Method, device and equipment for determining timing advance information

Abstract

Disclosed are a method, apparatus and device for determining timing advance information, belonging to the technical field of communications, the method for determining timing advance information in an embodiment of the present application comprising: a terminal obtaining A-IoT information, the A-IoT information comprising at least one of the following: identification information of at least one A-IoT device, location information of at least one A-IoT device, and location information of at least one A-IoT device; information of a grid where the at least one A-IoT device is located, reflected signal strength information of the at least one A-IoT device, timing advance information of the at least one cell, timing advance information of a specific cell, timing advance information of the at least one TAG, and a timing advance difference between the at least one cell and the specific cell; and the terminal determines timing advance information of the target cell according to the A-IoT information. According to the embodiment of the invention, the timing advance information can be determined based on the assistance of the A-IoT device, the power consumption of the terminal for determining the timing advance information can be reduced, and the network energy-saving performance can be improved.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present application relates to the field of communications, and more particularly, to a method, apparatus, and device for determining timing advance information. Background Art

[0002] Currently, a terminal can obtain timing advance information (such as timing advance (TA)) from the network side and adjust uplink transmission timing based on the timing advance information to maintain synchronization with the network.

[0003] However, with the evolution of random communication technology, the current method of obtaining timing advance information cannot meet the requirements of uplink transmission timing (such as transmission delay requirements). How to improve the performance of determining timing advance information is a problem that needs to be solved. Summary of the Invention

[0004] The embodiments of the present application provide a method, apparatus, and device for determining timing advance information, which can determine the timing advance information of a target cell based on the assistance of an A-IoT device without the involvement of the network side. This can reduce the delay in obtaining the timing advance information and release some downlink resources. It can also reduce the power consumption of the terminal in determining the timing advance information and improve the network energy-saving performance, which can solve the problem of insufficient performance in determining the timing advance information at this stage.

[0005] In a first aspect, a method for determining timing advance information is provided, including:

[0006] The terminal obtains A-IoT information of the environmental Internet of Things;

[0007] The terminal determines the timing advance information of the target cell according to the A-IoT information;

[0008] The A-IoT information includes at least one of the following: identification information of at least one A-IoT device, location information of at least one A-IoT device, grid information of at least one A-IoT device, reflected signal strength information of at least one A-IoT device, timing advance information of at least one cell, timing advance information of at least one timing advance group TAG, timing advance information of a specific cell, and a timing advance difference between at least one cell and a specific cell;

[0009] The at least one A-IoT device is deployed in the target cell, and the at least one cell includes the target cell.

[0010] In a second aspect, a method for determining timing advance information is provided, including:

[0011] The network side device sends first configuration information to the terminal, where the first configuration information is used to determine the timing advance information;

[0012] The first configuration information includes at least one of the following:

[0013] Grid information of the cell, grid segmentation granularity supported by the network side, identification information of the ambient Internet of Things A-IoT devices deployed in the network, A-IoT device information associated with each grid, grid information associated with each A-IoT device, timing advance information of at least one cell, timing advance information of at least one timing advance group TAG, timing advance information of a specific cell, timing advance difference between at least one cell and a specific cell, mapping relationship between identification information of the A-IoT device and timing advance information, mapping relationship between location information of the A-IoT device and timing advance information, mapping relationship between grids and timing advance information, the terminal is configured to allow application of the A-IoT information, the terminal is configured to allow determination of timing advance information based on assistance of the A-IoT device, the terminal is configured to allow reporting of timing advance information obtained or determined by the terminal to the network side device, and the terminal is configured to allow reporting to the network side device whether the terminal has obtained or determined the timing advance information.

[0014] According to a third aspect, a method for determining timing advance information is provided, including:

[0015] The first entity sends second configuration information to the terminal, where the second configuration information is used to determine timing advance information;

[0016] The second configuration information includes at least one of the following: identification information of an A-IoT device deployed in the network, timing advance information of at least one cell, timing advance information of at least one timing advance group TAG, timing advance information of a specific cell, a timing advance difference between at least one cell and a specific cell, and timing advance information corresponding to the identification information of the A-IoT device.

[0017] In a fourth aspect, a device for determining timing advance information is provided, comprising:

[0018] A processing unit for obtaining A-IoT information;

[0019] The processing unit is further configured to determine timing advance information of a target cell based on the A-IoT information;

[0020] The A-IoT information includes at least one of the following: identification information of at least one A-IoT device, location information of at least one A-IoT device, grid information of at least one A-IoT device, reflected signal strength information of at least one A-IoT device, timing advance information of at least one cell, timing advance information of at least one timing advance group TAG, timing advance information of a specific cell, and a timing advance difference between at least one cell and a specific cell;

[0021] The at least one A-IoT device is deployed in the target cell, and the at least one cell includes the target cell.

[0022] In a fifth aspect, a device for determining timing advance information is provided, comprising:

[0023] a transceiver unit, configured to send first configuration information to a terminal, where the first configuration information is used to determine timing advance information;

[0024] The first configuration information includes at least one of the following:

[0025] Grid information of the cell, grid segmentation granularity supported by the network side, identification information of the ambient Internet of Things A-IoT devices deployed in the network, A-IoT device information associated with each grid, grid information associated with each A-IoT device, timing advance information of at least one cell, timing advance information of at least one timing advance group TAG, timing advance information of a specific cell, timing advance difference between at least one cell and a specific cell, mapping relationship between identification information of the A-IoT device and timing advance information, mapping relationship between location information of the A-IoT device and timing advance information, mapping relationship between grids and timing advance information, the terminal is configured to allow application of the A-IoT information, the terminal is configured to allow determination of timing advance information based on assistance of the A-IoT device, the terminal is configured to allow reporting of timing advance information obtained or determined by the terminal to the network side device, and the terminal is configured to allow reporting to the network side device whether the terminal has obtained or determined the timing advance information.

[0026] In a sixth aspect, a device for determining timing advance information is provided, comprising:

[0027] a transceiver unit, configured to send second configuration information to the terminal, where the second configuration information is used to determine timing advance information;

[0028] The second configuration information includes at least one of the following: identification information of an A-IoT device deployed in the network, timing advance information of at least one cell, timing advance information of at least one timing advance group TAG, timing advance information of a specific cell, a timing advance difference between at least one cell and a specific cell, and timing advance information corresponding to the identification information of the A-IoT device.

[0029] In a seventh aspect, a terminal is provided, comprising a processor and a memory, wherein the memory stores a program or instruction that can be run on the processor, and when the program or instruction is executed by the processor, the steps of the method described in the first aspect are implemented.

[0030] In an eighth aspect, a terminal is provided, comprising a processor and a communication interface;

[0031] The processor is used to obtain A-IoT information.

[0032] The processor is further configured to determine timing advance information of a target cell based on the A-IoT information;

[0033] The A-IoT information includes at least one of the following: identification information of at least one A-IoT device, location information of at least one A-IoT device, grid information of at least one A-IoT device, reflected signal strength information of at least one A-IoT device, timing advance information of at least one cell, timing advance information of at least one timing advance group TAG, timing advance information of a specific cell, and a timing advance difference between at least one cell and a specific cell;

[0034] The at least one A-IoT device is deployed in the target cell, and the at least one cell includes the target cell.

[0035] In the ninth aspect, a network side device is provided, comprising a processor and a memory, wherein the memory stores programs or instructions that can be run on the processor, and when the programs or instructions are executed by the processor, the steps of the method described in the second aspect are implemented.

[0036] In a tenth aspect, a network-side device is provided, including a processor and a communication interface;

[0037] The communication interface is used to send first configuration information to the terminal, where the first configuration information is used to determine timing advance information;

[0038] The first configuration information includes at least one of the following:

[0039] Grid information of the cell, grid segmentation granularity supported by the network side, identification information of the ambient Internet of Things A-IoT devices deployed in the network, A-IoT device information associated with each grid, grid information associated with each A-IoT device, timing advance information of at least one cell, timing advance information of at least one timing advance group TAG, timing advance information of a specific cell, timing advance difference between at least one cell and a specific cell, mapping relationship between identification information of the A-IoT device and timing advance information, mapping relationship between location information of the A-IoT device and timing advance information, mapping relationship between grids and timing advance information, the terminal is configured to allow application of the A-IoT information, the terminal is configured to allow determination of timing advance information based on assistance of the A-IoT device, the terminal is configured to allow reporting of timing advance information obtained or determined by the terminal to the network side device, and the terminal is configured to allow reporting to the network side device whether the terminal has obtained or determined the timing advance information.

[0040] In an eleventh aspect, a first entity is provided, comprising a processor and a memory, wherein the memory stores a program or instruction that can be run on the processor, and when the program or instruction is executed by the processor, the steps of the method according to the third aspect are implemented.

[0041] In a twelfth aspect, there is provided a first entity, comprising a processor and a communication interface;

[0042] The communication interface is used to send second configuration information to the terminal, and the second configuration information is used to determine the timing advance information;

[0043] The second configuration information includes at least one of the following: identification information of an A-IoT device deployed in the network, timing advance information of at least one cell, timing advance information of at least one timing advance group TAG, timing advance information of a specific cell, a timing advance difference between at least one cell and a specific cell, and timing advance information corresponding to the identification information of the A-IoT device.

[0044] In the thirteenth aspect, a readable storage medium is provided, on which a program or instruction is stored. When the program or instruction is executed by a processor, the steps of the method described in the first aspect are implemented, or the steps of the method described in the second aspect are implemented, or the steps of the method described in the third aspect are implemented.

[0045] In the fourteenth aspect, a wireless communication system is provided, including: a terminal and a network side device, wherein the terminal can be used to execute the steps of the method described in the first aspect, and the network side device can be used to execute the steps of the method described in the second aspect.

[0046] In the fifteenth aspect, a wireless communication system is provided, including: a terminal, a network side device and a first entity, the terminal can be used to execute the steps of the method described in the first aspect, the network side device can be used to execute the steps of the method described in the second aspect, and the first entity can be used to execute the steps of the method described in the third aspect.

[0047] In the sixteenth aspect, a chip is provided, comprising a processor and a communication interface, wherein the communication interface is coupled to the processor, and the processor is used to run programs or instructions to implement the method as described in the first aspect, or the method as described in the second aspect, or the method as described in the third aspect.

[0048] In the seventeenth aspect, a computer program / program product is provided, which is stored in a storage medium and is executed by at least one processor to implement the steps of the method described in the first aspect, the second aspect or the third aspect.

[0049] In an embodiment of the present application, the terminal obtains A-IoT information, and the terminal determines the timing advance information of the target cell based on the A-IoT information. That is, the timing advance information of the target cell can be determined based on the assistance of the A-IoT device without the participation of the network side, which can reduce the delay in obtaining the timing advance information and release part of the downlink resources. The A-IoT device has the advantages of low cost, low power consumption, low complexity, and maintenance-free, thereby reducing the power consumption of the terminal in determining the timing advance information and improving the network energy-saving performance. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0050] In order to more clearly illustrate the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present application, the following briefly introduces the drawings required for use in the description of the embodiments of the present application. Obviously, the drawings described below are only some embodiments of the present application. For ordinary technicians in this field, other drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without any creative work.

[0051] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of a communication system architecture provided in an embodiment of the present application.

[0052] Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram of OOK-based backscatter transmission provided by this application.

[0053] Figure 3 This is a schematic diagram of backscatter communication provided by this application.

[0054] Figure 4 This is a schematic flowchart of a method for determining timing advance information provided according to an embodiment of the present application.

[0055] Figure 5 This is a schematic diagram of a grid segmentation provided according to an embodiment of the present application.

[0056] Figure 6 This is a schematic flowchart of another method for determining timing advance information provided according to an embodiment of the present application.

[0057] Figure 7 This is a schematic flowchart of another method for determining timing advance information provided according to an embodiment of the present application.

[0058] Figure 8 This is a schematic block diagram of a device for determining timing advance information provided according to an embodiment of the present application.

[0059] Figure 9 This is a schematic block diagram of another device for determining timing advance information provided according to an embodiment of the present application.

[0060] Figure 10 This is a schematic block diagram of another device for determining timing advance information provided according to an embodiment of the present application.

[0061] Figure 11 This is a schematic block diagram of a communication device provided according to an embodiment of the present application.

[0062] Figure 12 This is a schematic diagram of the hardware structure of a terminal provided according to an embodiment of the present application.

[0063] Figure 13 This is a schematic block diagram of a network-side device provided according to an embodiment of the present application. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0064] The following will be combined with the accompanying drawings in the embodiments of this application to clearly describe the technical solutions in the embodiments of this application. Obviously, the embodiments described are part of the embodiments of this application, not all of the embodiments. Based on the embodiments in this application, all other embodiments obtained by ordinary technicians in this field are within the scope of protection of this application.

[0065] The terms "first", "second", etc. in this application are used to distinguish similar objects, and are not used to describe a specific order or sequence. It should be understood that the terms used in this way are interchangeable where appropriate, so that the embodiments of the present application can be implemented in an order other than those illustrated or described herein, and the objects distinguished by "first" and "second" are generally of the same type, and do not limit the number of objects, for example, the first object can be one or more. In addition, "or" in this application represents at least one of the connected objects. For example, "A or B" covers three options, namely, Option 1: including A but not including B; Option 2: including B but not including A; Option 3: including both A and B. The character " / " generally indicates that the objects associated before and after are in an "or" relationship.

[0066] The term "indication" in this application can be either a direct indication (or explicit indication) or an indirect indication (or implicit indication). A direct indication can be understood as the sender explicitly informing the receiver of specific information, the operation to be performed, or the requested result, etc. in the instruction sent; an indirect indication can be understood as the receiver determining the corresponding information based on the instruction sent by the sender, or making a judgment and determining the operation to be performed or the requested result, etc. based on the judgment result.

[0067] It is worth noting that the technology described in the embodiments of the present application is not limited to the Internet of Things (IoT) system, but can also be used in other wireless communication systems, such as Long Term Evolution (LTE) / LTE-Advanced (LTE-A) system, Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA), Time Division Multiple Access (TDMA), Frequency Division Multiple Access (FDMA), Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiple Access (OFDMA), Single-carrier Frequency Division Multiple Access (SC-FDMA), Wireless Local Area Networks (WLAN), Wireless Fidelity (WiFi), Bluetooth system, or other systems. In the embodiments of the present application, the terms "system" and "network" are often used interchangeably, and the technology described can be used for the systems and radio technologies mentioned above, as well as for other systems and radio technologies. The following description describes a New Radio (NR) system for example purposes, and NR terminology is used in most of the following description, but these techniques can also be applied to systems other than NR systems, such as 6G (6 th Generation, 6G) communication system.

[0068] Figure 1 A block diagram of a wireless communication system applicable to embodiments of the present application is shown. The wireless communication system includes a terminal 11, a network-side device 12, and an A-IoT device 13.

[0069] Among them, the terminal 11 can be a mobile phone, a tablet personal computer, a laptop computer, a notebook computer, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a handheld computer, a netbook, an ultra-mobile personal computer (UMPC), a mobile Internet device (MID), an augmented reality (AR) device, a virtual reality (VR) device, a robot, a wearable device, an aircraft (flight vehicle), a vehicle user equipment (VUE), a shipborne device, a pedestrian user equipment (PUE), a smart home (home appliances with wireless communication functions, such as refrigerators, televisions, washing machines or furniture, etc.), a game console, a personal computer (PC), an ATM or a self-service machine, and other terminal-side devices. Wearable devices include: smart watches, smart bracelets, smart headphones, smart glasses, smart jewelry (smart bracelets, smart bracelets, smart rings, smart necklaces, smart anklets, smart anklets, etc.), smart wristbands, smart clothing, etc. Vehicle-mounted devices can also be called vehicle-mounted terminals, vehicle-mounted controllers, vehicle-mounted modules, vehicle-mounted components, vehicle-mounted chips, or vehicle-mounted units, etc. It should be noted that the specific type of terminal 11 is not limited in the embodiments of the present application.

[0070] In some implementations, the network-side device 12 may include an access network device.

[0071] In some implementations, the network side device 12 may include an access network device or a core network device.

[0072] Access network equipment may also be referred to as radio access network (RAN) equipment, radio access network functions, or radio access network units. Access network equipment may include base stations, wireless local area network (WLAN) access points (AS), or wireless fidelity (WiFi) nodes. Among them, the base station can be referred to as Node B (NB), Evolved Node B (eNB), the next generation Node B (gNB), New Radio Node B (NR Node B), access point, Relay Base Station (RBS), Serving Base Station (SBS), Base Transceiver Station (BTS), radio base station, radio transceiver, Basic Service Set (BSS), Extended Service Set (ESS), Home Node B (HNB), Home Evolved Node B (home evolved Node B), Transmission Reception Point (TRP) or other appropriate terms in the relevant field. As long as the same technical effect is achieved, the base station is not limited to specific technical vocabulary. It should be noted that in the embodiment of the present application, only the base station in the NR system is used as an example for introduction, and the specific type of the base station is not limited.

[0073] Among them, the core network equipment may include but is not limited to at least one of the following: core network node, core network function, mobility management entity (MME), access mobility management function (AMF), session management function (SMF), user plane function (UPF), policy control function (PCF), policy and charging rules function unit (PCRF), edge application server discovery function (EASDF), unified data management (UDM), unified data repository (UDR), home user server (HSS), centralized network configuration (CNC), network storage function (NRF), network exposure function (NEF), local NEF (L-NEF), binding support function (BSF), etc. Function, BSF), application function (Application Function, AF), network data analysis function (Network Data Analytics Function, NWDAF), location management function (Location Management Function, LMF), etc. It should be noted that in the embodiment of the present application, only the core network device in the NR system is introduced as an example, and the specific type of the core network device is not limited.

[0074] Among them, the A-IoT device 13 can also be called a passive Internet of Things (Passive-IoT) device, an AMP device, a zero-power device, a response device, a low-power IoT device, a tag, etc.

[0075] It should be noted that Figure 1An example is shown of a network side device, two terminals and two A-IoT devices. Optionally, the wireless communication system may include at least two network side devices and the coverage range of each network side device may include other numbers of terminals and A-IoT devices. This embodiment of the present application is not limited to this.

[0076] In order to better understand the embodiments of the present application, TA is described.

[0077] The base station (eNB) uses time-frequency orthogonal multiple access. If uplink data from different terminals (UEs) in the same subframe but different RBs arrive at an eNB out of order, it will cause significant interference, resulting in the eNB being unable to correctly decode the uplink data. Therefore, uplink synchronization requires that the time at which uplink data from different UEs in the same subframe but different RBs arrive at the eNB is basically aligned. As long as the eNB receives the uplink data sent by the UE within the cyclic prefix (CP) range, it can correctly decode the uplink data. Therefore, the time at which data from different UEs in the same subframe but different RBs arrive at the eNB must fall within the CP.

[0078] In some scenarios, such as random access, the eNB can send a Timing Advance Command (TAC) to notify the UE to send uplink signals with an appropriate timing advance, thereby ensuring that the UE's uplink data packets arrive at the eNB within the desired time. Specifically, the eNB can measure the UE's uplink signal to determine the UE's TA, and then send the TAC to the UE to notify the UE to advance the uplink transmission by a corresponding amount of time. The TAC carries the TA. Therefore, the TA is used for UE uplink transmission.

[0079] Theoretically, the eNB can estimate the UE's TA based on any uplink signal from the UE (such as the Sounding Reference Signal (SRS), Demodulation Reference Signal (DMRS), Channel Quality Indicator (CQI), Acknowledgement (ACK), Negative Acknowledgement (NACK), and Physical Uplink Shared Channel (PUSCH). The actual signal measurement used depends on the eNB's implementation. However, during the Random Access Procedure (RAP), the eNB determines the TA by measuring the received preamble.

[0080] From the UE's perspective, TA is essentially a negative offset between the start time of the received downlink subframe and the time of the transmitted uplink subframe. By appropriately controlling the offset for each UE, the eNB can control the time it takes for uplink signals from different UEs to reach the eNB. UEs farther from the eNB experience greater transmission delays and therefore need to send uplink data earlier than UEs closer to the eNB.

[0081] To facilitate a better understanding of the embodiments of the present application, UE-based TA measurement is described.

[0082] UE-based TA measurement: The UE calculates the TA of the candidate cell based on the TA value of the serving cell, the downlink receive timing difference (RSTD) between the serving cell and the candidate cell, and the downlink transmit timing difference between the serving cell and the candidate cell.

[0083] When the downlink transmission timing difference between the serving cell and the candidate cell is not zero, one method for the terminal to obtain the downlink transmission timing difference is to perform a RACH in the candidate cell to obtain the TA of the candidate cell, and calculate the downlink transmission timing difference between the serving cell and the candidate cell based on the TA of the serving cell and the TA of the candidate cell.

[0084] In a scenario where the serving cell and the candidate cell are synchronized, the downlink transmission timing difference between the serving cell and the candidate cell is 0.

[0085] To facilitate a better understanding of the embodiments of the present application, a random access-free (RACH-Less) switching based on UE TA measurement is described.

[0086] After receiving the Radio Resource Control (RRC) configuration of the candidate cell, the UE decides when to perform UE-based TA measurement. When the UE receives a handover command (such as LTM cell switch) and successfully measures the TA value, the UE applies the TA value and starts or restarts the TA timer (TAT) of the Primary Timing Advance Group (PTAG).

[0087] To facilitate a better understanding of the embodiments of the present application, the Ambient Internet of Things (A-IoT) is described.

[0088] A-IoT devices have ultra-low complexity and ultra-low power consumption.

[0089] A-IoT, also known as ambient power-enabled Internet of Things (Ambient Power-Enabled IoT), is a type of Internet of Things (IoT) service. A-IoT devices are powered by energy harvesting. A-IoT devices lack batteries or have limited energy storage capabilities (for example, using a capacitor). Energy harvesting can be done from radio waves, light, motion, heat, or other suitable energy sources.

[0090] A-IoT devices can also be A-IoT terminals, passive IoT devices, ambient power (AMP) devices, zero-power devices, low-power IoT devices, IoT devices, transponders, tags, and radio frequency identification (RFID) tags. These devices have low overall power consumption, including low-power signal reception and low-power signal transmission. Due to this low overall power consumption, communication energy can come from the environment, such as wind energy, kinetic energy, thermal energy, and radio frequency (RF) signals.

[0091] A-IoT devices can be classified based on energy source, energy storage capability, and passive or active emission. Specifically, they can include the following three types of devices:

[0092] Device Type A: A passive device with no independent signal generation or amplification, i.e., backscatter transmission.

[0093] Device Type B: A semi-passive device, also within the passive device category, with energy storage but no independent signal generation, i.e., backscatter transmission. The use of stored energy may include amplification of reflected signals.

[0094] Device Type C: Active device, with energy storage and independent signal generation, that is, active RF components for transmission.

[0095] To facilitate a better understanding of the embodiments of the present application, backscatter communication (BSC) is described.

[0096] Backscatter communication refers to the use of radio frequency signals from other devices or the environment to modulate the signal and transmit its own information. Backscatter technology, a passive or low-energy technology, is characterized by its ability to transmit its own signal by modifying the characteristics of the received ambient radio frequency signal, such as its phase or amplitude, achieving extremely low or zero power consumption.

[0097] For example, a backscatter transmission method based on binary on-off keying (OOK) can be as follows: Figure 2 As shown, a simple implementation method is that when the tag needs to send '1', the tag reflects the incident carrier signal, and when the tag needs to send '0', it does not reflect.

[0098] For example, backscatter communication can be as follows: Figure 3 As shown, the A-IoT device receives the wireless signal sent by the reading and writing device, modulates the wireless signal, loads the information to be sent, and radiates the modulated signal from the antenna. This information transmission process is called backscatter communication.

[0099] Backscatter communication devices (such as A-IoT) control the circuit's reflection coefficient Γ by adjusting its internal impedance, thereby changing the amplitude, frequency, phase, etc. of the incident signal to achieve signal modulation. The signal reflection coefficient can be expressed as:

[0100]

[0101] Where Z0 is the antenna characteristic impedance and Z1 is the load impedance. Assume that the incident signal is S in (t), the output signal is Therefore, corresponding amplitude modulation, frequency modulation or phase modulation can be achieved by reasonably controlling the reflection coefficient.

[0102] Backscatter communication devices (such as A-IoT devices) typically use low-power reception, typically using low-power RF, IF, or baseband envelope detection. The waveform of the transmitted signal typically uses simple modulation methods such as on-off keying (OOK), amplitude shift keying (ASK), and frequency shift keying (FSK).

[0103] The device that communicates with such low-power devices (such as A-IoT devices) is called a read-write device or a first network element. For example, it can be a terminal or a relay device or a repeater, or a base station or TRP, or a device with read-write functions, such as a reader / writer. The specific details are not limited here.

[0104] To facilitate a better understanding of the embodiments of the present application, the A-IoT data / service types are explained.

[0105] Device-originating (DO) and device-terminating (DT) data indicate that the data flow originates from or is transmitted to an A-IoT device (similar to an RFID tag). Data flows originating from A-IoT devices, or DO data, can be further categorized as device-originating-autonomous (DO-A) and device-originating–device-terminated triggered (DO-DTT).

[0106] DO-A, which means devices autonomously initiate data transmission, such as connecting a large number of various sensors that collect and actively report information about the environment, equipment, and organisms when necessary.

[0107] DO-DTT refers to devices initiating data transmission after being triggered by the network. For example, asset identification, status reporting, and tracking are all downlink-triggered reports. Readers collect data from tags by triggering inventory processes. Because the data is generated / initiated in IoT devices, this service should be considered a DO service initiated by a tag, triggered by a command sent by the reader.

[0108] To facilitate a better understanding of the embodiments of the present application, the information transmission between the reader and the tag in the RFID is described.

[0109] RFID is a traditional backscatter communication system designed to identify and read data from BSC devices (i.e., tags) within the reader's coverage area. Because RFID was initially used for automated inventory counting of large quantities of goods, the process of tag identification and data reading is also known as inventory taking.

[0110] Specifically, after the reader sends a query command (Query), the tag responds (Reply). For example, if the Reply is RN16, the tag generates a 16-bit random number and sends it to the reader. The reader then sends this sequence to the tag via an Acknowledgement (ACK) command. After the tag successfully verifies the RN16 in the ACK, it sends subsequent data (such as PC / XPC, EPC, etc.) to the reader.

[0111] The command (Command) of the reader (Reader) operation may be as shown in Table 1 below, and the status of the tag (Tag) may be as shown in Table 2 below.

[0112] Table 1

[0113]

[0114]

[0115] Table 2

[0116]

[0117] To facilitate understanding of the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present application, the technical solutions of the present application are described in detail below through specific embodiments. The above related technologies can be combined arbitrarily with the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present application as optional solutions, and all of them fall within the scope of protection of the embodiments of the present application. The embodiments of the present application include at least part of the following contents.

[0118] Figure 4 is a schematic flow chart of a method 200 for determining timing advance information according to an embodiment of the present application, such as Figure 4 As shown, the method 200 for determining timing advance information may include at least part of the following:

[0119] S210. The terminal obtains A-IoT information; wherein the A-IoT information includes at least one of the following: identification information of at least one A-IoT device, location information of at least one A-IoT device, grid information of at least one A-IoT device, reflected signal strength information of at least one A-IoT device, timing advance information of at least one cell, timing advance information of at least one TAG, timing advance information of a specific cell, and a timing advance difference between the at least one cell and the specific cell; wherein the at least one A-IoT device is deployed in the target cell, and the at least one cell includes the target cell;

[0120] S220: The terminal determines the timing advance information of the target cell based on the A-IoT information.

[0121] It should be understood that Figure 4 The steps or operations of the method 200 for determining timing advance information are shown, but these steps or operations are only examples, and the present application may also perform other operations or Figure 4 Variations of the various operations in .

[0122] In an embodiment of the present application, the terminal obtains A-IoT information, and the terminal determines the timing advance information of the target cell based on the A-IoT information. That is, the timing advance information of the target cell can be determined based on the assistance of the A-IoT device without the participation of the network side, which can reduce the delay in obtaining the timing advance information and release part of the downlink resources. The A-IoT device has the advantages of low cost, low power consumption, low complexity, and maintenance-free, thereby reducing the power consumption of the terminal in determining the timing advance information and improving the network energy-saving performance.

[0123] The timing advance information described in the embodiment of the present application may include TA or information related to TA;

[0124] The information related to the TA may include, for example, a timer related to the TA, an offset value related to the TA, a TA group (TA group, TAG), and the like.

[0125] Exemplarily, the target cell may include at least one of the following: a serving cell, a non-serving cell (such as a neighboring cell).

[0126] In some embodiments, the timing advance information of the target cell is applicable to the TA group in which the target cell is located. That is, the timing advance of cells in a TA group is the timing advance of the target cell.

[0127] In some embodiments, when an A-IoT device is deployed, at least one of the following may be stored: timing advance information of at least one cell at a specific location, timing advance information of a specific cell at a specific location, and the timing advance difference between at least one cell and a specific cell. The information stored by different A-IoT devices may be the same or different.

[0128] For example, an A-IoT device stores at least one of the following: timing advance information of the cell where the A-IoT device is located at a specific location, the timing advance difference between the cell where the A-IoT device is located and a specific cell, and timing advance information of the specific cell at a specific location.

[0129] In some embodiments, an A-IoT device may be pre-configured with at least one of the following: timing advance information for at least one cell at a specific location, timing advance information for a specific cell at a specific location, and a timing advance difference between at least one cell and a specific cell. The pre-configured information may be the same or different for different A-IoT devices.

[0130] In some embodiments, the specific cell may be agreed upon by a protocol, or may be configured by the network side. Exemplarily, the specific cell is a serving cell.

[0131] In some embodiments, the grid information may include both the grid identifier and the cell identifier to which the network identifier belongs.

[0132] In the embodiment of the present application, the A-IoT device is deployed at a relatively fixed location in the cell, so the A-IoT device can provide information related to timing advance.

[0133] In the embodiment of the present application, the grid can also be understood as a network zone.

[0134] In the embodiment of the present application, the timing advance difference can also be understood as a downlink transmission timing difference or an observation time difference.

[0135] In some embodiments, the cells in the network may be divided into at least two grids. For example, a schematic diagram of dividing the cells in the network into grids may be as follows: Figure 5 shown.

[0136] In some embodiments, the network side may support at least one mesh segmentation scheme or granularity, for example, mesh segmentation according to the granularity of A-IoT devices.

[0137] For example, different cells in the network may use a unified grid segmentation scheme or granularity, and an A-IoT device may be located in at least two cells at the same time.

[0138] For example, an operator can deploy A-IoT devices in a network. Cells in the network are divided into multiple grids, and terminals or A-IoT devices can be located in specific grids. That is, the location information of the terminal or A-IoT device can be represented by grid information. Grid information is used to identify the grid within a cell. For example, grid information can include the cell identification information of the cell where the grid is located and the grid identification information of the network.

[0139] In some embodiments, the A-IoT device may also be an A-IoT terminal, a passive Internet of Things (Passive-IoT) device, an ambient energy (AMP) device, a zero-power device, a low-power IoT device, an IoT device, a response device, a tag, an RFID tag, etc.

[0140] In some embodiments, the timing advance information of the at least one cell includes timing advance information of the at least one cell at a specific location, and the timing advance information of the specific cell includes timing advance information of the specific cell at a specific location;

[0141] The specific location is represented by the identification information of the A-IoT device or the grid information where the A-IoT device is located.

[0142] In some embodiments, the terminal may obtain A-IoT information from an A-IoT device.

[0143] In some embodiments, the above S210 may specifically include:

[0144] The terminal obtains A-IoT information through at least one of the following:

[0145] Inventory, detection, and measurement of A-IoT devices.

[0146] It should be noted that, from the perspective of the terminal (UE), the UE has A-IoT capability (capable), which is called AmbientIoT capable UE, that is, the UE has 3GPP communication capability and Ambient IoT capability. Ambient IoT capable UE can take inventory of Ambient IoT devices. For example, the UE can take inventory of Ambient IoT devices under the control of the network, for example, the network configures wireless resources for the UE so that the UE performs Ambient IoT related operations on the wireless resources. In an embodiment of the present application, the terminal (UE) can take inventory or detect or measure these A-IoT devices. These operations of taking inventory or detecting or measuring A-IoT devices can be regarded as a background task in the 3GPP communication process.

[0147] For example, the terminal (UE) may inventory, detect, or measure these A-IoT devices to determine the timing advance information of the target cell. That is, the timing advance information of the target cell is determined with the assistance of the A-IoT devices.

[0148] In some embodiments, the method 200 for determining timing advance information further includes:

[0149] The terminal receives first configuration information from the network side device;

[0150] The first configuration information includes but is not limited to at least one of the following:

[0151] Grid information of the cell, grid segmentation granularity supported by the network side, identification information of A-IoT devices deployed in the network, A-IoT device information associated with each grid, grid information associated with each A-IoT device, timing advance information of at least one cell, timing advance information of at least one TAG, timing advance information of a specific cell, timing advance difference between at least one cell and a specific cell, mapping relationship between identification information and timing advance information of the A-IoT device, mapping relationship between location information and timing advance information of the A-IoT device, mapping relationship between grids and timing advance information, the terminal is configured to allow application of the A-IoT information, the terminal is configured to allow determination of timing advance information based on assistance of the A-IoT device, the terminal is configured to allow reporting of timing advance information obtained or determined by the terminal to the network side device, and the terminal is configured to allow reporting to the network side device whether the terminal has obtained or determined the timing advance information.

[0152] In the embodiment of the present application, the above S220 may specifically include:

[0153] The terminal determines the timing advance information of the target cell based on the A-IoT information and the first configuration information.

[0154] In some embodiments, the terminal may also obtain timing advance information of a specific cell (eg, serving cell) through a random access channel (RACH) process.

[0155] In some embodiments, the first configuration information may be carried by at least one of the following:

[0156] System messages, reconfiguration messages.

[0157] Exemplarily, before the terminal obtains the A-IoT information, the terminal receives first configuration information from the network-side device.

[0158] In some embodiments, the method 200 for determining timing advance information further includes:

[0159] The terminal receives second configuration information from the first entity;

[0160] The second configuration information includes at least one of the following:

[0161] The second configuration information includes at least one of the following: identification information of an A-IoT device deployed in the network, timing advance information of at least one cell, timing advance information of a specific cell, a timing advance difference between at least one cell and a specific cell, and timing advance information corresponding to the identification information of the A-IoT device.

[0162] In some embodiments, the first entity may be a third-party server or a third-party network element.

[0163] In some embodiments, the first entity may be a core network element, or the first entity may be an application function (AF).

[0164] In the embodiment of the present application, the above S220 may specifically include:

[0165] The terminal determines the timing advance information of the target cell based on the A-IoT information and the second configuration information.

[0166] In an embodiment of the present application, the terminal determines the location information of the terminal based on the A-IoT information and the second configuration information.

[0167] Exemplarily, before the terminal obtains the A-IoT information, the terminal receives second configuration information from the first entity.

[0168] In some embodiments, the above S220 may specifically include:

[0169] The terminal determines, based on the grid information of the at least one A-IoT device included in the A-IoT information, the grid information of the target cell where the at least one A-IoT device is located;

[0170] The terminal determines the timing advance information of the target cell based on the timing advance information associated with the grid information of the target cell where the at least one A-IoT device is located.

[0171] Exemplarily, the association relationship between the grid information and the timing advance information may be pre-configured by the network side. For example, the terminal obtains the association relationship between the grid information and the timing advance information through the first configuration information.

[0172] In some embodiments, the above S220 may specifically include:

[0173] The terminal determines, based on the identification information of the at least one A-IoT device included in the A-IoT information, timing advance information associated with the identification information of the at least one A-IoT device;

[0174] The terminal determines the timing advance information of the target cell based on the timing advance information associated with the identification information of the at least one A-IoT device.

[0175] Exemplarily, the association relationship between the identification information of the A-IoT device and the timing advance information can be pre-configured by the network side. For example, the terminal obtains the association relationship between the identification information of the A-IoT device and the timing advance information through the first configuration information.

[0176] In some embodiments, the above S220 may specifically include:

[0177] The terminal determines, based on the location information of the at least one A-IoT device included in the A-IoT information, timing advance information associated with the location information of the at least one A-IoT device;

[0178] The terminal determines the timing advance information of the target cell based on the timing advance information associated with the location information of the at least one A-IoT device.

[0179] Exemplarily, the association between the location information and the timing advance information of the A-IoT device can be pre-configured by the network side. For example, the terminal obtains the association between the location information and the timing advance information of the A-IoT device through the first configuration information.

[0180] In some embodiments, the above S220 may specifically include:

[0181] The terminal determines the location information of the terminal based on at least one of the identification information of the at least one A-IoT device, the location information of the at least one A-IoT device, the grid information in which the at least one A-IoT device is located, and the reflected signal strength information of the at least one A-IoT device, which are included in the A-IoT information;

[0182] The terminal determines the timing advance information of the target cell according to the timing advance information associated with the location information of the terminal.

[0183] Optionally, when the location information of the terminal is represented by the identification information of the A-IoT device, the terminal determines the timing advance information of the target cell based on the timing advance information associated with the identification information of the A-IoT device used to represent the location information of the terminal. Exemplarily, the association between the identification information of the A-IoT device and the timing advance information can be pre-configured by the network side. For example, the terminal obtains the association between the identification information of the A-IoT device and the timing advance information through the first configuration information.

[0184] Optionally, when the location information of the terminal is represented by the location information of the A-IoT device, the terminal determines the timing advance information of the target cell based on the timing advance information associated with the location information of the A-IoT device used to represent the location information of the terminal. Exemplarily, the association between the location information of the A-IoT device and the timing advance information can be pre-configured by the network side. For example, the terminal obtains the association between the location information of the A-IoT device and the timing advance information through the first configuration information.

[0185] Optionally, when the terminal's location information is represented by the grid information in which the A-IoT device is located, the terminal determines the timing advance information of the target cell based on the timing advance information associated with the grid information used to represent the terminal's location information. Exemplarily, the association between the grid information and the timing advance information can be pre-configured by the network. For example, the terminal obtains the association between the grid information and the timing advance information through the first configuration information.

[0186] In some embodiments, the above S220 may specifically include:

[0187] The terminal determines the timing advance information of the target cell based on the timing advance information of the at least one cell or the timing advance information of the at least one TAG contained in the A-IoT information.

[0188] For example, the terminal determines the timing advance information of the target cell based on the timing advance information of the target cell at a specific location included in the A-IoT information.

[0189] In some embodiments, the above S220 may specifically include:

[0190] The terminal determines the timing advance information of the target cell based on the timing advance difference between the at least one cell and the specific cell contained in the A-IoT information, and the timing advance information of the specific cell. Exemplarily, the timing advance information of the specific cell can be obtained during the random access process, or the timing advance information of the specific cell is pre-configured by the network side.

[0191] In some embodiments, the above S220 may specifically include:

[0192] The terminal determines the timing advance information of the target cell based on the timing advance information of the specific cell at the specific location contained in the A-IoT information and the timing advance difference between the target cell and the specific cell. Exemplarily, the timing advance difference between the target cell and the specific cell can be pre-configured by the network side.

[0193] Optionally, the timing advance of a specific cell (such as a serving cell) can be understood as the timing advance corresponding to the current UE position, and the position is marked by a grid or an A-IoT device.

[0194] Exemplarily, the terminal may first determine the timing advance of the serving cell, may obtain the timing advance of the serving cell through the RACH process, or may obtain the timing advance of the serving cell from the first configuration information or the A-IoT information.

[0195] Exemplarily, the terminal obtains the timing advance difference between the target cell and the serving cell from the first configuration information or the A-IoT information.

[0196] Exemplarily, the timing advance difference between the target cell and the serving cell=the timing advance of the target cell-the timing advance of the serving cell.

[0197] Exemplarily, the terminal may determine the timing advance of the target cell based on the timing advance of the serving cell and the timing advance difference between the target cell and the serving cell. For example, without loss of generality, the timing advance of the target cell is equal to the sum of the timing advance of the serving cell and the timing advance difference between the target cell and the serving cell. For example, the timing advance of the target cell = the timing advance of the serving cell + the timing advance difference between the target cell and the serving cell.

[0198] In some embodiments, the method 200 for determining timing advance information further includes:

[0199] The terminal performs random access in the target cell according to the timing advance information of the target cell.

[0200] In this embodiment, after determining the timing advance information of the target cell, random access can be performed in the target cell based on the timing advance information of the target cell, which can effectively align the time when the terminal signal arrives at the base station and improve the performance of random access.

[0201] Exemplarily, if the terminal is configured to allow the application of timing advance information to perform random access or handover in the target cell, the terminal performs random access in the target cell according to the timing advance information of the target cell.

[0202] In some embodiments, the method 200 for determining timing advance information further includes:

[0203] The terminal sends first information to the network side device;

[0204] The first information includes at least one of the following: location information of the terminal, and timing advance information of the target cell.

[0205] In this embodiment, the terminal reports the first information, so that the network side can perform corresponding operations based on the first information, for example, providing timing advance information configuration, handover configuration, or measurement configuration.

[0206] Exemplarily, the network-side device may determine the first configuration information based on the first information.

[0207] In some embodiments, the location information of the terminal includes but is not limited to at least one of the following:

[0208] The identifiers of A-IoT devices detected by the terminal, the identifiers of the A-IoT devices closest to the terminal, the identifiers of the A-IoT devices with the strongest reflected signal strength detected by the terminal, the identifiers of A-IoT devices whose reflected signal strength exceeds the reflected signal strength threshold detected by the terminal, the identifiers of A-IoT devices detected by the terminal within a specific range centered on the terminal, the grid information of the terminal, the absolute position of the terminal, the relative position of the terminal, and a proximity indicator.

[0209] The proximity indication is used to indicate that the terminal is approaching or leaving at least one specific A-IoT device.

[0210] In this embodiment, by determining the grid position of the terminal in the network cell, the location information of the terminal can potentially be further utilized to improve communication performance.

[0211] Optionally, a specific A-IoT device may be configured by the network side, or a specific A-IoT device may be agreed upon by a protocol.

[0212] Optionally, the specific range may be agreed upon by a protocol, or the specific range may be configured by the network side, or the specific range may be determined by negotiation between the terminal and the network side device.

[0213] Exemplarily, the relative position of the terminal may be the position of the terminal relative to a reference point, wherein the reference point may include at least one of the following: a specific absolute position, a specific base station, a specific TRP, or a specific cell.

[0214] In some embodiments, the grid information of the terminal includes but is not limited to at least one of the following:

[0215] The grid where the A-IoT device closest to the terminal is located, as detected by the terminal;

[0216] The grid where the A-IoT device with the strongest reflected signal detected by the terminal is located;

[0217] The grid where the A-IoT device whose reflected signal strength detected by the terminal exceeds the reflected signal strength threshold is located;

[0218] The intersection of the grids where at least two A-IoT devices are located detected by the terminal;

[0219] The grid that appears most frequently among the grids where at least two A-IoT devices are located detected by the terminal;

[0220] The grid with the highest probability of appearing among the grids where at least two A-IoT devices detected by the terminal are located.

[0221] Exemplarily, the grid information where the terminal is located includes the intersection of grids where at least two A-IoT devices detected by the terminal are located. For example, in the A-IoT information, A-IoT device A is in grid 1 of cell 1, A-IoT device B is in grid 1 of cell 1 and grid 2 of cell 2, and A-IoT device C is in grid 1 of cell 1 and grid 2 of cell 2. Then the grid where the terminal is located is grid 1 of cell 1.

[0222] Exemplarily, the grid information where the terminal is located includes the grid that appears most frequently among the grids where at least two A-IoT devices are located detected by the terminal, or the grid that appears with the highest probability among the grids where at least two A-IoT devices are located detected by the terminal. In the A-IoT information, A-IoT device A is in grid 1 of cell 1, A-IoT device B is in grid 1 of cell 1 and grid 2 of cell 2, and A-IoT device C is in grid 3 of cell 1 and grid 3 of cell 2. Then the grid where the terminal is located is grid 1 of cell 1.

[0223] In some embodiments, the absolute position of the terminal includes but is not limited to at least one of the following:

[0224] The absolute location of the A-IoT device closest to the terminal detected by the terminal;

[0225] The absolute location of the A-IoT device with the largest reflected signal strength detected by the terminal;

[0226] The absolute location of the A-IoT device whose reflected signal strength detected by the terminal exceeds the reflected signal strength threshold;

[0227] the center position of the absolute positions of at least two A-IoT devices detected by the terminal;

[0228] The longitude and latitude of the terminal.

[0229] Exemplarily, the absolute position of the terminal includes the center position of the absolute positions of at least two A-IoT devices detected by the terminal, so that the distance between the terminal and the at least two A-IoT devices is equal or close.

[0230] For example, based on the absolute positions of two A-IoT devices, the midpoint is calculated to be the terminal location. Without loss of generality, expressing the position in coordinates, A-IoT device A is located at [X1, Y1], and A-IoT device B is located at [X2, Y2]. The UE location is then [(X1+X2) / 2, (Y1+Y2) / 2].

[0231] For another example, based on the absolute positions of three A-IoT devices, the center of the circumscribed circle of the triangle formed by the absolute positions of the three A-IoT devices is taken as the UE position.

[0232] In some embodiments, the relative position of the terminal includes but is not limited to at least one of the following:

[0233] The relative position of the A-IoT device closest to the terminal detected by the terminal;

[0234] The relative position of the A-IoT device with the largest reflected signal strength detected by the terminal;

[0235] The relative position of the A-IoT device whose reflected signal strength detected by the terminal exceeds the reflected signal strength threshold;

[0236] The average of the relative positions of at least two A-IoT devices detected by the terminal.

[0237] It should be noted that the relative position of an A-IoT device is the position information of the A-IoT device relative to a reference point. For example, the reference point is a specific absolute position, a base station position, or a TRP position.

[0238] Exemplarily, the relative position of the terminal includes the average value of the relative positions of at least two A-IoT devices detected by the terminal. If the relative position is a distance, the average value calculated based on the distance of at least two A-IoT devices is the terminal position.

[0239] For example, the relative position of the terminal may include the relative position of a randomly selected A-IoT device from at least two A-IoT devices detected by the terminal, or the relative position of an A-IoT device selected according to a specific rule from at least two A-IoT devices detected by the terminal. Optionally, the specific rule may be agreed upon by a protocol, or may be configured by the network side.

[0240] In some embodiments, the proximity indication includes, but is not limited to, at least one of the following:

[0241] an identifier of at least one specific A-IoT device that the terminal approaches or leaves;

[0242] an indication that the terminal is approaching or leaving at least one specific A-IoT device;

[0243] Indication of the terminal approaching or leaving all specific A-IoT devices.

[0244] The proximity can be understood as that the reflected signal strength of the specific A-IoT device measured by the UE exceeds the reflected signal strength threshold; or the distance between the UE and the specific A-IoT device is lower than a certain configured or agreed distance threshold.

[0245] Similarly, the departure can be understood as that the reflected signal strength of the specific A-IoT device measured by the UE is lower than the reflected signal strength threshold; or, the distance between the UE and the specific A-IoT device is higher than the distance threshold.

[0246] Exemplarily, the first information may be carried by at least one of the following:

[0247] Measurement report, terminal assistance message.

[0248] In some embodiments, the method 200 for determining timing advance information further includes:

[0249] The terminal receives second information from a network side device; the second information includes at least one of the following: wireless resources allowed to be used by the terminal after switching to a target cell, and a first timing advance; wherein the first timing advance is determined based on the first information.

[0250] In some embodiments, the method 200 for determining timing advance information further includes:

[0251] The terminal switches to the target cell in a RACH-Less manner according to the timing advance information or the first timing advance of the target cell.

[0252] In this embodiment, handover to the target cell is performed in a RACH-less manner based on the timing advance information or the first timing advance of the target cell, which can reduce handover delay and improve handover performance.

[0253] Exemplarily, if the terminal is configured to allow random access or handover in the target cell using timing advance information, the terminal hands over to the target cell in a RACH-Less manner according to the timing advance information or the first timing advance of the target cell.

[0254] Therefore, the terminal obtains A-IoT information, and the terminal determines the timing advance information of the target cell based on the A-IoT information. That is, the timing advance information of the target cell can be determined based on the assistance of the A-IoT device without the participation of the network side, which can reduce the delay in determining the timing advance information and release some downlink resources. The A-IoT device has the advantages of low cost, low power consumption, low complexity, and maintenance-free, which can also reduce the power consumption of the terminal in determining the timing advance information and improve the network energy-saving performance.

[0255] The above-mentioned Figure 4 and Figure 5 The terminal side solution of this application is described in detail. Figure 6 The network side solution of the present application is described. The same description can refer to the above-mentioned terminal side. For the sake of brevity, it will not be repeated here.

[0256] Figure 6 is a schematic flow chart of a method 300 for determining timing advance information according to an embodiment of the present application, such as Figure 6 As shown, the method 300 for determining timing advance information may include at least part of the following:

[0257] S310. The network-side device sends first configuration information to the terminal, where the first configuration information is used to determine timing advance information. The first configuration information includes at least one of the following: grid information of the cell, grid segmentation granularity supported by the network side, identification information of ambient Internet of Things (A-IoT) devices deployed in the network, A-IoT device information associated with each grid, grid information associated with each A-IoT device, timing advance information of at least one cell, timing advance information of at least one timing advance group (TAG), timing advance information of a specific cell, a timing advance difference between at least one cell and a specific cell, a mapping relationship between identification information of the A-IoT device and timing advance information, a mapping relationship between location information of the A-IoT device and timing advance information, and a mapping relationship between grids and timing advance information. The terminal is configured to allow application of the A-IoT information, the terminal is configured to allow determination of timing advance information based on assistance from the A-IoT device, the terminal is configured to allow reporting of timing advance information acquired or determined by the terminal to the network-side device, and the terminal is configured to allow reporting of whether the terminal has acquired or determined the timing advance information to the network-side device.

[0258] In an embodiment of the present application, the terminal obtains A-IoT information, and the terminal determines the timing advance information of the target cell based on the A-IoT information. That is, the timing advance information of the target cell can be determined based on the assistance of the A-IoT device without the participation of the network side, which can reduce the delay in determining the timing advance information and release part of the downlink resources. The A-IoT device has the advantages of low cost, low power consumption, low complexity, and maintenance-free, thereby also reducing the power consumption of the terminal in determining the timing advance information and improving the network energy-saving performance.

[0259] The above-mentioned Figure 4 and Figure 5 The terminal side solution of this application is described in detail. Figure 7 The first entity side solution of the present application is described. The same description can refer to the above-mentioned terminal side. For the sake of brevity, it will not be repeated here.

[0260] Figure 7 is a schematic flow chart of a method 400 for determining timing advance information according to an embodiment of the present application, such as Figure 7 As shown, the method 400 for determining timing advance information may include at least part of the following:

[0261] S410, the first entity sends second configuration information to the terminal, and the second configuration information is used to determine the timing advance information; wherein, the second configuration information includes at least one of the following: the second configuration information includes at least one of the following: identification information of the A-IoT device deployed in the network, timing advance information of at least one cell, timing advance information of at least one TAG, timing advance information of a specific cell, the timing advance difference between at least one cell and a specific cell, and timing advance information corresponding to the identification information of the A-IoT device.

[0262] In some embodiments, the first entity may be a third-party server or a third-party network element.

[0263] In some embodiments, the first entity may be a core network element, or the first entity may be an application function (AF).

[0264] In an embodiment of the present application, the terminal obtains A-IoT information, and the terminal determines the timing advance information of the target cell based on the A-IoT information. That is, the timing advance information of the target cell can be determined based on the assistance of the A-IoT device without the participation of the network side, which can reduce the delay in determining the timing advance information and release part of the downlink resources. The A-IoT device has the advantages of low cost, low power consumption, low complexity, and maintenance-free, thereby also reducing the power consumption of the terminal in determining the timing advance information and improving the network energy-saving performance.

[0265] The method for determining timing advance information provided in the embodiments of the present application may be performed by a device for determining timing advance information, or by a processing unit within the device for determining timing advance information that is configured to perform the method for determining timing advance information. The embodiments of the present application use the method performed by the device for determining timing advance information as an example to illustrate the device for determining timing advance information provided in the embodiments of the present application.

[0266] Figure 8 FIG. 5 shows a schematic block diagram of an apparatus 500 for determining timing advance information according to an embodiment of the present application. Figure 8 As shown, the apparatus 500 for determining timing advance information includes:

[0267] The processing unit 510 is configured to obtain A-IoT information;

[0268] The processing unit 510 is further configured to determine the timing advance information of the target cell based on the A-IoT information;

[0269] The A-IoT information includes at least one of the following: identification information of at least one A-IoT device, location information of at least one A-IoT device, grid information of at least one A-IoT device, reflected signal strength information of at least one A-IoT device, timing advance information of at least one cell, timing advance information of at least one timing advance group TAG, timing advance information of a specific cell, and a timing advance difference between at least one cell and a specific cell;

[0270] The at least one A-IoT device is deployed in the target cell, and the at least one cell includes the target cell.

[0271] In some embodiments, the timing advance information of the at least one cell includes timing advance information of the at least one cell at a specific location, and the timing advance information of the specific cell includes timing advance information of the specific cell at a specific location;

[0272] The specific location is represented by the identification information of the A-IoT device or the grid information where the A-IoT device is located.

[0273] In some embodiments, the apparatus 500 further includes:

[0274] The transceiver unit 520 is configured to receive first configuration information from a network-side device;

[0275] Among them, the first configuration information includes at least one of the following: grid information of the cell, grid segmentation granularity supported by the network side, identification information of A-IoT devices deployed in the network, A-IoT device information associated with each grid, grid information associated with each A-IoT device, timing advance information of at least one cell, timing advance information of at least one TAG, timing advance information of a specific cell, timing advance difference between at least one cell and a specific cell, mapping relationship between identification information of the A-IoT device and timing advance information, mapping relationship between location information of the A-IoT device and timing advance information, mapping relationship between grids and timing advance information, the terminal is configured to allow application of the A-IoT information, the terminal is configured to allow determination of timing advance information based on the assistance of the A-IoT device, the terminal is configured to allow reporting to the network side device the timing advance information obtained or determined by the terminal, and the terminal is configured to allow reporting to the network side device whether the terminal has obtained or determined the timing advance information.

[0276] In some embodiments, the processing unit 510 is specifically configured to:

[0277] Determine the timing advance information of the target cell based on the A-IoT information and the first configuration information.

[0278] In some embodiments, the apparatus 500 further includes:

[0279] The transceiver unit 520 is configured to receive second configuration information from the first entity;

[0280] The second configuration information includes at least one of the following:

[0281] Identification information of A-IoT devices deployed in the network, timing advance information of at least one cell, timing advance information of at least one TAG, timing advance information of a specific cell, timing advance difference between at least one cell and a specific cell, and timing advance information corresponding to the identification information of the A-IoT device.

[0282] In some embodiments, the processing unit 510 is specifically configured to:

[0283] Determine the timing advance information of the target cell based on the A-IoT information and the second configuration information.

[0284] In some embodiments, the processing unit 510 is specifically configured to:

[0285] Determining, according to the grid information of the at least one A-IoT device included in the A-IoT information, the grid information of the at least one A-IoT device in the target cell;

[0286] Determine the timing advance information of the target cell according to the timing advance information associated with the grid information of the target cell where the at least one A-IoT device is located.

[0287] In some embodiments, the processing unit 510 is specifically configured to:

[0288] Determining, based on the identification information of the at least one A-IoT device included in the A-IoT information, timing advance information associated with the identification information of the at least one A-IoT device;

[0289] Determine the timing advance information of the target cell according to the timing advance information associated with the identification information of the at least one A-IoT device.

[0290] In some embodiments, the processing unit 510 is specifically configured to:

[0291] Determining, based on the location information of the at least one A-IoT device included in the A-IoT information, timing advance information associated with the location information of the at least one A-IoT device;

[0292] Determine the timing advance information of the target cell according to the timing advance information associated with the location information of the at least one A-IoT device.

[0293] In some embodiments, the processing unit 510 is specifically configured to:

[0294] Determining the location information of the apparatus 500 for determining timing advance information according to at least one of the identification information of the at least one A-IoT device, the location information of the at least one A-IoT device, the grid information in which the at least one A-IoT device is located, and the reflected signal strength information of the at least one A-IoT device, contained in the A-IoT information;

[0295] The timing advance information of the target cell is determined according to the timing advance information associated with the location information of the apparatus 500 for determining the timing advance information.

[0296] In some embodiments, the processing unit 510 is specifically configured to:

[0297] In a case where the location information of the apparatus 500 for determining the timing advance information is represented by identification information of an A-IoT device, determining the timing advance information of the target cell according to the timing advance information associated with the identification information of the A-IoT device used to represent the location information of the apparatus 500 for determining the timing advance information;

[0298] In a case where the location information of the apparatus 500 for determining the timing advance information is represented by the location information of an A-IoT device, determining the timing advance information of the target cell according to the timing advance information associated with the location information of the A-IoT device used to represent the location information of the apparatus 500 for determining the timing advance information;

[0299] In a case where the location information of the apparatus 500 for determining timing advance information is represented by the grid information in which the A-IoT device is located, the timing advance information of the target cell is determined according to the timing advance information associated with the grid information used to represent the location information of the apparatus 500 for determining timing advance information.

[0300] In some embodiments, the processing unit 510 is specifically configured to:

[0301] The timing advance information of the target cell is determined according to the timing advance information of the at least one cell or the timing advance information of the at least one TAG contained in the A-IoT information.

[0302] In some embodiments, the processing unit 510 is specifically configured to:

[0303] The timing advance information of the target cell is determined according to the timing advance difference between the at least one cell and the specific cell contained in the A-IoT information, and the timing advance information of the specific cell.

[0304] In some embodiments, the processing unit 510 is specifically configured to:

[0305] The timing advance information of the target cell is determined according to the timing advance information of the specific cell contained in the A-IoT information and the timing advance difference between the target cell and the specific cell.

[0306] In some embodiments, the processing unit 510 is further configured to perform random access in the target cell according to the timing advance information of the target cell.

[0307] In some embodiments, the apparatus 500 for determining timing advance information further includes:

[0308] The transceiver unit 520 is configured to send first information to the network side device; wherein the first information includes at least one of the following: location information of the apparatus 500 for determining timing advance information, and timing advance information of the target cell;

[0309] Among them, the location information of the device 500 for determining the timing advance information includes at least one of the following: the identifier of the A-IoT device detected by the device 500 for determining the timing advance information, the identifier of the A-IoT device closest to the device 500 for determining the timing advance information detected by the device 500 for determining the timing advance information, the identifier of the A-IoT device with the largest reflected signal strength detected by the device 500 for determining the timing advance information, the identifier of the A-IoT device detected by the device 500 for determining the timing advance information and located within a specific range centered on the device 500 for determining the timing advance information, the grid information in which the device 500 for determining the timing advance information is located, the absolute position of the device 500 for determining the timing advance information, and the relative position of the device 500 for determining the timing advance information.

[0310] In some embodiments, the transceiver unit 520 is further configured to receive second information from the network side device;

[0311] The second information includes at least one of the following: radio resources allowed to be used after the apparatus 500 for determining timing advance information switches to the target cell, a first timing advance;

[0312] The first timing advance is determined based on the first information.

[0313] In some embodiments, the processing unit 510 is further configured to switch to the target cell in a RACH-Less manner according to the timing advance information of the target cell or the first timing advance.

[0314] In some embodiments, the processing unit 510 is specifically configured to:

[0315] The A-IoT information is obtained by at least one of the following:

[0316] Inventory, detection, and measurement of A-IoT devices.

[0317] In some embodiments, the transceiver unit 520 may be a communication interface or transceiver, or an input / output interface of a communication chip or a system on chip. The processing unit 510 may be embedded in or independent of a processor of the terminal in the form of hardware.

[0318] It should be understood that the apparatus 500 for determining timing advance information according to the embodiment of the present application may correspond to the terminal in the method embodiment of the present application, and the various units in the apparatus 500 for determining timing advance information are respectively for realizing Figure 4 For the sake of brevity, the corresponding process of the terminal in the method 200 is not repeated here.

[0319] In an embodiment of the present application, the terminal obtains A-IoT information, and the terminal determines the timing advance information of the target cell based on the A-IoT information. That is, the timing advance information of the target cell can be determined based on the assistance of the A-IoT device without the participation of the network side, which can reduce the delay in determining the timing advance information and release part of the downlink resources. The A-IoT device has the advantages of low cost, low power consumption, low complexity, and maintenance-free, thereby also reducing the power consumption of the terminal in determining the timing advance information and improving the network energy-saving performance.

[0320] Figure 9 FIG. 6 is a schematic block diagram of an apparatus 600 for determining timing advance information according to an embodiment of the present application. Figure 9 As shown, the apparatus 600 for determining timing advance information includes:

[0321] The transceiver unit 610 is configured to send first configuration information to the terminal, where the first configuration information is used to determine timing advance information; wherein the first configuration information includes at least one of the following:

[0322] Grid information of the cell, grid segmentation granularity supported by the network side, identification information of the ambient Internet of Things A-IoT devices deployed in the network, A-IoT device information associated with each grid, grid information associated with each A-IoT device, timing advance information of at least one cell, timing advance information of at least one timing advance group TAG, timing advance information of a specific cell, timing advance difference between at least one cell and a specific cell, mapping relationship between identification information of the A-IoT device and timing advance information, mapping relationship between location information of the A-IoT device and timing advance information, mapping relationship between grids and timing advance information, the terminal is configured to allow application of the A-IoT information, the terminal is configured to allow determination of timing advance information based on assistance of the A-IoT device, the terminal is configured to allow reporting of timing advance information obtained or determined by the terminal to the network side device, and the terminal is configured to allow reporting to the network side device whether the terminal has obtained or determined the timing advance information.

[0323] In some embodiments, the transceiver unit 610 may be a communication interface or a transceiver, or an input / output interface of a communication chip or a system on chip.

[0324] It should be understood that the apparatus 600 for determining timing advance information according to the embodiment of the present application may correspond to the network side device in the embodiment of the method of the present application, and the various units in the apparatus 600 for determining timing advance information are respectively for realizing Figure 6 For the sake of brevity, the corresponding processes of the network-side device in the method 300 are not repeated here.

[0325] In an embodiment of the present application, the terminal obtains A-IoT information, and the terminal determines the timing advance information of the target cell based on the A-IoT information. That is, the timing advance information of the target cell can be determined based on the assistance of the A-IoT device without the participation of the network side, which can reduce the delay in determining the timing advance information and release part of the downlink resources. The A-IoT device has the advantages of low cost, low power consumption, low complexity, and maintenance-free, thereby also reducing the power consumption of the terminal in determining the timing advance information and improving the network energy-saving performance.

[0326] Figure 10 FIG. 7 is a schematic block diagram of an apparatus 700 for determining timing advance information according to an embodiment of the present application. Figure 10 As shown, the apparatus 700 for determining timing advance information includes:

[0327] The transceiver unit 710 is configured to send second configuration information to the terminal, where the second configuration information is used to determine the timing advance information;

[0328] The second configuration information includes at least one of the following: identification information of an A-IoT device deployed in the network, timing advance information of at least one cell, timing advance information of at least one timing advance group TAG, timing advance information of a specific cell, a timing advance difference between at least one cell and a specific cell, and timing advance information corresponding to the identification information of the A-IoT device.

[0329] In some embodiments, the transceiver unit 710 may be a communication interface or a transceiver, or an input / output interface of a communication chip or a system on chip.

[0330] It should be understood that the apparatus 700 for determining timing advance information according to the embodiment of the present application may correspond to the first entity in the method embodiment of the present application, and the various units in the apparatus 700 for determining timing advance information are respectively for implementing Figure 7 The corresponding process of the first entity in the method 400 shown is not repeated here for the sake of brevity.

[0331] Therefore, in an embodiment of the present application, the terminal obtains A-IoT information, and the terminal determines the timing advance information of the target cell based on the A-IoT information. That is, the timing advance information of the target cell can be determined based on the assistance of the A-IoT device without the participation of the network side, which can reduce the delay in determining the timing advance information and release part of the downlink resources. The A-IoT device has the advantages of low cost, low power consumption, low complexity, and maintenance-free, thereby also reducing the power consumption of the terminal in determining the timing advance information and improving the network energy-saving performance.

[0332] The apparatus for determining timing advance information in the embodiments of the present application may be an electronic device, such as an electronic device having an operating system, or a component in the electronic device, such as an integrated circuit or chip. The electronic device may be a terminal, a network-side device, or a first entity. For example, the terminal may include but is not limited to the types of terminal 11 listed above, the network-side device may include but is not limited to the types of network-side device 12 listed above, and the first entity may be a server, a network attached storage (NAS), etc., which is not specifically limited in the embodiments of the present application.

[0333] The apparatus for determining timing advance information provided in the embodiment of the present application can achieve Figure 4 、 Figure 6 or Figure 7 The various processes implemented by the method embodiment achieve the same technical effect and are not described here again to avoid repetition.

[0334] like Figure 11As shown, an embodiment of the present application further provides a communication device 800, including a processor 801 and a memory 802, where the memory 802 stores programs or instructions that can be run on the processor 801.

[0335] For example, when the communication device 800 is a terminal, the program or instruction is executed by the processor 801 to implement the various steps performed by the terminal in the above-mentioned method embodiment for determining timing advance information, and can achieve the same technical effect. To avoid repetition, it will not be repeated here.

[0336] For another example, when the communication device 800 is a network side device, when the program or instruction is executed by the processor 801, the various steps performed by the network side device in the above-mentioned method embodiment for determining the timing advance information are implemented, and the same technical effect can be achieved. To avoid repetition, they will not be repeated here.

[0337] For another example, when the communication device 800 is a first entity, the program or instruction is executed by the processor 801 to implement the various steps performed by the first entity in the above-mentioned method embodiment for determining timing advance information, and can achieve the same technical effect. To avoid repetition, it will not be repeated here.

[0338] The embodiment of the present application further provides a terminal, comprising a processor and a communication interface, wherein the communication interface is coupled to the processor, and the processor is configured to execute a program or instruction to implement the following Figure 4 The steps performed by the terminal in the method embodiment shown. This terminal embodiment corresponds to the above-mentioned terminal side method embodiment, and each implementation process and implementation method of the above-mentioned method embodiment can be applied to this terminal embodiment and can achieve the same technical effect. Specifically, Figure 12 A schematic diagram of the hardware structure of a terminal for implementing an embodiment of the present application.

[0339] The terminal 900 includes but is not limited to: a radio frequency unit 901, a network module 902, an audio output unit 903, an input unit 904, a sensor 905, a display unit 906, a user input unit 907, an interface unit 908, a memory 909 and at least some of the components of the processor 910.

[0340] Those skilled in the art will understand that the terminal 900 may also include a power supply (such as a battery) to power each component. The power supply can be logically connected to the processor 910 through a power management system, thereby realizing functions such as managing charging, discharging, and power consumption management through the power management system. Figure 12 The terminal structure shown in the figure does not constitute a limitation on the terminal. The terminal may include more or fewer components than shown in the figure, or combine certain components, or arrange the components differently, which will not be repeated here.

[0341] It should be understood that in an embodiment of the present application, the input unit 904 may include a graphics processing unit (GPU) 9041 and a microphone 9042, and the graphics processor 9041 processes the image data of a static picture or video obtained by an image capture device (such as a camera) in a video capture mode or an image capture mode. The display unit 906 may include a display panel 9061, and the display panel 9061 may be configured in the form of a liquid crystal display, an organic light emitting diode, etc. The user input unit 907 includes a touch panel 9071 and at least one of other input devices 9072. The touch panel 9071 is also called a touch screen. The touch panel 9071 may include two parts: a touch detection device and a touch controller. Other input devices 9072 may include, but are not limited to, a physical keyboard, function keys (such as volume control keys, switch keys, etc.), a trackball, a mouse, and an operating stick, which will not be repeated here.

[0342] In the embodiment of the present application, after receiving downlink data from a network-side device, the RF unit 901 may transmit the data to the processor 910 for processing. Furthermore, the RF unit 901 may send uplink data to the network-side device. Typically, the RF unit 901 includes, but is not limited to, an antenna, an amplifier, a transceiver, a coupler, a low-noise amplifier, a duplexer, and the like.

[0343] The memory 909 can be used to store software programs or instructions and various data. The memory 909 may mainly include a first storage area for storing programs or instructions and a second storage area for storing data, wherein the first storage area may store an operating system, applications or instructions required for at least one function (such as a sound playback function, an image playback function, etc.). In addition, the memory 909 may include a volatile memory or a non-volatile memory. Among them, the non-volatile memory may be a read-only memory (ROM), a programmable read-only memory (PROM), an erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM), an electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), or a flash memory. The volatile memory may be a random access memory (RAM), a static random access memory (SRAM), a dynamic random access memory (DRAM), a synchronous dynamic random access memory (SDRAM), a double data rate synchronous dynamic random access memory (DDRSDRAM), an enhanced synchronous dynamic random access memory (ESDRAM), a synchronous link dynamic random access memory (SLDRAM), and a direct memory bus random access memory (DRRAM). The memory 909 in the embodiment of the present application includes but is not limited to these and any other suitable types of memory.

[0344] Processor 910 may include at least one processing unit. Optionally, processor 910 integrates an application processor and a modem processor. The application processor primarily handles operations related to the operating system, user interface, and application programs, while the modem processor primarily processes wireless communication signals, such as a baseband processor. It is understood that the modem processor may not be integrated into processor 910.

[0345] In some embodiments, the processor 910 is used to obtain A-IoT information; wherein the A-IoT information includes at least one of the following: identification information of at least one A-IoT device, location information of at least one A-IoT device, grid information of at least one A-IoT device, reflected signal strength information of at least one A-IoT device, timing advance information of at least one cell, timing advance information of at least one timing advance group TAG, timing advance information of a specific cell, and a timing advance difference between at least one cell and a specific cell; wherein the at least one A-IoT device is deployed in the target cell, and the at least one cell includes the target cell; the processor 910 is also used to determine the timing advance information of the target cell based on the A-IoT information.

[0346] It can be understood that the implementation process of each implementation method mentioned in this embodiment can refer to the relevant description of the method embodiment and achieve the same or corresponding technical effects. To avoid repetition, it will not be repeated here.

[0347] The embodiment of the present application further provides a network side device, including a processor and a communication interface, wherein the communication interface is coupled to the processor, and the processor is used to run a program or instruction to implement the following Figure 6 The steps performed by the network-side device in the method embodiment shown are as follows. This network-side device embodiment corresponds to the above-mentioned network-side device method embodiment. Each implementation process and implementation method of the above-mentioned method embodiment are applicable to this network-side device embodiment and can achieve the same technical effect. For the sake of brevity, they are not described here in detail.

[0348] Specifically, the embodiment of the present application also provides a network side device. Figure 13 As shown, network-side device 110 includes an antenna 111, a radio frequency device 112, a baseband device 113, a processor 114, and a memory 115. Antenna 111 is connected to radio frequency device 112. In the uplink direction, radio frequency device 112 receives information via antenna 111 and sends the received information to baseband device 113 for processing. In the downlink direction, baseband device 113 processes the information to be transmitted and sends it to radio frequency device 112. Radio frequency device 112 processes the received information and then sends it through antenna 111.

[0349] The method executed by the network-side device in the above embodiment may be implemented in the baseband device 113 , which includes a baseband processor.

[0350] The baseband device 113 may include, for example, at least one baseband board, on which at least two chips are provided, such as Figure 13As shown, one of the chips is, for example, a baseband processor, which is connected to the memory 115 via a bus interface to call the program in the memory 115 to execute the network device operations shown in the above method embodiment.

[0351] The network side device may further include a network interface 116, which is, for example, a Common Public Radio Interface (CPRI).

[0352] Specifically, the network side device 110 of the embodiment of the present application further includes: instructions or programs stored in the memory 115 and executable on the processor 114, and the processor 114 calls the instructions or programs in the memory 115 to execute. Figure 9 The methods performed by the units shown achieve the same technical effects, so they will not be described here in detail to avoid repetition.

[0353] An embodiment of the present application also provides a readable storage medium, on which a program or instruction is stored. When the program or instruction is executed by a processor, the various processes of the above-mentioned method embodiment for determining timing advance information are implemented, and the same technical effect can be achieved. To avoid repetition, it will not be repeated here.

[0354] The processor is the processor in the terminal described in the above embodiment. The readable storage medium includes a computer-readable storage medium, such as a computer read-only memory (ROM), a random access memory (RAM), a magnetic disk, or an optical disk. In some examples, the readable storage medium may be a non-transitory readable storage medium.

[0355] An embodiment of the present application further provides a chip, which includes a processor and a communication interface, wherein the communication interface is coupled to the processor, and the processor is used to run programs or instructions to implement the various processes of the above-mentioned method embodiment for determining timing advance information, and can achieve the same technical effect. To avoid repetition, it will not be repeated here.

[0356] It should be understood that the chip mentioned in the embodiments of the present application can also be called a system-level chip, a system chip, a chip system or a system-on-chip chip, etc.

[0357] An embodiment of the present application further provides a computer program / program product, which is stored in a storage medium. The computer program / program product is executed by at least one processor to implement the various processes of the above-mentioned method embodiment for determining timing advance information, and can achieve the same technical effect. To avoid repetition, it is not repeated here.

[0358] An embodiment of the present application also provides a communication system, including: a terminal and a network-side device, wherein the terminal can be used to execute the steps performed by the terminal in the method for determining timing advance information as described above, and the network-side device can be used to execute the steps performed by the network-side device in the method for determining timing advance information as described above.

[0359] An embodiment of the present application also provides a communication system, including: a terminal, a network-side device, and a first entity, wherein the terminal can be used to execute the steps performed by the terminal in the method for determining timing advance information as described above, the network-side device can be used to execute the steps performed by the network-side device in the method for determining timing advance information as described above, and the first entity can be used to execute the steps performed by the first entity in the method for determining timing advance information as described above.

[0360] It should be noted that, in this article, the terms "comprise", "include" or any other variants thereof are intended to cover non-exclusive inclusion, so that a process, method, article or device comprising a series of elements includes not only those elements, but also other elements not explicitly listed, or also includes elements inherent to such process, method, article or device. In the absence of further restrictions, an element defined by the sentence "comprises a ..." does not exclude the presence of other identical elements in the process, method, article or device comprising the element. In addition, it should be pointed out that the scope of the methods and devices in the embodiments of the present application is not limited to performing functions in the order shown or discussed, and may also include performing functions in a substantially simultaneous manner or in the opposite order according to the functions involved. For example, the described method may be performed in an order different from that described, and various steps may also be added, omitted or combined. In addition, the features described with reference to certain examples may be combined in other examples.

[0361] Through the description of the above embodiments, those skilled in the art can clearly understand that the above-mentioned embodiment methods can be implemented by means of a computer software product plus a necessary general-purpose hardware platform, or of course, by hardware. The computer software product is stored in a storage medium (such as ROM, RAM, magnetic disk, optical disk, etc.) and includes a number of instructions for enabling a terminal or network-side device to execute the methods described in each embodiment of the present application.

[0362] The embodiments of the present application are described above in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, but the present application is not limited to the above-mentioned specific implementation methods. The above-mentioned specific implementation methods are merely illustrative and not restrictive. Under the guidance of this application, ordinary technicians in this field can also make many forms of implementation methods without departing from the purpose of this application and the scope of protection of the claims. These implementation methods are all within the protection of this application.

Claims

1. A method for determining timing advance information, characterized in that: include: The terminal obtains A-IoT information of the environmental Internet of Things; The terminal determines the timing advance information of the target cell according to the A-IoT information; The A-IoT information includes at least one of the following: identification information of at least one A-IoT device, location information of at least one A-IoT device, grid information of at least one A-IoT device, reflected signal strength information of at least one A-IoT device, timing advance information of at least one cell, timing advance information of at least one timing advance group TAG, timing advance information of a specific cell, and a timing advance difference between at least one cell and a specific cell; The at least one A-IoT device is deployed in the target cell, and the at least one cell includes the target cell.

2. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that The timing advance information of the at least one cell includes the timing advance information of the at least one cell at a specific location, and the timing advance information of the specific cell includes the timing advance information of the specific cell at the specific location; The specific location is represented by the identification information of the A-IoT device or the grid information where the A-IoT device is located.

3. The method according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that The method further comprises: The terminal receives first configuration information from the network side device; Among them, the first configuration information includes at least one of the following: grid information of the cell, grid segmentation granularity supported by the network side, identification information of A-IoT devices deployed in the network, A-IoT device information associated with each grid, grid information associated with each A-IoT device, timing advance information of at least one cell, timing advance information of at least one TAG, timing advance information of a specific cell, timing advance difference between at least one cell and a specific cell, mapping relationship between identification information of the A-IoT device and timing advance information, mapping relationship between location information of the A-IoT device and timing advance information, mapping relationship between grids and timing advance information, the terminal is configured to allow application of the A-IoT information, the terminal is configured to allow determination of timing advance information based on the assistance of the A-IoT device, the terminal is configured to allow reporting to the network side device the timing advance information obtained or determined by the terminal, and the terminal is configured to allow reporting to the network side device whether the terminal has obtained or determined the timing advance information.

4. The method according to claim 3, characterized in that The terminal determines, according to the A-IoT information, the timing advance information of the target cell, including: The terminal determines the timing advance information of the target cell based on the A-IoT information and the first configuration information.

5. The method according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that The method further comprises: The terminal receives second configuration information from the first entity; The second configuration information includes at least one of the following: Identification information of A-IoT devices deployed in the network, timing advance information of at least one cell, timing advance information of at least one TAG, timing advance information of a specific cell, timing advance difference between at least one cell and a specific cell, and timing advance information corresponding to the identification information of the A-IoT device.

6. The method according to claim 5, characterized in that The terminal determines, according to the A-IoT information, the timing advance information of the target cell, including: The terminal determines the timing advance information of the target cell based on the A-IoT information and the second configuration information.

7. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that The terminal determines, according to the A-IoT information, the timing advance information of the target cell, including: The terminal determines, according to the grid information of the at least one A-IoT device included in the A-IoT information, the grid information of the target cell where the at least one A-IoT device is located; The terminal determines the timing advance information of the target cell based on the timing advance information associated with the grid information of the target cell where the at least one A-IoT device is located.

8. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that The terminal determines, according to the A-IoT information, the timing advance information of the target cell, including: The terminal determines, based on the identification information of the at least one A-IoT device included in the A-IoT information, the timing advance information associated with the identification information of the at least one A-IoT device; The terminal determines the timing advance information of the target cell based on the timing advance information associated with the identification information of the at least one A-IoT device.

9. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that The terminal determines, according to the A-IoT information, the timing advance information of the target cell, including: The terminal determines, based on the location information of the at least one A-IoT device included in the A-IoT information, timing advance information associated with the location information of the at least one A-IoT device; The terminal determines the timing advance information of the target cell based on the timing advance information associated with the location information of the at least one A-IoT device.

10. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that The terminal determines, according to the A-IoT information, the timing advance information of the target cell, including: The terminal determines the location information of the terminal according to at least one of the identification information of the at least one A-IoT device, the location information of the at least one A-IoT device, the grid information of the at least one A-IoT device, and the reflected signal strength information of the at least one A-IoT device contained in the A-IoT information; The terminal determines the timing advance information of the target cell according to the timing advance information associated with the location information of the terminal.

11. The method according to claim 10, characterized in that The terminal determines, according to the timing advance information associated with the location information of the terminal, the timing advance information of the target cell, including at least one of the following: In a case where the location information of the terminal is represented by identification information of an A-IoT device, the terminal determines the timing advance information of the target cell according to the timing advance information associated with the identification information of the A-IoT device used to represent the location information of the terminal; In a case where the location information of the terminal is represented by the location information of the A-IoT device, the terminal determines the timing advance information of the target cell according to the timing advance information associated with the location information of the A-IoT device used to represent the location information of the terminal; In a case where the location information of the terminal is represented by the grid information in which the A-IoT device is located, the terminal determines the timing advance information of the target cell based on the timing advance information associated with the grid information used to represent the location information of the terminal.

12. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that The terminal determines, according to the A-IoT information, the timing advance information of the target cell, including: The terminal determines the timing advance information of the target cell based on the timing advance information of the at least one cell or the timing advance information of the at least one TAG contained in the A-IoT information.

13. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that The terminal determines, according to the A-IoT information, the timing advance information of the target cell, including: The terminal determines the timing advance information of the target cell based on the timing advance difference between the at least one cell and the specific cell contained in the A-IoT information, and the timing advance information of the specific cell.

14. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that The terminal determines, according to the A-IoT information, the timing advance information of the target cell, including: The terminal determines the timing advance information of the target cell based on the timing advance information of the specific cell included in the A-IoT information and the timing advance difference between the target cell and the specific cell.

15. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 14, characterized in that The method further comprises: The terminal performs random access in the target cell according to the timing advance information of the target cell.

16. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 14, characterized in that The method further comprises: The terminal sends first information to the network side device; wherein the first information includes at least one of the following: location information of the terminal, timing advance information of the target cell; The location information of the terminal includes at least one of the following: the identifier of the A-IoT device detected by the terminal, the identifier of the A-IoT device closest to the terminal detected by the terminal, the identifier of the A-IoT device with the largest reflected signal strength detected by the terminal, the identifier of the A-IoT device detected by the terminal within a specific range centered on the terminal, the grid information of the terminal, the absolute position of the terminal, and the relative position of the terminal.

17. The method according to claim 16, characterized in that The method further comprises: The terminal receives second information from the network side device; The second information includes at least one of the following: radio resources allowed to be used by the terminal after switching to the target cell, and a first timing advance; The first timing advance is determined based on the first information.

18. The method according to claim 17, characterized in that The method further comprises: The terminal switches to the target cell in a RACH-Less manner according to the timing advance information of the target cell or the first timing advance.

19. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 18, characterized in that The terminal obtains A-IoT information, including: The terminal obtains the A-IoT information by at least one of the following: Inventory, detection, and measurement of A-IoT devices.

20. A method for determining timing advance information, characterized in that include: The network side device sends first configuration information to the terminal, where the first configuration information is used to determine the timing advance information; The first configuration information includes at least one of the following: Grid information of the cell, grid segmentation granularity supported by the network side, identification information of the ambient Internet of Things A-IoT devices deployed in the network, A-IoT device information associated with each grid, grid information associated with each A-IoT device, timing advance information of at least one cell, timing advance information of at least one timing advance group TAG, timing advance information of a specific cell, timing advance difference between at least one cell and a specific cell, mapping relationship between identification information of the A-IoT device and timing advance information, mapping relationship between location information of the A-IoT device and timing advance information, mapping relationship between grids and timing advance information, the terminal is configured to allow application of the A-IoT information, the terminal is configured to allow determination of timing advance information based on assistance of the A-IoT device, the terminal is configured to allow reporting of timing advance information obtained or determined by the terminal to the network side device, and the terminal is configured to allow reporting to the network side device whether the terminal has obtained or determined the timing advance information.

21. A method for determining timing advance information, characterized in that: include: The first entity sends second configuration information to the terminal, where the second configuration information is used to determine timing advance information; The second configuration information includes at least one of the following: Identification information of A-IoT devices deployed in the network, timing advance information of at least one cell, timing advance information of at least one timing advance group (TAG), timing advance information of a specific cell, the timing advance difference between at least one cell and a specific cell, and timing advance information corresponding to the identification information of the A-IoT device.

22. A device for determining timing advance information, characterized in that include A processing unit for obtaining A-IoT information; The processing unit is further configured to determine timing advance information of a target cell based on the A-IoT information; The A-IoT information includes at least one of the following: identification information of at least one A-IoT device, location information of at least one A-IoT device, grid information of at least one A-IoT device, reflected signal strength information of at least one A-IoT device, timing advance information of at least one cell, timing advance information of at least one timing advance group TAG, timing advance information of a specific cell, and a timing advance difference between at least one cell and a specific cell; The at least one A-IoT device is deployed in the target cell, and the at least one cell includes the target cell.

23. The device according to claim 22, characterized in that The timing advance information of the at least one cell includes the timing advance information of the at least one cell at a specific location, and the timing advance information of the specific cell includes the timing advance information of the specific cell at the specific location; The specific location is represented by the identification information of the A-IoT device or the grid information where the A-IoT device is located.

24. The device according to claim 22 or 23, characterized in that The device further comprises: A transceiver unit, configured to receive first configuration information from a network-side device; Among them, the first configuration information includes at least one of the following: grid information of the cell, grid segmentation granularity supported by the network side, identification information of A-IoT devices deployed in the network, A-IoT device information associated with each grid, grid information associated with each A-IoT device, timing advance information of at least one cell, timing advance information of at least one TAG, timing advance information of a specific cell, timing advance difference between at least one cell and a specific cell, a mapping relationship between identification information of the A-IoT device and timing advance information, a mapping relationship between location information of the A-IoT device and timing advance information, a mapping relationship between grids and timing advance information, the device for determining the timing advance information is configured to allow application of the A-IoT information, the device for determining the timing advance information is configured to allow determination of the timing advance information based on assistance from the A-IoT device, the device for determining the timing advance information is configured to allow reporting to the network side device the timing advance information obtained or determined by the device for determining the timing advance information, and the device for determining the timing advance information is configured to allow reporting to the network side device whether the device for determining the timing advance information has obtained or determined the timing advance information.

25. The device according to claim 24, characterized in that The processing unit is specifically configured to: Determine the timing advance information of the target cell based on the A-IoT information and the first configuration information.

26. The device according to claim 22 or 23, characterized in that The device further comprises: a transceiver unit, configured to receive second configuration information from the first entity; The second configuration information includes at least one of the following: Identification information of A-IoT devices deployed in the network, timing advance information of at least one cell, timing advance information of at least one TAG, timing advance information of a specific cell, timing advance difference between at least one cell and a specific cell, and timing advance information corresponding to the identification information of the A-IoT device.

27. The device according to claim 26, characterized in that The processing unit is specifically configured to: Determine the timing advance information of the target cell based on the A-IoT information and the second configuration information.

28. The device according to any one of claims 22 to 27, characterized in that The processing unit is specifically configured to: Determining, according to the grid information of the at least one A-IoT device included in the A-IoT information, the grid information of the at least one A-IoT device in the target cell; Determine the timing advance information of the target cell according to the timing advance information associated with the grid information of the target cell where the at least one A-IoT device is located.

29. The device according to any one of claims 22 to 27, characterized in that The processing unit is specifically configured to: Determining, based on the identification information of the at least one A-IoT device included in the A-IoT information, timing advance information associated with the identification information of the at least one A-IoT device; Determine the timing advance information of the target cell according to the timing advance information associated with the identification information of the at least one A-IoT device.

30. The device according to any one of claims 22 to 27, characterized in that The processing unit is specifically configured to: Determining, based on the location information of the at least one A-IoT device included in the A-IoT information, timing advance information associated with the location information of the at least one A-IoT device; Determine the timing advance information of the target cell according to the timing advance information associated with the location information of the at least one A-IoT device.

31. The device according to any one of claims 22 to 27, characterized in that The processing unit is specifically configured to: Determining the location information of the device for determining the timing advance information based on at least one of the identification information of the at least one A-IoT device, the location information of the at least one A-IoT device, the grid information in which the at least one A-IoT device is located, and the reflected signal strength information of the at least one A-IoT device, which are included in the A-IoT information; The timing advance information of the target cell is determined according to the timing advance information associated with the location information of the apparatus for determining the timing advance information.

32. The device according to claim 31, characterized in that The processing unit is specifically configured to: In a case where the location information of the apparatus for determining the timing advance information is represented by identification information of an A-IoT device, determining the timing advance information of the target cell according to the timing advance information associated with the identification information of the A-IoT device used to represent the location information of the apparatus for determining the timing advance information; In a case where the location information of the apparatus for determining the timing advance information is represented by the location information of an A-IoT device, determining the timing advance information of the target cell according to the timing advance information associated with the location information of the A-IoT device used to represent the location information of the apparatus for determining the timing advance information; In a case where the location information of the device for determining the timing advance information is represented by the grid information in which the A-IoT device is located, the timing advance information of the target cell is determined according to the timing advance information associated with the grid information used to represent the location information of the device for determining the timing advance information.

33. The device according to any one of claims 22 to 27, characterized in that The processing unit is specifically configured to: The timing advance information of the target cell is determined according to the timing advance information of the at least one cell or the timing advance information of the at least one TAG contained in the A-IoT information.

34. The device according to any one of claims 22 to 27, characterized in that The processing unit is specifically configured to: The timing advance information of the target cell is determined according to the timing advance difference between the at least one cell and the specific cell contained in the A-IoT information, and the timing advance information of the specific cell.

35. The device according to any one of claims 22 to 27, characterized in that The processing unit is specifically configured to: The timing advance information of the target cell is determined according to the timing advance information of the specific cell contained in the A-IoT information and the timing advance difference between the target cell and the specific cell.

36. The device according to any one of claims 22 to 35, characterized in that The processing unit is further configured to perform random access in the target cell according to the timing advance information of the target cell.

37. The device according to any one of claims 22 to 35, characterized in that The device further comprises: a transceiver unit configured to send first information to a network-side device; wherein the first information includes at least one of the following: location information of the device for determining timing advance information, and timing advance information of the target cell; Among them, the location information of the device for determining the timing advance information includes at least one of the following: the identifier of the A-IoT device detected by the device for determining the timing advance information, the identifier of the A-IoT device closest to the device for determining the timing advance information detected by the device for determining the timing advance information, the identifier of the A-IoT device with the largest reflected signal strength detected by the device for determining the timing advance information, the identifier of the A-IoT device detected by the device for determining the timing advance information and located within a specific range centered on the device for determining the timing advance information, the grid information of the device for determining the timing advance information, the absolute position of the device for determining the timing advance information, and the relative position of the device for determining the timing advance information.

38. The device according to claim 37, characterized in that The transceiver unit is further configured to receive second information from the network side device; The second information includes at least one of the following: radio resources allowed to be used after the apparatus for determining timing advance information switches to the target cell, a first timing advance; The first timing advance is determined based on the first information.

39. The device according to claim 38, characterized in that The processing unit is further configured to switch to the target cell in a RACH-Less manner according to the timing advance information of the target cell or the first timing advance.

40. The device according to any one of claims 22 to 39, characterized in that The processing unit is specifically configured to: The A-IoT information is obtained by at least one of the following: Inventory, detection, and measurement of A-IoT devices.

41. A device for determining timing advance information, characterized in that include a transceiver unit, configured to send first configuration information to a terminal, where the first configuration information is used to determine timing advance information; The first configuration information includes at least one of the following: Grid information of the cell, grid segmentation granularity supported by the network side, identification information of the ambient Internet of Things A-IoT devices deployed in the network, A-IoT device information associated with each grid, grid information associated with each A-IoT device, timing advance information of at least one cell, timing advance information of at least one timing advance group TAG, timing advance information of a specific cell, timing advance difference between at least one cell and a specific cell, mapping relationship between identification information of the A-IoT device and timing advance information, mapping relationship between location information of the A-IoT device and timing advance information, mapping relationship between grids and timing advance information, the terminal is configured to allow application of the A-IoT information, the terminal is configured to allow determination of timing advance information based on assistance of the A-IoT device, the terminal is configured to allow reporting of timing advance information obtained or determined by the terminal to the network side device, and the terminal is configured to allow reporting to the network side device whether the terminal has obtained or determined the timing advance information.

42. A device for determining timing advance information, characterized in that include a transceiver unit, configured to send second configuration information to the terminal, where the second configuration information is used to determine timing advance information; The second configuration information includes at least one of the following: Identification information of A-IoT devices deployed in the network, timing advance information of at least one cell, timing advance information of at least one timing advance group (TAG), timing advance information of a specific cell, the timing advance difference between at least one cell and a specific cell, and timing advance information corresponding to the identification information of the A-IoT device.

43. A terminal, characterized in that: The method comprises a processor and a memory, wherein the memory stores a program or instruction that can be run on the processor, and when the program or instruction is executed by the processor, the steps of the method for determining timing advance information according to any one of claims 1 to 19 are implemented.

44. A network side device, characterized in that: The method comprises a processor and a memory, wherein the memory stores a program or instruction that can be run on the processor, and when the program or instruction is executed by the processor, the steps of the method for determining timing advance information according to claim 20 are implemented.

45. A first entity, characterized in that The method comprises a processor and a memory, wherein the memory stores a program or instruction that can be run on the processor, and when the program or instruction is executed by the processor, the steps of the method for determining timing advance information according to claim 21 are implemented.

46. A readable storage medium, characterized in that The readable storage medium stores a program or instruction, and when the program or instruction is executed by the processor, it implements the steps of the method for determining timing advance information according to any one of claims 1 to 19, or implements the steps of the method for determining timing advance information according to claim 20, or implements the steps of the method for determining timing advance information according to claim 21.

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