Lightweight Terminal Cell Selection and Reselection Method and Related Equipment

Abstract

The present disclosure provides a lightweight terminal cell selection and reselection method and related devices. Among them, the lightweight terminal cell selection and reselection method includes: when the lightweight terminal enters the idle state or the inactive state from the connected state, generating a candidate cell list based on a pre-stored list of successfully switched cells and a list of cells with handover conditions; attempting to camp on the cells in the candidate cell list based on the candidate cell list; and in response to determining that camping on all the cells in the candidate cell list fails, starting frequency band scanning to select a cell to camp on.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure relates to the field of mobile communication technologies, and in particular, to a method and related device for cell selection and reselection of lightweight terminals. Background Art

[0002] A lightweight (Reduced Capability, RedCap) terminal is a lightweight 5G device introduced by the 3GPP R17 standard, aiming to provide efficient services for various consumer scenarios and industrial application scenarios. On the other hand, 3GPP stipulates that 5G new radio includes two major spectrum ranges, namely FR1 and FR2. In terms of bandwidth capabilities, when a RedCap terminal camps on an FR1 cell, its bandwidth capability does not exceed 20 MHz, and when it camps on an FR2 cell, its bandwidth capability does not exceed 100 MHz. While for non-RedCap terminals (i.e., traditional terminals), when camping on an FR1 cell, their bandwidth capabilities can exceed 20 MHz, and when camping on an FR2 cell, their bandwidth capabilities can exceed 100 MHz. That is to say, according to the 3GPP protocol, a RedCap terminal can only access cells that support the above bandwidth capabilities, simply referred to as RedCap cells, that is, the bandwidth of an FR1 cell does not exceed 20 MHz, and the bandwidth of an FR2 cell does not exceed 100 MHz. Since most of the current 5G networks are based on the 3GPP R15 or R16 standards, the coverage of RedCap cells that support the above bandwidth capabilities is incomplete, and it is difficult for mobile communication operators to complete the network-wide upgrade in the short term. As a result, when a RedCap terminal performs cell selection, it takes a long time and consumes a large amount of power, and the user experience is poor. Therefore, how to enable a RedCap terminal to access a RedCap cell as soon as possible and improve the user experience has become an important research and optimization direction for cell selection and cell reselection in the mobility management of RedCap terminals. Summary of the Invention

[0003] In view of this, embodiments of the present disclosure provide a method and related device for cell selection and reselection of lightweight terminals, which can enable a lightweight terminal to quickly access a RedCap cell that supports the bandwidth capability of the lightweight terminal, reduce the access delay and power consumption of the lightweight terminal, and thus greatly improve the user experience.

[0004] The method for cell selection and reselection of lightweight terminals according to embodiments of the present disclosure may include: when the lightweight terminal enters the idle state or the inactive state from the connected state, generating a candidate cell list based on a pre-stored list of successfully switched cells and a list of cells with handover conditions; attempting to camp on the cells in the candidate cell list based on the candidate cell list; and in response to determining that all cells in the candidate cell list have failed to camp, starting a frequency band scan to select a cell to camp on.

[0005] In an embodiment of the present disclosure, the list of successfully switched cells and the list of cells with handover conditions include multiple pieces of cell information; wherein, the cell information includes parameters such as cell identifier, cell frequency, cell frequency band, bandwidth, and signal quality; the generation of the candidate cell list includes: sorting the cells in the list of successfully switched cells and the list of cells with handover conditions in descending order of signal quality in the cell information; and sequentially adding the cells in the list of successfully switched cells and the list of cells with handover conditions to the candidate cell list in the sorted order.

[0006] The method according to the embodiment of the present disclosure further includes: during the sorting process, for cells with the same signal quality, based on the cell frequency in the cell information, the cells having the same frequency as the cell where the lightweight terminal camped when leaving the connected state are ranked ahead.

[0007] In an embodiment of the present disclosure, attempting to camp on a cell in the candidate cell list based on the candidate cell list includes: selecting the cell with the best signal quality from the candidate cell list as the target cell; attempting to camp on the target cell; in response to determining that camping on the target cell is successful, ending; and in response to determining that camping on the target cell fails, deleting the target cell from the candidate cell list, and returning to the step of selecting the cell with the best signal quality from the candidate cell list as the target cell.

[0008] In an embodiment of the present disclosure, the starting of the frequency band scanning to select a cell to camp on includes: reading a pre-stored list of prohibited access cells; determining a target cell to attempt to camp on through frequency band scanning; comparing the cell identifier of the target cell with the cell identifiers of each cell recorded in the list of prohibited access cells respectively; in response to determining that the target cell is a cell in the list of prohibited access cells, skipping the target cell and returning to the step of determining a target cell to attempt to camp on through frequency band scanning; in response to determining that the target cell is not a cell in the list of prohibited access cells, attempting to camp on the target cell; in response to determining that camping on the target cell fails, returning to the step of determining a target cell to attempt to camp on through frequency band scanning; and in response to determining that camping on the target cell is successful, ending.

[0009] The method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure further includes: receiving an indication to switch to a target cell; determining whether the bandwidth of the target cell supports the bandwidth capability of the lightweight terminal; in response to determining that the bandwidth of the target cell does not support the bandwidth capability of the lightweight terminal, performing a handover failure process; in response to determining that the bandwidth of the target cell supports the bandwidth capability of the lightweight terminal, performing a handover to the target cell; in response to a successful handover, adding information of the target cell to the list of successfully handover cells; and in response to a failed handover, performing the handover failure process.

[0010] The method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure further includes: in response to determining that the bandwidth of the target cell does not support the bandwidth capability of the lightweight terminal, adding information of the target cell to the list of prohibited access cells.

[0011] The method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure further includes: receiving an RRC reconfiguration message sent by the network side; wherein the RRC reconfiguration message includes a configuration of at least one conditional handover candidate cell; evaluating the conditional handover execution conditions of the candidate cell; determining whether the bandwidth of all candidate cells that meet the conditional handover execution conditions supports the bandwidth capability of the lightweight terminal; and adding information of all candidate cells that support the bandwidth capability of the lightweight terminal to the list of conditional handover cells.

[0012] The method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure further includes: adding information of all candidate cells that do not support the bandwidth capability of the lightweight terminal to the list of prohibited access cells.

[0013] Corresponding to the above lightweight terminal cell selection and reselection method, some embodiments of the present disclosure also disclose a lightweight terminal cell selection and reselection device, including:

[0014] A candidate cell list generation module, configured to generate a candidate cell list based on a pre-stored list of successfully handover cells and a list of cells with handover conditions when the lightweight terminal enters the idle state or the inactive state from the connected state;

[0015] A cell selection module, configured to attempt to camp on a cell in the candidate cell list based on the candidate cell list; and

[0016] A frequency scanning module, configured to start frequency band scanning to select a cell to camp on in response to determining that camping on all cells in the candidate cell list fails.

[0017] In addition, an embodiment of the present disclosure further provides an electronic device, including: a memory, a processor, and a computer program stored on the memory and executable on the processor, where the processor implements the above lightweight terminal cell selection and reselection method when executing the program.

[0018] Embodiments of the present disclosure also provide a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing computer instructions for causing a computer to execute the above-mentioned lightweight terminal cell selection and reselection method.

[0019] Embodiments of the present disclosure also provide a computer program product including computer program instructions that, when running on a computer, cause the computer to execute the above-mentioned lightweight terminal cell selection and reselection method.

[0020] In the above-mentioned lightweight terminal cell selection and reselection method and related devices, the lightweight terminal can preferentially attempt to access cells in the handover success cell list (HOList) and the cell list with handover conditions (CHOCelllist) when entering the idle state or the inactive state by recording and maintaining the handover success cell list (HOList) and the cell list with handover conditions (CHOCelllist) in the connected state. Since the cells in the handover success cell list (HOList) and the cell list with handover conditions (CHOCelllist) are all determined to be cells that can support the bandwidth capability of the lightweight terminal, compared with the method of directly performing frequency band scanning to select cells by the lightweight terminal, it is usually possible to access cells more quickly with a higher probability. That is to say, the above-mentioned lightweight terminal cell selection and reselection method can effectively improve the probability that the lightweight terminal can camp on cells in the current 5G network environment, thereby greatly improving the user experience. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0021] In order to more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the present disclosure or related technologies, the following will briefly introduce the drawings required for use in the embodiments or related technology descriptions. Obviously, the drawings in the following description are only embodiments of the present disclosure. For those of ordinary skill in the art, other drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without creative efforts.

[0022] Figure 1 Shows the implementation process of the lightweight terminal cell selection and reselection method described in the embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0023] Figure 2 Shows the implementation process of the method of attempting to camp on one of the candidate cell lists based on the generated candidate cell list described in the embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0024] Figure 3 Shows the implementation process of the method of selecting cells by frequency band scanning described in the embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0025] Figure 4 Shows the implementation process of the method for recording the list of successfully switched cells of the RedCap terminal described in the embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0026] Figure 5 Shows the implementation process of the method for recording the list of cells with handover conditions of the RedCap terminal described in the embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0027] Figure 6 Shows the internal structure of the lightweight terminal cell selection and reselection device described in some embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0028] Figure 7 Shows a more specific schematic diagram of the hardware structure of the electronic device described in some embodiments of the present disclosure. Detailed implementation manners

[0029] To make the objectives, technical solutions, and advantages of the present disclosure clearer and more understandable, the present disclosure will be further described in detail below in conjunction with specific embodiments and with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0030] It should be noted that unless otherwise defined, the technical terms or scientific terms used in the embodiments of the present disclosure should have the ordinary meanings understood by those of ordinary skill in the art to which the present disclosure belongs. The "first", "second" and similar terms used in the embodiments of the present disclosure do not denote any order, quantity or importance, but are only used to distinguish different components. The terms such as "including" or "comprising" mean that the elements or items appearing before this word cover the elements or items listed after this word and their equivalents, without excluding other elements or items. The terms such as "connected" or "coupled" are not limited to physical or mechanical connections, but may include electrical connections, whether direct or indirect. The terms such as "upper", "lower", "left", "right" are only used to represent relative position relationships, and when the absolute position of the object being described changes, the relative position relationship may also change accordingly.

[0031] It can be understood that before using the technical solutions of the various embodiments of the present disclosure, the types, usage scopes, usage scenarios, etc. of the personal information involved will be informed to the user in an appropriate manner and the user's authorization will be obtained.

[0032] For example, when responding to receiving an active request from the user, a prompt message is sent to the user to clearly prompt the user that the operation requested to be executed will require obtaining and using the user's personal information. Thus, the user can autonomously choose whether to provide personal information to software or hardware such as an electronic device, an application program, a server, or a storage medium that executes the operation of the technical solution of the present disclosure according to the prompt message.

[0033] As an optional but non-limiting implementation manner, in response to receiving an active request from a user, the manner of sending a prompt message to the user may be, for example, in the form of a pop-up window, and the prompt message may be presented in text in the pop-up window. In addition, the pop-up window may also carry selection controls for the user to select "agree" or "disagree" to provide personal information to the electronic device.

[0034] It can be understood that the above notification and the process of obtaining user authorization are only illustrative and do not constitute a limitation on the implementation manner of the present disclosure. Other manners that comply with relevant laws and regulations can also be applied to the implementation manner of the present disclosure.

[0035] As mentioned above, since the RedCap terminal can only access the RedCap cell that supports its bandwidth capability, however, the current situation is that the coverage of the RedCap cell is incomplete. Therefore, how to enable the RedCap terminal to access the RedCap cell as soon as possible and improve the user experience has forced the cell selection and cell reselection in the mobility management of the RedCap terminal to become an important research direction and optimization direction.

[0036] It can be understood that the mobility management of mobile communication generally includes cell selection, cell reselection, redirection, handover, and conditional handover (CHO).

[0037] Among them, cell selection and cell reselection refer to the behavior of a mobile terminal in the idle state (RRC_IDLE) or the inactive state (RRC_INACTIVE) to select a resident cell according to the reselection parameter configuration of the network (usually configured in the broadcast message of the cell for all mobile terminals in the cell) and the measurement results of neighboring cells.

[0038] Redirection means that when a mobile terminal in the connected state (RRC_CONNECTED) transitions to the idle state or the inactive state, the network specifies the frequency point of the neighboring cell in the RRC Release message. The mobile terminal transitions from the connected state to the idle state or the inactive state and searches for the target cell to reside on the specified frequency point. After redirection, the mobile terminal transitions to the idle state or the inactive state.

[0039] Handover refers to the behavior of a mobile terminal in the connected state (RRC_CONNECTED). The target cell is clearly specified by the network in the RRC reconfiguration message. After the handover to the target cell, the mobile terminal is still in the connected state.

[0040] Conditional handover refers to the behavior of a mobile terminal in the connected state (RRC_CONNECTED). The difference between conditional handover and handover is that the network may configure one or more candidate target cells in the RRC reconfiguration message. The mobile terminal will evaluate the handover execution conditions of each candidate target cell according to the configured conditions. If multiple target cells simultaneously meet the handover execution conditions, the mobile terminal will decide which target cell to select and perform the conditional handover. After the handover to the target cell, the mobile terminal remains in the connected state.

[0041] It can be seen that cell selection and reselection are autonomously determined by the mobile terminal according to the measurement results in the idle state (RRC_IDLE) or inactive state (RRC_INACTIVE) and the reselection parameters configured by the network. Handover and conditional handover are indicated by commands sent by the network to the mobile terminal, and generally triggered according to the measurement reports reported by the mobile terminal in the connected state (RRC_CONNECTED). It can be seen that the mobility management of the mobile terminal in the idle state (RRC_IDLE) or inactive state (RRC_INACTIVE) is evaluated only based on the measurement results of the mobile terminal in the idle state (RRC_IDLE) or inactive state (RRC_INACTIVE) and the historical cells it has camped on, while the mobility management in the connected state (RRC_CONNECTED) is triggered only based on the measurement results in the connected state (RRC_CONNECTED).

[0042] In practical applications, RedCap terminals also perform the above cell selection, cell reselection, handover, and conditional handover in the same way as ordinary mobile terminals. It can be seen that when RedCap terminals perform state transitions between the connected state (RRC_CONNECTED) and the idle state (RRC_IDLE), and between the connected state (RRC_CONNECTED) and the inactive state (RRC_INACTIVE), they do not record the cell information obtained in the connected state (RRC_CONNECTED), which leads to problems in the cell selection or cell reselection process. For example, when a RedCap terminal attempts to hand over to a target cell specified by the network in the connected state (RRC_CONNECTED), if the bandwidth of the target cell exceeds the capabilities of the RedCap terminal, the handover will fail. Or, if the bandwidth of the target cell meets the capabilities of the RedCap terminal, the handover is successful. In these cases, the RedCap terminal can determine whether the target cell meets its own bandwidth capabilities. However, the existing mobility management process does not record the information of these target cells where the handover fails or succeeds. This means that when the RedCap terminal enters the idle state (RRC_IDLE) or the inactive state (RRC_INACTIVE), it may try to connect to the cell that the handover failed due to bandwidth problems before, or preferentially try to connect to a cell that the RedCap terminal cannot access, resulting in an increase in unnecessary cell selection time and the power consumption of the RedCap terminal, and ultimately reflected in the degradation of the user experience.

[0043] To solve the above problems, embodiments of the present disclosure provide a lightweight terminal cell selection and reselection method that can record whether the cells obtained by the RedCap terminal in the connected state (RRC_CONNECTED) support the RedCap terminal, and use the recorded information for cell selection and reselection when it is in the idle state (RRC_IDLE) or the inactive state (RRC_INACTIVE), so as to assist the RedCap terminal in quickly finding accessible cells, reducing the cell selection time and the power consumption of the RedCap terminal, and thus improving the user experience.

[0044] The lightweight terminal cell selection and reselection method described in the embodiments of the present disclosure can be applied to lightweight terminals, that is, it can be executed by RedCap terminals. In addition, in order to execute the lightweight terminal cell selection and reselection method described in the embodiments of the present disclosure, in some embodiments of the present disclosure, the RedCap terminal can pre-maintain and save the following cell information lists in advance: the handover success cell list (HOList) and the cell list with handover conditions (CHOCelllist). In other embodiments of the present disclosure, the RedCap terminal can further pre-maintain and save the prohibited access cell list (BarList) in advance.

[0045] Among them, the above-mentioned handover successful cell list (HOList) is used to record the target cell information of each successful handover of the RedCap terminal in the connected state (RRC_CONNECTED). The above-mentioned target cell information includes parameters such as cell ID, cell frequency point, cell frequency band, bandwidth, and signal quality. The RedCap terminal shall ensure that when entering the idle state (RRC_IDLE) or the inactive state (RRC_INACTIVE), the cells in the handover successful cell list are used as references for the terminal cell selection and reselection.

[0046] The above-mentioned cell list with handover conditions (CHOCelllist) is used to record the cell information that can support the bandwidth capability of the RedCap terminal determined during the conditional handover process of the RedCap terminal in the connected state (RRC_CONNECTED), including parameters such as cell ID, cell frequency point, cell frequency band, bandwidth, and signal quality. The RedCap terminal shall ensure that when entering the idle state (RRC_IDLE) or the inactive state (RRC_INACTIVE), the cells in the cell list with handover conditions are used as references for the terminal cell selection and reselection.

[0047] The above-mentioned prohibited access cell list (BarList) is used to record the cell information determined by the RedCap terminal in the connected state (RRC_CONNECTED) because its bandwidth does not support the bandwidth capability of the RedCap terminal. Among them, the above-mentioned cell information includes parameters such as cell identifier (ID), cell frequency point, cell frequency band, bandwidth, and signal quality. The RedCap terminal shall ensure that when entering the idle state (RRC_IDLE) or the inactive state (RRC_INACTIVE), it does not attempt to access the cells in the prohibited access cell list.

[0048] Based on the above content, Figure 1 shows the implementation process of the lightweight terminal cell selection and reselection method described in some embodiments of the present disclosure. As Figure 1 shown, when the RedCap terminal enters the idle state or the inactive state from the connected state, the RedCap terminal cell selection and reselection method described in the embodiments of the present disclosure includes the following steps:

[0049] In step 110, a candidate cell list is generated based on the pre-stored handover successful cell list (HOList) and the cell list with handover conditions (CHOCelllist).

[0050] Specifically, in the embodiments of the present disclosure, the method for generating a candidate cell list may include: First, sort all the cells in the handover success cell list (HOList) and the cell list with handover conditions (CHOCelllist) in the order of the recorded signal quality from good to poor; then, add all the cells in the handover success cell list (HOList) and the cell list with handover conditions (CHOCelllist) to the above-mentioned candidate cell list in the sorted order in turn.

[0051] Furthermore, during the sorting process, for cells with the same signal quality, the cells with the same frequency as the cell where the RedCap terminal camped when leaving the connected state can be ranked ahead based on the recorded cell frequency. It should be noted that if the signal quality and the cell frequency are both the same, the cells can be sorted in any order.

[0052] In step 120, attempt to camp on the cells in the generated candidate cell list.

[0053] In the embodiments of the present disclosure, it is possible to attempt to camp in turn according to the order of the candidate cell list, that is, the order of the signal quality from good to poor. Specifically, in the embodiments of the present disclosure, the implementation method of attempting to camp on a cell in the generated candidate cell list can refer to Figure 2 , including the following steps:

[0054] In step 210, select the cell with the best signal quality from the candidate cell list as the target cell.

[0055] In step 220, attempt to camp on the above-mentioned target cell.

[0056] In step 230, in response to determining that camping on the target cell is successful, end.

[0057] In step 240, in response to determining that camping on the target cell fails, delete the above-mentioned target cell from the candidate cell list, and then return to the above step 210 to continue attempting the cell with the second-best signal quality in the candidate cell list until camping is successful or camping fails for all the cells in the candidate cell list.

[0058] In the above step 120, in response to determining that camping on a certain cell in the candidate cell list is successful, the current process can be ended.

[0059] In step 130, in response to determining that camping fails for all the cells in the candidate cell list, start frequency band scanning to select a cell to camp on.

[0060] In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the above processes of frequency band scanning and selecting a cell to camp on may refer to the processes specified in the existing 3GPP protocols, and the specific processes will not be repeated.

[0061] As an alternative to the processes specified in the existing protocols, in some other embodiments of the present disclosure, when a prohibited access cell list is pre-stored, the cell selection by frequency band scanning in step 140 above may specifically include: reading the pre-stored prohibited access cell list, and prohibiting an attempt to camp on the cells in the prohibited access cell list during frequency band scanning. That is to say, step 140 above may specifically be as Figure 3 shown and include the following steps:

[0062] In step 310, read the pre-stored prohibited access cell list.

[0063] In step 320, determine a target cell to attempt to camp on through frequency band scanning.

[0064] In step 330, compare the cell ID of the target cell with the cell IDs of each cell in the prohibited access cell list respectively.

[0065] In step 340, in response to determining that the target cell is a cell in the prohibited access cell list, skip the above target cell and return to step 320 above to continue frequency band scanning.

[0066] In step 350, in response to determining that the target cell is not a cell in the prohibited access cell list, attempt to camp on the above target cell.

[0067] In step 360, in response to determining that the camping fails, return to step 320 above to continue frequency band scanning.

[0068] In step 370, in response to determining that the camping is successful, end the above process.

[0069] It can be seen that by recording and maintaining the list of successfully switched cells (HOList) and the list of cells with handover conditions (CHOCelllist) when the RedCap terminal is in the connected state, the RedCap terminal can attempt to access the cells in the list of successfully switched cells (HOList) and the list of cells with handover conditions (CHOCelllist) first when entering the idle state or the inactive state. Since the cells in the list of successfully switched cells (HOList) and the list of cells with handover conditions (CHOCelllist) are all determined to be able to meet the bandwidth capacity requirements of the RedCap terminal, compared with the method of directly performing frequency band scanning by the RedCap terminal, the cell selection can usually be completed more quickly with a higher probability. That is to say, the above RedCap terminal cell selection and reselection method can effectively improve the probability of the RedCap terminal staying in the current 5G network environment and the user experience. Furthermore, in the case where all the cells in the list of all candidate cells fail to stay, even if frequency band scanning is required, the RedCap terminal can further avoid these cells that have been confirmed not to meet the bandwidth capacity requirements of the RedCap terminal through the prohibited access cell list (BarList) recorded and maintained by the RedCap terminal during the connected state before attempting to stay, thereby shortening the cell selection time and the power consumption of the RedCap terminal, and thus improving the user experience.

[0070] The recording methods of the above-mentioned list of successfully switched cells (HOList), the list of cells with handover conditions (CHOCelllist), and the prohibited access cell list (BarList) will be described in detail below.

[0071] Among them, the above-mentioned list of successfully switched cells (HOList) and the prohibited access cell list (BarList) are usually recorded during the handover process of the RedCap terminal. Specifically, Figure 4 shows the implementation process of the recording method of the list of successfully switched cells (HOList) of the RedCap terminal described in the embodiments of the present disclosure. As Figure 4 shown, the above method may include the following steps. It should be noted that before executing step 410, the RedCap terminal is currently in the connected state, accessing cell A and establishing a service connection.

[0072] In step 410, an instruction to switch to the target cell B is received.

[0073] In step 420, it is judged whether the bandwidth of the target cell B supports the bandwidth capacity of the RedCap terminal.

[0074] Specifically, the RedCap terminal will determine whether the bandwidth of target cell B is greater than the bandwidth capability of the RedCap terminal. If the bandwidth of target cell B is greater than the bandwidth capability of the RedCap terminal, then target cell B cannot support the bandwidth capability of the RedCap terminal; otherwise, target cell B can support the bandwidth capability of the RedCap terminal.

[0075] In step 430, in response to determining that the bandwidth of target cell B cannot support the bandwidth capability of the RedCap terminal, a handover failure process is executed.

[0076] In an embodiment of the present disclosure, the above step 430 may further include: in response to determining that the bandwidth of target cell B cannot support the bandwidth capability of the RedCap terminal, adding the information of target cell B to the above-mentioned barred cell list (BarList), thereby further implementing the generation and information recording of the barred cell list (BarList).

[0077] In step 440, in response to determining that the bandwidth of target cell B can support the bandwidth capability of the RedCap terminal, a handover to target cell B is executed.

[0078] In step 450, in response to a successful handover, the information of target cell B is added to the handover successful cell list (HOList).

[0079] In step 460, in response to a handover failure, a handover failure process is executed.

[0080] It can be seen that through the above method, the maintenance and recording of the handover successful cell list (HOList) can be completed during the handover process of the RedCap terminal. At the same time, the maintenance and recording of the barred cell list (BarList) can also be further completed.

[0081] The above-mentioned cell list with handover conditions (CHOCelllist) is usually recorded during the conditional handover process of the RedCap terminal. Specifically, Figure 5 shows the implementation process of the recording method of the cell list with handover conditions (CHOCelllist) of the RedCap terminal described in the embodiment of the present disclosure. As Figure 5 shown, the above method may include the following steps. It should be noted that before executing step 510, the RedCap terminal is currently in the connected state, accessing cell A and establishing a service connection.

[0082] In step 510, an RRC reconfiguration message sent by the network side is received, which includes the configuration of one or more conditional handover candidate cells and the conditional handover execution conditions.

[0083] In step 520, it is evaluated whether the candidate cell meets the conditional handover execution condition.

[0084] In step 530, it is determined whether the bandwidth capabilities of all candidate cells that meet the conditional handover execution condition support the bandwidth capabilities of the RedCap terminal.

[0085] Specifically, the RedCap terminal will judge whether the bandwidth of all candidate cells that meet the conditional handover execution condition is greater than the bandwidth capabilities of the RedCap terminal. If the bandwidth of the candidate cell is greater than the bandwidth capabilities of the RedCap terminal, the candidate cell cannot support the bandwidth capabilities of the RedCap terminal; otherwise, the candidate cell can support the bandwidth capabilities of the RedCap terminal.

[0086] In step 540, the information of all candidate cells that can support the bandwidth capabilities of the RedCap terminal is added to the conditional handover cell list (CHOCelllist).

[0087] The above step 540 may further include: adding the information of all candidate cells that cannot support the bandwidth capabilities of the RedCap terminal to the barred cell list (BarList).

[0088] Subsequently, the RedCap terminal will execute the conditional handover process until the handover is completed. Specifically, the RedCap terminal selects a candidate cell that can support the bandwidth capabilities of the RedCap terminal and executes the handover to that cell. If the handover is successful, the conditional handover process ends. If the handover fails, the RedCap terminal continues to attempt to hand over to the next candidate cell that can support the bandwidth capabilities of the RedCap terminal, and so on, until the handover is successful.

[0089] It can be seen that through the above method, the maintenance and recording of the conditional handover cell list (CHOCelllist) can be completed during the conditional handover process of the RedCap terminal. At the same time, the maintenance and recording of the barred cell list (BarList) can also be further completed.

[0090] Corresponding to the above lightweight terminal cell selection and reselection method, some embodiments of the present disclosure also disclose a lightweight terminal cell selection and reselection device. Figure 6 Shows the internal structure of the lightweight terminal cell selection and reselection device described in some embodiments of the present disclosure. As Figure 6 As described above, the above lightweight terminal cell selection and reselection device may include:

[0091] A candidate cell list generation module 610, configured to generate a candidate cell list based on a pre-stored list of successfully handovered cells and a list of cells with handover conditions when the lightweight terminal enters the idle state or the inactive state;

[0092] A cell selection module 620, configured to attempt to camp on a cell in the candidate cell list based on the candidate cell list; and

[0093] A frequency scanning module 630, configured to start frequency band scanning to select a camped cell in response to determining that camping on all cells in the candidate cell list fails.

[0094] It can be seen that by using the above lightweight terminal cell selection and reselection device, by recording and maintaining a list of successfully handovered cells and a list of cells with handover conditions in the connected state, the RedCap terminal can first attempt to access the cells in the list of successfully handovered cells and the list of cells with handover conditions when entering the idle state or the inactive state. Since the cells in the list of successfully handovered cells and the list of cells with handover conditions are all determined to be cells that can meet the bandwidth capacity requirements of the RedCap terminal, therefore, compared with the method of directly performing frequency band scanning by the RedCap terminal, the cell selection can usually be completed more quickly with a higher probability. That is to say, the above RedCap terminal cell selection and reselection method can effectively improve the probability of the RedCap terminal camping on a cell that the RedCap terminal can camp on and the user experience in the current 5G network environment.

[0095] Based on the same inventive concept, corresponding to the method of any of the above embodiments, the present disclosure further provides an electronic device, including: a memory, a processor, and a computer program stored on the memory and executable on the processor, where the processor implements the lightweight terminal cell selection and reselection method of any of the above embodiments when executing the program.

[0096] Figure 7 FIG. shows a schematic hardware structure diagram of a more specific electronic device provided in this embodiment. The device may include: a processor 2010, a memory 2020, an input / output interface 2030, a communication interface 2040, and a bus 2050. Among them, the processor 2010, the memory 2020, the input / output interface 2030, and the communication interface 2040 are communicatively connected to each other inside the device through the bus 2050.

[0097] The processor 2010 can be implemented in the form of a general-purpose CPU (Central Processing Unit), a microprocessor, an Application Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC), or one or more integrated circuits, etc., and is used to execute relevant programs to implement the technical solutions provided in the embodiments of this specification.

[0098] The memory 2020 can be implemented in the form of a ROM (Read Only Memory), a RAM (Random Access Memory), a static storage device, a dynamic storage device, etc. The memory 2020 can store an operating system and other application programs. When implementing the technical solutions provided in the embodiments of this specification through software or firmware, the relevant program codes are stored in the memory 2020 and are called and executed by the processor 2010.

[0099] The input / output interface 2030 is used to connect input / output devices to achieve information input and output. Among them, the input / output devices can be configured as components in the device or can be externally connected to the device to provide corresponding functions. Among them, the input devices can include microphones, various sensors, etc., and the output devices can include displays, speakers, vibrators, indicator lights, etc.

[0100] The communication interface 2040 is used to connect a communication module (not shown in the figure) to achieve communication interaction between this device and other devices. Among them, the communication module can achieve communication through a wired method (such as USB, network cable, etc.) or can achieve communication through a wireless method (such as mobile network, WIFI, Bluetooth, etc.).

[0101] The bus 2050 includes a path for transmitting information between various components of the device (such as the processor 2010, the memory 2020, the input / output interface 2030, and the communication interface 2040).

[0102] It should be noted that although the above device only shows the processor 2010, the memory 2020, the input / output interface 2030, the communication interface 2040, and the bus 2050, in the specific implementation process, this device may also include other components necessary for normal operation. In addition, those skilled in the art can understand that the above device may also only include the components necessary to implement the solutions of the embodiments of this specification and do not necessarily include all the components shown in the figure.

[0103] The electronic device in the above embodiment is used to implement the corresponding lightweight terminal cell selection and reselection method in any of the foregoing embodiments, and has the beneficial effects of the corresponding method embodiments, which will not be elaborated here.

[0104] Based on the same inventive concept, corresponding to the method of any of the above embodiments, the present disclosure also provides a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing computer instructions for causing the computer to execute the lightweight terminal cell selection and reselection method as described in any one of the above embodiments.

[0105] The computer-readable medium of this embodiment includes permanent and non-permanent, removable and non-removable media, and information storage can be implemented by any method or technology. The information can be computer-readable instructions, data structures, program modules, or other data. Examples of computer storage media include, but are not limited to, phase change memory (PRAM), static random access memory (SRAM), dynamic random access memory (DRAM), other types of random access memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), flash memory or other memory technologies, compact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM), digital versatile disc (DVD) or other optical storage, magnetic cassette tapes, magnetic tape magnetic disk storage or other magnetic storage devices, or any other non-transmission medium that can be used to store information accessible by a computing device.

[0106] The computer instructions stored in the storage medium of the above embodiment are used to cause the computer to execute the lightweight terminal cell selection and reselection method as described in any one of the above embodiments, and have the beneficial effects of the corresponding method embodiments, which will not be elaborated here.

[0107] Those of ordinary skill in the art should understand that the discussion of any of the above embodiments is only exemplary and is not intended to imply that the scope of the present disclosure (including the claims) is limited to these examples; under the concept of the present disclosure, the technical features in the above embodiments or different embodiments can also be combined, the steps can be implemented in any order, and there are many other variations in different aspects of the embodiments of the present disclosure as described above, which are not provided in detail for the sake of brevity.

[0108] In addition, for simplicity of explanation and discussion, and so as not to make the embodiments of the present disclosure difficult to understand, well-known power / ground connections to integrated circuit (IC) chips and other components may or may not be shown in the provided drawings. Further, the devices may be shown in block diagram form in order to avoid making the embodiments of the present disclosure difficult to understand, and this also takes into account the fact that details regarding the implementation of these block diagram devices are highly dependent on the platform on which the embodiments of the present disclosure are to be implemented (i.e., these details should be fully within the understanding of those skilled in the art). In cases where specific details (such as circuits) are set forth to describe exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that the embodiments of the present disclosure may be practiced without these specific details or with variations of these specific details. Accordingly, these descriptions should be considered illustrative rather than restrictive.

[0109] Although the present disclosure has been described in connection with specific embodiments thereof, many alternatives, modifications, and variations of these embodiments will be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art based on the foregoing description. For example, other memory architectures (such as dynamic RAM (DRAM)) may be used with the embodiments discussed.

[0110] Embodiments of the present disclosure are intended to cover all such alternatives, modifications, and variations that fall within the broad scope of the appended claims. Therefore, any omissions, modifications, equivalent substitutions, improvements, etc., made within the spirit and principle of the embodiments of the present disclosure shall be included within the protection scope of the present disclosure.

Claims

1. A lightweight terminal cell selection and reselection method, performed by the lightweight terminal, comprising: When the lightweight terminal enters an idle state or an inactive state from a connected state, a candidate cell list is generated based on a pre-stored successful switching cell list and a switching conditional cell list; wherein the successful switching cell list is used to record target cell information of each successful switching of the lightweight terminal in the connected state; the switching conditional cell list is used to record cell information that can support the bandwidth capability of the lightweight terminal and meet the conditional switching execution condition determined by the lightweight terminal during the conditional switching in the connected state; Attempting to camp on a cell in the candidate cell list based on the candidate cell list; and In response to determining that camping on all cells in the candidate cell list fails, frequency band scanning is initiated to select a cell to camp on.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein: The list of cells with successful switching and the list of cells with switching conditions each include at least one piece of cell information; wherein the cell information includes: a cell identifier, a cell frequency, a cell frequency band, a bandwidth, and a signal quality parameter; Generating a candidate cell list comprises: Sort the cells in the successful switching cell list and the cells in the switching condition cell list in descending order of signal quality in the cell information; and The cells in the successful switching cell list and the cells in the switching condition cell list are added to the candidate cell list in sequence according to the sorted order.

3. The method according to claim 2, further comprising: In the process of sorting, for cells with the same signal quality, based on the cell frequency in the cell information, the cell with the same frequency as the cell where the lightweight terminal resides when leaving the connected state is sorted in front.

4. The method according to claim 1, wherein: Attempting to camp on a cell in the candidate cell list based on the candidate cell list comprises: Selecting a cell with the best signal quality from the candidate cell list as a target cell; Trying to camp on the target cell; In response to determining that camping on the target cell is successful, ending; and In response to determining that camping on the target cell fails, the target cell is deleted from the candidate cell list, and the process returns to the step of selecting a cell with the best signal quality from the candidate cell list as the target cell.

5. The method according to claim 1, wherein: The initiating frequency band scanning and selecting a cell to reside in comprises: Reading a pre-stored list of prohibited access cells; Select the target cell to be camped on by scanning the frequency band; Comparing the cell identifier of the target cell with the cell identifiers of each cell recorded in the prohibited access cell list; In response to determining that the target cell is a cell in the prohibited access cell list, skipping the target cell, and returning to the step of determining the target cell to attempt to camp on by frequency band scanning; In response to determining that the target cell is not a cell in the prohibited cell list, attempting to camp on the target cell; In response to determining that camping on the target cell fails, returning to the step of selecting a target cell to attempt camping on through frequency band scanning; and In response to determining that camping on the target cell is successful, the process ends.

6. The method according to claim 1, further comprising: Receiving an instruction to switch to a target cell; Determining whether the bandwidth of the target cell supports the bandwidth capability of the lightweight terminal; In response to determining that the bandwidth of the target cell cannot support the bandwidth capability of the lightweight terminal, executing a handover failure process; In response to determining that the bandwidth of the target cell can support the bandwidth capability of the lightweight terminal, performing a handover to the target cell; In response to a successful handover, adding information of the target cell to the handover successful cell list; as well as In response to a handover failure, the handover failure process is executed.

7. The method according to claim 6, further comprising: In response to determining that the bandwidth of the target cell cannot support the bandwidth capability of the lightweight terminal, information of the target cell is added to a prohibited access cell list.

8. The method according to claim 1, further comprising: Receiving a radio resource control (RRC) reconfiguration message sent by a network side; wherein the RRC reconfiguration message includes a configuration of at least one conditional switching candidate cell; Evaluating whether the candidate cell meets a conditional handover execution condition; Determining whether the bandwidth of all candidate cells that meet the conditional handover execution condition supports the bandwidth capability of the lightweight terminal; and Information of all candidate cells that support the bandwidth capability of the lightweight terminal is added to the conditional switching cell list.

9. The method according to claim 8, further comprising: Information of all candidate cells that cannot support the bandwidth capability of the lightweight terminal is added to a prohibited access cell list.

10. A lightweight terminal cell selection and reselection device, comprising: A candidate cell list generation module, configured to generate a candidate cell list based on a pre-stored successful switching cell list and a switching conditional cell list when the lightweight terminal enters an idle state or an inactive state from a connected state; wherein the successful switching cell list is used to record target cell information of each successful switching of the lightweight terminal in the connected state; and the switching conditional cell list is used to record cell information that can support the bandwidth capability of the lightweight terminal and meet the conditional switching execution condition determined by the lightweight terminal during the conditional switching in the connected state; a cell selection module, configured to attempt to reside in a cell in the candidate cell list based on the candidate cell list; and The frequency scanning module is used for starting frequency band scanning to select a cell to reside in in response to determining that all cells in the candidate cell list have failed to reside.

11. An electronic device, comprising: A memory, a processor, and a computer program stored in the memory and executable on the processor, wherein when the processor executes the program, the lightweight terminal cell selection and reselection method according to any one of claims 1 to 9 is implemented.

12. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing computer instructions, wherein the computer instructions are used to enable a computer to execute the lightweight terminal cell selection and reselection method according to any one of claims 1 to 9.

13. A computer program product, comprising computer program instructions, which, when executed on a computer, enable the computer to execute the lightweight terminal cell selection and reselection method according to any one of claims 1 to 9.

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