Communication method and apparatus

Abstract

The embodiment of the application provides a communication method and device, the method comprises the following steps: a terminal device receives first indication information from a network device, the first indication information is used for indicating the priority of multiple characteristics, and the first value of the characteristics in a characteristic combination is determined according to the priority of the multiple characteristics, the first value of the characteristics is used for determining the second value of the characteristic combination, the second value of the characteristic combination is used for selecting a random access resource, the characteristic combination comprises at least one characteristic, and the at least one characteristic belongs to the multiple characteristics. By determining the second value of the characteristic combination for selecting the random access resource according to the priority of the multiple characteristics, the random access resource is avoided from being directly selected according to the priority of the multiple characteristics, so as to reduce the complexity of the terminal device for selecting the random access resource.

Description

[0001] This application is a divisional application. The original application has the application number 202210982583.7 and the original application date is August 16, 2022. The entire contents of the original application are incorporated herein by reference.

[0002] This application claims priority to Chinese Patent Application No. 202210379989.6, filed on April 12, 2022, entitled "Communication Method and Apparatus", the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference. Technical Field

[0003] This application relates to the field of communications, and more specifically, to a communication method and apparatus. Background Technology

[0004] Random access is a step in the process of a terminal device connecting to a network. Currently, during random access, when the terminal device supports certain features (such as reduced capacity, small packet data transmission, coverage enhancement, and network slicing enhancement), the terminal device needs to consider the priority of different features when selecting random access resources.

[0005] Currently, the logic for terminal devices to select random access resources based on different characteristics is quite complex and has a high implementation complexity. How to reduce the complexity of selecting random access resources has become an urgent problem to be solved. Summary of the Invention

[0006] This application provides a communication method and apparatus to reduce the complexity of selecting random access resources.

[0007] Firstly, a communication method is provided, which can be executed by a terminal device or by a component of the terminal device (such as a chip or circuit). There is no limitation on this. For ease of description, the following explanation will take execution by a terminal device as an example.

[0008] The communication method includes: a terminal device receiving first indication information from a network device, the first indication information indicating the priority of multiple features; the terminal device determining a first value of a feature in a feature combination based on the priority of the multiple features, the first value of the feature determining a second value of the feature combination, the second value of the feature combination being used for selecting random access resources, wherein the feature combination includes at least one feature, the at least one feature belonging to the multiple features.

[0009] Based on the above technical solution, after receiving the indication information indicating the priority of the indication feature, the terminal device can determine the first value of the feature in the feature combination according to the priority of the feature. The first value is used to determine the second value of the feature combination, and the second value of the feature combination is used for the selection of random access resources. That is to say, the terminal device no longer needs to directly select random access resources based on the priority of different features, but instead determines the first value of the feature in the feature combination according to the priority of different features, determines the second value of the feature combination based on the first value, and then selects random access resources based on the second value of the feature combination. This method of selecting random resources can reduce the logical complexity of the terminal device in selecting random access resources, thereby reducing the latency of the random access process.

[0010] For example, if a terminal device directly selects random access resources based on the priority of different characteristics, the terminal device needs to perform an iterative (or loop) process for random access resource selection, which is logically complex and has high implementation complexity. However, selecting random access resources based on the second value of the characteristic combination does not require an iterative process; instead, after determining the second value of the characteristic combination, random access resource selection is performed based on the second value of the characteristic combination.

[0011] For example, the terminal device determines a first value of a characteristic in a characteristic combination. The first value of the characteristic is used to determine a second value of the characteristic combination. This can be understood as: the terminal device determines a second value of the characteristic combination, and the second value of the characteristic combination is determined based on the first value of the characteristic in the characteristic combination. The first value of the characteristic in the characteristic combination is determined based on the priority of multiple characteristics.

[0012] In conjunction with the first aspect, in some implementations of the first aspect, the first value of the first characteristic and the first value of the second characteristic set satisfy the following relationship: the first value of the first characteristic is greater than the sum of the first values ​​of the second characteristic set, wherein the first characteristic is one of the at least one characteristics, and the second characteristic set is the set of all characteristics in the at least one characteristic that have a lower priority than the first characteristic.

[0013] Based on the above technical solution, the first value of the characteristic in the characteristic combination determined by the terminal device according to the priority of multiple characteristics needs to meet certain rules (e.g., the first value of the high-priority characteristic in the characteristic combination is greater than the sum of the first values ​​of all characteristics in the characteristic combination with a priority lower than that high-priority characteristic). In other words, if the network device is configured with high-priority characteristic-related random access resources, this rule is followed so that the terminal device can select the high-priority characteristic-related random access resources during the process of selecting random access resources.

[0014] In conjunction with the first aspect, in some implementations of the first aspect, the priority of the at least one feature and the non-negative integer corresponding to the at least one feature satisfy the following relationship: the higher the priority of the feature, the larger the non-negative integer corresponding to the feature, wherein the non-negative integer corresponding to the feature is used to determine the first value of the feature.

[0015] In conjunction with the first aspect, in some implementations of the first aspect, the non-negative integer corresponding to this characteristic and the first value of this characteristic satisfy the following relationship: Z = X N +Y; or, Z = X N Where Z represents the first value of the characteristic, N represents the non-negative integer corresponding to the characteristic, X is an integer greater than or equal to 1, and Y is a constant (e.g., an integer, a non-zero integer, etc.). Specifically, if the non-negative integer corresponding to the characteristic and the first value of the characteristic satisfy the relationship Z = X... N +Y, where Y is zero, can be interpreted as the non-negative integer corresponding to the characteristic and the first value of the characteristic satisfying the relationship Z = X. N In conjunction with the first aspect, in some implementations of the first aspect, the priority of the at least one feature and the non-negative integer corresponding to the at least one feature satisfy the following relationship: the higher the priority of the feature, the smaller the non-negative integer corresponding to the feature, wherein the non-negative integer corresponding to the feature is used to determine the first value of the feature.

[0016] Based on the above technical solution, the first value of a characteristic can be determined based on the non-negative integer corresponding to the characteristic, thereby reducing the complexity of determining the first value of the characteristic.

[0017] In conjunction with the first aspect, in some implementations of the first aspect, the non-negative integer corresponding to this characteristic and the first value of this characteristic satisfy the following relationship: Z = X M1-N +Y; or, Z = X M1-N Where Z represents the first value of the characteristic, N represents the non-negative integer corresponding to the characteristic, X is an integer greater than or equal to 1, Y is a constant, and M1 is related to the number of the at least one characteristic or the number of multiple characteristics.

[0018] In conjunction with the first aspect, in some implementations of the first aspect, the non-negative integer corresponding to the at least one feature is a series of M2 consecutive positive integers from 0 to M2-1, where M2 is the number of the at least one feature.

[0019] In conjunction with the first aspect, in some implementations of the first aspect, the second value of the feature combination is the sum of the first values ​​of the at least one feature included in the feature combination.

[0020] Based on the above technical solution, the second value of the feature combination can be the sum of the first values ​​of all features included in the feature combination, which reduces the complexity of determining the second value of the feature combination.

[0021] In conjunction with the first aspect, in some implementations of the first aspect, the method further includes: the terminal device selecting random access resources of a first feature combination, wherein the second value of the first feature combination is the largest among a plurality of second values ​​of a plurality of feature combinations, and one of the features included in one of the feature combinations of the plurality of feature combinations is one or more features of a feature combination used to trigger the random access procedure.

[0022] Secondly, a communication method is provided, which can be executed by a network device or by a component of the network device (such as a chip or circuit). There is no limitation on this. For ease of description, the following explanation will take execution by a network device as an example.

[0023] The communication method includes: a network device determining and configuring multiple characteristics; the network device sending second indication information to a terminal device, the second indication information being used to indicate a non-negative integer corresponding to one of the multiple characteristics, wherein the non-negative integer corresponding to the characteristic is used to determine the priority of the characteristic, and the priority of the characteristic is used for the selection of random access resources.

[0024] Based on the above technical solution, the network device can send non-negative integers corresponding to multiple characteristics to the terminal device, so that the terminal device can determine the first value of the characteristic in the characteristic combination based on the non-negative integer corresponding to the characteristic. The first value is used to determine the second value of the characteristic combination, and the second value of the characteristic combination is used for the selection of random access resources. That is to say, the terminal device no longer needs to directly select random access resources based on the priority of different characteristics, but instead determines the first value of the characteristic in the characteristic combination according to the priority of different characteristics, determines the second value of the characteristic combination based on the first value, and then selects random access resources based on the second value of the characteristic combination. This method of selecting random resources can reduce the logical complexity of the terminal device in selecting random access resources, thereby reducing the latency of the random access process.

[0025] In conjunction with the second aspect, in some implementations of the second aspect, the method further includes: the network device determining the priority of a feature among the plurality of features, wherein the priority of the plurality of features and the non-negative integer corresponding to the plurality of features satisfy the following relationship: the higher the priority of the feature, the larger the non-negative integer corresponding to the feature, wherein the non-negative integer corresponding to the feature is used to determine a first value of the feature.

[0026] In conjunction with the second aspect, in some implementations of the second aspect, the non-negative integer corresponding to this characteristic and the first value of this characteristic satisfy the following relationship: Z = XN +Y; or, Z = X N Where Z represents the first value of the characteristic, N represents the non-negative integer corresponding to the characteristic, X is an integer greater than or equal to 1, and Y is a constant.

[0027] In conjunction with the second aspect, in some implementations of the second aspect, the method further includes: the network device determining the priority of a feature among the plurality of features, wherein the priority of the plurality of features and the non-negative integer corresponding to the plurality of features satisfy the following relationship: the higher the priority of the feature, the smaller the non-negative integer corresponding to the feature, wherein the non-negative integer corresponding to the feature is used to determine a first value of the feature.

[0028] In conjunction with the second aspect, in some implementations of the second aspect, the non-negative integers corresponding to the multiple characteristics are M3 consecutive positive integers from 0 to M3-1, where M3 is the number of the multiple characteristics.

[0029] Thirdly, a communication method is provided, which can be executed by a terminal device or by a component of the terminal device (such as a chip or circuit). There is no limitation on this. For ease of description, the following explanation will take execution by a terminal device as an example.

[0030] The communication method includes: a terminal device receiving second indication information from a network device, the second indication information being used to indicate a non-negative integer corresponding to a characteristic among the plurality of characteristics; the terminal device determining a first value of a characteristic in a characteristic combination based on the non-negative integer corresponding to the characteristic, the first value of the characteristic being used to determine a second value of the characteristic combination, the second value of the characteristic combination being used for the selection of random access resources, wherein the characteristic combination includes at least one characteristic, and the at least one characteristic belongs to the plurality of characteristics.

[0031] In conjunction with the third aspect, in some implementations of the third aspect, the first value of the first characteristic and the first value of the second characteristic set satisfy the following relationship: the first value of the first characteristic is greater than the sum of the first values ​​of the second characteristic set, wherein the first characteristic is one of the at least one characteristics, and the second characteristic set is the set of all characteristics in the at least one characteristic whose first value is lower than the first characteristic.

[0032] In conjunction with the third aspect, in some implementations of the third aspect, the first value of this property satisfies the following relationship: Z = X N +Y; or, Z = X N Where Z represents the first value of the characteristic, N represents the non-negative integer corresponding to the characteristic, X is an integer greater than or equal to 1, and Y is a constant.

[0033] In conjunction with the third aspect, in some implementations of the third aspect, the first value of this property satisfies the following relationship: Z = X M1-N +Y; or, Z = X M1-N Where Z represents the first value of the characteristic, N represents the non-negative integer corresponding to the characteristic, X is an integer greater than or equal to 1, Y is a constant, and M1 is related to the number of the at least one characteristic or the number of multiple characteristics.

[0034] In conjunction with the third aspect, in some implementations of the third aspect, the second value of the feature combination is the sum of the first values ​​of the at least one feature included in the feature combination.

[0035] In conjunction with the third aspect, in some implementations of the third aspect, the method further includes: the terminal device selecting random access resources of a first feature combination, wherein the second value of the first feature combination is the largest among a plurality of second values ​​of a plurality of feature combinations, and one of the features included in one of the feature combinations of the plurality of feature combinations is one or more features of a feature combination used to trigger the random access procedure.

[0036] The beneficial effects of the methods shown in the third aspect and its possible designs above can be referred to the beneficial effects in the second aspect and its possible designs.

[0037] Fourthly, a communication method is provided, which can be executed by a network device or by a component of the network device (such as a chip or circuit). There is no limitation on this. For ease of description, the following explanation will take execution by a network device as an example.

[0038] The communication method includes: a network device determining a first value of a characteristic among a plurality of characteristics; the network device sending third indication information to a terminal device, the third indication information indicating the first value of the characteristic among the plurality of characteristics, wherein the first value of the third characteristic and the first value of a fourth set of characteristics satisfy the following relationship: the first value of the third characteristic is greater than the sum of the first values ​​of the fourth set of characteristics, wherein the third characteristic is one of the plurality of characteristics, and the fourth set of characteristics is the set of all characteristics among the plurality of characteristics whose first value is lower than the third characteristic.

[0039] Based on the above technical solution, the network device can send the first value of one of the multiple characteristics to the terminal device, so that the terminal device can determine the second value of the characteristic combination based on the first value, and then select random access resources according to the second value of the characteristic combination. In other words, the terminal device no longer needs to directly select random access resources based on the priority of different characteristics. This method of selecting random resources can reduce the logical complexity of the terminal device in selecting random access resources, thereby reducing the latency of the random access process.

[0040] The aforementioned third indication information can be broadcast information, configuring the same characteristics for all terminal devices, or the third indication information can be dedicated signaling, configuring multiple characteristics for a certain terminal device, such as configuring the terminal device to trigger random access to the characteristics included in the characteristic combination.

[0041] In conjunction with the fourth aspect, in some implementations of the fourth aspect, the first value of this characteristic satisfies the following relationship: Z = X N +Y; or, Z = X N Where Z represents the first value of the characteristic, N represents the non-negative integer corresponding to the characteristic, X is an integer greater than or equal to 1, and Y is a constant.

[0042] In conjunction with the fourth aspect, in some implementations of the fourth aspect, the first value of this characteristic satisfies the following relationship: Z = X M4-N +Y; or, Z = X M4-N Where Z represents the first value of the characteristic, N represents the non-negative integer corresponding to the characteristic, X is an integer greater than or equal to 1, Y is a constant, and M4 is related to the number of the multiple characteristics.

[0043] Fifthly, a communication method is provided, which can be executed by a terminal device or by a component of the terminal device (such as a chip or circuit). There is no limitation on this. For ease of description, the following explanation will take execution by a terminal device as an example.

[0044] The communication method includes: a terminal device receiving third indication information from a network device, the third indication information indicating a first value of a feature among a plurality of features; the terminal device determining a second value of a feature combination based on the first value of the feature, the second value of the feature combination being used for random access resource selection, wherein the first value of the third feature and the first value of the fourth feature set satisfy the following relationship: the first value of the third feature is greater than the sum of the first values ​​of the fourth feature set, wherein the third feature is one of the plurality of features, and the fourth feature set is the set of all features among the plurality of features whose first value is lower than that of the third feature.

[0045] In conjunction with the fifth aspect, in some implementations of the fifth aspect, the first value of this characteristic satisfies the following relationship: Z = X N +Y; or, Z = X N Where Z represents the first value of the characteristic, N represents the non-negative integer corresponding to the characteristic, X is an integer greater than or equal to 1, and Y is a constant.

[0046] In conjunction with the fifth aspect, in some implementations of the fifth aspect, the first value of this characteristic satisfies the following relationship: Z = X M4-N+Y; or, Z = X M4-N Where Z represents the first value of the characteristic, N represents the non-negative integer corresponding to the characteristic, X is an integer greater than or equal to 1, Y is a constant, and M4 is related to the number of the multiple characteristics.

[0047] In conjunction with the fifth aspect, in some implementations of the fifth aspect, the second value of the feature combination is the sum of the first values ​​of the at least one feature included in the feature combination.

[0048] In conjunction with the fifth aspect, in some implementations of the fifth aspect, the method further includes: the terminal device selecting random access resources of a first feature combination, wherein the second value of the first feature combination is the largest among a plurality of second values ​​of a plurality of feature combinations, and one of the feature combinations of the plurality of feature combinations includes one or more features of a feature combination used to trigger the random access procedure.

[0049] The beneficial effects of the methods shown in the fifth aspect and its possible designs above can be referred to the beneficial effects in the fourth aspect and its possible designs.

[0050] In a sixth aspect, a communication device is provided for performing the method provided in the first aspect.

[0051] The apparatus includes: a receiving unit for receiving first indication information from a network device, the first indication information indicating the priority of multiple features; and a processing unit for determining a first value of a feature in a feature combination based on the priority of the multiple features, the first value of the feature determining a second value of the feature combination, the second value of the feature combination being used for selecting random access resources, wherein the feature combination includes at least one feature, the at least one feature belonging to the multiple features.

[0052] In conjunction with the sixth aspect, in some implementations of the sixth aspect, the first value of the first characteristic and the first value of the second characteristic set satisfy the following relationship: the first value of the first characteristic is greater than the sum of the first values ​​of the second characteristic set, wherein the first characteristic is one of the at least one characteristics, and the second characteristic set is the set of all characteristics in the at least one characteristic that have a lower priority than the first characteristic.

[0053] In conjunction with the sixth aspect, in some implementations of the sixth aspect, the priority of the at least one feature and the non-negative integer corresponding to the at least one feature satisfy the following relationship: the higher the priority of the feature, the larger the non-negative integer corresponding to the feature, wherein the non-negative integer corresponding to the feature is used to determine the first value of the feature.

[0054] In conjunction with the sixth aspect, in some implementations of the sixth aspect, the non-negative integer corresponding to this characteristic and the first value of this characteristic satisfy the following relationship: Z = X N +Y; or, Z = X N Where Z represents the first value of the characteristic, N represents the non-negative integer corresponding to the characteristic, X is an integer greater than or equal to 1, and Y is a constant.

[0055] In conjunction with the sixth aspect, in some implementations of the sixth aspect, the priority of the at least one feature and the non-negative integer corresponding to the at least one feature satisfy the following relationship: the higher the priority of the feature, the smaller the non-negative integer corresponding to the feature, wherein the non-negative integer corresponding to the feature is used to determine the first value of the feature.

[0056] In conjunction with the sixth aspect, in some implementations of the sixth aspect, the non-negative integer corresponding to this characteristic and the first value of this characteristic satisfy the following relationship: Z = X M1-N +Y; or, Z = X M1-N Where Z represents the first value of the characteristic, N represents the non-negative integer corresponding to the characteristic, X is an integer greater than or equal to 1, Y is a constant, and M1 is related to the number of the at least one characteristic or the number of multiple characteristics.

[0057] In conjunction with the sixth aspect, in some implementations of the sixth aspect, the non-negative integer corresponding to the at least one characteristic is a series of M2 consecutive positive integers from 0 to M2-1, where M2 is the number of the at least one characteristic.

[0058] In conjunction with the sixth aspect, in some implementations of the sixth aspect, the second value of the feature combination is the sum of the first values ​​of the at least one feature included in the feature combination.

[0059] In conjunction with the sixth aspect, in some implementations of the sixth aspect, the processing unit is further configured to select random access resources of a first feature combination, wherein the second value of the first feature combination is the largest among a plurality of second values ​​of a plurality of feature combinations, and one of the feature combinations of the plurality of feature combinations includes one or more features of a feature combination used to trigger the random access procedure.

[0060] The beneficial effects of the methods shown in the sixth aspect and its possible designs above can be referred to the beneficial effects in the first aspect and its possible designs.

[0061] In a seventh aspect, a communication device is provided for performing the method provided in the second aspect above.

[0062] The device includes: a processing unit for determining and configuring multiple features; and a sending unit for sending second indication information to a terminal device, the second indication information being used to indicate a non-negative integer corresponding to one of the multiple features, wherein the non-negative integer corresponding to the feature is used to determine the priority of the feature, and the priority of the feature is used for the selection of random access resources.

[0063] In conjunction with the seventh aspect, in some implementations of the seventh aspect, the processing unit is further configured to determine the priority of a feature among the plurality of features, wherein the priority of the plurality of features and the non-negative integer corresponding to the plurality of features satisfy the following relationship: the higher the priority of a feature, the larger the non-negative integer corresponding to that feature.

[0064] In conjunction with the seventh aspect, in some implementations of the seventh aspect, the processing unit is further configured to determine the priority of a feature among the plurality of features, wherein the priority of the plurality of features and the non-negative integer corresponding to the plurality of features satisfy the following relationship: the higher the priority of a feature, the smaller the non-negative integer corresponding to the feature.

[0065] In conjunction with the seventh aspect, in some implementations of the seventh aspect, the non-negative integers corresponding to the multiple characteristics are M3 consecutive positive integers from 0 to M3-1, where M3 is the number of the multiple characteristics.

[0066] The beneficial effects of the device shown in the seventh aspect above and its possible designs can be referred to the beneficial effects in the second aspect and its possible designs.

[0067] Eighthly, a communication device is provided for performing the method provided in the third aspect above.

[0068] The device includes: a receiving unit for receiving second indication information from a network device, the second indication information being used to indicate a non-negative integer corresponding to a characteristic among the plurality of characteristics; and a processing unit for determining a first value of a characteristic in a characteristic combination based on the non-negative integer corresponding to the characteristic, the first value of the characteristic being used to determine a second value of the characteristic combination, the second value of the characteristic combination being used for the selection of random access resources, wherein the characteristic combination includes at least one characteristic, and the at least one characteristic belongs to the plurality of characteristics.

[0069] In conjunction with the eighth aspect, in some implementations of the eighth aspect, the first value of the first characteristic and the first value of the second characteristic set satisfy the following relationship: the first value of the first characteristic is greater than the sum of the first values ​​of the second characteristic set, wherein the first characteristic is one of the at least one characteristics, and the second characteristic set is the set of all characteristics in the at least one characteristic whose first value is lower than the first characteristic.

[0070] In conjunction with the eighth aspect, in some implementations of the eighth aspect, the first value of this property satisfies the following relationship: Z = XN +Y; or, Z = X N Where Z represents the first value of the characteristic, N represents the non-negative integer corresponding to the characteristic, X is an integer greater than or equal to 1, and Y is a constant.

[0071] In conjunction with the eighth aspect, in some implementations of the eighth aspect, the first value of this property satisfies the following relationship: Z = X M1-N +Y; or, Z = X M1-N Where Z represents the first value of the characteristic, N represents the non-negative integer corresponding to the characteristic, X is an integer greater than or equal to 1, Y is a constant, and M1 is related to the number of the at least one characteristic or the number of multiple characteristics.

[0072] In conjunction with the eighth aspect, in some implementations of the eighth aspect, the second value of the feature combination is the sum of the first values ​​of the at least one feature included in the feature combination.

[0073] In conjunction with the eighth aspect, in some implementations of the eighth aspect, the processing unit is further configured to select random access resources of a first feature combination, wherein the second value of the first feature combination is the largest among a plurality of second values ​​of a plurality of feature combinations, and one of the feature combinations of the plurality of feature combinations includes one or more features of a feature combination used to trigger the random access procedure.

[0074] The beneficial effects of the methods shown in the eighth aspect above and its possible designs can be referred to the beneficial effects in the third aspect and its possible designs.

[0075] Ninthly, a communication device is provided for performing the method provided in the fourth aspect above.

[0076] The device includes: a processing unit for determining a first value of a characteristic among a plurality of characteristics; and a sending unit for sending third indication information to a terminal device, the third indication information indicating the first value of the characteristic among the plurality of characteristics, wherein the first value of the third characteristic and the first value of a fourth set of characteristics satisfy the following relationship: the first value of the third characteristic is greater than the sum of the first values ​​of the fourth set of characteristics, wherein the third characteristic is one of the plurality of characteristics, and the fourth set of characteristics is the set of all characteristics among the plurality of characteristics whose first value is lower than the third characteristic.

[0077] In conjunction with the ninth aspect, in some implementations of the ninth aspect, the first value of this property satisfies the following relationship: Z = X N +Y; or, Z = X N Where Z represents the first value of the characteristic, N represents the non-negative integer corresponding to the characteristic, X is an integer greater than or equal to 1, and Y is a constant.

[0078] In conjunction with the ninth aspect, in some implementations of the ninth aspect, the first value of this property satisfies the following relationship: Z = X M4-N +Y; or, Z = X M4-N Where Z represents the first value of the characteristic, N represents the non-negative integer corresponding to the characteristic, X is an integer greater than or equal to 1, Y is a constant, and M4 is related to the number of the multiple characteristics.

[0079] The beneficial effects of the device shown in the ninth aspect above and its possible designs can be referred to the beneficial effects in the fourth aspect and its possible designs.

[0080] In a tenth aspect, a communication device is provided for performing the method provided in the fifth aspect above.

[0081] The apparatus includes: a receiving unit for receiving third indication information from a network device, the third indication information indicating a first value of a characteristic among a plurality of characteristics; and a processing unit for determining a second value of a characteristic combination based on the first value of the characteristic, the second value of the characteristic combination being used for the selection of random access resources, wherein the first value of the third characteristic and the first value of the fourth characteristic set satisfy the following relationship: the first value of the third characteristic is greater than the sum of the first values ​​of the fourth characteristic set, wherein the third characteristic is one of the plurality of characteristics, and the fourth characteristic set is the set of all characteristics among the plurality of characteristics whose first value is lower than that of the third characteristic.

[0082] In conjunction with aspect ten, in some implementations of aspect ten, the first value of this property satisfies the following relationship: Z = X N +Y; or, Z = X N Where Z represents the first value of the characteristic, N represents the non-negative integer corresponding to the characteristic, X is an integer greater than or equal to 1, and Y is a constant.

[0083] In conjunction with aspect ten, in some implementations of aspect ten, the first value of this property satisfies the following relationship: Z = X M4-N +Y; or, Z = X M4-N Where Z represents the first value of the characteristic, N represents the non-negative integer corresponding to the characteristic, X is an integer greater than or equal to 1, Y is a constant, and M4 is related to the number of the multiple characteristics.

[0084] In conjunction with the tenth aspect, in some implementations of the tenth aspect, the second value of the feature combination is the sum of the first values ​​of the at least one feature included in the feature combination.

[0085] In conjunction with the tenth aspect, in some implementations of the tenth aspect, the processing unit is further configured to select random access resources of a first feature combination, wherein the second value of the first feature combination is the largest among a plurality of second values ​​of a plurality of feature combinations, and one of the feature combinations of the plurality of feature combinations includes one or more features of a feature combination used to trigger the random access procedure.

[0086] The beneficial effects of the device shown in the tenth aspect above and its possible designs can be referred to the beneficial effects in the fifth aspect and its possible designs.

[0087] Eleventhly, a communication apparatus is provided for performing the methods provided in the first, third, or fifth aspects described above. Specifically, the communication apparatus may include units and / or modules for performing the methods provided in any implementation of the first, third, or fifth aspects, such as processing units and acquisition units.

[0088] In one implementation, the transceiver unit can be a transceiver or an input / output interface; the processing unit can be at least one processor. Optionally, the transceiver can be a transceiver circuit. Optionally, the input / output interface can be an input / output circuit.

[0089] In another implementation, the transceiver unit can be an input / output interface, interface circuit, output circuit, input circuit, pin, or related circuit on the chip, chip system, or circuit; the processing unit can be at least one processor, processing circuit, or logic circuit.

[0090] In a twelfth aspect, a communication apparatus is provided for performing the methods provided in the second or fourth aspect described above. Specifically, the communication apparatus may include units and / or modules for performing the methods provided in the second or fourth aspect, such as a processing unit and an acquisition unit.

[0091] In one implementation, the transceiver unit can be a transceiver or an input / output interface; the processing unit can be at least one processor. Optionally, the transceiver can be a transceiver circuit. Optionally, the input / output interface can be an input / output circuit.

[0092] In another implementation, the transceiver unit can be an input / output interface, interface circuit, output circuit, input circuit, pin, or related circuit on the chip, chip system, or circuit; the processing unit can be at least one processor, processing circuit, or logic circuit.

[0093] In a thirteenth aspect, this application provides a processor for performing the methods provided in the foregoing aspects.

[0094] Unless otherwise specified, or if it does not contradict its actual function or internal logic in the relevant description, the transmission and acquisition / reception operations involved in the processor can be understood as processor output and reception, input and other operations, or as transmission and reception operations performed by radio frequency circuits and antennas. This application does not limit them in this regard.

[0095] In a fourteenth aspect, a computer-readable storage medium is provided that stores program code for execution by a device, the program code including a method for performing any of the implementations of the first to fifth aspects described above.

[0096] In a fifteenth aspect, a computer program product containing instructions is provided, which, when run on a computer, causes the computer to perform the method provided by any one of the implementations of the first to fifth aspects described above.

[0097] In a sixteenth aspect, a chip is provided, the chip including a processor and a communication interface, the processor reading instructions stored in a memory through the communication interface and executing the method provided by any one of the implementations of the first to fifth aspects.

[0098] Optionally, as one implementation, the chip also includes a memory storing computer programs or instructions, and a processor is used to execute the computer programs or instructions stored in the memory. When the computer programs or instructions are executed, the processor is used to execute the method provided by any of the implementations of the first to fifth aspects described above.

[0099] In a seventeenth aspect, a communication system is provided, comprising the communication device described in the sixth aspect, or comprising the communication device described in the seventh aspect and the communication device described in the eighth aspect, or comprising the communication device described in the ninth aspect and the communication device described in the tenth aspect.

[0100] In the eighteenth aspect, a communication method is provided, which can be executed by a terminal device or by a component of the terminal device (such as a chip or circuit), without limitation. For ease of description, the following description takes execution by a terminal device as an example.

[0101] The communication method includes: a terminal device receiving a handover command or synchronization reconfiguration parameters from a network device, wherein the handover command or synchronization reconfiguration parameters include fifth indication information, the fifth indication information being used to indicate the characteristic priority of a target cell; and the terminal device selecting random access resources according to the characteristic priority of the target cell.

[0102] Based on the above technical solution, the terminal device performing the handover from the source cell to the target cell can obtain the characteristic priority of the target cell based on the indication information in the handover command or synchronization reconfiguration parameters. Thus, it can perform contention-based random access based on the characteristic priority of the target cell. On the one hand, it does not require the network to restrict the inclusion of the target cell's SIB1 in the RRC reconfiguration message containing the handover command or synchronization reconfiguration parameters, thereby reducing the size of the RRC reconfiguration message during handover and reducing the possibility of message transmission failure. On the other hand, the terminal device does not need to read the target cell's SIB1 or the SIB1 contained in the RRC reconfiguration message before handover or before completing RACH, thus reducing handover latency.

[0103] In conjunction with the eighteenth aspect, in some implementations of the eighteenth aspect, before the terminal device receives the handover command or synchronization reconfiguration parameters from the network device, the method further includes: the terminal device receiving a first SIB from the network device, the first SIB including sixth indication information, the sixth indication information being used to indicate the characteristic priority of the source cell; the terminal device selecting random access resources according to the characteristic priority of the source cell, wherein the first SIB is the SIB corresponding to the source cell.

[0104] In conjunction with aspect eighteen, in some implementations of aspect eighteen, the switching command or synchronization reconfiguration parameters are included in the RRC reconfiguration message.

[0105] In conjunction with aspect eighteen, in some implementations of aspect eighteen, the RRC reconfiguration message includes a second SIB, which includes a characteristic priority parameter of the target cell, wherein the second SIB is the SIB corresponding to the target cell.

[0106] In conjunction with the eighteenth aspect, in some implementations of the eighteenth aspect, the fifth indication information is used to indicate the characteristic priority of RedCap and CovEnh.

[0107] In the nineteenth aspect, a communication method is provided, which can be executed by a network device or by a component of the network device (e.g., a chip or circuit), without limitation. For ease of description, the following description takes execution by a network device as an example.

[0108] The communication method includes: a network device determining the characteristic priority of a target cell; the network device sending a handover command or synchronization reconfiguration parameters to a terminal device, wherein the handover command or synchronization reconfiguration parameters include fifth indication information, which is used to indicate the characteristic priority of the target cell.

[0109] In conjunction with the nineteenth aspect, in certain implementations of the nineteenth aspect, before the network device sends a handover command or synchronization reconfiguration parameters to the terminal device, the method further includes: the network device sending a first SIB to the terminal device, the first SIB including sixth indication information, the sixth indication information being used to indicate the characteristic priority of the source cell, wherein the first SIB is the SIB corresponding to the source cell.

[0110] In conjunction with the nineteenth aspect, in some implementations of the nineteenth aspect, the RRC reconfiguration message includes a second SIB, which includes a characteristic priority parameter of the target cell, wherein the second SIB is the SIB corresponding to the target cell.

[0111] In conjunction with the nineteenth aspect, in some implementations of the nineteenth aspect, the fifth indication information is used to indicate the characteristic priority of RedCap and CovEnh.

[0112] The beneficial effects of the methods shown in aspect nineteen and its possible designs above can be referred to in aspect eighteen and its possible designs.

[0113] In a twentieth aspect, a communication device is provided for performing the method provided in the eighteenth aspect above.

[0114] The device includes: a receiving unit for receiving a handover command or synchronization reconfiguration parameters from a network device, wherein the handover command or synchronization reconfiguration parameters include fifth indication information, the fifth indication information being used to indicate the characteristic priority of a target cell; and a processing unit for selecting random access resources according to the characteristic priority of the target cell.

[0115] In conjunction with aspect 20, in some implementations of aspect 20, before the receiving unit receives the handover command or synchronization reconfiguration parameters from the network device, the receiving unit is further configured to receive a first SIB from the network device, the first SIB including sixth indication information, the sixth indication information being used to indicate the characteristic priority of the source cell; the processing unit is further configured to select random access resources according to the characteristic priority of the source cell, wherein the first SIB is the SIB corresponding to the source cell.

[0116] In conjunction with aspect 20, in some implementations of aspect 20, the RRC reconfiguration message includes a second SIB, which includes a characteristic priority parameter of the target cell, wherein the second SIB is the SIB corresponding to the target cell.

[0117] In conjunction with aspect 20, in some implementations of aspect 20, the fifth indication information is used to indicate the feature priority of RedCap and CovEnh.

[0118] The beneficial effects of the methods shown in the twentieth aspect and its possible designs can be referred to the beneficial effects in the eighteenth aspect and its possible designs.

[0119] In a twentieth aspect, a communication device is provided for performing the method provided in the nineteenth aspect above.

[0120] The device includes: a processing unit for determining the characteristic priority of a target cell; and a sending unit for sending a handover command or synchronization reconfiguration parameters to a terminal device, wherein the handover command or synchronization reconfiguration parameters include fifth indication information, which is used to indicate the characteristic priority of the target cell.

[0121] In conjunction with aspect 21, in some implementations of aspect 21, before the sending unit sends a handover command or synchronization reconfiguration parameters to the terminal device, the sending unit is further configured to send a first SIB to the terminal device, the first SIB including sixth indication information, the sixth indication information being used to indicate the characteristic priority of the source cell, wherein the first SIB is the SIB corresponding to the source cell.

[0122] In conjunction with aspect 21, in some implementations of aspect 21, the RRC reconfiguration message includes a second SIB, which includes a characteristic priority parameter of the target cell, wherein the second SIB is the SIB corresponding to the target cell.

[0123] In conjunction with aspect 21, in some implementations of aspect 21, the fifth indication information is used to indicate the feature priority of RedCap and CovEnh.

[0124] The beneficial effects of the methods shown in aspect 21 above and its possible designs can be referred to in aspect 19 and its possible designs for their beneficial effects.

[0125] In a twenty-second aspect, a communication apparatus is provided for performing the method provided in the eighteenth aspect. Specifically, the communication apparatus may include units and / or modules for performing the method provided in any implementation of the eighteenth aspect, such as a processing unit and an acquisition unit.

[0126] In one implementation, the transceiver unit can be a transceiver or an input / output interface; the processing unit can be at least one processor. Optionally, the transceiver can be a transceiver circuit. Optionally, the input / output interface can be an input / output circuit.

[0127] In another implementation, the transceiver unit can be an input / output interface, interface circuit, output circuit, input circuit, pin, or related circuit on the chip, chip system, or circuit; the processing unit can be at least one processor, processing circuit, or logic circuit.

[0128] In a twenty-third aspect, a communication apparatus is provided for performing the method provided in the nineteenth aspect. Specifically, the communication apparatus may include units and / or modules for performing the method provided in the nineteenth aspect, such as a processing unit and an acquisition unit.

[0129] In one implementation, the transceiver unit can be a transceiver or an input / output interface; the processing unit can be at least one processor. Optionally, the transceiver can be a transceiver circuit. Optionally, the input / output interface can be an input / output circuit.

[0130] In another implementation, the transceiver unit can be an input / output interface, interface circuit, output circuit, input circuit, pin, or related circuit on the chip, chip system, or circuit; the processing unit can be at least one processor, processing circuit, or logic circuit.

[0131] In a twentieth aspect, this application provides a processor for performing the methods provided in the eighteenth and nineteenth aspects above.

[0132] Unless otherwise specified, or if it does not contradict its actual function or internal logic in the relevant description, the transmission and acquisition / reception operations involved in the processor can be understood as processor output and reception, input and other operations, or as transmission and reception operations performed by radio frequency circuits and antennas. This application does not limit them in this regard.

[0133] In a twenty-fifth aspect, a computer-readable storage medium is provided that stores program code for execution by a device, the program code including a method for performing any of the implementations of the eighteenth and nineteenth aspects described above.

[0134] In a twenty-sixth aspect, a computer program product comprising instructions is provided, which, when run on a computer, causes the computer to perform the method provided by any of the implementations of the eighteenth and nineteenth aspects described above.

[0135] In a twentieth aspect, a chip is provided, the chip including a processor and a communication interface, wherein the processor reads instructions stored in a memory through the communication interface and executes the method provided by any of the implementations of the eighteenth and nineteenth aspects above.

[0136] Optionally, as one implementation, the chip also includes a memory storing computer programs or instructions, and a processor for executing the computer programs or instructions stored in the memory. When the computer programs or instructions are executed, the processor is used to perform the methods provided by any of the implementations of aspects eighteen and nineteen above.

[0137] In a twentieth aspect, a communication system is provided, comprising the communication apparatus described in the twentieth aspect and the communication apparatus described in the twenty-first aspect. Attached Figure Description

[0138] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the communication system 100 to which the embodiments of this application apply;

[0139] Figure 2 (a) to (d) in the diagram are schematic diagrams of the communication methods between network devices and terminal devices;

[0140] Figure 3 This is a schematic flowchart of a four-step random access process;

[0141] Figure 4 This is a schematic flowchart of a two-step random access process;

[0142] Figure 5 This is a schematic flowchart illustrating a communication method provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0143] Figure 6 This is a schematic flowchart illustrating another communication method provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0144] Figure 7 This is a schematic flowchart illustrating another communication method provided in the embodiments of this application;

[0145] Figure 8 This is a schematic flowchart illustrating another communication method provided in the embodiments of this application;

[0146] Figure 9 This is a schematic block diagram of a communication device provided according to embodiments of this application;

[0147] Figure 10 This is another schematic block diagram of a communication device provided according to an embodiment of this application. Detailed Implementation

[0148] The technical solutions in the embodiments of this application will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0149] The technical solutions of this application can be applied to various communication systems, such as 5th generation (5G) systems, new radio (NR) systems, long term evolution (LTE) systems, LTE frequency division duplex (FDD) systems, LTE time division duplex (TDD) systems, etc. The technical solutions provided in this application can also be applied to future communication systems, such as 6th generation mobile communication systems. The technical solutions of this application can also be applied to device-to-device (D2D) communication, vehicle-to-everything (V2X) communication, machine-to-machine (M2M) communication, machine-type communication (MTC), and Internet of Things (IoT) communication systems or other communication systems.

[0150] To facilitate understanding of the embodiments of this application, let's first take... Figure 1 The communication system shown in the figure is used as an example to describe in detail the communication system to which the embodiments of this application are applicable. Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the communication system 100 to which embodiments of this application apply. For example... Figure 1 As shown, the communication system 100 may include at least one network device, such as Figure 1 The network device 110 shown; the communication system 100 may also include at least one terminal device, such as Figure 1 The terminal device 120 is shown. Network device 110 and terminal device 120 can communicate via a wireless link. Each communication device, such as network device 110 and terminal device 120, can be configured with multiple antennas. For each communication device in the communication system 100, the configured multiple antennas may include at least one transmitting antenna for transmitting signals and at least one receiving antenna for receiving signals. Therefore, the communication devices in the communication system 100, such as network device 110 and terminal device 120, can communicate via multi-antenna technology.

[0151] As an example, not a limitation, regarding Figure 1 In the scenario shown, network devices and terminal devices can communicate in various ways, such as point-to-point transmission, multi-hop (or relay) transmission, or dual connectivity (DC) or multiple connectivity transmission between multiple network devices and terminal devices. Figure 2 As shown in (a) to (d), Figure 2 (a) to (d) in the diagram are schematic diagrams of the communication methods between network devices and terminal devices.

[0152] in, Figure 2 (a) shows point-to-point transmission between network devices and terminal devices; Figure 2 (b) shows a multi-hop single-connection transmission between network devices and terminal devices; Figure 2 (c) in the diagram shows dual-connection transmission between network devices and terminal devices; Figure 2 (d) in the diagram represents multi-hop, multi-connection transmission between network devices and terminal devices.

[0153] It should be noted that, Figure 2 These are merely illustrative examples and do not constitute any limitation on the scope of protection of this application. The communication methods between network devices and terminal devices are not limited in any way in the embodiments of this application. For example, the transmission between network devices and terminal devices can be uplink, downlink, access link, backhaul link, or sidelink, etc.

[0154] In this application, "terminal equipment" can refer to an access terminal, user unit, user station, mobile station, mobile station, relay station, remote station, remote terminal, mobile device, user terminal, user equipment (UE), terminal, wireless communication device, user agent, or user device. Terminal equipment can also be a cellular phone, cordless phone, session initiation protocol (SIP) phone, wireless local loop (WLL) station, personal digital assistant (PDA), handheld device with wireless communication capabilities, computing device or other processing device connected to a wireless modem, vehicle-mounted device, wearable device, terminal equipment in future 5G networks, or terminal equipment in future evolved public land mobile networks (PLMNs), etc. This application does not limit the scope of the term.

[0155] As an example and not a limitation, in this application embodiment, wearable devices can also be called wearable smart devices. This is a general term for devices that utilize wearable technology to intelligently design and develop everyday wearables, such as glasses, gloves, watches, clothing, and shoes. Wearable devices are portable devices that are worn directly on the body or integrated into the user's clothing or accessories. Wearable devices are not merely hardware devices; they achieve powerful functions through software support, data interaction, and cloud interaction. Broadly defined, wearable smart devices include those that are feature-rich, large in size, and can achieve complete or partial functionality without relying on a smartphone, such as smartwatches or smart glasses, as well as those that focus on a specific application function and require use with other devices such as smartphones, such as various smart bracelets and smart jewelry for vital sign monitoring.

[0156] Furthermore, in this embodiment, the terminal device can also be a terminal device in an IoT system. IoT is an important component of future information technology development, and its main technical feature is connecting objects to networks through communication technologies, thereby realizing an intelligent network of human-machine interconnection and object-to-object interconnection. In this embodiment, IoT technology can achieve massive connectivity, deep coverage, and low terminal power consumption through technologies such as narrowband (NB).

[0157] The network device in this application embodiment can be any device with wireless transceiver function used for communicating with terminal devices. This equipment includes, but is not limited to: evolved Node B (eNB), radio network controller (RNC), Node B (NB), base station controller (BSC), base transceiver station (BTS), home evolved Node B (HeNB, or home Node B (HNB), baseband unit (BBU), access point (AP), wireless relay node, wireless backhaul node, transmission point (TP), or transmission and reception point (TRP) in a wireless fidelity (WIFI) system. It can also be a gNB in ​​a 5G system, such as NR, or a transmission point (TRP or TP), one or a group of antenna panels (including multiple antenna panels) of a base station in a 5G system, or a network node constituting a gNB or transmission point, such as a baseband unit (BBU) or a distributed unit (DU).

[0158] In some deployments, a gNB may include a centralized unit (CU) and a distribution unit (DU). A gNB may also include an active antenna unit (AAU). The CU implements some of the gNB's functions, and the DU implements others. For example, the CU handles non-real-time protocols and services, implementing radio resource control (RRC) and packet data convergence protocol (PDCP) layer functions. The DU handles physical layer protocols and real-time services, implementing radio link control (RLC), media access control (MAC), and physical (PHY) layer functions. The AAU implements some physical layer processing functions, radio frequency processing, and active antenna-related functions. Since RRC layer information ultimately becomes PHY layer information, or is derived from PHY layer information, in this architecture, higher-layer signaling, such as RRC layer signaling, can be considered to be sent by the DU, or by the DU+AAU. It is understood that network devices can be devices that include one or more of the following: CU nodes, DU nodes, and AAU nodes. In addition, the CU can be classified as a network device in the radio access network (RAN) or as a network device in the core network (CN), and this application does not limit this.

[0159] In this embodiment, the terminal device or network device includes a hardware layer, an operating system layer running on top of the hardware layer, and an application layer running on top of the operating system layer. The hardware layer includes hardware such as a central processing unit (CPU), a memory management unit (MMU), and memory (also called main memory). The operating system can be any one or more computer operating systems that implement business processing through processes, such as Linux, Unix, Android, iOS, or Windows. The application layer includes applications such as browsers, address books, word processing software, and instant messaging software. Furthermore, this embodiment does not specifically limit the specific structure of the execution entity of the method provided in this embodiment, as long as it can communicate according to the method provided in this embodiment by running a program that records the code of the method provided in this embodiment. For example, the execution entity of the method provided in this embodiment can be a terminal device or a network device, or a functional module in the terminal device or network device that can call and execute a program.

[0160] Furthermore, various aspects or features of this application can be implemented as methods, apparatus, or articles of manufacture using standard programming and / or engineering techniques. The term "article of manufacture" as used herein encompasses a computer program accessible from any computer-readable device, carrier, or medium. For example, computer-readable media may include, but are not limited to: magnetic storage devices (e.g., hard disks, floppy disks, or magnetic tapes), optical discs (e.g., compact discs (CDs), digital versatile discs (DVDs), etc.), smart cards, and flash memory devices (e.g., erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROMs), cards, sticks, or key drives, etc.). Additionally, the various storage media described herein may represent one or more devices and / or other machine-readable media for storing information. The term "machine-readable storage medium" may include, but is not limited to, wireless channels and various other media capable of storing, containing, and / or carrying instructions and / or data.

[0161] It should be understood that Figure 1 and Figure 2 This application uses the communication between network devices and terminal devices as an example to briefly illustrate one communication scenario in which this application can be applied, without limiting other scenarios in which this application can be applied.

[0162] It should also be understood that Figure 1 and Figure 2This is a simplified illustration for ease of understanding only. The communication system may also include other network devices or other terminal devices. Figure 1 and Figure 2 It was not drawn in the middle.

[0163] For example, a communication system may also include core network equipment for managing terminal equipment and network equipment configuration, such as access and mobility management function (AMF) network elements, session management function (SMF) network elements, user plane function (UPF) network elements, policy control function (PCF) network elements, etc.

[0164] Figure 1 and Figure 2 For the communication system applicable to the embodiments of this application, in order to facilitate understanding of the technical solutions of the embodiments of this application, before introducing the solutions of the embodiments of this application based on the 5G architecture, some terms or concepts in 5G that may be involved in the embodiments of this application will be briefly described first.

[0165] 1. Random access procedure.

[0166] The random access process refers to the process from when a terminal device sends a random access preamble to attempt to access the network until a basic signaling connection is established with the network.

[0167] It should be noted that before selecting the timing for transmitting the preamble via the random access channel (RACHoccasion, RO), the terminal device needs to select the uplink carrier. For example, when a supplementary uplink (SUL) or normal uplink (NUL) is configured, the terminal device can choose to operate on SUL or NUL.

[0168] After selecting the uplink carrier, the terminal device (e.g., a terminal device in RRC connected state) may need to perform a bandwidth part (BWP) operation. For example, if the active uplink BWP of the terminal device is not configured with an RO, the terminal device needs to switch the active uplink BWP to the initial uplink BWP.

[0169] After selecting the uplink carrier or BWP operation, the terminal device needs to select the random access (RA) type, which can be understood as the terminal device needing to choose whether to perform two-step random access (hereinafter referred to as...). Figure 4 The diagram shows whether to perform a two-step random access procedure or a four-step random access procedure (as described below). Figure 3 The diagram shows the four-step random access process.

[0170] Furthermore, after determining the RA type, the terminal device needs to perform RACH resource selection: the terminal device can select the RO to send the preamble based on the selected Synchronization Signal and PBCH block (SSB) and the mapping relationship between SSB and RO; or, the terminal device can select the preamble to send based on the selected SSB and the mapping relationship between SSB and preamble.

[0171] For example, an SSB can correspond to multiple ROs, or multiple SSBs can be mapped to a single RO; another example is that an SSB corresponds to one or more preambles, and different SSBs can use different preambles.

[0172] Currently, random access is mainly divided into two categories: four-step random access and two-step random access. For ease of understanding, let's combine... Figure 3 and Figure 4 The four-step random access procedure and the two-step random access procedure are described respectively.

[0173] Figure 3 This is a schematic flowchart of a four-step random access process.

[0174] from Figure 3 As can be seen, the four-step random access process may include the following steps:

[0175] S310, the terminal device sends a random access preamble to the network device.

[0176] For example, the terminal device sends a random access preamble to the network device on the physical random access channel (PRACH) resource, where the PRACH resource can be understood as the random access channel occasion (RO).

[0177] After receiving the random access preamble from the terminal device, the network device sends a random access response (RAR) to the terminal device based on the random access preamble. Figure 3The random access process shown also includes:

[0178] S320: Network devices send RARs to terminal devices.

[0179] For example, the RAR sent by the network device to the terminal device includes indication information indicating the uplink resources for sending message 3 (Msg3). This can be understood as the terminal device, upon receiving the RAR, being able to determine the uplink resources used to send Msg3.

[0180] After receiving the RAR, the terminal device sends Msg3 based on the RAR. Figure 3 The random access process shown also includes:

[0181] S330, the terminal device sends Msg3 to the network device.

[0182] For example, Msg3 may include layer 2 (L2) information and / or layer 3 (L3) information, such as an RRC connection establishment request message; or, for example, a beam failure recovery (BFR) MAC control element (CE).

[0183] If the contention is successfully resolved at the terminal device, the network device sends a contention resolution message to the terminal device. Figure 3 The random access process shown also includes:

[0184] S340, the network device sends a contention resolution message to the terminal device.

[0185] For example, the contention resolution message includes the identifier (ID) of the terminal device, which can also be called message 4 (Msg4). When it is determined from Msg3 that the random access is contention-based, the information of the terminal devices that need to compete is saved. When resolving the contention through Msg4, contention resolution will be performed on these competing terminal devices.

[0186] It should be noted that the above-mentioned in this application Figure 3 This diagram is provided merely to illustrate the four-step random access procedure and does not constitute any limitation on the scope of protection of this application. For a detailed description of the four-step random access procedure, please refer to the introduction in the relevant current technologies.

[0187] Figure 4 This is a schematic flowchart of a two-step random access process.

[0188] from Figure 4As can be seen, the two-step random access process may include the following steps:

[0189] S410, the terminal device sends message A (message A, MsgA) to the network device.

[0190] The MsgA includes a preamble portion and a physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH) portion. The preamble portion is transmitted on PRACH resources (such as RO as mentioned above), while the PUSCH resources can carry L2 or L3 information, such as BFR MAC CE or RRC connection establishment request messages.

[0191] After receiving message A from the terminal device, the network device sends a RAR to the terminal device based on message A. Figure 4 The random access process shown also includes:

[0192] S420, the network device sends message B (message B, MsgB) to the terminal device.

[0193] MsgB messages can contain either a successful RAR or a fallback RAR.

[0194] If the terminal device receives a fallback RAR, the terminal device needs to fall back to the four-step random access procedure, i.e., send Msg3.

[0195] In addition to the fallback process from two-step random access to four-step random access mentioned above, if the network device chooses to perform a two-step random access process when triggering random access, after the preamble of the two-step random access process reaches the maximum number of transmissions, the terminal device can also fallback to the four-step random access process to try to access, thereby increasing the access success rate of the terminal device and ensuring the access performance of the terminal device.

[0196] 2. PRACH resource allocation.

[0197] As described above regarding the random access process, random access requires sending a random access preamble based on PRACH resources. Currently, the protocol specifies that terminal devices with the following characteristics need to allocate PRACH resources, taking a four-step random access process as an example:

[0198] (1) Reduced Capability (RedCap).

[0199] RedCap UE refers to a terminal device with reduced capabilities. This reduction can refer to a decrease in the maximum bandwidth supported by the terminal device, or a reduction in the number of antennas. Because the maximum bandwidth supported by a RedCap UE (e.g., 20MHz) is smaller than that of a traditional terminal device (or non-RedCap terminal device), the network device needs to identify RedCap UEs in advance during the random access procedure (Msg1). This allows the network device to perform special handling on RedCap UEs during the subsequent RACH process.

[0200] For example, the uplink resources scheduled in RAR for Msg3 should not exceed the maximum bandwidth supported by the RedCap UE, and the RedCap UE should be properly configured in Msg4.

[0201] Network devices can also identify RedCap UEs via Msg3 instead of configuring RedCap's Msg1 for advance identification:

[0202] For example, if the initial uplink BWP bandwidth configured on the network device does not exceed 20MHz, the network device can identify the RedCap UE via Msg3.

[0203] It should be noted that RedCap should be understood as a type of terminal device. In order to be consistent with the description of the three features below, the term "feature" will also be used in the following text. That is, RedCap can be understood as the features supported by the terminal device.

[0204] (2) Small data transmission (SDT).

[0205] Terminal devices in the RRC inactive (RRC_INACTIVE) state can perform RACH-based small packet transmission. This can be understood as the terminal device sending small packet data when sending Msg3. The terminal device can perform small packet data transmission without entering the connected state, thereby saving power consumption and latency.

[0206] Therefore, the terminal device can report a request for small packet data transmission on Msg1, which allows the network device to schedule larger Msg3 transmission resources in RAR to carry the small packet data.

[0207] (3) Coverage enhancement (CovEnh).

[0208] CovEnh's research includes how to improve the coverage performance of Msg3 through repetition. Therefore, terminal devices can report the need for coverage enhancement in Msg1, allowing network devices to schedule repetition of Msg3.

[0209] (4) RAN-side enhancement of network slicing.

[0210] RAN-side enhancements for network slicing: Considering that some services or users have higher priorities, network devices can provide dedicated RACH resources for these services or users, thereby indicating the high priority of the slice to the network and achieving RACH resource isolation.

[0211] In addition, a slice group can include one or more slices. Network devices can configure independent dedicated PRACH resources for slice groups, and multiple slice groups can also share independent dedicated PRACH resources.

[0212] The above four characteristics require network devices to identify the characteristics of terminal devices during the Msg1 (or MsgA) process of the RACH procedure. Therefore, network devices need to configure independent PRACH resources for these characteristics. Independent PRACH resources may include independent ROs (e.g., independent time-frequency domain resources ROs) or dedicated preambles.

[0213] For example, network devices can configure independent RO resources for RedCap UEs. When a network device receives a preamble on this resource, it can identify the terminal device that sent the preamble as a RedCap UE, and thus perform special processing on the terminal device in subsequent processes.

[0214] The feature combination of the above four features also requires network devices to be configured with dedicated RACH resources.

[0215] For example, if a RedCap UE triggers RACH-based small packet transmission, the network device needs to identify the terminal device as a RedCap UE in Msg1, so as to perform special processing on the RedCap UE in subsequent RACH processes. The network device also needs to identify in Msg1 that the terminal device is requesting SDT transmission, so as to consider the transmission of small packet data when configuring Msg3 resources. In this case, the network device needs to configure independent RACH resources for the scenario where RedCap UE triggers RACH-based small packet transmission, which can be represented as resources corresponding to the combination of RedCap+SDT (or RedCap and SDT) features.

[0216] The combinations of the above four characteristics include the following:

[0217] SDT+RedCap (or RedCap and SDT);

[0218] RedCap+CovEnh (or RedCap and CovEnh);

[0219] CovEnh+slicing (or CovEnh and slicing);

[0220] SDT+slicing (or SDT and slicing);

[0221] SDT+CovEnh (or SDT and CovEnh);

[0222] RedCap + slicing (or RedCap and slicing);

[0223] SDT+RedCap+CovEnh (or SDT and RedCap and CovEnh);

[0224] SDT+RedCap+slicing (or SDT and RedCap and slicing);

[0225] SDT+CovEnh+slicing (or SDT and CovEnh and slicing);

[0226] RedCap+CovEnh+slicing (or RedCap and CovEnh and slicing);

[0227] SDT+REdCap+CovEnh+slicing (or SDT and RedCap and CovEnh andslicing).

[0228] It should be noted that this application does not limit the specific names of the feature combinations, as long as they include multiple features. Furthermore, it does not limit whether the features within a feature group are represented by "+", "and", other connectors, or no connector at all. For example, the aforementioned SDT+RedCap can be directly represented as SDT,RedCap.

[0229] Therefore, network devices may need to configure independent RACH resources not only for the above four characteristics, but also for the combination of the above characteristics.

[0230] In addition, the combination of two-step random access with the above features or combinations of features should also be considered.

[0231] For example, network devices may need to configure independent two-step random access resources for RedCap UEs;

[0232] For example, network equipment may need to configure separate two-step random access resources for RedCap UEs performing slice group 1 services.

[0233] 3. RACH resource selection.

[0234] In network device configuration, a network device can configure dedicated RACH resources for all features or feature combinations (such as the four features mentioned above, a combination of the four features, or a combination of features or feature combinations with two-step random access, etc.), or it can configure dedicated RACH resources only for some features or feature combinations. Dedicated RACH resources for features or feature combinations can be called RACH partitions.

[0235] For example, the feature combination triggering the RACH process might be RedCap+CovEnh+slicing, but the network device doesn't have dedicated RACH resources configured for the RedCap+CovEnh+slicing feature combination; it only has dedicated RACH resources for features or combinations including RedCap+slicing and RedCap+CovEnh. In this case, which dedicated RACH resource the terminal device selects for which feature or feature combination may depend on the feature priority (or feature priority order, feature sorting, feature priority criteria, etc.) during the RACH resource selection process. Here, feature priority can also be understood as the order in which the terminal device selects features during the RACH resource selection process, and does not necessarily represent the importance of the services corresponding to different features.

[0236] The feature combination that triggers the RACH process can be understood as the conditions of the relevant features in the feature combination being met during the RACH initiation process. For example, if the terminal device is a RedCap UE, and the signal quality threshold measured by the terminal device meets the coverage enhancement condition, and the service arriving at the terminal device is slice group related, the feature combination that triggers the RACH process could be RedCap + CovEnh + slicing. Another example is that the RRC layer indicates to the MAC layer that RedCap, SDT, or coverage enhancement features are applicable to this RACH process.

[0237] In addition to the RACH resource selection process, feature priority may also affect the RACH fallback process.

[0238] For example, if the feature combination that triggers the RACH process is RedCap+CovEnh+slicing, and the network device is configured with a dedicated RACH resource for the RedCap+CovEnh+slicing feature combination, but the RACH process based on this resource fails (once or multiple times), the terminal device can fall back to the RACH process on other resources. In this case, whether the RACH process chooses the dedicated resource for the RedCap+slicing or RedCap+CovEnh feature combination also depends on the feature priority in the RACH fallback mechanism.

[0239] The above combination Figure 1 and Figure 2 This paper briefly introduces the scenarios in which this application can be applied and the basic concepts involved in this application. As can be seen from the above, the selection of RACH resources needs to take into account the priority of features.

[0240] For example, feature priorities can be configured by the network device. For example, the network device configures the priorities of various features (e.g., RedCap, SDT, etc.) in System Information Block (SIB) 1, where a smaller priority value indicates a higher priority for the feature.

[0241] For example, the format of SIB1 is as follows:

[0242]

[0243] The “FeaturePriority-r17” field indicates the priority of the feature involved in the discussions of 3GPP Rel-17; the “redCapPriority-r17” field indicates RedCap priority, the “slicingPriority-r17” field indicates RAN slicing priority, the “ce-Priority-r17” field indicates CovEnh priority, and the “sdt-Priority-r17” field indicates SDT priority. Specifically, the priorities of different features can be identified by integers (0..15), with smaller values ​​indicating higher priority.

[0244] A RACH resource selection method: RACH resources are selected based on feature priority. For example, when the network does not have dedicated resources configured for the feature combination that triggers RACH, the UE can select RACH resources from a subset of the RACH resources configured by the network. Here, "subset" can be understood as a set of feature combinations that include some features from the feature combination that triggers RACH. The RACH resource selection method process includes:

[0245] If one of the RACH resources configured in the network is applicable to all features in the feature combination that triggers the RACH, the UE selects that RACH resource; otherwise, if one or more RACH resources are applicable to a subset of all features in the feature combination that triggers the RACH, the UE selects the RACH resource according to the feature priority order configured in SIB1. Specifically, the UE selects the RACH resource as follows:

[0246] a) Among the available RACH resources, identify the RACH resource with the highest feature priority in the feature combination that triggers RACH;

[0247] b) If only one RACH resource is identified, select that resource;

[0248] c) Otherwise, if there are multiple identified RACH resources, repeat steps a) and b) above. When repeating, the input is other characteristics in the combination of identified RACH resources and characteristics that trigger RACH (excluding the characteristics already considered).

[0249] d) Otherwise (if no resource is identified), repeat steps a), b) and c) above, with the input being other features in the combination of previously identified RACH resources and features that trigger RACH (other than the features already considered).

[0250] To facilitate understanding, the RACH resource selection method will be explained below with a specific example.

[0251] Example 1:

[0252] There are a total of 4 features (F1, F2, F3 and F4). The feature priority configured by the network device is F1>F2>F3>F4. The feature combination that triggers RACH is F1+F2+F3+F4. The features / feature combinations configured by the network device for RACH resources include: {F1+F3+F4, F1+F3, F2+F3+F4, F1, F1+F4}.

[0253] First, the UE determines that the network does not have dedicated RACH resources configured for F1+F2+F3+F4. Therefore, the UE selects RACH resources from a subset of the F1+F2+F3+F4 feature combinations according to the feature priority order (F1>F2>F3>F4).

[0254] From the RACH resources corresponding to the subset feature combinations configured in the network, identify the resources configured with the F1 feature, including the RACH resources of {F1+F3+F4, F1+F3, F1, F1+F4}.

[0255] From the multiple RACH resources identified above, the RACH resource configured with the F2 characteristic (the characteristic with the highest priority other than F1 in the characteristic combination that triggers RACH) was identified, and the result was empty;

[0256] That is, from the multiple RACH resources identified previously, continue to identify RACH resources that are configured with the F3 feature (the feature with the highest priority among the feature combinations that trigger RACH, excluding F1 and F2), including {F1+F3+F4, F1+F3}.

[0257] Continue to identify RACH resources that are configured with the F4 feature (the feature with the highest priority among the feature combinations that trigger RACH, excluding F1, F2, and F3) from the multiple identified RACH resources, including {F1+F3+F4}.

[0258] Since only one RACH resource was identified, the RACH resource selection process ended.

[0259] The RACH resource selection method requires the UE to select RACH resources according to feature priority order. The selection process is logically complex and has high implementation complexity, which may result in a large delay in the RACH process.

[0260] Another RACH resource selection method is to directly add the feature priorities to obtain the priority of the feature combination, and then the UE selects the RACH resource according to the priority of the feature combination.

[0261] To facilitate understanding, the RACH resource selection method will be explained below with reference to a specific example, Example 2.

[0262] Example 2:

[0263] The priority of network configuration feature F1 is 8, the priority of feature F2 is 7, the priority of feature F3 is 4, and the priority of feature F4 is 2.

[0264] The following table shows the feature combinations and priorities of the RACH resources configured on the network devices:

[0265] Feature combination F3+F4 F2+F3 F2+F3+F4 F1 F4 Feature combination priority 4+2＝6 7+4＝11 7+4+2＝13 8 2

[0266] In this RACH resource selection method, the UE can select the feature combination with the highest priority as the RACH resource, such as selecting the feature combination {F2+F3+F4}.

[0267] In this RACH resource selection method, if the UE selects the feature combination with the highest priority after calculation, there is a situation where the network device is configured with the RACH resource related to the highest priority F1, but the UE selects other RACH resources (such as the RACH resource with the feature combination of F2+F3+F4).

[0268] If a UE initiates a RACH procedure using RACH resources with the F2+F3+F4 feature combination, the network device cannot recognize that the UE is performing the F1 feature (if the F1 feature is for a RedCap UE, the network cannot recognize the UE as a RedCap UE), even though the F1 feature is the highest priority feature. This may affect the UE's access performance.

[0269] To avoid the problems existing in the current RACH resource selection method, this application provides a communication method to reduce the complexity of the UE's process of selecting RACH resources based on feature priority.

[0270] The embodiments shown below do not particularly limit the specific structure of the execution subject of the method provided in the embodiments of this application. As long as it is possible to communicate according to the method provided in the embodiments of this application by running a program that records the code of the method provided in the embodiments of this application, for example, the execution subject of the method provided in the embodiments of this application can be a terminal device or an access network device, or a functional module in the terminal device or access device that can call and execute the program.

[0271] To facilitate understanding of the embodiments of this application, the following points are provided.

[0272] First, in this application, "for instruction" can be understood as "enabling," and "enabling" can include direct enabling and indirect enabling. When describing information for enabling A, it can include whether the information directly enables A or indirectly enables A, but does not necessarily mean that the information carries A.

[0273] The information that enables the information is called the information to be enabled. In the specific implementation process, there are many ways to enable the information to be enabled, such as, but not limited to, directly enabling the information to be enabled, such as the information to be enabled itself or its index. It can also be indirectly enabled by enabling other information, where there is a relationship between the other information and the information to be enabled. It can also enable only a part of the information to be enabled, while the other parts are known or pre-agreed upon. For example, enabling specific information can be achieved by using a pre-agreed (e.g., protocol-defined) arrangement of various pieces of information, thereby reducing enabling overhead to some extent. Simultaneously, common parts of various pieces of information can be identified and enabled uniformly to reduce the enabling overhead caused by individually enabling the same information.

[0274] Second, the first, second, and various numerical designations (e.g., "#1", "#2", etc.) shown in this application are merely for descriptive convenience and to distinguish objects, and are not intended to limit the scope of the embodiments of this application. For example, they are used to distinguish different instruction information, etc., and are not used to describe a specific order or sequence. It should be understood that such described objects can be interchanged where appropriate so as to describe solutions other than those in the embodiments of this application.

[0275] Third, in this application, "preset" may include predefined terms, such as protocol definitions. These "predefined terms" can be implemented by pre-storing corresponding codes, tables, or other means of indicating relevant information in the device (e.g., including terminal devices or network devices), and this application does not limit the specific implementation method.

[0276] Fourth, the term "storage" in the embodiments of this application can refer to storage in one or more memories. These memories can be separate installations or integrated into an encoder, decoder, processor, or communication device. Alternatively, some memories can be separately installed, while others can be integrated into the decoder, processor, or communication device. The type of memory can be any form of storage medium, and this application does not limit this.

[0277] Fifth, the “protocol” involved in the embodiments of this application may refer to standard protocols in the field of communication, such as 5G protocols, new radio (NR) protocols, and related protocols applied in future communication systems. This application does not limit this.

[0278] Without loss of generality, the communication method provided in the embodiments of this application will be described in detail using the interaction between network devices and terminal devices as an example.

[0279] Figure 5 This is a schematic flowchart illustrating a communication method provided in an embodiment of this application, including the following steps:

[0280] S510 allows network devices to prioritize multiple characteristics.

[0281] Among these multiple characteristics, different characteristics satisfy at least one of the following: different characteristics correspond to different business requirements, different characteristics correspond to different transmission methods, different characteristics correspond to different device types, different characteristics correspond to different application scenarios, or different characteristics correspond to different functions.

[0282] For example, different characteristics among multiple characteristics can be understood as any two characteristics among the multiple characteristics.

[0283] For example, different characteristics corresponding to different business requirements can be understood as: different characteristics corresponding to different performance requirements. For instance, different characteristics have different requirements for one or more performance aspects such as transmission latency, reliability, and service priority, or different characteristics correspond to different services (such as video, voice calls, and cloud gaming). Optionally, business requirements can also be Quality of Service (QoS).

[0284] For example, the different transmission methods corresponding to different characteristics can be understood as: different characteristics correspond to different transmission methods such as multicast, broadcast or unicast.

[0285] For example, the different device types corresponding to different characteristics can be understood as: different characteristics correspond to different device types such as RedCapUE and IoT terminals.

[0286] For example, the different application scenarios corresponding to different characteristics can be understood as follows: different characteristics can be used in different scenarios such as industrial IoT, wearable devices, smartphones and satellite communications.

[0287] For example, the functions corresponding to different features can be understood as follows: different features are for different functions such as improving the coverage of terminal devices, saving the power consumption of terminal devices, reducing the cost of terminal devices, and improving the user experience.

[0288] Or, in other words, multiple features include various types of devices with reduced capabilities, small packet data transmission, coverage enhancement, or access network slicing enhancement.

[0289] Specifically, several features include RedCap, SDT, CovEnh, and RAN slicing, which are involved in the PRACH resource allocation described in the basic concepts above.

[0290] Among these, multiple features can be selected from RedCap, SDT, CovEnh, and RAN slicing.

[0291] For example, several features include RedCap, SDT, CovEnh, and RAN slicing.

[0292] For example, there are several features such as RedCap, SDT, and CovEnh.

[0293] For example, several features include RedCap, SDT, and RAN slicing.

[0294] For example, multiple features include RedCap and SDT.

[0295] In addition, the feature priorities of different slicing groups can also be configured differently.

[0296] For example, the priority order of features is: RedCap > RAN slicing group 2 > CovEnh > RAN slicing group 1 > SDT.

[0297] Alternatively, network devices can configure dedicated random access resources for specific features. Different features may have different dedicated random access resources, which may include time-domain resources, frequency-domain resources, or preamble code domain resources.

[0298] It should be noted that the embodiments of this application do not limit the types and number of specific features included in the multiple features; in addition, the specific form of the features is not limited in this application. It can be one or more of the features currently discussed (such as device types with reduced capabilities, small packet data transmission, coverage enhancement or access network slicing enhancement, etc.), or one or more of other features introduced in future communication methods.

[0299] As one possible implementation, network devices can be configured with different feature priorities based on their deployment and policies.

[0300] For example, depending on the deployment and policies of network devices, network devices support terminal devices with reduced capabilities, small packet data transmission, coverage enhancement, and network slicing enhancement. The priority order of these features is as follows: reduced capabilities > small packet data transmission > coverage enhancement > network slicing enhancement. The network device determines the priority order of multiple features as follows: reduced capabilities > small packet data transmission > coverage enhancement > network slicing enhancement.

[0301] As another possible implementation, network devices can determine the priority of different characteristics based on historical communication information.

[0302] For example, historical communication information indicates that network devices support reduced capabilities, small packet data transmission, coverage enhancement, and network slicing enhancement, and the priority order of these features is: reduced capabilities > small packet data transmission > coverage enhancement > network slicing enhancement. The network device determines the priority order of multiple features as: reduced capabilities > small packet data transmission > coverage enhancement > network slicing enhancement.

[0303] As another possible implementation, network devices can determine the priority of different characteristics based on instructions from management devices.

[0304] For example, the management device instructs the network device to support reduced capacity, small packet data transmission, coverage enhancement, and network slicing enhancement, and the priority order of reduced capacity, small packet data transmission, coverage enhancement, and network slicing enhancement is: reduced capacity > small packet data transmission > coverage enhancement > network slicing enhancement. The network device determines the priority order of multiple features as: reduced capacity > small packet data transmission > coverage enhancement > network slicing enhancement.

[0305] It should be noted that the specific implementation method for determining the priority order of multiple characteristics by the network device is not limited in the embodiments of this application.

[0306] Furthermore, network devices can update the priority order of multiple features based on real-time policies and deployments, improving the flexibility in determining the priority order of multiple features and enhancing the access performance of terminal devices.

[0307] For example, when other features are introduced later (e.g., features other than the four features mentioned above), the network device can also increase the priority of the features.

[0308] For example, feature #1 is introduced, which has a higher priority than RedCap. The current priority order of multiple features is: RedCap > RAN slicing > CovEnh > SDT. Network devices do not need to update the current priority order of these four features. Instead, they can indicate the newly introduced feature as the highest priority to the terminal devices. This method of configuring priority order has better backward compatibility.

[0309] For example, a network device can configure the priority of only some features. For instance, if the protocol specifies that RedCap is the highest priority and slicing is the second highest priority, the network device can configure the feature priority of SDT and CovEnh as CovEnh > SDT.

[0310] Specifically, after determining the priority order of multiple features, the network device can configure the priority order of these features to the terminal device through the first instruction information. Figure 5 The method shown also includes:

[0311] S520, the network device sends the first instruction information to the terminal device, or in other words, the terminal device receives the first instruction information from the network device.

[0312] The first indication information is used to indicate the priority of multiple characteristics determined by the aforementioned network device. Optionally, the first indication information indicating the priority of multiple characteristics may be multiple pieces of information, each indicating the priority of one characteristic, and the multiple pieces of information indicating the priority of multiple characteristics are collectively referred to as the first indication information.

[0313] For example, the first indication information indicating the priority of the plurality of features may explicitly indicate the order of the plurality of features. For example, feature identification information of the plurality of features can be used to indicate the order of the plurality of features: for ease of understanding, the following explanation uses the plurality of features including RedCap, RAN slicing, CovEnh and SDT as an example.

[0314] For example, if the first indication information includes identification information for multiple characteristics, and the order of the identification information for these multiple characteristics indicates that the order of the multiple characteristics is RedCap, RAN slicing, CovEnh, and SDT, then the priority order of the multiple characteristics is RedCap > RAN slicing > CovEnh > SDT.

[0315] Specifically, a feature can be indicated by an identifier. For example, if a feature is identified by 4 bits, with RedCap identified as 0000, RAN slicing identified as 0001, SDT identified as 0011, and CovEnh identified as 0010, then the first indication information contains a sequence indication field for multiple features: 0000000100100011. Here, the feature identifier is pre-defined by the protocol or negotiated in advance between the UE and the access network equipment.

[0316] For example, the first indication information indicating the priority of the plurality of features can implicitly indicate the order of the plurality of features. For instance, the order of the plurality of features can be indicated through dedicated configuration information for the plurality of features. For ease of understanding, the following explanation uses multiple features including RedCap, RAN slicing, CovEnh, and SDT as an example.

[0317] For example, network devices configure dedicated resources or dedicated configurations for each feature. In this case, the order of dedicated resources or dedicated configurations for each feature is RedCap, RAN slicing, CovEnh, and SDT. Then, the priority order of multiple features is RedCap > RAN slicing > CovEnh > SDT. Here, the first indication information can be understood as the order in which each feature appears.

[0318] For example, the first indication information indicating the priority information of the plurality of features may be the priority value of the feature: for ease of understanding, the following explanation uses multiple features including RedCap, RAN slicing, CovEnh and SDT as an example.

[0319] For example, network devices configure absolute priorities for features to determine their priority order. A network device might configure RedCap's absolute feature priority to 0, SDT's absolute feature priority to 3, RAN slicing's absolute feature priority to 6, and CovEnh's absolute feature priority to 10.

[0320] Optionally, the smaller the value, the higher the priority, and the feature priority order is RedCap>RAN slicing>SDT>CovEnh.

[0321] Optionally, the larger the value, the higher the priority, and the feature priority order is CovEnh>SDT>RANslicingRedCap>.

[0322] For ease of description, the following explanation uses the priority value of the first indication information characteristic as an example. For instance, the absolute priority of the RedCap characteristic configured in the network device is 0, the absolute priority of the SDT characteristic is 3, the absolute priority of the RAN slicing characteristic is 6, and the absolute priority of the CovEnh characteristic is 10.

[0323] It should be noted that the above-mentioned scheme of indicating the priority of multiple characteristics in the first indication information is only an example to illustrate that the priority of multiple characteristics can be indicated in different ways, and does not constitute any limitation on the scope of protection of this application. Other indication information that can be used to indicate the priority of multiple characteristics is also within the scope of protection of this application, and will not be elaborated here.

[0324] In this application embodiment, the priority of multiple characteristics determined by the network device can be for the terminal devices served by the network device, or it can be for a specific terminal device. For example, the sending method of the first indication information mentioned above includes the following two possibilities:

[0325] Possibility 1:

[0326] The first indication information is included in the system message. The above step S520 can be understood as: the network device sends a system message to the terminal device, and the system message includes the first indication information.

[0327] In one scenario, network devices can broadcast the priorities of multiple features in system messages. This allows network devices to configure the priorities of multiple features to multiple end devices via broadcast, improving configuration efficiency.

[0328] Possibility 2:

[0329] The first indication information is included in the dedicated signaling. The above step S520 can be understood as: the network device sends dedicated signaling to the terminal device, and the dedicated signaling includes the first indication information.

[0330] In possibility two, the network device configures the priority of multiple features via dedicated signaling. The network device can configure the priority of multiple features for a specific terminal device. Optionally, the dedicated signaling can be RRC signaling.

[0331] For example, when a terminal device enters the connected state, the network device can configure the priority of multiple features through RRC reconfiguration messages.

[0332] For example, when a terminal device is about to leave the connected state, the network device can configure the priority of multiple features through an RRC release message.

[0333] For example, the priority of multiple features configured in the RRC release message may include the priority of the features of the serving cell, and / or the priority of the features of neighboring cells, wherein the serving cell can be understood as the cell that sends the RRC release message to the terminal device.

[0334] As one possible implementation, the priority of multiple characteristics indicated by the first indication information included in the system message (e.g., priority #1) is different from the priority of multiple characteristics indicated by the first indication information included in the dedicated signaling (e.g., priority #2), wherein both priority #1 and priority #2 belong to the priority of multiple characteristics.

[0335] Furthermore, in this embodiment, after receiving the first indication information, the terminal device can determine the first value of the characteristic in the characteristic combination according to the priority of the characteristics. Figure 5 The method flow shown also includes:

[0336] S530: The terminal device determines the first value of the feature in the feature combination based on the priority of the features.

[0337] Optionally, in this embodiment, the first value of the characteristic can be understood as a value related to the characteristic priority value obtained by the terminal device.

[0338] The feature combination includes at least one feature, which belongs to the multiple features of the network device configuration described above.

[0339] For example, a network device may be configured with four features (e.g., RedCap, RAN slicing, CovEnh, and SDT), and the feature combination may include one or more of these four features.

[0340] Furthermore, the features included in this feature combination are one or more of the features included in the feature combination that triggers the RACH process.

[0341] For example, if a network device is configured with four features (e.g., RedCap, RAN slicing, CovEnh, and SDT), and the feature combination that triggers the RACH process for the terminal device is RedCap+SDT+CovEnh, and the network device has configured dedicated resources for the feature combinations SDT+RANslicing, RedCap+SDT, and RedCap+CovEnh, then the terminal device can determine the first value of the features in the feature combinations RedCap+SDT and RedCap+CovEnh (e.g., the first value #1 for RedCap, the first value #2 for SDT, and the first value #3 for CovEnh).

[0342] It should be understood that a terminal device can determine a first value of a characteristic in a particular characteristic combination among multiple characteristic combinations. For ease of description, this application will use the determination of a first value of a characteristic in a particular characteristic combination as an example.

[0343] As one possible implementation, the terminal device can determine the first value of one of several characteristics.

[0344] For example, a network device may be configured with the priorities of four features (e.g., RedCap, RAN slicing, CovEnh, and SDT). The terminal device can determine the first value of each of these four features (e.g., first value #1 for RedCap, first value #2 for RANslicing, first value #3 for CovEnh, and first value #4 for SDT). In this embodiment, determining the first value of a feature among multiple features can be understood as: determining multiple first values ​​corresponding to each feature, or determining multiple first values ​​of multiple features, or determining the first value of a feature among multiple features.

[0345] The following explanation primarily uses the example of a terminal device determining the first value of a characteristic in a characteristic combination based on characteristic priority. This characteristic combination includes at least one characteristic. In the implementation where the terminal device determines the first value of a characteristic among multiple characteristics, the description below of determining the first value of each characteristic in at least one characteristic can be understood as the first value of each characteristic among multiple characteristics. Specifically, the method of determining the first value of each characteristic among multiple characteristics is similar to determining the first value of each characteristic in at least one characteristic, and will not be elaborated further below.

[0346] Specifically, the first value is used to determine the second value of the feature combination, which is used for the selection of random access resources. The second value of the feature combination is related to the first values ​​of all features included in the feature combination.

[0347] Since the first value of the characteristic determined by the terminal device is used to determine the second value of the characteristic combination, the above step S530 can be understood as: the terminal device determines the second value of the characteristic combination.

[0348] Specifically, this embodiment does not limit the specific implementation method of the terminal device determining the first value of the feature according to the priority of the feature, as long as the first value of each feature in at least one feature in the feature combination satisfies the following rule (hereinafter referred to as the first rule):

[0349] The first value of the first characteristic is greater than the sum of the first values ​​of the second characteristic set, wherein the first characteristic is one of the at least one characteristics, and the second characteristic set is the set of all characteristics in the at least one characteristic whose priority is lower than the first characteristic, or the second characteristic set can also be understood as the set of all characteristics in the at least one characteristic whose first value is lower than the first characteristic.

[0350] For example, feature combination #1 includes feature #1, feature #2, and feature #3, with the feature priority order as follows: feature #1 > feature #2 > feature #3. Specifically, the first value of feature #1, #1, is greater than the sum of the first values ​​of feature #2, #2, and feature #3, #3; the first value of feature #2, #2, is greater than the first value of feature #3, #3.

[0351] Alternatively, the first value of each of the multiple characteristics configured on the network device satisfies the following rule:

[0352] The first value of the first characteristic is greater than the sum of the first values ​​of the second characteristic set, wherein the first characteristic is one of the plurality of characteristics, and the second characteristic set is the set of all characteristics among the plurality of characteristics whose priority (or first value) is lower than that of the first characteristic.

[0353] For example, the network is configured with feature priorities for features #1, #2, and #3, in the order of feature priority: feature #1 > feature #2 > feature #3. Specifically, the first value #1 of feature #1 is greater than the sum of the first values ​​#2 and #3 of feature #2; and the first value #2 of feature #2 is greater than the first value #3 of feature #3.

[0354] It should be understood that the purpose of determining the first value of the feature in this application is to enable the terminal device to select the feature-related RACH resource if the network device is configured with a higher priority feature-related RACH resource during the selection process. In other words, as long as the second value of the feature combination determined by the first value of the feature in the feature combination enables the terminal device to select the higher priority feature-related RACH resource during the selection process, the specific method of determining the first value of the feature is not limited.

[0355] To facilitate understanding, a method for determining the first value of a characteristic is described below, such that the first value of the first characteristic is greater than the sum of the first values ​​of the second set of characteristics. Specifically, this method for determining the first value of a characteristic includes the following steps:

[0356] Step 1: The terminal device determines the non-negative integer corresponding to at least one characteristic based on the priority of at least one characteristic in the characteristic combination.

[0357] Specifically, the priority of at least one characteristic and the non-negative integer corresponding to at least one characteristic satisfy the following relationship:

[0358] The higher the priority of a feature, the larger the non-negative integer corresponding to that feature; or, the higher the priority of a feature, the smaller the non-negative integer corresponding to that feature.

[0359] For example, if the feature combination includes RedCap, RAN slicing, and CovEnh, and the first indication information indicates that the priority order of RedCap, RAN slicing, and CovEnh is RedCap > RAN slicing > CovEnh, then the features included in the feature combination can be mapped to non-negative integers from low to high priority: RedCap corresponds to non-negative integer #1, RAN slicing corresponds to non-negative integer #2, and CovEnh corresponds to non-negative integer #3, where non-negative integer #1 is greater than non-negative integer #2, and non-negative integer #2 is greater than non-negative integer #3.

[0360] or,

[0361] The features included in the feature combination can be mapped to non-negative integers from high to low priority: RedCap corresponds to non-negative integer #3, RAN slicing corresponds to non-negative integer #2, and CovEnh corresponds to non-negative integer #1. Among them, non-negative integer #1 is greater than non-negative integer #2, and non-negative integer #2 is greater than non-negative integer #3.

[0362] For example, at least one characteristic corresponds to a non-negative integer that is M2 consecutive positive integers from 0 to M2-1, where M2 is the number of the at least one characteristic.

[0363] For example, the non-negative integer #1 is 2, the non-negative integer #2 is 1, and the non-negative integer #3 is 0.

[0364] Step 2: The terminal device determines the first value of the characteristic based on the non-negative integer corresponding to the characteristic.

[0365] When the features included in a feature combination can be mapped to non-negative integers from low to high priority, the non-negative integers corresponding to the features and the first value of the feature satisfy the following relationship:

[0366] Z = X N +Y, or, Z = X N

[0367] Where Z represents the first value of the characteristic, N represents the non-negative integer mapped by the characteristic, X is an integer greater than or equal to 1, and Y is a constant.

[0368] For example, X = 2, Z = 2 N .

[0369] When the features included in a feature combination can be mapped to non-negative integers from highest to lowest priority, the non-negative integers corresponding to the features and the first value of the feature satisfy the following relationship:

[0370] Z = X M1-N +Y, or, Z = X M1-N

[0371] Wherein, Z represents the first value of the characteristic, N represents the non-negative integer mapped by the characteristic, X is an integer greater than or equal to 1, Y is a constant, and M1 is related to the number of the at least one characteristic or the number of the plurality of characteristics.

[0372] For example, X = 2, Z = 2 M1-N .

[0373] For example, M1 is related to the number of at least one feature, including but not limited to:

[0374] M1 can be the number of at least one characteristic included in the characteristic combination (where M1 = M2), M1 can be the number of at least one characteristic included in the characteristic combination plus a constant, M1 can be the number of at least one characteristic included in the characteristic combination minus a constant, or M1 can be the arithmetic mean of the number of at least one characteristic included in the characteristic combination and a constant.

[0375] For example, M1 is related to the number of multiple features, including but not limited to:

[0376] M1 can be the number of multiple characteristics (where M1 = M3), M1 can be the number of multiple characteristics plus a constant, M1 can be the number of multiple characteristics minus a constant, or M1 can be the arithmetic mean of the number of multiple characteristics and a constant, etc.

[0377] It should be understood that the relationship between the first value of the characteristic and the corresponding non-negative integer is merely an example and does not constitute any limitation on the scope of protection of this application. Others can calculate the first value of the characteristic based on the corresponding non-negative integer, and the first value of the characteristic satisfies the first rule mentioned above.

[0378] Furthermore, the second value of the feature combination is related to the first value of all features included in the feature combination.

[0379] For example, feature combination #1 includes feature #1, feature #2 and feature #3, and the second value of feature combination #1 is related to the first value #1 of feature #1, the first value #2 of feature #2 and the first value #3 of feature #3.

[0380] For example, the second value of characteristic combination #1 is the sum of the first value #1 of characteristic #1, the first value #2 of characteristic #2, and the first value #3 of characteristic #3.

[0381] For example, the second value of characteristic combination #1, the first value #1 of characteristic #1, the first value #2 of characteristic #2, and the first value #3 of characteristic #3 satisfy the following relationship:

[0382] The second value of feature combination #1 = X 第一数值#1+第一数值#2+第一数值#3 Or, the second value of characteristic combination #1 = X 第一数值#1 +X 第一数值#2 +X 第一数值#3 Where X is an integer greater than or equal to 1.

[0383] It should be noted that this embodiment does not limit the relationship between the second value of the feature combination and the sum of the first values ​​of all features included in the feature combination. As long as the second value of the feature combination and the sum of the first values ​​of all features included in the feature combination are directly proportional, that is, the larger the sum of the first values ​​of all features included in the feature combination, the larger the second value of the feature combination.

[0384] Furthermore, after determining the second value of the feature combination, the terminal device can select random access resources based on the second value of the feature combination. Figure 5 The method flow shown also includes:

[0385] S540, terminal devices select random access resources.

[0386] Specifically, the terminal device selects random access resources of a first feature combination, wherein the second value of the first feature combination is the largest among multiple second values ​​of multiple feature combinations, and one of the features included in one of the multiple feature combinations is one or more features of the feature combination that triggers the random access procedure.

[0387] For example, if the feature combination used to trigger the random access procedure includes RedCap+SDT+CovEnh, and the network device has configured dedicated resources for the feature combinations SDT+RAN slicing, RedCap+SDT, and RedCap+CovEnh, then the terminal device determines to select a feature combination from RedCap+SDT and RedCap+CovEnh. If the first value of CovEnh is greater than the first value of SDT, then the second value of RedCap+CovEnh is greater than the second value of RedCap+SDT, and the terminal device selects the random access resource of RedCap+CovEnh.

[0388] For example, the aforementioned feature combinations RedCap+SDT and RedCap+CovEnh can be understood as a subset of all feature combinations that trigger the RACH process or a subset of feature combinations applicable to the current RACH process.

[0389] To facilitate understanding, the following explanation will be based on a specific example, Example 3. Figure 5 The communication method shown. Example 3 includes the following steps:

[0390] Step 1: The terminal device receives the priority of multiple features configured by the network device.

[0391] For example, the priority of the indicated feature in the received SIB1 is:

[0392] characteristic F1 F2 F3 F4 Feature Priority 0 3 6 10

[0393] The smaller the priority value, the higher the priority of the indicator characteristic. Therefore, the characteristic priority order is F1>F2>F3>F4. Specifically, SIB1 can be understood as the first indicator information mentioned above.

[0394] Step 2: The terminal device determines the second value of the feature combination based on the received feature priority.

[0395] For example, the terminal device maps the priority of the network device's configuration features from 0 to 3 in order of priority from low to high. Here, 3 can be understood as the value obtained by subtracting 1 from the number of features.

[0396] Furthermore, the terminal device can determine the first value of the characteristic as X based on the non-negative integer of the characteristic mapping. N, where X is an integer greater than or equal to 1, as shown in the table below, X = 2.

[0397] characteristic F1 F2 F3 F4 Feature Priority 0 3 6 10 N 3 2 1 0 First value <![CDATA[2 3 =8]]> <![CDATA[2 2 =4]]> <![CDATA[2 1 =2]]> <![CDATA[2 0 =1]]>

[0398] In the table above, the value of N can be understood as a non-negative integer corresponding to the characteristic.

[0399] For example, as shown in Example 1 above, the feature combination that triggers RACH is F1+F2+F3+F4. The network device is configured with the following features / feature combinations for RACH resources: {F1+F3+F4, F1+F3, F2+F3+F4, F1, F1+F4}. The first values ​​of the features included in the feature combination are summed to obtain the second value of the feature combination. This second value can be used to indicate the priority of the feature combination, as shown in the table below:

[0400] Feature combination F1+F3+F4 F1+F3 F2+F3+F4 F1 F1+F4 Feature combination priority 8+2+1＝11 8+2＝10 4+2+1＝7 8 8+1＝9

[0401] Step 3: The terminal device selects random access resources.

[0402] Specifically, the terminal device selects the highest priority feature combination, or the terminal device selects the feature combination with the second highest value. For example, the terminal device selects the RACH resources of F1+F3+F4.

[0403] Specifically, compared to the RACH resource selection process shown in Example 1, the RACH resource selection process shown in Example 3 does not require the terminal device to perform an iterative (or loop) process for RACH resource selection. The logic is simple and the implementation complexity is low.

[0404] In addition, compared with the RACH resource selection process shown in Example 2, if the network device is configured with a higher priority feature-related RACH resource, the terminal device can select that resource.

[0405] Figure 5 In the communication method shown, the terminal device determines a first value of at least one characteristic in the characteristic combination and determines a second value of the characteristic combination. This application also provides another communication method in which the network device determines the first value of the characteristic and sends it to the terminal device. The following describes a method in conjunction with... Figure 6 This communication method is described in detail.

[0406] Figure 6 This is a schematic flowchart of another communication method provided in an embodiment of this application, including the following steps:

[0407] S610 allows network devices to prioritize multiple characteristics.

[0408] Referring to the description of S510 above, it will not be repeated here.

[0409] Specifically, in this embodiment, after the network device determines the priority of multiple characteristics, it can determine the first value of the characteristic among the multiple characteristics based on the priority of the characteristics. Figure 6 The method flow shown also includes:

[0410] S620, the network device determines the first value of a characteristic among multiple characteristics.

[0411] Optionally, in this embodiment, the first value of the characteristic can be understood as the priority value of the characteristic configured by the network device.

[0412] Specifically, in this embodiment, the network device determines the first value of a characteristic among multiple characteristics in a manner similar to... Figure 5 The terminal device determines the first value of the characteristic in the characteristic combination in the illustrated embodiment in a similar way.

[0413] In this embodiment, the specific implementation method for determining the first value of a characteristic based on its priority by the network device is not limited. The first value of a characteristic among multiple characteristics only needs to satisfy the following rule (hereinafter referred to as the second rule):

[0414] The first value of the third characteristic is greater than the sum of the first values ​​of the fourth characteristic set, wherein the third characteristic is one of the multiple characteristics, and the fourth characteristic set is the set of all the multiple characteristics whose priority (or first value) is lower than that of the third characteristic.

[0415] For example, a network device may be configured with multiple features including feature #1, feature #2, feature #3, and feature #4. The priority order of these four features is feature #1 > feature #2 > feature #3 > feature #4. Specifically, the first value of feature #1 is greater than the sum of the first values ​​of feature #2, feature #3, and feature #4; the first value of feature #2 is greater than the sum of the first values ​​of feature #3 and feature #4; and the first value of feature #3 is greater than the first value of feature #4.

[0416] To facilitate understanding, the following describes a method for determining the first value of a characteristic, which includes the following steps:

[0417] Step 1: The network device determines the non-negative integers corresponding to the multiple characteristics based on their priorities.

[0418] Specifically, the priority of multiple characteristics and the corresponding non-negative integers satisfy the following relationship:

[0419] The higher the priority of a feature, the larger the non-negative integer corresponding to that feature; or, the higher the priority of a feature, the smaller the non-negative integer corresponding to that feature.

[0420] For example, if multiple features include RedCap, RAN slicing, CovEnh, and SDT, with the priority order being RedCap > RAN slicing > CovEnh > SDT, then these features can be mapped to non-negative integers from lowest to highest priority: RedCap corresponds to non-negative integer #1, RAN slicing corresponds to non-negative integer #2, CovEnh corresponds to non-negative integer #3, and SDT corresponds to non-negative integer #4. Among these, non-negative integer #1 is greater than non-negative integer #2, non-negative integer #2 is greater than non-negative integer #3, and non-negative integer #3 is greater than non-negative integer #4.

[0421] or,

[0422] The features included in the multiple features can be mapped to non-negative integers from high to low priority: RedCap corresponds to non-negative integer #4, RAN slicing corresponds to non-negative integer #3, CovEnh corresponds to non-negative integer #2, and SDT corresponds to non-negative integer #1. Among these, non-negative integer #1 is greater than non-negative integer #2, non-negative integer #2 is greater than non-negative integer #3, and non-negative integer #3 is greater than non-negative integer #4.

[0423] For example, the non-negative integers corresponding to the multiple characteristics are M3 consecutive positive integers from 0 to M3-1, where M3 is the number of the multiple characteristics.

[0424] For example, the non-negative integer #1 is 3, the non-negative integer #2 is 2, the non-negative integer #3 is 1, and the non-negative integer #4 is 0.

[0425] Step 2: The network device determines the first value of the characteristic based on the non-negative integer corresponding to the characteristic.

[0426] When multiple characteristics are included and can be mapped to non-negative integers from low to high priority, the non-negative integers corresponding to the characteristics and the first value of the characteristic satisfy the following relationship:

[0427] Z = X N +Y, or, Z = X N

[0428] Where Z represents the first value of the characteristic, N represents the non-negative integer mapped by the characteristic, X is an integer greater than or equal to 1, and Y is a constant.

[0429] When multiple characteristics can be mapped to non-negative integers from highest to lowest priority, the non-negative integer corresponding to the characteristic and the first value of the characteristic satisfy the following relationship:

[0430] Z = X M4-N +Y, or, Z = X M4-N

[0431] Wherein, Z represents the first value of the characteristic, N represents the non-negative integer mapped by the characteristic, X is an integer greater than or equal to 1, Y is a constant, and M4 is related to the number of the plurality of characteristics.

[0432] For example, M4 is related to the number of multiple features, including but not limited to:

[0433] M4 can be the number of multiple characteristics (e.g., M4 = M3), M4 can be the number of multiple characteristics plus a constant, M4 can be the number of multiple characteristics plus a constant, or M4 can be the arithmetic mean of the number of multiple characteristics and a constant, etc.

[0434] It should be understood that the relationship between the first value of the characteristic and the corresponding non-negative integer is merely an example and does not constitute any limitation on the scope of protection of this application. Others can calculate the first value of the characteristic based on the corresponding non-negative integer, and the first value of the characteristic satisfies the second rule mentioned above.

[0435] Furthermore, the network device can send third indication information to the terminal device, indicating a first value for the characteristic, so that the terminal device can determine a second value for the characteristic combination to perform RACH resource selection. Figure 6 The method flow shown also includes:

[0436] S630, the network device sends third instruction information to the terminal device, or in other words, the terminal device receives third instruction information from the network device.

[0437] Specifically, the third indication information is used to indicate the first value of one of the plurality of characteristics (e.g., each of the plurality of characteristics).

[0438] In this application embodiment, the first value of one of the multiple characteristics determined by the network device can be for the terminal device served by the network device, or it can be for a specific terminal device. For example, the sending method of the third indication information mentioned above includes the following two possibilities:

[0439] Possibility 1:

[0440] The third instruction information is included in the system message. Step S630 above can be understood as: the network device sends a system message to the terminal device, and the system message includes the third instruction information.

[0441] In one scenario, the network device can broadcast the first value of one of multiple characteristics in a system message. This allows the network device to configure the first value of one of multiple characteristics to multiple terminal devices via broadcast, improving configuration efficiency.

[0442] Possibility 2:

[0443] The third instruction information is included in the dedicated signaling. Step S630 above can be understood as: the network device sends dedicated signaling to the terminal device, and the dedicated signaling includes the third instruction information.

[0444] In possibility two, the network device configures the first value of one of several characteristics via dedicated signaling. For the network device, it is possible to configure the first value of one of several characteristics for a specific terminal device.

[0445] For example, when a terminal device enters the connected state, the network device can configure the first value of one of multiple characteristics through an RRC reconfiguration message.

[0446] For example, when a terminal device is about to leave the connected state, the network device can configure the first value of one of several characteristics through an RRC release message.

[0447] In this embodiment, after receiving the third indication information, the terminal device can determine the second value of the feature combination based on the first value of the feature. Figure 6 The method flow shown also includes:

[0448] S640, the second value for determining the combination of characteristics by the terminal device.

[0449] Specifically, the second value of the feature combination is related to the first value of all features included in the feature combination.

[0450] For example, feature combination #1 includes feature #1, feature #2 and feature #3, and the second value of feature combination #1 is related to the first value #1 of feature #1, the first value #2 of feature #2 and the first value #3 of feature #3.

[0451] For example, the second value of characteristic combination #1 is the sum of the first value #1 of characteristic #1, the first value #2 of characteristic #2, and the first value #3 of characteristic #3.

[0452] For example, the second value of characteristic combination #1, the first value #1 of characteristic #1, the first value #2 of characteristic #2, and the first value #3 of characteristic #3 satisfy the following relationship:

[0453] The second value of feature combination #1 = X 第一数值#1+第一数值#2+第一数值#3 Or, the second value of characteristic combination #1 = X第一数值#1 +X 第一数值#2 +X 第一数值#3 Where X is an integer greater than or equal to 1.

[0454] It should be noted that this embodiment does not limit the relationship between the second value of the feature combination and the sum of the first values ​​of all features included in the feature combination. As long as the second value of the feature combination and the sum of the first values ​​of all features included in the feature combination are directly proportional, that is, the larger the sum of the first values ​​of all features included in the feature combination, the larger the second value of the feature combination.

[0455] Furthermore, after determining the second value of the feature combination, the terminal device can select random access resources based on the second value of the feature combination. Figure 6 The method flow shown also includes:

[0456] S650, terminal devices select random access resources.

[0457] Referring to the description of S540 above, it will not be repeated here.

[0458] To facilitate understanding, the following explanation will be provided using a specific example, Example 4. Figure 6 The communication method shown. Example 4 includes the following steps:

[0459] Step 1: The priority value of the network configuration feature is X. N , where X is an integer greater than or equal to 1, meaning that the priority values ​​of the features that restrict network device configurations satisfy the above rules.

[0460] For example, the priority of network configuration features includes {1, 2, 4, 8, ... 2}. Nmax In the expression, Nmax is the non-negative integer corresponding to the highest priority feature (in this case, X = 2, Y = 0). The larger the feature priority value, the higher the feature priority.

[0461] characteristic F1 F2 F3 F4 First value 8 4 2 1

[0462] Step 2: The network device sends the priority value of the feature to the terminal device.

[0463] For example, the network device indicates to the terminal device feature F1 and its priority value 8, feature F2 and its priority value 4, feature F3 and its priority value 2, and feature F4 and its priority value 1.

[0464] Step 3: The terminal device determines the second value of the feature combination.

[0465] For example, as shown in Example 1 above, the feature combination that triggers RACH is F1+F2+F3+F4. The network device is configured with the following features / feature combinations for RACH resources: {F1+F3+F4, F1+F3, F2+F3+F4, F1, F1+F4}. The first values ​​of the features included in the feature combination are summed to obtain the second value of the feature combination. This second value of the feature combination can be used to indicate the priority of the feature combination, as shown in the table below:

[0466] Feature combination F1+F3+F4 F1+F3 F2+F3+F4 F1 F1+F4 The second value of the characteristic combination 8+2+1＝11 8+2＝10 4+2+1＝7 8 8+1＝9

[0467] Step 4: The terminal device selects random access resources.

[0468] Specifically, the terminal device selects the highest priority feature combination. For example, the terminal device selects the RACH resources of F1+F3+F4.

[0469] Specifically, compared to the RACH resource selection process shown in Example 1, the RACH resource selection process shown in Example 4 does not require the terminal device to perform an iterative (or loop) process for RACH resource selection. The logic is simple and the implementation complexity is low.

[0470] In addition, compared with the RACH resource selection process shown in Example 2, if the network device is configured with a higher priority feature-related RACH resource, the terminal device can select that resource.

[0471] In addition, compared with the RACH resource selection process shown in Example 3, the RACH resource selection process shown in Example 4 does not require the terminal device to determine the first value of the characteristic, which simplifies the operation of the terminal device.

[0472] Figure 6 In the communication method shown, the network device sends a first value of the characteristic to the terminal device. This application also provides another communication method in which the network device determines the non-negative integer corresponding to the characteristic and sends it to the terminal device. The following section discusses... Figure 7 This communication method is described in detail.

[0473] Figure 7 This is a schematic flowchart illustrating another communication method provided in an embodiment of this application, including the following steps:

[0474] In S710, network devices prioritize multiple characteristics.

[0475] Referring to the description of S510 above, it will not be repeated here.

[0476] Specifically, in this embodiment, after the network device determines the priority of multiple characteristics, it can determine the non-negative integer corresponding to the characteristic among the multiple characteristics based on the priority of the characteristics. Figure 7 The method flow shown also includes:

[0477] S720, the non-negative integer corresponding to the network device's characteristic determination.

[0478] Specifically, the priority of multiple characteristics and the corresponding non-negative integers satisfy the following relationship:

[0479] The higher the priority of a feature, the larger the non-negative integer corresponding to that feature; or, the higher the priority of a feature, the smaller the non-negative integer corresponding to that feature.

[0480] For example, if multiple features include RedCap, RAN slicing, CovEnh, and SDT, with the priority order being RedCap > RAN slicing > CovEnh > SDT, then these features can be mapped to non-negative integers from lowest to highest priority: RedCap corresponds to non-negative integer #1, RAN slicing corresponds to non-negative integer #2, CovEnh corresponds to non-negative integer #3, and SDT corresponds to non-negative integer #4. Among these, non-negative integer #1 is greater than non-negative integer #2, non-negative integer #2 is greater than non-negative integer #3, and non-negative integer #3 is greater than non-negative integer #4.

[0481] or,

[0482] The features included in the multiple features can be mapped to non-negative integers from high to low priority: RedCap corresponds to non-negative integer #4, RAN slicing corresponds to non-negative integer #3, CovEnh corresponds to non-negative integer #2, and SDT corresponds to non-negative integer #1. Among these, non-negative integer #1 is greater than non-negative integer #2, non-negative integer #2 is greater than non-negative integer #3, and non-negative integer #3 is greater than non-negative integer #4.

[0483] For example, the non-negative integers corresponding to the multiple characteristics are M3 consecutive positive integers from 0 to M3-1, where M3 is the number of the multiple characteristics.

[0484] For example, the non-negative integer #1 is 3, the non-negative integer #2 is 2, the non-negative integer #3 is 1, and the non-negative integer #4 is 0.

[0485] Furthermore, the network device can send a second indication message, a non-negative integer corresponding to the indication characteristic, to the terminal device so that the terminal device can determine a second value for the characteristic combination to perform RACH resource selection. Figure 7 The method flow shown also includes:

[0486] S730, the network device sends a second instruction message to the terminal device, or in other words, the terminal device receives a second instruction message from the network device.

[0487] Specifically, the second indication information is used to indicate the non-negative integer corresponding to one of the plurality of characteristics. The non-negative integer corresponding to the characteristic is used to determine a first value for that characteristic, and this first value is used for the selection of random access resources.

[0488] Optionally, the second indication information may also indicate the relationship between a non-negative integer corresponding to a certain characteristic and the first numerical value of that characteristic.

[0489] Optionally, the non-negative integer corresponding to a feature can be understood as the feature's priority.

[0490] For example, the non-negative integer corresponding to the second indication information indication characteristic #1 is the non-negative integer #1, and the first value of the indication characteristic #1 is the non-negative integer #1.

[0491] In this embodiment of the application, the non-negative integer corresponding to one of the multiple characteristics determined by the network device can be for the terminal device served by the network device, or it can be for a specific terminal device. For example, the sending method of the second indication information mentioned above includes the following two possibilities:

[0492] Possibility 1:

[0493] The second instruction information is included in the system message. Step S730 above can be understood as: the network device sends a system message to the terminal device, and the system message includes the second instruction information.

[0494] In one scenario, network devices can broadcast non-negative integers corresponding to multiple characteristics in system messages. This allows network devices to broadcast configuration information to multiple terminal devices, improving configuration efficiency.

[0495] Possibility 2:

[0496] The second instruction information is included in the dedicated signaling. Step S730 above can be understood as: the network device sends dedicated signaling to the terminal device, and the dedicated signaling includes the second instruction information.

[0497] In possibility two, the network device configures a non-negative integer corresponding to one of several characteristics via dedicated signaling. For a network device, this means configuring a non-negative integer corresponding to one of several characteristics for a specific terminal device.

[0498] For example, when a terminal device enters the connected state, the network device can configure a non-negative integer corresponding to one of the multiple characteristics through an RRC reconfiguration message.

[0499] For example, when a terminal device is about to leave the connected state, the network device can configure a non-negative integer corresponding to one of the multiple characteristics through an RRC release message.

[0500] In this embodiment, after receiving the second indication information, the terminal device can determine the first value of the characteristic in the characteristic combination based on the non-negative integer corresponding to the characteristic. Figure 7 The method flow shown also includes:

[0501] S740, the terminal device determines the first value of the characteristic in the characteristic combination based on the non-negative integer corresponding to the characteristic.

[0502] Optionally, in this embodiment, the first value of the characteristic can be understood as the characteristic priority value.

[0503] Specifically, the relevant description of how the terminal device determines the first value of the characteristic in the characteristic combination can be found in [reference]. Figure 5 The difference in the description of step S530 in the illustrated embodiment is that the second indication information received by the terminal device is not used to indicate the priority of the feature, but rather to indicate the non-negative integer corresponding to the feature. That is, if the terminal device determines the first value of the feature in the feature combination based on the non-negative integer corresponding to the feature, the terminal device can directly use the non-negative integer corresponding to the feature (for example, N in the formula involving the calculation of the first value of the feature in step S530 above is a non-negative integer issued by the network device) without having to calculate the non-negative integer corresponding to the feature in the feature combination.

[0504] Furthermore, after determining the second value of the feature combination, the terminal device can select random access resources based on the second value of the feature combination. Figure 7 The method flow shown also includes:

[0505] S750, terminal devices select random access resources.

[0506] Referring to the description of S540 above, it will not be repeated here.

[0507] To facilitate understanding, the following explanation will be provided using a specific example, Example 5. Figure 7 The communication method is shown in Example 5. Example 5 includes the following steps:

[0508] Step 1: The non-negative integer corresponding to the network configuration characteristics.

[0509] For example, the non-negative integers corresponding to network configuration characteristics are included in {0…15}. The integers {0..15} are values ​​defined by the current protocol to indicate characteristic priority, consisting of 16 integers starting from 0 and incrementing by 1. See the table below:

[0510] characteristic F1 F2 F3 F4 non-negative integers 3 2 1 0

[0511] Step 2: The network device sends the non-negative integer corresponding to the characteristic to the terminal device.

[0512] For example, the network device indicates to the terminal device characteristic F1 and the corresponding non-negative integer 3, characteristic F2 and the corresponding non-negative integer 2, characteristic F1 and the corresponding non-negative integer 1, and characteristic F4 and the corresponding non-negative integer 0.

[0513] Step 3: The terminal device determines the second value of the feature combination that indicates the priority of the feature combination by using the non-negative integer corresponding to the received feature.

[0514] For example, the terminal device can determine the first value of the characteristic as X based on the non-negative integer corresponding to the characteristic. N , where X is an integer greater than or equal to 1, as shown in the table below, X = 2.

[0515] characteristic F1 F2 F3 F4 non-negative integers 3 2 1 0 First value <![CDATA[2 3 =8]]> <![CDATA[2 2 =4]]> <![CDATA[2 1 =2]]> <![CDATA[2 0 =1]]>

[0516] For example, as shown in Example 1 above, the feature combination that triggers RACH is F1+F2+F3+F4. The network device is configured with the following features / feature combinations for RACH resources: {F1+F3+F4, F1+F3, F2+F3+F4, F1, F1+F4}. The first values ​​of the features included in the feature combination are summed to obtain the second value of the feature combination. This second value of the feature combination can be used to indicate the priority of the feature combination, as shown in the table below:

[0517]

[0518] Step 4: The terminal device selects random access resources. Specifically, the terminal device selects the highest priority feature combination. For example, the terminal device selects RACH resources of F1+F3+F4.

[0519] Specifically, compared to the RACH resource selection process shown in Example 1, the RACH resource selection process shown in Example 5 does not require the terminal device to perform an iterative (or loop) process for RACH resource selection. The logic is simple and the implementation complexity is low.

[0520] In addition, compared to the RACH resource selection process shown in Example 2, the RACH resource selection process shown in Example 5 allows the terminal device to select a resource if the network device is configured with a higher priority feature-related RACH resource.

[0521] In addition, compared with the RACH resource selection process shown in Example 3, the RACH resource selection process shown in Example 5 does not require the terminal device to determine the non-negative integer corresponding to the feature, which simplifies the operation of the terminal device.

[0522] In addition, compared with the RACH resource selection process shown in Example 4, the network device does not need to determine the first value of the characteristic in the RACH resource selection process shown in Example 5, which simplifies the operation of the network device without significantly increasing the implementation complexity of the terminal device.

[0523] This application also provides another communication method for specifying the network device configuration of RACH resources for System Information (SI) requests, in order to simplify the implementation process of RedCap UE.

[0524] In existing technologies, considering the limited maximum bandwidth supported by RedCap terminal devices (e.g., 20MHz), network devices can configure independent initial uplink BWPs for RedCap terminal devices. This independent initial uplink BWP configured by the network device for RedCap terminal devices can be understood as a BWP configured by the network device in addition to the general initial uplink BWP.

[0525] Furthermore, in the prior art, the network device can also configure RACH resources for the terminal device to request SIB messages. For example, when the terminal device is in a disconnected state, the terminal device can use the aforementioned RACH resources configured by the network device to indicate to the network device that it requests a non-broadcast SIB message. These RACH resources are located within the General Initial Uplink (BWP).

[0526] When a network device configures a separate initial uplink BWP for a RedCap terminal device, if the network device does not configure the RACH resource requesting SI for the RedCap terminal device on that separate initial uplink BWP, the terminal device's RRC layer needs to pass the RACH configurations of two initial uplink BWPs to the MAC layer. Furthermore, the terminal device's MAC layer needs to maintain two initial uplink BWP RACH configurations: a general initial uplink BWP RACH configuration and a dedicated initial uplink BWP RACH configuration. Therefore, the terminal device needs to consume more memory space, correspondingly increasing its cost. To solve the above problem, the following solution is proposed, which includes the following steps:

[0527] Step 1: The network device determines the configuration of the first uplink BWP and the configuration of the first RACH resource.

[0528] The first uplink BWP is a dedicated uplink BWP for RedCap device terminals, and the first RACH resource is included in the first uplink BWP.

[0529] For example, the first RACH resource is the RACH resource that requests the SI message within the first uplink BWP.

[0530] Step 2: The network device sends the fourth instruction information to the terminal device, or in other words, the terminal device receives the fourth instruction information from the network device.

[0531] The fourth indication information includes the configuration information of the first uplink BWP and the configuration information of the first RACH resource. Specifically, the configuration information of the first uplink BWP indicates the configuration of the first uplink BWP, and the configuration information of the first RACH resource indicates the configuration of the first RACH resource.

[0532] The above scheme stipulates that if the network device provides a dedicated uplink BWP configuration to the RedCap terminal device, the network device also needs to provide the RACH resources within that dedicated uplink BWP for requesting SI messages. Furthermore, if the network device provides a dedicated uplink BWP configuration to the RedCap terminal device, and the general initial uplink BWP is configured with RACH resources for requesting SI messages, then the network device also needs to provide the RACH resources within the RedCap terminal device's dedicated uplink BWP for requesting SI messages.

[0533] With the above approach, if a RedCap terminal device is provided with a dedicated uplink BWP, it will definitely be provided with RACH resources for requesting SI on that dedicated uplink BWP. Therefore, the terminal device does not need to maintain or use the RACH configuration of the general initial uplink BWP at the same time, which reduces memory space consumption and can further reduce the cost of the terminal device.

[0534] In addition, this document provides another embodiment involving the terminal device acquiring the feature priorities of the target cell. The feature priority parameters mentioned above are generally contained in System Information Block 1 (SIB1). Specifically, the format of SIB1 can be found in the previous introduction to the SIB1 format, and will not be repeated here.

[0535] This feature priority parameter indicates the priority of a feature. For example, it indicates the priority of one or more features among RedCap, Slicing, SDT, and coverage enhancement. Specifically, when a terminal device performs a handover (e.g., from a source cell to a target cell), if the network device does not provide a dedicated random access configuration (RACH-ConfigDedicated) in the handover command, the terminal device needs to perform a contention-based random access (CBRA) procedure. During the contention-based random access procedure, the terminal device needs to select random access resources or the set of random access resources based on the feature priority of the target cell.

[0536] For example, a network device can send the target cell's SIB1 (e.g., dedicatedSIB1-Delivery) to a terminal device via an RRC reconfiguration message. However, this parameter is optional in RRC reconfiguration messages, or in RRC reconfiguration messages that include handover commands (or synchronization reconfiguration parameters, ReconfigurationWithSync). It is understood that the synchronization reconfiguration parameter is a synchronization reconfiguration parameter specific to the target cell.

[0537] As described above, when a terminal device performs a handover, if the RRC reconfiguration message or an RRC reconfiguration message containing a handover command or synchronization reconfiguration parameters (such as `reconfigurationWithSync`) does not include the target cell's SIB1, the terminal device will be unable to obtain the target cell's feature priority, thus preventing it from performing contention-based random access. Alternatively, the terminal may need to obtain the target cell's SIB1 to acquire its feature priority, introducing unnecessary handover latency. Conversely, even if the RRC reconfiguration message or an RRC reconfiguration message containing a handover command (or synchronization reconfiguration parameters) includes the target cell's SIB1 during handover, the terminal device still needs to read the SIB1 before handover or before completing RACH to obtain the target cell's feature priority, which increases handover latency and impacts user experience.

[0538] For example, if the UE is a RedCap UE and its RSRP measurement meets the RSRP threshold for repeating Msg3 during coverage enhancement, the target cell provides the UE with random access resources (or a set of random access resources) from the source cell, including both RedCap and CovEnh random access resources, but not random access resources for the RedCap+CovEnh feature combination. Since there are no dedicated random access resources for handover and the coverage enhancement conditions are met, the RedCap UE initiates a contention-based random access procedure, applicable to the RedCap+CovEnh feature combination. However, considering the network does not provide random resources for the RedCap+CovEnh feature combination, the UE should select random access resources based on the target cell's feature priority ranking to perform the random access procedure to the target cell, such as selecting the random access resource corresponding to the feature with higher priority from the RedCap and CovEnh random access resources. However, if the handover command or synchronization reconfiguration parameters do not include the target cell's SIB1, the UE cannot obtain the target cell's feature priority ranking. Alternatively, if the handover command or synchronization reconfiguration parameters contain the SIB1 of the target cell, the UE needs to decode the SIB1 to obtain the characteristic priority of the target cell before starting the random access procedure, which increases the delay of the random access procedure and the handover interruption time.

[0539] One approach to improve UE handover performance is to mandate, or always include, the target cell's SIB1 in the handover command or synchronization reconfiguration parameters during handover. This means that including the target cell's SIB1 in the handover command or synchronization reconfiguration parameters is no longer optional, but a mandatory parameter. For example, if the handover command or synchronization reconfiguration parameters do not include a dedicated random access configuration, the network device mandates, or always includes the target cell's SIB1 in the RRC reconfiguration message. This RRC reconfiguration message contains the handover command or synchronization reconfiguration parameters. If, under the above conditions, the network device does not include the target cell's SIB1 in the RRC reconfiguration message, the terminal device triggers the RRC reconstruction process, or the terminal device selects random access resources according to predefined feature priorities or predefined rules.

[0540] For example, the predefined feature priority can be RedCap>CovEnh.

[0541] For example, the predefined rule includes one or more of the following: if the UE is a RedCap UE, then the random access resource applicable to RedCap is selected; if the UE is a non-RedCap UE and meets the coverage enhancement threshold, then the random access resource applicable to CovEnh is selected; otherwise, the UE selects a random access resource that is not associated with any feature.

[0542] The above scheme ensures that terminals can obtain valid feature priorities by restricting network behavior. Furthermore, by clarifying the terminal's behavior when it cannot obtain valid feature priorities from the target cell due to network configuration anomalies, the scheme clarifies the terminal's behavior in selecting random access resources, aligning the understanding and behavior of network devices and terminal devices, and improving the probability and reliability of successful random access.

[0543] However, considering the size of SIB1, including SIB1 in the handover command would increase the size of the RRC reconfiguration message during handover, increasing the likelihood of message transmission failure and decreasing the probability of successful handover. Furthermore, if the terminal device needs to read SIB1 before handover or before completing RACH, it would increase handover latency.

[0544] Therefore, how to further improve the performance of terminal devices in performing contention-based random access during handover has become an urgent problem to be solved.

[0545] This application also provides a communication method and apparatus to improve the performance of a terminal device performing contention-based random access during handover.

[0546] The following is combined Figure 8 This communication method is described in detail. Figure 8 This is a schematic flowchart of another communication method provided in this application, including the following steps:

[0547] S810, network devices determine the characteristic priority of the target cell.

[0548] Referring to the description of S510 above, it will not be repeated here. The difference is that in S810, the network device determines the characteristic priority of the target cell.

[0549] Specifically, the network device determines the characteristic priority of the target cell, which can be understood as: the network device where the target cell is located (e.g., network device #1) determines the characteristic priority of the target cell and sends it to the aforementioned network device.

[0550] In S820, network devices send handover commands or synchronization reconfiguration parameters to terminal devices, or in other words, terminal devices receive handover commands or synchronization reconfiguration parameters from network devices.

[0551] The handover command or synchronization reconfiguration parameters include a fifth indication information, which is used to indicate the characteristic priority of the target cell.

[0552] For example, the switching command or synchronization reconfiguration parameters can be included in the RRC reconfiguration message.

[0553] For example, an RRC reconfiguration message containing a handover command or synchronization reconfiguration parameters may also include a second SIB of the target cell.

[0554] For example, the second SIB of the target cell may include the characteristic priority of the target cell.

[0555] For example, the second SIB of the target cell may be the SIB1 of the target cell.

[0556] In this embodiment, the network device can indicate the characteristic priority of the target cell by carrying fifth indication information indicating the characteristic priority of the target cell in the handover command or synchronization reconfiguration parameters. On the one hand, it does not require the network to include the SIB1 of the target cell in the handover command or synchronization reconfiguration parameters, thereby reducing the size of the RRC reconfiguration message during handover, reducing the load of the handover command, reducing the possibility of message transmission failure, and increasing the possibility of handover success; on the other hand, the terminal device does not need to read the SIB1 before handover or before completing RACH, reducing handover latency.

[0557] As one possible implementation, including the fifth indication information in the handover command or synchronization reconfiguration parameters could be achieved by including the fifth indication information in the cell common configuration (e.g., ServingCellConfigCommon or spCellConfigCommon). This fifth indication information indicates the feature priority of the target cell. Since this cell common configuration is included in the handover command or synchronization reconfiguration parameters, when the UE receives the handover command or synchronization reconfiguration parameters, it can select a random access resource based on the feature priority parameters contained therein. The selected random access resource is used for the random access procedure to the target cell, completing the handover process.

[0558] As another possible implementation, including the fifth indication information in the handover command or the synchronization reconfiguration parameters of the target cell could be: including the fifth indication information in the cell common configuration or the handover command or the synchronization reconfiguration parameters of the target cell. This fifth indication information is used to indicate the characteristic priority of the target cell, and the fifth indication information is also included in the cell common configuration (e.g., ServingCellConfigCommonSIB) in the second SIB. In this implementation, the characteristic priority parameter directly included in the second SIB is removed; this second SIB is the SIB1 corresponding to the target cell sent by the network device to the terminal device.

[0559] It should be understood that the above implementation is merely an example illustrating how a network device sends a fifth indication message to a terminal device during handover, and does not constitute any limitation on the scope of protection of this embodiment. Other methods of sending the fifth indication message to the terminal device during handover are also within the scope of protection of this application. For example, sending the fifth indication message to the terminal device by adding a new signaling message, instead of reusing existing signaling.

[0560] For example, the fifth indication information is used to indicate the feature priority of RedCap and CovEnh. For instance, the feature priority parameter in the switching command or synchronization reconfiguration parameter may include the feature priority of RedCap and CovEnh.

[0561] Optionally, in this embodiment, the method by which the network device indicates the feature priority of the target cell can refer to the method of indicating feature priority by the network device described above (e.g., Figures 5 to 7 The embodiments shown are not described in detail here.

[0562] Optionally, Figure 8 The method flow shown also includes:

[0563] S811, the network device sends the first SIB to the terminal device, or in other words, the terminal device receives the first SIB from the network device.

[0564] The first SIB includes a sixth indication information, which indicates the characteristic priority of the source cell. The first SIB can be SIB1 sent by the source cell. When a terminal accesses the source cell, it needs to receive the system message from the source cell, select a random access resource according to the characteristic priority in the system message, and use the selected random access resource to perform a random access procedure with the source cell, thereby accessing the source cell.

[0565] Optionally, the ServingCellConfigCommonSIB IE in the first SIB includes the sixth instruction information.

[0566] It is understood that the network device is the network device where the source cell is located, or the source cell is a cell controlled or managed by the network device. The source cell and the target cell can be the same cell or different cells.

[0567] Specifically, the terminal device selects random access resources based on the characteristics and priority of the source cell, and the selected random access resources are used for the random access process to the source cell.

[0568] Furthermore, after obtaining the characteristic priority of the target cell through the aforementioned fifth indication information, the terminal device can select random access resources according to the characteristic priority of the target cell. Figure 8 The method flow shown also includes:

[0569] S830: The terminal device selects random access resources based on the characteristics and priorities of the target cell.

[0570] As one possible implementation, the method by which the terminal device selects random access resources based on the characteristics and priority of the target cell in this embodiment can be referred to the description of S540 above, and will not be repeated here.

[0571] As another possible implementation, in this embodiment, the terminal device selects random access resources according to the characteristics and priorities of the target cell in the same way as the RACH resource selection method corresponding to Example 1 above.

[0572] It should be understood that Figure 8 In the illustrated embodiment, there are no limitations on how the terminal device selects random access resources based on the characteristics and priorities of the target cell. Existing resource selection methods can be referenced. The focus of this embodiment is on how the terminal device learns the characteristics and priorities of the target cell.

[0573] The above mainly describes the method by which network devices indicate the characteristic priority of a target cell so that the terminal device can obtain the characteristic priority of the target cell. In addition, the terminal device can also use predefined characteristic priorities to select random access resources. For example, in the case of handover, if there is no characteristic priority of a target cell, or if the UE does not have an available characteristic priority of a target cell, the UE uses a predefined characteristic priority. For example, the UE selects random access resources according to the characteristic priority predefined by the protocol (e.g., RedCap > CovEnh); or, the UE selects random access resources that are not associated with any characteristic; or, if the bandwidth portion BWP selected by the UE is a RedCap-specific BWP, then the UE selects random access resources that are only applicable to RedCap. This predefined characteristic priority can also refer to the predefined characteristic priorities or predefined rules in the aforementioned scheme, which will not be elaborated further here.

[0574] The terminal device performs a random access procedure using the selected random access resource. For example, the terminal device may send a preamble or message A (MsgA) on the selected random access resource.

[0575] The above Figure 8 The illustrated embodiment clarifies the feature priority used by the UE in a contention-based random access scenario. This solves the problem that in this scenario, the UE cannot continue the random access procedure because there is no available feature priority.

[0576] It should be noted that this embodiment can also be used in scenarios with dual connectivity, multiple connectivity, or carrier aggregation. This embodiment can also be used when a secondary cell (e.g., SCell) needs to be added to a primary cell (e.g., PCell or pSCell). In this case, the target cell can be replaced by the secondary cell, and the source cell can be replaced by the primary cell. The network device can be understood as the master station. Other schemes or steps can be referred to the above description and will not be repeated here. It should be understood that the sequence number of each process does not imply the order of execution; the execution order of each process should be determined by its function and internal logic, and should not constitute any limitation on the implementation process of the embodiments of this application.

[0577] It should also be understood that, in the various embodiments of this application, unless otherwise specified or in case of logical conflict, the terms and / or descriptions between different embodiments are consistent and can be referenced by each other, and the technical features in different embodiments can be combined to form new embodiments according to their inherent logical relationships.

[0578] It should also be understood that in some of the above embodiments, the examples are mainly based on devices in existing network architectures (such as network devices, terminal devices, etc.). It should be understood that the specific form of the device is not limited in the embodiments of this application. For example, any device that can achieve the same function in the future is applicable to the embodiments of this application.

[0579] It is understood that, in the above-described method embodiments, the methods and operations implemented by the network device can also be implemented by components that can be used in the network device; and the methods and operations implemented by the terminal device can also be implemented by components that can be used in the terminal device.

[0580] The above, combined with Figures 5 to 8 The communication method provided in the embodiments of this application is described in detail. The above communication method is mainly described from the perspective of interaction between network devices and terminal devices. It is understood that, in order to achieve the above functions, network devices and terminal devices include hardware structures and / or software modules corresponding to the execution of each function.

[0581] Those skilled in the art will recognize that, based on the units and algorithm steps described in conjunction with the embodiments disclosed herein, this application can be implemented in hardware or a combination of hardware and computer software. Whether a function is implemented in hardware or by 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 specific applications, but such implementations should not be considered beyond the scope of this application.

[0582] The following, combined with Figure 9 and Figure 10This application provides a detailed description of the communication apparatus provided in its embodiments. It should be understood that the descriptions of the apparatus embodiments correspond to the descriptions of the method embodiments; therefore, any content not described in detail can be found in the above method embodiments. For brevity, some content is omitted hereafter.

[0583] This application embodiment can divide the transmitting or receiving device into functional modules according to the above method examples. For example, each function can be divided into its own functional modules, or two or more functions can be integrated into one processing module. The integrated module can be implemented in hardware or as a software functional module. It should be noted that the module division in this application embodiment is illustrative and only represents one logical functional division. In actual implementation, there may be other division methods. The following description uses the division of functional modules according to each function as an example.

[0584] Figure 9 This is a schematic block diagram of the apparatus 800 provided in an embodiment of this application. The apparatus 800 includes a transmitting unit 810, a processing unit 820, and a receiving unit 830. The transmitting unit 810 and the receiving unit 830 can implement corresponding communication functions, and the processing unit 820 is used for data processing. The transmitting unit 810 and the receiving unit 830 can also be referred to as a communication interface or a communication unit.

[0585] Optionally, the device 800 may further include a storage unit for storing instructions and / or data, and the processing unit 820 may read the instructions and / or data from the storage unit to enable the device to implement the aforementioned method embodiments.

[0586] The device 800 can be used to perform the actions performed by the device (such as the network device, terminal device, etc.) in the above method embodiments. In this case, the device 800 can be a device or a component that can be configured on the device. The sending unit 810 and the receiving unit 830 are used to perform the sending and receiving related operations of the device in the above method embodiments, and the processing unit 820 is used to perform the processing related operations of the device in the above method embodiments.

[0587] As a design feature, the device 800 is used to perform the actions performed by the network device in the above method embodiments.

[0588] One possible implementation:

[0589] Processing unit 820 is used to determine the priority of multiple characteristics;

[0590] The sending unit 810 is used to send first indication information to the terminal device, the first indication information being used to indicate the priority of the plurality of features.

[0591] Another possible implementation:

[0592] The processing unit 820 is used to determine the priority of multiple characteristics and to determine the first value of a characteristic among the multiple characteristics.

[0593] The sending unit 810 is used to send third indication information to the terminal device, the third indication information being used to indicate a first value of one of the plurality of characteristics.

[0594] Another possible implementation:

[0595] The processing unit 820 is used to determine the priority of multiple characteristics and to determine the non-negative integer corresponding to the characteristics among the multiple characteristics.

[0596] The sending unit 810 is used to send second indication information to the terminal device, the second indication information being used to indicate the non-negative integer corresponding to one of the plurality of characteristics.

[0597] Another possible implementation:

[0598] Processing unit 820 is used to determine the characteristic priority of the target cell.

[0599] The sending unit 810 is configured to send a handover command or synchronization reconfiguration parameters of the target cell to the terminal device. The handover command or synchronization reconfiguration parameters of the target cell include fifth indication information, which is used to indicate the characteristic priority of the target cell.

[0600] The apparatus 800 can implement steps or processes corresponding to those executed by a network device in a method embodiment according to the present application. The apparatus 800 may include units for executing the methods performed by the network device in the method embodiment. Furthermore, each unit in the apparatus 800 and the other operations and / or functions described above respectively implement the corresponding processes of the method embodiment in the network device within the method embodiment.

[0601] Among them, when the device 800 is used to perform Figure 5 When the method is in progress, the sending unit 810 can be used to execute the step of sending information in the method, such as step S520; the receiving unit 830 can be used to execute the step of receiving information in the method; and the processing unit 820 can be used to execute the processing step in the method, such as step S510.

[0602] When the device 800 is used to perform Figure 6 When the method is in progress, the sending unit 810 can be used to execute the step of sending information in the method, such as step S630; the receiving unit 830 can be used to execute the step of receiving information in the method; and the processing unit 820 can be used to execute the processing steps in the method, such as steps S610 and S620.

[0603] When the device 800 is used to perform Figure 7 When the method is in progress, the sending unit 810 can be used to execute the step of sending information in the method, such as step S730; the receiving unit 830 can be used to execute the step of receiving information in the method; and the processing unit 820 can be used to execute the processing steps in the method, such as steps S710 and S720.

[0604] When the device 800 is used to perform Figure 8 When the method is in progress, the sending unit 810 can be used to execute the step of sending information in the method, such as step S820; the processing unit 820 can be used to execute the processing step in the method, such as step S810.

[0605] It should be understood that the specific process of each unit performing the above-mentioned corresponding steps has been described in detail in the above method embodiments, and will not be repeated here for the sake of brevity.

[0606] As an alternative design, the device 800 is used to perform the actions performed by the terminal device in the above method embodiments.

[0607] One possible implementation:

[0608] The receiving unit 830 is configured to receive first indication information from the network device, the first indication information being used to indicate the priority of multiple features;

[0609] The processing unit 820 is configured to determine a first value of a feature in a feature combination based on the priority of the plurality of features, the first value of the feature is used to determine a second value of the feature combination, and the second value of the feature combination is used for the selection of random access resources, wherein the feature combination includes at least one feature, and the at least one feature belongs to the plurality of features.

[0610] Another possible implementation:

[0611] The receiving unit 830 is configured to receive second indication information from the network device, the second indication information being used to indicate a non-negative integer corresponding to one of the plurality of characteristics;

[0612] The processing unit 820 is configured to determine a first value of a characteristic in a characteristic combination based on a non-negative integer corresponding to the characteristic, the first value of the characteristic is used to determine a second value of the characteristic combination, and the second value of the characteristic combination is used for the selection of random access resources, wherein the characteristic combination includes at least one characteristic, and the at least one characteristic belongs to the plurality of characteristics.

[0613] Another possible implementation:

[0614] The receiving unit 830 is configured to receive third indication information from the network device, the third indication information being used to indicate a first value of a characteristic among a plurality of characteristics in terms of priority;

[0615] Processing unit 820 is configured to determine a second value of a feature combination based on a first value of the feature, the second value of the feature combination being used for random access resource selection, wherein the first value of the third feature and the first value of the fourth feature set satisfy the following relationship: the first value of the third feature is greater than the sum of the first values ​​of the fourth feature set, wherein the third feature is one of the plurality of features, and the fourth feature set is the set of all features whose first value is lower than that of the third feature.

[0616] Another possible implementation:

[0617] The receiving unit 830 is used to receive a handover command or a synchronization reconfiguration parameter of the target cell from a network device. The handover command or the synchronization reconfiguration parameter of the target cell includes a fifth indication information, which is used to indicate the characteristic priority of the target cell.

[0618] The processing unit 820 is used to select random access resources according to the characteristic priority of the target cell.

[0619] The device 800 can implement steps or processes corresponding to those executed by a terminal device in a method embodiment according to the present application. The device 800 may include units for executing the methods performed by the terminal device in the method embodiment. Furthermore, each unit in the device 800 and the other operations and / or functions described above respectively implement the corresponding processes of the method embodiment in the terminal device of the method embodiment.

[0620] Among them, when the device 800 is used to perform Figure 5 When the method is in progress, the receiving unit 830 can be used to execute the step of receiving information in the method, such as step S520; the processing unit 820 can be used to execute the processing steps in the method, such as steps S530 and S540.

[0621] When the device 800 is used to perform Figure 6 When the method is in progress, the receiving unit 830 can be used to execute the step of receiving information in the method, such as step S630; the processing unit 820 can be used to execute the processing steps in the method, such as steps S640 and S650.

[0622] When the device 800 is used to perform Figure 7 When the method is in progress, the receiving unit 830 can be used to execute the step of receiving information in the method, such as step S730; the processing unit 820 can be used to execute the processing steps in the method, such as steps S740 and S750.

[0623] When the device 800 is used to perform Figure 7When the method is in progress, the receiving unit 830 can be used to execute the step of receiving information in the method, such as step S820; the processing unit 820 can be used to execute the processing step in the method, such as step S830.

[0624] It should be understood that the specific process of each unit performing the above-mentioned corresponding steps has been described in detail in the above method embodiments, and will not be repeated here for the sake of brevity.

[0625] The processing unit 820 in the above embodiments can be implemented by at least one processor or processor-related circuitry. The transmitting unit 810 and the receiving unit 830 can be implemented by a transceiver or transceiver-related circuitry. The storage unit can be implemented by at least one memory.

[0626] like Figure 10 As shown, this application embodiment also provides an apparatus 900. The apparatus 900 includes a processor 910 and may further include one or more memories 920. The processor 910 is coupled to the memory 920, which stores computer programs or instructions and / or data. The processor 910 executes the computer programs or instructions and / or data stored in the memory 920, causing the methods in the above method embodiments to be executed. Optionally, the apparatus 900 includes one or more processors 910.

[0627] Alternatively, the memory 920 can be integrated with the processor 910 or set separately.

[0628] Optionally, such as Figure 10 As shown, the device 900 may further include a transceiver 930 for receiving and / or transmitting signals. For example, a processor 910 is used to control the transceiver 930 to receive and / or transmit signals.

[0629] As one approach, the device 900 is used to implement the operations performed by the device (such as the network device, terminal device, etc.) in the above method embodiments.

[0630] This application also provides a computer-readable storage medium storing computer instructions for implementing the methods executed by devices (such as the network devices, terminal devices, etc.) in the above method embodiments.

[0631] For example, when the computer program is executed by a computer, it enables the computer to implement the method executed by the network device in the above method embodiments.

[0632] This application also provides a computer program product containing instructions that, when executed by a computer, cause the computer to implement the method described in the above method embodiments, which is executed by a device (such as the aforementioned network device, terminal device, etc.).

[0633] This application also provides a communication system, which includes the devices described in the above embodiments (such as the network devices, terminal devices, etc.).

[0634] The explanations and beneficial effects of the relevant contents in any of the devices provided above can be found in the corresponding method embodiments provided above, and will not be repeated here.

[0635] It should be understood that the processor mentioned in the embodiments of this application can be a central processing unit (CPU), or other general-purpose processors, digital signal processors (DSPs), application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs), field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), or other programmable logic devices, discrete gate or transistor logic devices, discrete hardware components, etc. A general-purpose processor can be a microprocessor or any conventional processor.

[0636] It should also be understood that the memory mentioned in the embodiments of this application can be volatile memory and / or non-volatile memory. Non-volatile memory can be read-only memory (ROM), programmable read-only memory (PROM), erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM), electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), or flash memory. Volatile memory can be random access memory (RAM). For example, RAM can be used as an external cache. By way of example and not limitation, RAM can include a variety of forms, such as: static random access memory (SRAM), dynamic random access memory (DRAM), synchronous dynamic random access memory (SDRAM), double data rate synchronous dynamic random access memory (DDR SDRAM), enhanced synchronous dynamic random access memory (ESDRAM), synchronous linked dynamic random access memory (SLDRAM), and direct rambus RAM (DR RAM).

[0637] It should be noted that when the processor is a general-purpose processor, DSP, ASIC, FPGA, or other programmable logic device, discrete gate or transistor logic device, or discrete hardware component, the memory (storage module) can be integrated into the processor.

[0638] It should also be noted that the memory described herein is intended to include, but is not limited to, these and any other suitable types of memory.

[0639] Those skilled in the art will recognize that the units and steps of the various examples described in conjunction with the embodiments disclosed herein can be implemented in electronic hardware, or a combination of computer software and electronic hardware. Whether these functions are implemented in hardware or software 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 specific applications, but such implementations should not be considered beyond the scope of protection of this application.

[0640] In the several embodiments provided in this application, it should be understood that the disclosed apparatus and methods can be implemented in other ways. For example, the apparatus embodiments described above are merely illustrative; for instance, the division of units is only a logical functional division, and in actual implementation, there may be other division methods. For example, multiple units or components may be combined or integrated into another system, or some features may be ignored or not executed. Furthermore, the mutual coupling or direct coupling or communication connection shown or discussed may be through some interfaces, and the indirect coupling or communication connection of apparatus or units may be electrical, mechanical, or other forms.

[0641] The units described as separate components may or may not be physically separate. The components shown as units may or may not be physical units; that is, they may be located in one place or distributed across multiple network units. Some or all of the units can be selected to implement the solution provided in this application, depending on actual needs.

[0642] In addition, the functional units in the various embodiments of this application can be integrated into one unit, or each unit can exist physically separately, or two or more units can be integrated into one unit.

[0643] In the above embodiments, implementation can be achieved entirely or partially through software, hardware, firmware, or any combination thereof. When implemented using software, it can be implemented entirely or partially in the form of a computer program product. The computer program product includes one or more computer instructions. When the computer program instructions are loaded and executed on a computer, all or part of the processes or functions described in the embodiments of this application are generated. The computer can be a general-purpose computer, a special-purpose computer, a computer network, or other programmable device. For example, the computer can be a personal computer, a server, or a network device, etc. The computer instructions can be stored in a computer-readable storage medium or transmitted from one computer-readable storage medium to another. For example, the computer instructions can be transmitted from one website, computer, server, or data center to another website, computer, server, or data center via wired (e.g., coaxial cable, fiber optic, digital subscriber line (DSL)) or wireless (e.g., infrared, wireless, microwave, etc.) means. The computer-readable storage medium can be any available medium that a computer can access or a data storage device such as a server or data center that integrates one or more available media. The available media can be magnetic media (e.g., floppy disks, hard disks, magnetic tapes), optical media (e.g., DVDs), or semiconductor media (e.g., solid-state disks, SSDs). For example, the aforementioned available media may include, but are not limited to, USB flash drives, portable hard drives, read-only memory (ROM), random access memory (RAM), magnetic disks, or optical disks, and other media capable of storing program code.

[0644] The above description is merely a specific embodiment of this application, but the scope of protection of this application is not limited thereto. Any variations or substitutions that can be easily conceived by those skilled in the art within the scope of the technology disclosed in this application should be included within the scope of protection of this application. Therefore, the scope of protection of this application should be determined by the scope of the claims.

Claims

1. A communication method, characterized in that, include: Receive fifth indication information, the fifth indication information is used to indicate the feature priority of the target cell, the feature priority is used to indicate the priority of one or more features of the terminal device in the RACH resource selection process, the feature priority is the priority of the feature relative to other features, and the fifth indication information is included in the handover command or synchronization reconfiguration parameters; Random access resources are selected based on the characteristics and priorities of the target cell.

2. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that, Random access resources selected based on the characteristic priority of the target cell are used for the random access procedure with the target cell.

3. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that, The method further includes: Before receiving the handover command or synchronization reconfiguration parameters, a first SIB is received. The first SIB includes a sixth indication information, which is used to indicate the characteristic priority of the source cell. The first SIB is the SIB corresponding to the source cell. Random access resources are selected based on the characteristics and priorities of the source cell.

4. The method according to claim 3, characterized in that, Random access resources selected based on the characteristic priority of the source cell are used in the random access procedure with the source cell.

5. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that, The switching command or synchronous reconfiguration parameters are included in the RRC reconfiguration message.

6. The method according to claim 5, characterized in that, The RRC reconfiguration message includes a second SIB, which includes the characteristic priority parameters of the target cell. The second SIB is the SIB corresponding to the target cell.

7. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that, The feature priority is used to indicate the priority of one or more features among RedCap, RAN-side enhancements of network slices, SDT, and coverage enhancements.

8. A communication method, characterized in that, include: The feature priority of the target cell is determined. The feature priority is used to indicate the priority of one or more features of the terminal device during the RACH resource selection process. The feature priority is the priority of the feature relative to other features. Send a fifth indication message, which is included in the handover command or synchronization reconfiguration parameters, and the fifth indication message is used to indicate the characteristic priority of the target cell.

9. The method according to claim 8, characterized in that, The method further includes: Before sending the handover command or synchronization reconfiguration parameters, a first SIB is sent. The first SIB includes a sixth indication information, which is used to indicate the characteristic priority of the source cell. The first SIB is the SIB corresponding to the source cell.

10. The method according to claim 8 or 9, characterized in that, The switching command or synchronous reconfiguration parameters are included in the RRC reconfiguration message.

11. The method according to claim 10, characterized in that, The RRC reconfiguration message includes a second SIB, which includes the characteristic priority parameters of the target cell. The second SIB is the SIB corresponding to the target cell.

12. The method according to claim 8 or 9, characterized in that, The feature priority is used to indicate the priority of one or more features among RedCap, RAN-side enhancements of network slices, SDT, and coverage enhancements.

13. A communication device, characterized in that, include: Memory, used to store computer programs; A processor for executing a computer program stored in the memory to cause the communication device to perform the method of any one of claims 1 to 7.

14. A communication device, characterized in that, include: Memory, used to store computer programs; A processor for executing a computer program stored in the memory to cause the communication device to perform the method of any one of claims 8 to 12.

15. A computer-readable storage medium, characterized in that, The computer-readable storage medium stores computer instructions that, when executed on a computer, perform the method as described in any one of claims 1 to 7.

16. A computer-readable storage medium, characterized in that, The computer-readable storage medium stores computer instructions that, when executed on a computer, perform the method as described in any one of claims 8 to 12.

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