Method and apparatus for processing time advance (TA)

Abstract

An embodiment of the present application provides a method for processing the timing advance (TA), which is applied to a terminal. The terminal is in a low-speed moving state, and the low-speed movement includes a moving speed within a first speed range. The method includes: receiving a first message indicating a first TA sent by a base station; after receiving the first message, receiving a second message indicating a second TA sent by the base station; in response to satisfying a first condition, sending an uplink signal by using the first TA to obtain an uplink transmission bit error rate that meets the requirements, where meeting the requirements includes being less than a bit error rate threshold; and the first condition includes that the absolute difference between the first TA and the second TA is greater than a difference threshold. Satisfying the first condition indicates that the second TA may be abnormal. Therefore, the first TA is used instead of the second TA to send uplink information to obtain an uplink transmission bit error rate that meets the requirements.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This application relates to the field of communication technologies, and in particular, to a method and apparatus for processing Timing Advance (TA). Background Art

[0002] Timing Advance (TA) is a parameter configured by a base station for a terminal, aiming to ensure that the uplink signal sent by the terminal is received within the reception time of the uplink signal.

[0003] There is still room for improvement in the existing TA mechanism. Summary of the Invention

[0004] This application provides a method and apparatus, aiming to solve the problem of how to...

[0005] To achieve the above object, this application provides the following technical solutions:

[0006] In a first aspect of this application, a method for processing Timing Advance (TA) is provided, which is applied to a terminal in a low-speed moving state. The low-speed movement includes a moving speed within a first speed range. The method includes: receiving a first message indicating a first TA sent by a base station, and after receiving the first message, receiving a second message indicating a second TA sent by the base station. In response to meeting a first condition, an uplink signal is sent by using the first TA, and an uplink transmission bit error rate that meets the requirements is obtained. Meeting the requirements includes: being less than a bit error rate threshold. The first condition includes: the absolute difference between the first TA and the second TA is greater than a difference threshold. Meeting the first condition indicates that the second TA may be abnormal. Therefore, the first TA is used instead of the second TA to send uplink information, and an uplink transmission bit error rate that meets the requirements is obtained.

[0007] In some implementation manners, the first condition further includes: an estimated speed is greater than an actual speed. The estimated speed is obtained based on the first message and the second message, and the actual speed is obtained based on sensor data collected by a sensor on the terminal. The estimated speed being greater than the actual speed indicates that the TA indicated by the base station may be abnormal. Therefore, based on the condition that the estimated speed is greater than the actual speed, the accuracy of determining whether the second TA is abnormal can be improved.

[0008] In some implementation manners, the process of determining that the first condition is met includes: in the case where the first message and the second message are messages sent in the same cell, determining whether the first condition is met. If the first message and the second message are messages sent in the same cell, then if the absolute difference is large, it is very likely that the second TA is abnormal. Therefore, determining whether the cells are the same cell can further improve the accuracy of determining whether the second TA is abnormal.

[0009] In some implementations, the first message indicates a first time offset, and the second message indicates a second time offset. The first time offset is used to generate a first TA, and the second time offset is used to generate a second TA. The process of determining whether the first condition is met includes: when the absolute difference between the first time offset and the second time offset is not equal to zero, determining whether the first condition is met. If the absolute difference between the first time offset and the second time offset is equal to zero, it means that the TA indicated by the second message is the same as the TA indicated by the first message. Also, because of the mechanism that the TA stored in the terminal is the TA indicated by the most recently (i.e., the previous) received message, even if the TA indicated by the message received this time is inaccurate (i.e., incorrect), it cannot be replaced with the correct TA. Therefore, there is no need to further determine whether the first condition is met to save resources.

[0010] In some implementations, the first message and / or the second message includes: TAC.

[0011] The second aspect of this application provides a method for processing TA, which is applied to a terminal. The terminal is in a low-speed movement state, and low-speed movement includes a movement speed less than a speed threshold. The method includes: receiving messages sent by a base station multiple times. The messages received multiple times include a first message and a second message received after the first message. The first message indicates a first TA, and the second message indicates a second TA. In response to meeting the first condition, an uplink signal is sent using the first TA to obtain an uplink transmission bit error rate that meets the requirements. Meeting the requirements includes: being less than a first bit error rate threshold. The first condition includes: the estimated speed is greater than the actual speed. The estimated speed is obtained based on the first message and the second message, and the actual speed is obtained based on sensor data collected by a sensor on the terminal. Using the messages received within a period of time as a basis for determining whether the TA is incorrect is equivalent to introducing the relationship between the TAs indicated by continuously received messages as a basis for judgment. Therefore, it is possible to more accurately determine whether the TA is incorrect.

[0012] In some implementations, the first condition further includes: the uplink transmission bit error rate is greater than a second bit error rate threshold. When the uplink transmission bit error rate is not greater than the second bit error rate threshold, it means that it is possible that the second TA is not abnormal, and there is no need to perform subsequent processing steps for TA abnormality to save resources.

[0013] In some implementations, the first message and the second message are consecutively received messages. The first message is the previously received message, and the first message indicates a first time offset, which is used to generate a first TA. The second message indicates a second time offset, which is used to generate a second TA. The process of determining whether the first condition is satisfied includes: determining whether the first condition is satisfied when the result of subtracting the first time offset from the second time offset is greater than or equal to a difference threshold. If the result of subtracting the first time offset from the second time offset is less than the difference threshold, it indicates that the TAs indicated by the messages received before and after may change in a zigzag curve trend rather than being abnormal. Therefore, there is no need to determine the first condition to save resources.

[0014] In some implementations, the first message and the second message are consecutively received messages. The first message indicates a first time offset, which is used to generate a first TA. The second message indicates a second time offset, which is used to generate a second TA. The process of determining whether the first condition is satisfied includes: determining whether the first condition is satisfied when the absolute difference between the first time offset and the second time offset is not equal to zero. If the absolute difference between the first time offset and the second time offset is equal to zero, it indicates that the TA indicated by the second message (the message received this time) is the same as the TA indicated by the first message (the message received last time). Also, because of the mechanism that the TA stored in the terminal is the TA indicated by the most recently received message, even if the TA indicated by the message received this time is inaccurate (i.e., incorrect), it cannot be replaced with the correct TA. Therefore, there is no need to determine whether the first condition is satisfied to save resources.

[0015] In some implementations, the first message and the second message are consecutively received messages. The process of determining whether the first condition is satisfied includes: determining whether the first condition is satisfied when the first message and the second message are messages sent under the same cell. If the first message and the second message are messages sent from the same cell, then if the absolute difference is large, it is very likely that the second TA is abnormal. Therefore, determining whether the cells are the same can further improve the accuracy of determining whether the second TA is abnormal.

[0016] In some implementations, sending an uplink signal using the first TA includes: sending an uplink signal using the first TA when the terminal has performed an access process again. Performing the access process again includes an access process performed again in the first cell after performing an initial random access process in the first cell. If the terminal has performed an access process again after the initial access process, it indicates that the correct TA cannot be obtained through the access process either. Then, the most recent TA before the determined abnormal TA, that is, the first TA, is used to send the uplink signal to obtain correct uplink synchronization as much as possible.

[0017] In some implementations, the method provided in the second aspect further includes: in the case where the terminal does not perform the access procedure again, initiate an access procedure in the first cell, and in response to the successful access procedure, obtain a third TA to obtain correct uplink synchronization through the access.

[0018] In some implementations, the method provided in the second aspect further includes: in response to the failure of the access procedure, trigger a redirection procedure, and after being redirected to the second cell through the redirection procedure, obtain a fourth TA through the access procedure in the second cell to obtain correct uplink synchronization as much as possible.

[0019] In some implementations, the method provided in the second aspect further includes: in response to the failure of the access procedure, mark the first cell as an abnormal cell to reduce the possibility of uplink synchronization anomalies caused by accessing the abnormal cell again in the future.

[0020] The third aspect of the present application provides an electronic device, including: a memory and at least one processor; the memory is used to store application programs, and the at least one processor is used to execute the application programs to implement the processing method for TA provided in the first aspect or the second aspect of the present application.

[0021] The fourth aspect of the present application provides a computer storage medium for storing a computer program, and when the computer program is executed, it is used to implement the processing method for TA provided in the first aspect or the second aspect of the present application.

[0022] The fifth aspect of the present application provides a chip, characterized in that it includes a modem, and the modem is used to run the processing method for TA provided in the first aspect or the second aspect of the present application.

[0023] The sixth aspect of the present application provides a computer program product, and when the computer program product runs on a computer, it causes the computer to execute the processing method for TA provided in the first aspect or the second aspect of the present application. Description of the Drawings

[0024] Figure 1 An example diagram of the time synchronization of the uplink signal received by the base station;

[0025] Figure 2 A flowchart of a processing method for TA provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0026] Figure 3 A flowchart of another processing method for TA provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0027] Figure 4 An example diagram of the structure of a terminal provided by an embodiment of the present application. Detailed Embodiments

[0028] The technical solutions in the embodiments of the present application will be clearly and completely described below with reference to the accompanying drawings in the embodiments of the present application. The terms used in the following embodiments are only for the purpose of describing specific embodiments and are not intended to limit the present application. As used in the specification and appended claims of the present application, the singular forms "a", "an", "the", "above-mentioned", "said", and "this" are also intended to include the forms such as "one or more", unless clearly indicated to the contrary in the context. It should also be understood that in the embodiments of the present application, "one or more" means one, two, or more than two; "and / or" describes the association relationship of associated objects and means that three relationships may exist; for example, A and / or B may represent: A exists alone, A and B exist simultaneously, and B exists alone, where A and B may be singular or plural. The character " / " generally means that the associated objects before and after are in an "or" relationship.

[0029] Referring to "one embodiment" or "some embodiments" described in this specification means that specific features, structures, or characteristics described in connection with the embodiment are included in one or more embodiments of the present application. Thus, the statements "in one embodiment", "in some embodiments", "in other some embodiments", "in still other embodiments", etc. that appear in different places in this specification do not necessarily refer to the same embodiment, but mean "one or more but not all embodiments", unless otherwise specifically emphasized. The terms "comprising", "including", "having" and their variants mean "including but not limited to", unless otherwise specifically emphasized.

[0030] The "multiple" involved in the embodiments of the present application means greater than or equal to two. It should be noted that in the description of the embodiments of the present application, the terms "first", "second", etc. are only used for the purpose of distinguishing descriptions and cannot be understood as indicating or implying relative importance, nor can they be understood as indicating or implying an order.

[0031] The time division duplexing (TDD) radio frame (hereinafter simply referred to as the radio frame) used by the base station includes a downlink part and an uplink part. The downlink part is used for the base station to send downlink signals to the terminal, and the uplink part is used for the base station to receive the uplink signals sent by the terminal.

[0032] It can be understood that the base station has requirements for the time to receive the uplink signal, that is, the base station needs to receive the uplink signal at a specified time, such as the starting moment T of the uplink part.

[0033] Since it takes time for signals to be transmitted in space, in order to ensure that the base station receives the uplink signal within the specified time, the time at which the terminal sends the uplink signal to the base station needs to be determined based on the radio frame used by the base station and the transmission delay of the signal.

[0034] Moreover, for multiple terminals, the greater the distance of the terminal from the base station, the greater the signal transmission delay. If the uplink signals of multiple terminals do not reach the base station within the same time range (such as the cyclic prefix (CP)), it may not be possible to ensure the orthogonality of the uplink signals between different terminals, resulting in inter-symbol interference and further affecting the performance of uplink communication.

[0035] To solve the above problems, the base station needs to configure a timing advance (TA) for the terminal. TA specifies the advance amount of the uplink signal transmission time compared to the time specified by the radio frame used by the base station. In practical applications, TA is the advance amount based on the time when the terminal receives the downlink signal, that is, the terminal sends the uplink signal TA in advance at the moment when it receives the downlink signal, which can ensure that the uplink signal is received at the specified time of the radio frame. Moreover, the base station assigns different TAs to terminals at different distances from the base station, so that the uplink signals of different terminals basically reach the base station within the same time range, thereby reducing the possibility of inter-symbol interference.

[0036] Take Figure 1 as an example. The time axis T1 represents the moment when the base station sends the downlink signal (DL symbol), and the time axis T2 represents the receiving moment of the uplink signal specified by the radio frame. Figure 1 In

[0037] After the DL symbol experiences the transmission duration Tp1, it is received by terminal 1. In order to ensure that the uplink signal (UL symbol) reaches the base station at the time T2 specified by the base station, considering the signal transmission delay, terminal 1 sends the UL symbol TA1 = 2 * Tp1 in advance based on the moment when it receives the DL symbol. TA1 can ensure that the base station receives the UL symbol of terminal 1 at T2.

[0038] Compared with terminal 1, terminal 2 is farther from the base station. Assuming that the delay required for the DL symbol to be transmitted from the base station to terminal 2 is Tp2, then terminal 2 sends the UL symbol TA2 = 2 * Tp2 in advance compared to the moment when it receives the DL symbol. TA2 can ensure that the base station receives the UL symbol of terminal 1 at T2, and it can be understood that TA1 and TA2 can ensure that their respective UL symbols reach the base station at the same time, that is, align the time when the base station receives the UL symbol.

[0039] That is to say, based on Figure 1 , from the perspective of the terminal side, TA is essentially a negative offset between the start time of receiving the downlink subframe and the time of transmitting the uplink subframe. By appropriately controlling the time offset of each terminal, the base station can control the arrival times of the uplink signals from different terminals to be basically aligned. For terminals farther from the base station, due to the larger transmission delay, they need to send uplink data earlier than terminals closer to the base station. At the same time, from Figure 1 , it can be seen that the time when the base station receives the uplink symbol is the same as the time when it sends the downlink symbol, while there is an offset between the time when the terminal sends the uplink symbol and the time when it receives the downlink symbol. From Figure 1 , it can also be seen that different terminals have their own different TA values, that is, the TA value is a terminal-level configuration. TA is also referred to as round trip time (RTT).

[0040] The following will illustrate an example of the way the base station configures TA for the terminal:

[0041] In the process of the terminal initially accessing the base station, the terminal sends a preamble to the base station in the first step of the access process. The base station measures the preamble to obtain the initial TA and, in the second step of the access process, sends the initial TA to the terminal through the Timing Advance Command (TAC) field in the Random Access Response (RAR) message (i.e., message 2). The length of this field is exemplified as 12 bits in the NR standard and 11 bits in the LTE standard.

[0042] The terminal sends an uplink signal to the base station based on the initial TA in the TAC. That is, the terminal obtains the initial TA during the process of initially accessing the base station.

[0043] After the terminal accesses the base station, due to reasons such as the high-speed movement of the terminal (e.g., the terminal is on a moving high-speed train), the switching of the transmission path between the terminal and the base station (e.g., the user walks to the corner of a building in a city with dense buildings while carrying the terminal), the cumulative offset of the terminal's crystal oscillator over a long time resulting in an incorrect uplink timing, and the Doppler frequency shift caused by the movement of the terminal, the time delay of the uplink signal arriving at the base station may change, that is, the terminal changes from the uplink synchronization state to the uplink out-of-sync state.

[0044] Therefore, in order to keep the terminal in an uplink synchronization state with the base station, the base station measures the time of the uplink signals sent by the terminal (including but not limited to Sounding Reference Signal (SRS), Channel Quality Indicator (CQI), Hybrid Automatic Repeat-reques (HARQ), and Physical Uplink Shared Channel (PUSCH), etc.), updates the TA, and sends the updated TA to the terminal at an appropriate time. This process is called the uplink synchronization update process.

[0045] The uplink synchronization update process includes: the base station sends a TAC MAC layer control element (MAC control element, TAC MAC CE) to the terminal, and the terminal has saved the most recent time advance adjustment value NTA old (NTA refers to a variable carried by RAR or MAC CE). After receiving the TAC MAC CE, the terminal calculates the latest time advance adjustment value NTA new .

[0046] That is to say, the TA obtained by the terminal through the initial random access process can be regarded as an absolute value, that is, a TA value, and the adjustment value (time offset) is obtained through the uplink synchronization update process. Based on the adjustment value (time offset), the TA value is adjusted to obtain a new TA value. In either case, it can be understood that messages sent by the base station, such as TAC, all indicate TA.

[0047] It can be understood that the above is the mechanism adopted by the base station to ensure the uplink synchronization state of the terminal. The mechanism adopted by the terminal to ensure the uplink synchronization state is as follows: the base station configures a timing threshold for the terminal, indicating the validity period of TA (such as the Time Alignment Timer). Each time the terminal receives a TA, it resets the time alignment timer. After the duration of the time alignment timer exceeds the timer threshold, it means that the terminal has not received a TA for a long time, and the TA recorded by the terminal has expired and is no longer suitable for transmitting uplink signals using this TA. Instead, the terminal needs to re-initiate the process of accessing the base station to obtain the initial TA again.

[0048] The inventors found during the research process that although the mechanisms adopted by the base station and the terminal described above can ensure the uplink synchronization state between the terminal and the base station, they cannot avoid the base station from sending incorrect TAs.

[0049] In the case where the base station incorrectly calculates the TA due to certain reasons (such as incompatibility issues caused by base station and / or terminal upgrades), the terminal receives an incorrect TA and sends an uplink signal with the incorrect TA, which may lead to the destruction of the orthogonality of the uplink transmission, cause intra-cell interference, and then result in a relatively high bit error rate in the uplink transmission, affecting the effective transmission of data (such as call freezes or even dropped calls).

[0050] To solve the problem of relatively high uplink bit error rate caused by the terminal not receiving the correct TA, in the embodiments of the present application, a processing method and device for the TA are provided, aiming to identify abnormal (i.e., incorrect) TAs and process the abnormal TAs, thereby preventing the terminal from using abnormal TAs.

[0051] The processing method for the TA disclosed in the embodiments of the present application is applied in but not limited to the following scenarios:

[0052] The base station and the terminal are devices in a Long Term Evolution (LTE) system, an LTE Time Division Duplex (TDD) system, an LTE-Advanced (LTE-A) system, a Fifth Generation Mobile Communication Systems (5G), or a 5G New Radio (5G NR, which can be abbreviated as NR).

[0053] The base station is a wireless device in the above communication system and can also be referred to as the next Generation Node (gNB), etc.

[0054] The terminal can also be referred to as Terminal Equipment, User Equipment (UE), Mobile Station (MS), and Mobile Terminal, etc.

[0055] In addition to being applicable to the scenario of a single sub - carrier, the method described in this embodiment is also applicable to the carrier aggregation scenario. In the carrier aggregation scenario, different carriers supported by the terminal (including one primary carrier and the rest being secondary carriers) are allowed to have different TA values. For this scenario, the concept of Timing Advance Group (TAG) is introduced. A TAG can include the TAs of one or more serving cells, and one or more serving cells have the same TA. If the TAG only contains the TA of the Primary Cell (Pcell), it is called the primary timing advance group. If it only contains the TAs of secondary cells, it is called the secondary timing advance group (sTAG). In the Rel 11 standard, due to radio frequency limitations, carrier aggregation allows a maximum of two downlink carriers. Therefore, there are at most two TAGs. The concept of TAG is carried over in NR. For the carrier aggregation scenario, the following process can be executed for each cell one by one.

[0056] To implement the handling of abnormal TAs, the embodiment of this application improves the TA update logic of the baseband processor of the terminal. It can be understood that the baseband processor includes a modem. In this embodiment, the modem executes Figure 2 the processing method for TA shown Figure 2 which includes the following steps:

[0057] S101. Receive the TAC[i] sent by the base station. TAC[i] is the i - th TAC received by the terminal, and i is a value greater than or equal to 0.

[0058] If i > 0, it means that before executing the Figure 2 shown process, uplink synchronization has been established between the terminal and the base station, that is, the base station has sent at least one TAC to the terminal, and the NTA has been stored in the terminal old . If i = 0, it means that TAC[i] is the TAC received by the terminal for the first time in the current cell.

[0059] As described above, the terminal obtains the TA as an absolute value through the initial random access process, while the TAC obtained after the initial access indicates the time offset. For the convenience of description, for the TA indicated by the TAC hereinafter, if it is the TAC sent by the initial random access process, it is the absolute TA, and if it is the TAC sent after the initial random access process, it is the TA adjusted based on the time offset.

[0060] S102. Determine whether Pci[i]=Pci[i - 1] holds.

[0061] Pci[i] is the cell where the terminal is located when TAC[i] is received, and Pci[i - 1] is the cell where the terminal is located when TAC[i - 1] is received. Pci[i] = Pci[i - 1] means that Pci[i] is equal to Pci[i - 1].

[0062] If the cell where the terminal is located changes (i.e., it is not the same cell), then the TA needs to be updated, and it is very likely that the TA after the cell change is quite different from the TA stored by the terminal. Therefore, the NTA stored by the terminal last time old cannot be used. So, when Pci[i] is not equal to Pci[i - 1] (i.e., the judgment result is no), update the TA according to the existing standard (logic), that is, execute S107. When the judgment result is yes, execute S103.

[0063] S103. Judge whether |TAC[i] - TAC[i - 1]|!= 0 holds.

[0064] |TAC[i] - TAC[i - 1]|!= 0 means that the absolute difference between TAC[i] and TAC[i - 1] is not equal to 0.

[0065] If the absolute difference between TAC[i] and TAC[i - 1] is equal to 0, it means that the TA indicated by the TAC received this time is the same as the TA indicated by the TAC received last time. Also, because of the mechanism that the TA stored in the terminal is the TA indicated by the TAC received most recently (i.e., last time), so, even if the TA indicated by the TAC received this time is inaccurate (i.e., wrong), it cannot be replaced with the correct TA. Therefore, it is not necessary to execute the subsequent steps. That is, if the judgment result is no, execute S107, and if the judgment result is yes, execute S104.

[0066] S104. Judge whether |TAC[i] - TAC[i - 1]| > 5 holds.

[0067] |TAC[i] - TAC[i - 1]| represents the absolute difference between the TA indicated by the base station last time and the TA indicated by the base station this time. If the absolute difference between TAC[i] and TAC[i - 1] is too large, it means that the TA indicated this time may be wrong.

[0068] It can be understood that 5 is an example of the threshold representing too large an absolute difference. The threshold representing too large an absolute difference in this step is called the first threshold, and the first threshold can be set based on experience and pre - configured in the terminal.

[0069] In some implementations, when the terminal is in a low-speed movement state, the range of the first threshold is [3, 6]. In some other implementations, when the terminal is in a high-speed movement state, the range of the first threshold is [7, 20]. The low-speed movement state can be understood as the state where the movement speed is within the first speed range, such as when a user walks with the terminal or is stationary, and the high-speed movement state can be understood as the state where the movement speed is within the second speed range, such as when a user takes the terminal on a high-speed train. The first speed range and the second speed range can be configured as needed.

[0070] It can be understood that if the absolute difference between TAC[i] and TAC[i - 1] is less than the first threshold, it indicates that the difference between the TA indicated by the base station last time and the TA indicated by the base station this time is small, and it is very likely that the TA indicated by TAC[i] is correct. Therefore, when the judgment result of S104 is yes, S105 is executed, and when the judgment result of S104 is no, S107 is executed.

[0071] S105. Judge whether (((|TAC[i] - 31| * 16 * 64 * Tc) / 2 μ ) * c) / (T TAC[i] - T TAC[i-1] ) > 2 * sensor speed holds.

[0072] T TAC[i] represents the time when the i-th TAC is received, and T TAC[i-1] represents the time when the (i - 1)-th TAC is received, and T TAC[i] - T TAC[i-1] represents the time interval between the i-th and (i - 1)-th transmissions of TAC. Since the subcarrier spacing of NR is extended in powers of 2 based on 15 kHz of LTE, μ represents the subcarrier. Tc is a time unit in the NR system, and (16 * 64 * Tc) / 2 μ represents the actual adjustment amount indicated by TAC for a system with a subcarrier spacing of 2 μ * 15 KHz, that is, the basic unit of TAC adjustment. (|TAC[i] - 31| * 16 * 64) / 2 μ represents the absolute difference between T TAC[i] and T TAC[i-1] . Based on Figure 1 it can be known that this absolute difference can represent the offset of the time before and after the movement of the terminal. c represents the speed of light, that is, the speed of electromagnetic wave transmission. Therefore, represents the distance that the terminal moves during the interval between T TAC[i-1] and T TAC[i] . (((|TAC[i] - 31| * 16 * 64 * Tc) / 2 μ ) * c) / (T TAC[i] - T TAC[i-1])Indicates at T TAC[i-1] and T TAC[i] The speed at which the terminal moves during the interval of

[0073] The sensor speed is the speed sensed by the speed sensor configured in the terminal, indicating the speed at which the terminal moves.

[0074] (((|TAC[i] - 31| * 16 * 64) / 2 μ ) * c) / (T TAC[i] - T TAC[i-1] ) > 2 * sensor speed indicates the difference between the moving speed (estimated speed) of the terminal calculated based on TAC and the moving speed (which can be understood as the actual speed of the terminal) sensed by the sensor.

[0075] If the judgment result of S105 is yes, it means that the moving speed of the terminal obtained based on TAC is greater than the actual speed of the terminal, and the gap is large (which can be understood as much greater than), so it is possible that the TA indicated by TAC[i] is incorrect. Therefore, execute S106. If the judgment result of S105 is no, it means that the moving speed of the terminal obtained based on TAC is relatively close to the actual moving speed of the terminal, and the possibility that the TA indicated by TAC[i] is correct is relatively high. So execute S107.

[0076] It can be understood that the value 2 is only an example, which is called the coefficient threshold here. The coefficient threshold can be pre-configured in the terminal. The value range of the coefficient is related to the type of the terminal. In some implementation manners, if the terminal is a user-carried type of terminal such as a mobile phone or a watch, low-speed movement is normal, and an example of the value range of the coefficient threshold is [3, 6]. In some other implementation manners, if the terminal is a locomotive and high-speed movement is normal, an example of the value range of the coefficient threshold is [7, 20]. S106: Use the TA indicated by TAC[i - 1] as the latest TA, that is, TA = TAC[i - 1].

[0077] Because the TA indicated by TAC[i - 1] has been stored in the terminal, in some implementation manners, the processing module discards the TA indicated by TAC[i]. And it does not process the already stored TA.

[0078] It can be understood that TA = TAC[i - 1] means using the TA indicated by TAC[i - 1] as the latest TA. In some cases, it is possible that the TAC[i - 1] carries an offset, and the TA indicated by TAC[i - 1] can be understood as the TA calculated based on this offset on the basis of the existing TA.

[0079] S107: Use the TA indicated by TAC[i] as the latest TA, that is, TA = TAC[i].

[0080] FromFigure 2 As can be seen from the shown process, the anomaly judgment module determines whether the TA indicated by the latest received TAC is correct based on pre-configured conditions. If it is determined to be incorrect, the processing module uses the TA indicated by the previously received TAC as the latest TA to reduce the problem of a relatively high uplink transmission error rate caused by incorrect TAs.

[0081] It can be understood that if the terminal is in a high-speed moving state (the moving speed is within the second speed range), the change in the TA sent by the base station twice before and after is likely to be relatively large. However, if the terminal is not in a high-speed moving state (low-speed movement includes stationary, and the moving speed is within the first speed range), if the change in the TA sent by the base station twice before and after is large, it is very likely that the TA calculation is incorrect. In this case, the uplink transmission of the terminal has a relatively high error rate. Figure 2 S105 in the shown process is set based on the above principle, and the processing method of S106 is conducive to reducing the uplink transmission error rate of the terminal.

[0082] while Figure 2 The purpose of S102 - S104 shown is to qualitatively judge the possibility of the error of the TA received most recently from multiple dimensions. If the possibility is not high, the process is ended, aiming to save resources. And it can be understood that the judgment condition of S103 is within the coverage of the judgment condition of S104, so S103 and S104 can be combined into S104. Therefore, S102 - S104 are optional steps.

[0083] In summary, Figure 2 The shown process can be summarized as: when the terminal is moving at a low speed (that is, the moving speed is within the first speed range, such as stationary or walking indoors), the terminal determines that the absolute difference between the TA indicated by the TAC[i] sent by the base station and the TA indicated by the TAC[i - 1] is greater than the difference threshold. However, the terminal uses the TA indicated by the TAC[i - 1] to transmit the uplink signal, and the uplink transmission error rate is less than the uplink error rate threshold.

[0084] In some implementation manners, software modules that can run are configured in the modem: an anomaly judgment module and a processing module. Figure 2 S101 - S105 shown are executed by the anomaly judgment module, and S106 and S107 are executed by the processing module.

[0085] Figure 3 As another processing method for the TA, the main difference from Figure 2 the shown process is that it determines whether the TA is abnormal from the continuously received TACs. That is to say, it can identify the scenario where consecutive TACs indicate incorrect TAs and perform processing.

[0086] That is, in the same cell, the following judgments are made on the TACs sent by the base station in the most recent 10 consecutive times: First, if there is a change in the TA each time compared to the previous TA, the absolute difference between the TA indicated by the currently sent TAC and the first TA when counting starts is used to calculate the moving speed V1 of the terminal. V1 is compared with 2 times the speed V2 obtained by the terminal's sensor. If V1 is less than V2, it is considered that the change in TA is caused by the high-speed movement of the terminal, and the TA is changed to the TA indicated by the latest TAC, and new TACs are continuously received. If V1 is greater than V2, and the bit error rate of the uplink transmission is greater than 40% at this time, then it is considered that the TA indicated by the latest TAC sent by the base station is an outlier. That is to say, sending the uplink signal with the TA indicated by the latest TAC will destroy the orthogonality of the uplink transmission and cause intra-cell interference. In this case, the UE initiates a random access for uplink synchronization. If the random access is successful, the above abnormal judgment is continued. If no abnormality is detected, it is considered that the uplink synchronization is successfully restored. If the random access fails, the current cell is added to the blacklist and then redirection is triggered to access a new cell. If an abnormality is still detected after the random access, the terminal uses the TAC at the time when the abnormality was last detected as the time advance for sending the uplink frame, and discards all TACs received after that time.

[0087] The implementation based on the above guidance is as Figure 3 shown Figure 3 The process shown includes the following steps:

[0088] S201. Receive the TAC[i] sent by the base station. For details, refer to S101.

[0089] S202. Determine whether Pci[i] = Pci[i - 1] holds. If it does, execute S204; if not, execute S203.

[0090] For S202, refer to S102.

[0091] S203. Set the identifier of the random access (RA) to 0 (RA flag = 0), and set the value of the TA counter to 0 (TA counter = 0).

[0092] The identifier of RA indicates whether a random access has been performed again in the current cell except for the initial random access. It can be understood that when the judgment result of S202 is yes, it means that the terminal has performed at least one more access in addition to the initial access, so the identifier of RA is set to 1; otherwise, the identifier of RA is set to 0.

[0093] It can be understood that in combination with the logic of jumping from S202 to execute S203, before S203, the terminal has not performed a random access in the current cell. Therefore, the identifier of RA is set to 0.

[0094] The purpose of the TA counter is to count the number of received TACs, so as to judge whether the TA indicated by the latest received TAC is abnormal based on the continuously received TACs for multiple times.

[0095] The initial value of the TA counter is 0. For the convenience of description, the value of the TA counter is denoted as TA counter.

[0096] S204. Judge whether |TAC[i] - TAC[i - 1]|!= 0 holds. If it is, execute S205; if not, execute S209.

[0097] S204 can refer to S103.

[0098] S205. Increment TA counter by 1 (TA counter++).

[0099] Combined with S205 and S203, it can be seen that starting from S206, it is the step of judging whether the TA indicated by the base station is incorrect based on the continuously received TACs for multiple times (10 times in this embodiment). The purpose of S204 is that if the TAs indicated by the TACs received twice before and after are the same, it means that the TA is very likely not incorrect. Therefore, it is not used as the basis for subsequent judgment and no subsequent judgment is made to save resources and power consumption. It can be understood that S204 may not be executed either.

[0100] S206. Judge whether TAC[i] - TAC[i - 1] ≥ 1 holds. If not, execute S209; if it is, execute S207.

[0101] TAC[i] - TAC[i - 1] represents the difference between the TA indicated by the base station for the (i - 1)-th time and the TA indicated for the i-th time. If the difference between TAC[i] and TAC[i - 1] is less than 1, it means that the TA indicated by the TACs received twice before and after has decreased. Then, the TAs indicated by the TACs received before and after may change in a zigzag curve trend, indicating that the TA indicated for the i-th time is very likely not incorrect compared with the TA indicated for the (i - 1)-th time. Therefore, when the judgment result of S206 is yes, execute S207; when the judgment result of S206 is no, execute S209.

[0102] It can be understood that 1 is an example representing the difference threshold. The difference threshold in this step is called the second threshold, and the second threshold can be set based on experience and pre-configured in the terminal.

[0103] It can be understood that because this embodiment judges whether the TA is abnormal based on the TACs received multiple times, the second threshold is less than the first threshold, and an ideal judgment result can also be obtained.

[0104] In some implementations, the range of the second threshold is [1, 3].

[0105] S207. Judge whether the sensor speed is valid. If it is, execute S208; if not, execute S209.

[0106] Referring to S105, it can be understood that the sensor speed represents the difference between the moving speed of the terminal calculated based on TAC and the moving speed of the terminal sensed by the sensor (which can be understood as the actual speed of the terminal).

[0107] If the judgment result of S207 is yes, it means that the moving speed of the terminal obtained based on TAC is greater than the actual speed of the terminal, and the gap is large (which can be understood as much greater than), so it is possible that the TA indicated by TAC[i] is incorrect. Therefore, execute S208.

[0108] If the judgment result of S207 is no, it means that the moving speed of the terminal obtained based on TAC is relatively close to the actual moving speed of the terminal, and the possibility that the TA indicated by TAC[i] is correct is relatively high. So execute S209.

[0109] Moreover, it can be understood that the judgment method described in S207 can determine the error of the TA indicated by the continuously received TACs increasing in a continuous linear curve or a stepped curve, etc. within a period of time (such as receiving 10 TACs), and can filter out the situation of the zigzag jitter of the TAC values.

[0110] S208. Judge whether TA counter ≤ 10 and the bit error rate of the uplink transmission ≥ 40% hold. If it is, execute S210; if not, execute S209.

[0111] TA counter ≤ 10 indicates that the TAC received within 10 times is used as the judgment basis. It can be understood that 10 is only an example, which is called the number threshold here. The example of the value range of the number threshold is [8, 30].

[0112] The bit error rate of the uplink transmission ≥ 40% indicates that the bit error rate of the uplink transmission is relatively high. It can be understood that 40% is only an example, which is called the bit error rate threshold here. The example of the value range of the bit error rate threshold is [20%, 40%].

[0113] As described above, when the judgment result of S207 is yes, it can be determined that TA has an error in the form of continuous linear curve or stepped curve increase. However, the inventor found during the research process that the error in the form of continuous linear growth of TA within a certain period of time may not affect the uplink transmission. Therefore, S208 can exclude this situation to save resources. It can be understood that the judgment condition of the bit error rate is an optional condition, and the bit error rate can also not be judged.

[0114] If the judgment result of S208 is yes, it indicates that based on the multiple received TACs, the TA indicated by the latest received TAC is abnormal, then S210 is executed. If the judgment result of S208 is no, it indicates that the preset number of TACs has not been judged enough, or the bit error rate is not high, then S209 is executed.

[0115] S209: Set the TA counter to 0 (TA counter = 0). After S209, return to execute S201.

[0116] S210: Judge whether the identifier of RA is 0. If it is, execute S211. If it is not, execute S212.

[0117] S211: Use the TA indicated by TAC[i - 1] as the latest TA, that is, TA = TAC[i - 1], and discard TAC[i].

[0118] Specifically, refer to S106.

[0119] S212: Initiate a random access procedure to the base station.

[0120] After continuous TA anomaly, it can be considered that the UE and the base station side are out of sync at this time. In some implementation manners, the random access procedure is the non-synchronised type of random access procedure specified in the protocol.

[0121] It can be understood that after the random access procedure ends, the terminal obtains the TA, that is, establishes uplink synchronization with the base station again.

[0122] S213: Set the identifier of RA to 1 (RA flag = 1).

[0123] S214: Judge whether the random access procedure is successful. If it is, execute S215. If it is not, execute S216.

[0124] The success of the random access procedure indicates that the uplink synchronization with the base station has been obtained, so S215 is executed.

[0125] S215: Use the TA indicated by the TAC received in the most recent random access procedure as the latest TA.

[0126] It can be understood that after S215, it is possible to return to execute S201 to continuously monitor whether the TA sent by the base station is incorrect and handle it in a timely manner in case of an error. Since the probability that the TA obtained from the random access procedure is correct is relatively high, S215 can ensure that the correct TA is obtained as soon as possible.

[0127] An alternative step of S215 is to record the TA indicated by the TAC sent in the most recent random access procedure after receiving it and return to execute S201. That is to say, after confirming the current re-access, the continuously obtained TAs are correct. Otherwise, the TA obtained after the next random access is not adopted to fully ensure the correctness of the TA.

[0128] S216: Mark the current cell as an abnormal cell and trigger a redirection procedure.

[0129] In some implementation manners, add the current cell to the blacklist to mark it as an abnormal cell.

[0130] The redirection procedure is used for cell reselection. After the terminal is redirected to a new cell, a random access procedure is performed in the new cell to obtain the TA.

[0131] In some implementation manners, after S216, return to execute S201. It can be understood that in the process of returning to execute, after S201 - S210, since random access has been performed in S216, the judgment result of S210 is yes, so S211 is executed. The TAC[i - 1] in S211 is the most recent TAC before the TAC[i] determined to be abnormal.

[0132] In some other implementation manners, execute S215 after S216 and return to execute S201 after S215, aiming to obtain a normal TA as soon as possible.

[0133] From Figure 3 As can be seen from S210 - S216 shown above, for the handling of abnormal TAs, different handling methods are executed according to the severity of the problem: for the case where no random access has been performed except for the initial random access, perform another random access procedure to obtain the TA. If the random access is successful, the obtained TA is used as the latest TA. If the random access fails, it means the problem is more serious, so redirect to a new cell. If the TA in the new cell is still incorrect, it means the problem is even more serious, so the TA before the TA determined to be incorrect is used as the latest TA.

[0134] To sum up, Figure 3In the process shown, the TAC received within a period of time (i.e., multiple TACs) is used as a judgment basis to determine whether the TA is incorrect. This is equivalent to introducing the relationship between the offsets indicated by the TAC as a judgment basis. Therefore, it is possible to more accurately determine whether the TA is incorrect. Moreover, after determining that the TA is incorrect, in addition to discarding the TAC, it is also possible to initiate an access process and a redirection process, which is conducive to increasing the possibility of obtaining correct uplink synchronization.

[0135] It can be understood that Figure 3 The S201 - S209 shown are executed by the exception judgment module running in the modem, and S210 - S216 are executed by the processing module running in the modem.

[0136] The terminal to which the TA processing method described in the above embodiments is applicable can be a mobile phone, a tablet computer, a desktop or laptop notebook computer, an Ultra-mobile Personal Computer (UMPC), a handheld computer, a netbook, a Personal Digital Assistant (PDA), a wearable electronic device, a smart watch, and other call - supported electronic devices.

[0137] Figure 4 This is a component example of a terminal provided by an embodiment of the present application. Taking a mobile phone as an example, the terminal includes a processor 310, an external memory interface 320, an internal memory 321, a display screen 330, a camera 340, antenna 1, antenna 2, a mobile communication module 350, and a wireless communication module 360, etc.

[0138] It can be understood that the structure illustrated in this embodiment does not constitute a specific limitation on the electronic device. In other embodiments, the electronic device may include more or fewer components than those shown, or combine certain components, or split certain components, or have different component arrangements. The illustrated components can be implemented in hardware, software, or a combination of software and hardware.

[0139] The processor 310 may include one or more processing units. For example, the processor 310 may include an application processor (AP), a modem processor, a graphics processing unit (GPU), an image signal processor (ISP), a controller, a video codec, a digital signal processor (DSP), a baseband processor, and / or a neural-network processing unit (NPU), etc. Among them, different processing units may be independent devices or integrated in one or more processors.

[0140] It can be understood that the interface connection relationships between the modules illustrated in this embodiment are only illustrative and do not constitute a structural limitation on the terminal. In other embodiments of the present application, the terminal may also adopt different interface connection methods in the above embodiments, or a combination of multiple interface connection methods.

[0141] The external memory interface 320 may be used to connect to an external memory card, such as a Micro SD card, to implement the storage capacity expansion of the electronic device. The external memory card communicates with the processor 310 through the external memory interface 320 to implement the data storage function. For example, files such as music and videos are saved in the external memory card.

[0142] The internal memory 321 may be used to store computer-executable program codes, and the executable program codes include instructions. The processor 310 executes various functional applications and data processing of the terminal by running the instructions stored in the internal memory 321. The internal memory 321 may include a program storage area and a data storage area. Among them, the program storage area may store an operating system and application programs required for at least one function (such as a sound playback function, an image playback function, etc.). The data storage area may store data created during the use of the electronic device (such as audio data, a phone book, etc.). In addition, the internal memory 321 may include a high-speed random access memory and may also include a non-volatile memory, such as at least one disk storage device, a flash memory device, a universal flash storage (UFS), etc. The processor 310 executes various functional applications and data processing of the electronic device by running the instructions stored in the internal memory 321 and / or the instructions stored in the memory provided in the processor.

[0143] The electronic device realizes the display function through the GPU, the display screen 330, the application processor, etc. The GPU is a microprocessor for image processing, connected to the display screen 330 and the application processor. The GPU is used to execute mathematical and geometric calculations for graphics rendering. The processor 310 may include one or more GPUs, which execute program instructions to generate or change display information.

[0144] The display screen 330 is used to display images, videos, etc. The electronic device can realize the shooting function through the ISP, the camera 340, the video codec, the GPU, the display screen 330, the application processor, etc.

[0145] The wireless communication function of the electronic device can be realized through the antenna 1, the antenna 2, the mobile communication module 350, the wireless communication module 360, the modulation and demodulation processor, the baseband processor, etc.

[0146] The antenna 1 and the antenna 2 are used to transmit and receive electromagnetic wave signals. Each antenna in the electronic device can be used to cover a single or multiple communication frequency bands. Different antennas can also be multiplexed to improve the utilization rate of the antennas. For example: The antenna 1 can be multiplexed as the diversity antenna of the wireless local area network. In some other embodiments, the antenna can be used in combination with a tuning switch.

[0147] The mobile communication module 350 can provide solutions for wireless communications including 2G / 3G / 4G / 5G, etc. applied to the electronic device. The mobile communication module 350 may include at least one filter, switch, power amplifier, low noise amplifier (LNA), etc. The mobile communication module 350 can receive electromagnetic waves through the antenna 1, filter, amplify, etc. the received electromagnetic waves, and transmit them to the modulation and demodulation processor for demodulation. The mobile communication module 350 can also amplify the signal modulated by the modulation and demodulation processor and convert it into electromagnetic waves through the antenna 1 for radiation. In some embodiments, at least some functional modules of the mobile communication module 350 can be disposed in the processor 310. In some embodiments, at least some functional modules of the mobile communication module 350 and at least some modules of the processor 310 can be disposed in the same device.

[0148] In some embodiments, the electronic device initiates or receives a call request through the mobile communication module 350 and the antenna 1.

[0149] The wireless communication module 360 can provide solutions for wireless communications applied to an electronic device, including wireless local area networks (WLANs) (such as wireless fidelity (Wi-Fi) networks), Bluetooth (BT), global navigation satellite system (GNSS), frequency modulation (FM), near field communication (NFC), infrared (IR), etc. The wireless communication module 360 can be one or more devices integrating at least one communication processing module. The wireless communication module 360 receives electromagnetic waves via the antenna 3, performs frequency modulation and filtering processing on the electromagnetic wave signals, and sends the processed signals to the processor 310. The wireless communication module 360 can also receive signals to be sent from the processor 310, perform frequency modulation and amplification on them, and convert them into electromagnetic waves through the antenna 2 for radiation.

[0150] The terminal can implement audio functions through the audio module 370, speaker 370A, receiver 370B, microphone 370C, headphone jack 370D, and the application processor, etc. For example, music playback, recording, etc.

Claims

1. A method for processing the Timing Advance (TA), characterized in that, it is applied to a terminal, the terminal is in a low-speed moving state, and the low-speed movement includes a moving speed within a first speed range. The method includes: receiving a first message sent by a base station, the first message indicating a first TA; after receiving the first message, receiving a second message sent by the base station, the second message indicating a second TA; in response to meeting a first condition, by using the first TA to send an uplink signal, an uplink transmission bit error rate that meets the requirements is obtained. The requirements being met include: being less than a bit error rate threshold. The first condition includes: the absolute difference between the first TA and the second TA is greater than a difference threshold, and an estimated speed is greater than the product of the actual speed and a coefficient threshold. The estimated speed is obtained based on the first message and the second message. The coefficient threshold is related to the type of the terminal, and the actual speed is obtained based on sensor data collected by a sensor on the terminal.

2. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that, the process of determining whether the first condition is met includes: in the case where the first message and the second message are messages sent in the same cell, determining whether the first condition is met.

3. The method according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that, the first message indicates a first time offset, the second message indicates a second time offset, the first time offset is used to generate the first TA, and the second time offset is used to generate the second TA; the process of determining whether the first condition is met includes: in the case where the absolute difference between the first time offset and the second time offset is not equal to zero, determining whether the first condition is met.

4. The method according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that, the first message and / or the second message includes: TAC.

5. A method for processing the Timing Advance (TA), characterized in that, it is applied to a terminal, the terminal is in a low-speed moving state, and the low-speed movement includes a moving speed less than a speed threshold. The method includes: receiving messages sent by the base station multiple times. The messages received multiple times include a first message and a second message received after the first message. The first message indicates a first TA, and the second message indicates a second TA; in response to meeting a first condition, by using the first TA to send an uplink signal, an uplink transmission bit error rate that meets the requirements is obtained. The requirements being met include: being less than a first bit error rate threshold. The first condition includes: an estimated speed is greater than the product of the actual speed and a coefficient threshold. The estimated speed is obtained based on the first message and the second message. The coefficient threshold is related to the type of the terminal, and the actual speed is obtained based on sensor data collected by a sensor on the terminal.

6. The method according to claim 5, characterized in that, the first condition further includes: the uplink transmission bit error rate is greater than a second bit error rate threshold.

7. The method according to claim 5 or 6, characterized in that, The first message and the second message are consecutively received messages, and the first message is the previously received message; The first message indicates a first time offset, and the first time offset is used to generate the first TA. The second message indicates a second time offset, and the second time offset is used to generate a second TA; The process of determining whether the first condition is satisfied includes: When the result of subtracting the first time offset from the second time offset is greater than a difference threshold, determine whether the first condition is satisfied.

8. The method according to claim 5 or 6, characterized in that, The first message and the second message are consecutively received messages. The first message indicates a first time offset, and the first time offset is used to generate the first TA. The second message indicates a second time offset, and the second time offset is used to generate a second TA; The process of determining whether the first condition is satisfied includes: When the absolute difference between the first time offset and the second time offset is not equal to zero, determine whether the first condition is satisfied.

9. The method according to claim 5 or 6, characterized in that, The first message and the second message are consecutively received messages; The process of determining whether the first condition is satisfied includes: When the first message and the second message are messages sent under the same cell, determine whether the first condition is satisfied.

10. The method according to claim 5 or 6, characterized in that, The using the first TA to send an uplink signal includes: When the terminal has performed an access process again, use the first TA to send an uplink signal. The performing the access process again includes an access process performed again in the first cell after an initial random access process in the first cell.

11. The method according to claim 10, characterized in that, further comprising: When the terminal has not performed an access process again, initiate an access process in the first cell; In response to the success of the access process, obtain a third TA.

12. The method according to claim 11, characterized in that, further comprising: In response to the failure of the access process, trigger a redirection process; After being redirected to a second cell through the redirection process, obtain a fourth TA through an access process in the second cell.

13. The method according to claim 11, characterized in that, further comprising: In response to the failure of the access process, mark the first cell as an abnormal cell.

14. A terminal, characterized in that, comprising: a memory and at least one processor; The memory is used to store an application program, and the at least one processor is used to execute the application program to implement the method for processing the TA according to any one of claims 1-13.

15. A computer storage medium for storing a computer program, which when executed, is used to implement the method for processing the TA according to any one of claims 1-13.

16. A chip, characterized in that, It includes a modem which is used to run the processing method for TA described in any one of claims 1 to 13.

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