A network icon display method, terminal and computer readable storage medium

Abstract

The embodiment of the present application provides a method and terminal for displaying a network icon, which relates to the field of electronic technology, and can make the display of a 5G network icon more consistent with the actual network status of the terminal, reduce the switching of network icons, and improve the user experience. The specific scheme is: the terminal adds an NR SCG after registering to the first cell for the first time, and the first cell is a long-term evolution LTE cell; the terminal registers to the first cell for the second time, and the interval between the time of the second registration to the first cell and the time of the first registration to the first cell is less than or equal to the preset duration T; the terminal displays the 5G network icon. The embodiment of the present application is used to display a network icon.

Description

[0001] This application is a divisional application filed again for the divisional application. The application number of the divisional application is 202211152992.0, the application number of the original application is 202010220033.2, the application date of the original application is March 25, 2020, and the name of the invention of the original application is “A method and terminal for displaying a network icon”. The entire content of the original application is incorporated into this application by reference. Technical Field

[0002] Embodiments of the present application relate to the field of electronic technology, and in particular, to a method and terminal for displaying a network icon. Background Art

[0003] With the development of mobile communication technology, the fifth-generation (5G) mobile communication technology has become the mainstream trend of mobile communication. In the early stage of 5G networking, non-stand alone (NSA) networking was mostly used for network construction. NSA networking involves the 4th generation mobile communication technology (4G) network and 5G network. How to display 5G network icons and 4G network icons on mobile phones and other terminals is currently a hot issue in NSA networking research. Summary of the invention

[0004] The embodiments of the present application provide a method and terminal for displaying a network icon, which can make the display of a 5G network icon more consistent with the actual network status of the terminal, reduce the switching of network icons, and improve the user experience.

[0005] In order to achieve the above objectives, the embodiments of the present application adopt the following technical solutions:

[0006] On the one hand, an embodiment of the present application provides a method for displaying a network icon, which can be applied to a terminal, which adds a new air interface secondary service cell group NR SCG after registering with a first cell for the first time, and the first cell is a long-term evolution LTE cell. The method includes: the terminal registers with the first cell for the second time, and the interval between the time of the second registration with the first cell and the time of the first registration with the first cell is less than or equal to the preset duration T. The terminal displays a 5G network icon.

[0007] In this solution, since the network environment of the first cell is relatively stable in a short period of time and is not prone to major changes, the network side adds NR SCG to the terminal, that is, within the preset time T after the terminal establishes dual connection, if the terminal registers to the first cell again, the terminal in the first cell may still have the signal coverage of the NR base station, has the ability of dual connection, and has the ability to use the 5G network. When the terminal processes the service, the terminal has the conditions to use the 5G network for service processing through dual connection, so the terminal interface can display the 5G network icon. This solution can make the 5G network icon better match the 5G network capability of the terminal in the first cell, making the display of the 5G network icon more accurate; unlike the CONFIG D solution, the user does not actually use the 5G network when the 5G network icon is displayed.

[0008] In one possible design, if the terminal has not added NRSCG in the first cell within the previous preset duration T, for example, the interval between the second registration time of the terminal to the first cell and the first registration time to the first cell is greater than the preset duration T, or the terminal has not added NR SCG in the first cell before, the method also includes: the terminal enters a connected state. If NR SCG is added, the terminal displays a 5G network icon. After the NR SCG is deleted, the terminal continues to display the 5G network icon. Alternatively, if NR SCG is not added, the terminal displays a 4G network icon.

[0009] In this solution, if the terminal determines that no NR SCG has been added in the first cell within the previous preset time T, that is, no dual connection has been established, the terminal cannot directly display the 5G network icon. Then, after the terminal enters the connected state, the terminal determines whether to display the 5G network icon or the 4G network icon based on whether the network side adds NR SCG to the terminal, that is, whether the terminal establishes a dual connection.

[0010] In another possible design, after the terminal adds the NR SCG in the first cell, the terminal saves the identifier of the first cell in the whitelist and starts the timer corresponding to the first cell. After the timer corresponding to the first cell exceeds the preset duration T, the terminal deletes the identifier of the first cell from the whitelist.

[0011] In another possible design, if the terminal has not added NRSCG in the first cell within the previous preset duration T, for example, the interval between the time of the second registration to the first cell and the time of the first registration to the first cell is greater than the preset duration T, or the terminal has not added NR SCG in the first cell before, the method also includes: the terminal enters an idle state. If the first cell supports the non-independent NSA networking mode, the terminal displays the 5G network icon. Alternatively, if the first cell does not support the NSA networking mode, the terminal displays the 4G network icon.

[0012] In this solution, if the terminal has not added NR SCG, that is, has not established dual connection in the first cell within the previous preset time T, the terminal cannot directly display the 5G network icon. Then, after the terminal enters the idle state, the terminal determines whether to display the 5G network icon or the 4G network icon based on whether the first cell supports the NSA networking mode.

[0013] On the other hand, an embodiment of the present application provides a method for displaying a network icon, which can be applied to a terminal, which adds a new air interface secondary service cell group NR SCG after registering with a first cell for the first time, and the first cell is a long-term evolution LTE cell. The method includes: the terminal registers with the first cell for the second time, and the terminal displays a 5G network icon.

[0014] In this solution, after the network side adds NR SCG to the terminal, that is, after the terminal establishes dual connection, if the terminal registers to the first cell again, the terminal in the first cell may still have the signal coverage of the NR base station, has the capability of dual connection, and has the ability to use the 5G network. When the terminal processes the service, the terminal has the conditions to use the 5G network for service processing through dual connection, so the terminal interface can display the 5G network icon. This solution can make the 5G network icon better match the 5G network capability of the terminal in the first cell, so that the display of the 5G network icon is more accurate.

[0015] On the other hand, an embodiment of the present application provides a method for displaying a network icon, including: a terminal registers to a first cell, the first cell being a long term evolution LTE cell. If an NR SCG is added, the terminal displays a 5G network icon; after the NR SCG is deleted, the terminal continues to display the 5G network icon. Alternatively, if the NR SCG is not added, the terminal displays a 4G network icon.

[0016] In this solution, after the terminal registers to the first cell. When the network side does not add NR SCG to the terminal, that is, the terminal does not establish dual connection, the terminal in the first cell may not have the signal coverage of the NR base station, the dual connection capability, and the ability to use the 5G network, so the terminal displays the 4G network icon. When the network side adds NR SCG to the terminal, that is, the terminal establishes dual connection, it can be indicated that the terminal has the signal coverage of the NR base station, the dual connection capability, and the ability to use the 5G network, so when the terminal does not move out of the first cell, that is, continues to register in (or resides in) the first cell, the terminal can continue to display the 5G network icon.

[0017] In a possible design, after the NR SCG added for the terminal on the network side is deleted, the terminal continues to display the 5G network icon, including: after the NR SCG added for the terminal on the network side is deleted, the terminal enters a connected state or an idle state, and continues to display the 5G network icon.

[0018] That is to say, after the terminal disconnects the dual connection, as long as it has not moved out of the first cell and still resides in the first cell, the terminal can continue to display the 5G icon regardless of whether the terminal enters the connected state or the idle state.

[0019] On the other hand, an embodiment of the present application provides a method for displaying a network icon, including: a terminal registers to a first cell, and the first cell is a long-term evolution LTE cell. After the terminal initiates a first service and enters a connected state, if the first cell supports the NSA networking mode, the terminal displays a 5G network icon; if the first cell does not support the NSA networking mode, the terminal displays a 4G network icon. Alternatively, after the terminal initiates a second service and enters a connected state, if NR SCG is added, the terminal displays a 5G network icon; if NR SCG is not added, the terminal displays a 4G network icon.

[0020] For example, the first service includes an Attach service, a tracking area updating (TAU) service, a short message receiving / sending service, or a multimedia message receiving / sending service.

[0021] In this solution, after the terminal establishes a connection state through the second service, if the terminal establishes a dual connection, the terminal interface displays the 5G network icon; if the terminal interface displays the 5G network icon, it can be indicated that the terminal has established a dual connection and used the 5G network when processing the second service; therefore, the user does not actually use the 5G network when the 5G network icon is displayed, and the user experience is better. The 5G network icon can be well matched with the 5G network capability in the first cell, and the display of the 5G network icon is more accurate and more in line with the actual network status of the terminal.

[0022] In one possible design, after the terminal registers with the first cell, the method further includes: the terminal enters an idle state. If the first cell supports the NSA networking mode, the terminal displays a 5G network icon. Alternatively, if the first cell does not support the NSA networking mode, the terminal displays a 4G network icon.

[0023] Among them, since the probability that the first cell supports the NSA networking mode is relatively high, the probability that the terminal displays the 5G network icon in the idle state is also relatively high. For the first service, if the 5G network icon is also displayed after the dual connection is established in the connected state, and the 4G network icon is displayed when the dual connection is not established, then after the first service triggers the terminal to enter the connected state, the terminal displays the 4G network icon because the dual connection is not established. After the first service ends quickly, the terminal enters the idle state again. If the terminal determines that the first cell supports the NSA networking mode, the 5G network icon is displayed again, and the terminal will frequently switch between the 5G network icon and the 4G network icon. This solution can avoid the terminal frequently switching between the first icon and the second icon in this case.

[0024] On the other hand, an embodiment of the present application provides a method for displaying a network icon, comprising: a terminal registers with a first cell, the first cell being a long term evolution LTE cell. The terminal enters a connected state. If the terminal detects an NR signal, the terminal displays a 5G network icon. If the terminal does not detect an NR signal, the terminal displays a 4G network icon.

[0025] In this solution, when the terminal is processing services in the connected state, if the NR signal is detected, it means that the area where the terminal is located is covered by the NR signal, the terminal has 5G communication capabilities, and can use the 5G network, so the 5G network icon can be displayed; unlike the CONFIG D solution, the user does not actually use the 5G network when the 5G network icon is displayed. This solution can better match the 5G network icon with the 5G network capability of the terminal in the first cell, making the display of the 5G network icon more accurate and more in line with the actual network status of the terminal.

[0026] In one possible design, after the terminal registers with the first cell, the method further includes: the terminal enters an idle state. If the first cell supports the NSA networking mode, the terminal displays a 5G network icon. If the first cell does not support the NSA networking mode, the terminal displays a 4G network icon.

[0027] In this solution, after the terminal registers to the first cell, if the terminal enters an idle state, it can determine whether to display the 5G network icon or the 4G network icon based on whether the first cell supports the NSA networking mode.

[0028] On the other hand, an embodiment of the present application provides a terminal, which adds a new air interface secondary service cell group NR SCG after registering with a first cell for the first time, and the first cell is a long-term evolution LTE cell. The terminal includes: a screen for displaying a network icon; one or more processors; a memory; and one or more computer programs, wherein the one or more computer programs are stored in the memory, and the one or more computer programs include instructions, and when the instructions are executed by the terminal, the terminal performs the following steps: registering with the first cell for the second time, and the interval between the time of the second registration with the first cell and the time of the first registration with the first cell is less than or equal to the preset duration T; displaying a 5G network icon.

[0029] In one possible design, if no NR SCG has been added in the first cell within the previous preset duration T, for example, the interval between the time of the second registration to the first cell and the time of the first registration to the first cell is greater than the preset duration T, or, no NR SCG has been added in the first cell before, then when the instruction is executed by the terminal, the terminal is also caused to perform the following steps: enter the connected state. If NR SCG is added, the 5G network icon is displayed. After the NR SCG is deleted, the 5G network icon continues to be displayed. Alternatively, if NR SCG is not added, the 4G network icon is displayed.

[0030] In another possible design, if NRSCG has not been added in the first cell within the previous preset duration T, for example, the interval between the second registration time to the first cell and the first registration time to the first cell is greater than the preset duration T, or, NR SCG has not been added in the first cell before, then when the instruction is executed by the terminal, the terminal is also caused to perform the following steps: enter the idle state. If the first cell supports the non-independent NSA networking mode, the 5G network icon is displayed. Alternatively, if the first cell does not support the NSA networking mode, the 4G network icon is displayed.

[0031] On the other hand, an embodiment of the present application provides a terminal, which adds a new air interface secondary service cell group NR SCG after registering with a first cell for the first time, and the first cell is a long-term evolution LTE cell. The terminal includes: a screen for displaying a network icon; one or more processors; a memory; and one or more computer programs, wherein the one or more computer programs are stored in the memory, and the one or more computer programs include instructions, which, when executed by the terminal, cause the terminal to perform the following steps: registering with the first cell for the second time; displaying a 5G network icon.

[0032] On the other hand, an embodiment of the present application provides a terminal, comprising: a screen for displaying a network icon; one or more processors; a memory; and one or more computer programs, wherein the one or more computer programs are stored in the memory, and the one or more computer programs include instructions, and when the instructions are executed by the terminal, the terminal performs the following steps: registering to a first cell, the first cell being a long-term evolution LTE cell. If NR SCG is added, a 5G network icon is displayed; after NRSCG is deleted, the 5G network icon continues to be displayed. Alternatively, if NR SCG is not added, a 4G network icon is displayed.

[0033] In one possible design, after the NR SCG is deleted, the 5G network icon continues to be displayed, including: after the NR SCG is deleted, entering a connected state or an idle state, and continuing to display the 5G network icon.

[0034] On the other hand, an embodiment of the present application provides a terminal, comprising: a screen for displaying a network icon; one or more processors; a memory; and one or more computer programs, wherein the one or more computer programs are stored in the memory, and the one or more computer programs include instructions, which, when executed by the terminal, cause the terminal to perform the following steps: registering to a first cell, the first cell being a long-term evolution LTE cell. After initiating a first service and entering a connected state, if the first cell supports the NSA networking mode, a 5G network icon is displayed; if the first cell does not support the NSA networking mode, a 4G network icon is displayed. Alternatively, after initiating a second service and entering a connected state, if an NR SCG is added, a 5G network icon is displayed; if an NR SCG is not added, a 4G network icon is displayed.

[0035] For example, the first service includes an Attach service, a Tracking Area Update (TAU) service, a SMS receiving / sending service, or a MMS receiving / sending service.

[0036] In one possible design, when the instruction is executed by the terminal, the terminal is also caused to perform the following steps: after registering with the first cell, enter the idle state. If the first cell supports the NSA networking mode, display the 5G network icon. Alternatively, if the first cell does not support the NSA networking mode, display the 4G network icon.

[0037] On the other hand, an embodiment of the present application provides a terminal, comprising: a screen for displaying a network icon; one or more processors; a memory; and one or more computer programs, wherein the one or more computer programs are stored in the memory, and the one or more computer programs include instructions, and when the instructions are executed by the terminal, the terminal performs the following steps: registering to a first cell, the first cell being a long-term evolution LTE cell. Entering a connected state. If an NR signal is detected, a 5G network icon is displayed. If no NR signal is detected, a 4G network icon is displayed.

[0038] In one possible design, when the instruction is executed by the terminal, the terminal is also caused to perform the following steps: after registering to the first cell, enter the idle state. If the first cell supports the NSA networking mode, the 5G network icon is displayed. If the first cell does not support the NSA networking mode, the 4G network icon is displayed.

[0039] On the other hand, an embodiment of the present application provides an icon display device, which is included in a terminal. The device has the function of implementing the terminal behavior in any of the methods in the above aspects and possible designs, so that the terminal executes the display method of the network icon in any of the possible designs in the above aspects. The function can be implemented by hardware, or the corresponding software can be implemented by hardware. The hardware or software includes at least one module or unit corresponding to the above functions. For example, the device may include a registration module or unit, a display module or unit, or a processing module or unit, etc.

[0040] In another aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a terminal, including: one or more processors; and a memory, wherein a code is stored in the memory. When the code is executed by the terminal, the terminal executes a method for displaying a network icon executed by the terminal in any possible design of the above aspects.

[0041] On the other hand, an embodiment of the present application provides a computer-readable storage medium, including computer instructions. When the computer instructions are executed on a terminal, the terminal executes a method for displaying a network icon in any possible design of the above aspects.

[0042] On the other hand, an embodiment of the present application provides a computer program product, which, when executed on a computer, enables the computer to execute the method for displaying a network icon executed by a terminal in any possible design of the above aspects.

[0043] On the other hand, an embodiment of the present application provides a chip system, which is applied to a terminal. The chip system includes one or more interface circuits and one or more processors; the interface circuit and the processor are interconnected through a line; the interface circuit is used to receive a signal from the memory of the terminal and send a signal to the processor, the signal including a computer instruction stored in the memory; when the processor executes the computer instruction, the terminal executes the method for displaying a network icon in any possible design of the above aspects.

[0044] The beneficial effects corresponding to the above-mentioned other aspects can be found in the description of the beneficial effects of the method, which will not be elaborated here. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0045] Figure 1A A schematic diagram of a NSA network architecture provided for an embodiment of the present application;

[0046] Figure 1B Another NSA network architecture diagram provided for an embodiment of the present application;

[0047] Figure 2 A schematic diagram of the architecture of a communication system provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0048] Figure 3A schematic diagram of the hardware structure of a terminal provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0049] Figure 4 A schematic diagram of the software structure of a terminal provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0050] Figure 5A A flow chart of a method for displaying a network icon provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0051] Figure 5B A schematic diagram of a set of scenarios for establishing and disconnecting dual connections provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0052] Figure 5C A flowchart of another method for displaying a network icon provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0053] Figure 6 A flowchart of another method for displaying a network icon provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0054] Figure 7 A flowchart of another method for displaying a network icon provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0055] Figure 8 A flowchart of another method for displaying a network icon provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0056] Fig. 9 A flowchart of another method for displaying a network icon provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0057] Fig.10 A flowchart of another method for displaying a network icon provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0058] Fig.11 A flowchart of another method for displaying a network icon provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0059] Fig.12 A flowchart of another method for displaying a network icon provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0060] Fig.13 A schematic diagram of an interface for displaying network icons on a mobile phone provided in an embodiment of the present application. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0061] The technical solutions in the embodiments of the present application will be described below in conjunction with the drawings in the embodiments of the present application. In the description of the embodiments of the present application, unless otherwise specified, " / " means or, for example, A / B can mean A or B; "and / or" in this article is only a description of the association relationship of associated objects, indicating that there can be three relationships, for example, A and / or B can mean: A exists alone, A and B exist at the same time, and B exists alone. In addition, in the description of the embodiments of the present application, "multiple" means two or more than two.

[0062] In the following, the terms "first" and "second" are used for descriptive purposes only and are not to be understood as indicating or implying relative importance or implicitly indicating the number of the indicated technical features. Thus, a feature defined as "first" or "second" may explicitly or implicitly include one or more of the features. In the description of this embodiment, unless otherwise specified, "plurality" means two or more.

[0063] NSA networking can use existing 4G network facilities to deploy 5G networks. There are many NSA networking methods. For example, in one NSA networking method, see Figure 1A In (a)-(c), the 4G base station and the 5G base station (or new radio (NR) base station) share the 4G core network. Among them, the 4G base station is the main base station and the 5G base station is the auxiliary base station. The control plane signaling reaches the 4G core network through the 4G base station. The user plane signaling can reach the 4G core network through the 4G base station, and can also reach the 4G core network through the 5G base station. Exemplarily, the 4G network can be a long term evolution (LTE) type network, the 4G base station can be an evolutionary base station (evolutional Node B, eNB or eNodeB), the 5G base station can be a next generation base station (next generation NodeB, gNB), and the 4G core network can be an evolved packet core network (evolved packet core, EPC). Figure 1A The NSA networking mode in the example can also be called the EN-DC deployment mode.

[0064] For another example, in another NSA networking method, see Figure 1B In (a)-(c), the 4G base station and the 5G base station share the 5G core network. The 4G base station is the primary base station and the 5G base station is the secondary base station. The control plane signaling reaches the 5G core network through the 4G base station. The user plane signaling can reach the 5G core network through the 4G base station or through the 5G base station. Exemplarily, the 5G core network can be the next generation core network (NGC).

[0065] Since NSA networking involves both 4G and 5G network standards, the terminals in the NSA networking mode involve the switching display of 4G network icons and 5G network icons. At present, the display schemes of 5G network icons of various operators are numerous and change frequently, and there is no unified display scheme. As shown in Table 1, the Global System for Mobile Communications Association GSMA submitted CONFIG A / B / C / D four terminal display 5G network icon schemes to the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP).

[0066] Table 1

[0067]

[0068] Among them, in the display scheme of the 5G network icon shown in Table 1, CONFIG B / C requires the terminal to monitor in real time whether there is signal coverage of the NR base station, so the power consumption of the terminal is relatively large. Most terminal manufacturers choose the CONFIG A / D display scheme.

[0069] In the CONFIG A scheme, the 5G network icon is displayed only when the terminal resides in an LTE cell and establishes LTE+NR dual connectivity, and the 5G network icon is not displayed in other cases. Among them, LTE+NR dual connectivity means that the terminal in the connected state uses the wireless resources provided by the master node (MN) and the secondary node (SN) to communicate, and the master node and the secondary node use LTE and NR wireless access technologies respectively.

[0070] In the LTE+NR dual connection state, the terminal corresponds to a master cell group (MCG) and a secondary cell group (SCG). The master cell group includes the LTE cell accessed by the terminal, and the secondary cell group includes the NR cell. Among them, since the LTE+NR dual connection may be frequently established and disconnected between the terminal and the network, the 5G network icon and the 4G network icon displayed by the terminal will be frequently switched, resulting in a poor user experience.

[0071] In CONFIG D, the 5G network icon is displayed when the terminal resides in an LTE cell and the LTE cell supports NSA networking. In this way, when the user actually uses the terminal to handle services, there may be a scenario where the terminal displays the 5G network icon but there is actually no NR connection, that is, the user is not actually using the 5G network, which is easy to cause misunderstanding.

[0072] The embodiments of the present application provide several display schemes for network icons, which can make the display of 5G network icons more in line with the actual network status of the terminal, improve the user's understanding of the 5G network icon, reduce the switching of network icons, and improve the user's experience.

[0073] The network icon display scheme provided in the embodiment of the present application can optimize the above-mentioned CONFIG A scheme or CONFIG D scheme, so that the display of the 5G network icon is more in line with the actual network status and more in line with the user's understanding and cognitive habits.

[0074] like Figure 2 As shown, the display scheme of the network icon provided in the embodiment of the present application can be applied to the communication system 10. The communication system 10 is a network system formed by a first mobile communication network 101 and a second mobile communication network 102 through non-independent networking. The first mobile communication network 101 and the second mobile communication network 102 belong to different network standards. For example, the first mobile communication network can be a 4G network, and the second mobile communication network can be a 5G network; or, the first mobile communication network can be a 5G network, and the second mobile communication network can be a future 6G communication network; or, the first mobile communication network and the second mobile communication network are both different future communication networks. The embodiment of the present application does not limit the specific types of the first mobile communication network and the second mobile communication network. Among them, when the first mobile communication network is a 4G network and the second mobile communication network is a 5G network, the architecture of the communication system can be referred to. Figure 1A or Figure 1B .

[0075] The communication system 10 includes a first access network device 11 of a first mobile communication network 101, a second access network device 12 of a second mobile communication network 102, a terminal 13, and a core network 14. The core network 14 may include multiple network elements or multiple network devices. The terminal 13 may establish a communication connection (e.g., a radio resource control (RRC) connection) with the first access network device 11, thereby accessing the first mobile communication network 101. Alternatively, the terminal 13 may establish a mobile communication connection with the first access network device 11 and the second access network device 12, respectively, thereby establishing a dual connection, so that the terminal 13 accesses the first mobile communication network 101 and the second mobile communication network 102.

[0076] Among them, the access network device in the embodiment of the present application is a device that accesses the terminal to the wireless network, which can be an eNB or eNodeB in an LTE network; or a gNB in ​​a 5G network; or a base station in a future evolved public land mobile network (PLMN), a broadband network gateway (BNG), an aggregation switch or a non-third generation partnership project (3rd generation partnership project, 3GPP) access device, etc., and the embodiment of the present application does not make specific limitations on this. Optionally, the base station in the embodiment of the present application may include various forms of base stations, such as: macro base stations, micro base stations (also called small stations), relay stations, access points, etc., and the embodiment of the present application does not make specific limitations on this.

[0077] It should be noted that the types of access network devices (e.g., the first access network device and the second access network device) in different mobile communication networks may be different. For example, when the first mobile communication network is a 4G network, the first access network device may be an eNB; when the second mobile communication network is a 5G network, the second access network device may be a gNB.

[0078] The terminal in the embodiment of the present application may be a device for realizing a wireless communication function, for example, a terminal device or a chip that can be used in a terminal device, etc. The terminal may be a user equipment (UE), an access terminal, a terminal unit, a terminal station, a mobile station, a mobile station, a remote station, a remote terminal, a mobile device, a wireless communication device, a terminal agent or a terminal device, etc. in a 4G network, a 5G network or a future evolved PLMN. The access terminal may be a cellular phone, a cordless phone, a session initiation protocol (SIP) phone, a wireless local loop (WLL) station, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a handheld device with wireless communication function, a computing device or other processing device connected to a wireless modem processor, a vehicle-mounted device or a wearable device, a virtual reality (VR) terminal, an augmented reality (AR) terminal, a wireless terminal in industrial control, a wireless terminal in self driving, a wireless terminal in remote medical, 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. The terminal may be mobile or fixed.

[0079] Optionally, the above-mentioned access network equipment and terminal may also be referred to as a communication device, which may be a general device or a dedicated device, and the embodiments of the present application do not specifically limit this.

[0080] In an embodiment of the present application, the terminal can display a network icon according to the network status of the currently connected mobile communication network, so that the display of the network icon is more consistent with the actual network status, improves the user's understanding of the network icon, reduces the switching of network icons, and improves the user's experience. Among them, the network icon can be a network icon of the first mobile communication network or a network icon of the second mobile communication network. The network status may include whether the cell of the first mobile communication network accessed by the terminal supports non-independent networking, whether the terminal is currently in an idle state or a connected state, whether the terminal has established a dual connection, or whether the terminal has detected the signal coverage of the second mobile communication network, etc.

[0081] For example, Figure 31 shows a schematic diagram of the structure of the terminal 100. The terminal 100 may include a processor 110, an external memory interface 120, an internal memory 121, a universal serial bus (USB) interface 130, a charging management module 140, a power management module 141, a battery 142, an antenna 1, an antenna 2, a mobile communication module 150, a wireless communication module 160, an audio module 170, a speaker 170A, a receiver 170B, a microphone 170C, an earphone interface 170D, a sensor module 180, a button 190, a motor 191, an indicator 192, a camera 193, a display screen 194, and a subscriber identification module (SIM) card interface 195. The sensor module 180 may include a pressure sensor 180A, a gyroscope sensor 180B, an air pressure sensor 180C, a magnetic sensor 180D, an acceleration sensor 180E, a distance sensor 180F, a proximity light sensor 180G, a fingerprint sensor 180H, a temperature sensor 180J, a touch sensor 180K, an ambient light sensor 180L, a bone conduction sensor 180M, etc.

[0082] The internal memory 121 may be used to store computer executable program codes, which include instructions. The processor 110 executes the instructions stored in the internal memory 121 to perform various functional applications and data processing of the electronic device 100.

[0083] The mobile communication module 150 can provide solutions for wireless communications including 2G / 3G / 4G / 5G applied to the terminal 100. The mobile communication module 150 may include at least one filter, a switch, a power amplifier, a low noise amplifier (LNA), etc. The mobile communication module 150 can receive electromagnetic waves from the antenna 1, and filter, amplify, and process the received electromagnetic waves, and transmit them to the modulation and demodulation processor for demodulation. The mobile communication module 150 can also amplify the signal modulated by the modulation and demodulation processor, and convert it into electromagnetic waves for radiation through the antenna 1. In some embodiments, at least some of the functional modules of the mobile communication module 150 can be set in the processor 110. In some embodiments, at least some of the functional modules of the mobile communication module 150 can be set in the same device as at least some of the modules of the processor 110.

[0084] The modem processor may include a modulator and a demodulator. Among them, the modulator is used to modulate the low-frequency baseband signal to be sent into a medium-high frequency signal. The demodulator is used to demodulate the received electromagnetic wave signal into a low-frequency baseband signal. The demodulator then transmits the demodulated low-frequency baseband signal to the baseband processor for processing. After the low-frequency baseband signal is processed by the baseband processor, it is passed to the application processor. The application processor outputs a sound signal through a terminal (not limited to a speaker 170A, a receiver 170B, etc.), or displays an image or video through a display screen 194. In some embodiments, the modem processor may be an independent device. In other embodiments, the modem processor may be independent of the processor 110 and be set in the same device as the mobile communication module 150 or other functional modules.

[0085] For example, in an embodiment of the present application, the modem processor may obtain the network status of the mobile communication network of the terminal 100 and report the network status to the controller. For example, the network status may include whether the cell of the first mobile communication network accessed by the terminal supports non-independent networking, whether the terminal is currently in an idle state or a connected state, whether the terminal establishes a dual connection, or whether the terminal detects signal coverage of the second mobile communication network, etc.

[0086] The terminal 100 implements the display function through a GPU, a display screen 194, and an application processor. The GPU is a microprocessor for image processing, which connects the display screen 194 and the application processor. The GPU is used to perform mathematical and geometric calculations for graphics rendering. The processor 110 may include one or more GPUs that execute program instructions to generate or change display information.

[0087] The display screen 194 is used to display images, videos, etc. The display screen 194 includes a display panel. The display panel can be a liquid crystal display (LCD), an organic light-emitting diode (OLED), an active-matrix organic light-emitting diode or an active-matrix organic light-emitting diode (AMOLED), a flexible light-emitting diode (FLED), Miniled, MicroLed, Micro-oLed, a quantum dot light-emitting diode (QLED), etc. In some embodiments, the terminal 100 may include 1 or N display screens 194, where N is a positive integer greater than 1. For example, in an embodiment of the present application, the display screen 194 may display network icons such as a 5G network icon or a 4G network icon.

[0088] The SIM card interface 195 is used to connect the SIM card. The SIM card can be connected to and separated from the terminal 100 by inserting it into the SIM card interface 195 or pulling it out from the SIM card interface 195. The terminal 100 can support 1 or N SIM card interfaces, where N is a positive integer greater than 1. The SIM card interface 195 can support Nano SIM cards, Micro SIM cards, SIM cards, etc. Multiple cards can be inserted into the same SIM card interface 195 at the same time. The types of multiple cards can be the same or different. The SIM card interface 195 can also be compatible with different types of SIM cards. The SIM card interface 195 can also be compatible with external memory cards. The terminal 100 interacts with the network through the SIM card to implement functions such as calls and data communications. In some embodiments, the terminal 100 uses an eSIM, i.e., an embedded SIM card. The eSIM card can be embedded in the terminal 100 and cannot be separated from the terminal 100.

[0089] It is to be understood that the structure illustrated in the embodiment of the present application does not constitute a specific limitation on the terminal 100. In other embodiments of the present application, the terminal 100 may include more or fewer components than shown in the figure, or combine certain components, or split certain components, or arrange the components differently. The components shown in the figure may be implemented in hardware, software, or a combination of software and hardware.

[0090] In an embodiment of the present application, the modem processor can obtain the network status of the mobile communication network of the terminal 100 and report the obtained network status to the controller. The controller determines the target network icon according to the current network status of the terminal 100 by running the instructions stored in the internal memory 121, and notifies the display screen 194 to display the target network icon. The target network icon is the network icon of the first mobile communication network or the network icon of the second mobile communication network.

[0091] The software system of the terminal 100 may adopt a layered architecture, an event-driven architecture, a micro-core architecture, a micro-service architecture, or a cloud architecture. The embodiment of the present application takes the Android system of the layered architecture as an example to exemplify the software structure of the terminal 100.

[0092] Figure 4 1 is a software structure diagram of the terminal 100 of the embodiment of the present application. The layered architecture divides the software into several layers, each layer has a clear role and division of labor. The layers communicate with each other through software interfaces. In some embodiments, the Android system is divided into four layers, from top to bottom, namely, the application layer, the application framework layer, the Android runtime (Android runtime) and the system library, and the kernel layer. The application layer can include a series of application packages.

[0093] like Figure 4As shown, the application package may include camera, gallery, calendar, call, map, navigation, WLAN, Bluetooth, music, video, short message and other applications.

[0094] The application framework layer provides application programming interface (API) and programming framework for the applications in the application layer. The application framework layer includes some predefined functions. Figure 4 As shown, the application framework layer may include a window manager, a content provider, a view system, a phone manager, a resource manager, a notification manager, or a telephony service, etc.

[0095] Android Runtime includes core libraries and virtual machines. Android runtime is responsible for scheduling and management of the Android system.

[0096] The core library consists of two parts: one part is the function that needs to be called by the Java language, and the other part is the Android core library.

[0097] The application layer and the application framework layer run in a virtual machine. The virtual machine executes the Java files of the application layer and the application framework layer as binary files. The virtual machine is used to perform functions such as object life cycle management, stack management, thread management, security and exception management, and garbage collection.

[0098] The system library may include multiple functional modules, such as surface manager, media library, 3D graphics processing library (such as OpenGL ES), 2D graphics engine (such as SGL), etc.

[0099] The kernel layer is the layer between the hardware and the software. The kernel layer contains at least display driver, camera driver, audio driver, and sensor driver. The hardware may include the above-mentioned modem processor and display screen.

[0100] The following is an illustrative description of the software and hardware workflow of the terminal 100 in conjunction with the display scenario of the network icon.

[0101] The modem processor in the hardware layer can obtain the network status of the mobile communication network of the terminal 100, and report the network status to the Telephony service in the application framework layer. The Telephony service determines whether the target network icon is the icon of the first mobile communication network or the icon of the second mobile communication network according to the network status of the terminal 100, and notifies the display screen 194 in the hardware layer to display the target network icon.

[0102] The following will be Figure 2 The first mobile communication network in the communication system is a 4G network, the second mobile communication network is a 5G network, the first access network device is a 4G base station, the second access network device is a 5G NR base station, and the terminal is a 4G base station. Figure 3 and Figure 4 Taking the mobile phone of the structure shown as an example, several display schemes of network icons provided in the embodiments of the present application are respectively described. The network icon displayed on the mobile phone interface may include a 5G network icon or a 4G network icon.

[0103] Solution 1:

[0104] In a technical solution of Scheme 1, after the mobile phone is registered to LTE cell 1, if the terminal has previously established dual connections in LTE cell 1, it can be indicated that the mobile phone in LTE cell 1 has signal coverage of the NR base station (i.e., it has coverage of NR signals, coverage of NR cell signals, and the mobile phone can detect NR signals), has dual connection capabilities, and has the ability to use 5G networks, so the mobile phone can directly display the 5G icon. If the terminal has not previously established dual connections in LTE cell 1, the subsequent process is executed: if the mobile phone enters the idle state (also called idle state or inactive state), and LTE cell 1 supports the NSA networking mode, the mobile phone interface displays the 5G network icon; if LTE cell 1 does not support the NSA networking mode, the mobile phone interface displays the 4G network icon. If the mobile phone enters the connected state (also called connected state or active state), and the mobile phone has not established dual connections, the mobile phone interface displays the 4G network icon; if the mobile phone establishes dual connections, the mobile phone interface displays the 5G network icon, and the mobile phone continues to display the 5G network icon after the dual connections are subsequently disconnected.

[0105] That is to say, after the terminal registers to LTE cell 1, if dual connection is established, the relevant information of LTE cell 1 is saved, such as one or more of the cell ID, cell frequency, PLMN identification or NSA networking support capability of LTE cell 1. Subsequently, after the terminal registers to LTE cell 1 again, it can determine that dual connection has been established in the cell before based on the saved historical information, so as to directly display the 5G icon. That is, as long as the terminal has established dual connection in LTE cell 1, the 5G network icon can be directly displayed in LTE cell 1.

[0106] In this technical solution, after the network side adds NR SCG to the terminal, that is, after the terminal establishes dual connection, if the terminal registers to the first cell again, the terminal in the first cell may still have the signal coverage of the NR base station, has the capability of dual connection, and has the ability to use the 5G network. When the terminal processes the service, the terminal has the conditions to use the 5G network for service processing through dual connection, so the terminal interface can display the 5G network icon. This solution can make the 5G network icon better match the 5G network capability of the terminal in the first cell, so that the display of the 5G network icon is more accurate.

[0107] In another technical solution of solution 1, see Figure 5A After the mobile phone is registered to the LTE cell 1, it is determined whether a dual connection has been established in the LTE cell 1 within the previous preset time length T. For example, the preset time length T can be 3 days, 10 days, or 15 days.

[0108] See also Figure 5A If the mobile phone is registered to LTE cell 1 and it is determined that a dual connection has been established in LTE cell 1 within the previous preset time T, the 5G network icon will be displayed on the mobile phone interface.

[0109] See also Figure 5A , if the mobile phone registers to LTE cell 1 and determines that no dual connection has been established in LTE cell 1 within the previous preset time T, the mobile phone executes the subsequent process: if the mobile phone enters the idle state and LTE cell 1 supports NSA networking, the mobile phone interface displays the 5G network icon; if LTE cell 1 does not support NSA networking, the mobile phone interface displays the 4G network icon. If the mobile phone enters the connected state and the mobile phone has not established dual connection, the mobile phone interface displays the 4G network icon; if the mobile phone establishes dual connection, the mobile phone interface displays the 5G network icon, and the mobile phone continues to display the 5G network icon after the dual connection is disconnected.

[0110] Furthermore, after the mobile phone is registered to LTE cell 1, if the mobile phone establishes a dual connection, then within the preset time T after the dual connection is established, if the mobile phone moves out of LTE cell 1 and registers to LTE cell 1 again, the mobile phone determines that a dual connection has been established in LTE cell 1 within the previous preset time T, and the mobile phone directly displays the 5G network icon. If the mobile phone moves out of LTE cell 1 after the dual connection is established, and registers to LTE cell 1 again after the dual connection is established and the preset time T has elapsed, the mobile phone determines that a dual connection has not been established in LTE cell 1 within the previous preset time T, and the mobile phone determines the network icon to be displayed based on the network status such as whether LTE cell 1 supports NSA networking or whether the mobile phone subsequently establishes a dual connection.

[0111] For example, the preset duration T is 5 days, and the mobile phone establishes a dual connection after registering to LTE cell 1 for the first time. If the time interval between the first and second registrations of the mobile phone to LTE cell 1 is less than or equal to 5 days, the mobile phone can directly display the 5G network icon after registering to LTE cell 1 for the second time. If the time interval between the first and second registrations of the mobile phone to LTE cell 1 is greater than 5 days, after registering to LTE cell 1 for the second time, the mobile phone determines the network icon to be displayed based on the network status such as whether LTE cell 1 supports NSA networking or whether the mobile phone subsequently establishes a dual connection.

[0112] As mentioned above, dual connection means that the network side (including the core network and the access network) configures the main service cell group MCG and the secondary service cell group SCG for the terminal in the connected state. For example, after the mobile phone registers to LTE cell 1, it can stay in LTE cell 1, and the network side can add LTE cell 1 to the main service cell group. After the mobile phone initiates a service request, it can enter the connected state, for example, the service can be browsing the web, watching videos or listening to music. The 4G base station can send NR measurement information to the mobile phone to instruct the mobile phone to detect the NR signal of the neighboring area (or the signal of the NR cell). The mobile phone reports the NR signal measurement report to the 4G base station based on the measurement results. The network side (such as the 4G base station) sends RRC reconfiguration based on the NR measurement report, and adds the NR cell with better NR signal to the service cell group; the mobile phone performs NR random access to establish a secondary cell group (secondary cell group, SCG); that is, the network side adds NR SCG to the mobile phone. The mobile phone accesses the LTE cell and the NR cell, establishes dual connections with the 4G base station and the NR base station, and performs uplink / downlink communication through the 4G base station and the NR base station.

[0113] The mobile phone can disconnect the dual connection when the service ends, or the network side can disconnect the dual connection of the mobile phone when network resources are tight. When disconnecting the dual connection, the network side can delete (or release, remove) the NR SCG added for the mobile phone.

[0114] For example, a schematic diagram of a scenario after a mobile phone establishes a dual connection can be seen in Figure 5B (a) in the figure shows the scenario after the mobile phone disconnects the dual connection. Figure 5B (b) in .

[0115] That is to say, the mobile phone can establish dual connections after adding NR SCG; the mobile phone needs to add NRSCG when establishing dual connections. Therefore, in Solution 1 and Solution 2, the judgment condition of "establishing dual connections" can be replaced by "adding NRSCG".

[0116] Similarly, the dual connection can be disconnected after the NR SCG of the mobile phone is deleted; when the mobile phone disconnects the dual connection, the NRSCG previously added is deleted. Therefore, in Scheme 1 and Scheme 2 described in the following embodiments, the judgment condition of "disconnecting the dual connection" can be replaced by "NR SCG is deleted".

[0117] Thus, in scheme 1, after the mobile phone registers to LTE cell 1, if the mobile phone determines that NR SCG has been added in LTE cell 1 within the previous preset time T, the 5G network icon will be displayed on the mobile phone interface.

[0118] When the mobile phone determines that NR SCG has not been added in LTE cell 1 within the previous preset time T, if the mobile phone enters idle state and LTE cell 1 supports NSA networking, the mobile phone interface displays the 5G network icon; if the mobile phone enters idle state and LTE cell 1 does not support NSA networking, the mobile phone interface displays the 4G network icon.

[0119] When the mobile phone determines that NR SCG has not been added in LTE cell 1 within the previous preset time T, if the mobile phone enters the connected state and no NR SCG is added, the mobile phone interface displays the 4G network icon; if the mobile phone enters the connected state and adds NRSCG, the mobile phone interface displays the 5G network icon; after the NR SCG is deleted, the mobile phone continues to display the 5G network icon.

[0120] The following mainly describes the solution 1 provided in the embodiment of the present application from the perspective of whether the mobile phone establishes dual connections.

[0121] In some embodiments of the present application, after the mobile phone establishes dual connections in LTE cell 1, the mobile phone can record the relevant information that LTE cell 1 has established dual connections, and start the timer corresponding to LTE cell 1 to start timing. After the timing of the timer corresponding to LTE cell 1 exceeds the preset duration T, the mobile phone can also delete the previously saved relevant information that LTE cell 1 has established dual connections.

[0122] For example, after the mobile phone establishes a dual connection in LTE cell 1, it can record the identity (identify, ID) and identification information of LTE cell 1, and the identification information indicates that the mobile phone has established a dual connection in LTE cell 1. In addition, the mobile phone can also start the timer corresponding to the LTE cell 1 to start timing. After the timing of the timer corresponding to LTE cell 1 exceeds the preset duration T, the mobile phone can delete the ID and identification information of LTE cell 1, or the mobile phone can update the identification information corresponding to LTE cell 1 to indicate that no dual connection has been established. In addition, after the mobile phone establishes a dual connection in LTE cell 1, it can also record relevant information such as the frequency information of LTE cell 1, the PLMN identification or the support capability of the NSA networking method.

[0123] For another example, after the mobile phone establishes dual connection in LTE cell 1, it can add the ID of LTE cell 1 to the whitelist and start the corresponding timer. After the timer corresponding to LTE cell 1 exceeds the preset duration T, the mobile phone removes the identifier of LTE cell 1 from the whitelist. The cell corresponding to the identifier of the LTE cell in the whitelist is the LTE cell in which the mobile phone has established dual connection within the previous preset duration T.

[0124] The following embodiments are described by taking the method of using a whitelist to save cells that have established dual connections as an example.

[0125] When the mobile phone moves out of LTE cell 1 and then registers to LTE cell 1 again, if it is determined that the whitelist includes LTE cell 1, the mobile phone has established a dual connection in LTE cell 1 within the previous preset time T, and the mobile phone can directly display the 5G network icon.

[0126] Among them, if the mobile phone has established dual connections in LTE cell 1 before, it can be indicated that the mobile phone in LTE cell 1 has signal coverage of NR base stations, has dual connection capabilities, and has the ability to use 5G networks. Since the network environment of LTE cell 1 is relatively stable in a short period of time and is not prone to major changes, after the mobile phone registers to LTE cell 1 again within the preset time T after establishing dual connections, the mobile phone in LTE cell 1 may still have signal coverage of NR base stations, has dual connection capabilities, and has the ability to use 5G networks. When the mobile phone processes services, the mobile phone has the conditions to use the 5G network for business processing through dual connections, so the mobile phone interface can display the 5G network icon.

[0127] It is understandable that as the user moves, the mobile phone may have established dual connections in multiple LTE cells. The mobile phone can record the IDs of multiple LTE cells that have established dual connections. After the mobile phone establishes dual connections again in an LTE cell where dual connections have been established, the timer corresponding to the LTE cell can be triggered to restart the timing.

[0128] In this way, each time the mobile phone accesses an LTE cell, it can first determine whether the LTE cell has established dual connections and whether the corresponding timer has timed out. If the LTE cell has established dual connections and the corresponding timer has not timed out, the mobile phone will directly display the 5G network icon. If the LTE cell has not established dual connections or the corresponding timer has timed out, the mobile phone will display the network icon according to the network status.

[0129] Exemplarily, the whitelist saved by the mobile phone can refer to Table 2. As shown in Table 2, the cells in which the mobile phone has established dual connections within the previous preset time T include LTE cell a, LTE cell b, and LTE cell c, etc. In some embodiments, the cell information saved by the mobile phone for establishing dual connections can also include the frequency of the cell, PLMN identifier, remaining effective time, or support capability of the NSA networking mode, etc. Among them, the remaining effective time is the difference between T and t', and t' is the time interval between the time when the mobile phone last established dual connections in the LTE cell and the current time.

[0130] Table 2

[0131] Cell ID Whitelist Frequency PLMN Identification Remaining validity period NSA capability flag LTE cell a 2110MHz 46007 10 days 5 hours 1(Support NSA networking mode) LTE cell b 3510MHz 46003 5 days 1(Support NSA networking mode) LTE cell c 1930MHz 46011 3 days 16 hours 1(Support NSA networking mode) … … … … …

[0132] For example, Figure 6 A display process of a network icon corresponding to solution 1 is shown, and the process may include:

[0133] 601. The mobile phone is registered to LTE cell 1.

[0134] When the mobile phone is powered on for initial registration or cell reselection (for example, when powered on, exiting flight mode, inserting a card, disconnecting from the network, or changing location), it can register to LTE cell 1 through the attach process. During the attach process, since the mobile phone has not yet registered with the network cell, the network icon may not be displayed temporarily, or the default network icon may be displayed.

[0135] 602 . The mobile phone determines whether a dual connection has been established in the LTE cell 1 within the previous preset time period T. Then, the mobile phone executes step 603 or step 604 .

[0136] After the mobile phone is registered to the LTE cell 1, it can be determined whether a dual connection has been established in the LTE cell 1 within the previous preset time duration T.

[0137] It should be noted that if the mobile phone is turned on for the first time, or the mobile phone has never established dual connection before, the white list may not be saved on the mobile phone, or the white list is empty. In this case, the mobile phone can determine that there is no LTE cell that has established dual connection within the previous preset time T.

[0138] 603. If the mobile phone has established a dual connection in LTE cell 1 within the previous preset time T, the mobile phone interface displays a 5G network icon.

[0139] If the whitelist includes LTE cell 1, it means that the mobile phone has established dual connections in LTE cell 1 within the preset time period T, and the timer corresponding to LTE cell 1 has not exceeded the preset time period T. In other words, the mobile phone has registered with LTE cell 1 again within the preset time period T after establishing dual connections in LTE cell 1.

[0140] If the mobile phone has previously established dual connections in LTE cell 1, it can be indicated that when the mobile phone resides in LTE cell 1, there is signal coverage of NR base stations nearby, it has dual connection capabilities, and it has the ability to use 5G networks. Since the network environment of LTE cell 1 is relatively stable in a short period of time and is not prone to major changes, after the mobile phone registers to LTE cell 1 again within the preset time T after establishing dual connections, the mobile phone in LTE cell 1 may still have signal coverage of NR base stations, it has dual connection capabilities, and it has the ability to use 5G networks. When the mobile phone processes services, the mobile phone has the conditions to use the 5G network for business processing through dual connections, so the mobile phone interface can display the 5G network icon.

[0141] If the mobile phone has not been connected to LTE cell 1 before or the mobile phone has not registered with LTE cell 1 again within the preset time T after establishing dual connection in the LTE cell, the mobile phone can execute the subsequent process.

[0142] 604. The mobile phone determines whether to enter the idle state or the connected state. Then, the mobile phone executes step 605 or step 608.

[0143] If the whitelist is empty, or LTE cell 1 is not included in the whitelist, it may indicate that the mobile phone has not established a dual connection in LTE cell 1 within the previous preset time T. The mobile phone does not directly display the 5G network icon as in step 603, but determines whether it is currently in an idle state or a connected state, and displays the network icon according to different display rules corresponding to the idle state and the connected state.

[0144] 605. If entering the idle state, the mobile phone determines whether LTE cell 1 supports the NSA networking mode.

[0145] If the mobile phone is in idle state, the mobile phone will display the 4G network icon or the 5G network icon according to whether LTE cell 1 supports the NSA networking mode.

[0146] 606. If LTE cell 1 supports NSA networking, the mobile phone interface displays a 5G network icon.

[0147] If the mobile phone determines that LTE cell 1 supports NSA networking, the 5G network icon can be displayed. For example, the 4G base station can indicate whether LTE cell 1 supports REL-15 through a preset field in the system information block (SIB) sent during the attachment process. If the SIB message includes the preset field, and the preset field indicates that LTE cell 1 supports REL-15, the mobile phone determines that LTE cell 1 supports NSA networking.

[0148] If LTE cell 1 supports NSA networking, LTE cell 1 may have signal coverage of NR base station, the mobile phone may have dual connection conditions, and may have the ability to use 5G network, so the 5G network icon can be displayed.

[0149] 607. If the LTE cell does not support NSA networking, the mobile phone interface will display the 4G network icon.

[0150] If the LTE cell does not support the NSA networking mode, the mobile phone can only use the 4G network and cannot use the 5G network, so the 4G network icon can be displayed.

[0151] After step 606 or step 607 , if the mobile phone enters a connected state, the mobile phone may execute step 608 .

[0152] 608. If the mobile phone enters the connection state, the mobile phone determines whether to establish a dual connection. Then, the mobile phone executes step 609 or step 611.

[0153] For example, services such as browsing web pages or watching videos can trigger the mobile phone to enter a connected state in LTE cell 1.

[0154] 609. If dual connection is not established, the mobile phone interface displays the 4G network icon.

[0155] If the mobile phone has not established dual connections, the mobile phone uses the 4G network when processing services in the connected state, and does not use the 5G network. Therefore, the 4G network icon can be displayed on the mobile phone interface.

[0156] Subsequently, after the mobile phone exits the connected state and enters the idle state, step 605 may be executed again.

[0157] 610. If the mobile phone moves out of LTE cell 1 and switches to LTE cell 2, the mobile phone displays a network icon according to the network status in LTE cell 2.

[0158] When the mobile phone moves out of LTE cell 1 and switches to LTE cell 2, it can register with LTE cell 2 through the tracking area update (TAU) process, thereby switching to LTE cell 2. During the TAU process, the mobile phone has not yet switched to LTE cell 2, but is still in LTE cell 1, and may be in an idle state or a connected state. The mobile phone can display a network icon according to the network status in LTE cell 1 and the above step 604 and subsequent processes.

[0159] After registering to LTE cell 2, similar to the mobile phone in LTE cell 1, after the mobile phone switches to LTE cell 2, the process shown in the above steps 602-612 can be used to display the network icon according to the network status in LTE cell 2, which will not be repeated here.

[0160] Subsequently, if the mobile phone switches back to LTE cell 1, step 602 and subsequent processes are executed.

[0161] 611. If the mobile phone establishes dual connection, the 5G network icon will be displayed on the mobile phone interface.

[0162] The process of establishing dual connections on a mobile phone can be found in the above related instructions and will not be described here. If the network side adds NR SCG to the mobile phone and the mobile phone establishes dual connections, the mobile phone can access the NR cell, have the signal coverage of the NR base station, and can use the 5G network, so the 5G network icon can be displayed.

[0163] It should be noted that after the mobile phone establishes dual connection, if LTE cell 1 is not saved in the whitelist, LTE cell 1 can be saved in the whitelist and the timer can be started. When the timer corresponding to LTE cell 1 exceeds the preset duration T, the mobile phone can delete LTE cell 1 from the whitelist. For example, the preset duration T is 3 days. When the timer corresponding to LTE cell 1 starts from 0 and reaches 3 days, LTE cell 1 can be deleted from the whitelist.

[0164] After the mobile phone establishes dual connection, if the whitelist has saved LTE cell 1, the mobile phone can update the timer corresponding to LTE cell 1 so that the timer corresponding to LTE cell 1 restarts. For example, if the preset duration T is 3 days, the mobile phone can restart the timer corresponding to LTE cell 1 from 0.

[0165] 612. After the mobile phone disconnects the dual connection, the 5G network icon continues to be displayed.

[0166] When the service requested by the mobile phone ends or when network resources are tight, the network side can delete the NR SCG, thereby disconnecting the dual connection of the mobile phone. After disconnecting the dual connection, the mobile phone can reside in LTE cell 1 and can be in the idle state or connected state of LTE cell 1.

[0167] After disconnecting the dual connection, since the mobile phone has just established a dual connection, it can be shown that the mobile phone has signal coverage of the NR base station, has dual connection capabilities, and has the ability to use the 5G network, so the 5G network icon can continue to be displayed.

[0168] 613. After the mobile phone moves out of LTE cell 1 and switches to LTE cell 2, a network icon is displayed according to the network status in LTE cell 2.

[0169] Similar to LTE cell 1, after the mobile phone switches to LTE cell 2, the process shown in steps 602-612 can be used to display the network icon according to the network status in LTE cell 2, which will not be repeated here.

[0170] 614. The mobile phone registers to LTE cell 1 again and executes the above step 602.

[0171] That is to say, after the mobile phone registers to LTE cell 1 again, if the whitelist includes LTE cell 1, it can indicate that the mobile phone has registered to LTE cell 1 again within the preset duration T after establishing dual connection in LTE cell 1. Since the network environment of LTE cell 1 is relatively stable within the preset duration T and is not prone to major changes, the mobile phone in LTE cell 1 may still have signal coverage of NR base stations, dual connection capabilities, and the ability to use 5G networks. When the mobile phone processes services, it has the conditions to use the 5G network for service processing through dual connection, so the mobile phone can continue to display the 5G network icon.

[0172] After the mobile phone registers with LTE cell 1 again, if the whitelist does not include LTE cell 1, it can indicate that the time between the mobile phone registering with LTE cell 1 again and the mobile phone establishing a dual connection in LTE cell 1 is longer than the preset time T. If the time between the mobile phone registering with LTE cell 1 again and the mobile phone establishing a dual connection in LTE cell 1 is longer than the preset time T, it can indicate that the mobile phone has been out of LTE cell 1 for a long time, and the network environment of LTE cell 1 may have changed at this time. At this time, the mobile phone in LTE cell 1 may no longer have the signal coverage of the NR base station, no longer have the ability of dual connection, and no longer have the ability to use the 5G network. Therefore, the mobile phone does not directly display the 5G network icon, but re-determines the network icon to be displayed based on the network status such as whether it supports the NSA networking mode.

[0173] There may be many reasons for the change in the network environment. For example, the operator may have revoked the NR cell or NR base station configured at the current location of LTE cell 1, so that LTE cell 1 no longer has the signal coverage of the NR base station. For example, the layout of NR base stations may not be mature enough in the early stage of network construction, and the operator may change or adjust the layout of NR base stations. The operator may have revoked the NR SCG configured for the current LTE cell 1, so that LTE cell 1 no longer has the signal coverage of the NR base station. Or, the NR base station that the mobile phone was previously connected to may have failed, so that LTE cell 1 no longer has the signal coverage of the NR base station.

[0174] In this solution, when the 5G network icon is displayed on the mobile phone interface, the mobile phone is in an idle state and LTE cell 1 supports the NSA networking mode. Alternatively, when the 5G network icon is displayed on the mobile phone interface, the mobile phone registers to LTE cell 1 again within the preset time T after establishing dual connections in LTE cell 1; the mobile phone may have signal coverage of the NR base station, may establish dual connections, and has the ability to use the 5G network, and can use the 5G network to process services. When using solution 1, unlike the CONFIG D solution, when the user actually uses the mobile phone to process services, there may be a scenario where there is no NR connection, that is, the user does not actually use the 5G network; therefore, the user experience is better. Therefore, solution 1 can make the 5G network icon better match the 5G network capability of the mobile phone in LTE cell 1, make the display of the 5G network icon more accurate, make the display of the 5G network icon more consistent with the actual network status of the terminal, and improve the user's understanding of the 5G network icon. Solution 1 can be used as an optimization solution for CONFIG D, and can be called D++ solution.

[0175] In some cases, users may frequently move between multiple LTE cells. The multiple LTE cells where users frequently move are usually fixed and are usually saved in a whitelist. When the mobile phone frequently switches between these different LTE cells, since these LTE cells exist in the whitelist, the mobile phone can display the 5G network icon in different LTE cells, and the problem of frequent switching of network icons caused by cell switching will not occur.

[0176] Another embodiment of the present application also provides another display scheme for network icons, which is similar to the above-mentioned scheme 1, except that: after the mobile phone resides in LTE cell 1, it is determined whether the dual connection has been disconnected in LTE cell 1 within the previous preset time length T.

[0177] Among them, see Figure 5C, the scheme may include: after the mobile phone is registered to LTE cell 1, it is determined whether the dual connection has been disconnected in LTE cell 1 within the previous preset time T. For example, the preset time T can be 3 days, 10 days or 15 days. If the mobile phone is registered to LTE cell 1, it is determined that the dual connection has been disconnected in LTE cell 1 within the previous preset time T, then the mobile phone interface displays the 5G network icon. If the mobile phone is registered to LTE cell 1, it is determined that the dual connection has not been disconnected in LTE cell 1 within the previous preset time T, then the mobile phone executes the subsequent process: if the mobile phone enters the idle state (also called idle state or inactive state) and LTE cell 1 supports NSA networking mode, the mobile phone interface displays the 5G network icon; if LTE cell 1 does not support NSA networking mode, the mobile phone interface displays the 4G network icon. If the mobile phone enters the connected state (also called connected state or active state) and the mobile phone does not establish dual connection, the mobile phone interface displays the 4G network icon; if the mobile phone establishes dual connection, the mobile phone interface displays the 5G network icon, and the mobile phone continues to display the 5G network icon after the dual connection is subsequently disconnected.

[0178] Furthermore, after the mobile phone is registered to LTE cell 1, if the mobile phone disconnects the dual connection, then within the preset time T after disconnecting the dual connection, if the mobile phone moves out of LTE cell 1 and then registers to LTE cell 1 again, then the mobile phone determines that the dual connection has been disconnected in LTE cell 1 within the previous preset time T, and thus the mobile phone still displays the 5G network icon. If the mobile phone moves out of LTE cell 1 after disconnecting the dual connection, and then registers to LTE cell 1 again after disconnecting the dual connection and experiencing the preset time T, then the mobile phone determines that the dual connection has not been disconnected in LTE cell 1 within the previous preset time T, and thus the mobile phone displays the network icon in the idle state according to whether LTE cell 1 supports the NSA networking mode, and displays the network icon in the connected state according to whether the dual connection is established.

[0179] In this way, when the mobile phone moves out of LTE cell 1 and then registers to LTE cell 1 again, if it is determined that the whitelist includes LTE cell 1, it can be determined that the timer corresponding to LTE cell 1 has not exceeded the preset duration T, so that the 5G network icon can be directly displayed. Among them, if the mobile phone has previously disconnected the dual connection in LTE cell 1, it can be indicated that the mobile phone in LTE cell 1 has the signal coverage of the NR base station (that is, it has the coverage of the NR signal, has the coverage of the NR cell signal, and can detect the NR signal), has the ability of dual connection, and has the ability to use the 5G network. Since the network environment of LTE cell 1 is relatively stable in a short period of time and is not prone to major changes, after the mobile phone registers to LTE cell 1 again within the preset duration T after disconnecting the dual connection, the mobile phone in LTE cell 1 may still have the signal coverage of the NR base station, has the ability of dual connection, and has the ability to use the 5G network. When the mobile phone processes the service, the mobile phone has the conditions to use the 5G network for service processing through dual connection, so the mobile phone interface can display the 5G network icon.

[0180] Option 2:

[0181] In solution 2, after the mobile phone is registered to LTE cell 1, the 4G network icon can be displayed. Later, if the mobile phone adds NRSCG, the mobile phone interface will display the 5G network icon; after the NR SCG of the mobile phone is deleted, the mobile phone interface will continue to display the 5G network icon.

[0182] That is to say, after the mobile phone is registered to LTE cell 1, if the mobile phone adds NR SCG, the mobile phone interface will display the 5G network icon; after the NR SCG of the mobile phone is deleted, the mobile phone continues to display the 5G network icon. After the mobile phone is registered to LTE cell 1, if the mobile phone does not add NR SCG, the mobile phone interface will display the 4G network icon.

[0183] From the perspective of whether the mobile phone adds dual connections, Solution 2 may include: after the mobile phone registers to LTE cell 1, if the mobile phone establishes dual connections, the mobile phone continues to display the 5G network icon without moving out of LTE cell 1; or, if the mobile phone does not establish dual connections, the mobile phone interface displays the 4G network icon.

[0184] For details, see Figure 7 After registering to LTE cell 1, the mobile phone may enter the idle state or the connected state. If the mobile phone enters the idle state, the mobile phone interface displays the 4G icon. If the mobile phone enters the connected state and does not establish a dual connection, the mobile phone interface displays the 4G network icon; if the mobile phone establishes a dual connection after entering the connected state, the mobile phone can continue to display the 5G network icon if the mobile phone continues to stay in LTE cell 1 and does not move out.

[0185] Among them, when the mobile phone resides in LTE cell 1, if the mobile phone has not established dual connection, the mobile phone in LTE cell 1 may not have the signal coverage of NR base station, the ability of dual connection, and the ability to use 5G network. If the mobile phone has established dual connection, it can be shown that the mobile phone in LTE cell 1 has the signal coverage of NR base station, the ability of dual connection, and the ability to use 5G network. Therefore, when the mobile phone does not move out of LTE cell 1, the mobile phone can continue to display the 5G network icon regardless of whether the dual connection is disconnected.

[0186] When the mobile phone moves out of LTE cell 1 and enters LTE cell 2, the mobile phone can determine whether to display the 4G network icon or the 5G network icon based on the processing flow of solution 2 and the network status in LTE cell 2.

[0187] After the mobile phone registers to LTE cell 1 again, the network environment of LTE cell 1 may have changed during the period when the mobile phone moves out of LTE cell 1, and LTE cell 1 may no longer have the signal coverage of the NR base station, the dual connection capability, and the ability to use the 5G network. Therefore, after the mobile phone registers to LTE cell 1 again, the 5G network icon may no longer be displayed, and the 4G network icon or the 5G network icon may be displayed again based on the processing flow of solution 2 and the network status of the mobile phone in LTE cell 1.

[0188] In this way, when the mobile phone interface displays the 5G network icon, it can be shown that the mobile phone has established dual connections in the current LTE cell, and has not moved out of the current LTE cell after establishing dual connections. The mobile phone has the signal coverage of the NR base station, has the possibility of establishing dual connections, and has the ability to use the 5G network. Therefore, when using Solution 2, the 5G network icon and the 4G network icon will not be frequently switched according to whether the dual connection is established and disconnected, as in the CONFIG A solution, so the user experience is better. Solution 2 can be used as an optimization solution for CONFIG A, which can be called the A+ solution.

[0189] For example, Figure 8 A display process of a network icon corresponding to solution 2 is shown, and the process may include:

[0190] 801. The mobile phone is registered to LTE cell 1.

[0191] The phone can register to LTE cell 1 after it is turned on, exits airplane mode, inserts a SIM card, or loses network connection. Alternatively, the phone can register to LTE cell 1 by switching from another LTE cell to LTE cell 1 after changing its location.

[0192] 802. The mobile phone determines whether to enter an idle state or a connected state. Then, the mobile phone executes step 803 or step 804.

[0193] 803. If the phone enters the idle state, the 4G network icon will be displayed on the phone interface.

[0194] Subsequently, if the mobile phone enters the connected state, step 804 is executed.

[0195] 804. If the mobile phone enters the connection state, the mobile phone determines whether to establish a dual connection. Then, the mobile phone executes step 805 or step 806.

[0196] 805. If dual connection is not established, the mobile phone interface will display the 4G network icon.

[0197] If the mobile phone has not established dual connections, the mobile phone uses the 4G network when processing services in the connected state, and does not use the 5G network. Therefore, the 4G network icon can be displayed on the mobile phone interface.

[0198] Subsequently, after the mobile phone exits the connected state and enters the idle state, step 803 is executed to display the 4G network icon.

[0199] 806. If the mobile phone establishes dual connections, the 5G network icon will be displayed on the mobile phone interface.

[0200] If the network side adds NR SCG for the mobile phone and the mobile phone establishes dual connection, the mobile phone will access the NR cell, have signal coverage of the NR base station, and can use the 5G network, so the 5G network icon can be displayed.

[0201] 807. If the mobile phone disconnects the dual connection and still stays in LTE cell 1, the mobile phone continues to display the 5G network icon.

[0202] If the mobile phone has established dual connections, it means that the mobile phone has signal coverage of the NR base station, has dual connection capabilities, and has the ability to use the 5G network. Therefore, as long as the mobile phone has not moved out of LTE cell 1, regardless of whether the dual connection is disconnected, whether it is in idle or connected state, the mobile phone can continue to display the 5G network icon.

[0203] After the mobile phone moves out of LTE cell 1 and switches to LTE cell 2, the mobile phone can display the network icon according to the network status in LTE cell 2. Similar to the mobile phone in LTE cell 1, the mobile phone can display the network icon according to the network status in LTE cell 2 and the processing flow of solution 2, which will not be described here. After the mobile phone registers to LTE cell 1 again, steps 801-807 are re-executed.

[0204] After the mobile phone registers to LTE cell 1 again, the network environment may have changed. The mobile phone in LTE cell 1 may no longer have the signal coverage of the NR base station, dual connection capability and the ability to use the 5G network. Therefore, the mobile phone can re-execute step 802 and subsequent processes without continuously displaying the 5G network icon.

[0205] When the mobile phone moves out of LTE cell 1, since the network environment of LTE cell 1 may have changed, the mobile phone in LTE cell 1 may no longer have the signal coverage of the NR base station, no longer have the ability of dual connection, and no longer have the ability to use the 5G network. Therefore, when the mobile phone registers to LTE cell 1 again, the 5G network icon will no longer be displayed continuously, and the network icon to be displayed will be re-determined according to the current network status.

[0206] In this way, when the mobile phone interface displays the 5G network icon, it can indicate that the mobile phone has established dual connections in the current LTE cell, and has not moved out of the current LTE cell after establishing dual connections, has signal coverage of NR base stations, has the possibility of establishing dual connections, and has the ability to use 5G networks. Therefore, when using Solution 2, unlike Solution A, the 5G network icon and the 4G network icon will not be frequently switched depending on whether the dual connection is established and disconnected, so the user experience is better.

[0207] In some cases, the mobile phone may frequently switch between different LTE cells as the user's location moves. For example, the user often resides in LTE cell 1, but often briefly switches to LTE cell 2 (for example, the mobile phone passes by the location of LTE cell 2). After the mobile phone briefly switches to LTE cell 2, dual connection may not be established, so the mobile phone will display the 4G network icon. If the mobile phone has established dual connection in LTE cell 1, and continues to display the 5G network icon after switching to LTE cell 2 and registering to LTE cell 1 again, when the mobile phone switches back and forth between LTE cell 1 and LTE cell 2, the mobile phone will frequently switch between the 5G network icon and the 4G network icon, resulting in a poor user experience. With solution 2, the mobile phone will no longer display the 5G network icon after moving out of LTE cell 1 and registering to LTE cell 1 again, so the problem of frequent switching of network icons caused by cell switching is not likely to occur.

[0208] Option 3:

[0209] Solution three includes: the mobile phone is registered to LTE cell 1. After the mobile phone initiates the first service and the mobile phone enters the connected state, if LTE cell 1 supports the NSA networking mode, the mobile phone interface displays the 5G network icon; if LTE cell 1 does not support the NSA networking mode, the mobile phone interface displays the 4G network icon. After the mobile phone initiates the second service and the mobile phone enters the connected state, if the mobile phone adds NRSCG, the mobile phone interface displays the 5G network icon; if the mobile phone does not add NR SCG, the mobile phone interface displays the 4G network icon. After the mobile phone enters the idle state, if LTE cell 1 supports the NSA networking mode, the mobile phone interface displays the 5G network icon; if LTE cell 1 does not support the non-independent NSA networking mode, the mobile phone interface displays the 4G network icon.

[0210] From the perspective of whether the mobile phone adds dual connections, see Fig. 9 , Solution 2 may include: the mobile phone is registered to LTE cell 1. After the mobile phone initiates the first service and the mobile phone enters the connected state, if LTE cell 1 supports NSA, the mobile phone interface displays the 5G network icon; if LTE cell 1 does not support the NSA networking mode, the mobile phone interface displays the 4G network icon. After the mobile phone initiates the second service and the mobile phone enters the connected state, if the mobile phone establishes dual connections, the mobile phone interface displays the 5G network icon; if the mobile phone does not establish dual connections, the mobile phone interface displays the 4G network icon. After the mobile phone enters the idle state, if LTE cell 1 supports the NSA networking mode, the mobile phone interface displays the 5G network icon; if LTE cell 1 does not support the NSA networking mode, the mobile phone interface displays the 4G network icon.

[0211] The first service can usually trigger the mobile phone to enter a short connection state, such as the Attach service, TAU service, SMS receiving / sending service, or MMS receiving / sending service, etc. The second service can usually trigger the mobile phone to enter a longer connection state, which is a service with a longer duration, for example, it can include data services, such as browsing the web, watching videos, listening to music and other Internet services, or Volte call services, etc.

[0212] In solution three, for the second service, after entering the connected state, if the mobile phone establishes dual connections, the mobile phone can use the high-performance communication capabilities of the 5G network to process the second service, and the mobile phone interface displays the 5G network icon; if the mobile phone does not establish dual connections, the mobile phone processes the second service through the 4G network, and the mobile phone interface displays the 4G network icon.

[0213] Under the current NSA networking mode, the probability that the LTE cell supports the NSA networking mode is relatively high, so the probability that the mobile phone displays the 5G network icon in the idle state is also relatively high. For the first service, if the 5G network icon is also displayed after the dual connection is established in the connected state, and the 4G network icon is displayed when the dual connection is not established, then after the first service is triggered to enter the connected state, the mobile phone displays the 4G network icon because the dual connection is not established. After the first service ends quickly, the mobile phone enters the idle state again. If the mobile phone determines that LTE cell 1 supports the NSA networking mode, the 5G network icon is displayed again, so that the 4G network icon and the 5G network icon are frequently switched.

[0214] In solution three, consistent with the idle state, the mobile phone also displays the network icon for the connection state initiated by the first service according to whether it supports the NSA networking mode, and the problem of frequent switching between the 4G network icon and the 5G network icon is not likely to occur. For example, after the first service is triggered to enter the connection state, the mobile phone determines that LTE cell 1 supports the NSA networking mode and thus displays the 5G network icon. Soon after the first service ends, the mobile phone enters the idle state, and the mobile phone determines that LTE cell 1 supports the NSA networking mode and thus continues to display the 5G network icon. Therefore, when using solution three, the mobile phone will not frequently switch between the 5G network icon and the 4G network icon due to the first service, and the user experience is better.

[0215] Moreover, in scheme three, after the mobile phone establishes a connection state through the second service, if the mobile phone establishes a dual connection, the mobile phone interface displays the 5G network icon; if the mobile phone interface displays the 5G network icon, it can be indicated that the mobile phone has established a dual connection and used the 5G network when processing the second service. When scheme three is adopted, unlike the CONFIG D scheme, when the user actually uses the mobile phone to process the service, there may be a scenario where there is no NR connection, that is, the user does not actually use the 5G network, so the user experience is better. Therefore, the 5G network icon can be better matched with the 5G network capability of the mobile phone in LTE cell 1, the display of the 5G network icon is more accurate, and the display of the 5G network icon is more in line with the actual network status of the terminal, which can improve the user's understanding of the 5G network icon. Scheme three can be used as an optimization scheme for CONFIG D and CONFIG A, and can be called the D+A scheme.

[0216] For example, Fig.10 A display process of the network icon corresponding to solution three is shown, and the process may include:

[0217] 1001. The mobile phone is registered to LTE cell 1.

[0218] The phone can register to LTE cell 1 after it is turned on, exits airplane mode, inserts a SIM card, or loses network connection. Alternatively, the phone can register to LTE cell 1 by switching from another LTE cell to LTE cell 1.

[0219] 1002. The mobile phone determines to enter the idle state or the connected state. Then, the mobile phone executes step 1003 or step 1006.

[0220] 1003. If entering the idle state, the mobile phone determines whether LTE cell 1 supports the NSA networking mode.

[0221] 1004. If LTE cell 1 supports NSA networking, the mobile phone interface displays the 5G network icon.

[0222] If LTE cell 1 supports NSA networking, LTE cell 1 may have signal coverage of NR base station, the mobile phone may have dual connection conditions, and may have the ability to use 5G network, so the 5G network icon can be displayed.

[0223] 1005. If the LTE cell does not support NSA networking, the mobile phone interface will display the 4G network icon.

[0224] If the LTE cell does not support the NSA networking mode, the mobile phone can only use the 4G network and cannot use the 5G network, so the 4G network icon can be displayed.

[0225] After step 1004 or step 1005 , if the mobile phone enters the connected state, the mobile phone executes step 1006 .

[0226] 1006. If the mobile phone enters the connected state, the mobile phone determines whether the service that triggers the mobile phone to enter the connected state is the second service or the first service.

[0227] When the first service triggers the mobile phone to enter the connected state, the above steps 1003-1005 are executed. That is, when the first service triggers the mobile phone to enter the connected state, if LTE cell 1 supports the NSA networking mode, the mobile phone interface displays the 5G network icon; if LTE cell 1 does not support the NSA networking mode, the mobile phone interface displays the 4G network icon.

[0228] In this way, consistent with the idle state, for the connection state triggered by the first service, the mobile phone also displays the network icon according to whether it supports the NSA networking mode, and the problem of frequent switching between the 4G network icon and the 5G network icon is less likely to occur.

[0229] 1007. When the second service triggers the mobile phone to enter the connected state, the mobile phone determines whether to establish a dual connection. Then, the mobile phone executes step 1008 or step 1009.

[0230] 1008. If dual connection is not established, the mobile phone interface will display the 4G network icon.

[0231] If the mobile phone has not established dual connections, the mobile phone uses the 4G network when processing services in the connected state, and does not use the 5G network. Therefore, the 4G network icon can be displayed on the mobile phone interface.

[0232] After the mobile phone exits the connected state and enters the idle state, step 1003 is executed again.

[0233] 1009. If the mobile phone establishes dual connection, the 5G network icon will be displayed on the mobile phone interface.

[0234] If the network side adds NR SCG for the mobile phone and the mobile phone establishes dual connection, the mobile phone will access the NR cell, have signal coverage of the NR base station, and can use the 5G network, so the 5G network icon can be displayed.

[0235] Subsequently, after the mobile phone disconnects the dual connection, it may still be in a connected state or may enter an idle state, and the mobile phone displays the network icon again according to the above step 1002 and subsequent processes.

[0236] In this way, consistent with the idle state, for the connected state triggered by the first service, the mobile phone also displays the network icon according to whether it supports the NSA networking mode, and it is not easy to frequently switch between the 4G network icon and the 5G network icon. Therefore, when using solution 3, the 5G network icon and the 4G network icon will not be frequently switched due to the first service, so the user experience is better.

[0237] Option 4:

[0238] See also Fig.11 , Scheme 4 includes: the mobile phone is registered to LTE cell 1. After the mobile phone enters the connected state, it detects the NR signal. If the mobile phone detects the NR signal, the mobile phone interface displays the 5G network icon. If the mobile phone does not detect the NR signal, the mobile phone interface displays the 4G network icon. After the mobile phone enters the idle state, if LTE cell 1 supports the NSA networking mode, the mobile phone interface displays the 5G network icon; if LTE cell 1 does not support the NSA networking mode, the mobile phone interface displays the 4G network icon.

[0239] In solution 4, the mobile phone can enter the connected state when processing services (such as browsing the web, watching videos or listening to music and other data services). When the mobile phone is processing services in the connected state, if the NR signal is detected, it means that the network where the mobile phone is located has NR signal coverage, the mobile phone has 5G communication capability, and can use the 5G network, so the 5G network icon can be displayed.

[0240] That is to say, when the mobile phone interface displays the 5G network icon, if it is currently in an idle state, it can indicate that LTE cell 1 supports the NSA networking mode, may have signal coverage of the NR base station, may establish dual connections, and may be able to use the 5G network in NSA. When the mobile phone interface displays the 5G network icon, if it is currently in a connected state when processing services, it can indicate that the mobile phone has detected the NR signal, the network is covered by the NR signal, can establish dual connections, and has the ability to use the 5G network. Therefore, when using scheme 4, unlike the CONFIG D scheme, when the user actually uses the mobile phone to process services, there may be a scenario where there is no NR connection, that is, the user does not actually use the 5G network, so the user experience is better. Scheme 4 can make the 5G network icon better match the 5G network capability of the mobile phone in LTE cell 1, make the display of the 5G network icon more accurate, make the display of the 5G network icon more consistent with the actual network status of the terminal, and improve the user's understanding of the 5G network icon. Scheme 4 can be used as an optimization scheme for CONFIG D, and can be called the D+ scheme.

[0241] For example, Fig.12 A display process of a network icon corresponding to scheme 4 is shown, and the process may include:

[0242] 1201. The mobile phone is registered to LTE cell 1.

[0243] The phone can register to LTE cell 1 after it is turned on, exits airplane mode, inserts a SIM card, or loses network connection. Alternatively, the phone can register to LTE cell 1 by switching from another LTE cell to LTE cell 1.

[0244] 1202. The mobile phone determines whether to enter an idle state or a connected state. Then, the mobile phone executes step 1203 or step 1206.

[0245] 1203. If entering the idle state, the mobile phone determines whether LTE cell 1 supports the NSA networking mode.

[0246] 1204. If LTE cell 1 supports NSA networking, the mobile phone interface displays the 5G network icon.

[0247] If LTE cell 1 supports NSA networking, LTE cell 1 may have signal coverage of NR base station, the mobile phone may have dual connection conditions, and may have the ability to use 5G network, so the 5G network icon can be displayed.

[0248] 1205. If the LTE cell does not support NSA networking, the mobile phone interface will display the 4G network icon.

[0249] If the LTE cell does not support the NSA networking mode, the mobile phone can only use the 4G network and cannot use the 5G network, so the 4G network icon can be displayed.

[0250] After step 1204 or step 1205 , if the mobile phone enters the connected state, the mobile phone executes step 1206 .

[0251] 1206. If the mobile phone enters the connected state, the mobile phone detects the NR signal.

[0252] If the mobile phone enters the connected state, it can automatically detect the NR signal to determine whether it has signal coverage of the NR base station.

[0253] 1207. If the mobile phone does not detect the NR signal, the 4G network icon will be displayed.

[0254] If the mobile phone does not detect the NR signal, it is determined that there is currently no signal coverage of the NR base station, it is unable to access the NR cell, cannot establish dual connections, and does not have the ability to use the 5G network, so the 4G network icon can be displayed.

[0255] 1208. If the mobile phone detects an NR signal, the 5G network icon will be displayed.

[0256] If the mobile phone detects the NR signal, it is determined that it has signal coverage of the NR base station, can access the NR cell, has dual connection capability, and has the ability to use the 5G network, so the 5G network icon can be displayed.

[0257] After the mobile phone exits the connected state and enters the idle state, step 1203 and subsequent processes can be re-executed.

[0258] In this solution, when the 5G network icon is displayed on the mobile phone interface, if the current connection state is when processing services, it can indicate that the mobile phone has detected the NR signal, has the signal coverage of the NR base station, can access the NR cell, has the possibility of establishing dual connections, and has the ability to use the 5G network. Therefore, when using Solution 4, unlike the CONFIG D solution, when the user actually uses the mobile phone to process services, there may be a scenario where there is no NR connection, that is, the user does not actually use the 5G network, so the user experience is better.

[0259] In addition, in the embodiment of the present application, for example, a schematic diagram of a mobile phone interface displaying a 5G network icon can be seen in Fig.13 (a) in the figure, the schematic diagram of the mobile phone interface displaying the 4G network icon can be seen in Fig.13 (b) in .

[0260] It should be noted that the above is an example of a mobile phone as the terminal to illustrate the display method of the network icon provided in the embodiment of the present application. When the terminal is other devices, the method described in the above embodiment can still be used to display the network icon, which will not be repeated here.

[0261] It is understandable that in order to implement the above functions, the terminal includes hardware and / or software modules corresponding to the execution of each function. In combination with the algorithm steps of each example described in the embodiments disclosed herein, the present application can be implemented in the form of hardware or a combination of hardware and computer software. Whether a function is executed in the form of hardware or computer software driving hardware depends on the specific application and design constraints of the technical solution. Those skilled in the art can use different methods to implement the described functions for each specific application in combination with the embodiments, but such implementation should not be considered to be beyond the scope of the present application.

[0262] This embodiment can divide the terminal into functional modules according to the above method example, 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 module can be implemented in the form of hardware.

[0263] The embodiment of the present application also provides a terminal, including one or more processors and one or more memories. The one or more memories are coupled to the one or more processors, and the one or more memories are used to store computer program codes, and the computer program codes include computer instructions. When the one or more processors execute the computer instructions, the terminal executes the above-mentioned related method steps to implement the display method of the network icon in the above-mentioned embodiment.

[0264] An embodiment of the present application further provides a computer-readable storage medium, in which computer instructions are stored. When the computer instructions are executed on a terminal, the terminal executes the above-mentioned related method steps to implement the method for displaying the network icon in the above-mentioned embodiment.

[0265] The embodiments of the present application also provide a computer program product. When the computer program product is run on a computer, the computer is caused to execute the above-mentioned related steps to implement the method for displaying the network icon executed by the terminal in the above-mentioned embodiment.

[0266] In addition, an embodiment of the present application also provides a device, which may specifically be a chip, component or module, and the device may include a connected processor and memory; wherein the memory is used to store computer execution instructions, and when the device is running, the processor may execute the computer execution instructions stored in the memory so that the chip executes the network icon display method executed by the terminal in the above-mentioned method embodiments.

[0267] Among them, the terminal, computer-readable storage medium, computer program product or chip provided in this embodiment are all used to execute the corresponding methods provided above. Therefore, the beneficial effects that can be achieved can refer to the beneficial effects in the corresponding methods provided above, and will not be repeated here.

[0268] Another embodiment of the present application provides a communication system. The architecture of the communication system can be seen in Figure 2 The communication system may include the above-mentioned terminal and access network equipment, and may be used to implement the above-mentioned network icon display method.

[0269] Through the description of the above implementation methods, technical personnel in the relevant field can understand that for the convenience and simplicity of description, only the division of the above-mentioned functional modules is used as an example. In actual applications, the above-mentioned functions can be assigned to different functional modules as needed, that is, the internal structure of the device can be divided into different functional modules to complete all or part of the functions described above.

[0270] In the several embodiments provided in the present application, it should be understood that the disclosed 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 modules or 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 device, or some features can be ignored or not executed. Another point is that the mutual coupling or direct coupling or communication connection shown or discussed can be through some interfaces, indirect coupling or communication connection of devices or units, which can be electrical, mechanical or other forms.

[0271] The units described as separate components may or may not be physically separated, and the components shown as units may be one physical unit or multiple physical units, that is, they may be located in one place or distributed in multiple different places. Some or all of the units may be selected according to actual needs to achieve the purpose of the present embodiment.

[0272] 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.

[0273] 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 readable storage medium. Based on this understanding, the technical solution of the embodiment of the present application is essentially or the part that contributes to the prior art or all or part of the technical solution can be embodied in the form of a software product, which is stored in a storage medium, including several instructions to enable a device (which can be a single-chip microcomputer, chip, etc.) or a processor (processor) to perform all or part of the steps of the method described in each embodiment of the present application. The aforementioned storage medium includes: U disk, mobile hard disk, read only memory (ROM), random access memory (RAM), disk or optical disk and other media that can store program code.

[0274] The above contents are only specific implementation methods of the present application, but the protection scope of the present application is not limited thereto. Any technician familiar with the 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 method for displaying a network icon, applied to a terminal, characterized in that: include: registering to a first cell for the first time, wherein the terminal resides in the first cell, and the first cell is a Long Term Evolution (LTE) cell; After the terminal establishes a dual connection in the first cell in which it resides, the terminal displays a 5G network icon, wherein the establishing of the dual connection includes the terminal establishing a new air interface secondary service cell group NR SCG; After the terminal switches to the second cell, it resides in the first cell again and displays a 5G network icon, wherein the terminal has not yet established a dual connection when the 5G network icon is displayed; The step of residing in the first cell again and displaying the 5G network icon after the terminal switches to the second cell includes: After the terminal switches to the second cell, it resides in the first cell again and displays the 5G network icon when the time interval between the second registration to the first cell and the first registration to the first cell is less than or equal to the preset duration T.

2. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that The method further comprises: If the terminal does not establish the dual connection in the first cell after registering to the first cell for the first time, the 4G network icon is displayed.

3. The method according to claim 2, characterized in that After the terminal establishes a dual connection in the first cell where it resides, displaying a 5G network icon includes: If the terminal does not receive a preset field indicating that the first cell supports non-independent NSA networking in the first cell where it resides, and a dual connection is established, the terminal displays a 5G network icon.

4. The method according to claim 3, characterized in that If the terminal does not establish the dual connection in the first cell after registering to the first cell for the first time, the 4G network icon is displayed, including: the terminal does not receive a preset field in the first cell for indicating that the first cell supports the non-independent NSA networking mode, and the dual connection is not established, then the terminal displays the 4G network icon.

5. The method according to claim 4, characterized in that If the terminal does not establish the dual connection in the first cell after registering to the first cell for the first time, displaying the 4G network icon includes: the terminal is in a connected state; After the terminal establishes dual connections in the first cell where it resides, the 5G network icon is displayed, including: the terminal is in a connected state.

6. A terminal, characterized in that: include: A screen for displaying network icons; one or more processors; Memory; And one or more computer programs, wherein the one or more computer programs are stored in the memory, and the one or more computer programs include instructions, and when the instructions are executed by the terminal, the terminal executes the method for displaying a network icon as described in any one of claims 1-5.

7. A computer-readable storage medium, characterized in that: The method comprises computer instructions, and when the computer instructions are executed on a computer, the computer is caused to execute the method for displaying a network icon according to any one of claims 1 to 5.

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