Paging carrier determination method, apparatus, terminal, network device, medium and product

Abstract

The present disclosure provides a paging carrier determination method, device, terminal, network device, medium and product, relating to the technical field of wireless communication. The paging carrier determination method comprises: sending paging carrier / frequency information to a mobility management network element and / or a base station, wherein the paging carrier / frequency information comprises preferred paging carrier / frequency information of the terminal or carrier / frequency information in which the terminal resides; and listening to a paging message on a paging carrier / frequency, wherein the paging carrier / frequency is a paging carrier / frequency configured by the mobility management network element or the base station or a paging carrier / frequency corresponding to the paging carrier / frequency information. Through the technical solution of the present disclosure, the terminal participates in paging carrier decision by actively feeding back a preferred carrier representing its own demand or a resident carrier representing its actual state, so that the terminal can select a carrier with better signal and better adaptation.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This disclosure relates to the field of wireless communication technology, and in particular to a paging carrier determination method, a paging carrier determination device, a terminal, a network device, a computer-readable storage medium, and a computer program product. Background Technology

[0002] 6G (6th Generation Mobile Communication Technology) multi-carrier cell is a communication architecture in which a single cell can directly support multiple broadband carriers and terminals can access multiple carriers without complicated procedures. Since 6G services have high latency requirements, in order to prevent the additional power consumption and access latency caused by frequency modulation of 6G terminals, terminals need to receive system messages, paging messages and initiate random access on the same carrier as much as possible. However, the current method of determining the paging carrier in 6G multi-carrier cells is to passively follow the carrier corresponding to fixed rules, which makes it impossible for terminals to flexibly select suitable carriers to camp on in the cell.

[0003] It should be noted that the information disclosed in the background section above is only used to enhance the understanding of the background of this disclosure, and therefore may include information that does not constitute prior art known to those skilled in the art. Summary of the Invention

[0004] The purpose of this disclosure is to provide a paging carrier determination method, configuration device, terminal, network equipment, storage medium, and computer program product, which at least to some extent overcomes the problem in the related art that the terminal cannot flexibly select a suitable carrier to camp on in a cell.

[0005] Other features and advantages of this disclosure will become apparent from the following detailed description, or may be learned in part from practice of this disclosure.

[0006] According to one aspect of this disclosure, a paging carrier determination method is provided, comprising: sending paging carrier / frequency information to a mobility management network element and / or a base station, wherein the paging carrier / frequency information includes paging carrier / frequency information preferred by the terminal or carrier / frequency information on which the terminal is camped; and listening for paging messages on the paging carrier / frequency, wherein the paging carrier / frequency is a paging carrier / frequency configured by the mobility management network element or the base station or a paging carrier / frequency corresponding to the paging carrier / frequency information.

[0007] In one embodiment of this disclosure, the terminal-preferred paging carrier / frequency information includes the carrier / frequency priority determined by the terminal.

[0008] In one embodiment of this disclosure, the method further includes: determining the carrier / frequency priority based on at least one of terminal power-saving information, carrier power-saving information broadcast by the base station, and terminal capabilities; wherein the terminal power-saving information includes terminal battery level and / or time-domain information of discontinuous terminal reception, the carrier power-saving information broadcast by the base station includes time-domain information of discontinuous carrier transmission or discontinuous reception, and the terminal capabilities include terminal type and / or paging frequencies supported by the terminal.

[0009] In one embodiment of this disclosure, determining the carrier / frequency priority based on at least one of terminal power-saving information, carrier power-saving information broadcast by the base station, and terminal capabilities includes: the terminal type includes a first-capability terminal and / or a second-capability terminal; if the terminal is a first-capability terminal, then the priority of the supported first frequency carrier and / or the carrier with a first system bandwidth is determined to be high priority; if the terminal is a second-capability terminal, then the priority of the supported second frequency carrier and / or the carrier with a second system bandwidth is determined to be high priority; wherein, the frequency of the first frequency carrier is less than the frequency of the second frequency carrier, and the first system bandwidth is less than the second system bandwidth.

[0010] In one embodiment of this disclosure, the time-domain information of the terminal's discontinuous reception includes the terminal's discontinuous reception period. Determining the carrier / frequency priority based on at least one of terminal power-saving information, carrier power-saving information broadcast by the base station, and terminal capabilities includes: determining the discontinuous transmission state and discontinuous transmission period of the carrier based on the carrier power-saving information broadcast by the base station; determining the carrier that is not in the discontinuous transmission state as high priority; determining the carrier whose discontinuous transmission period is less than the terminal's discontinuous reception period as high priority; and determining the carrier whose discontinuous transmission period is greater than or equal to the terminal's discontinuous reception period as low priority.

[0011] In one embodiment of this disclosure, sending paging carrier / frequency information to a mobility management network element and / or a base station includes: sending a registration request message to the mobility management network element, the registration request message including the frequency of a first carrier as carrier / frequency information for which the terminal resides; and receiving an acceptance registration message sent by the mobility management network element, the acceptance registration message including a first tracking frequency, the first tracking frequency being one or more frequencies, the first tracking frequency including the frequency of the first carrier.

[0012] In one embodiment of this disclosure, the acceptance registration message further includes first tracking area information, which is used to indicate the tracking area to which the terminal belongs.

[0013] In one embodiment of this disclosure, before sending a registration request message to the mobility management network element, the method further includes: selecting the multi-carrier cell according to the multi-carrier cell selection criteria; selecting the carrier / frequency information where the terminal camps according to the carrier selection criteria as the first carrier in the multi-carrier cell, so as to initiate a random access procedure on the first carrier and establish a connection with the base station.

[0014] In one embodiment of this disclosure, the method further includes: if no paging carrier / frequency is configured, determining the paging carrier based on the terminal's identifier and a specified calculation formula.

[0015] In one embodiment of this disclosure, the method further includes: if no paging carrier / frequency is configured, selecting the carrier / frequency information where the terminal resides according to the carrier selection criteria as the residing carrier, and listening for paging messages on the residing carrier.

[0016] In one embodiment of this disclosure, selecting the carrier / frequency information for the terminal to reside on according to carrier selection criteria includes: determining candidate carriers that meet the carrier selection criteria based on the measurement results of the performance indicators of the supporting carriers; sorting the candidate carriers based on the carrier / frequency priority determined by the terminal; and selecting the candidate carrier with the highest priority as the carrier / frequency information for the terminal to reside on.

[0017] In one embodiment of this disclosure, the method further includes: if a multi-carrier cell and / or the carrier / frequency information on which the terminal is camped is reselected, and the reselected carrier / frequency information on which the terminal is camped is inconsistent with all frequencies in the first tracking frequency, then an update procedure is initiated to the mobility management network element and / or the base station to update the tracking frequency.

[0018] According to another aspect of this disclosure, a paging carrier determination method is provided, applied to a network device, comprising: receiving paging carrier / frequency information sent by a terminal, the paging carrier / frequency information including paging carrier / frequency information preferred by the terminal or carrier / frequency information camped by the terminal; and configuring a paging carrier / frequency in a multi-carrier cell for the terminal according to the paging carrier / frequency information.

[0019] In one embodiment of this disclosure, configuring a paging carrier / frequency in a multi-carrier cell for the terminal based on the paging carrier / frequency information includes: the terminal's preferred paging carrier / frequency information includes the carrier / frequency priority determined by the terminal, and configuring the paging carrier / frequency based on the carrier / frequency priority.

[0020] In one embodiment of this disclosure, the network device includes a base station, and the carrier power-saving information broadcast by the base station is used by the terminal to determine the carrier / frequency priority.

[0021] In one embodiment of this disclosure, configuring a paging carrier / frequency in a multi-carrier cell for the terminal based on the paging carrier / frequency information includes: the carrier / frequency information on which the terminal resides includes the frequency of the first carrier in the first tracking frequency in the registration request message sent by the terminal; configuring the paging carrier / frequency based on the first tracking frequency; and sending an acceptance registration message to the terminal, the acceptance registration message including the first tracking frequency.

[0022] In one embodiment of this disclosure, the network device is a mobility management network element, and further includes: sending the paging carrier / frequency to a base station so that the base station sends a paging message on the paging carrier / frequency.

[0023] In one embodiment of this disclosure, the network device includes a base station and further includes: if the paging carrier / frequency is not configured, determining the paging carrier based on the identifier of the terminal and a specified calculation formula.

[0024] In one embodiment of this disclosure, the method further includes: receiving tracking frequency update information sent by the terminal, the tracking frequency update information including carrier / frequency information reselected by the terminal; and updating the tracking frequency based on the tracking frequency update information.

[0025] According to another aspect of this disclosure, a paging carrier determination apparatus is provided, applied to a terminal, comprising: a transmitting module, configured to transmit paging carrier / frequency information to a mobility management network element and / or a base station, wherein the paging carrier / frequency information includes paging carrier / frequency information preferred by the terminal or carrier / frequency information camped by the terminal; and a listening module, configured to listen for paging messages on the paging carrier / frequency, wherein the paging carrier / frequency is a paging carrier / frequency configured by the mobility management network element or the base station or a paging carrier / frequency corresponding to the paging carrier / frequency information.

[0026] According to another aspect of this disclosure, a paging carrier determination apparatus is provided, applied to a network device, comprising: a receiving module for receiving paging carrier / frequency information sent by a terminal, the paging carrier / frequency information including paging carrier / frequency information preferred by the terminal or carrier / frequency information camped by the terminal; and a configuration module for configuring a paging carrier / frequency in a multi-carrier cell for the terminal according to the paging carrier / frequency information.

[0027] According to another aspect of this disclosure, a terminal device is provided, comprising: a processor; and a memory for storing executable instructions of the processor; the processor is configured to perform the paging carrier determination method of the first aspect described above by executing the executable instructions.

[0028] According to another aspect of this disclosure, a network device is provided, comprising: a processor; and a memory for storing executable instructions of the processor; the processor being configured to perform the paging carrier determination method of the first aspect described above by executing the executable instructions.

[0029] According to another aspect of this disclosure, a computer-readable storage medium is provided having a computer program stored thereon, which, when executed by a processor, implements the paging carrier determination method described above.

[0030] According to another aspect of this disclosure, a computer program product is provided, on which a computer program is stored, which, when executed by a processor, implements the above-described paging carrier determination method.

[0031] The paging carrier determination scheme provided in the embodiments of this disclosure involves the terminal actively sending information containing its preferred paging carrier / frequency or camped carrier / frequency to the mobility management network element and / or base station. Then, based on the carrier configured by the mobility management network element / base station or the carrier corresponding to its own transmitted information, the terminal is no longer limited to a single network allocation. Instead, it actively participates in the paging carrier decision-making by providing its preferred carrier representing its own needs or the camped carrier representing its actual state. This ensures that the terminal can select a carrier with better and more suitable signal, while preventing paging reception failures caused by passively bound carriers. Furthermore, since the terminal uses the carrier corresponding to its own feedback information or the matched carrier configured by the network for paging, frequent frequency tuning between multiple carriers is unnecessary, reducing additional power consumption and access latency. This is beneficial for meeting the low latency and low power consumption requirements of 6G services, thereby improving the flexibility and reliability of terminal paging while optimizing the communication efficiency of multi-carrier cells.

[0032] It should be understood that the above general description and the following detailed description are exemplary and explanatory only, and are not intended to limit this disclosure. Attached Figure Description

[0033] The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and form part of this specification, illustrate embodiments consistent with this disclosure and, together with the description, serve to explain the principles of this disclosure. It is obvious that the drawings described below are merely some embodiments of this disclosure, and those skilled in the art can obtain other drawings based on these drawings without any inventive effort.

[0034] Figure 1 This diagram shows a flowchart of a paging carrier determination method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0035] Figure 2 A flowchart of another paging carrier determination method in an embodiment of this disclosure is shown;

[0036] Figure 3 A flowchart of another paging carrier determination method in an embodiment of this disclosure is shown;

[0037] Figure 4 A flowchart of yet another paging carrier determination method in this disclosure is shown;

[0038] Figure 5 A flowchart of yet another paging carrier determination method in this disclosure is shown;

[0039] Figure 6 A flowchart of yet another paging carrier determination method in this disclosure is shown;

[0040] Figure 7 This diagram illustrates a paging carrier determination device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0041] Figure 8 This diagram illustrates another paging carrier determination device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0042] Figure 9 A structural block diagram of a computer device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure is shown. Detailed Implementation

[0043] Exemplary embodiments will now be described more fully with reference to the accompanying drawings. However, these exemplary embodiments can be implemented in many forms and should not be construed as limited to the examples set forth herein; rather, they are provided so that this disclosure will be more comprehensive and complete, and will fully convey the concept of the exemplary embodiments to those skilled in the art. The described features, structures, or characteristics may be combined in any suitable manner in one or more embodiments.

[0044] Furthermore, the accompanying drawings are merely illustrative of this disclosure and are not necessarily drawn to scale. The same reference numerals in the drawings denote the same or similar parts, and therefore repeated descriptions of them will be omitted. Some block diagrams shown in the drawings are functional entities and do not necessarily correspond to physically or logically independent entities. These functional entities may be implemented in software, in one or more hardware modules or integrated circuits, or in different network and / or processor devices and / or microcontroller devices.

[0045] In the evolution of multi-carrier technology in mobile communication systems, there are significant differences in the implementation mechanisms and demand adaptation between different generations. In 4G or 5G mobile communication systems, a physical cell corresponds to only one carrier. If a terminal needs to carry out multi-carrier communication, it first accesses the core primary cell (PCell) to complete the initial connection and basic configuration. Then, through the multi-cell management process initiated by the base station (such as adding, deleting, and modifying secondary cells), it gradually accesses the secondary cells (SCell) to form a multi-carrier communication link. In other words, the activation of multi-carrier capability depends on complex dynamic management signaling of secondary cells, and the terminal cannot directly camp on or access multiple carriers at the same time.

[0046] To improve paging capacity, NB-IoT uses anchor carriers as the core and additionally configures non-anchor paging carriers through broadcast messages, enabling a single cell to support multiple paging carriers to send paging messages. The logic for the terminal to determine the listening carrier is that the terminal calculates the paging carrier to be listened to based on its own unique identifier (UE ID) and the cell-level paging carrier weight value pre-configured by the network through a fixed algorithm. In other words, it needs to rely on the fixed selection logic to expand the paging carrier.

[0047] The difference between 6G multi-carrier cells and NB-IoT lies in the carrier frequency: 6G multi-carrier cells use wideband carriers, while NB-IoT uses narrowband carriers. 6G services have higher latency requirements, while NB-IoT services have lower latency requirements. To avoid the additional power consumption and access latency caused by frequency modulation in 6G terminals, it is more reasonable for the terminal to receive system messages, paging messages, and initiate random access on the same carrier. If the NB-IoT method (where the paging carrier is mainly determined by the UE ID) is used to determine the paging carrier in a 6G multi-carrier cell, the UE cannot choose a suitable carrier to camp on within the cell (e.g., choose a carrier with a good signal), lacking flexibility.

[0048] The following will describe in more detail each step of the paging carrier determination method in this exemplary embodiment, with reference to the accompanying drawings and embodiments.

[0049] Figure 1 A flowchart of a paging carrier determination method according to an embodiment of this disclosure is shown.

[0050] like Figure 1 As shown, a paging carrier determination method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure includes:

[0051] Step S102: Send paging carrier / frequency information to the mobility management network element and / or base station. The paging carrier / frequency information includes the terminal's preferred paging carrier / frequency information or the carrier / frequency information on which the terminal is camped.

[0052] In some embodiments, paging carrier / frequency information is information provided autonomously by the terminal to the network side to assist the network in determining the paging carrier. It can be information reflecting the terminal's subjective preference for the paging carrier, or information reflecting the terminal's current connection status, such as the carrier frequency that the terminal sends during the registration process for camping or access. This information provides a direct reference for the network side to configure a paging carrier that meets the terminal's needs, ensuring that the paging carrier configured by the network matches the terminal's actual situation or preferences.

[0053] Step S104: Listen for paging messages on the paging carrier / frequency, wherein the paging carrier / frequency is the paging carrier / frequency configured by the mobility management network element or the base station, or the paging carrier / frequency corresponding to the paging carrier / frequency information.

[0054] In some embodiments, the system enters an idle or inactive state and, if a selected paging carrier / frequency is configured, listens for paging messages on the selected paging carrier / frequency.

[0055] In some embodiments, the idle state refers to the state in which the terminal has no service connection with the network and does not maintain context information, while the inactive state refers to the state in which the terminal has no service connection with the network but the network still retains some of the terminal's context information, that is, it is between the connected state and the idle state.

[0056] In some embodiments, in the idle or inactive state, the terminal does not need to continuously interact with the network for data, but it needs to listen for paging messages to respond to network calls or service requests. That is, before entering these two states, the terminal has determined a dedicated paging carrier / frequency through interaction with the network. After entering the state, the terminal only listens on the configured paging carrier and does not need to scan all carriers indiscriminately to reduce terminal power consumption. At the same time, the network only sends paging messages on the designated carrier to reduce resource waste.

[0057] In some embodiments, if the mobility management network element or base station configures a paging carrier / frequency based on the paging carrier / frequency information, the terminal listens for paging messages on the paging carrier / frequency. If the mobility management network element or base station does not configure a paging carrier / frequency based on the paging carrier / frequency information, the terminal directly listens for paging messages on the paging carrier / frequency corresponding to the paging carrier / frequency information.

[0058] In this embodiment, the terminal actively sends information containing its preferred paging carrier / frequency or camped carrier / frequency to the mobility management network element and / or base station. Then, based on the carrier configured by the mobility management network element / base station or the carrier corresponding to its own transmitted information, the terminal is no longer limited to a single network allocation. Instead, it actively participates in paging carrier decision-making by providing its preferred carrier representing its own needs or the camped carrier representing its actual state. This ensures that the terminal can select a carrier with better and more suitable signal, while preventing paging reception failures caused by passively bound carriers. Furthermore, by using the carrier corresponding to its own feedback information or the matched carrier configured by the network for paging, the terminal does not need to frequently adjust frequencies between multiple carriers, reducing additional power consumption and access latency. This is beneficial for meeting the low latency and low power consumption requirements of 6G services, thereby improving the flexibility and reliability of terminal paging while optimizing the communication efficiency of multi-carrier cells.

[0059] In some embodiments, as a method of paging carrier / frequency information, the terminal determines its preferred paging carrier / frequency information based on its own assessment of carrier signal quality, channel conditions, etc. The preferred paging carrier / frequency can be one or more, and is actively reported to the mobility management network element and / or base station. The network side can configure one or more dedicated paging carriers for the terminal based on factors such as terminal preference, network load, and resource allocation strategy. When the terminal is in idle / inactive state, it directly listens for paging on these configured carriers.

[0060] In this embodiment, by having the terminal actively participate in decision-making, the paging carrier is ensured to better meet the actual communication needs of the terminal, while the network can improve the reliability of paging by configuring multiple carriers.

[0061] In one embodiment of this disclosure, the terminal's preferred paging carrier / frequency information includes a carrier / frequency priority determined by the terminal.

[0062] In some embodiments, the terminal can proactively generate paging carrier selection and sorting logic that meets its own needs based on its own capabilities, operating status and the resource characteristics broadcast by the network side, and can feed back the sorting results as preference information to the network side to provide a reliable basis for configuring paging carriers for the network side.

[0063] In one embodiment of this disclosure, the method further includes: determining a carrier / frequency priority based on at least one of terminal energy-saving information, carrier energy-saving information broadcast by the base station, and terminal capabilities; wherein the terminal energy-saving information includes terminal power consumption and / or time-domain information of discontinuous terminal reception, the carrier energy-saving information broadcast by the base station includes time-domain information of discontinuous carrier transmission or discontinuous reception, and the terminal capabilities include terminal type and / or paging frequencies supported by the terminal.

[0064] Among them, the time-domain information of the terminal's discontinuous reception is a comprehensive description of the DRX period and associated time parameters, which may include the terminal's discontinuous reception period and wake-up duration, etc.

[0065] In some embodiments, one implementation of determining carrier / frequency priority based on terminal power-saving information, carrier power-saving information broadcast by the base station, and terminal capabilities includes:

[0066] The frequencies of multiple paging carriers supported by the terminal are determined and used as the first carrier set.

[0067] Optionally, carriers configured with paging resources in the first carrier set are determined as the second carrier set.

[0068] Based on terminal energy-saving information, carrier energy-saving information broadcast by the base station, and terminal capabilities, the carriers in the first carrier set or the second carrier set are sorted to determine carrier / frequency priority.

[0069] Specifically, if the terminal type is a first-capability terminal, i.e. a low-capability terminal (e.g., narrowband terminal, low-power terminal), then low-frequency carriers and carriers with small system bandwidth have higher priority. If the terminal type is a second-capability terminal, i.e. a high-capability terminal (e.g., broadband terminal, intelligent agent terminal), then high-frequency carriers and carriers with large system bandwidth have higher priority. Carriers that are not in a discontinuous transmission state have higher priority. For carriers in a discontinuous transmission state, carriers whose discontinuous transmission period is shorter than the terminal's discontinuous reception period have higher priority.

[0070] In some embodiments, another implementation of determining carrier / frequency priority based on terminal power-saving information, carrier power-saving information broadcast by the base station, and terminal capabilities includes:

[0071] First, based on the terminal's capabilities, the range of candidate carriers is narrowed down to obtain candidate carriers. Then, based on the energy-saving information of the candidate carriers broadcast by the base station, the terminal can prioritize carriers that are not in a discontinuous transmission state. If all candidate carriers are in a discontinuous transmission state, the discontinuous transmission period of the carrier is compared with the discontinuous reception period of the terminal, and the carrier with a discontinuous transmission period shorter than the discontinuous reception period of the terminal is ranked higher, thus obtaining the initial ranking result of carrier / frequency priority. Finally, combined with the terminal's own energy-saving information, the initial ranking result is adjusted to obtain the target ranking result. For example, if the terminal's battery is below 20%, the priority of carriers with lower signal reception power consumption in the initial ranking is increased.

[0072] In some embodiments, another implementation of determining carrier / frequency priority based on terminal power-saving information, carrier power-saving information broadcast by the base station, and terminal capabilities includes:

[0073] First, the terminal performs basic screening of candidate carriers based on its own capabilities, and determines the carrier range that the technology is compatible with by combining the terminal type and the supported paging frequencies: if it is a low-capability terminal (such as a narrowband IoT sensor), only the supported low-frequency carriers (such as the Sub-6GHz band) and small system bandwidth carriers (such as ≤10MHz) are retained, while high-frequency and large-bandwidth carriers are excluded; if it is a high-capability terminal (such as an AR / VR device), only the supported high-frequency carriers (such as the millimeter-wave band) and large system bandwidth carriers (such as ≥100MHz) are retained, while all unsupported paging frequencies are eliminated, forming an initial set of candidate carriers.

[0074] Secondly, based on the carrier energy-saving information broadcast by the base station, the initial candidate set is sorted. The broadcast information is first parsed to obtain the discontinuous transmission state and period of each carrier: carriers that are not in a discontinuous transmission state (i.e., continuously transmitting signals) are placed at the top. These carriers do not require the terminal to wait for the transmission period and can listen for paging at any time. For carriers in a discontinuous transmission state, their discontinuous transmission period is compared with the terminal's discontinuous reception period. Carriers with shorter transmission periods are placed at the top to ensure that the terminal can catch up with the base station's transmission period when it wakes up. Carriers with transmission periods greater than or equal to the terminal's discontinuous reception period are placed at the bottom.

[0075] Finally, the sorting results are dynamically adjusted based on the terminal's energy-saving information: if the terminal's remaining battery power is less than 20% (low battery state), the priority of low-frequency carriers (with low signal propagation loss and low receiving power consumption) in the current sorting is increased by 1-2 places; at the same time, the time domain information of the terminal's discontinuous reception is taken into account. If the terminal's discontinuous reception period is long (e.g., 500ms), the compatibility between the discontinuous transmission period of each carrier and the period is further confirmed. The priority of carriers with low compatibility (e.g., the transmission period is only slightly shorter than the reception period, and the probability of wake-up acquisition is low) is appropriately reduced. Finally, a carrier / frequency priority that takes into account capability compatibility, network energy-saving characteristics and its own energy consumption requirements is formed.

[0076] In this embodiment, using terminal capabilities as the carrier selection method can prevent communication failures caused by selecting carriers beyond the range supported by the terminal hardware. The carrier / frequency priority is determined by combining energy-saving information broadcast by the base station to ensure that the carrier selected by the terminal matches the signal transmission patterns of the network side, reducing energy consumption and latency during listening and waiting. Furthermore, determining carrier / frequency priority based on terminal energy-saving information helps to better align with the terminal's real-time energy consumption requirements. Using at least one of the three parameters can improve the practicality and accuracy of priority ranking, thereby making the preferred paging carrier information subsequently reported by the terminal more aligned with its own and the actual network situation, providing a reliable basis for the network side to configure paging carriers.

[0077] In one embodiment of this disclosure, determining carrier / frequency priority based on at least one of terminal power-saving information, carrier power-saving information broadcast by the base station, and terminal capabilities includes:

[0078] Terminal types include first-capability terminals and / or second-capability terminals.

[0079] In some embodiments, the second capability terminal is a high-capability terminal, including but not limited to broadband terminals, smart terminals, AR / VR devices, and industrial control nodes, while the first capability terminal is a low-capability terminal, including but not limited to narrowband IoT sensors and low-power monitoring devices.

[0080] If the terminal is a first-capability terminal, then the priority of the first supported frequency carrier and / or the carrier with the first system bandwidth is determined to be high priority.

[0081] In some embodiments, the first frequency carrier refers to a carrier with a lower frequency, and the carrier with the second system bandwidth refers to a carrier with a smaller system bandwidth (such as 10 MHz and below).

[0082] If the terminal is a second-capability terminal, then the priority of the supported second frequency carrier and / or the carrier with the second system bandwidth is determined to be high priority.

[0083] In some embodiments, the second frequency carrier refers to a carrier with a higher frequency (such as the millimeter wave band), and the carrier with the first system bandwidth refers to a carrier with a larger system bandwidth (such as 100MHz and above).

[0084] In this system, the frequency of the first frequency carrier is less than the frequency of the second frequency carrier, and the bandwidth of the first system is less than the bandwidth of the second system.

[0085] In this embodiment, by dividing the terminal into a low-capability first-capability terminal and a high-capability second-capability terminal, the first-capability terminal is matched with a low-frequency, small-system-bandwidth first-type carrier and given high priority, while the second-capability terminal is matched with a high-frequency, large-system-bandwidth second-type carrier and given high priority. The second-capability terminal selects a high-frequency, large-bandwidth carrier, which can give full play to its hardware advantages, meet the needs of high-speed services, and prevent performance limitations due to insufficient carrier resources. The first-capability terminal selects a low-frequency, small-bandwidth carrier, which not only adapts to its limited processing capabilities, but also utilizes the low-power characteristics of low-frequency carriers to reduce energy consumption and prevent waste caused by carrying redundant resources, making the priority ranking more in line with the actual needs of the terminal.

[0086] In one embodiment of this disclosure, the time-domain information of discontinuous reception by the terminal includes the discontinuous reception period of the terminal, and the carrier / frequency priority is determined based on at least one of terminal power-saving information, carrier power-saving information broadcast by the base station, and terminal capabilities, including:

[0087] The discontinuous transmission status and discontinuous transmission period of the carrier are determined based on the carrier energy-saving information broadcast by the base station.

[0088] In some embodiments, discontinuous transmission state refers to a mode in which the base station does not continuously transmit signals, such as paging signals or reference signals, to a certain carrier, but transmits signals within a specific time period and remains silent during that specific time period (no signals are transmitted during the silent period), thereby reducing unnecessary energy consumption and air interface resource occupation.

[0089] In some embodiments, the discontinuous transmission period refers to the time cycle length of the transmission period plus the silent period when the base station is in a discontinuous transmission state.

[0090] Carriers that are not in a discontinuous transmission state are assigned high priority.

[0091] In some embodiments, for carriers that are not in a discontinuous transmission state, i.e., carriers in a continuous transmission state, the base station will continuously transmit signals (including paging signals) on the carrier. The terminal does not need to wait for the base station's transmission period and can capture paging messages at any listening time, preventing paging from being missed due to the base station being in a silent period. Such carriers are determined to be of high priority. By leveraging the characteristic of continuous signal existence, the reliability and efficiency of the terminal receiving paging are improved, and the cost of listening and waiting is reduced.

[0092] Carriers with discontinuous transmission periods shorter than the terminal's discontinuous reception periods are assigned high priority.

[0093] In some embodiments, the discontinuous reception period of the terminal refers to the time cycle length of the terminal wake-up monitoring signal plus sleep power saving. If the discontinuous transmission period of a certain carrier of the base station is less than the discontinuous reception period of the terminal, it means that within one reception period of the terminal, the base station will complete at least one cycle of transmission period and silence period, so that the terminal encounters the transmission period of the base station each time it wakes up, thereby successfully receiving the paging message. This prevents the monitoring failure caused by the base station being in the silence period when the terminal wakes up. Setting this type of carrier as high priority can ensure the reliability of paging reception of the terminal in power saving monitoring mode by adapting the base station transmission period and the terminal reception period.

[0094] Carriers with discontinuous transmission periods greater than or equal to the terminal's discontinuous reception periods are designated as low priority.

[0095] In some embodiments, if the discontinuous transmission period of a certain carrier transmitted by the base station is greater than or equal to the discontinuous reception period of the terminal, the base station may only be in a silent period once within a reception period of the terminal, or may only enter the transmission period when the terminal is asleep. When the terminal wakes up to listen, it is highly likely that it is in the silent period of the base station, which will result in the inability to receive paging messages. It will have to wait for the next reception period or even several periods to capture the signal. Therefore, setting such carriers as low priority can reduce the probability of low paging efficiency and high energy consumption caused by period mismatch, and enable the terminal to preferentially select carriers that are compatible with its own reception period.

[0096] In one embodiment of this disclosure, sending paging carrier / frequency information to a mobility management network element and / or a base station includes:

[0097] Send a registration request message to the mobility management network element, the registration request message including the frequency of the first carrier as the carrier / frequency information for which the terminal resides; receive an acceptance registration message sent by the mobility management network element, the acceptance registration message including a first tracking frequency, the first tracking frequency being one or more frequencies, the first tracking frequency including the frequency of the first carrier.

[0098] In some embodiments, as another way of paging carrier / frequency information, when a terminal initially accesses the network, it first selects a suitable carrier, namely the first carrier, to camp on and establish a temporary connection. Then, in the registration request message sent to the mobility management network element, it reports the first tracking frequency of the first carrier as its currently associated carrier information. The network understands the current camping status of the terminal through the registration request message, providing a basis for subsequent paging carrier configuration. This process ensures that the network obtains the real-time camping location of the terminal at the carrier level, laying the foundation for accurate paging carrier configuration.

[0099] In some embodiments, the frequency of the first carrier is selection information actively provided by the terminal to the mobility management network element, and the first tracking frequency is a paging carrier / frequency configured by the mobility management network element for the terminal based on the selection information, that is, the frequency of the first carrier is a subset of the first tracking frequency.

[0100] In some embodiments, after receiving a terminal registration request, the mobility management network element configures a first tracking frequency that includes the first carrier frequency reported by the terminal. The first tracking frequency may include one or more frequencies to form a tracking frequency set. The network element informs the terminal by accepting a registration message. After entering an idle / inactive state, the terminal prioritizes listening for paging on the first carrier belonging to the tracking frequency set where it is camped. The network then sends paging messages on the entire tracking frequency set to ensure that the terminal can receive messages on the camped carrier. This process, by binding the paging frequency to the terminal's camped carrier, ensures the reachability of paging and prevents power loss from frequent carrier switching by the terminal.

[0101] In this embodiment, the terminal reports its first carrier frequency during registration. This first carrier frequency is adopted by the network as the core frequency for paging monitoring. The network may supplement this with other frequencies to form a first tracking frequency, but the terminal can at least listen for paging messages on its reported first carrier frequency. This ensures the terminal's basic right to choose the paging carrier while retaining the network's flexibility to expand the paging carrier range based on overall resource conditions. The terminal listens for paging on the first carrier when in idle / inactive state, and the network sends paging messages on the tracking frequency. This associates the terminal's camping behavior with the paging configuration, achieving synchronization between the paging carrier and the terminal's actual camping state. While ensuring paging reliability, this also helps improve the terminal's flexibility in selecting a suitable carrier to camp on within the cell.

[0102] In one embodiment of this disclosure, the acceptance of the registration message further includes first tracking area information, which is used to indicate the tracking area to which the terminal belongs.

[0103] In some embodiments, the first tracking area information is a geographical area identifier divided by the network, which may consist of a group of base stations and be used in conjunction with a first tracking frequency. The tracking area defines the geographical range of paging, and the tracking frequency defines the carrier range within that range. After receiving an acceptance registration message including the first tracking area information, the terminal determines its own geographical management area. When the network needs to paging the terminal, it only sends messages on the base stations and corresponding tracking frequencies included in the tracking area, further narrowing the paging range, reducing the signaling overhead of cross-regional paging, and improving paging efficiency.

[0104] In one embodiment of this disclosure, before sending a registration request message to the mobility management network element, the method further includes: selecting a multi-carrier cell according to a multi-carrier cell selection criterion; selecting carrier / frequency information for the terminal to camp on according to a carrier selection criterion as the first carrier in the multi-carrier cell, so as to initiate a random access procedure on the first carrier and establish a connection with the base station, that is, selecting to camp on the first carrier of the multi-carrier cell according to the multi-carrier cell selection criterion and the carrier selection criterion, so as to initiate a random access procedure on the first carrier and establish a connection with the base station.

[0105] In some embodiments, the multicarrier cell selection criterion is a rule used by the terminal to determine the target cell to camp on from multiple available multicarrier cells. It is usually based on the cell's signal quality, such as Reference Signal Received Power (RSRP) and Reference Signal Received Quality (RSRQ), cell load, whether it belongs to a public terrestrial mobile network (PLMN) that is allowed to be accessed, etc., and prioritizes multicarrier cells with better signal, lower load and legal access, so as to ensure that the terminal can access a cell environment with good basic communication conditions.

[0106] In some embodiments, the carrier selection criterion is the basis for the terminal to select a specific camping carrier from the multiple carriers contained in the selected multi-carrier cell, such as the first carrier. This can be achieved by the terminal determining the carrier / frequency priority based on at least one of the terminal's energy-saving information, the carrier energy-saving information broadcast by the base station, and the terminal's capabilities.

[0107] In this embodiment, when the terminal first accesses the network, it can first select a target multi-carrier cell based on multi-carrier cell selection criteria, such as cell signal strength and load. Then, based on carrier selection criteria, it selects a first carrier to camp on from multiple carriers of that cell. The terminal initiates a random access procedure on the first carrier to ensure that the terminal can select a better initial access point.

[0108] In one embodiment of this disclosure, the method further includes: if no paging carrier / frequency is configured, determining the paging carrier based on the terminal's identifier and a specified calculation formula.

[0109] In some embodiments, the terminal identifier may be an IMSI (International Mobile Subscriber Identity) or a UE ID, etc.

[0110] In some embodiments, the specified calculation formula may be a modulo operation formula, a hash and modulo operation combination formula, a segmented mapping formula, etc. Through the mathematical mapping between terminal identifier and carrier quantity, the network and terminal can independently calculate the target paging carrier based on the same rule.

[0111] In this embodiment, as a fallback mechanism, the specified calculation formula converts the terminal identifier in long string or numeric form into an integer index. This index corresponds one-to-one with the carrier list in the multi-carrier cell, such as index 0 corresponding to carrier 1, index 1 corresponding to carrier 2, etc. The terminal and the network use the same formula and carrier list. The terminal can determine the carrier index to listen to through calculation, and the network can also determine the carrier to send through the same calculation. This method achieves non-interactive synchronization between the terminal and the network through negotiation, thereby improving the reliability of the fallback mechanism.

[0112] In one embodiment of this disclosure, the method further includes: if no paging carrier / frequency is configured, selecting the carrier / frequency information where the terminal resides according to the carrier selection criteria as the residing carrier, and listening for paging messages on the residing carrier.

[0113] In some embodiments, the carrier selection criterion is the criterion by which the terminal selects a stationary carrier (for listening to paging messages) from multiple carriers in a multi-carrier cell when no dedicated paging carrier / frequency is configured. Alternatively, it can be implemented by the terminal determining the carrier / frequency priority based on at least one of terminal power-saving information, carrier power-saving information broadcast by the base station, and terminal capabilities.

[0114] In this embodiment, as another fallback mechanism, when the terminal does not obtain a dedicated paging carrier and does not need to calculate the identifier, it can autonomously select a carrier to camp on and listen for paging according to the carrier selection criteria. Since the carrier selected by the terminal is unknown to the network, the network needs to send paging messages on all carriers of the multi-carrier cell to ensure that the terminal can receive the message on the camped carrier, thereby ensuring the reachability of paging.

[0115] In one embodiment of this disclosure, selecting the carrier / frequency information for terminal camping according to carrier selection criteria includes: determining candidate carriers that meet the carrier selection criteria based on the measurement results of the performance indicators of the supporting carriers; sorting the candidate carriers based on the carrier / frequency priority determined by the terminal; and selecting the candidate carrier with the highest priority as the carrier / frequency information for terminal camping.

[0116] In some embodiments, the measurement results are data obtained by the terminal after measuring the key communication performance indicators of each candidate carrier in a multi-carrier cell, and may include at least one of signal quality related results, channel and interference related results, and service adaptation related results.

[0117] In some embodiments, the terminal determines candidate carriers that meet the carrier selection criteria based on the measurement results of the supported carriers, and uses them as a third carrier set. The carriers in the third carrier set are sorted according to the aforementioned method of determining carrier / frequency priority based on terminal power saving information, carrier power saving information broadcast by the base station and terminal capabilities, so as to select the carrier with the highest priority to camp on.

[0118] In this embodiment, carriers that meet the selection criteria are first screened based on the measurement results of the candidate carrier performance indicators. Then, the candidate carriers are sorted according to the carrier / frequency priority determined by the terminal, and the highest priority carrier is selected as the stationary carrier. The measurement of the candidate carrier performance indicators ensures that the selected carriers meet the basic communication capabilities such as signal quality and interference level, avoiding the terminal from stationing on inferior carriers that cannot meet basic communication needs. The optimal carrier is sorted and selected based on the priority determined by the terminal itself (combining terminal energy-saving information, base station carrier energy-saving information, and terminal capabilities, etc.), so that the stationary carrier meets both network performance requirements and adapts to the personalized needs of the terminal, so that the carrier for which the terminal finally stationes achieves the optimal balance between communication reliability, resource adaptability, and energy-saving efficiency.

[0119] In one embodiment of this disclosure, the method further includes: if a multi-carrier cell and / or the carrier / frequency information on which the terminal is camped is reselected, and the reselected carrier / frequency information on which the terminal is camped is inconsistent with all frequencies in the first tracking frequency, then an update procedure is initiated to the mobility management network element and / or the base station to update the tracking frequency.

[0120] In this embodiment, the terminal may reselect a multi-carrier cell or camp on a carrier during movement. If the frequency of the newly camped carrier is not within the original tracking frequency range, an update procedure needs to be initiated to the mobility management network element and / or the base station to report the new carrier frequency. After receiving the report, the network updates the tracking frequency and synchronizes it with the base station to ensure that the tracking frequency matches the terminal's current camped carrier. This prevents the paging carrier from becoming disconnected from the camped carrier due to the terminal's movement, thereby ensuring the effective delivery of paging messages.

[0121] like Figure 2 As shown, a paging carrier determination method according to another embodiment of this disclosure, applied to a mobility management network element, includes:

[0122] Step S202: Receive paging carrier / frequency information sent by the terminal. The paging carrier / frequency information includes the terminal's preferred paging carrier / frequency information or the carrier / frequency information that the terminal is camped on.

[0123] In some embodiments, paging carrier / frequency information may include preferred paging carrier / frequency information actively reported by the terminal or a first tracking frequency sent by the terminal during the registration process.

[0124] Step S204: Configure the paging carrier / frequency in the multi-carrier cell for the terminal according to the paging carrier / frequency information.

[0125] In some embodiments, after receiving the terminal's selection criteria information, the mobility management network element makes a decision based on the overall network resource status. If the criteria information is the frequency preferred by the terminal, then the network-available carriers are selected within the preferred range and configured as dedicated paging carriers for the terminal. If the criteria information is the first carrier frequency where the terminal camps, then the terminal's paging carrier is configured based on the first tracking frequency including the first carrier frequency.

[0126] In this embodiment, the mobility management network element receives terminal selection criteria information and configures paging carriers accordingly. This allows terminals to participate in paging carrier decisions by actively providing feedback information, rather than being limited by fixed carrier rules, thus enabling flexible selection. In addition, the mobility management network element configures carriers based on terminal information, limiting the paging range to specific carriers rather than the entire network. This overcomes the problems of resource waste and excessive energy consumption caused by indiscriminate broadcasting in broadband multi-carrier scenarios.

[0127] In one embodiment of this disclosure, configuring a paging carrier / frequency in a multi-carrier cell for a terminal based on paging carrier / frequency information includes: the terminal's preferred paging carrier / frequency information including the carrier / frequency priority determined by the terminal, and configuring the paging carrier / frequency based on the carrier / frequency priority.

[0128] In this embodiment, after receiving information including carrier / frequency priority reported by the terminal, the network element and / or base station responsible for mobility management selects the carrier with the highest priority from the terminal priority list as the terminal's paging carrier / frequency, based on the priority determined by the terminal and the actual state of network resources. If the current network load of the carrier is low, paging resources are sufficient, and there is no obvious interference, it is directly configured as the terminal's paging carrier. If a high-priority carrier cannot meet the configuration conditions due to network congestion or other reasons, a carrier with a suitable network state is selected from the subsequent carriers according to the terminal priority order for configuration. This configuration method can ensure that the paging carrier / frequency is configured based on the priority preference determined by the terminal's own needs as much as possible.

[0129] In one embodiment of this disclosure, configuring a paging carrier / frequency in a multi-carrier cell for a terminal based on paging carrier / frequency information includes:

[0130] The carrier / frequency information that the terminal resides in includes the frequency of the first carrier in the first tracking frequency in the registration request message sent by the terminal; the paging carrier / frequency is configured according to the first tracking frequency; and an acceptance registration message is sent to the terminal, the acceptance registration message including the first tracking frequency.

[0131] In this embodiment, when the terminal initiates the registration process, it carries a first tracking frequency in the registration request message. The first tracking frequency also includes the frequency of the first carrier. After receiving the registration request message, the network element responsible for mobility management configures the first tracking frequency reported by the terminal as the terminal's paging carrier / frequency to ensure that the paging frequency configured on the network side is consistent with the carrier currently camped by the terminal, thereby realizing the real-time binding of the paging carrier and the terminal's camping state.

[0132] In one embodiment of this disclosure, the network device is a mobility management network element, and further includes: sending a paging carrier / frequency to a base station so that the base station sends a paging message on the paging carrier / frequency.

[0133] In this embodiment, after the mobility management network element completes the paging carrier configuration, it needs to synchronize the selected carrier information, such as a dedicated paging carrier or tracking frequency set, to the base station to ensure that the base station knows the specific carrier on which the paging message is sent to the terminal. After receiving the information, the base station will only send paging messages on these designated carriers when the terminal enters the idle / inactive state, thus preventing blind transmission.

[0134] In one embodiment of this disclosure, the method further includes: receiving tracking frequency update information sent by the terminal, the tracking frequency update information including carrier / frequency information reselected by the terminal; and updating the tracking frequency based on the tracking frequency update information.

[0135] In this embodiment, when the terminal reselects a carrier and the new frequency is inconsistent with the original tracking frequency, it sends an update message containing the new carrier / frequency information for the terminal to camp on to the mobility management network element. After receiving the update message, the network element first verifies the validity of the new frequency. If valid, it updates the original tracking frequency to a tracking frequency set containing the new frequency and synchronizes the updated information to the base station. If invalid, it rejects the update and notifies the terminal to reselect. This process ensures that the tracking frequency always matches the current camping state of the terminal, preventing paging disconnection caused by terminal movement and balancing reliability and efficiency.

[0136] like Figure 3 As shown, a paging carrier determination method according to another embodiment of this disclosure, applied to a base station, includes:

[0137] Step S302: Receive paging carrier / frequency information sent by the terminal. The paging carrier / frequency information includes the terminal's preferred paging carrier / frequency information or the carrier / frequency information that the terminal is camped on.

[0138] Step S304: The paging carrier / frequency information is sent to the mobility management network element so that the mobility management network element can configure the paging carrier / frequency selected in the multi-carrier cell for the terminal according to the selection criteria information.

[0139] In this embodiment, the base station receives the paging carrier / frequency selection information sent by the terminal and forwards it to the mobility management network element. The mobility management network element then configures the paging carrier. In a multi-carrier cell, the terminal does not need to passively select a carrier based on fixed rules. The base station then sends messages only on the configured paging carrier, which improves the efficiency and flexibility of paging in a multi-carrier cell.

[0140] In one embodiment of this disclosure, the network device includes a base station, and carrier power saving information broadcast by the base station is used by the terminal to determine carrier / frequency priority.

[0141] In this embodiment, the base station broadcasts energy-saving information related to each carrier to all terminals in the cell via broadcast messages (such as system messages), including core parameters such as whether the carrier is in a discontinuous transmission state and the discontinuous transmission period. The terminals determine the carrier / frequency priority based on the resource characteristics of the network side.

[0142] In one embodiment of this disclosure, the method further includes: receiving a selected paging carrier / frequency sent by a mobility management network element; and sending a paging message on the selected paging carrier / frequency.

[0143] In some embodiments, after receiving the selected paging carriers / frequency sent by the mobility management network element, the base station stores this carrier information in the context data corresponding to the terminal. When a paging message for the terminal arrives, the base station extracts the corresponding paging carriers / frequency from the context data and sends the paging message only on these specified carriers. The base station does not need to broadcast paging on all carriers in the cell, reducing unnecessary resource consumption.

[0144] In one embodiment of this disclosure, the network device includes a base station and further includes: if a paging carrier / frequency is not configured, determining a paging carrier based on the terminal's identifier and a specified calculation formula.

[0145] In this embodiment, when no dedicated paging carrier is configured for the terminal, the mobility management network element will trigger a fallback mechanism. For example, it will agree on a unified calculation formula with the base station, input the terminal identifier into the calculation formula to calculate the paging carrier index, and the base station will determine the corresponding carrier based on the index and send a paging message. This ensures the normal operation of the paging process when there is no dedicated configuration. The standardized algorithm realizes non-interactive synchronization between the terminal and the base station, preventing paging failure due to lack of configuration.

[0146] like Figure 4 As shown, a paging carrier determination method according to another embodiment of this disclosure includes:

[0147] In step S402, the terminal determines the carrier / frequency priority based on at least one of the terminal energy-saving information, the carrier energy-saving information broadcast by the base station, and the terminal's capabilities.

[0148] In step S404, the terminal sends its preferred paging carrier / frequency information to the network element and / or base station responsible for mobility management. The preferred paging carrier / frequency information includes carrier / frequency priority.

[0149] Step S406: The network element and / or base station responsible for mobility management configures the paging carrier / frequency for the terminal according to the paging carrier / frequency information preferred by the terminal.

[0150] The paging carrier / frequency can be one or more frequencies.

[0151] Step S408: If the terminal enters an idle / inactive state, and there is a configured dedicated paging carrier / frequency, the terminal listens for paging messages on the configured paging carrier / frequency.

[0152] Step S410: If a paging message from the terminal arrives at the base station, the base station sends the paging message on the configured paging carrier / frequency.

[0153] In step S412, if the terminal enters an idle / inactive state, and if there is no configured terminal-specific paging carrier / frequency, the terminal determines the paging carrier based on the terminal identifier.

[0154] For example, the terminal identifier is substituted into a specific formula to obtain the paging carrier index, and the terminal listens for paging messages on that paging carrier.

[0155] Step S414: If a paging message from the terminal arrives at the base station, the base station sends the paging message on the paging carrier determined according to the terminal identifier.

[0156] In this embodiment, if a dedicated paging carrier / frequency is configured for the terminal, the carrier range for the base station to send paging messages is reduced to a certain range while taking into account the selection of paging carrier frequencies by both the terminal and the network, thereby reducing network energy consumption and paging resource occupation during paging. If no dedicated paging carrier / frequency is configured for the terminal, the carrier range for the base station to send paging messages is reduced to a certain carrier by determining the paging carrier index based on the terminal identifier, thereby reducing network energy consumption and paging resource occupation during paging.

[0157] like Figure 5 As shown, a paging carrier determination method according to another embodiment of this disclosure includes:

[0158] In step S502, if the terminal has not yet registered (for example, the terminal that has just been powered on is still in an idle state), the terminal selects the first multi-carrier cell according to the multi-carrier cell selection criteria, and camps on the first carrier of the first multi-carrier cell according to the measurement results of the performance indicators of the supported carriers and the carrier / frequency priority determined by the terminal.

[0159] In step S504, the terminal initiates a random access procedure on the first carrier to establish a connection with the base station.

[0160] In step S506, the terminal sends a registration request message to the network element responsible for mobility management through the base station. The registration request message contains the carrier frequency (i.e., the frequency of the first carrier) where the terminal camps or accesses.

[0161] In step S508, the network element responsible for mobility management sends a registration acceptance message to the terminal, which includes the first tracking area information and the first tracking frequency, and completes the registration; wherein, the first tracking frequency may be one or more frequencies, and the first tracking frequency includes the frequency of the first carrier.

[0162] In step S510, the network element responsible for mobility management sends the first tracking area information and the first tracking frequency to the base station.

[0163] In step S512, if the terminal enters an idle / inactive state (for example, the terminal has no service for a period of time), the terminal listens for paging messages on the first carrier.

[0164] Step S514: If a paging message from a terminal arrives at the base station, the base station sends the paging message on the first tracking frequency (including the first carrier and the second carrier).

[0165] Step S516: If the terminal reselects a multi-carrier cell and / or a camped carrier (e.g., the terminal moves to another multi-carrier cell), and the camped carrier frequency is inconsistent with the first tracking frequency.

[0166] In step S518, the terminal initiates an update procedure to the network element and / or base station responsible for mobility management.

[0167] Step S520: Update the tracking frequency.

[0168] In this embodiment, the terminal sends the carrier frequency it camps or accesses to the network element responsible for mobility management via the base station. If the terminal reselects a multi-carrier cell and / or camps a carrier, and the camped carrier frequency is inconsistent with the tracking frequency, the terminal updates the tracking frequency to the network element responsible for mobility management and / or the base station. This enables the terminal to autonomously select its camping carrier / paging carrier. Through the interaction between the terminal and the network element / base station responsible for mobility management, the paging carrier information is synchronized in real time between the terminal and the network, ensuring that the network will perform paging on the camping carrier / paging carrier autonomously selected by the terminal.

[0169] like Figure 6 As shown, a paging carrier determination method according to another embodiment of this disclosure includes:

[0170] In step S602, the terminal determines the carrier / frequency priority based on at least one of the terminal energy-saving information, the carrier energy-saving information broadcast by the base station, and the terminal's capabilities.

[0171] In step S604, the terminal sends its preferred paging carrier / frequency information to the network element and / or base station responsible for mobility management. The preferred paging carrier / frequency information includes carrier / frequency priority.

[0172] Step S606: The network element and / or base station responsible for mobility management configures a paging carrier / frequency for the terminal according to the paging carrier / frequency information preferred by the terminal; wherein, the paging carrier / frequency can be one or more frequencies.

[0173] Step S608: If the terminal enters an idle / inactive state, and there is a configured dedicated paging carrier / frequency, the terminal listens for paging messages on the configured paging carrier / frequency.

[0174] In step S610, if a paging message from a terminal arrives at the base station, the base station sends the paging message on the configured paging carrier / frequency.

[0175] In step S612, if the terminal enters an idle / inactive state and there is no configured dedicated paging carrier / frequency, the terminal will select a carrier to camp on based on the measurement results of the performance indicators of the supported carriers and the carrier / frequency priority determined by the terminal, and the terminal will listen for paging messages on that carrier.

[0176] In step S614, if a paging message from a terminal arrives at the base station, the base station sends the paging message on all carriers of the multi-carrier cell.

[0177] In this embodiment, the network element responsible for mobility management configures tracking area information and tracking frequency for the terminal. The tracking frequency can be one or more frequencies, including the carrier frequency on which the terminal camps or accesses. The network element responsible for mobility management sends the tracking area information and tracking frequency to the base station. The base station only pages the terminal on the tracking frequency, reducing the network energy consumption and paging resource occupation of paging. On the other hand, by configuring the tracking frequency, the number of frequency updates between the terminal and the mobility management network element is reduced, achieving a trade-off between NAS signaling overhead and paging signaling overhead.

[0178] It should be noted that the above figures are merely illustrative of the processes included in the method according to exemplary embodiments of the present invention, and are not intended to be limiting. It is readily understood that the processes shown in the above figures do not indicate or limit the temporal order of these processes. Furthermore, it is readily understood that these processes may, for example, be executed synchronously or asynchronously in multiple modules.

[0179] The following reference Figure 7 The paging carrier determination device 700 according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described. Figure 7 The paging carrier determination device 700 shown is merely an example and should not impose any limitations on the functionality and scope of use of the embodiments of the present invention.

[0180] The paging carrier determination device 700 is manifested as a hardware module. Components of the paging carrier determination device 700 may include, but are not limited to: a transmitting module 702, used to transmit paging carrier / frequency information to the mobility management network element and / or base station, the paging carrier / frequency information including terminal-preferred paging carrier / frequency information or carrier / frequency information camped by the terminal; and a listening module 704, used to listen for paging messages on the paging carrier / frequency, wherein the paging carrier / frequency is the paging carrier / frequency configured by the mobility management network element or base station, or the paging carrier / frequency corresponding to the paging carrier / frequency information.

[0181] The following reference Figure 8 The paging carrier determination device 800 according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described. Figure 8The paging carrier determination device 800 shown is merely an example and should not impose any limitations on the functionality and scope of use of the embodiments of the present invention.

[0182] The paging carrier determination device 800 is manifested as a hardware module. Components of the paging carrier determination device 800 may include, but are not limited to: a receiving module 802, used to receive paging carrier / frequency information sent by the terminal, the paging carrier / frequency information including the terminal's preferred paging carrier / frequency information or the carrier / frequency information on which the terminal is camped; and a configuration module 804, used to configure the paging carrier / frequency in the multi-carrier cell for the terminal based on the paging carrier / frequency information.

[0183] Those skilled in the art will understand that various aspects of the present invention can be implemented as systems, methods, or program products. Therefore, various aspects of the present invention can be specifically implemented in the following forms: entirely in hardware, entirely in software (including firmware, microcode, etc.), or in a combination of hardware and software, collectively referred to herein as “circuit,” “module,” or “system.”

[0184] The following reference Figure 9 This describes an electronic device 900 according to this embodiment of the invention. It may be a network device or a terminal. Figure 9 The electronic device 900 shown is merely an example and should not impose any limitations on the functionality and scope of use of the embodiments of the present invention.

[0185] like Figure 9 As shown, the electronic device 900 is manifested in the form of a general-purpose computing device. The components of the electronic device 900 may include, but are not limited to: at least one processing unit 910, at least one storage unit 920, and a bus 930 connecting different system components (including storage unit 920 and processing unit 910).

[0186] The storage unit stores program code that can be executed by the processing unit 910, causing the processing unit 910 to perform the steps described in the "Exemplary Methods" section of this specification according to various exemplary embodiments of the present invention. For example, the processing unit 910 can perform actions such as... Figures 1 to 6 The described solution.

[0187] Storage unit 920 may include readable media in the form of volatile storage units, such as random access memory (RAM) 9201 and / or cache memory 9202, and may further include read-only memory (ROM) 9203.

[0188] The storage unit 920 may also include a program / utility 9204 having a set (at least one) program module 9205, such program module 9205 including but not limited to: an operating system, one or more application programs, other program modules and program data, each or some combination of these examples may include an implementation of a network environment.

[0189] Bus 930 can represent one or more of several types of bus structures, including a memory cell bus or memory cell controller, a peripheral bus, a graphics acceleration port, a processing unit, or a local bus using any of the various bus structures.

[0190] Electronic device 900 can also communicate with one or more external devices 940 (e.g., keyboard, pointing device, Bluetooth device, etc.), and with one or more devices that enable a user to interact with electronic device 900, and / or with any device that enables electronic device 900 to communicate with one or more other computing devices (e.g., router, modem, etc.). This communication can be performed via input / output (I / O) interface 950. Furthermore, electronic device 900 can also communicate with one or more networks (e.g., local area network (LAN), wide area network (WAN), and / or public networks, such as the Internet) via network adapter 960. As shown, network adapter 960 communicates with other modules of electronic device 900 via bus 930. It should be understood that, although not shown in the figures, other hardware and / or software modules can be used in conjunction with electronic device 900, including but not limited to: microcode, device drivers, redundant processing units, external disk drive arrays, RAID systems, tape drives, and data backup storage systems.

[0191] From the above description of the embodiments, those skilled in the art will readily understand that the exemplary embodiments described herein can be implemented by software or by combining software with necessary hardware. Therefore, the technical solutions according to the embodiments of this disclosure can be embodied in the form of a software product, which can be stored in a non-volatile storage medium (such as a CD-ROM, USB flash drive, external hard drive, etc.) or on a network, including several instructions to cause a computing device (such as a personal computer, server, terminal device, or network device, etc.) to execute the methods according to the embodiments of this disclosure.

[0192] In exemplary embodiments of this disclosure, a computer-readable storage medium is also provided, on which a program product capable of implementing the methods described above is stored. In some possible embodiments, various aspects of the invention may also be implemented as a program product comprising program code that, when the program product is run on an electronic device, causes the electronic device to perform the steps of the various exemplary embodiments of the invention described in the "Exemplary Methods" section above.

[0193] According to embodiments of the present invention, a program product for implementing the above-described method may employ a portable compact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM) and include program code, and may run on an electronic device, such as a personal computer. However, the program product of the present invention is not limited thereto. In this document, a readable storage medium may be any tangible medium containing or storing a program that may be used by or in conjunction with an instruction execution system, apparatus, or device.

[0194] The program product may employ any combination of one or more readable media. A readable medium may be a readable signal medium or a readable storage medium. A readable storage medium may be, for example, but not limited to, an electrical, magnetic, optical, electromagnetic, infrared, or semiconductor system, apparatus, or device, or any combination thereof. More specific examples of readable storage media (a non-exhaustive list) include: an electrical connection having one or more wires, a portable disk, a hard disk, random access memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM or flash memory), optical fiber, portable compact disk read-only memory (CD-ROM), optical storage devices, magnetic storage devices, or any suitable combination thereof.

[0195] Computer-readable signal media may include data signals propagated in baseband or as part of a carrier wave, carrying readable program code. Such propagated data signals may take various forms, including but not limited to electromagnetic signals, optical signals, or any suitable combination thereof. A readable signal medium may also be any readable medium other than a readable storage medium, capable of sending, propagating, or transmitting programs for use by or in conjunction with an instruction execution system, apparatus, or device.

[0196] The program code contained on the readable medium may be transmitted using any suitable medium, including but not limited to wireless, wired, optical fiber, RF, etc., or any suitable combination thereof.

[0197] Program code for performing the operations of this invention can be written in any combination of one or more programming languages, including object-oriented programming languages ​​such as Java and C++, and conventional procedural programming languages ​​such as C or similar languages. The program code can execute entirely on the user's computing device, partially on the user's device, as a standalone software package, partially on the user's computing device and partially on a remote computing device, or entirely on a remote computing device or server. In cases involving remote computing devices, the remote computing device can be connected to the user's computing device via any type of network, including a local area network (LAN) or a wide area network (WAN), or it can be connected to an external computing device (e.g., via the Internet using an Internet service provider).

[0198] It should be noted that although several modules or units for the device used to perform actions have been mentioned in the detailed description above, this division is not mandatory. In fact, according to embodiments of this disclosure, the features and functions of two or more modules or units described above can be embodied in one module or unit. Conversely, the features and functions of one module or unit described above can be further divided and embodied by multiple modules or units.

[0199] Furthermore, although the steps of the method in this disclosure are described in a specific order in the accompanying drawings, this does not require or imply that the steps must be performed in that specific order, or that all the steps shown must be performed to achieve the desired result. Additional or alternative steps may be omitted, multiple steps may be combined into one step, and / or a step may be broken down into multiple steps.

[0200] From the above description of the embodiments, those skilled in the art will readily understand that the exemplary embodiments described herein can be implemented by software or by combining software with necessary hardware. Therefore, the technical solutions according to the embodiments of this disclosure can be embodied in the form of a software product, which can be stored in a non-volatile storage medium (such as a CD-ROM, USB flash drive, external hard drive, etc.) or on a network, including several instructions to cause a computing device (such as a personal computer, server, mobile terminal, or network device, etc.) to execute the methods according to the embodiments of this disclosure.

[0201] Other embodiments of this disclosure will readily occur to those skilled in the art upon consideration of the specification and practice of the invention disclosed herein. This application is intended to cover any variations, uses, or adaptations of this disclosure that follow the general principles of this disclosure and include common knowledge or customary techniques in the art not disclosed herein. The specification and examples are to be considered exemplary only, and the true scope and spirit of this disclosure are indicated by the appended claims.

Claims

1. A method for determining a paging carrier, characterized in that, Applied to terminals, including: The system sends paging carrier / frequency information to mobility management network elements and / or base stations. The paging carrier / frequency information includes the terminal's preferred paging carrier / frequency information, which includes a carrier / frequency priority determined by the terminal based on terminal power-saving information, carrier power-saving information broadcast by the base station, and terminal capabilities. The terminal power-saving information includes time-domain information of discontinuous reception, which includes the discontinuous reception period. The terminal capabilities include the terminal type and the paging frequencies supported by the terminal. Determining the carrier / frequency priority includes: if the terminal is a low-capability terminal, then based on a supported first frequency carrier and / or a carrier with a first system bandwidth... The carrier determines the candidate carrier range; if the terminal is a high-capacity terminal, the candidate carrier range is determined based on the supported second frequency carrier and / or a carrier with a second system bandwidth; wherein, the frequency of the first frequency carrier is less than the frequency of the second frequency carrier, and the first system bandwidth is less than the second system bandwidth; the discontinuous transmission state and discontinuous transmission period of the carrier are determined according to the carrier power-saving information broadcast by the base station; within the candidate carrier range, carriers not in the discontinuous transmission state are determined as high priority; carriers with a discontinuous transmission period less than the discontinuous reception period of the terminal are determined as high priority; carriers with a discontinuous transmission period greater than or equal to the discontinuous reception period of the terminal are determined as low priority; Listening for paging messages on a paging carrier / frequency, wherein the paging carrier / frequency is the paging carrier / frequency configured by the mobility management network element or the base station, or the paging carrier / frequency corresponding to the paging carrier / frequency information.

2. The paging carrier determination method according to claim 1, characterized in that, Sending paging carrier / frequency information to mobility management network elements and / or base stations, including: Send a registration request message to the mobility management network element, the registration request message including the frequency of the first carrier as the carrier / frequency information where the terminal resides; The system receives a registration acceptance message sent by the mobility management network element. The registration acceptance message includes a first tracking frequency, which is one or more frequencies, including the frequency of the first carrier.

3. The paging carrier determination method according to claim 2, characterized in that, The registration acceptance message also includes first tracking area information, which indicates the tracking area to which the terminal belongs.

4. The paging carrier determination method according to claim 2, characterized in that, Before sending the registration request message to the mobility management network element, the method further includes: The multi-carrier cell is selected according to the multi-carrier cell selection criteria; The carrier / frequency information on which the terminal camps is selected according to the carrier selection criteria, and used as the first carrier in the multi-carrier cell, so as to initiate a random access procedure on the first carrier and establish a connection with the base station.

5. The paging carrier determination method according to claim 1, characterized in that, Also includes: If no paging carrier / frequency is configured, the paging carrier is determined based on the terminal's identifier and the specified calculation formula.

6. The paging carrier determination method according to claim 1, characterized in that, Also includes: If no paging carrier / frequency is configured, the carrier / frequency information on which the terminal resides is selected according to the carrier selection criteria as the residing carrier, and paging messages are listened for on the residing carrier.

7. The paging carrier determination method according to claim 4 or 6, characterized in that, The carrier / frequency information for which the terminal resides is selected according to the carrier selection criteria, including: Candidate carriers that meet the carrier selection criteria are determined based on the measurement results of the performance indicators of the supporting carriers. The candidate carriers are sorted according to the carrier / frequency priority determined by the terminal, and the candidate carrier with the highest priority is selected as the carrier / frequency information for which the terminal resides.

8. The paging carrier determination method according to claim 2, characterized in that, Also includes: If a multi-carrier cell and / or the carrier / frequency information on which the terminal is camped are reselected, and the reselected carrier / frequency information on which the terminal is camped is inconsistent with all frequencies in the first tracking frequency, then an update procedure is initiated to the mobility management network element and / or the base station to update the tracking frequency.

9. A method for determining a paging carrier, characterized in that, Applied to network devices, including: The terminal receives paging carrier / frequency information, which includes the terminal's preferred paging carrier / frequency information and a carrier / frequency priority determined by the terminal. The carrier / frequency priority is determined based on terminal power-saving information, base station-broadcast carrier power-saving information, and terminal capabilities. The terminal power-saving information includes time-domain information of discontinuous reception, which includes the discontinuous reception period. The terminal capabilities include terminal type and the paging frequencies supported by the terminal. Determining the carrier / frequency priority includes: if the terminal is a low-capability terminal, then based on a supported first frequency carrier and / or having a first priority... The candidate carrier range is determined by carriers with a system bandwidth; if the terminal is a high-capacity terminal, the candidate carrier range is determined based on a supported second frequency carrier and / or a carrier with a second system bandwidth; wherein the frequency of the first frequency carrier is less than the frequency of the second frequency carrier, and the first system bandwidth is less than the second system bandwidth; the discontinuous transmission state and discontinuous transmission period of the carrier are determined according to the carrier power-saving information broadcast by the base station; within the candidate carrier range, carriers not in the discontinuous transmission state are determined as high priority; carriers with a discontinuous transmission period less than the discontinuous reception period of the terminal are determined as high priority; carriers with a discontinuous transmission period greater than or equal to the discontinuous reception period of the terminal are determined as low priority; Configure the paging carrier / frequency in the multi-carrier cell for the terminal based on the paging carrier / frequency information.

10. The paging carrier determination method according to claim 9, characterized in that, Configure the paging carrier / frequency in the multi-carrier cell for the terminal according to the paging carrier / frequency information, including: Configure the paging carrier / frequency according to the carrier / frequency priority.

11. The paging carrier determination method according to claim 9, characterized in that, The network device includes a base station, and the carrier power saving information broadcast by the base station is used by the terminal to determine the carrier / frequency priority.

12. The paging carrier determination method according to claim 9, characterized in that, Configure the paging carrier / frequency in the multi-carrier cell for the terminal according to the paging carrier / frequency information, including: The carrier / frequency information that the terminal resides in includes the frequency of the first carrier in the first tracking frequency in the registration request message sent by the terminal; Configure the paging carrier / frequency according to the first tracking frequency; Send a registration acceptance message to the terminal, the registration acceptance message including the first tracking frequency.

13. The paging carrier determination method according to claim 10 or 12, characterized in that, The network device is a mobility management network element, and also includes: The paging carrier / frequency is sent to the base station so that the base station can send a paging message on the paging carrier / frequency.

14. The paging carrier determination method according to claim 9, characterized in that, The network equipment includes a base station, and also includes: If the paging carrier / frequency is not configured, the paging carrier is determined according to the terminal's identifier and the specified calculation formula.

15. The paging carrier determination method according to claim 9, characterized in that, Also includes: The terminal receives tracking frequency update information, which includes the carrier / frequency information that the terminal has reselected and where it is camped. The tracking frequency is updated based on the tracking frequency update information.

16. A paging carrier determination device, characterized in that, Applied to terminals, including: A transmitting module is configured to transmit paging carrier / frequency information to a mobility management network element and / or a base station. The paging carrier / frequency information includes the terminal's preferred paging carrier / frequency information, which includes a carrier / frequency priority determined by the terminal based on terminal power-saving information, carrier power-saving information broadcast by the base station, and terminal capabilities. The terminal power-saving information includes time-domain information of discontinuous reception, which includes the discontinuous reception period. The terminal capabilities include the terminal type and the paging frequencies supported by the terminal. Determining the carrier / frequency priority includes: if the terminal is a low-capability terminal, then based on a supported first frequency carrier and / or having a first priority... The candidate carrier range is determined by carriers with a system bandwidth; if the terminal is a high-capacity terminal, the candidate carrier range is determined based on a supported second frequency carrier and / or a carrier with a second system bandwidth; wherein the frequency of the first frequency carrier is less than the frequency of the second frequency carrier, and the first system bandwidth is less than the second system bandwidth; the discontinuous transmission state and discontinuous transmission period of the carrier are determined according to the carrier power-saving information broadcast by the base station; within the candidate carrier range, carriers not in the discontinuous transmission state are determined as high priority; carriers with a discontinuous transmission period less than the discontinuous reception period of the terminal are determined as high priority; carriers with a discontinuous transmission period greater than or equal to the discontinuous reception period of the terminal are determined as low priority; The monitoring module is used to monitor paging messages on a paging carrier / frequency, wherein the paging carrier / frequency is the paging carrier / frequency configured by the mobility management network element or the base station, or the paging carrier / frequency corresponding to the paging carrier / frequency information.

17. A paging carrier determination device, characterized in that, Applied to network devices, including: A receiving module is configured to receive paging carrier / frequency information transmitted by a terminal. The paging carrier / frequency information includes the terminal's preferred paging carrier / frequency information, which includes a carrier / frequency priority determined by the terminal. The carrier / frequency priority is determined based on terminal power-saving information, carrier power-saving information broadcast by the base station, and terminal capabilities. The terminal power-saving information includes time-domain information of discontinuous reception, which includes the discontinuous reception period. The terminal capabilities include the terminal type and the paging frequencies supported by the terminal. Determining the carrier / frequency priority includes: if the terminal is a low-capability terminal, then based on a supported first frequency carrier and / or... A candidate carrier range is determined based on carriers with a first system bandwidth. If the terminal is a high-capacity terminal, the candidate carrier range is determined based on a supported second frequency carrier and / or a carrier with a second system bandwidth. The frequency of the first frequency carrier is less than the frequency of the second frequency carrier, and the first system bandwidth is less than the second system bandwidth. The discontinuous transmission state and discontinuous transmission period of the carrier are determined according to carrier power-saving information broadcast by the base station. Within the candidate carrier range, carriers not in the discontinuous transmission state are determined as high priority. Carriers with a discontinuous transmission period less than the terminal's discontinuous reception period are determined as high priority. Carriers with a discontinuous transmission period greater than or equal to the terminal's discontinuous reception period are determined as low priority. The configuration module is used to configure the paging carrier / frequency in the multi-carrier cell for the terminal according to the paging carrier / frequency information.

18. A terminal device, characterized in that, include: processor; as well as Memory for storing the executable instructions of the processor; The processor is configured to execute the paging carrier determination method according to any one of claims 1 to 8 by executing the executable instructions.

19. A network device, characterized in that, include: processor; as well as Memory for storing the executable instructions of the processor; The processor is configured to execute the paging carrier determination method according to any one of claims 9 to 15 by executing the executable instructions.

20. A computer-readable storage medium having a computer program stored thereon, characterized in that, When the computer program is executed by the processor, it implements the paging carrier determination method according to any one of claims 1 to 15.

21. A computer program product, characterized in that, When the computer program is executed by the processor, it implements the paging carrier determination method according to any one of claims 1 to 15.

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