Communication method, device and system

Abstract

The invention relates to a communication method, device and system. The first network equipment sends a first message to the second network equipment, the first message comprises the information of the remote equipment and / or the information of the candidate relay equipment, and a direct connection path exists between the remote equipment and the first network equipment. And the first network equipment receives a second message from the second network equipment, and the second message comprises the first configuration information which is used for configuring the sidelink corresponding to the to-be-added non-direct connection path of the far-end equipment. And the first network equipment sends a third message to the far-end equipment, the third message comprises second configuration information used for configuring the sidelink, and the second configuration information is determined according to the first configuration information. In the embodiment of the invention, interaction can be carried out between the network devices, so that the non-direct connection path of the remote device can be configured according to the interaction result of the network devices, and the remote device can work in a multi-path scene between the base stations.

Description

[0001] CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

[0002] This application claims priority to the Chinese patent application filed with the State Intellectual Property Office of China on July 4, 2023, with application number 202310816758.1 and application name “A Multipath Configuration Method and Device”, the entire contents of which are incorporated by reference in this application. Technical Field

[0003] The present application relates to the field of communication technology, and in particular to a communication method, device and system. Background Art

[0004] For sidelink (SL) relay technology, one evolution direction is to support multipath between base stations. Figure 1 , which is a schematic diagram of multipath between base stations. Figure 1 In the example, the remote user equipment (UE) is connected to the base station 1 through the Uu interface. This path is called a direct path or direct link. In addition, the relay UE ( Figure 1 The relay UE in the relay UE is connected to the base station 2, and this path is called an indirect path or an indirect link. That is, the cell where the relay UE is located and the cell where the remote UE is located are located in different base stations.

[0005] In this scenario, since the base station where the relay UE is located does not know the information of the remote UE, it cannot configure the indirect path of the remote UE; and since the base station where the remote UE is located does not know the configuration of the base station where the relay UE is located, it cannot configure the indirect path of the remote UE. The indirect path of the remote UE cannot be configured, which may cause the remote UE to be unable to communicate on the indirect path. Summary of the invention

[0006] Embodiments of the present application provide a communication method, apparatus, and system for configuring a remote device in a multipath scenario between base stations.

[0007] In a first aspect, a first communication method is provided, which can be executed by a network device, or by other devices including network device functions, or by a chip system (or, chip) or other functional modules, the chip system or functional module can realize the function of the network device, the chip system or functional module is, for example, set in the network device. The network device is, for example, a first network device. The first network device is, for example, an access network device, such as a base station. The method includes: sending a first message to a second network device, the first message including information of a remote device, or including information of a remote device and information of a candidate relay device, wherein there is a direct path between the remote device and the first network device, and the number of the candidate relay devices is one or more; receiving a second message from the second network device, the second message including first configuration information, the first configuration information being used to configure a side link corresponding to a non-direct path to be added by the remote device, the non-direct path being a path through which the remote device is connected to the second network device through a first relay device in the candidate relay device; sending a third message to the remote device, the third message including second configuration information, the second configuration information being used to configure the side link, and the second configuration information being determined according to the first configuration information.

[0008] In an embodiment of the present application, a first network device directly connected to a remote device and a second network device indirectly connected thereto can interact, so that the second network device can obtain information about the remote device from the first network device, and the first network device can obtain information for configuring a non-direct path of the remote device from the second network device, thereby configuring the non-direct path of the remote device according to the interaction results of the network devices, for example, configuring a PC5 interface or SL corresponding to the non-direct path, so that the remote device can operate in a multi-path scenario between base stations.

[0009] In an optional embodiment, the information of the remote device includes one or more of the following: or, an identifier of the PLMN supported by the remote device; or, information about the wireless bearer of the remote device; or, DRX information of the direct path; or, the number of SL LCIDs available to the remote device or the number of occupied SL LCIDs; the number of SL RLC channel identifiers available to the remote device or the number of occupied SL RLC channel identifiers; or, SL RLC channel configuration requirement information of the remote device; or, delay margin information corresponding to the sidelink. For example, the first message includes the number of SL LCIDs available to the remote device or the number of occupied SL LCIDs, or includes the number of SL RLC channel identifiers available to the remote device or the number of occupied SL RLC channel identifiers, so that when the second network device configures the SLRLC channel for the non-direct path, it can try not to exceed the available number of SL RLC channels of the remote device. For another example, if the first message includes the DRX information of the direct path of the remote device, the second network device can align the PC5DRX of the non-direct path of the remote device with the Uu DRX, so that the remote UE can wake up only in the same time period to perform air interface transmission and SL transmission, which can reduce the time for the remote device to wake up, save power consumption, and reduce the complexity of the remote device. For another example, the first message may include the SL RLC channel configuration requirement information of the remote device, and / or the delay margin information corresponding to the side link, then the second network device can add the SL RLC channel configuration requirement information and / or the delay margin information to the configuration information of the remote device without additional configuration, which can reduce the workload of the second network device.

[0010] In an optional implementation, the information of the radio bearer of the remote device includes one or more of the following: an identifier of the first radio bearer configured for the indirect path, the first radio bearer including a data radio bearer and / or a signaling radio bearer; or, Xn transport layer address information of the data radio bearer where the PDCP entity of the remote device is located on the first network device; or, information indicating that the first radio bearer of the remote device belongs to the indirect path; or, information indicating that the first radio bearer of the remote device belongs to a relay device group; or, type information of the SL RLC entity used by the remote device on the indirect path; or, information indicating whether the first radio bearer of the remote device supports multi-path communication; or, information indicating whether the first radio bearer of the remote device supports repeated transmission; or, QoS information of the first radio bearer of the remote device. For example, if the first radio bearer of the remote device supports multi-path communication, the first radio bearer can be configured for the indirect path, otherwise the first radio bearer cannot be configured for the indirect path (because the remote device has maintained a direct path, and adding the indirect path is multi-path communication). For another example, the QoS information of the first radio bearer of the remote device can be used for the second network device to configure one or more of the following according to the QoS information: the SL DRX of the non-direct path, the PC5 interface corresponding to the non-direct path or the delay margin corresponding to the SL, or the SL RLC channel of the remote device. That is, the second network device can perform corresponding configuration for the remote device according to the information of the radio bearer of the remote device.

[0011] In an optional implementation, the SL RLC channel configuration requirement information of the remote device includes: association relationship information between a first radio bearer of the remote device and at least one SL LCID of the remote device, the first radio bearer being a radio bearer configured for the non-direct path; or, association relationship information between a first quantity and a second quantity, the first quantity being the number of radio bearers configured for the non-direct path, and the second quantity being the number of SL RLC channels associated with the remote device and the first number of radio bearers. The SL RLC channel configuration requirement information may directly indicate a specific first radio bearer and at least one SL LCID, so that the second network device may not need to select a SL LCID; or, the SL RLC channel configuration requirement information may indicate an association relationship between the number of radio bearers and the number of SL-RLC channels (or the number of SL LCIDs), and the second network device may select a SLLCID based on the number, which provides certain implementation flexibility for the second network device.

[0012] In an optional implementation, the SL RLC channel configuration requirement information of the remote device includes: association relationship information between a first radio bearer of the remote device and at least one SL RLC channel identifier of the remote device, the first radio bearer being a radio bearer configured for the non-direct path; or, association relationship information between a first quantity and a second quantity, the first quantity being the number of radio bearers configured for the non-direct path, and the second quantity being the number of SL RLC channels associated with the remote device and the first number of radio bearers. The SL RLC channel configuration requirement information may directly indicate a specific first radio bearer and at least one SL RLC channel identifier, so that the second network device may not need to select a SL RLC channel identifier; or, the SL RLC channel configuration requirement information may indicate an association relationship between the number of radio bearers and the number of SL-RLC channels (or the number of SL RLC channel identifiers), and the second network device may select a SL RLC channel identifier based on the number, which provides certain implementation flexibility for the second network device.

[0013] In an optional implementation, the information of the candidate relay device includes an identifier of the candidate relay device and / or an identifier of a serving PLMN of the candidate relay device.

[0014] In an optional implementation, when the PLMN supported by the remote device is different from the service PLMN of the candidate relay device, the information of the candidate relay device includes the identifier of the service PLMN of the candidate relay device; or, when the PLMN supported by the remote device is the same as the service PLMN of the candidate relay device, the information of the candidate relay device does not include the identifier of the service PLMN of the candidate relay device. For example, when the PLMN supported by the remote device is the same as the service PLMN of the candidate relay device, the information of the candidate relay device may not include the identifier of the service PLMN of the candidate relay device, thereby reducing the overhead of the first message.

[0015] In an optional implementation, the first configuration information includes one or more of the following: SRAP configuration information of the remote device; or SL RLC channel configuration information of the remote device; or SL physical layer configuration information of the remote device; or SL media access control MAC layer configuration information of the remote device. The first configuration information can configure each protocol layer of the indirect path for the remote device, so that the remote device can communicate through the indirect path.

[0016] In an optional implementation, the SRAP configuration information includes: the local identifier of the remote device under the first relay device, the association relationship information between the first radio bearer of the remote device and at least one SL LCID of the remote device, or the association relationship information between the first radio bearer of the remote device and at least one SLRLC channel identifier of the remote device, wherein the first radio bearer is a radio bearer configured for the non-direct path. The SRAP entity corresponds to the non-direct path to be added, and the SRAP entity needs to maintain the local identifier of the remote device corresponding to the non-direct path, so the SRAP configuration information may include the local identifier of the remote device under the first relay device. The first relay device is a relay device corresponding to the non-direct path, so the local identifier is also the local identifier of the remote device corresponding to the non-direct path.

[0017] In an optional embodiment, the information of the remote device includes SL RLC channel configuration requirement information of the remote device, wherein the association relationship information between the first radio bearer of the remote device and at least one SL LCID of the remote device, or the association relationship information between the first radio bearer of the remote device and at least one SL RLC channel identifier of the remote device, is determined based on the SL RLC channel configuration requirement information. If the first message includes the SL RLC channel configuration requirement information, the second network device can determine the association relationship information between the first radio bearer and the at least one SL LCID based on the SL RLC channel configuration requirement information, or determine the association relationship information between the first radio bearer and the at least one SL RLC channel identifier, thereby simplifying the configuration process of the second network device.

[0018] In an optional embodiment, the SL RLC channel configuration information includes one or more of the following: configuration information of the SL RLC entity of the remote device; or, SL MAC logical channel configuration information of the remote device; or, delay margin information corresponding to the side link.

[0019] In an optional implementation, the delay margin information corresponding to the side link is information included in the information of the remote device. If the first message includes the delay margin information corresponding to the side link, the second network device can add the delay margin information to the first configuration information without additional configuration, which can simplify the configuration process of the second network device.

[0020] In an optional implementation manner, the SL MAC layer configuration information includes SL DRX configuration information of the remote device. Generally, the MAC layer implements the DRX mechanism, so the SL MAC layer configuration information may include the SL DRX configuration information.

[0021] In an optional implementation, the second message includes a first information element, the first configuration information is included in the first information element, the third message includes the first information element, and the second configuration information is the first configuration information; or, the second configuration information is generated based on the first configuration information. The first network device can directly add the information element in the second message to the first message and send it to the remote device without parsing the information element in the second message, thereby simplifying the implementation of the first network device. Alternatively, the first network device can also parse the first configuration information and generate the second configuration information based on it, which is more flexible for the second network device to implement.

[0022] In a second aspect, a second communication method is provided, which can be executed by a network device, or by other devices including network device functions, or by a chip system (or, chip) or other functional modules, the chip system or functional module can realize the function of the network device, the chip system or functional module is, for example, set in the network device. The network device is, for example, a second network device. The second network device is, for example, an access network device, such as a base station. The method includes: receiving a first message from a first network device, the first message including information of a remote device, or including information of a remote device and information of a candidate relay device, wherein there is a direct path between the remote device and the first network device, and the number of the candidate relay devices is one or more; sending a second message to the first network device according to the first message, the second message including first configuration information, the first configuration information being used to configure a side link corresponding to a non-direct path to be added by the remote device, the non-direct path being a link connecting the remote device to the second network device through a first relay device among the candidate relay devices.

[0023] In an optional embodiment, the information of the remote device includes one or more of the following: an identifier of the PLMN supported by the remote device; or information of the wireless bearer of the remote device; or DRX information of the direct path; or the number of SL LCIDs available to the remote device or the number of occupied SL LCIDs; or the number of SL RLC channel identifiers available to the remote device or the number of occupied SL RLC channel identifiers; or SLRLC channel configuration requirement information of the remote device; or delay margin information corresponding to the side link.

[0024] In an optional embodiment, the information of the wireless bearer of the remote device includes one or more of the following: an identifier of the first wireless bearer configured for the non-direct path, the first wireless bearer including a data wireless bearer and / or a signaling wireless bearer; or, Xn transport layer address information of the data wireless bearer where the PDCP entity of the remote device is located on the first network device; or, information used to indicate that the first wireless bearer of the remote device belongs to the non-direct path; or, information used to indicate that the first wireless bearer of the remote device belongs to a relay device group; or, type information of the SL RLC entity used by the remote device on the non-direct path; or, information used to indicate whether the first wireless bearer of the remote device supports multi-path communication; or, information used to indicate whether the first wireless bearer of the remote device supports repeated transmission; or, QoS information of the first wireless bearer of the remote device.

[0025] In an optional embodiment, the SL RLC channel configuration requirement information of the remote device includes: association relationship information between a first wireless bearer of the remote device and at least one SL LCID of the remote device, or association relationship information between a first wireless bearer of the remote device and at least one SL RLC channel identifier of the remote device, wherein the first wireless bearer is a wireless bearer configured for the non-direct path; or association relationship information between a first quantity and a second quantity, wherein the first quantity is the number of wireless bearers configured for the non-direct path, and the second quantity is the number of SL RLC channels associated with the remote device and the first number of wireless bearers.

[0026] In an optional implementation, the information of the candidate relay device includes an identifier of the candidate relay device and / or an identifier of a serving PLMN of the candidate relay device.

[0027] In an optional embodiment, when the PLMN supported by the remote device is different from the service PLMN of the candidate relay device, the information of the candidate relay device includes the identifier of the service PLMN of the candidate relay device; or, when the PLMN supported by the remote device is the same as the service PLMN of the candidate relay device, the information of the candidate relay device does not include the identifier of the service PLMN of the candidate relay device.

[0028] In an optional embodiment, the first configuration information includes one or more of the following: SRAP configuration information of the remote device; or SL RLC channel configuration information of the remote device; or SL physical layer configuration information of the remote device; or SL MAC layer configuration information of the remote device.

[0029] In an optional embodiment, the SRAP configuration information includes: the local identifier of the remote device under the first relay device, the association relationship information between the first wireless bearer of the remote device and at least one SL LCID of the remote device, or the association relationship information between the first wireless bearer of the remote device and at least one SLRLC channel identifier of the remote device, wherein the first wireless bearer is a wireless bearer configured for the non-direct path.

[0030] In an optional embodiment, the information of the remote device includes the number of SLLCIDs available to the remote device or the number of occupied SL LCIDs, and / or the number of SL RLC channel identifiers available to the remote device or the number of occupied SL RLC channel identifiers, wherein the association relationship information between the first wireless bearer of the remote device and at least one SL LCID of the remote device, or the association relationship information between the first wireless bearer of the remote device and at least one SL RLC channel identifier of the remote device, is determined based on the number of SLLCIDs available to the remote device, the number of SL RLC channel identifiers available to the remote device, the number of SL LCIDs occupied by the remote device, or the number of SL RLC channel identifiers occupied by the remote device.

[0031] In an optional implementation, the information of the remote device includes SL RLC channel configuration requirement information of the remote device, and the association relationship information between the first radio bearer of the remote device and at least one SL LCID of the remote device is determined based on the SL RLC channel configuration requirement information.

[0032] In an optional implementation, the information of the remote device includes SL RLC channel configuration requirement information of the remote device, and the association relationship information between the first wireless bearer of the remote device and at least one SL RLC channel identifier of the remote device is determined based on the SL RLC channel configuration requirement information.

[0033] In an optional embodiment, the SL RLC channel configuration information includes one or more of the following: configuration information of the SL RLC entity of the remote device; or, SL MAC logical channel configuration information of the remote device; or, delay margin information corresponding to the side link.

[0034] In an optional implementation, the delay margin information corresponding to the side link is information included in the information of the remote device.

[0035] In an optional implementation, the SL MAC layer configuration information includes SL DRX configuration information of the remote device.

[0036] In an optional embodiment, the method also includes: sending a fourth message to the first relay device, the fourth message including third configuration information, the third configuration information is used to configure the side link corresponding to the non-direct path of the first relay device, and the third configuration information is determined based on the first configuration information.

[0037] Regarding the technical effects brought about by the second aspect or various optional implementations, reference may be made to the introduction to the technical effects of the first aspect or corresponding implementations.

[0038] In a third aspect, a third communication method is provided, which can be executed by a communication system, and the communication system includes, for example, a first network device and a second network device. The method includes: the first network device sends a first message to the second network device, the first message includes information of a remote device, or includes information of a remote device and information of a candidate relay device, wherein there is a direct path between the remote device and the first network device, and the number of the candidate relay devices is one or more; the second network device receives the first message, and sends a second message to the first network device according to the first message, the second message includes first configuration information, the first configuration information is used to configure the side link corresponding to the non-direct path to be added to the remote device, and the non-direct path is the path where the remote device is connected to the second network device through the first relay device among the candidate relay devices.

[0039] In an optional implementation, the method further includes: the first network device sends a third message to the remote device, the third message includes second configuration information, the second configuration information is used to configure the side link, and the second configuration information is determined based on the first configuration information.

[0040] Optionally, the third aspect may also include some or all of the optional implementations of the first aspect, and / or include some or all of the optional implementations of the second aspect. Please refer to the relevant content in the previous text and will not be elaborated here.

[0041] Regarding the technical effects brought about by the third aspect or various optional implementations, reference may be made to the introduction to the technical effects of the first aspect or the corresponding implementations, and / or reference may be made to the introduction to the technical effects of the second aspect or the corresponding implementations.

[0042] In a fourth aspect, a communication device is provided. The communication device may be the first network device described in any one of the first aspect to the second aspect. The communication device has the function of the first network device. The communication device is, for example, a first network device, or a larger device including the first network device, or a functional module in the first network device, such as a baseband device or a chip system. In an optional implementation, the communication device includes a baseband device and a radio frequency device. In another optional implementation, the communication device includes a processing unit (sometimes also referred to as a processing module) and a transceiver unit (sometimes also referred to as a transceiver module). The transceiver unit can implement a sending function and a receiving function. When the transceiver unit implements the sending function, it can be called a sending unit (sometimes also referred to as a sending module), and when the transceiver unit implements the receiving function, it can be called a receiving unit (sometimes also referred to as a receiving module). The sending unit and the receiving unit can be the same functional module, which is called a transceiver unit, and the functional module can implement the sending function and the receiving function; or, the sending unit and the receiving unit can be different functional modules, and the transceiver unit is a general term for these functional modules.

[0043] In an optional embodiment, the transceiver unit (or, the sending unit) is used to send a first message to a second network device, wherein the first message includes information of a remote device, or includes information of a remote device and information of a candidate relay device, wherein a direct path is provided between the remote device and the first network device, and the number of the candidate relay devices is one or more; the transceiver unit (or, the receiving unit) is used to receive a second message from the second network device, wherein the second message includes first configuration information, wherein the first configuration information is used to configure a side link corresponding to a non-direct path to be added to the remote device, wherein the non-direct path is a path through which the remote device is connected to the second network device via a first relay device among the candidate relay devices; the transceiver unit (or, the sending unit) is also used to send a third message to the remote device, wherein the third message includes second configuration information, wherein the second configuration information is used to configure the side link, and the second configuration information is determined based on the first configuration information.

[0044] In an optional embodiment, the communication device also includes a storage unit (sometimes also referred to as a storage module), and the processing unit is used to couple with the storage unit and execute the program or instructions in the storage unit, so that the communication device can perform the function of the first network device described in any one of the first to third aspects above.

[0045] In a fifth aspect, a communication device is provided. The communication device may be the second network device described in any one of the first to second aspects. The communication device has the functions of the second network device. The communication device is, for example, a second network device, or a larger device including a second network device, or a functional module in the second network device, such as a baseband device or a chip system. In an optional implementation, the communication device includes a baseband device and a radio frequency device. In another optional implementation, the communication device includes a processing unit (sometimes also referred to as a processing module) and a transceiver unit (sometimes also referred to as a transceiver module). For the implementation of the transceiver unit, reference may be made to the introduction of the fourth aspect.

[0046] In an optional embodiment, the transceiver unit (or, the receiving unit) is used to receive a first message from a first network device, the first message including information of a remote device, or including information of a remote device and information of a candidate relay device, wherein a direct path is provided between the remote device and the first network device, and the number of the candidate relay devices is one or more; the transceiver unit (or, the sending unit) is used to send a second message to the first network device according to the first message, the second message including first configuration information, the first configuration information being used to configure a side link corresponding to a non-direct path to be added to the remote device, the non-direct path being a link connecting the remote device to the second network device via a first relay device among the candidate relay devices.

[0047] In an optional embodiment, the communication device also includes a storage unit (sometimes also referred to as a storage module), and the processing unit is used to couple with the storage unit and execute the program or instructions in the storage unit, so that the communication device can perform the function of the second network device described in any one of the first to third aspects above.

[0048] In a sixth aspect, a communication device is provided, which may be a first network device, or a chip or chip system used in the first network device. The communication device includes a communication interface and a processor, and optionally, a memory. The memory is used to store a computer program, and the processor is coupled to the memory and the communication interface. When the processor reads the computer program or instruction, the communication device executes the method executed by the first network device in the above aspects.

[0049] In a seventh aspect, a communication device is provided, which may be a second network device, or a chip or chip system used in the second network device. The communication device includes a communication interface and a processor, and optionally, a memory. The memory is used to store a computer program, and the processor is coupled to the memory and the communication interface. When the processor reads the computer program or instruction, the communication device executes the method executed by the second network device in the above aspects.

[0050] In an eighth aspect, a communication system is provided, comprising a first network device and a second network device, wherein the first network device is used to execute the method executed by the first network device as described in the above aspects, and the second network device is used to execute the method executed by the second network device as described in the above aspects. For example, the first network device can be implemented by the communication device described in the fourth aspect or the sixth aspect; the second network device can be implemented by the communication device described in the fifth aspect or the seventh aspect.

[0051] In a ninth aspect, a computer-readable storage medium is provided, wherein the computer-readable storage medium is used to store a computer program or instruction, and when the computer-readable storage medium is executed, the method executed by the first network device or the second network device in the above aspects is implemented.

[0052] According to a tenth aspect, a computer program product comprising instructions is provided, which, when executed on a computer, enables the methods described in the above aspects to be implemented.

[0053] In an eleventh aspect, a chip system is provided, comprising a processor and an interface, wherein the processor is used to call and execute instructions from the interface so that the chip system implements the methods of the above aspects. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0054] Figure 1 A schematic diagram of multipath between base stations;

[0055] Figure 2 A schematic diagram of a co-site dual connection scenario;

[0056] Figure 3 This is a schematic diagram of the protocol stack in a co-site dual connection scenario;

[0057] Figure 4 A flow chart of a communication method provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0058] Figure 5 A schematic diagram of the structure of the third message in an embodiment of the present application;

[0059] Figure 6 A schematic diagram of a protocol stack applicable to an embodiment of the present application;

[0060] Figure 7 A schematic diagram of a device provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0061] Figure 8 A schematic diagram of another device provided in an embodiment of the present application. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0062] In order to make the purpose, technical solutions and advantages of the embodiments of the present application clearer, the embodiments of the present application will be further described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0063] In the embodiments of the present application, the number of nouns, unless otherwise specified, means "singular noun or plural noun", that is, "one or more". "At least one" means one or more, and "plural" means two or more. "And / or" describes the association relationship of associated objects, indicating that three relationships may exist. For example, A and / or B can mean: A exists alone, A and B exist at the same time, and B exists alone, where A and B can be singular or plural. The character " / " generally indicates that the previous and next associated objects are in an "or" relationship. For example, A / B means: A or B. "At least one of the following" or similar expressions refers to any combination of these items, including any combination of single or plural items. For example, at least one of a, b, or c means: a, b, c, a and b, a and c, b and c, or a and b and c, where a, b, c can be single or multiple.

[0064] The ordinal numbers such as "first" and "second" mentioned in the embodiments of the present application are used to distinguish multiple objects, and are not used to limit the size, content, order, timing, priority or importance of multiple objects. For example, the first message and the second message can be the same message or different messages, and this name does not indicate the difference in the sender / receiver, format, content, size, application scenario, priority or importance of the two messages. In addition, the numbering of the steps in the various embodiments introduced in this application is only to distinguish different steps, and is not used to limit the order of the steps. For example, S401 may occur before S402, or may occur after S402, or may occur at the same time as S402.

[0065] Below, some terms or concepts in the embodiments of the present application are explained to facilitate understanding by those skilled in the art.

[0066] In the embodiment of the present application, the terminal device is a device with wireless transceiver function, which can be a fixed device, a mobile device, a handheld device (such as a mobile phone), a wearable device, a vehicle-mounted device, or a wireless device built into the above device (for example, a communication module, a modem, or a chip system, etc.). The terminal device is used to connect people, objects, machines, etc., and can be widely used in various scenarios, such as but not limited to the following scenarios: perception scenarios, cellular communications, device-to-device communications (device-to-device, D2D), vehicle to everything (vehicle to everything, V2X), machine-to-machine / machine-type communications (machine-to-machine / machine-type communications, M2M / MTC), Internet of Things (Internet of Things, IoT), virtual reality (virtual reality, VR), augmented reality (augmented reality, AR), industrial control (industrial control), self-driving, remote medical, smart grid (smart grid), smart furniture, smart office, smart wear, smart transportation, smart city (smart city), drones, robots and other scenarios of terminal devices. The terminal device may sometimes be referred to as UE, terminal, access station, UE station, remote station, wireless communication device, or user equipment, etc.

[0067] In the embodiment of the present application, the communication device for implementing the function of the terminal device may be a terminal device, or may be a device capable of supporting the terminal device to implement the function, such as a chip system, which may be installed in the terminal device. In the technical solution provided in the embodiment of the present application, the technical solution provided in the embodiment of the present application is described by taking the device for implementing the function of the terminal device as an example, and the terminal device is used as an example. In addition, for the convenience of description, the terminal device is described in the embodiment of the present application by taking the UE as an example.

[0068] The network equipment in the embodiment of the present application, for example, includes access network equipment, and / or core network equipment. The access network equipment is a device with wireless transceiver function, which is used to communicate with the terminal device. The access network equipment includes but is not limited to base stations (base transceiver station (BTS), Node B, evolved node B (eNodeB) / eNB, or next generation node B (gNodeB) / gNB), transceiver points (transmission reception point, TRP), base stations of subsequent evolution of the third generation partnership project (3rd generation partnership project, 3GPP), access nodes in wireless fidelity (Wi-Fi) systems, wireless relay nodes, wireless backhaul nodes, etc. The base station can be: a macro base station, a micro base station, a micro-micro base station, a small station, a relay station, etc. Multiple base stations can support networks with the same access technology, or networks with different access technologies. The base station can include one or more co-station or non-co-station transmission and receiving points. The access network device may also be a wireless controller, a centralized unit (CU), and / or a distributed unit (DU) in a cloud radio access network (CRAN) scenario. The access network device may also be a server, etc. For example, the network device in the V2X technology may be a road side unit (RSU). The following describes the access network device using a base station as an example. The base station can communicate with a terminal device, or it can communicate with the terminal device through a relay station. The terminal device can communicate with multiple base stations in different access technologies. The core network device is used to implement functions such as mobility management, data processing, session management, policy and billing. The names of the devices that implement core network functions in systems with different access technologies may be different, and the embodiments of the present application do not limit this. Taking the fifth generation mobile communication technology (5G) system as an example, the core network equipment includes: access and mobility management function (AMF), session management function (SMF), policy control function (PCF) or user plane function (UPF), etc.

[0069] In the CU-DU architecture, the access network device may include one or more logical network elements such as a centralized unit (CU), a distributed unit (DU), a CU-control plane (CP), a CU-user plane (UP), or a radio unit (RU). The CU and DU may be set separately, or may be included in the same network element, such as a baseband unit (BBU). The RU may be included in a radio frequency device or a radio frequency unit, such as a remote radio unit (RRU), an active antenna unit (AAU), or a remote radio head (RRH).

[0070] In different systems, CU (or CU-CP and CU-UP), DU or RU may also have different names, but those skilled in the art can understand their meanings. For example, in the ORAN system, CU may also be called an open CU (O-CU), DU may also be called O-DU, CU-CP may also be called O-CU-CP, CU-UP may also be called O-CU-UP, and RU may also be called O-RU. For the convenience of description, the embodiments of the present application are described by taking CU, CU-CP, CU-UP, DU and RU as examples. Any unit of CU (or CU-CP, CU-UP), DU and RU in the embodiments of the present application may be implemented by a software module, a hardware module, or a combination of a software module and a hardware module.

[0071] In the embodiment of the present application, the communication device for realizing the function of the network device may be a network device, or may be a device capable of supporting the network device to realize the function, such as a chip system, which may be installed in the network device. In the technical solution provided in the embodiment of the present application, the technical solution provided in the embodiment of the present application is described by taking the device for realizing the function of the network device as an example that the network device is used as the device.

[0072] The technical features involved in the embodiments of the present application are introduced below.

[0073] In SL relay, we will consider supporting the intra-gNB dual-connection scenario of the UE's indirect path and direct path, so that the remote UE can connect to the network through multiple paths. For more information, please refer to Figure 2 .exist Figure 2 in,remote UE( Figure 2 The remote UE in the example is connected to the base station through the Uu interface. This path is called a direct link or direct path. In addition, the remote UE is connected to the base station through the relay UE ( Figure 2 The relay UE in the relay UE is connected to the base station, and the path is called an indirect link or indirect path. That is, the cell where the relay UE is located and the cell where the remote UE is located are located in the same base station, or it can be understood that the direct path and the indirect path of the remote UE are located in the cell of the same base station.

[0074] like Figure 3 The figure shows a schematic diagram of the protocol stack in a co-site dual-connection scenario. The packet data convergence protocol (PDCP) entity corresponding to the same radio bearer (radiobearer, RB) can be transmitted through the Uu radio link control (radio link control, RLC) bearer under the direct path, and can also be transmitted through the PC5 RLC bearer or PC5 RLC channel under the indirect path. Among them, the data of a radio bearer can be transmitted through one path or multiple paths; and a path can be used to transmit data of one or more radio bearers. Among them, the RLC channel can also be called RLC bearer, and the two can be understood as the same feature and can be replaced with each other. In addition, PC5 RLC can also be called SL RLC; PC5 sidelink relay adaptation protocol (SRAP) can also be called SL SRAP. For indirect paths, the PDCP entity connects with the PC5 RLC entity through the SRAP entity to ensure that the RLC bearer on the SL matches the RLC bearer on the Uu port (mapping). In addition Figure 3 The PC5 SRAP entity and the Uu SRAP entity in the embodiment may also be one entity, representing two interfaces for PC5 and Uu. Figure 3 It also involves protocol layers such as the media access control (MAC) layer and the physical (PHY) layer, which will not be elaborated in detail.

[0075] In the co-site dual-connection scenario, since the relay UE and the remote UE are both within the coverage of a base station, the remote UE and the relay UE may be in the same cell or in different cells of the same base station. In either case, the base station can be relatively clear about the situation of the remote UE and the relay UE. Therefore, according to the configuration process of the indirect path, the base station can configure the PC5 interface or SL of the indirect path for the remote UE through radio resource control (RRC) signaling, such as RRC setup message, RRC resume message, or RRC reconfiguration message.

[0076] For SL relay technology, one evolution direction is to support multipath between base stations, such as inter-gNB multipath. Figure 1 , is a schematic diagram of multipath between base stations. This scenario allows remote UE to connect to different base stations through multiple paths to obtain more services. In this scenario, remote UE needs to complete the communication of the indirect path according to the configuration of the indirect path between remote UE and relay UE. However, due to the base station where the relay UE is located (for example, Figure 1 The base station 2 in the example does not know the information of the remote UE and cannot configure the indirect path of the remote UE. The base station where the remote UE is located (for example Figure 1 The base station 1) in the relay UE is not aware of the configuration of the base station where the relay UE is located, and therefore cannot configure the indirect path of the remote UE. The indirect path of the remote UE cannot be configured, which may result in the remote UE being unable to communicate on the indirect path.

[0077] In view of this, in the embodiment of the present application, the first network device directly connected to the remote UE and the second network device indirectly connected can interact with each other, so that the second network device can obtain information about the remote UE from the first network device, and the first network device can obtain information for configuring the non-direct path of the remote UE from the second network device, so that the non-direct path of the remote UE can be configured according to the interaction results of the network devices, such as configuring the PC5 interface or SL corresponding to the non-direct path, so that the remote UE can operate in a multi-path scenario between base stations.

[0078] As above Figure 2The architecture shown can also be used as a communication network architecture applicable to the embodiments of the present application. Figure 2 In the example, the remote UE and base station 1 are directly connected via the Uu interface, and the remote UE and base station 2 are indirectly connected via the relay UE. Optionally, base station 1 and base station 2 do not share the same site. It can be seen that the remote UE and the relay UE are in the coverage of different base stations. Figure 2 The base station shown is, for example, an overall architecture, or may also be a distributed architecture, for example, including gNB-CU and gNB-DU, etc., without limitation. Figure 2 An example is that a user is at home, and the user's mobile phone, as a remote UE, can be directly connected to a low-frequency base station 1; in addition, the mobile phone is connected to a high-frequency base station 2 through devices such as customer premise equipment (CPE) at home.

[0079] In order to better describe the embodiments of the present application, the method provided by the embodiments of the present application is described below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. Unless otherwise specified in the following text, the steps indicated by dotted lines in the accompanying drawings corresponding to the various embodiments of the present application are all optional steps.

[0080] The methods provided in each embodiment of the present application can be applied to Figure 2 The network architecture shown in FIG. 1 is a network architecture shown in FIG. 1 . For example, the remote UE involved in each embodiment of the present application may be Figure 2 The remote UE in the present application; the first network device involved in each embodiment of the present application may be Figure 2 The base station 1 directly connected to the remote UE; the second network device involved in each embodiment of the present application may be Figure 2 The base station 2 directly connected to the relay UE, the first relay UE involved in each embodiment of the present application may be Figure 2 The relay UE in.

[0081] This application embodiment provides a communication method, see Figure 4 , which is a flow chart of the method.

[0082] S401: A first network device sends a first message to a second network device. Correspondingly, the second network device receives the first message from the first network device.

[0083] Optionally, before S401, the method may further include S402 to S404. In S402, the first network device sends a remote UE ( Figure 4The first network device sends measurement configuration information to the remote UE) and correspondingly, the remote UE receives the measurement configuration information from the first network device. The measurement configuration information is included in the RRC reconfiguration message, for example, and the measurement configuration information can be used to configure the remote UE to measure the relay UE. Optionally, if the first network device is a distributed architecture, for example, the first network device includes a CU and a DU, or includes a CU-CP, a CU-UP and a DU, the first network device sends measurement configuration information to the remote UE, specifically, the DU included in the first network device sends the measurement configuration information to the remote UE.

[0084] In S403, the remote UE measures one or more relay UEs. Figure 2 Take the first relayUE as an example. For example, the remote UE and one or more relay UEs perform a discovery process, during which one or more relay UEs may send a discovery message to the remote UE. The remote UE may then perform measurements based on the received discovery message, and the obtained measurement results may reflect the channel quality between the remote UE and the relay UE, for example, the measurement results may include one or more of SL-reference signal receiving power (RSRP), SL-reference signal receiving quality (RSRQ), or signal to interference plus noise ratio (SINR). Optionally, the discovery message from a relay UE may include information about the public land mobile network (PLMN) of the relay UE, and / or information about the PLMN supported by the cell where the relay UE is located.

[0085] In S404, the remote UE sends a measurement report to the first network device, and correspondingly, the first network device receives the measurement report from the remote UE. For example, when the remote UE meets the reporting condition configured by the measurement configuration information, the remote UE can send a measurement report to the first network device. The measurement report may include the identifiers of one or more relay UEs measured by the remote UE, and the measurement results corresponding to the one or more relay UEs. Optionally, the measurement report may also include information about the PLMNs of the one or more relay UEs, such as information about the service PLMNs of the one or more relay UEs. Since the relay UE and the remote UE may not necessarily serve the same PLMN, the second network device needs to query the context of the relay UE in multiple PLMNs supported by the second network device according to the ID of the relay UE. If the first network device sends the content in the measurement report to the second network device, since the information about the PLMN of the relay UE is provided to the second network device, the second network device can determine the context of the relay UE as soon as possible, thereby shortening the search process of the second network device.

[0086] Optionally, if the first network device is a distributed architecture, for example, the first network device includes a CU and / or a DU, or includes one or more of a CU-CP, a CU-UP, or a DU, when the first network device includes a DU, the first network device receives the measurement report from the remote UE, specifically, the DU included in the first network device receives the measurement report from the remote UE. Optionally, the first network device including the DU may also include a CU; or, the first network device including the DU may also include a CU-CP and / or a CU-UP.

[0087] If the first network device determines to add a non-direct path for the remote UE, the first network device may send a first message to the second network device. For example, the first network device determines to add a non-direct path for the remote UE based on the received measurement report, and the first network device may send a first message to the second network device. The first message may include information of the remote UE, or include information of the remote UE and information of candidate relay UEs. The number of candidate relay UEs may be one or more, and the one or more relay UEs may be within the coverage of the second network device. Among them, all of the relay UEs measured by the remote UE may be within the coverage of the second network device; or some of the relay UEs may be within the coverage of the second network device, while another part of the relay UEs may be outside the coverage of the second network device. In this case, for example, the first network device selects one or more relay UEs covered by the second network device and sends the first message to the second network device.

[0088] Optionally, the remote UE information included in the first message may include one or more of the following: information of the selected PLMN, the number of SL-logical channel identifications (LCID) available to the remote UE, the number of SL LCIDs occupied by the remote UE, the number of SLRLC channel identifications available to the remote UE, the number of SL RLC channel identifications occupied by the remote UE, discontinuous reception (DRX) information of the direct path between the remote UE and the first network device, information of the wireless bearer of the remote UE, SL RLC channel configuration requirement information of the remote UE, or delay margin information corresponding to the PC5 interface or SL between the remote UE and the relay UE (i.e., the PC5 interface or SL corresponding to the non-direct path to be configured). In various embodiments of the present application, the SL RLC channel identification is, for example, the SL RLC channel ID.

[0089] The information of the PLMN may include, for example, an identifier of the PLMN, such as a PLMN ID, or may also include other information of the PLMN, which is not limited. The selected PLMN may be, for example, a PLMN that the remote UE can support.

[0090] The SL LCID of the remote UE is the ID of the interface between the SL RLC entity and the MAC layer. In addition to performing relay-related communications, the first network device may also configure direct communications with other UEs for the remote UE, which will occupy part of the SL LCID of the remote UE. Or it can be understood that the number of SL RLC channels that the UE can support is limited, and the SL RLC channels configured for the direct communication of the remote UE occupy the SL RLC channels that the remote UE can configure at the same time. For a UE, the current number of configurable SL LCIDs is up to 512, so the first message may include the number of SL LCIDs of the remote UE and / or the number of SL LCIDs occupied by the remote UE, so that when the second network device configures the SL RLC channel of the non-direct path for the remote UE according to the first message, it can try not to exceed the available number of SLLCIDs.

[0091] The SL RLC channel identifier of the remote UE refers to the identifier of the SL RLC channel of the remote UE. In addition to performing relay-related communications, the first network device may also configure direct communications with other UEs for the remote UE, which will occupy part of the SL RLC channel identifiers of the remote UE. Or it can also be understood that the number of SL RLC channels that the UE can support is limited, and the SL RLC channel configured for the direct communication of the remote UE occupies the SL RLC channel that the remote UE can configure at the same time. For a UE, the current number of configurable SL RLC channel identifiers is up to 512, so the first message may include the number of SL RLC channel identifiers of the remote UE and / or the number of SL RLC channel identifiers occupied by the remote UE, so that when the second network device configures the SL RLC channel of the non-direct path for the remote UE according to the first message, it can try not to exceed the available number of SL RLC channel identifiers.

[0092] The DRX information of the direct path between the remote UE and the first network device can be used by the second network device to configure the PC5 interface of the non-direct path of the remote UE or the DRX of the SL. For example, the second network device can align the PC5 DRX (or SL DRX) of the non-direct path of the remote UE with the Uu DRX of the remote UE (i.e., the DRX of the direct path), so that the duration (on duration) of the remote UE PC5 DRX is aligned with the onduration of the Uu DRX of the remote UE, so that the remote UE only needs to wake up in the same time period for air interface transmission and SL transmission, which can reduce the time for the remote UE to wake up, save the power consumption of the remote UE, and reduce the complexity of the remote UE. Optionally, the DRX information may be included in the information of the wireless bearer of the remote UE. For example, the information of the wireless bearer includes the quality of service (QoS) information of the first wireless bearer, and the DRX information may be included in the QoS information; or, the DRX information and the information of the wireless bearer of the remote UE may be different information independent of each other.

[0093] The SL RLC channel configuration requirement information of the remote UE may include one or more of the following: association relationship information between the first radio bearer of the remote UE and at least one SL LCID of the remote UE, association relationship information between the first radio bearer of the remote UE and at least one SL RLC channel identifier of the remote UE, or association relationship information between a first number of radio bearers and a second number of SL RLC bearers (or SL RLC channels). The first number is the number of radio bearers configured for the non-direct path (for example, the first radio bearer includes a first number of radio bearers), and the radio bearers on the non-direct path are end-to-end radio bearers, which are radio bearers between the remote UE and the network device; the second number is the number of SL RLC channels associated with the remote UE and the first number of radio bearers. It can be understood that the SL RLC channel configuration requirement information can directly indicate a specific first radio bearer and at least one SL LCID, or indicate the first radio bearer and at least one SL RLC channel identifier, so that the second network device does not need to select the SL LCID or the SL RLC channel identifier, which can reduce the configuration complexity of the second network device; or, the SL RLC channel configuration requirement information can indicate the association between the number of radio bearers and the number of SL-RLC channels (or, the number of SL LCIDs, or the number of SL RLC channel identifiers), and the second network device can select the SL LCID or the SL RLC channel identifier according to the number, which has a certain configuration flexibility for the second network device, and the first message indicates the association between the quantities, which is conducive to reducing the transmission overhead of the first message. Among them, the first radio bearer may include one or more data radio bearers (DRB) and / or one or more signaling radio bearers (SRB), and the first radio bearer is a radio bearer configured for a non-direct path to be configured, and the first radio bearer can be indicated by indicating the identifier (e.g., ID) of the first radio bearer.

[0094] For example, the first message may include one or more of the number of SL LCIDs of the remote UE, the number of SL RLC channel identifiers of the remote UE, the number of SL LCIDs occupied by the remote UE, or the number of SL RLC channel identifiers occupied by the remote UE, but does not include the SL RLC channel configuration requirement information. The second network device may configure the association relationship information between the first wireless bearer and the SL LCID of the remote UE for the non-direct path, or configure the association relationship information between the first wireless bearer and the SL RLC channel identifier of the remote UE. Since the number of SL LCIDs of the remote UE, the number of SL RLC channel identifiers of the remote UE, the number of SL LCIDs occupied by the remote UE, or the number of SL RLC channel identifiers occupied by the remote UE are known, the second network device may configure the SL LCID (or SL RLC channel identifier) ​​for the non-direct path not more than the maximum number of SL LCIDs (or SL RLC channel identifiers) to ensure that the remote UE can communicate on the non-direct path. The second network device may configure the SL or PC5 interface between the remote UE and the relay UE according to the situation of the non-direct path. The second network device may determine the association between the radio bearer of the remote UE and the SL RLC channel between the remote UE and the relay UE, for example, supporting the first radio bearer (which may include at least one radio bearer) of the remote UE to multiplex a SL RLC channel between the remote UE and the relay UE.

[0095] Alternatively, the first message may include the SL RLC channel configuration requirement information, and the second network device may configure the association relationship information between the first radio bearer and the SL LCID of the remote UE for the non-direct path according to the SL RLC channel configuration requirement information. Optionally, in this case, since the SL RLC channel configuration requirement information provided by the first network device has ensured the configuration capability of the remote UE on the SL RLC bearer (or SL RLC channel) or SL LCID, the first message may not need to include the number of SL LCIDs of the remote UE and / or the number of SL LCIDs occupied by the remote UE. For example, if the SL RLC channel configuration requirement information includes the association relationship information between the first quantity and the second quantity, the second network device may determine the first number of radio bearers (e.g., the first radio bearer) configured for the non-direct path, select the second number of SL LCIDs for the non-direct path, and configure the association relationship between the first radio bearer and the second number of SL LCIDs, which has a certain configuration flexibility for the second network device. Among them, the first message may include information about the wireless bearer of the remote UE, and the information may indicate the first wireless bearer, so that the second network device can determine the first wireless bearer. This information will be introduced later. For another example, the SL RLC channel configuration requirement information includes the association relationship information between the first wireless bearer and at least one SL LCID, which is equivalent to the SL RLC channel configuration requirement information having indicated a specific wireless bearer and a specific SL LCID. Then the second network device only needs to configure the association relationship between the first wireless bearer and at least one SLLCID, and there is no need to determine the wireless bearer and select the SL LCID. This is relatively simple for the second network device to implement. In addition, the relay UE under the second network device may also have similar problems of insufficient SL RLC bearers (or SL RLC channels) or SL LCIDs. The second network device can determine the relay UE of the non-direct path based on the SL RLC channel configuration requirement information included in the first message. If all relay UEs or the relayUE selected by the second network device cannot meet the SL RLC channel configuration requirement information, the second network device may send a message to the first network device indicating a refusal to add a non-direct path for the remote UE, such as a second message. Optionally, the second message may indicate rejection information or a rejection reason, such as the second message carrying a rejection reason value, so that the first network device can clearly understand why the second network device refuses to add a non-direct path for the remote UE. For example, the first network device can take corresponding measures to solve the problem, thereby continuing to add a non-direct path for the remote UE.The SL LCID in the above example can also be replaced by the SL RLC channel identifier, which will not be repeated here.

[0096] The first message may include the delay margin information corresponding to the PC5 interface or SL between the remote UE and the relay UE, such as the delay budget. The delay margin indicated by the delay margin information is also the delay margin between the remote UE and the relay UE on the non-direct path. The second network device may configure the delay margin for the PC5 interface or SL according to the delay margin information. For example, the second network device may directly configure the delay margin corresponding to the delay margin information as the delay margin of the PC5 interface or SL. The first network device indicates the delay margin corresponding to the PC5 interface or SL, which can reduce the time for the second network device to determine the configuration information, improve the configuration efficiency, and simplify the configuration process of the second network device. Optionally, the second network device can also obtain the end-to-end QoS information of the first wireless bearer of the remote UE on the entire non-direct path through the first message, such as the information of the wireless bearer of the remote UE in the first message, and the information of the wireless bearer may include the QoS information of the first wireless bearer, and the QoS is the end-to-end QoS information of the first wireless bearer of the remote UE on the entire non-direct path. Therefore, the second network device can determine the delay information (or delay margin) that the Uu segment (i.e., between the relay UE and the second network device) of the first wireless bearer of the remote UE on the non-direct path needs to support, thereby determining the parameters required for the first wireless bearer of the remote UE and the Uu RLC channel, and further determine whether a new Uu RLC channel needs to be configured, or whether an association relationship with an existing Uu RLC channel needs to be configured.

[0097] Alternatively, the first message may not include the delay margin information corresponding to the PC5 interface or SL between the remote UE and the relay UE, but the first message includes the information of the wireless bearer of the remote UE, for example, the information of the wireless bearer includes the QoS information of the first wireless bearer of the remote UE, and the first wireless bearer is the wireless bearer configured for the non-direct path. Then the second network device can determine the delay margin information corresponding to the non-direct path according to the QoS information of the first wireless bearer. The delay margin indicated by the delay margin information is, for example, the delay margin between the remote UE and the second network device on the non-direct path. It can be seen that the delay margin includes the delay margin between the remote UE and the relay UE on the non-direct path, and the delay margin between the relay UE and the second network device on the non-direct path. The second network device can determine the delay margin between the relay UE and the second network device on the non-direct path by itself. Therefore, the second network device can configure the delay margin corresponding to the PC5 interface or SL between the remote UE and the relay UE for the remote UE according to the QoS information of the first wireless bearer and the delay margin between the relay UE and the second network device on the non-direct path. The second network device determines the QoS division (or the division of the delay margin) between the remote UE and the relay UE and between the relay UE and the second network device on the non-direct path according to the QoS information of the first wireless bearer, so that the existing Uu RLC channel of the relay UE can be more conveniently used, and the configuration is more flexible. In addition, in this case, the first message may not include the delay margin information corresponding to the PC5 interface or SL between the remote UE and the relay UE, which can save the transmission overhead of the first message.

[0098] The information of the radio bearer of the remote UE may include one or more of the following: an identifier of the first radio bearer configured for the non-direct path, Xn transport layer address information of the DRB of the PDCP entity of the remote UE located on the first network device, information used to indicate that the first radio bearer of the remote UE belongs to the non-direct path, information used to indicate that the first radio bearer of the remote UE belongs to the relay device group, type information of the SL RLC entity used by the remote UE in the non-direct path, information used to indicate whether the first radio bearer of the remote UE supports multi-path communication, information used to indicate whether the first radio bearer of the remote UE supports duplication transmission, or QoS information of the first radio bearer of the remote UE. For example, the information of the radio bearer of the remote UE may include an identifier of the first radio bearer configured for the non-direct path, and information used to indicate that the first radio bearer of the remote UE belongs to the non-direct path or information used to indicate that the first radio bearer of the remote UE belongs to the relay device group. For another example, the information of the wireless bearer of the remote UE may include the identifier of the first wireless bearer configured for the non-direct path, and the Xn transport layer address information of the DRB including the PDCP entity of the remote UE located on the first network device, and so on.

[0099] The first radio bearer has been introduced in the previous text. It is a radio bearer configured for the non-direct path to be configured, and may include one or more DRBs and / or one or more SRBs. The information of the radio bearer of the remote UE may include the identifiers of all the radio bearers included in the first radio bearer, so that the second network device can clearly know which radio bearers of the remote UE are configured for the non-direct path.

[0100] The SL RLC channel to which the data on a wireless bearer of a remote UE is transmitted is indicated by the Xn transport layer address information of the DRB of the PDCP entity corresponding to the wireless bearer located on the first network device. Therefore, the information of the wireless bearer of the remote UE may include the transport layer address information, and the second network device can determine the wireless bearer that needs to be transmitted through a non-direct connection based on the Xn transport layer address information.

[0101] The information of the radio bearer of the remote UE indicates, for example, that the first radio bearer belongs to the indirect path and / or indicates that the first radio bearer belongs to the relay device group, so that the second network device can determine that the first radio bearer is a radio bearer configured for the indirect path.

[0102] The type information of the SL RLC entity used by the remote UE in the non-direct path may indicate the type of the SL RLC entity. The type of the SL RLC entity may also be referred to as the mode of the SL RLC entity. For example, the mode of the SL RLC entity is acknowledged mode (AM), unidirectional unacknowledged mode (AM) or bidirectional UM, etc. According to the type information of the SL RLC entity, the second network device may configure a matching SL RLC mode in the PC5 or SL part of the remote UE and the relay UE included in the non-direct path, and in the Uu part between the relay UE and the second network device, to ensure that the transmission mode of the first wireless bearer on the second network device and the first network device is unified. Among them, the remote UE may use one or more SL RLC entities in the non-direct path, and the modes of different SL RLC entities in these one or more SL RLC entities may be the same or different.

[0103] The information of the radio bearer of the remote UE may indicate whether the first radio bearer supports multi-path communication. If the first radio bearer supports multi-path communication, the second network device may add the non-direct path for the remote UE, for example, configuring the PC5 interface or SL corresponding to the non-direct path for the remote UE; and if the first radio bearer does not support multi-path communication, the second network device may not add the non-direct path for the remote UE, for example, not executing S405 to be introduced later.

[0104] The information of the radio bearer of the remote UE may indicate whether the first radio bearer of the remote UE supports repeated transmission, and the repeated transmission is, for example, the repeated transmission mechanism of PDCP. If the first radio bearer supports repeated transmission, the indirect path and the direct path of the remote UE may transmit the same data (provided that the first radio bearer supports multi-path communication), for example, the data transmitted on one path is a copy of the data transmitted on another path; or, if the first radio bearer does not support repeated transmission, the indirect path and the direct path of the remote UE may transmit different data (provided that the first radio bearer supports multi-path communication). It can be seen that by indicating whether the first radio bearer of the remote UE supports repeated transmission, it is helpful to determine the data transmitted by the indirect path and the direct path.

[0105] The QoS information of the first wireless bearer of the remote UE can be used for the second network device to configure one or more of the following according to the QoS information: the SL DRX of the non-direct path, the PC5 interface corresponding to the non-direct path or the delay margin corresponding to the SL, or the SL RLC channel of the remote UE. The SL RLC channel may include the SLRLC channel used by the non-direct path. Optionally, the second network device can configure the SL DRX of the non-direct path in combination with the QoS information and the DRX information of the direct path between the remote UE and the first network device. For this, please refer to the previous introduction.

[0106] As described above, the first message may include information of the remote UE and / or information of the candidate relay UE. As the information of the remote UE has been introduced above, the information of the candidate relay UE will be introduced below. The number of candidate relay UEs may be one or more, and the information of the candidate relay UE may include information of the one or more relay UEs. For example, the first network device determines one or more relay UEs based on the measurement report from the remote UE, and the first message may include information of the one or more relay UEs. Among them, the information of any relay UE included in the first message may include the identifier of the relay UE and / or the identifier of the service PLMN of the relay UE. Since the information of the service PLMN of the relay UE is provided to the second network device, the second network device can determine the context of the relay UE as soon as possible, thereby shortening the search process of the second network device. Optionally, if the PLMN supported by the remote UE (e.g., selected PLMN) is different from the serving PLMN of the candidate relay UE, the first message may include the identifier of the serving PLMN of the candidate relay UE; and if the PLMN supported by the remote UE is the same as the serving PLMN of the candidate relay UE, the first message may not include the identifier of the serving PLMN of the candidate relay UE, and the second network device can determine that the identifier of the selected PLMN is the identifier of the serving PLMN of the candidate relay UE, thereby reducing the overhead of the first message. Optionally, if there are multiple candidate relay UEs, the serving PLMNs of these multiple relay UEs may be the same or different. If the serving PLMNs of different relay UEs are different, even if the serving PLMN of some of the relay UEs is the same as the selected PLMN, the first message may still include the identifier of the serving PLMN of each relay UE, so that the second network device can determine the serving PLMN of each relay UE.

[0107] Optionally, the first message may be an existing message, such as an S-node addition request message or an S-node modification request message, or other existing messages. Alternatively, the first message may also be a newly defined message in an embodiment of the present application, which is not specifically limited.

[0108] Optionally, if the first network device is a distributed architecture, for example, the first network device includes a CU and / or a DU, when the first network device includes a CU, the first network device sends a first message to the second network device, specifically, the CU included in the first network device sends the first message to the second network device. Optionally, the first network device including the CU may also include a DU.

[0109] For another example, the first network device may include one or more of CU-CP, CU-UP or DU. When the first network device includes CU-CP, the first network device sends a first message to the second network device, specifically, the CU-CP included in the first network device sends the first message to the second network device. Optionally, the first network device including CU-CP may also include CU-UP and / or DU.

[0110] Similarly, if the second network device is a distributed architecture, for example, the second network device includes a CU and / or a DU, when the second network device includes a CU, the second network device receives the first message from the first network device, specifically, the CU included in the second network device receives the first message from the first network device. Optionally, the second network device including the CU may also include a DU.

[0111] For another example, the second network device may include one or more of CU-CP, CU-UP or DU. When the second network device includes CU-CP, the second network device receives the first message from the first network device. Specifically, the CU-CP included in the second network device receives the first message from the first network device. Optionally, the first network device including CU-CP may also include CU-UP and / or DU.

[0112] S405. The second network device sends a second message to the first network device. Correspondingly, the first network device receives the first message from the second network device. If the second network device and / or the first network device is a distributed architecture, the sending or receiving method of the second message is similar to the sending or receiving method of the first message described above, and will not be described in detail.

[0113] The second message may include the first configuration information, and the first configuration information may configure the PC5 interface or SL corresponding to the non-direct path to be added by the remote UE. For example, after receiving the first message, the second network device may determine the first configuration information according to the content included in the first message, and the first configuration information may be used to configure the PC5 interface or SL corresponding to the non-direct path for the remote UE, and the second network device may send the first configuration information to the first network device. Among them, if the information of the candidate relay UE included in the first message indicates a relay UE, then the non-direct path refers to the path through which the remote UE is connected to the second network device through the relay UE, and the first configuration information can be used to configure the PC5 interface or SL between the remote UE and the relay UE, and the relay UE is, for example, the first relay UE; or, if the information of the candidate relay UE included in the first message indicates multiple relay UEs, the second network device can select a relay UE from them, for example, the first relay UE is selected, then the non-direct path refers to the path through which the remote UE is connected to the second network device through the first relay UE, and the first configuration information can be used to configure the PC5 interface or SL between the remote UE and the first relay UE. Optionally, the first configuration information may indicate the first relay UE at this time; or, if the first message does not include the information of the candidate relay UE, the second network device can select a relay UE, for example, the first relay UE is selected, then the non-direct path refers to the path through which the remote UE is connected to the second network device through the first relay UE. The path for the UE to connect to the second network device, the first configuration information can be used to configure the PC5 interface or SL between the remote UE and the first relay UE. Optionally, the first configuration information can indicate the first relay UE.

[0114] Optionally, the first configuration information includes one or more of the following: SRAP configuration information of the remote UE; or, SL RLC channel configuration information of the remote UE; or, SL physical layer configuration information of the remote UE; or, SLMAC layer configuration information of the remote UE.

[0115] The SRAP configuration information of the remote UE may include one or more of the following: the local ID of the remote UE under the first relay UE, the association relationship information between the first radio bearer of the remote UE and at least one SL LCID of the remote UE, or the association relationship information between the first radio bearer of the remote UE and at least one SL RLC channel identifier of the remote UE. Among them, the SRAP entity needs to maintain the localID of the remote UE under the first relay UE, so the first configuration information may include the local ID. Since the local ID is the unique identifier of the remote UE under the first relay UE, the local ID can be allocated by the second network device to effectively avoid confusion in the allocation of local IDs.

[0116] For example, the first message includes, for example, the number of SL LCIDs available to the remote UE or the number of SL LCIDs that have been occupied by the remote UE, and the second network device can determine the association relationship information between the first wireless bearer and the at least one SL LCID based on the number of available SL LCIDs or the number of occupied SL LCIDs. For example, the second network device can determine that the first wireless bearer is configured for the non-direct path based on the information of the wireless bearer of the remote UE included in the first message, and the second network device can associate at least one SL LCID for the first wireless bearer. Among them, the number of SL LCIDs associated with the first wireless bearer can be less than or equal to the number of SL LCIDs available to the remote UE, or the sum of the number of SL LCIDs associated with the first wireless bearer and the number of SL LCIDs that have been occupied by the remote UE can be less than or equal to the maximum number of SL LCIDs that can be configured for the remote UE, for example, the maximum number of SL LCIDs is 512. In addition, different wireless bearers included in the first wireless bearer can be associated with the SLRLC entity corresponding to the same SL LCID. Optionally, if the first message includes the number of SL LCIDs available to the remote UE or the number of SL LCIDs occupied by the remote UE, and the first message does not include the SL RLC channel configuration requirement information of the remote UE, the second network device can determine the association relationship information in the above manner. The SL LCID in the above example can also be replaced with an SLRLC channel identifier, which will not be repeated here.

[0117] In another example, the first message includes the SL RLC channel configuration requirement information of the remote UE, and the second network device can determine the association relationship information based on the SL RLC channel configuration requirement information. For example, the SL RLC channel configuration requirement information includes the association relationship information between the first quantity and the second quantity, and the second network device can determine to configure a first number of radio bearers for the non-direct path, for example, the second network device determines that the non-direct path is configured with a first radio bearer based on the information of the radio bearer of the remote UE in the first message, for example, the first radio bearer includes a first number of radio bearers. The second network device can select a second number of SL LCIDs for the non-direct path, and configure the association relationship between the first radio bearer and the second number of SL LCIDs. For another example, the SL RLC channel configuration requirement information includes the association relationship information between the first wireless bearer and at least one SL LCID (or SL RLC), which is equivalent to the SL RLC channel configuration requirement information having indicated a specific wireless bearer and a specific SL LCID. The second network device only needs to configure the association relationship between the first wireless bearer and the SL RLC entity corresponding to the at least one SL LCID. There is no need to determine the wireless bearer and select the SL LCID, which is relatively simple for the second network device to implement. The SL LCID in the above example can also be replaced by the SL RLC channel identifier, which will not be repeated here.

[0118] The SL RLC channel configuration information of the remote UE may include one or more of the following: configuration information of the SL RLC entity of the remote UE, SL MAC logical channel configuration information of the remote UE, or delay margin information corresponding to the PC5 interface or SL corresponding to the non-direct path. Among them, the SL MAC logical channel configuration information of the remote UE may be included in the SL RLC channel configuration information, or may also be included in the SL MAC layer configuration information of the remote UE.

[0119] For example, the first message includes delay margin information corresponding to the PC5 interface or SL between the remote UE and the relay UE, such as delay budget, then the second network device can configure the delay margin for the PC5 interface or SL based on the delay margin information. For example, the second network device can directly configure the delay margin corresponding to the delay margin information included in the first message as the delay margin of the PC5 interface or SL.

[0120] For another example, the first message may not include the delay margin information corresponding to the PC5 interface or SL between the remote UE and the relay UE, but the first message may include the information of the wireless bearer of the remote UE, for example, the information of the wireless bearer includes the QoS information of the first wireless bearer of the remote UE. Then the second network device can determine the delay margin information corresponding to the PC5 interface or SL of the non-direct path according to the QoS information of the first wireless bearer. For the determination method, please refer to the introduction in the previous text.

[0121] The SL MAC layer configuration information of the remote UE includes, for example, the SL DRX configuration information of the remote UE. For example, the second network device may determine the SL DRX configuration information according to the QoS information of the first wireless bearer of the remote UE included in the first message and / or the DRX information of the direct path of the remote UE. For example, if the first message includes the DRX information of the direct path of the remote UE, the second network device may align the SL DRX with the DRX of the direct path, so that the on duration of the SLDRX of the remote UE is aligned with the on duration of the Uu DRX, so that the remote UE only needs to wake up in the same time period for air interface transmission and SL transmission, which can reduce the time for the remote UE to wake up, save the power consumption of the remote UE, reduce the complexity of the remote UE, and reduce service delay.

[0122] Optionally, the second message may be an existing message, such as an S-node addition request acknowledgement message or an S-node modification request acknowledgement message, or other existing messages. Alternatively, the second message may also be a newly defined message in the embodiment of the present application, which is not specifically limited.

[0123] After receiving the first message, if the second network device determines that a non-direct path can be added for the remote UE, the aforementioned S405 can be executed. Alternatively, after receiving the first message, the second network device may not be able to add a non-direct path for the remote UE. In this case, the second message in S405 may not include the first configuration information, but may indicate a refusal to add a non-direct path for the remote UE. Optionally, the second message at this time may also indicate rejection information or rejection reasons, for example, the second message carries a rejection reason value to indicate the rejection reason, and the rejection reason is, for example, the reason why the candidate relay UE is unavailable. Optionally, if all the candidate relay UEs indicated by the first message are unavailable, the second network device may determine that a non-direct path cannot be added for the remote UE. For example, if a relay UE is overloaded, or a relay UE has a fault, or the second network device cannot communicate with a relay UE, or a relay UE currently cannot support the number of SL RLC channels supported by the first network device, etc., the relay UE can be considered unavailable. If the second message includes the first configuration information, the subsequent steps S406 and the like may continue to be executed; and if the second message indicates that an indirect path is rejected to be added for the remote UE, the subsequent steps S406 and the like may not be executed.

[0124] Optionally, if the second message indicates a refusal to add a non-direct path for the remote UE, the second message may be an existing message, such as an S-node addition request reject message or an S-node modification request reject message, or other existing messages. Alternatively, the second message may also be a newly defined message in an embodiment of the present application, which is not specifically limited.

[0125] S406: The first network device sends a third message to the remote UE. Correspondingly, the remote UE receives the third message from the first network device. Optionally, the third message is, for example, an RRC message, such as an RRC reconfiguration message, or may also be other RRC messages.

[0126] The third message may include second configuration information, and the second configuration information may be used to configure the non-direct path to be added, such as configuring the PC5 interface or SL corresponding to the non-direct path. After the first network device receives the first configuration information, it may send the second configuration information to the remote UE; after the remote UE receives the second configuration information, it may add the non-direct path according to the second configuration information, or configure the PC5 interface or SL corresponding to the non-direct path according to the second configuration information.

[0127] Optionally, the second configuration information may be generated based on the first configuration information. For example, the first network device may parse the second message, or parse the first configuration information, to generate the second configuration information based on the parsing result. This method of generating the second configuration information has certain flexibility for the first network device. The content indicated (or, included) by the second configuration information may be the same as the content indicated (or, included) by the first configuration information.

[0128] Alternatively, the second configuration information is the first configuration information, that is, the two are the same information. For example, the second message includes a first information element, and the first configuration information is included in the first information element. After receiving the second message, the second network device can directly add the first information element in the second message to a third message and send it to the remote UE. In this way, the second network device does not need to parse the first information element, which can simplify the processing process of the second network device. The first information element, for example, includes one or more containers, etc., and the specific form is not limited.

[0129] For reference Figure 5 , is a structural example of the third message, Figure 5 Take the third message as an example, that is, an RRC reconfiguration message, and Figure 5The information element in is all or part of the information elements included in the third message. It can be seen that the third message may include the SL-Layer 2 Remote UE (L2RemoteUE)-Configuration (Config) information element and the SL-Configuration Dedicated NR (ConfigDedicatedNR) information element. Among them, the SL-L2RemoteUE-Config information element may include the SL-SRAP-Configuration Remote (ConfigRemote) information element and the SL-UE Identity Remote (UEIdentityRemote) information element, and the SL-ConfigDedicatedNR information element may include the SL-RLC-Channel Configuration (ChannelConfig) information element. The SL-SRAP-ConfigRemote information element may include the SL-Local Identity (LocalIdentity) information element, the SL-Mapping to Add Mode List (MappingToAddModList) information element, and the SL-Mapping to Release List (MappingToReleaseList) information element. The SL-MappingToAddModList information element may include the SL-RemoteUE-RB-Identity information element and the SL-EgressRLC-ChannelPC5 (ChannelPC5) information element, and the SL-MappingToReleaseList information element may include the SL-RemoteUE-RB-Identity information element.

[0130] For example, the second configuration information includes SRAP configuration information of the remote UE, and the SRAP configuration information includes Figure 5 In the SL-L2RemoteUE-Config information element or SL-SRAP-ConfigRemote information element shown in the figure, the SL-L2RemoteUE-Config information element or SL-SRAP-ConfigRemote information element may be an information element directly obtained from the second message, or the SRAP configuration information may be information obtained by the second network device according to the first configuration information. For another example, the second message includes the SL RLC channel configuration information of the remote UE, and the SL RLC channel configuration information includes, for example, Figure 5 In the SL-RLC-ChannelConfig information element shown, the SL-RLC-ChannelConfig information element may be an information element directly obtained from the second message, or the SL RLC channel configuration information may be information obtained by the second network device based on the first configuration information.

[0131] Optionally, if the first network device is a distributed architecture, for example, the first network device includes a CU and / or a DU, or includes one or more of a CU-CP, a CU-UP, or a DU, when the first network device includes a DU, the first network device sends a third message to the remote UE, specifically, the DU included in the first network device sends the third message to the remote UE. Optionally, the first network device including the DU may further include a CU; or, the first network device including the DU may further include a CU-CP and / or a CU-UP.

[0132] If the remote UE has not established a PC5 connection with the first relay UE, then optionally, the method may further include S407, the remote UE establishing a connection with the first relay UE. For example, the connection is a PC5-signaling (S) connection. If the remote UE has established a connection with the first relay UE, S407 may not be performed.

[0133] If the first relay UE is still in the RRC non-connected state, the method may optionally further include S408 and S409. In S408, the remote UE triggers the first relay UE to enter the RRC connected state; in S409, the first relay UE enters the RRC connected state. For example, in S409, the first relay UE may establish (or re-establish) an RRC connection with the second network device to enter the RRC connected state. The RRC non-connected state may include, for example, an RRC idle state or an RRC inactive state. Optionally, in S408, the remote UE may send a trigger message to the first relay UE after successfully establishing a PC5 connection with the first relay UE to trigger the first relay UE to enter the RRC connected state.

[0134] Alternatively, in S408, the remote UE may send a trigger message to the first relay UE during the process of establishing a PC5 connection with the first relay UE, so as to trigger the first relay UE to enter the RRC connection state. For example, the remote UE may have information interaction during the process of establishing a PC5 connection with the first relay UE, and the remote UE may carry the trigger message in any of the messages, so as to trigger the first relay UE to enter the RRC connection state.

[0135] Alternatively, in S408, the remote UE may also send trigger information to the first relay UE when requesting to establish a PC5 connection with the first relay UE, so as to trigger the first relay UE to enter the RRC connection state. For example, the remote UE may send a connection establishment request to the first relay UE to request to establish a PC5 connection with the first relay UE, and the connection establishment request may include the trigger information.

[0136] Alternatively, the first relay UE may also enter the RRC connected state in other triggering modes, in which case it is not necessary to execute S408 and there is no restriction on this.

[0137] If the first relay UE has entered the RRC connected state, it is not necessary to execute S408 and S409.

[0138] Optionally, the method may further include S410, the remote UE sends a fifth message to the first network device, and accordingly, the first network device receives the fifth message from the remote UE. The fifth message may indicate that the addition of the non-direct path is completed or successfully added. For example, if the third message is an RRC reconfiguration message, the fifth message may be an RRC reconfiguration complete message. Among them, the fifth message may be sent directly to the first network device; or, the fifth message may also be transmitted to the second network device through the relay UE, and then transmitted to the first network device through the second network device, and there is no limitation here. If S409 is executed, S410 may occur after S409, or before S409, or simultaneously with S409. If S408 is executed, S410 may occur after S408.

[0139] Optionally, if the first network device is a distributed architecture, for example, the first network device includes a CU and / or a DU, or includes one or more of a CU-CP, a CU-UP, or a DU, when the first network device includes a DU, the remote UE sends the fifth message to the first network device, specifically, the remote UE sends the fifth message to the DU included in the first network device. Optionally, the first network device including the DU may further include a CU; or, the first network device including the DU may further include a CU-CP and / or a CU-UP.

[0140] Optionally, the method may also include S411, the second network device sends a fourth message to the first relay UE, and accordingly, the first relay UE may receive the fourth message from the second network device. The fourth message may include third configuration information, and the third configuration information may be used to configure the PC5 interface or SL of the first relay UE corresponding to the non-direct path. That is, the second configuration information and the third configuration information are both used to configure the non-direct path to be added, the second configuration information is used to configure the PC5 interface or SL of the remoteUE corresponding to the non-direct path, and the third configuration information is used to configure the PC5 interface or SL of the first relay UE corresponding to the non-direct path. The third configuration information can be obtained based on the first configuration information, and the way the first network device determines the third configuration information may be similar to the way it determines the first configuration information. Please refer to the previous text and do not elaborate on it. Optionally, if the second network device is a distributed architecture, for example, the second network device includes a CU and / or and a DU, or includes one or more of a CU-CP, a CU-UP, or a DU, when the second network device includes a DU, the second network device sends a fourth message to the first relay UE, specifically, the DU included in the second network device sends the fourth message to the first relay UE. Optionally, the second network device including the DU may further include a CU; or, the second network device including the DU may further include a CU-CP and / or a CU-UP.

[0141] Please refer to Figure 6 , which is a schematic diagram of a protocol stack applicable to an embodiment of the present application. Figure 6 It includes a protocol stack of a remote UE, a relay UE (e.g., a protocol stack of a first relay UE), a protocol stack of a first network device, and a protocol stack of a second network device. The direct path of the remote UE can be configured by the first network device, the direct path of the relay UE can be configured by the second network device, and the portion of the indirect path of the remote UE between the remote UE and the relay UE (i.e., the PC5 interface or SL corresponding to the indirect path) can be configured by negotiation between the first network device and the second network device.

[0142] Through the method described above, the remote UE adds a non-direct path, and the remote UE can communicate with the second network device through the non-direct path. In addition, the remote UE can also communicate with the first network device through the direct path, so that the remote UE can obtain more services, which is conducive to improving the throughput of the remote UE.

[0143] In an embodiment of the present application, the first network device directly connected to the remote UE and the second network device indirectly connected thereto can interact, so that the second network device can obtain information about the remote UE from the first network device, and the first network device can obtain information for configuring the non-direct path of the remote UE from the second network device, so that the non-direct path of the remote UE can be configured according to the interaction result of the network devices, for example, the PC5 interface or SL corresponding to the non-direct path is configured, so that the remote UE can work in a multi-path scenario between base stations. Moreover, the first network device can also provide more content to the second network device, for example, the first network device can provide the second network device with the delay margin information of the PC5 interface or SL corresponding to the non-direct path of the remote UE and / or the SL RLC channel configuration requirement information of the remote UE, etc., which is conducive to the first network device to better control the transmission of the remote UE on the SL.

[0144] Figure 7 A schematic diagram of the structure of a communication device provided in an embodiment of the present application is given. The communication device 700 may be Figure 4 The first network device or the circuit system of the first network device described in the embodiment shown is used to implement the method corresponding to the first network device in the above method embodiment. Alternatively, the communication device 700 may be Figure 4 The second network device or the circuit system of the second network device described in the embodiment shown is used to implement the method corresponding to the second network device in the above method embodiment. For example, one circuit system is a chip system.

[0145] The communication device 700 includes at least one processor 701. The processor 701 can be used for internal processing of the device to implement certain control processing functions. Optionally, the processor 701 includes instructions. Optionally, the processor 701 can store data. Optionally, different processors can be independent devices, can be located in different physical locations, and can be located on different integrated circuits. Optionally, different processors can be integrated into one or more processors, for example, integrated on one or more integrated circuits.

[0146] Optionally, the communication device 700 includes one or more memories 703 for storing instructions. Optionally, data may also be stored in the memory 703. The processor and memory may be provided separately or integrated together.

[0147] Optionally, the communication device 700 includes a communication line 702 and at least one communication interface 704. Since the memory 703, the communication line 702 and the communication interface 704 are all optional, Figure 7Indicated by dotted lines.

[0148] Optionally, the communication device 700 may further include a transceiver and / or an antenna. The transceiver may be used to send information to other devices or receive information from other devices. The transceiver may be referred to as a transceiver, a transceiver circuit, an input / output interface, etc., and is used to implement the transceiver function of the communication device 700 through an antenna. Optionally, the transceiver includes a transmitter and a receiver. Exemplarily, the transmitter may be used to generate a radio frequency signal from a baseband signal, and the receiver may be used to convert the radio frequency signal into a baseband signal.

[0149] The processor 701 may include a general-purpose central processing unit (CPU), a microprocessor, an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), or one or more integrated circuits for controlling the execution of the program of the present application.

[0150] The communication link 702 may include a pathway to transmit information between the above-mentioned components.

[0151] The communication interface 704 uses any transceiver-like device for communicating with other devices or communication networks, such as Ethernet, radio access network (RAN), wireless local area networks (WLAN), wired access networks, etc.

[0152] The memory 703 may be a read-only memory (ROM) or other types of static storage devices that can store static information and instructions, a random access memory (RAM) or other types of dynamic storage devices that can store information and instructions, or an electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), a compact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM) or other optical disc storage, optical disc storage (including compressed optical disc, laser disc, optical disc, digital versatile disc, Blu-ray disc, etc.), a magnetic disk storage medium or other magnetic storage device, or any other medium that can be used to carry or store the desired program code in the form of instructions or data structures and can be accessed by a computer, but is not limited thereto. The memory 703 may exist independently and be connected to the processor 701 via the communication line 702. Alternatively, the memory 703 may also be integrated with the processor 701.

[0153] The memory 703 is used to store computer-executable instructions for executing the solution of the present application, and the execution is controlled by the processor 701. The processor 701 is used to execute the computer-executable instructions stored in the memory 703, thereby realizing Figure 4 The steps performed by the first network device or the second network device in the illustrated embodiment.

[0154] Optionally, the computer-executable instructions in the embodiments of the present application may also be referred to as application code, which is not specifically limited in the embodiments of the present application.

[0155] In a specific implementation, as an embodiment, the processor 701 may include one or more CPUs, such as Figure 7 CPU0 and CPU1 in.

[0156] In a specific implementation, as an embodiment, the communication device 700 may include multiple processors, such as Figure 7 701 and processor 705 in the embodiment of the present invention. Each of these processors may be a single-CPU processor or a multi-CPU processor. The processor herein may refer to one or more devices, circuits, and / or processing cores for processing data (e.g., computer program instructions).

[0157] when Figure 7When the device shown is a chip, for example, a chip of a first network device or a chip of a second network device, the chip includes a processor 701 (may also include a processor 705), a communication line 702 and a communication interface 704, and optionally, the chip may include a memory 703. Specifically, the communication interface 704 may be an input interface, a pin or a circuit, etc. The memory 703 may be a register, a cache, etc. The processor 701 and the processor 705 may be a general-purpose CPU, a microprocessor, an ASIC, or one or more integrated circuits for controlling the execution of the program of the communication method of any of the above embodiments.

[0158] The embodiment of the present application can divide the functional modules of the device according to the above method example. For example, each functional module can be divided according to each function, or two or more functions can be integrated into one processing module. The above integrated modules can be implemented in the form of hardware or in the form of software functional modules. It should be noted that the division of modules in the embodiment of the present application is schematic and is only a logical functional division. There may be other division methods in actual implementation. For example, in the case of dividing each functional module according to each function, Figure 8 A schematic diagram of a device is shown, and the device 800 may be the first network device or the second network device involved in the above-mentioned various method embodiments, or a chip in the first network device or a chip in the second network device. The device 800 includes a sending unit 801, a processing unit 802 and a receiving unit 803.

[0159] It should be understood that the device 800 can be used to implement the steps performed by the first network device or the second network device in the communication method of the embodiment of the present application, and the relevant features can refer to the above Figure 4 The embodiments shown will not be described in detail here.

[0160] Optional, Figure 8 The functions / implementation processes of the sending unit 801, the receiving unit 803 and the processing unit 802 can be Figure 7 The processor 701 in the embodiment calls the computer execution instruction stored in the memory 703 to implement. Or, Figure 8 The function / implementation process of the processing unit 802 in Figure 7 The processor 701 in the embodiment calls the computer execution instruction stored in the memory 703 to implement, Figure 8 The functions / implementation processes of the sending unit 801 and the receiving unit 803 can be Figure 7 The communication interface 704 in is implemented.

[0161] Optionally, when the device 800 is a chip or a circuit, the functions / implementation processes of the sending unit 801 and the receiving unit 803 can also be implemented through pins or circuits.

[0162] The present application also provides a computer-readable storage medium, which stores a computer program or instruction. When the computer program or instruction is run, the method performed by the first network device or the second network device in the aforementioned method embodiment is implemented. In this way, the functions described in the above embodiments can be implemented in the form of software functional units and sold or used as independent products. Based on such an understanding, the technical solution of the present application can be essentially or in other words, the part that contributes or the part of the technical solution can be embodied in the form of a software product, which is stored in a storage medium, including several instructions to enable a computer device (which can be a personal computer, a server, or a network device, etc.) to perform all or part of the steps of the method described in each embodiment of the present application. The storage medium includes: various media that can store program codes, such as a USB flash drive, a mobile hard disk, a ROM, a RAM, a magnetic disk, or an optical disk.

[0163] The present application also provides a computer program product, which includes: a computer program code, when the computer program code is executed on a computer, the computer executes the method executed by the first network device or the second network device in any of the aforementioned method embodiments.

[0164] An embodiment of the present application also provides a processing device, including a processor and an interface; the processor is used to execute the method executed by the first network device or the second network device involved in any of the above method embodiments.

[0165] In the above embodiments, it can be implemented in whole or in part by software, hardware, firmware or any combination thereof. When implemented using software, it can be implemented in whole or in part 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, the process or function described in the embodiment of the present application is generated in whole or in part. The computer may be a general-purpose computer, a special-purpose computer, a computer network, or other programmable device. The computer instructions may be stored in a computer-readable storage medium, or transmitted from one computer-readable storage medium to another computer-readable storage medium, for example, the computer instructions may be transmitted from a website site, computer, server or data center by wired (e.g., coaxial cable, optical fiber, digital subscriber line (DSL)) or wireless (e.g., infrared, wireless, microwave, etc.) mode to another website site, computer, server or data center. The computer-readable storage medium may be any available medium that a computer can access or a data storage device such as a server or data center that includes one or more available media integrated. The available medium may be a magnetic medium, (e.g., a floppy disk, a hard disk, a tape), an optical medium (e.g., a DVD), or a semiconductor medium (e.g., a solid state disk (SSD)), etc.

[0166] The various illustrative logic units and circuits described in the embodiments of the present application can be implemented or operated by a general-purpose processor, a digital signal processor (DSP), an ASIC, a field-programmable gate array (FPGA), or other programmable logic devices, discrete gates or transistor logic, discrete hardware components, or any combination of the above. The general-purpose processor can be a microprocessor, and optionally, the general-purpose processor can also be any conventional processor, controller, microcontroller or state machine. The processor can also be implemented by a combination of computing devices, such as a digital signal processor and a microprocessor, a plurality of microprocessors, one or more microprocessors combined with a digital signal processor core, or any other similar configuration.

[0167] The steps of the method or algorithm described in the embodiments of the present application can be directly embedded in the hardware, the software unit executed by the processor, or the combination of the two. The software unit can be stored in RAM, flash memory, ROM, erasable programmable read-only memory (erasable programmable read-only memory, EPROM), EEPROM, register, hard disk, removable disk, CD-ROM or other storage media of any form in the art. Exemplarily, the storage medium can be connected to the processor so that the processor can read information from the storage medium and can write information to the storage medium. Optionally, the storage medium can also be integrated into the processor. The processor and the storage medium can be arranged in an ASIC, and the ASIC can be arranged in a terminal device. Optionally, the processor and the storage medium can also be arranged in different components in the terminal device.

[0168] These computer program instructions can also be loaded onto a computer or other programmable data processing device so that a series of operating steps are executed on the computer or other programmable device to produce a computer-implemented process, thereby providing instructions for implementing the process. Figure 1 A process or multiple processes and / or boxes Figure 1 A step that specifies a function in one or more boxes.

[0169] The contents of the various embodiments of the present application may refer to each other. If there is no special explanation and logical conflict, the terms and / or descriptions between different embodiments are consistent and can be referenced to each other. The technical features in different embodiments can be combined to form new embodiments according to their internal logical relationships.

[0170] It is understandable that in the embodiment of the present application, the first network device and / or the second network device can perform some or all of the steps in the embodiment of the present application, and these steps or operations are only examples. In the embodiment of the present application, other operations or variations of various operations can also be performed. In addition, each step can be performed in a different order presented in the embodiment of the present application, and it is possible that not all operations in the embodiment of the present application need to be performed.

Claims

1. A communication method, characterized in that: Applied to a first network device, the method comprises: Sending a first message to a second network device, wherein the first message includes information of a remote device, or includes information of a remote device and information of a candidate relay device, wherein a direct connection path exists between the remote device and the first network device, and the number of the candidate relay devices is one or more; receiving a second message from the second network device, the second message including first configuration information, the first configuration information being used to configure a side link corresponding to a non-direct path to be added by the remote device, the non-direct path being a path through which the remote device is connected to the second network device via a first relay device among the candidate relay devices; A third message is sent to the remote device, wherein the third message includes second configuration information, wherein the second configuration information is used to configure the sidelink, and wherein the second configuration information is determined based on the first configuration information.

2. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that The information of the remote device includes one or more of the following: An identifier of a public land mobile network PLMN supported by the remote device; Information about the radio bearer of the remote device; Discontinuous reception (DRX) information of the direct path; The number of sidelink SL logical channel identifiers LCIDs available to the remote device or the number of occupied SL LCIDs; The number of sidelink SL RLC channel identifiers available to the remote device or the number of occupied SL RLC channel identifiers; SL radio link control RLC channel configuration requirement information of the remote device; or, The delay margin information corresponding to the side link.

3. The method according to claim 2, characterized in that The information of the radio bearer of the remote device includes one or more of the following: an identifier of a first radio bearer configured for the indirect path, where the first radio bearer includes a data radio bearer and / or a signaling radio bearer; The Xn transport layer address information of the data radio bearer of the Packet Data Convergence Protocol (PDCP) entity of the remote device located on the first network device; Information used to indicate that the first radio bearer of the remote device belongs to the indirect connection path; Information used to indicate that the first radio bearer of the remote device belongs to a relay device group; Type information of the SL RLC entity used by the remote device on the indirect path; Information used to indicate whether the first radio bearer of the remote device supports multipath communication; Information used to indicate whether the first radio bearer of the remote device supports repeated transmission; or, Quality of service (QoS) information of the first radio bearer of the remote device.

4. The method according to claim 2 or 3, characterized in that: The SL RLC channel configuration requirement information of the remote device includes: association relationship information between a first radio bearer of the remote device and at least one SL LCID of the remote device, wherein the first radio bearer is a radio bearer configured for the indirect path; or association relationship information between a first radio bearer of the remote device and at least one SL RLC channel identifier of the remote device, wherein the first radio bearer is a radio bearer configured for the indirect path; or, The association relationship information between the first quantity and the second quantity, the first quantity is the number of radio bearers configured for the non-direct path, and the second quantity is the number of SL RLC channels of the remote device associated with the first number of radio bearers.

5. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that: The information of the candidate relay device includes an identifier of the candidate relay device and / or an identifier of a serving PLMN of the candidate relay device.

6. The method according to claim 5, characterized in that When the PLMN supported by the remote device is different from the service PLMN of the candidate relay device, the information of the candidate relay device includes an identifier of the service PLMN of the candidate relay device; or, When the PLMN supported by the remote device is the same as the serving PLMN of the candidate relay device, the information of the candidate relay device does not include an identifier of the serving PLMN of the candidate relay device.

7. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that: The first configuration information includes one or more of the following: Sidelink Relay Adaptation Protocol SRAP configuration information of the remote device; SL RLC channel configuration information of the remote device; SL physical layer configuration information of the remote device; or, SL media access control MAC layer configuration information of the remote device.

8. The method according to claim 7, characterized in that The SRAP configuration information includes: The local identifier of the remote device under the first relay device; and / or, The association relationship information between the first radio bearer of the remote device and at least one SL LCID of the remote device, or the association relationship information between the first radio bearer of the remote device and at least one SL RLC channel identifier of the remote device, wherein the first radio bearer is a radio bearer configured for the non-direct path.

9. The method according to claim 8, characterized in that The information of the remote device includes SL RLC channel configuration requirement information of the remote device, wherein the association relationship information between the first wireless bearer of the remote device and at least one SL LCID of the remote device, or the association relationship information between the first wireless bearer of the remote device and at least one SL RLC channel identifier of the remote device, is determined based on the SL RLC channel configuration requirement information.

10. The method according to any one of claims 7 to 9, characterized in that: The SL RLC channel configuration information includes one or more of the following: Configuration information of the SL RLC entity of the remote device; SL MAC logical channel configuration information of the remote device; or, The delay margin information corresponding to the side link.

11. The method according to claim 10, characterized in that The delay margin information corresponding to the side link is information included in the information of the remote device.

12. The method according to any one of claims 7 to 11, characterized in that: The SL MAC layer configuration information includes SL DRX configuration information of the remote device.

13. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 12, characterized in that: The second message includes a first information element, the first configuration information is included in the first information element, the third message includes the first information element, and the second configuration information is the first configuration information; or, The second configuration information is generated according to the first configuration information.

14. A communication method, characterized in that: Applied to the second network device, the method comprises: Receiving a first message from a first network device, the first message including information of a remote device, or including information of a remote device and information of a candidate relay device, wherein a direct connection path exists between the remote device and the first network device, and the number of the candidate relay devices is one or more; A second message is sent to the first network device according to the first message, the second message includes first configuration information, the first configuration information is used to configure a side link corresponding to the non-direct path to be added by the remote device, the non-direct path is a link connecting the remote device to the second network device through a first relay device among the candidate relay devices.

15. The method according to claim 14, characterized in that The information of the remote device includes one or more of the following: The identifier of the PLMN supported by the remote device; Information about the radio bearer of the remote device; DRX information of the direct path; The number of SL LCIDs available or occupied by the remote device; The number of SL RLC channel identifiers available to the remote device or the number of SL RLC channel identifiers occupied SL RLC channel configuration requirement information of the remote device; or, The delay margin information corresponding to the side link.

16. The method according to claim 15, characterized in that The information of the radio bearer of the remote device includes one or more of the following: an identifier of a first radio bearer configured for the indirect path, where the first radio bearer includes a data radio bearer and / or a signaling radio bearer; The Xn transport layer address information of the data radio bearer of the PDCP entity of the remote device located on the first network device; Information used to indicate that the first radio bearer of the remote device belongs to the indirect connection path; Information used to indicate that the first radio bearer of the remote device belongs to a relay device group; Type information of the SL RLC entity used by the remote device on the indirect path; Information used to indicate whether the first radio bearer of the remote device supports multipath communication; Information used to indicate whether the first radio bearer of the remote device supports repeated transmission; or, QoS information of the first radio bearer of the remote device.

17. The method according to claim 15 or 16, characterized in that The SL RLC channel configuration requirement information of the remote device includes: association relationship information between a first radio bearer of the remote device and at least one SL LCID of the remote device, wherein the first radio bearer is a radio bearer configured for the indirect path; or association relationship information between a first radio bearer of the remote device and at least one SL RLC channel identifier of the remote device, wherein the first radio bearer is a radio bearer configured for the indirect path; or, The association relationship information between the first quantity and the second quantity, the first quantity is the number of radio bearers configured for the non-direct path, and the second quantity is the number of SL RLC channels of the remote device associated with the first number of radio bearers.

18. The method according to any one of claims 14 to 17, characterized in that: The information of the candidate relay device includes an identifier of the candidate relay device and / or an identifier of a serving PLMN of the candidate relay device.

19. The method according to claim 18, characterized in that When the PLMN supported by the remote device is different from the service PLMN of the candidate relay device, the information of the candidate relay device includes an identifier of the service PLMN of the candidate relay device; or, When the PLMN supported by the remote device is the same as the serving PLMN of the candidate relay device, the information of the candidate relay device does not include an identifier of the serving PLMN of the candidate relay device.

20. The method according to any one of claims 14 to 19, characterized in that: The first configuration information includes one or more of the following: SRAP configuration information of the remote device; SL RLC channel configuration information of the remote device; SL physical layer configuration information of the remote device; or, SL MAC layer configuration information of the remote device.

21. The method according to claim 20, characterized in that The SRAP configuration information includes: The local identifier of the remote device under the first relay device; and / or, The association relationship information between the first radio bearer of the remote device and at least one SL LCID of the remote device, or the association relationship information between the first radio bearer of the remote device and at least one SL RLC channel identifier of the remote device, wherein the first radio bearer is a radio bearer configured for the non-direct path.

22. The method according to claim 21, characterized in that The information of the remote device includes the number of SL LCIDs available or the number of occupied SL LCIDs of the remote device, and the association relationship information between the first radio bearer of the remote device and at least one SL LCID of the remote device is determined according to the number of SL LCIDs available or the number of occupied SL LCIDs of the remote device; or The information of the remote device includes the number of SL RLC channel identifiers available to the remote device or the number of occupied SL RLC channel identifiers, and the association relationship information between the first wireless bearer of the remote device and at least one SL RLC channel identifier of the remote device is determined based on the number of SL RLC channel identifiers available to the remote device or the number of occupied SL RLC channel identifiers.

23. A communication method, characterized in that: The method comprises: The first network device sends a first message to the second network device, where the first message includes information of a remote device, or includes information of the remote device and information of a candidate relay device, wherein a direct connection path exists between the remote device and the first network device, and the number of the candidate relay devices is one or more; The second network device receives the first message and sends a second message to the first network device based on the first message, the second message including first configuration information, the first configuration information being used to configure a side link corresponding to a non-direct path to be added by the remote device, the non-direct path being a path through which the remote device connects to the second network device via a first relay device among the candidate relay devices.

24. The method according to claim 23, characterized in that The method further comprises: The first network device sends a third message to the remote device, where the third message includes second configuration information, where the second configuration information is used to configure the sidelink, and where the second configuration information is determined based on the first configuration information.

25. A communication device, characterized in that: The communication device comprises a processing unit and a transceiver unit, wherein the processing unit is coupled to the transceiver unit to execute the method according to any one of claims 1 to 13, or execute the method according to any one of claims 14 to 22.

26. A communication device, characterized in that: The communication device includes a processor and a memory, the memory is used to store a computer program, and the processor is used to execute the computer program stored in the memory, so that the communication device performs the method as described in any one of claims 1 to 13, or the communication device performs the method as described in any one of claims 14 to 22.

27. A computer-readable storage medium, characterized in that: The computer-readable storage medium is used to store a computer program, and when the computer program is run on a computer, the computer is caused to execute the method according to any one of claims 1 to 13, or the computer is caused to execute the method according to any one of claims 14 to 22.

28. A computer program product, characterized in that The computer program product comprises a computer program, and when the computer program is run on a computer, the computer is caused to execute the method according to any one of claims 1 to 13, or the computer is caused to execute the method according to any one of claims 14 to 22.

29. A chip system, characterized in that: The chip system comprises: A processor and an interface, wherein the processor is used to call and run instructions from the interface, and when the processor executes the instructions, the method according to any one of claims 1 to 13 is implemented, or the method according to any one of claims 14 to 22 is implemented.

30. A communication system, characterized in that: The communication system comprises a first network device and a second network device, wherein: The first network device is used to execute the method according to any one of claims 1 to 13; The second network device is used to execute the method according to any one of claims 14 to 22.

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