Information transmission method, information transmission device

Abstract

A kind of information sending method suitable for terminal, method includes: determining the relevant information of slice supported by cell (S101);By access layer, relevant information is sent to non-access layer (S102).Terminal can determine the relevant information of slice supported by cell, such as the identification of slice, the cell identification of supporting slice, the signal quality of supporting slice cell etc., and then relevant information can be sent to non-access layer by access layer, so that non-access layer can determine slice and provide to access layer with reference to relevant information, so that terminal can access the cell supporting the slice provided by non-access layer, it is advantageous to guarantee better communication effect.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The present disclosure relates to the technical field of communication, and in particular, to an information sending method, an information sending apparatus, a communication apparatus, and a computer readable storage medium. BACKGROUND

[0002] A network slice can provide a complete end-to-end virtual network for a specific user. By dividing network resources into multiple network slices, it is convenient to provide differentiated services for users with different service requirements (for example: delay, reliability, capacity, isolation, and other functions).

[0003] Based on the current access cell mechanism, the Non-Access Stratum (NAS) of the terminal only selects the expected slice indication to the Access Stratum (AS) based on the policy of the Non-Access Stratum itself, and the Access Stratum accesses based on the cell that supports the expected slice. SUMMARY

[0004] Therefore, embodiments of the present disclosure provide an information sending method, an information sending apparatus, a communication apparatus, and a computer readable storage medium to solve the technical problems in the related art.

[0005] According to a first aspect of embodiments of the present disclosure, an information sending method is provided, applicable to a terminal, and the method comprises:

[0006] determining related information of a slice supported by a cell;

[0007] sending the related information to a Non-Access Stratum (NAS) through an Access Stratum (AS).

[0008] According to a second aspect of embodiments of the present disclosure, an information sending method is provided, applicable to a base station, and the method comprises:

[0009] sending, to a terminal, related information of a slice supported by a cell corresponding to the base station.

[0010] According to a third aspect of embodiments of the present disclosure, an information sending apparatus is provided, applicable to a terminal, and the apparatus comprises:

[0011] a slice information determination module configured to determine related information of a slice supported by a cell;

[0012] an information sending module configured to send the related information to a Non-Access Stratum (NAS) through an Access Stratum (AS).

[0013] According to a fourth aspect of embodiments of the present disclosure, an information sending apparatus is provided, applicable to a base station, and the apparatus comprises:

[0014] The information sending module is configured to send, to the terminal, information about a slice supported by a cell corresponding to the base station.

[0015] According to a fifth aspect of the embodiments of the present disclosure, a communication apparatus is provided, which comprises:

[0016] a processor;

[0017] a memory for storing a computer program;

[0018] When the computer program is executed by the processor, the information sending method for a terminal is implemented.

[0019] According to a sixth aspect of the embodiments of the present disclosure, a communication apparatus is provided, which comprises:

[0020] a processor;

[0021] a memory for storing a computer program;

[0022] When the computer program is executed by the processor, the information sending method for a base station is implemented.

[0023] According to a seventh aspect of the embodiments of the present disclosure, a computer readable storage medium is provided, which is used for storing a computer program, and when the computer program is executed by a processor, the steps of the information sending method for a terminal are implemented.

[0024] According to an eighth aspect of the embodiments of the present disclosure, a computer readable storage medium is provided, which is used for storing a computer program, and when the computer program is executed by a processor, the steps of the information sending method for a base station are implemented.

[0025] According to the embodiments of the present disclosure, the terminal can determine information about a slice supported by a cell, such as an identifier of the slice, an identifier of a cell supporting the slice, a signal quality of the cell supporting the slice, and the like, and then send the information to a non-access layer through an access layer, so that the non-access layer can determine a slice by referring to the information and provide the slice to the access layer, so that the terminal can access a cell supporting the slice provided by the non-access layer, which is beneficial to guarantee a better communication effect. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0026] In order to more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present disclosure, the drawings needed in the embodiment description will be briefly introduced. Obviously, the drawings in the following description are only some embodiments of the present disclosure, and other drawings can be obtained by those skilled in the art without creative labor.

[0027] Figure 1is a schematic flow chart of an information sending method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0028] Figure 2 is a schematic flow chart of another information sending method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0029] Figure 3 is a schematic flow chart of yet another information sending method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0030] Figure 4 is a schematic flow chart of yet another information sending method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0031] Figure 5 is a schematic flow chart of yet another information sending method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0032] Figure 6 is a schematic flow chart of yet another information sending method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0033] Figure 7 is a schematic flow chart of yet another information sending method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0034] Figure 8 is a schematic block diagram of an information sending apparatus according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0035] Figure 9 is a schematic block diagram of an apparatus for information sending according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0036] Figure 10 is a schematic block diagram of an apparatus for information sending according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0037] The technical solutions in the embodiments of the present disclosure will be described clearly and completely below with reference to the drawings in the embodiments of the present disclosure. Obviously, the described embodiments are only part of the embodiments of the present disclosure, rather than all the embodiments of the present disclosure. Based on the embodiments in the present disclosure, all other embodiments obtained by those of ordinary skill in the art without creative work, fall within the protection scope of the present disclosure.

[0038] The terms used in the embodiments of the present disclosure are merely for the purpose of describing particular embodiments, and are not intended to limit the embodiments of the present disclosure. The singular forms "a", "an" and "the" used in the embodiments of the present disclosure and the appended claims are intended to include plural forms, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. It should also be understood that the term "and / or" used herein refers to and includes any or all possible combinations of one or more associated listed items.

[0039] It should be understood that, although the terms first, second, third, etc. can be employed in describing various information in the embodiments of the present disclosure, the information should not be limited to these terms. These terms are only used to differentiate one piece of information from another piece of information of the same type. For example, without departing from the scope of the embodiments of the present disclosure, the first information can also be referred to as the second information, and similarly, the second information can also be referred to as the first information. Depending on the context, the word "if" as used herein can be interpreted as "when" or "upon" or "in response to determining".

[0040] For the purpose of brevity and clarity, the terms "greater than" or "less than", "higher than" or "lower than" are used herein to characterize the size relationship. However, it can be understood by those skilled in the art that the term "greater than" also covers the meaning of "greater than or equal to", and the term "less than" also covers the meaning of "less than or equal to"; the term "higher than" covers the meaning of "higher than or equal to", and the term "lower than" covers the meaning of "lower than or equal to".

[0041] Currently, the non-access layer of the terminal only selects the expected slice indication to the access layer based on the policy of the non-access layer itself, and does not consider the support of the cell to the slice in the actual environment of the terminal.

[0042] The access layer accesses the cell supporting the expected slice based on the selection, but the supported slices of the cell accessible by the terminal in the environment of the terminal are generally different, and it cannot be guaranteed that there is a cell supporting the expected slice in the cell accessible by the terminal. If there is no cell supporting the expected slice, the terminal cannot access the cell, or even if the cell is accessed, it is difficult to obtain ideal communication effect (for example, the accessed cell does not support the expected slice, the signal quality is poor, etc.).

[0043] It should be noted that the slice in all embodiments of the present disclosure is a short name of a network slice. The network slice is composed of a radio access network (RAN) part and a core network (CN) part, and the implementation of the network slice depends on the principle that the traffic of different slices is processed by different protocol data unit sessions (PDU sessions). The network can realize different network slices by scheduling and providing different L1 / L2 configurations. Each slice can be uniquely identified by S-NSSAI, slice / service type (SST), and slice differentiator (SD), and the NSSAI (Network Slice Selection Assistance Information) includes one or more S-NSSAIs.

[0044] Figure 1is a schematic flow chart of an information sending method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. The information sending method shown in the embodiment can be applied to a terminal, including but not limited to a mobile phone, a tablet computer, a wearable device, a sensor, an Internet of Things device, and the like. The terminal can communicate with a base station as a user equipment, including but not limited to a 4G base station, a 5G base station, a 6G base station, and the like.

[0045] As shown in Figure 1 , the information sending method can include the following steps:

[0046] In step S101, the related information of the slice supported by the cell is determined.

[0047] In step S102, the related information is sent to the non-access layer through the access layer.

[0048] In one embodiment, the terminal can determine the related information of the slice supported by the cell, wherein the cell can be a cell that the terminal can access when performing cell selection and cell reselection, for example, including the current cell of the terminal and the neighboring cell of the current cell of the terminal.

[0049] In one embodiment, the terminal can determine the related information of the slice supported by the cell according to the cell broadcast information, that is, the cell can broadcast the related information of the slice supported by itself.

[0050] In addition to obtaining the related information in this way, the terminal can also obtain the related information in other ways, including but not limited to the following ways: taking an example of the related information containing the identifier of the slice supported by the cell, the base station corresponding to the neighboring cell of the current cell of the terminal can send the identifier of the slice supported by the neighboring cell to the base station corresponding to the current cell of the terminal, and then the base station corresponding to the current cell of the terminal sends the identifier of the slice supported by the neighboring cell and the identifier of the slice supported by the current cell to the terminal through radio access control layer signaling.

[0051] According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the terminal can determine the related information of the slice supported by the cell, such as the identifier of the slice, the identifier of the cell supporting the slice, the signal quality of the cell supporting the slice, and the like, and then the related information can be sent to the non-access layer through the access layer, so that the non-access layer can determine the slice and provide it to the access layer, so that the terminal can access the cell supporting the slice provided by the non-access layer, which is beneficial to guarantee a better communication effect.

[0052] In one embodiment, the slice includes at least one of the following:

[0053] the slice supported by the current cell of the terminal;

[0054] The remapping slice supported by the cell where the terminal is currently located;

[0055] The slice supported by the neighbor cell of the cell;

[0056] The remapping slice supported by the neighbor cell of the cell.

[0057] In an embodiment, the cell in the relevant information of the slice supported by the cell can be the cell where the terminal is currently located (which can be a camped cell or a connected cell) or a neighbor cell of the cell where the terminal is currently located.

[0058] The slice supported by the cell can be all the slices supported by the cells or the remapping slices supported by the cells. The remapping slice supported by the cell can be determined according to the information or dedicated signaling broadcast by the base station corresponding to the cell.

[0059] The remapping slice refers to that the cell does not support some slice A, but the service of the slice A can be implemented through another slice B supported by the cell. Then, the slice A can be mapped to the slice B. The remapping slice includes both the slice A and the slice B. The slice A and the slice B can each be one or more slices.

[0060] In an embodiment, the relevant information includes at least one of the following:

[0061] The identifier of the slice;

[0062] The identifier of the cell supporting the slice;

[0063] The signal quality of the cell supporting the slice (which can be determined according to a reference signal receiving power RSRP or other parameters);

[0064] Whether the network allows access to the slice (which can be determined according to a general access control barring information Uacbarringinfo or other information for indicating whether the network allows access to the slice issued by the base station);

[0065] The priority of the slice.

[0066] In an embodiment, the non-access layer can specifically determine the slice supported by each cell according to the identifier of the cell supporting the slice and the identifier of the slice supported by the cell. For example, the cell 1 supports the slice a and c, and the cell 2 supports the slice a and b.

[0067] In an embodiment, the non-access layer can determine the slice according to the signal quality of the cell supporting the slice and provide the slice to the access layer.

[0068] For example, the non-access layer can select the slice supported by the cell with the best signal quality as the expected slice of the non-access layer, and provide the access layer with the expected slice, so that when the access layer accesses the cell based on the expected slice provided by the non-access layer, the access layer can access the cell with the best signal quality, which is beneficial to ensure good communication effect.

[0069] For example, the non-access layer has determined the expected slice before receiving the related information, and then can determine the necessary slice that needs to be supported by the cell in the expected slice, and then determine the cell that supports the necessary slice according to the related information in the cell from high to low according to the signal quality, and provide the access layer with the slice supported by the cell with the best signal quality that supports the necessary slice, so that when the access layer accesses the cell, the access layer can select the cell with the best signal quality in the cell that supports the necessary slice to access, which is beneficial to ensure good communication effect.

[0070] In an embodiment, the non-access layer can avoid including the slice that the network does not allow to access in the expected slice when determining the expected slice to be provided to the access layer, so that the slice supported by the cell accessed by the access layer is the slice that the network does not allow to access, which causes the slice to be unable to provide corresponding services for the terminal, and affects the communication effect of the terminal.

[0071] In an embodiment, the non-access layer can determine and provide the slice to the access layer according to the priority of the slice. The priority can be sent to the non-access layer only in the case that the cell supports multiple slices, and in the case that the cell only supports one slice, the priority of the slice can not be set, or even if the priority is set, it can not be carried in the related information and sent to the non-access layer.

[0072] For example, the non-access layer can select a specified number of slices from high to low according to the priority as the expected slice of the non-access layer, and provide the access layer with the expected slice, so that when the access layer accesses the cell based on the expected slice provided by the non-access layer, the access layer can access the cell that supports the slice with higher priority, which is beneficial to ensure good communication effect.

[0073] In an embodiment, the priority of the slice is determined based on at least one of the following:

[0074] The indication of the base station;

[0075] The number of cells that support the slice;

[0076] The signal quality of the cell that supports the slice.

[0077] In an embodiment, the priority of the slice can be indicated by the base station, for example, the base station can determine that the slice with higher priority can provide better services for the terminal, or the slice with higher priority is more likely to provide services for the terminal.

[0078] In one embodiment, the priority of the slice can also be determined by the terminal itself, and can be determined according to the number of cells supporting the slice, or can be determined according to the signal quality of the cells indicating the slice.

[0079] For example, the more the number of cells supporting the slice, the higher the priority of the slice, and the non-access layer indicates the slice with higher priority to the access layer, so that the access layer can have more cells supporting the slice to select from, and it is beneficial to select a cell with relatively good communication quality to access.

[0080] For example, the better the signal quality of the cells supporting the slice, the higher the priority of the slice, and the non-access layer indicates the slice with higher priority to the access layer, so that the access layer can preferentially select cells with better signal quality to select from, and it is beneficial to ensure relatively good communication effect.

[0081] Figure 2 is a schematic flowchart of another information sending method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in Figure 2 The sending, by the access layer, the related information to the non-access layer includes:

[0082] In step S201, in response to determining that the related information is updated, the related information is sent to the non-access layer by the access layer.

[0083] In one embodiment, the terminal can compare the newly determined related information with the previously determined related information. For example, the terminal can periodically determine the related information, and then compare the newly periodically determined related information with the previously periodically determined related information; for example, the terminal re-determines the related information after changing the accessed cell, and then compares the newly determined related information after accessing the new cell with the related information determined when accessing the original cell.

[0084] In the case that the newly determined related information is different from the previously determined related information, it can be determined that the related information is updated, and then the related information can be sent to the non-access layer by the access layer, so as to ensure that the non-access layer can determine the latest related information of the supported slice of the cell in the current environment of the terminal.

[0085] Figure 3 is a schematic flowchart of another information sending method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in Figure 3 The sending, by the access layer, the related information to the non-access layer includes:

[0086] In step S301, in response to the terminal camping on the reselected cell after cell reselection, the related information of the slice supported by the reselected cell is sent to the non-access layer by the access layer.

[0087] In one embodiment, when the terminal performs cell reselection, it camps on a cell different from the cell before cell reselection, in which case, when the terminal performs cell selection and cell reselection again, the cell that the terminal can access is the cell after reselection (the cell after reselection and the neighboring cells of the cell), and thus the terminal needs to determine the related information of the slice of the cell after reselection.

[0088] The cell after reselection is generally different from the cell before reselection (the cell before reselection and the neighboring cells of the cell), and thus the related information of the slice supported by the cell before reselection is generally different from the related information of the slice supported by the cell after reselection, and thus when the terminal camps on the cell after reselection, the access layer can send the related information of the slice supported by the cell after reselection to the non-access layer, to ensure that the non-access layer can determine the latest related information of the slice supported by the cell in the current environment of the terminal.

[0089] It should be noted that, in addition to the conditions in the above two embodiments, other conditions can be set as needed for sending the related information from the access layer to the non-access layer, for example, the access layer can be set to periodically send the related information to the non-access layer, and the related information can be periodically acquired; or the access layer can send the related information to the non-access layer only when receiving a reporting request from the non-access layer.

[0090] Figure 4 is a schematic flowchart of another information sending method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in Figure 4 The method further includes:

[0091] In step S401, determining an expected slice required by the non-access layer;

[0092] The related information at least includes whether there is a suitable cell supporting the expected slice in the cell where the terminal is currently located and the neighboring cells of the cell.

[0093] In one embodiment, the non-access layer can determine the expected slice required by the non-access layer according to its own needs and indicate the access layer. For example, the non-access layer can determine a slice that can provide corresponding services for a service to be performed as the expected slice according to the service.

[0094] In this case, the access layer needs to select a cell that supports the expected slice when performing cell selection or cell reselection. Generally, the cells that can perform cell selection or cell reselection are the cell currently located by the terminal and the neighboring cells. Therefore, the target cell that supports the expected slice is determined from the slices supported by the cell currently located by the terminal and the neighboring cells, and whether the target cell exists is indicated in the related information.

[0095] The expected slice can include one or more slices, and supporting the expected slice can mean supporting all the slices in the expected slice.

[0096] When the non-access layer determines that the target cell exists, the non-access layer can instruct the access layer to select a cell to access according to the expected slice, so that the access layer can select the target cell to access. When the non-access layer determines that the target cell does not exist, the non-access layer can still instruct the access layer to select a cell to access according to the expected slice. In this case, the access layer can select a cell to access that supports the largest number of slices in the expected slice, or the non-access layer can change the expected slice so that the changed expected slice is supported by at least one of the cell currently located by the terminal and the neighboring cells, so that the terminal selects a cell to access that supports the changed expected slice.

[0097] Figure 5 is a schematic flowchart of another information sending method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in Figure 5 the method further includes:

[0098] In step S501, the expected slice required by the non-access layer is determined.

[0099] The sending of the related information from the access layer to the non-access layer includes:

[0100] In step S502, in response to the fact that there is no target cell that supports the expected slice in the cell currently located by the terminal and the neighboring cells of the cell, the related information is sent from the access layer to the non-access layer.

[0101] In one embodiment, the non-access layer can determine the expected slice required by itself according to its own needs and instruct the access layer. For example, the non-access layer can determine the slice that can provide corresponding services for the service required by the terminal as the expected slice.

[0102] In this case, the access layer needs to select a cell that supports the expected slice when performing cell selection or cell reselection. Generally, the cells that can perform cell selection or cell reselection are the cell currently located by the terminal and the neighboring cells. Therefore, the target cell that supports the expected slice is determined from the slices supported by the cell currently located by the terminal and the neighboring cells.

[0103] If there is no target cell, that is, there is no cell in the current cell and the neighbor cells of the terminal that can support the expected slice, then the cell access according to the expected slice selection will result in the accessed cell being unable to provide part or all of the services of the expected slice, affecting the communication effect. Therefore, the terminal can send the relevant information to the non-access layer in this case, so that the non-access layer determines the slice that can be supported by each cell in the current cell and the neighbor cells of the terminal, so that the non-access layer can change the expected slice, so that the changed expected slice is supported by at least one of the current cell and the neighbor cells of the terminal, so that the terminal selects a cell that can support the changed expected slice to access.

[0104] Figure 6 is a schematic flowchart of another information sending method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in Figure 6 the method further includes:

[0105] In step S601, the expected slice required by the non-access layer is determined;

[0106] The sending of the relevant information from the access layer to the non-access layer includes:

[0107] In step S602, in response to the existence of other alternative slices required by the non-access layer in addition to the expected slice, the relevant information is sent from the access layer to the non-access layer.

[0108] In one embodiment, the non-access layer can determine the required expected slice according to its own needs and indicate it to the access layer. For example, the non-access layer can determine the slice that can provide corresponding services for the business it needs to perform as the expected slice.

[0109] In addition to determining the expected slice, the non-access layer can also determine other alternative slices and inform the access layer whether other alternative slices exist, for example, it can indicate whether other alternative slices exist through 1-bit information.

[0110] The other alternative slice is also a slice required by the non-access layer, but the priority is lower than that of the expected slice, for example, the other alternative slice does not have the effect of providing services for the specified business as good as the expected slice, but can also provide services for the specified business.

[0111] If there are other alternative slices, the terminal can send the related information to the non-access layer through the access layer, so that the non-access layer can determine the slice that can be supported by the cell and the neighboring cell where the terminal currently locates according to the related information, and then select the slice that can be supported by the cell and the neighboring cell where the terminal currently locates from the other alternative slices as the adjusted expected slice and send the adjusted expected slice to the access layer, so that the adjusted expected slice is the slice that can be supported by at least one of the cell and the neighboring cell where the terminal currently locates, so that the terminal selects the cell that can support the adjusted expected slice to access.

[0112] In one embodiment, the terminal can first determine whether there is a target cell that supports the expected slice in the cell where the terminal currently locates and the neighboring cell, and in the case that there is no target cell, and there are other alternative slices, the terminal sends the related information to the non-access layer through the access layer.

[0113] In the case that there is a target cell, the terminal can select not to send the related information to the non-access layer through the access layer.

[0114] In addition, in the case that there is no target cell, and there are no other alternative slices, the terminal can also select not to send the related information to the non-access layer through the access layer.

[0115] Figure 7 is a schematic flowchart of another information sending method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in Figure 7 the method further includes:

[0116] In step S701, determining an expected slice required by the non-access layer;

[0117] The sending of the related information to the non-access layer through the access layer includes:

[0118] In step S702, sending the related information of a target slice belonging to the expected slice in the slice to the non-access layer through the access layer.

[0119] In one embodiment, the non-access layer can determine the required expected slice according to its own needs, and indicate the access layer. For example, the non-access layer can determine the slice that can provide corresponding services for the business according to the business needs as the expected slice.

[0120] In this case, the terminal can determine the slice supported by the cell where the terminal currently locates and the neighboring cell, and determine the target slice belonging to the expected slice in the slice supported by the cell where the terminal currently locates and the neighboring cell, and send the related information of the target slice to the non-access layer.

[0121] Accordingly, the non-access layer can accurately determine the support of each cell for the expected slices, for example, which cells can support all expected slices, which cells can support part of the expected slices, and which cells do not support the expected slices at all.

[0122] For example, in the case where no cell supports all expected slices, but there are cells that support part of the expected slices, the non-access layer can determine whether the part of the expected slices supported by the cell can meet the needs of providing services for the service.

[0123] For example, the expected slices are slice a, slice b and slice c, cell 1 supports slice a and c, and cell 2 supports slice a and b. The non-access layer determines that at least slice a and c need to be supported to meet the needs of providing services for the service. In this case, it can be determined according to the related information that cell 1 supports slice a and c.

[0124] Accordingly, the expected slices can be adjusted, and the adjusted expected slices are part of the original expected slices, and the adjusted expected slices can meet the needs of providing services for the service. Further, the adjusted expected slices can be sent to the access layer, so that the adjusted expected slices are supported by at least one of the cell currently located by the terminal and the neighboring cell, so as to enable the terminal to select a cell that can support the adjusted expected slices to access, and the slices supported by the accessed cell can meet the needs of providing services for the service.

[0125] In one embodiment, the expected slices in all embodiments of the present disclosure include, but are not limited to, the slices corresponding to the allowed NSSAI, the slices corresponding to the requested NSSAI, the slices corresponding to the S-NSSAI corresponding to the MO traffic, the slices in the operator-defined access category corresponding to the S-NSSAI, the slices corresponding to the slice index / slice group index, and any other information that can uniquely indicate the slice / slice group. The specific settings can be made as needed.

[0126] It should be noted that the related information is a reference for the non-access layer, and is not used to determine the action of the non-access layer. The non-access layer can perform actions based on the related information as described in the above embodiments, but the non-access layer can also choose not to perform actions according to the related information. The specific implementation of the non-access layer determines.

[0127] The present disclosure also provides an information sending method. The information sending method can be applied to a base station, such as a base station in a 4G communication system, a 5G communication system, a 6G communication system, or the like. The base station can communicate with a terminal, such as a mobile phone, a tablet computer, a wearable device, a sensor, an Internet of Things device, or the like.

[0128] The information sending method can include the following steps.

[0129] The base station sends, to the terminal, information about a slice supported by a cell corresponding to the base station.

[0130] In an embodiment, the base station can send the information by broadcasting or by using a radio resource control layer signaling.

[0131] According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the base station sends, to the terminal, information about a slice supported by a cell corresponding to the base station, so that the terminal can determine whether the cell supports the slice.

[0132] In an embodiment, the information includes at least one of the following:

[0133] an identifier of the slice;

[0134] an identifier of a cell supporting the slice;

[0135] a signal quality of the cell supporting the slice;

[0136] whether the network allows access to the slice;

[0137] a priority of the slice.

[0138] In an embodiment, the method further includes:

[0139] The base station sends, to the terminal, indication information indicating that the terminal sends the information to a non-access layer via an access layer.

[0140] In an embodiment, the base station can instruct the terminal to send the information to the non-access layer via the access layer after receiving the information, so that the non-access layer can determine the slice by referring to the information and provide the slice to the access layer, so that the terminal can access a cell supporting the slice provided by the non-access layer, and a better communication effect can be achieved.

[0141] Corresponding to the above-mentioned embodiments of the information sending method, the present disclosure also provides embodiments of an information sending device.

[0142] Figure 8is a schematic block diagram of an information sending apparatus according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. The information sending apparatus shown in the embodiment can be applied to a terminal, including but not limited to a mobile phone, a tablet computer, a wearable device, a sensor, an Internet of Things device, and the like. The terminal can communicate with a base station as a user equipment, including but not limited to a 4G base station, a 5G base station, a 6G base station, and the like.

[0143] As shown in Figure 8 , the information sending apparatus can include the following steps:

[0144] A slice information determining module 801 is configured to determine information about slices supported by a cell.

[0145] An information sending module 802 is configured to send the information about the slices to a non-access layer through an access layer.

[0146] In one embodiment, the slices include at least one of the following:

[0147] Slices supported by a cell where the terminal is currently located;

[0148] Remapped slices supported by the cell where the terminal is currently located;

[0149] Slices supported by a neighboring cell of the cell;

[0150] Remapped slices supported by the neighboring cell of the cell.

[0151] In one embodiment, the information about the slices includes at least one of the following:

[0152] An identifier of the slice;

[0153] An identifier of a cell supporting the slice;

[0154] A signal quality of a cell supporting the slice;

[0155] Whether the network allows access to the slice;

[0156] A priority of the slice.

[0157] In one embodiment, the priority of the slice is determined based on at least one of the following:

[0158] An indication of a base station;

[0159] A number of cells supporting the slice;

[0160] A signal quality of a cell supporting the slice.

[0161] In one embodiment, the information sending module is configured to send the related information to the non-access layer through the access layer in response to determining that the related information is updated.

[0162] In one embodiment, the information sending module is configured to send the related information of the slice supported by the cell to which the terminal reselects to the non-access layer through the access layer in response to the terminal camping on the cell after reselection.

[0163] In one embodiment, the apparatus further comprises:

[0164] an expected slice determining module configured to determine an expected slice required by the non-access layer;

[0165] The related information at least includes whether there is a target cell supporting the expected slice in the cell where the terminal currently stays and the neighboring cells of the cell.

[0166] In one embodiment, the apparatus further comprises:

[0167] an expected slice determining module configured to determine an expected slice required by the non-access layer;

[0168] The information sending module is configured to send the related information to the non-access layer through the access layer in response to there being no target cell supporting the expected slice in the cell where the terminal currently stays and the neighboring cells of the cell.

[0169] In one embodiment, the apparatus further comprises:

[0170] an expected slice determining module configured to determine an expected slice required by the non-access layer;

[0171] The information sending module is configured to send the related information to the non-access layer through the access layer in response to there being other alternative slices required by the non-access layer except the expected slice.

[0172] In one embodiment, the apparatus further comprises:

[0173] an expected slice determining module configured to determine an expected slice required by the non-access layer;

[0174] The information sending module is configured to send the related information of a target slice belonging to the expected slice among the slices to the non-access layer through the access layer.

[0175] The information sending device shown in the embodiment can be applied to a base station, including but not limited to a base station in a 4G base station, a 5G base station, a 6G base station, and the like, and can communicate with a terminal as a user equipment, including but not limited to a mobile phone, a tablet computer, a wearable device, a sensor, an Internet of Things device, and the like.

[0176] The information sending device can include:

[0177] The information sending module is configured to send, to the terminal, information about a slice supported by a cell corresponding to the base station.

[0178] In one embodiment, the device further includes:

[0179] The indication module is configured to send, to the terminal, indication information for instructing the terminal to send the information to a non-access layer through an access layer.

[0180] As to the device in the above-mentioned embodiments, the specific manners in which various modules perform operations have been described in detail in the embodiments of the method, and thus will not be described here in detail.

[0181] For the device embodiments, since they basically correspond to the method embodiments, the related parts are described with reference to the method embodiments. The device embodiments described above are merely illustrative, and the modules described as separate components can or can not be physically separated, and the components shown as modules can or can not be physical modules, i.e., can be located in one place or distributed on multiple network modules. Part or all of the modules can be selected to achieve the purposes of the embodiments according to actual needs. Those skilled in the art can understand and implement it without creative labor.

[0182] The embodiments of the present disclosure also propose a communication device, comprising:

[0183] a processor;

[0184] a memory for storing a computer program;

[0185] When the computer program is executed by the processor, the information sending method for the terminal is realized.

[0186] The embodiments of the present disclosure also propose a communication device, comprising:

[0187] a processor;

[0188] a memory for storing a computer program;

[0189] When the computer program is executed by the processor, the information sending method for a terminal according to any one of the above embodiments is implemented.

[0190] The embodiment of the present disclosure also provides a computer readable storage medium for storing a computer program, when the computer program is executed by the processor, the steps of the information sending method for a terminal according to any one of the above embodiments are implemented.

[0191] The embodiment of the present disclosure also provides a computer readable storage medium for storing a computer program, when the computer program is executed by the processor, the steps of the information sending method for a terminal according to any one of the above embodiments are implemented.

[0192] Figure 9 is a schematic block diagram of an apparatus 900 for information sending according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. The apparatus 900 can be a mobile phone, a computer, a digital broadcast terminal, a messaging device, a game console, a tablet device, a medical device, a fitness device, a personal digital assistant, etc.

[0193] Referring to Figure 9 The apparatus 900 can include one or more of the following components: a processing component 902, a memory 904, a power supply component 906, a multimedia component 908, an audio component 910, an input / output (I / O) interface 912, a sensor component 914, and a communication component 916.

[0194] The processing component 902 usually controls overall operations of the apparatus 900, such as operations associated with displaying, making phone calls, data communications, camera operations and recording operations. The processing component 902 can include one or more processors 920 to execute instructions to complete all or part of the steps of the information sending method for a terminal described above. Further, the processing component 902 can include one or more modules so as to facilitate interaction between the processing component 902 and other components. For example, the processing component 902 can include a multimedia module to facilitate the interaction between the multimedia component 908 and the processing component 902.

[0195] The memory 904 is configured to store various types of data to support operations of the apparatus 900. Examples of these data include instructions for any application or methods operating on the apparatus 900, contact data, phonebook data, messages, pictures, videos, etc. The memory 904 can be implemented by any type of volatile or nonvolatile storage devices or a combination thereof, such as static random access memory (SRAM), electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM), programmable read-only memory (PROM), read-only memory (ROM), magnetic storage, flash memory, magnetic disk or optical disk.

[0196] Power component 906 provides power to the various components of the device 900. The power component 906 can include a power management system, one or more power supplies, and other components associated with generating, managing, and distributing power for the device 900.

[0197] The multimedia component 908 includes a display for the device 900 to provide an output interface between the device 900 and a user. In some embodiments, the display can include a liquid crystal display (LCD) and a touch panel (TP). If the display includes a touch panel, the display can be implemented as a touch screen to receive input signals from a user. The touch panel includes one or more touch sensors for sensing touch, swiping, and gestures on the touch panel. The touch sensors can not only sense a boundary of a touch or swipe action, but also detect duration and pressure associated with the touch or swipe action. In some embodiments, the multimedia component 908 includes a front camera and / or a rear camera. When the device 900 is in an operation mode, such as a shooting mode or a video mode, the front camera and / or the rear camera can receive external multimedia data. Each of the front and rear cameras can be a fixed optical lens system or have a focal length and optical zoom capability.

[0198] The audio component 910 is configured to output and / or input audio signals. For example, the audio component 910 includes a microphone (MIC) for receiving an external audio signal when the device 900 is in an operation mode, such as a call mode, a recording mode, and a voice recognition mode. The received audio signal can be further stored in the memory 904 or transmitted via the communication component 916. In some embodiments, the audio component 910 also includes a speaker for outputting audio signals.

[0199] The I / O interface 912 provides an interface between the processing component 902 and peripheral interface modules, which can be a keyboard, a click wheel, a button, and the like. The buttons can include, but are not limited to, a home button, a volume button, a start button, and a lock button.

[0200] The sensor component 914 includes one or more sensors for providing status assessments for various aspects of the device 900. For example, the sensor component 914 can detect an open / closed position of the device 900, relative positioning of components of the device 900, such as a display and a keypad of the device 900, a change in position of the device 900 or a component of the device 900, presence or absence of user contact with the device 900, orientation or acceleration / deceleration / g-force and temperature changes of the device 900. The sensor component 914 can include proximity sensor(s) configured to detect presence of nearby objects without any physical contact. The sensor component 914 can further include a light sensor, such as a CMOS or CCD image sensor, for use in imaging applications. In some embodiments, the sensor component 914 can also include an acceleration sensor, a gyroscope sensor, a magnetic sensor, a pressure sensor, or a temperature sensor.

[0201] The communication component 916 is configured to facilitate wired or wireless communication between the device 900 and another device. The device 900 can access a wireless network based on a communication standard, such as WiFi, 2G or 3G, 4G LTE, 5G NR, or a combination thereof. In an example embodiment, the communication component 916 receives broadcast signals or broadcast-related information from an external broadcast management system via a broadcast channel. In an example embodiment, the communication component 916 can further include a Near Field Communication (NFC) module to facilitate short-range communication. For example, the NFC module can be implemented based on Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) techniques, infrared data association (IrDA) techniques, ultra-wideband (UWB) techniques, Bluetooth (BT) techniques, and other techniques.

[0202] In an example embodiment, the device 900 can be implemented with one or more Application Specific Integrated Circuits (ASICs), Digital Signal Processors (DSPs), Digital Signal Processing Devices (DSPDs), Programmable Logic Devices (PLDs), Field Programmable Gate Arrays (FPGAs), controllers, microcontrollers, or other electronic units to perform the above-described information transmission method applicable to a terminal.

[0203] In an example embodiment, a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium including instructions, such as the memory 904 including instructions, is also provided, which can be executed by the processor 920 of the device 900 to perform the above-described information transmission method applicable to a terminal. For example, the non-transitory computer-readable storage medium can be a ROM, a random access memory (RAM), a CD-ROM, a magnetic tape, a floppy disc, and an optical data storage device, etc.

[0204] As shown in FIG. 10, Figure 10 Figure 10 ​is a schematic block diagram of an apparatus 1000 for information sending according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. The apparatus 1000 can be provided as a base station. Refer to Figure 10 The apparatus 1000 includes a processing component 1022, a wireless transmit / receive component 1024, an antenna component 1026, and a signal processing portion specific to the wireless interface, the processing component 1022 can further include one or more processors. One of the processors in the processing component 1022 can be configured to implement the method for information sending by a base station as described in any of the above embodiments.

[0205] Other embodiments of the present disclosure will be apparent to those skilled in the art from consideration of the specification and practice of the present disclosure. The present disclosure is intended to cover any variations, uses, or adaptations of the present disclosure following, in general, the principles of the present disclosure and including such

[0206] It will be understood that the present disclosure is not limited to the precise construction herein described and as shown in the accompanying drawings, and that changes can be made to the embodiments disclosed without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. The scope of the present disclosure is only limited by the appended claims.

[0207] It should be noted that, in the present document, relational terms such as first and second, and the like can be used solely to distinguish one entity or action from another entity or action without necessarily requiring or implying any actual such relationship or order between such entities or actions. The terms "comprises", "comprising", or any other variation thereof, are intended to cover a non-exclusive inclusion, such that a process, method, article, or apparatus that comprises a list of elements does not include only those elements but can include other elements not expressly listed or inherent to such process, method, article, or apparatus. The terms "includes", "including", or any other variation thereof, are intended to cover a non-exclusive inclusion, such that a process, method, article, or apparatus that includes a list of elements does not include only those elements but can include other elements not expressly listed or inherent to such process, method, article, or apparatus.

[0208] The above detailed description merely describes preferred embodiments of the methods and devices provided by the present disclosure. The specific implementation described above can be modified in various ways without departing from the spirit and scope of the present disclosure. The above description is merely provided to help understand the principles and implementation of the present disclosure. Meanwhile, for those skilled in the art, the specific implementation and application scope of the present disclosure can be changed according to the principles of the present disclosure. In summary, the content of the present description should not be understood as limiting the present disclosure.

Claims

1. A method for sending information, characterized in that: Applicable to a terminal, the method includes: Determine the relevant information of the slices supported by the cell; Sending the relevant information to the non-access layer through the access layer; The relevant information includes the priority of the slice, and the priority of the slice is determined at least based on the number of cells supporting the slice; the non-access layer indicates the slice with higher priority to the access layer, and the access layer accesses the cell based on the slice with higher priority.

2. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that The slice includes at least one of the following: The slices supported by the cell where the terminal is currently located; The remapping slices supported by the cell where the terminal is currently located; Slices supported by neighboring cells of the cell; The remapping slices supported by the neighboring cells of the cell.

3. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that The relevant information also includes at least one of the following: an identification of the slice; an identifier of a cell supporting the slice; signal quality of the cell supporting the slice; Whether the network allows access to the slice.

4. The method according to claim 3, characterized in that The priority of the slice is further determined based on at least one of the following: Instructions from base stations; The signal quality of the cell supporting the slice.

5. The method according to claim 1, wherein The sending of the relevant information to the non-access layer through the access layer includes: In response to determining that the relevant information is updated, the relevant information is sent to the non-access stratum through the access stratum.

6. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that The sending of the relevant information to the non-access layer through the access layer includes: In response to the terminal residing in the reselected cell after cell reselection, the relevant information of the slices supported by the reselected cell is sent to the non-access layer through the access layer.

7. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that The method also includes: determining expected slices required for the non-access stratum; The relevant information also includes at least: whether there is a target cell that supports the expected slice in the cell where the terminal is currently located and the neighboring cells of the cell.

8. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that The method also includes: determining expected slices required for the non-access stratum; The sending of the relevant information to the non-access layer through the access layer includes: In response to the fact that there is no target cell supporting the expected slice in the cell where the terminal is currently located and the neighboring cells of the cell, the relevant information is sent to the non-access layer through the access layer.

9. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that The method further comprises: determining expected slices required for the non-access stratum; The sending of the relevant information to the non-access layer through the access layer includes: In response to the existence of other candidate slices required by the non-access stratum except the expected slice, the relevant information is sent to the non-access stratum through the access stratum.

10. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that The method further comprises: determining expected slices required for the non-access stratum; The sending the relevant information to the non-access layer through the access layer includes: The relevant information of the target slice in the slices belonging to the expected slice is sent to the non-access layer through the access layer.

11. A method for sending information, characterized in that: Applicable to a base station, the method includes: Send relevant information about the slices supported by the cell corresponding to the base station to the terminal; wherein the access layer of the terminal sends the relevant information to the non-access layer, the relevant information includes the priority of the slice, and the priority of the slice is determined based on at least the number of cells supporting the slice; the non-access layer indicates the slices with higher priority to the access layer, and the access layer accesses the cell based on the slices with higher priority.

12. The method according to claim 11, characterized in that The method further comprises: Sending instruction information to the terminal, used to instruct the terminal to send the relevant information to the non-access layer through the access layer.

13. An information sending device, characterized in that: Applicable to a terminal, the device includes: A slice information determination module is configured to determine relevant information of slices supported by the cell; An information sending module is configured to send the relevant information to the non-access layer through the access layer; The relevant information includes the priority of the slice, and the priority of the slice is determined at least based on the number of cells supporting the slice; the non-access layer indicates the slice with higher priority to the access layer, and the access layer accesses the cell based on the slice with higher priority.

14. An information sending device, characterized in that: Applicable to a base station, the device includes: An information sending module is configured to send relevant information about the slices supported by the cell corresponding to the base station to the terminal; wherein the access layer of the terminal sends the relevant information to the non-access layer, and the relevant information includes the priority of the slice, and the priority of the slice is determined based on at least the number of cells supporting the slice; the non-access layer indicates the slice with higher priority to the access layer, and the access layer accesses the cell based on the slice with higher priority.

15. A communication device, characterized in that: include: processor; memory for storing computer programs; When the computer program is executed by a processor, the information sending method according to any one of claims 1 to 10 is implemented.

16. A communication device, characterized in that: include: processor; memory for storing computer programs; When the computer program is executed by a processor, the information sending method according to any one of claims 11 to 12 is implemented.

17. A computer-readable storage medium for storing a computer program, characterized in that: When the computer program is executed by a processor, the steps of the information sending method according to any one of claims 1 to 10 are implemented.

18. A computer-readable storage medium for storing a computer program, characterized in that: When the computer program is executed by a processor, the steps of the information sending method according to any one of claims 11 to 12 are implemented.

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