5G gateway equipment and cell switching method

Abstract

The invention provides a 5G gateway device and a cell switching method, and the method comprises the steps: determining whether a restart condition is satisfied or not through the 5G gateway device; if yes, the 5G gateway device unlocks the communication authority of the first resident cell and restarts after network disconnection, and the first resident cell is set in the initialization process of deploying the 5G gateway device; after the 5G gateway equipment is restarted, cell scanning is carried out, and a second resident cell is determined again; the 5G gateway equipment monitors a resident cell through the following steps: determining whether a first period detection time point is reached; if the first period detection time point is reached, determining whether the second resident cell and the first resident cell are the same cell; and if not, executing the step of cell switching. Through the default switching mechanism for the resident cell provided by the invention, frequent network switching can be avoided, network service is more stable, and the method is suitable for a complex environment in an industrial scene.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The present application relates to the technical field of communication, in particular to a 5G gateway device and a cell switching method. BACKGROUND

[0002] In the 5G network architecture, the cell selection mechanism is a key technology to ensure stable access of terminal devices. The existing technology usually adopts a comprehensive evaluation algorithm based on parameters such as signal received power (RSRP) and signal quality (RSRQ) to select the cell with the best current signal performance as the service cell for data transmission. However, in the complex wireless environment of industrial outdoor scenarios, due to factors such as multipath effect and instantaneous interference, the signal quality fluctuates dramatically. This cell selection strategy based on instantaneous optimization is prone to frequent cell reselection and switching operations. This not only increases network signaling overhead and reduces data transmission efficiency, but also more likely causes service interruption, which cannot meet the stringent requirements of industrial scenarios for network stability. SUMMARY

[0003] The purpose of the embodiments of the present application is to provide a 5G gateway device and a cell switching method to solve the problem of poor service adaptability of the existing cell switching mechanism.

[0004] In a first aspect, the present application provides a cell switching method for a 5G gateway device. The 5G gateway device performs a communication service through a camping cell, and the communication service includes forwarding industrial production data of an industrial device to regulate and control the industrial device. The method comprises: determining whether a restart condition is met; if the restart condition is met, the 5G gateway device releases the lock of the communication authority of a first camping cell and restarts after disconnecting from the network, the first camping cell being set during the initialization process of the 5G gateway device; after the 5G gateway device restarts, performing cell scanning and re-determining a second camping cell; and monitoring the camping cell by the following steps: determining whether a first periodic detection time point is reached; if the first periodic detection time point is reached, determining whether the second camping cell and the first camping cell are the same cell; and if not, performing the steps of cell switching.

[0005] In an optional implementation, the 5G gateway device performs cell switching by the following steps: determining whether the first camping cell is included in a cell list obtained through cell scanning; if the first camping cell is included, determining whether the signal quality of the first camping cell meets a preset standard; if the signal quality meets the preset standard, switching the first camping cell to perform the communication service and closing the communication authority of other cells.

[0006] In an optional implementation, before the step of closing the communication authority of other cells, the 5G gateway device further comprises: Detecting communication delay in a communication service process based on a first camped cell; If the communication delay of the first camped cell is less than the preset delay within the preset time length, the communication permission of other cells is closed.

[0007] In an optional embodiment, if the communication delay of the first camped cell is not less than the preset delay within the preset time length, an exception is recorded, the second camped cell is kept to perform the communication service, and the step of determining whether the first periodic detection time point is reached is returned.

[0008] In an optional embodiment, the 5G gateway device determines the first camped cell by the following way: Connecting to a historical service cell; If the connection is successful, the historical service cell is determined as the first camped cell; If the connection fails, full-band scanning is performed to obtain a cell list; According to the priority of each cell, whether the signal quality of the cell in the cell list meets the preset standard is determined by polling to determine the first camped cell.

[0009] In an optional embodiment, the 5G gateway device determines the second camped cell by the following way: Full-band scanning is performed to obtain a cell list; Whether the signal quality and delay of the cell in the cell list meet the preset standard is determined by polling to determine the second camped cell.

[0010] In an optional embodiment, the 5G gateway device determines whether the restart condition is met by the following way: Determining whether the second periodic detection time point is reached, the first periodic detection time point is greater than the second periodic detection time point; If the second periodic detection time point is reached, the connection test of the camped cell is performed; If the connection test of the camped cell fails for N times continuously, it is determined that the restart condition is met.

[0011] In a second aspect, the application provides a 5G gateway device, which performs a communication service through a camped cell, the communication service including forwarding industrial production data of an industrial device to control the industrial device, The 5G gateway device determines whether the restart condition is met; If the restart condition is met, the 5G gateway device releases the lock of the communication permission of the first camped cell, and restarts after disconnecting the network, the first camped cell being set in the initialization process of deploying the 5G gateway device; After the 5G gateway device is restarted, cell scanning is performed, and the second camped cell is determined again; The 5G gateway device monitors the camping cell by the following steps: determining whether a first periodic detection time point is reached; if the first periodic detection time point is reached, determining whether the second camping cell and the first camping cell are the same cell; if not, performing the steps of cell switching.

[0012] In a preferred embodiment, the 5G gateway device performs cell switching by the following steps: determining whether the first camping cell is included in a cell list obtained by cell scanning; if included, determining whether the signal quality of the first camping cell meets a preset standard; if yes, switching the first camping cell to perform the communication service and closing the communication permission of other cells.

[0013] In a third aspect, the present application provides an electronic device, comprising a processor, a memory and a bus, the memory stores machine readable instructions executable by the processor, when the electronic device is running, the processor and the memory communicate through the bus, and the processor executes the machine readable instructions to perform the steps of the cell switching method of the 5G gateway device as described in any of the preceding embodiments.

[0014] In a fourth aspect, the present application provides a computer readable storage medium, the computer readable storage medium stores a computer program, when the computer program is run by a processor, the steps of the cell switching method of the 5G gateway device as described in any of the preceding embodiments are performed.

[0015] The 5G gateway device and the cell switching method provided by the present application, wherein the 5G gateway device performs a communication service through a camping cell, the communication service includes forwarding industrial production data of industrial equipment to control the industrial equipment, and includes determining whether a restart condition is met by the 5G gateway device; if the restart condition is met, the 5G gateway device releases the lock of the communication permission of the first camping cell and restarts the network, and the first camping cell is set during the initialization process of the 5G gateway device; after the 5G gateway device is restarted, cell scanning is performed and a second camping cell is determined again; the 5G gateway device monitors the camping cell by the following steps: determining whether a first periodic detection time point is reached; if the first periodic detection time point is reached, determining whether the second camping cell and the first camping cell are the same cell; if not, performing the steps of cell switching. Compared with the prior art automatic cell switching mechanism that selects the cell with the optimal signal, the default cell switching mechanism for the camping cell provided by the present application can avoid frequent network switching, so that the network service is more stable and suitable for complex environments in industrial scenarios. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0016] To more clearly illustrate the technical solutions of the embodiments of this application, the accompanying drawings used in the embodiments of this application will be briefly introduced below. It should be understood that the following drawings only show some embodiments of this application and should not be regarded as a limitation of the scope. For those skilled in the art, other related drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without creative effort.

[0017] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of a 5G gateway device provided in an embodiment of this application; Figure 2 A flowchart illustrating a cell handover method for a 5G gateway device provided in this application embodiment; Figure 3 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of an electronic device provided in an embodiment of this application. Detailed Implementation

[0018] First, the application scenarios of the technical solution of this application are described. The technical solution of this application can be applied to cell handover of 5G gateway devices in complex environments.

[0019] 5G gateways (DTU, CPE, etc.) serve as crucial hubs connecting devices and networks, and are widely used in various outdoor scenarios. However, existing cell selection mechanisms typically choose the cell with the best overall performance, such as signal quality, for data forwarding. In complex environments, these existing handover mechanisms often lead to frequent handovers, compromising network stability.

[0020] Therefore, this application provides a 5G gateway device and cell handover method for complex industrial scenarios.

[0021] The technical solutions in the embodiments of this application will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0022] Example 1 like Figure 1 As shown, one embodiment of this application provides a 5G gateway device. Specifically, it can be applied in complex environments such as oil fields, steel mills, and mines.

[0023] A 5G gateway device may include a core processing unit, a 5G communication module, a storage unit, and a service detection unit. The 5G communication module supports neighbor cell information queries and can obtain data such as PCI, frequency band, RSRP, and SNR for each cell. The storage unit stores configuration parameters such as default cell information, ping server address, service latency threshold, and initial detection period. The service detection unit detects network connectivity and service latency through ping tests. The core processing unit is responsible for coordinating operations and executing cell detection, evaluation, and handover logic.

[0024] The 5G gateway device herein will be configured with a camping cell during the installation and debugging stage. The 5G gateway device performs communication services through the camping cell, including forwarding industrial production data of industrial devices to regulate and control the industrial devices.

[0025] The installation personnel can select a camping cell according to the field signal strength, stability and other factors, or the device can automatically select a cell with the best signal quality and camping according to an algorithm.

[0026] For example, in the oilfield scenario, the 5G gateway device is installed in the oil well of the oil production plant under different working conditions to dynamically adjust the production of the pumping well in real time through real-time data collection. These 5G gateway devices are often installed in fixed positions on the poles beside the oil well, and are located in complex outdoor environments, facing harsh weather conditions such as wind, sand, rain, snow, and high temperature, and may also be affected by topography, surrounding industrial facilities, and electromagnetic interference.

[0027] In one embodiment, the camping cell can be set by the installation personnel. For example, the installation personnel scans the signal strength of the cell according to the 5G gateway, tests the time delay to the server after forcibly locking the network to different cells, and finally selects the best cell by comprehensively considering the signal strength and time delay factors. Finally, set the network to lock to the best cell in the gateway management page, and set it as the default camping cell. For example, the installation personnel directly specifies the cell corresponding to the oil well dedicated network in the gateway management configuration page.

[0028] In another embodiment, the camping cell can also be selected based on an automatic algorithm. The 5G gateway device determines the first camping cell by the following method: The historical service cell is connected to attempt. If the attempt is successful, the historical service cell is determined as the first camping cell. If the attempt fails, a full-band scan is performed to obtain a cell list. According to the priority of each cell, it is determined by polling whether the signal quality of the cell in the cell list meets the preset standard to determine the first camping cell.

[0029] For example, the 5G gateway device can perform full-band scanning to obtain a cell list. It is determined by polling whether the signal quality and time delay of the cell in the cell list meet the preset standard to determine the camping cell.

[0030] When the 5G gateway first enters the network, it will scan all supported 5G and 4G bands to find available cells. By measuring parameters such as received signal strength indication (RSRP) and signal quality (SINR), the signal quality of each cell is evaluated.

[0031] The scanned cells can then be sorted. For example, 5G cells are typically prioritized over 4G cells, and high-frequency cells are prioritized over low-frequency cells. If the gateway stores information about the cells it previously camped on (such as frequency points, operator information, etc.), it can also prioritize trying to connect to these known cells.

[0032] By setting up a residential cell, data transmission services can be made more stable, ensuring network quality while also improving reliability.

[0033] Installers can also configure the ping server address, service latency threshold requirements (such as 200ms), and initial detection cycle (such as 10 minutes) on the 5G gateway management page.

[0034] like Figure 2 As shown, to address incidents such as base station failures or power outages in the residential cell, the 5G device gateway is equipped with an interruption restart mechanism. Specifically, this includes: The S1 and 5G gateway devices must determine whether they meet the restart conditions.

[0035] In step S1, the 5G gateway device can determine whether the restart conditions are met in the following ways: Determine if the second cycle detection time point has been reached, as the first cycle detection time point is later than the second cycle detection time point. If the second cycle detection time point has been reached, perform a connectivity test on the stationary cell. If the stationary cell connectivity test fails N consecutive times, then the restart conditions are deemed met.

[0036] S2. If satisfied, the 5G gateway device unlocks the communication permissions of the first camping cell and restarts the network. The first camping cell is set during the initialization process of deploying the 5G gateway device.

[0037] When the periodic detection time is reached, the 5G gateway device checks whether the current serving cell is interrupted. If so, it unlocks the serving cell and performs a restart. The service detection unit pings the server; if it fails to ping three times consecutively, the device automatically restarts. Furthermore, before restarting, the core processing unit controls the 5G communication module to remove network lock restrictions.

[0038] After the S3 and 5G gateway devices are restarted, they perform a cell scan and re-determine the second cell to be used.

[0039] In step S3, the 5G gateway device determines the second camp cell in the following way: A full-band scan is performed to obtain a cell list. A polling method is used to determine whether the signal quality and latency of the cells in the cell list meet preset standards, thus identifying the second cell to be camped.

[0040] In a feasible implementation, after normal operation, the 5G gateway device can perform the following steps on the camping cell through the core processing unit: S4, determining whether the first periodic detection time point is reached; S5, if the first periodic detection time point is reached, determining whether the second camping cell and the first camping cell are the same cell; S6, if not, performing the steps of cell switching.

[0041] Specifically, the 5G gateway device can perform cell switching through the following steps: determining whether the first camping cell is included in the cell list obtained through cell scanning. If yes, determining whether the signal quality of the first camping cell meets the preset standard. If yes, switching the first camping cell to perform communication services and closing the communication permission of other cells.

[0042] Before the step of closing the communication permission of other cells, the 5G gateway device further includes detecting the communication delay in the process of performing communication services based on the first camping cell. If the communication delay of the first camping cell is less than the preset time delay within the preset time length, the communication permission of other cells is closed.

[0043] If the communication delay of the first camping cell is not less than the preset time delay within the preset time length, an exception is recorded, the second camping cell is kept to perform communication services, and the step of determining whether the first periodic detection time point is reached is returned.

[0044] The cell list herein can include the cell identification, PCI, frequency band, RSRP and SNR and other information of each cell. The cell list herein can be a real-time object obtained by scanning, and can also contain a fixed object pre-configured by the operator based on coverage requirements, geographical environment, frequency band characteristics and other factors during installation.

[0045] By comparing the identification of the current serving cell with the identification of the camping cell, it can be determined whether the current serving cell is the camping cell. By searching the identification of the camping cell in the cell list, it can be determined whether the camping cell is included in the cell list.

[0046] For example, if the camping cell RSRP is not lower than -100 dBm and the SNR is not lower than (which can be adjusted according to the actual scene), it can be determined whether the signal quality of the camping cell meets the preset standard.

[0047] In a feasible implementation, after the 5G terminal device is restarted, if there are pre-stored cells, these historical service cells can be tried first, and if they meet the communication requirements, they can be determined as default cells.

[0048] If there is no pre-stored cell or the historical serving cell cannot meet the requirements, the default cell can be selected by re-scanning and considering multiple decision information similar to the existing handover mechanism.

[0049] The cell handover method of the 5G gateway device provided in the application can avoid frequent network handover and make network service more stable compared with the existing automatic selection of the cell handover mechanism with the optimal signal, and is suitable for complex environments in industrial scenarios.

[0050] Embodiment Two In an embodiment of the application, the cell list can be stored in a storage unit. The cell list can be adjusted periodically.

[0051] Specifically, the cells in the cell list can be measured periodically (such as RSRP, RSRQ, etc.), and the measurement results can be reported to the serving cell through a measurement report. If it is found that the signal of a certain cell is too weak (below a threshold value) for a long time, the cell can be removed from the list and added to a blacklist to avoid wasting resources due to invalid measurement.

[0052] Meanwhile, in the time delay detection process, the number of times of recording abnormality of a cell can be counted. If the number of times is greater than a first threshold value, it means that the network quality of the cell is unstable, and the cell can also be deleted from the cell list and added to the blacklist.

[0053] Further, if the number of times of recording abnormality of the preset current camping cell is greater than a second threshold value, the locking of the camping cell can be released, and the camping cell can be replaced.

[0054] Embodiment Three In a specific embodiment, in a mine underground operation area, when a 5G gateway device is initially installed and debugged, the device automatically selects a cell A (PCI=111, frequency band=n78) with the best signal quality as a default camping cell, an installation personnel configures a network lock in the cell A, sets a service time delay threshold value to 200 ms, a detection period to 10 minutes, and a ping server address to 192.168.1.100.

[0055] During operation, the cell A is interrupted due to base station failure, the 5G gateway device triggers a network interruption restart mechanism, and the locking information is deleted before restart.

[0056] After restart, a terminal accesses a cell B (PCI=222, frequency band=n41) with a weak signal through full-frequency search, the service time delay of the current cell B reaches 300 ms, which exceeds the threshold value.

[0057] Every 10 minutes, the 5G gateway device performs a neighboring cell scanning task to obtain a neighboring cell list. When cell A resumes power supply and appears in the neighboring cell list, the handover evaluation process is entered. The core processing unit detects that the RSRP of cell A is -95dBm and the SNR is 12dB, which meets the signal quality standard condition.

[0058] The 5G gateway forces handover and locks to cell A. After handover, the service detection module detects that the service delay is reduced to 150ms, and normal data transmission is resumed.

[0059] In another specific embodiment, in the oil extraction area of an oil field, because the terminal accesses more to cell C (PCI=333, frequency band=n78) closest to the oil well, the 5G gateway device initially configures cell D (PCI=444, frequency band=n78) slightly far away as the default camping cell. After running for a period of time, the signal of cell D becomes weak due to the base station and triggers a network restart. After restart, the 5G gateway automatically accesses cell C (PCI=333, frequency band=n78) with slightly stronger signal but not optimal. At this time, the service delay of cell C is 220ms, close to the threshold.

[0060] The 5G gateway device performs neighboring cell scanning at a period of 10 minutes and finds that cell C reappears in the neighboring cell list.

[0061] After detection, the RSRP of cell D is -98dBm and the SNR is 11dB, which meets the signal quality standard condition.

[0062] Although the current camping cell C has a better signal, the 5G gateway still forces handover and locks to cell D immediately. After handover is completed, the service delay is stabilized at 180ms, which guarantees stable communication and data transmission of the device.

[0063] The 5G gateway device and cell handover method provided by the application preferentially access the camping cell, can avoid frequent network handover, make the network service more stable, and are suitable for complex environments in industrial scenarios.

[0064] Please refer to Figure 3 , Figure 3 A structural schematic diagram of an electronic device provided by an embodiment of the application is shown in FIG. 1. Figure 3 As shown in FIG. 1, the electronic device 300 includes a processor 310, a memory 320, and a bus 330.

[0065] The memory 320 stores machine readable instructions executable by the processor 310, when the electronic device 300 is running, the processor 310 and the memory 320 communicate through the bus 330, the machine readable instructions are executed by the processor 310, can execute the steps of the cell handover method of the 5G gateway device as one of the method embodiments, for specific implementation, please refer to the method embodiment, here will not be repeated.

[0066] The computer readable storage medium provided in the embodiments of the present application stores a computer program, and the computer program can execute the steps of the cell handover method of the 5G gateway device as one of the method embodiments when the processor runs, for specific implementation, please refer to the method embodiment, here will not be repeated.

[0067] Those skilled in the art can clearly understand that, for the convenience and brevity of the description, the specific working process of the above described system, device and unit can refer to the corresponding process in the foregoing method embodiments, and will not be repeated here.

[0068] In the embodiments provided in the present application, it should be understood that the disclosed devices and methods can be implemented in other ways. The device embodiments described above are only schematic, for example, the division of the units is only a logical function division, and actual implementation can have another division manner, for example, a plurality of units or components can be combined or integrated into another system, or some features can be ignored or not executed. In addition, the coupling or direct coupling or communication connection between the units shown or discussed can be indirect coupling or communication connection through some communication interface, device or unit, which can be electrical, mechanical or other forms.

[0069] In addition, the units described as separate components can or can not be physically separated, and the components shown as units can or can not be physical units, that is, they can be located in one place, or can be distributed on a plurality of network units. According to actual needs, part or all of the units can be selected to achieve the purpose of the present embodiment.

[0070] Furthermore, the functional modules in each embodiment of the present application can be integrated together to form an independent part, or each module can exist independently, or two or more modules can be integrated to form an independent part.

[0071] It should be noted that, if the functions are implemented in the form of software function modules and sold or used as independent products, they can be stored in a computer readable storage medium. Based on such understanding, the technical solutions of the present application can be embodied in the form of a software product in essence or in the form of a part or the technical solutions of the present application that make contributions to the prior art. The computer software product is stored in a storage medium, includes a plurality of instructions for causing a computer device (which can be a personal computer, a server, or a network device, etc.) to execute all or part of the steps of the methods described in the various embodiments of the present application. The foregoing storage medium includes: a U disk, a mobile hard disk, a read-only memory (Read-Only Memory, ROM), a random access memory (Random Access Memory, RAM), a magnetic disk or an optical disk, and various media that can store program codes.

[0072] In this article, relational terms such as first and second are used only to distinguish one entity or operation from another, and do not necessarily require or imply that there is any such actual relationship or order between these entities or operations.

[0073] The above only describes the embodiments of the present application and is not used to limit the protection scope of the present application. For those skilled in the art, the present application can have various modifications and changes. Any modification, equivalent replacement, improvement, etc. made within the spirit and principles of the present application shall be included in the protection scope of the present application.

Claims

1. A cell handover method for a 5G gateway device, characterized in that, 5G gateway device performs communication service through the residing cell, the communication service including forwarding industrial production data of industrial equipment to regulate and control the industrial equipment, including: The 5G gateway device determines whether the restart condition is met; If so, the 5G gateway device releases the lock on the communication authority of the first residing cell, which is set during the initialization process of deploying the 5G gateway device, and restarts the network; After the 5G gateway device restarts, it performs cell scanning and re-determines the second residing cell; The 5G gateway device monitors the residing cell by the following steps: Determine whether the first periodic detection time point is reached; If the first periodic detection time point is reached, determine whether the second residing cell and the first residing cell are the same cell; If not, perform the steps of cell switching.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein, The 5G gateway device performs cell switching by the following steps: Determine whether the first residing cell is included in the cell list obtained through cell scanning; If so, determine whether the signal quality of the first residing cell meets the preset standard; If so, switch the first residing cell to perform the communication service, and close the communication authority of other cells.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein, Before the 5G gateway device closes the communication authority of other cells, it also includes: Detect the communication delay during the communication service based on the first residing cell; If the communication delay of the first residing cell is less than the preset delay within the preset time period, close the communication authority of other cells.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein, If the communication delay of the first residing cell is not less than the preset delay within the preset time period, record the exception, keep the second residing cell to perform the communication service, and return to the step of determining whether the first periodic detection time point is reached.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein, The 5G gateway device determines the first residing cell by the following way: Attempt to connect to the historical service cell; If the attempt is successful, determine that the historical service cell is the first residing cell; If the attempt fails, perform full-band scanning to obtain a cell list; According to the priority of each cell, determine whether the signal quality of the cells in the cell list meets the preset standard by polling to determine the first residing cell.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein, The 5G gateway device determines the second residing cell by the following way: Perform full-band scanning to obtain a cell list; Determine whether the signal quality and delay of the cells in the cell list meet the preset standard by polling to determine the second residing cell.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein, The 5G gateway device determines whether the restart condition is met by the following way: Determine whether the second periodic detection time point is reached, the first periodic detection time point being greater than the second periodic detection time point; If the second periodic detection time point is reached, perform connection test on the residing cell; If the residing cell connection test fails continuously N times, it is determined that the restart condition is met. 8.A 5G gateway device, characterized by, The 5G gateway device performs communication service through the residing cell, the communication service including forwarding industrial production data of industrial equipment to regulate and control the industrial equipment, The 5G gateway device determines whether the restart condition is met; If so, the 5G gateway device releases the lock on the communication authority of the first residing cell, which is set during the initialization process of deploying the 5G gateway device, and restarts the network; After the 5G gateway device is restarted, cell scanning is performed, and the second camped cell is re-determined; The 5G gateway device monitors the camped cell through the following steps: It is determined whether the first periodic detection time point is reached; If the first periodic detection time point is reached, it is determined whether the second camped cell and the first camped cell are the same cell; If not, the steps of cell switching are performed.

9. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein, The 5G gateway device performs cell switching through the following steps: It is determined whether the first camped cell is included in the cell list obtained through cell scanning; If included, it is determined whether the signal quality of the first camped cell meets the preset standard; If yes, the first camped cell is switched to perform communication services, and the communication permission of other cells is closed.

10. A computer-readable storage medium, characterized in that, The computer readable storage medium stores a computer program, and when the computer program is run by the processor, the steps of the cell switching method of the 5G gateway device as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 7 are executed.

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