A cell activation method and device, and a storage medium

Abstract

This application discloses a cell activation method, the method comprising: a first base station sending multi-cell configuration information to a terminal device; the first base station being the base station currently accessed by the terminal device; the terminal device receiving the multi-cell configuration information sent by the first base station; the multi-cell configuration information including: configuration information of a first cell; the first base station being the base station currently accessed by the terminal device; the terminal device sending an activation instruction to a second base station; the second base station being the base station to which the first cell belongs; the activation instruction being used to request the second base station to activate the first cell for the terminal device; and the second base station receiving the activation instruction sent by the terminal device, the second base station being the base station to which the first cell belongs. In addition, this application also discloses a cell activation apparatus and a storage medium. The cell activation method, apparatus, and storage medium provided by this application can reduce uplink signaling overhead.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This application relates to the field of communication technology, and in particular to a cell activation method and apparatus, and a storage medium. Background Technology

[0002] In related technologies, when activating cells, the base station determines which cells to activate. During this process, terminal equipment, such as user equipment (UE), continuously reports cell signal quality measurement results to the base station. This allows the base station to determine the optimal cell based on the reported measurement results and activate it. Because the UE needs to continuously report cell signal quality measurement results to the base station, this process incurs significant uplink signaling overhead. Summary of the Invention

[0003] This application provides a cell activation method and apparatus that can reduce uplink signaling overhead when activating a cell.

[0004] The technical solution of this application embodiment is implemented as follows:

[0005] In a first aspect, embodiments of this application provide a cell activation method, applied to a terminal device, the method comprising:

[0006] The terminal device receives multi-cell configuration information sent by a first base station; the multi-cell configuration information includes: configuration information of the first cell; the first base station is the base station currently accessed by the terminal device.

[0007] An activation instruction is sent to a second base station; the activation instruction is used to request the second base station to activate the first cell for the terminal device; the second base station is the base station to which the first cell belongs.

[0008] Secondly, embodiments of this application provide a cell activation method applied to a first base station, the method comprising:

[0009] Send multi-cell configuration information to the terminal device; the multi-cell configuration information includes: configuration information of the first cell.

[0010] Thirdly, embodiments of this application provide a cell activation method applied to a second base station, the method comprising:

[0011] The terminal device receives an activation instruction; the activation instruction is used to request the second base station to activate the first cell for the terminal device.

[0012] Fourthly, embodiments of this application provide a cell activation device, the device comprising:

[0013] The first receiving unit is configured to receive multi-cell configuration information sent by the first base station; the multi-cell configuration information includes: configuration information of the first cell; the first base station is the base station currently accessed by the terminal device;

[0014] The first sending unit is used to send an activation instruction to the second base station; the activation instruction is used to request the second base station to activate the first cell for the terminal device; the second base station is the base station to which the first cell belongs.

[0015] Fifthly, embodiments of this application provide a cell activation device, the device comprising:

[0016] The second sending unit is used to send multi-cell configuration information to the terminal device; the multi-cell configuration information includes: configuration information of the first cell.

[0017] Sixthly, embodiments of this application provide a cell activation device, the device comprising:

[0018] The second receiving unit is used to receive an activation instruction sent by the terminal device; the activation instruction is used to request the second base station to activate the first cell for the terminal device.

[0019] In a seventh aspect, embodiments of this application provide a storage medium storing a computer program, which, when executed by a processor, performs the aforementioned cell activation method.

[0020] This application provides a cell activation method and apparatus. A terminal device receives multi-cell configuration information sent by a first base station and sends an activation instruction to a second base station. The multi-cell configuration information includes configuration information of a first cell. The first base station is the base station currently accessed by the terminal device. The activation instruction is used to request the second base station to activate the first cell for the terminal device. The second base station is the base station to which the first cell belongs. Thus, the activation instruction is determined by the terminal device based on the multi-cell configuration information sent by the first base station, rather than by the base station determining the cell's activation status. Since determining the cell activation instruction by the base station requires the terminal device to continuously report cell signal quality measurement results to the base station, resulting in significant uplink signaling overhead, this application eliminates the need for the terminal device to report cell signal quality measurement results to the base station when determining the first cell activation instruction, thereby reducing uplink signaling overhead. Attached Figure Description

[0021] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of an optional structure of a communication system provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0022] Figure 2 A schematic diagram of an optional cell activation method provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0023] Figure 3 This is a schematic diagram of an optional structure of a communication system provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0024] Figure 4 A schematic diagram of an optional cell activation method provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0025] Figure 5 A schematic diagram of an optional cell activation method provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0026] Figure 6 A schematic diagram of an optional cell activation method provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0027] Figure 7 A schematic diagram of an optional cell activation method provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0028] Figure 8 A schematic diagram of an optional cell activation method provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0029] Figure 9 A schematic diagram of an optional cell activation method provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0030] Figure 10 This is a schematic diagram of an optional structure of the cell activation device provided in the embodiments of this application;

[0031] Figure 11 This is a schematic diagram of an optional structure of the cell activation device provided in the embodiments of this application;

[0032] Figure 12 This is a schematic diagram of an optional structure of the cell activation device provided in the embodiments of this application;

[0033] Figure 13 This is a schematic diagram of an optional structure of an electronic device provided in an embodiment of this application. Detailed Implementation

[0034] To make the objectives, technical solutions, and advantages of the embodiments of this application clearer, the specific technical solutions in the embodiments of this application will be further described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings. The following embodiments are used to illustrate the embodiments of this application, but are not intended to limit the scope of the embodiments of this application. All other embodiments obtained by those skilled in the art based on the embodiments of this application without creative effort are within the scope of protection of this application.

[0035] Unless otherwise defined, all technical and scientific terms used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which embodiments of this application belong. The terminology used herein in the description of embodiments of this application is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments only and is not intended to be limiting of the embodiments of this application. The term "and / or" as used herein includes any and all combinations of one or more of the associated listed items.

[0036] The technical solutions of this application embodiment can be applied to various communication systems, such as: Global System of Mobile communication (GSM) system, Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) system, Wideband Code Division Multiple Access (WCDMA) system, General Packet Radio Service (GPRS), Long Term Evolution (LTE) system, LTE Frequency Division Duplex (FDD) system, LTE Time Division Duplex (TDD) system, Universal Mobile Telecommunication System (UMTS), Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access (WiMAX) communication system, or 5G system, etc.

[0037] For example, the communication system 100 used in the embodiments of this application can be as follows: Figure 1 As shown. The communication system 100 may include: a first base station 110, a second base station 120, and a terminal device 130. The first base station 110 and the second base station 120 may be devices that communicate with the terminal device 130 (or referred to as a communication terminal, terminal). The first base station 110 and the second base station 120 may provide communication coverage for a specific geographical area and may communicate with terminal devices located within that coverage area. Optionally, the first base station 110 and the second base station 120 may be a base station (Base Transceiver Station, BTS) in a GSM or CDMA system, a base station (NodeB, NB) in a WCDMA system, an evolved Node B (eNB or eNodeB) in an LTE system, or a base station (gNB) in an NR / 5G system.

[0038] The communication system 100 may also include: a radio controller in a cloud radio access network (CRAN), or mobile switching centers, relay stations, access points, vehicle-mounted equipment, wearable devices, hubs, switches, bridges, routers, network-side equipment in 5G networks, or network equipment in future evolved public land mobile networks (PLMNs).

[0039] The communication system may also include: at least one terminal device located within the coverage area of ​​the first or second base station. As used herein, "terminal device" includes, but is not limited to, connections via wired lines, such as via Public Switched Telephone Networks (PSTN), Digital Subscriber Line (DSL), digital cable, direct cable connection; and / or another data connection / network; and / or via a wireless interface, such as for cellular networks, Wireless Local Area Networks (WLAN), digital television networks such as DVB-H networks, satellite networks, AM-FM broadcast transmitters; and / or means configured to receive / transmit communication signals for another terminal device; and / or Internet of Things (IoT) devices. A terminal device configured to communicate via a wireless interface may be referred to as a "wireless communication terminal," "wireless terminal," or "mobile terminal." Examples of mobile terminals include, but are not limited to, satellite or cellular phones; personal communications system (PCS) terminals that can combine cellular radiotelephony with data processing, fax, and data communication capabilities; PDAs that may include radiotelephones, pagers, Internet / intranet access, web browsers, notebooks, calendars, and / or Global Positioning System (GPS) receivers; and conventional laptop and / or handheld receivers or other electronic devices that include radiotelephone transceivers. Terminal equipment can refer to access terminals, user equipment (UE), user units, user stations, mobile stations, mobile stations, remote stations, remote terminals, mobile devices, user terminals, terminals, wireless communication equipment, user agents, or user equipment. Access terminals can be cellular phones, cordless phones, Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) phones, Wireless Local Loop (WLL) stations, Personal Digital Assistants (PDAs), handheld devices with wireless communication capabilities, computing devices or other processing devices connected to a wireless modem, in-vehicle devices, wearable devices, terminal devices in 5G networks, or terminal devices in future PLMNs, etc.

[0040] Alternatively, a 5G system or 5G network may also be referred to as a New Radio (NR) system or NR network.

[0041] Figure 1Two base stations and one terminal device are illustrated exemplarily. Optionally, the communication system 100 may include multiple terminal devices and multiple base stations, and the coverage area of ​​each base station may include other numbers of terminal devices. This application embodiment does not limit this.

[0042] When a terminal device moves from one cell to another, in order to ensure communication continuity and service quality, the communication link between the terminal device and the original cell is transferred to the new cell. This process is called handover. The original cell can be called the source cell, the base station to which the source cell belongs can be called the source base station, and the new cell can be called the target cell, and the base station to which the target cell belongs can be called the target base station.

[0043] Optionally, the communication system 100 may also include other network entities such as a network controller and a mobility management entity, which is not limited in this embodiment.

[0044] It should be understood that devices with communication functions in the network / system of this application embodiment can be referred to as communication devices. Figure 1 Taking the communication system 100 shown as an example, the communication equipment may include a first base station 110, a second base station 120 and a terminal device 130 with communication functions. The first base station 110, the second base station 120 and the terminal device 130 may be the devices described above, and will not be repeated here. The communication equipment may also include other devices in the communication system 100, such as network controllers, mobility management entities and other network entities. This application embodiment does not limit this.

[0045] The present application will now be described in further detail with reference to the accompanying drawings and specific embodiments.

[0046] An optional processing flow of the cell activation method provided in this application embodiment is as follows: Figure 2 As shown, when applied to a terminal device, the procedure includes the following steps:

[0047] S201. The terminal device receives the multi-cell configuration information sent by the first base station.

[0048] Here, the first base station is the base station that the terminal device is currently connected to.

[0049] The multi-cell configuration information includes the configuration information of multiple cells, where the multiple cells include the first cell, that is, the first cell is any one of the multiple cells.

[0050] The multi-cell configuration information includes: the configuration information of the first cell. The configuration information of the first cell may include at least one of the following: carrier frequency, cell identity document (ID), and signal quality.

[0051] In one example, the configuration information for the first cell includes: carrier frequency.

[0052] In another example, the configuration information for the first cell includes: carrier frequency and cell identifier.

[0053] In yet another example, the configuration information for the first cell includes: carrier frequency, cell identifier, and signal quality.

[0054] S202, The terminal device sends an activation instruction to the second base station.

[0055] Here, the activation instruction is used to request the second base station to activate the first cell for the terminal device, wherein the second base station is the base station to which the first cell belongs.

[0056] The activation instruction may include: activate, or deactivate, where deactivation can be understood as inactivation. Activation instructs the first cell to provide communication services to terminal devices within its coverage area. Deactivation instructs the first cell to not provide communication services to terminal devices within its coverage area.

[0057] In one example, the activation indication is used to indicate activation. When the terminal device sends the activation indication to the second base station, it means that the terminal device requests the second base station to activate the first cell for the terminal device.

[0058] In another example, the activation indication is used to indicate deactivation. If the terminal device sends a deactivation indication to the second base station, it means that the terminal device requests the second base station not to activate the first cell for the terminal device.

[0059] In this embodiment of the application, the activation indicator can be represented by bits to indicate whether the first cell is activated. For example, "1" indicates that the first cell is activated, and "0" indicates that the first cell is deactivated.

[0060] In this embodiment of the application, the first base station may be different from or the same as the second base station, and this embodiment of the application does not limit this.

[0061] When the first base station and the second base station are different, the first base station can be a control base station, and the second base station can be a data base station. The control base station has a control plane between itself and the terminal equipment. The control base station can provide continuous and reliable low-frequency bands through the control plane, thereby ensuring the connection and mobility performance of the terminal equipment. The data base station has a user plane between itself and the terminal equipment. The data base station can send service data to the terminal equipment through the user plane, thereby ensuring higher throughput.

[0062] In one example, such as Figure 3As shown, the first base station 301 provides a continuous and reliable low-frequency band through the control plane 302 to ensure the connection performance and mobility performance of the terminal device 303, and the second base station 304 has a user plane 305 between it and the terminal device 303.

[0063] When the first base station and the second base station are the same, the first base station and the second base station can be either control base stations or data base stations. This application embodiment does not impose any limitations on this.

[0064] This application provides a cell activation method. A terminal device receives multi-cell configuration information sent by a first base station and sends an activation instruction to a second base station. The multi-cell configuration information includes configuration information of a first cell, the first base station being the base station currently accessed by the terminal device, and the activation instruction requesting the second base station to activate the first cell for the terminal device. The second base station is the base station to which the first cell belongs. Thus, the activation instruction is determined by the terminal device based on the multi-cell configuration information sent by the first base station, rather than by the base station determining the cell's activation status. Since determining the cell activation instruction by the base station requires the terminal device to continuously report cell signal quality measurement results to the base station, resulting in significant uplink signaling overhead, this application eliminates the need for the terminal device to report cell signal quality measurement results to the base station when determining the first cell activation instruction, thereby reducing uplink signaling overhead.

[0065] In this embodiment of the application, when the terminal device moves, sending the activation instruction to the second base station includes: the terminal device sending an updated activation instruction to the second base station, or the first base station sending updated multi-cell configuration information to the terminal device, and the terminal device sending an updated activation instruction to the second base station after receiving the updated multi-cell configuration information.

[0066] In some embodiments, the configuration information of the first cell includes at least one of the following: carrier frequency; signal quality; cell identifier ID.

[0067] Here, the carrier frequency may include uplink carrier frequency and downlink carrier frequency. The uplink carrier frequency represents the carrier frequency on which the terminal device transmits data to the base station, and the downlink carrier frequency represents the carrier frequency on which the base station transmits data to the terminal device.

[0068] Regarding signal quality, this signal quality is what the terminal device sends to the first base station via Radio Resource Control (RRC) messages.

[0069] The cell identifier (ID) is used to identify the cell.

[0070] In some embodiments, the method further includes: a terminal device receiving a limiting condition sent by the first base station; the limiting condition includes at least one of the following: the carrier frequency of the first cell belongs to a carrier frequency in a first carrier frequency combination; the carrier frequency of the first cell belongs to a carrier frequency in a second carrier frequency combination; the signal quality of the first cell is greater than or equal to a first signal quality threshold; and the signal quality of the first cell is greater than or equal to a second signal quality threshold. Wherein, the first carrier frequency combination includes multiple carrier frequencies; the service corresponding to the second carrier frequency combination is the same as the service performed by the terminal device; and the service corresponding to the second signal quality threshold is the same as the service performed by the terminal device.

[0071] In one example, the constraint may include: the carrier frequency of the first cell belongs to the carrier frequency in the first carrier frequency combination.

[0072] In another example, the constraints may include: the carrier frequency of the first cell belongs to a carrier frequency in a first carrier frequency combination and the carrier frequency of the first cell belongs to a carrier frequency in a second carrier frequency combination.

[0073] In another example, the constraints may include: the carrier frequency of the first cell belongs to a carrier frequency in a first carrier frequency combination, the carrier frequency of the first cell belongs to a carrier frequency in a second carrier frequency combination, and the signal quality of the first cell is greater than or equal to a first signal quality threshold.

[0074] In another example, the constraints may include: the carrier frequency of the first cell belongs to a carrier frequency in a first carrier frequency combination; the carrier frequency of the first cell belongs to a carrier frequency in a second carrier frequency combination; the signal quality of the first cell is greater than or equal to a first signal quality threshold; and the signal quality of the first cell is greater than or equal to a second signal quality threshold.

[0075] Here, regarding the limiting conditions, such as the case where the carrier frequency of the first cell belongs to the carrier frequency in the first carrier frequency combination, after receiving the multiple carrier frequencies included in the first carrier frequency combination sent by the first base station, the terminal device will determine whether the carrier frequency of the first cell belongs to the multiple carrier frequencies. If it does, the terminal device can send an activation instruction to the second base station.

[0076] In one example, the multiple carrier frequencies in the carrier frequency combination include carrier frequency 1 and carrier frequency 2. The carrier frequency of the first cell is carrier frequency 1. Then the terminal device can determine that carrier frequency 1 of the first cell belongs to the multiple carrier frequencies. At this time, the terminal device can send an activation indication to the second base station.

[0077] Here, regarding the constraint condition that the carrier frequency of the first cell belongs to the carrier frequency in the second carrier frequency combination, after receiving the second carrier frequency combination sent by the first base station, the terminal device can determine the carrier frequency combination corresponding to the service performed by the terminal device, such as the service initiated or received.

[0078] In one example, the second carrier frequency combination includes: carrier frequency combination 1 and carrier frequency combination 2, wherein carrier frequency combination 1 corresponds to service 1 and carrier frequency combination 2 corresponds to service 2. If the service to be initiated by the terminal device is service 1, the terminal device can determine that the carrier frequency combination corresponding to service 1 is carrier frequency combination 1.

[0079] Here, for the limiting conditions including: the signal quality of the first cell is greater than or equal to the first signal quality threshold, after receiving the first signal quality threshold sent by the first base station, the terminal device compares the signal quality of the first cell with the signal quality threshold. If the signal quality of the first cell is greater than or equal to the signal quality threshold, the terminal device can send an activation instruction to the second base station.

[0080] In this embodiment, the signal quality threshold can be the threshold corresponding to the Reference Signal Receiving Power (RSRP), Reference Signal Receiving Quality (RSRQ), or Received Signal Strength Indication (RSSI), or it can be the threshold corresponding to other signals. This embodiment does not limit it in any way.

[0081] Here, regarding the constraint condition that the signal quality of the first cell is greater than or equal to the second signal quality, after receiving the second signal quality threshold sent by the first base station, the terminal device can determine the second signal quality threshold corresponding to the service performed by the terminal device, such as the service initiated or received.

[0082] In one example, the second signal quality threshold includes: threshold 1 and threshold 2, wherein threshold 1 corresponds to service 1 and threshold 2 corresponds to service 2. If the service to be initiated by the terminal device is service 1, the terminal device can determine the signal quality threshold corresponding to service 1 as threshold 1.

[0083] In some embodiments, the method further includes: the terminal device receiving a triggering condition sent by the first base station, and when the terminal device meets the triggering condition, the terminal device sending the activation indication to the second base station.

[0084] In some embodiments, the triggering conditions include at least one of the following: the terminal device has a need to send services; the terminal device receives updated multi-cell configuration information; the second cell currently activated by the terminal device cannot meet the terminal device's Quality of Service (QoS) or Quality of Experience (QoE); the second cell is a different cell from the first cell; the signal quality of the second cell is less than a third signal quality threshold.

[0085] Here, the triggering conditions may include: the terminal device has a need to send services, the terminal device receives updated multi-cell configuration information, the second cell currently activated by the terminal device cannot meet the terminal device's Quality of Service (QoS) or Quality of Experience (QoE), and the signal quality of the second cell is less than a third signal quality threshold, or one or more of these conditions.

[0086] In one example, the triggering condition includes: the terminal device has a need to send services.

[0087] In another example, the triggering conditions include: the terminal device having a need to send services and the terminal device receiving updated multi-cell configuration information.

[0088] In another example, the triggering conditions include: the terminal device has a need to send services, the terminal device receives updated multi-cell configuration information, and the second cell currently activated by the terminal device cannot meet the terminal device's Quality of Service (QoS) or Quality of Experience (QoE).

[0089] In another example, the triggering conditions include: the terminal device has a need to send services, the terminal device receives updated multi-cell configuration information, the second cell currently activated by the terminal device cannot meet the terminal device's Quality of Service (QoS) or Quality of Experience (QoE), and the signal quality of the second cell is less than a third signal quality threshold.

[0090] Here, the triggering conditions include: the terminal device has a need to send services. After receiving the need to send services from the first base station, the terminal device will determine whether it needs to send services. If the terminal device needs to send services, it can be determined that the terminal device meets the triggering conditions. At this time, the terminal device can send an activation instruction to the second base station.

[0091] For triggering conditions including receiving updated multi-cell configuration information, the terminal device will determine whether it has received the updated multi-cell configuration information sent by the first base station. If it has, it can be determined that the terminal device meets the triggering condition. At this time, the terminal device can send an activation instruction to the second base station.

[0092] For triggering conditions including: the second cell currently activated by the terminal device cannot meet the terminal device's Quality of Service (QoS) or Quality of Experience (QoE), where the second cell is a different cell from the first cell, the terminal device will determine whether the second cell can meet the terminal device's QoS. If it cannot, the terminal device can be determined to meet the triggering condition. Alternatively, the terminal device will determine whether the second cell can meet the terminal device's QoE. If it cannot, the terminal device can be determined to meet the triggering condition. In this case, the terminal device can send an activation instruction to the second base station.

[0093] If the triggering condition is that the signal quality of the second cell is less than the signal quality threshold, the terminal device will determine whether the signal quality of the second cell is less than the third signal quality threshold. If it is less, the terminal device can be determined to meet the triggering condition. At this time, the terminal device can send an activation instruction to the second base station.

[0094] In some embodiments, sending the activation indication to the second base station includes: the terminal device sending the activation indication to the second base station through a Media Access Control (MAC) control element (CE).

[0095] In some embodiments, the MAC CE includes at least one bit string, which includes at least an activation indication for the first cell.

[0096] Here, for the first cell, bit 1 can be used to indicate activation of the first cell, and bit 0 can be used to indicate deactivation of the first cell.

[0097] In some embodiments, the same MAC CE is sent for different second base stations, and the bit string in the same MAC CE includes: an activation indication for the first cell; or, different MAC CEs are sent for different second base stations, and the bit string in the different MAC CEs includes: an activation indication for the first cell within the coverage area of ​​the different second base stations.

[0098] In one example, different second base stations include: base station 1 and base station 2. The bit string in the same MAC CE includes: activation indication of first cell 1. Then the terminal device can send activation indication of first cell 1 to base station 1 and send activation indication of first cell 1 to base station 2.

[0099] In another example, different second base stations include: base station 1 and base station 2. The first cell in the coverage area of ​​base station 1 includes: cell 1. The first cell in the coverage area of ​​base station 2 includes: cell 2. Different MAC CEs include: activation indication of cell 1 in the coverage area of ​​base station 1 and activation indication of cell 2 in the coverage area of ​​base station 2. Then the terminal device can send activation indication of cell 1 to base station 1 and activation indication of cell 2 to base station 2.

[0100] In some embodiments, the method further includes: the terminal device receiving activation confirmation information sent by the first base station.

[0101] Here, the activation confirmation information is used to indicate the activation result of the first cell, wherein the activation result of the first cell may include: confirmed activation, or confirmed non-activation.

[0102] After receiving the activation confirmation information sent by the first base station, the terminal device can know the final activation result of the first cell.

[0103] Figure 4 This is a schematic diagram illustrating the implementation process of a cell activation method according to an embodiment of this application. The method is applied to a first base station, such as... Figure 4 The method may include the following steps:

[0104] S401, The first base station sends multi-cell configuration information to the terminal equipment.

[0105] Here, the multi-cell configuration information includes the configuration information of multiple cells, where the first cell is included among the multiple cells. In other words, the first cell is any one of the multiple cells.

[0106] The multi-cell configuration information includes: the configuration information of the first cell. The configuration information of the first cell includes at least one of the following: carrier frequency; identifier; signal quality.

[0107] For a detailed description of the carrier frequency, identifier, and signal quality, please refer to the description in the above embodiments; it will not be repeated here.

[0108] In some embodiments, the method further includes: a first base station sending a restriction condition to the terminal device.

[0109] In some embodiments, the limiting condition includes at least one of the following: the carrier frequency of the first cell belongs to a carrier frequency in a first carrier frequency combination; the first carrier frequency combination includes multiple carrier frequencies;

[0110] The carrier frequency of the first cell belongs to the carrier frequency of the second carrier frequency combination, and the service corresponding to the second carrier frequency combination is the same as the service performed by the terminal device;

[0111] The signal quality of the first cell is greater than or equal to the first signal quality threshold.

[0112] The signal quality of the first cell is greater than or equal to the second signal quality threshold, and the service corresponding to the second signal quality threshold is the same as the service performed by the terminal device.

[0113] For a detailed description of the above conditions, please refer to the description in the above embodiments; it will not be repeated here.

[0114] In some embodiments, the method further includes: a first base station sending a trigger condition to the terminal device.

[0115] Here, the triggering condition is the condition that triggers the terminal device to send the activation instruction to the second base station.

[0116] In some embodiments, the triggering conditions include at least one of the following: the terminal device has a need to send services; the terminal device receives updated multi-cell configuration information; the second cell currently activated by the terminal device cannot meet the terminal device's Quality of Service (QoS) or Quality of Experience (QoE); the second cell is a different cell from the first cell; the signal quality of the second cell is less than a third signal quality threshold.

[0117] For a detailed description of the above conditions, please refer to the description in the above embodiments; it will not be repeated here.

[0118] In this embodiment of the application, the generation of activation confirmation information can include the following two methods:

[0119] First, activation confirmation information is generated through the second base station.

[0120] After the second base station generates activation confirmation information, it sends the generated activation confirmation information to the first base station, thereby enabling the first base station to send the activation confirmation information to the terminal device.

[0121] Second, activation confirmation information is generated through the first base station.

[0122] After the first base station generates activation confirmation information, it can directly send the activation confirmation information to the terminal device.

[0123] In some embodiments, when the activation confirmation information is generated by a second base station, the method further includes: a first base station receiving the activation confirmation information sent by the second base station; and forwarding the activation confirmation information to the terminal device.

[0124] Here, the activation confirmation message is used to indicate the activation result of the first cell.

[0125] In this embodiment of the application, after receiving the activation confirmation information sent by the second base station, the first base station can forward the activation confirmation information to the terminal device, thereby enabling the terminal device to determine the final activation result of the first cell.

[0126] In some embodiments, when the activation confirmation information is generated by a first base station, the method further includes: the first base station receiving an activation instruction sent by a second base station; generating activation confirmation information; and sending the activation confirmation information to the terminal device.

[0127] Here, the activation instruction is used to request the second base station to activate the first cell for the terminal device.

[0128] The activation confirmation message is used to indicate the activation result of the first cell.

[0129] In this embodiment of the application, after the terminal device sends the activation instruction to the second base station, the second base station sends the activation instruction to the first base station. After receiving the activation instruction sent by the second base station, the first base station can verify the activation status of the first cell indicated by the activation instruction and generate activation confirmation information. After generating the activation confirmation information, the first base station sends the activation confirmation information to the terminal device.

[0130] Here, the specific steps for the first base station to verify the activation status of the first cell and generate activation confirmation information may include: the first base station determining whether the first cell meets the restriction conditions of the first cell; if the first cell meets the restriction conditions of the first cell, then generating activation confirmation information to confirm the activation of the first cell; if the first cell does not meet the restriction conditions of the first cell, then not generating activation confirmation information to confirm the activation of the first cell.

[0131] In one example, the constraint condition for the first cell is that the signal quality of the first cell is greater than the signal quality threshold. The signal quality of the first cell is 80 dBm and the signal quality threshold is 60 dBm. At this time, the first base station will determine that the signal quality of the first cell, 80 dBm, is greater than the signal quality threshold of 60 dBm, thus satisfying the constraint condition of the first cell. At this time, the first base station will generate activation confirmation information to confirm the activation of the first cell.

[0132] In another example, the constraint for the first cell is that the signal quality of the first cell is greater than the signal quality threshold. The signal quality of the first cell is 40 dBm and the signal quality threshold is 60 dBm. In this case, the first base station will determine that the signal quality of the first cell, 40 dBm, is less than the signal quality threshold of 60 dBm, and the constraint for the first cell is not met. At this time, the first base station will generate activation confirmation information to determine that the first cell will not be activated.

[0133] Figure 5This is a schematic diagram illustrating the implementation process of a cell activation method according to an embodiment of this application. The method is applied to a second base station, such as... Figure 5 The method may include the following steps:

[0134] S501, The second base station receives the activation instruction sent by the terminal equipment.

[0135] Here, the activation instruction is used to request the second base station to activate the first cell for the terminal device.

[0136] The activation instruction may include: activate, or deactivate. Deactivation can be understood as inactivation. Activation instructs the first cell to provide communication services to terminal devices within its coverage area. Deactivation instructs the first cell not to provide communication services to terminal devices within its coverage area.

[0137] In some embodiments, the method further includes: a second base station verifying the activation status of the first cell and generating activation confirmation information; sending the activation confirmation message to a first base station, so that the first base station sends the activation confirmation information to the terminal device.

[0138] Here, the activation confirmation message is used to indicate the activation result of the first cell.

[0139] In this embodiment of the application, the second base station verifies the activation status of the first cell and generates activation confirmation information. This may include: the second base station determining whether the first cell meets the restriction conditions of the first cell; if the first cell meets the restriction conditions of the first cell, then generating activation confirmation information to confirm the activation of the first cell; if the first cell does not meet the restriction conditions of the first cell, then not generating activation confirmation information to confirm the activation of the first cell.

[0140] In one example, the constraint condition for the first cell is that the signal quality of the first cell is greater than the signal quality threshold. The signal quality of the first cell is 80 dBm and the signal quality threshold is 60 dBm. At this time, the second base station will determine that the signal quality of the first cell, 80 dBm, is greater than the signal quality threshold of 60 dBm, thus satisfying the constraint condition of the first cell. At this time, the second base station will generate activation confirmation information to confirm the activation of the first cell.

[0141] In another example, the constraint for the first cell is that the signal quality of the first cell is greater than the signal quality threshold. The signal quality of the first cell is 40 dBm and the signal quality threshold is 60 dBm. In this case, the second base station will determine that the signal quality of the first cell, 40 dBm, is less than the signal quality threshold of 60 dBm, and the constraint for the first cell is not met. Therefore, the second base station will not generate activation confirmation information to confirm the activation of the first cell.

[0142] In some embodiments, the method further includes: the second base station sending the activation indication to the first base station, so that the first base station verifies the activation status of the first cell indicated by the activation indication based on the activation indication and generates activation confirmation information.

[0143] Here, after receiving the activation instruction sent by the terminal device, the second base station can forward the received activation instruction to the first base station, so that the first base station can verify the activation status of the first cell indicated by the activation instruction based on the activation instruction and generate activation confirmation information.

[0144] The cell activation method provided in this application embodiment, such as Figure 6 As shown, it includes:

[0145] S601, The first base station sends multi-cell configuration information to the terminal equipment.

[0146] S602, The terminal device receives the multi-cell configuration information sent by the first base station.

[0147] S603, The terminal device sends an activation instruction to the second base station.

[0148] S604. The second base station receives the activation instruction sent by the terminal device.

[0149] For an explanation of S601, please refer to the explanation of S401 in the above embodiments; for an explanation of S602, please refer to the explanation of S201 in the above embodiments; for an explanation of S603, please refer to the explanation of S202 in the above embodiments; and for an explanation of S604, please refer to the explanation of S501 in the above embodiments.

[0150] In related technologies, there are two methods for multi-cell activation. One method, proposed during 4G research on carrier aggregation (CA) or data communication (DC), involves the base station configuring multiple cells via RRC messages without activating them. The base station then activates the cells as needed via MAC CE. The other method, proposed during 5G research, involves configuring and activating cells through the base station to achieve rapid cell activation.

[0151] Both of these methods involve the network directly controlling cell activation. The UE needs to continuously report measurement results so that the network can determine the optimal cell for activation. Because the UE needs to continuously report measurement results, this results in significant uplink signaling overhead.

[0152] One feasible solution is to configure multiple cells for the UE but not activate them, and at the same time configure the trigger conditions related to cell activation. When the trigger conditions are met, the UE reports a multi-cell activation indication MAC CE to the base station without sending measurement results, thereby avoiding unnecessary uplink signaling overhead.

[0153] like Figure 7 As shown, the cell activation method provided in this application includes the following steps:

[0154] S701, UE reports measurement results to the first base station.

[0155] Here, the measurement results include: the signal quality of the cell.

[0156] S702. The first base station and the second base station conduct multi-cell configuration negotiation to generate negotiation content.

[0157] Here, the content of the negotiation is a multi-cell configuration message, which is the multi-cell configuration information described in the above embodiments.

[0158] S703, the first base station sends the multi-cell configuration message to the UE.

[0159] Here, the multi-cell configuration message includes: the configuration parameters of each cell, the triggering conditions for the activation indication of each cell, and the restriction conditions of each cell.

[0160] Here, the configuration parameters for each cell may include: the cell's uplink carrier frequency, the cell's downlink carrier frequency, and the cell itself.

[0161] The triggering condition for cell activation indication can be at least one of the following:

[0162] The UE has a need to transmit services;

[0163] The UE received an updated multi-cell configuration, but the currently active cell does not match the updated multi-cell configuration;

[0164] Using the currently active cell cannot meet the UE's QoS or QoE requirements, such as throughput, latency, and reliability.

[0165] The signal quality of an active cell is lower than the activation signal quality threshold configured by the base station. The activation signal quality threshold may be set for the UE or for different service types.

[0166] The cell activation restrictions can be at least one of the following: a carrier (band) combination list, a list of different band combinations corresponding to different services, a signal quality threshold (such as RSRP / RSRQ / RSSI threshold values), or different signal quality thresholds corresponding to different services. The signal quality threshold is the signal quality threshold described in the above embodiments.

[0167] Here, regarding the band combination list, the UE can only select one cell corresponding to a band combination from the band combination list indicated by the first base station for activation.

[0168] Here, a band combination list includes multiple band combinations.

[0169] Each cell has a carrier frequency, which belongs to one of the bands in a certain band combination.

[0170] For example, one of the band combinations in the band combination list is band A + band B. The carrier frequencies of cell 1 and cell 2 belong to band A, the carrier frequency of cell 3 belongs to band B, and the carrier frequency of cell 4 belongs to band C.

[0171] Therefore, for the case where band combination = band A + band B, you can only choose cell 1 + cell 3 or cell 2 + cell 3 for activation, but you cannot choose cell 4 for activation.

[0172] Specifically, it can be divided into the following two methods.

[0173] Method 1: The UE selects one cell from band A, band B and band C respectively for activation.

[0174] In other words, the UE selects a cell from band A, a cell from band B, and a cell from band C, and activates all three cells simultaneously.

[0175] Method 2: The UE can select at most one cell from band A, band B and band C to activate, meaning that cells on a certain band can be left unactivated.

[0176] In other words, the UE selects a cell from band A, or does not select any cell; the UE selects a cell from band B, or does not select any cell; the UE selects a cell from band C, or does not select any cell. For the selected cell, it is activated simultaneously.

[0177] For different band combination lists corresponding to different services, the UE can select the appropriate band combination from the band combination list corresponding to the service it wants to initiate or receive.

[0178] For signal quality thresholds, the signal quality of the activated cell must be higher than or equal to the threshold value.

[0179] For different signal quality thresholds corresponding to different services, the signal quality of the activated cell must be higher than or equal to the corresponding threshold value for the service that the UE wants to initiate or receive.

[0180] S704, UE, and the first base station establish a data channel.

[0181] S705, a data channel is established between the first base station and the core network.

[0182] S706, UE and second base station establish data channel.

[0183] A data channel is established between the S707, the second base station, and the core network.

[0184] S708, UE sends a multi-cell activation instruction to the second base station.

[0185] Here, the second base station can be the same as or different from the first base station.

[0186] The multi-cell activation indicator is the activation indicator described in the above embodiments.

[0187] Multi-cell activation indication can be sent via MAC CE. MAC CE includes at least one bit string, where each bit corresponds to the activation or deactivation status of a cell in the multi-cell configuration. For example, "1" indicates that a cell is activated to provide service to the UE, and "0" indicates that a cell is deactivated / not activated.

[0188] Here, the multi-cell activation indication is inferred based on any combination of these three parts in the configuration message: the configuration parameters of each cell, the triggering conditions for the cell activation indication, and the restrictions on cell activation.

[0189] For example, in the scenario of "configuration parameters for each cell + triggering conditions for cell activation indication," the UE obtains the carrier frequency information of each cell through its configuration parameters, and the triggering condition for cell activation indication is that the UE needs to transmit services. If the UE happens to have a service transmission requirement, then the UE can initiate cell activation. The current scenario does not consider "restrictions on cell activation" because the UE can initiate cell activation based on cell quality measurement results.

[0190] For example, in the scenario of "configuration parameters for each cell + restrictions on cell activation," the UE uses the configuration parameters or carrier frequency information of each cell, and the restriction on cell activation is a band combination restriction. In this scenario, the triggering condition for the cell activation indication is not considered because this triggering condition may not need to be configured but is directly written into the protocol, such as stating that cell activation can be triggered when the UE has a need to transmit services. Therefore, when the UE happens to have a need to transmit services, the UE can initiate cell activation based on the cell activation restrictions.

[0191] When the second base station includes multiple base stations, there are two transmission methods:

[0192] Method 1: The UE sends the same MAC CE to all base stations; the bit string of the MAC CE contains an activation indication for all configured cells, where the configured cell is the cell in the multi-cell configuration message sent by the first base station to the UE in S703.

[0193] In one example, the second base station includes base station 1 and base station 2, and the multiple cells include cell 1 and cell 2. The UE sends activation instructions including cell 1 and cell 2 to base station 1 and base station 2.

[0194] Method 2: The UE sends different MAC CEs for different base stations. The bit string of each MAC CE contains activation indications for all configured cells of that base station.

[0195] In one example, the second base station includes: base station 1 and base station 2, and the multiple cells include: cell 1 and cell 2. Cell 1 belongs to base station 1, and cell 2 belongs to base station 2. The UE sends the activation indication of cell 1 to base station 1, and the UE sends the activation indication of cell 2 to base station 2.

[0196] When the UE moves, such as Figure 7 As shown, the method includes:

[0197] S709: The UE sends the updated multi-cell activation instruction to the second base station to activate or deactivate the relevant cells.

[0198] Here, the multi-cell activation indication resource can be sent to the UE via a multi-cell configuration message through resource reservation. The multi-cell activation indication requires uplink resources, which are reserved in advance for the UE by the second base station. By informing the UE through the multi-cell configuration message, the UE no longer needs to request resources from the base station to send the activation indication.

[0199] The second base station sends the multi-cell activation verification message to the first base station.

[0200] Here, the multi-cell activation verification message is the activation confirmation information described in the above embodiments.

[0201] The multi-cell activation verification message may include: the multi-cell activation result.

[0202] Regarding the multi-cell activation results, the second base station can verify the multi-cell activation and send the result to the first base station, or the first base station can verify the multi-cell activation based on the received multi-cell activation information.

[0203] Here, the main verification is whether the cell activated by the UE meets the cell activation restrictions. For example, whether the cell activated by the UE is the cell corresponding to the relevant service; whether the cell activated by the UE meets the measurement quality threshold, etc.

[0204] In some embodiments, for cell activation in a wide-area signaling coverage scenario, wide-area signaling coverage is a major evolutionary trend for future radio access networks. In a wide-area signaling coverage scenario, the control plane is provided by continuous and reliable low-frequency control base stations, which can guarantee terminal connection performance and mobility performance; the user plane is provided by high-frequency data base stations, which can guarantee higher throughput performance.

[0205] like Figure 8 As shown, the specific process may include the following steps:

[0206] S801 and UE report the measurement results to the control base station.

[0207] Here, the UE can send the measurement results to the control base station via RRC messages.

[0208] S802, the control base station negotiates with data base station 1 and data base station 2 to determine the multi-cell configuration.

[0209] Here, multiple cells belong to data base station 1. Data base station 1 is the anchor point of the data channel between the core network and the access network, and it forwards the received data to other data base stations.

[0210] S803, the control base station sends multi-cell configuration messages to the UE.

[0211] S804, Data Base Station 1 establishes a data channel with the core network.

[0212] S805, UE and data base station 1 establish a data channel.

[0213] S806, UE and data base station 2 establish a data channel.

[0214] S807, the UE sends a multi-cell activation instruction to data base station 1.

[0215] S808, the UE sends a multi-cell activation instruction to data base station 2.

[0216] When the UE moves, the following steps S809 and S810 can be executed, or the following steps S811 to S807 can be executed:

[0217] S809, the UE sends the updated multi-cell activation instruction to data base station 1.

[0218] S810 and UE will send the updated multi-cell activation instruction to data base station 2.

[0219] S811 and UE report the measurement results to the control base station.

[0220] S812, the control base station and data base station 1 conduct multi-cell configuration negotiation.

[0221] S813, the control base station and data base station 2 conduct multi-cell configuration negotiation.

[0222] S814, the control base station and data base station 3 negotiate multi-cell configuration.

[0223] S815 controls the base station to perform multi-cell configuration updates.

[0224] S816, The control base station sends the updated multi-cell configuration message to the UE;

[0225] After receiving the updated multi-cell configuration message, S817 and UE send the updated multi-cell activation instruction to data base station 1.

[0226] After receiving the updated multi-cell configuration message, S818 and UE will send the updated multi-cell activation instruction to data base station 2.

[0227] After receiving the updated multi-cell configuration message, S819 and UE send the updated multi-cell activation instruction to data base station 3.

[0228] In this embodiment of the application, for the case of control base station handover, since each data base station can connect to multiple control base stations, the data base station can have interfaces with both the source control base station and the target control base station.

[0229] If seamless data transmission is required, the UE will discard any data packets that have not been retransmitted on the deleted data base station. If lossless data transmission is required, the anchor data base station will forward the data packets that need to be retransmitted to the new data base station for retransmission based on information such as the PDCP status report fed back by the UE.

[0230] Figure 9 As shown, the cell activation method provided in this application embodiment includes the following steps:

[0231] S901 and UE report the measurement results to the control base station.

[0232] S902, a data channel is established between data base station 2 and data base station 3.

[0233] S903, UE and data base station 1 establish a data channel.

[0234] S904, UE and data base station 2 establish a data channel.

[0235] S905, the source control base station sends a handover request to the target control base station.

[0236] Here, the source control base station is the base station before the handover, and the target control base station is the base station after the handover.

[0237] The handover request carries the configuration of the current data base station and the Cell-RadioNetworkTemporaryIdentifier (C-RNTI) value of the UE under the source control base station.

[0238] S906, The target control base station will send the handover request confirmation to the source control base station.

[0239] Here, the handover request confirmation carries the suggested data base station configuration and the UE's C-RNTI value under the target control base station.

[0240] S907, the source control base station sends multi-cell configuration messages to the UE.

[0241] S908, the UE sends a message indicating that the reconfiguration is complete to the target control base station.

[0242] A data channel is established between S909, data base station 1, and data base station 3.

[0243] A data channel is established between S910, UE and data base station 3.

[0244] S911, the UE adds a new C-RNTI to the source C-RNTI and sends it to data base station 1 and data base station 2 via MAC CE.

[0245] Here, the UE scrambles the new C-RNTI using the source C-RNTI and sends it to the relevant data base station so that the data base station can be informed to receive the UE's data using the new C-RNTI next time.

[0246] S912, the UE sends the updated multi-cell activation instruction to data base station 1, data base station 2 and data base station 3.

[0247] S913, UE and data base station 1 conduct downlink data transmission.

[0248] S914, UE and data base station 2 conduct downlink data transmission.

[0249] S915, UE and data base station 3 conduct downlink data transmission.

[0250] Figure 10 A cell activation device provided in the embodiments of this application, such as Figure 10 As shown, the cell activation device 1000 includes:

[0251] The first receiving unit 1001 is configured to receive multi-cell configuration information sent by the first base station; the multi-cell configuration information includes: configuration information of the first cell; the first base station is the base station currently accessed by the terminal device;

[0252] The first sending unit 1002 is used to send an activation instruction to a second base station; the activation instruction is used to request the second base station to activate the first cell for the terminal device; the second base station is the base station to which the first cell belongs.

[0253] In some embodiments, the configuration information of the first cell includes at least one of the following: carrier frequency; cell identifier.

[0254] In some embodiments, the first receiving unit 1001 is further configured to:

[0255] Restrictions on receiving data transmitted from the first base station;

[0256] The limiting conditions include at least one of the following:

[0257] The carrier frequency of the first cell belongs to the carrier frequency in the first carrier frequency combination; the first carrier frequency combination includes multiple carrier frequencies;

[0258] The carrier frequency of the first cell belongs to the carrier frequency of the second carrier frequency combination, and the service corresponding to the second carrier frequency combination is the same as the service performed by the terminal device;

[0259] The signal quality of the first cell is greater than or equal to the first signal quality threshold.

[0260] The signal quality of the first cell is greater than or equal to the second signal quality threshold, and the service corresponding to the second signal quality threshold is the same as the service performed by the terminal device.

[0261] In some embodiments, the first receiving unit 1001 is further configured to:

[0262] The terminal device receives a trigger condition sent by the first base station; wherein, when the terminal device meets the trigger condition, the terminal device sends the activation indication to the second base station.

[0263] In some embodiments, the triggering condition includes at least one of the following:

[0264] The terminal device has the requirement to send services;

[0265] The terminal device receives the updated multi-cell configuration information;

[0266] The second cell currently activated by the terminal device cannot meet the terminal device's Quality of Service (QoS) or Quality of Experience (QoE); the second cell is a different cell from the first cell.

[0267] The signal quality of the second cell is less than the third signal quality threshold.

[0268] In some embodiments, the first transmitting unit 1003 is further configured to:

[0269] The activation instruction is sent to the second base station via the Media Access Control (MAC) control element (CE).

[0270] In some embodiments, the MAC CE includes at least one bit string, which includes at least an activation indication for the first cell.

[0271] In some embodiments, the first transmitting unit 1003 is further configured to:

[0272] For different second base stations, the same MAC CE is transmitted, and the bit string in the same MAC CE includes: an activation indication for the first cell; or,

[0273] For different second base stations, different MAC CEs are sent, and the bit strings in the different MAC CEs include: activation indications of the first cell within the coverage area of ​​the different second base stations.

[0274] In some embodiments, the first receiving unit 1001 is further configured to:

[0275] The system receives activation confirmation information sent by the first base station; the activation confirmation information is used to indicate the activation result of the first cell; the activation result of the first cell includes: confirmed activation, or confirmed non-activation.

[0276] Figure 11 A cell activation device provided in the embodiments of this application, such as Figure 11 As shown, the cell activation device 1100 includes:

[0277] The second sending unit 1101 is used to send multi-cell configuration information to the terminal device; the multi-cell configuration information includes: configuration information of the first cell.

[0278] In some embodiments, the configuration information of the first cell includes at least one of the following: carrier frequency; cell identifier.

[0279] In some embodiments, the second transmitting unit 1101 is further configured to:

[0280] Send a restriction condition to the terminal device; the restriction condition includes at least one of the following:

[0281] The carrier frequency of the first cell belongs to the carrier frequency in the first carrier frequency combination; the first carrier frequency combination includes multiple carrier frequencies;

[0282] The carrier frequency of the first cell belongs to the carrier frequency of the second carrier frequency combination, and the service corresponding to the second carrier frequency combination is the same as the service performed by the terminal device;

[0283] The signal quality of the first cell is greater than or equal to the first signal quality threshold.

[0284] The signal quality of the first cell is greater than or equal to the second signal quality threshold, and the service corresponding to the second signal quality threshold is the same as the service performed by the terminal device.

[0285] In some embodiments, the second transmitting unit 1101 is further configured to:

[0286] Send a trigger condition to the terminal device; the trigger condition is a condition that triggers the terminal device to send the activation indication to the second base station.

[0287] In some embodiments, the triggering condition includes at least one of the following triggering conditions:

[0288] The terminal device needs to send services;

[0289] The terminal device receives the updated multi-cell configuration information;

[0290] The second cell currently activated by the terminal device cannot meet the terminal device's Quality of Service (QoS) or Quality of Experience (QoE); the second cell is a different cell from the first cell.

[0291] The signal quality of the second cell is less than the signal quality threshold.

[0292] In some embodiments, the cell activation device further includes: a third receiving unit, configured to receive activation confirmation information sent by the second base station; the activation confirmation information is used to indicate the activation result of the first cell; the activation result of the first cell includes: confirmed activation, or confirmed non-activation;

[0293] The activation confirmation information is forwarded to the terminal device.

[0294] In some embodiments, the third receiving unit is further configured to:

[0295] The device receives an activation instruction sent by the second base station; the activation instruction is used to request the second base station to activate the first cell for the terminal device.

[0296] Generate activation confirmation information;

[0297] The activation confirmation information is sent to the terminal device.

[0298] Figure 12 A cell activation device provided in the embodiments of this application, such as Figure 12 As shown, the cell activation device 1200 includes:

[0299] The second receiving unit 1201 is used to receive an activation instruction sent by the terminal device; the activation instruction is used to request the second base station to activate the first cell for the terminal device.

[0300] In some embodiments, the apparatus 1200 further includes: a verification unit, configured to:

[0301] Generate activation confirmation information; the activation confirmation information is used to indicate the activation result of the first cell;

[0302] The activation confirmation message is sent to the first base station, so that the first base station sends the activation confirmation information to the terminal device.

[0303] In some embodiments, the apparatus 1200 further includes: a third transmitting unit, configured to:

[0304] The activation instruction is sent to the first base station, so that the first base station verifies the activation status of the first cell indicated by the activation instruction based on the activation instruction and generates activation confirmation information.

[0305] This application also provides a storage medium, namely a computer-readable storage medium, on which a computer program is stored, which, when executed by a processor, implements the cell activation method provided in the above embodiments.

[0306] It should be noted that the descriptions of the storage medium and device embodiments above are similar to those of the method embodiments above, and have similar beneficial effects. For technical details not disclosed in the storage medium and device embodiments of this application, please refer to the descriptions of the method embodiments of this application for understanding.

[0307] It should be noted that, Figure 13 This is a schematic diagram of a hardware entity of an electronic device according to an embodiment of this application, such as... Figure 13As shown, the electronic device 1300 includes: a processor 1301, at least one communication bus 1302, at least one external communication interface 1304, and a memory 1305. The communication bus 1302 is configured to enable communication between these components. In one example, the electronic device 1300 further includes: a user interface 1303, which may include a display screen; and the external communication interface 1304 may include standard wired and wireless interfaces.

[0308] The memory 1305 is configured to store instructions and applications executable by the processor 1301, and can also cache data to be processed or already processed by the processor 1301 and various modules in the electronic device (e.g., image data, audio data, voice communication data and video communication data), which can be implemented by flash memory or random access memory (RAM).

[0309] It should be understood that the phrase "one embodiment" or "an embodiment" throughout the specification means that a specific feature, structure, or characteristic related to the embodiment is included in at least one embodiment of this application. Therefore, "in one embodiment" or "in some embodiments" appearing throughout the specification do not necessarily refer to the same embodiment. Furthermore, these specific features, structures, or characteristics can be combined in any suitable manner in one or more embodiments. It should be understood that in the various embodiments of this application, the sequence numbers of the above-described processes do not imply a sequential order of execution; the execution order of each process should be determined by its function and internal logic, and should not constitute any limitation on the implementation process of the embodiments of this application. The sequence numbers of the above-described embodiments are merely descriptive and do not represent the superiority or inferiority of the embodiments.

[0310] It should be noted that, in this document, 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. Unless otherwise specified, 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 that element.

[0311] In the several embodiments provided in this application, it should be understood that the disclosed devices and methods can be implemented in other ways. The device embodiments described above are merely illustrative. For example, the division of units is only a logical functional division, and in actual implementation, there may be other division methods, such as: multiple units or components can be combined, or integrated into another system, or some features can be ignored or not executed. In addition, the coupling, direct coupling, or communication connection between the various components shown or discussed can be through some interfaces, and the indirect coupling or communication connection between devices or units can be electrical, mechanical, or other forms.

[0312] The units described above as separate components may or may not be physically separate. The components shown as units may or may not be physical units. They may be located in one place or distributed across multiple network units. Some or all of the units may be selected to achieve the purpose of this embodiment according to actual needs.

[0313] In addition, each functional unit in the various embodiments of this application can be integrated into one processing unit, or each unit can be a separate unit, or two or more units can be integrated into one unit; the integrated unit can be implemented in hardware or in the form of hardware plus software functional units.

[0314] Those skilled in the art will understand that all or part of the steps of the above method embodiments can be implemented by hardware related to program instructions. The aforementioned program can be stored in a computer-readable storage medium. When the program is executed, it performs the steps of the above method embodiments. The aforementioned storage medium includes various media that can store program code, such as mobile storage devices, read-only memory (ROM), magnetic disks, or optical disks.

[0315] Alternatively, if the integrated units described above are implemented as software functional modules and sold or used as independent products, they can also be stored in a computer-readable storage medium. Based on this understanding, the technical solutions of the embodiments of this application, or the parts that contribute to related technologies, can be embodied in the form of a software product. This computer software product is stored in a storage medium and includes several instructions to cause a computer device (which may be a personal computer, server, or network device, etc.) to execute all or part of the methods described in the various embodiments of this application. The aforementioned storage medium includes various media capable of storing program code, such as mobile storage devices, ROMs, magnetic disks, or optical disks.

[0316] The above description is merely an embodiment of this application, but the scope of protection of this application is not limited thereto. Any variations or substitutions that can be easily conceived by those skilled in the art within the scope of the technology disclosed in this application should be included within the scope of protection of this application. Therefore, the scope of protection of this application should be determined by the scope of the claims.

[0317] The above description is merely a preferred embodiment of this application and is not intended to limit the scope of protection of this application. Any modifications, equivalent substitutions, and improvements made within the spirit and principles of this application should be included within the scope of protection of this application.

Claims

1. A cell activation method, characterized by, Applied to a terminal device, the method includes: The terminal device receives multi-cell configuration information and restrictions sent by a first base station; the multi-cell configuration information includes: configuration information of the first cell; the first base station is the base station currently accessed by the terminal device. Based on the aforementioned constraints, determine the first cell to be activated from the cells indicated by the multi-cell configuration information; An activation instruction is sent to a second base station; the activation instruction is used to request the second base station to activate the first cell for the terminal device; the second base station is the base station to which the first cell belongs; wherein, the activation instruction is determined by the terminal device based on the multi-cell configuration information sent by the first base station; The limiting conditions include at least one of the following: The carrier frequency of the first cell belongs to the carrier frequency in the first carrier frequency combination; the first carrier frequency combination includes multiple carrier frequencies; The carrier frequency of the first cell belongs to the carrier frequency of the second carrier frequency combination, and the service corresponding to the second carrier frequency combination is the same as the service performed by the terminal device; The signal quality of the first cell is greater than or equal to the first signal quality threshold. The signal quality of the first cell is greater than or equal to the second signal quality threshold, and the service corresponding to the second signal quality threshold is the same as the service performed by the terminal device.

2. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that, The configuration information of the first cell includes at least one of the following: Carrier frequency; cell identifier.

3. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that, The method further includes: The terminal device receives a trigger condition sent by the first base station; wherein, when the terminal device meets the trigger condition, the terminal device sends the activation indication to the second base station.

4. The method according to claim 3, characterized in that, The triggering condition includes at least one of the following: The terminal device has the requirement to send services; The terminal device receives the updated multi-cell configuration information; The second cell currently activated by the terminal device cannot meet the terminal device's Quality of Service (QoS) or Quality of Experience (QoE); the second cell is a different cell from the first cell. The signal quality of the second cell is less than the third signal quality threshold.

5. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that, Sending the activation instruction to the second base station includes: The activation instruction is sent to the second base station via the Media Access Control (MAC) control element (CE).

6. The method according to claim 5, characterized in that, The MAC CE includes at least one bit string, which includes at least an activation indication for the first cell.

7. The method according to claim 5, characterized in that, For different second base stations, the same MAC CE is transmitted, and the bit string in the same MAC CE includes: an activation indication for the first cell; or, For different second base stations, different MAC CEs are sent, and the bit strings in the different MAC CEs include: activation indications of the first cell within the coverage area of ​​the different second base stations.

8. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that, The method further includes: The system receives activation confirmation information sent by the first base station; the activation confirmation information is used to indicate the activation result of the first cell; the activation result of the first cell includes: confirmed activation, or confirmed non-activation.

9. A cell activation method, characterized in that, Applied to a first base station, the method includes: Sending multi-cell configuration information and restrictions to a terminal device; the multi-cell configuration information includes: configuration information of a first cell, so that the terminal device determines an activation indication based on the multi-cell configuration information sent by the first base station; the restrictions are used by the terminal device to determine the first cell to be activated from the cells indicated by the multi-cell configuration information; The limiting conditions include at least one of the following: The carrier frequency of the first cell belongs to the carrier frequency in the first carrier frequency combination; the first carrier frequency combination includes multiple carrier frequencies; The carrier frequency of the first cell belongs to the carrier frequency of the second carrier frequency combination, and the service corresponding to the second carrier frequency combination is the same as the service performed by the terminal device; The signal quality of the first cell is greater than or equal to the first signal quality threshold. The signal quality of the first cell is greater than or equal to the second signal quality threshold, and the service corresponding to the second signal quality threshold is the same as the service performed by the terminal device.

10. The method according to claim 9, characterized in that, The configuration information of the first cell includes at least one of the following: Carrier frequency; cell identifier.

11. The method according to claim 9, characterized in that, The method further includes: Send a trigger condition to the terminal device; the trigger condition is a condition that triggers the terminal device to send the activation indication to the second base station.

12. The method according to claim 11, characterized in that, The triggering condition includes at least one of the following: The terminal device has the requirement to send services; The terminal device receives the updated multi-cell configuration information; The second cell currently activated by the terminal device cannot meet the terminal device's Quality of Service (QoS) or Quality of Experience (QoE); the second cell is a different cell from the first cell. The signal quality of the second cell is less than the third signal quality threshold.

13. The method according to claim 9, characterized in that, The method further includes: The system receives activation confirmation information sent by the second base station; the activation confirmation information is used to indicate the activation result of the first cell; the activation result of the first cell includes: confirmed activation, or confirmed non-activation; The activation confirmation information is forwarded to the terminal device.

14. The method according to claim 9, characterized in that, The method further includes: The device receives an activation instruction sent by a second base station; the activation instruction is used to request the second base station to activate the first cell for the terminal device. Generate activation confirmation information; The activation confirmation information is sent to the terminal device.

15. A cell activation method, characterized in that, Applied to a second base station, the method includes: The terminal device receives an activation instruction sent by the terminal device; the activation instruction is used to request the second base station to activate a first cell for the terminal device; wherein, the activation instruction is determined by the terminal device based on multi-cell configuration information sent by the first base station, and the first cell is the first cell that the terminal device determines to be activated from the cells indicated by the multi-cell configuration information according to the constraints. The limiting conditions include at least one of the following: The carrier frequency of the first cell belongs to the carrier frequency in the first carrier frequency combination; the first carrier frequency combination includes multiple carrier frequencies; The carrier frequency of the first cell belongs to the carrier frequency of the second carrier frequency combination, and the service corresponding to the second carrier frequency combination is the same as the service performed by the terminal device; The signal quality of the first cell is greater than or equal to the first signal quality threshold. The signal quality of the first cell is greater than or equal to the second signal quality threshold, and the service corresponding to the second signal quality threshold is the same as the service performed by the terminal device.

16. The method according to claim 15, characterized in that, The method further includes: Generate activation confirmation information; the activation confirmation information is used to indicate the activation result of the first cell; The activation confirmation information is sent to the first base station, so that the first base station sends the activation confirmation information to the terminal device.

17. The method according to claim 16, characterized in that, The method further includes: The activation instruction is sent to the first base station, so that the first base station verifies the activation status of the first cell indicated by the activation instruction based on the activation instruction and generates activation confirmation information.

18. A community activation device, characterized in that, The device includes: The first receiving unit is configured to receive multi-cell configuration information and constraints sent by the first base station; the multi-cell configuration information includes: configuration information of the first cell; the first base station is the base station currently accessed by the terminal device; A first sending unit is configured to send an activation instruction to a second base station; the activation instruction is configured to request the second base station to activate the first cell for the terminal device; the second base station is the base station to which the first cell belongs; wherein, the activation instruction is determined by the terminal device based on multi-cell configuration information sent by the first base station; the first cell is the first cell that the terminal device determines to be activated from the cells indicated by the multi-cell configuration information according to the constraints. The limiting conditions include at least one of the following: The carrier frequency of the first cell belongs to the carrier frequency in the first carrier frequency combination; the first carrier frequency combination includes multiple carrier frequencies; The carrier frequency of the first cell belongs to the carrier frequency of the second carrier frequency combination, and the service corresponding to the second carrier frequency combination is the same as the service performed by the terminal device; The signal quality of the first cell is greater than or equal to the first signal quality threshold. The signal quality of the first cell is greater than or equal to the second signal quality threshold, and the service corresponding to the second signal quality threshold is the same as the service performed by the terminal device.

19. A community activation device, characterized in that, The device includes: The second sending unit is configured to send multi-cell configuration information to the terminal device; the multi-cell configuration information includes: configuration information and limiting conditions of a first cell, so that the terminal device determines an activation indication based on the multi-cell configuration information sent by the first base station; the limiting conditions are used by the terminal device to determine the first cell to be activated from the cells indicated by the multi-cell configuration information. The limiting conditions include at least one of the following: The carrier frequency of the first cell belongs to the carrier frequency in the first carrier frequency combination; the first carrier frequency combination includes multiple carrier frequencies; The carrier frequency of the first cell belongs to the carrier frequency of the second carrier frequency combination, and the service corresponding to the second carrier frequency combination is the same as the service performed by the terminal device; The signal quality of the first cell is greater than or equal to the first signal quality threshold. The signal quality of the first cell is greater than or equal to the second signal quality threshold, and the service corresponding to the second signal quality threshold is the same as the service performed by the terminal device.

20. A community activation device, characterized in that, The device includes: The second receiving unit is configured to receive an activation instruction sent by a terminal device; the activation instruction is used to request a second base station to activate a first cell for the terminal device; wherein, the activation instruction is determined by the terminal device based on multi-cell configuration information sent by the first base station, and the first cell is the first cell that the terminal device determines to be activated from the cells indicated by the multi-cell configuration information according to the constraints. The limiting conditions include at least one of the following: The carrier frequency of the first cell belongs to the carrier frequency in the first carrier frequency combination; the first carrier frequency combination includes multiple carrier frequencies; The carrier frequency of the first cell belongs to the carrier frequency of the second carrier frequency combination, and the service corresponding to the second carrier frequency combination is the same as the service performed by the terminal device; The signal quality of the first cell is greater than or equal to the first signal quality threshold. The signal quality of the first cell is greater than or equal to the second signal quality threshold, and the service corresponding to the second signal quality threshold is the same as the service performed by the terminal device.

21. A storage medium storing a computer program, which, when executed by a processor, performs the cell activation method according to any one of claims 1 to 8, or performs the cell activation method according to any one of claims 9 to 14, or performs the cell activation method according to any one of claims 15 to 17.

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