NTN communication method, communication device and communication system

Abstract

The invention provides an NTN (Network Temporary Network) communication method and a communication device. The method comprises the following steps that: terminal equipment can determine to carry out mobility management in a first super cell or carry out mobility management between the first super cell and a second super cell according to the indication of a first satellite in the first super cell. According to the invention, the mobility management in the super-cells does not need to update the configuration overhead of the public part of the mobility management, and the mobility management among the super-cells also saves a part of special configuration overhead, reduces the interruption time caused by the mobility management, avoids the situation that the whole set of configuration information needs to be updated when the cells are switched frequently, improves the switching efficiency, and reduces the signaling overhead.

Description

NTN communication method, communication device and communication system Technical Field

[0001] The present application relates to a satellite network, and more particularly, to a NTN communication method, a communication device, and a communication system. Background Art

[0002] Non-terrestrial networks (NTNs), such as satellite communications, have significant advantages such as global coverage, long-distance transmission, flexible networking, easy deployment, and freedom from geographical restrictions. They have been widely used in many fields, including maritime communications, positioning and navigation, disaster relief, scientific experiments, video broadcasting, and earth observation.

[0003] In an NTN system, satellite motion or terminal device movement may trigger mobility management processes such as cell handover, cell reselection, registration update, and tracking area update. For example, as network nodes such as satellites, drones, and high-altitude platforms move, satellites may use different cell sets to cover the geographic locations they need to serve at different times, triggering frequent cell changes and mobility management.

[0004] In the NTN network mobility management process, how to reduce interruption time and signaling overhead is an urgent problem that needs to be solved.

[0005] Summary of the Invention

[0006] The present application provides an NTN communication method, a communication device, and a communication system, which can reduce interruption time and signaling overhead in the NTN network mobility management process.

[0007] In a first aspect, a method for NTN communication is provided. This method can be executed by a terminal device, or by a chip or circuit configured in the terminal device, or by a logic module or software capable of implementing all or part of the terminal device's functions. This application is not limited to this. The following description uses a terminal device as an example.

[0008] The terminal device is located in a first super cell, the first super cell is associated with multiple cells, and the terminal device is served by a first cell carried by a first satellite, and the first cell includes at least one or more of the multiple cells.

[0009] Among them, the super cell is associated with a geographical area, different geographical areas correspond to different super cells, and the first super cell is associated with multiple cells. It can be understood that the geographical area associated with the first super cell can be served by at least one of the multiple cells associated with the first super cell.

[0010] The method includes: receiving first information from a first satellite, the first information including information for performing mobility management on a terminal device; determining whether to perform mobility management within a first super cell, or determining whether to perform mobility management between the first super cell and a second super cell based on the first information.

[0011] In the present application, the terminal device is located in the first super cell, which can be understood as the terminal device being in a connected state after initial access, or the terminal device being disconnected and in an idle state or an inactive state after initial access. This embodiment of the present application does not limit this.

[0012] In the present application, the first super cell corresponds to a first super cell control entity, and configuration information of the first super cell may be allocated by the first super cell control entity.

[0013] In the present application, the first super cell is associated with multiple cells, which can be understood as the first super cell corresponding to the first area, and the terminal equipment in the first area can be provided with services by at least one of the multiple cells.

[0014] In the present application, mobility management includes cell switching, cell reselection, registration update and tracking area update, as well as switching between super cells, registration request, etc., which is not limited in the embodiments of the present application.

[0015] In this application, the configuration information of a super cell can be understood as the common part configuration information of the mobility management configuration information of multiple cells associated with the same super cell, and the configuration information of a cell can be understood as the dedicated part configuration information of the mobility management configuration information of the cell.

[0016] This technical solution proposes a two-layer network architecture, in which a super cell is associated with multiple cells. A terminal device can determine within a first super cell whether to perform mobility management within the first super cell, or between the first super cell and the second super cell, based on the first information from the first satellite. When a terminal device performs mobility management within a super cell, the terminal device only needs to update the configuration information corresponding to the cell when switching or reselecting the cell, and does not need to update the configuration information of the super cell, thereby saving some configuration signaling. When the terminal device performs mobility management between the first super cell and the second super cell, the terminal device can switch or reselect the super cell and the cell. The multiple cells associated with the super cell share a set of super cell configuration information, and there is no need to configure the super cell configuration information for each cell, thereby also saving some configuration signaling. Furthermore, the interruption time caused by mobility management can be reduced, and switching efficiency can be improved.

[0017] With reference to the first aspect, in an implementation manner of the first aspect, the first information includes an indicator of a super cell, the indicator of the super cell is associated with at least one cell identifier list, and the cell identifier list includes at least one cell identifier.

[0018] In the present application, the super cell indicator is associated with at least one cell identifier list. It can be understood that the super cell indicator is associated with one or more cell identifier lists, and the one or more cell identifier lists can be provided by different satellites.

[0019] In this technical solution, the first information is a super cell indicator. The super cell indicator and the first super cell identifier may be the same or different. The super cell indicator is used to instruct a terminal device on how to perform mobility management. The super cell indicator is associated with a list of cell identifiers provided by one or more different satellites to indicate the corresponding serving cell.

[0020] In combination with the first aspect, in an implementation method of the first aspect, whether to perform mobility management within the first super cell is determined based on one or more of the location information, speed information, time information, signal quality and other information of the terminal device, and the first information, or whether to perform mobility management between the first super cell and the second super cell.

[0021] In this technical solution, combining the location information, speed information, time information, signal quality information, etc. of the terminal device can more accurately determine whether the terminal device needs to be managed for mobility, thereby improving the accuracy of terminal device switching.

[0022] In combination with the first aspect, in an implementation method of the first aspect, the terminal device is in an idle state or an inactive state, and when the indicator identifier of the super cell is the same as the identifier of the first super cell, it is determined that mobility management is performed within the first super cell, including: reselecting and determining the identifier of the second cell according to the cell identifier list, and the second cell includes at least one of the multiple cells associated with the first super cell; or, when the indicator identifier of the super cell is different from the identifier of the first super cell, the indicator identifier of the super cell indicates the second super cell, and determining that mobility management is performed between the first super cell and the second super cell, including: initiating a registration request according to the indicator identifier of the super cell, the registration request is used to register to the second super cell, and reselecting and determining the identifier of the second cell according to the cell identifier list, and the second cell includes at least one of the multiple cells associated with the second super cell.

[0023] In this technical solution, a terminal device in an idle or inactive state determines how to perform mobility management based on the super-cell indicator. When the super-cell indicator and the first super-cell identifier are the same, mobility management is determined to be performed within the first super-cell, that is, reselection of a cell within the first super-cell is performed based on the cell identifier list associated with the first super-cell. When the super-cell indicator and the first super-cell identifier are different, the super-cell indicator indicates a second super-cell, and mobility management is determined to be performed between the first and second super-cells, that is, registration is performed with the second super-cell. This reduces the signaling overhead generated by the mobility management process.

[0024] In combination with the first aspect, in an implementation method of the first aspect, the terminal device is in a connected state, and determines to perform mobility management within the first super cell, including: when the indicator identifier of the super cell and the identifier of the first super cell are the same, determining the identifier of the second cell according to the cell identifier list and switching to the second cell, the second cell includes at least one of the multiple cells associated with the first super cell; or, determining to perform mobility management between the first super cell and the second super cell, including: when the indicator identifier of the super cell and the identifier of the first super cell are different, the indicator identifier of the super cell indicates the second super cell, switching to the second super cell according to the indicator identifier of the super cell, determining the identifier of the second cell according to the cell identifier list and switching to the second cell, the second cell includes at least one of the multiple cells associated with the second super cell.

[0025] In this technical solution, a connected terminal device determines how to perform mobility management based on the super-cell indicator. When the super-cell indicator and the first super-cell identifier are the same, mobility management is performed within the first super-cell, i.e., handover is performed within the first super-cell based on the cell identifier list associated with the super-cell indicator. When the super-cell indicator and the first super-cell identifier are different, mobility management is performed between the first and second super-cells, i.e., handover is performed to the second super-cell. This reduces mobility interruption time and handover signaling overhead.

[0026] With reference to the first aspect, in an implementation of the first aspect, when the indicator identifier of the super cell is the same as the identifier of the first super cell, configuration information of the second cell is determined.

[0027] In this technical solution, when the indicator identifier of the super cell is the same as the identifier of the first super cell, the terminal device performs mobility management within the first super cell. In this application, multiple cells associated with a super cell use the same super cell configuration information, and the configuration information of each cell is provided by the carrying satellite. Therefore, when performing mobility management within the super cell, the configuration information of the cell needs to be updated, but the configuration information of the super cell can remain unchanged, thereby saving the signaling overhead generated by updating the configuration information of the super cell.

[0028] In combination with the first aspect, in an implementation manner of the first aspect, the configuration information of the second cell is activated, and the second cell is a cell carried by the first satellite; or, the configuration information of the second cell sent by the second satellite is received, and the second cell is a cell carried by the second satellite.

[0029] In this technical solution, the first satellite can pre-configure the configuration information of the second cell for the terminal device, and the terminal device activates the configuration information of the second cell. Alternatively, if the service satellite of the terminal device changes and the cell carried by the second satellite provides services, the terminal device can also receive the configuration information of the second cell from the second satellite.

[0030] With reference to the first aspect, in an implementation of the first aspect, when the indicator identifier of the super cell is different from the identifier of the first super cell, configuration information of the second super cell and configuration information of the second cell are determined.

[0031] In this technical solution, when the terminal device performs mobility management, it needs to update some configuration information and / or cell configuration information. If mobility management is performed between super cells, it is necessary to update the configuration information corresponding to the super cell and obtain the cell configuration information associated with the new super cell. Mobility management between super cells only requires updating the common configuration information of mobility management once. Subsequent mobility management within the target super cell no longer requires updating the configuration information of the super cell, which also saves some configuration overhead, thereby reducing signaling overhead. Furthermore, only when mobility management is performed between super cells does it need to update the configuration information of the super cell. When mobility management is performed within a super cell, it is only necessary to update the configuration information corresponding to the target cell, avoiding the need to update the full set of configuration information when frequently switching cells, thereby reducing the interruption time caused by mobility management and improving switching efficiency.

[0032] In combination with the first aspect, in an implementation manner of the first aspect, the configuration information of the second super cell is activated; or, the configuration information of the second super cell sent by the second super cell control entity is received, and the second super cell control entity is associated with the second super cell; the configuration information of the second cell is activated, and the second cell is a cell carried by the first satellite; or, the configuration information of the second cell sent by the second satellite is received, and the second cell is a cell carried by the second satellite.

[0033] In this technical solution, when performing mobility management between the first super cell and the second super cell, the second super cell control entity can pre-configure the configuration information of the second super cell for the terminal device, or receive the configuration information of the second super cell from the second super cell control entity.

[0034] In combination with the first aspect, in an implementation manner of the first aspect, the configuration information of the second super cell includes public radio resource control configuration information, and the configuration information of the second cell includes specific radio resource control configuration information of the terminal device.

[0035] In a second aspect, a method for NTN communication is provided. The method can be executed by a first satellite, or by a ground station device associated with the first satellite, or by a chip or circuit configured in the first satellite, or by a logic module or software capable of implementing all or part of the functions of the first satellite. This application is not limited to this.

[0036] In the present application, a first satellite serves a first super cell, the first super cell is associated with multiple cells, the first cell carried by the first satellite provides services for a terminal device located in the first super cell, the first cell includes at least one of the multiple cells, and the first super cell is associated with a first area.

[0037] The method includes: determining first information, where the first information includes information on mobility management performed by the terminal device; and sending the first information to the terminal device.

[0038] With reference to the second aspect, in an implementation manner of the second aspect, the first information includes an indicator identifier of a super cell, the indicator identifier of the super cell is associated with at least one cell identifier list, and the cell identifier list includes at least one cell identifier.

[0039] In this technical solution, a two-layer network architecture is proposed. A super cell is associated with multiple cells. The first satellite can send first information to the terminal device in the first super cell it serves, to instruct the terminal device to determine how to perform mobility management.

[0040] In a third aspect, a method for NTN communication is provided. The method can be executed by a first super cell control entity, or by a chip or circuit configured in the first super cell control entity, or by a logic module or software capable of implementing all or part of the functions of the first super cell control entity. This application is not limited to this.

[0041] In the present application, the first super cell control entity corresponds to the first super cell, the first super cell is associated with multiple cells, the terminal device is located in the first super cell, the terminal device is served by the first cell carried by the first satellite, and the first cell includes at least one of the multiple cells.

[0042] The method includes: determining configuration information of a first super cell; and sending the configuration information of the first super cell to the terminal device.

[0043] In this technical solution, the first super-cell control entity can configure configuration information to the terminal equipment within the first super-cell. The terminal equipment within the first super-cell can perform cell switching and share a set of super-cell configuration information, avoiding the need to update the full set of configuration information when frequently switching cells, improving switching efficiency, and reducing signaling overhead.

[0044] In a fourth aspect, an NTN communication system is provided, characterized in that it includes a first satellite and a first super cell control entity, the first super cell control entity is associated with a first area, the first area corresponds to a first super cell, the first satellite serves the first super cell, a terminal device is located in the first super cell, the first super cell is associated with multiple cells, the terminal device is served by the first cell carried by the first satellite, and the first cell includes at least one of the multiple cells, including: the first satellite is used to determine first information, the first information including information for mobility management of the terminal device; the first satellite is also used to send the first information to the terminal device; the first super cell control entity is used to send configuration information of the first super cell to the terminal device.

[0045] In combination with the fourth aspect, in an implementation manner of the fourth aspect, the first information includes an indicator identifier of a super cell, the indicator identifier of the super cell is associated with at least one cell identifier list, and the cell identifier list includes at least one cell identifier.

[0046] In combination with the fourth aspect, in an implementation of the fourth aspect, the first satellite is also used to send configuration information of a second cell to the terminal device, where the second cell includes a cell indicated by at least one cell identifier in a cell identifier list, and the second cell is a cell carried by the first satellite.

[0047] In combination with the fourth aspect, in an implementation of the fourth aspect, the system also includes a second satellite, and the second satellite is further used to send configuration information of a second cell to the terminal device, the second cell is a cell indicated by a cell identifier in the one or more cell identifier lists, and the second cell is a cell carried by the second satellite.

[0048] In combination with the fourth aspect, in an implementation manner of the fourth aspect, the super cell indication identifier indicates a second super cell, and the system further includes a second super cell control entity, which is used to send configuration information of the second super cell to the terminal device.

[0049] In combination with the fourth aspect, in an implementation manner of the fourth aspect, the configuration information of the second super cell includes radio resource control configuration information, and the configuration information of the second cell includes specific radio resource control configuration information of the terminal device.

[0050] In a fifth aspect, an apparatus for NTN communication is provided. The apparatus may be a terminal device, or may be a chip or circuit configured in the terminal device, or may be a logic module or software capable of implementing all or part of the terminal device. This application is not limited to this.

[0051] The device is located in a first super cell, the first super cell is associated with multiple cells, the terminal equipment is served by the first cell carried by the first satellite, and the first cell includes at least one of the multiple cells.

[0052] The device includes: a transceiver unit, configured to receive first information from a first satellite, the first information including information for performing mobility management on a terminal device; and a processing unit, configured to determine, based on the first information, whether to perform mobility management within a first super cell, or to determine whether to perform mobility management between the first super cell and a second super cell, wherein the second super cell is associated with multiple cells.

[0053] It should be understood that the specific process of the transceiver unit and the processing unit of the device executing the corresponding steps has been described in detail in the above-mentioned first aspect. The beneficial effects of this aspect can be referred to the first aspect. For the sake of brevity, they will not be repeated here.

[0054] In a sixth aspect, a device for NTN communication is provided. The device may be a first satellite, or a ground station device associated with the first satellite, or a chip or circuit configured in the first satellite, or a logic module or software capable of implementing all or part of the first satellite. This application is not limited thereto.

[0055] The device serves a first super cell, the first super cell is associated with multiple cells, the first cell carried by the first satellite provides services for terminal equipment located in the first super cell, the first cell includes at least one of the multiple cells, and the first super cell is associated with a first area.

[0056] The device includes: a processing unit, used for determining first information, where the first information includes information for mobility management of the terminal device; and a transceiver unit, used for sending the first information to the terminal device.

[0057] It should be understood that the specific process of the transceiver unit and the processing unit of the device executing the corresponding steps has been described in detail in the above-mentioned second aspect. The beneficial effects of this aspect can be referred to the second aspect. For the sake of brevity, it will not be repeated here.

[0058] In a seventh aspect, an apparatus for NTN communication is provided. The apparatus may be a first super cell control entity, or may be a chip or circuit configured in the first super cell control entity, or may be a logic module or software capable of implementing all or part of the first super cell control entity. This application is not limited thereto.

[0059] The device corresponds to a first super cell, the first super cell is associated with multiple cells, the terminal equipment is located in the first super cell, the terminal equipment is served by a first cell carried by a first satellite, and the first cell includes at least one of the multiple cells.

[0060] The apparatus includes: a processing unit, configured to determine configuration information of a first super cell; and a transceiver unit, configured to send the configuration information of the first super cell to the terminal device.

[0061] It should be understood that the specific process of the transceiver unit and the processing unit of the device executing the corresponding steps has been described in detail in the above-mentioned third aspect. The beneficial effects of this aspect can be referred to the third aspect. For the sake of brevity, they will not be repeated here.

[0062] In an eighth aspect, the present application provides a processor for executing the methods provided in the above aspects.

[0063] For the operations such as sending and acquiring / receiving involved in the processor, unless otherwise specified, or if they do not conflict with their actual functions or internal logic in the relevant descriptions, they can be understood as processor output, reception, input and other operations, and can also be understood as sending and receiving operations performed by the radio frequency circuit and antenna. This application does not limit this.

[0064] In a ninth aspect, the present application provides a communication device, comprising: a memory for storing programs; and at least one processor for executing computer programs or instructions stored in the memory to perform the method provided by any one of the above aspects or its implementation.

[0065] In a tenth aspect, the present application provides a computer-readable storage medium, which stores program code for execution by a device, and the program code includes a method for executing any one of the above aspects or its implementation method.

[0066] In an eleventh aspect, the present application provides a computer program product comprising instructions, which, when executed on a computer, enables the computer to execute the method provided by any one of the above aspects or its implementation.

[0067] In the twelfth aspect, the present application provides a chip, which includes a processor and a communication interface. The processor reads instructions stored in the memory through the communication interface and executes the method provided by any one of the above aspects or its implementation method.

[0068] Optionally, the processor may be a processing circuit or a logic circuit, and the communication interface may be an input or output interface, wherein the processing circuit or logic circuit is used for information processing, and the input or output interface is used for sending and receiving information or data.

[0069] Optionally, as an implementation method, the chip also includes a memory, in which a computer program or instruction is stored, and the processor is used to execute the computer program or instruction stored in the memory. When the computer program or instruction is executed, the processor is used to execute the method provided by any of the above aspects or its implementation methods. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0070] FIG1 is a schematic diagram showing a communication system 100 applicable to an embodiment of the present application.

[0071] FIG2 shows a schematic diagram of a network architecture applicable to an embodiment of the present application.

[0072] FIG3 shows a schematic diagram of a mobility management system architecture applicable to an embodiment of the present application.

[0073] FIG4 shows a schematic diagram of an NTN communication method applicable to an embodiment of the present application.

[0074] FIG5 shows a schematic diagram of a mobility management control plane protocol stack architecture applicable to an embodiment of the present application.

[0075] FIG6 shows a schematic diagram of a mobility management process within a super cell provided in an embodiment of the present application.

[0076] FIG7 shows a schematic diagram of a broadcast signal-based super-cell mobility management process provided by an embodiment of the present application.

[0077] FIG8 shows a schematic diagram of a super-cell mobility management process based on broadcast signals and conditional switching provided by an embodiment of the present application.

[0078] FIG9 shows a schematic diagram of an inter-ultra-cell mobility management process provided in an embodiment of the present application.

[0079] FIG10 shows a schematic diagram of a communication device 1000 provided in an embodiment of the present application.

[0080] FIG11 shows a schematic diagram of a communication device 1100 provided in an embodiment of the present application. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0081] The technical solution in this application will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0082] The technical solution of the present application can be applied to non-terrestrial network (NTN) systems such as satellite communication systems and high altitude platform station (HAPS) communications, for example, integrated communication and navigation (ICaN) systems, global navigation satellite systems (GNSS), etc.

[0083] Satellite communication systems can be integrated with traditional mobile communication systems. For example, the mobile communication systems may include fourth-generation (4G) communication systems (e.g., long-term evolution (LTE) systems), worldwide interoperability for microwave access (WiMAX) communication systems, fifth-generation (5G) communication systems (e.g., new radio (NR) systems), and future mobile communication systems.

[0084] Refer to Figure 1, which is a schematic diagram of a communication system 100 applicable to an embodiment of the present application. As shown in Figure 1, the satellite provides communication services to the terminal device through multiple beams. The satellite in this scenario is a non-geostationary earth orbit (NGEO) satellite, and the satellite is connected to the core network equipment. The satellite uses multiple beams to cover the service area. Different beams can communicate through one or more of time division, frequency division and space division. Different beams can also use different polarization modes (such as linear polarization, elliptical polarization, left-hand circular polarization, right-hand circular polarization, etc.) for communication. The satellite provides communication and / or navigation services to the terminal device by broadcasting communication signals and / or navigation signals. The satellite mentioned in the embodiment of the present application may also be a satellite base station, or a network-side device carried on a satellite.

[0085] The terminal devices mentioned in the embodiments of the present application include various handheld devices, vehicle-mounted devices, wearable devices, computing devices or other processing devices connected to a wireless modem with wireless communication functions, and may specifically refer to user equipment (UE), access terminal, user unit, user station, mobile station, mobile station, remote station, remote terminal, mobile device, user terminal, terminal, wireless communication device, user agent or user device. The terminal device may also be a satellite phone, a cellular phone, a smart phone, a wireless data card, a wireless modem, a machine type communication device, a cordless phone, a session initiation protocol (SIP) phone, a wireless local loop (WLL) station, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a handheld device with wireless communication capabilities, a computing device or other processing device connected to a wireless modem, a vehicle-mounted device or a wearable device, a virtual reality (VR) terminal device, an augmented reality (AR) terminal device, a wireless terminal in industrial control, a wireless terminal in self-driving, a wireless terminal in remote medical, a wireless terminal in a smart grid, a wireless terminal in transportation safety, a wireless terminal in a smart city, a wireless terminal in a smart home, a terminal device in a 5G network or a future communication network, etc.

[0086] Figure 2 is a schematic diagram of a network architecture applicable to an embodiment of the present application. Taking a 5G network as an example, a ground mobile terminal UE accesses the network through a 5G new air interface. The 5G access network equipment is deployed on a satellite and connected to the core network on the ground through a wireless link. At the same time, there is an inter-satellite link between satellites to complete the signaling interaction and user data transmission between access network equipment. The various network elements in Figure 2 and their interfaces are described as follows:

[0087] Terminal device: A mobile device that supports the 5G new air interface, typically a mobile phone, tablet, or other mobile device. It can access the satellite network through the air interface and initiate calls, access the Internet, and perform other services.

[0088] 5G access network equipment: mainly provides wireless access services, dispatches wireless resources to access terminals, and provides reliable wireless transmission protocols and data encryption protocols, such as base stations.

[0089] 5G core network: This network provides services such as user access control, mobility management, session management, user security authentication, and billing. It consists of multiple functional units, divided into control plane and data plane functional entities. The access and mobility management function (AMF) is responsible for user access management, security authentication, and mobility management. The user plane function (UPF) manages user plane data transmission, traffic statistics, and other functions.

[0090] Ground station: responsible for forwarding signaling and business data between satellite access network equipment and 5G core network.

[0091] 5G New Air Interface: The wireless link between the terminal and access network equipment.

[0092] Xn interface: The interface between 5G access network devices, mainly used for signaling interaction such as switching.

[0093] NG interface: The interface between 5G access network equipment and 5G core network, mainly used for interacting with core network NAS and other signaling, as well as user business data.

[0094] In an NTN system, satellite motion or terminal device movement may trigger mobility management processes such as cell handover, cell reselection, registration update, and tracking area update. For example, as network nodes such as satellites, drones, and high-altitude platforms move, satellites may use different cell sets to cover the geographic locations they need to serve at different times, triggering frequent cell changes and mobility management.

[0095] In view of this, the present application proposes a method for NTN communication, which can ensure that the interruption time can be reduced and the signaling overhead can be saved in the NTN network mobility management process.

[0096] The technical solution of this application is introduced below.

[0097] FIG3 is a schematic diagram of a mobility management system architecture proposed in this application.

[0098] The mobility management architecture includes at least one satellite, such as the first satellite, the second satellite, and the third satellite shown in Figure 3. Each satellite can carry one or more cells. The one or more cells carried by the satellite can provide services for the corresponding service area. The satellite can serve as an anchor point for the configuration information of the cell in mobility management.

[0099] For example, as shown in Figure 3, the first satellite carries a cell identifier list {PCI list1}, the second satellite carries a cell identifier list {PCI list2}, and the third satellite carries a cell identifier list {PCI list3}. The first satellite can provide configuration information for the cells in {PCI list1}, the second satellite can provide configuration information for the cells in {PCI list2}, and the third satellite can provide configuration information for the cells in {PCI list3}.

[0100] It is worth noting that the above {PCI list 1}, {PCI list 2} and {PCI list 3} may include one or more physical cell IDs (PCIs). In addition, at different times and in different geographical areas, the cell ID lists carried by the satellite may be different or the same.

[0101] In this application, the architecture may also include other satellite nodes. This application is only for illustrative purposes and does not limit this.

[0102] The mobility management architecture also includes a hypercell, which can be understood as a logical cell composed of multiple cells. In this application, a hypercell is associated with a geographical area. Different geographical areas correspond to different hypercells. A hypercell is associated with multiple cells. In other words, the geographical area associated with the hypercell can be served by at least one of the multiple cells associated with the hypercell. The naming of "HyperCell" is only an example, and different naming methods are possible, which is not limited by this application.

[0103] For example, the first super cell and the second super cell shown in Figure 3 correspond to two geographical areas respectively. The geographical area corresponding to a super cell can be served by one satellite or by multiple satellites.

[0104] For example, the first satellite shown in Figure 3 can provide services for the first super cell, and the second satellite and the third satellite can provide services for the second super cell. That is, the cells in the cell identification list {PCI list1} carried by the first satellite can provide services for terminal devices within the first super cell, and the cells in the cell identification list {PCI list2} carried by the second satellite and the cells in the cell identification list {PCI list3} carried by the third satellite can provide services for terminal devices within the second super cell.

[0105] For example, the division of geographical areas may be implemented based on the H3 geographic space grid system or the Fibonacci geographic grid division method, but the present application does not limit this.

[0106] It should be noted that the cells associated with the super cell may also include transmission reception points (TRPs). For example, in one cell, there may be multiple TRPs with continuous coverage and working in the same frequency band, or in other words, multiple TRPs with continuous coverage and working in the same frequency band may be combined into one cell.

[0107] The mobility management architecture also includes a super-cell control entity, which is a control plane entity corresponding to the super-cell. The super-cell control entity can be understood as the anchor point for configuring configuration information for the corresponding super-cell in mobility management. For example, the first super-cell control entity shown in Figure 3 corresponds to the first super-cell and can configure the configuration information of the first super-cell; the second super-cell control entity corresponds to the second super-cell and can configure the configuration information of the second super-cell.

[0108] In this application, the configuration information of a cell may be understood as the configuration information of the dedicated part of the cell in the mobility management configuration information, and the configuration information of a super cell may be understood as the configuration information of the public part of the cell in the mobility management configuration information.

[0109] It can be understood that multiple cells associated with the same super cell use the same common part configuration information. For example, the common part configuration information used by the cells in the cell identification list {PCI list1} is the configuration information of the first super cell, and the common part configuration information used by the cells in the cell identification list {PCI list2} and the cells in the cell identification list {PCI list3} is the configuration information of the second super cell.

[0110] The super cell control entity may be hosted on a ground station, which is not limited in the embodiment of the present application.

[0111] It is understood that in this mobility management architecture, the super-cell identifier and the set of wave locations covered by the super-cell (i.e., the set of geographical grids) generally remain unchanged at different times. That is, at different times, the geographical area bound to the super-cell remains unchanged, the super-cell identifier remains unchanged, and the set of wave locations covered remains unchanged. The service area of ​​the satellite network is divided into multiple small geographical areas based on geographical location, and each geographical area can be understood as a wave location.

[0112] It can be understood that in this mobility management architecture, the satellites providing support for the super cell and the set of cells supported by the satellites may change at different times. That is, as time changes, the satellites move and can no longer continue to provide services to the super cell they originally served, and other satellites take over the services.

[0113] In the present application, the terminal device may be located in the geographical area corresponding to the first super cell, or may be located in the geographical area corresponding to the second super cell after moving. Accordingly, the satellite providing services for the terminal device and the cell set carried by the satellite change.

[0114] In the present application, mobility management includes cell switching, cell reselection, registration update and tracking area update, as well as switching between super cells, registration request, etc., which is not limited in the embodiments of the present application.

[0115] The nodes shown in the above mobility management system architecture are only for illustrative purposes. The system architecture may also include other nodes, which is not limited in the embodiments of the present application.

[0116] In the embodiment of the present application, the terminal device takes a terminal equipment as an example.

[0117] FIG4 is a schematic diagram of an NTN communication method proposed in this application.

[0118] In this embodiment, the method is illustrated by taking a terminal device and a network device as the execution subjects of the interaction diagram as examples, but this application does not limit the execution subjects of the interaction diagram. For example, the network device in Figure 4 can also be a chip, chip system, or processor that supports the method that can be implemented by the network device, or a logic module or software that can implement all or part of the network device functions; the terminal device in Figure 4 can also be a chip, chip system, or processor that supports the method that can be implemented by the terminal device, or a logic module or software that can implement all or part of the terminal device functions.

[0119] In this application, the network equipment may include a super cell control entity, a satellite, and an access network device.

[0120] In the present application, a terminal device is located in a first supercell, and the terminal device is served by a first cell carried by a first satellite in the first supercell. The first cell may be at least one of multiple cells associated with the first supercell. The terminal device may be located in the first supercell in an initial access state.

[0121] Regarding the terminal device being located in the first super cell, another optional understanding is that the terminal device obtains or maintains the identifier of the first super cell. For example, the terminal device can obtain the identifier of the first super cell from the serving satellite or be pre-configured with the serving satellite. The serving satellite can be, for example, the first satellite.

[0122] Exemplarily, when the terminal device accesses the first satellite, the identifier of the super cell associated with the current service cell (first cell) accessed by the terminal device is the identifier of the first super cell; when the terminal device is in an idle state, the identifier of the super cell associated with the cell (first cell) in which the terminal device resides is the identifier of the first super cell.

[0123] The first cell may be understood as the service cell of the terminal device or the service cell group of the terminal device, and the service cell group includes a plurality of cells that can provide services for the terminal device.

[0124] The first super cell is associated with the first area, that is, the terminal device is located in the first area, and the first area can be understood as a geographical area.

[0125] The terminal device being located in the first super cell can be understood as the terminal device being in a connected state after initial access, or the terminal device being disconnected and in an idle or inactive state after initial access.

[0126] In the present application, the first super cell corresponds to the first super cell control entity, that is, the first super cell may be allocated configuration information of the first super cell by the first super cell control entity.

[0127] In the present application, the configuration information of the super cell includes the radio resource control configuration information of the public part, and the configuration information of the cell includes the radio resource control configuration information of the dedicated part of the terminal device.

[0128] Multiple cells associated with the same super cell use the same super cell configuration information, that is, the multiple cells associated with the first super cell use the same configuration information of the common part, but the multiple cells associated with the first super cell may use different configuration information of the dedicated part.

[0129] First, the initial access process of the terminal device is described.

[0130] The initial access process includes the following steps:

[0131] a: The terminal device performs search and selection of the first cell;

[0132] b: The terminal device performs initial access to the first cell;

[0133] c: The terminal device establishes a radio resource control (RRC) connection with the first cell and the first super cell;

[0134] d: The terminal device establishes the initial context;

[0135] e: Optionally, the terminal device can also establish a protocol data unit (PDU) session.

[0136] In the initial access state, during the RRC connection establishment process in step c above, the first satellite or the first super cell control entity may send mobility management related configuration information to the terminal device.

[0137] Exemplarily, the mobility management related configuration information includes one or more of the following information: public measurement configuration information, paging configuration information, super cell reference location information, waveband set information, and cell access (or access after handover) related information, etc. This embodiment of the application is not limited to this.

[0138] Specifically, during the initial access process, the first satellite can configure the identifier of the first super cell and at least one cell identifier list associated with the first super cell for the terminal device, the first satellite can configure the configuration information of the first cell for the terminal device, and the first super cell control entity can configure the configuration information of the first super cell for the terminal device.

[0139] It should be understood that after initial access, the terminal device determines the identifier of the first super cell associated with the current service cell and a list of at least one cell identifier associated with the first super cell. The terminal device obtains the first information and determines how to perform mobility management based on the first information and the identifier of the first super cell.

[0140] A non-terrestrial NTN communication method provided by the present application may include the following steps:

[0141] S410: A terminal device receives first information from a first satellite, where the first information includes information for performing mobility management on the terminal device.

[0142] In the present application, the first satellite sends the first information to the terminal device, and accordingly, the terminal device receives the first information from the first satellite.

[0143] It should be understood that the first satellite is in motion and can send the first information when providing services to the terminal device, or in other words, the first satellite is about to leave the first super cell and sends the first information before the terminal device switches to the next service satellite. For example, the terminal device is about to leave the coverage of the first satellite, and the terminal device can access the second satellite and be provided with services by the second satellite. Before accessing the second satellite, the first satellite sends the first information to the terminal device to indicate the mobility management information.

[0144] The first information may include an indication identifier of a super cell, and the indication identifier of the super cell is associated with one or more cell identifier lists.

[0145] The super cell indicator is associated with one or more cell identifier lists. It can be understood that the super cell indicated by the super cell indicator can be served by the cell indicated by the associated one or more cell identifier lists, and the one or more cell identifier lists can be provided by different satellites.

[0146] The terminal device may receive at least one cell identifier list from the first satellite, where the at least one cell identifier list is associated with an indicator identifier of a super cell.

[0147] It should be understood that the first satellite configures at least one cell identifier list associated with the super cell to the terminal device. The at least one cell identifier list may include cells carried by the first satellite and may also include cells carried by other satellites. In other words, the terminal device can be served by different satellites in the same super cell. For example, the cell carried by the second satellite and the cell carried by the third satellite shown in Figure 3 can simultaneously provide services to the terminal device in the second super cell.

[0148] The at least one cell identifier list may be sent to the terminal device via the first information, or may be sent to the terminal device via a separate information.

[0149] S420: The terminal device determines to perform mobility management within the first super cell according to the first information, or determines to perform mobility management between the first super cell and a second super cell.

[0150] In the present application, mobility management is performed within the first super cell, for example, including cell reselection or switching within the first super cell; mobility management between the first super cell and the second super cell, for example, including super cell registration / switching and cell reselection and switching.

[0151] It should be noted that the mobility management within the first super cell can be understood as that the position of the terminal device has not changed or the moving range of the terminal device is small, and the terminal device is still in the area corresponding to the first super cell. When the terminal device moves and moves to the area corresponding to the second super cell, the terminal device can perform mobility management between the first super cell and the second super cell.

[0152] The terminal device determines to perform mobility management between the first supercell and the second supercell based on the first information. This may include: the terminal device performs mobility management between the first supercell and the second supercell and also performs mobility management between cells; or the terminal device only needs to perform mobility management between the first supercell and the second supercell, and does not need to perform mobility management between cells. In this application, the terminal device can be in an idle state or an inactive state, or in a connected state. The following describes how the terminal device determines mobility management in different states.

[0153] Case 1: When the terminal device is in an idle state or an inactive state, when the indication identifier of the super cell is the same as the identifier of the first super cell, the identifier of the second cell is reselected and determined according to the cell identifier list associated with the first super cell, and the second cell is at least one of the multiple cells associated with the first super cell.

[0154] Case 2: When the terminal device is in idle or inactive state, when the super cell indicator identifier is different from the first super cell identifier, the super cell indicator identifier indicates the second super cell, and a registration request is initiated according to the super cell indicator identifier, and the registration request is used to register to the second super cell.

[0155] In this case, when the cell associated with the second super cell does not overlap with the cell associated with the first super cell, the identifier of the second cell is reselected and determined based on the cell identifier list associated with the second super cell; when the cell associated with the second super cell partially overlaps with the cell associated with the first super cell, only the second super cell can be registered without reselecting the cell, that is, the first cell still provides services for the terminal device, that is, the first cell is included in the partially overlapping cells and can still provide services for the terminal device.

[0156] Among them, when the indication identifier of the super cell is the same as the identifier of the first super cell, the terminal device performs mobility management within the first super cell in an idle state or an inactive state, that is, reselects the second cell within the first super cell. It can be understood that the super cell of the terminal device has not changed, but the service cell (first cell) of the terminal device has been reselected (second cell) within the first super cell.

[0157] An optional understanding is that when the second cell includes multiple cells, the terminal device can select a cell from the multiple cells for switching when entering the connected state.

[0158] Among them, when the indicator identifier of the super cell is different from the identifier of the first super cell, the terminal device needs to perform mobility management between super cells in an idle state or an inactive state. It can initiate a registration request to request registration to the second super cell and update the cell public part configuration information of the mobility management configuration information. When the super cell changes, the service cell (first cell) of the terminal device can be reselected (second cell), and the configuration information of the cell-specific part of the mobility management configuration information also needs to be updated.

[0159] Case 3: When the terminal device is in a connected state, when the indication identifier of the super cell is the same as the identifier of the first super cell, the identifier of the second cell is determined according to the cell identifier list associated with the first super cell and switched to the second cell, where the second cell is at least one of the multiple cells associated with the first super cell.

[0160] Case 4: When the terminal device is in a connected state, when the super cell indicator is different from the first super cell indicator, the super cell indicator indicates the second super cell, and the terminal device is switched to the second super cell according to the super cell indicator.

[0161] In this case, when the cell associated with the second super cell does not overlap with the cell associated with the first super cell, the identifier of the second cell is determined according to the cell identifier list associated with the second super cell and switched to the second cell; when the cell associated with the second super cell partially overlaps with the cell associated with the first super cell, only the second super cell can be switched without switching the cell, that is, the first cell still provides services for the terminal device, that is, the first cell is included in the partially overlapping cells and can still provide services for the terminal device.

[0162] Among them, when the indication identifier of the super cell is the same as the identifier of the first super cell, the terminal device performs mobility management within the first super cell in a connected state, that is, switches to the second cell within the first super cell. It can be understood that the super cell of the terminal device has not changed, but within the first super cell, the service cell of the terminal device is switched from the first cell to the second cell.

[0163] Among them, when the indication identifier of the super cell is different from the identifier of the first super cell, the terminal device performs mobility management between super cells in the connected state, that is, it needs to switch super cells, that is, switch from the first super cell to the second super cell, and can also switch cells, from the first cell to the second cell.

[0164] An optional understanding is that when the second cell includes multiple cells, the terminal device can select a cell from the multiple cells for switching when entering the connected state.

[0165] It is worth noting that in the present application, the first super cell and the second super cell can also be expanded into the first super cell group and the second super cell group. The first super cell group may include one or more super cells, and the second super cell group may include one or more super cells. In this case, the terminal device determines whether to perform mobility management within the first super cell group or to perform mobility management between the first super cell group and the second super cell group based on the indication identifiers of the first super cell group and the super cell group. The specific implementation method is similar to the mobility management within the super cell and the mobility management between super cells, and will not be repeated in this application.

[0166] When a terminal device determines that mobility management is required, it must update the relevant configuration information as needed.

[0167] Specifically, the relevant configuration information that needs to be updated includes configuration information of the second cell and / or configuration information of the second super cell.

[0168] In a possible implementation, when the indicator identifier of the super cell is the same as the identifier of the first super cell, configuration information of the second cell needs to be determined.

[0169] It can be understood that when the indicator identifier of the super cell is the same as the identifier of the first super cell, the terminal device reselects the second cell in the idle state or inactive state, and the terminal device switches to the second cell in the connected state, and the super cell of the terminal device has not changed, then the configuration information of the public part is still the configuration information of the first super cell, but the service cell has changed. In this case, the configuration information corresponding to the cell needs to be updated, that is, the configuration information of the dedicated part needs to use the configuration information of the second cell.

[0170] In one implementation, the first satellite may pre-configure configuration information of the second cell for the terminal device, and the terminal device may activate the configuration information of the second cell.

[0171] It can be understood that in this case, the first satellite can pre-configure the cell carried by the first satellite itself for the terminal device, that is, the second cell is the cell carried by the first satellite. In other words, the terminal device is still within the coverage of the first satellite, so the configuration information of the cell carried by the first satellite can be activated.

[0172] In another implementation, the second satellite may send configuration information of the second cell to the terminal device.

[0173] In this case, the service satellite of the terminal device changes, that is, it switches from the first satellite to the second satellite. The second satellite can send the cell carried by the second satellite itself to the terminal device, that is, the second cell is the cell carried by the second satellite. In other words, the first satellite has flown away, and the second satellite has taken over to provide services for the terminal device. Therefore, the cell carried by the second satellite can provide services for the terminal device.

[0174] It should be understood that when the terminal device is in an idle state or an inactive state, the second satellite may send the configuration information of the second cell to the terminal device via a broadcast message.

[0175] In another possible implementation, when the indicator identifier of the super cell is different from the identifier of the first super cell, it is necessary to determine the configuration information of the second super cell and the configuration information of the second cell.

[0176] It can be understood that when the indicator identifier of the super cell is different from the identifier of the first super cell, the indicator identifier of the super cell indicates the second super cell, the terminal device registers to the second super cell in an idle state or an inactive state, and the terminal device switches to the second super cell in a connected state. The super cell of the terminal device undergoes mobility management, then the configuration information of the public part needs to be updated, and the cell may also perform mobility management. In this case, the configuration information of the public part is updated to the configuration information of the second super cell, and the configuration information of the dedicated part corresponding to the cell may also be updated to the configuration information of the second cell.

[0177] It should be understood that when the cell associated with the second super cell partially overlaps with the cell associated with the first super cell, only the second super cell can be switched without switching the cell, that is, there is no need to update the cell configuration information and the configuration information of the first cell is still used.

[0178] In one implementation, the second super cell control entity may pre-configure configuration information of the second super cell for the terminal device, and then activate the configuration information of the second super cell.

[0179] For example, the terminal device obtains the identifier of the second super cell (indicator identifier of the super cell), and the first super cell control entity or the terminal device activates the configuration information of the second super cell.

[0180] In another implementation, the second super cell control entity may send configuration information of the second super cell to the terminal device.

[0181] It should be understood that when the terminal device is in an idle state or an inactive state, the second super cell control entity may send the configuration information of the second super cell to the terminal device via a broadcast message.

[0182] The configuration information of the second cell can be pre-configured by the first satellite or sent through a broadcast message of the second satellite. For details, please refer to the description of the configuration information of the second cell in the scenario where the super cell indicator and the first super cell indicator are the same, which will not be repeated here.

[0183] It is worth noting that if the UE itself moves, the UE needs to compare the distance between its own position and the reference positions of multiple super cells or super cell groups, trigger the terminal device to initiate corresponding mobility management measurements and / or reports based on the comparison results, and determine whether to switch or reselect to the second super cell based on the measurement results.

[0184] For example, in the Earth centered earth fixed (ECEF) coordinate system, the UE position is (x1, x2, x3), the reference position of the first super cell is (y1, y2, y3), and the reference position of the second super cell is (z1, z2, z3). Then, the distance between the UE and the reference position in the first super cell is Similarly, the distance between the UE and the reference position in the second super cell is When the distance d1 between the UE and the reference location within the first super cell is greater than threshold 1, and the distance d2 between the UE and the reference location within the second super cell is less than threshold 2, the terminal UE may initiate corresponding mobility management measurement and / or reporting. For example, threshold 1 may be set to 500 km, and threshold 2 may be set to 600 km.

[0185] In one possible implementation, the terminal device determines whether to perform mobility management within the first super cell, or determines whether to perform mobility management between the first super cell and the second super cell based on one or more of the terminal device's location information, speed information, time information, signal quality information, and the first information.

[0186] Exemplarily, the terminal device determines whether to perform mobility management within the first super cell, or determines whether to perform mobility management between the first super cell and a second super cell, based on the location information of the terminal device and the first information.

[0187] When the distance between the terminal device's own position and the reference point position of the first super cell is greater than threshold 1 (such as 100km) and the distance between the terminal device's own position and the reference point position of the second super cell is less than threshold 2 (such as 50km), the terminal device initiates measurement of the cell set signal in the second super cell. When the measurement result meets the preset conditions (such as signal quality greater than threshold 3, the threshold 3 is such as signal strength of -6dB), and the super cell indication identifier indicated by the first information is different from the identifier of the first super cell, it switches / reselects from the first super cell to the second super cell.

[0188] Exemplarily, the terminal device determines whether to perform mobility management within the first super cell, or determines whether to perform mobility management between the first super cell and a second super cell according to the location information, time information and first information of the terminal device.

[0189] When the distance between the terminal device and the first super cell and / or the first cell reference point is less than threshold 1 (such as 100km), and within the arrival time period [t1, t2] (such as t1 is the UTC time starting point 03:00:00, t2 is the time offset relative to t1, such as 10 seconds), the terminal device initiates measurement of the cell set signal in the first super cell. When the measurement result meets the preset conditions (such as the signal quality is greater than the given threshold 3, the given threshold is -6dB, and the super cell indicated by the first information is the same as the identifier of the first super cell, then the first cell of the first super cell is switched / reselected to the second cell in the first super cell.

[0190] It should be understood that when the UE does not move and only the network device moves, the UE is still in the original super cell and usually there is no need to update the super cell control entity; when the UE does not move or the movement range is small, for example, when the distance between the terminal device's own position and the reference point position of the first super cell is less than a threshold of 4 (such as 10km), the UE at the edge of the super cell can receive multiple super cell identifiers. If the super cell currently associated with the UE belongs to multiple super cell identifiers, there is no need to update the super cell control entity.

[0191] Based on the above technical solution, a two-tier network architecture is proposed. A super cell can be associated with multiple cells, which use the same common part configuration information. The configuration information for the dedicated part of each cell is provided by the carrier satellite. Within a super cell, a terminal device can determine whether to perform mobility management within the super cell or between super cells based on the mobility management information indicated by the network device, and simultaneously update the corresponding configuration information. If mobility management is performed within the super cell, the updated cell's dedicated part configuration information can be obtained via the satellite, or the pre-configured dedicated part configuration information can be activated. If mobility management is performed between super cells, the corresponding public part configuration information can be obtained from the super cell control entity corresponding to the updated super cell, or the pre-configured public part configuration information can be activated. Mobility management within a super cell does not require updating the common part configuration overhead. Mobility management between super cells only requires a single update of the mobility management common part configuration information. Subsequent mobility management within the target super cell no longer requires updating the common part configuration information, saving some common part configuration overhead and thus reducing signaling overhead. Furthermore, the configuration information of the public part only needs to be updated once when mobility management is performed between ultra-small cells. When mobility management is performed within a super cell, only the configuration information of the dedicated part corresponding to the target cell needs to be updated, avoiding the need to update the full set of configuration information when frequently switching cells, thereby reducing the interruption time caused by mobility management and improving switching efficiency.

[0192] Next, a mobility management control plane protocol stack architecture applicable to the architecture of FIG. 3 and the method 400 in FIG. 4 is introduced.

[0193] FIG5 shows a schematic diagram of a mobility management control plane protocol stack architecture provided in an embodiment of the present application.

[0194] The control plane protocol stack architecture is a protocol stack between the terminal device and the satellite or super cell control entity.

[0195] The control plane of the terminal device and the control plane of the satellite or super cell control entity can be interconnected to perform signaling interaction.

[0196] The control plane includes the RRC layer, the packet data convergence protocol (PDCP) layer, the radio link control (RLC) layer, the medium access control (MAC) layer, and the physical layer (PHY) layer. The user plane includes the service data adaptation protocol (SDAP) layer, the PDCP layer, the RLC layer, the MAC layer, and the PHY layer.

[0197] Among them, the radio resource control (RRC) layer is used to manage and control radio resources; the SDAP layer is used to map between quality of service (QoS) flows and data radio bearers (DRBs). SDAP is used to map QoS flows to DRBs, and DRBs are composed of two layers: the PDCP layer and the RLC layer. The PDCP layer is used to perform header compression, decompression, encryption / decryption, integrity protection, integrity verification and other functions for user plane data. The PDCP layer is configured by RRC messages. The MAC layer is used to map between logical channels and transport channels, and to combine MAC data from different logical channels into a transport block. The protocol layers shown in Figure 5 are for illustrative purposes only. These protocol layers can be added or deleted, and the embodiments of the present application are not limited to this.

[0198] In the present application, the RRC layer is used to configure configuration information related to mobility management, such as the configuration information of the first super cell and the second super cell and the configuration information of the first cell and the cell in method 400.

[0199] In this application, the RRC layer can be divided into two parts, such as RRC-P1 (part 1) and RRC-P2 (part 2).

[0200] RRC-P1 is used for configuration information of a dedicated part of a cell configured for a satellite node, such as configuration information of the first cell or configuration information of the second cell in method 400 .

[0201] Exemplarily, the configuration information of the cell includes but is not limited to at least one of the following: UE-specific RRC (UE-specific RRC), that is, the Dedicated-RRC (dedicated RRC) part, such as a dedicated synchronization signal block (synchronization signal block, SSB) measurement timing configuration (Dedicated-SSB-based measurement timing configuration, Dedicated-SMTC) configuration, a dedicated partial bandwidth / random access channel (Dedicated-bandwidth part / random access channel, Dedicated-BWP / RACH) configuration, etc.

[0202] RRC-P2 is used for configuring the common part of configuration information for the super cell control entity, such as the configuration information of the first super cell or the configuration information of the second super cell in method 400 .

[0203] Exemplarily, the configuration information of the super cell includes but is not limited to at least one of the following: common RRC, i.e., Common-RRC part, such as Common-SMTC configuration, Common-BWP / RACH configuration, etc.

[0204] Exemplarily, the configuration information of the super cell may be Common-SMTC configuration. The period and length of Common-SMTC are the same as those of smtc1, with a maximum period of 160ms. It may also include information such as the reference location and measurement priority of the super cell.

[0205] Exemplarily, the configuration information of the cell can be a Dedicated-SMTC configuration, configuring multiple Dedicated-SMTCs at the same time, and adding SMTC-offset to solve the problem of time delay difference measured between different satellites / cells, and can also include ephemeris information of different adjacent satellites at different times.

[0206] Exemplarily, the configuration information of the super cell may be Common-RACH configuration, where Common-RACH includes RO time domain configuration (prach-configurationIndex), Preamble, and msg1-FDM factor in the frequency domain.

[0207] Exemplarily, the configuration information of the cell may be a dedicated-RACH configuration, and multiple dedicated-RACH extension factors and the number of consecutive frames of random access channel occasions (RO) may be configured to adapt to the (handover-oriented) non-uniform access requirements of different cells / wavelengths.

[0208] The naming of the above configuration signaling is only an example. Other naming methods can be used and are not limited to this in the embodiments of the present application.

[0209] It is worth noting that the RRC part in the figure can be understood as being split into two parallel sublayers, namely RRC-P1 and RRC-P2.

[0210] In the following embodiments, RRC-P2 is used as an example for configuration information of a super cell, and RRC-P1 is used as an example for configuration information of a cell.

[0211] The above scheme describes that the terminal device can determine whether to perform mobility management within the super cell or between super cells according to the instructions of the network device. The specific schemes for different scenarios are described in detail below.

[0212] First, an exemplary solution for performing mobility management within a super cell after initial access of a terminal device is introduced.

[0213] Figure 6 shows a schematic diagram of a mobility management process within a super cell provided by an embodiment of the present application. The solution shown in Figure 6 and the mobility management process within a super cell in method 400 can refer to each other.

[0214] In this application, mobility management within a super cell includes reselection of a serving cell by the UE when in an idle or inactive state, and switching of a serving cell or serving cell group by the UE when in a connected state. The following description will be made using serving cell switching as an example.

[0215] In this application, the broadcast signal takes SSB as an example.

[0216] In this embodiment, the UE is located in super cell #1, which may be an example of the first super cell in method 400 . Super cell #1 corresponds to super cell control entity #1, which may be an example of the first super cell control entity in method 400 .

[0217] In the super cell #1, the UE switches from the access network device #1 to the access network device #2, performing a switch from cell #1 to cell #2. Cell #1 may be an example of the first cell in method 400, and cell #2 may be an example of the second cell in method 400.

[0218] Cell #1 is a cell carried by satellite #1, and cell #2 can be a cell carried by satellite #1 or satellite #2. Satellite #1 can be an example of the first satellite in method 400, and satellite #2 can be an example of the second satellite in method 400.

[0219] The specific steps are as follows.

[0220] S601, super cell control entity #1 sends configuration information #1 to UE.

[0221] During initial access, satellite #1 or super cell control entity #1 may send mobility management related configuration information of multiple cells (serving cell and neighboring cells) to the terminal device via a broadcast message.

[0222] Specifically, the super cell control entity #1 may send configuration information #1 to the UE, and correspondingly, the UE receives the configuration information #1.

[0223] The configuration information #1 may include RRC configuration information of the super cell #1.

[0224] The configuration information #1 may be expressed as RRC-P2 information.

[0225] S602: Access network device #1 sends configuration information #2 to UE.

[0226] The configuration information #2 may include measurement-related configuration information in the RRC configuration information of cell #1 (source serving cell).

[0227] The configuration information #2 may be expressed as RRC-P1 MC information.

[0228] S603: The UE sends a measurement report to access network device #1.

[0229] After receiving the SSB, the UE performs mobility management measurements based on the measurement configuration for the SSB in configuration information #1 and configuration information #2. For example, the signal quality of the serving cell or neighboring cell (such as reference signal received power (RSRP), reference signal received quality (RSRQ), signal to interference plus noise ratio (SINR), etc.).

[0230] The UE reports the measurement results to the network.

[0231] The measurement results may be reported periodically or in response to an event, which is not limited in the embodiment of the present application.

[0232] For example, in event-triggered reporting, the reporting conditions may be configured as the serving cell signal quality being less than threshold 1 and / or the neighboring cell signal quality being greater than threshold 2.

[0233] S604: Access network device #1 sends a handover request message to access network device #2.

[0234] Access network device #1 determines whether to switch the serving cell based on the measurement results reported by the UE.

[0235] Specifically, access network device #1 selects a suitable target access network device according to the measurement result, taking access network device #2 as an example.

[0236] Access network device #1 sends a handover request message to access network device #2.

[0237] S605: Access network device #2 sends a handover response message to access network device #1.

[0238] S606: Access network device #1 sends configuration information #3 to the UE.

[0239] The configuration information #3 may include handover-related configuration information in the RRC configuration information of cell #1.

[0240] Specifically, the configuration information #3 includes subsequent switching-related resources and / or triggering conditions for conditional switching, and other switching-related configuration information.

[0241] Exemplarily, the handover triggering condition may be that RSRP_HO_SSB of the target satellite / target access network device / target cell is greater than a first threshold value.

[0242] Illustratively, the switching triggering condition may include multiple satellites and multiple subsequent switching.

[0243] The configuration information #3 may be expressed as RRC-P1 HO information.

[0244] S607: Access network device #1 sends the UE context information to access network device #2.

[0245] It should be noted that, in the case of handover between cells within a super cell, the common context remains unchanged. Therefore, the context information of the UE does not include the common context stored in the super cell control entity #1.

[0246] S608: The UE sends a random access request message to access network device #2.

[0247] S609: Access network device #2 sends a random access response message to the UE.

[0248] S610 , the access network device # 2 sends a path switching request message to the super cell control entity # 1 .

[0249] S611 , the super cell control entity #1 sends a path switch request response message to the access network device #2.

[0250] S612: Access network device #2 sends an indication message #1 to access network device #1.

[0251] The indication message #1 is used to instruct the access network device #1 to release the context information of the UE.

[0252] The context information of the UE does not include the common context stored in the super cell control entity #1.

[0253] S613, access network device #2 sends configuration information #4 to the UE.

[0254] The configuration information #4 includes measurement-related configuration information in the RRC configuration information of the target serving cell (cell #2).

[0255] The configuration information #4 may be expressed as RRC-P1 MC information.

[0256] It should be noted that, during initial access, satellite #1 can pre-configure the RRC configuration information of cell #2 for the terminal device, and the terminal device can activate the RRC configuration information of cell #2.

[0257] S613 is an optional step.

[0258] S614, the UE sends a configuration completion response message to access network device #2.

[0259] In this application, illustratively, the RRC-P1 MC information includes one or more of the following information: measurement configuration related to broadcast signal measurement, such as the SMTC period, SMTC duration, SMTC offset, etc. of the current cell and neighboring cells, measurement priority, location and distance threshold of the reference points of the current cell and neighboring cells, service time t_Service, and other related information. The naming of the above configuration signaling is only for example, and other naming methods can be used, which is not limited in the embodiments of this application.

[0260] In this application, illustratively, the RRC-P1 HO information includes one or more of the following information: (dedicated or random access) related configurations, such as preamble index / mask index, RO configuration period, RO frequency domain resources, beam-related identifier SSB index, etc., and timing (TA) related information. The naming of the above configuration signaling is only an example, and other naming methods can be used, which is not limited in the embodiments of this application.

[0261] Based on the above technical solution, when the terminal device performs mobility management in the super cell, it can obtain the configuration information of the target service cell or activate the pre-configured configuration information of the target service cell through the target access network device. The configuration information corresponding to the super cell remains unchanged, that is, the signaling of updating the configuration information of the public part is avoided, thereby saving the configuration signaling overhead corresponding to the configuration information of the public part.

[0262] Method 600 shows a mobility management process within a super cell. Furthermore, an embodiment of the present application proposes a mobility management process within a super cell based on a switching dedicated reference signal. Next, another exemplary scheme for performing mobility management within a super cell based on a broadcast signal after the initial access of the terminal device is introduced.

[0263] Figure 7 shows a schematic diagram of a super-cell mobility management process based on broadcast signals provided by an embodiment of the present application. The solution shown in Figure 7 and the super-cell mobility management process in method 400 can be referenced to each other.

[0264] In this application, the network device can send broadcast signals to the terminal device at different time periods.

[0265] The network equipment includes satellites, super cell control entities corresponding to the satellites, and ground station equipment.

[0266] The network device sends a broadcast signal to the corresponding service area through the carried cell.

[0267] For example, in different time periods, network equipment (super-cell control entity, satellite or ground station equipment) can use the first cell list (including one or more cells {PCI-K1, ..., PCI-KM}) to serve a certain geographical location area (such as the wave position set {bw-b1, ..., bw-bN}).

[0268] As shown in Figure 7, Satellite-L can send broadcast signal #1 and configuration information #a to the areas of wave position bw#2 and wave position bw#3 through the PCI-L1 cell. Accordingly, the terminal device receives the broadcast signal #1 and configuration information #a, measures the broadcast signal #1 based on the configuration information #a, and triggers switching according to the measurement results of the broadcast signal #1.

[0269] Satellite-L can send broadcast signal #2 and configuration information #b to the area of ​​wave position bw#b through the PCI-L1 cell. Accordingly, the terminal device receives the broadcast signal #2 and configuration information #b, measures the broadcast signal #2 based on the configuration information #b, and triggers switching according to the measurement results of the broadcast signal #2.

[0270] Satellite-K can send broadcast signal #1 and configuration information #a to the area of ​​wave position bw#b through the PCI-K1 cell. Accordingly, the terminal device receives the broadcast signal #1 (NR-SSB) and configuration information #a, measures the broadcast signal #1 based on the configuration information #a, and triggers switching according to the measurement results of the broadcast signal #1.

[0271] Satellite-K can send broadcast signal #2 and configuration information #b to the area of ​​wave position bw#B-1 through PCI-K1 cell. Accordingly, the terminal device receives broadcast signal #2 (HO-SSB) and configuration information #b, measures broadcast signal #2 based on configuration information #b, and triggers handover based on the measurement results of broadcast signal #2. The configuration of handover resources can be carried by RRC-P1 HO.

[0272] Exemplarily, broadcast signal #1 may be NR-SSB, and broadcast signal #2 may be HO-SSB.

[0273] Configuration information #a and configuration information #b may include RRC-P1 MC information and RRC-P1 HO information.

[0274] The contents of the RRC-P1 MC information and the RRC-P1 HO information may refer to the description in method 600 and will not be repeated here.

[0275] Next, the mobility management process of L1 / L2 triggered handover and conditional handover based on the handover dedicated reference signal is described in detail.

[0276] Figure 8 shows a schematic diagram of a mobility management process within a super cell based on broadcast signals and conditional handover according to an embodiment of the present application. The solution shown in Figure 8 and the mobility management process within a super cell in method 400 can be referenced to each other.

[0277] In this application, mobility management within a super cell includes reselection of a serving cell by the UE when in an idle or inactive state, and switching of a serving cell or serving cell group by the UE when in a connected state. The following description will be made using serving cell switching as an example.

[0278] In this embodiment, the UE is located in super cell #1, which may be an example of the first super cell in method 400 . Super cell #1 corresponds to super cell control entity #1, which may be an example of the first super cell control entity in method 400 .

[0279] In the super cell #1, the UE is handed over from the serving cell (cell #1) carried by satellite #1 to the target serving cell (cell #2) carried by satellite #2.

[0280] Satellite #1 may be an example of the first satellite in method 400 , and satellite #2 may be an example of the second satellite in method 400 .

[0281] The specific steps are as follows.

[0282] S810, super cell control entity #1 sends configuration information #1 to UE.

[0283] During initial access, satellite #1 or super cell control entity #1 may send mobility management related configuration information of multiple cells (serving cell and neighboring cells) to the terminal device via a broadcast message.

[0284] Specifically, the super cell control entity #1 may send configuration information #1 to the UE, and correspondingly, the UE receives the configuration information #1.

[0285] The configuration information #1 may include RRC configuration information of the super cell #1.

[0286] The configuration information #1 may be expressed as RRC-P2 information.

[0287] S820, satellite #1 sends configuration information #2 to the UE.

[0288] The configuration information #2 may include measurement-related configuration information in the RRC configuration information of the source serving cell (cell #1).

[0289] The configuration information #2 may be expressed as RRC-P1 MC information.

[0290] S830, the UE sends signal measurement results and / or location information to satellite #1.

[0291] After receiving the SSB, the UE performs mobility management measurements based on the measurement configuration for the SSB in configuration information #1 and configuration information #2, such as the signal quality of the serving cell or neighboring cell (such as RSRP / RSRQ / SINR, etc.).

[0292] The signal measurement result may include a signal measurement result based on NR-SSB / HO-SSB.

[0293] The location information is used to indicate the current location of the UE.

[0294] Exemplarily, the location information may be represented by wave position information, such as a wave position index, a wave position reference point position, and the like.

[0295] The measurement results and / or location information may be reported periodically or in response to an event, which is not limited in the embodiments of the present application.

[0296] S840a, satellite #1 sends configuration information #4 to satellite #2.

[0297] The configuration information #4 includes handover-related configuration information.

[0298] For example, HO-SSB measurement period, measurement duration, measurement offset, ephemeris information, and access resource configuration corresponding to different time periods (including prach preamble index / mask index, RO resources, RNTI, etc.).

[0299] S840b, satellite #1 sends configuration information #3 to the UE.

[0300] The configuration information #3 may include handover-related configuration information in the RRC configuration information of the source serving cell (cell #1).

[0301] Specifically, the configuration information #3 includes subsequent switching-related resources and / or triggering conditions for conditional switching, and other switching-related configuration information.

[0302] Exemplarily, the handover triggering condition may be that RSRP_HO_SSB of the target satellite / target access network device / target cell is greater than a first threshold value.

[0303] Illustratively, the switching triggering condition may include multiple satellites and multiple subsequent switching.

[0304] S850, the UE sends an RRC reconfiguration completion response message to satellite #1.

[0305] S860a: The UE performs downlink synchronization before receiving the handover command.

[0306] When the UE moves autonomously, the UE performs downlink synchronization through NR-SSB.

[0307] When satellite #1 moves, the UE performs downlink synchronization via HO-SSB.

[0308] It can be understood that based on the two broadcast signals, the mobile switching of the UE or the network device is triggered.

[0309] S860b, obtain the timing information (TA) of satellite #2 based on ephemeris and other information.

[0310] S870: Trigger CHO switching based on the measurement result.

[0311] CHO handover is triggered based on the L1 / L3 measurement results of NR-SSB or HO-SSB.

[0312] S880, process of accessing satellite #2.

[0313] Exemplarily, the access procedure may adopt a PDCCH ordered RACH procedure or a RACH-less HO procedure.

[0314] It should be understood that the RACH process can also be based on the system message corresponding to HO-SSB. The UE uses the UE-specific ID or group-RNTI in super cell #1 for blind detection. If the detection is successful, the corresponding RO resources can be used for handover access.

[0315] S890, LTM completed.

[0316] Based on the above technical solution, when a terminal device performs mobility management within a super cell, the service satellite of the terminal device may change, and the configuration information of the target service cell carried by the target satellite may be obtained through the target satellite or the configuration information of the pre-configured target service cell may be activated. The configuration information of the public part corresponding to the super cell remains unchanged, that is, the signaling for updating the configuration information of the public part is avoided, thereby saving the signaling overhead generated by the mobility management process.

[0317] The following introduces an exemplary solution for performing mobility management between two super cells after the initial access of a terminal device.

[0318] Figure 9 shows a schematic diagram of an inter-super-cell mobility management process provided by an embodiment of the present application. The solution shown in Figure 9 and the inter-super-cell mobility management process in method 400 can refer to each other.

[0319] In the present application, mobility management between super cells includes super cell registration when the terminal device is in an idle state or an inactive state, and super cell handover when the terminal device is in a connected state.

[0320] This embodiment takes the case where the cells associated with two super cells do not overlap as an example, that is, when the super cell performs handover or reselection, the cell also needs to perform handover or reselection.

[0321] Between two super cells, the UE switches from cell #1 of super cell #1 to cell #3 of super cell #2. Cell #1 corresponds to access network device #1, cell #3 corresponds to access network device #3, super cell #1 corresponds to super cell control entity #1, and super cell #2 corresponds to super cell control entity #2, thereby realizing switching between super cells.

[0322] Among them, super cell #1 can be an example of the first super cell in method 400, and super cell #2 can be an example of the second super cell in method 400; the super cell control entity #1 can be an example of the first super cell control entity in method 400, and the super cell control entity #2 can be an example of the second super cell control entity in method 400, cell #1 can be an example of the first cell in method 400, and cell #3 can be an example of the second cell in method 400.

[0323] Cell #1 is a cell carried by satellite #1, and cell #3 can be a cell carried by satellite #1 or satellite #2. Satellite #1 can be an example of the first satellite in method 400, and satellite #2 can be an example of the second satellite in method 400.

[0324] The specific steps are as follows.

[0325] S901, super cell control entity #1 sends configuration information #1 to UE.

[0326] During initial access, satellite #1 or super cell control entity #1 may send mobility management related configuration information of multiple cells (serving cell and neighboring cells) to the terminal device via a broadcast message.

[0327] Specifically, the super cell control entity #1 may send configuration information #1 to the UE, and correspondingly, the UE receives the configuration information #1.

[0328] The configuration information #1 may include RRC configuration information of the super cell #1.

[0329] The configuration information #1 may be expressed as RRC-P2 information.

[0330] S902, access network device #1 sends configuration information #2 to the UE.

[0331] The configuration information #2 may include measurement-related configuration information in the RRC configuration information of cell #1.

[0332] The configuration information #2 may be expressed as RRC-P1 MC information.

[0333] S903: The UE sends a measurement report to access network device #1.

[0334] After receiving the SSB, the UE performs mobility management measurements based on the measurement configuration for the SSB in configuration information #1 and configuration information #2, such as the signal quality of the serving cell or neighboring cell (such as RSRP / RSRQ / SINR, etc.).

[0335] The UE reports the measurement results to the network.

[0336] The measurement results may be reported periodically or in response to an event, which is not limited in the embodiment of the present application.

[0337] For example, in event-triggered reporting, the reporting conditions may be configured as the serving cell signal quality being less than threshold 1 and / or the neighboring cell signal quality being greater than threshold 2.

[0338] S904 , the access network device # 1 sends a handover request message to the super cell control entity # 2 .

[0339] Access network device #1 determines whether to switch the serving cell based on the measurement results reported by the UE.

[0340] Specifically, access network device #1 selects a suitable target access network device according to the measurement result, taking access network device #3 as an example.

[0341] Access network device #1 sends a handover request message to access network device #3.

[0342] S905 , the super cell control entity # 2 sends a handover response message to the cell # 1 .

[0343] S906 , the super cell control entity # 2 sends configuration information # 5 to the UE.

[0344] The configuration information #5 may include RRC configuration information of the super cell #2.

[0345] It should be understood that the RRC configuration information of the super cell #2 may also be pre-configured to the UE, and the UE or the super cell control entity #1 may activate the RRC configuration information of the super cell #2.

[0346] This S906 is an optional step.

[0347] S907, access network device #1 sends configuration information #3 to the UE.

[0348] The configuration information #3 may include handover-related configuration information in the RRC configuration information of cell #1 (source serving cell).

[0349] Specifically, the configuration information #3 includes subsequent switching related resources and / or triggering conditions for conditional switching.

[0350] Exemplarily, the switching trigger condition may be that the target satellite RSRP_HO_SSB>the first threshold value.

[0351] Illustratively, the switching triggering condition may include multiple satellites and multiple subsequent switching.

[0352] The configuration information #3 may be expressed as RRC-P1 HO information.

[0353] S908 , the super cell control entity # 1 sends an SN state transfer message to the super cell control entity # 2 .

[0354] S909, the UE sends a random access request message to access network device #3.

[0355] S910, access network device #3 sends a random access response message to the UE.

[0356] S911 , access network device #3 sends a path transfer request message to super cell control entity #2.

[0357] S912, the super cell control entity #2 sends a path transfer request response message to the access network device #3.

[0358] S913a, the super cell control entity #2 sends an indication message #2 to the super cell control entity #1.

[0359] The indication message #1 is used to instruct the super cell control entity #1 to release the context information of the UE.

[0360] S913b, the super cell control entity #1 sends an indication message #3 to the access network device #1.

[0361] The indication message #3 is used to instruct the access network device #1 to release the context information of the UE.

[0362] The UE context information is not stored in the public context of super cell #1.

[0363] S914, access network device #3 sends configuration information #6 to the UE.

[0364] The configuration information #6 includes measurement-related configuration information in the RRC configuration information of cell #3.

[0365] The configuration information #6 may be expressed as RRC-P1 MC information.

[0366] It should be noted that, during initial access, satellite #1 can pre-configure RRC configuration information of cell #3 for the UE, and the UE can activate cell #3 (target serving cell) using the RRC configuration information.

[0367] S914 is an optional step.

[0368] S915, the UE sends a configuration completion response message to access network device #3.

[0369] The contents of the RRC-P1 MC information and the RRC-P1 HO information may refer to the description in method 600 and will not be repeated here.

[0370] Based on the above technical solution, when the terminal device performs mobility management between super cells, it obtains the corresponding configuration information through the super cell control entity corresponding to the target super cell, or activates the pre-configured configuration information, obtains the configuration information of the cell through the access network device corresponding to the target cell, or activates the pre-configured configuration information of the cell. When the terminal device performs mobility management between the first super cell and the second super cell, the terminal device switches or reselects the super cell and the cell, and the cells within the super cell share a part of the configuration (the configuration information of the common part), thereby also saving a part of the configuration signaling overhead. Furthermore, the mobility management between super cells only needs to update the configuration information of the common part of the mobility management once, and the subsequent mobility management within the target super cell no longer needs to update the configuration information of the common part, thereby reducing the interruption time caused by the mobility management and saving the signaling overhead generated by the mobility management process.

[0371] It should be understood that the size of the serial numbers of the above processes does not mean the order of execution. The execution order of each process should be determined by its function and internal logic, and should not constitute any limitation on the implementation process of the embodiments of the present application.

[0372] The above mainly introduces the solution provided by the embodiment of the present application from the perspective of the interaction between various network elements. It can be understood that each network element, such as a transmitting end device or a receiving end device, includes a hardware structure and / or software module corresponding to the execution of each function in order to implement the above functions. Those skilled in the art should be aware that, in combination with the units and algorithm steps of each example described in the embodiments disclosed herein, the present application can be implemented in the form of hardware or a combination of hardware and computer software. Whether a function is executed in a hardware or computer software driven hardware manner depends on the specific application and design constraints of the technical solution. Professional and technical personnel can use different methods to implement the described functions for each specific application, but such implementation should not be considered to be beyond the scope of this application.

[0373] In the embodiment of the present application, the functional modules of the transmitting device or the receiving device can be divided according to the above method example. For example, each functional module can be divided according to each function, or two or more functions can be integrated into one processing module. The above integrated modules can be implemented in the form of hardware or in the form of software functional modules. It should be noted that the division of modules in the embodiment of the present application is schematic and is only a logical functional division. There may be other division methods in actual implementation. The following is an example of dividing each functional module according to each function.

[0374] The method provided in the embodiments of the present application is described in detail above with reference to Figures 4 to 9. Below, the apparatus provided in the embodiments of the present application is described in detail with reference to Figures 10 and 11. It should be understood that the description of the apparatus embodiment corresponds to the description of the method embodiment. Therefore, for matters not described in detail, reference can be made to the method embodiment above, and for the sake of brevity, no further description will be given here.

[0375] FIG10 is a schematic structural diagram of a communication device provided in an embodiment of the present application.

[0376] The device 1000 includes a transceiver unit 1010 and a processing unit 1020 , wherein the transceiver unit 1010 can be used to implement corresponding communication functions, and the processing unit 1020 can be used to perform data processing.

[0377] Optionally, the transceiver unit 1010 may also be referred to as a communication interface or communication unit, and may include a transmitting unit and / or a receiving unit. The transceiver unit 1010 may be a transceiver (including a transmitter and / or a receiver), an input / output interface (including an input and / or output interface), a pin, or a circuit. The transceiver unit 1010 may be configured to perform the transmitting and / or receiving steps in the above-described method embodiments.

[0378] Optionally, the processing unit 1020 may be a processor (may include one or more), a processing circuit with processor functions, etc., and may be used to execute other steps except sending and receiving in the above method embodiment.

[0379] Optionally, the apparatus 1000 further includes a storage unit, which may be a memory, an internal storage unit (e.g., a register, a cache, etc.), an external storage unit (e.g., a read-only memory, a random access memory, etc.), etc. The storage unit is used to store instructions, and the processing unit 1020 executes the instructions stored in the storage unit to enable the communication apparatus to perform the above method.

[0380] In one design, the apparatus 1000 may be used to execute the actions executed by the terminal device in each of the above method embodiments, for example, the apparatus 1000 may be used to execute the actions executed by the terminal device in the above methods 400, 600, 800, or 900. In this case, the apparatus 1000 may be a component of the terminal device, the transceiver unit 1010 may be used to execute the transceiver-related operations on the terminal device side in the above method embodiments, and the processing unit 1020 may be used to execute the processing-related operations of the terminal device in the above method embodiments.

[0381] For example, the transceiver unit 1010 is used to receive first information from a first satellite, where the first information includes information for performing mobility management on a terminal device; the processing unit 1020 is used to determine, based on the first information, whether to perform mobility management within a first super cell, or to determine whether to perform mobility management between the first super cell and a second super cell, where the second super cell is associated with multiple cells.

[0382] It should be understood that the transceiver unit 1010 and the processing unit 1020 can also perform other operations performed by the terminal device in any of the above methods 400, 600, 800 or 900, which will not be described in detail here.

[0383] In one design, the apparatus 1000 may be configured to perform the actions performed by the first satellite in the above method embodiments. For example, the apparatus 1000 may be configured to perform the actions performed by the first satellite in the above method 400, 600, 800, or 900. In this case, the apparatus 1000 may be a component of the first satellite, the transceiver unit 1010 may be configured to perform the transceiver-related operations on the first satellite side in the above method embodiments, and the processing unit 1020 may be configured to perform the processing-related operations on the first satellite in the above method embodiments.

[0384] For example, the processing unit 1020 is used to determine first information, where the first information includes information on mobility management of the terminal device; and the transceiver unit 1010 is used to send the first information to the terminal device.

[0385] It should be understood that the transceiver unit 1010 and the processing unit 1020 may also perform other operations performed by the first satellite in any of the above methods 400, 600, 800 or 900, which are not described in detail here.

[0386] In one design, the apparatus 1000 may be configured to perform the actions performed by the first super cell control entity in the above method embodiments. For example, the apparatus 1000 may be configured to perform the actions performed by the first satellite in the above method 400, 600, 800, or 900. In this case, the apparatus 1000 may be a component of the first super cell control entity, the transceiver unit 1010 may be configured to perform the transceiver-related operations of the first super cell control entity in the above method embodiments, and the processing unit 1020 may be configured to perform the processing-related operations of the first super cell control entity in the above method embodiments.

[0387] For example, the processing unit 1020 is configured to determine configuration information of a first super cell; and the transceiver unit 1010 is configured to send the configuration information of the first super cell to the terminal device.

[0388] It should be understood that the transceiver unit 1010 and the processing unit 1020 may also perform other operations performed by the first satellite in any of the above methods 400, 600, 800 or 900, which are not described in detail here.

[0389] It should also be understood that the device 1000 here is embodied in the form of a functional unit. The term "unit" here can refer to an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), an electronic circuit, a processor (such as a shared processor, a dedicated processor or a group processor, etc.) and a memory for executing one or more software or firmware programs, a combined logic circuit and / or other suitable components that support the described functions. In an optional example, those skilled in the art will understand that the device 1000 can be specifically a network device in the above-mentioned embodiment, and can be used to execute the various processes and / or steps corresponding to the network device in the above-mentioned method embodiments. To avoid repetition, it will not be described here.

[0390] The apparatus 1000 of each of the above-mentioned solutions has the function of implementing the corresponding steps performed by the device in the above-mentioned method, or the apparatus 1000 of each of the above-mentioned solutions has the function of implementing the corresponding steps performed by the network device in the above-mentioned method. The functions can be implemented by hardware, or the corresponding software can be implemented by hardware. The hardware or software includes one or more modules corresponding to the above-mentioned functions; for example, the transceiver unit can be replaced by a transceiver (for example, the sending unit in the transceiver unit can be replaced by a transmitter, and the receiving unit in the transceiver unit can be replaced by a receiver), and other units, such as the processing unit, can be replaced by a processor to respectively perform the sending and receiving operations and related processing operations in each method embodiment.

[0391] In addition, the transceiver unit 1010 may also be a transceiver circuit (for example, may include a receiving circuit and a sending circuit), and the processing unit may be a processing circuit.

[0392] It should be noted that the device in Figure 1000 can be a network element or device in the aforementioned embodiment, or a chip or chip system, such as a system on chip (SoC). The transceiver unit can be an input / output circuit or a communication interface; the processing unit can be a processor, microprocessor, or integrated circuit integrated on the chip. This is not limited here.

[0393] Figure 11 is a schematic diagram of a communication architecture provided in an embodiment of the present application. The communication device 1100 shown in Figure 11 includes a processor 1110, a memory 1120, and a transceiver 1130. The processor 1110 is coupled to the memory 1120 and is configured to execute instructions stored in the memory 1120 to control the transceiver 1130 to transmit and / or receive signals.

[0394] It should be understood that the processor 1110 and memory 1120 can be combined into a processing device, and the processor 1110 is used to execute the program code stored in the memory 1120 to implement the above functions. In specific implementations, the memory 1120 can also be integrated into the processor 1110, or independent of the processor 1110. It should be understood that the processor 1110 can also correspond to the various processing units in the aforementioned communication device, and the transceiver 1130 can correspond to the various receiving units and transmitting units in the aforementioned communication device.

[0395] It should also be understood that the transceiver 1130 may include a receiver (or receiver) and a transmitter (or transmitter). The transceiver may further include an antenna, and the number of antennas may be one or more. The transceiver may also be a communication interface or interface circuit.

[0396] Specifically, the communication device 1100 may correspond to the terminal device in method 400, 600, 800, or 900 according to the embodiments of the present application. The communication device 1100 may include units of the method performed by the terminal device in method 400, 600, 800, or 900. It should be understood that the specific process of each unit performing the above-mentioned corresponding steps has been described in detail in the above-mentioned method embodiments, and for the sake of brevity, it will not be repeated here.

[0397] When the communication device 1100 is a chip, the chip includes an interface unit and a processing unit, wherein the interface unit may be an input / output circuit or a communication interface; and the processing unit may be a processor, microprocessor, or integrated circuit integrated on the chip.

[0398] During implementation, each step of the above method can be completed by an integrated logic circuit of the hardware in the processor or by instructions in the form of software. The steps of the method disclosed in conjunction with the embodiments of the present application can be directly embodied as being executed by a hardware processor, or can be executed by a combination of hardware and software modules in the processor. The software module can be located in a storage medium mature in the art such as a random access memory, a flash memory, a read-only memory, a programmable read-only memory or an electrically erasable programmable memory, a register, etc. The storage medium is located in the memory, and the processor reads the information in the memory and completes the steps of the above method in conjunction with its hardware. To avoid repetition, it will not be described in detail here.

[0399] It should be noted that the processor in the embodiments of the present application can be an integrated circuit chip with signal processing capabilities. During implementation, each step of the above method embodiment can be completed by an integrated logic circuit of the hardware in the processor or by instructions in the form of software. The above processor can be a general-purpose processor, a digital signal processor (DSP), an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field-programmable gate array (FPGA) or other programmable logic device, a discrete gate or transistor logic device, or a discrete hardware component. The various methods, steps, and logic block diagrams disclosed in the embodiments of the present application can be implemented or executed. The general-purpose processor can be a microprocessor or the processor can also be any conventional processor. The steps of the method disclosed in the embodiments of the present application can be directly embodied as being executed by a hardware decoding processor, or can be executed by a combination of hardware and software modules in the decoding processor. The software module can be located in a storage medium mature in the art, such as random access memory, flash memory, read-only memory, programmable read-only memory, or electrically erasable programmable memory, registers, etc. The storage medium is located in the memory, and the processor reads the information in the memory and completes the steps of the above method in combination with its hardware.

[0400] The present application also provides a computer-readable medium having a computer program stored thereon, which implements the functions of any of the above method embodiments when executed by a computer.

[0401] The present application also provides a computer program product, which implements the functions of any of the above method embodiments when executed by a computer.

[0402] In the above embodiments, all or part of the embodiments may be implemented by software, hardware, firmware, or any combination thereof. When implemented using software, all or part of the embodiments may be implemented in the form of a computer program product. The computer program product includes one or more computer instructions. When the computer instructions are loaded and executed on a computer, all or part of the processes or functions described in the embodiments of the present application are generated. The computer may be a general-purpose computer, a special-purpose computer, a computer network, or other programmable device. The computer instructions may be stored in a computer-readable storage medium or transmitted from one computer-readable storage medium to another computer-readable storage medium. For example, the computer instructions may be transmitted from one website, computer, server, or data center to another website, computer, server, or data center via a wired (e.g., coaxial cable, optical fiber, digital subscriber line (DSL)) or wireless (e.g., infrared, wireless, microwave, etc.) method. The computer-readable storage medium may be any available medium that a computer can access or a data storage device such as a server or data center that includes one or more available media integrated therein. The available medium may be a magnetic medium (eg, a floppy disk, a hard disk, a magnetic tape), an optical medium (eg, a high-density digital video disc (DVD)), or a semiconductor medium (eg, a solid state disk (SSD)).

[0403] In the embodiments of this application, words such as "exemplary" and "for example" are used to indicate examples, illustrations, or descriptions. Any embodiment or design described in this application as "exemplary" should not be construed as preferred or advantageous over other embodiments or designs. Rather, the use of the word "exemplary" is intended to present concepts in a concrete way.

[0404] It should be understood that references to "embodiments" throughout this specification mean that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic associated with the embodiment is included in at least one embodiment of the present application. Therefore, various embodiments throughout this specification do not necessarily refer to the same embodiment. Furthermore, these particular features, structures, or characteristics may be combined in any suitable manner in one or more embodiments.

[0405] It should be understood that in the various embodiments of the present application, the size of the sequence number of each process does not mean the order of execution, and the execution order of each process should be determined by its function and internal logic, and should not constitute any limitation on the implementation process of the embodiment of the present application. The names of all nodes and messages in this application are merely names set by this application for the convenience of description. The names in the actual network may be different. It should not be understood that this application limits the names of various nodes and messages. On the contrary, any name with the same or similar function as the node or message used in this application is regarded as the method or equivalent replacement of this application, and is within the scope of protection of this application.

[0406] It should also be understood that in this application, "when", "if" and "if" all mean that the UE or base station will take corresponding measures under certain objective circumstances. It does not limit the time, and does not require the UE or base station to take judgment actions when implementing it, nor does it mean that there are other limitations.

[0407] Additionally, the terms "system" and "network" are often used interchangeably. The term "and / or" is simply used to describe an association between related objects, indicating that three possible relationships exist. For example, "A and / or B" can mean: A exists alone, A and B exist simultaneously, or B exists alone.

[0408] As used herein, the term "at least one of" or "at least one of" refers to all or any combination of the listed items. For example, "at least one of A, B, and C" can mean: A alone, B alone, C alone, A and B together, B and C together, and A, B, and C together. As used herein, "at least one" means one or more. "A plurality" means two or more.

[0409] It should be understood that in each embodiment of the present application, the terms "include", "comprise", "have" and their variations all mean "including but not limited to", unless otherwise specifically emphasized.

[0410] It should be understood that in various embodiments of the present application, the first, second, and various numerical numbers are merely distinctions for ease of description and are not intended to limit the scope of the embodiments of the present application.

[0411] Those skilled in the art will appreciate that the units and algorithm steps of each example described in conjunction with the embodiments disclosed herein can be implemented in electronic hardware, or a combination of computer software and electronic hardware. Whether these functions are performed in hardware or software depends on the specific application and design constraints of the technical solution. Professional and technical personnel can use different methods to implement the described functions for each specific application, but such implementation should not be considered beyond the scope of this application.

[0412] Those skilled in the art will clearly understand that, for the convenience and brevity of description, the specific working processes of the systems, devices and units described above can refer to the description of the corresponding processes and beneficial effects in the aforementioned method embodiments, and will not be repeated here.

[0413] In the several embodiments provided in this application, it should be understood that the disclosed systems, devices and methods can be implemented in other ways. For example, the device embodiments described above are merely schematic. For example, the division of the units is merely a logical function division. In actual implementation, there may be other division methods, such as multiple units or components can be combined or integrated into another system, or some features can be ignored or not executed. Another point is that the mutual coupling or direct coupling or communication connection shown or discussed can be through some interfaces, indirect coupling or communication connection of devices or units, which can be electrical, mechanical or other forms.

[0414] The units described as separate components may or may not be physically separate, and the components shown as units may or may not be physical units, that is, they may be located in one place or distributed across multiple network units. Some or all of these units may be selected to achieve the purpose of this embodiment according to actual needs.

[0415] In addition, each functional unit in each embodiment of the present application may be integrated into one processing unit, or each unit may exist physically separately, or two or more units may be integrated into one unit.

[0416] If the functions are implemented in the form of software functional units and sold or used as independent products, they can be stored in a computer-readable storage medium. Based on this understanding, the technical solution of the present application, or the part that contributes to the prior art, or the part of the technical solution, can be embodied in the form of a software product. The computer software product is stored in a storage medium and includes several instructions for enabling 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 method described in each embodiment of the present application. The aforementioned storage medium includes various media that can store program codes, such as a USB flash drive, a mobile hard disk, a read-only memory (ROM), a random access memory (RAM), a magnetic disk, or an optical disk.

[0417] The above description is merely a specific embodiment of the present application, but the scope of protection of the present application is not limited thereto. Any changes or substitutions that can be easily conceived by a person skilled in the art within the technical scope disclosed in this application should be included in the scope of protection of this application. Therefore, the scope of protection of this application should be based on the scope of protection of the claims.

Claims

1. A method for non-terrestrial NTN communication, characterized in that: Applied to a terminal device, the terminal device is located in a first super cell, the first super cell is associated with multiple cells, the terminal device is served by a first cell carried by a first satellite, the first cell includes at least one of the multiple cells, and the method includes: receiving first information from the first satellite, wherein the first information includes information for mobility management of the terminal device; It is determined according to the first information that mobility management is performed in the first super cell, or it is determined that mobility management is performed between the first super cell and a second super cell.

2. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that The first information includes an indication identifier of a super cell, the indication identifier of the super cell is associated with at least one cell identifier list, and the cell identifier list includes at least one cell identifier.

3. The method according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that: The determining, according to the first information, to perform mobility management in the first super cell, or determining to perform mobility management between the first super cell and a second super cell, includes: Based on one or more of the location information, speed information, time information, and signal quality information of the terminal device and the first information, it is determined that mobility management is performed within the first super cell, or it is determined that mobility management is performed between the first super cell and a second super cell.

4. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that The terminal device is in an idle state or an inactive state, When the indication identifier of the super cell is the same as the identifier of the first super cell, determining to perform mobility management in the first super cell includes: reselecting according to the cell identifier list to determine an identifier of a second cell, where the second cell includes at least one of the multiple cells associated with the first super cell; Alternatively, when the indication identifier of the super cell is different from the identifier of the first super cell, the indication identifier of the super cell indicates the second super cell, and determining to perform mobility management between the first super cell and the second super cell includes: A registration request is initiated according to the indication identifier of the super cell, the registration request is used to register to the second super cell, and the identifier of the second cell is reselected according to the cell identifier list, and the second cell includes at least one of the multiple cells associated with the second super cell.

5. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that: The terminal device is in a connected state; When the indication identifier of the super cell is the same as the identifier of the first super cell, the determining to perform mobility management in the first super cell includes: Determine an identifier of a second cell according to the cell identifier list and switch to the second cell, where the second cell includes at least one of the multiple cells associated with the first super cell; Alternatively, when the indication identifier of the super cell is different from the identifier of the first super cell, the indication identifier of the super cell indicates the second super cell, and determining to perform mobility management between the first super cell and the second super cell includes: The method switches to the second super cell according to the indication identifier of the super cell, determines the identifier of the second cell according to the cell identifier list and switches to the second cell, wherein the second cell includes at least one of the multiple cells associated with the second super cell.

6. The method according to claim 4 or 5, characterized in that: The method further comprises: When the indication identifier of the super cell is the same as the identifier of the first super cell, the configuration information of the second cell is determined.

7. The method according to claim 6, characterized in that The determining the configuration information of the second cell includes: activating configuration information of the second cell, where the second cell is a cell carried by the first satellite; or, Configuration information of the second cell sent by the second satellite is received, where the second cell is a cell carried by the second satellite.

8. The method according to claim 4 or 5, characterized in that: The method further comprises: When the indication identifier of the super cell is different from the identifier of the first super cell, configuration information of the second super cell and configuration information of the second cell are determined.

9. The method according to claim 8, characterized in that The determining the configuration information of the second super cell and the configuration information of the second cell includes: Determining configuration information of the second super cell includes: activating configuration information of the second super cell; or, receiving configuration information of the second super cell sent by a second super cell control entity, wherein the second super cell control entity is associated with the second super cell; Determining configuration information of the second cell includes: activating configuration information of the second cell, where the second cell is a cell carried by the first satellite; or, Configuration information of the second cell sent by the second satellite is received, where the second cell is a cell carried by the second satellite.

10. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 9, characterized in that The configuration information of the second super cell includes common radio resource control configuration information, and the configuration information of the second cell includes specific radio resource control configuration information of the terminal device.

11. A method for non-terrestrial NTN communication, characterized in that: Applied to a first satellite, the first satellite serves a first super cell, the first super cell is associated with multiple cells, a first cell carried by the first satellite provides services for a terminal device located in the first super cell, and the first cell includes at least one of the multiple cells, the method comprising: determining first information, the first information comprising information for mobility management of the terminal device; The first information is sent to the terminal device.

12. The method according to claim 11, characterized in that The first information includes an indication identifier of a super cell, the indication identifier of the super cell is associated with at least one cell identifier list, and the cell identifier list includes at least one cell identifier.

13. A method for non-terrestrial NTN communication, characterized in that: Applied to a first super cell control entity, the first super cell control entity corresponds to a first super cell, the first super cell is associated with multiple cells, a terminal device is located in the first super cell, the terminal device is served by a first cell carried by a first satellite, and the first cell includes at least one of the multiple cells. The method includes: Determining configuration information of the first super cell; Send configuration information of the first super cell to the terminal device.

14. A non-terrestrial NTN communication system, characterized in that: The method comprises a first satellite and a first super cell control entity, wherein the first super cell control entity is associated with a first area, the first area corresponds to a first super cell, the first satellite serves the first super cell, a terminal device is located in the first super cell, the first super cell is associated with a plurality of cells, the terminal device is served by a first cell carried by the first satellite, and the first cell includes at least one of the plurality of cells, including: The first satellite is used to send first information to the terminal device, where the first information includes information for mobility management of the terminal device; The first super cell control entity is used to send configuration information of the first super cell to the terminal device.

15. The system according to claim 14, characterized in that The first information includes an indication identifier of a super cell, the indication identifier of the super cell is associated with at least one cell identifier list, and the cell identifier list includes at least one cell identifier.

16. The system according to claim 14 or 15, characterized in that The first satellite is further used to send configuration information of a second cell to the terminal device, where the second cell includes a cell indicated by at least one cell identifier in the cell identifier list, and the second cell is a cell carried by the first satellite.

17. The system according to claim 14 or 15, characterized in that The system further includes a second satellite, The second satellite is further used to send configuration information of a second cell to the terminal device, where the second cell includes a cell indicated by at least one cell identifier in the cell identifier list, and the second cell is a cell carried by the second satellite.

18. The system according to any one of claims 14 to 17, characterized in that: The super cell indication identifier indicates a second super cell. The system further includes a second super cell control entity, and the second super cell control entity is used to send configuration information of the second super cell to the terminal device.

19. The system according to any one of claims 14 to 18, characterized in that: The configuration information of the second super cell includes common radio resource control configuration information, and the configuration information of the second cell includes specific radio resource control configuration information of the terminal device.

20. A terminal device for non-terrestrial NTN communication, characterized in that: The terminal device is located in a first super cell, the first super cell is associated with multiple cells, the terminal device is served by a first cell carried by a first satellite, the first cell includes at least one of the multiple cells, and the terminal device includes: A transceiver unit is configured to receive first information from the first satellite, wherein the first information includes information about the mobility of the terminal device. Management information; The processing unit is configured to determine, according to the first information, to perform mobility management within the first super cell, or to determine to perform mobility management between the first super cell and a second super cell.

21. The terminal device according to claim 20, characterized in that: The first information includes an indication identifier of a super cell, the indication identifier of the super cell is associated with at least one cell identifier list, and the cell identifier list includes at least one cell identifier.

22. The terminal device according to claim 20 or 21, characterized in that: The processing unit is specifically used to determine whether to perform mobility management within the first super cell, or to determine whether to perform mobility management between the first super cell and a second super cell based on one or more of the location information, speed information, time information, and signal quality information of the terminal device and the first information.

23. The terminal device according to any one of claims 20 to 22, characterized in that: The terminal device is in an idle state or an inactive state, When the indication identifier of the super cell is the same as the identifier of the first super cell, the processing unit is specifically configured to: reselecting according to the cell identifier list to determine an identifier of a second cell, where the second cell includes at least one of the multiple cells associated with the first super cell; When the indication identifier of the super cell is different from the identifier of the first super cell, the indication identifier of the super cell indicates the second super cell, and the processing unit is specifically configured to: A registration request is initiated according to the indication identifier of the super cell, the registration request is used to register to the second super cell, and the identifier of the second cell is reselected according to the cell identifier list, and the second cell includes at least one of the multiple cells associated with the second super cell.

24. The terminal device according to any one of claims 20 to 22, characterized in that: The terminal device is in a connected state, When the indication identifier of the super cell is the same as the identifier of the first super cell, the processing unit is specifically configured to: Determine an identifier of a second cell according to the cell identifier list and switch to the second cell, where the second cell includes at least one of the multiple cells associated with the second super cell; When the indication identifier of the super cell is different from the identifier of the first super cell, the indication identifier of the super cell indicates the second super cell, and the processing unit is specifically configured to: The method switches to the second super cell according to the indication identifier of the super cell, determines the identifier of the second cell according to the cell identifier list and switches to the second cell, wherein the second cell includes at least one of the multiple cells associated with the second super cell.

25. The terminal device according to claim 23 or 24, characterized in that: The processing unit is further configured to: When the indication identifier of the super cell is the same as the identifier of the first super cell, the configuration information of the second cell is determined.

26. The terminal device according to claim 25, characterized in that The processing unit is specifically used to activate configuration information of the second cell, where the second cell is a cell carried by the first satellite; or, the processing unit is specifically used to receive configuration information of the second cell sent by a second satellite, where the second cell is a cell carried by the second satellite.

27. The terminal device according to claim 23 or 24, characterized in that: The processing unit is further configured to: When the indication identifier of the super cell is different from the identifier of the first super cell, configuration information of the second super cell and configuration information of the second cell are determined.

28. The terminal device according to claim 27, characterized in that: The processing unit is specifically used to activate the configuration information of the second super cell; or, the processing unit is specifically used to receive the configuration information of the second super cell sent by a second super cell control entity, and the second super cell control entity is associated with the second super cell; The processing unit is specifically used to activate configuration information of the second cell, where the second cell is a cell carried by the first satellite; or, the processing unit is specifically used to receive configuration information of the second cell sent by a second satellite, where the second cell is a cell carried by the second satellite.

29. The terminal device according to any one of claims 20 to 28, characterized in that: The configuration information of the second super cell includes common radio resource control configuration information, and the configuration information of the second cell includes specific radio resource control configuration information of the terminal device.

30. A satellite device for non-terrestrial NTN communication, characterized in that: The satellite device serves a first super cell, the first super cell is associated with multiple cells, a first cell carried by the satellite device provides services for a terminal device located in the first super cell, the first cell includes at least one of the multiple cells, and the satellite device includes: a processing unit, configured to determine first information, wherein the first information includes information for mobility management of the terminal device; A transceiver unit is used to send the first information to the terminal device.

31. The satellite device according to claim 30, characterized in that: The first information includes an indication identifier of a super cell, the indication identifier of the super cell is associated with at least one cell identifier list, and the cell identifier list includes at least one cell identifier.

32. A first super cell control entity device for non-terrestrial NTN communication, characterized in that: The first super cell control entity device corresponds to a first super cell, the first super cell is associated with multiple cells, a terminal device is located in the first super cell, the terminal device is served by a first cell carried by a first satellite, the first cell includes at least one of the multiple cells, and the first super cell control entity device includes: a processing unit, configured to determine configuration information of the first super cell; A transceiver unit is used to send the configuration information of the first super cell to the terminal device.

33. A communication device, characterized in that: The communication device is used to execute the method according to any one of claims 1 to 13.

34. A communication device, characterized in that: include: A processor, configured to execute a computer program stored in the memory, so that the apparatus performs the method according to any one of claims 1 to 13.

35. The device according to claim 34, characterized in that The apparatus also includes the memory.

36. A computer-readable storage medium, characterized in that: The computer-readable storage medium stores a computer program, and when the computer program is executed on a computer, the computer is caused to execute the method according to any one of claims 1 to 13.

37. A computer program product, characterized in that The computer program product comprises instructions for performing the method of any one of claims 1 to 13.

38. A chip system, characterized in that: include: A processor, used to call and run a computer program from a memory, so that a communication device equipped with the chip system executes the method described in any one of claims 1 to 13.

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