Method and communication device for monitoring physical downlink control channel

Abstract

The present application provides a method and communication device for monitoring a physical downlink control channel, the method comprising: a terminal device receives a first message sent by a network device, the first message includes M sleep time sets, and the sleep time is used to indicate the length of time to stop monitoring the PDCCH; the terminal device receives a second message sent by the network device, the second message includes sleep time indication information, the sleep time indication information is used to indicate a target sleep time index, and the target sleep time index is one of the M sleep time sets; the terminal device stops monitoring the PDCCH within the target time period. Based on the above technical solution, the terminal device can determine the time to stop monitoring the PDCCH according to the indication information sent by the network device. In this way, the terminal device can monitor the PDCCH more flexibly.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present application relates to the field of communication technology, and more specifically, to a method and a communication device for monitoring a physical downlink control channel. Background Art

[0002] In order to save unnecessary power consumption of terminal devices, terminal devices monitor the physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) based on the discontinuous reception (DRX) mechanism. The basic principle of the DRX mechanism is to configure a DRX cycle for terminal devices in the invalid radio resource control (RRC) connection state. The DRX cycle consists of an on-duration time and an opportunity for DRX. During the on-duration period, the terminal device monitors the PDCCH, and the on-duration period is controlled by the on-duration timer (drx-OnDurationTimer); during the DRX opportunity time, the terminal device does not monitor the PDCCH to reduce power consumption. Whenever a terminal device is scheduled to initially transmit a new data, an inactivity timer (drx-InactivityTimer) is started or restarted, and the terminal device will remain in the active state until the inactivity timer expires. The inactivity timer specifies the length of time that the terminal device remains in the active state after successfully decoding a PDCCH that schedules the initial transmission of new data. Although the DRX mechanism can save power consumption of terminal devices, the terminal devices can only decide whether to monitor the PDCCH according to the DRX cycle, and this monitoring mechanism is not very flexible. Summary of the invention

[0003] The present application provides a method and a communication device for monitoring a physical downlink control channel, which can monitor the PDCCH more flexibly.

[0004] In a first aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a method for monitoring a PDCCH, the method comprising: a communication device receives a first message sent by a network device, the first message comprising M sleep time sets, the mth sleep time set in the M sleep time sets comprising N m index and N m sleep time, where N m The index and the N m Sleep time corresponds to each other, where m = 1, ..., M, N mis a positive integer greater than or equal to 1, and the sleep time is used to indicate the length of time to stop monitoring the PDCCH; the communication device receives a second message sent by the network device, and the second message includes sleep time indication information, and the sleep time indication information is used to indicate a target sleep time index, and the target sleep time index is an index in the M sleep time sets; the communication device stops monitoring the PDCCH within a target time period, wherein the time length of the target time period corresponds to the time length of stopping monitoring the PDCCH indicated by the target sleep time, and the target sleep time corresponds to the target sleep time index. Based on the above technical solution, the communication device can determine the time to stop monitoring the PDCCH according to the indication information sent by the network device. In this way, the communication device can monitor the PDCCH more flexibly.

[0005] In combination with the first aspect, in a possible implementation manner of the first aspect, the unit of the sleep time is a discontinuous reception DRX cycle or a time unit. The above technical solution provides solutions for sleep time with two granularities.

[0006] In combination with the first aspect, in a possible implementation of the first aspect, the first message further includes time unit indication information, and the time unit indication information is used to indicate that the unit of the sleep time is a DRX cycle or a time unit. The above technical solution provides two optional time granularities, and the communication device can determine the unit granularity of the sleep time according to the indication information of the network device, so that the communication device can monitor the PDCCH more flexibly.

[0007] In combination with the first aspect, in a possible implementation of the first aspect, when the unit of the sleep time is the DRX cycle, if the communication device receives the sleep time indication information before the nth DRX cycle, then the target time period is from the nth DRX cycle to the n+x-1th DRX cycle; if the communication device receives the sleep time indication information at the first PDCCH opportunity within the on-duration period of the nth DRX cycle, then the target time period is from the nth DRX cycle to the n+x-1th DRX cycle; if the communication device receives the sleep time indication information at the nth PDCCH opportunity within the on-duration period of the nth DRX cycle, then the target time period is from the nth DRX cycle to the n+x-1th DRX cycle; t If the sleep time indication information is received on a PDCCH occasion, the target time period is from the n+1th DRX cycle to the n+xth DRX cycle, where x is the time length indicated by the target sleep time for stopping monitoring the PDCCH, and x and n are positive integers greater than or equal to 1.

[0008] In combination with the first aspect, in a possible implementation method of the first aspect, when the unit of the time length is the DRX cycle, if the communication device receives the sleep time indication information before the nth DRX cycle, then the target time period is from the nth DRX cycle to the n+x-1th DRX cycle; if the communication device receives the sleep time indication information on a PDCCH opportunity within the on-duration period of the nth DRX cycle, then the target time period is from the time the communication device receives the sleep time indication information to the n+x-1th DRX cycle, where x is the time length indicated by the target sleep time to stop monitoring the PDCCH, and x and n are positive integers greater than or equal to 1.

[0009] In combination with the first aspect, in a possible implementation method of the first aspect, when the unit of the time length is the DRX cycle, if the communication device receives the sleep time indication information before the nth DRX cycle, then the target time period is from the nth DRX cycle to the n+x-1th DRX cycle; if the communication device receives the sleep time indication information at a PDCCH timing within the on-duration period of the nth DRX cycle, then the target time period is from the n+1th DRX cycle to the n+xth DRX cycle, where x is the time length indicated by the target sleep time to stop monitoring the PDCCH, and x and n are positive integers greater than or equal to 1.

[0010] In combination with the first aspect, in a possible implementation manner of the first aspect, the communication device stops monitoring the PDCCH within a target time period, including: the communication device does not run an on-duration timer within the target time period.

[0011] In combination with the first aspect, in a possible implementation of the first aspect, the communication device stops listening to the PDCCH within the target time period, including: the communication device starts a first timer after receiving the sleep time indication information; if the first timer is running, the communication device does not start the start duration timer, and the length of the first timer is x DRX cycles, x-1 DRX cycles, or x+1 DRX cycles.

[0012] In combination with the first aspect, in a possible implementation method of the first aspect, when the unit of the sleep time is a time unit, the communication device stops listening to the PDCCH within the target time period, including: the communication device stops listening to the PDCCH within x time units from the time it receives the sleep time indication information, where x is the time length for stopping listening to the PDCCH indicated by the target sleep time, and x is a positive integer greater than or equal to 1.

[0013] In combination with the first aspect, in a possible implementation of the first aspect, the communication device stops listening to the PDCCH within x time units from the time it receives the sleep time indication information, including: the communication device does not run the start duration timer or the inactive timer within the x time units from the time it receives the sleep time indication information.

[0014] In combination with the first aspect, in a possible implementation of the first aspect, M is a positive integer greater than 1, the communication device is configured with M DRX parameter sets, and the M sleep time sets correspond one-to-one to the M DRX parameter sets. The method also includes: the communication device determines a target sleep time set, which is a sleep time set in the M sleep time sets that corresponds to the DRX parameter set currently used by the communication device; the communication device determines the sleep time corresponding to the target sleep time index in the target sleep time set as the target sleep time.

[0015] In combination with the first aspect, in a possible implementation of the first aspect, the method further includes: if the communication device triggers a cache status report within the target time period, and the cache status report meets the condition for triggering a scheduling request, then triggering the scheduling request after the target time period ends. The above technical solution can further save power consumption of the communication device.

[0016] In combination with the first aspect, in a possible implementation of the first aspect, the method further includes: if the communication device triggers a cache status report within the target time period, and the cache status report meets the condition for triggering a scheduling request, and the logical channel that triggers the cache status report allows delayed triggering of the scheduling request, then the scheduling request is triggered after the target time period ends. The above technical solution can further save power consumption of the communication device.

[0017] In combination with the first aspect, in a possible implementation of the first aspect, the method further includes: when the communication device receives the sleep time indication information, switching the downlink DL partial bandwidth BWP of the current main service cell to the target DL BWP, wherein the target DL BWP is the DL BWP with the smallest bandwidth among the DL BWPs configured on the corresponding service cell, the default DL BWP or the initial DL BWP. The above technical solution can further save the power consumption of the communication device.

[0018] In combination with the first aspect, in a possible implementation of the first aspect, the method further includes: when the communication device receives the sleep time indication information, switching the downlink DL partial bandwidth BWP of all activated secondary service cells to the target DL BWP, wherein the target DL BWP is the DL BWP with the smallest bandwidth among the DL BWPs configured on the corresponding service cell, the default DL BWP or the initial DL BWP. The above technical solution can further save the power consumption of the communication device.

[0019] In combination with the first aspect, in a possible implementation of the first aspect, the method further includes: the communication device deactivates all activated secondary serving cells when receiving the sleep time indication information. The above technical solution can further save power consumption of the communication device.

[0020] In combination with the first aspect, in a possible implementation of the first aspect, the second message further includes secondary service cell deactivation indication information, and the secondary service cell deactivation indication information is used to indicate deactivation of all activated secondary service cells or deactivation of some activated secondary service cells; the method further includes: the communication device deactivates the activated secondary service cell indicated by the deactivation secondary service cell indication information. The above technical solution can further save power consumption of the communication device.

[0021] In combination with the first aspect, in a possible implementation of the first aspect, the first message further includes a time threshold, and the method further includes: when the communication device receives the sleep time indication information, if the length of the target sleep time is greater than or equal to the time threshold, the communication device deactivates all secondary service cells in the activated state. The above technical solution can further save power consumption of the communication device.

[0022] In combination with the first aspect, in a possible implementation of the first aspect, before the communication device receives the sleep time indication information, the method further includes: the communication device reports at least one expected sleep time to the network device. In this way, the network device can determine the sleep time set according to the at least one expected sleep time reported by the communication device.

[0023] In combination with the first aspect, in a possible implementation of the first aspect, the at least one expected sleep time is carried by terminal device capability information, terminal device auxiliary information, wireless resource control RRC connection establishment completion message, RRC connection recovery completion message or RRC connection reconstruction completion message.

[0024] In combination with the first aspect, in a possible implementation manner of the first aspect, the first message is a radio resource control reconfiguration message, and the second message is downlink control information.

[0025] In combination with the first aspect, in a possible implementation manner of the first aspect, the communication device is a terminal device or a chip.

[0026] In a second aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a method for monitoring a PDCCH, the method comprising: a communication device determines M sleep time sets, the mth sleep time set in the M sleep time sets includes N m index and N m sleep time, where N m The index and the N m Sleep time corresponds to each other, where m = 1, ..., M, N m is a positive integer greater than or equal to 1, and the sleep time is used to indicate the length of time to stop monitoring the PDCCH; the communication device sends a first message to the terminal device, and the first message includes the M sleep time sets; the communication device determines the sleep time indication information, and the sleep time indication information is used to indicate the target sleep time index, and the target sleep time index is an index in the M sleep time sets; the communication device sends a second message to the terminal device, and the second message includes the sleep time indication information. Based on the above technical solution, the communication device can directly instruct the terminal device to determine the time to stop monitoring the PDCCH. In this way, the terminal device can monitor the PDCCH more flexibly.

[0027] In conjunction with the second aspect, in a possible implementation manner of the second aspect, the unit of the sleep time is a discontinuous reception DRX cycle or a time unit. The above technical solution provides solutions for sleep time with two granularities.

[0028] In combination with the second aspect, in a possible implementation of the second aspect, the first message further includes time unit indication information, and the time unit indication information is used to indicate that the unit of the sleep time is a DRX cycle or a time unit. The above technical solution provides two optional time granularities, and the terminal device can determine the unit granularity of the sleep time according to the indication information of the communication device, so that the terminal device can monitor the PDCCH more flexibly.

[0029] In combination with the second aspect, in a possible implementation of the second aspect, the second message further includes secondary service cell deactivation indication information, and the secondary service cell deactivation indication information is used to indicate the deactivation of all activated secondary service cells or the deactivation of some activated secondary service cells. The above technical solution can further save the power consumption of the terminal device.

[0030] In combination with the second aspect, in a possible implementation manner of the second aspect, the first message further includes a time threshold.

[0031] In combination with the second aspect, in a possible implementation of the second aspect, before the terminal device receives the first message, the method further includes: the communication device receives at least one expected sleep time sent by the terminal device; the communication device determines M sleep time sets, including: the communication device determines the sleep time and index in each sleep time set in the M sleep time sets according to the at least one expected sleep time.

[0032] In combination with the second aspect, in a possible implementation manner of the second aspect, the first message is a radio resource control reconfiguration message, and the second message is downlink control information.

[0033] In combination with the second aspect, in a possible implementation manner of the second aspect, the communication device is a network device or a chip.

[0034] In a third aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a method for monitoring PDCCH, the method comprising: a communication device receives a first message sent by a network device, the first message being used to instruct the communication device to stop running an on-duration timer and / or an inactive timer; when the communication device determines that the only timer being run is the on-duration timer and / or the inactive timer, the communication device stops running the running timer and stops monitoring the physical downlink shared channel PDCCH.

[0035] In combination with the third aspect, in a possible implementation of the third aspect, the method also includes: when the communication device determines that the running timer includes an uplink retransmission timer and / or a downlink retransmission timer, the communication device stops listening to the PDCCH after the retransmission timer times out.

[0036] In combination with the third aspect, in a possible implementation of the third aspect, the method also includes: when the communication device receives the first message, it switches the downlink DL partial bandwidth BWP of the current main service cell to the target DLBWP, wherein the target DL BWP is the DL BWP with the smallest bandwidth among the DL BWPs configured on the corresponding service cell, the default DL BWP or the initial DL BWP.

[0037] In combination with the third aspect, in a possible implementation of the third aspect, the method also includes: when the communication device receives the first message, it switches the downlink DL BWP of all activated secondary service cells to the target DL BWP, wherein the target DL BWP is the DL BWP with the smallest bandwidth among the DL BWPs configured on the corresponding service cell, the default DLBWP or the initial DL BWP.

[0038] In combination with the third aspect, in a possible implementation manner of the third aspect, the method further includes: upon receiving the first message, the communication device deactivates all secondary service cells in an activated state.

[0039] In combination with the third aspect, in a possible implementation of the third aspect, the first message also includes deactivation of secondary service cell indication information, and the deactivation of secondary service cell indication information is used to indicate the deactivation of all activated secondary service cells or the deactivation of some activated secondary service cells. The method also includes: the communication device deactivates the activated secondary service cell indicated by the deactivation of secondary service cell indication information.

[0040] In combination with the third aspect, in a possible implementation manner of the third aspect, the first message is media access control information, or downlink control information.

[0041] In combination with the third aspect, in a possible implementation manner of the third aspect, the communication device is a terminal device or a chip.

[0042] In a fourth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication device, which includes a module for executing the first aspect or any possible implementation method of the first aspect.

[0043] Optionally, the communication apparatus of the fourth aspect may be a terminal device, or may be a component (such as a chip or circuit, etc.) that can be used for a terminal device.

[0044] In a fifth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication device, which includes a module for executing the second aspect or any possible implementation method of the second aspect.

[0045] Optionally, the communication device of the fifth aspect may be a network device, or may be a component (such as a chip or circuit, etc.) that can be used for a network device.

[0046] In a sixth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication device, which includes a module for executing the third aspect or any possible implementation method of the third aspect.

[0047] Optionally, the communication apparatus of the sixth aspect may be a terminal device, or may be a component (such as a chip or circuit, etc.) that can be used for a terminal device.

[0048] In a seventh aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a storage medium storing instructions for implementing the method described in the first aspect or any possible implementation method of the first aspect.

[0049] In an eighth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a storage medium storing instructions for implementing the method described in the second aspect or any possible implementation method of the second aspect.

[0050] In a ninth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a storage medium storing instructions for implementing the method described in the third aspect or any possible implementation method of the third aspect.

[0051] In a tenth aspect, the present application provides a computer program product comprising instructions, which, when executed on a computer, enables the computer to execute the method described in the first aspect or any possible implementation of the first aspect.

[0052] In an eleventh aspect, the present application provides a computer program product comprising instructions, which, when executed on a computer, enables the computer to execute the method described in the second aspect or any possible implementation of the second aspect.

[0053] In a twelfth aspect, the present application provides a computer program product comprising instructions, which, when executed on a computer, enables the computer to execute the method described in the third aspect or any possible implementation of the third aspect. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0054] Figure 1 It is a schematic flowchart of a method for monitoring PDCCH provided according to an embodiment of the present application.

[0055] Figure 2 It is a schematic flowchart of another method for monitoring PDCCH provided according to an embodiment of the present application.

[0056] Figure 3 It is a structural block diagram of a communication device provided according to an embodiment of the present application.

[0057] Figure 4 It is a structural block diagram of a communication device provided according to an embodiment of the present application.

[0058] Figure 5 It is a structural block diagram of a communication device provided according to an embodiment of the present application.

[0059] Figure 6 It is a structural block diagram of a terminal device provided according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0060] Figure 7 It is a structural block diagram of a network device provided according to an embodiment of the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0061] The technical solution in this application will be described below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

[0062] In the present application, "at least one" means one or more, and "plurality" means two or more. "And / or" describes the association relationship of associated objects, indicating that three relationships may exist. For example, A and / or B can represent: A exists alone, A and B exist at the same time, and B exists alone, where A and B can be singular or plural. The character " / " generally indicates that the objects associated before and after are in an "or" relationship. "At least one of the following" or similar expressions refers to any combination of these items, including any combination of single or plural items. For example, at least one of a, b or c can represent: a, b, c, ab, ac, bc or abc, where a, b, c can be single or multiple. In addition, in the embodiments of the present application, the words "first", "second" and the like do not limit the quantity and execution order.

[0063] It should be noted that, in this application, words such as "exemplary" or "for example" are used to indicate examples, illustrations or descriptions. Any embodiment or design described as "exemplary" or "for example" in this application should not be interpreted as being more preferred or more advantageous than other embodiments or designs. Specifically, the use of words such as "exemplary" or "for example" is intended to present related concepts in a specific way.

[0064] The technical solutions of the embodiments of the present application can be applied to various communication systems, for example: global system for mobile communications (GSM) system, code division multiple access (CDMA) system, wideband code division multiple access (WCDMA) system, general packet radio service (GPRS), long term evolution (LTE) system, LTE frequency division duplex (FDD) system, LTE time division duplex (TDD), universal mobile telecommunication system (UMTS), worldwide interoperability for microwave access (WiMAX) communication system, future fifth generation (5G) system or new radio (NR), etc.

[0065] The terminal device in the embodiments of the present application may refer to a user device, an access terminal, a user unit, a user station, a mobile station, a mobile station, a remote station, a remote terminal, a mobile device, a user terminal, a terminal, a wireless communication device, a user agent or a user device. The terminal device may also be a cellular phone, a cordless phone, a session initiation protocol (SIP) phone, a wireless local loop (WLL) station, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a handheld device with wireless communication function, a computing device or other processing device connected to a wireless modem, a vehicle-mounted device, a wearable device, a terminal device in a future 5G network or a terminal device in a future evolved public land mobile communication network (PLMN), etc., and the embodiments of the present application are not limited to this.

[0066] The network device in the embodiment of the present application can be a device for communicating with a terminal device. The network device can be a base station (base transceiver station, BTS) in a global system for mobile communications (GSM) system or a code division multiple access (CDMA), or a base station (NodeB, NB) in a wideband code division multiple access (WCDMA) system, or an evolved base station (evoled NodeB, eNB or eNodeB) in an LTE system, or a wireless controller in a cloud radio access network (CRAN) scenario, or the network device can be a relay station, an access point, a vehicle-mounted device, a wearable device, a network device in a future 5G network, or a network device in a future evolved PLMN network, etc., and the embodiments of the present application are not limited.

[0067] In an embodiment of the present application, a terminal device or a network device includes a hardware layer, an operating system layer running on the hardware layer, and an application layer running on the operating system layer. The hardware layer includes hardware such as a central processing unit (CPU), a memory management unit (MMU), and a memory (also called main memory). The operating system can be any one or more computer operating systems that implement business processing through a process, such as a Linux operating system, a Unix operating system, an Android operating system, an iOS operating system, or a windows operating system. The application layer includes applications such as a browser, an address book, a word processing software, and an instant messaging software. In addition, the embodiment of the present application does not specifically limit the specific structure of the execution subject of the method provided in the embodiment of the present application, as long as it can communicate according to the method provided in the embodiment of the present application by running a program that records the code of the method provided in the embodiment of the present application, for example, the execution subject of the method provided in the embodiment of the present application can be a terminal device or a network device, or a functional module in a terminal device or a network device that can call a program and execute a program.

[0068] In addition, various aspects or features of the present application can be implemented as methods, devices or products using standard programming and / or engineering techniques. The term "product" used in this application covers computer programs that can be accessed from any computer-readable device, carrier or medium. For example, computer-readable media may include, but are not limited to: magnetic storage devices (e.g., hard disks, floppy disks or tapes, etc.), optical disks (e.g., compact discs (CDs), digital versatile discs (DVDs), etc.), smart cards and flash memory devices (e.g., erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM), cards, sticks or key drives, etc.). In addition, the various storage media described herein may represent one or more devices and / or other machine-readable media for storing information. The term "machine-readable medium" may include, but is not limited to, wireless channels and various other media capable of storing, containing and / or carrying instructions and / or data.

[0069] Figure 1 is a schematic flow chart of a method for monitoring PDCCH provided in accordance with an embodiment of the present application. For ease of description, Figure 1 The embodiments are described with terminal devices and network devices as the execution subjects. It can be understood that Figure 1 In the method shown, the execution subject of the steps executed by the terminal device may also be a component used for the terminal device (such as a chip, circuit, etc.), and the execution subject of the steps executed by the network device may also be a component used for the network device (such as a chip, circuit, etc.).

[0070] 101. A terminal device receives a first message sent by a network device. The first message includes M sleep time sets. The mth sleep time set in the M sleep time sets includes N m index and N m sleep time, where N m The index and the N m Sleep time corresponds to each other, where m = 1, ..., M, N m is a positive integer greater than or equal to 1, and the sleep time is used to indicate the length of time for stopping monitoring the PDCCH.

[0071] Optionally, in some embodiments, the unit of the sleep time is a DRX cycle or a time unit. In other words, in some embodiments, the unit of the sleep time is a DRX cycle. In other embodiments, the unit of the sleep time is a time unit. The time unit referred to in the embodiments of the present application may be a millisecond (ms), a slot, a mini-slot, an orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) symbol, etc.

[0072] Optionally, in some embodiments, the first message may further include time unit indication information, and the time unit indication information is used to indicate that the unit of the sleep time is the DRX cycle or the time unit. In other words, the terminal device may determine whether the unit of the sleep time is the DRX cycle or the time unit according to the time unit indication information. Optionally, in some embodiments, the network device may also send the time unit indication information to the terminal device through other messages.

[0073] For example, in some embodiments, if M is equal to 1, the sleep time set may include N indexes and N sleep times, and the N indexes correspond to the N sleep times one by one. For example, Table 1 is an example of a sleep time set.

[0074] index Sleep time 1 2 2 4 3 6 4 8

[0075] Table 1

[0076] As shown in Table 1, assuming that the unit of the sleep time is a DRX cycle, the sleep time corresponding to an index value of 1 is 2 DRX cycles; the sleep time corresponding to an index of 2 is 4 DRX cycles, and so on.

[0077] If M is a positive integer greater than 1, each of the M sleep time sets may include multiple indexes and multiple sleep times.

[0078] Optionally, in some embodiments, different sleep time sets may include different numbers of indexes and sleep times. For example, if M is equal to 3, then N1 may be equal to 3, N2 may be equal to 5, and N3 may be equal to 7. In other words, sleep time set 1 of the three sleep time sets may include 3 indexes and 3 sleep times, sleep time set 2 may include 5 indexes and 5 sleep times, and sleep time set 3 may include 7 indexes and 7 sleep times.

[0079] Optionally, in some embodiments, the indexes and sleep times included in some or all sleep time sets in different sleep time index sets may be the same. For example, if M is equal to 3, N1 may be equal to 3, N2 may be equal to 3, and N3 may be equal to 5. In other words, Sleep Time Set 1 and Sleep Time Set 2 in the three sleep time index sets may include 3 indexes and 3 sleep times, and Sleep Time Set 3 may include 5 sleep time sets and 5 indexes. For another example, if M is equal to 3, N1, N2, and N3 are all equal to 3. In other words, Sleep Time Set 1, Sleep Time Set 2, and Sleep Set 3 in the three sleep time index sets may include 3 indexes and 3 sleep times.

[0080] 102. The terminal device receives a second message sent by the network device, where the second message includes sleep time indication information, where the sleep time indication information is used to indicate a target sleep time index, where the target sleep time index is an index in the M sleep time sets.

[0081] The terminal device can determine the target sleep time index according to the second message, and further determine the target sleep time and the target time period.

[0082] 103. The terminal device stops monitoring the PDCCH within a target time period, wherein the time length of the target time period corresponds to the time length of stopping monitoring the PDCCH indicated by the target sleep time, and the target sleep time corresponds to the target sleep time index.

[0083] Taking Table 1 as an example, if the target sleep time index is 2, the target sleep time length is 4 DRX cycles.

[0084] Based on the above technical solution, the terminal device can determine the time to stop monitoring the PDCCH according to the indication information sent by the network device. In this way, the terminal device can monitor the PDCCH more flexibly.

[0085] Optionally, in some embodiments, when the unit of the sleep time is the DRX cycle, if the terminal device receives the sleep time indication information before the nth DRX cycle, then the target time period is from the nth DRX cycle to the n+x-1th DRX cycle; if the terminal device receives the sleep time indication information at the first PDCCH occasion within the on-duration period of the nth DRX cycle, then the target time period is from the nth DRX cycle to the n+x-1th DRX cycle; if the terminal device receives the sleep time indication information at the nth PDCCH occasion within the on-duration period of the nth DRX cycle, then the target time period is from the nth DRX cycle to the n+x-1th DRX cycle; tIf the terminal device receives the sleep time indication information at a PDCCH opportunity, the target time period is from the n+1th DRX cycle to the n+xth DRX cycle, where x is the length of time indicated by the target sleep time to stop monitoring the PDCCH, and x and n are positive integers greater than or equal to 1. In other words, if the terminal device receives the sleep time indication information at the first PDCCH before the nth DRX cycle or within the on-duration period of the nth DRX cycle, the terminal device will sleep for x DRX cycles starting from the nth DRX cycle. If the terminal device receives the sleep time indication information at a PDCCH time other than the first PDCCH opportunity of the nth DRX cycle, the terminal device will sleep for x DRX cycles starting from the n+1th DRX cycle. The terminal device does not monitor the PDCCH during the on-duration period of the x DRX cycles in sleep. The terminal device also does not monitor the PDCCH during the DRX opportunity time of the x DRX cycles in sleep.

[0086] Optionally, in some other embodiments, when the unit of the time length is the DRX cycle, if the terminal device receives the sleep time indication information before the nth DRX cycle, the target time period is from the nth DRX cycle to the n+x-1th DRX cycle; if the terminal device receives the sleep time indication information at a PDCCH opportunity within the on-duration period of the nth DRX cycle, the target time period is from the time when the terminal device receives the sleep time indication information to the n+x-1th DRX cycle, where x is the time length indicated by the target sleep time for stopping monitoring the PDCCH, and x and n are positive integers greater than or equal to 1. In other words, if the terminal device is before the nth DRX cycle, the terminal device sleeps for x DRX cycles starting from the nth DRX cycle. If the terminal device receives the sleep time indication information at a PDCCH opportunity of the nth DRX cycle, the terminal device starts to sleep from the time when the sleep time indication information is received until the n+x-1th DRX cycle. The terminal device does not monitor the PDCCH during the on-duration period of the dormant DRX cycle. The terminal device also does not monitor the PDCCH during the DRX opportunity time of the dormant DRX cycle.

[0087] Optionally, in other embodiments, when the unit of the time length is the DRX cycle, if the terminal device receives the sleep time indication information before the nth DRX cycle, the target time period is from the nth DRX cycle to the n+x-1th DRX cycle; if the terminal device receives the sleep time indication information at a PDCCH timing within the on-duration period of the nth DRX cycle, the target time period is from the n+1th DRX cycle to the n+xth DRX cycle, where x is the time length indicated by the target sleep time for stopping monitoring the PDCCH, and x and n are positive integers greater than or equal to 1. In other words, if the terminal device is before the nth DRX cycle, the terminal device sleeps for x DRX cycles starting from the nth DRX cycle. If the terminal device receives the sleep time indication information at a PDCCH timing of the nth DRX cycle, the terminal device sleeps for x DRX cycles starting from the n+1th DRX cycle. The terminal device does not monitor the PDCCH during the on-duration period of the dormant DRX cycle. The terminal device also does not monitor the PDCCH during the DRX opportunity time of the dormant DRX cycle.

[0088] The terminal device stops monitoring PDCCH within the target time period, including: the terminal device does not run the on-duration timer within the target time period. Optionally, in some embodiments, the on-duration timer is not started before the start time of the target time period. In this case, the terminal device does not run the on-duration timer within the target time period, including: the terminal device does not start the on-duration timer. Optionally, in some embodiments, the on-duration timer has been started before the start time of the target time period and the end time of the on-duration timer is later than the start time of the target time period. In this case, the terminal device does not run the on-duration timer within the target time period, including: the terminal device stops running the on-duration timer.

[0089] Optionally, in some other embodiments, after receiving the sleep time indication information, the terminal device starts a timer, which timer can be called a sleep timer, for example. The length of the sleep timer is x DRX cycles, x-1 DRX cycles, or x+1 DRX cycles. During the operation of the sleep timer, at the moment when the terminal device needs to start the duration timer as defined in the prior art, the terminal device does not start the duration timer. In other words, only when the sleep timer is not running, at the moment when the terminal device needs to start the duration timer as defined in the prior art, the terminal device starts the duration timer.

[0090] Optionally, in some embodiments, when the unit of the sleep time is a time unit, the terminal device stops monitoring the PDCCH within a target time period, including: the terminal device stops monitoring the PDCCH within x time units from the time it receives the sleep time indication information, where x is the time length for stopping monitoring the PDCCH indicated by the target sleep time, and x is a positive integer greater than or equal to 1. In other words, the target time period is x time units from the time the terminal device receives the sleep time indication information. Further, when the terminal device receives the sleep time indication information, the inactive timer is not started or restarted. Further, after the end of the x time units, the terminal device starts to monitor the PDCCH.

[0091] Optionally, in some embodiments, the terminal device stops monitoring the PDCCH within x time units from the time the sleep time indication information is received, including: the terminal device does not run the on-duration timer or the inactive timer within the x time units from the time the sleep time indication information is received. Further, the terminal device does not start or restart the inactive timer when receiving the sleep time indication information. Further, after the end of the x time units, the terminal device runs the on-duration timer or the inactive timer.

[0092] Optionally, in some embodiments, the on-duration timer is not started before the start time of the target time period. In this case, the terminal device does not start the on-duration timer. Optionally, in some embodiments, the on-duration timer has been started before the start time of the target time period and the on-duration timer is still running before the start time of the target time period, in which case the terminal device stops running the on-duration timer.

[0093] Optionally, in some embodiments, the inactivity timer is not started before the start time of the target time period. In this case, the terminal device may prohibit starting the inactivity timer. Optionally, in some embodiments, the inactivity timer has been started before the start time of the target time period and the inactivity timer is still running before the start time of the target time period. In this case, the terminal device may stop running the inactivity timer.

[0094] Optionally, in some embodiments, when the unit of the sleep time is a time unit, the terminal device stops monitoring the PDCCH within the target time period, including: when the terminal device receives the sleep time indication information, a timer is started, and the timer can be called a sleep timer, for example. The length of the sleep timer is x time units. While the sleep timer is running, the terminal device does not monitor the PDCCH. In other words, the terminal device monitors the PDCCH only when the sleep timer is not running and the duration timer and / or the inactive timer are running. Further, the terminal device does not start or restart the inactive timer when receiving the sleep time indication information. Further, when the sleep timer times out, if the duration timer and / or the inactive timer are running, the terminal device monitors the PDCCH.

[0095] Optionally, in some embodiments, when the unit of the sleep time is a time unit, the terminal device stops monitoring the PDCCH within the target time period, including: after the terminal device receives the sleep time indication information, if the length of the target sleep time is greater than or equal to the remaining length of the on-duration timer and / or the inactive timer, the terminal device stops the on-duration timer and / or the inactive timer. Further, the terminal device starts the on-duration timer at the moment when the on-duration timer needs to be started in the next DRX cycle, and monitors the PDCCH while the on-duration timer is running.

[0096] Optionally, in some embodiments, when the unit of the sleep time is a time unit, the terminal device stops listening to the PDCCH within the target time period, including: a special value is included in the sleep time set. The special value is used to instruct the terminal device to stop the start-up duration timer and / or the non-activation timer. After the terminal device receives the sleep time indication information, if the target sleep time index indicated by the sleep time indication information corresponds to the special value, the terminal device stops the start-up duration timer and / or the non-activation timer. Further, the terminal device starts the start-up duration timer at the moment when the start-up duration timer needs to be started in the next DRX cycle, and listens to the PDCCH while the start-up duration timer is running.

[0097] Optionally, in some embodiments, when the unit of the sleep time is a time unit, the terminal device stops listening to the PDCCH within the target time period, including: the sleep time indication information includes a special value in addition to indicating the target sleep time index. The special value is not used to indicate any index in the sleep time set. The special value is used to instruct the terminal device to stop turning on the duration timer and / or the non-activation timer. After the terminal device receives the sleep time indication information, if the sleep time indication information is the special value, the terminal device stops turning on the duration timer and / or the non-activation timer. Further, the terminal device starts the on duration timer at the moment when the on duration timer needs to be started in the next DRX cycle, and listens to the PDCCH while the on duration timer is running.

[0098] Optionally, in some embodiments, when the unit of the sleep time is a time unit, the terminal device stops monitoring the PDCCH within the target time period, including: after the terminal device receives the sleep time indication information, if the length of the target sleep time is less than the remaining length of the on-duration timer and / or the inactive timer, the terminal device stops the on-duration timer and / or the inactive timer. Further, after the target time period for stopping monitoring the PDCCH ends, the terminal device monitors the PDCCH. If the sleep time indication information is received again while monitoring the PDCCH, the terminal device stops monitoring the PDCCH within the target time period; if the indication information for scheduling new data is received while monitoring the PDCCH, the terminal device starts or restarts the inactive timer, and monitors the PDCCH while the inactive timer is running.

[0099] Optionally, in some embodiments, when the unit of the sleep time is a time unit, the terminal device stops monitoring the PDCCH within the target time period, including: after the terminal device receives the sleep time indication information, if the length of the target sleep time is less than the remaining length of the on-duration timer and / or the inactive timer, the terminal device stops the on-duration timer and / or the inactive timer, and starts a timer, which can be called a sleep timer, for example. The length of the sleep timer is x time units. During the operation of the sleep timer, the terminal device does not monitor the PDCCH. Further, after the sleep timer times out, the terminal device monitors the PDCCH. If the sleep time indication information is received again while monitoring the PDCCH, the terminal device stops monitoring the PDCCH within the target time period; if the indication information for scheduling new data is received while monitoring the PDCCH, the terminal device starts or restarts the inactive timer, and monitors the PDCCH while the inactive timer is running.

[0100] Optionally, in some embodiments, M is a positive integer greater than 1, and the terminal device is configured with M DRX parameter sets, and the M sleep time sets correspond one-to-one to the M DRX parameter sets. The method may also include: the terminal device determines a target sleep time set, the target sleep time set being a sleep time set in the M sleep time sets corresponding to the DRX parameter set currently used by the terminal device; the terminal device determines the sleep time in the target sleep time set corresponding to the target sleep time index as the target sleep time.

[0101] Each DRX parameter set may include at least one of the following DRX parameters: DRX cycle length and offset value; on-duration timer length; inactive timer length; uplink retransmission timer length; downlink retransmission timer length; uplink hybrid automatic repeat request round trip time timer; downlink hybrid automatic repeat request round trip time timer.

[0102] For example, M is equal to 2. The DRX cycle in DRX parameter set 1 is the first DRX cycle length. The DRX cycle in DRX parameter set 2 is the second DRX cycle length. Sleep time set 1 corresponds to DRX parameter set 1, and sleep time set 2 corresponds to DRX parameter set 2. Assuming that the currently used DRX parameter set is DRX parameter set 2, the target sleep time set is the target sleep time set 2.

[0103] Optionally, in some embodiments, the method further includes: if the terminal device triggers a cache status report within the target time period, and the cache status report meets the condition for triggering a scheduling request, then triggering the scheduling request after the target time period ends.

[0104] Optionally, in some other embodiments, the method also includes: if the terminal device triggers a cache status report within the target time period, and the cache status report meets the conditions for triggering a scheduling request, and the logical channel that triggers the cache status report allows delayed triggering of the scheduling request, then the scheduling request is triggered after the target time period ends.

[0105] Optionally, in some embodiments, the method also includes: upon receiving the sleep time indication information, the terminal device switches the downlink (DL) partial bandwidth (Bandwidth Part, BWP) of the current main service cell to a target DL BWP, wherein the target DL BWP is the DLBWP with the smallest bandwidth among the DL BWPs configured on the corresponding service cell, the default DL BWP or the initial DL BWP.

[0106] Optionally, in some embodiments, the method also includes: upon receiving the sleep time indication information, the terminal device switches the downlink DL BWP of all activated secondary service cells to the target DL BWP, wherein the target DL BWP is the DL BWP with the smallest bandwidth among the DL BWPs configured on the corresponding service cell, the default DL BWP or the initial DLBWP.

[0107] In other words, in some embodiments, the terminal device may only switch the DL BWP of the current primary service cell to the target DL BWP. In other embodiments, the terminal device may only switch the DLBWP of the secondary service cell in an activated state to the target DL BWP. In other embodiments, the terminal device may simultaneously switch the DLBWP of the current primary service cell and the DL BWP of the secondary service cell in an activated state to the target DL BWP. The above technical solution can further save the power of the terminal device.

[0108] In addition, the terminal device may further deactivate the secondary serving cell in the activated state. In other words, the terminal device may simultaneously perform DL BWP switching and deactivate the secondary serving cell in the activated state. Of course, the terminal device may also perform only one of the two operations of DL BWP switching and deactivating the secondary serving cell in the activated state.

[0109] Optionally, in some embodiments, the method further includes: upon receiving the sleep time indication information, the terminal device deactivates all secondary service cells in an activated state.

[0110] Optionally, in some embodiments, the second message further includes secondary service cell deactivation indication information, and the secondary service cell deactivation indication information is used to indicate the deactivation of all activated secondary service cells or the deactivation of some activated secondary service cells.

[0111] Optionally, in some other embodiments, the network device may also send the secondary serving cell deactivation indication information to the terminal device separately. In other words, the network device may send a third message to the terminal device, and the third message includes the secondary serving cell deactivation indication information.

[0112] Optionally, in some embodiments, the secondary service cell deactivation indication information is used to indicate whether the terminal device deactivates all secondary service cells in an activated state. The method also includes: after the terminal device receives the second message, if the secondary service cell deactivation indication information indicates that the terminal device deactivates all secondary service cells in an activated state, the terminal device deactivates all secondary service cells in an activated state; if the secondary service cell deactivation indication information indicates that the terminal device does not deactivate all secondary service cells in an activated state, the terminal device does not deactivate all secondary service cells in an activated state.

[0113] Optionally, in some embodiments, the deactivation secondary service cell indication information is used to instruct the terminal device to deactivate some secondary service cells that are in an activated state. The deactivation secondary service cell indication information can be a bitmap information, and each bit in the bitmap corresponds to a secondary service cell. For example, bit 0 corresponds to a secondary service cell with a secondary service cell index value of 0, and bit 1 corresponds to a secondary service cell with a secondary service cell index value of 1. When the value of a bit is 0, it indicates that the terminal device deactivates the corresponding secondary service cell, or when the value of a bit is 1, it indicates that the corresponding secondary service cell is deactivated; or, the deactivation secondary service cell indication information can be a secondary service cell index value. For example, when the deactivation secondary service cell indication information contains 0, it instructs the terminal device to deactivate the secondary service cell with a secondary service cell index value of 0. The method also includes: the terminal device deactivates the secondary service cell in an activated state indicated by the deactivation secondary service cell indication information.

[0114] Optionally, in some embodiments, the deactivation secondary service cell indication information is used to instruct the terminal device to deactivate some secondary service cells in an activated state. The deactivation secondary service cell indication information may include a secondary service cell list. The terminal device may determine the secondary service cell that needs to be deactivated based on the list. Optionally, in some embodiments, the cells included in the list may be secondary service cells that are already in an activated state. In other words, the network device may first determine the secondary service cells in an activated state that need to be deactivated, and then indicate the corresponding secondary service cells to the terminal device. Optionally, in other embodiments, the list may include secondary service cells in an activated state and may also include secondary service cells in a deactivated state. In other words, the network device indicates that the cell that needs to be deactivated is indicated to the terminal device. If a cell in the list is in an activated state, the terminal device deactivates the cell; if a cell in the list is not in an activated state, the terminal device does not need to perform a deactivation operation on the cell. Optionally, in other embodiments, the deactivation secondary service cell indication information may be used only to indicate the deactivation of some secondary service cells in an activated state. In this case, the terminal device can determine the secondary service cell in the activated state that needs to be deactivated. Optionally, in other embodiments, the deactivation secondary service cell indication information may include the number or proportion of secondary service cells that need to be deactivated. The terminal device can deactivate the secondary service cell in the activated state according to the number or proportion.

[0115] Optionally, in some embodiments, the first message also includes a time threshold, and the method also includes: when the terminal device receives the sleep time indication information, if the length of the target sleep time is greater than or equal to the time threshold, the terminal device deactivates all secondary service cells that are in an activated state.

[0116] Optionally, in some embodiments, before the terminal device receives the first message, the method further includes: the terminal device reports at least one expected sleep time to the network device. The network device can determine the sleep time in the sleep time set and the index corresponding to each sleep time based on the at least one expected sleep time, and then send the sleep time set to the terminal device. The at least one expected sleep time can be carried by terminal device capability information (also referred to as UE capability information), terminal device auxiliary information (also referred to as UE auxiliary information), radio resource control (RRC) connection establishment completion message, RRC connection recovery completion message, or RRC connection reconstruction completion message.

[0117] Optionally, in other embodiments, the network device may determine the M sleep time sets in other ways. For example, the network device may determine the M sleep time sets according to an internal policy. The M sleep time sets may also be pre-set inside the network device.

[0118] The network device may determine the target sleep time index based on the time when downlink information is sent to the terminal device. For example, if the network device does not send downlink information to the terminal device using PDCCH within a certain time period, the sleep time index corresponding to the time period is determined as the target sleep time index. The network device may also determine the target sleep time index based on the at least one expected sleep time.

[0119] Optionally, in some embodiments, the first message is a radio resource control reconfiguration message, and the second message is downlink control information (DCI).

[0120] Figure 2 is a schematic flow chart of another method for monitoring PDCCH provided in accordance with an embodiment of the present application. For ease of description, Figure 2 The embodiments are described with terminal devices and network devices as the execution subjects. It can be understood that Figure 2 In the method shown, the execution subject of the steps executed by the terminal device may also be a component used for the terminal device (such as a chip, circuit, etc.), and the execution subject of the steps executed by the network device may also be a component used for the network device (such as a chip, circuit, etc.).

[0121] 201. A terminal device receives a first message sent by a network device, where the first message is used to instruct the terminal device to stop running an on-duration timer and / or an inactivation timer.

[0122] 202. When the terminal device determines that the timer being run is only the on-duration timer and / or the inactivation timer, the terminal device stops running the timer being run and stops monitoring the physical downlink shared channel PDCCH.

[0123] Optionally, the embodiment further includes the following steps:

[0124] 203. When the terminal device determines that the running timer includes an uplink retransmission timer and / or a downlink retransmission timer, the terminal device stops monitoring the PDCCH after the retransmission timer times out.

[0125] Optionally, in some embodiments, the method also includes: upon receiving the first message, the terminal device switches the downlink (DL) partial bandwidth (Bandwidth Part, BWP) of the current main service cell to a target DL BWP, wherein the target DL BWP is the DL BWP with the smallest bandwidth among the DL BWPs configured on the corresponding service cell, the default DLBWP or the initial DL BWP.

[0126] Optionally, in some embodiments, the method also includes: upon receiving the first message, the terminal device switches the downlink DL BWP of all activated secondary service cells to the target DL BWP, wherein the target DL BWP is the DL BWP with the smallest bandwidth among the DL BWPs configured on the corresponding service cell, the default DL BWP or the initial DL BWP.

[0127] In other words, in some embodiments, the terminal device may only switch the DL BWP of the current primary service cell to the target DL BWP. In other embodiments, the terminal device may only switch the DLBWP of the secondary service cell in an activated state to the target DL BWP. In other embodiments, the terminal device may simultaneously switch the DLBWP of the current primary service cell and the DL BWP of the secondary service cell in an activated state to the target DL BWP. The above technical solution can further save the power of the terminal device.

[0128] In addition, the terminal device may further deactivate the secondary serving cell in the activated state. In other words, the terminal device may simultaneously perform DL BWP switching and deactivate the secondary serving cell in the activated state. Of course, the terminal device may also perform only one of the two operations of DL BWP switching and deactivating the secondary serving cell in the activated state.

[0129] Optionally, in some embodiments, the method further includes: upon receiving the first message, the terminal device deactivates all activated secondary service cells.

[0130] Optionally, in some embodiments, the first message further includes secondary service cell deactivation indication information, and the secondary service cell deactivation indication information is used to indicate deactivation of all activated secondary service cells or deactivation of some activated secondary service cells.

[0131] Optionally, in some embodiments, the secondary service cell deactivation indication information is used to indicate whether the terminal device deactivates all secondary service cells in an activated state. The method also includes: after the terminal device receives the second message, if the secondary service cell deactivation indication information indicates that the terminal device deactivates all secondary service cells in an activated state, the terminal device deactivates all secondary service cells in an activated state; if the secondary service cell deactivation indication information indicates that the terminal device does not deactivate all secondary service cells in an activated state, the terminal device does not deactivate all secondary service cells in an activated state.

[0132] Optionally, in some embodiments, the deactivation secondary service cell indication information is used to instruct the terminal device to deactivate some secondary service cells that are in an activated state. The deactivation secondary service cell indication information can be a bitmap information, and each bit in the bitmap corresponds to a secondary service cell. For example, bit 0 corresponds to a secondary service cell with a secondary service cell index value of 0, and bit 1 corresponds to a secondary service cell with a secondary service cell index value of 1. When the value of a bit is 0, it indicates that the terminal device deactivates the corresponding secondary service cell, or when the value of a bit is 1, it indicates that the corresponding secondary service cell is deactivated; or, the deactivation secondary service cell indication information can be a secondary service cell index value. For example, when the deactivation secondary service cell indication information contains 0, it instructs the terminal device to deactivate the secondary service cell with a secondary service cell index value of 0. The method also includes: the terminal device deactivates the secondary service cell in an activated state indicated by the deactivation secondary service cell indication information.

[0133] Optionally, in some embodiments, the deactivation secondary service cell indication information is used to instruct the terminal device to deactivate some secondary service cells in an activated state. The deactivation secondary service cell indication information may include a secondary service cell list. The terminal device may determine the secondary service cell that needs to be deactivated based on the list. Optionally, in some embodiments, the cells included in the list may be secondary service cells that are already in an activated state. In other words, the network device may first determine the secondary service cells in an activated state that need to be deactivated, and then indicate the corresponding secondary service cells to the terminal device. Optionally, in other embodiments, the list may include secondary service cells in an activated state and may also include secondary service cells in a deactivated state. In other words, the network device indicates that the cell that needs to be deactivated is indicated to the terminal device. If a cell in the list is in an activated state, the terminal device deactivates the cell; if a cell in the list is not in an activated state, the terminal device does not need to perform a deactivation operation on the cell. Optionally, in other embodiments, the deactivation secondary service cell indication information may be used only to indicate the deactivation of some secondary service cells in an activated state. In this case, the terminal device can determine the secondary service cell in the activated state that needs to be deactivated. Optionally, in other embodiments, the deactivation secondary service cell indication information may include the number or proportion of secondary service cells that need to be deactivated. The terminal device can deactivate the secondary service cell in the activated state according to the number or proportion.

[0134] Optionally, in some embodiments, the first message is medium access control element (MAC CE) or downlink control information (DCI).

[0135] Figure 3 1 is a block diagram of a communication device according to an embodiment of the present application. The communication device may be a terminal, or a component (such as a chip or a circuit) that can be used in a terminal. Figure 3 As shown, the communication device 300 may include a receiving module 301 and a processing module 302 .

[0136] The receiving module 301 is configured to receive a first message sent by a network device, wherein the first message includes M sleep time sets, and the mth sleep time set in the M sleep time sets includes N m index and N m sleep time, where N m The index and the N m Sleep time corresponds to each other, where m = 1, ..., M, N mis a positive integer greater than or equal to 1, and the sleep time is used to indicate the length of time for stopping monitoring the PDCCH.

[0137] The receiving module 301 is further used to receive a second message sent by the network device, where the second message includes sleep time indication information, where the sleep time indication information is used to indicate a target sleep time index, where the target sleep time index is an index in the M sleep time sets.

[0138] The processing module 302 is configured to stop monitoring the PDCCH within a target time period, wherein the time length of the target time period corresponds to the time length of stopping monitoring the PDCCH indicated by a target sleep time, and the target sleep time corresponds to the target sleep time index.

[0139] In a possible manner, the receiving module 301 may be implemented by a receiver, and the processing module 302 may be implemented by a processor. The specific functions and beneficial effects of the receiving module 301 and the processing module 302 may be found in Figure 1 The method shown will not be described in detail here.

[0140] In a possible embodiment, a communication device is also provided, which may be a terminal or a component (such as a chip or circuit) that can be used for a terminal. The communication device may include a processor, and optionally, may also include a transceiver and a memory. The processor may be used to implement the corresponding functions and operations of the above-mentioned processing module. The memory may be used to store execution instructions or application code, and the execution is controlled by the processor to implement the communication method provided in the above-mentioned embodiment of the present application; and / or, it may also be used to temporarily store some data and instruction information, etc. The memory may exist independently of the processor, in which case the memory may be connected to the processor via a communication line. In another possible design, the memory may also be integrated with the processor, which is not limited in the embodiments of the present application.

[0141] Figure 4 is a structural block diagram of a communication device provided according to an embodiment of the present application. Figure 4 As shown, the communication device 400 includes a processing module 401 and a sending module 402 .

[0142] The processing module 401 is used to determine M sleep time sets, wherein the mth sleep time set in the M sleep time sets includes N m index and N m sleep time, where N m The index and the N m Sleep time corresponds to each other, where m = 1, ..., M, N m is a positive integer greater than or equal to 1, and the sleep time is used to indicate the length of time for stopping monitoring the PDCCH.

[0143] The sending module 402 is configured to send a first message to the terminal device, where the first message includes the M sleep time sets.

[0144] The processing module 401 is further used to determine sleep time indication information, where the sleep time indication information is used to indicate a target sleep time index, where the target sleep time index is an index in the M sleep time sets.

[0145] The sending module 402 is further configured to send a second message to the terminal device, where the second message includes the sleep time indication information.

[0146] The sending module 402 may be implemented by a transmitter. The processing module 401 may be implemented by a processor. The specific functions and beneficial effects of the sending module 402 and the processing module 401 may be found in Figure 1 The method shown will not be described in detail here.

[0147] In a possible embodiment, a communication device is also provided, which may be a base station or a component (such as a chip or circuit) that can be used for a base station. The communication device may include a transceiver and a processor, and optionally, may also include a memory. The transceiver may be used to implement the corresponding functions and operations corresponding to the above-mentioned receiving module and sending module, and the processor may be used to implement the corresponding functions and operations of the above-mentioned processing module. The memory may be used to store execution instructions or application code, and the execution is controlled by the processor to implement the communication method provided in the above-mentioned embodiment of the present application; and / or, it may also be used to temporarily store some data and instruction information, etc. The memory may exist independently of the processor, in which case the memory may be connected to the processor via a communication line. In another possible design, the memory may also be integrated with the processor, which is not limited in the embodiment of the present application.

[0148] Figure 5 1 is a block diagram of a communication device according to an embodiment of the present application. The communication device may be a terminal, or a component (such as a chip or a circuit) that can be used in a terminal. Figure 5 As shown, the communication device 500 may include a receiving module 501 and a processing module 502 .

[0149] The receiving module 501 is used to receive a first message sent by a network device, where the first message is used to instruct the terminal device to stop running an on-duration timer and / or an inactivation timer.

[0150] The processing module 502 is configured to stop running the running timer and stop monitoring the physical downlink shared channel PDCCH when it is determined that the running timer is only the on-duration timer and / or the inactivation timer.

[0151] In one possible manner, the receiving module 501 may be implemented by a receiver, and the processing module 502 may be implemented by a processor. The specific functions and beneficial effects of the receiving module 501 and the processing module 502 may be found in Figure 2 The method shown will not be described in detail here.

[0152] In a possible embodiment, a communication device is also provided, which may be a terminal or a component (such as a chip or circuit) that can be used for a terminal. The communication device may include a processor, and optionally, may also include a transceiver and a memory. The processor may be used to implement the corresponding functions and operations of the above-mentioned processing module. The memory may be used to store execution instructions or application code, and the execution is controlled by the processor to implement the communication method provided in the above-mentioned embodiment of the present application; and / or, it may also be used to temporarily store some data and instruction information, etc. The memory may exist independently of the processor, in which case the memory may be connected to the processor via a communication line. In another possible design, the memory may also be integrated with the processor, which is not limited in the embodiments of the present application.

[0153] Figure 6 is a structural block diagram of a terminal device provided according to an embodiment of the present invention. Figure 6 As shown, the terminal device 600 includes a processor 601, a memory 602, a radio frequency circuit, an antenna, and an input-output device. The processor 601 can be used to process communication protocols and communication data, as well as to control the terminal device, execute software programs, process data of software programs, etc. The memory 602 is mainly used to store software programs and data. The radio frequency circuit is mainly used for conversion between baseband signals and radio frequency signals and processing of radio frequency signals. The antenna is mainly used to send and receive radio frequency signals in the form of electromagnetic waves. Input-output devices, such as touch screens, display screens, keyboards, etc., are mainly used to receive data input by users and output data to users. It should be noted that some types of terminal devices may not have input-output devices.

[0154] When data needs to be sent, the processor 601 performs baseband processing on the data to be sent, and then outputs the baseband signal to the RF circuit. The RF circuit performs RF processing on the baseband signal and then transmits the RF signal to the outside in the form of electromagnetic waves through the antenna. When data is sent to the terminal device, the RF circuit receives the RF signal through the antenna, converts the RF signal into a baseband signal, and outputs the baseband signal to the processor. The processor converts the baseband signal into data and processes the data. For ease of explanation, Figure 6Only one memory and processor are shown. In an actual terminal device product, there may be one or more processors and one or more memories. The memory may also be referred to as a storage medium or a storage device. The memory may be set independently of the processor or may be integrated with the processor, and the embodiments of the present application do not limit this.

[0155] In the embodiment of the present application, the antenna and the radio frequency circuit with transceiver functions can be regarded as the transceiver 603 of the terminal device, and the processor with processing function can be regarded as the processing unit of the terminal device. The transceiver can also be referred to as a transceiver unit, a transceiver, a transceiver device, etc. The processing unit can also be referred to as a processor, a processing board, a processing module, a processing device, etc. Optionally, the device used to implement the receiving function in the transceiver 603 can be regarded as a receiving unit, and the device used to implement the sending function in the transceiver 603 can be regarded as a sending unit, that is, the transceiver 603 includes a receiving unit and a sending unit. The receiving unit can sometimes also be referred to as a receiver, a receiver, or a receiving circuit, etc. The sending unit can sometimes also be referred to as a transmitter, a transmitter, or a transmitting circuit, etc.

[0156] The processor 601, the memory 602 and the transceiver 603 communicate with each other through internal connection paths to transmit control and / or data signals.

[0157] The method disclosed in the above embodiment of the present invention can be applied to the processor 601, or implemented by the processor 601. The processor 601 may be an integrated circuit chip with signal processing capabilities. In the implementation process, each step of the above method can be completed by an integrated logic circuit of hardware in the processor 601 or an instruction in the form of software.

[0158] The processor described in each embodiment of the present application may be a general-purpose processor, a digital signal processor (DSP), an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field programmable gate array (FPGA) or other programmable logic devices, discrete gates or transistor logic devices, discrete hardware components. The methods, steps and logic block diagrams disclosed in the embodiments of the present invention can be implemented or executed. The general-purpose processor may be a microprocessor or the processor may also be any conventional processor, etc. The steps of the method disclosed in the embodiments of the present invention may be directly embodied as being executed by a hardware decoding processor, or may be executed by a combination of hardware and software modules in the decoding processor. The software module may be located in a mature storage medium in the art such as a random access memory (RAM), a flash memory, a read-only memory (ROM), a programmable read-only memory or an electrically erasable programmable memory, a register, etc. The storage medium is located in a memory, and the processor reads the instructions in the memory and completes the steps of the above method in combination with its hardware.

[0159] Optionally, in some embodiments, the memory 602 may store instructions for executing the following steps: Figure 1 The processor 601 can execute the instructions stored in the memory 602 in combination with other hardware (such as the transceiver 603) to complete the following steps: Figure 1 The steps performed by the terminal device in the method shown, the specific working process and beneficial effects can be found in Figure 1 Description of the illustrated embodiment.

[0160] Optionally, in some embodiments, the memory 602 may store instructions for executing the following steps: Figure 2 The processor 601 can execute the instructions stored in the memory 602 in combination with other hardware (such as the transceiver 603) to complete the following steps: Figure 2 The steps performed by the terminal device in the method shown, the specific working process and beneficial effects can be found in Figure 2 Description of the illustrated embodiment.

[0161] Figure 7 It is a structural block diagram of a network device provided according to an embodiment of the present invention. Figure 7 The network device 700 shown includes a processor 701 , a memory 702 , and a transceiver 703 .

[0162] The processor 701, the memory 702 and the transceiver 703 communicate with each other through internal connection paths to transmit control and / or data signals.

[0163] The method disclosed in the above embodiment of the present invention can be applied to the processor 701, or implemented by the processor 701. The processor 701 may be an integrated circuit chip with signal processing capabilities. In the implementation process, each step of the above method can be completed by the hardware integrated logic circuit in the processor 701 or the instruction in the form of software. The above processor 701 can be a general processor, a digital signal processor (digital signal processor, DSP), an application specific integrated circuit (application specific integrated circuit, ASIC), a field programmable gate array (field programmable gate array, FPGA) or other programmable logic devices, discrete gates or transistor logic devices, discrete hardware components. The methods, steps and logic block diagrams disclosed in the embodiments of the present invention can be implemented or executed. The general processor can be a microprocessor or the processor can also be any conventional processor, etc. The steps of the method disclosed in the embodiment of the present invention can be directly embodied as a hardware decoding processor to be executed, or a combination of hardware and software modules in the decoding processor can be executed. The software module may be located in a mature storage medium in the art, such as a random access memory (RAM), a flash memory, a read-only memory (ROM), a programmable read-only memory, or an electrically erasable programmable memory, a register, etc. The storage medium is located in the memory 702, and the processor 701 reads the instructions in the memory 702 and completes the steps of the above method in combination with its hardware.

[0164] Optionally, in some embodiments, the memory 702 may store instructions for executing the following steps: Figure 1 The processor 701 can execute the instructions stored in the memory 702 in combination with other hardware (such as the transceiver 703) to complete the following steps: Figure 1 The steps of the network device in the method shown, the specific working process and beneficial effects can be found in Figure 3 Description of the illustrated embodiment.

[0165] Optionally, in some embodiments, the memory 702 may store instructions for executing the following steps: Figure 2 The processor 701 can execute the instructions stored in the memory 702 in combination with other hardware (such as the transceiver 703) to complete the following steps: Figure 2The steps of the network device in the method shown, the specific working process and beneficial effects can be found in Figure 3 Description of the illustrated embodiment.

[0166] The embodiment of the present application also provides a chip, which includes a transceiver unit and a processing unit. The transceiver unit may be an input / output circuit or a communication interface; the processing unit may be a processor or a microprocessor or an integrated circuit integrated on the chip. The chip may execute the method executed by the network device side in the above embodiment.

[0167] As another form of this embodiment, a computer-readable storage medium is provided, on which instructions are stored. When the instructions are executed, the method on the network device side in the above method embodiment is executed.

[0168] As another form of this embodiment, a computer program product including instructions is provided, and when the instructions are executed, the method on the network device side in the above method embodiment is executed.

[0169] Those of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that the units and algorithm steps of each example described in conjunction with the embodiments disclosed herein can be implemented in electronic hardware, or a combination of computer software and electronic hardware. Whether these functions are performed in hardware or software depends on the specific application and design constraints of the technical solution. Professional and technical personnel can use different methods to implement the described functions for each specific application, but such implementation should not be considered to be beyond the scope of this application.

[0170] Those skilled in the art can clearly understand that, for the convenience and brevity of description, the specific working processes of the systems, devices and units described above can refer to the corresponding processes in the aforementioned method embodiments and will not be repeated here.

[0171] In the several embodiments provided in the present application, it should be understood that the disclosed systems, devices and methods can be implemented in other ways. For example, the device embodiments described above are only schematic. For example, the division of the units is only a logical function division. There may be other division methods in actual implementation, such as multiple units or components can be combined or integrated into another system, or some features can be ignored or not executed. Another point is that the mutual coupling or direct coupling or communication connection shown or discussed can be through some interfaces, indirect coupling or communication connection of devices or units, which can be electrical, mechanical or other forms.

[0172] The units described as separate components may or may not be physically separated, and the components shown as units may or may not be physical units, that is, they may be located in one place or distributed on multiple network units. Some or all of the units may be selected according to actual needs to achieve the purpose of the solution of this embodiment.

[0173] In addition, each functional unit in each embodiment of the present application may be integrated into one processing unit, or each unit may exist physically separately, or two or more units may be integrated into one unit.

[0174] If the functions are implemented in the form of software functional units and sold or used as independent products, they can be stored in a computer-readable storage medium. Based on this understanding, the technical solution of the present application can be essentially or partly embodied in the form of a software product that contributes to the prior art. The computer software product is stored in a storage medium and includes several instructions for a computer device (which can be a personal computer, a server, or a network device, etc.) to perform all or part of the steps of the methods described in the various embodiments of the present application. The aforementioned storage media include: various media that can store program codes, such as USB flash drives, mobile hard disks, read-only memories (ROM), random access memories (RAM), magnetic disks or optical disks.

[0175] The above is only a specific implementation of the present application, but the protection scope of the present application is not limited thereto. Any person skilled in the art who is familiar with the present technical field can easily think of changes or substitutions within the technical scope disclosed in the present application, which should be included in the protection scope of the present application. Therefore, the protection scope of the present application should be based on the protection scope of the claims.

Claims

1. A method for monitoring a physical downlink control channel PDCCH, characterized in that: The method comprises: The communication device receives a first message sent by a network device, wherein the first message includes M sleep time sets, and the mth sleep time set in the M sleep time sets includes N m sleep time, where m = 1, ..., M, M and N m is a positive integer greater than or equal to 1, and the sleep time is used to indicate the length of time for stopping monitoring the PDCCH; The communication device receives a second message sent by the network device, where the second message includes sleep time indication information, where the sleep time indication information is used to indicate a target sleep time, where the target sleep time is one of the M sleep time sets; The communication device stops monitoring the PDCCH within a target time period, wherein the length of the target time period corresponds to the target sleep time; The first message is a radio resource control reconfiguration message, and the second message is downlink control information.

2. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that The unit of the sleep time is a discontinuous reception DRX cycle or a time unit.

3. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that The first message also includes time unit indication information, where the time unit indication information is used to indicate that the unit of the sleep time is a DRX cycle or a time unit.

4. The method according to claim 2 or 3, characterized in that: In the case where the unit of the sleep time is the DRX cycle, if the communication device receives the sleep time indication information before the nth DRX cycle, the target time period is from the nth DRX cycle to the n+x-1th DRX cycle; If the communication device receives the sleep time indication information at the first PDCCH opportunity within the on-duration time of the nth DRX cycle, the target time period is from the nth DRX cycle to the n+x-1th DRX cycle; If the communication device receives an nth DRX cycle during the on-duration of the nth DRX cycle, t If the sleep time indication information is received on a PDCCH occasion, the target time period is from the n+1th DRX cycle to the n+xth DRX cycle, where x is the time length indicated by the target sleep time for stopping monitoring the PDCCH, and x and n are positive integers greater than or equal to 1.

5. The method according to claim 2 or 3, characterized in that: In the case where the unit of the time length is the DRX cycle, if the communication device receives the sleep time indication information before the nth DRX cycle, the target time period is from the nth DRX cycle to the n+x-1th DRX cycle; If the communication device receives the sleep time indication information on a PDCCH opportunity within the on-duration period of the nth DRX cycle, the target time period is from the time when the communication device receives the sleep time indication information to the n+x-1th DRX cycle, where x is the length of time indicated by the target sleep time to stop monitoring the PDCCH, and x and n are positive integers greater than or equal to 1.

6. The method according to claim 2 or 3, characterized in that: In the case where the unit of the time length is the DRX cycle, if the communication device receives the sleep time indication information before the nth DRX cycle, the target time period is from the nth DRX cycle to the n+x-1th DRX cycle; If the communication device receives the sleep time indication information on a PDCCH opportunity within the on-duration period of the nth DRX cycle, the target time period is from the n+1th DRX cycle to the n+xth DRX cycle, where x is the length of time indicated by the target sleep time to stop monitoring the PDCCH, and x and n are positive integers greater than or equal to 1.

7. The method according to claim 4, characterized in that The communication device stops monitoring the PDCCH within a target time period, including: the communication device does not run an on-duration timer within the target time period.

8. The method according to claim 4, characterized in that The communication device stops monitoring the PDCCH within a target time period, comprising: after receiving the sleep time indication information, the communication device starts a first timer, and during the operation of the first timer, the communication device stops monitoring the PDCCH, wherein the length of the first timer corresponds to the time length indicated by the target sleep time for stopping monitoring the PDCCH.

9. The method according to claim 4, characterized in that The communication device stops monitoring the PDCCH within the target time period, including: the communication device starts a first timer after receiving the sleep time indication information; If the first timer is running, the communication device does not start the on-duration timer, and the length of the first timer is x DRX cycles, x-1 DRX cycles, or x+1 DRX cycles.

10. The method according to claim 2 or 3, characterized in that: In a case where the unit of the sleep time is a time unit, the communication device stops monitoring the PDCCH within a target time period, including: The communication device stops monitoring the PDCCH within x time units after receiving the sleep time indication information, where x is the time length of stopping monitoring the PDCCH indicated by the target sleep time, and x is a positive integer greater than or equal to 1.

11. The method according to claim 10, characterized in that The communication device stops monitoring the PDCCH within x time units after receiving the sleep time indication information, including: The communication device does not run an on-duration timer or an inactive timer within the x time units after receiving the sleep time indication information.

12. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that The method further comprises: If the communication device triggers a buffer status report within the target time period, and the buffer status report meets the condition for triggering a scheduling request, the communication device triggers the scheduling request after the target time period ends.

13. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that The method further comprises: If the communication device triggers a cache status report within the target time period, and the cache status report meets the condition for triggering a scheduling request, and the logical channel triggering the cache status report allows delayed triggering of the scheduling request, then the scheduling request is triggered after the target time period ends.

14. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that The method also includes: upon receiving the sleep time indication information, the communication device switches the downlink DL partial bandwidth BWP of the current primary service cell to a target DL BWP, wherein the target DL BWP is the DLBWP with the smallest bandwidth among the DL BWPs configured on the corresponding service cell, a default DL BWP or an initial DL BWP.

15. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that The method also includes: upon receiving the sleep time indication information, the communication device switches the downlink DL partial bandwidth BWP of all activated secondary service cells to a target DL BWP, wherein the target DL BWP is the DL BWP with the smallest bandwidth among the DL BWPs configured on the corresponding service cell, a default DL BWP or an initial DL BWP.

16. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that The method further includes: upon receiving the sleep time indication information, the communication device deactivates all secondary serving cells in an activated state.

17. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that The second message further includes secondary serving cell deactivation indication information, where the secondary serving cell deactivation indication information is used to indicate deactivation of all activated secondary serving cells or deactivation of some activated secondary serving cells; The method also includes: the communication device deactivating the secondary serving cell in an activated state indicated by the secondary serving cell deactivation indication information.

18. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that The first message also includes a time threshold, and the method further includes: when the communication device receives the sleep time indication information, if the length of the target sleep time is greater than or equal to the time threshold, the communication device deactivates all secondary service cells in the activated state.

19. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that Before the communication device receives the sleep time indication information, the method further includes: the communication device reporting at least one expected sleep time to the network device.

20. The method of claim 19, wherein: The at least one expected sleep time is carried by terminal device capability information, terminal device auxiliary information, a radio resource control RRC connection establishment completion message, an RRC connection recovery completion message or an RRC connection reconstruction completion message.

21. A method for monitoring a physical downlink control channel PDCCH, characterized in that: The method comprises: The communication device determines M sleep time sets, wherein the mth sleep time set in the M sleep time sets includes N m sleep time, where m = 1, ..., M, M and N m is a positive integer greater than or equal to 1. The sleep time is used to indicate the length of time to stop monitoring the PDCCH. The communication device sends a first message to the terminal device, where the first message includes the M sleep time sets; The communication device determines sleep time indication information, where the sleep time indication information is used to indicate a target sleep time, where the target sleep time is one of the M sleep time sets; The communication device sends a second message to the terminal device, where the second message includes the sleep time indication information; The first message is a radio resource control reconfiguration message, and the second message is downlink control information.

22. The method according to claim 21, characterized in that The unit of the sleep time is a discontinuous reception DRX cycle or a time unit.

23. The method of claim 21, wherein: The first message also includes time unit indication information, where the time unit indication information is used to indicate that the unit of the sleep time is a DRX cycle or a time unit.

24. The method according to any one of claims 21 to 23, characterized in that The second message also includes secondary serving cell deactivation indication information, where the secondary serving cell deactivation indication information is used to indicate deactivation of all activated secondary serving cells or deactivation of some activated secondary serving cells.

25. The method according to any one of claims 21 to 23, characterized in that The first message also includes a time threshold.

26. A communication device, characterized in that: The communication device comprises a module for implementing the method according to any one of claims 1 to 20.

27. The communication device according to claim 26, characterized in that The communication device is a terminal device or a chip.

28. A communication device, characterized in that: The communication device comprises a module for implementing the method as claimed in any one of claims 21 to 25.

29. The communication device according to claim 28, characterized in that The communication device is a network device or a chip.

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