the first indication information is obtained from the UE based on at least one of the following: a radio resource control (RRC) establishment request message, an RRC establishment completion message, a sidelink relay single network slice selection assistance information (S-NSSAI), a UE-to-network sidelink relay S-NSSAI, or a UE-to-UE sidelink relay S-NSSAI.

[0045] In one embodiment, the indication information generator 322 may generate second indication information based on the first indication information and send it to the second network node via the transmitter 312. The indication information analyzer 320 may obtain third indication information indicating whether the UE is authorized to perform sidelink relay communication from the second network node via the receiver 314.

[0046] In one embodiment, the second indication information indicates that the UE can be at least one of the following in the sidelink relay communication: a sidelink relay UE, a sidelink remote UE, a UE to a network sidelink relay UE, a UE to a network sidelink remote UE, a UE to a UE sidelink relay UE, or a UE to a UE sidelink remote UE. The third indication information indicates whether the UE is authorized to be at least one of the following in the sidelink relay communication: a sidelink relay and / or a remote UE, a UE to a network sidelink relay and / or a remote UE, or a UE to a UE sidelink relay and / or a remote UE. In one embodiment, a new air interface (NR) sidelink or a long term evolution (LTE) sidelink is used for the sidelink relay communication based on the third indication information.

[0047] In one embodiment, based on the third indication information, the indication information analyzer 320 can determine whether the UE is authorized to perform side link relay communication. In one embodiment, the first network node is a base station, and the second network node is a device that performs a network function in a core network associated with the base station, such as an AMF. The first indication information is obtained based on a radio resource control (RRC) message. The second indication information is sent based on a next generation application protocol (NGAP) message or an S1 application protocol (S1AP) message. The third indication information is obtained based on an NGAP message or an S1AP message.

[0048] In one embodiment, the indication information generator 322 may generate fourth indication information based on the third indication information and send it to the third network node via the transmitter 312. The fourth indication information may indicate whether the UE is authorized as at least one of the following in the sidelink relay communication: a sidelink relay and / or remote UE, a sidelink relay and / or remote UE using an NR sidelink for relay service, a sidelink relay and / or remote UE using an LTE sidelink for relay service, a UE to a network sidelink relay and / or remote UE, a UE to a network sidelink relay and / or remote UE using an NR sidelink for relay service, a UE to a network sidelink relay and / or remote UE using an LTE sidelink for relay service, or a UE to a UE sidelink relay and / or remote UE.

[0049] In one embodiment, the first network node is a central unit (CU) of the base station; the third network node is a distributed unit (DU) of the base station; and the second network node is a device that performs a network function in a core network associated with the base station, such as an AMF. The fourth indication information is sent based on an F1 application protocol (F1AP) message.

[0050] In another embodiment, the network node 300 is referred to as a first network node. The handover and connection controller 324 may determine a handover of the UE from the source network node to the target network node. The UE side link capability determiner 326 may determine that the UE supports side link relay communications involving the UE. Therefore, the indication information generator 322 may generate indication information indicating whether the UE is authorized to perform side link relay communications, and send the indication information to the target network node via the transmitter 312.

[0051] In one embodiment, the first network node is a device that performs a network function in a core network; the source network node is a first base station associated with the core network; and the target network node is a second base station associated with the core network. The indication information may be sent based on an NGAP message or an S1AP message.

[0052] In another embodiment, the first network node is a source network node and is a first base station; and the target network node is a second base station. The indication information is sent via an Xn interface or an X2 interface.

[0053] In yet another embodiment, the first network node is a central unit (CU) of the base station; the source network node is a first distributed unit (DU) of the base station; the target network node is a second DU of the base station. The indication information is sent based on an F1 application protocol (F1AP) message.

[0054] In one embodiment, the indication information indicates whether the UE is authorized as at least one of the following in sidelink relay communication: a sidelink relay and / or a remote UE; a sidelink relay and / or a remote UE using an NR side link for relay service; a sidelink relay and / or a remote UE using an LTE side link for relay service; a UE to a network sidelink relay and / or a remote UE; a UE to a network sidelink relay and / or a remote UE using an NR side link for relay service; a UE to a network sidelink relay and / or a remote UE using an LTE side link for relay service; or a UE to a UE sidelink relay and / or a remote UE.

[0055] In another embodiment, the network node 300 is referred to as a primary network node. The handover and connection controller 324 may determine a secondary network node for establishing a multiple connection between the UE and at least the primary network node and the secondary network node. The UE side link capability determiner 326 may determine that the UE supports side link relay communication involving the UE. Therefore, the indication information generator 322 may generate indication information indicating whether the UE is authorized to perform side link relay communication, and send it to the secondary network node via the transmitter 312.

[0056] In one embodiment, the indication information is sent via an Xn interface or an X2 interface. The indication information indicates whether the UE is authorized as at least one of the following in the sidelink relay communication: a sidelink relay and / or a remote UE, a sidelink relay and / or a remote UE using an NR sidelink for relay service, a sidelink relay and / or a remote UE using an LTE sidelink for relay service, a UE to a network sidelink relay and / or a remote UE, a UE to a network sidelink relay and / or a remote UE using an NR sidelink for relay service, a UE to a network sidelink relay and / or a remote UE using an LTE sidelink for relay service, or a UE to a UE sidelink relay and / or a remote UE.

[0057] In one embodiment, network node 300 is referred to as a first network node.Handover and connection controller 324 and UE sidelink capability determiner 326 may determine that a UE is to be connected to a target network node and that sidelink relay communications involving the UE are supported.

[0058] The indication information analyzer 320 may obtain indication information for each of the plurality of second network nodes via the receiver 314, the indication information indicating whether the second network node supports sidelink relay communication involving the UE. The target node selector 328 in this example may select at least one of the plurality of second network nodes as the target network node based on the indication information from each of the plurality of second network nodes.

[0059] In one embodiment, the first network node is a base station; each of the plurality of second network nodes is an AMF associated with the base station. The indication information is obtained from the AMF based on the NGAP message. The indication information obtained from the AMF indicates whether the AMF can support at least one of the following: side link relay communication, side link relay communication based on UE to network side link relay, or side link relay communication based on UE to UE side link relay.

[0060] In one embodiment, the first network node is a source network node of a UE, configured to perform a handover of the UE to a target network node; each of the plurality of second network nodes is a neighboring base station of the source network node. The indication information is obtained from each neighboring base station via an Xn interface or an X2 interface. In another embodiment, the first network node is a primary network node of the UE; the target network node is a secondary network node that establishes multiple connections between the UE and at least the primary network node and the secondary network node. The indication information is obtained from each second network node via an Xn interface or an X2 interface. In yet another embodiment, the first network node is a central unit (CU) of a base station; each of the plurality of second network nodes is a distributed unit (DU) of a base station. The indication information is obtained from each DU based on an F1AP message.

[0061] In one embodiment, the indication information indicates at least one of the following related to sidelink relay communication: whether the DU can support sidelink relay communication, sidelink relay communication based on UE to network sidelink relay, or sidelink relay communication based on UE to UE sidelink relay; cell information for supporting sidelink relay communication, sidelink relay communication based on UE to network sidelink relay, or sidelink relay communication based on UE to UE sidelink relay, wherein the cell information includes at least information related to at least one of frequency, bandwidth, cell physical cell identity (PCI) or cell global identity (CGI); resource pool information, which includes supporting sidelink relay communication, sidelink relay communication based on UE to network sidelink relay, or sidelink relay communication based on UE to UE sidelink relay; or a system information block (SIB) message, which includes configuration information for sidelink relay communication, sidelink relay communication based on UE to network sidelink relay, or sidelink relay communication based on UE to UE sidelink relay.

[0062] In one embodiment, the indication information analyzer 320 may obtain cell information of a neighboring base station from each neighboring base station of the first network node via a receiver 314 via an Xn interface or an X2 interface, and the information is used to support sidelink relay communication, sidelink relay communication based on UE to network sidelink relay, or sidelink relay communication based on UE to UE sidelink relay. The cell information includes information related to at least one of frequency, bandwidth, cell physical cell identifier (PCI) or cell global identifier (CGI). The indication information generator 322 may generate cell information of each neighboring base station and send it to each DU via a transmitter 312. A SIB message may be generated based on the cell information.

[0063] In various embodiments, the network node 300 may serve as a second network node or a secondary network node in the above embodiments. In one embodiment, the node side link capability determiner 329 may determine whether the network node 300 supports side link relay communication for connecting the UE to the target network node. Then, the indication information generator 322 may generate indication information indicating whether the network node 300 supports side link relay communication involving the UE, and send the indication information to another network node considered or selected as the target network node via the transmitter 312.

[0064] The power module 308 may include a power source (such as one or more batteries) and a power regulator to provide power to the Figure 3 Each of the above modules in provides regulated power. In some embodiments, if the network node 300 is coupled to a dedicated external power source (eg, a wall outlet), the power module 308 may include a transformer and a power conditioner.

[0065] The various modules discussed above are coupled together via a bus system 330. The bus system 330 may include a data bus and, in addition to the data bus, for example, a power bus, a control signal bus, and / or a status signal bus. It will be appreciated that the modules of the network node 300 may be operably coupled to each other using any suitable technology and medium.

[0066] Despite Figure 3 , but it will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that one or more modules may be combined or implemented together. For example, the processor 304 may implement not only the functions described above with respect to the processor 304, but also the functions described above with respect to the indication information analyzer 320. Figure 3 Each module shown in FIG. 1 may be implemented using multiple individual components or elements.

[0067] Figure 4 An exemplary method for signaling exchange during access of a user equipment (UE) 410 to a base station (BS) 420 according to some embodiments of the present disclosure is shown. At operation 401, the UE 410 sends first indication information indicating that the UE 410 supports sidelink relay communication (e.g., as a relay UE and / or a remote UE) to the BS 420. At operation 402, the BS 420 sends second indication information indicating that the UE 410 supports sidelink relay communication to the AMF 430. At operation 403, the AMF 430 sends third indication information indicating whether the UE 410 is authorized to perform sidelink relay communication to the BS 420.

[0068] Figure 5An exemplary method for signaling exchange during handover or connection establishment of a UE supporting sidelink relay communication according to some embodiments of the present disclosure is shown. At operation 501, a first network node 510 determines that a UE is to be connected to a second network node 520 and supports sidelink relay communication (e.g., as a relay UE and / or a remote UE). At operation 502, the first network node 510 sends indication information to the second network node 520 indicating whether the UE is authorized to perform sidelink relay communication.

[0069] Figure 6 An exemplary method for signaling exchange during interface establishment of a UE supporting sidelink relay communication according to some embodiments of the present disclosure is shown. At operation 601, a first network node 610 determines that a UE is to be connected to a target network node and supports sidelink relay communication (e.g., as a relay UE and / or a remote UE). At operation 602, each of the N second network nodes 620 sends indication information to the first network node 610 indicating whether the second network node supports sidelink relay communication. At operation 603, the first network node 610 selects at least one of the N second network nodes 620 as a target network node for the UE based on the indication information.

[0070] Now, different embodiments of the present disclosure will be described in detail below. It should be noted that the features of the embodiments and examples in the present disclosure can be combined with each other in any way without conflict.

[0071] In a first embodiment, a UE accesses a base station. The UE has the ability to become a relay UE, a remote UE, or both; and is therefore referred to as a relay / remote UE. The relay / remote UE may indicate to the base station through an RRC message that the access UE is a relay / remote UE. After receiving the RRCSetupComplete message, the base station may send the identity information of the relay / remote UE to a core network associated with the base station so that the core network performs authorization for the access UE. Specifically, after the base station learns through an RRC message that the access UE is a relay / remote UE, the base station sends at least one of the following information to the core network through an NGAP or S1AP message (such as an INITIAL UE MESSAGE): optionally, side link (SL) relay / remote UE indication information; optionally, UE to network (UE to NW) SL relay / remote UE indication information; optionally, UE to UE SL relay / remote UE indication information.

[0072] After receiving the above message, the core network performs authorization operations on the relay / remote UE and determines whether the accessed UE is authorized to use SL for relay communication. If the accessed UE is authorized to use SL for relay communication, the core network sends at least one of the following information to the base station through an NGAP / S1AP message: Optionally, SL relay / remote UE authorization information; Optionally, indication information indicating authorization for the SL relay / remote UE using NR SL for relay communication; Optionally, indication information indicating authorization for the SL relay / remote UE using LTE SL for relay communication; Optionally, UE to NW SL relay / remote UE authorization information; Optionally, indication information indicating authorization for UE using NR SL for relay communication to NW SL relay / remote UE; Optionally, indication information indicating authorization for UE using LTE SL for relay communication to NW SL relay / remote UE; Optionally, UE to UE SL relay / remote UE authorization information. After receiving the message from the core network, the base station determines whether the accessed UE is authorized to use the SL for relay communication based on the authorization / indication information carried in the message.

[0073] For the CU / DU split scenario, if the CU obtains the authorization information of the access UE from the core network, the CU sends the authorization information of the UE to the DU through the F1 interface. The authorization information may include at least one of the following: optionally, SL relay / remote UE authorization / indication information; optionally, authorization / indication information of the SL relay / remote UE that performs relay communication using NR SL; optionally, authorization / indication information of the SL relay / remote UE that performs relay communication using LTE SL; optionally, UE to NW SL relay / remote UE authorization / indication information; optionally, authorization / indication information from UE that performs relay communication using NR SL to NW SL relay / remote UE; optionally, authorization / indication information from UE that performs relay communication using LTE SL to NW SL relay / remote UE; optionally, UE to UE SL relay / remote UE authorization / indication information.

[0074] In the second embodiment, handover and multiple connection scenarios are considered. Different from the traditional UE handover process, in the handover of this embodiment, the target base station needs to know whether the UE is a relay / remote UE to determine whether the handover of the relay / remote UE is allowed. If the handover is allowed, the target base station will allocate SL relay resources to the relay / remote UE. There are different cases for handover or handover scenarios, as listed below.

[0075] Case 1 is about handover based on NG / S1 interface. In this case, the core network sends relay / remote UE indication information to the target base station via NG / S1 interface, for example, based on HANDOVERREQUEST / PATH SWITCH REQUEST ACKNOWLEDGE message.

[0076] Case 2 is about handover based on the Xn / X2 interface. In this case, the source base station sends relay / remote UE indication information to the target base station via the Xn / X2 interface.

[0077] Case 3 is about handover between different DUs, i.e. inter-gNB-DU mobility. This scenario considers the case where the UE moves from one gNB-DU to another gNB-DU within the same gNB-CU during NR operation. The CU can send relay / remote UE indication information to the target DU via the F1 interface.

[0078] For multiple connection scenarios, the secondary node (SN) needs to know whether the accessed UE is a relay / remote UE in order to configure the SL relay resource pool for the relay / remote UE. The main node (MN) can send indication information of the relay / remote UE to the SN via the Xn / X2 interface.

[0079] In a second embodiment, the indication information of the relay / remote UE transmitted in the above scenario may include at least one of the following: optionally, SL relay / remote UE authorization / indication information; optionally, authorization / indication information of the SL relay / remote UE using NR SL to perform relay communication; optionally, authorization / indication information of the SL relay / remote UE using LTE SL to perform relay communication; optionally, UE to NW SL relay / remote UE authorization / indication information; optionally, authorization / indication information from UE using NR SL to NW SL relay / remote UE to perform relay communication; optionally, authorization / indication information from UE using LTE SL to NW SL relay / remote UE to perform relay communication; optionally, UE to UE SL relay / remote UE authorization / indication information.

[0080] In a third embodiment, an interface establishment process is considered. During the interface establishment process, the AMF sends capability indication information indicating whether SL relay is supported to the associated base station via an NGAP message (such as NG SETUP RESPONSE). The indication information may include at least one of the following: optionally, a capability indication of supporting SL relay; optionally, a capability indication of supporting UE to NWSL relay; optionally, a capability indication of supporting UE to UE SL relay.

[0081] Therefore, the base station can select an AMF that supports the SL relay function for the UE according to the indication information sent by each AMF. If the core network to which the base station is connected is an evolved packet core (EPC), the mobility management entity (MME) sends the above capability indication information to the base station through an S1AP message (such as S1 SETUP RESPONSE).

[0082] In a fourth embodiment, the relay / remote UE wants to switch to another base station, or establish multiple connections with additional base stations. The source base station can select a base station that supports the SL relay function for the UE. The source base station can know, for example, from operations administration and maintenance (OAM), the indication information indicating whether the neighboring base station supports SL relay. The source base station can also know from the neighboring base station via the Xn / X2 interface whether the neighboring base station supports the SL relay function. Specifically, the base station can exchange at least one of the following information based on the Xn / X2 interface management message: optionally, a capability indication of supporting SL relay; optionally, a capability indication of supporting UE to NW SL relay; optionally, a capability indication of supporting UE to UE SL relay; optionally, cell information supporting SL relay, optionally including frequency, bandwidth, cell PCI or cell CGI; optionally, cell information supporting UE to NW SL relay, optionally including frequency, bandwidth, cell PCI or cell CGI; optionally, cell information supporting UE to UE SL relay, optionally including frequency, bandwidth, cell PCI or cell CGI; optionally, resource pool information supporting SL relay, UE to NW SL relay or UE to NW SL relay.

[0083] In the fifth embodiment, a CU / DU split scenario is considered, where a CU can be connected to multiple DUs. But not all DUs have the same functionality. Some DUs may support the SL relay function, but others may not. Therefore, during the F1 interface establishment process, each DU should indicate whether the CU supports the SL relay function. Specifically, the DU sends at least one of the following to the CU through an F1AP message (such as F1SETUP REQUEST / GNB-DU CONFIGURATION UPDATE): optionally, a capability indication of supporting SL relay; optionally, a capability indication of supporting UE to NW SL relay; optionally, a capability indication of supporting UE to UE SL relay; optionally, cell information supporting SL relay, optionally including frequency, bandwidth, cell PCI or cell CGI; optionally, cell information supporting UE to NW SL relay, optionally including frequency, bandwidth, cell PCI or cell CGI; optionally, cell information supporting UE to UE SL relay, optionally including frequency, bandwidth, cell PCI or cell CGI; optionally, resource pool information supporting SL relay, UE to NW SL relay or UE to NW SL relay; optionally, the SIB message includes configuration information of SL relay, UE to NW SL relay or UE to UE SL relay.

[0084] If the DU generates a SIB message related to SL relay, it needs to obtain the information of the neighboring cells that support SL relay to construct the SIB message. If the CU obtains the cell information of the neighboring base station that supports SL relay, UE to NW SL relay or UE to UE SL relay from OAM or via the Xn / X2 interface, the CU sends the obtained cell information to the DU. The cell information may include at least one of the following: optionally, frequency, bandwidth, cell PCI or cell CGI.

[0085] In the sixth embodiment, the RRC establishment process is considered. During the RRC establishment process of the relay / remote UE, the relay / remote UE can indicate the identity of the relay / remote UE to the base station. Therefore, the base station can know that the accessed UE is not a normal UE, and can select a base station that supports the SL relay function for the relay / remote UE. In one example, the relay / remote UE can use the RRCSetupRequest or RRCSetupComplete message to carry the relay / remote UE indication information. In another example, the system can define SL relay S-NSSAI, UE to NW SL relay S-NSSAI and / or UE to UE SL relay S-NSSAI. Therefore, the relay / remote UE can use the defined S-NSSAI to report the relay / remote UE indication information. The base station can determine the identity of the access UE based on the S-NSSAI reported by the access UE.

[0086] Although various embodiments of the present disclosure have been described above, it should be understood that they are presented only by way of example rather than by way of limitation. Similarly, various figures may depict example architectures or configurations, which are provided to enable those of ordinary skill in the art to understand the exemplary features and functions of the present disclosure. However, these personnel will understand that the present disclosure is not limited to the example architectures or configurations shown, but may be implemented using various alternative architectures and configurations. In addition, as will be understood by those of ordinary skill in the art, one or more features of an embodiment may be combined with one or more features of another embodiment described herein. Therefore, the breadth and scope of the present disclosure should not be limited by any of the above-described exemplary embodiments.

[0087] It should also be understood that any reference to an element using names such as "first", "second", etc. herein does not generally limit the number or order of these elements. Instead, these names can be used herein as a convenient means of distinguishing two or more elements or element instances. Therefore, a reference to a first element and a second element does not mean that only two elements can be used, or that the first element must be located before the second element in some way.

[0088] In addition, those of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that information and signals may be represented using any of a variety of different technologies and techniques. For example, data, instructions, commands, information, signals, bits, and symbols that may be referenced in the above description may be represented by voltages, currents, electromagnetic waves, magnetic fields or particles, optical fields or particles, or any combination thereof.

[0089] Those of ordinary skill in the art will further understand that any of the various illustrative logical blocks, modules, processors, devices, circuits, methods, and functions described in connection with the aspects disclosed herein may be implemented by electronic hardware (e.g., digital implementations, analog implementations, or a combination of the two), firmware, various forms of programs or design code containing instructions (which, for convenience, may be referred to herein as "software" or "software modules"), or any combination of these technologies.

[0090] In order to clearly illustrate this interchangeability of hardware, firmware and software, various illustrative components, blocks, modules, circuits and steps have been described above generally according to their functions. Whether this function is implemented as hardware, firmware or software or a combination of these technologies depends on the specific application and the design constraints imposed on the entire system. Those skilled in the art can implement the described functions in various ways for each specific application, but this implementation decision will not lead to deviation from the scope of this disclosure. According to various embodiments, processors, devices, components, circuits, structures, machines, modules, etc. can be configured to perform one or more of the functions described herein. As used herein with respect to a specified operation or function, the term "configured to" or "configured for" refers to a processor, device, component, circuit, structure, machine, module, etc. that is physically constructed, programmed and / or arranged to perform a specified operation or function.

[0091] In addition, it will be understood by those of ordinary skill in the art that the various illustrative logic blocks, modules, devices, components, and circuits described herein may be implemented or performed within an integrated circuit (IC), which may include 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 device, or any combination thereof. The logic blocks, modules, and circuits may also include antennas and / or transceivers to communicate with various components within a network or within a device. The general-purpose processor may be a microprocessor, but in an alternative, the processor may be any conventional processor, controller, or state machine. The processor may also be implemented as a combination of computing devices, such as a combination of a DSP and a microprocessor, a plurality of microprocessors, one or more microprocessors combined with a DSP core, or any other suitable configuration to perform the functions described herein.

[0092] If implemented in software, the function can be stored as one or more instructions or codes on a computer-readable medium. Therefore, the steps of the method or algorithm disclosed herein can be implemented as software stored on a computer-readable medium. Computer-readable media include computer storage media and communication media, and communication media include any media that can enable a computer program or code to be transferred from one place to another. The storage medium can be any available medium that can be accessed by a computer. By way of example and not limitation, such computer-readable media can include RAM, ROM, EEPROM, CD-ROM or other optical disk storage, disk storage or other magnetic storage devices, or any other medium that can be used to store desired program code in the form of instructions or data structures and can be accessed by a computer.

[0093] In this document, the term "module" as used herein refers to software, firmware, hardware, and any combination of these elements for performing the related functions described herein. In addition, for the purpose of discussion, various modules are described as discrete modules; however, it will be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art that two or more modules can be combined to form a single module that performs the associated functions according to the embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0094] In addition, memory or other storage and communication components may be used in embodiments of the present disclosure. It should be understood that, for the purpose of clarity, the above description has described embodiments of the present disclosure with reference to different functional units and processors. However, it is apparent that any appropriate functional distribution between different functional units, processing logic elements or domains may be used without departing from the present disclosure. For example, functions shown as being performed by separate processing logic elements or controllers may be performed by the same processing logic elements or controllers. Therefore, references to specific functional units are only references to suitable devices for providing the described functions, rather than indications of strict logical or physical structures or organizations.

[0095] Various modifications to the embodiments described in this disclosure will be apparent to those skilled in the art, and the general principles defined herein may be applied to other embodiments without departing from the scope of this disclosure. Therefore, this disclosure is not intended to be limited to the embodiments shown herein, but is to be accorded the broadest scope consistent with the novel features and principles disclosed herein, as described in the following claims.

Claims

1. A method performed by a first network node, the method include: acquiring, from a wireless communication device, first indication information indicating that the wireless communication device supports sidelink relay communication involving the wireless communication device; sending second indication information generated based on the first indication information to a second network node; and Acquire, from the second network node, third indication information indicating whether the wireless communication device is authorized to perform the sidelink relay communication, wherein the third indication information indicates whether the wireless communication device is authorized to be at least one of the following in the sidelink relay communication: a sidelink relay and / or a remote user equipment UE, a UE to a network sidelink relay and / or a remote UE, or a UE to a UE sidelink relay and / or a remote UE; determining whether the wireless communication device is authorized to perform sidelink relay communication based on the third indication information, in: The first network node is a base station, The second network node is a device that performs a network function in a core network associated with the base station. The first indication information is obtained based on a radio resource control RRC message, The second indication information is sent based on a Next Generation Application Protocol NGAP message, and The third indication information is obtained based on the NGAP message; The central unit CU of the first network node sends fourth indication information generated based on the third indication information to the third network node, in: The third network node is a distributed unit DU of the base station, and The fourth indication information is sent based on an F1 application protocol F1AP message; During establishment of the F1 interface, the central unit CU of the first network node receives an indication of whether the side link relay function is supported, sent by the DU through an F1AP message.

2. The method according to claim 1, in: The wireless communication device is a UE associated with the first network node; and The second indication information indicates that the UE can be at least one of the following in the sidelink relay communication: Sidelink relay UE, Sidelink Remote UE, UE to network side link relay UE, UE to network side link remote UE, UE to UE side link relay UE, or UE to UE side link remote UE.

3. The method according to claim 1, in: The wireless communication device is a user equipment UE associated with the first network node; and Based on the third indication information, a new radio interface NR side link or a long term evolution LTE side link is used for the side link relay communication.

4. The method according to claim 1, in, The fourth indication information indicates whether the wireless communication device is authorized to be at least one of the following in the sidelink relay communication: Sidelink relay and / or remote UE, NR-based sidelink relay and / or remote UE, Sidelink relay and / or remote UE based on LTE sidelink, UE to network side link relay and / or remote UE, UE to network side link relay and / or remote UE based on NR side link, UE to network side link relay and / or remote UE based on LTE side link, or UE to UE side link relay and / or remote UE.

5. The method according to claim 1, in: The wireless communication device is a user equipment UE associated with the first network node; and The first indication information is obtained from the UE based on at least one of the following: Radio Resource Control (RRC) setup request message, RRC setup complete message, Sidelink relay single network slice selection auxiliary information S-NSSAI, UE to network side link relay S-NSSAI, or UE-to-UE sidelink relay S-NSSAI.

6. A method performed by a first network node, the method include: acquiring, from a second network node, first indication information indicating that a wireless communication device associated with the second network node supports sidelink relay communication involving the wireless communication device; and sending second indication information indicating whether the wireless communication device is authorized to perform sidelink relay communication to the second network node, wherein the second indication information indicates that the wireless communication device can be at least one of the following in the sidelink relay communication: sidelink relay and / or remote user equipment UE, UE to network sidelink relay and / or remote UE, or UE to UE sidelink relay and / or remote UE, and wherein: The second network node is a base station; The first network node is a device that performs a network function in a core network associated with the base station; The first indication information is obtained based on a Next Generation Application Protocol NGAP message; and The second indication information is sent based on the NGAP message; The third indication information generated based on the second indication information is sent by the central unit CU of the second network node to the third network node, Wherein: the third network node is a distributed unit DU of the base station, The third indication information is sent based on an F1 application protocol F1AP message; During establishment of the F1 interface, the central unit CU of the second network node receives an indication of whether the side link relay function is supported, sent by the DU through an F1AP message.

7. The method according to claim 6, in: The wireless communication device is a UE; and The first indication information indicates that the UE can be at least one of the following in the sidelink relay communication: Sidelink relay UE, Sidelink Remote UE, UE to network side link relay UE, UE to network side link remote UE, UE to UE side link relay UE, or UE to UE side link remote UE.

8. The method according to claim 6, in: The wireless communication device is a user equipment UE; and Based on the second indication information, a new radio interface NR side link or a long term evolution LTE side link is used for the side link relay communication.

9. The method according to claim 6, wherein: in, The third indication information indicates whether the wireless communication device is authorized to be at least one of the following in the sidelink relay communication: Sidelink relay and / or remote UE, NR-based sidelink relay and / or remote UE, Sidelink relay and / or remote UE based on LTE sidelink, UE to network side link relay and / or remote UE, UE to network side link relay and / or remote UE based on NR side link, UE to network side link relay and / or remote UE based on LTE side link, or UE to UE side link relay and / or remote UE.

10. The method according to claim 6, in: The wireless communication device is a user equipment UE, which sends indication information indicating that the UE supports sidelink relay communication to the second network node based on at least one of the following from the UE: Radio Resource Control (RRC) setup request message, RRC setup complete message, Sidelink relay single network slice selection auxiliary information S-NSSAI, UE to network side link relay S-NSSAI, or UE-to-UE sidelink relay S-NSSAI.

11. A network node, comprising a processor and a memory, wherein the processor is configured to read a code from the memory to execute the method according to any one of claims 1 to 10.

12. A non-transitory computer-readable medium having stored thereon computer-executable instructions which, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to implement the method according to any one of claims 1 to 10.

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