Communication method and device

Abstract

The invention provides a communication method and device. The method comprises: a first management unit receives a first message from a first access network device, sends a second message to the first access network device, and sends a third message to a first radio frequency unit, the first message being used for requesting to allocate communication resources to a terminal device, the second message being used for indicating that the communication resources have been allocated to the terminal device, and the third message being used for indicating that the communication resources have been allocated to the terminal device; the third message comprises communication resource configuration, the terminal equipment communicates with the first radio frequency unit through at least one communication resource indicated by the communication resource configuration, and the at least one communication resource is part or all of communication resources in a communication resource set provided by the first access network equipment for the first management unit for management. According to the embodiment of the invention, the special communication resource is allocated or scheduled to the terminal equipment through the first management unit, so that the terminal equipment does not need to execute corresponding operations such as physical layer baseband adjustment and / or physical layer radio frequency adjustment in the switching process of the mobile unit and the radio frequency unit, and the switching interruption time can be reduced.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This application relates to the field of communication technologies, and in particular, to a communication method and apparatus. Background Art

[0002] In a mobile communication system, due to the movement of a terminal device, the communication link between the terminal device and an access network device changes. The access network device will instruct the terminal device to perform a cell handover according to the movement of the terminal device. During the process of the terminal device handover from a source cell to a target cell, there may be an interruption period, which affects the user experience. Based on this, how to reduce the handover interruption time has become an urgent problem to be solved currently. Summary of the Invention

[0003] This application provides a communication method and apparatus for reducing the handover interruption time.

[0004] In a first aspect, this application provides a communication method. This method can be executed by a first management unit or a module of the first management unit (such as a processor, a processing unit, a chip, a chip system, or a circuit, etc.). Optionally, this method can also be implemented by a logical node, a logical module, or software that can implement all or part of the functions of the first management unit. Exemplarily, below, the communication method executed by the first management unit is taken as an example. This method can include the following steps: The first management unit receives a first message from a first access network device. After that, the first management unit can send a second message to the first access network device. Then, the first management unit can send a third message to a first radio frequency unit. Among them, the first message is used to request to allocate communication resources for a terminal device. The second message is used to indicate that communication resources have been allocated for the terminal device. The third message can include communication resource configuration. The terminal device can communicate with the first radio frequency unit through at least one communication resource indicated by the communication resource configuration. The at least one communication resource can be part or all of the communication resource set provided by the first access network device for the first management unit to manage.

[0005] In this method, the first management unit is used to allocate or schedule dedicated communication resources (or can be called specific communication resources) for the terminal device. In this way, the terminal device does not need to perform corresponding operations such as physical layer baseband adjustment and / or physical layer radio frequency adjustment during the movement and radio frequency unit handover process, thereby reducing the handover interruption time and helping to improve the user experience.

[0006] Accordingly, in a second aspect, the present application provides a communication method, which can be executed by a first access network device or a module of the first access network device (such as a processor, a processing unit, a chip, a chip system, or a circuit, etc.). Optionally, the method can also be implemented by a logical node, a logical module, or software that can implement all or part of the functions of the first access network device. Exemplarily, below, the communication method executed by the first access network device is taken as an example. The method may include the following steps: The first access network device provides a communication resource set to the first management unit. After that, the first access network device may send a first message to the first management unit. Then, the first access network device may receive a second message from the first management unit, where the first message is used to request the allocation of communication resources for the terminal device, and the second message is used to indicate that communication resources have been allocated for the terminal device. For example, the terminal device may communicate with the first radio frequency unit according to some or all of the communication resources in the communication resource set.

[0007] For the technical effects that can be achieved in the second aspect, please refer to the technical effects that can be achieved in the first aspect above, and will not be elaborated here.

[0008] In a possible implementation manner provided in the first aspect or the second aspect, if the second message includes at least one communication resource allocated to the terminal device, the first access network device may generate a communication resource configuration according to the at least one communication resource. After that, the first access network device may send a fourth message to the first management unit. Accordingly, the first management unit receives the fourth message, where the at least one communication resource may be some or all of the communication resources in the communication resource set, and the fourth message may include the communication resource configuration corresponding to the terminal device. Optionally, when the first management unit does not receive the fourth message, the first management unit may generate the communication resource configuration corresponding to the terminal device according to the at least one communication resource.

[0009] In the above implementation manner, if the first management unit can obtain the communication resource configuration corresponding to the terminal device from the first access network device, it can avoid generating the communication resource configuration corresponding to the terminal device by itself, thereby reducing the resource consumption caused by generating the communication resource configuration. In addition, if the first management unit cannot obtain the communication resource configuration corresponding to the terminal device from the first access network device, it can reduce the communication overhead between the first access network device and the first management unit, and also reduce the resource consumption caused by the first access network device generating the communication resource configuration.

[0010] In a possible implementation provided in the first aspect or the second aspect, the first access network device sends a first transport block to the first management unit. Correspondingly, the first management unit receives the first transport block from the first access network device. After that, the first management unit may send the first transport block and first indication information to the first radio frequency unit, where the first indication information is used to indicate that the first transport block is transmitted using a first communication resource, and the first communication resource is included in at least one communication resource.

[0011] In the above implementation, during downlink data transmission, the first management unit schedules dedicated communication resources for transmitting the first transport block, which can make the transmission of the first transport block more reasonable and more in line with the actual needs of the terminal device. Moreover, by introducing the first management unit to manage the communication resources of the terminal device, during the process of the terminal device moving and switching radio frequency units, the terminal device does not need to perform corresponding operations such as physical layer baseband adjustment and / or physical layer radio frequency adjustment, thereby reducing the handover interruption time.

[0012] In a possible implementation provided in the first aspect or the second aspect, the first radio frequency unit sends a second transport block to the first management unit. Correspondingly, the first management unit receives the second transport block from the first radio frequency unit. After that, the first management unit may send the second transport block to the first access network device. Correspondingly, the first access network device receives the second transport block from the first management unit.

[0013] In the above implementation, during uplink data transmission, the terminal device also uses dedicated communication resources scheduled by the first management unit to transmit the second transport block to the first radio frequency unit. Since the first radio frequency unit knows the communication resource configuration corresponding to the terminal device, when receiving the second transport block on the dedicated communication resource, it also knows the identity identifier of the terminal device. In this way, the first radio frequency unit can transmit the second transport block to the first access network device on a specific user plane channel.

[0014] In a possible implementation provided in the first aspect, the first management unit may send a first handover indication and a second handover indication to the first radio frequency unit. Correspondingly, the first radio frequency unit receives the first handover indication and the second handover indication from the first management unit, where the first handover indication is used to indicate that the terminal device performs beam handover, and the second handover indication is used to indicate stopping providing communication services for the terminal device.

[0015] In the above implementation, when the signal quality measurement report reported by the terminal device is analyzed and processed by the first management unit, when the first management unit determines that the radio frequency unit corresponding to the terminal device needs to be switched and the beam corresponding to the terminal device needs to be switched, it can timely and accurately send the first handover indication and the second handover indication to the first radio frequency unit.

[0016] In a possible implementation provided in the first aspect or the second aspect, the first access network device sends a third handover indication and a fourth handover indication to the first management unit. Correspondingly, the first management unit receives the third handover indication and the fourth handover indication from the first access network device. After that, the first management unit may send the fourth handover indication and a fifth handover indication to the first radio frequency unit, where the third handover indication is used to indicate performing radio frequency unit handover, the fourth handover indication is used to indicate that the terminal device performs beam handover, and the fifth handover indication is used to indicate that the first radio frequency unit stops providing communication services for the terminal device.

[0017] In the above implementation, when the signal quality measurement report reported by the terminal device is parsed and processed by the first access network device, when the first access network device determines that the radio frequency unit corresponding to the terminal device needs to be handed over and the beam corresponding to the terminal device needs to be handed over, it can timely and accurately send the third handover indication and the fourth handover indication to the first management unit, which is convenient for the first management unit to timely know that radio frequency unit handover and beam handover are required, so as to timely and effectively perform radio frequency unit handover and send the fourth handover indication to the first radio frequency unit, further enabling the terminal device to timely perform beam handover.

[0018] In a possible implementation provided in the first aspect, the method further includes: the first management unit may send second indication information and communication resource configuration corresponding to the terminal device to the second radio frequency unit, where the second indication information is used to indicate that the second radio frequency unit provides communication services for the terminal device.

[0019] For example, the first management unit may also send beam direction information required for communication between the second radio frequency unit and the terminal device to the second radio frequency unit. After that, the second radio frequency unit may use the beam direction information to communicate with the terminal device.

[0020] In the above implementation, after learning that the radio frequency unit corresponding to the terminal device is handed over from the first radio frequency unit to the second radio frequency unit, the second indication information and communication resource configuration may be sent to the second radio frequency unit so that the second radio frequency unit can timely provide communication services for the terminal device.

[0021] In a possible implementation provided in the second aspect, the method further includes: The first access network device may send a fifth message to the second access network device, where the fifth message is used to request communication resources managed by the first management unit, and the fifth message may include communication resources provided by the first access network device that can be managed by the first management unit. After that, the first access network device may receive a sixth message from the second access network device, where the sixth message may include communication resources provided by the second access network device that can be managed by the first management unit. Then, the first access network device may determine a communication resource set according to the communication resources provided by the first access network device that can be managed by the first management unit and the communication resources provided by the second access network device that can be managed by the first management unit.

[0022] In the above implementation, the first access network device determines the communication resource set through interaction and negotiation with the second access network device, which can enable the communication resource set to meet the resource requirements for the terminal device to switch services between the first access network device and the second access network device, and can enable both the first access network device and the second access network device to provide corresponding services using consistent communication resources for the terminal device.

[0023] In a possible implementation provided in the first aspect or the second aspect, the first message may include at least one of the following: identification information of the terminal device or identification information of the first radio frequency unit.

[0024] In the above implementation, when the first message includes the identification information of the terminal device, the identification information of the terminal device can be used by the first management unit to accurately associate the allocated communication resources with the terminal device itself. When the first message includes the identification information of the first radio frequency unit, it can facilitate the first management unit to subsequently send the communication resource configuration to the corresponding radio frequency unit in a timely and accurate manner.

[0025] In a possible implementation provided in the first aspect or the second aspect, each communication resource in the communication resource set may include at least one of the following: time domain resources, frequency domain resources, code domain resources, or spatial domain resources.

[0026] In a third aspect, the present application provides a communication method, which can be implemented by the interaction of multiple communication devices (such as a first access network device, a second access network device, and a first network element). In this method, the first access network device can send a first message to the second access network device. After receiving the first message, the second access network device can send a second message to the first network element. Among them, the first message is used to request the handover of the access network device. The first message may include the communication resource configuration corresponding to the terminal device. At least one communication resource indicated by the communication resource configuration may be part or all of the communication resources in the communication resource set. The communication resource set is negotiated and determined by the first access network device and the second access network device. The communication resource set can be provided by the first access network device to the first management unit for management. The second message is used to indicate that the user plane channel endpoint is switched from the first access network device to the second access network device.

[0027] In this method, the terminal device does not need to perform corresponding operations such as physical layer baseband adjustment and / or physical layer radio frequency adjustment, and can realize the switching of the user plane channel endpoint from the first access network device to the second access network device (for example, realize the migration of the L2 protocol stack anchor point from the first access network device to the second access network device). This can facilitate the subsequent implementation of low-interruption handover in a wider area (such as across management units), and can facilitate the subsequent negotiation of whether the second management unit can continue to use at least one communication resource allocated by the first management unit for the terminal device.

[0028] Optionally, when the first message does not include the communication resource configuration corresponding to the terminal device, the above method can also realize the migration of the management rights and L2 protocol stack anchor points of one or more terminal devices from the first access network device to the second access network device (such as access network device 2), thereby reducing the load of the first access network device.

[0029] In a possible implementation manner provided in the third aspect, the first management unit is connected to the first radio frequency unit, and the first radio frequency unit provides communication services for the terminal device; the method further includes: the second access network device can send a third message to the first access network device according to the first message, where the third message is used to indicate that the second access network device agrees to the handover of the access network device. After receiving the third message, the first access network device can send a fourth message to the first management unit, where the fourth message is used to indicate that the access network device has switched. The fourth message may include the reconfiguration information corresponding to the terminal device, and the reconfiguration information is used to instruct the terminal device to perform a reconfiguration operation. After receiving the fourth message, the first management unit can send the reconfiguration information to the first radio frequency unit, and after receiving the reconfiguration information, the first radio frequency unit can send the reconfiguration information to the terminal device.

[0030] In the above implementation manner, the first access network device can facilitate the terminal device to perform the reconfiguration operation in a timely manner by sending a fourth message to the first management unit, without performing corresponding operations such as physical layer baseband adjustment and / or physical layer radio frequency adjustment. Thus, it can achieve the relocation (or migration) of the L2 protocol stack anchor point from the first access network device to the second access network device, that is, realize the handover of the access network device, and can facilitate the subsequent low-interruption handover across management units.

[0031] In a possible implementation manner provided in the third aspect, the fourth message further includes the identification information or address information of the second access network device; the method further includes: the first management unit can establish a user plane channel and / or a control plane channel with the second access network device according to the identification information or address information of the second access network device.

[0032] In the above implementation manner, by establishing a user plane channel and / or a control plane channel between the first management unit and the second access network device, it can facilitate data transmission and / or signaling transmission between the first management unit and the second access network device.

[0033] In a possible implementation manner provided in the third aspect, the reconfiguration operation may include at least one of the following: packet data convergence protocol (PDCP) reconfiguration, PDCP re-establishment, radio link control (RLC) reconfiguration, RLC re-establishment, service data adaptation protocol (SDAP) reconfiguration, media access control (MAC) reconfiguration, or MAC reset.

[0034] In the above implementation manner, the terminal device does not need to perform corresponding operations such as physical layer baseband adjustment and / or physical layer radio frequency adjustment, and completes the handover of the access network device by performing the reconfiguration operation, effectively realizing the migration of the L2 protocol stack anchor point.

[0035] In a possible implementation provided by the third aspect, the second access network device is respectively connected to the first management unit and the second management unit, and the second management unit is connected to the second radio frequency unit; the method further includes: the second access network device may send first indication information and second indication information to the first management unit, where the first indication information is used to instruct the first management unit to stop providing resource management services for the terminal device, and the second indication information is used to instruct the terminal device to perform beam switching. After receiving the first indication information and the second indication information, the first management unit may send the second indication information and third indication information to the first radio frequency unit, where the third indication information is used to instruct the first radio frequency unit to stop providing communication services for the terminal device. The second access network device may also send fourth indication information to the second management unit, where the fourth indication information is used to instruct the second management unit to provide resource management services for the terminal device. After receiving the fourth indication information, the second management unit may send fifth indication information to the second radio frequency unit, where the fifth indication information is used to instruct the second radio frequency unit to provide communication services for the terminal device.

[0036] For example, the second access network device may also send the beam direction information required for the second radio frequency unit to communicate with the terminal device to the second management unit. After receiving the beam direction information required for the second radio frequency unit to communicate with the terminal device, the second management unit may send the beam direction information required for the second radio frequency unit to communicate with the terminal device to the second radio frequency unit. After that, the second radio frequency unit may use the beam direction information to communicate with the terminal device.

[0037] In the above implementation, when the signal quality measurement report reported by the terminal device is parsed and processed by the second access network device, when the second access network device determines that the radio frequency unit corresponding to the terminal device needs to be switched and the beam corresponding to the terminal device needs to be switched, it can timely and accurately send the first indication information and the second indication information to the first management unit, which is convenient for the first management unit to timely know that radio frequency unit switching and beam switching are required, so that the radio frequency unit switching can be timely and effectively executed, and the second indication information and the third indication information can be sent to the first radio frequency unit, enabling the first radio frequency unit to effectively stop providing communication services for the terminal device, and further enabling the terminal device to timely perform beam switching. In addition, by sending the fourth indication information to the second management unit, the second access network device can facilitate the second management unit to timely know that it will provide resource management services for the terminal device, so that the second management unit can further send the fifth indication information to the second radio frequency unit, so that the second radio frequency unit can timely provide communication services for the terminal device.

[0038] In a possible implementation provided by the third aspect, the second access network device may be connected to the first management unit and the second management unit respectively, and the second management unit is connected to the second radio frequency unit; the method further includes: the first management unit may send sixth indication information to the second access network device, where the sixth indication information is used to instruct the first management unit to stop providing resource management services for the terminal device, and the first management unit may also send seventh indication information and eighth indication information to the first radio frequency unit, where the seventh indication information is used to instruct the first radio frequency unit to stop providing communication services for the terminal device, and the eighth indication information is used to instruct the terminal device to perform beam switching. After receiving the sixth indication information, the second access network device may send ninth indication information to the second management unit, where the ninth indication information is used to instruct the second management unit to provide resource management services for the terminal device. After receiving the ninth indication information, the second management unit may send tenth indication information to the second radio frequency unit, where the tenth indication information is used to instruct the second radio frequency unit to provide communication services for the terminal device.

[0039] For example, after receiving the sixth indication information, the second access network device may also send the beam direction information required for the second radio frequency unit to communicate with the terminal device to the second management unit. After receiving the beam direction information required for the second radio frequency unit to communicate with the terminal device, the second management unit may send the beam direction information required for the second radio frequency unit to communicate with the terminal device to the second radio frequency unit. After that, the second radio frequency unit may use the beam direction information to communicate with the terminal device.

[0040] In the above implementation, when the signal quality measurement report reported by the terminal device is analyzed and processed by the first management unit, when the first management unit determines that the radio frequency unit corresponding to the terminal device needs to be switched and the beam corresponding to the terminal device needs to be switched, it can timely and accurately send the sixth indication information to the second access network device, which can facilitate the first access network device to timely know that the radio frequency unit needs to be switched, and can send the seventh indication information and the eighth indication information to the first radio frequency unit, so that the first radio frequency unit can effectively stop providing communication services for the terminal device, and can further enable the terminal device to timely perform beam switching. In addition, by sending the ninth indication information to the second management unit, the second access network device can facilitate the second management unit to timely know that it will provide resource management services for the terminal device, so that the second management unit can further send the tenth indication information to the second radio frequency unit, so that the second radio frequency unit can timely provide communication services for the terminal device.

[0041] In a possible implementation provided in the third aspect, the method further includes: The second access network device may send a fifth message to the second management unit, where the fifth message is used to request the communication resource configuration corresponding to the terminal device. After receiving the fifth message, the second management unit may send a sixth message to the second access network device, where the sixth message is used to indicate that the second management unit agrees to the request for issuing the same communication resource configuration, or may also be used to indicate that the second management unit agrees to issue the same communication resource configuration for the terminal device, or may also be used to indicate that the second management unit agrees to allocate the same at least one communication resource for the terminal device.

[0042] In the above implementation, in the case where the second management unit may allocate the same at least one communication resource for the terminal device, or may issue the same communication resource configuration for the terminal device, during the process of the terminal device moving from the coverage range of the first radio frequency unit to the coverage range of the second radio frequency unit, the terminal device does not need to perform corresponding operations such as physical layer baseband adjustment and / or physical layer radio frequency adjustment, and does not need to perform reconfiguration or re - establishment related to the L2 protocol stack.

[0043] In a possible implementation provided in the third aspect, each communication resource in the communication resource set may include at least one of the following: time - domain resource, frequency - domain resource, code - domain resource, or space - domain resource.

[0044] In the fourth aspect, the present application further provides a communication device, which can implement the method in any possible implementation of any one of the first aspect to the third aspect above. The communication device may be implemented by hardware or by hardware executing corresponding software. The hardware or software includes one or more units or modules corresponding to the above functions.

[0045] In a possible implementation, the communication device includes: a processor configured to support the communication device in executing the corresponding functions of the first management unit, or the second management unit, or the first access network device, or the second access network device, or the first radio frequency unit, or the second radio frequency unit, or the terminal device, or the first network element in the above - shown method. The communication device may further include a memory, which may be coupled to the processor and stores the necessary program instructions and data of the communication device. Optionally, the communication device further includes a communication interface for supporting the communication between the communication device and other devices.

[0046] In a possible implementation, the communication device includes corresponding functional modules respectively used to implement the steps in the above method. The functions may be implemented by hardware or by hardware executing corresponding software. The hardware or software includes one or more modules corresponding to the above functions.

[0047] In a possible implementation, the structure of the communication device includes a transceiver module and a processing module, and these modules can perform the corresponding functions in the above method examples. For specific descriptions, refer to the methods in any possible implementation manner in any one of the first to third aspects, and details are not described herein.

[0048] In a fifth aspect, the present application further provides a communication device, which includes a processor and a communication interface. The communication interface is configured to receive signals from other communication devices outside the communication device and transmit them to the processor, or send signals from the processor to other communication devices outside the communication device. The processor realizes the methods in any possible implementation manner in any one of the first to third aspects through logic circuits or by executing computer programs or instructions. Optionally, the communication device further includes a memory for storing computer programs or instructions.

[0049] In a sixth aspect, the present application provides a communication system, which includes a plurality of communication devices (such as multiple of the first management unit, the second management unit, the first access network device, the second access network device, the first radio frequency unit, the second radio frequency unit, the terminal device, or the first network element). Among them, the implementation of the relevant functions of the first management unit, the second management unit, the first access network device, the second access network device, the first radio frequency unit, the second radio frequency unit, the terminal device, or the first network element can refer to the relevant descriptions mentioned in the first, second, or third aspect above, and details are not described herein.

[0050] In a seventh aspect, the present application provides a computer program product, which includes a computer program or instruction. When the computer program or instruction runs on a computer, the computer is caused to execute the methods in any possible implementation manner in any one of the first to third aspects.

[0051] In an eighth aspect, the present application provides a computer-readable storage medium, in which a computer program or instruction is stored. When the computer program or instruction is executed by a computer, the computer is caused to execute the methods in any possible implementation manner in any one of the first to third aspects.

[0052] In a ninth aspect, the present application provides a chip, which may include a processor and may further include a memory (or the chip is coupled to the storage). The chip executes the program instructions in the storage to execute the methods in any possible implementation manner in any one of the first to third aspects. Herein, "coupling" means that two components are directly or indirectly combined with each other. For example, coupling may refer to an electrical connection between two components.

[0053] In a tenth aspect, the present application further provides a chip system, which includes a processor for supporting a computer device to implement the method in any possible implementation manner of any one of the first aspect to the third aspect above. In a possible implementation manner, the chip system further includes a memory for storing necessary programs and data of the computer device. The chip system may be composed of chips or may include chips and other discrete devices.

[0054] Based on the implementation manners provided in the above aspects of the present application, further combinations can be made to provide more implementation manners. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0055] Figure 1 Exemplarily shows a schematic diagram of a possible communication system architecture provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0056] Figure 2a Exemplarily shows a schematic diagram of a CU-DU separation architecture adopted by a network device provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0057] Figure 2b Exemplarily shows a schematic diagram of a CU-DU-RU separation architecture adopted by a network device provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0058] Figure 3 Exemplarily shows a schematic diagram of a process of a communication method provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0059] Figure 4 Exemplarily shows a schematic diagram of an application scenario provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0060] Figure 5 Exemplarily shows a schematic diagram of uplink and downlink data transmission provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0061] Figure 6 Exemplarily shows a schematic diagram of a process of another communication method provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0062] Figure 7 Exemplarily shows a schematic diagram of a process of yet another communication method provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0063] Figure 8 Exemplarily shows a schematic diagram of another application scenario provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0064] Figure 9 Exemplarily shows a schematic diagram of a process of yet another communication method provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0065] Figure 10 Exemplarily shows a schematic diagram of the structure of a communication device provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0066] Figure 11 The structural schematic diagram of another communication device provided by an embodiment of the present application is exemplarily shown. Detailed implementation manners

[0067] Before introducing the technical solutions provided by the present application, some terms involved in the present application are first explained to facilitate the understanding of those skilled in the art.

[0068] (1) Beam: It refers to the main lobe of the directional array pattern. Optionally, a network device (such as a base station) can adjust the weights of the antennas so that the beam of the network device can point to different directions and have different coverage ranges (or can be called coverage areas).

[0069] (2) Layer 1 (L1) can refer to the physical (PHY) layer, and Layer 2 (L2) can refer to any one or more of the media access control (or can be called medium access control) (MAC) layer or the media access control protocol layer, the radio link control (RLC) layer or the radio link control layer protocol, the packet data convergence protocol (or can be called packet data convergence protocol) (PDCP) layer, and the service data adaptation protocol (SDAP) layer. Layer 3 (L3) can refer to the radio resource control (RRC) layer.

[0070] (3) Signal quality: In the embodiments of the present application, the signal quality can be the signal strength. Among them, the parameters used to reflect or represent the signal strength can include, but are not limited to, at least one of the following: reference signal receiving power (RSRP), reference signal receiving quality (RSRQ), or received signal strength indication (RSSI).

[0071] (4) Synchronization Signal and Physical Broadcast Channel (PBCH) Block (SSB): The SSB consists of three parts: the Primary Synchronization Signal (PSS), the Secondary Synchronization Signal (SSS), and the PBCH. Among them, both the PSS and the SSS are synchronization signals. The PSS can be used to transmit the cell ID, and the SSS can be used to transmit the cell group ID. The cell ID and the cell group ID together determine the multiple Physical Cell Identities (PCI) in the communication system. The PBCH can be used for the terminal device to obtain information about the accessed cell.

[0072] It should be noted that in the embodiments of this application, "sending information" can be understood as one device sending information to another device, or, it can also be understood as a logical module inside a device sending information to another logical module. For example, "the network device sends information" can be understood as the network device sending information to another device (such as a terminal device), or, it can be understood as logical module 1 in the network device sending information to logical module 2 in the terminal device.

[0073] In the embodiments of this application, "receiving information" can be understood as one device receiving information from another device, or, it can also be understood as a logical module inside a device receiving information from another logical module. For example, "the network device receives information" can be understood as the network device receiving information from another device (such as a terminal device), or, it can be understood as logical module 1 in the network device receiving information from logical module 2 in the terminal device.

[0074] In the embodiments of this application, "sending information to the terminal device" can be understood as the destination of the information being the terminal. It can include directly or indirectly sending information to the terminal. "Receiving information from the terminal" can be understood as the source of the information being the terminal, and it can include directly or indirectly receiving information from the terminal. The information may be subjected to necessary processing, such as format conversion, etc., between the source and the destination of the information transmission, but the destination can understand the valid information from the source. Similar expressions in the embodiments of this application can be understood similarly and will not be elaborated here.

[0075] Next, the embodiments of this application will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0076] Next, the communication system architecture applicable to the communication method provided in this application will be introduced. It should be noted that these introductions are for the convenience of those skilled in the art to understand and do not constitute a limitation on the protection scope required by this application.

[0077] The technical solutions of the embodiments of this application can be applied to various communication systems, such as: Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS), Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) system, Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN), Sidelink communication system, 4th generation (4G) communication system, 5th generation (5G) communication system, 6th generation (6G) communication system or other future evolved systems, or other various wireless communication systems adopting wireless access technologies, etc. As long as there is a need for cell handover in the communication system, the technical solutions of the embodiments of this application can be adopted.

[0078] A network element in the communication system can send a signal to another network element or receive a signal from another network element. The signal can include information, signaling, data, etc. Herein, the network element can also be replaced by an entity, a network entity, a device, a communication device, a communication module, a node, a communication node, etc. In the embodiments of this application, the network element is taken as an example for description.

[0079] Figure 1 An exemplary schematic diagram of a possible communication system architecture applicable to the embodiments of this application is shown. As Figure 1 shown, the communication system architecture can include a terminal device and at least one network device (such as Network Device 1, Network Device 2, and Network Device 3).

[0080] Among them, the network device is a node in a radio access network (RAN), also known as a base station, and can also be called a RAN node (or device) or a RAN entity or an access network device or an access node, etc., which is used to help the terminal device achieve wireless access. Currently, some examples of network devices are: evolved NodeB (eNodeB), access point (AP), access point (AP) in a wireless fidelity (WIFI) system, radio network controller (RNC), NodeB (NB), base station controller (BSC), base transceiver station (BTS), wireless relay node, wireless backhaul node, transmission point (TP), next generation node B (gNB) in a 5G network, transmitting point (TP), transmission reception point (TRP), home base station (e.g., home evolved NodeB, or home Node B, HNB), macro base station, micro base station (also called small cell), relay station, base band unit (BBU), or network devices in a communication system evolved after 5G such as 6G. The network device can also be other devices with network device functions. For example, it can also be a gNB or a TRP or a TP in a 5G system, or one or a group (including multiple antenna panels) of antenna panels of a base station in a 5G system. In addition, the network device can also be a device that undertakes the base station function in a device-to-device (D2D), vehicle-to-everything (V2X), Internet of Things (IoT), machine-to-machine (M2M) communication or other communication systems, and can also include a central unit (CU) and a distributed unit (DU) in a cloud radio access network (C-RAN) system, and network devices in a non-terrestrial network (NTN) communication system, that is, it can be deployed on a high-altitude platform or a satellite. The embodiments of the present application do not make specific limitations on this.

[0081] Exemplarily, in some possible network architectures, the network device may be a CU, a DU, a CU-control plane (CP), a CU-user plane (UP), or a radio unit (which may also be referred to as a radio frequency unit) (RU), etc. The CU and the DU may be separately provided, or may also be included in the same network element, such as a baseband unit (BBU). The RU may be included in a radio frequency device or a radio frequency unit, such as included in a remote radio unit (RRU), an active antenna unit (AAU), or a remote radio head (RRH). In this network architecture, the signaling generated by the CU may be sent to the terminal device through the DU, or the signaling generated by the terminal device may be sent to the CU through the DU. The DU may directly encapsulate the signaling through the protocol layer without parsing it and pass it through to the terminal device or the CU. In this network architecture, the CU is classified as a network device on the radio access network side. In addition, the CU may also be classified as a network device on the core network side. This application does not limit this. For example, the functions of the PDCP layer and above protocol layers are set in the CU, and the functions of the protocol layers below the PDCP layer (such as the RLC layer and the MAC layer, etc.) are set in the DU. It can be understood that the above division of the processing functions of the CU and the DU according to the protocol layer is only an example, and it can also be divided in other ways. For example, the functions of the protocol layers above the RLC layer are set in the CU, and the functions of the protocol layers at and below the RLC layer are set in the DU. Or, the CU or the DU may be divided into having more protocol layer functions. Or, the CU or the DU may also be divided into having partial processing functions of the protocol layer.

[0082] It can be understood that in different systems, the CU (or CU-CP and CU-UP), the DU, or the RU may also have different names, but those skilled in the art can understand their meanings. For example, in the ORAN system, the CU may also be referred to as an O-CU (Open CU), the DU may also be referred to as an O-DU, the CU-CP may also be referred to as an O-CU-CP, the CU-UP may also be referred to as an O-CU-UP, and the RU may also be referred to as an O-RU. For the convenience of description, this application takes the CU, CU-CP, CU-UP, DU, and RU as examples for description. Any one of the CU (or CU-CP, CU-UP), DU, and RU in this application may be implemented through a software module, a hardware module, or a combination of a software module and a hardware module.

[0083] In the embodiments of the present application, the network device may adopt a CU-DU split architecture, which may also be referred to as a distributed deployment architecture, or may also adopt a CU-DU-RU split architecture. For example, Figure 2a is a schematic diagram of a CU-DU split architecture adopted by a network device provided in the embodiments of the present application. As Figure 2a shown, the network device may logically include a CU and one or more DUs. Each DU may be connected to the CU through an F1 interface, and the information interaction between different DUs may be completed based on the forwarding of the CU. The CU and the DU may be physically set together or physically separated, which is not limited. Among them, the CU may support the functions of the RRC layer protocol, the PDCP protocol, and the SDAP protocol; the DU may support the functions of the RLC layer protocol, the MAC layer protocol, and part or all of the PHY layer. For the specific descriptions of the above various protocol layers, reference may be made to the relevant technical specifications of the 3rd generation partnership project (3GPP).

[0084] For another example, Figure 2b is a schematic diagram of a CU-DU-RU split architecture adopted by a network device provided in the embodiments of the present application. As Figure 2b shown, the network device may logically include a CU, a DU, and an RU. The CU and the DU may be physically set together or physically separated, which is not limited. Among them, the CU may support the functions of the RRC layer protocol, the PDCP protocol, and the SDAP protocol; the DU may support the functions of the RLC layer protocol and the MAC layer protocol, and may also support part of the PHY layer protocol; the RU may support part or all of the PHY layer. It can be understood that in the CU-DU-RU split architecture, the interface between the DU and the RU may be referred to as the fronthaul, the interface between the CU and the DU may be referred to as the midhaul, and the interface between the CU and the core network may be referred to as the backhaul.

[0085] A terminal device is a device that provides voice or data connectivity to users. It can also be an Internet of Things device and is also known as a terminal, user equipment (UE), access terminal device, in-vehicle terminal, industrial control terminal, UE unit, UE station, mobile station, mobile station (MS), mobile terminal (MT), remote station, remote terminal device, mobile device, UE terminal device, terminal device, wireless communication device, UE agent, or UE device, etc. For example, terminal devices include handheld devices, in-vehicle devices, etc. with wireless connection capabilities.Currently, the terminal device can be: mobile phone, Pad, laptop computer, palmtop computer, customer-premises equipment (CPE), subscriber unit, satellite phone, cellular phone, smart phone, cordless phone, session initiation protocol (SIP) phone, wireless local loop (WLL) station, wireless data card, personal digital assistant (PDA) computer, wireless modem, handset, laptop computer, computer with wireless transceiver function, virtual reality (VR) terminal device, augmented reality (AR) terminal device, head mounted display (HMD), wireless terminal in industrial control, mobile internet device (MID), in-vehicle terminal device (such as cars, bicycles, electric vehicles, airplanes, ships, trains, high-speed rails, etc.), wireless terminal in self-driving, wireless terminal in remote medical, wireless terminal in smart grid, wireless terminal in transportation safety, wireless terminal in smart city, wireless terminal in smart home, wearable terminal device (such as smart watches, smart bracelets, pedometers, etc.), vehicle, drone, helicopter, airplane, factory machine / equipment, machine type communication (MTC) terminal, ship or robot, etc.

[0086] In the embodiments of the present application, the network device and the terminal device can be in a fixed position or movable. The network device and the terminal device can be deployed on land, including indoors or outdoors, handheld, wearable or in-vehicle, or can also be deployed on the water surface (such as ships, etc.), or can also be deployed in the air (such as airplanes, balloons or satellites, etc.).

[0087] In the embodiments of the present application, the functions of the network device (such as a base station) can also be performed by a module (such as a chip) in the base station, or can be performed by a control subsystem including the functions of the base station. The control subsystem including the functions of the base station here can be a control center in the above application scenarios such as smart grid, industrial control, intelligent transportation, and smart city. The functions of the terminal device can also be performed by a module (such as a chip or a modem) in the terminal device, or can be performed by a device including the functions of the terminal.

[0088] In the embodiments of the present application, the communication between the terminal device and the network device means that the terminal device sends an uplink signal or uplink information to the network device, and the uplink information is carried on the uplink channel, and / or the network device sends a downlink signal or downlink information to the terminal device, and the downlink information is carried on the downlink channel. In order to communicate with the network device, the terminal device needs to establish a wireless connection with the cell controlled by the network device (that is, the terminal device camps on the cell controlled by the network device). The cell that establishes a wireless connection with the terminal device is called the serving cell of the terminal device (that is, the cell that provides services for the terminal device).

[0089] The terminal device can be located within the coverage of one or more cells (carriers), and the cell(s) providing services for the terminal device can be one or more. For example, Figure 1 In the shown communication system architecture, the terminal device is simultaneously located within the coverage of the cell controlled by network device 1, the cell controlled by network device 2, and the cell controlled by network device 3. The cell controlled by network device 1, the cell controlled by network device 2, and the cell controlled by network device 3 can all provide services for the terminal device. It should be understood that a network device can control multiple cells at the same time. When there are multiple cells providing services for the terminal device, the terminal device can work in the manner of carrier aggregation (CA), dual connectivity (DC), or coordinated multiple points transmission / reception (CoMP), and one or more cells can provide one or more of the wireless resources corresponding to more than one set of transmission parameters for the terminal device and the like.

[0090] It can be understood that the communication system and service scenarios described in the embodiments of the present application are for more clearly explaining the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present application, and do not constitute a limitation on the technical solutions provided by the embodiments of the present application. Those of ordinary skill in the art know that with the evolution of the network architecture and the emergence of new service scenarios, the technical solutions provided by the embodiments of the present application are equally applicable to similar technical problems.

[0091] The following will introduce in detail the specific implementation of the communication method in the embodiments of the present application with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0092] It can be understood that in the following Figures 3 to 9 taking multiple communication devices (such as multiple of the first management unit, the second management unit, the first access network device, the second access network device, the first radio frequency unit, the second radio frequency unit, the terminal device, or the first network element) as the execution subjects of the interaction schematic as an example for illustration, but the present application does not limit the execution subjects of the interaction schematic. For example, the first management unit may be a mobility unit (MU) 1, the second management unit may be MU2, the first access network device may be a combination of CU1 and DU1, the second access network device may be a combination of CU2 and DU2, the first radio frequency unit may be RU1, the first radio frequency unit may be RU2, the terminal device may be UE, and the first network element may be an access and mobility management function (AMF) network element. Among them, the AMF network element is mainly used for mobility management and access management, etc. For example, it can receive non-access stratum (NAS) signaling (including mobility management (MM) signaling and session management (SM) signaling) of the terminal device and relevant signaling of the access network device (such as N2 signaling at the base station granularity interacting with the AMF network element), complete the user registration process and forwarding of SM signaling, and mobility management. For example, it may be a mobility management entity (MME) in a 4G communication system or an AMF network element in a 5G communication system. For example, in a future communication system such as a 6G communication system, the access management network element may still be an AMF network element, or have other names, and the present application does not limit this. It should be understood that when CU1 and DU1 are not separately deployed, CU1 and DU1 are an integral whole; when CU1 and DU1 are separately deployed, CU1 and DU1 communicate through the F1 interface. When CU2 and DU2 are not separately deployed, CU2 and DU2 are an integral whole; when CU2 and DU2 are separately deployed, CU2 and DU2 communicate through the F1 interface.

[0093] It should be understood that the method executed by the first management unit in this application can also be executed by a module (such as a chip, a chip system, or a processor) applied to the first management unit, and can also be implemented by a logical node, a logical module, or software that can implement all or part of the functions of the first management unit. The method executed by the second management unit in this application can also be executed by a module (such as a chip, a chip system, or a processor) applied to the second management unit, and can also be implemented by a logical node, a logical module, or software that can implement all or part of the functions of the second management unit. The method executed by the first access network device in this application can also be executed by a module (such as a chip, a chip system, or a processor) applied to the first access network device, and can also be implemented by a logical node, a logical module, or software that can implement all or part of the functions of the first access network device. The method executed by the second access network device in this application can also be executed by a module (such as a chip, a chip system, or a processor) applied to the second access network device, and can also be implemented by a logical node, a logical module, or software that can implement all or part of the functions of the second access network device. The method executed by the first radio frequency unit in this application can also be executed by a module (such as a chip, a chip system, or a processor) applied to the first radio frequency unit, and can also be implemented by a logical node, a logical module, or software that can implement all or part of the functions of the first radio frequency unit. The method executed by the second radio frequency unit in this application can also be executed by a module (such as a chip, a chip system, or a processor) applied to the second radio frequency unit, and can also be implemented by a logical node, a logical module, or software that can implement all or part of the functions of the second radio frequency unit. The method executed by the terminal device in this application can also be executed by a module (such as a chip, a chip system, or a processor) applied to the terminal device, and can also be implemented by a logical node, a logical module, or software that can implement all or part of the functions of the terminal device. The method executed by the first network element in this application can also be executed by a module (such as a chip, a chip system, or a processor) applied to the first network element, and can also be implemented by a logical node, a logical module, or software that can implement all or part of the functions of the first network element.

[0094] Figure 3 A flowchart showing the process of a communication method provided by an embodiment of this application is exemplarily shown. This method is applicable to Figure 1 the communication system architecture shown. As Figure 3 shown, this method includes:

[0095] For example, taking the first access network device as a combination of CU1 and DU1, the second access network device as a combination of CU2 and DU2, the first management unit as MU1, the first radio frequency unit as RU1, the second radio frequency unit as RU2, the third radio frequency unit as RU3, and two terminal devices (such as UE1 and UE2) as an example, the Figure 3 application scenario to which the communication method shown applies is introduced.

[0096] Figure 4 This is a schematic diagram of an application scenario provided by an embodiment of the present application. As Figure 4 shown, MU1 can be connected to DU1 and DU2 respectively, and MU1 can also be connected to RU1, RU2, and RU3 respectively. Among them, MU1 has two major functions: (1) the routing and distribution function of data; (2) the scheduling function of communication resources required for communication between terminal devices and access network devices. For example, UE1 and UE2 are within the coverage range of RU1, and UE1 and UE2 can communicate with RU1 respectively. Among them, the services run by UE1 do not have the service requirements of low-interruption handover or do not have the service requirements of frequent and rapid movement, and the services run by UE2 have the service requirements of low-interruption handover and / or have the service requirements of frequent and rapid movement. For example, UE2 moves from the coverage range of RU1 to the coverage range of RU2, or then moves from the coverage range of RU2 to the coverage range of RU3. It should be noted that in the existing CU-DU-RU separation architecture, one RU is fixedly connected to one DU, while in Figure 4 the application scenario shown, one RU is not fixedly connected to a certain DU, but can be connected to different DUs through the routing function of MU1.

[0097] It should be understood that CU1 and DU1 (or CU2 and DU2) can be deployed in a separation architecture, or can also be deployed in a non-separation architecture (or can be called a merged architecture deployment), and the embodiments of the present application do not limit this. Among them, CU1 and CU2 can communicate through the Xn interface.

[0098] It can be understood that the mobility management of terminal devices such as UE2 can refer to the technical solutions provided in the following steps 301 to 303.

[0099] Step 301: The first access network device sends a first message to the first management unit. Correspondingly, the first management unit receives the first message from the first access network device.

[0100] Among them, the first message is used to request the first management unit to allocate communication resources for the terminal device.

[0101] Exemplarily, the first message may include at least one of the following: identification information of the terminal device or identification information of the first radio frequency unit. Among them, the identification information of the terminal device can facilitate the first management unit to timely identify which terminal device the communication resources are allocated to, or can also be used by the first management unit to associate the allocated communication resources with the terminal device itself. The identification information of the first radio frequency unit can facilitate the first management unit to timely and accurately determine which radio frequency unit to send the communication resource configuration to subsequently, so that the communication resource configuration can be further sent to the terminal device through the corresponding radio frequency unit (such as the first radio frequency unit). Optionally, the first management unit can be respectively connected to multiple radio frequency units (such as the first radio frequency unit, the second radio frequency unit, and the third radio frequency unit, etc.). It should be understood that the terminal device is currently within the coverage range of the first radio frequency unit, and the terminal device can communicate with the first radio frequency unit.

[0102] For example, the identification information of the terminal device can be the identity identifier, name, index, or other information that can uniquely identify the terminal device. The identification information of the first radio frequency unit can be the identity identifier, name, index, or other information that can uniquely identify the first radio frequency unit.

[0103] The following introduces the implementation process of the first access network device sending the first message to the first management unit through several possible implementation manners.

[0104] Manner 1: When the first access network device recognizes that the terminal device has a service requirement for low-interruption handover based on the service characteristics included in the service data reported by the terminal device, the first access network device can send the first message to the first management unit.

[0105] Manner 2: When the first access network device recognizes that the terminal device has a service requirement for frequent and fast movement (such as the terminal device moving from the coverage range of the first radio frequency unit to the coverage range of the second radio frequency unit, or then moving from the coverage range of the second radio frequency unit to the coverage range of the third radio frequency unit), the first access network device can send the first message to the first management unit.

[0106] It can be understood that the above Manner 1 or Manner 2 can be implemented separately, or can also be implemented in combination (or combined implementation).

[0107] Optionally, before the first access network device sends the first message to the first management unit, the first access network device may first provide (or allocate) a communication resource set to the first management unit, so that the communication resource set is managed by the first management unit. For example, the first management unit may allocate and schedule communication resources for the terminal device based on the communication resource set. It should be understood that for terminal devices without the service requirement of low-interruption handover or without the service requirement of frequent and fast movement, the allocation and scheduling of communication resources are still executed by the first access network device. For example, for a terminal device such as the above UE1, the function of the first management unit (such as MU1) is data distribution. For downlink data, MU1 sends the downlink data from the first access network device to the first radio frequency unit (such as RU1); for uplink data, MU1 sends the uplink data from the first radio frequency unit to the first access network device. Among them, terminal devices such as UE1 are within the coverage of the first radio frequency unit, and terminal devices such as UE1 can communicate with the first radio frequency unit.

[0108] For example, the communication resource set may include one or more communication resources. Each of the one or more communication resources may include at least one of the following: time-domain resources, frequency-domain resources, code-domain resources, or space-domain resources. It should be understood that the communication resources may refer to radio interface physical resources (or may be referred to as radio interface resources).

[0109] The following introduces several possible determination methods for the communication resource set.

[0110] Implementation method 1: The first access network device sends a fifth message to the second access network device. Among them, the fifth message is used to request the communication resources managed by the first management unit. Optionally, the fifth message may include the communication resources provided by the first access network device that can be managed by the first management unit. After receiving the fifth message, if the fifth message includes the communication resources provided by the first access network device that can be managed by the first management unit, the second access network device may determine the communication resources that can be managed by the first management unit according to the communication resources provided by the first access network device that can be managed by the first management unit and in combination with its own communication resource usage. If the fifth message does not include the communication resources provided by the first access network device that can be managed by the first management unit, the second access network device may determine the communication resources that can be managed by the first management unit according to its own communication resource usage. After that, the second access network device may send a sixth message to the first access network device. Among them, the sixth message may include the communication resources provided by the second access network device that can be managed by the first management unit. Then, after receiving the sixth message, the first access network device may determine the communication resource set according to the communication resources provided by the first access network device that can be managed by the first management unit and the communication resources provided by the second access network device that can be managed by the first management unit.

[0111] For example, taking the first access network device as access network device 1, the second access network device as access network device 2, and the fifth message including communication resources (such as communication resource 1, communication resource 2, and communication resource 3) provided by access network device 1 that can be managed by the first management unit as an example. Access network device 1 sends the fifth message to access network device 2. Among them, the fifth message is used to request communication resources that can be managed by the first management unit. The fifth message includes communication resource 1, communication resource 2, and communication resource 3 provided by access network device 1 that can be managed by the first management unit. After receiving the fifth message, access network device 2 can learn communication resource 1, communication resource 2, and communication resource 3 provided by access network device 1 that can be managed by the first management unit. Then, based on communication resource 1, communication resource 2, and communication resource 3 and combined with its own communication resource usage situation, access network device 2 determines that the communication resources that can be managed by the first management unit are communication resource 2 and communication resource 3, and can send a sixth message to access network device 1. Among them, the sixth message includes communication resource 2 and communication resource 3 provided by access network device 2 that can be managed by the first management unit. Then, after receiving the sixth message, access network device 1 can determine that the set of communication resources that can be managed by the first management unit is {communication resource 2, communication resource 3} according to communication resource 2 and communication resource 3 provided by access network device 2 that can be managed by the first management unit and communication resource 1, communication resource 2, and communication resource 3 provided by access network device 1 that can be managed by the first management unit.

[0112] It should be understood that the above implementation method 1 can also be understood as the implementation process in which the first access network device and the second access network device conduct online negotiation (or advance negotiation or real-time negotiation) to determine the set of communication resources.

[0113] Implementation method 2: The first access network device and the second access network device pre-define the set of communication resources that can be managed by the first management unit through a protocol. For example, the first access network device and the second access network device can pre-define through a protocol which communication resources are provided to the first management unit for management.

[0114] Optionally, the first access network device can also configure or define by itself which communication resources are provided to the first management unit for management.

[0115] It can be understood that for the set of communication resources provided for the first management unit to manage, neither the first access network device nor the second access network device will use the communication resources included in the set of communication resources subsequently. For example, taking the coverage area of the first radio frequency unit having two terminal devices (such as terminal device 1 and terminal device 2) as an example. Among them, terminal device 1 is a terminal device without the service requirement of low-interruption handover or without the service requirement of frequent and rapid movement, and the terminal device is a terminal device with the service requirement of low-interruption handover and / or with the service requirement of frequent and rapid movement. When the first access network device (or the second access network device) communicates with terminal device 1, it will not use the communication resources included in the set of communication resources provided for the first management unit to manage.

[0116] Step 302: The first management unit sends a second message to the first access network device. Correspondingly, the first access network device receives the second message from the first management unit.

[0117] Among them, the second message is used to indicate that communication resources have been allocated to the terminal device. For example, the second message can be a response message to the first message.

[0118] For example, in one example, the second message includes at least one communication resource allocated by the first management unit to the terminal device. In another example, the second message does not include at least one communication resource allocated by the first management unit to the terminal device.

[0119] In a possible implementation manner, when the second message includes at least one communication resource allocated by the first management unit to the terminal device, after receiving the second message, the first access network device can generate a communication resource configuration corresponding to the terminal device according to the at least one communication resource included in the second message. Then, the first access network device can send a fourth message to the first management unit. Among them, the fourth message can include the communication resource configuration corresponding to the terminal device. Optionally, the fourth message can include the identification information of the first radio frequency unit. It should be understood that when the above first message includes the identification information of the first radio frequency unit, the fourth message may not need to carry the identification information of the first radio frequency unit. When the above first message does not include the identification information of the first radio frequency unit, the fourth message can carry the identification information of the first radio frequency unit. In this way, it can facilitate the first management unit to send the communication resource configuration corresponding to the terminal device to the corresponding first radio frequency unit in a timely and accurate manner, so that the communication resource configuration can be further sent to the corresponding terminal device through the first radio frequency unit.

[0120] In another possible implementation manner, when the second message does not include at least one communication resource allocated by the first management unit to the terminal device, the first management unit itself generates a communication resource configuration corresponding to the terminal device according to the at least one communication resource allocated to the terminal device.

[0121] Optionally, during the process of the first management unit allocating communication resources to the terminal device, the first management unit may also additionally allocate an identity identifier (or a temporary identity identifier) to the terminal device. This identity identifier (or temporary identity identifier) is used to uniquely identify the terminal device within the first management unit. In this way, it is convenient for the first management unit to effectively manage multiple terminal devices, or effectively maintain the association relationship (or can be called a mapping relationship) between multiple terminal devices and their corresponding communication resources. When the first management unit allocates an identity identifier (or a temporary identity identifier) to the terminal device, the first management unit may carry this identity identifier (or temporary identity identifier) in the second message. It should be understood that this identity identifier (or temporary identity identifier) can also be used to timely and effectively identify the identity of the terminal device during the mobility management process of the terminal device.

[0122] Step 303: The first management unit sends a third message to the first radio frequency unit. Correspondingly, the first radio frequency unit receives the third message from the first management unit.

[0123] For example, the third message may include the communication resource configuration corresponding to the terminal device. Optionally, the third message may further include at least one of the following: the identification information of the terminal device or the identity identifier (or temporary identity identifier) allocated by the first management unit to the terminal device.

[0124] At least one communication resource indicated by the communication resource configuration is the communication resource (or can be understood as the communication resource for data transmission) allocated by the first management unit to the terminal device for communication. The terminal device can communicate with the first radio frequency unit by using one of the at least one communication resources. Optionally, the at least one communication resource is part or all of the communication resource set provided by the first access network device to the first management unit for management.

[0125] It should be understood that after receiving the third message, the first radio frequency unit may send the communication resource configuration included in the third message to the terminal device.

[0126] For example, the communication resource configuration may include at least one of the following: one or more time domain resource configurations, one or more frequency domain resource configurations, one or more code domain resource configurations, or one or more space domain resource configurations, etc.

[0127] In a possible implementation manner, the communication resource configuration content used by the terminal device is generated by the first access network device. When the first management unit receives a fourth message from the first access network device, the first management unit may obtain the communication resource configuration corresponding to the terminal device from the fourth message, and may carry (or bear or include or contain) the communication resource configuration corresponding to the terminal device in the third message and send it to the first radio frequency unit.

[0128] In another possible implementation, the communication resource configuration content used by the terminal device is generated by the first management unit, and the first management unit may carry the communication resource configuration corresponding to the terminal device generated by itself in the third message and send it to the first radio frequency unit.

[0129] Optionally, after the terminal device receives the corresponding communication resource configuration, the communication resources used for each data transmission (such as uplink data transmission or downlink data transmission) of the terminal device are scheduled by the first management unit. In this way, the introduced new unit (or can be called a new node) (such as the first management unit) can manage the allocation and scheduling of communication resources across access network devices / cells / gNBs / CUs / DUs.

[0130] The uplink data transmission process and the downlink data transmission process for the terminal device are introduced below through several possible examples.

[0131] Example 1: Downlink data transmission process.

[0132] In the embodiment of the present application, the first access network device may packetize the downlink data to obtain a first transport block (TB). The first transport block may also be referred to as a MAC protocol data unit (PDU). Then, the first access network device may send the first transport block to the first management unit. After receiving the first transport block, the first management unit may select (or schedule) the first communication resource from at least one communication resource allocated to the terminal device for transmitting the first transport block, and may generate first indication information based on the first communication resource. Then, the first access network device may send the first transport block and the first indication information to the first radio frequency unit. The first indication information is used to instruct the first radio frequency unit to use the first communication resource to transmit the first transport block. It should be understood that the first indication information refers to information related to control signaling.

[0133] For example, take the first access network device as access network device ①, the first management unit as MU1, the first radio frequency unit as RU1, and the terminal device as UE2 as an example. Figure 5 A schematic diagram of uplink and downlink data transmission provided for the embodiment of the present application. As Figure 5As shown in the figure, a downlink user plane channel 1 (or it can be called a downlink user plane data channel 1) can be established between the access network device 1 and the MU1 for the UE2. A downlink user plane channel 2 (or it can be called a downlink user plane data channel 2) can be established between the MU1 and the RU1 for the UE2. After the MU1 receives the first transport block from the access network device 1 on the downlink user plane channel 1, since the MU1 has learned the identification information of the RU1 corresponding to the UE2 through the above first message or the above fourth message, it can know to send the first transport block to the RU1. In this way, the MU1 can send the first transport block to the RU1 through the downlink user plane channel 2, and the RU1 further sends the first transport block to the UE2. It can be understood that the MU1 not only sends the first transport block to the RU1 through the downlink user plane channel 2, but also can send the first indication information to the RU1 through the control plane channel. In this way, the RU1 can use the first communication resource indicated by the first indication information (or it can be understood as a specific communication resource or a dedicated communication resource) to send the first transport block to the UE2.

[0134] Example 2: Uplink data transmission process.

[0135] In the embodiment of the present application, the terminal device can send uplink data (such as a second transport block) to the first radio frequency unit. The second transport block can also be called a MAC PDU. After the first radio frequency unit receives the second transport block, it can send the second transport block to the first management unit. After the first management unit receives the second transport block, it can send the second transport block to the first access network device.

[0136] For example, the terminal device can use a certain communication resource indicated by the first management unit (or it can be understood as a specific communication resource or a dedicated communication resource indicated by the first management unit) (such as a second communication resource, etc.) to send the second transport block to the first radio frequency unit. Among them, a certain communication resource is included in at least one communication resource indicated by the communication resource configuration. After the first radio frequency unit receives the second transport block on the communication resource indicated by the first management unit, it can identify (or judge) the identification information of the corresponding terminal device (such as an identity identifier), so it can use a specific second uplink user plane channel (that is, an uplink user plane channel established between the first management unit and the first radio frequency unit for the terminal device) to send the second transport block to the first management unit. After the first management unit receives the second transport block on the specific second uplink user plane channel, it can also identify the identification information of the corresponding terminal device, so it can also use a specific first uplink user plane channel (that is, an uplink user plane channel established between the first management unit and the first access network device for the terminal device) to send the second transport block to the first access network device. After that, the first access network device can receive the second transport block on the specific first uplink user plane channel.

[0137] It should be understood that a certain communication resource indicated by the first management unit may be indicated by the first management unit in advance (or beforehand) to the terminal device, or may also be pre-defined. Optionally, a certain communication resource indicated by the first management unit may also be indicated by the first management unit based on the seventh message of the terminal device. For example, the terminal device may send the seventh message to the first radio frequency unit, and the first radio frequency unit further sends the seventh message to the first management unit. The seventh message is used to indicate that the terminal device is about to send uplink data. After receiving the seventh message, the first management unit may select (or schedule) a certain communication resource from at least one communication resource indicated by the communication resource configuration, and may send an eighth message to the first radio frequency unit, and the first radio frequency unit further sends the eighth message to the terminal device. The eighth message may be used to indicate the communication resource, or may also be used to indicate that the terminal device uses the communication resource to send uplink data.

[0138] Exemplarily, please continue to refer to Figure 5 . As Figure 5 shown, a uplink user plane channel 1 (or may be referred to as uplink user plane data channel 1) can be established between the access network device 1 and MU1 for UE2. A uplink user plane channel 2 (or may be referred to as uplink user plane data channel 2) can be established between MU1 and RU1 for UE2. UE2 can use the dedicated communication resource indicated by MU1 to send the second transport block to RU1. Since RU1 has learned the communication resource configuration corresponding to UE2 and the identity information of UE2 through the above third message, after receiving the second transport block on the dedicated communication resource, RU1 can identify the identity identifier of UE2, and thus can use the uplink user plane channel 2 for UE2 to send the second transport block to MU1. After receiving the second transport block on the uplink user plane channel 2 for UE2, MU1 can also identify the identity identifier of UE2, and thus can also use the uplink user plane channel 1 for UE2 to send the second transport block to the access network device 1. After that, the access network device 1 can receive the second transport block on the uplink user plane channel 1 for UE2.

[0139] It can be understood that in addition to data transmission, the terminal device can also report a signal quality measurement report (or a reference signal measurement report), which facilitates the first access network device or the first management unit to make a handover (HO) decision (such as determining whether to perform a radio frequency unit handover or a beam handover). For example, the signal quality measurement report may include the reference signal received power of the serving cell where the terminal device is located, the signal received power or signal quality of neighboring cells. For example, the reference signal may be an SSB, a channel state information-reference signal (CSI-RS), or a tracking reference signal (TRS), etc.

[0140] Optionally, the signal quality measurement report reported by the terminal device can be parsed and processed by the first access network device, or can also be parsed and processed by the first management unit.

[0141] Exemplarily, the following introduces the decision-making processes for radio frequency unit handover and beam handover through several possible implementation manners.

[0142] Implementation Mode 1: The signal quality report reported by the terminal device is parsed and processed by the first management unit. If the first management unit determines, through parsing and processing the signal quality measurement report, that the radio frequency unit corresponding to the terminal device (which can be understood as the radio frequency unit providing communication services for the terminal device) needs to be switched and the beam corresponding to the terminal device (which can be understood as the beam where the terminal device is located, or the beam direction used by the terminal device) needs to be switched, then it can send a first switching instruction and a second switching instruction to the first radio frequency unit. Among them, the first switching instruction can be used to instruct the terminal device to perform beam switching; the second switching instruction can be used to instruct the first radio frequency unit to stop providing communication services for the terminal device, or can also be used to indicate that the first radio frequency unit is about to stop providing communication services for the terminal device, or can also be used to indicate that the terminal device is about to leave the coverage area of the first radio frequency unit. It should be understood that after the first management unit determines that the radio frequency unit corresponding to the terminal device needs to be switched, it can, according to the signal quality measurement report, switch the radio frequency unit providing communication services for the terminal device from the first radio frequency unit to the corresponding radio frequency unit (such as the second radio frequency unit). Optionally, the first switching instruction may include which beam the terminal device needs to switch to (for example, the terminal device needs to switch from the first beam included in the coverage area of the first radio frequency unit to the second beam included in the coverage area of the second radio frequency unit), or may also include the identification information of the terminal device. For example, the first switching instruction and the second switching instruction may be carried (or included or contained or borne) in the same message, or may also be carried in different messages respectively. The embodiments of this application do not make any limitations in this regard. After receiving the first switching instruction and the second switching instruction, the first radio frequency unit may, based on the second switching instruction, stop providing communication services for the terminal device (or can be referred to as stopping providing communication services for the terminal device, that is, stopping the data transceiver communication process for the terminal device) after successfully sending the first switching instruction to the terminal device.

[0143] For example, taking the first management unit as MU1, the first radio frequency unit as RU1, the second radio frequency unit as RU2, and the terminal device as UE2 as an example. In the case where UE2 is about to move from the coverage area of RU1 to the coverage area of RU2, MU1 can, according to the signal quality measurement report reported by UE2, determine that the RU for providing communication services for UE2 needs to be switched from RU1 to RU2. In this way, MU1 can send a first switching instruction and a second switching instruction to RU1. After receiving the first switching instruction and the second switching instruction, RU1 can, based on the second switching instruction, stop providing communication services for UE2 after successfully sending the first switching instruction to UE2.

[0144] Implementation method 2: The signal quality measurement report reported by the terminal device is parsed and processed by the first access network device. If the first access network device determines, by parsing and processing the signal quality measurement report, that the radio frequency unit corresponding to the terminal device needs to be switched and the beam corresponding to the terminal device needs to be switched, it may send a third handover instruction and a fourth handover instruction to the first management unit. The third handover instruction may be used to instruct the first management unit to perform radio frequency unit handover; the fourth handover instruction may be used to instruct the terminal device to perform beam handover. Optionally, the third handover instruction may include which radio frequency unit to switch to (for example, it is necessary to switch from the first radio frequency unit to the second radio frequency unit), or it may also include the identification information of the second radio frequency unit. The fourth handover instruction may include which beam the terminal device needs to switch to (for example, the terminal device needs to switch from the first beam included in the coverage range of the first radio frequency unit to the second beam included in the coverage range of the second radio frequency unit), or it may also include the identification information of the terminal device. For example, the third handover instruction and the fourth handover instruction may be carried in the same message, or may be carried in different messages respectively. The embodiments of the present application do not limit this.

[0145] After receiving the third handover instruction and the fourth handover instruction, the first management unit may, according to the third handover instruction, switch the radio frequency unit providing communication services for the terminal device from the first radio frequency unit to the second radio frequency unit, and may send the fourth handover instruction and the fifth handover instruction to the first radio frequency unit. The fifth handover instruction may be used to instruct the first radio frequency unit to stop providing communication services for the terminal device, or may be used to indicate that the first radio frequency unit is about to stop providing communication services for the terminal device, or may be used to indicate that the terminal device is about to leave the coverage range of the first radio frequency unit. For example, the fourth handover instruction and the fifth handover instruction may be carried in the same message, or may be carried in different messages respectively. The embodiments of the present application do not limit this. After receiving the fourth handover instruction and the fifth handover instruction, the first radio frequency unit may, based on the fifth handover instruction, stop providing communication services for the terminal device after successfully sending the fourth handover instruction to the terminal device.

[0146] For example, take the first access network device as access network device 1, the first management unit as MU1, the first radio frequency unit as RU1, the second radio frequency unit as RU2, and the terminal device as UE2. In the case where UE2 is about to move from the coverage area of RU1 to the coverage area of RU2, access network device 1 can determine, based on the signal quality measurement report reported by UE2, that the RU for providing communication services to UE2 needs to be switched from RU1 to RU2. In this way, access network device 1 can send a third handover instruction and a fourth handover instruction to MU1. After receiving the third handover instruction and the fourth handover instruction, MU1 can switch the radio frequency unit providing communication services to UE2 from RU1 to RU2 according to the third handover instruction, and can send the fourth handover instruction and a fifth handover instruction to RU1. After receiving the fourth handover instruction and the fifth handover instruction, RU1 can, based on the fifth handover instruction, stop providing communication services to UE2 after successfully sending the fourth handover instruction to UE2.

[0147] It can be understood that after the first management unit sends the first handover instruction and the second handover instruction to the first radio frequency unit, or sends the fourth handover instruction and the fifth handover instruction to the first radio frequency unit, or switches the radio frequency unit providing communication services to the terminal device from the first radio frequency unit to the second radio frequency unit, it can send the second indication information and the communication resource configuration corresponding to the terminal device to the second radio frequency unit. Among them, the second indication information can be used to indicate that the second radio frequency unit provides communication services to the terminal device, or can also be used to indicate that the second radio frequency unit will provide communication services to the terminal device, or can also be used to indicate that the second radio frequency unit will serve the terminal device, or can also indicate that the terminal device is about to enter the coverage area of the second radio frequency unit. It should be understood that the terminal device is currently within the coverage area of the second radio frequency unit, and the terminal device can communicate with the second radio frequency unit by using one of the at least one communication resource indicated by the communication resource configuration. For example, the second indication information and the communication resource configuration can be carried in the same message, or can also be carried in different messages respectively. The embodiments of the present application do not limit this. It should be understood that an uplink user plane channel and a downlink user plane channel are established between the first management unit (such as MU1) and the second radio frequency unit (such as RU2) for the terminal device, so that the terminal device can perform uplink and downlink data transmission.

[0148] Optionally, when the terminal device moves from the coverage area of the second radio frequency unit to the coverage area of the third radio frequency unit, the radio frequency unit providing communication services for the terminal device can be switched from the second radio frequency unit to the third radio frequency unit by referring to Implementation Mode 1 or Implementation Mode 2 in step 303 above. In this way, the terminal device can communicate with the third radio frequency unit within the coverage area of the third radio frequency unit by using one of the at least one communication resource indicated by the above communication resource configuration. It should be understood that an uplink user plane channel and a downlink user plane channel are established between the first management unit (such as MU1) and the third radio frequency unit (such as RU3) for the terminal device to perform uplink and downlink data transmission.

[0149] It can be understood that during the process of the radio frequency unit corresponding to the terminal device switching from the first radio frequency unit to the second radio frequency unit and then from the second radio frequency unit to the third radio frequency unit, the first access network device providing services for the terminal device remains unchanged. In this way, the L2 protocol stack anchor is always located at the first access network device, so that the terminal device does not need to perform operations related to L2 protocol stack reset and / or operations related to RRC reconfiguration (such as PDCP reconfiguration, PDCP re-establishment (including key update), RLC reconfiguration, RLC re-establishment, SDAP reconfiguration, MAC reconfiguration or MAC reset) during the movement and radio frequency unit switching of the terminal device, which helps to reduce the handover interruption time and can ensure the continuity of data transmission of the terminal device during the movement.

[0150] It can be seen from the above steps 301 to 303 that by using the first management unit to allocate or schedule dedicated communication resources (or can be called specific communication resources) to the terminal device, the terminal device does not need to perform corresponding operations such as physical layer baseband adjustment and / or physical layer radio frequency adjustment during the movement and radio frequency unit switching process, thereby reducing the handover interruption time and helping to improve the user experience.

[0151] Based on the above Figure 3 technical solution of the communication method shown, the following Figure 6 specific example is used to introduce the above Figure 3 shown communication method in detail. Among them, in the Figure 6 specific example shown, the terminal device is UE2, the first access network device is access network device 1, the second access network device is access network device 2, the first management unit is MU1, the first radio frequency unit is RU1, and the second radio frequency unit is RU2.

[0152] Figure 6 This is a schematic flowchart of another communication method provided by an embodiment of the present application. As Figure 6 shown, the specific process of this method can include:

[0153] Step 601: The access network device 1 negotiates with the access network device 2 for a set of communication resources that can be managed by MU1.

[0154] Optionally, the implementation process of step 601 can refer to the implementation process of determining the set of communication resources in step 301 above, which will not be elaborated here.

[0155] Step 602: The access network device 1 sends the set of communication resources to MU1. Correspondingly, MU1 receives the set of communication resources from the access network device 1.

[0156] Optionally, the implementation process of step 602 can refer to the implementation process of the first access network device providing the set of communication resources to the first management unit in step 301 above, which will not be elaborated here.

[0157] Step 603: The access network device 1 sends a first message to MU1. Correspondingly, MU1 receives the first message from the access network device 1.

[0158] Optionally, the implementation process of step 603 can refer to the implementation process of step 301 above, which will not be elaborated here.

[0159] Step 604: MU1 sends a second message to the access network device 1. Correspondingly, the access network device 1 receives the second message from MU1.

[0160] Optionally, the implementation process of step 604 can refer to the implementation process of step 302 above, which will not be elaborated here.

[0161] Step 605: MU1 sends the communication resource configuration corresponding to UE2 to RU1. Correspondingly, RU1 receives the communication resource configuration corresponding to UE2 from MU1.

[0162] Optionally, the implementation process of step 605 can refer to the implementation process of the first management unit sending a third message to the first radio frequency unit in step 303 above, which will not be elaborated here.

[0163] Step 606: RU1 sends the communication resource configuration to UE2. Correspondingly, UE2 receives the communication resource configuration from RU1.

[0164] Optionally, the implementation process of step 606 can refer to the implementation process of the first radio frequency unit sending the communication resource configuration to the terminal device in step 303 above, which will not be elaborated here.

[0165] Optionally, after step 606 is executed, the embodiment of the present application may further execute steps 607 to 610. By executing steps 607 to 610, it is possible to switch the RU corresponding to UE2 from RU1 to RU2, but the access network device 1 still provides services for UE2. In this way, the L2 protocol stack anchor is always located at the access network device 1, so that UE2 does not need to perform operations related to L2 protocol stack reset and / or does not need to perform operations related to RRC reconfiguration during the movement and RU switching processes, which helps to reduce the handover interruption time and can ensure the continuity of data transmission of UE2 during the movement. In addition, the first management unit is used to allocate or schedule dedicated communication resources to the terminal device, so that the terminal device does not need to perform corresponding operations such as physical layer baseband adjustment and / or physical layer radio frequency adjustment during the movement and radio frequency unit switching processes, thereby reducing the handover interruption time and helping to improve the user experience.

[0166] Step 607: The access network device 1 sends a first indication message to MU1. Correspondingly, MU1 receives the first indication message from the access network device 1.

[0167] The above step 607 is an optional step.

[0168] Among them, the first indication message may include a third handover indication and a fourth handover indication. For example, the first indication message may further include which RU to switch to (such as switching from RU1 to RU2), or may also include the identification information of RU2. Optionally, the first indication message may further include which beam UE2 needs to switch to (such as UE2 needs to switch from a certain beam included in the coverage range of RU1 to a certain beam included in the coverage range of RU2), or may also include the identification information of UE2.

[0169] Optionally, the implementation process of step 607 may refer to the implementation process of the first access network device sending the third handover indication and the fourth handover indication to the first management unit in the above step 303, which will not be elaborated here.

[0170] Step 608: MU1 sends a second indication message to RU1. Correspondingly, RU1 receives the second indication message from MU1.

[0171] In one example, when the above step 607 is executed, that is, the signal quality measurement report reported by UE2 is parsed and processed by the access network device 1, so the second indication message may include a fourth handover indication and a fifth handover indication. In another example, when the above step 607 is not executed, that is, the signal quality measurement report reported by UE2 is parsed and processed by MU1, so the second indication message may include a first handover indication and a second handover indication. For example, the second indication message may further include the identification information of UE2.

[0172] Step 609: RU1 sends a third indication message to UE2. Correspondingly, UE2 receives the third indication message from RU1.

[0173] In one example, when the signal quality measurement report reported by UE2 is parsed and processed by the access network device 1, the third indication message may include a fourth handover indication. In another example, when the signal quality measurement report reported by UE2 is parsed and processed by MU1, the third indication message may include a first handover indication. Optionally, the third indication message may further include which beam UE2 needs to switch to (for example, UE2 needs to switch from a certain beam included in the coverage area of RU1 to a certain beam included in the coverage area of RU2), or may also include the identification information of UE2.

[0174] Step 610: MU1 sends a fourth indication message to RU2. Correspondingly, RU2 receives the fourth indication message from MU1.

[0175] In one example, when the signal quality measurement report reported by UE2 is parsed and processed by the access network device 1, the fourth indication message may include second indication information and the communication resource configuration corresponding to UE2. In another example, when the signal quality measurement report reported by UE2 is parsed and processed by MU1, the fourth indication message may also include second indication information and the communication resource configuration corresponding to UE2. For example, the fourth indication message in any one of the above two examples may further include the beam direction information required for RU2 to communicate with UE2. Optionally, the fourth indication message may also include third indication information, where the third indication information is used to indicate which beam direction RU2 uses to communicate with UE2, or may also be used to indicate the beam direction required for RU2 to communicate with UE2.

[0176] It should be understood that in step 610, an uplink user plane channel and a downlink user plane channel may be established between MU1 and RU2 for UE2 to perform uplink and downlink data transmission.

[0177] As can be seen from the above steps 601 to 610, during the RU handover process of UE2, the access network device 2 providing services to UE2 has not yet been handed over (i.e., the access network device 1 still provides corresponding services to UE2). In this way, since the L2 protocol stack anchor has always been located at the access network device 1, UE2 can be made not to perform operations related to L2 protocol stack reset and / or operations related to RRC reconfiguration during the movement and RU handover processes, thereby reducing the handover interruption time and helping to improve the user experience. In addition, by using the first management unit to allocate or schedule dedicated communication resources to the terminal device, the terminal device can be made not to perform corresponding operations such as physical layer baseband adjustment and / or physical layer radio frequency adjustment during the movement and radio frequency unit handover processes, thereby reducing the handover interruption time and helping to improve the user experience.

[0178] Figure 7 A flowchart showing another communication method provided by an embodiment of the present application is exemplarily illustrated. This method is applicable to Figure 1 the communication system architecture shown. As Figure 7 shown, this method may include:

[0179] For example, hereinafter, taking the first access network device as access network device 1 (such as a combination of CU1 and DU1), the second access network device as access network device 2 (such as a combination of CU2 and DU2), the first management unit as MU1, the second management unit as MU2, and the terminal device as UE, and there are multiple radio frequency units (such as RU1, RU2, RU3, RU4, RU5, and RU6) as an example, the Figure 7 application scenarios applicable to the communication method shown are introduced.

[0180] Figure 8 Another application scenario diagram provided by an embodiment of the present application is shown. As Figure 8 shown, MU1 can be respectively connected to DU1 and DU2, and MU1 can also be respectively connected to RU1, RU2, and RU3; MU2 can be connected to DU2, and MU2 can also be respectively connected to RU4, RU5, and RU6. It should be understood that since RU1, RU2, and RU3 are all connected to the same MU (such as MU1) or since RU4, RU5, and RU6 are all connected to the same MU (such as MU2), for the mobility management of UE, the Figure 3 communication scheme shown above can be adopted. When UE moves from the coverage area of RU3 to the coverage area of RU4 or moves from the coverage area of RU4 to the coverage area of RU3, the Figure 7 communication scheme shown can be adopted.

[0181] Among them, both MU1 and MU2 have two major functions: (1) data routing and distribution function; (2) scheduling function of communication resources required for communication between terminal devices and access network devices. For example, if the UE is within the coverage area of RU3, the UE can communicate with RU3. It should be noted that in the existing CU-DU-RU separation architecture, one RU is fixedly connected to one DU, while in Figure 8 In the application scenario shown, one RU is not fixedly connected to a certain DU, but can be connected to different DUs through the routing function of the MU (such as MU1).

[0182] It should be understood that CU1 and DU1 (or CU2 and DU2) can be deployed in a separation architecture or can also be deployed in a non-separation architecture (or can be called a merged architecture deployment), and the embodiments of the present application do not limit this. Among them, CU1 and CU2 can communicate through the Xn interface.

[0183] It can be understood that for the mobility management of terminal devices such as the above-mentioned UE (such as the implementation solution for the UE to move to the coverage area of RU3 or the implementation solution for the UE to move from the coverage area of RU3 to the coverage area of RU4), the technical solutions provided in the following steps 701 to 702 can be referred to. It should be understood that Figure 7 or Figure 9 In the communication solution shown, the xth message (such as the first message, the second message, etc.) involved is partially or completely different from the content indicated (or included or carried) by the xth message (such as the first message, the second message, etc.) involved in the communication solution shown above. In addition, Figure 3 or Figure 6 In the communication solution shown, the xth indication information (such as the first indication information, the second indication information, etc.) involved is partially or completely different from the content indicated (or included or carried) by the xth indication information (such as the first indication information, the second indication information, etc.) involved in the communication solution shown above. Figure 7 or Figure 9 In the communication solution shown, the xth indication message (such as the first indication message, the second indication message, etc.) involved is partially or completely different from the content indicated (or included or carried) by the xth indication message (such as the first indication message, the second indication message, etc.) involved in the communication solution shown above. Figure 3 or Figure 6 In the communication solution shown, the xth indication message (such as the first indication message, the second indication message, etc.) involved is partially or completely different from the content indicated (or included or carried) by the xth indication message (such as the first indication message, the second indication message, etc.) involved in the communication solution shown above. Figure 7 or Figure 9 In the communication solution shown, the xth indication message (such as the first indication message, the second indication message, etc.) involved is partially or completely different from the content indicated (or included or carried) by the xth indication message (such as the first indication message, the second indication message, etc.) involved in the communication solution shown above. Figure 3 or Figure 6 In the communication solution shown, the xth indication message (such as the first indication message, the second indication message, etc.) involved is partially or completely different from the content indicated (or included or carried) by the xth indication message (such as the first indication message, the second indication message, etc.) involved in the communication solution shown above.

[0184] Step 701: The first access network device sends a first message to the second access network device. Correspondingly, the second access network device receives the first message from the first access network device.

[0185] Among them, the first message can be used to request a handover of the access network device.

[0186] Optionally, the first message may include communication resource configuration corresponding to the terminal device. Among them, at least one communication resource indicated by the communication resource configuration is part or all of the communication resources in the communication resource set. The communication resource set is negotiated and determined by the first access network device and the second access network device. The communication resource set is provided by the first access network device to the first management unit for management. Exemplarily, each communication resource in the communication resource set may include at least one of the following: time domain resource, frequency domain resource, code domain resource, or spatial domain resource, etc.

[0187] It should be understood that the relevant implementation process regarding the communication resource configuration in step 701 can refer to the relevant implementation process regarding the communication resource configuration in the communication solution Figure 3 illustrated above, which will not be elaborated here.

[0188] Step 702: The second access network device sends a second message to the first network element according to the first message. Correspondingly, the first network element receives the second message from the second access network device.

[0189] Among them, the second message can be used to request the first network element to switch the user plane channel endpoint (or can be referred to as the data channel endpoint) from the first access network device to the second access network device. For example, the second message can be a path switch request message.

[0190] In the embodiments of the present application, after receiving the first message, the second access network device can send a second message to the first network element (such as the AMF network element). After receiving the second message, the first network element can indicate the second network element (such as the user plane function (UPF) network element) to switch the user plane channel endpoint from the first access network device to the second access network device through the interaction process between the core network elements. Among them, the UPF network element is used for packet routing and forwarding, or quality of service (QoS) processing of user plane data, etc. For example, in a 5G communication system, the user plane network element can be a UPF network element. In future communication systems such as a 6G communication system, the user plane network element can still be a UPF network element, or have other names, which is not limited in this application.

[0191] It can be understood that the first management unit can be connected to the first access network device, the first management unit can also be connected to the second access network device, and the first management unit can also be connected to the first radio frequency unit. The terminal device is within the coverage area of the first radio frequency unit, and the first radio frequency unit can provide communication services for the terminal device. For example, after receiving the first message, the second access network device can also send a third message to the first access network device according to the first message. The third message is used to indicate that the second access network device agrees to the handover of the access network device. That is to say, the third message can be used to indicate that the second access network device confirms that the handover of the access network device can be performed. For example, the third message can be a response message to the first message. After receiving the third message, the first access network device can send a fourth message to the first management unit according to the third message. The fourth message can be used to indicate that the access network device has switched, or can also be used to indicate that the terminal device needs to perform reconfiguration (such as L2 reconfiguration). For example, the fourth message can include reconfiguration information corresponding to the terminal device. The reconfiguration information is used to instruct the terminal device to perform a reconfiguration operation. Optionally, the fourth message can further include at least one of the following: the identification information or address information of the second access network device, or the identification information of the terminal device. When the fourth message includes the identification information or address information of the second access network device, the first management unit can establish a user plane channel and / or a control plane channel with the second access network device according to the identification information or address information of the second access network device.

[0192] After receiving the fourth message, the first management unit can send the reconfiguration information corresponding to the terminal device to the first radio frequency unit according to the fourth message. After receiving the reconfiguration information corresponding to the terminal device, the first radio frequency unit can send the reconfiguration information to the corresponding terminal device. After receiving the reconfiguration information, the terminal device can perform a reconfiguration operation (such as an L2 reconfiguration process). For example, the reconfiguration operation can include at least one of the following: PDCP reconfiguration, PDCP re-establishment (including key update), RLC reconfiguration, RLC re-establishment, SDAP reconfiguration, MAC reconfiguration, or MAC reset, etc. In this way, after the terminal device performs the reconfiguration operation, it can communicate with the second access network device via the first radio frequency unit and the first management unit, so that the radio frequency unit does not switch, but the handover from the first access network device to the second access network device is completed.

[0193] For example, take the first access network device as access network device 1, the second access network device as access network device 2, the first management unit as MU1, the first radio frequency unit as RU3, the terminal device as UE, the first network element as the AMF network element, and the second network element as the UPF network element. In the case where the load of access network device 1 needs to be reduced due to an excessive number of UEs served by access network device 1, or the UE moves to the coverage area of RU3 and the L2 protocol stack anchor point needs to be relocated (or migrated) from access network device 1 to access network device 2, access network device 1 can send a first message to access network device 2. After receiving the first message, access network device 2 can send a second message to the AMF network element. After receiving the second message, the AMF network element can, through the interaction process between core network elements, instruct the UPF network element to switch the user plane channel endpoint from access network device 1 to access network device 2. In addition, after receiving the first message, access network device 2 can also send a third message to access network device 1 after confirming that the switch of the access network device is feasible. After receiving the third message, access network device 1 can send a fourth message to MU1 according to the third message. After receiving the fourth message, MU1 can send the reconfiguration information corresponding to the UE to RU3 according to the fourth message. After receiving the reconfiguration information corresponding to the UE, RU3 can send the reconfiguration information to the corresponding UE. After receiving the reconfiguration information, the UE can perform a reconfiguration operation. In this way, after the UE performs the reconfiguration operation, it can communicate with access network device 2 via RU3 and MU1, so that the RU is not switched, but the switch from access network device 1 to access network device 2 is completed (that is, the data communication path of the UE changes from UE-RU3-MU1-access network device 1 to UE-RU3-MU1-access network device 2).

[0194] It can be seen from the above steps 701 to 702 that the terminal device can switch the user plane channel endpoint from the first access network device to the second access network device (such as migrating the L2 protocol stack anchor point from the first access network device to the second access network device) without performing corresponding operations such as physical layer baseband adjustment and / or physical layer radio frequency adjustment. This can facilitate the subsequent implementation of low-interruption switching in a wider area (such as across management units) and facilitate the subsequent negotiation of whether the second management unit can continue to use at least one communication resource allocated by the first management unit for the terminal device.

[0195] It should be understood that by implementing the technical solutions provided in the above steps 701 to 702, the load balancing management of the access network device can also be achieved. It can be understood that in the process of implementing the load balancing management of the access network device, the first message in the above step 701 may not include the communication resource configuration corresponding to the terminal device. For example, when the number of terminal devices served by the first access network device (such as access network device 1) is greater than or equal to the number threshold, the technical solutions provided in the above steps 701 to 702 can be executed to realize the migration of the management right and the L2 protocol stack anchor point of one or more terminal devices from the first access network device to the second access network device (such as access network device 2), thereby reducing (or alleviating or decreasing) the load of the first access network device.

[0196] For example, taking the Figure 8 application scenario shown above as an example. In one example, taking the case where the load of access network device 1 needs to be reduced due to the excessive number of UEs served by access network device 1 as an example. Access network device 1 can send a first message to access network device 2. The first message does not include the communication resource configuration corresponding to the UE. After receiving the first message, access network device 2 can send a second message to the first network element (such as the AMF network element). After receiving the second message, the first network element can, through the interaction process between core network elements, instruct the second network element (such as the UPF network element) to switch the user plane channel endpoint from access network device 1 to access network device 2. In addition, after receiving the first message, access network device 2 can also, after confirming that the switching of the access network device is feasible, send a third message to access network device 1. After receiving the third message, access network device 1 can, according to the third message, send a fourth message to MU1. After receiving the fourth message, MU1 can, according to the fourth message, send the reconfiguration information corresponding to the UE to RU3. After receiving the reconfiguration information corresponding to the UE, RU3 can send the reconfiguration information to the corresponding UE. After receiving the reconfiguration information, the UE can perform a reconfiguration operation. In this way, after the UE performs the reconfiguration operation, it can communicate with access network device 2 via RU3 and MU1, so that it can be realized that the RU is not switched, but the switching from access network device 1 to access network device 2 is completed. In this way, the technical solution provided in this example can realize the migration of the management right and the L2 protocol stack anchor point of the above UE from access network device 1 to access network device 2, which helps to reduce the load of access network device 1, thereby realizing the load balancing management of the access network device.

[0197] In another example, take the case where the UE moves into the coverage area of RU3 and is about to further move into the coverage area of RU4. The access network device 1 can send a first message to the access network device 2. The first message includes the communication resource configuration corresponding to the UE. After receiving the first message, the access network device 2 can send a second message to the first network element (such as the AMF network element). After receiving the second message, the first network element can, through the interaction process between core network elements, instruct the second network element (such as the UPF network element) to switch the user plane channel endpoint from the access network device 1 to the access network device 2. In addition, after receiving the first message, the access network device 2 can also, after confirming that the access network device can be switched, send a third message to the access network device 1. After receiving the third message, the access network device 1 can, according to the third message, send a fourth message to MU1. After receiving the fourth message, MU1 can, according to the fourth message, send the reconfiguration information corresponding to the UE to RU3. After receiving the reconfiguration information corresponding to the UE, RU3 can send the reconfiguration information to the corresponding UE. After receiving the reconfiguration information, the UE can perform a reconfiguration operation. In this way, after performing the reconfiguration operation, the UE can communicate with the access network device 2 via RU3 and MU1, so that the RU is not switched, but the switch from the access network device 1 to the access network device 2 is completed. Thus, the technical solution provided by this example can achieve the migration of the L2 protocol stack anchor point from the access network device 1 to the access network device 2 without performing corresponding operations such as physical layer baseband adjustment and / or physical layer radio frequency adjustment, which helps to achieve subsequent low-interruption switching across MUs.

[0198] It can be understood that the second access network device can be connected to the second management unit, and the second management unit can be connected to the second radio frequency unit. In the embodiments of the present application, after performing the above steps 701 and 702, the management right and the L2 protocol stack anchor point of the terminal device (such as a UE) are migrated from the first access network device to the second access network device. When the above first message includes the communication resource configuration corresponding to the terminal device, the second access network device can obtain the communication resource configuration corresponding to the terminal device from the first message. In this way, the second access network device can send a fifth message to the second management unit. The fifth message can be used to request the communication resource configuration corresponding to the terminal device, or can also be used to request to allocate the same communication resource configuration for the terminal device, or can also be used to request to allocate the same at least one communication resource for the terminal device. After receiving the fifth message, the second management unit can, according to the fifth message and in combination with the communication resource situation it manages, determine whether the same communication resource configuration can be allocated. If the second management unit determines that the same communication resource configuration can be allocated for the terminal device, the second management unit can send a sixth message to the second access network device. The sixth message can be used to indicate consent to the request for allocating the same communication resource configuration, or can also be used to indicate consent to allocate the same communication resource configuration for the terminal device, or can also be used to indicate consent to allocate the same at least one communication resource for the terminal device, or can also be used to indicate that the same at least one communication resource can be provided (or allocated) for the terminal device. Optionally, the sixth message can include the same communication resource configuration. It should be understood that when the second management unit can allocate the same at least one communication resource for the terminal device or can allocate the same communication resource configuration for the terminal device, during the process of the terminal device moving from the coverage range of the first radio frequency unit to the coverage range of the second radio frequency unit, the terminal device does not need to perform corresponding operations such as physical layer baseband adjustment and / or physical layer radio frequency adjustment, and does not need to perform reconfiguration or re-establishment related to the L2 protocol stack.

[0199] If the second management unit determines that the same communication resource configuration cannot be allocated to the terminal device, the second management unit may allocate one or more communication resources to the terminal device in combination with the communication resources it manages, and may send a seventh message to the second access network device. The seventh message may be used to indicate that the same communication resource configuration cannot be allocated to the terminal device, or may also be used to indicate that a new communication resource configuration is allocated to the terminal device. Optionally, the seventh message may include one or more communication resources corresponding to the terminal device. In one example, when the seventh message includes one or more communication resources corresponding to the terminal device, the second access network device generates a new communication resource configuration based on the one or more communication resources, and the second access network device sends the new communication resource configuration to the second management unit, and then the new communication resource configuration is sent to the second radio frequency unit via the second management unit, and further the second radio frequency unit sends the new communication resource configuration to the corresponding terminal device. In another example, when the seventh message does not include one or more communication resources corresponding to the terminal device, the second management unit generates a new communication resource configuration based on the one or more communication resources, and then the new communication resource configuration is sent to the second radio frequency unit via the second management unit, and further the second radio frequency unit sends the new communication resource configuration to the corresponding terminal device.

[0200] It should be understood that when the terminal device moves from the coverage area of the first radio frequency unit to the coverage area of the second radio frequency unit, radio frequency unit handover and beam handover are involved. Exemplarily, the determination process of radio frequency unit handover and beam handover is introduced below through several possible implementation manners.

[0201] Implementation method 1: The signal quality measurement report reported by the terminal device is parsed and processed by the second access network device. If the second access network device determines, through parsing and processing the signal quality measurement report, that the radio frequency unit corresponding to the terminal device needs to be switched and the beam corresponding to the terminal device needs to be switched, it may send a first indication message and a second indication message to the first management unit. Among them, the first indication message may be used to instruct the first management unit to stop providing resource management services for the terminal device, or may also be used to instruct the first management unit to no longer manage the communication resources of the terminal device, or may also be used to indicate that the terminal device is about to leave the first management unit, or may also be used to indicate that the first management unit is about to stop providing resource management services for the terminal device; the second indication message may be used to instruct the terminal device to perform beam switching. Optionally, the second indication message may include which beam the terminal device needs to switch to (for example, the terminal device needs to switch from the first beam included in the coverage range of the first radio frequency unit to the second beam included in the coverage range of the second radio frequency unit), or may also include the identification information of the terminal device. For example, the first indication message and the second indication message may be carried in the same message, or may also be carried in different messages respectively, and the embodiments of the present application do not limit this.

[0202] After receiving the first indication message and the second indication message, the first management unit may, according to the first indication message, send the second indication message and a third indication message to the first radio frequency unit. Among them, the third indication message may be used to instruct the first radio frequency unit to stop providing communication services for the terminal device, or may also be used to indicate that the first radio frequency unit is about to stop providing communication services for the terminal device, or may also be used to indicate that the terminal device is about to leave the coverage range of the first radio frequency unit. It should be understood that the first management unit may achieve stopping the corresponding management of the terminal device by reclaiming at least one communication resource allocated to the terminal device, or by stopping providing resource management services for the terminal device. For example, the second indication message and the third indication message may be carried in the same message, or may also be carried in different messages respectively, and the embodiments of the present application do not limit this. After receiving the second indication message and the third indication message, the first radio frequency unit may, based on the third indication message, stop providing communication services for the terminal device after successfully sending the second indication message to the corresponding terminal device.

[0203] Optionally, after determining that the radio frequency unit corresponding to the terminal device needs to be switched and the beam corresponding to the terminal device needs to be switched, the second access network device may also send fourth indication information to the second management unit. The fourth indication information may be used to instruct the second management unit to provide resource management services for the terminal device, or may also be used to indicate that the second management unit is about to provide resource management services for the terminal device, or may also be used to indicate that the communication resources of the terminal device will be managed by the second management unit. After receiving the fourth indication information, the second management unit may send fifth indication information to the second radio frequency unit. The fifth indication information may be used to instruct the second radio frequency unit to provide communication services for the terminal device, or may also be used to indicate that the second radio frequency unit is about to provide communication services for the terminal device, or may also be used to indicate that the second radio frequency unit will serve the terminal device, or may also indicate that the terminal device is about to enter the coverage area of the second radio frequency unit.

[0204] It can be understood that after determining that the radio frequency unit corresponding to the terminal device needs to be switched and the beam corresponding to the terminal device needs to be switched, the second access network device may also send the beam direction information required for the second radio frequency unit to communicate with the terminal device to the second management unit. After receiving the beam direction information required for the second radio frequency unit to communicate with the terminal device, the second management unit may send the beam direction information required for the second radio frequency unit to communicate with the terminal device to the second radio frequency unit. After that, the second radio frequency unit may use the beam direction information to communicate with the terminal device. Optionally, after determining that the radio frequency unit corresponding to the terminal device needs to be switched and the beam corresponding to the terminal device needs to be switched, the second access network device may also send an indication information to the second management unit. The indication information may be used to instruct which beam direction the second radio frequency unit uses to communicate with the terminal device, or may also be used to indicate the beam direction required for the second radio frequency unit to communicate with the terminal device. After receiving the indication information, the second management unit may send the indication information to the second radio frequency unit. After that, the second radio frequency unit may use the beam direction indicated by the indication information to communicate with the terminal device.

[0205] Exemplarily, take the second access network device as access network device 2, the first management unit as MU1, the second management unit as MU2, the first radio frequency unit as RU3, the second radio frequency unit as RU4, and the terminal device as UE. In the case where the UE is about to move from the coverage area of RU3 to the coverage area of RU4, the access network device 2 can determine, according to the signal quality measurement report reported by the UE, that the RU for providing communication services to the UE needs to be switched from RU3 to RU4. In this way, the access network device 2 can send the first indication information and the second indication information to MU1. After receiving the first indication information and the second indication information, MU1 can, according to the first indication information, send the second indication information and the third indication information to RU3. After receiving the second indication information and the third indication information, RU3 can, based on the third indication information, stop providing communication services to the UE after successfully sending the second indication information to the corresponding UE. Optionally, after determining that the RU corresponding to the UE needs to be switched and the beam corresponding to the UE needs to be switched, the access network device 2 can also send the fourth indication information to MU2. After receiving the fourth indication information, MU2 can send the fifth indication information to RU4. For example, after determining that the RU corresponding to the UE needs to be switched and the beam corresponding to the UE needs to be switched, the access network device 2 can also send the beam direction information required for RU4 to communicate with the UE to MU2. After receiving the beam direction information required for RU4 to communicate with the UE, MU2 can send the beam direction information required for RU4 to communicate with the UE to RU4. After that, RU4 can use this beam direction information to communicate with the UE.

[0206] Implementation method 2: The signal quality report reported by the terminal device is parsed and processed by the first management unit. If the first management unit determines, by parsing and processing the signal quality measurement report, that the radio frequency unit corresponding to the terminal device needs to be switched and the beam corresponding to the terminal device needs to be switched, it may send sixth indication information to the second access network device. The sixth indication information may be used to instruct the first management unit to stop providing resource management services for the terminal device, or may also be used to instruct the first management unit to no longer manage the communication resources of the terminal device, or may also be used to indicate that the terminal device is about to leave the first management unit, or may also be used to indicate that the first management unit is about to stop providing resource management services for the terminal device. After receiving the sixth indication information, the second access network device may, according to the sixth indication information, send ninth indication information to the second management unit. The ninth indication information may be used to instruct the second management unit to provide resource management services for the terminal device, or may also be used to indicate that the second management unit is about to provide resource management services for the terminal device, or may also be used to indicate that the communication resources of the terminal device will soon be managed by the second management unit. After receiving the ninth indication information, the second management unit may, according to the ninth indication information, send tenth indication information to the second radio frequency unit. The tenth indication information may be used to instruct the second radio frequency unit to provide communication services for the terminal device, or may also be used to indicate that the second radio frequency unit is about to provide communication services for the terminal device, or may also be used to indicate that the second radio frequency unit will soon serve the terminal device, or may also indicate that the terminal device is about to enter the coverage area of the second radio frequency unit.

[0207] In addition, the first management unit may also send seventh indication information and eighth indication information to the first radio frequency unit. The seventh indication information may be used to instruct the first radio frequency unit to stop providing communication services for the terminal device, or may also be used to indicate that the first radio frequency unit is about to stop providing communication services for the terminal device, or may also be used to indicate that the terminal device is about to leave the coverage area of the first radio frequency unit. The eighth indication information may be used to instruct the terminal device to perform beam switching. After receiving the seventh indication information and the eighth indication information, the first radio frequency unit may, based on the seventh indication information, stop providing communication services for the terminal device after successfully sending the eighth indication information to the corresponding terminal device. Optionally, the eighth indication information may include which beam the terminal device needs to switch to (for example, the terminal device needs to switch from the first beam included in the coverage area of the first radio frequency unit to the second beam included in the coverage area of the second radio frequency unit), or may also include the identification information of the terminal device. For example, the seventh indication information and the eighth indication information may be carried in the same message, or may also be carried in different messages respectively, and the embodiments of this application do not limit this.

[0208] It can be understood that after receiving the sixth indication information, the second access network device may also send, according to the sixth indication information, the beam direction information required for the second radio frequency unit to communicate with the terminal device to the second management unit. After receiving the beam direction information required for the second radio frequency unit to communicate with the terminal device, the second management unit may send the beam direction information required for the second radio frequency unit to communicate with the terminal device to the second radio frequency unit. Thereafter, the second radio frequency unit may use this beam direction information to communicate with the terminal device. Optionally, after receiving the sixth indication information, the second access network device may also send, according to the sixth indication information, an indication information to the second management unit. Wherein, this indication information may be used to indicate which beam direction the second radio frequency unit uses to communicate with the terminal device, or may also be used to indicate the beam direction required for the second radio frequency unit to communicate with the terminal device. After receiving this indication information, the second management unit may send this indication information to the second radio frequency unit. Thereafter, the second radio frequency unit may use the beam direction indicated by this indication information to communicate with the terminal device.

[0209] Exemplarily, continue to take the second access network device as access network device 2, the first management unit as MU1, the second management unit as MU2, the first radio frequency unit as RU3, the second radio frequency unit as RU4, and the terminal device as UE as an example. In the case where the UE is about to move from the coverage area of RU3 to the coverage area of RU4, MU1 may, according to the signal quality measurement report reported by the UE, determine that the RU for providing communication services to the UE needs to be switched from RU3 to RU4. Thus, MU1 may send the sixth indication information to access network device 2. After receiving the sixth indication information, access network device 2 may, according to the sixth indication information, send the ninth indication information to MU2. After receiving the ninth indication information, MU2 may, according to the ninth indication information, send the tenth indication information to RU4. In addition, MU1 may also send the seventh indication information and the eighth indication information to RU3. After receiving the seventh indication information and the eighth indication information, RU3 may, based on the seventh indication information, stop providing communication services to the UE after successfully sending the eighth indication information to the corresponding UE. For example, after receiving the sixth indication information, access network device 2 may also send, according to the sixth indication information, the beam direction information required for RU4 to communicate with the UE to MU2. After receiving the beam direction information required for RU4 to communicate with the UE, MU2 may send the beam direction information required for RU4 to communicate with the UE to RU4. Thereafter, RU4 may use this beam direction information to communicate with the UE.

[0210] It should be understood that the radio frequency unit switching and beam switching (which can be understood as communication resource switching) described in the above Implementation Mode 1 or Implementation Mode 2 can be decoupled from the access network device switching (i.e., L2 protocol stack anchor point switching) described in the above Steps 701 to 702. That is to say, the radio frequency unit switching and beam switching described in the above Implementation Mode 1 or Implementation Mode 2 can be independently executed from the access network device switching described in the above Steps 701 to 702. In addition, when the terminal device is about to move from the coverage area of the first radio frequency unit to the coverage area of the second radio frequency unit, the newly introduced management unit (such as the second management unit) is used to manage the communication resources of the terminal device (i.e., provide communication resource management services for the terminal device), so as to achieve low-interruption handover in a wider area (such as from the first management unit to the second management unit).

[0211] Based on the above Figure 7 technical solution of the communication method shown, the following will introduce the above Figure 9 communication method in detail through the following Figure 7 specific example shown. Among them, in the Figure 9 specific example shown, the terminal device is a UE, the first access network device is Access Network Device 1, the second access network device is Access Network Device 2, the first management unit is MU1, the second management unit is MU2, the first radio frequency unit is RU3, the second radio frequency unit is RU4, and the first network element is the AMF network element.

[0212] Figure 9 This is a schematic flowchart of another communication method provided by an embodiment of the present application. As Figure 9 shown, the specific process of this method may include:

[0213] Step 9:01: Access Network Device 1 sends a first message to Access Network Device 2. Correspondingly, Access Network Device 2 receives the first message from Access Network Device 1.

[0214] Optionally, the implementation process of Step 9:01 may refer to the implementation process of the above Step 7:01, which will not be elaborated here.

[0215] Step 9:02: Access Network Device 2 sends a third message to Access Network Device 1. Correspondingly, Access Network Device 1 receives the third message from Access Network Device 2.

[0216] Optionally, the implementation process of Step 9:02 may refer to the implementation process of the above Step 7:02 regarding the second access network device sending a third message to the first access network device, which will not be elaborated here.

[0217] Step 9:03: Access Network Device 2 sends a second message to the AMF network element. Correspondingly, the AMF network element receives the second message from Access Network Device 2.

[0218] Optionally, the implementation process of step 903 may refer to the implementation process of the second access network device sending a second message to the first network element in step 702 above, which will not be elaborated here.

[0219] Step 904: The access network device 1 sends a fourth message to MU1. Correspondingly, MU1 receives the fourth message from the access network device 1.

[0220] Optionally, the implementation process of step 904 may refer to the implementation process of the first access network device sending a fourth message to the first management unit in step 702 above, which will not be elaborated here.

[0221] Step 905: MU1 sends reconfiguration information to RU3. Correspondingly, RU3 receives the reconfiguration information from MU1.

[0222] Optionally, the implementation process of step 905 may refer to the implementation process of the first management unit sending reconfiguration information to the first radio frequency unit in step 702 above, which will not be elaborated here.

[0223] Step 906: RU3 sends reconfiguration information to the UE. Correspondingly, the UE receives the reconfiguration information from RU3.

[0224] Optionally, the implementation process of step 906 may refer to the implementation process of the first radio frequency unit sending reconfiguration information to the terminal device in step 702 above, which will not be elaborated here.

[0225] Optionally, after step 906 is executed, the embodiment of the present application may further execute step 907, step 908, and step 909 to step 912 (or execute step 907, step 908, and step 913 to step 916). It should be understood that step 909 to step 912 are triggered when the signal quality measurement report reported by the UE is parsed and processed by the access network device 2; step 913 to step 916 are triggered when the signal quality measurement report reported by the UE is parsed and processed by MU1. By executing step 907, step 908, and step 909 to step 912 (or execute step 907, step 908, and step 913 to step 916), it is possible to achieve extremely low-interruption handover between the RUs connected to different MUs for the UE on the basis of MU2 continuing to use the communication resource configuration allocated by MU1 for the UE, and low-interruption handover in a wider area (such as across MUs) can be achieved.

[0226] Step 907: The access network device 2 sends a fifth message to MU2. Correspondingly, MU2 receives the fifth message from the access network device 2.

[0227] Optionally, the implementation process of step 907 may refer to the implementation process of the second access network device sending the fifth message to the second management unit in the foregoing text, which will not be elaborated here.

[0228] Step 908: MU2 sends a sixth message to access network device 2. Correspondingly, access network device 2 receives the sixth message from MU2.

[0229] Optionally, the implementation process of step 908 may refer to the implementation process of the second management unit sending the sixth message to the second access network device in the foregoing text, which will not be elaborated here.

[0230] Step 909: Access network device 2 sends a first indication message to MU1. Correspondingly, MU1 receives the first indication message from access network device 2.

[0231] In the case where the signal quality measurement report reported by the UE is parsed and processed by access network device 2, the first indication message may include first indication information and second indication information. For example, the first indication information is used to indicate that MU1 is about to stop providing resource management services for the UE, and the second indication information is used to indicate that the UE performs beam switching. Optionally, the first indication message may further include which beam the UE needs to switch to (for example, the UE needs to switch from a certain beam included in the coverage range of RU3 to a certain beam included in the coverage range of RU4), or may also include the identification information of the UE.

[0232] Step 910: MU1 sends a second indication message to RU3. Correspondingly, RU3 receives the second indication message from MU1.

[0233] In the case where the signal quality measurement report reported by the UE is parsed and processed by access network device 2, the second indication message may include second indication information and third indication information. For example, the third indication information is used to indicate that RU3 is about to stop providing communication services for the UE. Optionally, the second indication message may further include which beam the UE needs to switch to (for example, the UE needs to switch from a certain beam included in the coverage range of RU3 to a certain beam included in the coverage range of RU4), or may also include the identification information of the UE.

[0234] In the embodiment of the present application, after receiving the first indication message, MU1 may send a second indication message to RU3 based on the first indication information carried in the first indication message.

[0235] Step 911: Access network device 2 sends a third indication message to MU2. Correspondingly, MU2 receives the third indication message from access network device 2.

[0236] When the signal quality measurement report reported by the UE is parsed and processed by the access network device 2, the third indication message may include fourth indication information. For example, the fourth indication information is used to indicate that the MU2 is about to provide resource management services for the UE.

[0237] In an embodiment of the present application, when the access network device 2 determines that the RU corresponding to the UE needs to be switched and the beam corresponding to the UE needs to be switched, it can send a third indication message to MU2.

[0238] Step 912: MU2 sends a fourth indication message to RU4. Correspondingly, RU4 receives the fourth indication message from MU2.

[0239] When the signal quality measurement report reported by the UE is parsed and processed by the access network device 2, the fourth indication message may include fifth indication information. For example, the fifth indication information is used to indicate that the RU 4 will provide communication services for the UE.

[0240] Step 913: MU1 sends a fifth indication message to access network device 2. Correspondingly, access network device 2 receives the fifth indication message from MU1.

[0241] In the case where the signal quality measurement report reported by the UE is parsed and processed by MU1, the fifth indication message may include sixth indication information. For example, the sixth indication information is used to indicate that MU1 is about to stop providing resource management services for the UE.

[0242] Step 914: MU1 sends a sixth indication message to RU3. Correspondingly, RU3 receives the sixth indication message from MU1.

[0243] When the signal quality measurement report reported by the UE is parsed and processed by MU1, the sixth indication message may include seventh indication information and eighth indication information. For example, the seventh indication information is used to indicate that RU3 is about to stop providing communication services to the UE, and the eighth indication information is used to instruct the UE to perform beam switching. Optionally, the sixth indication message may also include which beam the UE needs to switch to (for example, the UE needs to switch from a beam within the coverage area of RU3 to a beam within the coverage area of RU4), or may also include UE identification information.

[0244] In an embodiment of the present application, after receiving the sixth indication message, RU3 can stop providing communication services to the UE based on the seventh indication information carried by the sixth indication message and after successfully sending the eighth indication information carried by the sixth indication message to the corresponding UE.

[0245] Step 915: Access network device 2 sends a seventh indication message to MU2. Correspondingly, MU2 receives the seventh indication message from access network device 2.

[0246] In the case where the signal quality measurement report reported by the UE is parsed and processed by MU1, the seventh indication message may include the ninth indication information. For example, the ninth indication information is used to indicate that MU2 is about to provide resource management services for the UE.

[0247] In the embodiment of the present application, after receiving the fifth indication message, the access network device 2 may send a seventh indication message to MU2 based on the sixth indication information carried in the fifth indication message.

[0248] Step 916: MU2 sends an eighth indication message to RU4. Accordingly, RU4 receives the eighth indication message from MU2.

[0249] In the case where the signal quality measurement report reported by the UE is parsed and processed by MU1, the eighth indication message may include the tenth indication information. For example, the tenth indication information is used to indicate that communication services will be provided for the UE by RU4 soon.

[0250] In the embodiment of the present application, after receiving the seventh indication message, MU2 may send an eighth indication message to RU4 based on the ninth indication information carried in the seventh indication message.

[0251] It can be seen from the above steps 901 to 916 that the L2 protocol stack anchor point switch (i.e., the access network device switch) is decoupled from the RU switch / beam switch (which can be understood as the communication resource switch), that is, it can be understood that the L2 protocol stack anchor point switch and the RU switch / beam switch can be executed independently of each other. In addition, when the UE is about to move from the coverage area of RU3 to the coverage area of RU4, the newly introduced MU2 is used to manage the communication resources of the UE (i.e., provide communication resource management services for the UE), so that low-interruption switching in a wider area (such as from MU1 to MU2) can be achieved.

[0252] It should be noted that in the description of this application, "at least one" means one or more, and "a plurality" means two or more. "And / or" describes the association relationship of associated objects, indicating that three relationships can exist. For example, A and / or B can represent the situations of existing A alone, existing A and B simultaneously, and existing B alone, where A and B can be singular or plural. The character " / " generally indicates that the associated objects before and after are in an "or" relationship. "At least one (item)" or its similar expression refers to any combination of these items, including any combination of single item (item) or plural items (items). For example, "at least one of A, B, and C" includes A, B, C, AB, AC, BC, or ABC. Also, unless otherwise specified, the ordinal numbers such as "first", "second", "third", etc. mentioned in the embodiments of this application are used to distinguish multiple objects and are not used to limit the order, time sequence, priority, or importance of multiple objects. In addition, the terms "include", "comprise", "have" and their variants appearing in this application all mean "including but not limited to", unless otherwise particularly emphasized in other ways.

[0253] In addition, it should be noted that each step involved in the above various embodiments can be executed by the corresponding device, or can be executed by components such as a chip, a processor, or a chip system in the device. The embodiments of this application do not limit this. The above embodiments are only described by taking the execution by the corresponding device as an example.

[0254] It should be understood that in various embodiments of this application, the magnitudes of the serial numbers of the above processes do not mean the sequence of execution. The execution sequence of each process should be determined by its function and internal logic, and should not constitute any limitation to the implementation process of the embodiments of this application.

[0255] It should be noted that in the above various embodiments, some steps can be selected for implementation, and the order of the steps in the figure can also be adjusted for implementation. This application does not limit this. It should be understood that implementing some steps in the figure, adjusting the order of the steps, or combining them with each other for specific implementation all fall within the protection scope of this application.

[0256] It can be understood that in order to implement the functions in the above embodiments, each device involved in the above embodiments includes the corresponding hardware structure and / or software module for executing each function. Those skilled in the art should easily realize that, in combination with the units and method steps of the examples described in the embodiments disclosed in this application, this application can be implemented in the form of hardware or a combination of hardware and computer software. Whether a certain function is executed in the way of hardware or computer software driving hardware depends on the specific application scenario and design constraint conditions of the technical solution.

[0257] It should be understood that the "steps" in the embodiments of the present application are only for illustration, which is a representation method adopted for better understanding of the embodiments, and do not constitute a substantial limitation on the implementation of the solution of the present application. For example, the "steps" can also be understood as "features". In addition, the steps do not impose any limitation on the execution order of the solution of the present application. Any operation such as changing the step order, combining steps, or splitting steps that does not affect the realization of the overall solution falls within the scope disclosed in the present application.

[0258] The following are schematic structural diagrams of possible communication devices provided by the embodiments of the present application. These communication devices can be used to implement the functions of the first management unit, the second management unit, the first access network device, the second access network device, the first radio frequency unit, the second radio frequency unit, the terminal device, or the first network element in the above method embodiments, and thus can also achieve the beneficial effects of the above method embodiments.

[0259] As Figure 10 shown, the communication device 1000 includes a transceiver module 1001 (which may also be referred to as a communication module, a transceiver unit, or a communication unit for sending and receiving data) and a processing module 1002 (which may also be referred to as a processing unit). The communication device 1000 is used to implement the functions of the first management unit, the second management unit, the first access network device, the second access network device, the first radio frequency unit, the second radio frequency unit, the terminal device, or the first network element in the method embodiments shown above. Figures 3 to 9

[0260] Optionally, the transceiver module 1001 may include a receiving module and / or a sending module. The receiving module can be used for the communication device 1000 to receive signals (information, data, etc.); the sending module can be used for the communication device 1000 to send signals (information, data, etc.). The sending module can send signals (information, data, etc.) under the control of the processing module 1002, and the receiving module can receive signals (information, data, etc.) under the control of the processing module 1002.

[0261] When the communication device 1000 is used to implement the above Figures 3 to 6When the communication device 1000 is used to implement the functions of the first management unit (such as MU1) in the method embodiment shown: The transceiver module 1001 is used to receive a first message from the first access network device. Among them, the first message is used to request the allocation of communication resources for the terminal device. The transceiver module 1001 is also used to send a second message to the first access network device. Among them, the second message is used to indicate that communication resources have been allocated for the terminal device. The transceiver module 1001 is also used to send a third message to the first radio frequency unit. Among them, the third message may include communication resource configuration. Among them, the terminal device can communicate with the first radio frequency unit through at least one communication resource indicated by the communication resource configuration, and the at least one communication resource may be part or all of the communication resources in the communication resource set provided by the first access network device for the first management unit to manage. The processing module 1002 is used to perform corresponding processing operations, such as generating communication resource configuration according to at least one communication resource.

[0262] When the communication device 1000 is used to implement the above Figures 3 to 6 functions of the first access network device (such as access network device 1) in the method embodiment shown: The transceiver module 1001 is used to provide the communication resource set to the first management unit. The transceiver module 1001 is also used to send a first message to the first management unit. Among them, the first message is used to request the allocation of communication resources for the terminal device. The transceiver module 1001 is also used to receive a second message from the first management unit. Among them, the second message is used to indicate that communication resources have been allocated for the terminal device. For example, the communication resource set may be determined through negotiation between the first access network device and the second access network device. The processing module 1002 is used to perform corresponding processing operations, such as generating communication resource configuration according to at least one communication resource, or may also be used to packetize downlink data to generate a first transport block, or may also determine the communication resources that can be managed by the first management unit according to its own communication resource usage situation, etc.

[0263] When the communication device 1000 is used to implement the above Figures 3 to 6 functions of the first radio frequency unit (such as RU1) in the method embodiment shown: The transceiver module 1001 is used to receive a third message from the first management unit. Among them, the third message may include communication resource configuration. The terminal device can communicate with the first radio frequency unit through at least one communication resource indicated by the communication resource configuration, and the at least one communication resource may be part or all of the communication resources in the communication resource set provided by the first access network device for the first management unit to manage. The processing module 1002 is used to perform corresponding processing operations, such as negotiating with the first management unit to establish an uplink and downlink user plane channel for the terminal device.

[0264] When the communication device 1000 is used to implement the above Figures 3 to 6When the communication device 1000 is used to implement the function of the second radio frequency unit (such as RU2) in the method embodiment shown: The transceiver module 1001 is configured to receive second indication information from the first management unit and communication resource configuration corresponding to the terminal device. The second indication information is used to indicate providing communication services for the terminal device. The processing module 1002 is configured to perform corresponding processing operations, such as negotiating with the first management unit to establish an uplink and downlink user plane channel for the terminal device.

[0265] When the communication device 1000 is used to implement the above Figures 7 to 9 When the communication device 1000 is used to implement the function of the first access network device (such as access network device 1) in the method embodiment shown: The transceiver module 1001 is configured to send a first message to the second access network device. The first message is used to request a handover of the access network device. The first message may include communication resource configuration corresponding to the terminal device. At least one communication resource indicated by the communication resource configuration may be part or all of the communication resources in the communication resource set. The communication resource set may be determined through negotiation between the first access network device and the second access network device. The communication resource set may be provided by the first access network device to the first management unit for management. The processing module 1002 is configured to perform corresponding processing operations, such as providing corresponding services for the terminal device, or determining whether it is necessary to migrate the L2 protocol stack anchor point to another access network device (such as the second access network device).

[0266] When the communication device 1000 is used to implement the above Figures 7 to 9 When the communication device 1000 is used to implement the function of the second access network device (such as access network device 2) in the method embodiment shown: The transceiver module 1001 is configured to receive the first message from the first access network device. The first message is used to request a handover of the access network device. The first message may include communication resource configuration corresponding to the terminal device. At least one communication resource indicated by the communication resource configuration may be part or all of the communication resources in the communication resource set. The communication resource set may be determined through negotiation between the first access network device and the second access network device. The transceiver module 1001 is further configured to send a second message to the first network element according to the first message. The second message is used to indicate that the user plane channel endpoint is switched from the first access network device to the second access network device. The processing module 1002 is configured to perform corresponding processing operations, such as providing corresponding services for the terminal device, or parsing and processing a signal quality measurement report reported by the terminal device.

[0267] When the communication device 1000 is used to implement the above Figures 7 to 9When implementing the functions of the first management unit (such as MU1) in the method embodiment shown: The transceiver module 1001 is used to receive a fourth message from the first access network device. Among them, the fourth message is used to indicate that a handover occurs in the access network device. The fourth message may include reconfiguration information corresponding to the terminal device, and the reconfiguration information is used to instruct the terminal device to perform a reconfiguration operation. The transceiver module 1001 is further used to send the reconfiguration information to the first radio frequency unit according to the fourth message. Optionally, the transceiver module 1001 may also be used to receive a first indication information and a second indication information from the second access network device. Among them, the first indication information is used to indicate to stop providing resource management services for the terminal device, and the second indication information is used to instruct the terminal device to perform beam switching. Optionally, the transceiver module 1001 may also be used to send the second indication information and a third indication information to the first radio frequency unit according to the first indication information. Among them, the third indication information is used to indicate to stop providing communication services for the terminal device. The processing module 1002 is used to perform corresponding processing operations, such as being used to establish a user plane channel and / or a control plane channel with the second access network device according to the identification information or address information of the second access network device.

[0268] When the communication device 1000 is used to implement the above Figures 7 to 9 When implementing the functions of the second management unit (such as MU2) in the method embodiment shown: The transceiver module 1001 is used to receive a fourth indication information from the second access network device. Among them, the fourth indication information is used to indicate to provide resource management services for the terminal device. The transceiver module 1001 is further used to send a fifth indication information to the second radio frequency unit according to the fourth indication information. Among them, the fifth indication information is used to indicate to provide communication services for the terminal device. Optionally, the transceiver module 1001 may also be used to receive a ninth indication information from the second access network device. Among them, the ninth indication information is used to indicate to provide resource management services for the terminal device. Optionally, the transceiver module 1001 may also be used to send a tenth indication information to the second radio frequency unit according to the ninth indication information. Among them, the tenth indication information is used to indicate to provide communication services for the terminal device. The processing module 1002 is used to perform corresponding processing operations, such as being used to allocate communication resources for the terminal device or being responsible for scheduling the communication resources used for the uplink and downlink data transmission of the terminal device.

[0269] When the communication device 1000 is used to implement the above Figures 7 to 9When implementing the functions of the first radio frequency unit (such as RU3) in the method embodiment shown: The transceiver module 1001 is used to receive reconfiguration information from the first management unit. The transceiver module 1001 is also used to send the reconfiguration information to the terminal device. Optionally, the transceiver module 1001 can also be used to receive the second indication information and the third indication information from the first management unit. The second indication information is used to instruct the terminal device to perform beam switching, and the third indication information is used to instruct to stop providing communication services to the terminal device. Optionally, the transceiver module 1001 can also be used to receive the seventh indication information and the eighth indication information from the first management unit. The seventh indication information is used to instruct to stop providing communication services to the terminal device, and the eighth indication information is used to instruct the terminal device to perform beam switching. The processing module 1002 is used to perform corresponding processing operations, such as negotiating with the first management unit to establish uplink and downlink user plane channels for the terminal device.

[0270] When the communication device 1000 is used to implement the above Figures 7 to 9 functions of the second radio frequency unit (such as RU4) in the method embodiment shown: The transceiver module 1001 is used to receive the fifth indication information from the second management unit. The fifth indication information is used to instruct to provide communication services to the terminal device. Optionally, the transceiver module 1001 can also be used to receive the tenth indication information from the second management unit. The tenth indication information is used to instruct to provide communication services to the terminal device. The processing module 1002 is used to perform corresponding processing operations, such as negotiating with the second management unit to establish uplink and downlink user plane channels for the terminal device.

[0271] For a more detailed description of the transceiver module 1001 and the processing module 1002, reference can be made to the relevant descriptions in the above Figures 3 to 9 method embodiment shown, which will not be elaborated here.

[0272] It should be understood that the transceiver module 1001 in the embodiments of the present application can be implemented by a communication interface or a communication interface-related circuit component, and the processing module 1002 can be implemented by a processor or a processor-related circuit component.

[0273] It should be noted that the division of modules in the embodiments of the present application is illustrative, only a logical function division. In actual implementation, there may be other division methods. In addition, in each embodiment of the present application, each functional unit can be integrated in a processing unit, can also exist physically alone, or two or more units can be integrated in one unit. The above integrated unit can be implemented in the form of hardware or in the form of a software functional unit.

[0274] When an integrated unit is implemented in the form of a software functional unit and sold or used as an independent product, it can be stored in a computer-readable storage medium. Based on this understanding, the technical solution of this application, in essence, or the part that contributes to the prior art, or all or part of this technical solution, can be embodied in the form of a software product. This computer software product is stored in a storage medium and includes several instructions for causing a computer device (which may be a personal computer, a server, etc.) or a processor to execute all or part of the steps of the methods in various embodiments of this application. The aforementioned storage medium includes: various media that can store program codes, such as USB flash drives, mobile hard disks, read-only memories (ROM), random access memories (RAM), magnetic disks, or optical discs.

[0275] As another possible product form, such as Figure 11 shown, the communication device 1100 includes: a communication interface 1101 and a processor 1102. Optionally, the communication device 1100 further includes a memory 1103. Among them, the communication interface 1101, the processor 1102, and the memory 1103 are interconnected with each other. When the communication device 1100 is used to implement the technical solutions related to the first management unit (or the second management unit or the first access network device or the second access network device or the first radio frequency unit or the second radio frequency unit or the terminal device or the first network element or the second network element) in the above embodiments, the communication interface 1101 can be used to implement the functions of the above transceiver module 1001 when executing the technical solutions related to the first management unit (or the second management unit or the first access network device or the second access network device or the first radio frequency unit or the second radio frequency unit or the terminal device or the first network element or the second network element), and the processor 1102 is used to implement the functions of the above processing module 1002 when executing the technical solutions related to the first management unit (or the second management unit or the first access network device or the second access network device or the first radio frequency unit or the second radio frequency unit or the terminal device or the first network element or the second network element).

[0276] Optionally, the communication interface 1101, the processor 1102, and the memory 1103 are interconnected with each other through a bus 1104. The bus 1104 can be a peripheral component interconnect (PCI) bus or an extended industry standard architecture (EISA) bus, etc. The bus can be divided into an address bus, a data bus, a control bus, etc. For the sake of representation, Figure 11 only a thick line is used to represent it in the figure, but it does not mean that there is only one bus or one type of bus.

[0277] A communication interface 1101 for receiving and sending data. For example, when the communication device 1100 is a terminal device as Figure 1 illustrated, the communication interface 1101 can communicate with a network device (such as network device 2) as Figure 1 illustrated, or can also communicate with other devices outside the communication system architecture as Figure 1 illustrated (such as other terminal devices or servers). In one example, the communication interface can be a transceiver device integrated with data transceiver functions. In another example, the communication interface can also be composed of a transmitter and a receiver, where the transmitter is used to send data and the receiver is used to receive data.

[0278] Optionally, the communication interface 1101 can include a transmitter and / or a receiver. The transmitter is used to send signals, messages, information, data, etc. The receiver is used to receive signals, messages, information, data, etc. Exemplarily, the transmitter sends signals, messages, information, data, etc. under the control of the processor 1102. The receiver receives signals, messages, information, data, etc. under the control of the processor 1102.

[0279] The functions of the processor 1102 can refer to the corresponding function descriptions of the first management unit, the second management unit, the first access network device, the second access network device, the first radio frequency unit, the second radio frequency unit, the terminal device, the first network element, or the second network element in the above embodiments, which will not be elaborated here. Among them, the processor 1102 can be a central processing unit (CPU), a network processor (NP), or a combination of a CPU and an NP, etc. The processor 1102 can further include a hardware chip. The above hardware chip can be an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a programmable logic device (PLD), or a combination thereof. The above PLD can be a complex programmable logic device (CPLD), a field-programmable gate array (FPGA), a generic array logic (GAL), or any combination thereof. When implementing the above functions, the processor 1102 can be implemented by hardware, and of course, it can also implement the corresponding software through hardware.

[0280] A memory 1103 for storing program instructions and the like. Specifically, the program instructions may include program code, and the program code includes computer operation instructions. The memory 1103 may include a random access memory (RAM), and may also include a non-volatile memory, such as at least one disk memory. The processor 1102 executes the program instructions stored in the memory 1103 to implement the above functions, thereby implementing the method steps required to be executed by the first management unit or the second management unit or the first access network device or the second access network device or the first radio frequency unit or the second radio frequency unit or the terminal device or the first network element or the second network element in the above embodiments.

[0281] Based on the same concept, an embodiment of the present application further provides a communication system, which includes multiple communication devices (multiple of the first management unit or the second management unit or the first access network device or the second access network device or the first radio frequency unit or the second radio frequency unit or the terminal device or the first network element). Among them, the first management unit can be used to implement the technical solutions related to the first management unit in the above embodiments. The second management unit can be used to implement the technical solutions related to the second management unit in the above embodiments. The first access network device can be used to implement the technical solutions related to the first access network device in the above embodiments. The second access network device can be used to implement the technical solutions related to the second access network device in the above embodiments. The first radio frequency unit can be used to implement the technical solutions related to the first radio frequency unit in the above embodiments. The second radio frequency unit can be used to implement the technical solutions related to the second radio frequency unit in the above embodiments. The terminal device can be used to implement the technical solutions related to the terminal device in the above embodiments. The first network element can be used to implement the technical solutions related to the first network element in the above embodiments.

[0282] Based on the same concept, an embodiment of the present application further provides a computer program product, which includes a computer program or instruction. When the computer program or instruction runs on a computer, the computer is caused to execute the method provided in the above embodiments.

[0283] Based on the same concept, an embodiment of the present application further provides a computer-readable storage medium, which stores a computer program or instruction. When the computer program or instruction is executed by a computer, the computer is caused to execute the method provided in the above embodiments.

[0284] Among them, the storage medium can be any available medium that can be accessed by a computer. Taking this as an example but not limited to: the computer-readable medium can include RAM, ROM, EEPROM, CD-ROM or other optical disc storage, magnetic disk storage medium or other magnetic storage devices, or any other medium that can be used to carry or store the desired program code in the form of instructions or data structures and can be accessed by a computer.

[0285] Based on the same concept, an embodiment of the present application further provides a chip, which may include a processor, and may also include a memory (or the chip is coupled to the storage), and the chip executes the program instructions in the storage to execute the method provided in the above embodiment. Among them, "coupling" means that two components are directly or indirectly combined with each other. For example, coupling may refer to an electrical connection between two components.

[0286] Based on the same concept, an embodiment of the present application further provides a chip system, which includes a processor for supporting a computer device to implement the functions involved in the communication device (such as the first management unit or the second management unit or the first access network device or the second access network device or the first radio frequency unit or the second radio frequency unit or the terminal device or the first network element, etc.) in the above embodiment. In a possible implementation manner, the chip system further includes a memory, and the memory is used to store the necessary programs and data of the computer device. The chip system may be composed of chips or may include chips and other discrete devices.

[0287] In the method provided by the embodiments of the present application, it can be implemented in whole or in part by software, hardware, firmware, or any combination thereof. When implemented using software, it can be implemented in whole or in part in the form of a computer program product. The computer program product includes one or more computer instructions. When the computer instructions are loaded and 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 can be a general-purpose computer, a special-purpose computer, a computer network, or other programmable devices. The computer instructions can be stored in a computer-readable storage medium or transmitted from one computer-readable storage medium to another. For example, the computer instructions can be transmitted from a website, computer, server, or data center to another website, computer, server, or data center in a wired manner (such as coaxial cable, optical fiber, digital subscriber line (DSL)) or wirelessly (such as infrared, wireless, microwave, etc.). The computer-readable storage medium can be any available medium that can be accessed by a computer or a data storage device such as a server or data center that includes one or more integrated available media. The available medium can be a magnetic medium (such as a floppy disk, hard disk, magnetic tape), an optical medium (such as a high-definition digital video disc (DVD)), or a semiconductor medium (such as a solid-state drive (SSD)), etc.

[0288] In the embodiments of the present application, the steps of the described method can be directly embedded in hardware, a software unit executed by a processor, or a combination of the two. The software unit can be stored in a RAM, ROM, EEPROM, register, hard disk, removable disk, CD-ROM, or any other form of storage medium in the art. Exemplarily, the storage medium can be connected to the processor so that the processor can read information from the storage medium and write information to the storage medium. Optionally, the storage medium can also be integrated into the processor. The processor and the storage medium can be provided in an ASIC.

[0289] The present application is described with reference to the flowcharts and / or block diagrams of methods, apparatuses (systems), and computer program products according to the present application. It should be understood that each process and / or block in the flowcharts and / or block diagrams, as well as the combination of processes and / or blocks in the flowcharts and / or block diagrams, can be implemented by computer program instructions. These computer program instructions can be provided to the processor of a general-purpose computer, a special-purpose computer, an embedded processor, or other programmable data processing devices to generate a machine, such that the instructions executed by the processor of the computer or other programmable data processing devices generate for implementing in the process Figure 1 a process or multiple processes and / or blocksFigure 1 means for the functions specified in one or more boxes.

[0290] These computer program instructions may also be loaded onto a computer or other programmable data processing apparatus, so that a series of operation steps are performed on the computer or other programmable apparatus to produce a computer-implemented process, and thus the instructions executed on the computer or other programmable apparatus provide for implementing in the process Figure 1 one or more processes and / or boxes Figure 1 steps of the functions specified in one or more boxes.

[0291] Obviously, those skilled in the art can make various changes and modifications to this application without departing from the spirit and scope of this application. Thus, if these modifications and variations of this application fall within the scope of the claims of this application and their equivalent technologies, this application is also intended to cover these changes and modifications.

Claims

1. A communication method, characterized in that, Applied to the first management unit, the method includes: Receiving a first message from a first access network device, the first message being used to request allocation of communication resources for a terminal device; Sending a second message to the first access network device, the second message being used to indicate that communication resources have been allocated for the terminal device; Sending a third message to a first radio frequency unit, the third message including communication resource configuration; Wherein, the terminal device communicates with the first radio frequency unit through at least one communication resource indicated by the communication resource configuration, and the at least one communication resource is part or all of the communication resource set provided by the first access network device for the first management unit to manage.

2. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that, The method further includes: Receiving a fourth message from the first access network device, the fourth message including the communication resource configuration; or, Generating the communication resource configuration according to the at least one communication resource.

3. The method according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that The method further includes: Receiving a first transport block from the first access network device; Sending the first transport block and first indication information to the first radio frequency unit, the first indication information being used to indicate using a first communication resource to transmit the first transport block, and the first communication resource is included in the at least one communication resource.

4. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that The method further includes: Receiving a second transport block from the first radio frequency unit; Sending the second transport block to the first access network device.

5. The method according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that, The method further includes: Sending a first handover indication and a second handover indication to the first radio frequency unit; Wherein, the first handover indication is used to indicate that the terminal device performs beam handover, and the second handover indication is used to indicate stopping providing communication services for the terminal device.

6. The method according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that, The method further includes: Receiving a third handover indication and a fourth handover indication from the first access network device; Sending the fourth handover indication and a fifth handover indication to the first radio frequency unit; Wherein, the third handover indication is used to indicate performing radio frequency unit handover, the fourth handover indication is used to indicate that the terminal device performs beam handover, and the fifth handover indication is used to indicate stopping providing communication services for the terminal device.

7. The method according to claim 5 or 6, characterized in that The method further includes: Sending second indication information and the communication resource configuration to a second radio frequency unit, the second indication information being used to indicate providing communication services for the terminal device.

8. The method according to any one of claims 1-7, characterized in that, The first message includes at least one of the following: identification information of the terminal device or identification information of the first radio frequency unit.

9. The method according to any one of claims 1-8, characterized in that, Each communication resource in the communication resource set includes at least one of the following: time domain resource, frequency domain resource, code domain resource or space domain resource.

10. A communication method, characterized in that, Applied to the first access network device, the method includes: Providing a communication resource set to the first management unit; Sending a first message to the first management unit, the first message being used to request allocation of communication resources for a terminal device; Receiving a second message from the first management unit, the second message being used to indicate that communication resources have been allocated for the terminal device.

11. The method according to claim 10, characterized in that, The method further includes: Send a fifth message to a second access network device, where the fifth message is used to request communication resources managed by the first management unit, and the fifth message includes communication resources provided by the first access network device that can be managed by the first management unit; Receive a sixth message from the second access network device, where the sixth message includes communication resources provided by the second access network device that can be managed by the first management unit; Determine the communication resource set according to the communication resources provided by the first access network device that can be managed by the first management unit and the communication resources provided by the second access network device that can be managed by the first management unit.

12. The method according to claim 10 or 11, characterized in that, The method further includes: If the second message includes at least one communication resource allocated to the terminal device, generate a communication resource configuration according to the at least one communication resource, where the at least one communication resource is part or all of the communication resources in the communication resource set; Send a fourth message to the first management unit, where the fourth message includes the communication resource configuration.

13. The method according to any one of claims 10-12, characterized in that, The method further includes: Send a first transport block to the first management unit.

14. The method according to any one of claims 10 to 12, characterized in that, The method further includes: Receive a second transport block from the first management unit.

15. The method according to any one of claims 10-12, characterized in that, The method further includes: Send a third handover indication and a fourth handover indication to the first management unit, where the third handover indication is used to indicate performing a radio frequency unit handover, and the fourth handover indication is used to indicate that the terminal device performs a beam handover.

16. The method according to any one of claims 10-15, characterized in that The first message includes at least one of the following: identification information of the terminal device or identification information of the first radio frequency unit.

17. The method according to any one of claims 10-16, characterized in that, Each communication resource in the communication resource set includes at least one of the following: time domain resource, frequency domain resource, code domain resource, or spatial domain resource.

18. A communication method, characterized in that, Includes: A first access network device sends a first message to a second access network device, where the first message is used to request a handover of the access network device, and the first message includes a communication resource configuration corresponding to a terminal device, and at least one communication resource indicated by the communication resource configuration is part or all of the communication resources in the communication resource set, and the communication resource set is negotiated and determined by the first access network device and the second access network device, and the communication resource set is provided by the first access network device to the first management unit for management; The second access network device sends a second message to a first network element according to the first message, where the second message is used to indicate that the user plane tunnel endpoint is handed over from the first access network device to the second access network device.

19. The method according to claim 18, wherein The first management unit is connected to a first radio frequency unit, and the first radio frequency unit provides communication services for the terminal device; The method further includes: The second access network device sends a third message to the first access network device according to the first message, where the third message is used to indicate that the second access network device agrees to the handover of the access network device; The first access network device sends a fourth message to the first management unit according to the third message. The fourth message is used to indicate that a handover of the access network device has occurred. The fourth message includes reconfiguration information corresponding to the terminal device, and the reconfiguration information is used to instruct the terminal device to perform a reconfiguration operation; The first management unit sends the reconfiguration information to the first radio frequency unit according to the fourth message; The first radio frequency unit sends the reconfiguration information to the terminal device.

20. The method according to claim 19, wherein The fourth message further includes identification information or address information of the second access network device; The method further includes: The first management unit establishes a user plane channel and / or a control plane channel with the second access network device according to the identification information or address information of the second access network device.

21. The method according to claim 19, wherein The reconfiguration operation includes at least one of the following: packet data convergence protocol (PDCP) reconfiguration, PDCP re - establishment, radio link control (RLC) reconfiguration, RLC re - establishment, service data adaptation protocol (SDAP) reconfiguration, media access control (MAC) reconfiguration, or MAC reset.

22. The method according to any one of claims 19-21, characterized in that, The second access network device is respectively connected to the first management unit and the second management unit, and the second management unit is connected to the second radio frequency unit; The method further includes: The second access network device sends first indication information and second indication information to the first management unit. The first indication information is used to indicate to stop providing resource management services for the terminal device, and the second indication information is used to instruct the terminal device to perform beam switching; The first management unit sends the second indication information and third indication information to the first radio frequency unit according to the first indication information. The third indication information is used to indicate to stop providing communication services for the terminal device; The second access network device sends fourth indication information to the second management unit. The fourth indication information is used to indicate to provide resource management services for the terminal device; The second management unit sends fifth indication information to the second radio frequency unit according to the fourth indication information. The fifth indication information is used to indicate to provide communication services for the terminal device.

23. The method according to any one of claims 19-21, characterized in that, The second access network device is respectively connected to the first management unit and the second management unit, and the second management unit is connected to the second radio frequency unit; The method further includes: The first management unit sends sixth indication information to the second access network device. The sixth indication information is used to indicate that the first management unit stops providing resource management services for the terminal device; The first management unit sends seventh indication information and eighth indication information to the first radio frequency unit. The seventh indication information is used to indicate to stop providing communication services for the terminal device, and the eighth indication information is used to instruct the terminal device to perform beam switching; The second access network device sends ninth indication information to the second management unit according to the sixth indication information. The ninth indication information is used to indicate to provide resource management services for the terminal device; The second management unit sends tenth indication information to the second radio frequency unit according to the ninth indication information, and the tenth indication information is used to indicate providing communication services for the terminal device.

24. The method according to claim 22 or 23, characterized in that, The method further includes: The second access network device sends a fifth message to the second management unit, and the fifth message is used to request the communication resource configuration; The second management unit sends a sixth message to the second access network device according to the fifth message, and the sixth message is used to indicate consent to the request for the communication resource configuration.

25. The method according to any one of claims 18-24, characterized in that, Each communication resource in the communication resource set includes at least one of the following: time domain resource, frequency domain resource, code domain resource, or space domain resource.

26. A communication device, characterized in that, It includes a module or unit for executing the method according to any one of claims 1-9, or includes a module or unit for executing the method according to any one of claims 10-17, or includes a module or unit for executing the method according to any one of claims 18-25.

27. A communication device, characterized in that, It includes: A communication interface for receiving and sending data; A memory for storing computer program instructions and data; A processor for executing and calling the computer program instructions and data in the memory, so that the communication device executes the method according to any one of claims 1-9 or the method according to any one of claims 10-17 or the method according to any one of claims 18-25.

28. A computer-readable storage medium, characterized in that, A computer program or instruction is stored in the computer-readable storage medium, and when the computer program or instruction is executed by a computer, the computer is caused to execute the method according to any one of claims 1-9 or the method according to any one of claims 10-17 or the method according to any one of claims 18-25.

29. A computer program product, characterized in that, The computer program product includes a computer program or instruction, and when the computer program or instruction runs on a computer, the computer is caused to execute the method according to any one of claims 1-9 or the method according to any one of claims 10-17 or the method according to any one of claims 18-25.

30. A chip, characterized in that, The chip includes a processor, and the chip is used to execute the program instructions in the storage to execute the method according to any one of claims 1-9 or the method according to any one of claims 10-17 or the method according to any one of claims 18-25.

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