Communication method, communication device and computer storage medium

Abstract

A communication method, a communication device and a computer storage medium, wherein the communication method comprises: determining a first satellite as an anchor satellite of the terminal device, the anchor satellite being a satellite that establishes a service link with the terminal device and communicates with the terminal device based on the service link, and deploying a first access network device on the first satellite; receiving downlink information from the first access network device, and / or sending uplink information to the first access network device. The implementation of the present application can reduce the forwarding complexity of the context information of the terminal device and save the power consumption of the terminal device.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present application relates to the field of communication technology, and in particular to a communication method, a communication device, and a computer storage medium. Background Art

[0002] In the radio access network (RAN) architecture of non-terrestrial networks (NTN), satellites deploying access network equipment can exchange information with terminal equipment on the ground through service links, and with the ground NTN gateway through feeder links. The ground NTN gateway can establish a communication connection with the core network equipment.

[0003] When the terminal device uses satellite access, there may be discontinuous coverage scenarios. For example, at time T1, the satellite is located above the terminal device, the terminal device is within the satellite coverage, and the service link between the terminal device and the satellite is available, but the NTN gateway is not within the satellite coverage, so the feeder link between the satellite and the NTN gateway is unavailable, and the satellite cannot establish a communication connection with the core network device through the ground NTN gateway. When the satellite moves above the NTN gateway at time T2, the feeder link between the NTN gateway and the satellite is available, but the terminal device is not within the satellite coverage, so the service link between the satellite and the terminal device is unavailable.

[0004] At present, multiple satellites are deployed in the RAN architecture of NTN. There are inter-satellite links between satellites. When the terminal device needs to send uplink information to the network, it will access one of the multiple satellites and send the uplink information to the accessed satellite. Since the feeder link between the accessed satellite and the ground NTN gateway is unavailable, the accessed satellite can forward the uplink information to other satellites through the inter-satellite link, so that other satellites can send the uplink information to the NTN gateway. For the downlink information of the terminal device, the NTN gateway sends the downlink information of the terminal device to a satellite through the feeder link. Since the service link between the satellite and the terminal device is unavailable, the satellite can forward the downlink information to other satellites, so that other satellites can send the downlink information to the terminal device through the service link. From the above, it can be seen that the satellite communicating with the terminal device is random. Since the communication between the terminal device and the satellite requires the context information of the terminal device, the context information of the terminal device needs to be forwarded between satellites, which will increase the forwarding complexity of the context information of the terminal device. Summary of the invention

[0005] The purpose of the present application is to provide a communication method, a communication device and a computer storage medium, wherein the satellite communicating with the terminal device is fixed, thereby avoiding forwarding of context information of the terminal device between satellites and reducing the forwarding complexity of the context information of the terminal device.

[0006] In a first aspect, a communication method is provided, which is applied to a terminal device, comprising:

[0007] Determine a first satellite as an anchor satellite of the terminal device, a first access network device is deployed on the first satellite, and the anchor satellite is a satellite that establishes a service link with the terminal device and communicates with the terminal device based on the service link;

[0008] Receive downlink information from the first access network device, and / or send uplink information to the first access network device.

[0009] In implementing the method of the first aspect, the first satellite is used as an anchor satellite of the terminal device, that is, the terminal device will communicate with the first satellite in a fixed manner. For example, the terminal device receives downlink information from the first satellite and / or sends uplink information to the first satellite. By fixing the satellite communicating with the terminal device, the context information of the terminal device can be avoided from being forwarded between satellites, thereby reducing the complexity of forwarding the context information of the terminal device. In addition, since the satellite with the terminal device is fixed, the terminal device does not need to monitor the paging message all the time in order to avoid missing the downlink information, thereby saving the power consumption of the terminal device. In this application, since the terminal device needs to establish a service link and communicate with a fixed anchor satellite, the real-time transmission of uplink information and / or downlink information will be affected. However, for business scenarios with low real-time requirements, such as the data collection reporting scenario in the Internet of Things, the implementation of the communication method provided by this application will not affect the transmission of uplink information and / or downlink information, and can also achieve better beneficial effects.

[0010] In combination with the first aspect, in a possible implementation manner, the receiving downlink information from the first access network device and / or the sending uplink information to the first access network device includes:

[0011] Establishing a radio resource control (RRC) connection with the first access network device;

[0012] The method further comprises: receiving downlink information from the first access network device based on the RRC connection, and / or sending uplink information to the first access network device based on the RRC connection.

[0013] By implementing this method, when uplink information needs to be sent or downlink information needs to be received, an RRC connection is established with the first access network device, thereby avoiding the need to establish an RRC connection all the time and saving power consumption of the terminal device.

[0014] In combination with the first aspect, in a possible implementation manner, establishing a radio resource control RRC connection with the first access network device includes:

[0015] When the terminal device is located within the coverage of the first satellite and receives a broadcast message from the first access network device, an RRC connection is established with the first access network device, and the broadcast message includes an identifier of the first satellite.

[0016] By implementing this method, an RRC connection is established only when it is determined that the terminal device is within the coverage of the anchor satellite and receives a broadcast message including the identifier of the first satellite. There is no need to monitor all the time to avoid missing downlink information, thereby saving power consumption of the terminal device.

[0017] In combination with the first aspect, in a possible implementation manner, determining the first satellite as an anchor satellite of the terminal device includes:

[0018] receiving first indication information, where the first indication information indicates establishing an anchor point relationship between the first satellite and the terminal device;

[0019] According to the first indication information, the first satellite is determined to be an anchor satellite of the terminal device.

[0020] In implementing this method, the network instructs to establish an anchor point relationship between the first satellite and the terminal device, so that the anchor point satellite determined by the network side and the terminal device is consistent.

[0021] In combination with the first aspect, in a possible implementation manner, the method further includes:

[0022] When the terminal device is located within the coverage of the first satellite and does not receive a broadcast message from the first access network device after monitoring for more than a preset number of times, a second satellite is determined as an anchor satellite for the terminal device.

[0023] When this method is implemented, when the terminal device cannot search for a broadcast message including the identifier of an anchor satellite, the anchor relationship between the first satellite and the terminal device is canceled, and the second satellite is determined as the anchor satellite of the terminal device. The terminal device does not need to continue searching for the first satellite, thereby saving power consumption of the terminal device and reducing information transmission delay.

[0024] In combination with the first aspect, in a possible implementation manner, the method further includes:

[0025] receiving second indication information sent by the first access network device, where the second indication information indicates that the first satellite is no longer an anchor satellite of the terminal device;

[0026] According to the second indication information, a second satellite is determined as an anchor satellite of the terminal device.

[0027] By implementing this method, the network can actively cancel the anchor point relationship between the first satellite and the terminal device, and the terminal device can establish an anchor point relationship with the second satellite to avoid the terminal device from continuing to search for broadcast messages containing the identifier of the first satellite, saving power consumption of the terminal device and reducing information transmission delay.

[0028] In combination with the first aspect, in a possible implementation manner, determining the second satellite as an anchor satellite of the terminal device includes:

[0029] Establishing an RRC connection with a second access network device, where the second access network device is deployed on a second satellite;

[0030] receiving third indication information from the second access network device, wherein the third indication information indicates establishing an anchor point relationship between the second satellite and the terminal device;

[0031] According to the third indication information, the second satellite is determined to be an anchor satellite of the terminal device.

[0032] By implementing this method, after canceling the anchor point relationship between the first satellite and the terminal device, the anchor point relationship between the second satellite and the terminal device can be established, thereby facilitating the transmission of uplink information and downlink information of the terminal device and improving the communication success rate.

[0033] In a second aspect, a communication method is provided, which is applied to a core network device, including:

[0034] receiving downlink information, wherein the downlink information is downlink information sent to a terminal device;

[0035] Determining that the anchor satellite of the terminal device is a first satellite, a first access network device is deployed on the first satellite, and the anchor satellite is a satellite that establishes a service link with the terminal device and communicates with the terminal device based on the service link;

[0036] The downlink information is sent to the first access network device.

[0037] When implementing the method of the second aspect, the core network device sends the downlink information of the terminal device to the anchor satellite of the terminal device when receiving the downlink information of the terminal device. The anchor satellite of the terminal device communicates with the terminal device, thereby avoiding forwarding the context information of the terminal device between satellites and increasing complexity.

[0038] In conjunction with the second aspect, in a possible implementation manner, the method further includes:

[0039] receiving a first request message from the first access network device, where the first request message is used to request to establish an anchor point relationship between the first satellite and the terminal device;

[0040] Sending a first response message to the first access network device, where the first response message indicates that establishment of an anchor point relationship between the first satellite and the terminal device is allowed;

[0041] After the anchor point relationship between the first satellite and the terminal device is established, the anchor point satellite of the terminal device is the first satellite.

[0042] In implementing this method, the core network device interacts with the access network device to determine the anchor satellite of the terminal device as the first satellite, so that the core network device and the access network device both use the first satellite as the anchor satellite of the terminal device.

[0043] In conjunction with the second aspect, in a possible implementation manner, the method further includes:

[0044] receiving a second request message from the first access network device, where the second request message is used to request that the first satellite no longer be an anchor satellite for the terminal device;

[0045] A second response message is sent to the first access network device, where the second response message indicates that the first satellite is allowed to no longer be an anchor satellite for the terminal device.

[0046] When this method is implemented, the core network device interacts with the access network device, cancels the anchor point relationship between the terminal device and the first satellite, and the core network device will not send the downlink information of the terminal device to the first satellite subsequently.

[0047] According to a third aspect, a communication method is provided, which is applied to an access network device, where the access network device is deployed on a first satellite. The method includes:

[0048] Sending first indication information to a terminal device, where the first indication information indicates establishing an anchor point relationship between the first satellite and the terminal device;

[0049] After establishing the anchor relationship between the first satellite and the terminal device, the anchor satellite of the terminal device is the first satellite, and the anchor satellite is a satellite that establishes a service link with the terminal device and communicates with the terminal device based on the service link.

[0050] Implementing this approach facilitates establishing an anchor point relationship between the first satellite and the terminal device, thereby preventing context information of the terminal device from being forwarded between satellites.

[0051] In combination with the third aspect, in a possible implementation manner, before sending the first indication information to the terminal device, the method further includes:

[0052] Sending a first request message to a core network device, where the first request message is used to request to establish an anchor point relationship between the first satellite and the terminal device;

[0053] A first response message is received from the core network device, where the first response message indicates that establishment of an anchor point relationship between the first satellite and the terminal device is allowed.

[0054] By implementing this method, the access network device and the core network device interact with each other, and the first satellite can also be uniformly determined as the anchor satellite of the terminal device.

[0055] In combination with the third aspect, in a possible implementation manner, after sending the first indication information to the terminal device, the method further includes:

[0056] Sending a second request message to the core network device, where the second request message is used to request that the first satellite no longer be an anchor satellite for the terminal device;

[0057] A second response message is received from the core network device, where the second response message indicates that the first satellite is allowed to no longer be an anchor satellite for the terminal device.

[0058] When this method is implemented, the core network device interacts with the access network device, cancels the anchor point relationship between the terminal device and the first satellite, and the core network device will not send the downlink information of the terminal device to the first satellite subsequently.

[0059] In combination with the third aspect, in a possible implementation manner, the method further includes:

[0060] Sending second indication information to the terminal device, wherein the second indication information indicates that the first satellite is no longer an anchor satellite for the terminal device.

[0061] By implementing this method, the terminal device is instructed to cancel the anchor point relationship between the first satellite and the terminal device, and the terminal device will no longer monitor the broadcast message including the identifier of the first satellite, thereby saving power consumption of the terminal device.

[0062] In a fourth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication device, applied to a terminal device, including:

[0063] a processing unit, configured to determine that a first satellite is an anchor satellite of the terminal device, a first access network device is deployed on the first satellite, and the anchor satellite is a satellite that establishes a service link with the terminal device and communicates with the terminal device based on the service link;

[0064] A transceiver unit is used to receive downlink information from the first access network device and / or send uplink information to the first access network device.

[0065] In a fifth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication device, applied to a core network device, including:

[0066] A transceiver unit, configured to receive downlink information, wherein the downlink information is downlink information sent to a terminal device;

[0067] a processing unit, configured to determine that the anchor satellite of the terminal device is a first satellite, a first access network device is deployed on the first satellite, and the anchor satellite is a satellite that establishes a service link with the terminal device and communicates with the terminal device based on the service link;

[0068] The transceiver unit is further configured to send the downlink information to the first access network device.

[0069] In a sixth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication device, applied to an access network device, where the access network device is deployed on a first satellite, including:

[0070] a transceiver unit, configured to send first indication information to a terminal device, wherein the first indication information indicates to establish an anchor point relationship between the first satellite and the terminal device;

[0071] After establishing the anchor relationship between the first satellite and the terminal device, the anchor satellite of the terminal device is the first satellite, and the anchor satellite is a satellite that establishes a service link with the terminal device and communicates with the terminal device based on the service link.

[0072] In the seventh aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication device, which includes a processor and a memory, the processor and the memory are connected to each other, the memory is used to store a computer program, and the processor is configured to execute the computer program to execute the method as described in the first aspect or any optional embodiment of the first aspect, or to execute the method as described in the second aspect or any optional embodiment of the second aspect, or to execute the method as described in the third aspect or any optional embodiment of the third aspect.

[0073] In an eighth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a chip, comprising a processor and an interface, wherein the processor and the interface are coupled; the interface is used to receive and / or output signals, and the processor is used to execute code instructions to execute the method described in the first aspect or any optional embodiment of the first aspect, or to execute the method described in the second aspect or any optional embodiment of the second aspect, or to execute the method described in the third aspect or any optional embodiment of the third aspect.

[0074] In the ninth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a computer storage medium, which stores a computer program, wherein the computer program includes program instructions. When a computer executes the program instructions, it implements the method as described in the first aspect or any optional embodiment of the first aspect, or implements the method as described in the second aspect or any optional embodiment of the second aspect, or implements the method as described in the third aspect or any optional embodiment of the third aspect.

[0075] In the tenth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a computer program product, which includes a computer program or a computer code, and when the computer program product is run on a computer, it is used to implement the method described in the first aspect or any optional embodiment of the first aspect, or to implement the method described in the second aspect or any optional embodiment of the second aspect, or to implement the method described in the third aspect or any optional embodiment of the third aspect.

[0076] In an eleventh aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication system, which includes at least two of a first communication device, a second communication device, and a third communication device.

[0077] The beneficial effects of the technical solutions provided in aspects 4 to 11 of the present application can refer to the beneficial effects of the technical solutions provided in aspects 1 to 3, and will not be repeated here. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0078] Figure 1 A communication system provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0079] Figure 2 A network architecture diagram for deploying access network equipment on a satellite provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0080] Figure 3 A schematic diagram of the positions between the satellite, the terminal device, and the NTN gateway provided in the embodiment of the present application;

[0081] Figure 4 A flow chart of a communication method provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0082] Figure 5 A flowchart of another communication method provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0083] Figure 6 A flowchart of another communication method provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0084] Figure 7 A flowchart of another communication method provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0085] Figure 8A schematic diagram of a process for establishing an anchor point relationship provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0086] Fig. 9 A schematic diagram of a process for uplink data transmission provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0087] Fig.10 A schematic diagram of a process for downlink data transmission provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0088] Fig.11 A schematic diagram of a process for canceling an anchor point relationship provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0089] Fig.12 A schematic diagram of the structure of a communication device provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0090] Fig.13 A schematic diagram of the structure of another communication device provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0091] Fig.14 A schematic diagram of the structure of another communication device provided in an embodiment of the present application. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0092] In the embodiments of the present application, unless otherwise specified, the character " / " indicates that the objects before and after the association are in an or relationship. For example, A / B can represent A or B. "And / or" describes the association relationship of the associated objects, indicating that three relationships can exist. For example, A and / or B can represent: A exists alone, A and B exist at the same time, and B exists alone.

[0093] It should be pointed out that the words "first", "second", etc. involved in the embodiments of the present application are only used to distinguish the description purpose, and cannot be understood as indicating or implying relative importance or implicitly indicating the number of technical features indicated, nor can they be understood as indicating or implying order.

[0094] In the embodiments of the present application, "at least one" means one or more, and "more" means two or more. In addition, "at least one of the following" or similar expressions refers to any combination of these items, which may include any combination of single items or plural items. For example, at least one of A, B, or C can represent: A, B, C, A and B, A and C, B and C, or A, B and C. Among them, each of A, B, and C can be an element itself, or a set containing one or more elements.

[0095] In the embodiments of the present application, "exemplary", "in some embodiments", "in another embodiment", etc. are used to indicate examples, illustrations or descriptions. Any embodiment or design described as "exemplary" in the present application should not be interpreted as being more preferred or more advantageous than other embodiments or designs. Specifically, the use of the word "exemplary" is intended to present concepts in a concrete way.

[0096] In the embodiments of the present application, "of", "corresponding", and "corresponding" can sometimes be used interchangeably. It should be noted that when the distinction between them is not emphasized, the meanings to be expressed are consistent. In the embodiments of the present application, communication and transmission can sometimes be used interchangeably. It should be noted that when the distinction between them is not emphasized, the meanings to be expressed are consistent. For example, transmission can include sending and / or receiving, which can be a noun or a verb.

[0097] The equal to involved in the embodiments of the present application can be used in conjunction with greater than, and is applicable to the technical solution adopted when greater than, and can also be used in conjunction with less than, and is applicable to the technical solution adopted when less than. It should be noted that when equal to is used in conjunction with greater than, it cannot be used in conjunction with less than; when equal to is used in conjunction with less than, it cannot be used in conjunction with greater than.

[0098] The communication method proposed in this application can be applied to the long term evolution (LTE) system, the 5G NR (5G New Radio) system, the 6th generation mobile communication technology (6G) system and subsequent evolution systems, and this application does not limit this. Figure 1 As shown, the communication system includes at least terminal equipment, access network equipment and core network equipment.

[0099] Among them, the terminal device includes a device that provides voice and / or data connectivity to the user. For example, it may include a handheld device with a wireless connection function or a processing device connected to a wireless modem. The terminal device can communicate with a core network (e.g., 5G core network (5th generation core, 5GC)) via a radio access network (RAN), and can exchange voice and / or data with the RAN. The terminal device may also be referred to as a terminal (Terminal), user equipment (UE), wireless terminal equipment, mobile terminal (MT) equipment, subscriber unit, subscriber station, mobile station (MS), mobile station (mobile), remote station (remote station), access point (AP), remote terminal equipment (remote terminal), access terminal equipment (access terminal), user terminal equipment (user terminal), user agent (user agent), or user equipment (user device), etc. In addition, the terminal device can be a mobile phone, a tablet computer, a computer with wireless transceiver function, a virtual reality (VR) terminal device, an augmented reality (AR) terminal device, a wireless terminal in industrial control, a wireless terminal in self-driving, a wireless terminal in remote medical surgery, a wireless terminal in smart grid, a wireless terminal in transportation safety, a wireless terminal in smart city, a wireless terminal in smart home, etc. It should be understood that the embodiments of the present application do not limit the specific technology and specific device form adopted by the terminal device. The terminal device in the present application can be any of the above-mentioned devices or chips, which are not specifically limited here. Whether as a device or as a chip, the terminal device can be manufactured, sold or used as an independent product. In this embodiment and subsequent embodiments, the terminal device is introduced as an example.

[0100] The access network device may be any device with wireless transceiver function, and may be used to be responsible for air interface related functions, such as wireless link maintenance function, wireless resource management function, and part of mobility management function. In addition, the access network device may also be configured with a baseband unit (BBU) having baseband signal processing function. Exemplarily, the access network device may be a radio access network (RAN) that currently provides services for the terminal device. At present, some common examples of access network devices are: Node B (NB), evolved Node B (eNB), next generation node B (gNB) in 5G new radio (NR) system, node in 6G system (e.g., xNodeB), transmission reception point (TRP), radio network controller (RNC), base station controller (BSC), base transceiver station (BTS), home base station (e.g., home evolved NodeB or home node (HNB)), etc. In addition, in a network structure such as a cloud radio access network (CloudRAN) or an open radio access network (ORAN), the access network device may be a device including a centralized unit (CU) (also referred to as a control unit) and / or a distributed unit (DU). It should be understood that the access network device in the embodiment of the present application may be any of the above-mentioned devices or a chip in the above-mentioned device, and the specific details are not limited here. Whether as a device or as a chip, the access network device can be manufactured, sold or used as an independent product. In this embodiment and subsequent embodiments, the access network device is taken as an example for introduction.

[0101] Core network equipment refers to equipment in the core network (CN) that provides service support for terminal devices. At present, some common examples of core network equipment are: access and mobility management function (AMF) entity, session management function (SMF) entity, user plane function (UPF) entity, mobility management entity (MME), etc., which are not listed here one by one. Among them, the AMF entity can be responsible for access management and mobility management of terminal devices; the SMF entity can be responsible for session management, such as user session establishment, etc.; the UPF entity can be a functional entity of the user plane, mainly responsible for connecting to the external network; the MME is mainly responsible for signaling processing, etc.

[0102] It should be noted that the entity in this application may also be referred to as a network element or a functional entity. For example, an AMF entity may also be referred to as an AMF network element or an AMF functional entity; for another example, an SMF entity may also be referred to as an SMF network element or an SMF functional entity, etc.

[0103] Exemplarily, the communication method proposed in the present application can be applied to the non-terrestrial communication network NTN architecture. For example, the non-terrestrial communication network based on the NG-RAN architecture (NTN-based NG-RAN architectures) defined in the 3GPP protocol. At this time, some or all of the functions of the aforementioned access network equipment can be implemented through non-terrestrial communication network equipment (such as satellites, tethered unmanned aerial systems (TUA, etc.), that is, the access network equipment can be deployed on non-terrestrial communication network equipment. It should be noted that the present application describes the non-terrestrial communication network equipment as a satellite, but the present application is not limited. There may be other non-terrestrial communication network devices, that is, the satellite described in the embodiment of the present application can also be replaced by other non-terrestrial communication network devices.

[0104] like Figure 2 As shown, it is a network architecture diagram of deploying access network equipment on a satellite provided in an embodiment of the present application. The network architecture includes terminal equipment, satellite, NTN gateway (also known as ground station, gateway station, signal gateway) and core network equipment, and the access network equipment is deployed on the satellite.

[0105] The satellite may be a geostationary earth orbit (GEO) satellite, a medium earth orbit (MEO) satellite or a low earth orbit (LEO) satellite of a non-geostationary earth orbit (NGEO), or a high altitude platform station (HAPS), etc. The present application does not limit the specific type of satellite.

[0106] The NTN gateway in the embodiment of the present application can be used to connect the satellite and the core network equipment on the ground. The communication link between the NTN gateway and the satellite can be called a feeder link (or feedback link); the communication link between the satellite and the terminal equipment can be called a service link.

[0107] Understandable, Figure 2 Only one satellite and one NTN gateway are shown. In actual use, a multi-satellite and / or multi-NTN gateway architecture may be adopted as required. Each satellite may provide services to one or more terminal devices, each satellite may correspond to one or more NTN gateways, each NTN gateway may correspond to one or more satellites, etc., which are not specifically limited in this application.

[0108] Since the satellite is constantly moving, the relative position between the satellite and the terminal equipment or NTN gateway will change continuously. Figure 3 As shown in (a), at time t1, the satellite is above the terminal device, and the service link between the satellite and the terminal device is available, but the feeder link between the satellite and the NTN gateway is unavailable. At time t2, as Figure 3 As shown in (b), the satellite is above the NTN gateway, the feeder link between the satellite and the NTN gateway is available, but the service link between the satellite and the terminal device is unavailable. Among them, time t2 can be after time t1.

[0109] For services with low real-time requirements, uplink information and / or downlink information can be transmitted in a store-and-forward manner. The following takes the process of a terminal device residing in the network as an example. The uplink information is the attach signaling, and the downlink information is the attach accept message.

[0110] The terminal device sends the attach signaling to satellite 1 through the service link. Satellite 1 stores the attach signaling and waits for the feeder link between satellite 1 and the NTN gateway to be available. Satellite 1 sends the attach signaling to the core network device, which can be, for example, MME. It is understandable that satellite 1 can also send the attach signaling to other satellites, such as satellite 2, which then forwards it to the core network device.

[0111] The core network device sends the attach accept message to satellite 1, which stores the attach accept message and waits for the service link between satellite 1 and the terminal device to be available, then satellite 1 sends the attach accept message to the terminal device. It is understandable that satellite 1 can also send the attach accept message to other satellites, such as satellite 3, which then forwards it to the terminal device.

[0112] In a multi-satellite deployment scenario, the satellite that communicates with the terminal device is not fixed. For example, the first time, satellite 1 stores and forwards the uplink information and / or downlink information of the terminal device, and the second time may be satellite 2 that stores and forwards the uplink information and / or downlink information of the terminal device. Since the context information of the terminal device is required when the terminal device communicates with the satellite, and the satellite that communicates with the terminal device is not fixed, the context information of the terminal device will be forwarded between satellites, increasing the complexity. In addition, in order not to miss the downlink information, the terminal device will continuously monitor the paging message, increasing the power consumption of the terminal device.

[0113] In order to solve the above technical problems, the embodiment of the present application proposes to set an anchor satellite for the terminal device, and the anchor satellite is fixed to communicate with the terminal device. For example, the terminal device can receive downlink information from the access network device deployed on the anchor satellite, and / or the terminal device can send uplink information to the access network device deployed on the anchor satellite, and the anchor satellite can store and forward the uplink information and / or downlink information. Since the satellite communicating with the terminal device is fixed, the context information of the terminal device can be avoided from being forwarded between satellites, reducing complexity. The terminal device also does not need to monitor the paging message all the time, saving the power consumption of the terminal device.

[0114] Some terms involved in the embodiments of the present application are explained below to facilitate understanding by those skilled in the art.

[0115] 1. Ephemeris information

[0116] Ephemeris information, which may also be referred to as ephemeris, ephemeris, almanac, etc., is information used to locate the position of celestial bodies at any time. The terminal device can search the network based on the satellite's ephemeris information, thereby improving the user experience. The satellite's ephemeris information mainly includes orbital plane parameters and satellite level parameters. It should be understood that in the embodiments of the present application, the satellite's ephemeris information may also be referred to as ephemeris parameters, satellite ephemeris parameters, or other possible names, and the present application does not limit this.

[0117] 2. Anchor Satellite

[0118] The anchor satellite in the embodiment of the present application may also be referred to as an anchor satellite cell. The anchor satellite is a fixed satellite that establishes a service link with the terminal device and communicates with the terminal device based on the service link. When the terminal device needs to send uplink information, it sends the uplink information to the anchor satellite through the service link. Similarly, the downlink information sent by the network to the terminal device is also sent to the anchor satellite, so that the anchor satellite can send it to the terminal device through the service link.

[0119] It should be noted that the various technical solutions (or embodiments) of the present application can be implemented independently or in combination based on certain internal connections. The present application is not limited thereto. In addition, the various terms and definitions between the various embodiments can be referenced to each other. In each embodiment of the present application, different implementations can also be implemented in combination or independently.

[0120] Please refer to Figure 4 , is a flow chart of a communication method provided in an embodiment of the present application, such as Figure 4 As shown, the communication method of this embodiment may include the following steps:

[0121] 401. A terminal device determines a first satellite as an anchor satellite of the terminal device.

[0122] The first access network device is deployed on the first satellite, and accordingly, the cell covered by the first access network device is an anchor satellite cell.

[0123] The first satellite being the anchor satellite of the terminal device may be indicated by the network. For example, the first access network device may send first indication information to the terminal device, and the first indication information indicates to establish an anchor relationship between the first satellite and the terminal device. The terminal device may determine, based on the first indication information, that the first satellite is the anchor satellite of the terminal device.

[0124] 402. The terminal device receives downlink information from the first access network device and / or sends uplink information to the first access network device.

[0125] After determining that the first satellite is the anchor satellite of the terminal device, the terminal device subsequently receives downlink information from the first access network device deployed on the first satellite, and / or sends uplink information to the first access network device deployed on the first satellite.

[0126] Among them, uplink information may include but is not limited to uplink data and / or uplink signaling. Downlink information may include but is not limited to downlink data and / or downlink signaling. The following examples illustrate the process of a terminal device sending uplink information and receiving downlink information:

[0127] The process of sending uplink information by the terminal device is exemplified as follows: when the terminal device is in an idle state and the terminal device has uplink information that needs to be sent to the network, the terminal device will monitor the broadcast message, which includes the satellite identifier. The terminal device determines whether it is a broadcast message sent by the anchor satellite (i.e., the first satellite) of the terminal device according to the satellite identifier contained in the broadcast message. If the terminal device receives a broadcast message including the identifier of the anchor satellite (i.e., the first satellite), it means that the first access network device on the first satellite can be accessed, and the terminal device can establish a radio resource control (Radio Resource Control, RRC) connection with the first access network device deployed on the first satellite, thereby sending uplink information to the first access network device based on the RRC connection. Correspondingly, the first access network device receives the uplink information. Since the feeder link between the first satellite and the NTN gateway is unavailable, the first access network device can store the uplink information and send the uplink information to the core network device when the feeder link between the first satellite and the NTN gateway is available. Exemplarily, the first access network device can also send the uplink information to other satellites so that other satellites can send it to the core network device, which is not limited in this application.

[0128] After the terminal device sends the uplink information to the anchor satellite (ie, the first satellite), the terminal device may disconnect the RRC connection with the first access network device. Specifically, the first access network device may send an RRC connection release message or an RRC connection suspend message to the terminal device.

[0129] In order to save power consumption of the terminal device, the terminal device does not need to monitor the broadcast messages all the time. The terminal device can determine the time when the terminal device is within the coverage of the first satellite based on the ephemeris information of the first satellite. When it is determined that the terminal device is within the coverage of the first satellite, the terminal device starts to monitor the broadcast messages and receive the broadcast messages from the first access network device to save power consumption.

[0130] An example of a process of a terminal device receiving downlink information is as follows: the terminal device monitors a broadcast message, which includes a satellite identifier. The terminal device determines whether the broadcast message is sent by the anchor satellite (i.e., the first satellite) of the terminal device based on the satellite identifier contained in the broadcast message. If the terminal device receives a broadcast message including the identifier of the anchor satellite (i.e., the first satellite), the terminal device resides in the anchor satellite cell and continues to monitor whether there is a paging message for the terminal device. If the terminal device receives a paging message for the terminal device, the terminal device can establish an RRC connection with a first access network device deployed on the first satellite, thereby receiving downlink information based on the RRC connection.

[0131] After the terminal device receives the downlink information, the terminal device may disconnect the RRC connection with the first access network device. Specifically, the first access network device may send an RRC connection release message or an RRC connection suspend message to the terminal device.

[0132] In order to save power consumption of the terminal device, the terminal device does not need to monitor the broadcast messages all the time. The terminal device can determine the time when the terminal device is within the coverage of the first satellite based on the ephemeris information of the first satellite. When it is determined that the terminal device is within the coverage of the first satellite, the terminal device starts to monitor the broadcast messages and receive the broadcast messages from the first access network device to save power consumption.

[0133] Please refer to Figure 5 , is a flow chart of another communication method provided in an embodiment of the present application, such as Figure 5 As shown, the communication method of this embodiment may include the following steps:

[0134] 501. The core network device receives downlink information.

[0135] The downlink information is downlink information of the terminal device. Exemplarily, the downlink information includes an identifier of the terminal device.

[0136] The downlink information may be downlink information sent by the application server to the core network device.

[0137] 502. The core network device determines that the anchor satellite of the terminal device is the first satellite.

[0138] The core network device may store an anchor point relationship between the first satellite and the terminal device, and the anchor point relationship between the first satellite and the terminal device indicates that the anchor point satellite of the terminal device is the first satellite. When the core network device receives downlink information from the terminal device, it may determine that the anchor point satellite of the terminal device is the first satellite according to the stored anchor point relationship between the first satellite and the terminal device. The first access network device is deployed on the first satellite.

[0139] 503. The core network device sends downlink information to the first access network device.

[0140] The core network device sends the downlink information to the first access network device. Specifically, when the feeder link between the first satellite and the NTN gateway is available, the downlink information is sent to the first access network device deployed on the first satellite. The first access network device can store the downlink information to wait for the service link between the first satellite and the terminal device to be available, and then send the downlink information to the terminal device.

[0141] 504. The first access network device sends downlink information to the terminal device.

[0142] The first access network device may send a paging message to the terminal device, the paging message instructing the terminal device to receive downlink information. When the terminal device receives the paging message, the terminal device will establish an RRC connection with the first access network device and receive downlink information based on the RRC connection. It is understandable that before the terminal device receives the paging message, the terminal device may receive a broadcast message from the first access network device, the broadcast message including the identifier of the first satellite. The terminal device determines that the broadcast message is sent by the anchor satellite (i.e., the first satellite), then resides in the cell covered by the first access network device and receives the paging message.

[0143] Please refer to Figure 6 , is a flow chart of another communication method provided in an embodiment of the present application, such as Figure 6 As shown, the communication method of this embodiment may include the following steps. It is understandable that in some embodiments, the following partial steps may also be included. For example, only steps 601-604 may be included to establish an anchor point relationship between the first satellite and the terminal device. For another example, only steps 601-604 and steps 606 and 607 may be included. For another example, only steps 606-612 may be included, etc.:

[0144] 601. A first access network device sends a first request message to a core network device.

[0145] The first request message is used to request to establish an anchor point relationship between the first satellite and the terminal device.

[0146] Exemplarily, when the terminal device establishes an RRC connection with the first access network device, the first access network device sends a first request message to the core network device.

[0147] In some embodiments, the terminal device may send a request to the first access network device for requesting to establish an anchor point relationship, and the first access network device may send a first request message to the core network device based on the request sent by the terminal device.

[0148] Exemplarily, the first request message may include at least an identifier of the terminal device and an identifier of the first satellite.

[0149] 602. The core network device sends a first response message to the first access network device.

[0150] The first response message indicates that establishment of an anchor point relationship between the first satellite and the terminal device is allowed.

[0151] If the core network device allows the establishment of an anchor point relationship between the first satellite and the terminal device, the core network device may send a first response message to the first access network device, where the first response message indicates that the establishment of the anchor point relationship between the first satellite and the terminal device is allowed.

[0152] The core network device also stores an anchor point relationship between the first satellite and the terminal device, where the anchor point relationship indicates that the anchor point satellite of the terminal device is the first satellite. For example, the core network device stores a mapping relationship between the identifier of the terminal device and the identifier of the first satellite.

[0153] 603. The first access network device sends first indication information to the terminal device.

[0154] The first indication information indicates establishing an anchor point relationship between the first satellite and the terminal device.

[0155] Exemplarily, the first indication information may be carried in an RRC connection release message.

[0156] 604. The terminal device determines, according to the first indication information, that the first satellite is an anchor satellite of the terminal device.

[0157] The terminal device receives the first indication information and stores the anchor point relationship between the first satellite and the terminal device. For example, the terminal device stores the identifier of the first satellite.

[0158] 605. The terminal device receives downlink information from the first access network device and / or sends uplink information to the first access network device.

[0159] After the terminal device sends uplink information to the first access network device, or after the terminal device receives downlink information, the terminal device will disconnect the RRC connection. Specifically, the first access network device can send an RRC connection release message to the terminal device, and the terminal device can send an RRC connection release confirmation message to the first access network device.

[0160] 606, when it is determined that the terminal device is located within the coverage of the first satellite, the terminal device starts to monitor the broadcast message;

[0161] When the terminal device is determined to be within the coverage of the first satellite according to the ephemeris information of the first satellite, the terminal device may monitor the broadcast message. For example, the terminal device may monitor the broadcast message when it needs to send uplink information, or the terminal device may monitor the broadcast message in order to receive downlink information.

[0162] 607: If the broadcast message including the identifier of the first satellite is not received for more than a preset number of times, it is determined that the first satellite is not an anchor satellite of the terminal device.

[0163] If the terminal device does not receive a broadcast message including the identifier of the first satellite after monitoring for more than a preset number of times, the terminal device may no longer use the first satellite as the anchor satellite of the terminal device. Further, the terminal device may execute steps 608 to 612 to establish an anchor relationship between the second satellite and the terminal device. In other words, if the terminal device does not receive a broadcast message including the identifier of the first satellite after monitoring for more than a preset number of times, the second satellite may be determined as the anchor satellite of the terminal device. The specific determination method may refer to steps 608 to 612.

[0164] 608. The terminal device establishes an RRC connection with a second access network device, and the second access network device is deployed on a second satellite.

[0165] The terminal device may reside in the second access network device and establish an RRC connection with the second access network device. Exemplarily, the terminal device may request the second access network device to establish an anchor point relationship between the second satellite and the terminal device.

[0166] 609. The second access network device sends a third request message to the core network device.

[0167] The third request message is used to request to establish an anchor point relationship between the second satellite and the terminal device. The second request message may include at least an identifier of the terminal device and an identifier of the second satellite.

[0168] 610. The core network device sends a third response message to the second access network device.

[0169] The second response message indicates that establishment of an anchor point relationship between the second satellite and the terminal device is allowed.

[0170] If the core network device allows the establishment of an anchor point relationship between the second satellite and the terminal device, the core network device sends a second response message to the second access network device, where the second response message indicates that the establishment of an anchor point relationship between the second satellite and the terminal device is allowed.

[0171] The core network device also stores the anchor point relationship between the second satellite and the terminal device, where the anchor point relationship indicates that the anchor point satellite of the terminal device is the second satellite.

[0172] In some embodiments, the core network device may cancel the anchor point relationship between the first satellite and the terminal device, for example, delete the anchor point relationship between the first satellite and the terminal device. When receiving downlink information from the terminal device, the core network device may send the downlink information to a second access network device deployed on the second satellite.

[0173] In some embodiments, the core network device may send a notification message to the first access network device, where the notification message is used to notify the first satellite that the anchor point relationship with the terminal device is cancelled.

[0174] 611. The second access network device sends third indication information to the terminal device, where the third indication information indicates to establish an anchor point relationship between the second satellite and the terminal device.

[0175] Exemplarily, the first indication information may be carried in an RRC connection release message.

[0176] 612. The terminal device determines, according to the third indication information, that the second satellite is an anchor satellite of the terminal device.

[0177] The terminal device may update the anchor satellite to the second satellite, and subsequently monitor the broadcast message including the identifier of the second satellite.

[0178] Please refer to Figure 7 , is a flow chart of another communication method provided in an embodiment of the present application, such as Figure 7 As shown, the communication method of this embodiment may include the following steps. It is understandable that in some embodiments, the following partial steps may also be included, for example, only steps 701 to 705 may be included, and for another example, only steps 701 to 704 and steps 706 to 708 may be included, and for another example, only steps 701 to 704 and steps 706 to 713 may be included, etc.:

[0179] 701. A first access network device sends a first request message to a core network device.

[0180] The first request message is used to request to establish an anchor point relationship between the first satellite and the terminal device.

[0181] 702. The core network device sends a first response message to the first access network device.

[0182] The first response message indicates that establishment of an anchor point relationship between the first satellite and the terminal device is allowed.

[0183] 703. The first access network device sends first indication information to the terminal device.

[0184] The first indication information indicates establishing an anchor point relationship between the first satellite and the terminal device.

[0185] 704. The terminal device determines, according to the first indication information, that the first satellite is an anchor satellite of the terminal device.

[0186] 705. The terminal device receives downlink information from the first access network device and / or sends uplink information to the first access network device.

[0187] For steps 701 to 705 of this embodiment of the present application, please refer to Figure 6 Steps 601 to 605 of the embodiment are not described in detail here.

[0188] 706. The first access network device sends a second request message to the core network device.

[0189] The second request message is used to request cancellation of the anchor relationship between the first satellite and the terminal device. The second request message is used to request cancellation of the anchor relationship between the first satellite and the terminal device, which can be understood as the second request message is used to request that the first satellite is no longer an anchor satellite for the terminal device.

[0190] The first access network device determines that the anchor relationship between the first satellite and the terminal device needs to be canceled. For example, if the first access network device detects that the number of terminal devices that use the first satellite as an anchor satellite exceeds a preset threshold, the anchor relationship between one or more terminal devices and the first satellite may be canceled.

[0191] Specifically, the first access network device sends a second request message to the core network device, where the second request message includes an identifier of a terminal device whose anchor point relationship needs to be cancelled and an identifier of the first satellite.

[0192] 707. The core network device sends a second response message to the first access network device.

[0193] The second response message indicates that cancellation of the anchor relationship between the first satellite and the terminal device is allowed. The second response message indicates that cancellation of the anchor relationship between the first satellite and the terminal device is allowed, which can be understood as the second response message indicates that the first satellite is no longer an anchor satellite for the terminal device.

[0194] If the core network device allows the cancellation of the anchor point relationship between the first satellite and the terminal device, a second response message is sent.

[0195] 708. The first access network device sends second indication information to the terminal device.

[0196] The second indication information indicates cancellation of the anchor point relationship between the first satellite and the terminal device. The second indication information indicates cancellation of the anchor point relationship between the first satellite and the terminal device, which can be understood as the second indication information indicating that the first satellite is no longer an anchor point satellite for the terminal device.

[0197] The second indication information may be carried in an RRC connection release message or an RRC connection rejection establishment message. After receiving the second indication information, the terminal device may no longer use the first satellite as the anchor satellite of the terminal device. Further, the terminal device may execute steps 709 to 713 to establish an anchor relationship between the second satellite and the terminal device. In other words, the terminal device may determine the second satellite as the anchor satellite of the terminal device according to the second indication information, and the specific determination method may refer to steps 709 to 713.

[0198] 709. The terminal device establishes an RRC connection with a second access network device, and the second access network device is deployed on a second satellite.

[0199] 710. The second access network device sends a third request message to the core network device.

[0200] 711. The core network device sends a third response message to the second access network device.

[0201] 712. The second access network device sends third indication information to the terminal device, where the third indication information indicates to establish an anchor point relationship between the second satellite and the terminal device.

[0202] 713. The terminal device determines, according to the third indication information, that the second satellite is an anchor satellite of the terminal device.

[0203] Please refer to step 709 to step 713 of this embodiment of the application. Figure 6 Steps 608 to 612 of the embodiment are not described in detail here.

[0204] The following example illustrates the process of establishing an anchor relationship, transmitting uplink information, transmitting downlink information, and canceling an anchor relationship. The following example takes the terminal device as UE, the access network device as eNB, and the core network device as MME:

[0205] Please refer to Figure 8 , is a schematic diagram of the process of establishing an anchor point relationship provided in an embodiment of the present application, and the process of establishing an anchor point relationship includes the following steps:

[0206] 801, eNB1 sends a broadcast message, which includes the identifier of satellite 1. Correspondingly, UE receives the broadcast message.

[0207] The broadcast message may be a system broadcast message. The broadcast message includes an identifier of satellite 1 where eNB1 is located. eNB1 is deployed on satellite 1.

[0208] 802. The terminal device establishes an RRC connection with eNB1.

[0209] The terminal device can reside in eNB1 and establish an RRC connection with eNB1.

[0210] 803. eNB1 sends a first request message to MME.

[0211] The first request message requests to establish an anchor point relationship between the UE and satellite 1.

[0212] The first request message may include the identifier of the UE and the identifier of the satellite 1. Exemplarily, the first request message may be an anchor point relationship establishment request message.

[0213] 804. MME stores the anchor point relationship between UE and satellite 1.

[0214] Specifically, the MME storing the anchor point relationship between the UE and the satellite 1 can be understood as the MME storing the mapping relationship between the identifier of the UE and the identifier of the satellite 1 .

[0215] 805. MME sends a first response message to eNB1.

[0216] The first response message indicates that the establishment of the anchor point relationship between the UE and satellite 1 is allowed.

[0217] The first response message can also be understood as a confirmation message, that is, confirming the establishment of the anchor point relationship between the UE and the satellite 1. The first response message can be a confirmation message for establishing the anchor point relationship.

[0218] 806. eNB1 sends an RRC connection release message to the UE.

[0219] The RRC connection release message may include first indication information, where the first indication information is used to indicate the establishment of an anchor point relationship between the UE and the satellite 1 , that is, the satellite 1 where the eNB1 is located is the anchor point satellite of the UE.

[0220] 807 , the UE determines satellite 1 as an anchor satellite, and stores the identifier of satellite 1 .

[0221] The UE will establish an anchor relationship between the UE and satellite 1, for example, by storing the identifier of satellite 1. The cell covered by satellite 1 may be referred to as an anchor satellite cell, and the UE may also store the identifier of the anchor satellite cell, that is, the identifier of the cell covered by satellite 1, so that when searching for a broadcast message later, it may be determined whether it is a broadcast message sent by the anchor satellite. For example, if the identifier of the cell included in the searched broadcast message matches the identifier of the cell covered by satellite 1 stored by the UE, it is determined that it is a broadcast message sent by the anchor satellite.

[0222] Please refer to Fig. 9 , is a schematic diagram of a process of uplink data transmission provided in an embodiment of the present application, and the process of uplink data transmission includes the following steps:

[0223] 901, the UE determines whether the UE is in the coverage of eNB1 according to the ephemeris information of satellite 1. When it is determined that the UE is in the coverage of eNB1, the UE starts to monitor the broadcast message.

[0224] When it is determined that the UE is within the coverage of eNB1, it starts to monitor the broadcast message, and the terminal device does not need to monitor the broadcast message all the time, which can save the power consumption of the terminal device.

[0225] 902, eNB1 sends a broadcast message. The broadcast message includes the identifier of satellite 1. Correspondingly, the UE receives the broadcast message.

[0226] 903: The UE reads the identifier of satellite 1 in the broadcast message, and determines that the broadcast message is sent by the anchor satellite of the UE.

[0227] 904, establish an RRC connection between the UE and eNB1.

[0228] The UE may match the satellite identifier contained in the broadcast message with the satellite identifier stored in the UE, and if they match, it is determined that the broadcast message is a broadcast message sent by the eNB1 deployed on the anchor satellite.

[0229] Exemplarily, the identifier of satellite 1 included in the broadcast message sent by eNB1 matches the identifier of the satellite stored in the terminal device. The terminal device resides in eNB1 and establishes an RRC connection with eNB1.

[0230] 905. UE sends uplink information to eNB1.

[0231] The UE may send the uplink information to the eNB1 via the control plane or the user plane, and the eNB1 may store the uplink information and send the uplink information to the core network when the feeder link between the eNB1 and the NTN gateway is available. Optionally, the eNB1 may also send the uplink information to the eNB deployed on other satellites, so that the eNB deployed on other satellites may send the uplink information to the core network.

[0232] 906, eNB1 sends an RRC connection release message or an RRC connection suspend message to the UE.

[0233] Please refer to Fig.10 , is a schematic diagram of a process of downlink data transmission provided in an embodiment of the present application, and the process of downlink data transmission includes the following steps:

[0234] 1001. MME sends downlink information to eNB1.

[0235] The downlink information may be downlink information sent by the application server to the UE. The MME receives the downlink information, and according to the stored anchor point relationship between the UE and the satellite 1, the MME may send the downlink information to the eNB1 deployed on the satellite 1. Specifically, when the feeder link between the satellite 1 and the NTN gateway is available, the downlink information is sent to the eNB1, and the eNB1 stores the downlink information.

[0236] In order to send downlink information to the UE, the eNB1 may send a paging message, where the paging message instructs the UE to receive the downlink information.

[0237] 1002. The UE determines whether the UE is within the coverage of the eNB1 according to the ephemeris information of the satellite 1. When it is determined that the UE is within the coverage of the eNB1, the UE starts to monitor the broadcast message.

[0238] When it is determined that the UE is within the coverage of eNB1, it starts to monitor the broadcast message, and the terminal device does not need to monitor the broadcast message all the time, which can save the power consumption of the terminal device.

[0239] 1003. eNB1 sends a broadcast message.

[0240] The broadcast message includes the identifier of satellite 1. Accordingly, the UE receives the broadcast message.

[0241] 1004. The UE reads the identifier of satellite 1 in the broadcast message and determines that the broadcast message is sent by the anchor satellite of the UE.

[0242] 1005. eNB1 sends a paging message.

[0243] The paging message instructs the UE to receive downlink information. Accordingly, the UE receives the paging message.

[0244] When the UE receives the broadcast message including the identifier of the satellite 1 and the paging message sent by the eNB1, the UE executes step 1006, ie, establishes an RRC connection between the UE and the eNB1.

[0245] 1006. Establish an RRC connection between the UE and eNB1.

[0246] 1007. eNB1 sends downlink information to UE.

[0247] Correspondingly, the UE receives the downlink information sent by eNB1.

[0248] 1008. eNB1 sends an RRC connection release message or an RRC connection suspend message to the UE.

[0249] Please refer to Fig.11, which is a flow chart of canceling the anchor point relationship provided in an embodiment of the present application. It should be noted that the UE may actively cancel the anchor point relationship between the UE and the satellite 1, as shown in steps 1101-1102, or the eNB1 may actively cancel the anchor point relationship between the UE and the satellite 1, as shown in steps 1103-1105, which are described in detail below:

[0250] 1101. The UE determines whether the UE is within the coverage of the eNB1 according to the ephemeris information of the satellite 1. When it is determined that the UE is within the coverage of the eNB1, the UE starts to monitor the broadcast message.

[0251] When it is determined that the UE is within the coverage of eNB1, it starts to monitor the broadcast message, and the terminal device does not need to monitor the broadcast message all the time, which can save the power consumption of the terminal device.

[0252] 1102: If the UE fails to monitor the broadcast message including the identifier of satellite 1 for more than a preset number of times, it is determined to cancel the anchor point relationship between the UE and satellite 1.

[0253] In one implementation, when the UE is monitoring a broadcast message, if it does not monitor a broadcast message including the identifier of satellite 1, it may continue to monitor the broadcast message after a period of time. To prevent the UE from continuing to monitor, in an embodiment of the present application, if the UE does not monitor a broadcast message including the identifier of satellite 1 for more than a preset number of times, the anchor point relationship between the UE and satellite 1 may be cancelled. Canceling the anchor point relationship between the UE and satellite 1 may be understood as not using satellite 1 as the anchor point satellite of the UE. The UE may establish an anchor point relationship with other satellites, as described in steps 1106-1112.

[0254] 1103. eNB1 sends a second request message to MME.

[0255] When eNB1 determines that the anchor point relationship between the UE and satellite 1 needs to be cancelled, the eNB1 sends a second request message to the MME. The second request message is used to request cancellation of the anchor point relationship between the UE and satellite 1. eNB1 is deployed on satellite 1.

[0256] For example, when eNB1 detects that the number of UEs that have established anchor point relationships with satellite 1 exceeds a threshold, the anchor point relationships between some UEs and satellite 1 may be cancelled.

[0257] 1104. MME sends a second response message to eNB1.

[0258] If the MME allows the anchor point relationship between the UE and the satellite 1 to be cancelled, the MME may send a second response message to the eNB1, where the second response message indicates that the anchor point relationship between the UE and the satellite 1 is allowed to be cancelled.

[0259] 1105. eNB1 sends second indication information to the UE.

[0260] The second indication information indicates cancellation of the anchor point relationship between the UE and the satellite 1. The second indication information indicates cancellation of the anchor point relationship between the UE and the satellite 1, which can be understood as the second indication information indicating that the satellite 1 is no longer the anchor point satellite of the UE.

[0261] The second indication information may be carried in an RRC connection release message or an RRC connection rejection message. The UE may establish an anchor point relationship with other satellites, as described in steps 1106-1112.

[0262] 1106, eNB2 sends a broadcast message, where the broadcast message includes the identifier of satellite 2. Correspondingly, the UE receives the broadcast message.

[0263] The broadcast message may be a system broadcast message, and the broadcast message includes an identifier of satellite 2 where eNB2 is located, that is, eNB2 is deployed on satellite 2.

[0264] 1107, establish an RRC connection between the terminal device and eNB2.

[0265] The terminal device can reside in eNB2 and establish an RRC connection with eNB2.

[0266] 1108 , eNB2 sends a third request message to the MME, where the third request message requests to establish an anchor point relationship between the UE and satellite 2 .

[0267] The third request message may include the identifier of the UE and the identifier of the satellite 2. Exemplarily, the third request message may be an anchor point relationship establishment request message.

[0268] 1109. The MME stores the anchor point relationship between the UE and the satellite 2.

[0269] Specifically, the MME storing the anchor point relationship between the UE and the satellite 2 can be understood as the MME storing the mapping relationship between the identifier of the UE and the identifier of the satellite 2.

[0270] In some implementations, the MME may update the stored anchor point relationship between the UE and satellite 1, for example, updating the anchor point relationship between the UE and satellite 1 to the anchor point relationship between the UE and satellite 2. Specifically, the mapping relationship between the identifier of the UE and the identifier of satellite 1 may be updated to the mapping relationship between the identifier of the UE and the identifier of satellite 2.

[0271] In some implementations, if the UE actively cancels the anchor point relationship between the UE and satellite 1, the MME may send an indication message to the eNB1 deployed on satellite 1, where the indication message indicates that the anchor point relationship between the UE and satellite 1 is canceled, or the indication message indicates that the UE establishes an anchor point relationship with satellite 2.

[0272] 1110. MME sends a third response message to eNB2, where the third response message indicates that establishment of an anchor point relationship between UE and satellite 2 is allowed.

[0273] The third response message can also be understood as a confirmation message, that is, confirming the establishment of the anchor point relationship between the UE and the satellite 2. The third response message can be a confirmation message for establishing the anchor point relationship.

[0274] 1111, eNB2 sends an RRC connection release message to the UE.

[0275] The RRC connection release message may include third indication information, where the third indication information is used to indicate the establishment of an anchor point relationship between the UE and the satellite 2, that is, the satellite 2 where the eNB2 is located is the anchor point satellite of the UE.

[0276] Correspondingly, the UE may update the stored anchor point relationship between the UE and satellite 1 to the anchor point relationship between the UE and satellite 2 , for example, updating the stored identifier of satellite 1 to the identifier of satellite 2 .

[0277] 1112. The UE determines satellite 2 as an anchor satellite and stores the identifier of satellite 2.

[0278] The cell covered by satellite 2 may be referred to as an anchor satellite cell, and the UE may also store the identifier of the anchor satellite cell, that is, the identifier of the cell covered by satellite 2, so that when searching for a broadcast message later, it may be determined whether it is a broadcast message sent by the anchor satellite. For example, if the identifier of the cell included in the searched broadcast message matches the identifier of the cell covered by satellite 2 stored by the UE, it is determined that it is a broadcast message sent by the anchor satellite.

[0279] The following is an introduction to the communication device provided in the embodiments of the present application.

[0280] The present application divides the functional modules of the communication device according to the above method embodiment. For example, each functional module can be divided according to each function, or two or more functions can be integrated into one processing module. The above integrated modules can be implemented in the form of hardware or software functional modules. It should be noted that the division of modules in the present application is schematic and is only a logical function division. There may be other division methods in actual implementation. Figure 12 to Figure 14 The communication device according to the embodiment of the present application is described in detail.

[0281] Fig.12 is a schematic diagram of the structure of a communication device provided in an embodiment of the present application, such as Fig.12 As shown, the communication device 1000 can correspondingly implement the functions or steps implemented by the terminal device, access network device or core network device in the above-mentioned various method embodiments.

[0282] In some possible implementations, the communication device 1000 can implement the behaviors and functions of the terminal device in the above method embodiments. For example, the communication device 1000 can be a terminal device, or a component (such as a chip or circuit) used in the terminal device. The transceiver unit 1100 can be used to perform all receiving or sending operations performed by the terminal device in the above method embodiments. The processing unit 1200 is used to perform all operations performed by the terminal device except the receiving and sending operations.

[0283] In one possible design, the communication device 1000 includes: a transceiver unit 1100 and a processing unit 1200.

[0284] The processing unit 1200 is configured to determine that a first satellite is an anchor satellite of the terminal device, and a first access network device is deployed on the first satellite;

[0285] The transceiver unit 1100 is configured to receive downlink information from the first access network device and / or send uplink information to the first access network device.

[0286] Exemplarily, the transceiver unit 1100 is specifically used to establish a radio resource control RRC connection with the first access network device;

[0287] The method further comprises: receiving downlink information from the first access network device based on the RRC connection, and / or sending uplink information to the first access network device based on the RRC connection.

[0288] Exemplarily, the transceiver unit 1100 is specifically used to establish an RRC connection with the first access network device when the terminal device is located within the coverage of the first satellite and receives a broadcast message from the first access network device, and the broadcast message includes an identifier of the first satellite.

[0289] Exemplarily, the processing unit 1200 is specifically configured to receive first indication information through the transceiver unit 1100, wherein the first indication information indicates establishing an anchor point relationship between the first satellite and the terminal device; and determine that the first satellite is an anchor point satellite of the terminal device according to the first indication information.

[0290] Exemplarily, the processing unit 1200 is also used to determine that the second satellite is the anchor satellite of the terminal device when the terminal device is located within the coverage area of ​​the first satellite and no broadcast message from the first access network device is received for more than a preset number of monitoring times.

[0291] Exemplarily, the transceiver unit 1100 is further configured to receive second indication information sent by the first access network device, where the second indication information indicates that the first satellite is no longer an anchor satellite of the terminal device;

[0292] The processing unit 1200 is configured to determine, according to the second indication information, that the second satellite is an anchor satellite of the terminal device.

[0293] Exemplarily, the processing unit 1200 is specifically configured to establish an RRC connection with a second access network device, where the second access network device is deployed on a second satellite;

[0294] The transceiver unit 1100 is further configured to receive third indication information from the second access network device, wherein the third indication information indicates to establish an anchor point relationship between the second satellite and the terminal device;

[0295] The processing unit 1200 is configured to determine, according to the third indication information, that the second satellite is an anchor satellite of the terminal device.

[0296] Fig.12 The specific description and beneficial effects of the illustrated device embodiment can be referred to the description of the aforementioned method embodiment, which will not be repeated here.

[0297] Reuse Fig.12 , the communication device 1000 can implement the behaviors and functions of the core network device in the above method embodiment. For example, the communication device 1000 can be a core network device, or a component (such as a chip or circuit) used in the core network device. The transceiver unit 1100 can be used to perform all receiving or sending operations performed by the core network device in the above method embodiment. The processing unit 1200 is used to perform all operations performed by the core network device except the receiving and sending operations.

[0298] In one possible design, the transceiver unit 1100 is configured to receive downlink information, where the downlink information is downlink information sent to a terminal device;

[0299] The processing unit 1200 is configured to determine that the anchor satellite of the terminal device is a first satellite, and a first access network device is deployed on the first satellite;

[0300] The transceiver unit 1100 is further configured to send the downlink information to the first access network device.

[0301] Exemplarily, the transceiver unit 1100 is further used to receive a first request message from the first access network device, where the first request message is used to request to establish an anchor point relationship between the first satellite and the terminal device;

[0302] The transceiver unit 1100 is further configured to send a first response message to the first access network device, wherein the first response message indicates that establishment of an anchor point relationship between the first satellite and the terminal device is allowed.

[0303] Exemplarily, the transceiver unit 1100 is further used to receive a second request message from the first access network device, where the second request message is used to request that the first satellite no longer be an anchor satellite for the terminal device;

[0304] The transceiver unit 1100 is further configured to send a second response message to the first access network device, where the second response message indicates that the first satellite is allowed to no longer be an anchor satellite for the terminal device.

[0305] Fig.12 The specific description and beneficial effects of the illustrated device embodiment can be referred to the description of the aforementioned method embodiment, which will not be repeated here.

[0306] Reuse Fig.12 , the communication device 1000 can correspondingly implement the behaviors and functions of the access network device in the above method embodiment. For example, the communication device 1000 can be an access network device, or a component (such as a chip or circuit) used in the access network device. The transceiver unit 1100 can be used to perform all receiving or sending operations performed by the access network device in the above method embodiment. The processing unit 1200 is used to perform all operations performed by the access network device except the receiving and sending operations.

[0307] In one possible design, the processing unit 1200 is used to send first indication information to the terminal device through the transceiver unit 1100, where the first indication information indicates establishing an anchor point relationship between the first satellite and the terminal device;

[0308] After the anchor point relationship between the first satellite and the terminal device is established, the anchor point satellite of the terminal device is the first satellite.

[0309] Exemplarily, the transceiver unit 1100 is further used to send a first request message to the core network device, where the first request message is used to request to establish an anchor point relationship between the first satellite and the terminal device;

[0310] The transceiver unit 1100 is further used to receive a first response message from the core network device, where the first response message indicates that establishment of an anchor point relationship between the first satellite and the terminal device is allowed.

[0311] Exemplarily, the transceiver unit 1100 is further used to send a second request message to the core network device, where the second request message is used to request that the first satellite is no longer an anchor satellite for the terminal device;

[0312] Exemplarily, the transceiver unit 1100 is further configured to receive a second response message from the core network device, where the second response message indicates that the first satellite is allowed to no longer be an anchor satellite for the terminal device.

[0313] Exemplarily, the transceiver unit 1100 is further used to send second indication information to the terminal device, where the second indication information indicates that the first satellite is no longer an anchor satellite of the terminal device.

[0314] The above describes the terminal device, access network device and core network device of the embodiment of the present application. The following describes possible product forms of the terminal device, access network device and core network device. It should be understood that any device having the above Fig.12 Any product that has the functions of the terminal device described above, or any product that has the functions of the terminal device described above Fig.12 Any product that has the functions of the access network device described above, or any product that has the functions of the access network device described above Fig.12 Any form of product with the functions of the core network device falls within the protection scope of the embodiments of the present application. It should also be understood that the following introduction is only an example and does not limit the product forms of the terminal device, access network device and core network device of the embodiments of the present application to this.

[0315] In one possible implementation, Fig.12 In the communication device shown, the processing unit 1200 may be one or more processors, the transceiver unit 1100 may be a transceiver, or the transceiver unit 1100 may also be a sending unit and a receiving unit, the sending unit may be a transmitter, the receiving unit may be a receiver, and the sending unit and the receiving unit are integrated into one device, such as a transceiver. In the embodiment of the present application, the processor and the transceiver may be coupled, etc., and the embodiment of the present application does not limit the connection method between the processor and the transceiver.

[0316] Fig.13 A schematic diagram of the structure of another communication device 2000 provided in an embodiment of the present application. Fig.13 The communication device in the communication device may be the above-mentioned terminal device, or the above-mentioned access network device, or the above-mentioned core network device.

[0317] like Fig.13 As shown, the communication device 2000 includes one or more processors 2200 and a transceiver 2100. The transceiver 2100 can implement the function of the transceiver unit 1100, and the processor 2200 can implement the function of the processing unit 1200.

[0318] exist Fig.13 In various implementations of the communication device shown, the transceiver may include a receiver and a transmitter, wherein the receiver is used to perform a receiving function (or operation) and the transmitter is used to perform a transmitting function (or operation). The transceiver is used to communicate with other devices / devices through a transmission medium.

[0319] Optionally, the communication device 2000 may also include one or more memories 2300 for storing program instructions and / or data. The memory 2300 is coupled to the processor 2200. The coupling in the embodiment of the present application is an indirect coupling or communication connection between devices, units or modules, which may be electrical, mechanical or other forms, and is used for information exchange between devices, units or modules. The processor 2200 may operate in conjunction with the memory 2300. The processor 2200 may execute program instructions stored in the memory 2300.

[0320] The specific connection medium between the transceiver 2100, the processor 2200 and the memory 2300 is not limited in the embodiment of the present application. Fig.13 The transceiver 2100, the processor 2200 and the memory 2300 are connected via a bus 2400. Fig.13 The connections between the other components are shown in bold lines, which are only for illustration and are not intended to be limiting. The bus can be divided into an address bus, a data bus, a control bus, etc. For ease of representation, Fig.13 Only one thick line is used in the diagram, but this does not mean that there is only one bus or only one type of bus.

[0321] In the embodiments of the present application, the processor may be a general-purpose processor, a digital signal processor, an application-specific integrated circuit, a field programmable gate array or other programmable logic device, a discrete gate or transistor logic device, a discrete hardware component, etc., and may implement or execute the methods, steps, and logic block diagrams disclosed in the embodiments of the present application. The general-purpose processor may be a microprocessor or any conventional processor, etc. The steps of the method disclosed in the embodiments of the present application may be directly embodied as being executed by a hardware processor, or may be executed by a combination of hardware and software modules in the processor, etc.

[0322] In the embodiment of the present application, the memory may include, but is not limited to, non-volatile memory such as a hard disk drive (HDD) or a solid-state drive (SSD), a random access memory (RAM), an erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM), a read-only memory (ROM) or a portable read-only memory (CD-ROM), etc. The memory is any storage medium that can be used to carry or store program codes in the form of instructions or data structures and can be read and / or written by a computer (such as the communication device shown in the present application), but is not limited thereto. The memory in the embodiment of the present application can also be a circuit or any other device that can realize a storage function, used to store program instructions and / or data.

[0323] The processor 2200 is mainly used to process the communication protocol and communication data, and to control the entire communication device, execute the software program, and process the data of the software program. The memory 2300 is mainly used to store the software program and data. The transceiver 2100 may include a control circuit and an antenna. The control circuit is mainly used to convert the baseband signal and the radio frequency signal and to process the radio frequency signal. The antenna is mainly used to send and receive radio frequency signals in the form of electromagnetic waves. The input and output devices, such as a touch screen, a display screen, a keyboard, etc., are mainly used to receive data input by the user and output data to the user.

[0324] When the communication device is turned on, the processor 2200 can read the software program in the memory 2300, interpret and execute the instructions of the software program, and process the data of the software program. When data needs to be sent wirelessly, the processor 2200 performs baseband processing on the data to be sent, and outputs the baseband signal to the RF circuit. The RF circuit performs RF processing on the baseband signal and then sends the RF signal outward in the form of electromagnetic waves through the antenna. When data is sent to the communication device, the RF circuit receives the RF signal through the antenna, converts the RF signal into a baseband signal, and outputs the baseband signal to the processor 2200. The processor 2200 converts the baseband signal into data and processes the data.

[0325] In another implementation, the RF circuit and antenna may be arranged independently of the processor performing baseband processing. For example, in a distributed scenario, the RF circuit and antenna may be arranged remotely from the communication device.

[0326] It is understandable that the communication device shown in the embodiment of the present application may also have Fig.13The embodiments of the present application do not limit the number of components and the like. The methods executed by the processor and the transceiver shown above are only examples, and the specific steps executed by the processor and the transceiver can refer to the methods described above.

[0327] In another possible implementation, Fig.12 In the communication device shown, the processing unit 1200 may be one or more logic circuits, and the transceiver unit 1100 may be an input / output interface, or a communication interface, or an interface circuit, or an interface, etc. Alternatively, the transceiver unit 1100 may be a sending unit and a receiving unit, the sending unit may be an output interface, the receiving unit may be an input interface, and the sending unit and the receiving unit may be integrated into one unit, such as an input / output interface. Fig.14 As shown, Fig.14 The communication device shown includes a logic circuit 3001 and an interface 3002. That is, the processing unit 1200 can be implemented by the logic circuit 3001, and the transceiver unit 1100 can be implemented by the interface 3002. The logic circuit 3001 can be a chip, a processing circuit, an integrated circuit or a system on chip (SoC) chip, etc., and the interface 3002 can be a communication interface, an input / output interface, a pin, etc. For example, Fig.13 The above communication device is used as an example of a chip, and the chip includes a logic circuit 3001 and an interface 3002 .

[0328] In the embodiment of the present application, the logic circuit and the interface may also be coupled to each other. The embodiment of the present application does not limit the specific connection method between the logic circuit and the interface.

[0329] It can be understood that the communication device shown in the embodiment of the present application can implement the method provided in the embodiment of the present application in the form of hardware, or can implement the method provided in the embodiment of the present application in the form of software, etc., and the embodiment of the present application is not limited to this.

[0330] The embodiment of the present application also provides a wireless communication system, which includes an access network device and a terminal device, and the network device and the terminal device can be used to execute the method in any of the above embodiments. Further optionally, the communication system can also include a core network device.

[0331] In addition, the present application also provides a computer-readable storage medium, which stores computer code. When the computer code runs on a computer, the computer executes the operations and / or processing performed by the terminal device, access network device or core network device in the method provided by the present application.

[0332] The present application also provides a computer program product, which includes a computer code or a computer program. When the computer code or computer program runs on a computer, the operations and / or processing performed by the terminal device, access network device or core network device in the method provided by the present application are executed.

[0333] In the several embodiments provided in the present application, it should be understood that the disclosed systems, devices and methods can be implemented in other ways. For example, the device embodiments described above are only schematic. For example, the division of the units is only a logical function division. There may be other division methods in actual implementation, 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 mutual coupling or direct coupling or communication connection shown or discussed can be an indirect coupling or communication connection through some interfaces, devices or units, or it can be an electrical, mechanical or other form of connection.

[0334] The units described as separate components may or may not be physically separated, and the components displayed as units may or may not be physical units, that is, they may be located in one place or distributed on multiple network units. Some or all of the units may be selected according to actual needs to achieve the technical effects of the solutions provided in the embodiments of the present application.

[0335] In addition, each functional unit in each embodiment of the present application may be integrated into one processing unit, or each unit may exist physically separately, or two or more units may be integrated into one unit. The above-mentioned integrated unit may be implemented in the form of hardware or in the form of software functional units.

[0336] If the integrated unit is implemented in the form of a software functional unit and sold or used as an independent product, it can be stored in a computer-readable storage medium. Based on this understanding, the technical solution of the present application is essentially or the part that makes the contribution, or all or part of the technical solution can be embodied in the form of a software product. The computer software product is stored in a readable storage medium, including a number of instructions to enable a computer device (which can be a personal computer, server, or network device, etc.) to perform all or part of the steps of the method described in each embodiment of the present application. The aforementioned readable storage medium includes: U disk, mobile hard disk, read-only memory (ROM), random access memory (RAM), disk or optical disk, etc., various media that can store program codes.

[0337] The above is only a specific implementation of the present application, but the protection scope of the present application is not limited thereto. Any person skilled in the art who is familiar with the present technical field can easily think of changes or substitutions within the technical scope disclosed in the present application, which should be included in the protection scope of the present application. Therefore, the protection scope of the present application should be based on the protection scope of the claims.

Claims

1. A communication method, applied to a terminal device, characterized in that: include: Receiving first indication information sent by a first access network device deployed on a first satellite, where the first indication information indicates establishing an anchor point relationship between the first satellite and the terminal device; According to the first indication information, determining that the first satellite is an anchor satellite of the terminal device, the anchor satellite being a fixed satellite that establishes a service link with the terminal device and communicates with the terminal device based on the service link; When the terminal device is in an idle state and the terminal device has uplink information that needs to be sent, the terminal device monitors a broadcast message, the broadcast message includes an identifier of a satellite, and determines whether the broadcast message is sent by the first satellite according to the identifier of the satellite included in the broadcast message; if the broadcast message is sent by the first satellite, establishes a first radio resource control RRC connection with the first access network device deployed on the first satellite, and sends the uplink information based on the first RRC connection; or, Monitor a broadcast message, where the broadcast message includes an identifier of a satellite, and determine whether the broadcast message is sent by the first satellite based on the identifier of the satellite contained in the broadcast message; if the broadcast message is sent by the first satellite, reside in the cell of the first satellite and continue to monitor whether there is a paging message of the terminal device; if a paging message of the terminal device is received, establish a second RRC connection with the first access network device deployed on the first satellite, and receive downlink information based on the second RRC connection.

2. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that The monitoring of broadcast messages includes: When the terminal device determines, based on the ephemeris information of the first satellite, that the terminal device is located within the coverage of the first satellite, it starts to monitor broadcast messages.

3. The method according to claim 2, characterized in that The method further comprises: When the terminal device determines that the terminal device is located within the coverage of the first satellite based on the ephemeris information of the first satellite, and no broadcast message from the anchor satellite is received after monitoring for more than a preset number of times, a second satellite is determined as the anchor satellite of the terminal device.

4. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that The method further comprises: receiving second indication information sent by the first access network device, where the second indication information indicates that the first satellite is no longer an anchor satellite of the terminal device; According to the second indication information, a second satellite is determined as an anchor satellite of the terminal device.

5. The method according to claim 3 or 4, characterized in that The determining the second satellite as the anchor satellite of the terminal device includes: Establishing an RRC connection with a second access network device, where the second access network device is deployed on the second satellite; receiving third indication information from the second access network device, wherein the third indication information indicates establishing an anchor point relationship between the second satellite and the terminal device; According to the third indication information, the second satellite is determined to be an anchor satellite of the terminal device.

6. A communication method, characterized in that: Applied to core network equipment, including: Receiving a first request message from a first access network device deployed on a first satellite, where the first request message is used to request to establish an anchor point relationship between the first satellite and a terminal device, and the first request message includes at least an identifier of the terminal device and an identifier of the first satellite; Sending a first response message to the first access network device, where the first response message indicates that establishment of an anchor point relationship between the first satellite and the terminal device is allowed; storing an anchor point relationship between the first satellite and the terminal device, wherein the anchor point relationship indicates that the anchor point satellite of the terminal device is the first satellite, and the anchor point satellite is a fixed satellite that establishes a service link with the terminal device and communicates with the terminal device based on the service link; receiving downlink information, wherein the downlink information is downlink information sent to a terminal device; Determining, according to the stored anchor point relationship between the first satellite and the terminal device, that the anchor point satellite of the terminal device is the first satellite; The downlink information is sent to the first access network device deployed on the first satellite.

7. The method according to claim 6, characterized in that The method further comprises: receiving a second request message from the first access network device, where the second request message is used to request that the first satellite no longer be an anchor satellite for the terminal device; A second response message is sent to the first access network device, where the second response message indicates that the first satellite is allowed to no longer be an anchor satellite for the terminal device.

8. A communication method, characterized in that: Applied to an access network device, the access network device is deployed on a first satellite, and the method includes: Sending first indication information to a terminal device, where the first indication information indicates establishing an anchor point relationship between the first satellite and the terminal device, and after the anchor point relationship between the first satellite and the terminal device is established, the anchor point satellite of the terminal device is the first satellite; Establishing a first radio resource control RRC connection with the terminal device, and receiving uplink information based on the first RRC connection, wherein the first RRC connection is established in response to the following conditions: the terminal device is in an idle state, and the terminal device has uplink information to be sent, and the terminal device determines that the broadcast message is sent by the first satellite according to the identifier of the satellite contained in the monitored broadcast message; or, A second RRC connection is established with the terminal device, and downlink information is sent based on the second RRC connection, wherein the second RRC connection is established in response to the following conditions: the terminal device determines, based on the identifier of the satellite contained in the monitored broadcast message, that the broadcast message is sent by the first satellite, and the terminal device resides in a cell of the first satellite and monitors the paging message of the terminal device.

9. The method according to claim 8, characterized in that Before sending the first indication information to the terminal device, the method further includes: Sending a first request message to a core network device, where the first request message is used to request to establish an anchor point relationship between the first satellite and the terminal device; A first response message is received from the core network device, where the first response message indicates that establishment of an anchor point relationship between the first satellite and the terminal device is allowed.

10. The method according to claim 8, characterized in that After sending the first indication information to the terminal device, the method further includes: Sending a second request message to the core network device, where the second request message is used to request that the first satellite no longer be an anchor satellite for the terminal device; A second response message is received from the core network device, where the second response message indicates that the first satellite is allowed to no longer be an anchor satellite for the terminal device.

11. The method according to claim 10, characterized in that The method further comprises: Sending second indication information to the terminal device, wherein the second indication information indicates that the first satellite is no longer an anchor satellite for the terminal device.

12. A communication device, characterized in that: The method comprises a unit for executing the method according to any one of claims 1 to 5, or comprises a unit for executing the method according to any one of claims 6 to 7, or comprises a unit for executing the method according to any one of claims 8 to 11.

13. A communication device, characterized in that: Comprising a processor, the processor is used to execute the method according to any one of claims 1-5, or the processor is used to execute the method according to any one of claims 6-7, or the processor is used to execute the method according to any one of claims 8-11.

14. A computer storage medium, characterized in that: The computer storage medium is used to store a computer program. When the computer program is executed, the method according to any one of claims 1 to 5 is executed, or the method according to any one of claims 6 to 7 is executed, or the method according to any one of claims 8 to 11 is executed.

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