Methods, systems, and storage media of cell group activation and deactivation indication

Abstract

The present disclosure provides a cell group activation and deactivation indication method, system, terminal, network node and storage medium, wherein the method comprises: a terminal sends a cell group activation request or deactivation request to a network node of a network side according to service requirements; the bearer message of the cell group activation request or the cell group deactivation request comprises a MAC CE message; the terminal receives a cell group activation indication or deactivation indication sent by the network node, and performs an activation or deactivation operation corresponding to the cell group activation indication or the cell group deactivation indication; the bearer message of the cell group activation indication or the deactivation indication comprises a MAC CE message. The method, system, terminal, network node and medium of the present disclosure realize fast and flexible cell group activation or deactivation request and indication through MAC CE message in a multi-connection scenario, solve the problem that multiple cell groups cannot be activated or deactivated flexibly and quickly, and can utilize network resources more quickly and flexibly.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to the field of communication technology, and in particular to a method, system, terminal, network node, and storage medium for indicating the activation and deactivation of cell groups. Background Technology

[0002] With the development of 5G technology, the 5G spectrum continues to evolve towards higher frequency bands (100GHz band). On the other hand, the 4G spectrum will gradually be refarmed as 5G networks are deployed on a large scale. Therefore, multi-band overlapping deployment will be a common deployment method for future mobile networks (such as 5G / 6G). In the current 3GPP protocol, a UE can support a maximum of dual connectivity mode, that is, simultaneously connecting to one master node (MN) and one secondary node (SN). When the UE is in multi-connectivity mode, multiple secondary cell groups can be configured for the UE. However, the existing dual connectivity technology framework does not consider the management of multiple secondary cell groups. Therefore, a technical solution for cell group activation and deactivation instructions is needed. Summary of the Invention

[0003] In view of this, one technical problem to be solved by the present invention is to provide a method, system, terminal, network node and storage medium for indicating activation and deactivation of cell groups.

[0004] According to a first aspect of this disclosure, a method for indicating activation and deactivation of a cell group is provided, comprising: a terminal sending a cell group activation request or a cell group deactivation request to a network node on the network side according to service requirements; wherein, the network node includes: a primary node MN or a secondary node SN; the terminal is configured with a primary node MN and one or more of the SNs, each of the SNs being configured with an SCG; the bearer message of the cell group activation request or the cell group deactivation request includes: a MAC CE message; the terminal receiving the cell group activation indication or the cell group deactivation indication sent by the network node, and performing an activation or deactivation operation corresponding to the cell group activation indication or the cell group deactivation indication; wherein, the bearer message of the cell group activation indication or the cell group deactivation indication includes: a MAC CE message.

[0005] Optionally, the terminal uses a first MAC CE message format with a fixed length to generate the cell group activation request or the cell group deactivation request to request activation or deactivation of one or more cell groups; wherein, the first MAC CE message includes: a first Cell Group ID field; the first Cell Group ID field is used to indicate the first cell group ID that needs to be activated or deactivated.

[0006] Optionally, the terminal generates the cell group deactivation request using a second MAC CE message format with a fixed length of 0 bits, in order to request the deactivation of the cell group; wherein, the MAC subheader corresponding to the second MAC CE message includes: a first LCID; the first LCID is used to indicate that the second MAC CE message is a cell group deactivation request.

[0007] According to a second aspect of this disclosure, a method for indicating the activation and deactivation of a cell group is provided, comprising: a network node on the network side receiving a cell group activation request or a cell group deactivation request sent by a terminal; wherein the network node includes: a primary node MN or a secondary node SN; the terminal is configured with a primary node MN and one or more of the SNs, each of the SNs being configured with an SCG; the network node, based on the cell group activation request or the cell group deactivation request, interacts with relevant nodes to determine the cell group that needs to be activated or deactivated; the network node, based on the cell group that needs to be activated or deactivated, generates a cell group activation indication or a cell group deactivation indication and returns it to the terminal, so that the terminal performs an activation or deactivation operation corresponding to the cell group activation indication or the cell group deactivation indication; wherein the bearer message of the cell group activation request or the cell group deactivation request includes: a MAC CE message; the bearer message of the cell group activation indication or the cell group deactivation indication includes: a MAC CE message.

[0008] Optionally, the network node uses a fixed-length third MAC CE message format to generate the cell group activation indication or the cell group deactivation indication, to simultaneously indicate the activation or deactivation of one or more cell groups; wherein, the MAC subheader corresponding to the third MAC CE message includes: a second LCID; the second LCID is used to indicate that the third MAC CE message is a cell group activation or deactivation indication; the third MAC CE message includes: an activation state field or a deactivation state field of the SCell.

[0009] Optionally, the terminal determines the third MAC CE message as either the cell group activation indication or the cell group deactivation indication based on the second LCID; the terminal obtains the SCell Index configured for the cell group activation indication or the cell group deactivation indication, and determines the cell group that needs to be activated or deactivated based on the SCell Index.

[0010] Optionally, the network node uses a fixed-length fourth MAC CE message format to generate the cell group activation indication or the cell group deactivation indication, so as to simultaneously indicate the activation or deactivation of one or more cell groups in a fourth MAC CE message; wherein, the fourth MAC CE message includes: a second Cell Group ID field; the second Cell Group ID field is used to indicate the second cell group ID that needs to be activated or deactivated; for the SCell and PSCell in the cell group corresponding to the second cell group ID, all of them need to be activated or deactivated simultaneously.

[0011] Optionally, the network node uses a fixed-length fifth MAC CE message format to generate the cell group activation indication or the cell group deactivation indication, to indicate the activation or deactivation of a cell group and the activation status of SCells within the cell group; if the network node needs to indicate the activation or deactivation of multiple cell groups, it uses multiple fixed-length fifth MAC CE message formats to generate the cell group activation indication or the cell group deactivation indication; wherein, the fifth MAC CE message includes: an activation status field or a deactivation status field, a CG ID field, and an activation status field or a deactivation status field of the SCell.

[0012] Optionally, the network node uses a sixth MAC CE message format with variable length to generate the cell group activation indication or the cell group deactivation indication, to simultaneously indicate the activation or deactivation of one or more cell groups, as well as the activation status of SCells within the cell group; wherein, the sixth MAC CE message includes: an activation status field or a deactivation status field, a CGID field, and an activation status field or a deactivation status field of the SCell.

[0013] Optionally, the SN uses the seventh MAC CE message format to generate the cell group deactivation indication, which is used to indicate the deactivation of the cell group; wherein, the MAC subheader corresponding to the seventh MAC CE message includes: a third LCID; the third LCID is used to indicate that the seventh MAC CE message is a cell group deactivation indication; the fixed length of the seventh MAC CE message is 0 bits.

[0014] According to a third aspect of this disclosure, a terminal is provided, wherein the terminal is configured with a primary node MN and one or more SNs, each SN being configured with an SCG, the terminal comprising: a request sending module, configured to send a cell group activation request or a cell group deactivation request to a network node on the network side according to service requirements; wherein the network node includes: a primary node MN or a secondary node SN; and an indication processing module, configured to receive a cell group activation indication or a cell group deactivation indication sent by the network node, and perform an activation or deactivation operation corresponding to the cell group activation indication or cell group deactivation indication; wherein the bearer message of the cell group activation request or the cell group deactivation request includes: a MAC CE message; and the bearer message of the cell group activation indication or the cell group deactivation indication includes: a MAC CE message.

[0015] Optionally, the request sending module is configured to generate the cell group activation request or the cell group deactivation request using a first MAC CE message format with a fixed length, for requesting activation or deactivation of one or more cell groups; wherein, the first MAC CE message includes: a first Cell Group ID field; the first Cell Group ID field is used to indicate the first cell group ID that needs to be activated or deactivated.

[0016] Optionally, the request sending module is configured to generate the cell group deactivation request using a second MAC CE message format with a fixed length of 0 bits, for requesting the deactivation of the cell group; wherein, the MAC subheader corresponding to the second MAC CE message includes: a first LCID; the first LCID is used to indicate that the second MAC CE message is a cell group deactivation request.

[0017] According to a fourth aspect of this disclosure, a network node is provided, wherein the network node includes: a primary node MN or a secondary node SN; the network node includes: a request receiving module, configured to receive a cell group activation request or a cell group deactivation request sent by a terminal; wherein the terminal is configured with a primary node MN and one or more of the SNs, each of the SNs being configured with an SCG; a request processing module, configured to interact with relevant nodes based on the cell group activation request or the cell group deactivation request to determine the cell group that needs to be activated or deactivated; an instruction sending module, configured to generate a cell group activation instruction or a cell group deactivation instruction based on the cell group that needs to be activated or deactivated and return it to the terminal, so that the terminal performs an activation or deactivation operation corresponding to the cell group activation instruction or the cell group deactivation instruction; wherein the bearer message of the cell group activation request or the cell group deactivation request includes: a MAC CE message; the bearer message of the cell group activation instruction or the cell group deactivation instruction includes: a MAC CE message.

[0018] Optionally, the indication sending module is configured to generate the cell group activation indication or the cell group deactivation indication using a third MAC CE message format with a fixed length, to simultaneously indicate the activation or deactivation of one or more cell groups; wherein, the MAC subheader corresponding to the third MAC CE message includes: a second LCID; the second LCID is used to indicate that the third MAC CE message is a cell group activation or deactivation indication; the third MAC CE message includes: an activation state field or a deactivation state field of the SCell.

[0019] Optionally, the terminal determines the third MAC CE message as either the cell group activation indication or the cell group deactivation indication based on the second LCID; the terminal obtains the SCell Index configured for the cell group activation indication or the cell group deactivation indication, and determines the cell group that needs to be activated or deactivated based on the SCell Index.

[0020] Optionally, the indication sending module is configured to generate the cell group activation indication or the cell group deactivation indication using a fourth MAC CE message format with a fixed length, so as to simultaneously indicate the activation or deactivation of one or more cell groups in a fourth MAC CE message; wherein the fourth MAC CE message includes: a second Cell Group ID field; the second Cell Group ID field is used to indicate the second cell group ID that needs to be activated or deactivated; for the SCell and PSCell in the cell group corresponding to the second cell group ID, all of them need to be activated or deactivated simultaneously.

[0021] Optionally, the indication sending module is configured to generate the cell group activation indication or the cell group deactivation indication using a fixed-length fifth MAC CE message format to indicate the activation or deactivation of a cell group and the activation status of SCells within the cell group; if it is necessary to indicate the activation or deactivation of multiple cell groups, the cell group activation indication or the cell group deactivation indication is generated using multiple fixed-length fifth MAC CE message formats; wherein, the fifth MAC CE message includes: an activation status field or a deactivation status field, a CG ID field, and an activation status field or a deactivation status field of the SCell.

[0022] Optionally, the indication sending module is used to generate the cell group activation indication or the cell group deactivation indication using a sixth MAC CE message format with variable length, so as to simultaneously indicate the activation or deactivation of one or more cell groups, and the activation status of SCells within the cell group; wherein, the sixth MAC CE message includes: an activation status field or a deactivation status field, a CG ID field, and an activation status field or a deactivation status field of the SCell.

[0023] Optionally, the network node is an SN; the indication sending module is used to generate the cell group deactivation indication using the seventh MAC CE message format to indicate the deactivation of the cell group; wherein, the seventh MAC CE message includes: the third LCID of the MAC subheader; the third LCID is used to indicate the deactivation of the cell group; the fixed length of the seventh MAC CE message is 0 bits.

[0024] According to a fifth aspect of this disclosure, a terminal is provided, comprising: a memory; and a processor coupled to the memory, the processor being configured to perform the method described above based on instructions stored in the memory.

[0025] According to a sixth aspect of this disclosure, a network node is provided, comprising: a memory; and a processor coupled to the memory, the processor being configured to perform the method described above based on instructions stored in the memory.

[0026] According to a seventh aspect of this disclosure, an activation and deactivation instruction system for a cell group is provided, comprising: a terminal as described above and a network node as described above.

[0027] According to an eighth aspect of this disclosure, a computer-readable storage medium is provided that stores computer instructions which are executed by a processor using the method described above.

[0028] This disclosure discloses a cell group activation and deactivation instruction method, system, terminal, network node, and storage medium. For multi-connection scenarios, it uses MAC CE messages to achieve fast and flexible cell group activation or deactivation requests and instructions. It defines various MAC CE formats for cell group activation or deactivation requests and instructions, applicable to different application scenarios. This solves the problem that existing technologies cannot flexibly and quickly activate or deactivate multiple cell groups; it enables faster and more flexible utilization of network resources, shortens the latency from secondary cell configuration to activation, reduces terminal power consumption, achieves efficient and flexible use of network resources, and improves user experience. Attached Figure Description

[0029] To more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the embodiments of this disclosure or the prior art, the drawings used in the description of the embodiments or the prior art will be briefly introduced below. Obviously, the drawings described below are only some embodiments of this disclosure. For those skilled in the art, other drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without creative effort.

[0030] Figure 1 A schematic diagram of a scenario involving overlapping multi-frequency band deployment;

[0031] Figure 2 This is a schematic flowchart of an embodiment of the cell group activation and deactivation instruction method according to the present disclosure;

[0032] Figure 3 A schematic diagram of the first MACCE message format in one embodiment of the cell group activation and deactivation indication method according to this disclosure;

[0033] Figure 4 This is a schematic flowchart of another embodiment of the cell group activation and deactivation instruction method according to the present disclosure;

[0034] Figure 5 This is a schematic diagram of the third MACCE message format in one embodiment of the cell group activation and deactivation indication method according to the present disclosure;

[0035] Figure 6 This is a schematic diagram of the fourth MACCE message format in one embodiment of the cell group activation and deactivation indication method according to the present disclosure;

[0036] Figure 7 This is a schematic diagram of the fifth MACCE message format in one embodiment of the cell group activation and deactivation indication method according to the present disclosure;

[0037] Figure 8 This is a schematic diagram of the sixth MACCE message format in one embodiment of the cell group activation and deactivation indication method according to the present disclosure;

[0038] Figure 9 This is a schematic diagram of a module according to an embodiment of a terminal based on the present disclosure;

[0039] Figure 10 This is a schematic diagram of modules according to another embodiment of a terminal based on the present disclosure;

[0040] Figure 11 This is a schematic diagram of a module according to an embodiment of a network node based on the present disclosure;

[0041] Figure 12 This is a schematic diagram of a module according to another embodiment of a network node based on the present disclosure. Detailed Implementation

[0042] The present disclosure will now be described more fully with reference to the accompanying drawings, which illustrate exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure. The technical solutions of the embodiments of the present disclosure will be clearly and completely described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Obviously, the described embodiments are only some embodiments of the present disclosure, and not all embodiments. All other embodiments obtained by those skilled in the art based on the embodiments of the present disclosure without creative effort are within the scope of protection of the present disclosure.

[0043] The terms "first" and "second" used in the following text are only used to describe the differences between them and have no other special meaning.

[0044] In existing 3GPP protocols, a terminal supports a maximum of dual connectivity mode, meaning the terminal can simultaneously connect to one primary node (MN) and one secondary node (SN). A primary node can be viewed as a Master Cell Group (MCG), containing one Primary Cell (PCell) and several Secondary Cells (SCells); a secondary node (SN) can be viewed as a Secondary Cell Group (SCG), containing one PSCell and several SCells.

[0045] Multi-band overlapping deployment will be the deployment method for future mobile networks (such as 5G / 6G). Figure 1 As shown, the UE is configured with multiple SNs. There are interfaces between SNs and MNs, but no interfaces between SNs themselves. The MN is responsible for coordinating and interacting with radio resources. From the user's perspective, the development of emerging technologies such as AR / XR brings new service demands. To meet users' continuous high-speed requirements, multiple cell groups can be configured for the terminal, ensuring user service needs through multi-connectivity. On the other hand, with the future deployment of high-frequency bands, the radius of high-frequency cells is constantly shrinking. If only dual connectivity is supported, SN changes will occur frequently for mobile terminals. Relying solely on low-frequency MNs may not guarantee the continuity of high-speed services, requiring additional configuration of mid-to-low-frequency SNs to ensure service rates. Multi-connectivity is used to ensure a consistent user experience. Multi-standard, multi-connectivity hybrid networking will be an inevitable trend in future technological development.

[0046] For multi-connection scenarios where a terminal is configured with multiple secondary nodes, and each secondary node can be configured with a secondary cell group, this disclosure proposes a fast activation and deactivation indication method for multiple cell groups. Figure 2 This is a flowchart illustrating an embodiment of the cell group activation and deactivation instruction method according to the present disclosure, as follows: Figure 2 As shown:

[0047] Step 201: The terminal sends a cell group activation request or a cell group deactivation request to the network node on the network side according to the service requirements.

[0048] In one embodiment, the terminal includes a mobile phone, tablet computer, etc.; the network node includes a primary node MN or a secondary node SN. The terminal is configured with a primary node MN and one or more SNs, each SN being configured with an SCG; the bearer message for the cell group activation request or cell group deactivation request includes MAC CE messages, etc.

[0049] Step 202: The terminal receives a cell group activation indication or cell group deactivation indication sent by the network node, and performs the activation or deactivation operation corresponding to the cell group activation indication or cell group deactivation indication. The bearer message of the cell group activation indication or cell group deactivation indication includes MAC CE messages, etc.

[0050] In one embodiment, for a terminal-triggered scenario, the terminal sends a cell group activation or deactivation request to the network node MN or SN via MAC CE. The network node determines whether to accept the cell group activation or deactivation request, exchanges information with relevant nodes, and identifies the cell group that needs to be activated or deactivated. The network node generates a cell group activation or deactivation indication and sends it to the terminal via MAC CE.

[0051] The terminal receives a cell group activation or deactivation instruction and performs the relevant activation or deactivation operation. The terminal can use existing methods to perform the relevant activation or deactivation operation, including random access on PSCell or SCell, SCell activation, etc. For example, the information carried by the cell group activation instruction includes cell group ID, SCell Index information, RACH (Random Access Channel) resource information, etc.; the information carried by the cell group deactivation instruction includes cell group ID, etc.

[0052] The terminal uses a fixed-length first MAC CE message format to generate a cell group activation request or cell group deactivation request to request the activation or deactivation of one or more cell groups. The first MAC CE message includes a first CellGroup ID field; the first CellGroup ID field is used to indicate the first cell group ID that needs to be activated or deactivated.

[0053] For example, a terminal sends a cell group activation or deactivation request to an MN or SN using a first MAC CE message format. A terminal can simultaneously request the activation or deactivation of multiple cell groups. The first MAC CE message format, which carries the cell group activation or deactivation request, is used to simultaneously request the activation or deactivation of one or more cell groups; the first MAC CE message format defines a new fixed-length MAC CE containing a first Cell Group id field to indicate the cell group ID.

[0054] For example, such as Figure 3 As shown, the activation or deactivation request for the cell group corresponding to the first Cell Group ID can be indicated via a bitmap. The format of this bitmap-based activation or deactivation request is pre-sent to the network node. If the terminal is configured with the cell group whose first Cell Group ID is i, then the CG in the first MACCE message format... i The instruction requests activation or deactivation of the cell group; 0 indicates deactivation and 1 indicates activation. Otherwise, the MN or SN ignores the cell group. i The length of the first MAC CE message depends on the maximum number of cell groups supported and maintains byte alignment.

[0055] The terminal generates a cell group deactivation request using a fixed-length (0-bit) second MAC CE message format to request the deactivation of a cell group. The MAC subheader of the second MAC CE message includes a first LCID, which indicates that the second MAC CE message is a cell group deactivation request. The fixed-length (0-bit) second MAC CE message format can be modified by defining a new first LCID to indicate a cell group deactivation request, requesting the deactivation of the cell group that received the MAC CE.

[0056] like Figure 3 As shown, the first MAC CE message format can be used to configure scenarios with no more than 8 cell groups. If more cell groups need to be configured, the number of bytes in the MAC CE can be further increased. The first MAC CE message format configures CGs. i (The first Cell Group ID field includes CG1-CG8). If the terminal is configured with the cell group whose first Cell Group ID is i, then the corresponding CG... i The instruction requests activation or deactivation of the cell group, with 0 indicating deactivation and 1 indicating activation; otherwise, the MN ignores the cell group. i domain.

[0057] Figure 4This is a flowchart illustrating another embodiment of the cell group activation and deactivation instruction method according to the present disclosure, as follows: Figure 4 As shown:

[0058] Step 401: The network node on the network side receives the cell group activation request or cell group deactivation request sent by the terminal. The network node includes a primary node (MN) or secondary nodes (SN), etc.; the terminal is configured with one primary node (MN) and one or more SNs, each SN configured with an SCG. The bearer message for the cell group activation request or cell group deactivation request includes MAC CE messages, etc.

[0059] Step 402: Based on the cell group activation request or cell group deactivation request, the network node interacts with relevant nodes to determine the cell groups that need to be activated or deactivated. The network node can use existing methods to interact with relevant nodes to determine the cell groups that need to be activated or deactivated.

[0060] Step 403: Based on the cell groups that need to be activated or deactivated, the network node generates a cell group activation instruction or a cell group deactivation instruction and returns it to the terminal, so that the terminal can perform the activation or deactivation operation corresponding to the cell group activation instruction or cell group deactivation instruction. The bearer message of the cell group activation instruction or cell group deactivation instruction includes MAC CE messages, etc.

[0061] In one embodiment, a network node uses a fixed-length third MAC CE message format to generate a cell group activation indication or a cell group deactivation indication, which simultaneously indicates the activation or deactivation of one or more cell groups. The MAC subheader corresponding to the third MAC CE message includes a second LCID; the second LCID is used to indicate that the third MAC CE message is a cell group activation or deactivation indication; the third MAC CE message includes: an activation state field or a deactivation state field of the SCell.

[0062] The terminal determines whether the third MAC CE message is a cell group activation indication or a cell group deactivation indication based on the second LCID. The terminal obtains the SCell Index configured for the cell group activation indication or cell group deactivation indication, and determines the cell group that needs to be activated or deactivated based on the SCell Index.

[0063] Network nodes MN or SN can use a third MAC CE message to send a cell group activation or deactivation indication to the terminal, indicating the activation or deactivation of one or more cell groups, and optionally indicating the SCell to be activated. A single third MAC CE message can indicate the activation or deactivation of multiple cell groups simultaneously. The third MAC CE message format defines a new second LCID, and the terminal determines whether the third MAC CE message is used to indicate the activation or deactivation of a cell group based on the second LCID.

[0064] The terminal checks the SCell Index configured under all MAC entities. If the terminal has configured a SCell with an SCellIndex value of i, the Ci field indicates the activation or deactivation status of that SCell. Based on the activation or deactivation status indication of the SCell, the terminal implicitly determines whether to activate or deactivate a certain cell group.

[0065] For example, the activation or deactivation status of a cell group is determined by the activation or deactivation indications of all SCells within the group; similarly, the activation or deactivation status of a cell group is determined by the activation or deactivation indications of PSCells within the group. An implicit deactivation scheme based on timers: The terminal independently maintains a corresponding cell group deactivation timer for each configured cell group (SCG), and the duration of each cell group's deactivation timer can be different. When the terminal activates a cell group according to network-side instructions, it starts the corresponding cell group deactivation timer. The timer is restarted each time an uplink / downlink scheduling indication is received from an SCell within that cell group or when uplink / downlink transmission is performed. When the timer expires, the terminal implicitly deactivates the cell group, i.e., no network-side deactivation indication is required.

[0066] In one embodiment, the third MAC CE message format is as follows: Figure 5 As shown, this can be used for scenarios with no more than 8 SCells. If more SCells need to be configured, the byte count of this MAC CE can be expanded. For the C in the third MAC CE message format... i The field indicates the activation or deactivation status of a cell group if the terminal has configured a cell with an SCellIndex value of i. 1 indicates activation, and 0 indicates deactivation. If no SCell is configured, this field is ignored. R is a reserved bit with a value of 0. The terminal implicitly determines whether to activate or deactivate a cell group based on the activation or deactivation status of the SCell.

[0067] For an active cell group, if the received third MAC CE message indicates that all SCells within the group are deactivated, it implicitly indicates that the cell group should be deactivated. For a deactivated cell group, if the received third MAC CE message indicates that all SCells within the cell group are active, it implicitly indicates that the cell group should be activated; this method requires inter-node communication regarding the range of SCell Index values ​​within the cell group. When the terminal receives this third MAC CE message, it needs to check the activation or deactivation status of the SCell Indexes configured for all entities.

[0068] For an active cell group, if the received third MAC CE message indicates that a PSCell within the group is deactivated, the cell group is implicitly deactivated. For a deactivated cell group, if the received third MAC CE message indicates that a PSCell within the cell group is activated, the cell group is implicitly activated; this method requires nodes to exchange the specific index values ​​of the PSCells within the cell group. When the terminal receives the MAC CE, it needs to check the activation or deactivation status of the SCell Index corresponding to the PSCell under each entity. Based on this, if nodes can exchange the specific values ​​of all SCell Indexes within the cell group, they can activate certain SCells within the group while activating a PSCell, thus achieving more flexible resource utilization.

[0069] In one embodiment, the network node uses a fixed-length fourth MAC CE message format to generate a cell group activation indication or a cell group deactivation indication, so as to indicate the activation or deactivation of multiple cell groups simultaneously in a fourth MAC CE message; the fourth MAC CE message includes a second Cell Group ID field, which is used to indicate the second cell group ID that needs to be activated or deactivated; for the SCells and PSCells in the cell group corresponding to the second cell group ID, all of them need to be activated or deactivated simultaneously.

[0070] The fourth MAC CE message is used by the MN or SN to simultaneously indicate the activation or deactivation of one or more cell groups to the terminal; only one fourth MAC CE message needs to be sent. The fourth MAC CE message defines a new fixed-length cell group activation or deactivation indication, including a second Cell Group id field to indicate the cell group ID.

[0071] The activation or deactivation status of the cell group corresponding to the second Cell Group ID is indicated via a bitmap. If the terminal is configured with the cell group whose second Cell Group ID is i, then CGi indicates activation or deactivation of that cell group, with 0 representing deactivation and 1 representing activation; otherwise, the terminal ignores the CGi field (second Cell Group ID field). For SCells within a group, by default, the PSCell is activated at the same time as the cell group, or all SCells are activated. Some SCells cannot be activated, and there is no need for MN and SN to exchange SCell Index information. The length of the fourth MAC CE message depends on the maximum number of supported cell groups and maintains byte alignment.

[0072] like Figure 6 The diagram shows a scenario with no more than 8 cell groups. If more cell groups are supported in the future, the MAC CE size can be expanded. For CG...i If the terminal is configured to the cell group with cell group id i, then CG i Indicates whether to activate or deactivate the cell group; 0 represents deactivation, and 1 represents activation; otherwise, the terminal ignores the cell group. i domain.

[0073] In one embodiment, the network node uses a specific fixed-length fifth MAC CE message format to generate a cell group activation indication or a cell group deactivation indication to indicate the activation or deactivation of a cell group and the activation status of SCells within the cell group; if the network node needs to provide separate indications for multiple cell groups, it uses multiple fixed-length fifth MAC CE message formats to generate cell group activation indications or cell group deactivation indications.

[0074] The fifth MAC CE message includes an activation or deactivation state field, a CG ID field, and an activation or deactivation state field for the SCell. The fifth MAC CE message is used by the MN or SN to send a cell group activation or deactivation indication to the terminal, specifying the number of cell groups to be indicated. One or more MAC CEs can be sent. A new fifth MAC CE message defines activation or deactivation, indicating the activation or deactivation state according to the third Cell Group, and optionally indicating the activation state of other SCells besides the PSCell within the group.

[0075] The fifth MAC CE message includes an activation / deactivation status A / D field (1 for activation, 0 for deactivation), a CG ID field (indicating the cell group ID), and a SCell activation / deactivation status Ci field (indicating the activation / deactivation status of other SCells within the group, excluding PSCell). PSCell is activated by default. Other SCells within the group are ordered in descending or ascending order, and their activation status is indicated by a bitmap (0 for deactivation, 1 for activation). This fifth MAC CE message is guaranteed to be byte-aligned.

[0076] Each cell group can be indicated individually using a fixed-length fifth MAC CE message. If multiple cell groups are activated or deactivated simultaneously, multiple fifth MAC CE messages need to be sent. Alternatively, multiple cell groups can be indicated together using a variable-length fifth MAC CE message. If multiple cell groups are activated or deactivated simultaneously, one fifth MAC CE message needs to be sent.

[0077] In one embodiment, each cell group is individually indicated, using a fixed-length fifth MAC CE message. If multiple cell groups are activated or deactivated simultaneously, multiple fixed-length fifth MAC CE messages need to be sent. Figure 7As shown, the A / D field indicates whether the cell group is activated or deactivated, with 0 indicating deactivation and 1 indicating activation; the CG ID field indicates the third Cellgroup ID; the Ci field indicates whether the corresponding SCells are simultaneously activated in ascending or descending order of the SCell Index (excluding PSCell) within the group, using a bitmap method, with 0 indicating deactivation and 1 indicating activation; when the A / D field value is 0, the Ci field value is always 0. For example, if the PSCell Index within the group is 5, and the other SCell Index values ​​are 6, 7, and 8 respectively, then in ascending order, C1 corresponds to the activation or deactivation status of the SCell with an SCell Index value of 6.

[0078] In one embodiment, a network node may use a variable-length sixth MAC CE message format to generate a cell group activation indication or a cell group deactivation indication, which simultaneously indicates the activation or deactivation of one or more cell groups, as well as the activation status of SCells within the cell group. The sixth MAC CE message includes: an activation status field or a deactivation status field, a CG ID field, an activation status field or a deactivation status field of the SCell, etc. Each byte indicates a cell group, and the length of the sixth MAC CE message depends on the number of cell groups that need to be activated or deactivated.

[0079] like Figure 8 As shown, the A / D field indicates whether the cell group is activated or deactivated, with 0 indicating deactivation and 1 indicating activation; the CG ID field indicates the Cell group ID; the Ci field indicates whether the corresponding SCells are activated simultaneously in ascending or descending order of the SCell Index (excluding PSCell) within the group, using a bitmap method, with 0 indicating deactivation and 1 indicating activation; when the A / D field value is 0, the Ci field value is always 0.

[0080] In one embodiment, the SN uses the seventh MAC CE message format to generate a cell group deactivation indication to indicate the deactivation of a cell group. The MAC subheader corresponding to the seventh MAC CE message includes a third LCID, which indicates that the sixth MAC CE message is a cell group deactivation indication. The fixed length of the seventh MAC CE message is 0 bits. A new seventh MAC CE message can be defined for deactivating cell groups, which can be used in scenarios where the SN sends messages to the terminal. The fixed length of the seventh MAC CE message is 0 bits; by defining a new third LCID, the terminal can be instructed to deactivate the cell group that received the MAC CE.

[0081] In one embodiment, such as Figure 9As shown, this disclosure provides a terminal 90, which is configured with a master node MN and one or more SNs, each SN being configured with an SCG. The terminal 90 includes a request sending module 91 and an indication processing module 92.

[0082] The request sending module 91 sends a cell group activation request or a cell group deactivation request to the network nodes on the network side according to service requirements. The network nodes include the primary node MN or the secondary node SN. The instruction processing module 92 receives the cell group activation instruction or cell group deactivation instruction sent by the network nodes and performs the activation or deactivation operation corresponding to the cell group activation instruction or cell group deactivation instruction.

[0083] In one embodiment, the request sending module 91 generates a cell group activation request or cell group deactivation request using a first MAC CE message format with a fixed length, to request the activation or deactivation of one or more cell groups. The first MAC CE message includes a first Cell Group ID field, which indicates the first cell group ID that needs to be activated or deactivated.

[0084] The request sending module 91 generates a cell group deactivation request using a fixed-length 0-bit second MAC CE message format to request the deactivation of the cell group. The MAC subheader corresponding to the second MAC CE message includes a first LCID, which indicates that the second MAC CE message is a cell group deactivation request.

[0085] In one embodiment, this disclosure provides a terminal, such as Figure 10 As shown, the terminal may include a memory 94, a processor 93, a communication interface 95, and a bus 96. The memory 94 is used to store instructions, and the processor 93 is coupled to the memory 94. The processor 93 is configured to execute the activation and deactivation indication methods of the cell group described above based on the instructions stored in the memory 94.

[0086] The memory 94 can be a high-speed RAM, non-volatile memory, or a memory array. The memory 94 may also be divided into blocks, and these blocks can be combined into virtual volumes according to certain rules. The processor 93 can be a central processing unit (CPU), an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), or one or more integrated circuits configured to implement the cell group activation and deactivation instruction methods of this disclosure.

[0087] In one embodiment, such as Figure 11As shown, this disclosure provides a network node 110, which can be a primary node MN or a secondary node SN. The network node 110 includes a request receiving module 111, a request processing module 112, and an indication sending module 113. The request receiving module 111 receives cell group activation requests or cell group deactivation requests sent by a terminal. The request processing module 112, based on the cell group activation request or cell group deactivation request, interacts with relevant nodes to determine the cell groups that need to be activated or deactivated. The indication sending module 113, based on the cell groups that need to be activated or deactivated, generates a cell group activation indication or a cell group deactivation indication and returns it to the terminal, so that the terminal performs the activation or deactivation operation corresponding to the cell group activation indication or cell group deactivation indication.

[0088] In one embodiment, the instruction sending module 113 uses a fixed-length third MAC CE message format to generate a cell group activation indication or a cell group deactivation indication, to simultaneously indicate the activation or deactivation of one or more cell groups. The MAC subheader corresponding to the third MAC CE message includes a second LCID, which is used to indicate that the third MAC CE message is a cell group activation or deactivation indication.

[0089] The terminal determines whether the third MAC CE message is a cell group activation indication or a cell group deactivation indication based on the second LCID. The terminal then determines the cell group that needs to be activated or deactivated based on the SCell Index configured for the cell group activation indication or cell group deactivation indication.

[0090] In one embodiment, the instruction sending module 111 generates a cell group activation instruction or cell group deactivation instruction using a fixed-length fourth MAC CE message format, to simultaneously indicate the activation or deactivation of multiple cell groups within a single fourth MAC CE message. The fourth MAC CE message includes a second Cell Group ID field, which indicates the second cell group ID that needs to be activated or deactivated; all SCells and PSCells within the cell group corresponding to the second cell group ID need to be activated or deactivated simultaneously.

[0091] The instruction sending module 111 generates a cell group activation instruction or a cell group deactivation instruction using a fixed-length fifth MAC CE message format to simultaneously indicate the activation or deactivation of a cell group and the activation status of SCells within that cell group. If the instruction sending module 111 needs to indicate the activation or deactivation of multiple cell groups, it generates the cell group activation instruction or the cell group deactivation instruction using multiple fixed-length fifth MAC CE message formats. The fifth MAC CE message includes an activation status field or deactivation status field, a CG ID field, and an activation status field or deactivation status field for the SCell, etc.

[0092] The instruction sending module 111 uses a sixth MAC CE message format with variable length to generate the cell group activation indication or the cell group deactivation indication, so as to simultaneously indicate the activation or deactivation of one or more cell groups, as well as the activation status of SCells within the cell group; the sixth MAC CE message includes: an activation status field or a deactivation status field, a CG ID field, an activation status field or a deactivation status field of the SCell, etc.

[0093] In one embodiment, the network node is SN; the instruction sending module 113 uses the seventh MAC CE message format to generate a cell group deactivation indication to indicate the deactivation of the cell group. The MAC subheader corresponding to the seventh MAC CE message includes a third LCID, which is used to indicate that the seventh MAC CE message is a cell group deactivation indication; the fixed length of the seventh MAC CE message is 0 bits.

[0094] In one embodiment, this disclosure provides a network node, such as Figure 12 As shown, a network node may include a memory 115, a processor 114, a communication interface 116, and a bus 117. The memory 115 is used to store instructions, and the processor 114 is coupled to the memory 115. The processor 114 is configured to execute the activation and deactivation indication methods of the cell group described above based on the instructions stored in the memory 115.

[0095] The memory 115 can be a high-speed RAM, non-volatile memory, or a memory array. The memory 115 may also be divided into blocks, and these blocks can be combined into virtual volumes according to certain rules. The processor 114 can be a central processing unit (CPU), an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), or one or more integrated circuits configured to implement the cell group activation and deactivation instruction methods of this disclosure.

[0096] In one embodiment, this disclosure provides a cell group activation and deactivation indication system, including a terminal as described in any of the above embodiments and a network node as described in any of the above embodiments.

[0097] In one embodiment, this disclosure provides a computer-readable storage medium storing computer instructions that, when executed by a processor, implement the method as described in any of the above embodiments.

[0098] The cell group activation and deactivation indication method, system, terminal, network node, and storage medium in the above embodiments, for multi-connection scenarios, realize fast and flexible cell group activation or deactivation requests and indications through MAC CE messages. They define various MAC CE formats for cell group activation or deactivation requests and indications, applicable to different application scenarios, solving the problem that existing technologies cannot flexibly and quickly activate or deactivate multiple cell groups. They enable faster and more flexible use of network resources, shorten the latency from secondary cell configuration to activation, reduce terminal power consumption, achieve efficient and flexible use of network resources, and improve user experience.

[0099] The methods and systems of this disclosure may be implemented in many ways. For example, they may be implemented by software, hardware, firmware, or any combination of software, hardware, and firmware. The above-described order of steps for the methods is for illustrative purposes only, and the steps of the methods of this disclosure are not limited to the order specifically described above unless otherwise specifically stated. Furthermore, in some embodiments, this disclosure may also be implemented as a program recorded on a recording medium, the program including machine-readable instructions for implementing the methods according to this disclosure. Thus, this disclosure also covers recording media storing programs for performing the methods according to this disclosure.

[0100] The description in this disclosure is provided for illustrative and descriptive purposes only and is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the disclosure to its forms. Many modifications and variations will be apparent to those skilled in the art. The embodiments were chosen and described in order to better illustrate the principles and practical application of this disclosure and to enable those skilled in the art to understand this disclosure and to design various embodiments with various modifications suitable for a particular purpose.

Claims

1. A method for indicating the activation and deactivation of a cell group, comprising: The terminal sends a cell group activation request or a cell group deactivation request to the network node on the network side according to the service requirements. The terminal uses a first MAC CE message format with a fixed length to generate the cell group activation request or the cell group deactivation request, in order to request the activation or deactivation of one or more cell groups; the first MAC CE message includes: a first Cell Group ID field; the first Cell Group ID field is used to indicate the first cell group ID that needs to be activated or deactivated; The network nodes include: a primary node MN or a secondary node SN; the terminal is configured with a primary node MN and one or more of the SNs, and each SN is configured with an SCG. The terminal receives a cell group activation instruction or a cell group deactivation instruction sent by the network node, and performs an activation or deactivation operation corresponding to the cell group activation instruction or cell group deactivation instruction. The network node uses a fixed-length fourth MAC CE message format to generate the cell group activation indication or the cell group deactivation indication, so as to simultaneously indicate the activation or deactivation of one or more cell groups in a fourth MAC CE message; the fourth MAC CE message includes: a second Cell Group ID field; the second Cell Group ID field is used to indicate the second cell group ID that needs to be activated or deactivated; for the SCell and PSCell in the cell group corresponding to the second cell group ID, all of them need to be activated or deactivated at the same time.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising: The terminal uses a second MAC CE message format with a fixed length of 0 bits to generate the cell group deactivation request in order to request the deactivation of the cell group; The MAC subheader corresponding to the second MAC CE message includes: a first LCID; the first LCID is used to indicate that the second MAC CE message is a cell group deactivation request.

3. A method for indicating the activation and deactivation of a cell group, comprising: The network node on the network side receives cell group activation requests or cell group deactivation requests sent by the terminal; The terminal uses a first MAC CE message format with a fixed length to generate the cell group activation request or the cell group deactivation request, in order to request the activation or deactivation of one or more cell groups; the first MAC CE message includes: a first Cell Group ID field; the first Cell Group ID field is used to indicate the first cell group ID that needs to be activated or deactivated; The network nodes include: a primary node MN or a secondary node SN; the terminal is configured with a primary node MN and one or more of the SNs, and each SN is configured with an SCG. The network node interacts with relevant nodes to determine the cell group that needs to be activated or deactivated based on the cell group activation request or the cell group deactivation request. The network node generates a cell group activation instruction or a cell group deactivation instruction based on the cell group that needs to be activated or deactivated, and returns it to the terminal so that the terminal performs the activation or deactivation operation corresponding to the cell group activation instruction or cell group deactivation instruction. The network node uses a fixed-length fourth MAC CE message format to generate the cell group activation indication or the cell group deactivation indication, so as to simultaneously indicate the activation or deactivation of one or more cell groups in a fourth MAC CE message; the fourth MAC CE message includes: a second Cell Group ID field; the second Cell Group ID field is used to indicate the second cell group ID that needs to be activated or deactivated; for the SCell and PSCell in the cell group corresponding to the second cell group ID, all of them need to be activated or deactivated at the same time.

4. The method of claim 3, further comprising: The network node uses a fixed-length third MAC CE message format to generate the cell group activation indication or the cell group deactivation indication, so as to simultaneously indicate the activation or deactivation of one or more cell groups. The MAC subheader corresponding to the third MAC CE message includes: a second LCID; the second LCID is used to indicate whether the third MAC CE message is a cell group activation or deactivation indication; the third MAC CE message includes: the activation state field or deactivation state field of the SCell.

5. The method of claim 4, further comprising: The terminal determines, based on the second LCID, whether the third MAC CE message is a cell group activation indication or a cell group deactivation indication; The terminal obtains the SCell Index configured by the cell group activation indication or the cell group deactivation indication, and determines the cell group that needs to be activated or deactivated based on the SCell Index.

6. The method of claim 3, further comprising: The network node uses a fixed-length fifth MAC CE message format to generate the cell group activation indication or the cell group deactivation indication, to indicate the activation or deactivation of a cell group and the activation status of SCells within the cell group. If the network node needs to indicate the activation or deactivation of multiple cell groups, it generates the cell group activation indication or the cell group deactivation indication using multiple fifth MAC CE message formats with fixed lengths. The fifth MAC CE message includes: the active or deactivated state field, the CG ID field, and the active or deactivated state field of the SCell.

7. The method of claim 3, further comprising: The network node uses a sixth MAC CE message format with variable length to generate the cell group activation indication or the cell group deactivation indication, which simultaneously indicates the activation or deactivation of one or more cell groups, as well as the activation status of SCells within the cell group. The sixth MAC CE message includes: the active or deactivated state field, the CG ID field, and the active or deactivated state field of the SCell.

8. The method of claim 3, further comprising: The SN uses the seventh MAC CE message format to generate the cell group deactivation indication, which is used to indicate the deactivation of the cell group; The MAC subheader corresponding to the seventh MAC CE message includes: a third LCID; the third LCID is used to indicate that the seventh MAC CE message is a cell group deactivation indication; the fixed length of the seventh MAC CE message is 0 bits.

9. A terminal, wherein, The terminal is configured with a master node MN and one or more SNs, each SN being configured with an SCG. The terminal includes: The request sending module is used to send cell group activation requests or cell group deactivation requests to network nodes on the network side according to business needs. The network nodes include: a primary node MN or a secondary node SN; the request sending module uses a first MAC CE message format with a fixed length to generate the cell group activation request or the cell group deactivation request, to request the activation or deactivation of one or more cell groups; wherein the first MAC CE message includes: a first Cell Group ID field; the first Cell Group ID field is used to indicate the first cell group ID that needs to be activated or deactivated; The instruction processing module is used for the terminal to receive a cell group activation instruction or a cell group deactivation instruction sent by the network node, and to perform an activation or deactivation operation corresponding to the cell group activation instruction or the cell group deactivation instruction. The network node uses a fixed-length fourth MAC CE message format to generate the cell group activation indication or the cell group deactivation indication, so as to simultaneously indicate the activation or deactivation of one or more cell groups in a fourth MAC CE message; the fourth MAC CE message includes: a second Cell Group ID field; the second Cell Group ID field is used to indicate the second cell group ID that needs to be activated or deactivated; for the SCell and PSCell in the cell group corresponding to the second cell group ID, all of them need to be activated or deactivated at the same time.

10. The terminal as described in claim 9, wherein, The request sending module is used to generate the cell group deactivation request using a second MAC CE message format with a fixed length of 0 bits, in order to request the deactivation of the cell group; wherein, the MAC subheader corresponding to the second MAC CE message includes: a first LCID; the first LCID is used to indicate that the second MAC CE message is a cell group deactivation request.

11. A network node, wherein, The network nodes include: a master node MN or a secondary node SN; the network nodes include: A request receiving module is used to receive a cell group activation request or a cell group deactivation request sent by a terminal; wherein, the terminal is configured with a master node MN and one or more SNs, each SN being configured with an SCG; the terminal generates the cell group activation request or the cell group deactivation request using a first MAC CE message format with a fixed length, to request activation or deactivation of one or more cell groups; the first MAC CE message includes: a first Cell Group ID field; the first Cell Group ID field is used to indicate the first cell group ID that needs to be activated or deactivated; The request processing module is used to interact with relevant nodes to determine the cell group that needs to be activated or deactivated based on the cell group activation request or the cell group deactivation request. The instruction sending module is used to generate a cell group activation instruction or a cell group deactivation instruction based on the cell group that needs to be activated or deactivated, and return it to the terminal so that the terminal can perform the activation or deactivation operation corresponding to the cell group activation instruction or cell group deactivation instruction. The instruction sending module uses a fixed-length fourth MAC CE message format to generate the cell group activation instruction or the cell group deactivation instruction, so as to simultaneously indicate the activation or deactivation of one or more cell groups in a fourth MAC CE message; the fourth MAC CE message includes: a second Cell Group ID field; the second Cell Group ID field is used to indicate the second cell group ID that needs to be activated or deactivated; for the SCell and PSCell in the cell group corresponding to the second cell group ID, all of them need to be activated or deactivated at the same time.

12. The network node of claim 11, further comprising: The indication sending module is used to generate the cell group activation indication or the cell group deactivation indication using a third MAC CE message format with a fixed length, so as to simultaneously indicate the activation or deactivation of one or more cell groups; wherein, the MAC subheader corresponding to the third MAC CE message includes: a second LCID; the second LCID is used to indicate that the third MAC CE message is a cell group activation or deactivation indication; the third MAC CE message includes: an activation state field or a deactivation state field of the SCell.

13. The network node as described in claim 12, wherein, The terminal determines, based on the second LCID, whether the third MAC CE message is a cell group activation indication or a cell group deactivation indication; The terminal obtains the SCell Index configured by the cell group activation indication or the cell group deactivation indication, and determines the cell group that needs to be activated or deactivated based on the SCell Index.

14. The network node as described in claim 11, wherein, The instruction sending module is used to generate the cell group activation instruction or the cell group deactivation instruction using a fixed-length fifth MAC CE message format, to indicate the activation or deactivation of a cell group and the activation status of SCells within the cell group; if the instruction sending module needs to indicate the activation or deactivation of multiple cell groups, it generates the cell group activation instruction or the cell group deactivation instruction using multiple fixed-length fifth MAC CE message formats. The fifth MAC CE message includes: the active or deactivated state field, the CG ID field, and the active or deactivated state field of the SCell.

15. The network node as claimed in claim 11, wherein, The indication sending module is used to generate the cell group activation indication or the cell group deactivation indication using a sixth MAC CE message format with variable length, so as to simultaneously indicate the activation or deactivation of one or more cell groups, as well as the activation status of SCells within the cell group. The sixth MAC CE message includes: the active or deactivated state field, the CG ID field, and the active or deactivated state field of the SCell.

16. The network node as claimed in claim 11, wherein, The network node is SN; The instruction sending module is used to generate the cell group deactivation instruction using the seventh MAC CE message format, so as to instruct the cell group to be deactivated; The MAC subheader message corresponding to the seventh MAC CE includes: a third LCID; the third LCID is used to indicate that the seventh MAC CE message is a cell group deactivation indication; the fixed length of the seventh MAC CE message is 0 bits.

17. A terminal, wherein, Memory; And a processor coupled to the memory, the processor being configured to perform the method as described in any one of claims 1 to 2 based on instructions stored in the memory.

18. A network node, wherein, Memory; And a processor coupled to the memory, the processor being configured to perform the method as described in any one of claims 3 to 8 based on instructions stored in the memory.

19. A cell group activation and deactivation indication system, comprising: The terminal as described in any one of claims 9 to 10 and claim 17, and the network node as described in any one of claims 11 to 16 and claim 18.

20. A computer-readable storage medium storing computer instructions that are executed by a processor according to any one of claims 1 to 8.

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