Communication method and device and computer readable storage medium

Abstract

The invention provides a communication method and device, and a computer readable storage medium, and the communication method comprises the steps: receiving a beam indication which is used for indicating the forwarding of a beam indicated by a beam index on an indicated time domain resource and a frequency domain resource. The invention provides a scheme for independently controlling different working frequency bands of the relay equipment.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present application relates to the field of communication technology, and in particular to a communication method and device, and a computer-readable storage medium. Background Art

[0002] The 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) protocol version 18 (Release 18, R18) introduced the Network-Controlled Repeater (NCR), also known as the smart repeater, and the Reconfigurable Intelligent Surface (RIS). The smart repeater / RIS can form a beam under the control of the base station and send the received data in a directional manner. Specifically, the smart repeater / RIS forwards signals in a directional manner through the control information (Side Control Information, SCI) sent by the base station, which increases the coverage while reducing power waste.

[0003] For details, please refer to Figure 1 Taking the relay device as an example, in terms of function, the relay device can be divided into two parts. The first part is the mobile terminal-oriented part (NCR-MT), which mainly completes the control signaling transmission between the network device and the relay device. The link between the network device and this part is called the control link (or C-link); the second part is the forwarding part (NCR-Fwd), which realizes the data exchange between the network device and the terminal device by amplifying and forwarding. The link between the network device and the forwarding part is called the backhaul link (or B-link), and the link between the terminal device and the forwarding part is the access link (or A-link). For the access link, the network device needs to instruct the relay device at what time and in which direction to transmit. This can be divided into two problems, time domain resource indication and beam indication. In the existing scheme, the sending direction is represented by the beam index (beamindex), and the time domain resource (time resource) used by the access link is indicated in an explicit way. For beam indication, both dynamic indication and semi-static indication can be supported. Specifically, periodic, non-periodic and semi-continuous access link beam indication can be considered.

[0004] At present, the relay equipment / RIS is an in-band relay, that is, the working carrier of the mobile terminal part is included in (or overlaps with) the working carrier of the forwarding part, and supports working on multiple frequency bands. In R18, the control signaling for the mobile terminal part acts on the entire relay equipment working frequency band, but in the new protocol version, the enhancement of the relay equipment control signaling can be considered, that is, different frequency ranges are divided and different frequency bands are controlled separately by control signaling.

[0005] However, there is currently no solution for how to achieve separate control of different operating frequency bands of relay equipment / RIS. Summary of the invention

[0006] The present application provides a communication method and apparatus, and provides a solution for realizing separate control of different working frequency bands of a relay device / RIS.

[0007] In order to achieve the above objectives, this application provides the following technical solutions:

[0008] In a first aspect, a communication method is provided, the communication method comprising: receiving a beam indication, wherein the beam indication is used to indicate forwarding with a beam indicated by a beam index on indicated time domain resources and frequency domain resources.

[0009] Optionally, the beam indication includes at least one forwarding resource, and each forwarding resource includes a beam index, a time domain resource, and a frequency domain resource.

[0010] Optionally, the beam indication includes first information, second information and third information, the first information indicates a beam index, the second information indicates time domain resources, and the third information indicates frequency domain resources.

[0011] Optionally, the first information, the second information and the third information are respectively carried in a first field, a second field and a third field in downlink control information DCI.

[0012] Optionally, the number of the first field, the second field and the third field is equal.

[0013] Optionally, the beam indication is used to indicate forwarding using beams indicated by at least two beam indices on indicated time domain resources and frequency domain resources.

[0014] Optionally, the beam indication includes at least one forwarding resource, each forwarding resource includes a beam index and a time domain resource, wherein each beam index has a mapping relationship with each frequency domain resource.

[0015] Optionally, the received beam indication includes: receiving radio access control RRC signaling, the RRC signaling including at least one forwarding resource, each forwarding resource including a beam index and a time domain resource; receiving a media intervention control element MAC CE, the MAC CE including an identifier indicating a frequency domain resource and an activated / deactivated forwarding resource.

[0016] Optionally, the receiving beam indication includes: receiving radio access control RRC configuration information, the RRC configuration information is associated with frequency domain resources; receiving RRC signaling, the RRC signaling includes at least one forwarding resource, each forwarding resource includes a beam index and a time domain resource.

[0017] Optionally, the communication method further includes: forwarding with a beam indicated by a beam index in the beam indication at a minimum frequency domain granularity where the frequency domain resources are located.

[0018] Optionally, the communication method also includes: in response to the existence of a beam indication on the entire working frequency band, forwarding on the working frequency band using the beam indicated by the beam index in the beam indication; or, in response to the existence of M beam indications on the working frequency band, forwarding on the working frequency band using any one of the following beams: the beam indicated by the beam indication on the frequency band with the smallest identifier of the indicated frequency domain resource, the beam with the smallest beam index, and the beam used at the last forwarding moment, where M is a positive integer greater than or equal to 2.

[0019] Optionally, the communication method further includes: reporting capability indication information, wherein the capability indication information indicates the capability of independently forwarding control over different frequency domain resources.

[0020] Optionally, the communication method further includes: receiving mode switching information, where the mode switching information is used to indicate independent forwarding control on different frequency resources or forwarding control on the entire working frequency band.

[0021] In a second aspect, the present application also discloses a communication method, which includes: sending a beam indication, wherein the beam indication is used to indicate forwarding with a beam indicated by a beam index on indicated time domain resources and frequency domain resources.

[0022] Optionally, the beam indication includes at least one forwarding resource, and each forwarding resource includes a beam index, a time domain resource, and a frequency domain resource.

[0023] Optionally, the beam indication includes first information, second information and third information, the first information indicates a beam index, the second information indicates time domain resources, and the third information indicates frequency domain resources.

[0024] Optionally, the beam indication includes at least one forwarding resource, each forwarding resource includes a beam index and a time domain resource, wherein each beam index has a mapping relationship with each frequency domain resource.

[0025] Optionally, the sending of beam indication includes: sending radio access control RRC signaling, the RRC signaling including at least one forwarding resource, each forwarding resource including a beam index and a time domain resource; sending a media intervention control element MAC CE, the MAC CE including an identifier indicating a frequency domain resource and an activated / deactivated forwarding resource.

[0026] Optionally, the sending of the beam indication includes: sending radio access control RRC configuration information, wherein the RRC configuration information is associated with frequency domain resources; and sending RRC signaling, wherein the RRC signaling includes at least one forwarding resource, and each forwarding resource includes a beam index and a time domain resource.

[0027] In a third aspect, the present application also discloses a communication device, comprising: a communication module, configured to receive a beam indication, wherein the beam indication is used to indicate forwarding with a beam indicated by a beam index on indicated time domain resources and frequency domain resources.

[0028] In a fourth aspect, the present application also discloses a communication device, which includes: a communication module, used to send a beam indication, wherein the beam indication is used to indicate forwarding with a beam indicated by a beam index on indicated time domain resources and frequency domain resources.

[0029] In a fifth aspect, a computer-readable storage medium is provided, on which a computer program is stored, and the computer program is executed by a processor to execute any one of the methods provided in the first aspect or the second aspect.

[0030] In a sixth aspect, a communication device is provided, comprising a memory and a processor, wherein the memory stores a computer program executable on the processor, and the processor executes the computer program to execute any one of the methods provided in the first aspect.

[0031] In a seventh aspect, a communication device is provided, comprising a memory and a processor, wherein the memory stores a computer program executable on the processor, and the processor executes the computer program to execute any one of the methods provided in the second aspect.

[0032] In an eighth aspect, a computer program product is provided, on which a computer program is stored, and the computer program is executed by a processor to execute any one of the methods provided in the first aspect or the second aspect.

[0033] In a ninth aspect, a communication system is provided, comprising the above-mentioned terminal device and the above-mentioned network device.

[0034] In the tenth aspect, an embodiment of the present application further provides a chip (or a data transmission device) on which a computer program is stored, and when the computer program is executed by the chip, the steps of the above method are implemented.

[0035] In the eleventh aspect, an embodiment of the present application also provides a system chip, which is applied to a terminal, and the chip system includes at least one processor and an interface circuit, the interface circuit and the at least one processor are interconnected through lines, and the at least one processor is used to execute instructions to execute any one of the methods provided in the first aspect or the second aspect.

[0036] Compared with the prior art, the technical solution of this application has the following beneficial effects:

[0037] In the technical solution of the present application, a relay device or a reconfigurable intelligent surface (RIS) receives a beam indication, and the beam indication is used to indicate forwarding with a beam indicated by a beam index on the indicated time domain resources and frequency domain resources. The technical solution of the present application enables the relay device / intelligent reflective surface to forward on the indicated frequency domain resources by additionally indicating frequency domain resources in the beam indication, thereby enhancing the control signaling of the relay device / intelligent reflective surface, thereby achieving independent control of the relay device / intelligent reflective surface forwarding on different frequency domain resources and improving the flexibility of forwarding.

[0038] Furthermore, the beam indication includes at least one forwarding resource, each forwarding resource includes a beam index, a time domain resource and a frequency domain resource. The technical solution of the present application indicates the frequency domain resource in an explicit manner, so that the relay device / intelligent reflection surface directly obtains the frequency domain resource from the signaling and forwards it.

[0039] Furthermore, the beam indication includes at least one forwarding resource, each forwarding resource includes a beam index and a time domain resource, wherein each beam index has a mapping relationship with each frequency domain resource. The technical solution of the present application indicates the frequency domain resource in an implicit manner, and the relay device / intelligent reflection surface determines the frequency domain resource for forwarding through the mapping relationship, which can reduce the signaling overhead. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0040] Figure 1 It is a schematic diagram of the architecture of a relay network in the prior art;

[0041] Figure 2 It is an interactive flow chart of a communication method provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0042] Figure 3 It is an interactive flow chart of a communication method provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0043] Figure 4is an interactive flow chart of another communication method provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0044] Figure 5 is a structural diagram of a communication device provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0045] Figure 6 It is a schematic diagram of the hardware structure of a communication device provided in an embodiment of the present application. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0046] The communication systems to which the embodiments of the present application are applicable include, but are not limited to, Long Term Evolution (LTE) systems, fifth-generation (5G) systems, new wireless (NR) systems, and future evolution systems or multiple communication fusion systems. Among them, the 5G system can be a non-standalone (NSA) 5G system or a standalone (SA) 5G system. The technical solution of the present application is also applicable to different network architectures, including but not limited to relay network architectures, dual-connection architectures, vehicle-to-everything communication architectures, and other architectures.

[0047] This application mainly involves the communication between terminal equipment, relay equipment / RIS and network equipment. Among them:

[0048] The network device in the embodiment of the present application may also be referred to as an access network device, for example, it may be a base station (BS) (also referred to as a base station device), and the network device is a device deployed in a radio access network (RAN) to provide wireless communication functions. For example, in the second-generation (2G) network, the equipment that provides base station functions includes the base transceiver station (BTS), in the third-generation (3G) network, the equipment that provides base station functions includes the node B (NodeB), and in the fourth-generation (4G) network, the equipment that provides base station functions includes the evolved node B (eNB). In wireless local area networks (WLAN), the equipment that provides base station functions is the access point (AP), and the equipment that provides base station functions in NR is the next generation Node Base station (gNB), as well as the evolved node B (ng-eNB), where the gNB and the terminal device communicate using NR technology, and the ng-eNB and the terminal device communicate using evolved universal terrestrial radio access (Evolved Universal Terrestrial Radio Access, E-UTRA) technology, and both gNB and ng-eNB can be connected to the 5G core network. The network devices in the embodiments of the present application also include devices that provide base station functions in future new communication systems, etc.

[0049] The terminal equipment in the embodiments of the present application may refer to various forms of access terminals, user units, user stations, mobile stations, mobile stations (Mobile Station, MS), remote stations, remote terminals, mobile devices, user terminals, wireless communication devices, user agents or user devices. The terminal equipment may also be a cellular phone, a cordless phone, a Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) phone, a Wireless Local Loop (WLL) station, a Personal Digital Assistant (PDA), a handheld device with wireless communication function, a computing device or other processing device connected to a wireless modem, a vehicle-mounted device, a wearable device, a terminal device in a future 5G network or a terminal device in a future evolving Public Land Mobile Network (PLMN), etc., which is not limited in the embodiments of the present application. The terminal equipment may also be referred to as User Equipment (UE), a terminal, etc.

[0050] The relay device in the embodiment of the present application refers to an intelligent relay device in the 3GPP protocol R18, or a relay device in other evolved communication systems. The relay device supports omnidirectional forwarding and directional forwarding of data.

[0051] The smart reflective surface in the embodiment of the present application refers to a plane composed of a large number of passive reflective elements, which is placed between the network device and the terminal device. Since each element can independently change the phase (or / and) amplitude or even frequency of the incident signal, the smart reflective surface can be used to enable the terminal device to better receive the signal sent by the network device.

[0052] Among them, the control signaling between the network device and the relay device may include at least one of the following: 1. Beamforming information, because the relay device can perform directional transmission, and a beam can represent a transmission direction, and the beam information contains the content related to the beam. 2. Switch information (ON-OFF information), which controls the switch of the forwarding part and determines whether the relay device performs amplification and forwarding. 3. Uplink and downlink time division duplex (TDD) configuration information, which is used to allocate the time for uplink and downlink transmission.

[0053] As described in the background art, there is currently no solution to achieve separate control of different operating frequency bands of a relay device / RIS.

[0054] The technical solution of the present application enables the relay device / intelligent reflector surface to forward on the indicated frequency domain resources by additionally indicating the frequency domain resources in the beam indication, thereby enhancing the control signaling of the relay device / intelligent reflector surface, thereby achieving independent control of the relay device / intelligent reflector surface forwarding on different frequency domain resources and improving the flexibility of forwarding.

[0055] The time domain resources referred to in the embodiments of the present application may include a starting time slot, a starting symbol and a duration, wherein the starting time slot is defined as a time slot offset within a cycle, the starting symbol is defined as a symbol offset within a time slot, and the duration is defined as the number of symbols.

[0056] The frequency domain resources referred to in the embodiments of the present application may be any implementable frequency domain granularity, for example, a frequency band, a bandwidth part (Band Width Part, BWP), a resource block (Resource Block, RB), etc.

[0057] In order to make the above-mentioned objects, features and advantages of the present application more obvious and easy to understand, the specific embodiments of the present application are described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0058] See also Figure 2 The method provided in this application specifically includes the following steps:

[0059] Step 201: The network device sends a beam indication, wherein the beam indication is used to indicate forwarding with the beam indicated by the beam index on the indicated time domain resources and frequency domain resources.

[0060] Step 202: The relay device / intelligent reflecting surface forwards the signal using the beam indicated by the beam index on the indicated time domain resources and frequency domain resources.

[0061] It should be pointed out that the serial numbers of the steps in this embodiment do not limit the execution order of the steps.

[0062] It is understandable that, in a specific implementation, the communication method can be implemented in the form of a software program, which runs in a processor integrated inside a chip or a chip module. The method can also be implemented in the form of software combined with hardware, which is not limited in this application.

[0063] Compared with the prior art in which the network device indicates in the beam indication that the beam indicated by the beam index is forwarded on the indicated time domain resource, in this embodiment, the network device indicates in the beam indication that the beam indicated by the beam index is forwarded on the indicated time domain resource and frequency domain resource. By adding information of the dimension of frequency domain resources, the relay device / intelligent reflection surface can independently forward according to the indicated frequency domain resources to avoid forwarding on the entire working frequency band, realize independent control of the relay device / intelligent reflection surface forwarding on different frequency domain resources, and improve the flexibility of forwarding.

[0064] In a non-limiting embodiment, the relay device / intelligent reflective surface can perform forwarding control based on different frequencies, that is, perform independent forwarding control on different frequency resources. If the relay device / intelligent reflective surface has the above-mentioned frequency selective control capability, the capability can be reported to the network device.

[0065] Please refer to Figure 3 In step 301, the relay device / intelligent reflection surface reports capability indication information to the network device.

[0066] When the network device learns that the relay device / intelligent reflective surface has the ability of frequency selective control, the network device can explicitly or implicitly instruct the relay device / intelligent reflective surface to switch modes, that is, instruct the relay device / intelligent reflective surface to perform independent forwarding control on different frequency resources or to perform forwarding control on the entire working frequency band.

[0067] In step 302, the network device sends mode switching information to the relay device / intelligent reflective surface. This method is a method of explicitly indicating mode switching. Specifically, the mode switching information can be carried in a high-level signaling, such as a Radio Resource Control (RRC) signaling.

[0068] In a variation, the network device may also implicitly instruct the relay device / intelligent reflector to switch modes. Specifically, when the network device configures a beam indication according to the relay device / intelligent reflector, if the beam indication indicates frequency domain resources, it means that the relay device / intelligent reflector performs independent forwarding control on different frequency resources. Otherwise, the relay device / intelligent reflector performs forwarding control in the entire working frequency band.

[0069] Specifically, in step 303, the network device sends a beam indication to the relay device / intelligent reflecting surface.

[0070] In step 304, the relay device / intelligent reflecting surface forwards the signal using the beam indicated by the beam index on the indicated time domain resources and frequency domain resources.

[0071] The beam indication in the present application may be in different forms, which are described below in conjunction with different embodiments.

[0072] Embodiment 1: The beam indication includes at least one forwarding resource, and each forwarding resource (forwarding resource) includes a beam index, a time domain resource and a frequency domain resource.

[0073] Specifically, a forwarding resource includes a beam index, an identifier indicating a time domain resource, and an identifier indicating a frequency domain resource.

[0074] For example, the forwarding resource includes {beamindex, time resource, frequency resource}, where time resource indicates an identifier indicating a time domain resource, and frequency resource indicates an identifier indicating a frequency domain resource.

[0075] In a specific embodiment, the time domain resource indicated in the beam indication may be a periodic time domain resource, and accordingly, the beam indication is called a periodic beam indication. Specifically, in an application scenario of the periodic beam indication, the periodic beam indication may be configured through RRC signaling.

[0076] In another specific embodiment, the time domain resource indicated in the beam indication may be a semi-persistent resource. Accordingly, the beam indication is called a semi-persistent beam indication. Specifically, in the application scenario of the semi-persistent beam indication, the network device first configures the forwarding resource through RRC signaling, and then activates / deactivates one or more forwarding resources through a media access control (MAC) control element (CE).

[0077] Embodiment 2: The beam indication includes first information, second information and third information, the first information indicates the beam index, the second information indicates the time domain resources, and the third information indicates the frequency domain resources.

[0078] Specifically, the first information, the second information and the third information are respectively carried in a first field, a second field and a third field in downlink control information (Downlink Control Information, DCI).

[0079] For example, the DCI includes a maximum of Lmax first fields, a maximum of Tmax second fields, and a maximum of Fmax third fields; Lmax=Tmax=Fmax.

[0080] Further, the time domain resource indicated in the beam indication in this embodiment may be a non-periodic time domain resource. Accordingly, the beam indication is called a non-periodic beam indication.

[0081] Embodiment 3: RRC signaling and a media access control (Media Access Control, MAC) control element (Control Element, CE) are used to jointly indicate forwarding with a beam indicated by a beam index on indicated time domain resources and frequency domain resources.

[0082] For details, please refer to Figure 4 In step 401, the network device sends RRC signaling to the relay device / intelligent reflection surface. The RRC signaling includes at least one forwarding resource, and each forwarding resource includes a beam index and a time domain resource.

[0083] In step 402, the network device sends a MAC CE to the relay device / intelligent reflection surface. The MAC CE includes an identifier indicating a frequency domain resource. Specifically, the identifier may indicate one or more frequency domain resources.

[0084] Furthermore, the MAC CE may also include activated / deactivated forwarding resources.

[0085] In step 403, the relay device / intelligent reflecting surface forwards the signal using the beam indicated by the beam index on the indicated time domain resources and frequency domain resources.

[0086] This embodiment can be applied to the application scenario of semi-persistent beam indication.

[0087] In the above-mentioned Embodiment 1, Embodiment 2 and Embodiment 3, the network device explicitly indicates the frequency domain resources in the beam indication. In Embodiment 4 and Embodiment 5, the network device may also implicitly indicate the frequency domain resources.

[0088] Embodiment 4: The beam indication includes at least one forwarding resource, each forwarding resource includes a beam index and a time domain resource, wherein each beam index has a mapping relationship with each frequency domain resource.

[0089] In this embodiment, the beam index and the frequency domain resource have a predefined mapping relationship or a default mapping relationship. The mapping relationship may be specified by a communication standard protocol, or may be pre-agreed by a network device and a relay device / intelligent reflector surface, and this application does not limit this.

[0090] For example, beam index beam 1 and beam index beam 2 correspond to bandwidth part BWP1, and beam index beam 3 and beam index beam 4 correspond to bandwidth part BWP2.

[0091] Embodiment 5: The network device may configure frequency domain resources for the relay device / intelligent reflective surface through RRC configuration information.

[0092] In this embodiment, the network device sends RRC configuration information, such as RRC elements, to the relay device / intelligent reflective surface. The RRC configuration information is associated with frequency domain resources.

[0093] For example, RRC configuration information 1 corresponds to bandwidth part BWP1, and RRC configuration information 2 corresponds to bandwidth part BWP2.

[0094] Further, the network device sends an RRC signaling to the relay device / intelligent reflection surface. The RRC signaling includes at least one forwarding resource, and each forwarding resource includes a beam index and a time domain resource.

[0095] Therefore, the RRC configuration information and RRC signaling are used to instruct the relay device / intelligent reflection surface to forward using the beam indicated by the beam index on the indicated time domain resources and frequency domain resources.

[0096] In a non-limiting embodiment, if the relay device / intelligent reflective surface supports controlling the switch of the forwarding part of the relay device / intelligent reflective surface with the minimum frequency domain control granularity, then when the relay device / intelligent reflective surface receives the beam indication in the above embodiment, it is equivalent to the network device implicitly instructing the relay device / intelligent reflective surface to control the switch of the forwarding part with the minimum frequency domain control granularity. The relay device / intelligent reflective surface forwards with the beam indicated by the beam index in the beam indication at the minimum frequency domain granularity where the frequency domain resources are located. In other words, in the control signaling sent by the network device to the relay device / intelligent reflective surface, the switch information (ON-OFF information) indicates whether the relay device / intelligent reflective surface performs amplification and forwarding at the minimum frequency domain control granularity.

[0097] For example, if the beam indication is {beam 1, time resource 1, frequency resource 1}, the relay device / intelligent reflection surface only enables forwarding at the minimum frequency domain granularity where frequency resource 1 is located. Among them, timeresource 1 indicates an identifier indicating a time domain resource, and frequency resource 1 indicates an identifier indicating a frequency domain resource.

[0098] In a non-limiting embodiment, if the relay device / intelligent reflective surface does not support controlling the switch of the forwarding part of the relay device / intelligent reflective surface with the minimum frequency domain control granularity, then when there is a beam indication on the entire working frequency band, the relay device / intelligent reflective surface forwards with the beam indicated by the beam index in the beam indication on the entire working frequency band. That is, in the control signaling sent by the network device to the relay device / intelligent reflective surface, the switch information (ON-OFF information) indicates whether the relay device / intelligent reflective surface performs amplification and forwarding on the entire working frequency band.

[0099] When there are M beam indications on the working frequency band, the relay device / intelligent reflector surface forwards with any of the following beams on the working frequency band: the beam indicated by the beam indication with the smallest identifier of the indicated frequency domain resource, the beam with the smallest beam index, and the beam used at the last forwarding moment, where M is a positive integer greater than or equal to 2.

[0100] For example, the entire working frequency band of the relay device / intelligent reflector includes three frequency bands: Band 1, Band 2, and Band 3, among which only Band 1 and Band 3 have beam indications.

[0101] If the communication standard protocol agrees to control the switch of the forwarding part of the relay device / intelligent reflector with the minimum frequency domain control granularity, the relay device / intelligent reflector forwards with the indicated beam on band1 and band3.

[0102] If the communication standard protocol does not agree to control the switching of the relay device / intelligent reflector forwarding part with the minimum frequency domain control granularity, then the relay device / intelligent reflector forwards on band1, band2, and band3, and the relay device / intelligent reflector forwards on band1 and band3 according to the indicated beam. The relay device / intelligent reflector forwards on band2 in one of the following ways:

[0103] Method 1: forwarding is performed according to the beam indication on the frequency band with the smallest frequency domain resource identifier, that is, according to the beam used by band 1;

[0104] Method 2: forwarding according to the default beam, for example, forwarding using the beam with the smallest beam index;

[0105] Method 3: Keep the forwarding beam consistent with the previous forwarding moment. For example, if beam 2 is used for forwarding at the previous forwarding moment, the relay device / intelligent reflector uses beam 2 for forwarding on band 2.

[0106] Embodiment 6: The beam indication is used to indicate forwarding with beams indicated by at least two beam indices on the indicated time domain resources and frequency domain resources.

[0107] The beam indication in the embodiment of the present application (also referred to as a beam indication group here) can indicate at least two beams, that is, it can instruct the relay device / intelligent reflection surface to forward with as few as two beams on the same time domain resources to achieve enhanced coverage of the relay device / intelligent reflection surface.

[0108] In a specific implementation, the beam indication group indicates that forwarding is performed with beams indicated by at least two beam indices on each time domain resource, or forwarding is performed with beams indicated by at least two beam indices on partially overlapping time domain resources.

[0109] In another specific implementation, the beam indication group includes multiple forwarding resource groups (forwarding resource groups), and each forwarding resource group includes multiple beam indexes and an identifier indicating a time domain resource.

[0110] In yet another specific implementation, each forwarding resource group includes a beam index and multiple identifiers indicating time domain resources, and the time domain resources in multiple forwarding resource groups are at least partially overlapped.

[0111] In another specific implementation, the beam indication group includes multiple forwarding resource groups, each forwarding resource group includes multiple forwarding resources (forwarding resource), each forwarding resource includes a beam index and an identifier of a time domain resource, the time domain resources in the multiple forwarding resources at least partially overlap, and on the same time domain resource, at most K beams are indicated simultaneously, where K is a positive integer greater than or equal to 2.

[0112] In another specific embodiment, the beam indication group includes a radio resource control RRC list, the RRC list includes X forwarding resource groups, each forwarding resource group includes a maximum of N groups of forwarding resources, each forwarding resource includes a beam index and a time domain resource, wherein N represents the maximum number of beams used on the same time domain resource, and N and X are positive integers greater than or equal to 2.

[0113] In another specific implementation, the beam indication group includes completely overlapping time domain resources and at least two corresponding beam indexes, and the beam indication group is carried by the first newly added field in the downlink control information DCI.

[0114] For more specific implementation methods of the embodiments of the present application, please refer to the aforementioned embodiments, which will not be repeated here.

[0115] Please refer to Figure 5 , Figure 5 A communication device 50 is shown, which may include:

[0116] The communication module 501 is used to receive a beam indication, where the beam indication is used to indicate forwarding with a beam indicated by a beam index on indicated time domain resources and frequency domain resources.

[0117] In a specific implementation, the above-mentioned communication device 50 may correspond to a chip with communication function in a relay device / intelligent reflective surface, such as a system-on-a-chip (SOC), a baseband chip, etc.; or correspond to a chip module with communication function in a terminal device; or correspond to a chip module with a data processing function chip, or correspond to a relay device / intelligent reflective surface.

[0118] In another embodiment, the communication module 501 is used to send a beam indication, where the beam indication is used to indicate forwarding with a beam indicated by a beam index on indicated time domain resources and frequency domain resources.

[0119] In a specific implementation, the above-mentioned communication device 50 may correspond to a chip with communication function in a network device, such as a SOC, a baseband chip, etc.; or correspond to a chip module with communication function in a network device; or correspond to a chip module with a data processing function chip, or correspond to a network device.

[0120] For other related descriptions about the communication device 50 , reference may be made to the related descriptions in the aforementioned embodiments, which will not be repeated here.

[0121] Regarding the various modules / units included in the various devices and products described in the above embodiments, they can be software modules / units, or hardware modules / units, or they can be partially software modules / units and partially hardware modules / units. For example, for various devices and products applied to or integrated in a chip, the various modules / units included therein can all be implemented in the form of hardware such as circuits, or at least some of the modules / units can be implemented in the form of software programs, which run on a processor integrated inside the chip, and the remaining (if any) modules / units can be implemented in the form of hardware such as circuits; for various devices and products applied to or integrated in a chip module, the various modules / units included therein can all be implemented in the form of hardware such as circuits, and different modules / units can be located in the same component of the chip module (such as a chip, circuit module, etc.) or in different components, or at least some of the modules / units can be implemented in the form of software programs. It is implemented in the form of a software program, which runs on a processor integrated inside the chip module, and the remaining (if any) modules / units can be implemented in hardware such as circuits; for various devices and products applied to or integrated in the terminal equipment, the various modules / units contained therein can be implemented in hardware such as circuits, and different modules / units can be located in the same component (for example, chip, circuit module, etc.) or in different components in the terminal equipment, or, at least some modules / units can be implemented in the form of a software program, which runs on a processor integrated inside the terminal equipment, and the remaining (if any) modules / units can be implemented in hardware such as circuits.

[0122] The present application also discloses a storage medium, which is a computer-readable storage medium and stores a computer program, which can be executed when the computer program is run. Figures 1 to 3 The steps of the method shown in . The storage medium may include a read-only memory (ROM), a random access memory (RAM), a magnetic disk or an optical disk, etc. The storage medium may also include a non-volatile memory (non-volatile) or a non-transitory memory, etc.

[0123] Please refer to Figure 6 The embodiment of the present application also provides a hardware structure diagram of a communication device. The device includes a processor 601, a memory 602 and a transceiver 603.

[0124] Processor 601 may be a general-purpose central processing unit (CPU), a microprocessor, an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), or one or more integrated circuits for controlling the execution of the program of the present application. Processor 601 may also include multiple CPUs, and processor 601 may be a single-core (single-CPU) processor or a multi-core (multi-CPU) processor. The processor here may refer to one or more devices, circuits, or processing cores for processing data (such as computer program instructions).

[0125] The memory 602 may be a ROM or other types of static storage devices that can store static information and instructions, a RAM or other types of dynamic storage devices that can store information and instructions, or an electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), a compact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM) or other optical disc storage, optical disc storage (including compressed optical disc, laser disc, optical disc, digital versatile disc, Blu-ray disc, etc.), a disk storage medium or other magnetic storage device, or any other medium that can be used to carry or store the desired program code in the form of an instruction or data structure and can be accessed by a computer, and the embodiments of the present application do not impose any restrictions on this. The memory 602 may exist independently (in this case, the memory 602 may be located outside the device or inside the device), or it may be integrated with the processor 601. Among them, the memory 602 may contain a computer program code. The processor 601 is used to execute the computer program code stored in the memory 602, thereby realizing the method provided in the embodiments of the present application.

[0126] The processor 601, the memory 602 and the transceiver 603 are connected via a bus. The transceiver 603 is used to communicate with other devices or a communication network. Optionally, the transceiver 603 may include a transmitter and a receiver. The device used to implement the receiving function in the transceiver 603 can be regarded as a receiver, and the receiver is used to perform the receiving step in the embodiment of the present application. The device used to implement the sending function in the transceiver 603 can be regarded as a transmitter, and the transmitter is used to perform the sending step in the embodiment of the present application.

[0127] when Figure 6The schematic diagram of the structure shown is used to illustrate the structure of the relay device / intelligent reflective surface involved in the above embodiment. The processor 601 is used to control and manage the actions of the relay device / intelligent reflective surface. For example, the processor 601 is used to support the terminal device to execute or Figure 2 Steps 201 and 202 in, or, executing Figure 3 Steps 301 to 304 in, or, executing Figure 4 The processor 601 may communicate with other network entities through the transceiver 603, for example, communicating with the above-mentioned network device. The memory 602 is used to store program codes and data of the terminal device. When the processor runs the computer program, it may control the transceiver 603 to receive one or more of RRC signaling, MAC signaling and DCI.

[0128] when Figure 6 The schematic diagram of the structure shown in FIG. 1 is used to illustrate the structure of the network device involved in the above embodiment. The processor 601 is used to control and manage the actions of the network device. For example, the processor 601 is used to support the network device to execute Figure 2 Step 201 in , or Figure 3 Steps 301 to 303 in , or Figure 4 The processor 601 may communicate with other network entities through the transceiver 603, for example, communicating with the above-mentioned terminal device. The memory 602 is used to store program codes and data of the network device. When the processor runs the computer program, it may control the transceiver 603 to send one or more of RRC signaling, MAC signaling and DCI.

[0129] The embodiment of the present application defines a unidirectional communication link from an access network to a terminal device as a downlink, data transmitted on the downlink is downlink data, and the transmission direction of downlink data is called the downlink direction; and a unidirectional communication link from a terminal device to an access network is an uplink, data transmitted on the uplink is uplink data, and the transmission direction of uplink data is called the uplink direction.

[0130] It should be understood that the term "and / or" in this article is only a description of the association relationship of the associated objects, indicating that there can be three relationships. For example, A and / or B can represent: A exists alone, A and B exist at the same time, and B exists alone. In addition, the character " / " in this article indicates that the associated objects before and after are in an "or" relationship.

[0131] The "plurality" appearing in the embodiments of the present application refers to two or more.

[0132] The first, second, etc. descriptions appearing in the embodiments of the present application are only used for illustration and distinction of the description objects. There is no order, nor do they indicate any special limitation on the number of devices in the embodiments of the present application, and cannot constitute any limitation on the embodiments of the present application.

[0133] The "connection" that appears in the embodiments of the present application refers to various connection methods such as direct connection or indirect connection to achieve communication between devices, and the embodiments of the present application do not impose any limitations on this.

[0134] The above embodiments may be implemented in whole or in part by software, hardware, firmware or any other combination thereof. When implemented using software, the above embodiments may be implemented in whole or in part in the form of a computer program product. The computer program product includes one or more computer instructions or computer programs. When the computer instructions or computer programs are loaded or executed on a computer, the processes or functions described in the embodiments of the present application are generated in whole or in part. The computer may be a general-purpose computer, a special-purpose computer, a computer network, or other programmable devices. The computer instructions may be stored in a computer-readable storage medium, or transmitted from one computer-readable storage medium to another computer-readable storage medium, for example, the computer instructions may be transmitted from one website site, computer, server or data center to another website site, computer, server or data center by wired or wireless means.

[0135] It should be understood that in the various embodiments of the present application, the size of the serial numbers 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, and should not constitute any limitation on the implementation process of the embodiments of the present application.

[0136] In the several embodiments provided in the present application, it should be understood that the disclosed methods, devices and systems can be implemented in other ways. For example, the device embodiments described above are merely schematic; for example, the division of the units is only a logical function division, and there may be other division methods in actual implementation; for example, multiple units or components can be combined or integrated into another system, or some features can be ignored or not executed. Another point is that the mutual coupling or direct coupling or communication connection shown or discussed can be through some interfaces, indirect coupling or communication connection of devices or units, which can be electrical, mechanical or other forms.

[0137] The units described as separate components may or may not be physically separated, and the components shown as units may or may not be physical units, that is, they may be located in one place or distributed on multiple network units. Some or all of the units may be selected according to actual needs to achieve the purpose of the solution of this embodiment.

[0138] In addition, each functional unit in each embodiment of the present application may be integrated into one processing unit, or each unit may be physically included separately, or two or more units may be integrated into one unit. The above-mentioned integrated unit may be implemented in the form of hardware or in the form of hardware plus software functional units.

[0139] The above-mentioned integrated unit implemented in the form of a software functional unit can be stored in a computer-readable storage medium. The above-mentioned software functional unit is stored in a storage medium, including a number of instructions for enabling a computer device (which can be a personal computer, a server, or a network device, etc.) to perform some steps of the method described in each embodiment of the present application.

[0140] Although the present application is disclosed as above, the present application is not limited thereto. Any person skilled in the art can make various changes and modifications without departing from the spirit and scope of the present application. Therefore, the protection scope of the present application shall be subject to the scope defined by the claims.

Claims

1. A communication method, characterized in that: include: A beam indication is received, where the beam indication is used to indicate forwarding with a beam indicated by a beam index on indicated time domain resources and frequency domain resources.

2. The communication method according to claim 1, characterized in that: The beam indication includes at least one forwarding resource, and each forwarding resource includes a beam index, a time domain resource, and a frequency domain resource.

3. The communication method according to claim 1, characterized in that: The beam indication includes first information, second information and third information, the first information indicates a beam index, the second information indicates time domain resources, and the third information indicates frequency domain resources.

4. The communication method according to claim 3, characterized in that: The first information, the second information and the third information are respectively carried in a first field, a second field and a third field in downlink control information DCI.

5. The communication method according to claim 4, characterized in that: The number of the first field, the second field and the third field is equal.

6. The communication method according to claim 1, characterized in that: The beam indication is used to indicate forwarding using beams indicated by at least two beam indices on indicated time domain resources and frequency domain resources.

7. The communication method according to claim 1, characterized in that: The beam indication includes at least one forwarding resource, each forwarding resource includes a beam index and a time domain resource, wherein each beam index has a mapping relationship with each frequency domain resource.

8. The communication method according to claim 1, characterized in that: The receiving beam indication includes: receiving a radio access control RRC signaling, wherein the RRC signaling includes at least one forwarding resource, and each forwarding resource includes a beam index and a time domain resource; A media access control element MAC CE is received, where the MAC CE includes an identifier indicating a frequency domain resource and an activated / deactivated forwarding resource.

9. The communication method according to claim 1, characterized in that: The receiving beam indication includes: receiving radio access control RRC configuration information, wherein the RRC configuration information is associated with frequency domain resources; receiving RRC signaling, wherein the RRC signaling includes at least one forwarding resource, and each forwarding resource includes a beam index and a time domain resource.

10. The communication method according to claim 1, characterized in that: Also includes: Forwarding is performed using the beam indicated by the beam index in the beam indication at the minimum frequency domain granularity where the frequency domain resource is located.

11. The communication method according to claim 1, characterized in that: Also includes: In response to the presence of a beam indication on the entire working frequency band, forwarding is performed on the working frequency band using a beam indicated by a beam index in the beam indication; Alternatively, in response to the presence of M beam indications on the working frequency band, forwarding is performed on the working frequency band using any one of the following beams: the beam indicated by the beam indication on the frequency band with the smallest identifier of the indicated frequency domain resource, the beam with the smallest beam index, and the beam used at the last forwarding moment, where M is a positive integer greater than or equal to 2.

12. The communication method according to claim 1, characterized in that: Also includes: Report capability indication information, where the capability indication information indicates the capability of independently forwarding control of different frequency domain resources.

13. The communication method according to claim 1, characterized in that: Also includes: Mode switching information is received, where the mode switching information is used to indicate independent forwarding control on different frequency resources or forwarding control on the entire working frequency band.

14. A communication method, characterized in that: include: A beam indication is sent, where the beam indication is used to indicate forwarding with the beam indicated by the beam index on the indicated time domain resources and frequency domain resources.

15. The communication method according to claim 14, characterized in that: The beam indication includes at least one forwarding resource, and each forwarding resource includes a beam index, a time domain resource, and a frequency domain resource.

16. The communication method according to claim 14, characterized in that: The beam indication includes first information, second information and third information, the first information indicates a beam index, the second information indicates time domain resources, and the third information indicates frequency domain resources.

17. The communication method according to claim 14, characterized in that: The beam indication includes at least one forwarding resource, each forwarding resource includes a beam index and a time domain resource, wherein each beam index has a mapping relationship with each frequency domain resource.

18. The communication method according to claim 14, characterized in that: The sending of the beam indication includes: sending a radio access control RRC signaling, wherein the RRC signaling includes at least one forwarding resource, and each forwarding resource includes a beam index and a time domain resource; A media access control element MAC CE is sent, where the MAC CE includes an identifier indicating a frequency domain resource and an activated / deactivated forwarding resource.

19. The communication method according to claim 14, characterized in that: The sending of beam indication includes: sending radio access control RRC configuration information, wherein the RRC configuration information is associated with frequency domain resources; sending RRC signaling, wherein the RRC signaling includes at least one forwarding resource, and each forwarding resource includes a beam index and a time domain resource.

20. A communication device, characterized in that: include: A communication module is used to receive a beam indication, where the beam indication is used to indicate forwarding with a beam indicated by a beam index on indicated time domain resources and frequency domain resources.

21. A communication device, characterized in that: include: A communication module is used to send a beam indication, where the beam indication is used to indicate forwarding with a beam indicated by a beam index on indicated time domain resources and frequency domain resources.

22. A computer-readable storage medium having a computer program stored thereon, characterized in that: When the computer program is executed by a processor, the computer program executes the steps of the communication method according to any one of claims 1 to 13, or executes the steps of the communication method according to any one of claims 14 to 19.

23. A communication device, comprising a memory and a processor, wherein the memory stores a computer program that can be run on the processor, characterized in that: When the processor runs the computer program, the processor performs the steps of the communication method according to any one of claims 1 to 13.

24. A communication device, comprising a memory and a processor, wherein the memory stores a computer program that can be run on the processor, characterized in that: When the processor runs the computer program, the processor performs the steps of the communication method according to any one of claims 14 to 19.

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