A communication method and device

Abstract

The application relates to a communication method and device, wherein the communication method comprises the following steps: an access network device receives a first message from a terminal device, the first message carries indication information, the indication information is used for indicating that first uplink data has been sent, and the first message also carries the identity of the terminal device; the access network device determines whether first information corresponding to the first message or the first uplink data is stored according to the identity of the terminal device; when the first information is stored, the access network device sends a second message to the terminal device, and the second message carries the first information. The terminal device can send the first message carrying the indication information to the access network device, the access network device can store the first information corresponding to the first message or the first uplink data, so that the access network device can directly send the stored first information to the terminal device, the waiting process of the terminal device is reduced, and power saving of the terminal device is facilitated.

Description

[0001] This application is a divisional application. The original application has the application number 201910477886.1 and the original application date is June 3, 2019. The entire contents of the original application are incorporated herein by reference. Technical Field

[0002] This application relates to the field of communication technology, and in particular to a communication method and device. Background Technology

[0003] To address the characteristic that terminal devices need to establish a Radio Resource Control (RRC) connection even when sending small amounts of data, an Early Data Transmission (EDT) mechanism has been introduced to reduce the number of connection establishment and release steps required for terminal devices to establish an RRC connection and to reduce data transmission power consumption. Under the EDT mechanism, terminal devices are allowed to transmit small amounts of data via the third message (Msg3) during the random access procedure and end the transmission process after the fourth message (Msg4) during the random access procedure, without needing to enter the RRC connected state.

[0004] However, there is a type of sensor currently available, which can be called a self-powered sensor. This type of sensor communicates without using batteries, relying instead on energy from the surrounding environment (such as solar, wind, electromagnetic, or thermal energy). The characteristics of this type of sensor are limited energy, unpredictable energy availability, and short-lived energy supply. Therefore, communication with this type of sensor can be interrupted at any time. For example, after sending Msg3 to the base station, the self-powered sensor runs out of power and cannot receive Msg4 from the base station. After sending Msg4, the base station, not receiving feedback from the self-powered sensor for an extended period, will delete all context and untransmitted data. When the self-powered sensor's power supply returns, it will resend Msg3 to the base station. The base station then needs to re-interact with the core network equipment to resend Msg4. The interaction time between the base station and the core network equipment is long, and the self-powered sensor has to wait a considerable amount of time, resulting in wasted power. Summary of the Invention

[0005] This application provides a communication method and device for reducing energy waste.

[0006] In a first aspect, a first communication method is provided, the method comprising: an access network device receiving a first message from a terminal device, the first message carrying indication information, the indication information being used to indicate that the first uplink data has been sent, and the first message also carrying an identifier of the terminal device; the access network device determining, based on the identifier of the terminal device, whether first information corresponding to the first message or the first uplink data is stored; when the first information is stored, the access network device sending a second message to the terminal device, the second message carrying the first information.

[0007] This method can be executed by a first communication device, which can be a communication equipment or a communication device capable of supporting the functions required for the communication equipment to implement the method, such as a chip system. For example, the communication equipment is an access network device.

[0008] In this embodiment, the terminal device can send a first message carrying indication information to the access network device. The access network device can store first information corresponding to the first message or first uplink data, so that the access network device can directly send the stored first information to the terminal device, reducing the waiting process of the terminal device. For example, if the terminal device is a self-powered terminal device and the first message is Msg3, that is, after the terminal device sends Msg3 to the access network device, its power is exhausted. After the power is restored, it resends Msg3 to the access network device. The access network device can temporarily not delete the context of the terminal device (e.g., the first information). After receiving the resent Msg3 from the terminal device, the access network device can directly send the stored first information to the terminal device, thus eliminating the need to interact with the core network device to determine the first information. This reduces the time for obtaining the first information and the waiting time of the terminal device, thereby reducing the energy consumption of the terminal device and helping to save power.

[0009] In conjunction with the first aspect, in one possible implementation of the first aspect, the method further includes:

[0010] The access network device receives a type indication message from the terminal device, the type indication message being used to indicate that the terminal device is of type 1.

[0011] Access network devices can retain terminal device context information for a longer period of time if the terminal device is identified as a Type 1 terminal device. This allows for more targeted storage, and the access network device does not need to store the context of all terminal devices for an extended period, thus saving storage space. Type 1 can be, for example, self-powered, energy-constrained, or other types, such as the general type. In short, any type of terminal device that requires the access network device to retain its context for a longer period can be considered Type 1, without specific restrictions.

[0012] In conjunction with the first aspect, in one possible implementation of the first aspect, the method further includes:

[0013] Before receiving the first message from the terminal device, the access network device receives a third message from the terminal device. The third message carries first uplink data, and the first message is a retransmission of the third message. The third message also carries a first identifier, which is the identifier of the first uplink data.

[0014] The access network device determines the first information based on the first uplink data;

[0015] The access network device sends a sixth message to the terminal device, the sixth message carrying the first information;

[0016] When the access network device does not receive a response message from the terminal device corresponding to the sixth message, the access network device stores the first information, wherein the type of the terminal device is the first type.

[0017] The access network device received the third message from the terminal device beforehand, and also sent a sixth message to the terminal device. However, the access network device did not receive a response message from the terminal device corresponding to the sixth message. Therefore, the access network device can store the first information. In this way, if the terminal device subsequently indicates that the first uplink data has been sent, the access network device can directly send the first information to the terminal device without requiring the terminal device to wait for a long time, which helps the terminal device save power.

[0018] In conjunction with the first aspect, in one possible implementation of the first aspect, the method further includes:

[0019] The access network device stores the identifier of the terminal device, the first identifier, and the correspondence between the first information.

[0020] A terminal device may send multiple messages to the access network device. Therefore, in addition to the first uplink data, the terminal device may also send other uplink data to the access network device. To address this, a first identifier can be set for the first uplink data or the third message. The access network device can store the identifier of the terminal device, the first identifier, and the correspondence between the first information and the first identifier, so that the corresponding first information can be found based on the identifier of the terminal device and the first identifier.

[0021] In conjunction with the first aspect, in one possible implementation of the first aspect, the first message does not carry the first uplink data, and the method further includes:

[0022] When it is determined that the first information is not stored, the access network device sends a fourth message to the terminal device, the fourth message being used to request the retransmission of the first uplink data;

[0023] The access network device receives a fifth message from the terminal device, the fifth message carrying the first uplink data;

[0024] The access network device determines the first information based on the first uplink data;

[0025] The access network device sends a seventh message to the terminal device, the seventh message carrying the first information.

[0026] If the first message does not carry the first uplink data and the access network device does not store the first information, the access network device can request the first uplink data again from the terminal device, so that the access network device can determine the first information.

[0027] In conjunction with the first aspect, in one possible implementation of the first aspect, the first message carries first uplink data, and the method further includes:

[0028] When it is determined that the first information is not stored, the access network device determines the first information based on the first uplink data;

[0029] The access network device sends a seventh message to the terminal device, the seventh message carrying the first information.

[0030] If the first message carries the first uplink data, the access network device can directly determine the first information based on the first uplink data if it does not store the first information, without having to request the first uplink data from the terminal device again. This reduces the interaction between the access network device and the terminal device and saves signaling overhead.

[0031] In conjunction with the first aspect, in one possible implementation of the first aspect, the access network device determines the first information based on the first uplink data, including:

[0032] The access network device sends the first uplink data to the core network device;

[0033] The access network device receives the first information from the core network device.

[0034] As one way for access network devices to determine the first information, the access network device can send the first uplink data to the core network device, which then determines the first information and sends it back to the access network device. This way, the access network device has determined the first information. Alternatively, the access network device can determine the first information in other ways, such as determining it itself without interacting with the core network device. There are no restrictions on the method by which the access network device determines the first information.

[0035] In conjunction with the first aspect, in one possible implementation of the first aspect, the first message further carries a first identifier, which is an identifier for the first uplink data.

[0036] The first message can carry a first identifier, which makes it easier for access network devices to find the corresponding first information based on the terminal device's identifier and the first identifier.

[0037] In conjunction with the first aspect, in one possible implementation of the first aspect, the access network device determines whether it stores first information corresponding to the first message or the first uplink data based on the identifier of the terminal device, including:

[0038] The access network device determines whether it stores the first information corresponding to the terminal device's identifier and the first identifier based on the identifier of the terminal device carried in the first message and the first identifier.

[0039] If the terminal device stores the correspondence between the terminal device's identifier, the first identifier, and the first information, then the access network device can use the terminal device's identifier and the first identifier to check whether the corresponding first information is stored. In this way, even if the terminal device sends multiple uplink data to the access network device, the existence of the first identifier reduces the possibility of incorrect indexing of the first information.

[0040] Secondly, a second communication method is provided, the method comprising: a terminal device sending a first message to an access network device, the first message carrying indication information, the indication information being used to indicate that first uplink data has been sent, the first message also carrying an identifier of the terminal device; the terminal device receiving a second message from the access network device, the second message carrying first information, the first information corresponding to the first message or the first uplink data.

[0041] This method can be executed by a second communication device, which can be a communication device or a communication device capable of supporting the functions required for the communication device to implement the method, such as a chip system. For example, the communication device is a terminal device.

[0042] In conjunction with the second aspect, in one possible implementation of the second aspect, the method further includes:

[0043] The terminal device sends a type indication message to the access network device, the type indication message being used to indicate that the terminal device is of type 1.

[0044] In conjunction with the second aspect, in one possible implementation of the second aspect, the first message further carries a first identifier, which is the identifier of the first uplink data.

[0045] In conjunction with the second aspect, in one possible implementation of the second aspect, the first message does not carry first uplink data, and before the terminal device receives the second message from the access network device, the method further includes:

[0046] The terminal device receives a fourth message from the access network device, the fourth message being used to request the retransmission of the first uplink data;

[0047] The terminal device sends a fifth message to the access network device, the fifth message carrying the first uplink data.

[0048] In conjunction with the second aspect, in one possible implementation of the second aspect, the first message also carries the first uplink data.

[0049] For the technical effects of the second aspect or its various implementations, please refer to the introduction of the technical effects of the first aspect or its various implementations; further details are omitted here.

[0050] Thirdly, a third communication method is provided, comprising: a network device receiving energy information of a terminal device, the energy information being used to indicate the overall energy status of the terminal device within a first time period, or to indicate the current energy status of the terminal device; the network device sending a paging message to the terminal device based on the energy information.

[0051] This method can be executed by a third communication device, which can be a communication device or a communication device capable of supporting the functions required for the communication device to implement the method, such as a chip system. For example, the communication device is a network device.

[0052] The method provided in this application embodiment allows a network device to receive energy information from a terminal device and determine whether to initiate paging based on the terminal device's energy status. This enables the network device to call the terminal device only when it has power, reducing network resource waste and improving paging success rate. Furthermore, the network device does not need to register the terminal device if it is not paged, thus reducing the likelihood of the terminal device needing to re-register.

[0053] In conjunction with the third aspect, in one possible implementation of the third aspect, the network device sends a paging message to the terminal device based on the energy information, including:

[0054] When the first downlink information arrives, the network device determines whether the current energy of the terminal device supports receiving the first downlink information based on the energy information;

[0055] When the current energy of the terminal device supports receiving the first downlink information, the network device sends the paging message to the terminal device.

[0056] Network devices can determine whether to page a terminal device only after the first downlink message to be sent to the terminal device arrives, thus reducing invalid paging of terminal devices. Furthermore, network devices can determine whether to initiate paging based on the terminal device's power status, allowing them to call the terminal device when it has power, reducing network resource waste and improving paging success rate.

[0057] Fourthly, a fourth communication method is provided, the method comprising: a terminal device determining energy information of the terminal device, the energy information being used to indicate the overall energy status of the terminal device within a first time period, or to indicate the current energy status of the terminal device; the terminal device sending the energy information to a network device.

[0058] This method can be executed by a fourth communication device, which can be a communication device or a communication device capable of supporting the functions required for the communication device to implement the method, such as a chip system. For example, the communication device is a terminal device.

[0059] In conjunction with the fourth aspect, in one possible implementation of the fourth aspect, the method further includes: the terminal device receiving a paging message from the network device.

[0060] For the technical effects of the fourth aspect or its various implementations, please refer to the introduction of the technical effects of the third aspect or its various implementations; further details are omitted here.

[0061] Fifthly, a fifth communication method is provided, comprising: a network device receiving a first message from a terminal device, the first message indicating that the energy state of the terminal device is a first state; and the network device determining not to send information to the terminal device.

[0062] This method can be executed by a fifth communication device, which can be a communication device or a communication device capable of supporting the functions required for the communication device to implement the method, such as a chip system. For example, the communication device is a network device.

[0063] The method provided in this application allows a terminal device to inform a network device of its power status. The network device can then determine whether to page the terminal device based on its power status, thus enabling it to call the terminal device only when it has power, reducing network resource waste and improving paging success rate. Furthermore, the network device does not need to register the terminal device if it is not paged, reducing the likelihood of the terminal device needing to re-register.

[0064] In conjunction with the fifth aspect, in one possible implementation of the fifth aspect, the method further includes: the network device receiving a second message from the terminal device, the second message indicating that the energy state of the terminal device is a second state; and the network device determining that it is capable of sending information to the terminal device.

[0065] For example, a terminal device can periodically determine its energy level. After sending the first message to the network device, the terminal device may enter a low-energy state or a power-off state. After a period of time, the terminal device may regain energy, for example, if its energy level is greater than or equal to a first threshold. In this case, the terminal device can send a second message to the network device. The second message indicates that the terminal device's energy status is in a second state, or that its energy level is greater than or equal to the first threshold. Upon receiving the second message, the network device can determine that it can send information to the terminal device. By promptly informing the network device of its energy status, the terminal device can facilitate the network device initiating paging when needed.

[0066] In conjunction with the fifth aspect, in one possible implementation of the fifth aspect, the method further includes:

[0067] The network device sends a first threshold to the terminal device, the first threshold being used to determine whether the energy state of the terminal device is the first state or the second state.

[0068] The first threshold can be configured by the network device, stipulated by the protocol, or determined by the terminal device itself; there are no specific restrictions.

[0069] A sixth aspect provides a sixth communication method, the method comprising: a terminal device determining that the energy state of the terminal device is a first state; the terminal device sending a first message to a network device, the first message indicating that the energy state of the terminal device is the first state.

[0070] This method can be executed by a sixth communication device, which can be a communication device or a communication device capable of supporting the functions required for the communication device to implement the method, such as a chip system. For example, the communication device is a terminal device.

[0071] In conjunction with the sixth aspect, in one possible implementation of the sixth aspect, the method further includes:

[0072] The terminal device determines that the energy state of the terminal device is the second state;

[0073] The terminal device sends a second message to the network device, the second message indicating that the energy state of the terminal device is the second state.

[0074] In conjunction with the sixth aspect, in one possible implementation of the sixth aspect, the method further includes:

[0075] The terminal device receives a first threshold from the network device; or,

[0076] The terminal device determines the first threshold;

[0077] The first threshold is used to determine whether the energy state of the terminal device is the first state or the second state.

[0078] For the technical effects of the sixth aspect or its various implementations, please refer to the introduction of the technical effects of the fifth aspect or its various implementations; further details are omitted here.

[0079] In a seventh aspect, a first communication device is provided, such as the first communication device as described above. The communication device is used to perform the methods in the first aspect or any possible implementation thereof. Specifically, the communication device may include modules for performing the methods in the first aspect or any possible implementation thereof, such as a processing module and a transceiver module. Exemplarily, the communication device is an access network device.

[0080] The transceiver module is used to receive a first message from a terminal device. The first message carries indication information, which indicates that the first uplink data has been sent. The first message also carries the identifier of the terminal device.

[0081] The processing module is used to determine, based on the identifier of the terminal device, whether it stores first information corresponding to the first message or the first uplink data;

[0082] The transceiver module is further configured to send a second message to the terminal device when the processing module determines that the first information is stored, the second message carrying the first information.

[0083] In conjunction with the seventh aspect, in one possible implementation of the seventh aspect, the transceiver module is further configured to receive a type indication message from the terminal device, the type indication message being used to indicate that the type of the terminal device is a first type.

[0084] In conjunction with the seventh aspect, in one possible implementation of the seventh aspect,

[0085] The transceiver module is further configured to receive a third message from the terminal device before receiving the first message from the terminal device, the third message carrying first uplink data, the first message being a retransmitted third message, and the third message also carrying a first identifier, the first identifier being the identifier of the first uplink data;

[0086] The processing module is further configured to determine the first information based on the first uplink data;

[0087] The transceiver module is further configured to send a sixth message to the terminal device, the sixth message carrying the first information;

[0088] The processing module is further configured to store the first information when the access network device does not receive a response message from the terminal device corresponding to the sixth message, wherein the type of the terminal device is the first type.

[0089] In conjunction with the seventh aspect, in one possible implementation of the seventh aspect, the processing module is further configured to store the correspondence between the identifier of the terminal device, the first identifier, and the first information.

[0090] In conjunction with the seventh aspect, in one possible implementation of the seventh aspect, the first message does not carry the first uplink data.

[0091] The transceiver module is further configured to send a fourth message to the terminal device when the processing module determines that the first information is not stored, the fourth message being used to request the retransmission of the first uplink data;

[0092] The transceiver module is further configured to receive a fifth message from the terminal device, the fifth message carrying the first uplink data;

[0093] The processing module is further configured to determine the first information based on the first uplink data;

[0094] The transceiver module is further configured to send a seventh message to the terminal device, the seventh message carrying the first information.

[0095] In conjunction with the seventh aspect, in one possible implementation of the seventh aspect, the first message carries first uplink data.

[0096] The processing module is further configured to determine the first information based on the first uplink data when it is determined that the first information is not stored.

[0097] The transceiver module is further configured to send a seventh message to the terminal device, the seventh message carrying the first information.

[0098] In conjunction with the seventh aspect, in one possible implementation of the seventh aspect, the processing module is configured to determine the first information based on the first uplink data in the following manner:

[0099] The first uplink data is sent to the core network device through the transceiver module;

[0100] The transceiver module receives the first information from the core network device.

[0101] In conjunction with the seventh aspect, in one possible implementation of the seventh aspect, the first message further carries a first identifier, which is an identifier for the first uplink data.

[0102] In conjunction with the seventh aspect, in one possible implementation of the seventh aspect, the processing module is configured to determine, based on the identifier of the terminal device, whether first information corresponding to the first message or the first uplink data is stored in the following manner:

[0103] Based on the identifier of the terminal device carried in the first message and the first identifier, determine whether the first information corresponding to the identifier of the terminal device and the first identifier is stored.

[0104] For the technical effects of the seventh aspect or its various implementations, please refer to the introduction of the technical effects of the first aspect or its various implementations, which will not be elaborated further.

[0105] Eighthly, a second communication device is provided, such as the second communication device described above. The communication device is used to perform the methods in the second aspect or any possible implementation thereof. Specifically, the communication device may include modules for performing the methods in the second aspect or any possible implementation thereof, such as a processing module and a transceiver module. Exemplarily, the communication device is a terminal device.

[0106] The processing module is used to determine that the first uplink data has been sent;

[0107] The transceiver module is used to send a first message to the access network device. The first message carries indication information, which is used to indicate that the first uplink data has been sent. The first message also carries the identifier of the terminal device.

[0108] The transceiver module is further configured to receive a second message from the access network device, the second message carrying first information, the first information corresponding to the first message or the first uplink data.

[0109] In conjunction with the eighth aspect, in one possible implementation of the eighth aspect, the transceiver module is further configured to send a type indication message to the access network device, the type indication message being used to indicate that the type of the terminal device is a first type.

[0110] In conjunction with the eighth aspect, in one possible implementation of the eighth aspect, the first message further carries a first identifier, which is an identifier of the first uplink data.

[0111] In conjunction with the eighth aspect, in one possible implementation of the eighth aspect, the first message does not carry the first uplink data, and the transceiver module is further configured to:

[0112] Before receiving the second message from the access network device, a fourth message is received from the access network device, the fourth message being used to request the retransmission of the first uplink data;

[0113] A fifth message is sent to the access network device, the fifth message carrying the first uplink data.

[0114] In conjunction with the eighth aspect, in one possible implementation of the eighth aspect, the first message also carries the first uplink data.

[0115] For the technical effects of the eighth aspect or its various implementations, please refer to the description of the technical effects of the second aspect or its various implementations; further details are omitted here.

[0116] A ninth aspect provides a third communication device, such as the third communication device described above. The communication device is used to perform the methods in the third aspect or any possible implementation thereof. Specifically, the communication device may include modules for performing the methods in the third aspect or any possible implementation thereof, such as a processing module and a transceiver module. Exemplarily, the communication device is a network device.

[0117] The transceiver module is used to receive energy information from the terminal device. The energy information is used to indicate the overall energy status of the terminal device within a first time period, or to indicate the current energy status of the terminal device.

[0118] The processing module is used to send a paging message to the terminal device based on the energy information.

[0119] In conjunction with the ninth aspect, in one possible implementation of the ninth aspect, the processing module is configured to send a paging message to the terminal device based on the energy information in the following manner:

[0120] When the first downlink information arrives, the energy information is used to determine whether the current energy of the terminal device supports receiving the first downlink information;

[0121] When the current energy of the terminal device supports receiving the first downlink information, the paging message is sent to the terminal device.

[0122] For the technical effects of the ninth aspect or various embodiments thereof, please refer to the introduction of the technical effects of the third aspect or various embodiments thereof, which will not be elaborated further.

[0123] In a tenth aspect, a fourth communication device is provided, such as the fourth communication device described above. The communication device is used to perform the methods in the fourth aspect or any possible implementation thereof. Specifically, the communication device may include modules for performing the methods in the fourth aspect or any possible implementation thereof, such as a processing module and a transceiver module. Exemplarily, the communication device is a terminal device.

[0124] The processing module is used to determine the energy information of the terminal device, the energy information being used to indicate the overall energy status of the terminal device within a first time period, or to indicate the current energy status of the terminal device.

[0125] The transceiver module is used to send the energy information to the network device.

[0126] In conjunction with the tenth aspect, in one possible implementation of the tenth aspect, the transceiver module is further configured to receive paging messages from the network device.

[0127] For the technical effects of the tenth aspect or various embodiments thereof, please refer to the introduction of the technical effects of the fourth aspect or various embodiments thereof, which will not be elaborated further.

[0128] Eleventhly, a fifth communication device is provided, such as the fifth communication device described above. This communication device is used to perform the methods in the fifth aspect or any possible implementation thereof. Specifically, the communication device may include modules for performing the methods in the fifth aspect or any possible implementation thereof, such as a processing module and a transceiver module. Exemplarily, the communication device is a network device.

[0129] The transceiver module is used to receive a first message from the terminal device, the first message being used to indicate that the energy state of the terminal device is a first state;

[0130] The processing module is used to determine not to send information to the terminal device.

[0131] In conjunction with the eleventh aspect, in one possible implementation of the eleventh aspect,

[0132] The transceiver module is further configured to receive a second message from the terminal device, the second message indicating that the energy state of the terminal device is a second state;

[0133] The processing module is also used to determine whether information can be sent to the terminal device.

[0134] In conjunction with the eleventh aspect, in one possible implementation of the eleventh aspect, the transceiver module is further configured to send a first threshold to the terminal device, the first threshold being used to determine whether the energy state of the terminal device is the first state or the second state.

[0135] For the technical effects of the various embodiments of the eleventh aspect or the eleventh aspect, please refer to the introduction of the technical effects of the various embodiments of the fifth aspect or the fifth aspect, which will not be elaborated further.

[0136] In a twelfth aspect, a sixth type of communication device is provided, such as the sixth communication device described above. This communication device is used to perform the methods in the sixth aspect or any possible implementation thereof. Specifically, the communication device may include modules for performing the methods in the sixth aspect or any possible implementation thereof, such as a processing module and a transceiver module. Exemplarily, the communication device is a terminal device.

[0137] The processing module is used to determine that the energy state of the terminal device is a first state;

[0138] The transceiver module is used to send a first message to the network device, the first message being used to indicate that the energy state of the terminal device is the first state.

[0139] In conjunction with the twelfth aspect, in one possible implementation of the twelfth aspect,

[0140] The processing module is further configured to determine that the energy state of the terminal device is a second state;

[0141] The transceiver module is further configured to send a second message to the network device, the second message indicating that the energy state of the terminal device is the second state.

[0142] In conjunction with the twelfth aspect, in one possible implementation of the twelfth aspect,

[0143] The transceiver module is further configured to receive a first threshold from the network device; or,

[0144] The processing module is further configured to determine the first threshold;

[0145] The first threshold is used to determine whether the energy state of the terminal device is the first state or the second state.

[0146] For the technical effects of the twelfth aspect or its various embodiments, please refer to the description of the technical effects of the sixth aspect or its various embodiments; further details will not be provided here.

[0147] In a thirteenth aspect, a seventh type of communication device is provided, such as the first communication device described above. This communication device includes a processor and a memory, and optionally, a transceiver. The processor, memory, and transceiver are used to implement the methods described in the first aspect or various possible designs of the first aspect. Exemplarily, the communication device is a chip disposed in a communication device. Exemplarily, the communication device is an access network device. The transceiver is implemented, for example, through an antenna, feeder, and codec in the communication device; or, if the communication device is a chip disposed in the communication device, the transceiver is, for example, a communication interface in the chip connected to a radio frequency transceiver component in the communication device to transmit and receive information via the radio frequency transceiver component.

[0148] The transceiver is used to receive a first message from a terminal device. The first message carries indication information, which indicates that the first uplink data has been sent. The first message also carries the identifier of the terminal device.

[0149] The processor is configured to determine, based on the identifier of the terminal device, whether it stores first information corresponding to the first message or the first uplink data;

[0150] The transceiver is further configured to send a second message to the terminal device when the processing module determines that the first information is stored, the second message carrying the first information.

[0151] In conjunction with the thirteenth aspect, in one possible implementation of the thirteenth aspect, the transceiver is further configured to receive a type indication message from the terminal device, the type indication message being used to indicate that the type of the terminal device is a first type.

[0152] In conjunction with aspect thirteen, in one possible implementation of aspect thirteen,

[0153] The transceiver is further configured to receive a third message from the terminal device before receiving the first message from the terminal device, the third message carrying first uplink data, the first message being a retransmitted third message, and the third message also carrying a first identifier, the first identifier being an identifier of the first uplink data;

[0154] The processor is further configured to determine the first information based on the first uplink data;

[0155] The transceiver is also used to send a sixth message to the terminal device, the sixth message carrying the first information;

[0156] The processor is further configured to store the first information when the access network device does not receive a response message from the terminal device corresponding to the sixth message, wherein the type of the terminal device is the first type.

[0157] In conjunction with the thirteenth aspect, in one possible implementation of the thirteenth aspect, the processor is further configured to store the correspondence between the identifier of the terminal device, the first identifier, and the first information.

[0158] In conjunction with aspect thirteen, in one possible implementation of aspect thirteen, the first message does not carry first uplink data.

[0159] The transceiver is further configured to send a fourth message to the terminal device when the processor determines that the first information is not stored, the fourth message being used to request the retransmission of the first uplink data;

[0160] The transceiver is further configured to receive a fifth message from the terminal device, the fifth message carrying the first uplink data;

[0161] The processor is further configured to determine the first information based on the first uplink data;

[0162] The transceiver module is further configured to send a seventh message to the terminal device, the seventh message carrying the first information.

[0163] In conjunction with aspect thirteen, in one possible implementation of aspect thirteen, the first message carries first uplink data.

[0164] The processor is further configured to determine the first information based on the first uplink data when it is determined that the first information is not stored.

[0165] The transceiver is also used to send a seventh message to the terminal device, the seventh message carrying the first information.

[0166] In conjunction with the thirteenth aspect, in one possible implementation of the thirteenth aspect, the processor is configured to determine the first information based on the first uplink data in the following manner:

[0167] The first uplink data is sent to the core network device via the transceiver;

[0168] The transceiver receives the first information from the core network device.

[0169] In conjunction with the thirteenth aspect, in one possible implementation of the thirteenth aspect, the first message further carries a first identifier, which is an identifier for the first uplink data.

[0170] In conjunction with the thirteenth aspect, in one possible implementation of the thirteenth aspect, the processor is configured to determine, based on the identifier of the terminal device, whether first information corresponding to the first message or the first uplink data is stored:

[0171] Based on the identifier of the terminal device carried in the first message and the first identifier, determine whether the first information corresponding to the identifier of the terminal device and the first identifier is stored.

[0172] For the technical effects of the thirteenth aspect or its various embodiments, please refer to the introduction of the technical effects of the first aspect or its various embodiments, which will not be elaborated further.

[0173] In a fourteenth aspect, an eighth type of communication device is provided, such as the second communication device described above. This communication device includes a processor and a transceiver for implementing the methods described in the second aspect or various possible designs of the second aspect. Exemplarily, the communication device is a chip disposed in a communication device. Exemplarily, the communication device is a terminal device. The transceiver is implemented, for example, through an antenna, feeder, and codec in the communication device; or, if the communication device is a chip disposed in the communication device, the transceiver is, for example, a communication interface in the chip that is connected to a radio frequency transceiver component in the communication device to transmit and receive information via the radio frequency transceiver component.

[0174] The processor is used to determine that the first uplink data has been sent;

[0175] The transceiver is used to send a first message to the access network device. The first message carries indication information, which indicates that the first uplink data has been sent. The first message also carries the identifier of the terminal device.

[0176] The transceiver is further configured to receive a second message from the access network device, the second message carrying first information, the first information corresponding to the first message or the first uplink data.

[0177] In conjunction with the fourteenth aspect, in one possible implementation of the fourteenth aspect, the transceiver is further configured to send a type indication message to the access network device, the type indication message being used to indicate that the type of the terminal device is a first type.

[0178] In conjunction with the fourteenth aspect, in one possible implementation of the fourteenth aspect, the first message further carries a first identifier, the first identifier being an identifier of the first uplink data.

[0179] In conjunction with the fourteenth aspect, in one possible implementation of the fourteenth aspect, the first message does not carry first uplink data, and the transceiver module is further configured to:

[0180] Before receiving the second message from the access network device, a fourth message is received from the access network device, the fourth message being used to request the retransmission of the first uplink data;

[0181] A fifth message is sent to the access network device, the fifth message carrying the first uplink data.

[0182] In conjunction with the fourteenth aspect, in one possible implementation of the fourteenth aspect, the first message further carries the first uplink data.

[0183] For the technical effects of the fourteenth aspect or its various embodiments, please refer to the description of the technical effects of the second aspect or its various embodiments, which will not be elaborated further.

[0184] In a fifteenth aspect, a ninth type of communication device is provided, such as the third communication device described above. This communication device includes a processor and a transceiver for implementing the methods described in the third aspect or various possible designs of the third aspect. Exemplarily, the communication device is a chip disposed in a communication device. Exemplarily, the communication device is a network device. The transceiver is implemented, for example, through an antenna, feeder, and codec in the communication device; or, if the communication device is a chip disposed in the communication device, the transceiver is, for example, a communication interface in the chip connected to a radio frequency transceiver component in the communication device to transmit and receive information via the radio frequency transceiver component.

[0185] The transceiver is used to receive energy information from the terminal device, the energy information being used to indicate the overall energy status of the terminal device within a first time period, or to indicate the current energy status of the terminal device.

[0186] The processor is used to send a paging message to the terminal device based on the energy information.

[0187] In conjunction with the fifteenth aspect, in one possible implementation of the fifteenth aspect, the processor is configured to send a paging message to the terminal device based on the energy information in the following manner:

[0188] When the first downlink information arrives, the energy information is used to determine whether the current energy of the terminal device supports receiving the first downlink information;

[0189] When the current energy of the terminal device supports receiving the first downlink information, the paging message is sent to the terminal device.

[0190] For the technical effects of the fifteenth aspect or its various embodiments, please refer to the introduction of the technical effects of the third aspect or its various embodiments, which will not be elaborated further.

[0191] In a sixteenth aspect, a tenth type of communication device is provided, such as the fourth communication device described above. This communication device includes a processor and a transceiver for implementing the methods described in the fourth aspect or various possible designs of the fourth aspect. Exemplarily, the communication device is a chip disposed in a communication device. Exemplarily, the communication device is a terminal device. The transceiver is implemented, for example, through an antenna, feeder, and codec in the communication device; or, if the communication device is a chip disposed in the communication device, the transceiver is, for example, a communication interface in the chip that is connected to a radio frequency transceiver component in the communication device to transmit and receive information via the radio frequency transceiver component.

[0192] The processor is configured to determine the energy information of the terminal device, wherein the energy information is used to indicate the overall energy status of the terminal device within a first time period, or to indicate the current energy status of the terminal device.

[0193] The transceiver is used to send the energy information to network devices.

[0194] In conjunction with the sixteenth aspect, in one possible implementation of the sixteenth aspect, the transceiver is further configured to receive paging messages from the network device.

[0195] For the technical effects of the sixteenth aspect or its various embodiments, please refer to the introduction of the technical effects of the fourth aspect or its various embodiments, which will not be elaborated further.

[0196] In a seventeenth aspect, an eleventh type of communication device is provided, such as the fifth communication device described above. This communication device includes a processor and a transceiver for implementing the methods described in the fifth aspect or various possible designs of the fifth aspect. Exemplarily, the communication device is a chip disposed in a communication device. Exemplarily, the communication device is a network device. The transceiver is implemented, for example, through an antenna, feeder, and codec in the communication device; or, if the communication device is a chip disposed in the communication device, the transceiver is, for example, a communication interface in the chip connected to a radio frequency transceiver component in the communication device to transmit and receive information via the radio frequency transceiver component.

[0197] The transceiver is used to receive a first message from the terminal device, the first message being used to indicate that the energy state of the terminal device is a first state;

[0198] The processor is configured to determine not to send information to the terminal device.

[0199] In conjunction with the seventeenth aspect, in one possible implementation of the seventeenth aspect,

[0200] The transceiver is further configured to receive a second message from the terminal device, the second message indicating that the energy state of the terminal device is a second state;

[0201] The processor is also configured to determine whether information can be sent to the terminal device.

[0202] In conjunction with the seventeenth aspect, in one possible implementation of the seventeenth aspect, the transceiver is further configured to send a first threshold to the terminal device, the first threshold being used to determine whether the energy state of the terminal device is the first state or the second state.

[0203] For the technical effects of the seventeenth aspect or its various embodiments, please refer to the description of the technical effects of the fifth aspect or its various embodiments; further details are omitted here.

[0204] Eighteenthly, a twelfth type of communication device is provided, such as the sixth communication device described above. This communication device includes a processor and a transceiver for implementing the methods described in the sixth aspect or various possible designs of the sixth aspect. Exemplarily, the communication device is a chip disposed in a communication device. Exemplarily, the communication device is a terminal device. The transceiver is implemented, for example, through an antenna, feeder, and codec in the communication device; or, if the communication device is a chip disposed in the communication device, the transceiver is, for example, a communication interface in the chip connected to a radio frequency transceiver component in the communication device to transmit and receive information via the radio frequency transceiver component.

[0205] The processor is used to determine that the energy state of the terminal device is a first state;

[0206] The transceiver is used to send a first message to the network device, the first message being used to indicate that the energy state of the terminal device is the first state.

[0207] In conjunction with the eighteenth aspect, in one possible implementation of the eighteenth aspect,

[0208] The processor is further configured to determine that the energy state of the terminal device is a second state;

[0209] The transceiver is also used to send a second message to the network device, the second message indicating that the energy state of the terminal device is the second state.

[0210] In conjunction with the eighteenth aspect, in one possible implementation of the eighteenth aspect,

[0211] The transceiver is also configured to receive a first threshold from the network device; or,

[0212] The processor is further configured to determine the first threshold;

[0213] The first threshold is used to determine whether the energy state of the terminal device is the first state or the second state.

[0214] For the technical effects of the eighteenth aspect or its various embodiments, please refer to the description of the technical effects of the sixth aspect or its various embodiments; further details are omitted here.

[0215] A nineteenth aspect provides a thirteenth communication device. This communication device can be the first communication device in the above-described method design. Exemplarily, the communication device is a chip disposed in an access network device. The communication device includes: a memory for storing computer-executable program code; and a processor coupled to the memory. The program code stored in the memory includes instructions that, when executed by the processor, cause the thirteenth communication device to perform the method described in the first aspect or any possible implementation thereof.

[0216] The thirteenth communication device may also include a communication interface, which may be a transceiver in the access network equipment, such as through an antenna, feeder and codec in the communication device. Alternatively, if the thirteenth communication device is a chip in the access network equipment, the communication interface may be the input / output interface of the chip, such as input / output pins.

[0217] A twentieth aspect provides a fourteenth communication device. This communication device can be the second communication device designed in the above-described method. Exemplarily, the communication device is a chip disposed in a terminal device. The communication device includes: a memory for storing computer-executable program code; and a processor coupled to the memory. The program code stored in the memory includes instructions that, when executed by the processor, cause the fourteenth communication device to perform the method described in the second aspect or any possible implementation thereof.

[0218] The fourteenth communication device may also include a communication interface, which may be a transceiver in the terminal device, such as through an antenna, feeder and codec in the communication device. Alternatively, if the fourteenth communication device is a chip in the terminal device, the communication interface may be the chip's input / output interface, such as input / output pins.

[0219] In a twenty-first aspect, a fifteenth communication device is provided. This communication device can be the third communication device designed in the above-described method. Exemplarily, the communication device is a chip disposed in a network device. The communication device includes: a memory for storing computer-executable program code; and a processor coupled to the memory. The program code stored in the memory includes instructions that, when executed by the processor, cause the fifteenth communication device to perform the method described in the third aspect or any possible implementation thereof.

[0220] The fifteenth type of communication device may also include a communication interface, which may be a transceiver in a network device, such as an antenna, feeder, and codec in the communication device. Alternatively, if the fifteenth type of communication device is a chip in a network device, the communication interface may be the chip's input / output interface, such as input / output pins.

[0221] In a twenty-second aspect, a sixteenth communication device is provided. This communication device can be the fourth communication device designed in the above-described method. Exemplarily, the communication device is a chip disposed in a terminal device. The communication device includes: a memory for storing computer-executable program code; and a processor coupled to the memory. The program code stored in the memory includes instructions that, when executed by the processor, cause the sixteenth communication device to perform the method described in the fourth aspect or any possible implementation thereof.

[0222] The sixteenth type of communication device may also include a communication interface, which may be a transceiver in the terminal device, such as through an antenna, feeder and codec in the communication device. Alternatively, if the sixteenth type of communication device is a chip installed in the terminal device, the communication interface may be the input / output interface of the chip, such as input / output pins.

[0223] In a twenty-third aspect, a seventeenth communication device is provided. This communication device can be the fifth communication device in the above-described method design. Exemplarily, the communication device is a chip disposed in a network device. The communication device includes: a memory for storing computer-executable program code; and a processor coupled to the memory. The program code stored in the memory includes instructions that, when executed by the processor, cause the seventeenth communication device to perform the method described in the fifth aspect or any possible implementation thereof.

[0224] The seventeenth type of communication device may also include a communication interface, which may be a transceiver in a network device, such as an antenna, feeder, and codec in the communication device. Alternatively, if the seventeenth type of communication device is a chip in a network device, the communication interface may be the chip's input / output interface, such as input / output pins.

[0225] In a twenty-fourth aspect, an eighteenth communication device is provided. This communication device can be the sixth communication device designed in the above-described method. Exemplarily, the communication device is a chip disposed in a terminal device. The communication device includes: a memory for storing computer-executable program code; and a processor coupled to the memory. The program code stored in the memory includes instructions that, when executed by the processor, cause the eighteenth communication device to perform the method described in the sixth aspect or any possible implementation thereof.

[0226] The eighteenth type of communication device may also include a communication interface, which may be a transceiver in the terminal device, such as through an antenna, feeder and codec in the communication device. Alternatively, if the eighteenth type of communication device is a chip installed in the terminal device, the communication interface may be the input / output interface of the chip, such as input / output pins.

[0227] In the twenty-fifth aspect, a first communication system is provided, which may include the first communication device described in the seventh aspect, the seventh communication device described in the thirteenth aspect, or the thirteenth communication device described in the nineteenth aspect, as well as the second communication device described in the eighth aspect, the eighth communication device described in the fourteenth aspect, or the fourteenth communication device described in the twentieth aspect.

[0228] In a twentieth aspect, a second communication system is provided, which may include the third communication device described in the ninth aspect, the ninth communication device described in the fifteenth aspect, or the fifteenth communication device described in the twenty-first aspect, as well as the fourth communication device described in the tenth aspect, the tenth communication device described in the sixteenth aspect, or the sixteenth communication device described in the twenty-second aspect.

[0229] In the twenty-seventh aspect, a third communication system is provided, which may include the fifth communication device described in the eleventh aspect, the eleventh communication device described in the seventeenth aspect, or the seventeenth communication device described in the twenty-third aspect, as well as the sixth communication device described in the twelfth aspect, the twelfth communication device described in the eighteenth aspect, or the eighteenth communication device described in the twenty-fourth aspect.

[0230] The first, second, and third communication systems can be the same system, or they can be different systems, or any two of them can be the same system and the third can be a different system.

[0231] In a twentieth aspect, a computer storage medium is provided, wherein instructions are stored therein, which, when executed on a computer, cause the computer to perform the method described in the first aspect or any possible design of the first aspect.

[0232] In a twentieth aspect, a computer storage medium is provided, wherein instructions are stored therein, which, when executed on a computer, cause the computer to perform the method described in the second aspect or any possible design of the second aspect.

[0233] In a thirtieth aspect, a computer storage medium is provided, wherein instructions are stored therein, which, when executed on a computer, cause the computer to perform the method described in the third aspect or any possible design of the third aspect.

[0234] In a thirty-first aspect, a computer storage medium is provided, wherein instructions are stored therein, which, when executed on a computer, cause the computer to perform the method described in the fourth aspect or any possible design of the fourth aspect.

[0235] In a thirty-second aspect, a computer storage medium is provided, wherein instructions are stored therein, which, when executed on a computer, cause the computer to perform the method described in the fifth aspect or any possible design of the fifth aspect.

[0236] In a thirty-third aspect, a computer storage medium is provided, wherein instructions are stored therein, which, when executed on a computer, cause the computer to perform the method described in the sixth aspect or any possible design of the sixth aspect.

[0237] In a thirty-fourth aspect, a computer program product containing instructions is provided, the computer program product storing instructions that, when run on a computer, cause the computer to perform the method described in the first aspect or any possible design of the first aspect.

[0238] In a thirty-fifth aspect, a computer program product containing instructions is provided, the computer program product storing instructions that, when run on a computer, cause the computer to perform the method described in the second aspect or any possible design of the second aspect.

[0239] In a thirty-sixth aspect, a computer program product containing instructions is provided, the computer program product storing instructions that, when run on a computer, cause the computer to perform the method described in the third aspect or any possible design of the third aspect.

[0240] In a thirty-seventh aspect, a computer program product containing instructions is provided, the computer program product storing instructions that, when run on a computer, cause the computer to perform the method described in the fourth aspect or any possible design of the fourth aspect.

[0241] In a thirty-eighth aspect, a computer program product containing instructions is provided, the computer program product storing instructions that, when run on a computer, cause the computer to perform the method described in the fifth aspect or any possible design of the fifth aspect.

[0242] In a thirty-ninth aspect, a computer program product containing instructions is provided, the computer program product storing instructions that, when run on a computer, cause the computer to perform the method described in the sixth aspect or any possible design of the sixth aspect.

[0243] In this embodiment of the application, the terminal device can send a first message carrying indication information to the access network device, and the access network device can store first information corresponding to the first message or the first uplink data. Thus, the access network device can directly send the stored first information to the terminal device, reducing the waiting process of the terminal device and helping the terminal device to save power. Attached Figure Description

[0244] Figure 1 A flowchart of the EDT process in an LTE system;

[0245] Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram illustrating the working process of a self-powered sensor.

[0246] Figure 3 This is a schematic diagram illustrating an application scenario according to an embodiment of this application;

[0247] Figure 4 A flowchart illustrating the first communication method provided in this application embodiment;

[0248] Figure 5 A flowchart illustrating the second communication method provided in this application embodiment;

[0249] Figure 6 A flowchart illustrating the third communication method provided in the embodiments of this application;

[0250] Figure 7 A schematic block diagram of a first type of access network device provided in the embodiments of this application;

[0251] Figure 8 Another schematic block diagram of the first type of access network device provided in the embodiments of this application;

[0252] Figure 9 A schematic block diagram of a first type of terminal device provided in the embodiments of this application;

[0253] Figure 10 Another schematic block diagram of the first type of terminal device provided in the embodiments of this application;

[0254] Figure 11 A schematic block diagram of a second type of network device provided in the embodiments of this application;

[0255] Figure 12 Another schematic block diagram of a second type of network device provided in the embodiments of this application;

[0256] Figure 13 A schematic block diagram of a second type of terminal device provided in the embodiments of this application;

[0257] Figure 14 Another schematic block diagram of the second type of terminal device provided in the embodiments of this application;

[0258] Figure 15 A schematic block diagram of a third type of network device provided in the embodiments of this application;

[0259] Figure 16 Another schematic block diagram of a third type of network device provided in the embodiments of this application;

[0260] Figure 17 A schematic block diagram of a third type of terminal device provided in the embodiments of this application;

[0261] Figure 18 Another schematic block diagram of a third type of terminal device provided in the embodiments of this application;

[0262] Figure 19 A schematic block diagram of a communication device provided in the embodiments of this application;

[0263] Figure 20 Another schematic block diagram of the communication device provided in the embodiments of this application;

[0264] Figure 21 Another schematic block diagram of the communication device provided in the embodiments of this application. Detailed Implementation

[0265] To make the objectives, technical solutions, and advantages of the embodiments of this application clearer, the embodiments of this application will be further described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0266] The following explanations of some terms used in the embodiments of this application are provided to facilitate understanding by those skilled in the art.

[0267] 1) Terminal equipment, including devices that provide voice and / or data connectivity to users, such as handheld devices with wireless connectivity or processing devices connected to a wireless modem. The terminal equipment can communicate with the core network via a radio access network (RAN) and exchange voice and / or data with the RAN. The terminal equipment may include user equipment (UE), wireless terminal equipment, mobile terminal equipment, device-to-device (D2D) terminal equipment, vehicle-to-everything (V2X) terminal equipment, machine-to-machine / machine-type communications (M2M / MTC) terminal equipment, Internet of Things (IoT) terminal equipment, subscriber unit, subscriber station, mobile station, remote station, access point (AP), remote terminal, access terminal, user terminal, user agent, or user device, etc. For example, it may include mobile phones (or "cellular" phones), computers with mobile terminal equipment, portable, pocket-sized, handheld, or computer-embedded mobile devices, etc. Examples include personal communication service (PCS) phones, cordless phones, session initiation protocol (SIP) phones, wireless local loop (WLL) stations, and personal digital assistants (PDAs). It also includes limited devices, such as those with low power consumption, limited storage capacity, or limited computing power. Examples include information sensing devices such as barcode scanners, radio frequency identification (RFID), sensors, global positioning systems (GPS), and laser scanners.

[0268] By way of example and not limitation, in this embodiment, the terminal device can also be a wearable device. Wearable devices, also known as wearable smart devices or smart wearable devices, are a general term for devices that utilize wearable technology to intelligently design and develop everyday wearables, such as glasses, gloves, watches, clothing, and shoes. Wearable devices are portable devices that are worn directly on the body or integrated into the user's clothing or accessories. Wearable devices are not merely hardware devices, but also achieve powerful functions through software support, data interaction, and cloud interaction. Broadly speaking, wearable smart devices include those that are feature-rich, large in size, and can achieve complete or partial functions without relying on a smartphone, such as smartwatches or smart glasses, as well as those that focus on a specific type of application function and require the use of other devices such as smartphones, such as various smart bracelets, smart helmets, and smart jewelry for vital sign monitoring.

[0269] In this embodiment, the terminal device can be of a general type, which can refer to a terminal device that obtains energy through charging or a terminal device with unrestricted energy. Alternatively, the terminal device may be of a self-powered type, which does not use battery power but relies on energy obtained from the surrounding environment (such as solar, wind, electromagnetic, or thermal energy) for communication. Such terminal devices are characterized by limited energy, uncontrollable energy availability, and short-term energy availability.

[0270] The various terminal devices described above, if located in a vehicle (e.g., placed inside or installed inside a vehicle), can be considered as vehicle-mounted terminal devices, also known as on-board units (OBUs).

[0271] 2) Network devices, including access network (AN) devices such as base stations (e.g., access points), can refer to devices in the access network that communicate with wireless terminal devices over the air interface via one or more cells, or, for example, an access network device in a V2X technology is a roadside unit (RSU). A base station can be used to convert received air frames to and from Internet Protocol (IP) packets, acting as a router between the terminal device and the rest of the access network, which may include an IP network. An RSU can be a fixed infrastructure entity supporting V2X applications and can exchange messages with other entities supporting V2X applications. Access network devices can also coordinate the management of air interface attributes. For example, the access network equipment may include evolved base stations (NodeB, eNB, or e-NodeB) in a long term evolution (LTE) system or long term evolution-advanced (LTE-A) system, or it may include next-generation node B (gNB) in a 5th generation (5G) new radio (NR) system, or it may include centralized unit (CU) and distributed unit (DU) in a cloud radio access network (Cloud RAN) system. The embodiments of this application are not limited.

[0272] Of course, network devices may also include core network devices, but since the technical solutions provided in this application mainly involve access network devices, unless otherwise specified, the “network devices” described below refer to access network devices.

[0273] 3) Self-powered sensors (or self-powered type sensors), also known as energy-limited sensors or energy harvesting sensors, are sensors that do not use batteries but rely on energy harvested from the surrounding environment (such as solar, wind, electromagnetic, or thermal energy) for communication. These sensors are characterized by limited energy, uncontrollable energy delivery, and short-term energy availability.

[0274] 4) "At least one" means one or more, while "more than" means two or more. "And / or" describes the relationship between related objects, indicating that three relationships can exist. For example, A and / or B can mean: A alone, A and B simultaneously, or B alone, where A and B can be singular or plural. The character " / " generally indicates that the preceding and following related objects are in an "or" relationship. "At least one of the following" or similar expressions refer to any combination of these items, including any combination of single or plural items. For example, at least one of a, b, or c can mean: a, b, c, ab, ac, bc, or abc, where a, b, and c can be single or multiple.

[0275] Furthermore, unless otherwise stated, the ordinal numbers such as "first" and "second" mentioned in the embodiments of this application are used to distinguish multiple objects and are not used to limit the order, timing, priority, or importance of multiple objects. For example, "first message" and "second message" are only used to distinguish different signaling messages, and do not indicate differences in the content, priority, sending order, or importance of these two types of information.

[0276] The term "stored" as used in the embodiments of this application can be understood as related information stored in non-volatile memory, or related information stored in the processor's memory. These memories include, but are not limited to, read-only memory (ROM), random access memory (RAM), cache, buffer, or register, etc.

[0277] The above describes some concepts involved in the embodiments of this application. The technical features of the embodiments of this application are described below.

[0278] Currently, given that terminal devices need to establish an RRC connection even when sending small amounts of data, an EDT (Electronic Data Transfer) mechanism has been introduced to reduce the connection establishment and release steps required for terminal devices to establish an RRC connection and to reduce data transmission power consumption. Under the EDT mechanism, terminal devices in the RRC idle state or the RRC inactive state are allowed to transmit small amounts of data during the Msg3 step of the random access procedure, and the transmission process ends after the Msg4 step, without needing to enter the RRC connected state. Please refer to [link / reference]. Figure 1 This is a flowchart of the EDT process in an LTE system.

[0279] First, the terminal device sends a dedicated random access preamble sequence (EDT) to the base station, and the base station receives the random access preamble sequence from the terminal device. Then, the base station sends a random access response (RAR) to the terminal device, and the terminal device receives the RAR from the base station. Then...

[0280] Step 1: After receiving the RAR, the terminal device sends an RRC early data request message on the uplink grant (UL grant) indicated by the RAR. The base station receives the RRC early data request message from the terminal device. The RRC early data request message contains a Non-Access Stratum (NAS) message, and the uplink data is carried in this NAS message. This RRC early data request message can be regarded as Msg3.

[0281] Step 2: The base station sends an initial UE message to the mobility management entity (MME), and the MME receives the initial UE message from the base station. This initial UE message can be a non-access stratum (NAS) message, which includes uplink data sent by the terminal device to the base station via an RRC data early transmission request message.

[0282] Step 3: The MME modifies the bearer between itself and the servicing gateway (S-GW). During the bearer modification process, the MME notifies the S-GW that data needs to be sent to the S-GW.

[0283] Step 4: The MME sends the received uplink data from the base station to the S-GW, and the S-GW receives the uplink data from the MME. This uplink data is the same uplink data included in the initial UE information in step 2, which is the uplink data sent by the terminal device to the base station via the RRC data early transmission request message.

[0284] Step 5: If downlink data from the terminal device arrives at the S-GW at this time, the S-GW sends the downlink data to the MME, and the MME receives the downlink data from the S-GW. Alternatively, if no downlink data from the terminal device arrives at the S-GW, the S-GW can send a message to the MME indicating whether there is more downlink data.

[0285] Step 6a: If downlink data is received from the S-GW, the MME sends the downlink data to the base station via downlink NAS transport (DL NAStransport), and the base station receives the downlink data from the MME.

[0286] Step 6b: The MME can also indicate to the base station whether there is more downlink data. If the MME indicates that there is more downlink data, it will trigger the base station terminal equipment to send an RRC connection establishment indication to initiate the process of establishing an RRC connection.

[0287] Step 7: The base station sends an RRC early data complete message to the terminal device, and the terminal device receives the RRC early data complete message from the base station. The RRC early data complete message can be considered as Msg4. If the base station received downlink data from the MME in step 6a, the RRC early data complete message will carry that downlink data. Alternatively, if the base station did not receive downlink data from the MME in step 6a, the RRC early data complete message can serve as an acknowledgment message for the RRC early data request message. For example, the RRC early data complete message can carry information related to cell reselection by the terminal device in idle state. After sending the RRC early data request message, the terminal device will perform blind detection of the scheduling information for the RRC early data complete message on the corresponding channel, and then receive the RRC early data complete message according to the instructions of the scheduling information.

[0288] Step 8: The base station and MME release the S1 connection, and the MME and S-GW perform operations such as modifying the bearer.

[0289] Figure 1 In the process shown, after sending Msg3, the terminal device waits to receive Msg4 until it does. Currently, there is a type of self-powered sensor that communicates without using batteries, relying on energy from the surrounding environment (such as solar, wind, electromagnetic, or thermal energy). See reference... Figure 2This diagram illustrates the operation of a self-powered sensor. Self-powered sensors are characterized by limited energy, uncontrollable energy replenishment, and short-lived energy availability. Therefore, communication with a self-powered sensor can be interrupted at any time. If the self-powered sensor acts as a terminal device in an EDT (Electronic Data Transmission) process with the base station, it may run out of power after sending Msg3, thus failing to receive Msg4 from the base station. If the base station does not receive a response from the terminal device for an extended period after sending Msg4, it will delete the terminal device's context. If downlink data was previously sent to the terminal device via Msg4, the base station will discard that downlink data. Once the self-powered sensor's power is restored, it will resend Msg3 to the base station. Because the base station has already deleted the terminal device's context and other information, it needs to re-interact with the core network equipment, for example, by re-executing... Figure 1 Steps 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6a in the process. The interaction time between the base station and the core network equipment is relatively long, which means that self-powered sensors need to wait for a long time, resulting in a waste of power.

[0290] Therefore, the technical solution of the embodiments of this application is provided. In the embodiments of this application, the terminal device can send a first message carrying indication information to the access network device, and the access network device can store first information corresponding to the first message or first uplink data. Thus, the access network device can directly send the stored first information to the terminal device, thereby reducing the waiting process of the terminal device. For example, if the terminal device is a self-powered terminal device, and the first message is Msg3, that is, after the terminal device sends Msg3 to the access network device, its power is exhausted. After the power is restored, it resends Msg3 to the access network device. The access network device may not delete the context of the terminal device (e.g., the first information). After receiving the resent Msg3 from the terminal device, the access network device can directly send the stored first information to the terminal device, thus eliminating the need to interact with the core network device to determine the first information. This reduces the time for obtaining the first information and also reduces the waiting time of the terminal device, thereby reducing the energy consumption of the terminal device and contributing to power saving.

[0291] The technical solutions provided in this application can be applied to fourth-generation mobile communication technology (4G) systems, such as LTE systems, or to 5G systems, such as NR systems, or to next-generation mobile communication systems or other similar communication systems, without any specific limitations.

[0292] The following describes a network architecture used in an embodiment of this application. Please refer to [link / reference]. Figure 3 .

[0293] Figure 3 This includes access network equipment, core network equipment, and terminal equipment. A terminal device connects to an access network device, and the access network device connects to a core network device. Of course... Figure 3 The number of terminal devices mentioned is just an example. In actual applications, one access network device can provide services to multiple terminal devices. Figure 3 The core network equipment, access network equipment, and each of the multiple terminal devices, either some or all, can implement the technical solutions provided in the embodiments of this application. Furthermore, Figure 3 The terminal devices mentioned are mobile phones, but in practical applications they are not limited to this.

[0294] Figure 3 Access network equipment in the system includes, for example, a base station, or a Remote Unit (RSU). The base station corresponds to different equipment in different systems; for example, it may correspond to an eNB in ​​a 4G system and a gNB in ​​a 5G system. Of course, the technical solutions provided in this application can also be applied to future mobile communication systems. Figure 3 The access network equipment in this context can also correspond to the access network equipment in future mobile communication systems.

[0295] Figure 3 The core network equipment in the network may include MME and S-GW, or access and mobility management function (AMF), etc. The core network equipment will also be different when the communication system or scenario is different.

[0296] The technical solutions provided by the embodiments of this application are described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0297] This application provides a first communication method, please refer to [link to relevant documentation]. Figure 4 Here is a flowchart of the method. In the following description, this method will be applied to... Figure 3The network architecture shown is an example. Furthermore, this method can be executed by two communication devices, such as a first communication device and a second communication device, or it can be executed by three communication devices, such as a first communication device, a second communication device, and a third communication device. The first, second, or third communication device can be an access network device or a communication device capable of supporting the functions required for the access network device to implement the method; it can be a core network device or a communication device capable of supporting the functions required for the core network device to implement the method; it can be a terminal device or a communication device capable of supporting the functions required for the terminal device to implement the method; or it can be other communication devices, such as a chip system. There are no restrictions on the implementation method of the first, second, or third communication device. For example, the first communication device can be an access network device, the second communication device can be a terminal device, and the third communication device can be a core network device; or the first communication device can be an access network device, the second communication device can be a chip system capable of supporting the terminal device to implement the method, and the third communication device can be a core network device, and so on. The access network device is, for example, a base station.

[0298] For ease of explanation, the following text will use the example of the method being executed by a core network device, an access network device, and a terminal device; that is, the example where the first communication device is the access network device, the second communication device is the terminal device, and the third communication device is the core network device. Alternatively, the following text will use the example of the method being executed by an access network device and a terminal device; that is, the example where the first communication device is the access network device and the second communication device is the terminal device. This is because this embodiment is applied to... Figure 3 Taking the network architecture shown below as an example, the core network equipment described below can be... Figure 3 The core network devices shown in the network architecture, and the access network devices mentioned below, can be... Figure 3 The access network devices shown in the network architecture, and the terminal devices mentioned below, can be... Figure 3 The terminal device in the network architecture shown. In addition, the terminal device in the embodiments of this application can be a self-powered terminal device as described above, or it can be other types of terminal devices, such as ordinary terminal devices (that is, it does not need to obtain energy from the environment, but can obtain sufficient energy through charging, etc., and may rarely cause communication interruption due to energy depletion during communication).

[0299] First, it is important to note that in the embodiments of this application, the "third message" and the third message in the random access procedure (i.e., Msg3) are not equivalent, or in other words, they are not the same concept. If this document describes the third message in the random access procedure, it will be described as "the third message in the random access procedure," "Msg3," or "Msg3 in the random access procedure," etc., while if this document describes the third message, it will be described as "the third message." Similarly, in the embodiments of this application, the "fourth message" and the fourth message in the random access procedure (i.e., Msg4) are not equivalent, or in other words, they are not the same concept. If this document describes the fourth message in the random access procedure, it will be described as "the fourth message in the random access procedure," "Msg4," or "Msg4 in the random access procedure," etc., while if this document describes the fourth message, it will be described as "the fourth message."

[0300] S41. The terminal device sends a third message to the access network device, and the access network device receives the third message from the terminal device.

[0301] if Figure 4 The illustrated embodiment is applied in an EDT scenario, so the third message is, for example, Msg3 during the random access process. Alternatively, Figure 4 The application scenario of the illustrated embodiment can also be other scenarios. For example, it can also be applied to terminal devices in RRC connection state. In that case, the third message is, for example, an RRC message, or it may be other types of messages.

[0302] The third message can carry the first uplink data. For example, if the third message is Msg3, then the first uplink data is the early transmission data sent to the access network device via EDT. Alternatively, if the third message is a message from the terminal device in RRC connected state, then the first uplink data can be the uplink data that the terminal device normally sends to the access network device.

[0303] In addition, the third message may also carry a first identifier, such as the identifier of the first uplink data, or it may be the identifier of the third message. The access network device may also store the first identifier after receiving the third message. The third message may also carry the identifier of the terminal device, or, if the terminal device and the access network device have had other prior interactions, the terminal device may send its identifier to the access network device through those previous interactions, or the access network device may obtain the terminal device's identifier from the core network device. The access network device may also store the terminal device's identifier after obtaining it.

[0304] As an optional implementation, the terminal device can also send its type information to the access network device. For example, the terminal device sends a type indication message to the access network device, indicating that the terminal device's type is a first type. The access network device receives the type indication message from the terminal device and can determine that the terminal device's type is the first type based on this message. The first type can be, for example, a self-powered type, an energy-constrained type, or other types, such as a normal type. In short, any terminal device that requires the access network device to retain its context for a longer period of time can be considered as the first type; there are no specific limitations.

[0305] For example, the type indication message and the third message can be the same message. That is, the terminal device can send its type information to the access network device through the third message, thereby helping to save signaling overhead. Alternatively, the type indication message and the third message can be different messages. For example, the type indication message could be a message in the process of the terminal device registering with the access network device (or, in other words, with the core network device), such as a registration message, or it could be other messages in the registration process, or the type indication message could be any other message. There are no specific restrictions.

[0306] S41 is an optional step and is not mandatory.

[0307] S42. The access network device sends the sixth message to the terminal device.

[0308] After receiving the third message, the access network device can determine the response information, for example, referred to as the first information. The access network device sends the first information to the terminal device in the sixth message. For example, the first information may include data, signaling, or both. The first information may be response information to the first uplink data, or it may be response information to the third message. If the first information is response information to the third message, then it can be considered that the first information corresponds to the third message. Specifically, the first information may correspond to the first uplink data, in which case it can also be considered as response information to the first uplink data; or, the first information may correspond to other information included in the first message besides the first uplink data, in which case it cannot be considered as response information to the first uplink data; or, the first information may correspond to the first uplink data included in the first message, and also to other information included in the first message besides the first uplink data, in which case it can also be considered as response information to the first uplink data (of course, the first information is also response information to other information included in the first message besides the first uplink data).

[0309] After sending the first information to the terminal device, if the access network device does not receive a response message from the terminal device (which corresponds to the sixth message), the access network device may store the first information. For example, if the access network device does not receive a response message from the terminal device within a first duration, it may store the first information. The first duration is, for example, the duration during which the access network device should normally receive a response message from the terminal device. The first duration may be configured by the access network device itself, configured by the core network device, or specified by a protocol. For example, if the access network device receives a type indication message and determines that the terminal device is of type 1, then if the access network device does not receive a response message from the terminal device, it may store the first information. The step of the access network device determining the type of the terminal device may occur after the access network device has not received a response message from the terminal device and before the access network device stores the first information, or it may occur before the access network device receives a response message from the terminal device. For example, the terminal device may send its type information to the access network device during the registration process or when sending the third message, and the access network device can determine the type of the terminal device after receiving the type information. Alternatively, the terminal device may not send a type indication message to the access network device, and the access network device can store the initial information regardless of the type of terminal device.

[0310] Furthermore, access network devices may interact with multiple terminal devices, receiving information from them and storing information corresponding to different terminal devices. Therefore, to facilitate subsequent retrieval of the first information, the access network device can store the correspondence between the first information and the identifiers of the terminal devices, so that the first information can be found based on the identifiers of the terminal devices.

[0311] For example, the third message could be Msg3, for example... Figure 1 In step 1, the RRC data early transmission request message, the sixth message can be Msg4, for example, Figure 1 In step 7, the RRC data early transmission completion message may include downlink data from the core network device.

[0312] Alternatively, if the terminal device is in an RRC connection state, the first message may be, for example, a positive acknowledgment (ACK) or a negative acknowledgment (NACK) corresponding to the first uplink data, or it may be other information. The third message may be, for example, an RRC message, and the sixth message may also be an RRC message, or the third message may be an RRC message and the sixth message may be of another type, or the sixth message may be an RRC message and the third message may be of another type, or both the third and sixth messages may be of a type other than RRC messages, and the types of the third and sixth messages may be the same or different.

[0313] If the third message is Msg3, the access network device may need to interact with the core network device to determine the first information. For example, the access network device and the core network device can perform... Figure 1 Steps 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6a in the illustrated process are used to determine the first information.

[0314] If the terminal device is in RRC connection state, the access network device can determine the first information on its own without interacting with the core network device, or the access network device can determine the first information through interaction with the core network device. No specific restrictions are imposed.

[0315] exist Figure 4 The "×" indicates that the terminal device did not receive the sixth message after the access network device sent it. There are several possible reasons for this. For example, if the terminal device is self-powered, it might run out of power after sending the third message and therefore be unable to receive the sixth message. Alternatively, if the terminal device is in an RRC connection state, it might fail to receive the sixth message due to poor channel quality or other factors after sending the third message. Of course, there could be other reasons why the terminal device did not receive the sixth message, and this application does not limit the specific reasons for this failure.

[0316] S43. The terminal device sends a first message to the access network device, and the access network device receives the first message from the terminal device. The first message carries indication information, which indicates that the first uplink data has been sent, and the first message also carries the identifier of the terminal device.

[0317] Because the terminal device did not receive the sixth message, it cannot confirm whether the access network device correctly received the first uplink data. Therefore, the terminal device can send a first message to the access network device to ensure that the access network device can obtain the first uplink data. This can be understood as the first message being a resentment of the third message by the terminal device. In other words, after sending the third message, the terminal device did not receive the sixth message, so it resent the third message to the access network device, and this resentment of the third message is called the first message. If the third message is Msg3, then the first message can also be Msg3. Alternatively, if the third message is a message from a terminal device in RRC connection mode, then the first message can also be a message of the same type as the third message, for example, both the third and first messages are RRC messages. Or, the first message can also be a message of a different type than the third message, for example, the first message is an RRC message and the third message is another type of message, or the third message is an RRC message and the first message is another type of message.

[0318] The first message may carry indication information to indicate that the first uplink data has been sent, and may also carry the identifier of the terminal device. Upon receiving the first message, the network device can determine the first uplink data based on the terminal device's identifier, and confirm that the first uplink data has been sent based on the indication information. The identifier of the terminal device may be, for example, its identification number (ID), or other information that can uniquely identify the terminal device, such as its physical address; there are no specific restrictions.

[0319] For this terminal device, before sending the first message to the access network device, it may have only sent one piece of uplink data to the access network device, such as the first uplink data, without sending any other uplink data. In this case, the access network device can identify the first uplink data based on the terminal device's identifier. For example, before sending the first message to the access network device, the terminal device may have only sent one message to the access network device, such as the third message, which carries the first uplink data but not any other uplink data. In this case, the access network device can identify the first uplink data based on the terminal device's identifier. Alternatively, before sending the first message to the access network device, the terminal device may have sent multiple messages to the access network device, such as the third message among the multiple messages. In this case, all messages except the third message do not carry uplink data, while the third message carries the first uplink data but not any other uplink data. In this case, the access network device can identify the first uplink data based on the terminal device's identifier.

[0320] However, it's also possible that the terminal device sends multiple messages (including a third message) to the access network device before sending the first message. These multiple messages, besides the third message, also carry uplink data. Alternatively, the terminal device might send only one message, such as the third message, before sending the first message, but this third message includes other uplink data besides the first. In this case, the access network device might not be able to determine which uplink data the first data belongs to based solely on the terminal device's identifier. Therefore, as an alternative, the first message can also carry a first identifier, which could be, for example, the identifier of the first uplink data or the identifier of the third message. After receiving the first message, the access network device can then determine which uplink data from which terminal device the first uplink data corresponds to based on the first identifier and the terminal device's identifier. Additionally, as described in S42, the access network device can store first information. Considering that the access network device may receive multiple messages from a terminal device and may also store multiple pieces of information corresponding to a terminal device, in order to facilitate subsequent retrieval of the first information and prevent confusion between different pieces of information, the access network device can specifically store the first information, the first identifier, and the identifier of the terminal device, as well as the correspondence between these three, so that the first information can be found based on the identifier of the terminal device and the first identifier.

[0321] As mentioned earlier, the third message can carry the first uplink data, and the first message is a resent third message. Therefore, the first message can carry the first uplink data or not.

[0322] Furthermore, if the terminal device does not experience a cell change after sending the third message to the access network device and before sending the first message to the access network device, that is, if the terminal device remains camped in the same cell after sending the third message to the access network device and before sending the first message to the access network device, then the access network device mentioned in S41 to S43 is the same access network device, which is the access network device corresponding to the cell in which the terminal device is camped. Alternatively, if a cell change occurs after the terminal device sends the third message to the access network device but before sending the first message, meaning the terminal device camps on different cells before sending the third message and the first message, then if the cells camped by the terminal device before and after correspond to the same access network device, the access network device described in S41 to S43 is the same access network device. However, if the cells camped by the terminal device before and after correspond to different access network devices, then the access network devices described in S41 and S42 and the access network device described in S43 can be different access network devices. In this case, the access network device in S43 can be referred to as the target access network device, and the access network devices in S41 and S42 can be referred to as the source access network device.

[0323] If the access network device in S43 is the target access network device, then after receiving the first message, the target access network device can send the first message to the source access network device, and the source access network device can receive the first message from the target access network device.

[0324] S44. The access network device determines whether it stores first information corresponding to the first message or the first uplink data based on the identifier of the terminal device.

[0325] If the cells where the terminal device camps before and after correspond to the same access network device, then the access network device mentioned in S41 to S44 is the same access network device; however, if the cells where the terminal device camps before and after correspond to different access network devices, then the access network device mentioned in S41, S42 and S43 is the source access network device, and the access network device mentioned in S43 is the target access network device. That is to say, the target access network device sends the first message to the source access network device, and the source access network device executes S44.

[0326] After receiving the first message, the access network device can determine that the first uplink data has been sent based on the indication information, and can query whether it stores first information corresponding to the identifier of the terminal device. That is, to find the first information corresponding to the first message or the first uplink data, it can specifically search for the first information corresponding to the identifier of the terminal device. Alternatively, if the access network device stores the correspondence between the identifier of the terminal device and the first identifier and the first information, then the first message can also carry the first identifier (or, if the third message carries the first identifier, then the first message can carry the first identifier). The access network device then determines whether it stores first information corresponding to the first message or the first uplink data based on the identifier of the terminal device. Specifically, the access network device queries whether it stores first information corresponding to the identifier of the terminal device and the first identifier. In other words, to find the first information corresponding to the first message or the first uplink data, it can specifically search for the first information corresponding to the identifier of the terminal device and the first identifier.

[0327] S45. When it is determined that the first information is stored, the access network device sends a second message to the terminal device, and the terminal device receives the second message from the access network device, the second message carrying the first information.

[0328] If the first message is stored, the access network device can directly send the first message to the terminal device, so that the terminal device can obtain the first message. For example, if the first message is Msg3, then the second message can be Msg4. Alternatively, if the first message is a message in RRC connection state for the terminal device, then the second message can also be a message of the same type as the first message, for example, both the first and second messages are RRC messages. Or the second message can also be a message of a different type than the first message, for example, the first message is an RRC message and the second message is another type of message, or the second message is an RRC message and the first message is another type of message.

[0329] Taking Msg3 as the first message and Msg4 as the second message as an example. For instance, if a terminal device sends Msg3 to an access network device but then runs out of power and fails to receive Msg4 from the access network device, the terminal device can resend Msg3 after its power is restored. If the access network device does not receive a response message from the terminal device within a first time interval after sending Msg4, it can temporarily retain the terminal device's first information. This first information may include, for example, the terminal device's context, or the terminal device's context and the downlink data to be transmitted to the terminal device. Then, after receiving the resent Msg3 from the terminal device, the access network device can directly send the stored first information to the terminal device, thus eliminating the need to interact with the core network device to determine the first information. This reduces the time spent acquiring the first information and the waiting time for the terminal device, thereby reducing the terminal device's energy consumption and contributing to power saving.

[0330] Alternatively, consider a terminal device in an RRC connection state. Under current cellular communication technology, after a power outage, the network deletes all context information and untransmitted data from the terminal device. When the terminal device regains power, the RRC connection is re-established between the terminal device and the network device to continue the previous transmission process. This mechanism is unsuitable for self-powered sensors because they consume significant power during the re-establishment of the RRC connection with the network device. Once the RRC connection is established, the self-powered sensor's power may be depleted, resulting in a continuous inability to transmit data between the self-powered sensor and the base station. In this embodiment, after sending the sixth message to the terminal device, if the access network device does not receive a response message from the terminal device within a first time period, it can store first information. This first information may include the terminal device's context, or it may include the terminal device's context and untransmitted downlink data. Therefore, once the terminal device regains power, the access network device can directly send the first message to the network device without re-establishing the RRC connection, reducing the terminal device's energy consumption and the time required for the terminal device to obtain the first information again.

[0331] If the cells where the terminal device camps before and after correspond to the same access network device, then the access network device described in S41 to S45 is the same access network device. However, if the cells where the terminal device camps before and after correspond to different access network devices, then the access network device described in S41, S42, and S43 is the source access network device, and the access network devices described in S43 and S45 are the target access network devices. In other words, the target access network device sends the first message to the source access network device, which then executes S44, sends the first message back to the target access network device, and the target access network device sends the second message to the terminal device. Alternatively, if the cells where the terminal device camps before and after correspond to different access network devices, then the access network devices mentioned in S41, S42, S43, and S45 can be considered as the source access network device and the access network device mentioned in S43 as the target access network device. In this case, the access network device in S45 sending the second message to the terminal device can be understood as the source access network device sending the second message to the target access network device, and then the target access network device forwarding the second message to the terminal device. Thus, the terminal device receives the second message forwarded by the target access network device from the source access network device.

[0332] S45 describes the scenario where the access network device (or source access network device) stores the first information. However, it's also possible that the access network device (or source access network device) did not store the first information, or although it stored the first information, the access network device failed to query it, or the first information stored by the access network device (or source access network device) was lost, or the access network device (or source access network device) stored the first information but still did not receive the first message from the terminal device after a second storage period, in which case the access network device discarded the first information, and so on. In these cases, the access network device needs to re-determine the first information. The method by which the access network device determines the first information is related to whether the first message carries the first uplink data, which will be described below.

[0333] 1. The first message did not carry the first uplink data.

[0334] In this scenario, if the access network device fails to find the first information, it needs to re-obtain the first uplink data from the terminal device to determine the first information. For example, the access network device sends a fourth message to the terminal device, requesting a retransmission of the first uplink data. If the access network device used to determine the first information is the source access network device, it can send the fourth message to the target access network device, which then forwards it to the terminal device. After receiving the fourth message, the terminal device can retransmit the first uplink data to the access network device. If the access network device used to determine the first information is the source access network device, the terminal device sends the first uplink data to the target access network device, which then forwards it to the source access network device. For example, if the first message (or third message) is Msg3, the terminal device can continue to send the first uplink data to the access network device via Msg3. Alternatively, if the terminal device is in RRC connection mode and the first message (or third message) is an RRC message, the terminal device can continue to send the first uplink data to the access network device via an RRC message. After receiving the first uplink data from the terminal device, the access network device can determine the first information based on the first uplink data. If the target access network device receives the first uplink data from the terminal device, the target access network device forwards the first uplink data to the access network device. After determining the first information, the access network device can send the first information to the terminal device, for example, the access network device sends a seventh message to the terminal device, and the seventh message carries the first information. If the source access network device determines the first information, the source access network device sends the first information to the target access network device, and the target access network device sends a seventh message to the terminal device. For example, if the first message (or the third message) is Msg3, then the seventh message can be Msg4; or, for example, if the first message (or the third message) is an RRC message, then the seventh message can be an RRC message.

[0335] There are several possible reasons why an access network device might not find the first information. For example, the access network device might not have stored the first information due to a malfunction or other reasons; or, although the access network device performed the operation to store the first information, it failed to do so; or, although the access network device stored the first information successfully, it may delete the stored first information to free up storage space for other information, as the access network device may not receive the first message for an extended period (e.g., within a second time period). The second time period can be configured by the access network device or the core network device, or specified through a protocol. Of course, besides the situations listed above, there may be other reasons why the access network device cannot find the first information.

[0336] Access network devices may determine the initial information in different ways.

[0337] For example, if the first message (or third message) is Msg3, it means that the first uplink data is early transmission data sent via the EDT mechanism. Then, the access network device can determine the first information through interaction with the core network device. For instance, the access network device sends the first uplink data to the core network device. After receiving the first uplink data, the core network device can process it accordingly to determine the first information. The core network device then sends the first information back to the access network device, thus the access network device determines the first information. If the access network device used in the process of determining the first information is the source access network device, then the access network device mentioned here can be the source access network device. For example, the first information may include downlink data to be sent to the terminal device.

[0338] Alternatively, if the terminal device is in RRC connection state, for example, if the first message (or third message) is an RRC message or other type of message, it can be understood that the first uplink data is the data normally sent by the terminal device to the network device while in RRC connection state. In this case, the access network device can determine the first information through interaction with the core network device. For example, the access network device sends the first uplink data to the core network device. After receiving the first uplink data, the core network device can perform corresponding processing to determine the first information, and then the core network device sends the first information back to the access network device, thus the access network device determines the first information. Alternatively, the access network device can also determine the first information directly without interacting with the core network device. If the access network device used in the process of determining the first information is the source access network device, then the access network device mentioned here can be the source access network device.

[0339] In this scenario, the first message does not need to carry excessive information, especially if the access network device finds the first message corresponding to the indication information, which helps to save signaling overhead.

[0340] 2. The first message carries the first uplink data.

[0341] In this scenario, if the access network device fails to find the first information, it does not need to obtain the first uplink data from the terminal device. Instead, it can re-determine the first information based on the first uplink data carried in the first message. This reduces the interaction between the access network device and the terminal device, and also reduces the time the access network device spends re-determining the first information. This, in turn, reduces the waiting time for the terminal device, contributing to power conservation. If the access network device used in the process of determining the first information is a source access network device, then the access network device mentioned here can be the source access network device.

[0342] After determining the first information, the access network device can send the first information to the terminal device. For example, the access network device can send a seventh message to the terminal device, with the seventh message carrying the first information. If the first information is determined by the source access network device, then the source access network device can send the first information to the target access network device, which then sends the first information to the terminal device. The terminal device then receives the first information forwarded from the source access network device by the target access network device. For example, if the first message (or the third message) is Msg3, then the seventh message could be Msg4; or, for example, if the first message (or the third message) is an RRC message, then the seventh message could be an RRC message.

[0343] For information on how access network devices determine the first piece of information, please refer to the previous section.

[0344] In this embodiment of the application, the terminal device can send a first message carrying indication information to the access network device, and the access network device can store first information corresponding to the first message or the first uplink data. Thus, the access network device can directly send the stored first information to the terminal device, thereby reducing the waiting process of the terminal device and helping the terminal device to save power.

[0345] The preceding text described the processes related to EDT. In addition, for self-powered terminal devices, potential issues during the paging process also need to be considered. The paging process is a procedure by which network devices locate terminal devices when there are downlink services to be sent. To ensure that the services reach the terminal devices, terminal devices in RRC inactive or RRC idle states periodically check the paging channel. If the terminal device's ID is found in the detected paging message, it indicates that the network device is calling the terminal device, and the terminal device can then establish an RRC connection with the network device. It is important to note that both checking the paging channel and establishing an RRC connection require energy. Furthermore, paging is divided into core network device-triggered paging (CN paging) and access network device-triggered paging (RNA paging). CN paging is for terminal devices in the RRC idle state, while RNA paging is for terminal devices in the RRC inactive state.

[0346] Current paging schemes do not consider the terminal device's power level; they page the terminal device as soon as downlink data arrives. Therefore, if the terminal device is out of power when paging is initiated, it cannot receive the paging message, and the network device cannot reach it, resulting in wasted network resources. Furthermore, because the network device cannot reach the terminal device, it may deregister the terminal device, forcing the terminal device to re-register when it has power, further increasing its energy consumption.

[0347] Therefore, this application provides a second communication method. In this method, the network device can determine whether to page the terminal device based on the terminal device's power status. This allows the network device to call the terminal device only when it has power, reducing the waste of network resources and the likelihood of the terminal device needing to register again.

[0348] Please see Figure 5 Here is a flowchart of the method. In the following description, this method will be applied to... Figure 3 The network architecture shown is an example. Furthermore, this method can be executed by two communication devices, such as a first communication device and a second communication device. The first or second communication device can be an access network device or a communication device capable of supporting the functions required for the access network device to implement the method; it can be a core network device or a communication device capable of supporting the functions required for the core network device to implement the method; it can be a terminal device or a communication device capable of supporting the functions required for the terminal device to implement the method; or it can be other communication devices, such as a chip system. There are no restrictions on the implementation method of the first or second communication device. For example, the first communication device can be an access network device and the second communication device can be a terminal device; or the first communication device can be a core network device and the second communication device can be a terminal device; or the first communication device can be an access network device and the second communication device can support a chip system that allows the terminal device to implement the method, and so on. The access network device is, for example, a base station.

[0349] For ease of explanation, the following text will use the example of this method being executed by a network device and a terminal device; that is, assuming the first communication device is a network device and the second communication device is a terminal device. The network device can be an access network device or a core network device. This embodiment is based on an application in... Figure 3 Taking the network architecture shown below as an example, the core network equipment described below can be... Figure 3 The core network devices shown in the network architecture, and the access network devices mentioned below, can be... Figure 3 The access network devices shown in the network architecture, and the terminal devices mentioned below, can be... Figure 3The terminal device in the network architecture shown. In addition, the terminal device in the embodiments of this application can be a self-powered terminal device as described above, or it can be other types of terminal devices, such as ordinary terminal devices (that is, it does not need to obtain energy from the environment, but can obtain sufficient energy through charging, etc., and may rarely cause communication interruption due to energy depletion during communication).

[0350] S51. The network device sends a request message to the terminal device, and the terminal device receives the request message from the network device. The request message is used to request energy information from the terminal device.

[0351] For example, a network device can proactively request energy information from a terminal device. If the network device is an access network device, it can directly send a request message to the terminal device. Alternatively, if the network device is a core network device, it can send a request message to the access network device, which will then forward the request message to the terminal device.

[0352] As an optional implementation, the terminal device can also send its type information to the network device. For example, the terminal device can send a type indication message to the network device, indicating that the terminal device's type is a first type. The network device receives the type indication message from the terminal device and can determine that the terminal device's type is the first type based on this message. The first type may be, for example, a self-powered type, or it may be another type, such as a normal type; there are no specific limitations. The step of the terminal device sending type information to the network device may occur, for example, before S51. If the access network device determines that the terminal device's type is the first type, it can request the terminal device's energy information from the terminal device, thereby enabling it to initiate paging of the terminal device when it has power.

[0353] The request message may be a radio resource control (RRC) message, a media access control element (MAC CE) message, or other messages.

[0354] S52. The terminal device determines the energy information of the terminal device, the energy information being used to indicate the overall energy status of the terminal device within a first time period, or to indicate the current energy status of the terminal device.

[0355] Of course, S51 is only an optional step. That is to say, the network device may not need to actively request the terminal device's energy information. The terminal device can actively determine the terminal device's energy information and send it to the network device. For example, the terminal device can determine the terminal device's energy information periodically, or determine the terminal device's energy information when certain triggering conditions are met. There are no restrictions on the specific triggering conditions.

[0356] Energy information can indicate the overall energy status of a terminal device within a first time period, or it can indicate the current energy status of the terminal device. The term "current" can refer to the time when the terminal device determines the energy information.

[0357] If the energy information indicates the current energy state of the terminal device, then the energy information may include the current energy value of the terminal device.

[0358] If the energy information indicates the overall energy status of the terminal device within a first duration, then the energy information may include one or any combination of the following: multiple energy values ​​of the terminal device within the first duration, probability distribution information of the energy values ​​of the terminal device within the first duration, the average value of the energy values ​​of the terminal device within the first duration, or, within the first duration, the duration for which the energy value of the terminal device is greater than or equal to a first threshold. For example, the energy information may include only multiple energy values ​​of the terminal device within a first duration; or, the energy information may include only the probability distribution information of the energy values ​​of the terminal device within a first duration; or, the energy information may include only the average energy value of the terminal device within a first duration; or, the energy information may include only the duration during which the energy value of the terminal device is greater than or equal to a first threshold within the first duration; or, the energy information may include multiple energy values ​​of the terminal device within a first duration and the average energy value of the terminal device within the first duration; or, the energy information may include multiple energy values ​​of the terminal device within a first duration, the probability distribution information of the energy values ​​of the terminal device within the first duration, and the average energy value of the terminal device within the first duration; or, the energy information may include multiple energy values ​​of the terminal device within a first duration, the probability distribution information of the energy values ​​of the terminal device within the first duration, the average energy value of the terminal device within the first duration, and the duration during which the energy value of the terminal device is greater than or equal to a first threshold within the first duration, and so on. There are no restrictions on which of the above items the energy information includes. Alternatively, the energy information may include one or more of the above-mentioned information, or it may not include any of the above-mentioned information but include other information, as long as the energy information can indicate the overall energy status of the terminal device within the first time period.

[0359] For example, the first duration could be 1 hour, 1 day, 1 week, or one or more paging cycles, etc. The first duration can be configured by the network device or defined by a protocol. Furthermore, if the energy information indicates the terminal device's energy status within the first duration, then the first duration can be a fixed period of time. For example, the terminal device determines its energy information at a specific moment, and the first duration is unrelated to that moment but rather a specific time period. For instance, the first moment could be 10:00:00, which is actually the period from 08:00:00 to 09:00:00. Alternatively, the end time of the first duration can be the time obtained by subtracting an offset from the first moment. For example, if the first moment is 10:00:00 and the offset is 30 minutes, and the energy information needs to indicate the terminal device's energy status within the first duration, then the first duration would be the period from 08:30:00 to 09:30:00 if the first duration is 1 hour. If the offset is 0, then the end time of the first duration is equivalent to the first moment itself. For example, if the first time is 10:00:00, and the energy information needs to indicate the energy status of the terminal device within the first time period, and the first time period is 1 hour, then the first time period can be the period from 09:00:00 to 10:00:00.

[0360] If the energy information includes multiple energy values ​​of the terminal device within a first duration, then, for example, if sampling is specified according to a first step length within the first duration, the energy information can include the energy value of the terminal device every first step length within the first duration, and also the energy value of the terminal device at the beginning of the first duration. The first step length can be expressed as a specific duration, such as 10 minutes, or as a percentage, such as 10%, meaning that sampling is performed every 10% of the first duration, starting from the beginning of the first duration. For example, if the first duration is from 09:00:00 to 10:00:00, and the first step length is 20 minutes, then the energy information could include the energy value of the terminal device at 09:00:00, the energy value of the terminal device at 09:20:00, the energy value of the terminal device at 09:40:00, and the energy value of the terminal device at 10:00:00. Alternatively, for example, if the first time period is from 09:00:00 to 10:00:00, and the first step length is 25% of a minute, then the energy information could include the terminal device's energy value at 09:00:00, 09:15:00, 09:30:00, 09:45:00, and 10:00:00. Of course, this first step length is just an example; the actual first step length can be configured by the network device or specified by the protocol. A smaller first step length will more accurately reflect the actual energy value of the terminal device.

[0361] Alternatively, if the energy information includes multiple energy values ​​of the terminal device within a first time period, for example, if the energy information is specified to include N energy values ​​of the terminal device within a first time period, then the terminal device can arbitrarily select N times within the first time period and take the N energy values ​​from these N times as the N energy values ​​included in the energy information. N is a positive integer. N can be configured by the network device or specified through a protocol.

[0362] Alternatively, since the first duration is already a past time period, the energy value collected by the terminal device within the first duration is already a known quantity. Therefore, the terminal device only needs to use all the energy values ​​collected by the terminal device within the first duration as the N energy values ​​included in the energy information.

[0363] If the energy information includes the probability distribution of the energy values ​​of the terminal device within a first time period, this probability distribution information can be presented as a probability distribution curve, with the Y-axis representing the energy value and the X-axis representing time. Alternatively, the probability distribution information can be presented in a table or other ways. For example, Table 1 can be referred to as one implementation of a probability distribution table.

[0364] Table 1

[0365]

[0366] As shown in Table 1, from 0:00 to 6:00, the probability of the terminal device's energy being less than 30% is 30%, and the probability of the terminal device's energy being greater than or equal to 30% is also 30%. From 6:00 to 12:00, the probability of the terminal device's energy being less than 30% is 10%, and the probability of the terminal device's energy being greater than or equal to 30% is 90%. From 12:00 to 18:00, the probability of the terminal device's energy being less than 30% is 0%, and the probability of the terminal device's energy being greater than or equal to 30% is 100%. From 18:00 to 24:00, the probability of the terminal device's energy being less than 30% is 30%, and the probability of the terminal device's energy being greater than or equal to 30% is 70%. Here, "energy less than 30%" means that the terminal device's energy is less than 30% of the maximum energy the terminal device can support; similarly, "energy greater than or equal to 30%" means that the terminal device's energy is greater than or equal to 30% of the maximum energy the terminal device can support. Among them, 30% of the maximum energy that the terminal device can support can be considered as a threshold, or it can be directly represented by the threshold in Table 1. In addition, Table 1 divides the time range by hour. The first duration can be considered as a day, or the first duration can also be a smaller or larger granularity. For example, the first duration can be 1 hour, half an hour, or even shorter, or 2 days, a month, or even longer.

[0367] Using probability distribution information to indicate energy information can more clearly indicate the energy status of the terminal device within the first time period.

[0368] If the energy information includes the average energy value of the terminal device within a first duration, the terminal device can sample its energy value within the first duration according to a second step size. The average of these sampled energy values ​​is the average energy value of the terminal device within the first duration. Similarly, the second step size can be a specific duration, such as 10 minutes, or it can be a percentage, such as 10%, meaning that sampling is performed every 10% of the second duration, starting from the beginning of that duration. The first and second step sizes can be the same or different. For example, if the first duration is from 09:00:00 to 09:30:00, and the second step size is 10 minutes, then the energy information could include the terminal device's energy value at 09:00:00, the energy value at 09:10:00, and the energy value at 09:30:00. The average of these three energy values ​​is then obtained to determine the average energy value of the terminal device within the first duration. Alternatively, since the first time period is already in the past, the energy value collected by the terminal device within that first time period is already known. Therefore, the terminal device only needs to calculate the average of all the energy values ​​collected within the first time period. This average can be an arithmetic mean or a geometric mean. Of course, the second step size here is just an example; the actual second step size can be configured by the network device or specified by a protocol. A smaller second step size will result in an average value closer to the actual energy value of the terminal device.

[0369] If energy information includes the duration within a first time period where the terminal device's energy value is greater than or equal to a first threshold, then it's possible to determine which moments (or durations) within that first time period during which the terminal device's energy value is greater than or equal to the first threshold. The sum of these moments (or durations) is the total duration for which the terminal device's energy value is greater than or equal to the first threshold. For example, if the first time period is from 09:00:00 to 10:00:00, and the terminal device's energy value is greater than the first threshold from 09:00:00 to 09:35:00, equal to the first threshold from 09:35:00 to 09:45:00, and less than the first threshold from 09:45:00 to 10:00:00, then the duration for which the terminal device's energy value is greater than or equal to the first threshold within the first time period is 45 minutes. This first threshold is just an example; the specific first threshold can be configured by the network device or defined by a protocol.

[0370] In addition, the energy information of the terminal device can be reflected by the terminal device's transmission power, or by the terminal device's remaining power, or by both transmission power and remaining power, or by other parameters.

[0371] S53. The terminal device sends the energy information to the network device, and the network device receives the energy information from the terminal device.

[0372] After determining the energy information, the terminal device can send it to the network device, allowing the network device to obtain the terminal device's energy information. For example, the terminal device can send the energy information to the network device via an RRC message, or it can send the energy information to the network device via other types of messages.

[0373] Additionally, during processes S51 to S53, the terminal device can be in RRC connected state, enabling it to interact with network devices. After S53, the terminal device may enter RRC inactive or RRC idle state, requiring the network device to initiate paging of the terminal device.

[0374] Because both access network devices and core network devices can initiate paging of terminal devices, if the network device is an access network device, it can send the terminal device's energy information to the core network device after obtaining it; conversely, if the network device is a core network device, it can send the terminal device's energy information to the access network device after obtaining it. In this way, both the access network device and the core network device can obtain the terminal device's energy information and thus initiate paging of the terminal device based on that information.

[0375] S54. The network device sends a paging message to the terminal device based on the energy information.

[0376] Generally, if a network device does not need to send downlink information to a terminal device, it does not need to initiate a paging process. This is because even if the terminal device is paged, there may be no information transmission, wasting the terminal device's energy. Therefore, a network device can initiate a paging process only when it needs to send downlink information to the terminal device.

[0377] For example, when the first downlink message arrives, the network device can determine whether the terminal device's current energy supports receiving the first downlink message based on the energy information. If it is determined that the terminal device's current energy supports receiving the first downlink message, the network device can send a paging message to the terminal device. The first downlink message may include data, signaling, or both data and signaling.

[0378] The network device has already obtained the terminal device's energy information. Therefore, when the first downlink message arrives, the network device can determine whether the terminal device's current energy level supports receiving the first downlink message based on this energy information. In other words, the network device determines whether the terminal device's current energy level supports receiving the first downlink message based on the terminal device's historical energy information.

[0379] Network devices can be access network devices or core network devices. For example, if the network device is an access network device, and the terminal device is in an RRC inactive state and first downlink information arrives, the access network device can determine whether the terminal device has power with a certain probability or whether the terminal device definitely has power based on the terminal device's energy information. If it is determined that the terminal device has power with a certain probability or definitely has power, it means that the terminal device's current energy supports receiving the first downlink information. Conversely, if it is determined that the terminal device has no power with a certain probability or definitely has no power, it means that the terminal device's current energy does not support receiving the first downlink information.

[0380] Alternatively, the network device could be a core network device. If the terminal device is in RRC idle state and the first downlink information arrives, the access network device can determine, based on the terminal device's power information, whether the terminal device has a certain probability of being powered or whether it definitely has power. If it is determined that the terminal device has a certain probability of being powered or definitely has power, it means that the terminal device's current power supports receiving the first downlink information. Conversely, if it is determined that the terminal device has a certain probability of being de-powered or definitely has no power, it means that the terminal device's current power does not support receiving the first downlink information.

[0381] The method provided in this application allows network devices to determine whether to page a terminal device based on its power status. This enables network devices to call terminal devices when they have power, reducing network resource waste and improving paging success rates. Furthermore, network devices do not need to register a terminal device if it is not paged, thus reducing the likelihood of the terminal device needing to re-register.

[0382] In order to solve and Figure 5 The embodiments shown address the same technical problem, and this application provides a third communication method. Please refer to... Figure 6 Here is a flowchart of the method. In the following description, this method will be applied to... Figure 3The network architecture shown is an example. Furthermore, this method can be executed by two communication devices, such as a first communication device and a second communication device. The first or second communication device can be an access network device or a communication device capable of supporting the functions required for the access network device to implement the method; it can be a core network device or a communication device capable of supporting the functions required for the core network device to implement the method; it can be a terminal device or a communication device capable of supporting the functions required for the terminal device to implement the method; or it can be other communication devices, such as a chip system. There are no restrictions on the implementation method of the first or second communication device. For example, the first communication device can be an access network device and the second communication device can be a terminal device; or the first communication device can be a core network device and the second communication device can be a terminal device; or the first communication device can be an access network device and the second communication device can support a chip system that allows the terminal device to implement the method, and so on. The access network device is, for example, a base station.

[0383] For ease of explanation, the following text will use the example of this method being executed by a network device and a terminal device; that is, assuming the first communication device is a network device and the second communication device is a terminal device. The network device can be an access network device or a core network device. This embodiment is based on an application in... Figure 3 Taking the network architecture shown below as an example, the core network equipment described below can be... Figure 3 The core network devices shown in the network architecture, and the access network devices mentioned below, can be... Figure 3 The access network devices shown in the network architecture, and the terminal devices mentioned below, can be... Figure 3 The terminal device in the network architecture shown. In addition, the terminal device in the embodiments of this application can be a self-powered terminal device as described above, or it can be other types of terminal devices, such as ordinary terminal devices (that is, it does not need to obtain energy from the environment, but can obtain sufficient energy through charging, etc., and may rarely cause communication interruption due to energy depletion during communication).

[0384] S61. The terminal device determines the energy state of the terminal device as the first state.

[0385] For example, a terminal device can determine its energy state based on a first threshold. This first threshold can be used to determine whether the terminal device's energy state is a first state or a second state. For instance, it can be determined by comparing the terminal device's current remaining energy with the first threshold. The first state can be considered a low-energy state, and the second state can be considered a high-energy state. A low-energy state means that the terminal device may not be able to receive information from network devices; for example, the terminal device's current battery level may not be sufficient to receive paging messages or instructions for establishing an RRC connection. For example, a low-energy state is when the terminal device's battery is about to run out. A high-energy state means that the terminal device can receive information from network devices; for example, the terminal device's current battery level may be sufficient to receive paging messages or instructions for establishing an RRC connection.

[0386] For example, the terminal device can know the first threshold in advance. For instance, the first threshold might be configured by the network device. For example, the network device might send a third message to the terminal device, indicating the first threshold. Upon receiving the third message from the network device, the terminal device can then determine the first threshold. If the network device sends the first threshold to the terminal device, the terminal device might be in an RRC connection state when receiving the first threshold from the network device. The third message could be an RRC message, or it could be another type of message, such as a message during a random access procedure. If the first threshold is configured by the network device, the network device can configure the same first threshold for multiple terminal devices. This allows the network device to send the first threshold via broadcast or multicast (i.e., the third message can be a broadcast or multicast message), helping to save signaling overhead. Alternatively, if the first threshold is configured by the network device, the network device can also configure different first thresholds for different terminal devices. For example, the network device can configure corresponding first thresholds for terminal devices based on their capabilities, making the configured first thresholds more consistent with the actual situation of the terminal devices. The capabilities of the terminal devices mentioned here mainly refer to their energy acquisition or energy consumption.

[0387] Alternatively, the first threshold can be defined through a protocol. The protocol can define a single first threshold that applies to all terminal devices, or it can define different first thresholds that apply to different terminal devices; for example, a single first threshold might apply to terminal devices with a specific capability.

[0388] Alternatively, the first threshold can be determined by the terminal device itself, for example, based on its own capabilities. In this approach, different terminal devices may determine the same or different first thresholds. The first threshold determined in this way better reflects the actual situation of the terminal device and more accurately represents its energy status.

[0389] Of course, in addition to the first threshold, terminal devices can also determine whether the energy state of the terminal device is in the first state or the second state through other means.

[0390] S62. The terminal device sends a first message to the network device, and the network device receives the first message from the terminal device. The first message is used to indicate that the energy state of the terminal device is a first state, or the first message is used to indicate that the energy of the terminal device is less than a first threshold.

[0391] If the terminal device determines that its remaining energy is less than a first threshold, it indicates that the terminal device may not be able to support receiving information from the network device. For example, the terminal device may be running out of power and unable to wait to receive information from the network device, or even if the terminal device can receive information from the network device, its energy is insufficient to support receiving it. In this case, the terminal device can send a first message to the network device to inform it of its low energy level. During the process of determining its energy level and sending the first message, the terminal device may be in an RRC connection state; for example, the first message may be an RRC message or another type of message.

[0392] For example, the first message is specifically used to indicate the energy level of the terminal device, and it may occupy 1 bit. If this 1 bit is "1", it indicates that the energy state of the terminal device is in the first state, or that the energy level of the terminal device is less than a first threshold; if this 1 bit is "0", it indicates that the energy state of the terminal device is in the second state, or that the energy level of the terminal device is greater than or equal to the first threshold. Alternatively, the first message may also occupy more bits, and the energy level of the terminal device may be indicated by the corresponding values ​​of the bits; there are no specific restrictions.

[0393] Alternatively, the first message could be a reused message originally intended for other purposes. In this case, the first message could include indication information for the terminal device's energy level. This indication information could be, for example, 1 bit. If this 1 bit is "1", it indicates that the terminal device's energy state is in the first state, or that the terminal device's energy is less than a first threshold. If this 1 bit is "0", it indicates that the terminal device's energy state is in the second state, or that the terminal device's energy is greater than or equal to the first threshold. Alternatively, the indication information could occupy more bits, using corresponding bit values ​​to indicate the terminal device's energy level; there are no specific restrictions on the specifics.

[0394] Network devices can be, for example, access network devices or core network devices. Since both access network devices and core network devices may initiate paging to terminal devices, if the network device is an access network device, it can forward the first message to the core network device after receiving it; conversely, if the network device is a core network device, it can forward the first message to the access network device after receiving it. In this way, both the access network device and the core network device can receive the first message and thus determine the current energy status of the terminal device.

[0395] S63. The network device determines not to send information to the terminal device.

[0396] If a network device determines that the terminal device's energy state is in the first state, the network device knows that the terminal device cannot support receiving information. Therefore, the network device can choose not to send information to the terminal device, for example, the network device can choose not to paging the terminal device.

[0397] For example, a terminal device can periodically determine its energy level. After sending a first message to the network device, the terminal device may enter a low-energy state or a power-off state. After a period of time, the terminal device may regain energy, for example, if its energy level is greater than or equal to a first threshold. The terminal device can then send a second message to the network device, indicating either a second energy state or that its energy level is greater than or equal to the first threshold. Upon receiving the second message, the network device can determine that it can send information to the terminal device. For example, if the network device has downlink information to send to the terminal device, it can send a paging message to the terminal device to send the downlink information after successfully calling the terminal device. The downlink information may include, for example, data or signaling, or data and signaling.

[0398] Network devices can be access network devices or core network devices. For example, if the network device is an access network device, and it receives the first message from the terminal device, it will not send a paging message to the terminal device. Subsequently, if the access network device receives the second message from the terminal device, it determines that it can send a paging message to the terminal device. In this case, if the terminal device is in an RRC inactive state and downlink information awaiting delivery to the terminal device arrives, the access network device can send a paging message to the terminal device.

[0399] Alternatively, the network device may be a core network device. In this case, if the access network device receives the first message from the terminal device, it will not send a paging message to the terminal device. Subsequently, if the access network device receives the second message from the terminal device, it determines that it can send a paging message to the terminal device. In this situation, if the terminal device is in RRC idle state and downlink information to be sent to the terminal device has arrived, the access network device can send a paging message to the terminal device.

[0400] The method provided in this application allows a terminal device to inform a network device of its power status. The network device can then determine whether to page the terminal device based on its power status, thus enabling it to call the terminal device only when it has power, reducing network resource waste and improving paging success rate. Furthermore, the network device does not need to register the terminal device if it is not paged, reducing the likelihood of the terminal device needing to re-register.

[0401] The apparatus used to implement the above method in the embodiments of this application is described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Therefore, the content above can be used in subsequent embodiments, and repeated content will not be described again.

[0402] Figure 7 This is a schematic block diagram of a communication device 700 provided in an embodiment of this application. Exemplarily, the communication device 700 is, for example, an access network device 700. The access network device 700 includes a processing module 710 and a transceiver module 720. The processing module 710 can be used to perform... Figure 4 In the illustrated embodiment, all operations performed by the access network device except for transmit and receive operations, such as... Figure 4 S44 in the illustrated embodiment, and / or other processes used to support the techniques described herein. The transceiver module 720 can be used to perform... Figure 4 In the illustrated embodiment, all transmit and receive operations performed by the access network device, such as Figure 4 S41, S42, S43, and S45 in the illustrated embodiments, and / or other processes used to support the techniques described herein.

[0403] The transceiver module 720 is used to receive a first message from a terminal device. The first message carries indication information, which is used to indicate that the first uplink data has been sent. The first message also carries the identifier of the terminal device.

[0404] The processing module 710 is used to determine, based on the identifier of the terminal device, whether it stores first information corresponding to the first message or the first uplink data;

[0405] The transceiver module 720 is further configured to send a second message to the terminal device when the processing module 710 determines that the first information is stored, the second message carrying the first information.

[0406] As an optional implementation, the transceiver module 720 is further configured to receive a type indication message from the terminal device, the type indication message being used to indicate that the type of the terminal device is a first type.

[0407] As an optional implementation method,

[0408] The transceiver module 720 is further configured to receive a third message from the terminal device before receiving the first message from the terminal device, the third message carrying first uplink data, the first message being a retransmitted third message, and the third message also carrying a first identifier, the first identifier being an identifier of the first uplink data;

[0409] The processing module 710 is further configured to determine the first information based on the first uplink data;

[0410] The transceiver module 720 is also configured to send a sixth message to the terminal device, the sixth message carrying the first information;

[0411] The processing module 710 is further configured to store the first information when the transceiver module 720 does not receive a response message from the terminal device corresponding to the sixth message, wherein the type of the terminal device is the first type.

[0412] As an optional implementation, the processing module 710 is also used to store the correspondence between the identifier of the terminal device, the first identifier, and the first information.

[0413] As an optional implementation, the first message does not carry the first uplink data.

[0414] The transceiver module 720 is further configured to send a fourth message to the terminal device when the processing module 710 determines that the first information is not stored, the fourth message being used to request the retransmission of the first uplink data;

[0415] The transceiver module 720 is further configured to receive a fifth message from the terminal device, the fifth message carrying the first uplink data;

[0416] The processing module 710 is further configured to determine the first information based on the first uplink data;

[0417] The transceiver module 720 is also used to send a seventh message to the terminal device, the seventh message carrying the first information.

[0418] As an optional implementation, the first message carries first uplink data.

[0419] The processing module 710 is further configured to determine the first information based on the first uplink data when it is determined that the first information is not stored.

[0420] The transceiver module 720 is also used to send a seventh message to the terminal device, the seventh message carrying the first information.

[0421] Processing module 710 is used to determine the first information based on the first uplink data in the following manner:

[0422] The first uplink data is sent to the core network equipment via the transceiver module 720.

[0423] The transceiver module 720 receives the first information from the core network device.

[0424] As an optional implementation, the first message also carries a first identifier, which is an identifier for the first uplink data.

[0425] As an optional implementation, the processing module 710 is configured to determine, based on the identifier of the terminal device, whether first information corresponding to the first message or the first uplink data is stored in the following manner:

[0426] Based on the identifier of the terminal device carried in the first message and the first identifier, determine whether the first information corresponding to the identifier of the terminal device and the first identifier is stored.

[0427] It should be understood that the processing module 710 in the embodiments of this application can be implemented by a processor or processor-related circuit components, and the transceiver module 720 can be implemented by a transceiver or transceiver-related circuit components.

[0428] like Figure 8As shown, this application embodiment also provides a communication device 800. Exemplarily, the communication device 800 is, for example, an access network device 800. The access network device 800 includes a processor 810, a memory 820, and a transceiver 830, wherein the memory 820 stores instructions or programs, and the processor 810 is used to execute the instructions or programs stored in the memory 820. When the instructions or programs stored in the memory 820 are executed, the processor 810 is used to perform the operations performed by the processing module 710 in the above embodiment, and the transceiver 830 is used to perform the operations performed by the transceiver module 720 in the above embodiment.

[0429] It should be understood that the access network device 700 or access network device 800 according to the embodiments of this application may correspond to Figure 4 The terminal device in the illustrated embodiment, and the operation and / or function of each module in access network device 700 or access network device 800 are respectively implemented to achieve Figure 4 The corresponding processes in the illustrated embodiments will not be described in detail here for the sake of brevity.

[0430] Figure 9 This is a schematic block diagram of a communication device 900 provided in an embodiment of this application. Exemplarily, the communication device 900 is, for example, a terminal device 900. The terminal device 900 includes a processing module 910 and a transceiver module 920. The processing module 910 can be used to perform... Figure 4 In the illustrated embodiment, all operations performed by the terminal device except for sending and receiving operations, such as... Figure 4 The terminal device in the illustrated embodiment determines the operation of the first uplink data and / or other processes to support the techniques described herein. The transceiver module 920 can be used to perform... Figure 4 In the illustrated embodiment, all send and receive operations performed by the terminal device, for example... Figure 4 S41, S42, S43, and S45 in the illustrated embodiments, and / or other processes used to support the techniques described herein.

[0431] Processing module 910 is used to determine that the first uplink data has been sent;

[0432] The transceiver module 920 is used to send a first message to the access network device. The first message carries indication information, which is used to indicate that the first uplink data has been sent. The first message also carries the identifier of the terminal device 900.

[0433] The transceiver module 920 is also configured to receive a second message from the access network device, the second message carrying first information, the first information corresponding to the first message or the first uplink data.

[0434] Alternatively, the processing module 910 may not need to perform the step of determining that the first uplink data has been sent. For example, if the transceiver module 920 has previously sent the first uplink data, the processing module 910 will naturally know this and will not need to determine it again.

[0435] As an optional implementation, the transceiver module 920 is further configured to send a type indication message to the access network device, the type indication message being used to indicate that the type of the terminal device is a first type.

[0436] As an optional implementation, the first message also carries a first identifier, which is the identifier of the first uplink data.

[0437] As an optional implementation, the first message does not carry the first uplink data, and the transceiver module 920 is further configured to:

[0438] Before receiving the second message from the access network device, a fourth message is received from the access network device, the fourth message being used to request the retransmission of the first uplink data;

[0439] A fifth message is sent to the access network device, the fifth message carrying the first uplink data.

[0440] As an optional implementation, the first message also carries the first uplink data.

[0441] It should be understood that the processing module 910 in the embodiments of this application can be implemented by a processor or processor-related circuit components, and the transceiver module 920 can be implemented by a transceiver or transceiver-related circuit components.

[0442] like Figure 10 As shown, this application embodiment also provides a communication device 1000. Exemplarily, the communication device 1000 is, for example, a terminal device 1000. The terminal device 1000 includes a processor 1010, a memory 1020, and a transceiver 1030. The memory 1020 stores instructions or programs, and the processor 1010 executes the instructions or programs stored in the memory 1020. When the instructions or programs stored in the memory 1020 are executed, the processor 1010 performs the operations performed by the processing module 910 in the above embodiment, and the transceiver 1030 performs the operations performed by the transceiver module 920 in the above embodiment.

[0443] It should be understood that the terminal device 900 or terminal device 1000 according to the embodiments of this application may correspond to Figure 4 The terminal devices in the illustrated embodiments, and the operations and / or functions of the various modules in terminal device 900 or terminal device 1000, are respectively designed to implement... Figure 4The corresponding processes in the illustrated embodiments will not be described in detail here for the sake of brevity.

[0444] Figure 11 This is a schematic block diagram of a communication device 1100 provided in an embodiment of this application. Exemplarily, the communication device 1100 is, for example, a network device 1100. The network device 1100 includes a processing module 1110 and a transceiver module 1120. The processing module 1110 can be used to perform... Figure 5 In the illustrated embodiment, all operations performed by the network device other than sending and receiving operations are included, for example... Figure 5 S54 in the illustrated embodiment, and / or other processes used to support the techniques described herein. The transceiver module 1120 can be used to perform... Figure 5 In the illustrated embodiment, all send and receive operations performed by the network device, such as Figure 5 S51 and S53 in the illustrated embodiments, and / or other processes used to support the techniques described herein.

[0445] The transceiver module 1120 is used to receive energy information from the terminal device, wherein the energy information is used to indicate the overall energy status of the terminal device within a first time period, or to indicate the current energy status of the terminal device.

[0446] The processing module 1110 is used to send a paging message to the terminal device based on the energy information.

[0447] As an optional implementation, the processing module 1110 is configured to send a paging message to the terminal device based on the energy information in the following manner:

[0448] When the first downlink information arrives, the energy information is used to determine whether the current energy of the terminal device supports receiving the first downlink information;

[0449] When the current energy of the terminal device supports receiving the first downlink information, the paging message is sent to the terminal device through the transceiver module 1120.

[0450] It should be understood that the processing module 1110 in the embodiments of this application can be implemented by a processor or processor-related circuit components, and the transceiver module 1120 can be implemented by a transceiver or transceiver-related circuit components.

[0451] like Figure 12As shown, this application embodiment also provides a communication device 1200. Exemplarily, the communication device 1200 is, for example, a network device 1200. The network device 1200 includes a processor 1210, a memory 1220, and a transceiver 1230. The memory 1220 stores instructions or programs, and the processor 1210 executes the instructions or programs stored in the memory 1220. When the instructions or programs stored in the memory 1220 are executed, the processor 1210 performs the operations performed by the processing module 1110 in the above embodiment, and the transceiver 1230 performs the operations performed by the transceiver module 1120 in the above embodiment.

[0452] It should be understood that network device 1100 or network device 1200 according to embodiments of this application may correspond to Figure 5 The network devices shown in the embodiments, and the operation and / or function of each module in network device 1100 or network device 1200, are respectively implemented to achieve Figure 5 The corresponding processes in the illustrated embodiments will not be described in detail here for the sake of brevity.

[0453] Figure 13 This is a schematic block diagram of a communication device 1300 provided in an embodiment of this application. Exemplarily, the communication device 1300 is, for example, a terminal device 1300. The terminal device 1300 includes a processing module 1310 and a transceiver module 1320. The processing module 1310 can be used to perform... Figure 5 In the illustrated embodiment, all operations performed by the terminal device except for sending and receiving operations, such as... Figure 5 S52 in the illustrated embodiment, and / or other processes used to support the techniques described herein. The transceiver module 1320 can be used to perform... Figure 5 In the illustrated embodiment, all send and receive operations performed by the terminal device, for example... Figure 5 S51 and S53 in the illustrated embodiments, and / or other processes used to support the techniques described herein.

[0454] The processing module 1310 is used to determine the energy information of the terminal device, wherein the energy information is used to indicate the overall energy status of the terminal device within a first time period, or to indicate the current energy status of the terminal device.

[0455] The transceiver module 1320 is used to send the energy information to the network device.

[0456] As an optional implementation, the transceiver module 1320 is also configured to receive paging messages from the network device.

[0457] It should be understood that the processing module 1310 in the embodiments of this application can be implemented by a processor or processor-related circuit components, and the transceiver module 1320 can be implemented by a transceiver or transceiver-related circuit components.

[0458] like Figure 14 As shown, this application embodiment also provides a communication device 1400. Exemplarily, the communication device 1400 is, for example, a terminal device 1400. The terminal device 1400 includes a processor 1410, a memory 1420, and a transceiver 1430. The memory 1420 stores instructions or programs, and the processor 1410 executes the instructions or programs stored in the memory 1420. When the instructions or programs stored in the memory 1420 are executed, the processor 1410 performs the operations performed by the processing module 1310 in the above embodiment, and the transceiver 1430 performs the operations performed by the transceiver module 1320 in the above embodiment.

[0459] It should be understood that the terminal device 1400 or terminal device 1400 according to the embodiments of this application may correspond to Figure 5 The terminal device in the illustrated embodiment, and the operation and / or function of the terminal device 1400 or the various modules in the terminal device 1400 are respectively implemented to achieve Figure 5 The corresponding processes in the illustrated embodiments will not be described in detail here for the sake of brevity.

[0460] Figure 15 This is a schematic block diagram of a communication device 1500 provided in an embodiment of this application. Exemplarily, the communication device 1500 is, for example, a network device 1500. The network device 1500 includes a processing module 1510 and a transceiver module 1520. The processing module 1510 can be used to perform... Figure 6 In the illustrated embodiment, all operations performed by the network device other than sending and receiving operations are included, for example... Figure 6 S63 in the illustrated embodiment, and / or other processes used to support the techniques described herein. The transceiver module 1520 can be used to perform... Figure 6 In the illustrated embodiment, all send and receive operations performed by the network device, such as Figure 6 S62 in the illustrated embodiments, and / or other processes used to support the techniques described herein.

[0461] The transceiver module 1520 is used to receive a first message from the terminal device, the first message being used to indicate that the energy state of the terminal device is a first state;

[0462] Processing module 1510 is used to determine not to send information to the terminal device.

[0463] As an optional implementation method,

[0464] The transceiver module 1520 is also configured to receive a second message from the terminal device, the second message being used to indicate that the energy state of the terminal device is a second state;

[0465] The processing module 1510 is also configured to determine whether information can be sent to the terminal device.

[0466] As an optional implementation, the transceiver module 1520 is further configured to send a first threshold to the terminal device, the first threshold being used to determine whether the energy state of the terminal device is the first state or the second state.

[0467] It should be understood that the processing module 1510 in the embodiments of this application can be implemented by a processor or processor-related circuit components, and the transceiver module 1520 can be implemented by a transceiver or transceiver-related circuit components.

[0468] like Figure 16 As shown, this application embodiment also provides a communication device 1600. Exemplarily, the communication device 1600 is, for example, a network device 1600. The network device 1600 includes a processor 1610, a memory 1620, and a transceiver 1630. The memory 1620 stores instructions or programs, and the processor 1610 executes the instructions or programs stored in the memory 1620. When the instructions or programs stored in the memory 1620 are executed, the processor 1610 performs the operations performed by the processing module 1510 in the above embodiment, and the transceiver 1630 performs the operations performed by the transceiver module 1520 in the above embodiment.

[0469] It should be understood that network device 1500 or network device 1600 according to embodiments of this application may correspond to Figure 6 The network devices shown in the embodiments, and the operation and / or function of each module in network device 1500 or network device 1600, are respectively implemented to achieve Figure 6 The corresponding processes in the illustrated embodiments will not be described in detail here for the sake of brevity.

[0470] Figure 17 This is a schematic block diagram of a communication device 1700 provided in an embodiment of this application. Exemplarily, the communication device 1700 is, for example, a terminal device 1700. The terminal device 1700 includes a processing module 1710 and a transceiver module 1720. The processing module 1710 can be used to perform... Figure 6 In the illustrated embodiment, all operations performed by the terminal device except for sending and receiving operations, such as... Figure 6 S61 in the illustrated embodiment, and / or other processes used to support the techniques described herein. The transceiver module 1720 can be used to perform... Figure 6 In the illustrated embodiment, all send and receive operations performed by the terminal device, for example... Figure 6 S62 in the illustrated embodiments, and / or other processes used to support the techniques described herein.

[0471] Processing module 1710 is used to determine the energy state of terminal device 1700 as the first state;

[0472] The transceiver module 1720 is used to send a first message to the network device, the first message being used to indicate that the energy state of the terminal device 1700 is the first state.

[0473] As an optional implementation method,

[0474] The processing module 1710 is also used to determine the energy state of the terminal device 1700 as the second state;

[0475] The transceiver module 1720 is also used to send a second message to the network device, the second message being used to indicate that the energy state of the terminal device 1700 is the second state.

[0476] As an optional implementation method,

[0477] The transceiver module 1720 is also configured to receive a first threshold from the network device; or,

[0478] The processing module 1710 is also used to determine the first threshold;

[0479] The first threshold is used to determine whether the energy state of the terminal device 1700 is the first state or the second state.

[0480] It should be understood that the processing module 1710 in the embodiments of this application can be implemented by a processor or processor-related circuit components, and the transceiver module 1720 can be implemented by a transceiver or transceiver-related circuit components.

[0481] like Figure 18 As shown, this application embodiment also provides a communication device 1800. Exemplarily, the communication device 1800 is, for example, a terminal device 1800. The terminal device 1800 includes a processor 1810, a memory 1820, and a transceiver 1830. The memory 1820 stores instructions or programs, and the processor 1810 executes the instructions or programs stored in the memory 1820. When the instructions or programs stored in the memory 1820 are executed, the processor 1810 performs the operations performed by the processing module 1710 in the above embodiment, and the transceiver 1830 performs the operations performed by the transceiver module 1720 in the above embodiment.

[0482] It should be understood that terminal device 1700 or terminal device 1800 according to embodiments of this application may correspond to Figure 6The terminal device in the illustrated embodiment, and the operation and / or function of each module in terminal device 1700 or terminal device 1800, are respectively implemented to achieve Figure 6 The corresponding processes in the illustrated embodiments will not be described in detail here for the sake of brevity.

[0483] This application also provides a communication device, which can be a terminal device or a circuit. This communication device can be used to perform the above-described... Figure 4 The method embodiments shown Figure 5 The method embodiments shown, or Figure 6 The actions performed by the terminal device in the method embodiment shown.

[0484] When the communication device is a terminal device Figure 19 A simplified schematic diagram of a terminal device is shown. This is for ease of understanding and illustration. Figure 19 In this context, the terminal device is taken as a mobile phone. For example... Figure 19 As shown, the terminal device includes a processor, memory, radio frequency (RF) circuitry, antenna, and input / output devices. The processor is primarily used for processing communication protocols and data, controlling the terminal device, executing software programs, and processing software program data. The memory is mainly used to store software programs and data. The RF circuitry is mainly used for converting baseband signals to RF signals and processing RF signals. The antenna is mainly used for transmitting and receiving RF signals in the form of electromagnetic waves. Input / output devices, such as touchscreens, displays, and keyboards, are mainly used to receive user input data and output data to the user. It should be noted that some types of terminal devices may not have input / output devices.

[0485] When data needs to be sent, the processor performs baseband processing on the data to be sent and outputs the baseband signal to the radio frequency (RF) circuit. The RF circuit then processes the baseband signal and transmits it outward as electromagnetic waves through the antenna. When data is sent to the terminal device, the RF circuit receives the RF signal through the antenna, converts it into a baseband signal, and outputs the baseband signal to the processor. The processor then converts the baseband signal back into data and processes it. For ease of explanation, Figure 19 Only one memory and processor are shown in the illustration. In actual terminal device products, there may be one or more processors and one or more memories. Memory may also be referred to as storage medium or storage device, etc. Memory may be set up independently of the processor or integrated with the processor; this application does not limit this.

[0486] In this embodiment, the antenna and radio frequency circuit with transceiver functions can be considered as the transceiver unit of the terminal device, and the processor with processing functions can be considered as the processing unit of the terminal device. For example... Figure 19As shown, the terminal device includes a transceiver unit 1910 and a processing unit 1920. The transceiver unit can also be called a transceiver, transceiver machine, transceiver device, etc. The processing unit can also be called a processor, processing board, processing module, processing device, etc. Optionally, the device in the transceiver unit 1910 used to implement the receiving function can be considered as a receiving unit, and the device in the transceiver unit 1910 used to implement the transmitting function can be considered as a transmitting unit; that is, the transceiver unit 1910 includes a receiving unit and a transmitting unit. The transceiver unit can sometimes also be called a transceiver, transceiver, or transceiver circuit, etc. The receiving unit can sometimes be called a receiver, receiver, or receiving circuit, etc. The transmitting unit can sometimes be called a transmitter, transmitter, or transmitting circuit, etc.

[0487] It should be understood that the transceiver unit 1910 is used to perform the above-mentioned tasks. Figure 4 In the method embodiment shown, the sending and receiving operations on the terminal device side are executed by the processing unit 1920. Figure 4 The method embodiments shown include operations on the terminal device side other than sending and receiving operations.

[0488] For example, in one implementation, the transceiver unit 1910 is used to perform... Figure 4 The transmitting and receiving steps on the terminal device side of the illustrated embodiment, such as S41, S42, S43, and S45, and / or other processes used to support the technology described herein. Processing unit 1920 is used to execute... Figure 4 In the embodiments shown, the terminal device side performs operations other than sending and receiving operations, such as determining the first uplink data, and / or other processes to support the techniques described herein.

[0489] Alternatively, the transceiver unit 1910 is used to perform the above. Figure 5 In the method embodiment shown, the sending and receiving operations on the terminal device side are executed by the processing unit 1920. Figure 5 The method embodiments shown include operations on the terminal device side other than sending and receiving operations.

[0490] For example, in one implementation, the transceiver unit 1910 is used to perform... Figure 5 The terminal device side transmit and receive steps in the illustrated embodiments, such as S51 and S53, and / or other processes used to support the technology described herein. Processing unit 1920 is used to execute... Figure 5 The terminal device side in the illustrated embodiments includes operations other than the transmit / receive operation, such as S52, and / or other processes used to support the technology described herein.

[0491] Alternatively, the transceiver unit 1910 is used to perform the above. Figure 6In the method embodiment shown, the sending and receiving operations on the terminal device side are executed by the processing unit 1920. Figure 6 The method embodiments shown include operations on the terminal device side other than sending and receiving operations.

[0492] For example, in one implementation, the transceiver unit 1910 is used to perform... Figure 6 The terminal device side transmit / receive steps in the illustrated embodiments, such as S61, and / or other processes used to support the technology described herein. Processing unit 1920 is used to execute... Figure 6 In the embodiments shown, the terminal device side includes operations other than the transmit and receive operations, such as S62, and / or other processes used to support the techniques described herein.

[0493] When the communication device is a chip, the chip includes a transceiver unit and a processing unit. The transceiver unit can be an input / output circuit or a communication interface; the processing unit is a processor, microprocessor, or integrated circuit integrated on the chip.

[0494] When the communication device in the embodiments of this application is a terminal device, it can be referred to Figure 20 The device shown. As an example, this device can perform similar tasks. Figure 20 The features of the 2010 processor. Figure 20 The device includes a processor 2010, a data transmission processor 2020, and a data reception processor 2030. The processing module 910 in the above embodiment can be... Figure 20 The processor 2010 in the above embodiment performs the corresponding functions. The transceiver module 920 in the above embodiment can be... Figure 20 The data transmission processor 2020 and / or data reception processor 2030 in the above embodiment. Alternatively, the processing module 1310 in the above embodiment may be... Figure 20 The processor 2010 in the above embodiment performs the corresponding functions. The transceiver module 1320 in the above embodiment can be... Figure 20 The data transmission processor 2020 and / or data reception processor 2030 in the above embodiment. Alternatively, the processing module 1710 in the above embodiment may be... Figure 20 The processor 2010 in the above embodiment performs the corresponding functions. The transceiver module 1720 in the above embodiment can be... Figure 20 The data transmission processor 2020 and / or data reception processor 2030 in the process.

[0495] Although Figure 20 The diagram shows a channel encoder and a channel decoder, but it is understood that these modules are not limiting to this embodiment and are merely illustrative.

[0496] Figure 21This illustrates another form of the present embodiment. The processing device 2100 includes modules such as a modulation subsystem, a central processing subsystem, and a peripheral subsystem. The communication device in this embodiment can serve as the modulation subsystem. Specifically, the modulation subsystem may include a processor 2103 and an interface 2104. The processor 2103 performs the functions of the aforementioned processing module 910, and the interface 2104 performs the functions of the aforementioned transceiver module 920. Alternatively, the processor 2103 performs the functions of the aforementioned processing module 1310, and the interface 2104 performs the functions of the aforementioned transceiver module 1320. Alternatively, the processor 2103 performs the functions of the aforementioned processing module 1710, and the interface 2104 performs the functions of the aforementioned transceiver module 1720. As another variation, the modulation subsystem includes a memory 2106, a processor 2103, and a program stored in the memory 2106 and executable on the processor. When the processor 2103 executes the program, it implements the aforementioned... Figure 4 The method embodiments shown Figure 5 The method embodiments shown, or Figure 6 The method shown in the embodiment is a method on the terminal device side. It should be noted that the memory 2106 can be non-volatile or volatile, and its location can be inside the modulation subsystem or in the processing device 2100, as long as the memory 2106 can be connected to the processor 2103.

[0497] This application also provides a first communication system. This communication system may include the methods described above. Figure 4 The illustrated embodiment involves an access network device, and includes at least one of the above-described components. Figure 4 The terminal device involved in the illustrated embodiment. The access network device is, for example, a... Figure 7 Access network equipment 700 or Figure 8 The access network device 800, and the terminal device, for example, are Figure 9 Terminal device 900 or Figure 10 Terminal devices such as 1000 in the network. For example, access network devices can be used to perform... Figure 4 All operations performed by the access network device in the illustrated embodiment, such as Figure 4 S41-S45 in the illustrated embodiments, and / or other processes used to support the techniques described herein. The terminal device can be used to execute... Figure 4 All operations performed by the terminal device in the illustrated embodiment, such as Figure 4 The terminal device in the illustrated embodiment determines the operation of the first uplink data, as well as S41, S42, S43 and S45, and / or other processes for supporting the techniques described herein.

[0498] This application also provides a second communication system. This communication system may include the one described above. Figure 5 The network device involved in the illustrated embodiment, and including at least one of the above-described components. Figure 5 The terminal device involved in the illustrated embodiment. The network device is, for example, a... Figure 11 Network device 1100 or Figure 12 The network device 1200, and the terminal device, for example, are... Figure 13 Terminal device 1300 or Figure 14 Terminal devices such as 1400 in the network. For example, network devices can be used to perform... Figure 5 All operations performed by the network device in the illustrated embodiment, such as Figure 5 The embodiments shown include S51, S52, and S54, and / or other processes used to support the techniques described herein. The terminal device can be used to execute... Figure 5 All operations performed by the terminal device in the illustrated embodiment, such as Figure 5 S51 to S53 in the illustrated embodiments, and / or other processes used to support the techniques described herein.

[0499] This application also provides a third communication system. This communication system may include the one described above. Figure 6 The network device involved in the illustrated embodiment, and including at least one of the above-described components. Figure 6 The terminal device involved in the illustrated embodiment. The network device is, for example, a... Figure 15 Network device 1500 or Figure 16 The network device 1600, and the terminal device, for example, are... Figure 17 Terminal device 1700 or Figure 18 Terminal devices such as the 1800 in the example. For example, network devices can be used to perform... Figure 5 All operations performed by the network device in the illustrated embodiment, such as Figure 6 S63 and S63 in the illustrated embodiments, and / or other processes used to support the techniques described herein. The terminal device can be used to execute... Figure 6 All operations performed by the terminal device in the illustrated embodiment, such as Figure 6 S61 and S62 in the illustrated embodiments, and / or other processes used to support the techniques described herein.

[0500] The second and third communication systems can be the same system or different systems. Furthermore, if the network device in the second communication system is an access network device, then the first and second communication systems can be the same system or different systems. Similarly, if the network device in the third communication system is an access network device, then the first and third communication systems can be the same system or different systems.

[0501] This application also provides a computer-readable storage medium storing a computer program thereon, which, when executed by a processor, can implement the methods provided in the above-described embodiments. Figure 4 The illustrated embodiments show processes related to the terminal device.

[0502] This application also provides a computer-readable storage medium storing a computer program thereon, which, when executed by a processor, can implement the methods provided in the above-described embodiments. Figure 4 The illustrated embodiment describes the processes related to the access network equipment.

[0503] This application also provides a computer-readable storage medium storing a computer program thereon, which, when executed by a processor, can implement the methods provided in the above-described embodiments. Figure 5 The illustrated embodiments show processes related to the terminal device.

[0504] This application also provides a computer-readable storage medium storing a computer program thereon, which, when executed by a processor, can implement the methods provided in the above-described embodiments. Figure 5 The illustrated embodiments show processes related to network devices.

[0505] This application also provides a computer-readable storage medium storing a computer program thereon, which, when executed by a processor, can implement the methods provided in the above-described embodiments. Figure 6 The illustrated embodiments show processes related to the terminal device.

[0506] This application also provides a computer-readable storage medium storing a computer program thereon, which, when executed by a processor, can implement the methods provided in the above-described embodiments. Figure 6 The illustrated embodiments show processes related to network devices.

[0507] This application also provides a computer program product containing instructions that, when executed, perform the above-described... Figure 4 The method shown in the embodiment is the method on the terminal device side.

[0508] This application also provides a computer program product containing instructions that, when executed, perform the above-described... Figure 4 The method shown in the embodiment is the method on the access network device side.

[0509] This application also provides a computer program product containing instructions that, when executed, perform the above-described... Figure 5 The method shown in the embodiment is the method on the terminal device side.

[0510] This application also provides a computer program product containing instructions that, when executed, perform the above-described... Figure 5 The method shown in the embodiment is the method on the network device side.

[0511] This application also provides a computer program product containing instructions that, when executed, perform the above-described... Figure 6 The method shown in the embodiment is the method on the terminal device side.

[0512] This application also provides a computer program product containing instructions that, when executed, perform the above-described... Figure 6 The method shown in the embodiment is the method on the network device side.

[0513] It should be understood that the processor mentioned in the embodiments of this application can be a central processing unit (CPU), or other general-purpose processors, digital signal processors (DSPs), application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs), field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), or other programmable logic devices, discrete gate or transistor logic devices, discrete hardware components, etc. A general-purpose processor can be a microprocessor or any conventional processor.

[0514] It should also be understood that the memory mentioned in the embodiments of this application can be volatile memory or non-volatile memory, or may include both volatile and non-volatile memory. Non-volatile memory can be ROM, programmable read-only memory (PROM), erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM), electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), or flash memory. Volatile memory can be RAM, which is used as an external cache. By way of example, but not limitation, many forms of RAM are available, such as static random access memory (SRAM), dynamic random access memory (DRAM), synchronous dynamic random access memory (SDRAM), double data rate synchronous dynamic random access memory (DDR SDRAM), enhanced synchronous dynamic random access memory (ESDRAM), synchronous linked dynamic random access memory (SLDRAM), and direct rambus RAM (DR RAM).

[0515] It should be noted that when the processor is a general-purpose processor, DSP, ASIC, FPGA, or other programmable logic device, discrete gate or transistor logic device, or discrete hardware component, the memory (storage module) is integrated into the processor.

[0516] It should be noted that the memories described herein are intended to include, but are not limited to, these and any other suitable types of memories.

[0517] It should be understood that in the various embodiments of this application, the order of the above-mentioned processes 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 this application.

[0518] Those skilled in the art will recognize that the units and algorithm steps of the various examples described in conjunction with the embodiments disclosed herein can be implemented in electronic hardware, or a combination of computer software and electronic hardware. Whether these functions are implemented in hardware or software depends on the specific application and design constraints of the technical solution. Those skilled in the art can use different methods to implement the described functions for each specific application, but such implementation should not be considered beyond the scope of this application.

[0519] Those skilled in the art will understand that, for the sake of convenience and brevity, the specific working processes of the systems, devices, and units described above can be referred to the corresponding processes in the foregoing method embodiments, and will not be repeated here.

[0520] In the several embodiments provided in this application, it should be understood that the disclosed systems, apparatuses, and methods can be implemented in other ways. For example, the apparatus embodiments described above are merely illustrative; for instance, the division of units is only a logical functional division, and in actual implementation, there may be other division methods. For example, multiple units or components may be combined or integrated into another system, or some features may be ignored or not executed. Furthermore, the coupling or direct coupling or communication connection shown or discussed may be through some interfaces; the indirect coupling or communication connection between apparatuses or units may be electrical, mechanical, or other forms.

[0521] The units described as separate components may or may not be physically separate. The components shown as units may or may not be physical units; that is, they may be located in one place or distributed across multiple network units. Some or all of the units can be selected to achieve the purpose of this embodiment according to actual needs.

[0522] In addition, the functional units in the various embodiments of this application can be integrated into one processing unit, or each unit can exist physically separately, or two or more units can be integrated into one unit.

[0523] If the aforementioned functions are implemented as software functional units and sold or used as independent products, they can be stored in a computer-readable storage medium. Based on this understanding, the technical solution of this application, in essence, or the part that contributes to the prior art, or a portion of the technical solution, can be embodied in the form of a software product. This computer software product is stored in a storage medium and includes several instructions to cause a computer device (which may be a personal computer, server, or network device, etc.) to execute all or part of the steps of the methods described in the various embodiments of this application. The aforementioned storage medium includes various media capable of storing program code, such as USB flash drives, portable hard drives, read-only memory (ROM), random access memory (RAM), magnetic disks, or optical disks.

[0524] The above description is merely a specific embodiment of this application, but the protection scope of the embodiments of this application is not limited thereto. Any variations or substitutions that can be easily conceived by those skilled in the art within the technical scope disclosed in the embodiments of this application should be included within the protection scope of this application. Therefore, the protection scope of the embodiments of this application should be determined by the protection scope of the claims.

Claims

1. A communication method, characterized in that, The method includes: The network device receives energy information from the terminal device, the energy information being used to indicate the overall energy status of the terminal device within a first time period, or to indicate the current energy status of the terminal device; The network device sends a paging message to the terminal device based on the energy information; When the energy information indicates the overall energy status of the terminal device within a first duration, the energy information includes one or more of the following: multiple energy values ​​of the terminal device within the first duration, probability distribution information of the energy values ​​of the terminal device within the first duration, the average value of the energy values ​​of the terminal device within the first duration, and the duration during which the energy values ​​of the terminal device are greater than or equal to a first threshold within the first duration; When the energy information indicates the current energy state of the terminal device, the energy information includes the current energy value of the terminal device.

2. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that, The network device sends a paging message to the terminal device based on the energy information, including: When the first downlink information arrives, the network device determines whether the current energy of the terminal device supports receiving the first downlink information based on the energy information; When the current energy of the terminal device supports receiving the first downlink information, the network device sends the paging message to the terminal device.

3. A communication method, characterized in that, The method includes: The terminal device determines the energy information of the terminal device, which is used to indicate the overall energy status of the terminal device within a first time period, or to indicate the current energy status of the terminal device. The terminal device sends the energy information to the network device; When the energy information indicates the overall energy status of the terminal device within a first duration, the energy information includes one or more of the following: multiple energy values ​​of the terminal device within the first duration, probability distribution information of the energy values ​​of the terminal device within the first duration, the average value of the energy values ​​of the terminal device within the first duration, and the duration during which the energy values ​​of the terminal device are greater than or equal to a first threshold within the first duration; When the energy information indicates the current energy state of the terminal device, the energy information includes the current energy value of the terminal device; The energy information is used to determine whether to send a paging message to the terminal device.

4. The method according to claim 3, characterized in that, The method further includes: The terminal device receives a paging message from the network device.

5. A communication method, characterized in that, The method includes: The network device receives a first message from the terminal device, the first message indicating that the energy state of the terminal device is a first state; The network device determines not to send information to the terminal device; The network device receives a second message from the terminal device, the second message indicating that the energy state of the terminal device is a second state; the network device determines that it can send information to the terminal device. The method further includes: The network device sends a first threshold to the terminal device, the first threshold being used to determine whether the energy state of the terminal device is the first state or the second state.

6. A communication method, characterized in that, The method includes: The terminal device determines its energy state as a first state; The terminal device sends a first message to the network device, the first message being used to indicate that the energy state of the terminal device is the first state; The method further includes: The terminal device determines that the energy state of the terminal device is a second state; the terminal device sends a second message to the network device, the second message being used to indicate that the energy state of the terminal device is the second state; The method further includes: The terminal device receives a first threshold from the network device; or, the terminal device determines the first threshold. Wherein, the first threshold is used to determine whether the energy state of the terminal device is the first state or the second state; The energy status is used to determine whether to send a paging message to the terminal device.

7. A communication device, characterized in that, include: A transceiver module is used to receive energy information from a terminal device. The energy information is used to indicate the overall energy status of the terminal device within a first time period, or to indicate the current energy status of the terminal device. The processing module is used to send a paging message to the terminal device based on the energy information; When the energy information indicates the overall energy status of the terminal device within a first duration, the energy information includes one or more of the following: multiple energy values ​​of the terminal device within the first duration, probability distribution information of the energy values ​​of the terminal device within the first duration, the average value of the energy values ​​of the terminal device within the first duration, and the duration during which the energy values ​​of the terminal device are greater than or equal to a first threshold within the first duration; When the energy information indicates the current energy state of the terminal device, the energy information includes the current energy value of the terminal device.

8. The communication device according to claim 7, characterized in that, The processing module is used to determine, based on the energy information, whether the current energy of the terminal device supports receiving the first downlink information when the first downlink information arrives; and to send the paging message to the terminal device when the current energy of the terminal device supports receiving the first downlink information.

9. A communication device, characterized in that, include: The processing module is used to determine the energy information of the terminal device, wherein the energy information is used to indicate the overall energy status of the terminal device within a first time period, or to indicate the current energy status of the terminal device. The transceiver module is used to send the energy information to the network device; When the energy information indicates the overall energy status of the terminal device within a first duration, the energy information includes one or more of the following: multiple energy values ​​of the terminal device within the first duration, probability distribution information of the energy values ​​of the terminal device within the first duration, the average value of the energy values ​​of the terminal device within the first duration, and the duration during which the energy values ​​of the terminal device are greater than or equal to a first threshold within the first duration; When the energy information indicates the current energy state of the terminal device, the energy information includes the current energy value of the terminal device; The energy information is used to determine whether to send a paging message to the terminal device.

10. The communication device according to claim 9, characterized in that, The transceiver module is also used to receive paging messages from the network device.

11. A communication device, characterized in that, include: The transceiver module is used to receive a first message from the terminal device, wherein the first message is used to indicate that the energy state of the terminal device is a first state; The processing module is used to determine not to send information to the terminal device; The transceiver module is further configured to receive a second message from the terminal device, the second message indicating that the energy state of the terminal device is a second state; The processing module is also used to determine whether information can be sent to the terminal device; The transceiver module is further configured to send a first threshold to the terminal device, the first threshold being used to determine whether the energy state of the terminal device is the first state or the second state.

12. A communication device, characterized in that, include: The processing module is used to determine the energy state of the terminal device as the first state; The transceiver module is used to send a first message to the network device, wherein the first message is used to indicate that the energy state of the terminal device is the first state; The processing module is further configured to determine that the energy state of the terminal device is a second state; The transceiver module is further configured to send a second message to the network device, the second message being used to indicate that the energy state of the terminal device is the second state; The transceiver module is further configured to receive a first threshold from the network device; or, The processing module is further configured to determine the first threshold; Wherein, the first threshold is used to determine whether the energy state of the terminal device is the first state or the second state; The energy status is used to determine whether to send a paging message to the terminal device.

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