Method, apparatus and terminal for determining paging time window (ptw)

Abstract

The application provides a paging time window (PTW) determination method and device and a terminal, and relates to the technical field of communication. The method comprises the following steps: acquiring a first discontinuous reception (DRX) cycle on the network device side; and determining a first initial PTW corresponding to the terminal according to the first DRX cycle. The scheme of the application solves the problem that the eDRX mode cannot work normally due to the fact that the PTW and the DRX paging cycle are not adapted to each other.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to the field of communication technology, and in particular to a method, apparatus and terminal for determining the paging time window (PTW). Background Technology

[0002] With the rapid development of IoT communication technology and the increasing attention to energy conservation and emission reduction in recent years, mobile communication has placed increasingly higher demands on the energy consumption of terminal devices. Narrow Band with Internet of Things (NB-IoT), as a new wireless access technology in cellular systems, has even more stringent requirements for energy consumption. Therefore, in order to further reduce terminal energy consumption and meet the extremely low power consumption requirements of NB-IoT terminal devices, mechanisms such as Extended Discontinuous Reception (eDRX) mode and Power Saving Mode (PSM) are introduced to keep terminal devices in a sleep state as much as possible to achieve the purpose of saving power.

[0003] like Figure 1 As shown, within each eDRX cycle, there is a paging time window (PTW). The terminal (UE) only listens to the paging channel during the discontinuous reception (DRX) cycle within the PTW to receive downlink services. Outside the PTW, the UE is in sleep mode, neither listening to the paging channel nor receiving downlink services. Currently, the PTW cycle setting in eDRX mode is static, while the DRX paging cycle configuration may differ between different core networks. This could lead to incompatibility between the PTW and DRX paging cycles, causing the eDRX mode to malfunction. Summary of the Invention

[0004] The purpose of this invention is to provide a method, apparatus, and terminal for determining the paging time window (PTW) to solve the problem in the prior art that the PTW may not work properly in eDRX mode due to the incompatibility between the paging time window and the DRX paging cycle.

[0005] To achieve the above objectives, embodiments of the present invention provide a method for determining the paging time window (PTW), applied to a terminal, the method comprising:

[0006] Obtain the first discontinuous reception DRX cycle on the network device side;

[0007] The first initial PTW corresponding to the terminal is determined based on the first DRX cycle.

[0008] Optionally, obtaining the first discontinuous reception DRX period on the network device side includes:

[0009] The network device receives a first downlink message sent by the network device side; wherein the first downlink message carries the first DRX period.

[0010] Optionally, receiving the first downlink message sent by the network device includes:

[0011] Receive the first downlink message broadcast by the network device.

[0012] Optionally, determining the first initial PTW corresponding to the terminal based on the first DRX cycle includes:

[0013] Based on the pre-stored correspondence between the DRX period and the initial PTW on the network device side, the first initial PTW corresponding to the first DRX period is determined.

[0014] Optionally, after determining the first initial PTW corresponding to the terminal based on the first DRX cycle, the method further includes:

[0015] Send a first uplink message to the network device; wherein the first uplink message carries the first initial PTW corresponding to the terminal.

[0016] Optionally, after sending the first uplink message to the network device, the method further includes:

[0017] The network device receives a second downlink message sent by the network device side; wherein the second downlink message carries the actual PTW used by the network device side based on the first initial PTW.

[0018] To achieve the above objectives, embodiments of the present invention provide a device for determining the paging time window (PTW), applied to a terminal, the device comprising:

[0019] The acquisition module is used to acquire the first discontinuous reception DRX cycle on the network device side;

[0020] The determination module is used to determine the first initial PTW corresponding to the terminal based on the first DRX cycle.

[0021] Optionally, the acquisition module includes:

[0022] A receiving unit is configured to receive a first downlink message sent by the network device side; wherein the first downlink message carries the first DRX period.

[0023] Optionally, the receiving unit is further configured to: receive the first downlink message broadcast by the network device side.

[0024] Optionally, the determining module includes:

[0025] The determining unit is configured to determine the first initial PTW corresponding to the first DRX period based on the pre-stored correspondence between the DRX period and the initial PTW on the network device side.

[0026] Optionally, the device further includes:

[0027] The sending module is configured to send a first uplink message to the network device side after determining the first initial PTW corresponding to the terminal according to the first DRX period; wherein the first uplink message carries the first initial PTW corresponding to the terminal.

[0028] Optionally, the device further includes:

[0029] The receiving module is configured to receive a second downlink message sent by the network device after sending a first uplink message to the network device side; wherein the second downlink message carries the actual PTW used by the network device side based on the first initial PTW.

[0030] To achieve the above objectives, embodiments of the present invention provide a terminal, comprising: a transceiver, a processor, a memory, and a program or instructions stored in the memory and executable on the processor; characterized in that, when the processor executes the program or instructions, it implements the steps in the method for determining the paging time window (PTW) as described above.

[0031] To achieve the above objectives, embodiments of the present invention provide a readable storage medium storing a program or instructions thereon, which, when executed by a processor, implement the steps in the method for determining the paging time window (PTW) as described above.

[0032] The beneficial effects of the above-described technical solution of the present invention are as follows:

[0033] In this embodiment of the invention, the terminal obtains the first discontinuous reception DRX cycle from the network device side and determines the first initial PTW corresponding to the terminal based on the first DRX cycle. This enables the PTW requested by the terminal to be adaptively adjusted according to the DRX cycle configured by the network device, thereby solving the problem that the eDRX mode cannot work properly due to the incompatibility between the PTW and the DRX cycle. Attached Figure Description

[0034] Figure 1 A schematic diagram of the eDRX cycle and PTW time;

[0035] Figure 2 A schematic diagram of the DRX cycle and PTW time;

[0036] Figure 3 This is a flowchart of the method for determining PTW according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0037] Figure 4 This is a schematic diagram of the eDRX period, PTW time, and DRX period in an embodiment of the present invention.

[0038] Figure 5 This is a schematic diagram illustrating the correspondence between the DRX cycle and the initial PTW in an embodiment of the present invention.

[0039] Figure 6 This is one of the schematic diagrams illustrating the interaction between a terminal and a network device according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0040] Figure 7 This is one of the schematic diagrams illustrating the interaction between a terminal and a network device according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0041] Figure 8 This is a block diagram of a PTW determination device according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0042] Figure 9 This is a block diagram of a terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention. Detailed Implementation

[0043] To make the technical problems, technical solutions and advantages of the present invention clearer, a detailed description will be given below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and specific embodiments.

[0044] It should be understood that the phrase "one embodiment" or "an embodiment" throughout the specification means that a specific feature, structure, or characteristic related to the embodiment is included in at least one embodiment of the invention. Therefore, "in one embodiment" or "in an embodiment" appearing throughout the specification do not necessarily refer to the same embodiment. Furthermore, these specific features, structures, or characteristics can be combined in any suitable manner in one or more embodiments.

[0045] In various embodiments of the present invention, it should be understood that the sequence number of each process described below does not imply the order of execution. The execution order of each process should be determined by its function and internal logic, and should not constitute any limitation on the implementation process of the embodiments of the present invention.

[0046] In addition, the terms "system" and "network" are often used interchangeably in this article.

[0047] In the embodiments provided in this application, it should be understood that "B corresponding to A" means that B is associated with A, and B can be determined based on A. However, it should also be understood that determining B based on A does not mean determining B solely based on A; B can also be determined based on A and / or other information.

[0048] In NB-IoT networks, the DRX paging period may differ depending on the core network configuration. For example, in real-world testing, four DRX configurations were found: 1280 / 2560 / 5120 / 10240ms. Since the UE is unaware of the network's DRX period configuration, if the PTW setting is too small (e.g., the UE's requested PTW time is less than the DRX period), the terminal will not have enough time to listen to the paging channel, resulting in lost downlink paging and impacting normal downlink services. For example, if the network-side DRX period configuration is 10240ms, and the UE's requested PTW time is 5120ms... Figure 2 As shown, in this situation, the UE cannot wake up normally to receive paging information from the network side, and the eDRX mode cannot work properly.

[0049] If the PTW setting is too large, meaning the UE requests a long PTW time, the UE will be in a wake-up state during the PTW period, causing the terminal device to remain in a wake-up state for an extended period, listening to the paging channel. This will increase the power consumption throughout the eDRX cycle, affecting the terminal device's power-saving goals and preventing the achievement of optimal power consumption. As shown in Table 1, the standby power consumption during the eDRX cycle is based on actual testing with different PTW configurations; the longer the PTW time, the higher the power consumption.

[0050] Table 1

[0051]

[0052] like Figure 3 As shown, this embodiment of the invention provides a method for determining a PTW (Personal Tolerant Warrant), applied to a terminal. The method includes:

[0053] Step 31: Obtain the first discontinuous reception DRX cycle on the network device side.

[0054] Step 32: Determine the first initial PTW corresponding to the terminal based on the first DRX cycle.

[0055] In the DRX paging cycle, i.e. when the terminal is in DRX mode, the receiver is turned on only during the necessary time period to enter the active state to receive downlink data, and the receiver is turned off during the remaining time period to enter the sleep state and stop receiving downlink data, which saves the terminal's power consumption.

[0056] like Figure 4As shown, to reduce power consumption and extend standby time, eDRX mode is introduced in NB-IoT. The eDRX cycle is in units of hyperframe number (H-SFN). In LTE, the synchronization unit between the UE and eNodeB is the system frame number (SFN), with one SFN equal to 10ms. The SFN value ranges from 0 to 1023. When the SFN reaches 1023, it restarts from 0. The maximum SFN cycle is 1024 SFNs = 10240ms = 10.24s. Therefore, some cycles in LTE (such as the paging cycle and the Connected DRX cycle) are shorter than 10.24s.

[0057] In NB-IoT systems, to achieve power saving, 10.24s is insufficient for the paging cycle. This is where the concept of superframe H-SFN comes in. One H-SFN corresponds to 1024 SFNs, meaning one superframe equals 10.24s. The H-SFN value ranges from 0 to 1023, and the maximum H-SFN cycle is 1024 H-SFNs, corresponding to 2.9127 hours (1024 * 10.24s / 60 / 60 = 2.9127). Therefore, for NB-IoT systems, the maximum paging cycle of eDRX can be 2.9 hours.

[0058] In eDRX mode, there is a PTW within each eDRX cycle. During the PTW, the terminal listens to the paging channel according to the DRX cycle in order to receive downlink services. Outside of the PTW, the terminal is in sleep mode, does not listen to the paging channel, and does not receive downlink services, thereby effectively reducing the terminal's power consumption.

[0059] In the above scheme, the terminal obtains the first discontinuous reception DRX cycle from the network device side and determines the first initial PTW corresponding to the terminal based on the first DRX cycle. This enables the PTW requested by the terminal to be adaptively adjusted according to the DRX cycle configured by the network device, thereby solving the problem that the eDRX mode cannot work properly due to the incompatibility between the PTW and the DRX cycle.

[0060] Optionally, determining the first initial PTW corresponding to the terminal based on the first DRX cycle includes: determining the first initial PTW corresponding to the first DRX cycle based on the pre-stored correspondence between the DRX cycle and the initial PTW on the network device side.

[0061] For example, the correspondence between the core network's DRX cycle and the initial PTW can be pre-defined in the terminal-side memory or non-volatile flash memory (NV) technology. Figure 5As shown, taking the correspondence between four DRX cycles and initial PTWs as an example, DRX cycle 1 corresponds to initial PTW1, DRX cycle 2 corresponds to initial PTW2, DRX cycle 3 corresponds to initial PTW3, and DRX cycle 4 corresponds to initial PTW4. Thus, when obtaining the first DRX cycle from the network device side through system messages, the first initial PTW corresponding to the first DRX cycle can be determined based on the correspondence between the threshold DRX cycle and the initial PTW. This allows the terminal to adaptively request the initial PTW based on the core network's DRX cycle.

[0062] Optionally, obtaining the first discontinuous reception DRX period on the network device side includes: receiving a first downlink message sent by the network device side; wherein the first downlink message carries the first DRX period.

[0063] The step of receiving the first downlink message sent by the network device includes receiving the first downlink message broadcast by the network device. That is, the first downlink message is sent by the network device via broadcast, and the first downlink message can be a system message.

[0064] For example, before registering with the network, the terminal device receives a system message broadcast by the network device and obtains the DRX cycle from the network device through the system message.

[0065] Optionally, after determining the first initial PTW corresponding to the terminal according to the first DRX period, the method further includes: sending a first uplink message to the network device side; wherein the first uplink message carries the first initial PTW corresponding to the terminal.

[0066] For example, when registering with a network, a terminal can report an initial PTW to the network device, which can be carried in the first uplink message. Optionally, when registering with a network, in addition to reporting the initial PTW, the terminal can also report an initial eDRX period to the network device; for example, the initial eDRX period and the initial PTW can be carried in the first uplink message, but this embodiment of the invention is not limited thereto.

[0067] Specifically, such as Figure 6 As shown, the terminal receives a system message broadcast by the network device. The system message carries the DRX period of the core network. The terminal determines the initial PTW of the request based on the obtained DRX period of the core network, and carries the initial PTW through a first uplink message (such as Attach request) and sends it to the network device side.

[0068] Optionally, after sending the first uplink message to the network device, the method further includes: receiving a second downlink message sent by the network device; wherein the second downlink message carries the actual PTW used by the network device based on the first initial PTW.

[0069] For example, when a terminal reports an initial PTW to the network device, the network device can send the actual PTW used to the terminal based on the initial PTW. Similarly, when a terminal reports an initial eDRX cycle and an initial PTW to the network device, the network device can send the actual eDRX cycle and PTW used to the terminal based on the initial eDRX cycle and initial PTW.

[0070] Specifically, such as Figure 7 As shown, the terminal sends an initial PTW determined based on the DRX period of the core network to the network device via a first uplink message (such as an attach request). The network device determines the actual PTW used by the terminal based on this initial PTW and sends the actual PTW used to the terminal via a second downlink signaling message (such as an attach accept).

[0071] The key point of this application is to propose a method for dynamically adjusting the PTW time configuration of the UE in an NB-IoT network according to different DRX period configurations on the core network side.

[0072] According to the present invention, in an NB-IoT network, the UE can dynamically adjust the PTW time configuration based on the different DRX cycle configurations on the core network side. That is, the UE can automatically adjust the PTW initial time application based on the DRX cycle of the core network. On the one hand, this can avoid the problem that the eDRX mode cannot work properly due to the configured PTW time being less than the DRX cycle. On the other hand, it can effectively reduce the power consumption of eDRX mode when the DRX cycle of the core network changes.

[0073] The method for determining PTW according to embodiments of the present invention has been described above. The apparatus and terminal corresponding to the above method will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0074] like Figure 8 As shown, this embodiment of the invention provides a PTW determination device 800, applied to a terminal, the device 800 comprising:

[0075] The acquisition module 810 is used to acquire the first discontinuous reception DRX period on the network device side;

[0076] The determination module 820 is used to determine the first initial PTW corresponding to the terminal based on the first DRX cycle.

[0077] Optionally, the acquisition module 810 includes:

[0078] A receiving unit is configured to receive a first downlink message sent by the network device side; wherein the first downlink message carries the first DRX period.

[0079] Optionally, the receiving unit is further configured to: receive the first downlink message broadcast by the network device side.

[0080] Optionally, the determining module 820 includes:

[0081] The determining unit is configured to determine the first initial PTW corresponding to the first DRX period based on the pre-stored correspondence between the DRX period and the initial PTW on the network device side.

[0082] Optionally, the device 800 further includes:

[0083] The sending module is configured to send a first uplink message to the network device side after determining the first initial PTW corresponding to the terminal according to the first DRX period; wherein the first uplink message carries the first initial PTW corresponding to the terminal.

[0084] Optionally, the device 800 further includes:

[0085] The receiving module is configured to receive a second downlink message sent by the network device after sending a first uplink message to the network device side; wherein the second downlink message carries the actual PTW used by the network device side based on the first initial PTW.

[0086] The apparatus 800 described in this embodiment of the invention can implement the various processes of the PTW determination method embodiment described above and achieve the same technical effect. To avoid repetition, it will not be described again here.

[0087] This invention also provides a mobile terminal, such as... Figure 9 As shown, it includes a transceiver 910, a processor 900, a memory 920, and a program or instructions stored in the memory 920 and executable on the processor 900; when the processor 900 executes the program or instructions, it implements the steps described above in the PTW determination method, which will not be repeated here to avoid repetition.

[0088] The transceiver 910 is used to receive and send data under the control of the processor 900.

[0089] Among them, Figure 9In this context, the bus architecture can include any number of interconnected buses and bridges, specifically linking various circuits of one or more processors represented by processor 900 and memory represented by memory 920 together. The bus architecture can also link various other circuits such as peripheral devices, voltage regulators, and power management circuits, which are well known in the art and therefore will not be described further herein. The bus interface provides an interface. Transceiver 910 can be multiple elements, including transmitters and receivers, providing a unit for communicating with various other devices over a transmission medium. For different user equipment, user interface 930 can also be an interface capable of connecting external or internal devices, including but not limited to keypads, displays, speakers, microphones, joysticks, etc.

[0090] The processor 900 is responsible for managing the bus architecture and general processing, while the memory 920 can store the data used by the processor 900 during operation.

[0091] An embodiment of the present invention provides a readable storage medium storing a program or instructions. When the program or instructions are executed by a processor, they implement the steps in the PTW determination method described above and achieve the same technical effect. To avoid repetition, further details are omitted here.

[0092] The processor mentioned above is the processor in the terminal described in the above embodiments. The readable storage medium includes computer-readable storage media, such as computer read-only memory (ROM), random access memory (RAM), magnetic disk, or optical disk.

[0093] It should be further noted that the terminals described in this specification include, but are not limited to, smartphones, tablets, etc., and many of the functional components described are referred to as modules in order to emphasize the independence of their implementation.

[0094] In this embodiment of the invention, the module can be implemented in software so that it can be executed by various types of processors. For example, an identified executable code module may include one or more physical or logical blocks of computer instructions, which may be constructed as objects, procedures, or functions. Nevertheless, the executable code of the identified module does not need to be physically located together, but may include different instructions stored in different bits, which, when logically combined, constitute the module and achieve the module's intended purpose.

[0095] In practice, an executable code module can be a single instruction or many instructions, and can even be distributed across multiple different code segments, different programs, and across multiple memory devices. Similarly, operational data can be identified within the module and can be implemented in any suitable form and organized within any suitable type of data structure. This operational data can be collected as a single dataset or distributed across different locations (including different storage devices), and can exist, at least in part, solely as electronic signals within the system or network.

[0096] When a module can be implemented using software, considering the current level of hardware technology, modules that can be implemented in software can be implemented using hardware circuits by those skilled in the art to achieve the corresponding functions, without considering cost. These hardware circuits include conventional very-large-scale integrated circuits (VLSI) or gate arrays, as well as existing semiconductors such as logic chips and transistors, or other discrete components. Modules can also be implemented using programmable hardware devices, such as field-programmable gate arrays, programmable array logic, and programmable logic devices.

[0097] The exemplary embodiments described above are with reference to the accompanying drawings. Many different forms and embodiments are feasible without departing from the spirit and teachings of the invention. Therefore, the invention should not be construed as limiting the exemplary embodiments set forth herein. Rather, these exemplary embodiments are provided to make the invention complete and convey the scope of the invention to those skilled in the art. In these drawings, component dimensions and relative dimensions may be exaggerated for clarity. The terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particular exemplary embodiments only and is not intended to be limiting. As used herein, unless clearly indicated otherwise, the singular forms “a,” “an,” and “the” are intended to include all such forms. It will be further understood that the terms “comprising” and / or “including”, when used in this specification, indicate the presence of the stated features, integers, steps, operations, components, and / or elements, but do not exclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, integers, steps, operations, components, and / or groups thereof. Unless otherwise indicated, when stated, a range of values ​​includes the upper and lower limits of the range and any subranges in between.

[0098] The above description represents the preferred embodiments of the present invention. It should be noted that those skilled in the art can make various improvements and modifications without departing from the principles of the present invention, and these improvements and modifications should also be considered within the scope of protection of the present invention.

Claims

1. A method for determining the paging time window (PTW), characterized in that, The method applied to a terminal comprises: obtaining a first discontinuous reception (DRX) cycle of a network device side; determining a first initial paging time window (PTW) corresponding to the terminal according to the first DRX cycle; the determining of the first initial PTW corresponding to the terminal according to the first DRX cycle comprises: determining the first initial PTW corresponding to the first DRX cycle according to a pre-stored correspondence relationship between a plurality of groups of DRX cycles of the network device side and initial PTWs.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein, the obtaining of the first DRX cycle of the network device side comprises: receiving a first downlink message sent by the network device side; wherein the first downlink message carries the first DRX cycle.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein, the receiving of the first downlink message sent by the network device side comprises: receiving the first downlink message broadcast by the network device side.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein, after the determining of the first initial PTW corresponding to the terminal according to the first DRX cycle, the method further comprises: sending a first uplink message to the network device side; wherein the first uplink message carries the first initial PTW corresponding to the terminal.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein, after the sending of the first uplink message to the network device side, the method further comprises: receiving a second downlink message sent by the network device side; wherein the second downlink message carries an actually used PTW determined by the network device side according to the first initial PTW.

6. A device for determining a paging time window (PTW), characterized in that, The apparatus applied to a terminal comprises: an obtaining module, configured to obtain a first discontinuous reception (DRX) cycle of a network device side; a determining module, configured to determine a first initial paging time window (PTW) corresponding to the terminal according to the first DRX cycle; the determining module comprises: a determining unit, configured to determine the first initial PTW corresponding to the first DRX cycle according to a pre-stored correspondence relationship between a plurality of groups of DRX cycles of the network device side and initial PTWs.

7. The apparatus of claim 6, wherein, the obtaining module comprises: a receiving unit, configured to receive a first downlink message sent by the network device side; wherein the first downlink message carries the first DRX cycle.

8. The apparatus of claim 7, wherein, the receiving unit is further configured to receive the first downlink message broadcast by the network device side.

9. The apparatus of claim 6, wherein, the apparatus further comprises: a sending module, configured to send a first uplink message to the network device side after the determining of the first initial PTW corresponding to the terminal according to the first DRX cycle; wherein the first uplink message carries the first initial PTW corresponding to the terminal.

10. The apparatus of claim 9, wherein, the apparatus further comprises: a receiving module, configured to receive a second downlink message sent by the network device side after the sending of the first uplink message to the network device side; wherein the second downlink message carries an actually used PTW determined by the network device side according to the first initial PTW.

11. A terminal comprising: a transceiver, a processor, a memory, and a program or instructions stored on the memory and executable on the processor; when the processor executes the program or instructions, the processor implements the steps in the paging time window (PTW) determination method according to any one of claims 1 to 5.

12. A readable storage medium, on which a program or instructions are stored, characterized in that, the program or instructions, when executed by the processor, implement the steps in the paging time window (PTW) determination method according to any one of claims 1 to 5.

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