A cell handover method and device

Abstract

This application discloses a cell handover method, comprising the following steps: determining first configuration information, wherein the first configuration information is used to indicate that a first carrier is a terminal common primary carrier; determining the timing for switching the terminal's dedicated primary carrier to the first carrier using at least one of the following methods: first downlink control information includes handover indication information, used to instruct the terminal device to switch the terminal's dedicated primary carrier to the first carrier; the terminal device only receives downlink control signaling for data scheduling in one cell for a period of time that has expired. This application also includes apparatus for implementing the method. This application addresses the problem of energy waste caused by the use of distributed cells for transmission even when the load is low under terminal dedicated cell configuration conditions.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This application relates to the field of wireless communication technology, and in particular to a cell handover method and device. Background Technology

[0002] In the NR system design, to achieve terminal energy saving, a secondary cell or deactivation mechanism based on Layer 1 signaling is introduced, along with a sleep behavior based on downlink physical layer control signaling. The terminal reports CSI information about the secondary cell to the base station with minimal energy consumption. Sleep behavior refers to the terminal not performing PDCCH listening on the secondary cell, but only performing some measurements and uplink signal transmissions. Terminals performing sleep behavior maintain time-frequency synchronization and perform CSI measurements on the secondary cell. Sleep behavior eliminates the time required for activation, and significantly reduces terminal energy consumption compared to the normal active state. The transition process between sleep and normal active behavior is as follows: The base station activates the secondary cell using MAC CE. The currently active BWP in the secondary cell can be either a sleep BWP or a normal BWP. For active secondary cells, the base station switches between sleep and normal BWPs through a DCI-based BWP handover mechanism. A secondary cell currently in an active state, regardless of whether the currently active BWP is a sleep BWP or a normal BWP, can enter an inactive state through MAC CE activation or timer timeout.

[0003] When communication network systems are large-scale, the density of base stations deployed is high, and the power consumption of individual base stations is large, resulting in high energy costs. Carrier aggregation technology configures primary and secondary cells specifically for each terminal; that is, a terminal can be configured with a primary cell and a set of secondary cells. Furthermore, a carrier used as the primary cell for terminal 1 can be configured as a secondary cell for another terminal 2. Therefore, a large number of terminals within the base station's coverage area may be configured with a significant number of primary and secondary cell carriers, leading to substantial energy consumption. In particular, when the communication traffic of terminal devices decreases, maintaining the operation of a large number of primary and secondary cells further reduces the efficiency of communication resource utilization. Summary of the Invention

[0004] This application proposes a cell handover method and device to solve the problem of high energy consumption in multi-cell configuration under carrier aggregation technology. It designs a technical solution to achieve network energy saving, configures a common primary carrier in the network, and the carrier aggregation terminal in the network detects dynamic signaling from the network to determine whether to switch the configured terminal-dedicated primary carrier to the common primary carrier, and indicates the dormant / active state of the terminal-dedicated secondary cell, or the terminal determines whether to switch the dedicated primary carrier to the common primary carrier based on a timer.

[0005] In a first aspect, embodiments of this application propose a cell handover method, comprising the following steps:

[0006] Determine the first configuration information, which is used to indicate that the first carrier is the terminal common primary carrier;

[0007] The timing for switching the terminal's dedicated primary carrier to the first carrier can be determined using at least one of the following methods:

[0008] The first downlink control information includes handover indication information, which instructs the terminal device to switch the terminal-dedicated primary carrier to the first carrier;

[0009] The timeout period for the terminal device to receive downlink control signaling for data scheduling in only one cell has expired.

[0010] Preferably, the method further includes the following step: determining second configuration information, the second configuration information being used to indicate that N BWPs in the first carrier are terminal common BWPs.

[0011] Preferably, the method further includes the following steps: determining the timing for the terminal's primary cell to switch to a dormant BWP on the first carrier is: the duration of the terminal not receiving downlink control signaling for data scheduling has expired.

[0012] A cell handover method according to a first aspect of this application, used in a network-side device, includes the following steps:

[0013] Send first configuration information, which is used to indicate that the first carrier is the terminal common primary carrier;

[0014] Send first downlink control information, which includes handover indication information to instruct the terminal device to switch the terminal-dedicated primary carrier to the first carrier.

[0015] Preferably, the method further includes the following step: sending second configuration information, the second configuration information being used to indicate that N BWPs in the first carrier are terminal common BWPs.

[0016] A cell handover method according to the first aspect of this application, used in a terminal-side device, includes the following steps:

[0017] Receive first configuration information, which is used to indicate that the first carrier is the terminal common primary carrier;

[0018] In response to the first downlink control information or the first timer timeout, switch from the terminal-dedicated primary carrier to the first carrier;

[0019] The first downlink control information includes handover indication information, which instructs the terminal device to switch the terminal-dedicated primary carrier to the first carrier;

[0020] The first timer is used to determine that the duration during which the terminal device receives downlink control signaling for data scheduling in only one cell has expired.

[0021] Preferably, in response to a timeout of the first timer, the system switches from the terminal-dedicated primary carrier to a normal BWP on the first carrier.

[0022] Preferably, the method further includes the following step: receiving second configuration information, the second configuration information being used to indicate that N BWPs in the first carrier are terminal common BWPs.

[0023] Preferably, the method further includes the following step: in response to a second timer timeout, switching from the terminal's primary cell to a dormant BWP on the first carrier. The second timer is used to determine the duration for which the terminal has not received downlink control signaling for data scheduling.

[0024] In any embodiment of the first aspect of this application, preferably, the first downlink control signaling is broadcast signaling, located in the common search space, scrambled with a common RNTI, and instructs all terminal devices connected to the designated network device to switch primary carriers.

[0025] Alternatively, the first downlink control signaling may be terminal-specific downlink control signaling, indicating whether the terminal device should switch to the first carrier as the primary carrier.

[0026] Alternatively, the first downlink control signaling is multicast signaling located in the common search space, scrambled with energy-efficient RNTI, indicating the primary carrier switching of at least a portion of the terminal devices connected to the designated network device.

[0027] In any embodiment of the first aspect of this application, preferably, the first downlink control signaling is further used to indicate that after the primary cell handover of the terminal device, the secondary cell is in a sleep or active state.

[0028] In any embodiment of the first aspect of this application, preferably, the first downlink control information is further used to instruct the terminal device to switch the terminal-dedicated main carrier to the normal BWP or dormant BWP of the first carrier.

[0029] Secondly, embodiments of this application also propose a network-side device for implementing the method described in any embodiment of the first aspect of this application. At least one module in the network-side device is used for at least one of the following functions: determining and sending first configuration information; determining and sending second configuration information; determining and sending first downlink control signaling.

[0030] Thirdly, embodiments of this application also propose a terminal-side device for implementing the method described in any embodiment of the first aspect of this application. At least one module in the terminal-side device is used for at least one of the following functions: receiving and determining first configuration information; receiving and determining second configuration information; receiving first downlink control signaling; determining the timing for the terminal's dedicated primary carrier to switch to a normal BWP on the first carrier; and determining the timing for the terminal's primary cell to switch to a dormant BWP on the first carrier.

[0031] To implement the apparatus of the second and / or third aspects of this application, this application also proposes a communication apparatus, comprising: a memory, a processor, and a computer program stored in the memory and executable on the processor, wherein the computer program, when executed by the processor, implements the steps of the method as described in any embodiment of the first aspect of this application.

[0032] Fourthly, embodiments of this application also provide a computer-readable medium storing a computer program that, when executed by a processor, implements the steps of the method described in any embodiment of the first aspect of this application.

[0033] Fifthly, embodiments of this application also propose a mobile communication system comprising at least one network-side device as described in any embodiment of this application and / or at least one terminal-side device as described in any embodiment of this application.

[0034] The above-described technical solutions adopted in the embodiments of this application can achieve the following beneficial effects:

[0035] This patent defines a common primary cell for all terminals in the system. When the load on a terminal in the network is low, it can be switched to the defined common primary cell, and the original primary cell and secondary cell can be turned off. This method can solve the problem of energy waste caused by the use of distributed cells for transmission when the load is low under the condition of dedicated cell configuration for terminals, thereby reducing energy consumption and improving resource utilization efficiency. Attached Figure Description

[0036] The accompanying drawings, which are included to provide a further understanding of this application and form part of this application, illustrate exemplary embodiments and are used to explain this application, but do not constitute an undue limitation of this application. In the drawings:

[0037] Figure 1 A diagram illustrating the primary and secondary cells and handover process for terminal equipment;

[0038] Figure 2 This is a flowchart illustrating an embodiment of the method of this application;

[0039] Figure 3A schematic diagram illustrating an embodiment of configuring primary and secondary cells for multiple terminal devices;

[0040] Figure 4 Schematic diagram of an embodiment for primary cell handover of multiple terminal devices

[0041] Figure 5 This is a flowchart illustrating an embodiment of the method of this application used in a network-side device;

[0042] Figure 6 This is a flowchart illustrating an embodiment of the method of this application used in a terminal-side device;

[0043] Figure 7 This is a schematic diagram of the first downlink control signaling indication structure for multicast.

[0044] Figure 8 This is a schematic diagram of an embodiment of a network-side device;

[0045] Figure 9 This is a schematic diagram of an embodiment of the terminal-side device;

[0046] Figure 10 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of a network-side device according to another embodiment of the present invention;

[0047] Figure 11 This is a block diagram of a terminal-side device according to another embodiment of the present invention. Detailed Implementation

[0048] To make the objectives, technical solutions, and advantages of this application clearer, the technical solutions of this application will be clearly and completely described below in conjunction with specific embodiments and corresponding drawings. Obviously, the described embodiments are only a part of the embodiments of this application, and not all of them. Based on the embodiments in this application, all other embodiments obtained by those skilled in the art without creative effort are within the scope of protection of this application.

[0049] The technical solutions provided by the various embodiments of this application are described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0050] Figure 1 A diagram illustrating the primary and secondary cells and handover process for terminal equipment;

[0051] As communication network systems expand, base station density increases, individual base stations consume significant power, leading to high energy costs. Carrier aggregation technology configures primary and secondary cells for dedicated terminals; a terminal can be configured with a primary cell and a set of secondary cells. Furthermore, a carrier used as the primary cell for terminal 1 can be configured as a secondary cell for terminal 2. From an energy-saving perspective, when cell load is low, it's necessary to disable some carriers and configure a common carrier as the primary cell for all connected terminals. This ensures all connected terminals operate on the common primary carrier, while other carriers can operate in power-saving mode. As shown in the diagram, when the current primary cell (Pcell) is not the common primary cell used to save network power, the network device will need to request the terminal to perform a Pcell handover. After switching to the new Pcell, the network device will need to deactivate the old Pcell or put it into sleep mode.

[0052] Considering that Pcell handover via RRC reconfiguration (e.g., L3-based handover in the current standard) may not be fast enough to respond to dynamically arriving loads, Scell / Pcell handover via L1 / L2 signaling is more advantageous. This L1 / L2-based Pcell handover is also UE-specific. If this UE-specific L1 / L2-based Pcell change is applied to the network power-saving scenarios discussed earlier, the network device may need to trigger multiple L1 / L2 signaling calls to connected UEs, resulting in higher signaling overhead.

[0053] Figure 2 This is a flowchart illustrating an embodiment of the method of this application.

[0054] This application proposes a cell handover method, comprising the following steps 110-130:

[0055] Step 110: Determine the first configuration information, which is used to indicate that the first carrier is the terminal common primary carrier.

[0056] In addition to configuring a primary carrier and a secondary carrier for each terminal via a base station, the network equipment also configures a common carrier, such as a first carrier, for each terminal. In the embodiments of this application, all terminals can perform channel measurements on the first carrier to facilitate rapid switching to the first carrier.

[0057] Therefore, if any terminal device receives first configuration information indicating the first carrier configured by the network device, and the first carrier is a common subcarrier for the terminals, then the terminal device performs channel measurement on the first carrier.

[0058] Step 120, preferably, further includes the following steps: determining second configuration information, the second configuration information being used to indicate that N BWPs in the first carrier are terminal common BWPs.

[0059] The base station configures N common BWPs on the common first carrier configured for each terminal, and indicates the state of each BWP as either a normal BWP or a dormant BWP.

[0060] The terminal receives the second configuration information, indicating that the first carrier has N BWPs, and / or that the N BWPs are one of the normal BWPs and the dormant BWPs.

[0061] The BWP is a terminal common BWP configured on the first carrier. The second configuration information can be common RRC signaling, common MAC CE signaling, or common physical layer signaling bearer.

[0062] Step 130: Determine the timing for the terminal's dedicated primary carrier to switch to the first carrier using at least one of the following methods:

[0063] Method 1: The first downlink control information includes handover indication information, which is used to instruct the terminal device to switch the terminal-dedicated primary carrier to the first carrier;

[0064] The terminal device receives a first downlink control signaling message. This message indicates the primary carrier handover status of the terminal device, and simultaneously indicates the activation and sleep states of other secondary cells and the primary carrier before handover. Alternatively, the first downlink control signaling message indicates the identifier of the specific BWP (Browser Window) to which the terminal device's primary carrier is switched to the first carrier, and simultaneously indicates the activation and sleep states of other secondary cells and the primary carrier before handover. The first downlink control signaling message can be terminal-specific signaling, broadcast signaling, or group common signaling.

[0065] Method 2: The terminal device has timed out for receiving downlink control signaling for data scheduling in only one cell.

[0066] For example, a first timer is defined. The terminal starts the timer only when it receives downlink control signaling for data scheduling in one cell (the primary cell or one of the secondary cells). If there is data scheduling in more than one cell, the timer is reset. After the timer expires, the terminal switches the primary cell to the first carrier.

[0067] When the first carrier is configured with multiple BWPs, preferably, the terminal device switches the terminal-dedicated primary carrier to the active BWP of the first carrier. More preferably, the method further includes the following step: determining the timing for the terminal's primary cell to switch to the dormant BWP on the first carrier is based on the timeout period during which the terminal has not received downlink control signaling for data scheduling.

[0068] It should be noted that the above steps are used for network entities in a wireless communication system, including terminal-side devices, network-side devices, or other intermediate devices; the above steps can also be used for service devices that provide information processing for the network entity devices; the above steps can also be used for any device, system, subsystem, circuit, chip, or software entity that provides information reception, transmission, identification, and processing for terminal-side devices or network-side devices.

[0069] Figure 3 This is a schematic diagram illustrating an implementation of configuring primary and secondary cells for multiple terminal devices. For example, the network side configures a dedicated primary carrier and secondary carrier for each terminal, and configures a common first primary carrier for the terminals. For instance, terminal 1 is configured with a dedicated primary carrier CC1 and secondary carrier CC2, terminal 2 is configured with a dedicated primary carrier CC2, secondary carriers CC1 and CC3, and terminal 3 is configured with a dedicated primary carrier CC3 and secondary carrier CC4. Furthermore, terminals 1, 2, and 3 are configured with a common first primary carrier CC1.

[0070] Figure 4 This is a schematic diagram illustrating an implementation example of primary cell handover for multiple terminal devices. Figure 3 Based on the illustrated embodiment, when the network detects that the load of terminal 1 is low, the main carrier remains the first carrier CC1, and other carriers CC2 can be deactivated or put into sleep mode. When the network detects that the load of terminal 2 is low, the main carrier is changed from CC2 to the first carrier CC1, and all or part of the other carriers CC2 and CC3 are deactivated or put into sleep mode. When the network detects that the load of terminal 3 is low, the main carrier is changed from CC3 to the first carrier CC1, and all or part of the other carriers CC3 and CC4 are deactivated or put into sleep mode.

[0071] The network indicates the active sleep state of the first carrier and other terminal-dedicated carriers to the terminal using the first downlink signaling, so that the terminal only needs to listen for downlink control signaling on the active carrier indicated by the network and receive downlink data.

[0072] Figures 3-4 In the embodiments, when further considering the configuration of multiple BWPs, for example, the network side configures a terminal-specific primary carrier and secondary carrier for each terminal, configures a common first primary carrier for the terminals, and configures an active BWP and a sleep BWP for the first primary carrier. For example, terminal 1 is configured with a terminal-specific primary carrier CC1 and secondary carrier CC2, terminal 2 is configured with a terminal-specific primary carrier CC2, secondary carriers CC1 and CC3, and terminal 3 is configured with a terminal-specific primary carrier CC3 and secondary carrier CC4. Terminals 1, 2, and 3 are configured with a common first primary carrier CC1, where CC1 is configured with BWP1 as the active BWP and BWP2 as the sleep BWP.

[0073] When the network detects that the load on terminal 1 is low, the primary carrier remains the first carrier CC1 and operates on the active BWP on CC1. Other carriers CC2 can be deactivated or put into sleep mode. When the network detects that the load on terminal 2 is low, the primary carrier is changed from CC2 to the active BWP1 of the first carrier CC1, and all or part of the carriers of other carriers CC2 and CC3 are deactivated or put into sleep mode. When the network detects that the load on terminal 3 is low, the primary carrier is changed from CC3 to the active BWP1 of the first carrier CC1, and all or part of the carriers of other carriers CC3 and CC4 are deactivated or put into sleep mode.

[0074] Correspondingly, when the network detects that the load of terminals 1, 2, and 3 is close to 0, it will switch the primary carrier of the terminals to the sleep BWP of the first carrier CC1.

[0075] The network indicates the active sleep state of the first carrier and other terminal-dedicated carriers to the terminal using the first downlink signaling, so that the terminal only needs to listen for downlink control signaling on the active carrier indicated by the network and receive downlink data.

[0076] Figure 5 This is a flowchart illustrating an embodiment of the method of this application used in a network-side device.

[0077] The method described in any embodiment of the first aspect of this application, used in a network-side device, includes the following steps 210-230:

[0078] Step 210: Send first configuration information, which is used to indicate that the first carrier is the terminal common primary carrier.

[0079] Step 220, preferably, further includes the following steps: sending second configuration information, the second configuration information being used to indicate that N BWPs in the first carrier are terminal common BWPs.

[0080] Step 230: Send first downlink control information, which includes handover indication information to instruct the terminal device to switch the terminal-dedicated primary carrier to the first carrier.

[0081] Furthermore, it also includes the following steps: the terminal device determines and sends the timing configuration information of the first timer and the second timer.

[0082] Figure 6 This is a flowchart illustrating an embodiment of the method of this application used in a terminal-side device.

[0083] The method described in any embodiment of the first aspect of this application, used in a terminal-side device, includes the following steps 310-340:

[0084] A cell handover method according to the first aspect of this application, used in a terminal-side device, includes the following steps:

[0085] Step 310: Receive first configuration information, which is used to indicate that the first carrier is the terminal common primary carrier.

[0086] The terminal receives first configuration information indicating the first carrier configured by the network device. The first carrier is a common subcarrier of the terminal, and the terminal performs channel measurement on the first carrier.

[0087] Step 320, preferably, further includes the following steps: receiving second configuration information, the second configuration information being used to indicate that N BWPs in the first carrier are terminal common BWPs.

[0088] The terminal receives second configuration information indicating N BWPs on the first carrier, and / or, the N BWPs are either normal BWPs or dormant BWPs. The BWPs are terminal common BWPs.

[0089] Step 330: In response to the first downlink control information or the first timer timeout, switch from the terminal dedicated primary carrier to the first carrier.

[0090] Step 330A: The first downlink control information includes handover indication information, which is used to instruct the terminal device to switch the terminal dedicated primary carrier to the first carrier;

[0091] The terminal device receives a first downlink control signaling, which instructs the terminal device to switch the terminal-dedicated primary carrier to the normal BWP or dormant BWP of the first carrier. The first downlink control signaling is either a broadcast signaling or a group common signaling.

[0092] Step 330B: The first timer is used to determine that the duration during which the terminal device receives downlink control signaling for data scheduling in only one cell has expired.

[0093] Preferably, in response to a timeout of the first timer, the system switches from the terminal-dedicated primary carrier to a normal BWP on the first carrier.

[0094] Define a first timer. The terminal starts the timer only when it receives downlink control signaling for data scheduling in one cell (the primary cell or one of the secondary cells). If there is data scheduling in more than one cell, the timer will reset. After the timer expires, the terminal will switch the primary cell to the first carrier.

[0095] The terminal receives high-layer signaling from the base station and configures the timing of the first timer. The timer is started when the terminal receives downlink control signaling for data scheduling only in the primary cell or one of the secondary cells. When the timer expires, the terminal switches the primary cell to the normal BWP on the first carrier, and the primary cell and other secondary cells before the switch enter sleep mode.

[0096] When the terminal switches to the first carrier for data transmission, it receives the first downlink control signaling to determine whether it needs to return to the original primary carrier and whether the secondary cell needs to be activated.

[0097] Step 330C, preferably, further includes the following step: in response to a second timer timeout, switching from the terminal's primary cell to a dormant BWP on the first carrier. The second timer is used to determine the duration for which the terminal has not received downlink control signaling for data scheduling.

[0098] A second timer is defined. The terminal starts the timer when it does not receive downlink control signaling for data scheduling. If data scheduling occurs, the timer is reset. After the timer expires, the terminal switches the primary cell to the dormant BWP on the first carrier.

[0099] The terminal receives high-layer signaling from the base station and configures the timing of the second timer. When the terminal does not receive any downlink control signaling for data scheduling in the primary or secondary cell, the timer is started. When the second timer expires, the terminal switches the primary cell to the dormant BWP on the first carrier, and the primary cell and other secondary cells before the switch enter a sleep state.

[0100] When the terminal switches to the first carrier for data transmission, it receives the first downlink control signaling to determine whether it needs to return to the original primary carrier and whether the secondary cell needs to be activated.

[0101] In any embodiment of the first aspect of this application, preferably, the first downlink control signaling is broadcast signaling, located in the common search space, scrambled with a common RNTI, and instructs all terminal devices connected to the designated network device to switch primary carriers.

[0102] Alternatively, the first downlink control signaling may be terminal-specific downlink control signaling, indicating whether the terminal device should switch to the first carrier as the primary carrier.

[0103] Alternatively, the first downlink control signaling is multicast signaling located in the common search space, scrambled with energy-efficient RNTI, indicating the primary carrier switching of at least a portion of the terminal devices connected to the designated network device.

[0104] In any embodiment of the first aspect of this application, preferably, the first downlink control signaling is further used to indicate that after the primary cell handover of the terminal device, the secondary cell is in a sleep or active state.

[0105] In any embodiment of the first aspect of this application, preferably, the first downlink control information is further used to instruct the terminal device to switch the terminal-dedicated main carrier to the normal BWP or dormant BWP of the first carrier.

[0106] Figure 7 This is a schematic diagram of the first downlink control signaling indication structure for multicast.

[0107] The first downlink control signaling can be implemented in three ways: broadcast signaling, terminal-specific signaling, or group common signaling.

[0108] Method 1: The first downlink control signaling is broadcast signaling. The signaling is transmitted in the common search space and scrambled with the common RNTI. It is used to indicate the primary carrier switching of all terminals in the network equipment and the dormant / active status of the secondary cell.

[0109] The base station configures time-frequency resource locations in a common search space for terminals, either periodically or non-periodically. These locations are used by all terminals in the network to search for the first downlink control signaling within the common search space, which is scrambled with a common RNTI. When a terminal in the network receives a broadcast signaling "1" for the first downlink control signaling on its dedicated primary carrier, all terminals switch their primary carrier to the first carrier and put both the dedicated primary and secondary carriers into a dormant state. When a terminal detects a "0" for the first downlink control signaling, it continues operating on its previous primary and secondary carriers. Conversely, when a terminal in the network receives a "1" for the first downlink control signaling on the first carrier, all terminals switch their primary carrier back to the original primary carrier and activate all secondary carriers. When a terminal detects a "0" for the first downlink control signaling, it continues operating on the common primary carrier.

[0110] When considering BWP configuration, the base station allocates time-frequency resource locations in a common search space (CSS) periodically or non-periodically to the terminals. These CSS locations are used by all terminals in the network to search for the first downlink control signaling within the CSS, which is scrambled with a common RNTI. When the network device configures two BWPs for the first carrier, one BWP is configured as a normal BWP, and the other as a dormant BWP. When a terminal in the network device receives a broadcast signaling "10" on its dedicated primary carrier, all terminals switch their primary carrier to the dormant BWP on the first carrier and put their dedicated primary and secondary carriers into a dormant state. When a terminal detects a first downlink control signaling "11", all terminals switch their primary carrier to the normal BWP on the first carrier and put their dedicated primary and secondary carriers into a dormant state. When a terminal detects a first downlink control signaling "00", the terminal continues to operate on its previous primary and secondary carriers. When a terminal in a network device receives the first downlink control signaling "11" on the first carrier, all terminals switch back to the original primary carrier and activate all secondary carriers. When a terminal detects that the first downlink control signaling is "00", the terminal continues to work on the common primary carrier.

[0111] Method 2: The first downlink control signaling is a terminal-specific downlink control signaling. The base station sends the first downlink control signaling to indicate whether the terminal should switch to the first carrier as the primary carrier, and at the same time indicates the sleep activation status of other secondary cells of the terminal.

[0112] The terminal searches its dedicated primary carrier space in the network configuration and detects information indicating primary carrier switching and the sleep status of other secondary cells. For example, the first downlink control signaling indicates related information, i.e., adding N+1 bits, where 1 bit is used to indicate whether the primary carrier needs to be switched. When the bit is "1", it means that the primary carrier needs to be switched, and when the bit is "0", it means that the primary carrier does not need to be switched. N bits are used to indicate the sleep status of each of the N secondary cells or a group of secondary cells. When the bit is "1", it means that the secondary cell is active, and when the bit is "0", the secondary cell is asleep.

[0113] When considering BWP configuration, the terminal searches its dedicated primary carrier space in the network configuration to detect information indicating primary carrier switching and other secondary cell sleep states. For example, the first downlink control signaling indicates related information, adding N+2 bits. Two bits are used to indicate whether the primary carrier has switched and whether it has switched to the dormant BWP or the normal BWP of the first primary carrier. When bit "10", it indicates that the primary carrier has switched to the dormant BWP of the first primary carrier. When bit "11", it indicates that it has switched to the normal BWP of the first primary carrier. When bit "00", it indicates that the primary carrier does not need to switch. N bits are used to indicate the sleep status of each of the N secondary cells or a group of secondary cells. When bit "1", it indicates that the secondary cell is active, and when bit "0", the secondary cell is asleep.

[0114] Method 3: The first downlink control signaling is multicast signaling, and the signaling is transmitted in the common search space, scrambled using energy-efficient RNTI. When a terminal in the network device receives the first downlink control signaling as "1" in the broadcast signaling, it switches its dedicated primary carrier to the first carrier and puts both the dedicated primary and secondary carriers into a sleep state.

[0115] The base station configures time-frequency resource locations in a common search space for terminals, either periodically or non-periodically. These locations are used by all terminals in the network to search for first downlink control signaling within the common search space, which is scrambled with a new common RNTI. The first downlink control signaling indicates whether each terminal should switch to a first carrier as the primary carrier, and the sleep status of other secondary carriers.

[0116] Specifically, the first downlink control signaling includes multiple indicator blocks. Each indicator block contains 1 bit indicating whether to switch the primary carrier, and multiple bits indicating the sleep status of other secondary carriers for each UE. The starting position of the corresponding indicator information for each UE in the indicator block is given by the higher-layer configuration information. The terminal device receives the block information (starting point S and length L) configured by the higher-layer signaling, and decodes the corresponding first downlink control signaling in the second signaling scrambled with the new RNTI, where 1 bit indicates whether to switch the primary carrier, and the other L-1 bits are used to indicate the sleep status of other secondary cells.

[0117] When considering BWP configuration, specifically, the first downlink control signaling contains multiple indication blocks. Each indication block contains M bits (M > 1) indicating whether to switch the primary carrier, which specific BWP or BWP group on the first carrier to switch to, and L bits indicating the sleep status of other secondary carriers for each UE. The starting position of the indication information corresponding to each UE in the indication block is given by the higher-layer configuration information. The terminal device receives the block information (starting point S and length L) configured by the higher-layer signaling, decodes the corresponding first downlink control signaling in the second signaling scrambled with the new RNTI, where M bits indicate whether the primary carrier is switched to a normal BWP or a sleeping BWP, and the other L-1 bits are used to indicate the sleep status of other secondary cells.

[0118] It should be noted that when the first signaling of all three methods exists simultaneously, the priority is as follows:

[0119] When there is a conflict between the terminal-dedicated secondary carrier activation and sleep signaling indication and the secondary carrier activation and sleep status indicated by the multicast signaling, the information indicated by the terminal-dedicated signaling shall prevail.

[0120] When there is a conflict between the terminal-dedicated secondary carrier activation and sleep signaling indication and the secondary carrier activation and sleep status indicated by the broadcast signaling, the information indicated by the terminal-dedicated signaling shall prevail.

[0121] When there is a conflict between the multicast secondary carrier activation and sleep signaling indication and the broadcast signaling indication of secondary carrier activation and sleep status, the information indicated by the multicast signaling shall prevail.

[0122] Figure 8 This is a schematic diagram of an embodiment of a network-side device.

[0123] This application also proposes a network-side device using the method of any embodiment of this application. At least one module in the network-side device is used for at least one of the following functions: determining and sending first configuration information; determining and sending second configuration information; determining and sending first downlink control signaling.

[0124] To implement the above technical solution, this application proposes a network-side device 400, which includes a network transmitting module 401, a network determining module 402, and a network receiving module 403 that are interconnected.

[0125] The network sending module is used to send first configuration information, second configuration information, and first downlink control signaling; further, it is also used to send configuration values ​​of the first timer and the second timer.

[0126] The network determination module is used to determine first configuration information, second configuration information, and first downlink control signaling; it is also used to determine the configuration values ​​of a first timer and / or a second timer; and to determine the timing for switching any terminal's dedicated primary carrier to the first carrier in at least one manner.

[0127] The network receiving module is used to receive uplink information.

[0128] The specific methods for implementing the functions of the network sending module, network determining module, and network receiving module are as described in the various method embodiments of this application, and will not be repeated here.

[0129] The network-side equipment described in this application may refer to base station facilities, network-side equipment or servers connected to base stations, systems that provide services for the aforementioned equipment, or any system, subsystem, module, circuit, chip or software operating device that provides information reception, transmission, identification and processing for the aforementioned equipment.

[0130] Figure 9 This is a schematic diagram of an embodiment of the terminal-side device.

[0131] This application also proposes a terminal-side device using the method of any embodiment of this application, wherein at least one module in the terminal-side device is used for at least one of the following functions: receiving and determining first configuration information; receiving and determining second configuration information; receiving first downlink control signaling; determining the timing for the terminal's dedicated primary carrier to switch to a normal BWP on the first carrier; and determining the timing for the terminal's primary cell to switch to a dormant BWP on the first carrier.

[0132] To implement the above technical solution, this application proposes a terminal-side device 500, which includes a terminal transmitting module 501, a terminal determining module 502, and a terminal receiving module 503 that are interconnected.

[0133] The terminal receiving module is used to receive first configuration information and second configuration information; in some embodiments, it is also used to receive first downlink control signaling; in some embodiments, it is also used to receive configuration values ​​of a first timer and a second timer.

[0134] The terminal determination module is used to determine first configuration information, second configuration information, and first downlink control signaling; it is also used to determine the configuration values ​​of a first timer and / or a second timer; and to determine the timing of the terminal's dedicated primary carrier switching to the first carrier in at least one manner.

[0135] The terminal sending module is used to send uplink information.

[0136] The specific methods for implementing the functions of the terminal sending module, the terminal determining module, and the terminal receiving module are as described in the various method embodiments of this application, and will not be repeated here.

[0137] The terminal-side equipment described in this application may refer to user equipment (UE), personal mobile terminal, smart terminal, mobile phone, computer with communication function, system providing services for the above-mentioned equipment, or any system, subsystem, module, circuit, chip or software running device that provides information reception, transmission, identification and processing for the above-mentioned equipment.

[0138] Figure 10 A schematic diagram of a network-side device according to another embodiment of the present invention is shown. As shown, the network-side device 600 includes a processor 601, a wireless interface 602, and a memory 603. The wireless interface may consist of multiple components, including a transmitter and a receiver, providing a unit for communication with various other devices over a transmission medium. The wireless interface implements communication functions with the terminal-side device, processes wireless signals through receiving and transmitting devices, and the data carried by the signals is communicated with the memory or processor via an internal bus structure. The memory 603 contains a computer program that executes any embodiment of this application, and the computer program runs or modifies the processor 601. The memory, processor, and wireless interface circuit are connected via a bus system. The bus system includes a data bus, a power bus, a control bus, and a status signal bus, which will not be described in detail here.

[0139] Figure 11 This is a block diagram of a terminal-side device according to another embodiment of the present invention. The terminal-side device 700 includes at least one processor 701, a memory 702, a user interface 703, and at least one network interface 704. The various components in the terminal-side device 700 are coupled together via a bus system. The bus system is used to implement communication between these components. The bus system includes a data bus, a power bus, a control bus, and a status signal bus.

[0140] User interface 703 may include a display, keyboard, or clicking device, such as a mouse, trackball, touchpad, or touchscreen.

[0141] The memory 702 stores executable modules or data structures. The memory may store an operating system and application programs. The operating system includes various system programs, such as a framework layer, core library layer, and driver layer, used to implement various basic business functions and handle hardware-based tasks. The application programs include various applications, such as media players and browsers, used to implement various application functions.

[0142] In an embodiment of the present invention, the memory 702 contains a computer program that executes any embodiment of the present application, the computer program being run on or modified by the processor 701.

[0143] The memory 702 includes a computer-readable storage medium. The processor 701 reads the information in the memory 702 and, in conjunction with its hardware, completes the steps of the above-described method. Specifically, the computer-readable storage medium stores a computer program, which, when executed by the processor 701, implements the steps of the method embodiments described in any of the above embodiments.

[0144] The processor 701 may be an integrated circuit chip with signal processing capabilities. In implementation, each step of the method in this application can be completed by the integrated logic circuitry in the hardware of the processor 701 or by instructions in software form. The processor 701 may be a general-purpose processor, a digital signal processor, an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a readily available programmable gate array (FPGA) or other programmable logic device, discrete gate or transistor logic device, or discrete hardware component. It can implement or execute the methods, steps, and logic block diagrams disclosed in the embodiments of this invention. The general-purpose processor may be a microprocessor or any conventional processor. The steps of the method disclosed in the embodiments of this invention can be directly manifested as execution by a hardware decoding processor, or execution by a combination of hardware and software modules in the decoding processor.

[0145] Those skilled in the art will understand that embodiments of the present invention can be provided as methods, systems, or computer program products. Therefore, the present invention can take the form of a completely hardware embodiment, a completely software embodiment, or an embodiment combining software and hardware aspects. In a typical configuration, the device of this application includes one or more processors (CPUs), an input / output user interface, a network interface, and memory.

[0146] Furthermore, the present invention may take the form of a computer program product implemented on one or more computer-usable storage media (including but not limited to disk storage, CD-ROM, optical storage, etc.) containing computer-usable program code.

[0147] Therefore, this application also proposes a computer-readable medium storing a computer program that, when executed by a processor, implements the steps of the method described in any embodiment of this application. For example, the memory 603, 702 of the present invention may include non-permanent memory in the form of computer-readable medium, random access memory (RAM) and / or non-volatile memory, such as read-only memory (ROM) or flash RAM.

[0148] Based on the embodiments of the above-described apparatus in this application, this application also proposes a mobile communication system, including at least one embodiment of any terminal-side device in this application and / or at least one embodiment of any network-side device in this application.

[0149] It should also be noted that the terms "comprising," "including," or any other variations thereof are intended to cover non-exclusive inclusion, such that a process, method, article, or apparatus that comprises a list of elements includes not only those elements but also other elements not expressly listed, or elements inherent to such a process, method, article, or apparatus. Without further limitation, an element defined by the phrase "comprising one..." does not exclude the presence of other identical elements in the process, method, article, or apparatus that includes said element.

[0150] It should also be noted that the terms "first," "second," etc., in this application are used to distinguish multiple objects with the same name and have no meaning of order or size.

[0151] The above description is merely an embodiment of this application and is not intended to limit the scope of this application. Various modifications and variations can be made to this application by those skilled in the art. Any modifications, equivalent substitutions, improvements, etc., made within the spirit and principles of this application should be included within the scope of the claims of this application.

Claims

1. A cell handover method, characterized by, The method comprises the following steps: determining first configuration information, wherein the first configuration information is used to indicate that a first carrier is a common primary carrier for a terminal, and the first carrier is configured with a plurality of BWP; determining a time for switching a terminal dedicated primary carrier to an active BWP of the first carrier in at least one of the following manners: the first downlink control information comprises switching indication information, which is used to instruct the terminal device to switch the terminal dedicated primary carrier to the active BWP of the first carrier, and to switch the terminal dedicated primary carrier before the switching into a dormant state; the terminal device determines that a terminal primary cell is switched to a dormant BWP on the first carrier when a time for receiving downlink control signaling for data scheduling in one cell has exceeded.

2. The cell handover method of claim 1, wherein, The method further comprises the following steps: determining second configuration information, wherein the second configuration information is used to indicate that N BWP in the first carrier is a common BWP for the terminal.

3. The cell handover method as described in claim 1, characterized in that, The method further comprises the following steps: determining a time for switching the terminal primary cell to the dormant BWP on the first carrier, wherein the time is determined in at least one of the following manners: a time for the terminal not receiving downlink control signaling for data scheduling has exceeded.

4. The cell handover method of claim 1, used for a network side device, characterized in that, The method comprises the following steps: sending first configuration information, wherein the first configuration information is used to indicate that a first carrier is a common primary carrier for a terminal; sending first downlink control information, wherein the first downlink control information comprises switching indication information, which is used to instruct the terminal device to switch a terminal dedicated primary carrier to the first carrier.

5. The cell handover method as described in claim 4, characterized in that, The method further comprises the following steps: sending second configuration information, wherein the second configuration information is used to indicate that N BWP in the first carrier is a common BWP for the terminal.

6. The cell handover method of claim 1, used for a terminal-side device, wherein, The method comprises the following steps: receiving first configuration information, wherein the first configuration information is used to indicate that a first carrier is a common primary carrier for a terminal; switching from a terminal dedicated primary carrier to the first carrier in response to first downlink control information or a first timer being expired; the first downlink control information comprises switching indication information, which is used to instruct the terminal device to switch the terminal dedicated primary carrier to the first carrier; the first timer is used to determine that a time for the terminal device to receive downlink control signaling for data scheduling in one cell has exceeded.

7. The cell switching method according to claim 6, wherein: switching from the terminal dedicated primary carrier to a normal BWP in the first carrier in response to the first timer being expired.

8. The cell handover method as described in claim 6, characterized in that, The method further comprises the following steps: receiving second configuration information, wherein the second configuration information is used to indicate that N BWP in the first carrier is a common BWP for the terminal.

9. The cell handover method as described in claim 6, characterized in that, The method further comprises the following steps: switching from a terminal primary cell to a dormant BWP on the first carrier in response to a second timer being expired; the second timer is used to determine that a time for the terminal not receiving downlink control signaling for data scheduling has exceeded.

10. The cell switching method according to any one of claims 1 to 9, wherein: the first downlink control information is broadcast signaling, which is located in a common search space, scrambled with a common RNTI, and used to instruct all terminal devices connected to a setting network device to switch a primary carrier.

11. The cell switching method according to any one of claims 1 to 9, wherein: the first downlink control information is terminal dedicated downlink control signaling, which is used to instruct the terminal device whether to switch to the first carrier as a primary carrier.

12. The cell handover method of any of claims 1-9, wherein the first downlink control information is multicast signaling, located in a common search space, scrambled with a power saving RNTI, and indicates a primary carrier handover for at least a portion of terminal devices connected to the network device.

13. The cell handover method of any of claims 1-9, wherein the first downlink control information is further used to indicate a secondary cell state of the terminal device after a primary cell handover, the secondary cell state being either a sleep state or an active state.

14. The cell handover method of any of claims 1-9, wherein the first downlink control information is further used to indicate a terminal device dedicated primary carrier handover to a normal BWP or a dormant BWP of the first carrier.

15. A network side device configured to implement the method of any of claims 1-5, 10-14, wherein the network side device comprises at least one module configured to perform at least one of the following functions: determining and sending the first configuration information; determining and sending the second configuration information; and determining and sending the first downlink control signaling.

16. A terminal side device configured to implement the method of any of claims 1-3, 6-14, wherein the terminal side device comprises at least one module configured to perform at least one of the following functions: receiving and determining the first configuration information; receiving and determining the second configuration information; and receiving the first downlink control signaling; determining a time for a terminal device dedicated primary carrier handover to a normal BWP of the first carrier; and determining a time for a terminal primary cell handover to a dormant BWP of the first carrier.

17. A computer program product comprising a computer readable medium having stored thereon instructions which, when executed by a computer, cause the computer to carry out the steps of the method of any of claims 1-14.

18. A computer readable medium having stored thereon a computer program which, when executed by a processor, carries out the steps of the method of any of claims 1-14.

19. A mobile communication system comprising at least one network side device of claim 15 and / or at least one terminal side device of claim 16. ​ ​ ​ ​ 17. A communication device, characterized by ​ ​ ​ ​

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