Communication method and device

Abstract

A communication method and device, the method comprising: when a webmaster allocates an IP address to an IAB node, the IAB node can report the IP address allocated to the IAB node by the webmaster to a donor-CU, the donor-CU obtains a BAP address of a donor-DU associated with the IP address, and sends the corresponding BAP address to the IAB node, so that the IAB node can obtain the BAP address of the donor-DU associated with the IP address, and the BAP address of the donor-DU associated with the IP address is sent to the IAB node. Therefore, the correct transmission of uplink data is ensured.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The embodiments of the present application relate to the field of communication technology, and in particular, to a communication method and device. Background Art

[0002] Compared with the fourth generation (4G) mobile communication system, the fifth generation (5G) mobile communication system has put forward more stringent requirements for various network performance indicators. For example, the capacity is increased by 1,000 times, the coverage requirements are wider, and the ultra-high reliability and low latency are required. On the one hand, considering the rich high-frequency wave frequency resources, in hot spots, in order to meet the ultra-high capacity requirements of 5G, the use of high-frequency small base stations to form a network is becoming more and more popular. The propagation characteristics of high-frequency carriers are poor, the attenuation is serious due to obstruction, and the coverage range is not wide, so a large number of small base stations need to be deployed densely. Correspondingly, the cost of providing optical fiber backhaul for these large and densely deployed small base stations is very high, and the construction is difficult, so an economical and convenient backhaul solution is needed. On the other hand, from the perspective of wide coverage requirements, in order to provide network coverage in some remote areas, the deployment of optical fiber is difficult and costly, and flexible and convenient access and backhaul solutions also need to be designed. Integrated access and backhaul (IAB) technology provides a solution to the above two problems: its access link (AL) and backhaul link (BL) both use wireless transmission solutions, reducing the deployment of optical fibers. In IAB technology, how the IAB node obtains the backhaul adaptation protocol (BAP) address of the donor-distributed unit (DU) associated with the Internet protocol (IP) address is a research direction. Summary of the invention

[0003] The embodiments of the present application provide a communication method and apparatus, so that an IAB node can obtain a BAP address of a donor-DU associated with an IP address.

[0004] In a first aspect, a communication device is provided, wherein the execution subject of the method is an IAB node, or a module (e.g., a chip or circuit, etc.) in the IAB node, and taking the IAB node as the execution subject as an example, the method comprises: the IAB node receives first information from a network manager, the first information comprises an Internet Protocol IP address assigned by the network manager to the IAB node; the IAB node sends second information to a donor-CU, a centralized unit of a host node, and the second information comprises an IP address; the IAB node receives third information from the donor-CU, the third information comprises a backhaul link adaptation layer protocol BAP address, and the BAP address is a BAP address of a distributed unit of a host node, donor-DU, associated with the IP address. Optionally, the network manager may perform OAM for the operation management and maintenance of the IAB node.

[0005] Through the above design, when the network manager assigns an IP address to the IAB node, the IAB node can report the IP address assigned by the network manager to the donor-CU, and the donor-CU obtains the BAP address of the donor-DU associated with the IP address, and sends the corresponding BAP address to the IAB node, so that the IAB node can obtain the BAP address of the donor-CU associated with the IP address.

[0006] In one design, it also includes: the IAB node determines a BAP routing identifier corresponding to the uplink data, the BAP routing identifier includes a BAP address; the IAB node determines an IP address associated with the BAP address based on third information; the IAB node uses the IP address as a source IP address of the uplink data; and the IAB node sends the uplink data to the donor-CU.

[0007] Through the above design, in uplink data transmission: the IAB node can select an IP address from at least one configured IP address as the source IP address of the uplink data based on the BAP address of the target node included in the BAP routing identifier, where the BAP address of the target node may be the BAP address of the donor-DU, thereby ensuring the correct transmission of the uplink data.

[0008] The second aspect is the donor-CU side corresponding to the first aspect. The beneficial effects can be found in the description of the first aspect. A communication method is provided. The execution subject of the method is the donor-CU, or a module in the donor-CU (such as a chip or circuit, etc.). Taking the donor-CU as the execution subject as an example, the method includes the donor-CU receiving second information from the IAB node, the second information including an Internet Protocol IP address, and the IP address is the IP address assigned by the network management to the IAB node; the donor-CU sends third information to the IAB node, the third information including a backhaul link adaptation layer protocol BAP address, and the BAP address is the BAP address of the host node distributed unit donor-DU associated with the IP address.

[0009] In one design, the method further includes: the donor-CU obtains the association relationship between the donor-DU and the IP address; the donor-CU determines the donor-DU associated with the IP address based on the association relationship between the donor-DU and the IP address; the donor-CU determines the BAP address of the donor-DU as the BAP address. Optionally, after the donor-CU determines the BAP address of the donor-DU, the BAP address may be sent to the donor-DU.

[0010] In one design, the donor-CU obtains the association relationship between the donor-DU and the IP address, including: the donor-CU sends fourth information to at least one donor-DU it manages, the fourth information is used to request the donor-DU for the IP address associated with it; the donor-CU receives fifth information from the donor-DU, the fifth information includes the IP address associated with it reported by the donor-DU; the donor-CU determines the association relationship between the donor-DU and the IP address based on the fifth information and the second information.

[0011] In one design, the donor-CU obtains the association relationship between the donor-DU and the IP address, including: the donor-CU receives sixth information from the network management, the sixth information includes an identifier of at least one donor-DU and an IP address of at least one IAB node; the donor-CU determines the association relationship between the donor-DU and the IP address based on the sixth information and the second information.

[0012] In one design, it also includes: the donor-CU determines the donor-DU associated with the IP address based on the IP address of at least one donor-DU it manages; the donor-CU determines the BAP address of the donor-DU, which is the BAP address.

[0013] In one design, it also includes: the donor-CU sends seventh information to at least one donor-DU it manages, the seventh information includes an IP address, and the seventh information is used to inquire whether the donor-DU is associated with the IP address; the donor-CU receives eighth information from the donor-DU, and the eighth information is used to indicate that the donor-DU is associated with the IP address; the donor-CU determines the BAP address based on the eighth information.

[0014] According to a third aspect, a communication method is provided, wherein the execution subject of the method is an IAB node, or a module (chip or circuit, etc.) in the IAB node. Taking the IAB node as the execution subject as an example, the method includes: the IAB node receives a first indication from a host node centralized unit donor-CU, and the first indication is used to indicate the number of host node distributed units donor-DU that can be reached by the IAB node, or to indicate whether the number of donor-DU that can be reached by the IAB node is one.

[0015] In one design, when the number of donor-DUs reachable by the IAB node is one, the method further includes: the IAB node sends a first request to the network management or the donor-CU, the first request being used to request the network management or the donor-CU to allocate an IP address to the IAB node. Optionally, the network management performs OAM for the IAB node.

[0016] In one design, when the number of donor-DUs reachable by the IAB node is multiple, the method further includes: the IAB node sends a second request to the donor-CU, where the second request is used to request the donor-CU to allocate an IP address to the IAB node.

[0017] Through the above design, when the number of donor-DUs reachable by the IAB node is one, the IAB node can request an IP address from the network management or donor-CU; and when the number of donor-DUs reachable by the IAB node is multiple, the IAB node can request an IP address from the donor-CU, thereby ensuring the correct transmission of uplink data.

[0018] In the fourth aspect, this aspect is the host donor-CU side corresponding to the third aspect. The beneficial effects can be found in the description of the third aspect. A communication method is provided. The execution subject of the method is the donor-CU, or a module in the donor-CU (such as a chip or circuit, etc.). Taking the donor-CU as the execution subject as an example, the method includes: the donor-CU determines the number of host node distributed units donor-DU that can be reached by the access backhaul integrated IAB node; the donor-CU sends a first indication to the IAB node, and the first indication is used to indicate the number of donor-DUs that can be reached by the IAB node, or to indicate whether the number of donor-DUs that can be reached by the IAB node is one.

[0019] In a fifth aspect, a communication method is provided, wherein the execution subject of the method is an IAB node, or a module in the IAB node (such as a chip or circuit, etc.), and taking the IAB node as the execution subject as an example, the method includes: the IAB node receives a second indication from a host node centralized unit donor-CU; wherein the second indication is used to indicate a method for the IAB node to obtain an Internet Protocol IP address, and / or to indicate whether the IAB node is allowed to obtain an IP address from a network manager, and the method for the IAB node to obtain an IP address includes obtaining an IP address from a donor-CU or obtaining an IP address from a network manager.

[0020] Through the above design, the donor-CU determines the way in which the IAB node requests the IP address, or indicates whether the IAB node is allowed to obtain the IP address from the network management, and indicates it to the IAB node, thereby ensuring the correct transmission of uplink data.

[0021] In one design, when the second indication is used to indicate that the IAB node obtains the IP address from the network management, or indicates that the IAB node is allowed to obtain the IP address from the network management, the number of donor-DUs reachable by the IAB node is one.

[0022] In one design, when the second indication is used to indicate that the IAB node obtains the IP address from a donor-CU and / or indicates that the IAB node is not allowed to obtain the IP address from a network manager, the number of donor-DUs reachable by the IAB node is multiple.

[0023] In one design, when the second indication is used to indicate that the IAB node obtains the IP address from a network manager, the method further includes: the IAB node sends a third request to the network manager, where the third request is used to request the network manager to allocate an IP address to the IAB node.

[0024] In one design, when the second indication is used to indicate that the IAB node is allowed to obtain an IP address from the network manager, it also includes: the IAB node sends a fourth request to the network manager, the fourth request is used to request the network manager to allocate an IP address to the IAB node; or, the IAB node sends a fifth request to the donor-CU, the fifth request is used to request the donor-CU to allocate an IP address to the IAB node.

[0025] In one design, when the second indication is used to indicate that the IAB node obtains the IP address from the donor-CU, and / or indicates that the IAB node is not allowed to obtain the IP address from the network manager, it also includes: the IAB node sends a sixth request to the donor-CU, and the sixth request is used to request the donor-CU to allocate an IP address to the IAB node.

[0026] In one design, when the second indication is used to indicate that the IAB node obtains the IP address from a donor-CU and / or indicates that the IAB node is not allowed to obtain the IP address from a network manager, the second indication includes the IP address of the IAB node.

[0027] In the sixth aspect, for the donor-CU side corresponding to the fifth aspect, the beneficial effects can be found in the description of the fifth aspect. A communication method is provided, and the executor of the method is the donor-CU, or a module in the donor-CU (for example, a chip or circuit, etc.). The method includes: the donor-CU sends a second indication to the access backhaul integrated IAB node; wherein the second indication is used to indicate a method for the IAB node to obtain an Internet Protocol IP address, and / or to indicate whether the IAB node is allowed to obtain an IP address from a network manager, and the method for the IAB node to obtain an IP address includes obtaining an IP address from the donor-CU or obtaining an IP address from the network manager.

[0028] In one design, the further step includes: the donor-CU determining the number of donor-DU distributed units of the host node reachable from the IAB node; and the donor-CU determining the second indication based on the number of donor-DUs reachable from the IAB node.

[0029] In one design, the donor-CU determines a second indication based on the number of donor-DUs reachable by the IAB node, including: when the number of donor-DUs reachable by the IAB node is one, the second indication is used to indicate that the IAB node obtains an IP address from a network manager, or to indicate that the IAB node is allowed to obtain an IP address from a network manager.

[0030] In one design, the donor-CU determines a second indication based on the number of donor-DUs reachable by the IAB node, including: when the number of donor-DUs reachable by the IAB node is multiple, the second indication is used to indicate that the IAB node obtains an IP address from the donor-CU, and / or indicates that the IAB node is not allowed to obtain an IP address from the network manager.

[0031] In one design, when the second indication is used to indicate that the IAB node obtains the IP address from a donor-CU and / or indicates that the IAB node is not allowed to obtain the IP address from a network manager, the second indication includes the IP address of the IAB node.

[0032] In a seventh aspect, a communication method is provided, wherein the execution subject of the method is an IAB node, or a module (chip or circuit, etc.) in the IAB node, and taking the IAB node as the execution subject as an example, the method comprises: the IAB node receives first configuration information from a network manager, and the first configuration information comprises an Internet Protocol IP address assigned by the network manager to the IAB node and a backhaul link adaptation layer protocol BAP address of a donor node distributed unit donor-DU associated with the IP address. Optionally, the network manager performs operation management and maintenance (OAM) for the IAB node.

[0033] Through the above design, when the network management configures the IP address for the IAB node, it will also configure the BAP address of the donor-DU associated with the IP address, so that the IAB node can correctly obtain the association relationship between the IP address and the BAP address of the donor-DU. In the uplink data transmission, the IAB node can obtain the BAP routing identifier according to the uplink mapping rule, and select the IP address associated with the BAP address of the target donor-DU according to the BAP routing identifier as the source IP address of the uplink data, thereby avoiding or reducing the uplink data from being mistakenly discarded when it reaches the target donor-DU, and ensuring the correct transmission of the uploaded data.

[0034] In one design, it also includes: the IAB node determines a BAP routing identifier corresponding to the uplink data, the BAP routing identifier includes a BAP address; the IAB node determines an IP address associated with the BAP address based on the first configuration information; the IAB node uses the IP address associated with the BAP address as the source IP address of the uplink data; and the IAB node sends the uplink data to the donor-CU.

[0035] In the eighth aspect, the eighth aspect is the network management side corresponding to the seventh aspect. The beneficial effects can be found in the description of the seventh aspect. A communication method is provided. The execution subject of the method is the network management, or a module in the network management (such as a chip or circuit, etc.). Taking the network management as the execution subject as an example, the method includes: the network management allocates an Internet Protocol IP address to the integrated access backhaul IAB node; the network management determines the backhaul link adaptation layer protocol BAP address of the host node distributed unit donor-DU associated with the IP address; the network management sends the first configuration information to the IAB node, and the first configuration information includes the IP address allocated by the network management to the IAB node and the BAP address of the donor-DU associated with the IP address. Optionally, the network management is the operation management and maintenance OAM of the IAB node.

[0036] In one design, the network manager determines the BAP address of the donor-DU associated with the IP address, including: the network manager receives ninth information, the ninth information includes the identifier of the donor-DU and the BAP address of the donor-DU; the network manager determines the BAP address of the donor-DU associated with the IP address based on the ninth information.

[0037] In one design, the ninth information comes from a network manager of a donor node centralized unit donor-CU, or a network manager of a donor-DU.

[0038] In one design, the network manager determines a BAP address of a donor-DU associated with an IP address, including: the network manager allocates a BAP address to the donor-DU connected to the IAB node.

[0039] In one design, it also includes: the network manager sends the BAP address of the donor-DU.

[0040] In one design, the network manager sends the BAP address of the donor-DU to the network manager of the donor-CU, or the network manager of the donor-DU, or the donor-DU.

[0041] In a ninth aspect, a communication method is provided, wherein the execution subject of the method is an IAB node, or a module (chip or circuit, etc.) in the IAB node, and taking the IAB node as the execution subject as an example, the method comprises: when the IAB node cannot determine the association between the Internet Protocol IP address and the backhaul link adaptation layer protocol BAP address of the host node distributed unit donor-DU, the IAB node arbitrarily selects an IP address from the IP address of the IAB node as the source IP address of the uplink data; the IAB node sends the uplink data to the donor-DU. Optionally, the IP address of the IAB node is assigned to the IAB node by the network management.

[0042] Through the above design, the network manager can allocate IP addresses for the IAB nodes. The IAB nodes can randomly select an IP address from the IP addresses allocated by the network manager and use the IP address as the source IP address of the uplink data. The donor-DU can be configured to exempt the IP address from filtering, thereby ensuring the correct transmission of the uplink data.

[0043] In the tenth aspect, the tenth aspect is the donor-CU side corresponding to the ninth aspect. For the beneficial effects, please refer to the description of the ninth aspect. A communication method is provided, and the execution subject of the method is the donor-CU, or a module (chip or circuit, etc.) in the donor-CU. Taking the donor-CU as the execution subject as an example, the method includes: the donor-CU receives an Internet Protocol IP address from an access and backhaul integrated IAB node, and the IP address is the IP address assigned by the network management to the IAB; the donor-CU sends second configuration information to the donor-DU, and the second configuration information is used to configure the donor-DU to exempt the IP address from filtering. Exemption from filtering means that when the donor-DU receives uplink data with a source IP address as an IP address or downlink data with a target IP address as an IP address, the uplink data or the downlink data will not be discarded.

[0044] In the eleventh aspect, a device is provided, which can implement the method of the first aspect, the third aspect, the fifth aspect, the seventh aspect, or the ninth aspect. For example, the device includes means corresponding to the first aspect, the third aspect, the fifth aspect, the seventh aspect, or the ninth aspect. The device can be implemented by hardware, software, or by hardware executing the corresponding software implementation.

[0045] In one design, the apparatus includes a unit that performs the first, third, fifth, seventh, or ninth aspects described above.

[0046] In one design, the apparatus includes a processor configured to execute the method of the first, third, fifth, seventh, or ninth aspect described above.

[0047] In one design, the device includes a processor and an interface circuit, the interface circuit is used to receive signals from other devices outside the device and transmit them to the processor or send signals from the processor to other devices outside the device, and the processor is used to implement the methods of the above-mentioned first aspect, third aspect, fifth aspect, seventh aspect or ninth aspect through logic circuits or execution code instructions.

[0048] In one design, the device includes a processor and a memory, and the processor is used to execute a computer program or instructions stored in the memory, so that the device implements the method of the first aspect, the third aspect, the fifth aspect, the seventh aspect or the ninth aspect mentioned above.

[0049] In the twelfth aspect, a device is provided, which can implement the method of the second aspect, the fourth aspect, the sixth aspect, the eighth aspect or the tenth aspect. For example, the device includes means corresponding to the second aspect, the fourth aspect, the sixth aspect, the eighth aspect or the tenth aspect. The device can be implemented by hardware, software or by executing the corresponding software implementation by hardware.

[0050] In one design, the apparatus includes a unit that performs the second, fourth, sixth, eighth, or tenth aspects described above.

[0051] In one design, the apparatus includes a processor configured to execute the method of the second, fourth, sixth, eighth or tenth aspect described above.

[0052] In one design, the device includes a processor and an interface circuit, the interface circuit is used to receive signals from other devices outside the device and transmit them to the processor or send signals from the processor to other devices outside the device, and the processor is used to implement the methods of the second, fourth, sixth, eighth or tenth aspect above through logic circuits or execution code instructions.

[0053] In one design, the device includes a processor and a memory, and the processor is used to execute a computer program or instructions stored in the memory, so that the device implements the method of the second aspect, fourth aspect, sixth aspect, eighth aspect or tenth aspect above.

[0054] In a thirteenth aspect, a computer-readable storage medium is provided, storing a computer program or instruction. When the computer program or instruction is executed on a computer, the computer implements the method of any one of the first to tenth aspects.

[0055] In a fourteenth aspect, a computer program product is provided, comprising a computer program or instructions, which, when executed by a computer, enables the method of any one of the first to tenth aspects to be executed.

[0056] In a fifteenth aspect, a chip is provided, comprising a processor, wherein the processor is coupled to a memory and is used to execute a computer program or instruction stored in the memory, so that the chip implements the method of any one of the first to tenth aspects above.

[0057] In the sixteenth aspect, a communication system is provided, comprising: a first communication device and a second communication device; wherein the first communication device is used to implement the method of the first aspect above, and the second communication device is used to implement the method of the second aspect above; or, the first communication device is used to implement the method of the third aspect above, and the second communication device is used to implement the method of the fourth aspect above; or, the first communication device is used to implement the method of the fifth aspect above, and the second communication device is used to implement the method of the sixth aspect above; or, the first communication device is used to implement the method of the seventh aspect above, and the second communication device is used to implement the method of the eighth aspect above; or, the first communication device is used to implement the method of the ninth aspect above, and the second communication device is used to implement the method of the tenth aspect above. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0058] Figure 1 A schematic diagram of the architecture of a mobile communication system used in an embodiment of the present application;

[0059] Figure 2 A schematic diagram of an IAB network provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0060] Figure 3 A flow chart provided for an embodiment of the present application;

[0061] Figure 4 Another flow chart provided for an embodiment of the present application;

[0062] Figure 5 Another flow chart provided for an embodiment of the present application;

[0063] Figure 6 Another flow chart provided for an embodiment of the present application;

[0064] Figure 7 Another flow chart provided for an embodiment of the present application;

[0065] Figure 8 A schematic diagram of a structure of a device provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0066] Fig. 9 Another schematic diagram of the structure of the device provided in an embodiment of the present application. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0067] In order to make the purpose, technical solution and advantages of the present application more clear, the present application will be further described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings. The specific operation methods, functional descriptions, etc. in the method embodiments can also be applied to the device embodiments or system embodiments.

[0068] Figure 1 1 is a schematic diagram of the architecture of a communication system 1000 used in an embodiment of the present application. Figure 1As shown, the communication system 1000 includes a radio access network 100 and a core network 200. Optionally, the communication system 1000 may also include the Internet 300. The radio access network (RAN) 100 may include at least one RAN node (eg, Figure 1 110a and 110b in the figure, collectively referred to as 110), and may also include at least one terminal (such as Figure 1 120a-120j in the figure are collectively referred to as 120). The terminal is connected to the wireless access network device by wireless means, and the wireless access network device is connected to the core network by wireless or wired means. The core network device and the wireless access network device can be independent and different physical devices, or the functions of the core network device and the logical functions of the wireless access network device can be integrated on the same physical device, or part of the functions of the core network device and part of the functions of the wireless access network device can be integrated on one physical device. Terminals and terminals, as well as wireless access network devices and wireless access network devices can be connected to each other by wired or wireless means.

[0069] RAN 100 may be a cellular system related to the 3rd generation partnership project (3GPP), for example, a 4th generation (4G) mobile communication system, a 5th generation (5G) mobile communication system, or a future-oriented evolution system, for example, a 6th generation (6G) mobile communication system. RAN 100 may also be an open access network (open RAN, O-RAN or ORAN), a cloud radio access network (cloud radio access network, CRAN), or a wireless fidelity (wireless fidelity, WiFi) system. RAN 100 may also be a communication system that integrates two or more of the above systems.

[0070] The RAN node 110, which may also be sometimes referred to as an access network device, a RAN entity or an access node, constitutes a part of the communication system to help the terminal achieve wireless access. The multiple RAN nodes 110 in the communication system 1000 may be nodes of the same type or nodes of different types. In some scenarios, the roles of the RAN node 110 and the terminal 120 are relative, for example, Figure 1The network element 120i may be a helicopter or a drone, which may be configured as a mobile base station. For the terminals 120j that access the RAN 100 through the network element 120i, the network element 120i is a base station; but for the base station 110a, the network element 120i is a terminal. The RAN node 110 and the terminal 120 are sometimes referred to as communication devices, for example Figure 1 The network elements 110a and 110b may be understood as communication devices having base station functions, and the network elements 120a-120j may be understood as communication devices having terminal functions.

[0071] In one possible scenario, a RAN node may be a base station, an evolved NodeB (eNodeB), an access point (AP), a transmission reception point (TRP), a next generation NodeB (gNB), a next generation base station in a 6G mobile communication system, a base station in a future mobile communication system, or an access node in a WiFi system. A RAN node may be a macro base station (e.g. Figure 1 110a in), micro base stations or indoor stations (such as Figure 1 110b in the description), a relay node or a donor node, or a wireless controller in a CRAN scenario. Optionally, the RAN node may also be a server, a wearable device, a vehicle or an on-board device, etc. For example, the access network device in the vehicle to everything (V2X) technology may be a road side unit (RSU). All or part of the functions of the RAN node in the present application may also be implemented by software functions running on hardware, or by virtualization functions instantiated on a platform (such as a cloud platform). The RAN node in the present application may also be a logical node, a logical module or software that can implement all or part of the functions of the RAN node.

[0072] In another possible scenario, multiple RAN nodes collaborate to assist the terminal in achieving wireless access, and different RAN nodes respectively implement part of the functions of the base station. For example, the RAN node can be 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 can be set separately, or can also be included in the same network element, such as a baseband unit (BBU). The RU can 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).

[0073] 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 O-CU (open 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, CU, CU-CP, CU-UP, DU and RU are described as examples in this application. Any unit of CU (or CU-CP, CU-UP), DU and RU in this application may be implemented by a software module, a hardware module, or a combination of a software module and a hardware module.

[0074] A terminal is a device with wireless transceiver function, which can send signals to a RAN node or receive signals from a RAN node. A terminal may also be referred to as a terminal device, user equipment (UE), mobile station, mobile terminal, etc. Terminals can be widely used in various scenarios, such as device-to-device (D2D), vehicle-to-everything (V2X) communication, machine-type communication (MTC), Internet of Things (IOT), virtual reality, augmented reality, industrial control, automatic driving, telemedicine, smart grid, smart furniture, smart office, smart wear, smart transportation, smart city, etc. A terminal may be a mobile phone, a tablet computer, a computer with wireless transceiver function, a wearable device, a vehicle, an airplane, a ship, a robot, a robotic arm, a smart home device, etc. The embodiments of the present application do not limit the specific technology and specific device form adopted by the terminal.

[0075] In one design, RAN100 may also include a wireless relay device or a wireless backhaul device. In one implementation, the terminal may access the RAN node through the wireless relay device or the wireless backhaul device. In the following description, unless otherwise specified, the wireless relay device or the wireless backhaul device is an integrated access and backhaul (IAB) node, and the RAN node is a donor node, for example.

[0076] The IAB node can provide wireless access services for the terminal, and the service data of the terminal can be transmitted to the host node through the IAB node. The IAB node can directly access the host node or access the host node through other IAB nodes. The IAB node includes a mobile terminal (MT) and a DU. Among them, when the IAB node faces its parent node, its parent node can be a host node or other IAB nodes, and the IAB node plays the role of a terminal. In this case, it is the DU that provides the terminal role for the IAB node. When the IAB node faces its child node, its child node can be other IAB nodes or terminals, and the IAB node plays the role of a network device. In this case, it is the DU that provides the network device role for the IAB node. The host node may include a CU and a DU, and the host node may be connected to a core network that provides services to the terminal, such as a 5G core network. The CU included in the host node may be referred to as a donor-CU, and the DU included in the host node may be referred to as a donor-DU.

[0077] In a possible implementation, one or more IAB nodes may be included in the transmission path between the terminal and the host node. For an IAB node, if the child node of the IAB node is a terminal, the connection between the IAB node and the terminal is AL; if the child node of the IAB node is another IAB node, the connection between the IAB node and the other IAB node is BL, and the connection between the host node and the IAB node is also BL. Figure 2 As shown, a transmission path between terminal 1 and the host node is: terminal 1→IAB node 4→IAB node 3→IAB node 1→host node. Terminal 1 accesses IAB node 4 through AL, IAB node 4 accesses IAB node 3 through BL, IAB node 3 accesses IAB node 1 through BL, IAB node 1 accesses the host node through BL, and so on.

[0078] In the wireless backhaul network, a protocol layer is introduced, called the backhaul adaptation protocol (BAP) layer, which is used to implement functions such as routing and bearer mapping of data packets in the wireless backhaul network. The starting point of the BAP layer is located at the IAB node connected to the terminal, and the end point is located at the host node. The BAP layer exists in each IAB node and host node in a transmission path. In one design, the donor-CU can assign BAP addresses to the IAB nodes and donor-DUs it manages, so that in the wireless backhaul network, an IAB node and a donor-DU can be identified by the BAP address. The donor-CU can configure mapping rules for the IAB node, which can be an uplink mapping rule or a downlink mapping rule. The mapping rule at least includes the mapping relationship between {the IP address and tunnel endpoint ID (TEID) of the donor-CU} and {BAP routing identifier}. The BAP routing identifier consists of the BAP address and path identifier (path ID, identity, ID) of the target node. For uplink transmission, the target node is the host node, and the BAP address of the target node included in the BAP routing identifier can be the BAP address of the donor-DU; for downlink transmission, the target node is the IAB node connected to the terminal, and the BAP address of the target node included in the BAP routing identifier can be the BAP address of the IAB node connected to the terminal.

[0079] Take the example of an IAB node connected to a terminal sending uplink data. The IAB node uses a data radio bearer (DRB) to receive uplink data sent by the terminal. The IAB node uses the DRB corresponding to the uplink data to determine the donor-CU that has a mapping relationship with the DRB. The IAB node determines the BAP routing identifier corresponding to the donor-CU corresponding to the DRB of the uplink data based on the mapping relationship between {IP address and TEID of the donor-CU)} and {BAP routing identifier} included in the uplink mapping rule. In addition, there is a peer IP layer between the IAB node connected to the UE and the host node. The IAB node connected to the UE needs to at least encapsulate the uplink data at the IP layer. During the encapsulation process, it needs to obtain the IP address of the IAB node, use the IP address as the source IP address of the uplink data, and carry the source IP address in the uplink data. In one implementation, an IAB node may be configured with multiple IP addresses.

[0080] In one design, the donor-CU may configure an IP address for the IAB node. When the donor-CU configures an IP address for the IAB node, the configuration information also carries the BAP address of the donor-DU associated with the IP address. In one implementation, when the IAB node needs to select a source IP address for uplink data from multiple IP addresses, the IP address associated with the BAP address of the donor-DU included in the BAP routing identifier obtained from the uplink mapping rule may be selected as the source IP address of the uplink data.

[0081] In addition to the donor-CU being able to configure an IP address for the IAB node, the network manager can also configure an IP address for the IAB node. When the network manager configures an IP address for the IAB node, how the IAB node obtains the BAP address of the donor-DU associated with the IP address is a technical problem to be solved by the embodiments of the present application.

[0082] [Example 1]

[0083] In the first embodiment, the network management can configure an IP address for the IAB node. When the IAB node receives the IP address configured by the network management, it sends the IP address to the donor-CU. The donor-CU obtains the BAP address of the donor-DU associated with the IP address and sends the BAP address of the donor-DU to the IAB node. Figure 3 As shown, a process is provided, which at least includes:

[0084] Step 310: the network manager sends first information to the IAB node, and the IAB node receives the first information from the network manager, where the first information includes an IP address allocated by the network manager to the IAB node.

[0085] In one design, the network management is operations administration and maintenance (OAM), which can be used for the configuration and management of network devices such as IAB nodes, donor-CUs, and donor-DUs. IAB nodes, donor-CUs, and donor-DUs can be connected to OAM, for example, through core network devices, or through IP networks. The OAMs corresponding to the IAB nodes, donor-CUs, and donor-DUs can be the same or different. In the subsequent description of this application, the example that the OAMs corresponding to the IAB nodes, donor-CUs, and donor-DUs are different is mainly used for description. In one implementation, the OAM of the IAB node can allocate an IP address to the IAB node, that is, the network management in step 310 can be the OAM of the IAB node. Optionally, the first information can be an IP address allocation message.

[0086] In the embodiment of the present application, the IAB node is used to provide wireless access and wireless backhaul services for the child nodes (the child nodes may be other IAB nodes or terminals). The IAB node may be mobile, and the IAB node may be called a mobile IAB node, or a layer 3 relay node, etc. The IAB node may include two parts, the IAB-MT (which may be referred to as MT) and the IAB-DU (which may be referred to as DU). In one implementation, Figure 3 As shown, the IAB-MT can receive the first information from the network manager and send the first information to the IAB-DU. Optionally, in a dual-connection scenario, the IAB-MT can be connected to two different upstream nodes, and the upstream node can be an IAB node, or a host node, etc. When considering the dual-connection scenario, the IP address assigned by the network manager to the IAB node is used for the IAB node to communicate with the host node. Alternatively, when considering a layer 3 relay node, the relay node may include a mobile terminal function (MT) and a base station function (gNB), and the relevant expressions of the DU in the embodiment of the present application may be replaced by the gNB function part of the relay node.

[0087] Step 320: the IAB node sends second information to the donor-CU, and the donor-CU receives the second information from the IAB node, where the second information includes the IP address allocated by the network management to the IAB node.

[0088] Step 330: the donor-CU sends the third information to the IAB node, and the IAB node receives the third information from the donor-CU, where the third information includes a BAP address, and the BAP address is the BAP address of the donor-DU associated with the IP address.

[0089] In the embodiment of the present application, when the IAB node receives the IP address assigned by the network manager, it can execute step 320 to report the IP address assigned by the network manager to the donor-CU. The donor-CU can determine the BAP address of the donor-DU associated with the IP address, and in step 330, send the BAP address to the IAB node.

[0090] Optionally, the second information may be an RRC message, and the name of the RRC message may be IAB other information (IABOtherInformation). Figure 3 As shown, the IAB-MT may send the second information to the donor-CU. Optionally, the third information may be an RRC reconfiguration message. In one implementation, as Figure 3 As shown, the donor-CU may send the third information to the IAB-DU. Considering that the network manager may allocate multiple IP addresses to the IAB node, and the IAB node reports multiple IP addresses to the donor-CU at one time, the donor-CU sends the third information to the IAB node, including the BAP address and its corresponding IP address.

[0091] Optionally, it also includes: Step 340: After the donor-CU determines the BAP address of the donor-DU associated with the IP address, the BAP address can also be sent to the donor-DU for configuring the BAP address of the donor-DU. Considering that if the IAB node here is the first IAB node connected to the donor-DU, before this, the donor-DU has not served the IAB node and has not been assigned a BAP address, the donor-CU can trigger the allocation of the BAP address to the donor-DU associated with the IP address after receiving the IP address reported by the IAB node.

[0092] There is no restriction on the order of executing step 330 and step 340. For example, after the donor-CU determines the BAP address of the donor-DU associated with the IP address, step 330 can be executed first and then step 340, or step 340 can be executed first and then step 330, etc.

[0093] In the first embodiment, the donor-CU obtains the BAP address of the donor-DU corresponding to the IP address, and the following three solutions are provided:

[0094] The first solution: donor-CU can obtain the association relationship between donor-DU and IP address. Based on the association relationship between donor-DU and IP address, donor-CU determines the donor-DU associated with the IP address. Donor-CU determines the BAP address of the donor-DU associated with the IP address as the BAP address of the donor-DU associated with the IP address.

[0095] For example, the association relationship between the donor-DU and the IP address obtained by the donor-CU includes: the first donor-DU is associated with IP address 1 to IP address 10, the second donor-DU is associated with IP address 11 to IP address 20, and the third donor-DU is associated with IP address 21 to IP address 30. If the IP address assigned to it by the network management reported by the IAB node is IP address 11, it can be determined that IP address 11 is associated with the second donor-DU. The donor-CU can send the BAP address of the second donor-DU to the IAB node.

[0096] In one design, the donor-CU obtains the association relationship between the donor-DU and the IP address, including: the donor-CU sends fourth information to at least one donor-DU it manages, and the fourth information is used to request the donor-DU for the IP address associated with it. The donor-CU receives fifth information from the donor-DU, and the fifth information includes the IP address associated with it reported by the donor-DU. The donor-CU determines the association relationship between the donor-DU and the IP address based on the fifth information and the second information. Optionally, there is an F1 interface between the donor-CU and the donor-DU it manages, and the fourth information and the fifth information can interact through the F1 interface. The fourth information and the fifth information can be F1 application protocol (F1AP) messages.

[0097] For example, a donor node may include a donor-CU and at least one donor-DU. The donor-DU is responsible for allocating IP addresses, and the donor-DU stores its allocated IP addresses. In an embodiment of the present application, there is an association relationship between the donor-DU and the IP address it allocates or stores. In one implementation, the donor-DU may inquire at least one donor-DU it manages about the IP address it manages. The donor-CU determines the association relationship between the donor-DU and the IP address based on the IP address information fed back by at least one donor-DU. Or,

[0098] The donor-CU may receive the sixth information from the network management, the sixth information including at least one identifier of the donor-DU and at least one IP address of the IAB node; the donor-CU may determine the association relationship between the IP address reported by the IAB node and the donor-DU based on the sixth information and the second information. For example, the network management may be the OAM of the IAB node, or the OAM of the donor-DU, etc., without limitation. The network management may obtain the association relationship between the donor-DU and the IP address assigned to the donor-DU, and send the association relationship to the donor-CU, etc. through the sixth information, so that the donor-CU may obtain the association relationship between the donor-DU and the IP address, etc., and further obtain the association relationship between the IP address reported by the IAB node and the donor-DU, etc.

[0099] The second solution: the donor-CU can determine the donor-DU associated with the IP address reported by the IAB node based on the IP address of at least one donor-DU it manages; the donor-CU determines the BAP address of the donor-DU, which is the BAP address of the donor-DU associated with the IP address reported by the IAB node. In the embodiment of the present application, the donor-CU can obtain the IP address of the donor-DU it manages. The donor-CU can match the IP address assigned to it by the network manager reported by the IAB node with the IP address of at least one donor-DU it manages; if the match is successful for a donor-DU, it is considered that the IP address assigned to it by the network manager reported by the IAB node is associated with the donor-DU. For example, the IP address reported by the IAB node and the IP address of the donor-DU can be compared within a certain bit range; if the two are consistent, it is considered that the two are matched successfully; otherwise, the match fails. For example, the IP address in the embodiment of the present application may be 32 bits. If the first 16 bits of the IP address of an IAB node and the IP address of a donor-DU are the same, the two IP addresses are considered to match successfully. Optionally, the matching rule between the IP address reported by the IAB node and the IP address of the donor-DU may be preset or configured by the OAM of the donor-CU to the donor-CU.

[0100] The third solution: the donor-CU sends the seventh information to at least one donor-DU it manages, the seventh information includes the IP address reported by the IAB node, and the seventh information is used to inquire whether a donor-DU is associated with the IP address of the IAB node; the donor-CU receives the eighth information from the donor-DU, and the eighth information is used to indicate the IP address associated with the donor-DU; the donor-CU determines the BAP address according to the eighth information. Optionally, the seventh information and the eighth information can be F1AP messages.

[0101] For example, when the donor-CU receives the IP address assigned by the network manager reported by the IAB node, the IP address can be sent to at least one donor-DU managed by it. After receiving the IP address, a donor-DU can determine whether the IP address is under its management. In one implementation, if the IP address is under its management, it replies to the donor-CU with association; if it is not associated, it does not reply. Alternatively, the donor-DU can also reply with no association when it is not associated, etc., without limitation. In the foregoing description, it is mainly described that the donor-DU replies with the eighth information when it is associated. When the donor-CU receives a reply of association of a donor-DU, the BAP address of the donor-DU can be used as the BAP address of the donor-DU associated with the IP address assigned by the network manager. Optionally, in addition to replying to the donor-CU with an indication of whether the association is present, the donor-DU can also reply to the donor-CU with an associated IP address and the identifier of the donor-DU. For example, in addition to the associated indication information, the eighth information in the foregoing text may also include the associated IP address and / or the identifier of the donor-DU, etc. Optionally, the identifier of the donor-DU may include at least one of the following: the identifier of the gNB-DU, the IP address of the donor-DU, or the BAP address of the donor-DU, etc. Such a design mainly considers that: the network manager can allocate multiple IP addresses to the IAB node. The IAB node reports all the multiple IP addresses to the donor-CU. The donor-CU simultaneously inquires the donor-DUs it manages about the donor-DUs associated with the multiple IP addresses. A donor-DU can be associated with some of the multiple IP addresses. Therefore, when a donor-DU replies to the association, in addition to replying to the associated indication information, it also needs to reply to the specific IP address to which it is associated. Furthermore, the donor-DU can also reply to the identifier of the current donor-DU.

[0102] In the embodiment of the present application, after step 330, the following steps may also be included:

[0103] Taking uplink transmission as an example, the IAB node determines the BAP routing identifier corresponding to the uplink data, and the BAP routing identifier includes the BAP address. The IAB node determines the IP address associated with the BAP address based on the third information; the IAB node uses the IP address as the source IP address of the uplink data. The IAB node sends the uplink data to the donor-CU.

[0104] In one implementation, the donor-CU may configure an uplink mapping rule for the IAB node, and the uplink mapping rule includes at least the correspondence between {donor-CU's IP address and TEID} and {BAP routing identifier}. The IAB node may first obtain the BAP routing identifier corresponding to the uplink data according to the uplink mapping rule. Afterwards, the IAB node obtains the IP address associated with the BAP address based on the BAP address of the donor-DU included in the BAP routing identifier. The IP address associated with the BAP address is used as the source IP address of the uplink data, and the source IP address is carried in the uplink data, and the uplink data is sent to the next-hop IAB node. And / or, the IP address associated with the BAP address is used as the destination IP address of the downlink data and sent to the donor-CU.

[0105] In one design, the IAB node in the embodiment of the present application may be specifically an IAB node connected to the terminal. It is understandable that there is a peer IP layer between the IAB node connected to the terminal and the host node. Therefore, it is necessary to perform IP layer encapsulation only for the IAB node connected to the terminal. When encapsulating the IP layer, it is necessary to select an IP address that is associated with the BAP address of the donor-DU obtained in the uplink mapping rule from multiple IP addresses as the source IP address for encapsulation.

[0106] Through the above design, when the network manager assigns an IP address to the IAB node, the IAB node can report the IP address assigned by the network manager to the donor-CU, and the donor-CU obtains the BAP address of the donor-DU associated with the IP address, and sends the corresponding BAP address to the IAB node, so that the IAB node can obtain the BAP address of the donor-DU associated with the IP address, thereby ensuring the correct transmission of uplink data.

[0107] [Example 2]

[0108] Different from the idea of ​​the first embodiment, in the second embodiment: the donor-CU may send a first indication to the IAB node, and the first indication is used to indicate the number of donor-DUs that the IAB node can reach, or whether the number of donor-DUs that can be reached is one. Optionally, if the number of donor-DUs that the IAB node can reach is one, the IAB node may request an IP address from the network management; otherwise, the IAB node requests an IP address from the donor-CU. Figure 4 As shown, the process includes at least:

[0109] Step 410: the donor-CU sends a first indication to the IAB node, and the IAB node receives the first indication from the donor-CU.

[0110] The first indication is used to indicate the number of donor-DUs that can be reached by the IAB node, or to indicate whether the number of donor-DUs that can be reached by the IAB node is one. Optionally, the first indication may be carried in an RRC message. For example, the donor-CU may send an RRC message to the IAB node, and the IAB node receives an RRC message from the donor-CU, where the RRC message carries the first indication. In one design, Figure 4 As shown, the donor-CU may send a first indication to the IAB-MT.

[0111] In one design, when the IAB node receives the first indication, it may determine, based on the first indication, whether the number of donor-DUs reachable by the IAB node is one. If the number of donor-DUs reachable by the IAB node is one, the IAB node sends a first request to the network management or donor-CU, and the first request may request the network management or donor-CU to allocate an IP address to the IAB node. Alternatively, if the number of donor-DUs reachable by the IAB node is multiple, the IAB node sends a second request to the donor-CU, and the second request is used to request the donor-CU to allocate an IP address to the IAB node. Optionally, the network management may be the OAM of the IAB node.

[0112] In one implementation, the process of the donor-CU allocating an IP address to the IAB node includes: the donor-CU sends the IP address allocated to the IAB node and the BAP address of the donor-DU associated with the IP address. The process of the network manager allocating an IP address to the IAB node includes: the network manager sends the IP address allocated to the IAB node.

[0113] In one implementation, in the process of the donor-CU allocating an IP address to the IAB node: since the donor-DU is responsible for the management of the IP address, when the donor-CU allocates an IP address to the IAB node, the donor-CU can request an IP address from the donor-DU that is reachable by the IAB node, and send the IP address to the IAB node. Therefore, for the design of the donor-CU allocating an IP address to the IAB node, the IP address allocated by the donor-CU is managed by the reachable donor-DU, or it is called that the IP address allocated by the donor-CU to the IAB node is associated with the donor-DU that is reachable by the IAB node. As mentioned above, when the donor-CU allocates an IP address to the IAB node, in addition to sending the IP address to the IAB node, the BAP address of the donor-DU associated with the IP address is also sent to the IAB node. The BAP address of the donor-DU associated with the IP address can be considered as the BAP address of the donor-DU that manages the IP address, that is, the BAP address of a donor-DU that is reachable by the IAB node.

[0114] In one implementation, when the network manager allocates an IP address to the IAB node, the network manager can obtain an IP address from a donor-DU that is reachable by the IAB node, and allocate the IP address to the IAB node. That is, when the network manager allocates an IP address to the IAB node, the IP address is actually managed by the donor-DU that is reachable by the IAB node. For example, when the network manager allocates an IP address to the IAB node, it can obtain the IP address managed by the donor-DU that is reachable by the IAB node, and allocate one or more IP addresses managed by it to the IAB node. Alternatively, the network manager can first allocate an IP address to the IAB node, and then send the IP address to the donor-DU that is reachable by the IAB node, store the IP address for the reachable donor-DU, and consider that the IP address is managed by itself, or consider that the IP address is associated with the donor-DU that is reachable by the IAB node.

[0115] In one design, in uplink data transmission, when the donor-DU receives the uplink data sent by the IAB node, it will determine whether the source IP address of the uplink data is under its management. If it is managed by itself, the uplink data will be sent to the donor-CU; otherwise, the uplink data will be discarded. In an embodiment of the present application, when the IAB node has a reachable donor-DU, the IAB node can request the donor-CU or OAM to assign an IP address to it. As mentioned earlier, when the donor-CU or OAM assigns an IP address to the IAB node, the IP address it assigns is managed by the reachable donor-DU. Therefore, the IAB node can arbitrarily select an IP address when multiple IP addresses are configured. Since the IP address is managed by the currently reachable donor-DU, the uplink data will not be discarded by the donor-DU. Alternatively, when the IAB node has multiple reachable donor-DUs, the IAB node needs to select an IP address associated with the BAP address of the target donor-DU as the source IP address based on the BAP address of the target donor-DU included in the BAP routing identifier obtained from the uplink mapping rule. That is, the IAB node needs to select an IP address managed by the target donor-DU as the source IP address from multiple IP addresses, thereby avoiding or reducing the discarding of uplink data when the donor-DU receives the uplink data, resulting in erroneous transmission of the uplink data.

[0116] Through the above design, when the number of donor-DUs reachable by the IAB node is one, the IAB node can request an IP address from the network management or donor-CU; and when the number of donor-DUs reachable by the IAB node is multiple, the IAB node can request an IP address from the donor-CU, thereby ensuring the correct transmission of uplink data.

[0117] [Example 3]

[0118] The difference between the third embodiment and the second embodiment is that the donor-CU can determine the way in which the IAB node obtains the IP address according to the number of donor-DUs reachable by the IAB node, and then the donor-CU sends a second indication to the IAB node, the second indication is used to indicate the way in which the IAB node obtains the IP address and / or indicates whether the IAB node is allowed to obtain the IP address from the network management, etc. Figure 5 As shown, a process is provided, which at least includes:

[0119] Step 510: the donor-CU sends a second indication to the IAB node, and the IAB node receives the second indication from the donor-CU.

[0120] The second indication is used to indicate the way in which the IAB node obtains the IP address, and / or indicates whether the IAB node is allowed to obtain the IP address from the network management. The way in which the IAB node obtains the IP address includes obtaining the IP address from the donor-CU or obtaining the IP address from the network management. Optionally, in the third embodiment, the network management may be the OAM of the IAB node. In one design, Figure 5 As shown, the donor-CU may send a second indication to the IAB-MT, and the IAB-MT receives the second indication from the donor-CU.

[0121] Optionally, before step 510, the method may further include: step 500: the donor-CU determines the number of donor-DUs that can be reached by the IAB node; the donor-CU determines a second indication based on the number of donor-DUs that can be reached by the IAB node. For example, when the number of donor-DUs that can be reached by the IAB node is one, the second indication is used to indicate that the IAB node obtains an IP address by obtaining an IP address from a network manager, or to indicate that the IAB node is allowed to obtain an IP address from a network manager. Alternatively, when the number of donor-DUs that can be reached by the IAB node is multiple, the second indication is used to indicate that the IAB node obtains an IP address by obtaining an IP address from the donor-CU, and / or to indicate that the IAB node is not allowed to obtain an IP address from a network manager.

[0122] It is understandable that, in the third embodiment, when the second indication is used to indicate that the IAB node obtains the IP address from the network manager, the IAB node can obtain the IP address from the network manager. For example, the IAB node can send a third request to the network manager, and the third request is used to request the network manager to allocate an IP address to the IAB node. Further, when the network manager receives the third request, the network manager can send a third response to the IAB node, and the third response may include the IP address allocated by the network manager to the IAB node. Or,

[0123] When the second indication is used to indicate that the IAB node is allowed to obtain an IP address from the network manager, the IAB node can obtain the IP address from the network manager, or can obtain the IP address from the donor-CU, etc., without limitation. For example, taking the example of the IAB node obtaining an IP address from the network manager, the IAB node sends a fourth request to the network manager, and the fourth request is used to request the network manager to allocate an IP address to the IAB node. Further, the network manager may send a fourth response to the IAB node, and the fourth response includes the IP address allocated by the network manager to the IAB node. Alternatively, taking the example of the IAB node obtaining an IP address from the donor-CU. The IAB node sends a fifth request to the donor-CU, and the fifth request is used to request the donor-CU to allocate an IP address to the IAB node. Further, the donor-CU may send a fifth response to the IAB node, and the fifth response includes the IP address allocated by the donor-CU to the IAB node. Alternatively,

[0124] When the second indication is used to indicate that the IAB node obtains the IP address from the donor-CU, and / or indicates that the IAB node is not allowed to obtain the IP address from the network management, the IAB node can obtain the IP address from the donor-CU. For example, the IAB node sends a sixth request to the donor-CU, and the sixth request is used to request the donor-CU to allocate an IP address to the IAB node. Further, the donor-CU may send a sixth response to the IAB node, and the sixth response includes the IP address allocated by the donor-CU to the IAB node. Or,

[0125] In one implementation, when the second indication is used to indicate that the IAB node obtains the IP address by obtaining the IP address from the donor-CU, and / or indicates that the IAB node is not allowed to obtain the IP address from the network management, the second indication includes the IP address of the IAB node. That is, when the donor-CU determines that the IAB node obtains the IP address by obtaining the IP address from the donor-CU, and / or indicates that the IAB node is not allowed to obtain the IP address from the network management, the donor-CU can directly allocate the IP address to the IAB node, and send the IP address to the IAB node through the second indication. The IAB node can directly obtain the IP address in the second indication. Of course, the IP address is allocated by the donor-CU to the IAB node. The IAB node does not need to send a request message to the donor-CU to request the donor-CU to allocate the IP address to the IAB node, thereby saving the signaling overhead of the IAB node. Alternatively, the IP address can exist independently of the second indication, for example, the donor-CU sends the second indication and the IP address of the IAB node to the IAB node. In one implementation, the donor-CU may send an RRC message to the IAB node, where the RRC message includes the second indication and the IP address allocated by the donor-CU to the IAB node.

[0126] Through the above design, the donor-CU determines the way in which the IAB node requests the IP address, or indicates whether the IAB node is allowed to obtain the IP address from the network management, and indicates it to the IAB node, thereby ensuring the correct transmission of uplink data.

[0127] [Example 4]

[0128] In the fourth embodiment, the network management uses the same method as the donor-CU to allocate an IP address to the IAB node. For example, when the network management allocates an IP address to the IAB node, it will carry the BAP address of the donor-DU associated with the allocated IP address. Figure 6 As shown, a process is provided, which at least includes:

[0129] Step 610: The network manager sends first configuration information to the IAB node, and the IAB node receives the first configuration information from the network manager. The first configuration information includes an IP address allocated by the network manager to the IAB node and a BAP address of the donor-DU associated with the IP address.

[0130] Optionally, the name of the first configuration information may be IP address allocation. After receiving the first configuration information, the IAB node may report the IP address configured by the network manager to the donor-CU. In the fourth embodiment, unless otherwise specified, the network manager may be the OAM of the IAB node. In one implementation, Figure 6 As shown, the network management may send the first configuration information to the IAB-MT, and the IAB-MT sends the first configuration information to the IAB-DU.

[0131] In one design, before step 610, the method further includes: step 600: the network manager allocates an IP address to the IAB node; the network manager determines the BAP address of the donor-DU associated with the IP address. In embodiment 4, the method for the network manager to determine the BAP address of the donor-DU associated with the IP address includes:

[0132] Example 1: The network management may receive the ninth information, which includes the identifier of the donor-DU and the BAP address of the donor-DU. For example, the identifier of the donor-DU includes the gNB-DU ID and / or the IP address of the donor-DU, etc. The network management determines the BAP address of the donor-DU associated with the IP address based on the ninth information. The name of the ninth information may be donor-DU BAP address notification information, etc.

[0133] Example 1.1: The ninth information comes from the network management of the donor-CU. Taking the network management as OAM as an example, that is to say, the OAM of the donor-CU can send the ninth information to the OAM of the IAB node.

[0134] For example, the donor-CU may send the identifier of the donor-DU it manages and the BAP address allocated to the donor-DU to the OAM of the donor-CU, and the OAM of the donor-CU sends the ninth information to the OAM of the IAB node, and the ninth information includes the identifier of the donor-DU and the BAP address of the donor-DU and other information. In this case, the ninth information is said to be from the OAM of the donor-CU. When the OAM of the IAB node allocates an IP address to the IAB node, it may configure an IP address in the identifier of the donor-DU to the IAB node, and when sending the IP address to the IAB node, it also sends the BAP address of the donor-DU to the IAB node.

[0135] Example 1.2: The ninth information is from the network management of the donor-DU. For example, the network management is OAM, that is, the OAM of the donor-DU can send the ninth information to the OAM of the IAB node.

[0136] For example, the donor-CU may send the identifier of the donor-DU it manages and the BAP address allocated to the donor-DU to the OAM of the donor-DU, and the OAM of the donor-DU then sends the above information to the OAM of the IAB node through the ninth information. In this case, the ninth information is said to be from the OAM of the donor-DU. When the OAM of the IAB node allocates an IP address to the IAB node, it may send an IP address in the identifier of the donor-DU to the IAB node, and when sending the IP address to the IAB node, it also sends the BAP address of the donor-DU to the IAB node.

[0137] Example 2: The network management assigns a BAP address to the donor-DU connected to the IAB node.

[0138] Taking the OAM of the IAB node as an example, optionally, the OAM of the IAB node also needs to send the BAP address allocated for the donor-DU to the donor-DU. For example, in one implementation, the OAM of the IAB node can send the BAP address of the donor-DU. For example, the OAM of the IAB node sends the BAP address of the donor-DU to the OAM of the donor-CU. The OAM of the donor-CU sends the BAP address of the donor-DU to the donor-CU, and the donor-CU sends the BAP address of the donor-DU to the donor-DU. Alternatively, the OAM of the IAB node can send the BAP address of the donor-DU to the OAM of the donor-DU, and the OAM of the donor-DU sends the BAP address of the donor-DU to the donor-DU.

[0139] For example, in addition to allocating an IP address to the IAB node, the OAM of the IAB node also allocates a BAP address to the donor-DU connected to the IAB node. For example, in one implementation, the OAM of the IAB node can obtain the identifier of the donor-DU connected to the IAB node, and the identifier of the donor-DU includes the gNB-DU ID and / or the IP address of the donor-DU, etc. In an embodiment of the present application, the OAM of the IAB node can allocate an IP address managed by a donor-DU in the donor-DU connected to the IAB node to the IAB node, and allocate a BAP address to the connected donor-DU. Further, the OAM of the IAB node can send the identifier of the donor-DU and the BAP address allocated to it to the corresponding donor-DU. In one implementation, the OAM of the IAB node can send the identifier of the donor-DU and the BAP address allocated to it to the OAM of the donor-CU, and the OAM of the donor-CU then sends the above information to the donor-CU, and the donor-CU sends the above information to the corresponding donor-DU through the F1AP message. Alternatively, in another implementation, the OAM of the IAB node may send the identifier of the donor-DU and the BAP address allocated thereto to the OAM of the donor-DU, and the OAM of the donor-DU sends the above information to the donor-DU.

[0140] Optionally, after receiving the first configuration information, the IAB node further includes: in uplink data transmission: the IAB node determines the BAP routing identifier corresponding to the uplink data, the BAP routing identifier includes the BAP address; the IAB node determines the IP address associated with the BAP address according to the first configuration information; the IAB node uses the IP address associated with the BAP address as the source IP address of the uplink data; the IAB node sends the uplink data to the donor-CU. And / or, the IAB node uses the IP address associated with the BAP address as the destination IP address of the downlink data and sends it to the donor-CU.

[0141] Through the above design, when the network management configures the IP address for the IAB node, it will also configure the BAP address of the donor-DU associated with the IP address, so that the IAB node can correctly obtain the association relationship between the IP address and the BAP address of the donor-DU. In the uplink data transmission, the IAB node can obtain the BAP routing identifier according to the uplink mapping rule, and select the IP address associated with the BAP address of the target donor-DU according to the BAP routing identifier as the source IP address of the uplink data, thereby avoiding or reducing the uplink data from being mistakenly discarded when it reaches the target donor-DU, and ensuring the correct transmission of the uploaded data.

[0142] [Example 5]

[0143] In the fifth embodiment, when the IAB node cannot determine the association between the IP address and the BAP address of the donor-DU, the IAB node can arbitrarily select one IP address from the multiple IP addresses configured by the network management as the source IP address of the uplink data. One possible problem is that there is a security filtering mechanism on the donor-DU side. Take uplink data transmission as an example: when the donor-DU receives an uplink data, it will determine whether the source IP address of the uplink data is managed by it, or is called associated with it. If the source IP address of the uplink data is managed by it or associated with it, the uplink data is sent to the donor-CU, otherwise the uplink data is discarded to ensure that illegal data does not reach the donor-CU. Optionally, the security filtering mechanism can be configured for the donor-DU by the donor-CU, or the OAM of the donor-DU, etc. In this fifth embodiment, the donor-DU can be configured to exempt the IP address assigned by the network management from filtering, thereby ensuring the correct transmission of data. As Figure 7 As shown, a process is provided, which at least includes:

[0144] Step 710: The network manager allocates an IP address to the IAB node, and sends the IP address allocated to the IAB node to the IAB node, and the IAB node receives the IP address allocated to it by the network manager. Step 710 is optional.

[0145] In one implementation, Figure 7 As shown, the network manager may send the IP address allocated by the network manager to the IAB-MT, and the IAB-MT may send the IP address allocated by the network manager to the IAB-DU. Optionally, the network manager may be the OAM of the IAB node, etc.

[0146] Step 720: The IAB node sends the IP address allocated by the network management to the IAB node to the donor-CU, and the donor-CU receives the IP address from the IAB node.

[0147] In one implementation, Figure 7 As shown, IAB-MT can send the IP address allocated by the network management to donor-CU.

[0148] Step 730: the donor-CU sends second configuration information to the donor-DU, where the second configuration information is used to configure the donor-DU to exempt the above IP address from filtering.

[0149] Among them, filtering-free means that when the donor-DU receives uplink data with a source IP address as an IP address or downlink data with a target IP address as an IP address, the uplink data or downlink data will not be discarded. The security filtering mechanism in the previous article mainly describes the uplink filtering mechanism, and there may also be a downlink filtering mechanism on the donor-DU side. For example, when the donor-DU receives downlink data from the donor-CU, it can determine whether the target IP address of the downlink data is managed by itself, or whether it is associated with itself; if it is managed by itself, or associated with itself, the donor-DU sends the downlink data to the next-hop IAB node; otherwise, the downlink data is discarded.

[0150] It can be understood that the second configuration information can explicitly indicate that the IP address is exempt from filtering. For example, the second configuration information may include a whitelist of exempted filtering, which includes at least one IP address exempt from filtering. For example, the name of the second configuration information may be an IAB transport network layer address exception (IAB TNL address exception, transport network layer, TNL) information element, which carries the IP address exempted from filtering. Alternatively, the second configuration information may implicitly indicate that the IP address is exempt from filtering. For example, the donor-CU may configure the downlink mapping rules associated with the IP addresses of other donor-DUs to the donor-DU, so that the IP addresses assigned by the network management can also be exempted from filtering. Alternatively, in step 730, the second configuration information may instruct the donor-DU to turn off the filtering rules. In this way, the donor-DU no longer performs filtering for any uplink data or downlink data. For example, in uplink data transmission, when the donor-DU receives uplink data from the IAB node, the uplink data is no longer filtered, and the uplink data can be sent to the donor-CU. In downlink data transmission, when the donor-DU receives downlink data from the donor-CU, it no longer performs filtering on the downlink data and can send the downlink data to the next-hop IAB node.

[0151] In one description, when the donor-CU receives the trigger of step 720, it can execute step 730 to configure the filter-free rule for the donor-DU. In the description of step 730, it can be considered that the donor-CU configures the filter-free rule for the donor-DU. Alternatively, the OAM of the donor-DU can also configure the filter-free rule for the donor-DU. For example, step 730 can be replaced by: the OAM of the donor-DU sends the second configuration information to the donor-DU, and the donor-DU receives the second configuration information from the OAM of the donor-DU. There is no limitation on the way in which the OAM of the donor-DU obtains the IP address configured by the OAM of the IAB node for the IAB node. For example, the OAM of the donor-DU and the OAM of the IAB node can interact with each other to obtain the IP address configured by the OAM of the IAB node for the IAB node, etc.

[0152] Step 740: Taking uplink transmission as an example, when the IAB node cannot determine the association between the IP address and the BAP address of the donor-DU, it arbitrarily selects an IP address from the IP addresses of the IAB node as the source IP address of the uplink data, and the IAB node sends the uplink data to the donor-DU.

[0153] Through the above design, the network management can allocate IP addresses for IAB nodes. The IAB nodes can randomly select an IP address from the IP addresses allocated by the network management, use the IP address as the source IP address of the uplink data, and configure the donor-DU to exempt the IP address from filtering, thereby ensuring the correct transmission of the uplink data. For downlink transmission, the donor-CU can randomly select an IP address from the IP addresses configured by the network management for the IAB node as the target IP address. The target IP address of the downlink data is no longer filtered for the donor-DU, thereby ensuring the correct transmission of the downlink data.

[0154] It is understandable that in the embodiments of the present application:

[0155] 1. In addition to focusing on describing the differences between different processes, the descriptions of different processes can refer to each other.

[0156] 2. In Figures 3 to 7 In the process, the IAB node, donor-DU, donor-CU and network management are used as the execution subjects for example. It can be understood that in each process, the function of the terminal can be implemented by the terminal, or by a module in the terminal (for example, a chip or circuit, etc.). The function of the donor-DU can be implemented by the donor-DU, or by a module in the donor-DU. The function of the donor-CU can be implemented by the donor-CU, or by a module in the donor-CU. The function of the network management can be implemented by the network management, or by a module in the network management, etc.

[0157] 3. In Figures 3 to 7 Each flow chart may include fewer steps or more steps than the flow chart or text description, without limitation.

[0158] 4. In the embodiments of the present application, "(such as an IAB node) receives information from (such as a network management or a donor-CU)" can be understood as the source of the information being the network management or the donor-CU, and the destination being the IAB node, which may include the IAB node directly or indirectly receiving information from the network management or the donor-CU. The information may be processed as necessary between the source and destination of the information transmission, such as format changes, etc., but the destination can understand the valid information from the source. Similar expressions in the present application can be understood similarly and will not be repeated here.

[0159] In the embodiments provided in the present application, the methods provided in the embodiments of the present application are introduced from the perspective of the interaction between the IAB node, donor-DU, donor-CU and network management. In order to implement the functions in the methods provided in the embodiments of the present application, the IAB node, donor-DU, donor-CU and network management, etc., may include hardware structures and / or software modules, and implement the above functions in the form of hardware structures, software modules, or hardware structures plus software modules. Whether a certain function of the above functions is executed in the form of hardware structures, software modules, or hardware structures plus software modules depends on the design constraints of the specific application of the technical solution.

[0160] Figure 8 and Fig. 9 The schematic diagram of the structure of possible devices provided by the embodiments of the present application. These communication devices can implement the functions of the IAB node, donor-CU, or network management in the above method embodiments. Therefore, the beneficial effects of the above method embodiments may be achieved.

[0161] like Figure 8 As shown, the communication device 800 includes a processing unit 810 and a transceiver unit 820 .

[0162] Exemplarily, the processing unit 810 may also be referred to as a processor, a processing board, a processing module, a processing device, etc. The transceiver unit 820 may also be referred to as a transceiver, a transceiver, a transceiver module, a transceiver device, a communication unit, etc. Further, the transceiver unit 820 may include at least one of a transmitting unit or a receiving unit. The transmitting unit and the receiving unit may be integrated together, or may be two independent units, etc.

[0163] In one design, communication device 800 is used to implement Figure 3 Functions of IAB node or donor-CU:

[0164] For example, when the communication device 800 is used to implement Figure 3 When the function of the IAB node is performed: the transceiver unit 820 is used to receive the first information from the network management, the first information includes the Internet Protocol IP address allocated by the network management to the IAB node; the transceiver unit 820 is also used to send the second information to the host node centralized unit donor-CU, the second information includes the IP address; the transceiver unit 820 is also used to receive the third information from the donor-CU, the third information includes the backhaul link adaptation layer protocol BAP address, the BAP address is the BAP address of the host node distributed unit donor-DU associated with the IP address.

[0165] For example, when the communication device 800 is used to implement Figure 3When the function of the donor-CU is performed: the transceiver unit 820 is used to receive the second information from the IAB node, the second information includes the Internet Protocol IP address, and the IP address is the IP address assigned to the IAB node by the network management; the transceiver unit 820 is also used to send the third information to the IAB node, the third information includes the backhaul link adaptation layer protocol BAP address, and the BAP address is the BAP address of the host node distributed unit donor-DU associated with the IP address.

[0166] In one design, communication device 800 is used to implement Figure 4 Functions of IAB node or donor-CU:

[0167] For example, when the communication device 800 is used to implement Figure 4 When the function of the IAB node is: the transceiver unit 820 is used to receive a first indication from the host node centralized unit donor-CU, the first indication is used to indicate the number of host node distributed units donor-DU reachable by the IAB node, or to indicate whether the number of donor-DU reachable by the IAB node is one.

[0168] For example, when the communication device 800 is used to implement Figure 4 When the function of the donor-CU is performed: the processing unit 810 is used to determine the number of donor-DU distributed units of the host node reachable by the access backhaul integrated IAB node; the transceiver unit 820 is used to send a first indication to the IAB node, and the first indication is used to indicate the number of donor-DUs reachable by the IAB node, or to indicate whether the number of donor-DUs reachable by the IAB node is one.

[0169] In one design, communication device 800 is used to implement Figure 5 Functions of IAB node or donor-CU:

[0170] For example, when the communication device 800 is used to implement Figure 5 When the function of the IAB node is performed: the transceiver unit 820 is used to receive a second indication from the donor node centralized unit donor-CU; wherein the second indication is used to indicate a method for the IAB node to obtain an Internet Protocol IP address, and / or to indicate whether the IAB node is allowed to obtain an IP address from a network manager, and the method for the IAB node to obtain an IP address includes obtaining an IP address from a donor-CU or obtaining an IP address from a network manager.

[0171] For example, when the communication device 800 is used to implement Figure 5When the function of the donor-CU is performed: the transceiver unit 820 is used to send a second indication to the access backhaul integrated IAB node; wherein the second indication is used to indicate a method for the IAB node to obtain an Internet Protocol IP address, and / or to indicate whether the IAB node is allowed to obtain an IP address from a network manager, and the method for the IAB node to obtain an IP address includes obtaining an IP address from a donor-CU or obtaining an IP address from a network manager.

[0172] In one design, communication device 800 is used to implement Figure 6 Functions of IAB nodes or network management:

[0173] For example, when the communication device 800 is used to implement Figure 6 When the function of the IAB node is: the transceiver unit 820 is used to receive the first configuration information from the network management, the first configuration information includes the Internet Protocol IP address allocated by the network management to the IAB node and the return link adaptation layer protocol BAP address of the host node distributed unit donor-DU associated with the IP address.

[0174] For example, when the communication device 800 is used to implement Figure 6 The functions of the network management are as follows: a processing unit 810 is used to allocate an Internet Protocol IP address to the IAB node; the network management determines the backhaul link adaptation layer protocol BAP address of the host node distributed unit donor-DU associated with the IP address; a transceiver unit 820 is used to send first configuration information to the IAB node, the first configuration information includes the IP address allocated by the network management to the IAB node and the BAP address of the donor-DU associated with the IP address.

[0175] In one design, communication device 800 is used to implement Figure 7 Functions of IAB node or donor-CU:

[0176] For example, when the communication device 800 is used to implement Figure 7 The functions of the IAB node in the middle are as follows: the processing unit 810 is used to arbitrarily select an IP address from the IP addresses of the IAB node as the source IP address of the uplink data when the association between the Internet Protocol IP address and the return link adaptation layer protocol BAP address of the host node distributed unit donor-DU cannot be determined; the transceiver unit 820 is used to send the uplink data to the donor-DU.

[0177] For example, when the communication device 800 is used to implement Figure 7When the function of the donor-CU is performed: the transceiver unit 820 is used to receive the Internet Protocol IP address from the IAB node, and the IP address is the IP address assigned by the network management to the IAB; the transceiver unit 820 is also used to send second configuration information to the donor-DU, and the second configuration information is used to configure the donor-DU to be free of filtering for the IP address. Free of filtering means that when the donor-DU receives uplink data with a source IP address as the IP address or downlink data with a target IP address as the IP address, the uplink data or the downlink data will not be discarded.

[0178] For a more detailed description of the processing unit 810 and the transceiver unit 820, reference may be made to the description in the above method embodiment, which will not be repeated here.

[0179] It is understandable that the division of units in the embodiments of the present application is schematic and is only a logical function division. There may be other division methods in actual implementation. In addition, each functional unit in the embodiments of the present application may be integrated into a physical device (for example, a processor), or each functional unit may be a separate physical device, or two or more units may be integrated into one unit for implementation, and the above-mentioned integrated unit may be implemented in the form of hardware, or in the form of software functional modules, etc.

[0180] Fig. 9 Another structural diagram of a communication device 900 provided in an embodiment of the present application is shown. For example, Fig. 9 The communication device 900 shown may be Figure 8 A hardware circuit implementation of the communication device 800 shown in FIG. Fig. 9 Only the essential parts of the communication device are shown.

[0181] like Fig. 9 As shown, the communication device 900 includes a processor 910 and an interface circuit 920. The processor 910 and the interface circuit 920 are coupled to each other.

[0182] For example, the processor 910 may be a central processing unit (CPU), or other general-purpose processors, digital signal processors (DSP), application specific integrated circuits (ASIC), field programmable gate arrays (FPGA) or other programmable logic devices, transistor logic devices, hardware components or any combination thereof. The general-purpose processor may be a microprocessor or any conventional processor. The interface circuit 920 may be a transceiver or an input-output circuit, etc.

[0183] Optionally, the communication device 900 may further include a memory 930 for storing instructions executed by the processor 910 or storing input data required by the processor 910 to execute instructions or storing data generated after the processor 910 executes instructions. For example, instructions may also be referred to as computer programs, or computer program codes, etc.

[0184] For example, the memory 930 may be a random access memory (RAM), a flash memory, a read-only memory (ROM), a programmable read-only memory (PROM), an erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM), an electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), a register, a hard disk, a mobile hard disk, a compact disc ROM (CD-ROM), or any other form of storage medium known in the art.

[0185] When the communication device 900 is used to implement Figures 3 to 7 When the processor 910 performs the functions of the processing unit 810, and the interface circuit 920 performs the functions of the transceiver unit 820, the processor 910 performs the functions of the processing unit 810, and the interface circuit 920 performs the functions of the transceiver unit 820.

[0186] In one design, the interface circuit 920 is used to receive signals from other communication devices outside the communication device 900 and transmit them to the processor 910, or send signals from the processor 910 to other communication devices outside the communication device. The processor 910 implements the above through logic circuits or executes code instructions. Figures 3 to 7 The functions of the IAB node, donor-CU or network management.

[0187] The embodiment of the present application also provides a communication device, which includes a processor and a memory, the processor and the memory are coupled, and the processor is used to implement Figures 3 to 7 For example, the processor may execute instructions in the memory so that the communication device implements one or more functions in the above method embodiments, such as Figures 3 to 7 In one exemplary embodiment, the storage medium is coupled to the processor so that the processor can read information from the storage medium and write information to the storage medium. Of course, the storage medium can also be a component of the processor. The processor and the storage medium can be located in an ASIC. In addition, the ASIC can be located in Figures 3 to 7 The processor and storage medium can also exist as discrete components in the IAB node, donor-CU or network management. Figures 3 to 7 IAB node, donor-CU or network management, etc.

[0188] The present application also provides a communication device, which includes a processor, and the processor is used to implement Figures 3 to 7 The functions of the IAB node, donor-CU, or network management.

[0189] The present application also provides a computer-readable storage medium, which stores instructions, which may also be referred to as computer programs, computer program codes, etc. The instructions are executed on a computer, so that the computer executes the method in the above embodiment. Figures 3 to 7 The functions of the IAB node, donor-CU or network management.

[0190] Optionally, the computer may be a general-purpose computer, a special-purpose computer, a computer network, a network device, a user device or other programmable device. The computer program or instruction 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 program or instruction may be transmitted from one website, computer, server or data center to another website, computer, server or data center by wired or wireless means. The computer-readable storage medium may be any available medium that can be accessed by a computer or a data storage device such as a server or data center that integrates one or more available media. The available medium may be a magnetic medium, such as a floppy disk, a hard disk, or a magnetic tape; it may also be an optical medium, such as a digital video disc; it may also be a semiconductor medium, such as a solid-state hard disk. The computer-readable storage medium may be a volatile or non-volatile storage medium, or may include both volatile and non-volatile types of storage media.

[0191] The present application also provides a computer program product, including a computer program or an instruction. When the computer program or the instruction is executed on a computer, the above Figures 3 to 7 The method of the IAB node, donor-CU or network management is executed. For example, the computer program product includes one or more computer programs or instructions. When the computer program or instruction is loaded and executed on the computer, all or part of the embodiments of the present application are executed. Figures 3 to 7 The process or function of the IAB node, donor-CU or network management.

[0192] It is understood that the method in the embodiments of the present application can be implemented in whole or in part by software, hardware, firmware or any other combination. When implemented by software, it can be implemented in whole or in part in the form of a computer program product.

[0193] The present application also provides a chip, which includes a processor, the processor is coupled to a memory, and the processor is used to execute a computer program or instruction stored in the memory, so that the chip implements Figures 3 to 7 For example, taking the chip implementing the function of the donor-CU as an example, the chip can receive information from other modules of the donor-CU (such as radio frequency or antenna, etc.), and the information can be sent by the IAB node to the donor-CU. Alternatively, the chip can send information to other modules in the donor-CU (such as radio frequency or antenna, etc.), and the information is sent by the donor-CU to the IAB node, etc.

[0194] An embodiment of the present application also provides a communication system, including: a first communication device and a second communication device.

[0195] Among them, the first communication device can implement the above Figure 3 The second communication device can realize the function of the IAB node in the above text. Figure 3 Alternatively, the first communication device may implement the above Figure 4 The second communication device can implement the above Figure 4 Alternatively, the first communication device may implement the above Figure 5 The second communication device can implement the above Figure 5 Alternatively, the first communication device may implement the above Figure 6 The second communication device can implement the above Figure 6 Alternatively, the first communication device may implement the above Figure 7The second communication device can implement the above Figure 7 For the specific structure of the first communication device or the second communication device, please refer to the above description, for example Figure 8 or Fig. 9 The structure description in .

[0196] In the description of this application, "at least one" means one or more, and "more than one" 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. In the text description of this application, the character " / " generally indicates that the associated objects before and after are in an "or" relationship; "including at least one of A, B or C" can mean: including A; including B; including C; including A and B; including A and C; including B and C; including A, B and C.

[0197] The various numbers involved in the embodiments of the present application are only for the convenience of description and are not used to limit the scope of the embodiments of the present application. The size of the sequence number of the above-mentioned processes does not mean the order of execution. The execution order of each process should be determined by its function and internal logic.

[0198] Obviously, those skilled in the art can make various changes and modifications to the present application without departing from the scope of the present application. Thus, if these modifications and variations of the present application fall within the scope of the claims of the present application and their equivalents, the present application is also intended to include these modifications and variations.

Claims

1. A communication method, characterized in that: include: The access backhaul integrated IAB node receives first information from a network manager, wherein the first information includes an Internet Protocol IP address allocated by the network manager to the IAB node; The IAB node sends second information to a donor node centralized unit donor-CU, where the second information includes the IP address; The IAB node receives third information from the donor-CU, where the third information includes a backhaul link adaptation layer protocol BAP address, where the BAP address is a BAP address of a host node distributed unit donor-DU associated with the IP address.

2. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that Also includes: The IAB node determines a BAP routing identifier corresponding to the uplink data, where the BAP routing identifier includes the BAP address; The IAB node determines the IP address associated with the BAP address according to the third information; The IAB node uses the IP address as the source IP address of the uplink data; The IAB node sends the uplink data to the donor-CU.

3. The method according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that The network manager performs operation management and maintenance (OAM) for the IAB node.

4. A communication method, characterized in that: include: The donor node centralized unit donor-CU receives second information from the access backhaul integrated IAB node, where the second information includes an Internet Protocol IP address, and the IP address is an IP address allocated by the network management to the IAB node; The donor-CU sends third information to the IAB node, where the third information includes a backhaul link adaptation layer protocol BAP address, where the BAP address is a BAP address of a donor node distributed unit donor-DU associated with the IP address.

5. The method according to claim 4, characterized in that Also includes: The donor-CU obtains the association relationship between the donor-DU and the IP address; The donor-CU determines the donor-DU associated with the IP address according to the association relationship between the donor-DU and the IP address; The donor-CU determines the BAP address of the donor-DU as the BAP address.

6. The method according to claim 5, characterized in that The donor-CU obtains the association relationship between the donor-DU and the IP address, including: The donor-CU sends fourth information to at least one donor-DU managed by it, where the fourth information is used to request the donor-DU for an IP address associated with it; The donor-CU receives fifth information from the donor-DU, where the fifth information includes an IP address associated with the donor-DU and reported by the donor-DU; The donor-CU determines the association relationship between the donor-DU and the IP address based on the fifth information and the second information.

7. The method according to claim 5, characterized in that The donor-CU obtains the association relationship between the donor-DU and the IP address, including: The donor-CU receives sixth information from the network management, where the sixth information includes an identifier of at least one donor-DU and an IP address of at least one IAB node; The donor-CU determines the association relationship between the donor-DU and the IP address based on the sixth information and the second information.

8. The method according to claim 4, characterized in that Also includes: The donor-CU determines the donor-DU associated with the IP address according to the IP address of at least one donor-DU managed by the donor-CU; The donor-CU determines the BAP address of the donor-DU as the BAP address.

9. The method according to claim 4, characterized in that Also includes: The donor-CU sends seventh information to at least one donor-DU managed by it, wherein the seventh information includes the IP address, and the seventh information is used to inquire whether the donor-DU is associated with the IP address; The donor-CU receives eighth information from the donor-DU, where the eighth information is used to instruct the donor-DU to associate with the IP address; The donor-CU determines the BAP address according to the eighth information.

10. The method according to any one of claims 4 to 9, characterized in that Also includes: The donor-CU sends the BAP address to the donor-DU.

11. A communication device, characterized in that: The method comprises a unit for implementing the method according to any one of claims 1 to 3.

12. A communication device, characterized in that: The method comprises a processor and a memory, wherein the processor and the memory are coupled, and the processor is used to implement the method according to any one of claims 1 to 3.

13. A communication device, characterized in that: It includes a processor and an interface circuit, wherein the interface circuit is used to receive signals from other communication devices outside the communication device and transmit them to the processor or send signals from the processor to other communication devices outside the communication device, and the processor is used to implement the method as described in any one of claims 1 to 3 through a logic circuit or executing code instructions.

14. A communication device, characterized in that: Comprising units for implementing the method according to any one of claims 4 to 10.

15. A communication device, characterized in that: The method comprises a processor and a memory, wherein the processor and the memory are coupled, and the processor is configured to implement the method according to any one of claims 4 to 10.

16. A communication device, characterized in that: It includes a processor and an interface circuit, wherein the interface circuit is used to receive signals from other communication devices outside the communication device and transmit them to the processor or send signals from the processor to other communication devices outside the communication device, and the processor is used to implement the method as described in any one of claims 4 to 10 through a logic circuit or executing code instructions.

17. A computer-readable storage medium, characterized in that: The computer-readable storage medium stores instructions, and when the instructions are executed on a computer, the computer executes the method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, or the method according to any one of claims 4 to 10.

18. A chip, characterized in that: The chip comprises a processor, which is coupled to a memory and is used to execute a computer program or instruction stored in the memory, so that the chip implements the method of any one of claims 1 to 3, or implements the method of any one of claims 4 to 10.

19. A communication system, characterized in that: include: a first communication device and a second communication device; The first communication device is used to implement the method according to any one of claims 1 to 3; The second communication device is used to implement the method according to any one of claims 4 to 10.

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