Satellite communication method and satellite communication apparatus

Abstract

The application provides a satellite communication method and a satellite communication device. The method can be applied to a GEO satellite, and the method comprises the following steps: receiving load conditions of each second LEO satellite in a satellite cluster where each first LEO satellite is located, which are reported by the first LEO satellite; obtaining ephemeris information of each second LEO satellite from a ground station; generating a task division result under the condition that a first preset condition is met, and / or generating a satellite cluster division result under the condition that a second preset condition is met, according to the load information and / or the ephemeris information; and sending the task division result and / or the satellite cluster division result to a target first LEO satellite. The target first LEO satellite comprises a first LEO satellite in a satellite cluster where a target second LEO satellite is located, and / or a first LEO satellite in a target satellite cluster. The method can be applied to the management and scheduling of a cooperative low-orbit satellite system, and can improve the system performance and reliability.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This application relates to the field of communications, specifically to a satellite communication method and a satellite communication device. Background Technology

[0002] Satellite communications are developing rapidly. Taking low Earth orbit (LEO) satellite communications as an example, LEO satellite communications refer to communication based on a network of LEO satellites. Due to their low transmission latency, relatively small path loss, and potential to provide global coverage, LEO satellite networks have become a key component in building the next generation of integrated space-ground information networks.

[0003] In traditional low-Earth orbit (LEO) satellite networks, LEO satellites operate independently or with limited coordination via ground stations, while terminal devices communicate directly with the LEO satellites. This network architecture is simple, but it has limitations in resource allocation and network efficiency.

[0004] Based on this, a cooperative low-Earth orbit (LEO) satellite network has been proposed. In a cooperative LEO satellite network, LEO satellites can not only communicate with ground stations and terminal equipment, but also communicate with each other through inter-satellite links (ISL). Therefore, how to manage and schedule a cooperative LEO satellite network is a problem that urgently needs to be solved. Summary of the Invention

[0005] This application provides a satellite communication method and a satellite communication device, which can realize the management and scheduling of cooperative low-Earth orbit satellite systems, and improve system performance and reliability.

[0006] Firstly, a satellite communication method is provided. This method can be executed by a GEO satellite, or by components (such as circuits, chips, or chip systems) configured within the GEO satellite, or by logic modules or software capable of implementing all or part of the functions of a GEO satellite. This application does not limit the scope of this method. The following description uses a GEO satellite as an example.

[0007] This satellite communication method is applied to geostationary orbit (GEO) satellites, which are communicatively connected to first LEO satellites in one or more satellite clusters. Each satellite cluster also includes one or more second LEO satellites, and the GEO satellites are communicatively connected to ground stations. The method includes:

[0008] The system receives payload information from each first LEO satellite, which is reported by each second LEO satellite in its satellite cluster; it obtains ephemeris information from each second LEO satellite from the ground station; based on the payload information and / or ephemeris information, it generates a task allocation result if a first preset condition is met, and / or, if a second preset condition is met, it generates a satellite cluster allocation result; the task allocation result is used to instruct one or more target second LEO satellites to adjust the cells they cover, and the satellite cluster allocation result is used to instruct one or more target satellite clusters to adjust the second LEO satellites contained therein; it sends the task allocation result and / or the satellite cluster allocation result to the target first LEO satellite; the target first LEO satellite includes: the first LEO satellite in the satellite cluster where the target second LEO satellite is located, and / or, the first LEO satellite in the target satellite cluster.

[0009] The satellite communication method provided in this application embodiment is based on a master-slave LEO satellite cluster formed by a first LEO satellite and a second LEO satellite. Through a combination of coordinated control by the first LEO satellite and coordinated control by the GEO satellite, it achieves multi-level, collaborative resource awareness, thereby enabling fine-grained management and scheduling of resources and LEO satellites, improving overall network performance and reliability. Specifically, the first LEO satellite reports the load information of each managed second LEO satellite to the GEO satellite. The GEO satellite obtains global load information and global ephemeris information, and performs task partitioning and / or satellite cluster partitioning based on the load information and ephemeris information. This achieves fine-grained scheduling and management of wireless resources and LEO satellites, improving overall network performance and reliability. In summary, the method provided in this application embodiment achieves multi-level, collaborative resource awareness. Based on resource awareness, it realizes various collaborations such as satellite cluster partitioning, mobility management, and load balancing, and achieves fine-grained scheduling of resources and LEO satellites, improving overall network performance and reliability.

[0010] In one possible implementation, the first preset conditions include load-related conditions and / or location-related conditions.

[0011] Load-related conditions refer to conditions related to the load status of the second LEO satellite. Position-related conditions refer to conditions related to the position status of the second LEO satellite.

[0012] In this implementation, the first preset condition includes load-related conditions, namely, the task re-allocation is triggered by the load status of the second LEO satellite, which facilitates refined resource management; the first preset condition also includes location-related conditions, namely, the task re-allocation is triggered by the location change of the second LEO satellite, which facilitates mobility management.

[0013] In one possible implementation, the load-related conditions include: the load of at least one second LEO satellite is higher than a first load threshold, and the load of at least one second LEO satellite is lower than a second load threshold.

[0014] In a GEO-managed satellite constellation, if at least one second-level LEO satellite has a load exceeding a first load threshold and at least one second-level LEO satellite has a load below a second load threshold, it indicates an imbalance in the load of the second-level LEO satellites. This condition triggers task reallocation, allowing the load of high-load second-level LEO satellites to be shared by low-load second-level LEO satellites. This further enables fine-grained resource management and scheduling, achieving load balancing and improving system performance and reliability.

[0015] In one possible implementation, the location-related condition includes: at least one second LEO satellite's beam cannot cover the currently covered cell after a preset duration.

[0016] In a GEO satellite constellation, if at least one second LEO satellite's beam velocity fails to cover the currently covered cell after a preset duration, it indicates that the movement of this second LEO satellite causes coverage offset, resulting in the inability to cover the currently covered cell. This condition triggers a reassignment of tasks, facilitating the subsequent reallocation of second LEO satellites to the uncovered cells. This enables mobility management, provides continuous coverage to the cells, and ultimately provides continuous network access for terminal devices within the cells, improving system performance and reliability.

[0017] In one possible implementation, generating the task partitioning result includes: generating an interference matrix based on load information and ephemeris information, the interference matrix being used to characterize the beam interference between each second LEO satellite; determining a target second LEO satellite from one or more second LEO satellites based on load information and / or ephemeris information; and re-partitioning the target second LEO satellite according to the interference matrix to obtain a task partitioning result, the task partitioning result including the target cell to be covered by the target second LEO satellite.

[0018] In this implementation, tasks are divided according to the interference matrix, which can not only obtain the beam covering the target cell, but also prevent interference to other beams or other cells, thereby further improving network performance and reliability.

[0019] In one possible implementation, the target second LEO satellite is re-divided into tasks based on the interference matrix to obtain the task division result. This includes: setting initial beam information for the target second LEO satellite; the beam corresponding to the initial beam information covering the target cell; adding the initial beam information to the interference calculation, updating the interference matrix, and obtaining the updated interference matrix; if the interference intensity of the interference pair corresponding to the initial beam information in the updated interference matrix is ​​less than a preset interference threshold, then the initial beam information is used as the target beam information of the target second LEO satellite, and the task division result is generated; if the interference intensity of the interference pair corresponding to the initial beam information in the updated interference matrix is ​​greater than or equal to the preset interference threshold, then the initial beam information is adjusted to obtain the adjusted initial beam, and the beam corresponding to the adjusted initial beam information covers the target cell; using the adjusted initial beam information as the initial beam information, the execution step is returned to add the initial beam information to the interference calculation, update the interference matrix, and obtain the updated interference matrix.

[0020] In this implementation, the beam information is adjusted repeatedly through loops to find beam information with interference intensity less than the interference threshold. This allows the determination of target beam information with less interference for the target second LEO satellite, which can obtain the beam covering the target cell and prevent interference to other beams or other cells, thereby further improving network performance and reliability.

[0021] In one possible implementation, the second preset condition includes conditions related to the satellite constellation and / or conditions related to communication failures.

[0022] In this implementation, the second preset condition includes conditions related to the satellite cluster, which can trigger the re-division of the satellite cluster based on the current status of the satellite cluster, thereby achieving global management of the satellite cluster; the second preset condition includes conditions related to communication failure, which can trigger the re-division of the satellite cluster based on the communication status of the second LEO satellite, thus achieving flexible management of the satellite cluster and improving the performance of the communication system. For example, the second LEO satellite that has a communication failure can be removed from the satellite cluster, thereby reducing the management burden of the first LEO satellite and GEO.

[0023] In one possible implementation, the satellite cluster-related conditions include: satisfying a first preset condition, and the source second LEO satellite and the corresponding target second LEO satellite currently not belonging to the same satellite cluster; the first preset condition includes load-related conditions and / or location-related conditions, the load-related conditions including: at least one second LEO satellite has a load higher than a first load threshold, and at least one second LEO satellite has a load lower than a second load threshold; the location-related conditions include: at least one second LEO satellite's beam cannot cover the currently covered cell after a preset duration; when the load-related conditions are satisfied, the source second LEO satellite includes second LEO satellites with loads higher than the first load threshold; when the location-related conditions are satisfied, the source second LEO satellite includes second LEO satellites whose beams cannot cover the currently covered cell after a preset duration.

[0024] In this implementation, if the first preset condition (i.e., task partitioning) is met, and the source second LEO satellite and the target second LEO satellite do not currently belong to the same satellite cluster, then a re-partition of the satellite cluster is triggered. This facilitates the first LEO satellite's management of the cluster and the second LEO satellite, and also facilitates the reporting of the target second LEO satellite's load information to the GEO, thereby improving system performance.

[0025] In one possible implementation, the conditions associated with the communication failure include: at least one second LEO satellite experiencing a communication failure.

[0026] In this implementation, when the second LEO satellite experiences a communication failure, cluster partitioning is triggered, which can remove the second LEO satellite from the satellite cluster. This reduces the management burden on the first LEO satellite and GEO satellite, and further improves system performance.

[0027] In one possible implementation, generating the satellite cluster partitioning result includes: determining a target satellite cluster from one or more satellite clusters, the target satellite cluster including a first target satellite cluster where the target second LEO satellite is currently located, and a second target satellite cluster where the source second LEO satellite is located; partitioning the target second LEO satellite from the first target satellite cluster to the second target satellite cluster to obtain the satellite cluster partitioning result.

[0028] This implementation method enables simple and accurate satellite cluster partitioning, improving system management efficiency and system performance.

[0029] Secondly, a satellite communication method is provided. This method can be executed by, for example, a first LEO satellite, or by a component (such as a circuit, chip, or chip system) configured in the first LEO satellite, or by a logic module or software capable of implementing all or part of the functions of the first LEO satellite. This application does not limit this approach. The following description uses a first LEO satellite as an example.

[0030] This satellite communication method is applied to a first LEO satellite that communicates with GEO satellites. The first LEO satellite belongs to a first satellite constellation, which also includes one or more second LEO satellites. The method includes:

[0031] The system receives first information reported by each second LEO satellite in the first satellite cluster, the first information representing the radio resource situation provided by the second LEO satellite; determines the load information of each second LEO satellite based on the first information; reports the load information to the GEO satellite; receives task allocation results and / or satellite cluster allocation results sent by the GEO satellite, the task allocation results being used to instruct the target second LEO satellite to adjust the cell coverage, the target second LEO satellite being a second LEO satellite in the first satellite cluster and a satellite in another second LEO satellite cluster; the satellite cluster allocation results being used to instruct the target satellite cluster to adjust the second LEO satellites it contains, the target satellite cluster being a cluster in the first satellite cluster and another satellite cluster; the task allocation results are generated based on the load information, and / or the ephemeris information of each second LEO satellite in the first satellite cluster and each second LEO satellite in another satellite cluster, under the condition of satisfying a first preset condition, and the satellite cluster allocation results are generated under the condition of satisfying a second preset condition.

[0032] In one possible implementation, upon receiving the satellite cluster partitioning result sent by the GEO satellite, the target satellite cluster includes a first satellite cluster. The method further includes: adjusting the second LEO satellite included in the first satellite cluster according to the satellite cluster partitioning result.

[0033] In one possible implementation, upon receiving the task allocation result from a GEO satellite, the first satellite cluster includes a source second LEO satellite and / or a target second LEO satellite; the first preset condition includes load-related conditions and / or location-related conditions. The load-related conditions include: at least one of the second LEO satellites in the first satellite cluster and the second LEO satellites in other satellite clusters has a load higher than a first load threshold, and at least one has a load lower than a second load threshold; the location-related conditions include: at least one of the second LEO satellites in the first satellite cluster and the second LEO satellites in other satellite clusters cannot have its beam cover the currently covered cell after a preset duration; if the task allocation result is generated under the condition of satisfying the load-related conditions, then the source second LEO satellite includes second LEO satellites with loads higher than the first load threshold; if the task allocation result is generated under the condition of satisfying the location-related conditions, then the source second LEO satellite includes: second LEO satellites whose beams cannot cover the currently covered cell after a preset duration; the method further includes: sending the task allocation result to the source second LEO satellite and / or the target second LEO satellite.

[0034] In one possible implementation, the first information includes at least one of basic resource information and resource usage information. The basic resource information is used to characterize the basic situation of the wireless resources provided by the second LEO satellite, and the resource usage information is used to characterize the usage of the wireless resources provided by the second LEO satellite by the terminal device.

[0035] In one possible implementation, the basic resource information includes: the beam information of the second LEO satellite, and / or the information of the cells covered by each beam of the second LEO satellite.

[0036] In one possible implementation, the beam information includes one or more of the following: the number of beams, the direction of the beams, the angle of the beams, the frequency of the beams, or the power of the beams.

[0037] In one possible implementation, resource usage information includes one or more of the following: the number of users or the amount of wireless resource usage within the cell covered by each beam of the second LEO satellite.

[0038] In one possible implementation, the load information includes one or more of the following: the user space density of the cell covered by the second LEO satellite, the proportion of active users in the cell covered by the second LEO satellite, the radio resource utilization rate of the second LEO satellite, or the average throughput of the second LEO satellite.

[0039] In one possible implementation, the first information includes the number of users in the cell, and the load information includes the user space density.

[0040] In one possible implementation, user space density is represented by a user space density distribution map.

[0041] The second aspect is the implementation on the first LEO satellite side, which corresponds to the first aspect. The explanations, supplements, and descriptions of the beneficial effects of the first aspect also apply to the second aspect, and will not be repeated here.

[0042] Thirdly, a satellite communication method is provided. This method can be executed by a third LEO satellite, or by a component (such as a circuit, chip, or chip system) configured in the third LEO satellite, or by a logic module or software capable of implementing all or part of the functions of the third LEO satellite. This application does not limit this. The following description uses a third LEO satellite as an example. The third LEO satellite is one of the second LEO satellites; specifically, it can be a source second LEO satellite or a target second LEO satellite.

[0043] This satellite communication method is applied to a third LEO satellite, which belongs to a first satellite constellation. The first satellite constellation includes one first LEO satellite and one or more second LEO satellites, with the third LEO satellite being one of the one or more second LEO satellites. The method includes:

[0044] The system reports first information to the first LEO satellite, which represents the status of radio resources provided by the third LEO satellite; it receives task allocation results from the first LEO satellite, which instruct one or more target second LEO satellites to adjust the cells they cover; the task allocation results are generated based on the load information of each second LEO satellite and / or the ephemeris information of each second LEO satellite, under the condition of satisfying a first preset condition; the load information of the third LEO satellite is determined based on the first information.

[0045] In one possible implementation, the third LEO satellite is the target second LEO satellite, and the task allocation result includes the target cell to be covered by the target second LEO satellite. The method also includes: adjusting the beam according to the task allocation result, and the adjusted beam covers the target cell.

[0046] In one possible implementation, the third LEO satellite is a source second LEO satellite; the first preset condition includes load-related conditions and / or location-related conditions. The load-related conditions include: at least one of the source second LEO satellite and other second LEO satellites has a load higher than a first load threshold, and at least one of the second LEO satellites and other second LEO satellites has a load lower than a second load threshold; the location-related conditions include: at least one of the second LEO satellites and other second LEO satellites cannot cover the currently covered cell after a preset duration; if the task allocation result is generated under the condition of satisfying the load-related conditions, then the source second LEO satellite includes second LEO satellites with a load higher than the first load threshold; if the task allocation result is generated under the condition of satisfying the location-related conditions, then the source second LEO satellite includes second LEO satellites whose beams cannot cover the currently covered cell after a preset duration.

[0047] In one possible implementation, the third LEO satellite and the target second LEO satellite do not currently belong to the same satellite cluster. The third LEO satellite covers the target cell and has a communication connection with one or more terminal devices within the target cell. The method further includes: generating a handover strategy based on the task allocation result, the handover strategy including the target terminal device, which is the terminal device within the target cell to be switched; and sending a connection handover message to the target terminal device, the connection handover message being used to indicate that the network connection is switched to the target second LEO satellite.

[0048] In one possible implementation, before sending a connection switching message to the target terminal device, the method further includes: sending a switching request to the target second LEO satellite, the switching request being used to request switching the network connection of the target terminal device to the target second LEO satellite; and receiving a switching response sent by the target second LEO satellite.

[0049] In one possible implementation, the method further includes: sending a handover request to the target second LEO satellite, the handover request being used to request the network connection of the target terminal device to be switched to the target second LEO satellite; and receiving a handover response sent by the target second LEO satellite.

[0050] In one possible implementation, the method further includes: receiving an RRC reconfiguration message sent by the target terminal device; after performing RRC reconfiguration, sending an RRC reconfiguration completion message to the target terminal device; and releasing the context of the target terminal device to the source second LEO satellite.

[0051] The third aspect is the implementation of the source second LEO satellite side, which corresponds to the first and second aspects. The explanations, supplements, and descriptions of the beneficial effects of the first and second aspects also apply to the third aspect, and will not be repeated here.

[0052] Fourthly, a satellite communication device is provided, comprising a processing module and a transceiver module. The transceiver module is used to: receive the load status of each second LEO satellite in its satellite cluster reported by each first LEO satellite; and obtain ephemeris information of each second LEO satellite from a ground station. The processing module is used to: generate a task allocation result based on the load information and / or ephemeris information, provided that a first preset condition is met, and / or generate a satellite cluster allocation result, provided that a second preset condition is met. The task allocation result is used to instruct a target second LEO satellite in one or more second LEO satellites to adjust its coverage cell, and the satellite cluster allocation result is used to instruct a target satellite cluster in one or more satellite clusters to adjust the second LEO satellites contained therein. The communication module is also used to: send the task allocation result and / or the satellite cluster allocation result to the target first LEO satellite. The target first LEO satellite includes: a first LEO satellite in the satellite cluster where the target second LEO satellite is located, and / or, a first LEO satellite in the target satellite cluster.

[0053] The fourth aspect is the implementation on the device side corresponding to the first aspect. The explanation, supplement, and description of the beneficial effects of the first aspect also apply to the fifth aspect, and will not be repeated here.

[0054] Fifthly, a satellite communication device is provided, comprising a transceiver module. The transceiver module is used for: receiving first information reported by each second LEO satellite in a first satellite cluster, the first information representing the status of radio resources provided by the second LEO satellites; the processing module is used for: determining the load information of each second LEO satellite based on the first information; the communication module is further used for: reporting the load information to a GEO satellite; receiving task allocation results and / or satellite cluster allocation results sent by the GEO satellites, the task allocation results being used to instruct a target second LEO satellite to adjust its coverage cell, the target second LEO satellite being a second LEO satellite in the first satellite cluster and a satellite in another second LEO satellite cluster; the satellite cluster allocation results being used to instruct a target satellite cluster to adjust the second LEO satellites it contains, the target satellite cluster being a cluster in the first satellite cluster and another satellite cluster; the task allocation results are generated based on the load information, and / or the ephemeris information of each second LEO satellite in the first satellite cluster and each second LEO satellite in another satellite cluster, under the condition of satisfying a first preset condition, and the satellite cluster allocation results are generated under the condition of satisfying a second preset condition.

[0055] The fifth aspect is the implementation on the device side corresponding to the second aspect. The explanation, supplement, and description of the beneficial effects of the second aspect also apply to the sixth aspect, and will not be repeated here.

[0056] Sixthly, a satellite communication device is provided, comprising a transceiver module. The transceiver module is configured to: report first information to a first LEO satellite, the first information representing the status of radio resources provided by a third LEO satellite; receive a task allocation result from the first LEO satellite, the task allocation result instructing a target second LEO satellite among one or more second LEO satellites to adjust its coverage cell; the task allocation result is generated based on the load information of each second LEO satellite and / or the ephemeris information of each second LEO satellite, under the condition of satisfying a first preset condition, wherein the load information of the third LEO satellite is determined based on the first information.

[0057] The sixth aspect is the implementation on the device side corresponding to the third aspect. The explanations, supplements, and descriptions of the beneficial effects of the third aspect also apply to the sixth aspect, and will not be repeated here.

[0058] In a seventh aspect, a satellite communication device is provided, including a processor. The processor is coupled to a memory and can be used to execute instructions or data in the memory to implement the method in any possible implementation of the first aspect. Optionally, the satellite communication device further includes a memory. Optionally, the satellite communication device further includes a communication interface, and the processor is coupled to the communication interface.

[0059] In one implementation, the communication interface can be a transceiver, or an input / output interface.

[0060] In another implementation, the satellite communication device is a chip configured within a GEO satellite. When the satellite communication device is a chip configured within a terminal device, the communication interface can be an input / output interface.

[0061] Eighthly, a satellite communication device is provided, including a processor. The processor is coupled to a memory and can be used to execute instructions or data in the memory to implement the method in any possible implementation of the second aspect described above. Optionally, the satellite communication device further includes a memory. Optionally, the satellite communication device further includes a communication interface, and the processor is coupled to the communication interface.

[0062] In one implementation, the communication interface can be a transceiver, or an input / output interface.

[0063] In another implementation, the satellite communication device is a chip configured within the satellite. When the satellite communication device is a chip configured within the satellite, the communication interface can be an input / output interface.

[0064] In a ninth aspect, a processor is provided, comprising: an input circuit, an output circuit, and a processing circuit. The processing circuit is used to receive signals through the input circuit and transmit signals through the output circuit, causing the processor to execute a method in any possible implementation of any aspect.

[0065] In specific implementation, the processor can be one or more chips, the input circuit can be input pins, the output circuit can be output pins, and the processing circuit can be transistors, gate circuits, flip-flops, and various logic circuits. The input signal received by the input circuit can be received and input by, for example, but not limited to, a receiver, and the signal output by the output circuit can be, for example, but not limited to, output to and transmitted by a transmitter. Furthermore, the input circuit and the output circuit can be the same circuit, which is used as both the input circuit and the output circuit at different times. This application does not limit the specific implementation of the processor and various circuits.

[0066] In a tenth aspect, a satellite communication device is provided, including a processor and a memory. The processor is used to read instructions stored in the memory, receive signals via a receiver, and transmit signals via a transmitter to execute the methods in any possible implementation of any of the preceding aspects.

[0067] Optionally, there may be one or more processors and one or more memories.

[0068] Eleventhly, a computer program product is provided, comprising: a computer program (also referred to as code or instructions) that, when run, causes a computer to perform a method in any possible implementation of any of the preceding aspects.

[0069] In a twelfth aspect, a computer-readable storage medium is provided that stores a computer program (also referred to as code or instructions) that, when executed on a computer, causes the computer to perform the methods in any possible implementation of any of the above aspects.

[0070] In a thirteenth aspect, embodiments of this application provide a chip system including one or more processors for calling and executing instructions stored in memory, causing the methods in any of the above aspects or any possible implementations of the above aspects to be executed. The chip system may be composed of chips or may include chips and other discrete devices.

[0071] The chip system may include input circuits or interfaces for transmitting information or data, and output circuits or interfaces for receiving information or data.

[0072] In a fourteenth aspect, a satellite communication system is provided, including the aforementioned GEO satellite, first LEO satellite, and second LEO satellite. Optionally, the communication system may further include other equipment that communicates with at least one of the GEO satellite, first LEO satellite, or second LEO satellite, such as terminal equipment, ground station, etc. Attached Figure Description

[0073] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of a traditional low-Earth orbit satellite communication system;

[0074] Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram of a cooperative low-Earth orbit satellite communication system in related technologies;

[0075] Figure 3 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of a satellite communication system provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0076] Figure 4 This is one of the schematic diagrams of a satellite communication method according to an embodiment of this application;

[0077] Figure 5 This is a second schematic diagram of an example of a satellite communication method according to an embodiment of this application;

[0078] Figure 6 This is a schematic diagram of another example of a satellite communication method according to an embodiment of this application;

[0079] Figure 7 This is a schematic diagram of yet another example of a satellite communication method according to an embodiment of this application;

[0080] Figure 8 This is a schematic diagram of yet another example of a satellite communication method according to an embodiment of this application;

[0081] Figure 9 This is a schematic diagram of yet another example of a satellite communication method according to an embodiment of this application;

[0082] Figure 10 This is a schematic diagram of the network architecture of a satellite communication system before the task division and satellite cluster division are re-performed, as provided in the application scenario of this application embodiment.

[0083] Figure 11 This is a schematic diagram of the network architecture of a satellite communication system after re-dividing tasks and satellite clusters, as provided in the application scenario of this application embodiment.

[0084] Figure 12 This is a schematic diagram of connection changes in an application scenario provided in this application embodiment;

[0085] Figure 13This is a schematic diagram of the network architecture of a satellite communication system before the re-division of tasks and satellite clusters, as provided in the second application scenario of this application embodiment.

[0086] Figure 14 This is a schematic diagram of the network architecture of the satellite communication system after the task division and satellite cluster division are re-done under the second application scenario provided in this application embodiment;

[0087] Figure 15 This is a schematic diagram of connection changes under application scenario two provided in the embodiments of this application;

[0088] Figure 16 This is a schematic diagram of the network architecture of a satellite communication system before the re-division of tasks and satellite clusters, as provided in the third application scenario of this application.

[0089] Figure 17 This is a schematic diagram of the network architecture of the satellite communication system after re-dividing tasks and satellite clusters in application scenario three provided in this application embodiment;

[0090] Figure 18 This is a schematic diagram of the connection changes under application scenario three provided in the embodiments of this application;

[0091] Figure 19 This is a structural block diagram of an example satellite communication device provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0092] Figure 20 This is a structural block diagram of an example satellite communication device provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0093] Figure 21 This is a structural block diagram of an example satellite communication device provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0094] Figure 22 This is a structural block diagram of a satellite communication device provided in an embodiment of this application. Detailed Implementation

[0095] The technical solutions in the embodiments of this application will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0096] The technical solution provided in this application can be applied to non-terrestrial network (NTN) communication systems. Of course, the technical solution provided in this application can also be applied to future communication systems, and this is not limited thereto.

[0097] For example, a satellite communication network, and specifically a low-Earth orbit (LEO) satellite network, will be used as an example. A LEO satellite network consists of a group of LEO satellites.

[0098] For example, Figure 1This is a schematic diagram of the structure of a traditional low-Earth orbit satellite communication system. (Example:) Figure 1 As shown, a traditional low-Earth orbit satellite communication system 100 may include a LEO mega-constellation 110, terminal equipment 120, and ground stations 130, etc.

[0099] The LEO mega-constellation comprises multiple LEO satellites 111. This network of LEO satellites 111 provides communication services covering the entire globe or specific regions. In this satellite communication system, the LEO satellites operate independently or through limited coordination via ground stations 130. Terminal devices 120 communicate directly with the LEO satellites. Specifically, each LEO satellite transmits a spotbeam covering a specific area, communicating with terminal devices 120 within that area.

[0100] Terminal device 120 can also be referred to as a terminal, user equipment (UE), mobile station, mobile terminal, etc. Terminal device 120 can include aerial user equipment (UE), terrestrial user equipment (UE), etc. Terminal device 120 can be widely used in various scenarios, such as device-to-device (D2D), vehicle-to-everything (V2X) communication, machine-type communication (MTC), Internet of Things (IoT), ultra-reliable low-latency communication (URLLC), virtual reality, augmented reality, industrial control, autonomous driving, telemedicine, smart grid, smart furniture, smart office, smart wearables, smart transportation, smart cities, or satellite communication, etc. The terminal can be a mobile phone, tablet computer, computer with wireless transceiver capabilities, wearable device, vehicle, aircraft (such as drones, helicopters, airplanes), hot air balloon, ship, robot, robotic arm, or smart home device, etc. The embodiments of this application do not limit the form of terminal device 120.

[0101] Traditional low-Earth orbit (LEO) satellite communication systems have simple network architectures, but there is limited cooperation between LEO satellites, resulting in limitations in resource allocation and network efficiency.

[0102] Based on this, a cooperative low-Earth orbit (LEO) satellite communication system has been proposed in related technologies. In a cooperative LEO satellite communication system, LEO satellites can exchange information and share resources.

[0103] For example, Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of a cooperative low-Earth orbit satellite communication system 200 in the related art. (Example:) Figure 2 As shown, the system includes a cooperative LEO satellite group 210, terminal equipment 220, and ground station 230.

[0104] The cooperative LEO satellite constellation 210 includes multiple LEO satellites 211. In this system, on one hand, the LEO satellites 211 can form user-centric coverage, enabling communication between the LEO satellites 211 and terminal devices 220. On the other hand, the LEO satellites 211 can communicate with each other via inter-satellite links, forming a highly cooperative satellite constellation (e.g., Figure 2 (As shown by the dashed ellipse in the image). Additionally, LEO satellite 211 is also capable of communicating with ground station 230.

[0105] The type, form and application scenarios of the terminal device 220 in this system can be the same as or similar to the terminal device 120 mentioned above, and will not be described again.

[0106] In one specific embodiment, the cooperative low-Earth orbit satellite communication system 200 may further include geostationary earth orbit (GEO) satellites (or geosynchronous orbit satellites). The GEO satellites can communicate with each other on the LEO satellites to coordinate and control cooperation among them. Optionally, cooperation among the LEO satellites may include, but is not limited to, cluster partitioning, mobility management, data relay, load balancing, and path optimization.

[0107] It should be noted that, Figure 2 This is merely an example of a network architecture for a cooperative low-Earth orbit (LEO) satellite communication system. In reality, researchers are also investigating which architecture of a cooperative LEO satellite communication system can improve the overall performance and reliability of the network, and how to specifically manage and schedule cooperative LEO satellite networks to enhance overall network performance. These are pressing issues that need to be addressed.

[0108] In view of this, embodiments of this application provide a satellite communication system and a satellite communication method, which adopt a combination of master-slave LEO satellite cluster and GEO satellite coordinated control to achieve multi-level and collaborative resource perception, thereby realizing fine-grained resource scheduling and improving the overall network performance and reliability.

[0109] For example, Figure 3 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of a satellite communication system provided in an embodiment of this application, as shown below. Figure 3As shown, the satellite communication system 300 includes a GEO satellite 310, one or more satellite clusters 320, terminal equipment 330, and ground station 340.

[0110] Each satellite constellation 320 includes one first LEO satellite 321 and one or more second LEO satellites 322. The first LEO satellite 321 is deployed with an access and mobility management function (AMF) module. The first LEO satellite 321 is also referred to as an AMF satellite, AMF node, or LEO-AMF. The second LEO satellites 322 are deployed with base station equipment, such as gNBs. The second LEO satellites 322 are also referred to as base station satellites, base station nodes, or LEO-base stations.

[0111] The first LEO satellite 321 in each satellite cluster 320 can communicate with each of the second LEO satellites 322 in the same cluster. Furthermore, the first LEO satellite 321 can communicate with the GEO satellites 310. The first LEO satellite 321 acts as the network controller of its satellite cluster 320, coordinating the management of the cluster and resources with the GEO satellites. The second LEO satellites 322 are managed and coordinated by the first LEO satellite 321. Therefore, the first LEO satellite 321 is also referred to as the master LEO satellite, and the second LEO satellite 322 is also referred to as the slave LEO satellite.

[0112] GEO satellite 310 can communicate with the first LEO satellite 321 in each satellite cluster 320. Optionally, GEO satellite 310 may be deployed with a policy control function (PCF) module (or network coordination function module). GEO satellite 310 is used to manage the satellite cluster and resources through the coordination of the first LEO satellites 321. Each first LEO satellite 321 can communicate with GEO satellite 310 via a satellite relay link. Optionally, GEO satellite 310 can be a core network element, such as a session management function (SMF) node, a PMF node, or an operation, administration and maintenance (OAM) node, etc., without specific limitations, as long as it can communicate with the first LEO satellite 321.

[0113] The satellite constellation 320, formed by the first LEO satellite 321 and the second LEO satellite 322, can provide a wireless network for the terminal device 330. Optionally, each second LEO satellite 322 can transmit one or more beams. Each beam can cover K terminal devices 330 on the ground or in the air. K is a positive integer. In this application, the cell covered by the beam transmitted by the second LEO satellite 322 can also be described as the cell covered by the second LEO satellite 322. Optionally, the system can adopt a fixed cell mode. Specifically, a preset area can be pre-divided on the ground or in the air to form a preset cell. The GEO satellite can assign a corresponding cell to each second LEO satellite 322, that is, adjust the beam direction of each second LEO satellite so that the beam covers the area where the corresponding cell is located, thereby providing a wireless network for the terminal devices 330 in the area where the cell is located.

[0114] The type, form, and application scenarios of terminal device 330 may be the same as or similar to those of terminal devices 120 and 220, and will not be described in detail here. Optionally, terminal device 330 may be a single-antenna ground user terminal.

[0115] Ground station 340 is capable of communicating with each of the first LEO satellites 321 and the second LEO satellite 322, and also with the GEO satellite 310. Ground station 340 is capable of acquiring ephemeris information from each of the first LEO satellites 321 and the second LEO satellite 322.

[0116] The following detailed explanation of the solution provided in this application, in conjunction with the corresponding flowcharts, illustrates the method. It is understood that the illustrative flowcharts provided in this application primarily use different devices (e.g., GEO satellites, first LEO satellites, second LEO satellites, and terminal devices) as examples of the execution entities for this interactive illustration. However, this application does not limit the execution entities for the interactive illustrations. For example, the devices in the illustrative flowcharts (e.g., GEO satellites, first LEO satellites, second LEO satellites, and terminal devices) can also be chips, chip systems, or processors that support the implementation of this method on those devices, or logic modules or software capable of implementing all or part of the functions of those devices.

[0117] As a general statement, the message or signaling interactions involved in the interaction process of this application embodiment can be standard messages or signaling or newly introduced messages or signaling. This application embodiment does not make specific limitations on this.

[0118] Figure 4 and Figure 5 This is a schematic diagram of a satellite communication method according to an embodiment of this application. Figure 4 and Figure 5 As shown, the method includes the following steps:

[0119] S410, each of the second LEO satellites reports its first information to the first LEO satellite in its current satellite constellation. Correspondingly, the first LEO satellite receives the first information reported by each of the second LEO satellites.

[0120] The first information is used to characterize the radio resources provided by the second LEO satellite. Optionally, the first information may include at least one of basic resource information and resource usage information. The basic resource information is used to characterize the basic situation of the radio resources provided by the second LEO satellite. The resource usage information is used to characterize the usage of the radio resources provided by the second LEO satellite by the terminal device.

[0121] In one embodiment, the basic resource information may include one or more of the following: beam information of the second LEO satellite and information on the cells covered by each beam of the second LEO satellite. Optionally, the beam information includes, but is not limited to, one or more of the following: the number of beams, beam direction, beam angle, beam frequency, and beam power. The beam frequency may include one or more of the following: the beam center frequency, frequency range, supported carrier bandwidth, supported NR band, and currently used frequency. Optionally, the cell information may include one or more of the following: the cell name, cell identity (ID), etc.

[0122] Of course, depending on the needs, the basic resource information may also include other information, such as the time slot structure used and the granularity of spectrum usage.

[0123] In one embodiment, resource usage information may include at least one of: the number of users within the cell covered by each beam of the second LEO satellite, and radio resource usage (e.g., physical resource block (PRB) usage). The number of users within the cell indicates the number of active users within the cell. Active users are also known as active terminal devices or activated terminal devices.

[0124] Of course, other information may also be included as needed, such as the maximum number of terminal devices that the second LEO satellite is allowed to connect to (hereinafter referred to as the maximum number of connections), power budget, etc.

[0125] It is understandable that satellite constellations can provide wireless networks to terminal devices. Optionally, such as... Figure 4 As shown, terminal devices can pre-register in the network provided by the satellite constellation. In this way, each second LEO satellite in the constellation can obtain information such as the number of active users and resource usage within the cell covered by each beam.

[0126] As one possible approach, each second LEO satellite can periodically and proactively report first information to the first LEO satellite.

[0127] As another possible implementation, the first LEO satellite can send instructions to each of the second LEO satellites, which will then trigger the second LEO satellites to report the first information to the first LEO satellite.

[0128] Optionally, the second LEO satellite may report the first information using standard messages or signaling. Alternatively, the second LEO satellite may also report the first information using newly introduced messages or signaling. For example, new signaling may be obtained by extending the control plane signaling protocol (NGAP), and the first information may be reported using this new signaling. The name of the new signaling is not limited; in this application, for ease of description, the new signaling obtained by extending NGAP information is referred to as NG resource update signaling.

[0129] S420, each first LEO satellite determines the payload information of each second LEO satellite in its satellite cluster based on the first information.

[0130] The load information of the second LEO satellite is used to characterize the utilization of radio resources provided by the second LEO satellite by terminal devices. Optionally, the load information of the second LEO satellite may include one or more of the following: user spatial density of the cell covered by the second LEO satellite, active user ratio of the cell covered by the second LEO satellite, radio resource utilization rate of the second LEO satellite (e.g., PRB utilization rate), or average throughput of the second LEO satellite.

[0131] In one specific embodiment, the first LEO satellite can determine the user spatial density of each cell covered by each second LEO satellite based on the number of users reported by the cells reported by the second LEO satellites it manages. User spatial density characterizes the number of active users per unit coverage area of ​​a cell. User spatial density can be determined, for example, by the ratio of the number of active users in a cell to the cell's coverage area. In one possible implementation, user spatial density can be characterized by a user spatial density distribution map. The user spatial density distribution map is a distribution view of active users (i.e., terminal devices) built based on cells. Each cell serves as a statistical unit, counting the number of terminal devices acquired within the corresponding area of ​​the cell, reflecting the spatial distribution characteristics of network traffic, and thus reflecting the load of the second LEO satellite. It can be understood that for a given second LEO satellite, the higher the user spatial density of the cells it covers, the greater the network traffic of that second LEO satellite, and the higher its load.

[0132] In another embodiment, the first LEO satellite can determine the active user ratio based on the number of active users and the maximum number of connections reported by all the second LEO satellites it manages across all cells. The active user ratio is the ratio of the number of active users to the maximum number of connections. The active user ratio reflects the load status of the second LEO satellite. It can be understood that for a given second LEO satellite, a higher active user ratio indicates a higher load on that second LEO satellite.

[0133] In another embodiment, the first LEO satellite can also determine the radio resource utilization rate of each second LEO satellite based on the radio resource usage reported by the various second LEO satellites it manages. Taking PRB utilization rate as an example, the PRB utilization rate is the ratio of PRB usage to the total number of PRBs on the second LEO satellite. The radio resource utilization rate reflects the load status of the second LEO satellites. It can be understood that for a given second LEO satellite, a higher radio resource utilization rate indicates a higher load on that second LEO satellite.

[0134] It should be understood that the information listed above is merely an example of payload information and is not intended to be limiting. In practice, payload information only needs to characterize the terminal device's use of the radio resources provided by the second LEO satellite.

[0135] S430, each first LEO satellite reports the payload information of each second LEO satellite in its constellation to the GEO satellite. Correspondingly, the GEO satellite receives the payload information reported by each first LEO satellite.

[0136] Optionally, each first LEO satellite may also report part or all of the first information, along with information about the satellite cluster, to the GEO satellite. For example, a first LEO satellite may report basic resource information of each second LEO satellite, along with information about the satellite cluster, to the GEO satellite. The satellite cluster information may include one or more of the following: the satellite cluster ID, the IDs of the first LEO satellites in the cluster (or the IDs of the AMFs), the IDs or numbers of the second LEO satellites in the cluster, the total payload of the satellite cluster, and the boundary status of the satellite cluster.

[0137] Optionally, the first LEO satellite may report payload information using standard messages or signaling, or it may report payload information using newly introduced messages or signaling, depending on the communication method between the GEO satellite and the first LEO satellite.

[0138] S440, the GEO satellites obtain ephemeris information from the ground stations for each of the second LEO satellites.

[0139] This step is optional, and in some embodiments, it may be omitted. In such cases, subsequent steps may not involve ephemeris information.

[0140] S450, based on the payload information and / or ephemeris information of each second LEO satellite, and under the condition of meeting preset conditions, the GEO satellite re-divides the target second LEO satellites to obtain the task division result, and / or, the GEO satellite re-divides the target satellite cluster to obtain the satellite cluster division result.

[0141] The task allocation results are used to instruct the target second LEO satellite to adjust the coverage of the cell, and the satellite cluster allocation results are used to instruct the target satellite cluster to adjust the second LEO satellites contained therein.

[0142] The satellite cluster will be divided into two parts according to its mission and explained separately below.

[0143] 1) Task division.

[0144] Optionally, the preset conditions may include a first preset condition. The first preset condition is also the condition that triggers the task division.

[0145] In one embodiment, in S450, the GEO satellite, based on the payload information and / or ephemeris information of each second LEO satellite, and under preset conditions, re-divides the tasks of the target second LEO satellite to obtain the task division results, including:

[0146] S451, the GEO satellite, based on the payload information and / or ephemeris information of each second LEO satellite, and under the condition of satisfying the first preset condition, determines the target second LEO satellite corresponding to each source second LEO satellite, and re-divides the tasks of each target second LEO satellite to obtain the task division result.

[0147] Task allocation, also known as coverage area allocation, beam adjustment, or cell assignment, refers to assigning corresponding cells to a target second LEO satellite and adjusting the beams of the target second LEO satellite so that its beams cover the assigned cells, thereby providing network coverage for the assigned cells. Optionally, adjusting the beams of the target second LEO satellite includes, but is not limited to, adjusting one or more of the following: the number of beams, beam direction, beam angle, and beam frequency.

[0148] The target second LEO satellite is the second LEO satellite that needs to be re-classified for mission purposes, that is, the corresponding cell and the beam velocity need to be adjusted.

[0149] Optionally, the first preset condition may include load-related conditions and / or location-related conditions. The first preset condition includes load-related conditions, that is, the task re-allocation is triggered by the load status of the second LEO satellite, thus facilitating refined resource management; the first preset condition includes location-related conditions, that is, the task re-allocation is triggered by changes in the location of the second LEO satellite, thus facilitating mobility management.

[0150] In one specific embodiment, the load-related conditions include: the load of at least one second LEO satellite is higher than a first load threshold, and the load of at least one second LEO satellite is lower than a second load threshold. That is, based on the load information, if at least one LEO satellite has an excessively high load and at least one LEO satellite has a low load, indicating an imbalance in the load of the second LEO satellites, a target second LEO satellite is identified, and its tasks are reassigned. This facilitates the distribution of the load from the overloaded second LEO satellites to the underloaded ones, further enabling refined resource management and scheduling, achieving load balancing, and improving system performance and reliability.

[0151] For ease of description, the target second LEO satellite that shares the load, i.e., the second LEO satellite with an excessive load, is called the source second LEO satellite, and the cell covered by the source second LEO satellite is called the target cell. The target cell is also the cell that the target second LEO satellite is to cover.

[0152] Specifically, a GEO satellite can identify one or more of at least one second LEO satellite as the target second LEO satellite, and then reassign tasks to the target second LEO satellite, i.e., reallocate corresponding cells to the target second LEO satellite. These reallocated cells may include the target cell. The GEO satellite adjusts the beam of the target second LEO satellite so that its beam covers the target cell, providing network coverage to the target cell and thus reducing the load on the source second LEO satellite.

[0153] In another specific embodiment, the location-related condition includes: at least one second LEO satellite's beam cannot cover the currently covered cell after a preset duration. That is, based on ephemeris information, if it is predicted that the second LEO satellite will be unable to cover the currently covered cell after a preset duration due to its movement, the task allocation is recalculated, and a new second LEO satellite is assigned to cover the currently covered cell. The second LEO satellite whose beam cannot cover the currently covered cell after the preset duration can also be called the source second LEO satellite, and the cell currently covered by the source second LEO satellite is called the target cell. The newly assigned second LEO satellite for covering the target cell is the target second LEO satellite. The target cell is the cell to be covered by the target second LEO satellite. In this embodiment, when the movement of the second LEO satellite causes coverage shift and prevents it from covering the currently covered cell, a task recalculation is triggered. This facilitates the subsequent reallocation of second LEO satellites to the uncovered cells, enabling mobility management, providing continuous coverage of the cells, and thus providing continuous network access for terminal devices within the cells, improving system performance and reliability.

[0154] It should be understood that the first presupposition conditions listed above are merely examples and do not constitute a limitation on the first presupposition conditions.

[0155] The task allocation result is used to indicate the cells covered by the target second LEO satellite. Optionally, the task allocation result may include one or more of the following: a) information about the target second LEO satellite (e.g., the ID or number of the target second LEO satellite); b) information about the target cells (e.g., the ID of the target cell); c) the beam information of the target second LEO satellite after task allocation (referred to as target beam information). The target beam information is also the target of subsequent beam adjustment. Optionally, the target beam information may include one or more of the following: the number of target beams, the direction of the target beams, the angle of the target beams, the frequency of the target beams, and the power of the target beams.

[0156] 2) Satellite cluster division.

[0157] Optionally, the preset conditions may also include a second preset condition. The second preset condition is the condition that triggers the satellite cluster division.

[0158] In one embodiment, in S450, the GEO satellite, based on the payload information and / or ephemeris information of each second LEO satellite, and under preset conditions, re-divides the target satellite cluster to obtain a satellite cluster division result, including:

[0159] S452, the GEO satellite, based on the payload information and / or ephemeris information of each second LEO satellite, determines the target satellite cluster under the condition of meeting the second preset condition, and re-divides the target satellite cluster to obtain the satellite cluster division result.

[0160] Satellite cluster partitioning, also known as constellation clustering, refers to dividing the second-level LEO satellites in a target satellite cluster into one or more satellite clusters. Optionally, the repartitioning of satellite clusters generally involves the second-level LEO satellites at the edge of the target satellite cluster, repartitioning these edge-level second-level LEO satellites, and reallocating satellite clusters and corresponding first-level LEO satellites to these edge-level second-level LEO satellites.

[0161] The target satellite constellation refers to a satellite constellation that needs to be re-divided.

[0162] Optionally, the second preset condition may include conditions related to the satellite constellation, and / or conditions related to communication failures.

[0163] In this implementation, the second preset condition includes conditions related to the satellite cluster, which can trigger the re-division of the satellite cluster based on the current status of the satellite cluster, thereby achieving global management of the satellite cluster; the second preset condition includes conditions related to communication failure, which can trigger the re-division of the satellite cluster based on the communication status of the second LEO satellite, thus achieving flexible management of the satellite cluster and improving the performance of the communication system. For example, the second LEO satellite that has a communication failure can be removed from the satellite cluster, thereby reducing the management burden of the first LEO satellite and GEO.

[0164] In one specific embodiment, the conditions related to the satellite cluster may include: meeting a first preset condition, and the source second LEO satellite and the corresponding target second LEO satellite not currently belonging to the same satellite cluster. In other words, when a second LEO satellite (i.e., the source second LEO satellite) in a certain satellite cluster has an excessively high load and needs second LEO satellites (i.e., the target second LEO satellite) in other satellite clusters to share the load, then satellite cluster partitioning is performed. And / or, when a second LEO satellite (i.e., the source second LEO satellite) cannot cover the currently covered cell after a preset duration, and needs second LEO satellites (i.e., the target second LEO satellite) in other satellite clusters to cover the cell, then satellite cluster partitioning is performed.

[0165] Optionally, the target second LEO satellite can be assigned to the same satellite cluster as the source second LEO satellite. This facilitates the management of the cluster by the first LEO satellite, as well as the coordination and management of the GEO satellites, thereby improving system performance.

[0166] In another specific embodiment, the conditions related to the communication failure may include, for example, at least one second LEO satellite experiencing a communication failure. In other words, when the surrounding environment causes a communication failure of a second LEO satellite, satellite cluster partitioning can be triggered. The communication failure may include a malfunction of the second LEO satellite itself, and / or an interruption of the communication link between the second LEO satellite and the first LEO satellite, or with terminal equipment, or with ground stations, etc.

[0167] Optionally, the second LEO satellite experiencing communication failure can be removed from the satellite cluster, thus reducing the management burden on the first LEO satellite and GEO satellite. In this case, the second LEO satellite with communication failure is identified as the target second LEO satellite, and the satellite cluster to which the target second LEO satellite currently resides is identified as the target satellite cluster.

[0168] The satellite cluster partitioning results may include one or more of the following: a) information about the target second LEO satellite; b) information about the target cell; c) information about the target satellite cluster. Optionally, the target satellite cluster information may include one or more of the following: the name of the target satellite cluster, the ID of the target satellite cluster, etc.

[0169] In other words, if the first preset condition is met but the second preset condition is not met, the GEO satellite generates a mission allocation result; if both the first and second preset conditions are met, the GEO satellite generates both a mission allocation result and a satellite cluster allocation result. If the first preset condition is not met, but the second preset condition is met, the GEO satellite generates a satellite cluster allocation result. In summary, the GEO satellite can generate mission allocation results and / or satellite cluster allocation results.

[0170] Optionally, the preset conditions may also include a third preset condition.

[0171] In another embodiment, the GEO satellite can also reallocate resources of the target second LEO satellite based on the payload information and / or ephemeris information of each second LEO satellite, provided that a third preset condition is met. Optionally, resource allocation includes allocating PRB resources, etc.

[0172] Optionally, the third preset condition can be a resource-related condition.

[0173] In one specific embodiment, the third preset condition is, for example, that the sum of the resource quantities of the source second LEO satellite and the target second LEO satellite is less than a preset threshold. That is, when the total resource quantity of the source second LEO satellite and the target second LEO satellite is small, resources can be reallocated to the target second LEO satellite to meet the load requirements of the terminal device.

[0174] It should be noted that the first, second, and third preset conditions described above are merely examples and do not constitute a limitation on the individual preset conditions. In practical applications, the preset conditions may differ from the examples above, or they may include more or fewer conditions than those described above.

[0175] S460, the GEO satellite transmits the mission allocation results and / or satellite cluster allocation results to the target first LEO satellite. Correspondingly, the target first LEO satellite receives the mission allocation results and / or satellite cluster allocation results transmitted by the GEO satellite. The target first LEO satellite includes the first LEO satellite in the satellite cluster currently occupied by the target second LEO satellite, and / or the first LEO satellite in the target cluster.

[0176] In other words, the target first LEO satellite includes: the second LEO satellite to which the re-assigned mission belongs is the first LEO satellite in the satellite cluster, and / or, the first LEO satellite in the re-assigned satellite cluster.

[0177] Optionally, GEO satellites may use standard messages or signaling to distribute task allocation results and / or satellite cluster allocation results. Alternatively, GEO satellites may also distribute task allocation results and / or satellite cluster allocation results using newly introduced messages or signaling, such as the NG resource update (NG_resource_update) signaling.

[0178] S470, the target first LEO satellite is adjusted according to the satellite cluster division results, and the second LEO satellite included in the target satellite cluster is adjusted.

[0179] S480, the target first LEO satellite sends the task allocation results to the source second LEO satellite and / or the target second LEO satellite in its constellation. Correspondingly, the target second LEO satellite or the second LEO satellite receives the task allocation results sent by the target first LEO satellite.

[0180] It is understandable that if the content transmitted by the GEO satellite includes the task allocation results but not the satellite cluster allocation results, then the first target LEO satellite includes the first LEO satellite in the satellite cluster where the second target LEO satellite is located (i.e., the first LEO satellite that manages the second target LEO satellite). In this case, the first target LEO satellite will transmit the task allocation results to the second target LEO satellite in its satellite cluster.

[0181] If the content transmitted by the GEO satellite includes both mission allocation results and satellite cluster allocation results, then the target first LEO satellite includes both the first LEO satellite in the satellite cluster where the target second LEO satellite resides (i.e., the first LEO satellite managing the target second LEO satellite) and the first LEO satellite in the satellite cluster where the source second LEO satellite resides (i.e., the first LEO satellite managing the source second LEO satellite). In this case, for the target first LEO satellite in the cluster where the target second LEO satellite resides, the mission allocation results are transmitted to the target second LEO satellite in its respective satellite cluster; for the target first LEO satellite in the cluster where the source second LEO satellite resides, the mission allocation results are transmitted to the source second LEO satellite in its respective satellite cluster.

[0182] Optionally, after step S480, the method may further include: the second target LEO satellite sending a response message to the first target LEO satellite. Correspondingly, the first target LEO satellite receives the response message sent by the second target LEO satellite.

[0183] The response message is used to indicate that the task partitioning result has been received.

[0184] S490, the target second LEO satellite adjusts its beam according to the mission allocation results.

[0185] Optionally, adjusting the beam may include adding a beam, changing a beam, or removing one or more beams.

[0186] Specifically, based on the target beam information in the mission allocation results, the target second LEO satellite will adjust its beams to ensure that at least one beam in the adjusted beam matches the target beam information. For example, one or more of the following adjustments may be made: adjusting the number of beams of the target second LEO satellite to be the same as the target number of beams; adjusting the beam direction of the target second LEO satellite to be consistent with the target beam direction; adjusting the beam angle of the target second LEO satellite to be consistent with the target beam angle; adjusting the beam frequency of the target second LEO satellite to be consistent with the target beam frequency; and adjusting the beam power of the target second LEO satellite to be consistent with the target beam power.

[0187] In this way, the adjusted beam can cover the target cell, provide network coverage for the target cell, thereby sharing the load for the second source LEO satellite, and / or, can cover the target cell that the second source LEO satellite cannot cover, thus achieving continuous coverage of the target cell.

[0188] Furthermore, if the GEO satellite reallocates resources to the target second LEO satellite, it can also transmit the allocation results to the target first LEO satellite. The target first LEO satellite then transmits the allocation results to the target second LEO satellite. The target second LEO satellite then acquires the resources based on the allocation results.

[0189] The satellite communication method provided in this application embodiment is based on a master-slave LEO satellite cluster formed by a first LEO satellite and a second LEO satellite. It achieves multi-level, collaborative resource awareness through a combination of coordinated control by the first LEO satellite and coordinated control by the GEO satellite, thereby enabling fine-grained management and scheduling of resources and LEO satellites, and improving overall network performance and reliability. Specifically, the second LEO satellite reports first information to the first LEO satellite in its cluster, the first information representing the wireless resource status. The first LEO satellite then uses this first information to calculate the load information of the second LEO satellite. In other words, resource awareness is achieved through two levels of collaboration between the second and first LEO satellites. Subsequently, the first LEO satellite reports the load information to the GEO satellite, which then performs task allocation and / or satellite cluster partitioning based on the global load information and ephemeris information. This enables fine-grained scheduling and management of wireless resources and LEO satellites, improving overall network performance and reliability. In summary, the method provided in this application realizes multi-level and collaborative resource awareness. Based on resource awareness, it enables various collaborations such as satellite cluster partitioning, mobility management, and load balancing, and achieves fine-grained scheduling of resources and LEO satellites, thereby improving the overall network performance and reliability.

[0190] It is understood that after the task is re-divided according to the above process and the target second LEO satellite adjusts its beam, the beam of the target second LEO satellite can cover the target cell. Afterwards, some or all terminal devices within the target cell can switch connections to the target second LEO satellite. This can reduce the load on the source second LEO satellite, or restore normal communication for the terminal devices within the target cell. Regarding the connection switching of terminal devices within the target cell, this application can provide the following two implementation methods:

[0191] As one possible implementation, terminal devices in the target cell can determine that the beam of the second LEO satellite is the better beam by measuring signal quality and load information, and thus switch the connection to the second LEO satellite.

[0192] As another possible implementation, such as Figure 5 As shown, the connection switching process may include:

[0193] S491, Source 2 LEO satellite generates handover strategy. The handover strategy includes the target terminal equipment, which is the terminal equipment in the target cell to be handed over.

[0194] Optionally, the source second LEO satellite can generate a handover strategy according to a preset method, the specific method of which is not limited. For example, the source second LEO satellite can randomly select a preset number of terminal devices from the terminal devices in the target cell as target terminal devices. Another example is that the source second LEO satellite can determine the target terminal devices based on the location of each terminal device in the target cell; for instance, it can determine the terminal devices in the first area of ​​the target cell as target terminal devices. Yet another example is that the source second LEO satellite can also determine the target terminal devices based on the channel information reported by each terminal device in the target cell.

[0195] S492, the source second LEO satellite sends a connection switching message to the target terminal device. Correspondingly, the target terminal device receives the connection switching message. This connection switching message indicates that the network connection should be switched from the source second LEO satellite to the target second LEO satellite.

[0196] Optionally, the connection switching message may include one or more of the following: information about the target second LEO satellite, information about the satellite cluster to which the target second LEO satellite belongs, and beam information of the target second LEO satellite.

[0197] Upon receiving the connection switching message, the target terminal device disconnects from the source second LEO satellite and establishes a connection with the target second LEO satellite. Alternatively, the source second LEO satellite can actively disconnect from the target terminal device, and the target second LEO satellite can actively establish a connection with the target terminal device.

[0198] Optionally, the target second LEO satellite can be connected and switched based on the Xn-based inter-base station handover procedure or the NG-based base station-core network handover procedure, without limitation.

[0199] For example, Figure 6 Taking the inter-base station handover process as an example, the connection handover process will be further explained. Figure 6 As shown, after step S491 and before step S492, the method may include:

[0200] S601, the source second LEO satellite sends a handover request to the target second LEO satellite.

[0201] A handover request is used to request a switch of the target terminal device's network connection to the target second LEO satellite. Optionally, the handover request may include information about the target terminal device.

[0202] S602, the target second LEO satellite sends a handover response to the source second LEO satellite.

[0203] Following step S492, the method further includes:

[0204] S603, the target terminal device sends a radio resource control (RRC) reconfiguration message to the target second LEO satellite.

[0205] S604, the target second LEO satellite completes RRC reconfiguration and sends an RRC reconfiguration completion message to the target terminal equipment.

[0206] S605, the target second LEO satellite releases the context of the target terminal device to the source second LEO satellite.

[0207] It should be noted that, Figure 6 The example provided illustrates the situation where the source second LEO satellite and the target second LEO satellite do not currently belong to the same satellite cluster (i.e., there is a satellite cluster division). The handover process is the same for cases where the source second LEO satellite and the target second LEO satellite belong to the same satellite cluster (i.e., there is no satellite cluster division). The source second LEO satellite and the target second LEO satellite interact to request and respond to the handover, and release the context. The target second LEO satellite then interacts with the target terminal device to perform RRC configuration.

[0208] In this embodiment, since the second source LEO satellite can receive the task allocation results from the first LEO satellite in a timely manner and know the changes in cell coverage in advance, the second source LEO satellite generates a handover strategy and sends a connection handover message to trigger the terminal device to switch connections. This can complete the connection handover in advance before the signal quality deteriorates, prevent communication terminals from deteriorating, improve system performance and stability, improve the stability of services to terminal devices, and thus improve the user experience.

[0209] The process of GEO satellite mission allocation and satellite cluster allocation will be further explained below.

[0210] See Figure 7 In one embodiment, step S451 above, whereby the GEO satellite, based on the payload information and / or ephemeris information of each second LEO satellite, determines the target second LEO satellite under the condition of satisfying a first preset condition, and re-divides the tasks of the target second LEO satellite to obtain the task division result, includes:

[0211] S710, the GEO satellite determines whether the first preset condition is met based on the payload information and / or ephemeris information of each second LEO satellite; if the first preset condition is met, then step S720 is executed.

[0212] If the first preset condition is not met, there is no need to redefine the task, and the GEO satellite continues to execute subsequent steps S452, as well as steps S460 to S492.

[0213] S720, the GEO satellite generates an interference matrix based on the beam information and ephemeris information of each second LEO satellite.

[0214] In this embodiment of the application, the interference matrix is ​​used to characterize the beam interference between each second LEO satellite.

[0215] Specifically, the interference matrix is ​​used to quantify the mutual interference intensity between beams in a wireless network. The interference matrix can be an N×N matrix, where N represents the number of beams and is a positive integer. The element values ​​in the interference matrix represent the interference intensity of the source beam on the affected beam.

[0216] S730, the GEO satellite determines the target second LEO satellite based on the payload information and / or ephemeris information of each second LEO satellite.

[0217] In one embodiment, the first preset condition includes load-related conditions. For example, the first preset condition includes: at least one second LEO satellite has a load higher than a first load threshold, and at least one second LEO satellite has a load lower than a second load threshold. In this case, the GEO satellite can determine the corresponding target second LEO satellite for each second LEO satellite (i.e., the source second LEO satellite) whose load is higher than the first load threshold, based on the load information from the second LEO satellites whose load is lower than the second load threshold.

[0218] Taking any source second LEO satellite a as an example, the principles for determining the target second LEO satellite a corresponding to the source second LEO satellite a may include: 1) The distance between the target second LEO satellite a and the source second LEO satellite a is less than the distance threshold; in this way, adjusting the beam of the target second LEO satellite a can achieve the purpose of covering the target cell; 2) The load of the target second LEO satellite a is as small as possible; in this way, the load of the source second LEO satellite a can be distributed as much as possible.

[0219] For example, the second LEO satellites with loads higher than a first load threshold (i.e., source second LEO satellites) include multiple satellites: second LEO satellite 1, second LEO satellite 2, and second LEO satellite 3. The second LEO satellites with loads lower than the second load threshold also include multiple satellites: second LEO satellite 6, second LEO satellite 7, and second LEO satellite 8. In this case, satisfying the first preset condition, the GEO satellite determines the corresponding target second LEO satellite from among the multiple second LEO satellites (second LEO satellite 6, second LEO satellite 7, and second LEO satellite 8) with loads lower than the second load threshold, for each source second LEO satellite (second LEO satellite 1, second LEO satellite 2, and second LEO satellite 3). Taking the determination of the corresponding target second LEO satellite for second LEO satellite 1 as an example, it can be first determined whether there are any second LEO satellites among second LEO satellites 6, 7, and 8 whose distance to second LEO satellite 1 is less than a distance threshold:

[0220] If none of the second LEO satellites 6, 7, and 8 are less than the distance threshold to the second LEO satellite 1, then it is determined that there is no target second LEO satellite corresponding to the second LEO satellite 1.

[0221] If any of the second LEO satellites 6, 7, and 8 is less than the distance threshold to the second LEO satellite 1, then the second LEO satellite that is less than the distance threshold to the second LEO satellite 1 is identified as the target second LEO satellite corresponding to the second LEO satellite 1.

[0222] If multiple of the second LEO satellites 6, 7, and 8 are less than the distance threshold from the second LEO satellite 1, then the one with the smallest payload among them can be identified as the target second LEO satellite corresponding to the second LEO satellite 1.

[0223] In another embodiment, the first preset condition includes location-related conditions. For example, the first preset condition includes: at least one second LEO satellite's beam cannot cover the currently covered cell after a preset duration. In this case, based on ephemeris information, a corresponding target second LEO satellite can be determined for each cell (i.e., the source second LEO satellite) whose beam cannot cover the currently covered cell after a preset duration. Taking any source second LEO satellite b as an example, optionally, the principle for determining the target second LEO satellite b corresponding to the source second LEO satellite b can include: 1) after a preset duration, the target second LEO satellite b's current beam, or after adjusting the current beam, can cover the target cell; 2) the load of the target second LEO satellite b is as small as possible; thus, the communication quality of the target cell can be guaranteed as much as possible.

[0224] For example, if a GEO satellite determines that there are two second LEO satellites whose beam cannot cover the currently covered cell after a preset duration, meaning there are two source second LEO satellites, such as second LEO satellite 4 and second LEO satellite 5, then, meeting the second preset condition, the GEO satellite, based on the ephemeris information of each second LEO satellite, determines the corresponding target second LEO satellite for each source second LEO satellite (second LEO satellite 4 and second LEO satellite 5). Taking determining the corresponding target second LEO satellite for second LEO satellite 4 as an example, it can first be determined whether there is a second LEO satellite that, after a preset duration, the current beam or after adjusting the current beam, can cover the target cell:

[0225] If such a second LEO satellite does not exist, then it is determined that there is no target second LEO satellite corresponding to second LEO satellite 4.

[0226] If there is one such second LEO satellite, then that second LEO satellite is identified as the target second LEO satellite corresponding to second LEO satellite 4;

[0227] If there are multiple such second LEO satellites, then the one with the smallest payload among them can be identified as the target second LEO satellite corresponding to second LEO satellite 4.

[0228] In another embodiment, the first preset conditions include load-related conditions and location-related conditions. In this case, the two embodiments described above can be combined to determine the target second LEO satellite, and the specific details will not be elaborated further.

[0229] S740, the GEO satellite re-divides the mission of the target second LEO satellite based on the interference matrix, and obtains the mission division result.

[0230] In this embodiment, GEO satellites can perform frequency planning, interference avoidance, and beam management based on the interference matrix. This allows them to obtain beams that cover the target cell while preventing interference with other beams or cells, thus achieving task allocation while further improving network performance and reliability.

[0231] See Figure 8 In one possible implementation, step S740 may include:

[0232] S741, the GEO satellite sets the initial beam information for the target second LEO satellite.

[0233] S742, the GEO satellite incorporates the initial beam information into the interference calculation, updates the interference matrix, and obtains the updated interference matrix.

[0234] S743, the GEO satellite determines whether the interference intensity of the interference pair corresponding to the initial wave velocity information in the updated interference matrix is ​​less than the preset interference threshold; if yes, proceed to step S744; if no, proceed to step S745.

[0235] S744, the GEO satellite uses the initial beam information as the target beam information to generate the mission partitioning results.

[0236] S745, the GEO satellite adjusts the initial beam information and uses the adjusted initial beam information as the initial beam information, then returns to step S742.

[0237] In this implementation, the beam information is adjusted repeatedly through loops to find beam information with interference intensity less than the interference threshold. This allows the determination of target beam information with less interference for the target second LEO satellite, which can obtain the beam covering the target cell and prevent interference to other beams or other cells, thereby further improving network performance and reliability.

[0238] See Figure 9 In one embodiment, in step S452 above, the GEO satellite, based on the payload information and / or ephemeris information of each second LEO satellite, determines the target satellite cluster under the condition of satisfying a second preset condition, and re-divides the target satellite cluster to obtain the satellite cluster division result, including:

[0239] S910, the GEO satellite determines whether the second preset condition is met; if the second preset condition is met, then proceed to step S920.

[0240] If the second preset condition is not met, there is no need to redivide the satellite cluster, and the GEO satellites continue to execute subsequent steps S460 to S492.

[0241] S920, the GEO satellite determines the target satellite cluster, which includes the first target satellite cluster where the target second LEO satellite is currently located, and the second target satellite cluster where the source second LEO satellite is located.

[0242] S930, the GEO satellite reassigns the second LEO satellite from the first target satellite cluster to the second target satellite cluster, thus obtaining the satellite cluster division result.

[0243] In this embodiment, by dividing the satellite cluster, it is easier for the first LEO satellite to manage the second LEO satellite, which facilitates multi-level and collaborative resource perception and scheduling in the network system, thereby improving network performance.

[0244] To facilitate understanding, the methods provided in the embodiments of this application will be further explained below in conjunction with several application scenarios.

[0245] Scenario 1: The mission is reassigned (by adding beams), and the satellite constellation is also reassigned.

[0246] For example, Figure 10 The following is a schematic diagram of the network architecture of a satellite communication system before the re-division of tasks and satellite clusters, provided as an application scenario in this application embodiment. Please refer to... Figure 10 The satellite communication system includes satellite cluster 1 and satellite cluster 2.

[0247] As shown in Table 1 below, satellite constellation 1 is managed by the first LEO satellite (referred to as first LEO satellite 1) equipped with an AMF-1 module. Satellite constellation 1 includes second LEO satellites numbered S1-1, S1-2, S1-3, and S1-4. The cells covered by second LEO satellites S1-1, S1-2, S1-3, and S1-4 are cells C1, C2, C3, and C4, respectively. For simplicity, Figure 10 Only cell C1 is shown. Furthermore, for the sake of brevity, Figure 10 Ground stations are not shown. The same applies to application scenarios two and three, which will be discussed later.

[0248] The current beam frequencies (e.g., center frequencies) of the second LEO satellites S1-1, S1-2, S1-3, and S1-4 are f1, f2, f3, and f4, respectively. Assuming load information is represented by resource utilization, the current resource utilization rates of the second LEO satellites S1-1, S1-2, S1-3, and S1-4 are 95%, 70%, 65%, and 60%, respectively. Assuming a first load threshold of 90% and a second load threshold of 10%, the load of the second LEO satellite S1-1 is higher than the first load threshold, meaning the load of the second LEO satellite S1-1 is too high. The loads of the second LEO satellites S1-2, S1-3, and S1-4 are all above the first load threshold and above the second load threshold, meaning the load conditions of the second LEO satellites S1-2, S1-3, and S1-4 are normal.

[0249] Table 1

[0250]

[0251] As shown in Table 2 below, satellite constellation 2 is managed by the first LEO satellite (referred to as first LEO satellite 2) deployed with the AMF-2 module. Satellite constellation 2 includes second LEO satellites numbered S2-1, S2-2, S2-3, and S2-4. The cells covered by second LEO satellites S2-1, S2-3, and S2-4 are cells C5, C6, and C7, respectively. Figure 10(Not shown in the image). The current beam frequencies of the second LEO satellites S2-1, S2-2, S2-3, and S2-4 are f1, f2, f3, and f4, respectively. The second LEO satellite S2-2 does not cover any cells and is a redundant satellite; its current load is 0. Assuming load information is represented by resource utilization, the current resource utilization rates of the second LEO satellites S2-1, S2-2, S2-3, and S2-4 are 60%, 0%, 55%, and 65%, respectively. The load of the second LEO satellite S2-2 is below the second load threshold, indicating a low load; the loads of the second LEO satellites S2-1, S2-3, and S2-4 are normal.

[0252] Table 2

[0253]

[0254] In this scenario, the method provided in this application embodiment may include:

[0255] Step 1-1: The second LEO satellites S1-1, S1-2, S1-3 and S1-4 in satellite cluster 1 report their respective first information to the first LEO satellite 1; the second LEO satellites S2-1, S2-2, S2-3 and S2-4 in satellite cluster 2 report their respective first information to the first LEO satellite 2.

[0256] The first information may include at least one of basic resource information and resource usage information. For example, the basic resource information of the second LEO satellite S1-1 may include one or more of the following: the beam information of S1-1, or the information of the cells covered by the beam of S1-1. The resource usage information of the second LEO satellite S1-1 may include the amount of radio resources used by S1-1 (such as PRB usage).

[0257] The specific implementation process of this step can be found in step S410 above, and will not be repeated here.

[0258] Steps 1-2: First LEO satellite 1 determines the payload information of second LEO satellites S1-1, S1-2, S1-3, and S1-4 based on the first information of second LEO satellites S1-1, S1-2, S1-3, and S1-4, respectively; First LEO satellite 2 determines the payload information of second LEO satellites S2-1, S2-2, S2-3, and S2-4 based on the first information of second LEO satellites S2-1, S2-2, S2-3, and S2-4, respectively.

[0259] Load information includes, for example, resource utilization. The resource utilization rates of the second LEO satellites S1-1, S1-2, S1-3, and S1-4 are shown in Table 1 above. The resource utilization rates of the second LEO satellites S2-1, S2-2, S2-3, and S2-4 are shown in Table 2 above.

[0260] The specific implementation process of this step can be found in step S420 above, and will not be repeated here.

[0261] Steps 1-3: First LEO satellite 1 reports the payload information and basic resource information of second LEO satellites S1-1, S1-2, S1-3 and S1-4, as well as the information of satellite cluster 1, to the GEO satellite; First LEO satellite 2 reports the payload information and basic resource information of second LEO satellites S2-1, S2-2, S2-3 and S2-4, as well as the information of satellite cluster 2, to the GEO satellite.

[0262] The specific implementation process of this step can be found in step S430 above, and will not be repeated here.

[0263] Steps 1-4: The GEO satellites obtain ephemeris information of the second LEO satellites S1-1, S1-2, S1-3 and S1-4, as well as ephemeris information of the second LEO satellites S2-1, S2-2, S2-3 and S2-4, from the ground station.

[0264] The specific implementation process of this step can be found in step S440 above, and will not be repeated here.

[0265] In steps 1-5, the GEO satellite determines, based on the load information of the second LEO satellites S1-1, S1-2, S1-3, and S1-4, and the load information of the second LEO satellites S2-1, S2-2, S2-3, and S2-4, that the second LEO satellite S1-1 is greater than the first load threshold and the second LEO satellite S2-2 is less than the second load threshold (i.e., the load-related conditions in the first preset conditions are met). Therefore, the GEO satellite determines that the second LEO satellite S2-2 is the target second LEO satellite corresponding to the second LEO satellite S1-1 (i.e., the source second LEO satellite).

[0266] At the same time, the GEO satellite can identify cell C1, which is covered by the second LEO satellite S1-1, as the target cell.

[0267] The specific implementation process of this step can be found in steps S451 and S710 to S740 above, and will not be repeated here.

[0268] In this embodiment, after task allocation, the beam of the second LEO satellite S2-2 can be adjusted to cover cell C1 (i.e., the target cell). Furthermore, based on the beam information of each second LEO satellite, an interference matrix is ​​calculated. According to the interference matrix, if the original beam frequency of the second LEO satellite S2-2 is continued to be used, it will form a strong interference pair with the second LEO satellite S1-2 in satellite cluster 1. Therefore, the beam frequency of the second LEO satellite S2-2 is adjusted to fn, i.e., the target beam frequency is fn.

[0269] Steps 1-6: The GEO satellite determines that the second LEO satellite S1-1 (i.e., the source second LEO satellite) and the second LEO satellite S2-2 (i.e., the target second LEO satellite) do not currently belong to the same satellite cluster (i.e., the satellite cluster-related conditions in the second preset conditions are met). Therefore, the GEO satellite determines the target satellite cluster as satellite cluster 1 and satellite cluster 2, and re-divides satellite cluster 1 and satellite cluster 2 to obtain the satellite cluster division result.

[0270] The specific implementation process of this step can be found in steps S452 and S910 to S930 above, and will not be repeated here.

[0271] Steps 1-7: The GEO satellites will send the mission allocation results and satellite cluster allocation results to the target first LEO satellites (i.e., first LEO satellite 1 and first LEO satellite 2).

[0272] The specific implementation process of this step can be found in step S460 above, and will not be repeated here.

[0273] Steps 1-8: First LEO satellite 1 adjusts satellite cluster 1 according to the satellite cluster division results; First LEO satellite 2 adjusts satellite cluster 2 according to the satellite cluster division results.

[0274] Specifically, the first LEO satellite 2 removes the second LEO satellite S2-2 (i.e., the target second LEO satellite) from satellite cluster 2. In other words, the first LEO satellite 2 updates its local control domain, removing the beam of the second LEO satellite S2-2 from its local beam management library.

[0275] The first LEO satellite 1 adds the second LEO satellite S2-2 (i.e., the target second LEO satellite) to satellite cluster 1. In other words, the first LEO satellite 1 updates its local control domain, connecting the beam of the second LEO satellite S2-2 to the local beam management library.

[0276] The specific implementation process of this step can be found in step S470 above, and will not be repeated here.

[0277] Steps 1-9: First LEO satellite 1 sends the task allocation result to second LEO satellite S1-1 (i.e., the source second LEO satellite); first LEO satellite 2 sends the task allocation result to second LEO satellite S2-2 (i.e., the target second LEO satellite).

[0278] The specific implementation process of this step can be found in step S480 above, and will not be repeated here.

[0279] Steps 1-10: The second LEO satellite S2-2 (i.e., the target second LEO satellite) adjusts its beam according to the mission allocation results to cover cell C1 (i.e., the target cell).

[0280] Specifically, the second LEO satellite S2-2 (i.e., the target second LEO satellite) adds a beam based on the mission allocation results. The added beam covers cell C1. Optionally, the frequency of the added beam can be, for example, fn.

[0281] The specific implementation process of this step can be found in step S490 above, and will not be repeated here.

[0282] For example, Figure 11 The following is a schematic diagram of the network architecture of a satellite communication system after re-dividing tasks and satellite clusters, as provided in the application scenario of this application embodiment. (Comparison) Figure 10 and Figure 11 It can be seen that the second LEO satellite S2-2 changed from not covering any cell to covering cell C1, and the satellite cluster to which the second LEO satellite S2-2 belongs changed from satellite cluster 2 to satellite cluster 1.

[0283] Step 1-11: The second LEO satellite S1-1 (i.e., the source second LEO satellite) generates a switching strategy.

[0284] The specific implementation process of this step can be found in step S491 above, and will not be repeated here.

[0285] Steps 1-12: The second LEO satellite S1-1 (i.e., the source second LEO satellite) sends a connection switching message to the target terminal device.

[0286] The specific implementation process of this step can be found in step S492 above, and will not be repeated here.

[0287] For example, Figure 12 This is a schematic diagram illustrating connection changes in an application scenario provided by an embodiment of this application. For example... Figure 12 As shown, before the re-assignment of tasks and satellite constellation, the satellite communication system connections were as follows: Figure 12 As shown in Figure (a) above. After the task allocation and satellite cluster partitioning were re-done, the satellite communication system connections are as follows: Figure 12 As shown in Figure (b), before the task allocation and satellite cluster re-assignment, the second LEO satellite S2-2 was communicatively connected to the first LEO satellite 2, and all terminal devices in cell C1 were connected to the second LEO satellite S1-1. After the task allocation and satellite cluster re-assignment, the second LEO satellite S2-2 was communicatively connected to the first LEO satellite 1, and some terminal devices in cell C1 were connected to the second LEO satellite S2-2.

[0288] In summary, in this scenario, after adjusting the beam and switching connections based on the task allocation and satellite constellation allocation results, the information of each second LEO satellite in the satellite constellation can be seen in Table 3 below:

[0289] Table 3

[0290]

[0291] As can be seen from Scenario 1, after the task allocation and satellite cluster partitioning are re-done, the second LEO satellite S2-2 shares the load of the second LEO satellite S1-1, thus alleviating the load on the second LEO satellite S1-1. It is evident that the method provided in this application embodiment can perceive global load information and ephemeris information, thereby performing task allocation and / or satellite cluster partitioning, achieving cross-satellite cluster load balancing, and enabling fine-grained management and scheduling of resources and LEO satellites, as well as mobility management, thereby improving the overall network performance and reliability.

[0292] Scenario 2: The mission is reassigned (by adding beams), but the satellite constellation is not reassigned.

[0293] For example, Figure 13 This is a schematic diagram of the network architecture of the satellite communication system before the re-division of tasks and satellite clusters, as provided in the second application scenario of this application. Please refer to... Figure 13 The following explanation will be based on satellite constellation 1 as an example.

[0294] As shown in Table 4 below, satellite constellation 1 is managed by the first LEO satellite (referred to as first LEO satellite 1) equipped with an AMF-1 module. Satellite constellation 1 includes second LEO satellites numbered S1-1, S1-2, S1-3, and S1-4. The cells covered by second LEO satellites S1-1, S1-2, S1-3, and S1-4 are cells C1, C2, C3, and C4, respectively. For simplicity, Figure 13 Only cells C1 and C2 are shown. The current beam frequencies (e.g., center frequencies) of the second LEO satellites S1-1, S1-2, S1-3, and S1-4 are f1, f2, f3, and f4, respectively. Assuming load information is characterized by resource utilization, the current resource utilization rates of the second LEO satellites S1-1, S1-2, S1-3, and S1-4 are 95%, 9%, 76%, and 40%, respectively. Assuming the first load threshold is 90% and the second load threshold is 10%, then the load of the second LEO satellite S1-1 is higher than the first load threshold, indicating that the load of the second LEO satellite S1-1 is too high. The load of the second LEO satellite S1-2 is lower than the second load threshold, indicating that the load of the second LEO satellite S1-2 is low. The load conditions of the second LEO satellites S1-3 and S1-4 are normal.

[0295] Table 4

[0296]

[0297] In this scenario, the method provided in this application embodiment may include:

[0298] Step 2-1: The second LEO satellites S1-1, S1-2, S1-3 and S1-4 in satellite cluster 1 report their respective first information to the first LEO satellite 1.

[0299] Step 2-2: The first LEO satellite 1 determines the payload information of the second LEO satellites S1-1, S1-2, S1-3 and S1-4 based on the first information of the second LEO satellites S1-1, S1-2, S1-3 and S1-4 respectively.

[0300] Steps 2-3: The first LEO satellite 1 reports the payload information and basic resource information of the second LEO satellites S1-1, S1-2, S1-3 and S1-4, as well as the information of satellite cluster 1, to the GEO satellite.

[0301] Steps 2-4: The GEO satellites obtain ephemeris information of the second LEO satellites S1-1, S1-2, S1-3 and S1-4 from the ground station.

[0302] Steps 2-5: Based on the load information of the second LEO satellites S1-1, S1-2, S1-3 and S1-4, the GEO satellite determines that the second LEO satellite S1-1 is greater than the first load threshold and the second LEO satellite S1-2 is less than the second load threshold (i.e., the load-related conditions in the first preset conditions are met). Therefore, the GEO satellite determines that the second LEO satellite S1-2 is the target second LEO satellite corresponding to the second LEO satellite S1-1 (i.e., the source second LEO satellite).

[0303] At the same time, the GEO satellite can identify cell C1, which is covered by the second LEO satellite S1-1, as the target cell.

[0304] In steps 2-6, the GEO satellite determines that the second LEO satellite S1-1 (i.e., the source second LEO satellite) and the second LEO satellite S1-2 (i.e., the target second LEO satellite) currently belong to the same satellite cluster 1 (i.e., the satellite cluster-related conditions in the second preset conditions are not met), and determines that there are currently no satellites with communication failures (i.e., the communication failure-related conditions in the second preset conditions are not met). Therefore, the GEO satellite does not re-divide the satellite cluster.

[0305] Steps 2-7: The GEO satellite sends the mission allocation results to the target first LEO satellite (i.e., first LEO satellite 1).

[0306] Steps 2-8: The first LEO satellite 1 sends the task allocation results to the second LEO satellite S1-1 (i.e., the source second LEO satellite) and the second LEO satellite S1-2 (i.e., the target second LEO satellite).

[0307] Steps 2-9: The second LEO satellite S1-2 (i.e., the target second LEO satellite) adjusts its beam according to the mission allocation results to cover cell C1 (i.e., the target cell).

[0308] Specifically, the second LEO satellite S1-2 (i.e., the target second LEO satellite) adds a beam based on the mission allocation results. The added beam covers cell C1. The frequency of the added beam is, for example, fx.

[0309] For example, Figure 14 This is a schematic diagram of the network architecture of the satellite communication system after re-dividing tasks and satellite clusters, as provided in the second application scenario of this application. (Comparison) Figure 13 and Figure 14 It can be seen that the second LEO satellite S1-2 has changed from one beam to two beams, and the newly added beam covers cell C1.

[0310] Step 2-10: The second LEO satellite S1-1 (i.e., the source second LEO satellite) generates a switching strategy.

[0311] Step 2-11: The second LEO satellite S1-1 (i.e., the source second LEO satellite) sends a connection switching message to the target terminal device.

[0312] For example, Figure 15 This is a schematic diagram illustrating the connection changes under application scenario two provided in the embodiments of this application. For example... Figure 15 As shown, before the task allocation was redefined, the satellite communication system connections were as follows: Figure 15 As shown in Figure (a) above. After the task allocation was re-evaluated, the satellite communication system connections are as follows: Figure 15 As shown in Figure (b), before the task allocation was re-assigned, the second LEO satellite S1-1 covered cell C1, and the second LEO satellite S1-2 covered cell C2. All terminal devices in cell C1 were connected to the second LEO satellite S1-1. After the task allocation was re-assigned, the second LEO satellite S1-2 covered not only cell C2 but also cell C1, and some terminal devices in cell C1 were connected to the second LEO satellite S1-2.

[0313] In summary, in this scenario, after adjusting the beam and switching connections based on the task allocation and satellite constellation allocation results, the information of each second LEO satellite in the satellite constellation can be seen in Table 5 below:

[0314] Table 5

[0315]

[0316] As can be seen from Scenario 2, the method provided in this application embodiment can perceive global load information and ephemeris information, and then perform task division to achieve load balancing, fine-grained management and scheduling of resources, and mobility management in the same satellite cluster, thereby improving the overall network performance and reliability.

[0317] Scenario 3: The mission is reassigned (beams are changed), but the satellite constellation is not reassigned.

[0318] For example, Figure 16 This diagram illustrates the network architecture of the satellite communication system before the re-division of tasks and satellite clusters, as provided in application scenario three of this application. Please refer to... Figure 16 Let's continue with the example of satellite constellation 1.

[0319] As shown in Table 6 below, satellite constellation 1 is managed by the first LEO satellite (referred to as first LEO satellite 1) equipped with an AMF-1 module. Satellite constellation 1 includes second LEO satellites numbered S1-1, S1-2, S1-3, and S1-4. Second LEO satellite S1-1 currently does not cover any cells. Second LEO satellites S1-2, S1-3, and S1-4 currently cover cells C2, C3, and C4, respectively. For simplicity, Figure 16 Only cell C2 is shown in the table. The current beam frequencies of the second LEO satellites S1-2, S1-3, and S1-4 are f2, f3, and f4, respectively. Assume that the loads of the second LEO satellites S1-1, S1-2, S1-3, and S1-4 are all normal (not shown in Table 6).

[0320] Table 6

[0321]

[0322] In this scenario, the method provided in this application embodiment may include:

[0323] Step 3-1: The second LEO satellites S1-1, S1-2, S1-3 and S1-4 in satellite cluster 1 report their respective first information to the first LEO satellite 1.

[0324] Step 3-2: The first LEO satellite 1 determines the payload information of the second LEO satellites S1-1, S1-2, S1-3 and S1-4 respectively based on the first information of the second LEO satellites S1-1, S1-2, S1-3 and S1-4.

[0325] Step 3-3: The first LEO satellite 1 reports the payload information and basic resource information of the second LEO satellites S1-1, S1-2, S1-3 and S1-4, as well as the information of satellite cluster 1, to the GEO satellite.

[0326] Steps 3-4: The GEO satellites obtain ephemeris information of the second LEO satellites S1-1, S1-2, S1-3 and S1-4 from the ground station.

[0327] In steps 3-5, the GEO satellite determines, based on the load information of the second LEO satellites S1-1, S1-2, S1-3, and S1-4, that the load-related conditions in the first preset conditions are not met. Furthermore, based on the ephemeris information of the second LEO satellites S1-1, S1-2, S1-3, and S1-4, the GEO satellite determines that the beam of the second LEO satellite S1-2 cannot cover cell C2 after a preset duration (i.e., the location-related conditions in the first preset conditions are met). Therefore, the GEO satellite determines that the second LEO satellite S1-1 is the target second LEO satellite corresponding to the second LEO satellite S1-2 (i.e., the source second LEO satellite).

[0328] At the same time, the GEO satellite can identify cell C2, which is covered by the beam of the second LEO satellite S1-2, as the target cell.

[0329] Steps 3-6: The GEO satellite determines that it does not meet the satellite cluster-related conditions in the second preset conditions, nor does it meet the communication failure-related conditions in the second preset conditions. Therefore, the GEO satellite does not re-divide the satellite cluster.

[0330] Steps 3-7: The GEO satellite sends the mission allocation results to the target first LEO satellite (i.e., first LEO satellite 1).

[0331] Steps 3-8: The first LEO satellite 1 sends the task allocation results to the second LEO satellite S1-2 (i.e., the source second LEO satellite) and the second LEO satellite S1-1 (i.e., the target second LEO satellite).

[0332] Steps 3-9: The second LEO satellite S1-1 (i.e., the target second LEO satellite) adjusts its beam according to the mission allocation results to cover cell C2 (i.e., the target cell).

[0333] Specifically, the second LEO satellite S1-1 (i.e., the target second LEO satellite) adds a beam based on the mission allocation results. The added beam covers cell C2. Optionally, the frequency of the added beam may be, for example, f2.

[0334] For example, Figure 17 This is a schematic diagram of the network architecture of the satellite communication system after re-dividing tasks and satellite clusters, as provided in application scenario three of this application. (Comparison) Figure 16 and Figure 17 It can be seen that the beam covering cell C2 changes from the beam of the second LEO satellite S1-2 to the beam of the second LEO satellite S1-1.

[0335] It should be noted that this embodiment uses the example of the target second LEO satellite adding a beam to cover cell C2 (i.e., the target cell). In other embodiments, the target second LEO satellite can also adjust its beam information to cover cell C2. The specific method can be determined according to the actual situation.

[0336] Step 3-10: The second LEO satellite S1-2 (i.e., the source second LEO satellite) generates a switching strategy.

[0337] Step 3-11: The second LEO satellite S1-2 (i.e., the source second LEO satellite) sends a connection switching message to the target terminal device.

[0338] For example, Figure 18 This is a schematic diagram illustrating the connection changes under application scenario three provided in the embodiments of this application. For example... Figure 18 As shown, before the task allocation was redefined, the satellite communication system connections were as follows: Figure 18 As shown in Figure (a) above. After the task allocation was re-evaluated, the satellite communication system connections are as follows: Figure 18 As shown in Figure (b), before the task allocation was re-performed, the second LEO satellite S1-2 covered cell C2, and all terminal devices in cell C2 were connected to the second LEO satellite S1-2. After the task allocation was re-performed, the second LEO satellite S1-1 covered cell C2, and all terminal devices in cell C2 were connected to the second LEO satellite S1-1.

[0339] In summary, in this scenario, after adjusting the beam and switching connections based on the task allocation and satellite constellation allocation results, the information of each second LEO satellite in the satellite constellation can be seen in Table 7 below:

[0340] Table 7

[0341]

[0342] As can be seen from Scenario 3, the method provided in this application embodiment can perceive global load information and ephemeris information, and then perform task division and / or satellite cluster division, realize coverage changes during satellite movement, effectively realize mobility management and fine-grained scheduling of resources, improve overall network performance, and improve the reliability of user terminal connection.

[0343] The methods provided in the embodiments of this application will be described below from the perspectives of GEO satellites, the first LEO satellite, and the second LEO satellite.

[0344] 1. From the GEO's perspective:

[0345] In one embodiment, the satellite communication method provided in this application can be applied to GEO satellites, which are communicatively connected to one or more LEO satellites in a satellite cluster. Each satellite cluster also includes one or more second LEO satellites, and the GEO satellites are communicatively connected to a ground station. The method includes:

[0346] Receive the payload information of each second LEO satellite in the satellite cluster reported by each first LEO satellite;

[0347] Obtain ephemeris information for each of the second LEO satellites from the ground station;

[0348] Based on the load information and / or ephemeris information, a task partitioning result is generated if the first preset condition is met, and / or, if the second preset condition is met, a satellite cluster partitioning result is generated; the task partitioning result is used to instruct one or more target second LEO satellites in one second LEO satellite to adjust the cell coverage, and the satellite cluster partitioning result is used to instruct one or more target satellite clusters in one satellite cluster to adjust the second LEO satellites contained therein.

[0349] Send the task allocation results and / or satellite cluster allocation results to the first LEO satellite of the target; the first LEO satellite of the target includes: the first LEO satellite in the satellite cluster where the second LEO satellite of the target is located, and / or, the first LEO satellite in the target satellite cluster.

[0350] The first and second preset conditions can be described as in the above embodiments, and will not be repeated here.

[0351] One possible implementation involves generating the task partitioning results, including:

[0352] Based on the load information and ephemeris information, an interference matrix is ​​generated. The interference matrix is ​​used to characterize the beam interference between each second LEO satellite.

[0353] Based on payload information and / or ephemeris information, identify the target second LEO satellite from one or more second LEO satellites;

[0354] Based on the interference matrix, the target second LEO satellite is re-divided into tasks, and the task division results are obtained. The task division results include the target cells to be covered by the target second LEO satellite.

[0355] In one possible implementation, the target second LEO satellite is re-divided into missions based on the interference matrix, resulting in mission partitioning results, including:

[0356] Set initial beam information for the target second LEO satellite; the beam corresponding to the initial beam information covers the target cell;

[0357] The initial beam information is added to the interference calculation to update the interference matrix, resulting in the updated interference matrix.

[0358] If the interference intensity of the interference pair corresponding to the initial beam information in the updated interference matrix is ​​less than the preset interference threshold, then the initial beam information is used as the target beam information of the second LEO satellite and the task division result is generated.

[0359] If the interference intensity of the interference pair corresponding to the initial beam information in the updated interference matrix is ​​greater than or equal to the preset interference threshold, then the initial beam information is adjusted to obtain the adjusted initial beam. The beam corresponding to the adjusted initial beam information covers the target cell. The adjusted initial beam information is used as the initial beam information, and the execution step is returned to add the initial beam information to the interference calculation, update the interference matrix, and obtain the updated interference matrix.

[0360] One possible implementation involves generating satellite cluster partitioning results, including:

[0361] The target satellite cluster is determined from one or more satellite clusters, including the first target satellite cluster where the target second LEO satellite is currently located, and the second target satellite cluster where the source second LEO satellite is located;

[0362] The second LEO satellite of the target was transferred from the first target satellite cluster to the second target satellite cluster, and the satellite cluster division result was obtained.

[0363] 2. From the perspective of the first LEO satellite:

[0364] In another embodiment, the satellite communication method provided in this application can be applied to a first LEO satellite, which communicates with GEO satellites. The first LEO satellite belongs to a first satellite cluster, which also includes one or more second LEO satellites. The method includes:

[0365] Receive the first information reported by each of the second LEO satellites in the first satellite cluster. The first information represents the status of the radio resources provided by the second LEO satellites.

[0366] Based on the first information, determine the payload information of each second LEO satellite;

[0367] Report payload information to the GEO satellite;

[0368] The system receives task allocation results and / or satellite cluster allocation results transmitted by GEO satellites. The task allocation results are used to instruct the target second LEO satellite to adjust the cell coverage area. The target second LEO satellite is a second LEO satellite in the first satellite cluster and a satellite in the second LEO satellite cluster of other satellite clusters. The satellite cluster allocation results are used to instruct the target satellite cluster to adjust the second LEO satellites contained therein. The target satellite cluster is a cluster in the first satellite cluster and other satellite clusters. The task allocation results are generated based on the payload information and / or the ephemeris information of each second LEO satellite in the first satellite cluster and each second LEO satellite in the other satellite cluster, under the condition of satisfying a first preset condition. The satellite cluster allocation results are generated under the condition of satisfying a second preset condition.

[0369] In one possible implementation, the first information includes at least one of basic resource information and resource usage information. The basic resource information is used to characterize the basic situation of the wireless resources provided by the second LEO satellite, and the resource usage information is used to characterize the usage of the wireless resources provided by the second LEO satellite by the terminal device.

[0370] In one possible implementation, the basic resource information includes: the beam information of the second LEO satellite, and / or the information of the cells covered by each beam of the second LEO satellite.

[0371] In one possible implementation, the beam information includes one or more of the following: the number of beams, the direction of the beams, the angle of the beams, the frequency of the beams, or the power of the beams.

[0372] In one possible implementation, resource usage information includes one or more of the following: the number of users or the amount of wireless resource usage within the cell covered by each beam of the second LEO satellite.

[0373] In one possible implementation, the load information includes one or more of the following: the user space density of the cell covered by the second LEO satellite, the proportion of active users in the cell covered by the second LEO satellite, the radio resource utilization rate of the second LEO satellite, or the average throughput of the second LEO satellite.

[0374] In one possible implementation, the first information includes the number of users in the cell, and the load information includes the user space density.

[0375] In one possible implementation, user space density is represented by a user space density distribution map.

[0376] In one possible implementation, upon receiving the satellite cluster partitioning results from the GEO satellite, the target satellite cluster includes the first satellite cluster. The method further includes:

[0377] Based on the satellite cluster division results, the second LEO satellites included in the first satellite cluster are adjusted.

[0378] In one possible implementation, upon receiving the task allocation results sent by the GEO satellite, the first satellite cluster includes the source second LEO satellite and / or the target second LEO satellite;

[0379] If the task partitioning result is generated under the condition of satisfying load-related conditions, then the source second LEO satellite includes second LEO satellites with loads higher than the first load threshold;

[0380] If the task allocation result is generated under the condition of satisfying location-related conditions, the source second LEO satellite includes: the second LEO satellite whose beam cannot cover the currently covered cell after a preset duration;

[0381] The method also includes:

[0382] The task allocation results are sent to the source second LEO satellite and / or the target second LEO satellite.

[0383] 3. From the perspective of the second LEO satellite:

[0384] In yet another embodiment, the satellite communication method provided in this application can be applied to a third LEO satellite, which belongs to a first satellite cluster. The first satellite cluster includes one first LEO satellite and one or more second LEO satellites, and the third LEO satellite is one of the one or more second LEO satellites. The method includes:

[0385] Report the first information to the first LEO satellite; the first information describes the status of radio resources provided by the third LEO satellite.

[0386] The system receives the task allocation result from the first LEO satellite, which instructs one or more target second LEO satellites to adjust the cell coverage area. The task allocation result is generated based on the load information of each second LEO satellite and / or the ephemeris information of each second LEO satellite, under the condition of satisfying a first preset condition. The load information of the third LEO satellite is determined based on the first information.

[0387] It should be noted that the term "third LEO satellite" here can be understood as a collective term for both the target second LEO satellite and the source second LEO satellite. In fact, in the satellite communication system provided in the embodiments of this application, any second LEO satellite may be either a source second LEO satellite or a target second LEO satellite.

[0388] 1) When the third LEO satellite is the target second LEO satellite:

[0389] The task allocation result includes the target cell to be covered by the second LEO satellite. The method also includes: adjusting the beam according to the task allocation result, and the adjusted beam covers the target cell.

[0390] 2) When the third LEO satellite is the source of the second LEO satellite:

[0391] If the task allocation result is generated under the condition of satisfying the load-related conditions, then the source second LEO satellite includes the second LEO satellite with a load higher than the first load threshold; that is, the load of the third LEO satellite is higher than the first load threshold.

[0392] If the task allocation result is generated under the condition of satisfying location-related conditions, then the source second LEO satellite includes: the second LEO satellite whose beam cannot cover the currently covered cell after a preset time period, that is, the third LEO satellite whose beam cannot cover the currently covered cell after a preset time period.

[0393] In one possible implementation, the third LEO satellite and the target second LEO satellite do not currently belong to the same satellite cluster. The third LEO satellite covers the target cell and has a communication connection with one or more terminal devices within the target cell. The method further includes:

[0394] Based on the task allocation results, a handover strategy is generated. The handover strategy includes the target terminal device, which is the terminal device in the target cell to be handed over.

[0395] A connection switching message is sent to the target terminal device, which indicates that the network connection should be switched to the target second LEO satellite.

[0396] In one possible implementation, before sending the connection switching message to the target terminal device, the method further includes:

[0397] Send a handover request to the target second LEO satellite. The handover request is used to request that the network connection of the target terminal device be switched to the target second LEO satellite.

[0398] Receive the handover response sent by the target second LEO satellite.

[0399] In one possible implementation, the method further includes:

[0400] Receive the RRC reconfiguration message sent by the target terminal device;

[0401] After performing RRC reconfiguration, an RRC reconfiguration complete message is sent to the target terminal device;

[0402] The context of releasing the target terminal equipment to the source second LEO satellite.

[0403] It should be understood that Figures 1 to 18 The flowcharts or scene diagrams shown are for illustrative purposes only and are not intended to limit the embodiments of this application to the examples illustrated. In fact, those skilled in the art can interpret the embodiments based on... Figures 1 to 18 The examples in the document can be transformed into equivalent ways to obtain more implementations.

[0404] The above text combined Figures 1 to 18 This document describes in detail the satellite communication method provided in the embodiments of this application. The following will combine... Figures 19 to 22 The apparatus embodiments of this application are described in detail below. It should be understood that the satellite communication apparatus of this application embodiments can execute the various satellite communication methods described in the foregoing embodiments of this application. That is, the specific working processes of the various products below can be referred to the corresponding processes in the foregoing method embodiments.

[0405] In the embodiments described above, the terminal device can execute some or all of the steps in each embodiment; the first LEO satellite and the second LEO satellite can execute some or all of the steps in each embodiment. These steps or operations are merely examples, and the embodiments of this application can also perform other operations or variations of various operations. Furthermore, the steps can be executed in different orders as presented in the embodiments, and it is not necessary to execute all the operations in the embodiments of this application. Moreover, the sequence number of each step does not imply the order of execution; the execution order of each process should be determined by its function and internal logic, and should not constitute any limitation on the implementation process of the embodiments of this application.

[0406] Figure 19 This is a schematic block diagram of a satellite communication device provided in an embodiment of this application. Figure 19 As shown, the satellite communication device 1900 may include a communication module 1920. The communication module 1920 can implement corresponding communication functions, which can be internal communication functions of the satellite communication device 1900 or communication functions between the satellite communication device 1900 and other devices. Optionally, the communication module 1920 may also be referred to as a communication interface or transceiver module. Optionally, the satellite communication device 1900 also includes a processing module 1910. The processing module 1910 can implement corresponding processing functions.

[0407] Optionally, the satellite communication device 1900 further includes a storage module, which can be used to store instructions and / or data; the processing module 1910 can read the instructions and / or data in the storage module so that the satellite communication device 1900 can implement the aforementioned method embodiments.

[0408] In one possible design, the satellite communication device 1900 may correspond to the GEO satellite in the above method embodiments, or to a component (such as a circuit, chip, or chip system) configured in the GEO satellite. The satellite communication device 1900 may be used to perform the steps or processes performed by the GEO satellite in any of the above method embodiments.

[0409] For example, the communication module 1920 is used to: receive payload information of each second LEO satellite in the satellite cluster reported by each first LEO satellite; and obtain ephemeris information of each second LEO satellite from the ground station.

[0410] Processing module 1910 is used to: generate task partitioning results based on load information and / or ephemeris information, under the condition of satisfying a first preset condition, and / or generate satellite cluster partitioning results under the condition of satisfying a second preset condition; the task partitioning results are used to instruct one or more target second LEO satellites in a second LEO satellite to adjust the coverage cell, and the satellite cluster partitioning results are used to instruct one or more target satellite clusters in a satellite cluster to adjust the second LEO satellites contained therein;

[0411] Communication module 1920 is also used to: send the task allocation result and / or satellite cluster allocation result to the target first LEO satellite; the target first LEO satellite includes: the first LEO satellite in the satellite cluster where the target second LEO satellite is located, and / or, the first LEO satellite in the target satellite cluster.

[0412] In one embodiment, the first preset conditions include load-related conditions and / or location-related conditions.

[0413] In one embodiment, the load-related conditions include: the load of at least one second LEO satellite is higher than a first load threshold, and the load of at least one second LEO satellite is lower than a second load threshold.

[0414] In one embodiment, the location-related condition includes: at least one second LEO satellite's beam cannot cover the currently covered cell after a preset duration.

[0415] In one embodiment, the processing module 1910 is specifically configured to: generate an interference matrix based on load information and ephemeris information, the interference matrix being used to characterize the beam interference between each second LEO satellite; determine a target second LEO satellite from one or more second LEO satellites based on load information and / or ephemeris information; and re-divide the target second LEO satellite into tasks based on the interference matrix to obtain a task division result, the task division result including the target cell to be covered by the target second LEO satellite.

[0416] In one embodiment, the processing module 1910 is specifically configured to: set initial beam information for the target second LEO satellite; the beam corresponding to the initial beam information covers the target cell; add the initial beam information to the interference calculation, update the interference matrix, and obtain the updated interference matrix; if the interference intensity of the interference pair corresponding to the initial beam information in the updated interference matrix is ​​less than a preset interference threshold, then the initial beam information is used as the target beam information of the target second LEO satellite, and a task partitioning result is generated; if the interference intensity of the interference pair corresponding to the initial beam information in the updated interference matrix is ​​greater than or equal to the preset interference threshold, then the initial beam information is adjusted to obtain an adjusted initial beam, and the beam corresponding to the adjusted initial beam information covers the target cell; use the adjusted initial beam information as the initial beam information, return to the execution step of adding the initial beam information to the interference calculation, updating the interference matrix, and obtaining the updated interference matrix.

[0417] In one embodiment, the second preset condition includes conditions related to the satellite constellation and / or conditions related to communication failures.

[0418] In one embodiment, the satellite cluster-related conditions include: satisfying a first preset condition, and the source second LEO satellite and the corresponding target second LEO satellite currently not belonging to the same satellite cluster; the first preset condition includes load-related conditions and / or location-related conditions, the load-related conditions including: at least one second LEO satellite has a load higher than a first load threshold, and at least one second LEO satellite has a load lower than a second load threshold; the location-related conditions include: at least one second LEO satellite's beam cannot cover the currently covered cell after a preset duration; when the load-related conditions are satisfied, the source second LEO satellite includes a second LEO satellite with a load higher than the first load threshold; when the location-related conditions are satisfied, the source second LEO satellite includes a second LEO satellite whose beam cannot cover the currently covered cell after a preset duration.

[0419] In one embodiment, the processing module 1910 is specifically configured to: determine a target satellite cluster from one or more satellite clusters, the target satellite cluster including a first target satellite cluster where the target second LEO satellite is currently located, and a second target satellite cluster where the source second LEO satellite is located; and divide the target second LEO satellite from the first target satellite cluster to the second target satellite cluster to obtain a satellite cluster division result.

[0420] The above are merely examples; for detailed steps or procedures, please refer to the descriptions in the foregoing embodiments.

[0421] Figure 20 This is a schematic block diagram of a satellite communication device provided in an embodiment of this application. Figure 20As shown, the satellite communication device 2000 may include a communication module 2020. The communication module 2020 can implement corresponding communication functions, which can be internal communication functions of the satellite communication device 2000 or communication functions between the satellite communication device 2000 and other devices. Optionally, the communication module 2020 may also be referred to as a communication interface or transceiver module. Optionally, the satellite communication device 2000 also includes a processing module 2010. The processing module 2010 can implement corresponding processing functions.

[0422] Optionally, the satellite communication device 2000 further includes a storage module, which can be used to store instructions and / or data; the processing module 2010 can read the instructions and / or data in the storage module so that the satellite communication device 2000 can implement the aforementioned method embodiments.

[0423] In one possible design, the satellite communication device 2000 may correspond to the first LEO satellite in the above method embodiments, or to a component (such as a circuit, chip, or chip system) configured in the first LEO satellite. The satellite communication device 2000 may be used to perform the steps or processes performed by the first LEO satellite in any of the above method embodiments.

[0424] For example, the communication module 2020 is used to: receive first information reported by each of the second LEO satellites in the first satellite cluster, the first information representing the status of radio resources provided by the second LEO satellites;

[0425] The processing module 2010 is used to: determine the load information of each second LEO satellite based on the first information;

[0426] The communication module 2020 is also used to: report payload information to GEO satellites;

[0427] The system receives task allocation results and / or satellite cluster allocation results transmitted by GEO satellites. The task allocation results are used to instruct the target second LEO satellite to adjust the cell coverage area. The target second LEO satellite is a second LEO satellite in the first satellite cluster and a satellite in the second LEO satellite cluster of other satellite clusters. The satellite cluster allocation results are used to instruct the target satellite cluster to adjust the second LEO satellites contained therein. The target satellite cluster is a cluster in the first satellite cluster and other satellite clusters. The task allocation results are generated based on the payload information and / or the ephemeris information of each second LEO satellite in the first satellite cluster and each second LEO satellite in the other satellite cluster, under the condition of satisfying a first preset condition. The satellite cluster allocation results are generated under the condition of satisfying a second preset condition.

[0428] In one embodiment, upon receiving the satellite cluster partitioning result sent by the GEO satellite, the target satellite cluster includes a first satellite cluster; the processing module 2010 is further configured to: adjust the second LEO satellite included in the first satellite cluster according to the satellite cluster partitioning result.

[0429] In one embodiment, upon receiving the task allocation result from a GEO satellite, the first satellite cluster includes a source second LEO satellite and / or a target second LEO satellite; the first preset condition includes load-related conditions and / or location-related conditions. The load-related conditions include: at least one of the second LEO satellites in the first satellite cluster and the second LEO satellites in other satellite clusters has a load higher than a first load threshold, and at least one has a load lower than a second load threshold; the location-related conditions include: at least one of the second LEO satellites in the first satellite cluster and the second LEO satellites in other satellite clusters cannot have its beam cover the currently covered cell after a preset duration; if the task allocation result is generated under the condition of satisfying the load-related conditions, the source second LEO satellite includes second LEO satellites with loads higher than the first load threshold; if the task allocation result is generated under the condition of satisfying the location-related conditions, the source second LEO satellite includes: second LEO satellites whose beams cannot cover the currently covered cell after a preset duration;

[0430] The communication module 2020 is also used to: send task allocation results to the source second LEO satellite and / or the target second LEO satellite.

[0431] The above are merely examples; for detailed steps or procedures, please refer to the descriptions in the foregoing embodiments.

[0432] Figure 21 This is a schematic block diagram of a satellite communication device provided in an embodiment of this application. Figure 21 As shown, the satellite communication device 2100 may include a communication module 2120. The communication module 2120 can implement corresponding communication functions, which can be internal communication functions of the satellite communication device 2100 or communication functions between the satellite communication device 2100 and other devices. Optionally, the communication module 2120 may also be referred to as a communication interface or transceiver module. Optionally, the satellite communication device 2100 may also include a processing module 2110. The processing module 2110 can implement corresponding processing functions.

[0433] Optionally, the satellite communication device 2100 further includes a storage module, which can be used to store instructions and / or data; the processing module 2110 can read the instructions and / or data in the storage module so that the satellite communication device 2100 can implement the aforementioned method embodiments.

[0434] In one possible design, the satellite communication device 2100 may correspond to the third LEO satellite in the above method embodiments, or to a component (such as a circuit, chip, or chip system) configured in the third LEO satellite. The third LEO satellite may be the aforementioned source second LEO satellite or target second LEO satellite. The satellite communication device 2100 may be used to execute the steps or processes performed by the source second LEO satellite or target second LEO satellite in any of the above method embodiments.

[0435] For example, the communication module 2120 is configured to: report first information to a first LEO satellite, the first information representing the status of radio resources provided by a third LEO satellite; receive a task allocation result sent by the first LEO satellite, the task allocation result instructing a target second LEO satellite among one or more second LEO satellites to adjust the cell coverage; the task allocation result is generated based on the load information of each second LEO satellite and / or the ephemeris information of each second LEO satellite, under the condition of satisfying a first preset condition, and the load information of the third LEO satellite is determined based on the first information.

[0436] In one embodiment, the third LEO satellite is the target second LEO satellite, and the task allocation result includes the target cell to be covered by the target second LEO satellite; the processing module 2110 is used to: adjust the beam according to the task allocation result, and the adjusted beam covers the target cell.

[0437] In one embodiment, the third LEO satellite is a source second LEO satellite; the first preset condition includes load-related conditions and / or location-related conditions. The load-related conditions include: at least one of the source second LEO satellite and other second LEO satellites has a load higher than a first load threshold, and at least one of the second LEO satellites and other second LEO satellites has a load lower than a second load threshold; the location-related conditions include: at least one of the second LEO satellites and other second LEO satellites cannot cover the currently covered cell after a preset duration; if the task allocation result is generated under the condition of satisfying the load-related conditions, then the source second LEO satellite includes second LEO satellites with a load higher than the first load threshold; if the task allocation result is generated under the condition of satisfying the location-related conditions, then the source second LEO satellite includes second LEO satellites whose beams cannot cover the currently covered cell after a preset duration.

[0438] In one embodiment, the third LEO satellite and the target second LEO satellite do not currently belong to the same satellite cluster. The third LEO satellite covers the target cell and has a communication connection with one or more terminal devices within the target cell. The communication module 2120 is further configured to: generate a handover strategy based on the task allocation result, the handover strategy including the target terminal device, which is the terminal device within the target cell to be switched; and send a connection handover message to the target terminal device, the connection handover message being used to indicate that the network connection is switched to the target second LEO satellite.

[0439] In one embodiment, the communication module 2120 is further configured to: send a handover request to the target second LEO satellite, the handover request being used to request the network connection of the target terminal device to be switched to the target second LEO satellite; and receive a handover response sent by the target second LEO satellite.

[0440] The above are merely examples; for detailed steps or procedures, please refer to the descriptions in the foregoing embodiments.

[0441] Figure 22 This is another schematic block diagram of the satellite communication device 2200 provided in the embodiments of this application. The satellite communication device 2200 may be a chip, chip system, or processor, etc., implemented by a GEO satellite, a first LEO satellite, or a second LEO satellite. The satellite communication device 2200 can be used to implement the methods described in the above method embodiments; for details, please refer to the descriptions in the above method embodiments.

[0442] like Figure 22 As shown, the satellite communication device 2200 may include one or more processors 2210, which may also be referred to as processing units or processing modules, and can implement certain control functions. The processor 2210 can be a general-purpose processor or a dedicated processor, such as a baseband processor or a central processing unit. The baseband processor can be used to process communication protocols and communication data, while the central processing unit can be used to control the satellite communication device 2200 (e.g., base station, baseband chip, user, user chip), execute software programs, and process data from the software programs.

[0443] In an alternative design, the processor 2210 may also store instructions and / or data, which can be executed by the processor 2210 to cause the satellite communication device 2200 to perform the methods described in the above method embodiments.

[0444] In another alternative design, the satellite communication device 2200 may include a transceiver 2230 for implementing receiving and transmitting functions. For example, the transceiver 2230 may be a transceiver circuit, interface, interface circuit, or transceiver device. The transceiver circuit, interface, interface circuit, or transceiver for implementing receiving and transmitting functions may be separate or integrated. The aforementioned transceiver circuit, interface, interface circuit, or transceiver may be used for reading and writing code / data, or it may be used for transmitting or relaying signals.

[0445] Optionally, the satellite communication device 2200 may include one or more memories 2220, which may store instructions that can be executed on the processor 2210, causing the satellite communication device 2200 to perform the methods described in the above method embodiments. Optionally, the memories 2220 may also store data. Optionally, the processor 2210 may also store instructions and / or data. The processor 2210 and the memories 2220 may be provided separately or integrated together.

[0446] It should be understood that, in one possible design, the steps in the method embodiments provided in this application can be implemented by integrated logic circuits in the processor's hardware or by instructions in software form. The steps of the methods disclosed in the embodiments of this application can be directly implemented by a hardware processor, or implemented by a combination of hardware and software modules in the processor. The software modules can reside in random access memory, flash memory, read-only memory, programmable read-only memory, electrically erasable programmable memory, registers, or other mature storage media in the art. This storage medium is located in memory, and the processor reads information from the memory and, in conjunction with its hardware, completes the steps of the above method. To avoid repetition, detailed descriptions are not provided here.

[0447] In one implementation, the satellite communication device 2200 can correspond to the GEO satellite in the above method embodiments and can be used to execute the various steps and / or processes performed by the GEO satellite in the above method embodiments. The processor 2210 can be used to execute instructions stored in the memory 2220, and when the processor 2210 executes the instructions stored in the memory, the processor 2210 is used to execute the various steps and / or processes of the above method embodiments corresponding to the GEO satellite.

[0448] In another implementation, the satellite communication device 2200 can correspond to the first LEO satellite in the above method embodiments, and can be used to execute the various steps and / or processes performed by the first LEO satellite in the above method embodiments. The processor 2210 can be used to execute instructions stored in the memory 2220, and when the processor 2210 executes the instructions stored in the memory, the processor 2210 is used to execute the various steps and / or processes of the above method embodiments corresponding to the first LEO satellite.

[0449] In another implementation, the satellite communication device 2200 can correspond to the second LEO satellite in the above method embodiments, and can be used to execute the various steps and / or processes performed by the second LEO satellite in the above method embodiments. The processor 2210 can be used to execute instructions stored in the memory 2220, and when the processor 2210 executes the instructions stored in the memory, the processor 2210 is used to execute the various steps and / or processes of the above method embodiments corresponding to the second LEO satellite.

[0450] It should be understood that the aforementioned processing device can be one or more chips. For example, the processing device can be a field-programmable gate array (FPGA), an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a system-on-chip (SoC), a central processor unit (CPU), a network processor (NP), a digital signal processor (DSP), a microcontroller unit (MCU), a programmable logic device (PLD), or other integrated chips.

[0451] It is understood that the memory in the embodiments of this application can be volatile memory or non-volatile memory, or may include both volatile and non-volatile memory. The non-volatile memory can be read-only memory (ROM), programmable read-only memory (PROM), erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM), electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), or flash memory. The volatile memory can be random access memory (RAM), which is used as an external cache. By way of example, but not limitation, many forms of RAM are available, such as static random access memory (SRAM), dynamic random access memory (DRAM), synchronous dynamic random access memory (SDRAM), double data rate synchronous dynamic random access memory (DDR SDRAM), enhanced synchronous dynamic random access memory (ESDRAM), synchronous linked dynamic random access memory (SLDRAM), and direct rambus RAM (DR RAM). It should be noted that the memory used in the systems and methods described herein is intended to include, but is not limited to, these and any other suitable types of memory.

[0452] According to the method provided in the embodiments of this application, this application also provides a chip system, which includes one or more processors for calling and executing instructions stored in memory, thereby causing the method described in the embodiments of this application to be executed. The chip system may be composed of chips or may include chips and other discrete devices.

[0453] The chip system may include input circuits or interfaces for transmitting information or data, and output circuits or interfaces for receiving information or data.

[0454] According to the method provided in the embodiments of this application, this application also provides a satellite communication system, which includes the aforementioned GEO satellite, first LEO satellite, and second LEO satellite. Optionally, the satellite communication system may further include terminal equipment and ground station.

[0455] According to the method provided in the embodiments of this application, this application also provides a computer program product, which includes: computer program code, which, when run on a computer, causes the computer to execute the various steps or processes performed by the GEO satellite, the first LEO satellite or the second LEO satellite in any of the foregoing method embodiments.

[0456] According to the method provided in the embodiments of this application, this application also provides a computer-readable storage medium storing program code that, when run on a computer, causes the computer to execute the various steps or processes performed by the GEO satellite, the first LEO satellite, or the second LEO satellite in any of the foregoing method embodiments.

[0457] The computer-readable storage medium may be the aforementioned volatile memory or non-volatile memory, or it may include both volatile memory and non-volatile memory.

[0458] In the embodiments of this application, the terms and English abbreviations are exemplary examples given for ease of description and should not be construed as limiting the application in any way. This application does not preclude the possibility of defining other terms that can achieve the same or similar functions in existing or future agreements.

[0459] In the above embodiments, implementation can be achieved, in whole or in part, through software, hardware, firmware, or any combination thereof. When implemented in software, it can be implemented, in whole or in part, as a computer program product. A computer program product includes one or more computer instructions. When the computer instructions are loaded and executed on a computer, all or part of the flow or function according to the embodiments of this application is generated.

[0460] In the several embodiments provided in this application, it should be understood that the disclosed systems, apparatuses, and methods can be implemented in other ways. For example, the apparatus embodiments described above are merely illustrative; for instance, the division of units is only a logical functional division, and in actual implementation, there may be other division methods. For example, multiple units or components may be combined or integrated into another system, or some features may be ignored or not executed. Furthermore, the coupling or direct coupling or communication connection shown or discussed may be through some interfaces; the indirect coupling or communication connection between apparatuses or units may be electrical, mechanical, or other forms.

[0461] It should be understood that in the various embodiments of this application, the sequence number of each process does not imply the order of execution. The execution order of each process should be determined by its function and internal logic, and should not constitute any limitation on the implementation process of the embodiments of this application.

[0462] In summary, the above are merely preferred embodiments of the technical solutions of this application and are not intended to limit the scope of protection of this application. Any modifications, equivalent substitutions, improvements, etc., made within the spirit and principles of this application should be included within the scope of protection of this application.

Claims

1. A method of satellite communication, characterized by, The method is applied to a geostationary earth orbit (GEO) satellite, the GEO satellite is in communication connection with a first low earth orbit (LEO) satellite in one or more satellite clusters respectively, each of the satellite clusters further includes one or more second LEO satellites, and the GEO satellite is in communication connection with a ground station, and the method comprises the following steps: receiving load information of each second LEO satellite in a satellite cluster where each first LEO satellite is located, which is reported by each first LEO satellite; obtaining ephemeris information of each second LEO satellite from the ground station; generating a task division result in a case where a first preset condition is met according to the load information and / or the ephemeris information, and / or generating a satellite cluster division result in a case where a second preset condition is met; the task division result is used to instruct a target second LEO satellite in the one or more second LEO satellites to adjust a cell to be covered, and the satellite cluster division result is used to instruct a target satellite cluster in the one or more satellite clusters to adjust a second LEO satellite contained therein; sending the task division result and / or the satellite cluster division result to a target first LEO satellite; the target first LEO satellite includes a first LEO satellite in a satellite cluster where the target second LEO satellite is located, and / or a first LEO satellite in the target satellite cluster.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein, The first preset condition includes a load-related condition and / or a position-related condition.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein, The load-related condition includes: the load of at least one second LEO satellite is higher than a first load threshold, and the load of at least one second LEO satellite is lower than a second load threshold.

4. The method of claim 2, wherein, The position-related condition includes: at least one second LEO satellite cannot cover a current cell to be covered after a preset time length.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein, The generation of the task division result includes: generating an interference matrix according to the load information and the ephemeris information; the interference matrix is used to represent an interference situation of a beam between each second LEO satellite; determining the target second LEO satellite from the one or more second LEO satellites according to the load information and / or the ephemeris information; re-performing task division on the target second LEO satellite according to the interference matrix to obtain the task division result, and the task division result includes a target cell to be covered by the target second LEO satellite.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein, The re-performing of the task division on the target second LEO satellite according to the interference matrix to obtain the task division result includes: setting initial beam information for the target second LEO satellite; a beam corresponding to the initial beam information covers the target cell; adding the initial beam information to interference calculation to update the interference matrix to obtain an updated interference matrix; if an interference intensity of an interference pair corresponding to the initial beam information in the updated interference matrix is less than a preset interference threshold, the initial beam information is taken as target beam information of the target second LEO satellite to generate the task division result. If the interference strength of the interference pair corresponding to the initial beam information in the updated interference matrix is greater than or equal to a preset interference threshold, the initial beam information is adjusted to obtain adjusted initial beam information, and the beam corresponding to the adjusted initial beam information covers the target cell; the adjusted initial beam information is taken as the initial beam information, and the step of adding the initial beam information into interference calculation is returned to update the interference matrix to obtain an updated interference matrix.

7. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that, The second preset condition includes a satellite cluster related condition and / or a communication failure related condition.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein, The satellite cluster related condition includes: The first preset condition is satisfied, and the source second LEO satellite and the corresponding target second LEO satellite do not currently belong to the same satellite cluster; The first preset condition includes a load related condition and / or a position related condition, the load related condition includes that the load of at least one second LEO satellite is higher than a first load threshold and the load of at least one second LEO satellite is lower than a second load threshold, and the position related condition includes that at least one second LEO satellite cannot cover a currently covered cell after a preset time length; In the case of satisfying the load related condition, the source second LEO satellite includes a second LEO satellite whose load is higher than the first load threshold; In the case of satisfying the position related condition, the source second LEO satellite includes a second LEO satellite whose beam cannot cover a currently covered cell after the preset time length.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein, The generation of the satellite cluster division result includes: Determining the target satellite cluster from the one or more satellite clusters, the target satellite cluster including a first target satellite cluster in which the target second LEO satellite currently locates and a second target satellite cluster in which the source second LEO satellite locates; Dividing the target second LEO satellite from the first target satellite cluster to the second target satellite cluster to obtain the satellite cluster division result.

10. A satellite communication method, characterized by, The method is applied to a first LEO satellite, the first LEO satellite communicates with a GEO satellite, the first LEO satellite belongs to a first satellite cluster, and the first satellite cluster further includes one or more second LEO satellites, and the method includes: Receiving first information reported by each second LEO satellite in the first satellite cluster, the first information representing a situation of a wireless resource provided by the second LEO satellite; According to the first information, determining load information of each second LEO satellite; Reporting the load information to the GEO satellite; receiving a task division result and / or a satellite cluster division result sent by the GEO satellite, the task division result being used to instruct a target second LEO satellite to adjust a cell covered, the target second LEO satellite being a satellite in the first satellite cluster and a second LEO satellite in another satellite cluster, the satellite cluster division result being used to instruct a target satellite cluster to adjust a second LEO satellite contained therein, the target satellite cluster being a cluster in the first satellite cluster and the other satellite cluster, the task division result being generated according to the load information and / or ephemeris information of each second LEO satellite in the first satellite cluster and each second LEO satellite in the other satellite cluster, in a case where a first preset condition is met, and the satellite cluster division result being generated in a case where a second preset condition is met.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein, In a case where the satellite cluster division result sent by the GEO satellite is received, the target satellite cluster includes the first satellite cluster, and the method further includes: adjusting a second LEO satellite contained in the first satellite cluster according to the satellite cluster division result.

12. The method according to claim 10 or 11, characterized in that, In a case where the task division result sent by the GEO satellite is received, the first satellite cluster includes a source second LEO satellite and / or the target second LEO satellite; the first preset condition includes a load-related condition and / or a position-related condition, the load-related condition including that a load of at least one of the second LEO satellites in the first satellite cluster and the second LEO satellites in the other satellite cluster is higher than a first load threshold and a load of at least one of the second LEO satellites in the first satellite cluster and the second LEO satellites in the other satellite cluster is lower than a second load threshold, and the position-related condition including that at least one of the second LEO satellites in the first satellite cluster and the second LEO satellites in the other satellite cluster is unable to cover a currently covered cell by a beam after a preset time length; if the task division result is generated in a case where the load-related condition is met, the source second LEO satellite includes a second LEO satellite whose load is higher than the first load threshold; if the task division result is generated in a case where the position-related condition is met, the source second LEO satellite includes a second LEO satellite whose beam is unable to cover a currently covered cell after the preset time length; the method further includes: downlinking the task division result to the source second LEO satellite and / or the target second LEO satellite.

13. A method of satellite communication, characterized by applied to a third LEO satellite, the third LEO satellite belonging to a first satellite cluster, the first satellite cluster including one first LEO satellite and one or more second LEO satellites, the third LEO satellite being one of the one or more second LEO satellites, the method including: reporting first information to the first LEO satellite, the first information representing a case of a wireless resource provided by the third LEO satellite; receive a task division result issued by the first LEO satellite, the task division result indicating a target second LEO satellite of the one or more second LEO satellites to adjust a cell to cover; the task division result is generated by a GEO satellite according to load information of each second LEO satellite and / or ephemeris information of each second LEO satellite, and is sent to the first LEO satellite under a first preset condition, and the load information of the third LEO satellite is determined according to the first information.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein, The third LEO satellite is the target second LEO satellite, and the target cell to be covered by the target second LEO satellite is included in the task division result, and the method further comprises: adjusting a beam according to the task division result, and the adjusted beam covers the target cell.

15. The method of claim 13, wherein, The third LEO satellite is a source second LEO satellite. The first preset condition includes a load-related condition and / or a position-related condition, the load-related condition includes that the load of at least one of the source second LEO satellite and other second LEO satellites is higher than a first load threshold, and the load of at least one of the source second LEO satellite and the other second LEO satellites is lower than a second load threshold; the position-related condition includes that the beam of at least one of the source second LEO satellite and the other second LEO satellites cannot cover the currently covered cell after a preset time length, and the other second LEO satellite is a satellite other than the source second LEO satellite in the one or more second LEO satellites; If the task division result is generated under the load-related condition, the source second LEO satellite includes a second LEO satellite whose load is higher than the first load threshold; If the task division result is generated under the position-related condition, the source second LEO satellite includes a second LEO satellite whose beam cannot cover the currently covered cell after the preset time length.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein, The third LEO satellite and the target second LEO satellite do not currently belong to the same satellite cluster, the third LEO satellite covers a target cell, and the third LEO satellite is in communication connection with one or more terminal devices in the target cell, and the method further comprises: generating a handover strategy according to the task division result, the handover strategy including a target terminal device, the target terminal device being the terminal device to be switched in connection in the target cell; sending a connection handover message to the target terminal device, the connection handover message being used to instruct to switch network connection to the target second LEO satellite.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein, Before the connection handover message is sent to the target terminal device, the method further comprises: sending a handover request to the target second LEO satellite, the handover request being used to request to switch network connection of the target terminal device to the target second LEO satellite; receiving a handover response sent by the target second LEO satellite.

18. A satellite communication apparatus, characterized by comprising: The apparatus comprises at least one processor coupled with a memory having stored therein programs or instructions, the processor executing the programs or instructions causing the apparatus to perform the method of any one of claims 1-17.

19. A computer readable storage medium having stored thereon a computer program or instructions, characterized in that, The computer programs or instructions, when executed, cause a computer to perform the method of any one of claims 1-17.

20. A satellite communication system, characterized by The apparatus comprises a GEO satellite and one or more satellite clusters, each of the satellite clusters comprising a first LEO satellite and one or more second LEO satellites, the GEO satellite configured to perform the method of any one of claims 1-9, the first LEO satellite configured to perform the method of any one of claims 10-12, and the second LEO satellite configured to perform the method of any one of claims 13-17.

21. A chip system comprising one or more processors, characterized in that The one or more processors are configured to call and run instructions stored in the memory, causing the method of any one of claims 1-17 to be performed.

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