Communication method and related device

Abstract

The invention provides a communication method and a related device, which are applied to the technical field of communication. According to the embodiment of the invention, different periodic configurations can be provided for the random access resources corresponding to different coverage areas, for example, for a sub-satellite area / low access demand area, the random access resources with shorter periods can be relatively configured, and for an edge area / high access demand area, the random access resources with longer periods can be relatively configured. Therefore, the periods of the random access resources in different areas can be individually configured in a targeted manner, thereby being capable of adapting to a scene in which the users are not uniformly distributed, improving the flexibility of resource allocation, and realizing the optimal utilization of the resources.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The present application relates to the technical field of communication, in particular to a communication method and related apparatus. BACKGROUND

[0002] With the rapid development of information technology, there are more urgent requirements for efficient, mobile and diverse communication. In some important fields, such as space communication, aviation communication, maritime communication and military communication, satellites play an irreplaceable role. Satellite communication has its unique advantages compared with ground communication, such as providing wider coverage, and satellite base stations are not easily damaged by natural disasters or external forces. The introduction of satellite communication can provide communication services for areas that cannot be covered by ground communication networks, such as oceans and forests, enhance the reliability of communication, such as ensuring that airplanes, trains and users on these transportation means obtain better communication services, and provide more data transmission resources for communication and improve network speed. Therefore, supporting communication with both the ground and the satellite at the same time has great benefits in terms of wide coverage, reliability, multi-connection and high throughput.

[0003] Currently, satellite communication has been introduced into the 3rd generation partnership project (3GPP) standard as a communication scenario of the 5th generation (5G) communication, called non-terrestrial network (NTN). Generally, the coverage area of NTN is large, and the number of terminals in the coverage area is also large. If a large number of repeated schemes are used to increase the coverage of a single terminal, only a small number of terminals in the system can access the network.

[0004] In some schemes, the period of access resources of a cell is the same. If it is a single-satellite multi-cell scenario, the access resource allocation of the cell can be realized by configuring different access resources for each cell to match the uneven user distribution matching feature. However, if a satellite is a cell, or the coverage range of the cell is particularly large, and there are multiple SSB beam directions, in this scenario, the satellite coverage area is large, and if the period of random access resources used in different regions of a cell is the same, there may be a problem of not adapting to uneven user distribution, which is not conducive to the optimal use of resources.

[0005] Therefore, how to adapt to the scenario of uneven user distribution and realize the optimal use of resources is a hot spot that researchers in the field are studying. SUMMARY

[0006] The present application provides a communication method and related apparatus, which can adapt to the scenario of uneven user distribution, improve the flexibility of resource allocation, and realize the optimal use of resources.

[0007] In a first aspect, the present application provides a communication method, which can be applied to a first communication device, such as a terminal or a communication module in a terminal, or a circuit or chip responsible for communication function in a terminal (such as a modem chip, also known as a baseband chip, or a system on chip (SoC) chip or a system in package (SIP) chip containing a modem core). The method comprises: receiving first indication information, wherein the first indication information is used to indicate a first periodic random access resource, the first periodic random access resource belongs to one of a plurality of candidate periodic random access resources, the plurality of candidate periodic random access resources further include a second periodic random access resource, the first periodic random access resource corresponds to a first coverage area, the second periodic random access resource corresponds to a second coverage area, the first coverage area corresponds to a first SSB index group, the second coverage area corresponds to a second SSB index group, and the first coverage area and the second coverage area belong to the same cell. Random access is performed on the first periodic random access resource.

[0008] In the present application, taking a cell including a plurality of coverage areas as an example, different coverage areas correspond to different periodic random access resources, and the first communication device can receive corresponding indication information according to different coverage areas, and the received indication information is used to indicate the corresponding periodic random access resource. The random access resources of different coverage areas do not need to be configured with uniform periods, and the random access resources corresponding to different coverage areas can have different period configurations, for example, for the area under the star / low access demand area, relatively shorter period random access resources can be configured, and for the edge area / high access demand area, relatively longer period random access resources can be configured. In this way, the periods of random access resources of different areas can be configured individually, thereby being able to adapt to the scenario of uneven user distribution, improving the flexibility of resource allocation, and realizing the optimized use of resources.

[0009] In a possible implementation, the first indication information includes a first random access resource index, the second periodic random access resource is indicated by second indication information, the second indication information includes a second random access resource index, the first random access resource index is associated with the first periodic random access resource, the first random access resource index corresponds to the first SSB index group, the second random access resource index is associated with the second periodic random access resource, and the second random access resource index corresponds to the second SSB index group.

[0010] In the above embodiment, the entire cell can support multiple periodic configurations of random access resources, different areas have different periodic configurations of random access resources, and different periodic configurations of random access resources correspond to different SSB index groups. The first random access resource index included in the first indication information and the second random access resource index included in the second indication information directly indicate the random access resources corresponding to the periods, so as to realize the optimized allocation of random access resources and improve the utilization rate of random access resources.

[0011] In another possible implementation, the first indication information further includes a first sparsity factor, the second periodic configuration of random access resources is indicated by second indication information, and the second indication information further includes a second sparsity factor. The first sparsity factor is used to indicate a multiple of the period size of the first periodic configuration of random access resources, and the second sparsity factor is used to indicate a multiple of the period size of the second periodic configuration of random access resources.

[0012] In the above embodiment, the optimized allocation of random access resources and the improved utilization rate of random access resources can be realized by indicating a multiple of the period size of random access resources.

[0013] In another possible implementation, the first indication information further includes half-frame indication information, and the half-frame indication information is used to indicate a period in which the first periodic configuration of random access resources is transmitted.

[0014] In the above embodiment, the half-frame indication information can be used to indicate which range of the period of random access resources corresponding to the current SSB index group is, so as to realize the optimized allocation of random access resources and improve the utilization rate of random access resources.

[0015] In another possible implementation, the first indication information further includes a bitmap of random access resources, and the first indication information is specifically used to indicate the first periodic configuration of random access resources by the bitmap. The value of each bit in the bitmap is used to represent whether the corresponding random access resource is valid or invalid.

[0016] In the above embodiment, the optimized allocation of random access resources and the improved utilization rate of random access resources can be realized by indicating the random access resources corresponding to the period by the bitmap of random access resources.

[0017] In a further possible implementation, the method further includes: receiving third indication information, wherein the third indication information is used to indicate random access resources of a third period, the random access resources of the third period belong to one of the random access resources of the plurality of candidate periods, the random access resources of the third period correspond to a third coverage area, the third coverage area corresponds to a third SSB index group, and the first coverage area and the third coverage area belong to a same cell.

[0018] In the above implementation, in a case where the first communication device (for example, the terminal 1) moves from one area to another area, the terminal 1 can receive, in the current coverage area (the third coverage area), third indication information used to indicate random access resources of a third period. In this way, even if the terminal moves to other coverage areas, the optimized allocation of random access resources can be achieved, and the utilization rate of random access resources is improved.

[0019] In a further possible implementation, the random access resources of the second period and / or the random access resources of the first period or the random access resources of the third period are predefined; or the random access resources of the second period and / or the random access resources of the first period or the random access resources of the third period are determined by the second communication device.

[0020] In the above implementation, the present solution provides a plurality of determination manners of the random access resources of the corresponding period, so that the determination of the random access resources of the corresponding period is more diversified.

[0021] In a further possible implementation, the uniform period of the same cell is obtained according to time-frequency RO resources.

[0022] In the above implementation, for example, if the random access resources of a cell are accessed intensively, the second communication device can configure the random access resources of the cell with a uniform period. In this way, since the random access resources of the entire cell are accessed intensively, configuring the random access resources of the cell with a uniform period can also adapt to a scenario where users are unevenly distributed, and the optimized utilization of resources is achieved.

[0023] In a second aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication method applied to a second communication device, which can be, for example, a network device or a communication module in the network device, or a circuit or chip responsible for communication functions in the network device (such as a modem chip, also known as a baseband chip, or a system on chip (SoC) chip or a system in package (SIP) chip containing a modem core). The method comprises: determining first indication information, wherein the first indication information is used to indicate random access resources of a first period, the random access resources of the first period belong to one of a plurality of candidate period random access resources, the plurality of candidate period random access resources also include random access resources of a second period, the random access resources of the first period correspond to a first coverage area, the random access resources of the second period correspond to a second coverage area, the first coverage area corresponds to a first SSB index group, the second coverage area corresponds to a second SSB index group, and the first coverage area and the second coverage area belong to the same cell. The first communication device is sent the first indication information.

[0024] In the present application, taking a cell including a plurality of coverage areas as an example, different coverage areas correspond to random access resources of different periods, and the second communication device can send corresponding indication information according to different coverage areas. The indication information sent is used to indicate random access resources of a corresponding period. The random access resources of different coverage areas do not need to be configured with uniform periods, and different periods can be configured for random access resources with different coverage areas. For example, for the area under the star / low access demand area, relatively shorter period random access resources can be configured, and for the edge area / high access demand area, relatively longer period random access resources can be configured. In this way, the periods of random access resources of different areas can be configured individually, thereby being able to adapt to scenarios where users are unevenly distributed, improving the flexibility of resource allocation, and realizing optimized use of resources.

[0025] In a possible implementation, the first indication information includes a first random access resource index, the random access resources of the second period are indicated by second indication information, the second indication information includes a second random access resource index, the first random access resource index is associated with the random access resources of the first period, the first random access resource index corresponds to the first SSB index group, the second random access resource index is associated with the random access resources of the second period, and the second random access resource index corresponds to the second SSB index group.

[0026] In a further possible implementation, the first indication information further comprises a first sparsity factor, the second periodic random access resource is indicated by second indication information, the second indication information further comprises a second sparsity factor, the first sparsity factor is used to indicate a multiple of a periodic size of the first periodic random access resource, and the second sparsity factor is used to indicate a multiple of a periodic size of the second periodic random access resource.

[0027] In a further possible implementation, the first indication information further comprises half-frame indication information, the half-frame indication information is used to indicate a period of transmission of the first periodic random access resource.

[0028] In a further possible implementation, the first indication information further comprises a bitmap of the random access resource, the first indication information is specifically used to indicate the first periodic random access resource by the bitmap, and a value of each bit in the bitmap is used to represent that a corresponding random access resource is valid or invalid.

[0029] In a further possible implementation, the method further comprises: determining third indication information, wherein the third indication information is used to indicate a third periodic random access resource, the third periodic random access resource belongs to one of the plurality of candidate periodic random access resources, the third periodic random access resource corresponds to a third coverage area, the third coverage area corresponds to a third SSB index group, and the first coverage area and the third coverage area belong to a same cell. The third indication information is sent to the first communication apparatus.

[0030] In a further possible implementation, the second periodic random access resource and / or the first periodic random access resource or the third periodic random access resource is predefined, or the second periodic random access resource and / or the first periodic random access resource or the third periodic random access resource is determined.

[0031] In a further possible implementation, the method further comprises: determining a uniform period of a same cell according to a time-frequency RO resource.

[0032] In a third aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication apparatus, which can be used for the first communication apparatus in the first aspect, can be a terminal, a device (for example, a chip, or a chip system, or a circuit) in the terminal, or a device capable of being matched with the terminal, and can also be a logic module or software capable of realizing all or part of terminal functions.

[0033] In a possible implementation, the communication apparatus can include a module or unit corresponding to each of the methods / operations / steps / actions described in the first aspect, which can be a hardware circuit, software, or a combination of hardware circuit and software.

[0034] In a fourth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication apparatus, which can be used in the second communication apparatus of the second aspect. The communication apparatus can be a network device, a device (for example, a chip or a chip system or a circuit) in the network device, or a device capable of being matched with the network device, or a logic module or software capable of implementing all or part of the functions of the network device.

[0035] In a possible implementation, the communication apparatus can include a module or unit corresponding to each of the methods / operations / steps / actions described in the second aspect, which can be a hardware circuit, software, or a combination of hardware circuit and software.

[0036] In a fifth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication apparatus, which includes at least one processor and a communication interface. The communication interface is configured to input and / or output information, and the at least one processor is configured to invoke a computer program stored in at least one memory to implement the method described in any of the embodiments of the first aspect or the second aspect.

[0037] In a possible implementation, the communication apparatus further includes the at least one memory. Optionally, the memory and the processor are integrated.

[0038] In a sixth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication apparatus, which includes a logic circuit and an interface. The logic circuit and the interface are coupled. The interface is configured to input and / or output information, and the logic circuit is configured to implement the method described in any of the embodiments of the first aspect to the second aspect.

[0039] In a possible implementation of the sixth aspect, the communication apparatus is a chip or a chip system.

[0040] In a seventh aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication system, which includes a first communication apparatus and a second communication apparatus. The first communication apparatus and the second communication apparatus are communicatively connected. The first communication apparatus is configured to implement the method of any of the embodiments of the first aspect, and the second communication apparatus is configured to implement the method of any of the embodiments of the second aspect.

[0041] In an eighth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a computer readable storage medium, which is configured to store instructions or a computer program. When the instructions or the computer program are executed, the method of any of the embodiments of the first aspect to the second aspect is implemented.

[0042] In a ninth aspect, the present application provides a computer program product, which comprises computer instructions, when the instructions are run on at least one processor, can implement the method in any of the foregoing first aspect to the second aspect or any possible implementation manner. Illustratively, the computer program product can be a software installation package, when the foregoing method is needed, the computer program product can be downloaded and executed on a computing device.

[0043] The technical solutions provided by the second aspect to the ninth aspect of the present application can refer to the beneficial effects of the technical solutions of the first aspect, which will not be repeated here. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0044] Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of a communication system provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0045] Figure 2a is a schematic diagram of a communication system in a transparent transmission scenario provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0046] Figure 2b and Figure 2c is a schematic diagram of a communication system in a regeneration scenario provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0047] Figure 3 is a schematic diagram of a scanning coverage area provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0048] Figure 4 is a flowchart of a communication method provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0049] Figure 5 is a schematic diagram of a sparse factor provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0050] Figure 6 is a schematic diagram of a bit pattern provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0051] Figure 7 is a schematic diagram of a communication device 70 provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0052] Figure 8 is a schematic diagram of another communication device 80 provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0053] Figure 9 is a schematic diagram of still another communication device 90 provided by an embodiment of the present application. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0054] The following first describes the related names or terms involved in the present application, so as to facilitate the understanding of those skilled in the art.

[0055] 1. Beam

[0056] The embodiment of the beam in the NR protocol can be a spatial domain filter, or a spatial filter, or a spatial domain parameter, a spatial parameter, a spatial domain setting, a spatial setting, or quasi-colocation (QCL) information, QCL assumption, QCL indication, etc. The beam can be indicated by a transmission configuration indication state (TCI-state) parameter, or by a spatial relation parameter. Therefore, in this application, the beam can be replaced by a spatial domain filter, a spatial filter, a spatial domain parameter, a spatial parameter, a spatial domain setting, a spatial setting, QCL information, QCL assumption, QCL indication, TCI-state (DL TCI-state, UL TCI-state), spatial relation, etc. The above terms are also equivalent to each other. The beam can also be replaced by other terms representing the beam, which are not limited in this application.

[0057] The beam used for transmitting a signal can be referred to as a transmission beam (Tx beam), and can also be referred to as a spatial domain transmission filter, a spatial transmission filter, a spatial domain transmission parameter or a spatial transmission parameter, a spatial domain transmission setting or a spatial transmission setting. The downlink transmission beam can be indicated by a TCI-state.

[0058] The beam used to receive signals can be called a reception beam (Rx beam), a spatial domain reception filter, a spatial reception filter, a spatial domain reception parameter, a spatial domain reception setting, or a spatial reception setting. The uplink transmit beam can be indicated by a spatial relation, an uplink TCI-state, or an SRS resource (indicating the transmit beam using that SRS). Therefore, the uplink beam can also be replaced by an SRS resource.

[0059] The transmitting beam can refer to the distribution of signal strength in different directions in space after a signal is transmitted through an antenna, while the receiving beam can refer to the distribution of signal strength in different directions in space of a wireless signal received from an antenna.

[0060] Furthermore, the beam can be a wide beam, a narrow beam, or other types of beam. The beamforming technology can be beamforming technology or other technologies. Specifically, beamforming technology can be digital beamforming technology, analog beamforming technology, or hybrid digital / analog beamforming technology, etc.

[0061] Beams are generally associated with resources. For example, during beam measurement, network devices measure different beams using different resources. The terminal provides feedback on the measured resource quality, allowing the network device to determine the quality of the corresponding beam. During data transmission, beam information is also indicated through its corresponding resources. For instance, network devices use the TCI field in DCI to indicate the terminal's PDSCH beam information.

[0062] Optionally, multiple beams with the same or similar communication characteristics can be considered as a single beam. A beam may include one or more antenna ports for transmitting data channels, control channels, and detection signals, etc. One or more antenna ports forming a beam can also be considered as a set of antenna ports.

[0063] In the embodiments of this application, unless otherwise specified, a beam refers to the transmit beam of a network device. In beam measurement, each beam of a network device corresponds to a resource, and therefore the beam corresponding to that resource can be uniquely identified by the resource index.

[0064] 2. Coverage Area

[0065] Coverage area can be used to indicate the projection range of a beam on the ground or the range where a signal can reach. By adjusting the antenna weights, a base station can direct its transmitted beam in different directions, resulting in different coverage areas. In this embodiment, the coverage area refers to the beam's coverage area on the ground. The coverage area changes as the satellite moves and the weights are adjusted.

[0066] To facilitate understanding of the technical solution of this application, the application will be further described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0067] The method provided in this application can be applied to non-terrestrial networks (NTN) communication systems, such as... Figure 1 As shown, the communication system may include a first communication device, a second communication device, and a ground station (also referred to as a gateway station or signaling station). Exemplarily, the first communication device may be a terminal, and the second communication device may be a satellite. It is understood that... Figure 1 Only one satellite and one ground station are shown. In actual use, a multi-satellite and / or multi-ground station architecture can be adopted as needed. Each satellite can provide services to one or more terminals, each satellite can correspond to one or more ground stations, and each ground station can correspond to one or more satellites, etc. This application does not specifically limit the scope of the embodiments. The method provided in this application can be applied to Internet of Things (IoT) systems, Vehicle to X (V2X) systems, and Narrow Band Internet of Things (NB-IoT) systems; it can also be applied to LTE Frequency Division Duplex (FDD) systems, LTE Time Division Duplex (TDD) systems, Long Term Evolution (LTE) systems, 5th Generation (5G) communication systems, 6th Generation (6G) communication systems, or future communication systems, etc. This application does not specifically limit the scope of the embodiments.

[0068] A terminal is a device with wireless transceiver capabilities. It can communicate with access network equipment (or access devices) in a radio access network (RAN). A terminal can also be referred to as user equipment (UE), access terminal, subscriber unit, user station, mobile station, remote station, remote terminal, mobile device, user agent, or user device, etc. In one possible implementation, the terminal can be deployed on land, including indoors or outdoors, handheld or vehicle-mounted; it can also be deployed on water (such as on a ship). In one possible implementation, the terminal can be a handheld device with wireless communication capabilities, a vehicle-mounted device, a wearable device, a sensor, a terminal in the Internet of Things (IoT), a terminal in the Internet of Vehicles (IoV), a drone, a 5G network, or any form of terminal in future networks, etc., and this application embodiment does not limit this. Exemplarily, terminals can also communicate with each other via device-to-device (D2D) and machine-to-machine (M2M) communication. The terminal shown in this application embodiment can also be a device in the Internet of Things (IoT). This IoT network may include, for example, a vehicle-to-everything (V2X) network. The communication methods in the V2X system are collectively referred to as vehicle-to-other-device (V2X), where X can represent anything. For example, V2X may include: vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) communication, vehicle-to-infrastructure (V2I) communication, vehicle-to-pedestrian (V2P) communication, or vehicle-to-network (V2N) communication, etc.

[0069] Ground stations can be used to connect satellites to base stations or satellites to the core network. Satellites can provide wireless access services to terminals, allocate wireless resources to accessing terminals, and provide reliable wireless transmission protocols and data encryption protocols. As an example, satellites can serve as base stations for wireless communication, such as evolved NodeBs (eNBs) and next-generation node Bs (gNBs). As another example, satellites can also act as relays for these base stations, transmitting their signals to terminals.

[0070] Therefore, in some implementations of this application, such as in a satellite transparent transmission scenario, the network device can provide...Figure 1 The base station shown is also called a ground base station. Figure 2a This is a schematic diagram of a communication system in a transparent transmission scenario provided in an embodiment of this application. Exemplarily, the terminal can access the network through an air interface (which can be various types of air interfaces, such as a 5G air interface), and the network equipment can be deployed on a ground base station. The satellite is connected to the ground station via a wireless link. The ground station and the ground base station are connected to the core network via wired or wireless means. Wireless links can exist between satellites. Figure 2a In the system shown, the satellite can have transparent transmission and forwarding capabilities. In other implementations of this application, such as in satellite regeneration scenarios, the network device can... Figure 1 The satellite shown. Figure 2b This is a schematic diagram of a communication system in a regeneration scenario provided by an embodiment of this application. Exemplarily, a terminal can access the network via an air interface (which can be various types of air interfaces, such as a 5G air interface), and network equipment can be deployed on satellites (e.g., in satellite regeneration mode). For example, base stations or some base station functions can be deployed on satellites, and satellites can complete signaling interaction and user data transmission between base stations. Figure 2c As shown.

[0071] For example, Figure 2a to Figure 2c The various network elements and their interfaces can be seen as follows:

[0072] Terminals can access the satellite network via the air interface and initiate calls, access the internet, and perform other services. Base stations can provide wireless access services, allocate wireless resources to accessing terminals, and provide reliable wireless transmission protocols and data encryption protocols. Ground stations can be responsible for forwarding signaling and service data between the satellite and the core network. The core network can be used for user access control, mobility management, session management, user security authentication, and billing. The core network can consist of multiple functional units, such as functional entities including control plane and data plane components. For example, Figure 2a to Figure 2c The core network shown may include access and mobility management functions (AMF), session management functions (SMF), and user plane functions (UPF). For example, AMF can be used to manage user access, security authentication, and mobility management. UPF can be used to manage user plane data transmission and traffic statistics. Figure 2a to Figure 2cThe air interface shown can be understood as the wireless link between the terminal and the base station, or the wireless link between the satellite and the ground station; the Xn interface can be understood as the interface between base stations, mainly used for signaling interaction such as handover; the NG interface can be used as the interface between the base station and the core network, used for exchanging non-access stratum (NAS) signaling of the core network, as well as user service data. In systems with different wireless access technologies, the names of devices with base station functions may vary, and they will not be shown one by one in the embodiments of this application.

[0073] The satellite can be a geostationary Earth orbit (GEO) satellite, a non-geostationary Earth orbit (NGEO) medium Earth orbit (MEO) satellite, or a low Earth orbit (LEO) satellite, or a high altitude platform station (HAPS), etc. This application does not limit the specific type of satellite.

[0074] In some network device deployments, the network device may include a centralized unit (CU) and a distributed unit (DU). In other network device deployments, the CU may be divided into a CU-control plane (CP) and a CU-user plane (UP). In still other network device deployments, the network device may be an open radio access network (ORAN) architecture, etc. This application embodiment does not limit the specific deployment method of the network device. For example, when the network device is an ORAN architecture, the network device shown in this application embodiment may be an access network device in ORAN, or a functional module, etc. In the ORAN system, the CU may also be called an open (O)-CU, the DU may also be called an O-DU, the CU-CP may also be called an O-CU-CP, and the CU-UP may also be called an O-CU-UP, etc. The network device deployment methods listed here are only examples; as standard technologies evolve, network devices may have other deployment forms.

[0075] The network architecture and business scenarios described in the embodiments of this application are for the purpose of more clearly illustrating the technical solutions of the embodiments of this application, and do not constitute a limitation on the technical solutions provided in the embodiments of this application. As those skilled in the art will know, with the evolution of network architecture and the emergence of new business scenarios, the technical solutions and network architectures provided in the embodiments of this application are also applicable to similar technical problems.

[0076] Currently, when a terminal accesses a cell, it receives a downlink synchronization signal to achieve downlink synchronization. Downlink synchronization signals in different coverage directions have different SSB indices. In multi-cell scenarios, SSBs can be used in groups to scan the entire coverage area of ​​the cell. Please refer to [link to relevant documentation]. Figure 3 , Figure 3 This is a schematic diagram of a scanning coverage area provided in an embodiment of this application, such as... Figure 3 As shown, the system scans four SSBs (e.g., SSB0-3 or SSB4-7) every 20ms, with the remaining time available for access and communication. In some schemes, the random access resource period for a cell is the same (e.g., the period of the random access resources corresponding to SSB0-3, shown in black in the figure). In a single-satellite, multi-cell scenario, different random access resources can be configured for each cell to match the uneven distribution of users (e.g., the period of the random access resources corresponding to SSB4-7, shown in alternating black and white in the figure). However, if a satellite is a single cell, or if the cell has a very large coverage area with multiple SSB beam directions, the satellite coverage area is large. If different areas within a cell use the same period of random access resources, it may not be able to adapt to the uneven distribution of users, hindering optimal resource utilization.

[0077] In view of this, embodiments of this application provide a communication method and related apparatus. A first communication apparatus can receive corresponding indication information based on different coverage areas. The received indication information is used to indicate random access resources for a corresponding period. Random access resources in different coverage areas do not need to be configured with a uniform period. Different period configurations can be used for random access resources in different coverage areas. For example, for sub-satellite areas / areas with low access demand, relatively shorter period random access resources can be configured, while for edge areas / areas with high access demand, relatively longer period random access resources can be configured. In this way, the period of random access resources in different areas can be configured specifically and individually, thereby adapting to scenarios with uneven user distribution, improving the flexibility of resource allocation, and achieving optimized resource utilization.

[0078] The communication methods shown below (such as) Figure 4 For a detailed description of the first and second communication devices, please refer to [reference needed].Figure 1 , Figure 2a to Figure 2c Details will not be elaborated here. For ease of description, specific examples in the embodiments of this application may be illustrated using terminals and network devices, but this should not be construed as a limitation on the embodiments of this application.

[0079] The embodiments of this application will now be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0080] Please see Figure 4 , Figure 4 This is a flowchart illustrating a communication method provided in an embodiment of this application. The flowchart describes the interaction between a first communication device and a second communication device as executing entities. The first communication device can be a terminal as an independent device, a communication module within a terminal, or a circuit or chip within a terminal responsible for communication functions (such as a modem chip, also known as a baseband chip, or a System-on-Chip (SoC) chip containing a modem core, or a System-in-Package (SIP) chip). The second communication device can be a satellite as an independent device, or a component within an independent device, such as a satellite processor, chip, or chip system, or a logic module or software capable of implementing all or part of the satellite's functions. Optionally, this method can be applied to a communication system, for example, to... Figure 1 , Figure 2a to Figure 2c The communication system shown.

[0081] like Figure 4 The method shown may include multiple steps in steps S401-S403. It should be understood that this application describes the method in the order of steps S401-S403 for ease of description, and is not intended to limit the execution to this specific order. The embodiments of this application do not limit the order of execution, the execution time, or the number of executions of one or more of the above steps. Steps S401-S403 are as follows:

[0082] Step S401: The second communication device determines the first instruction information.

[0083] The first indication information is used to indicate the random access resources of the first period. The random access resources of the first period belong to one of the random access resources of multiple candidate periods. The random access resources of the first period correspond to the first coverage area, and the first coverage area corresponds to the first SSB index group. For example, the random access resources of multiple candidate periods include "random access resource 1 with a period of 5ms", "random access resource 1 with a period of 10ms", "random access resource 2 with a period of 15ms", "random access resource 2 with a period of 20ms", "random access resource 3 with a period of 25ms", etc. The random access resources of the first period are "random access resource 1 with a period of 5ms". "Random access resource 1 with a period of 5ms" corresponds to coverage area 1, and coverage area 1 corresponds to SSB index group 1.

[0084] Optionally, the random access resources for multiple candidate periods may also include random access resources for a second period, which correspond to a second coverage area and a second SSB index group. For example, the random access resource for the second period is "random access resource 2 with a period of 15ms," which corresponds to coverage area 2, and coverage area 2 corresponds to SSB index group 2.

[0085] In this context, the first coverage area and the second coverage area belong to the same cell, and both the first and second coverage areas are partial areas within a cell corresponding to the second communication device. The first and second coverage areas are exemplary names used to distinguish a particular coverage area. For example, when there is only one second coverage area, the first coverage area is coverage area 1, and the second coverage area is coverage area 2; coverage area 1 and coverage area 2 both belong to cell 1 under satellite coverage. Similarly, when there are multiple second coverage areas, the first coverage area is area 1, and the multiple second coverage areas are coverage area 2, coverage area 3, and coverage area 4; coverage area 1, coverage area 2, coverage area 3, and coverage area 4 all belong to cell 1 under satellite coverage.

[0086] Optionally, the second communication device can divide the coverage area in several ways. Three examples of how the second communication device can divide the coverage area are described below, using a satellite as an example:

[0087] Method 1: The coverage area division is based on historical terminal access data.

[0088] For example, historical terminal access data shows that there is more user demand in coverage area 1 and less user demand in coverage area 2. Therefore, the satellite can divide the main coverage area into coverage area 1 and coverage area 2.

[0089] Method 2: The coverage area is divided based on the location of cities on the ground.

[0090] For example, taking the Shanghai and Tibet regions as examples, based on population statistics, the Shanghai region has a relatively dense population distribution and a large demand for terminal access and users, while the Tibet region has a relatively sparse population distribution and a small demand for terminal access and users. Under these circumstances, the satellite can divide the Shanghai region into coverage area 1 and the Tibet region into coverage area 2.

[0091] Method 3: The coverage area division is based on the satellite's direction of motion.

[0092] Optionally, the satellite's motion direction information can be obtained from its configuration parameters. Alternatively, the satellite's motion direction information can be uploaded manually. This information can be, but is not limited to, the satellite's motion direction configuration information or its ephemeris information.

[0093] Optionally, the satellite's motion direction information can be retrieved from the satellite's configuration parameters at preset intervals to ensure that the updated motion direction information is obtained promptly when the satellite's motion direction configuration information in the configuration parameters is updated. The preset interval can be set as needed, and this application does not limit it.

[0094] Optionally, the satellite's ephemeris information can be derived from high-precision initial orbit parameters fitted using orbit fitting methods. Based on this, an orbit for a preset time period can be extrapolated (e.g., the satellite's orbital root at the epoch time can be injected by the ground control center, and the satellite uses a traditional analytical method to extrapolate 7 days of orbital data; alternatively, the satellite's orbital root at the epoch time can be injected by the ground, and the satellite uses a numerical method to extrapolate the orbital data for a preset time period using an integrator; the granularity of the preset time period can be seconds, minutes, hours, or days). An algorithmic model can determine the satellite's trajectory within a preset time period based on the initial orbit parameters. For example, the algorithmic model can determine the satellite's position at time t1 based on the orbital parameters. However, due to the large error in satellite orbit extrapolation, if the ephemeris at time t0 has a limited lifespan (e.g., 15–40 seconds), the ephemeris needs to be searched again to update the satellite's trajectory after the lifespan expires.

[0095] Alternatively, the coverage area division can be determined by the satellite or ground satellite orbit control center based on the satellite's direction of motion.

[0096] Optionally, the coverage area division is obtained based on the satellite's motion trajectory or ephemeris information. For example, if the satellite's motion trajectory is from a sparsely populated area to a densely populated area, the satellite can divide the area into coverage area 1 and coverage area 2 based on the motion trajectory.

[0097] The first indication information is an exemplary name used to distinguish a particular indication information. Optionally, since the first coverage area and the second coverage area are different, the configuration within the first indication information configured by the second communication device according to the first coverage area and the configuration within the second indication information configured by the second communication device according to the second coverage area are also different. For example, the first indication information is SIB1#1, the second indication information is SIB1#2, and the configurations within SIB1#1 and SIB1#2 are different.

[0098] Alternatively, when there are multiple second coverage areas, each second coverage area can be configured with corresponding second indication information. For example, the multiple second coverage areas are coverage area 2, coverage area 3, and coverage area 4. In this case, the second indication information configured for coverage area 2 is SIB1#2, the second indication information configured for coverage area 3 is SIB1#3, and the second indication information configured for coverage area 4 is SIB1#4.

[0099] In one possible implementation, the first indication information includes a first random access resource index, and the random access resources of the second period are indicated by the second indication information, which includes a second random access resource index. The first random access resource index is associated with the random access resources of the first period and corresponds to a first SSB index group. The second random access resource index is associated with the random access resources of the second period and corresponds to a second SSB index group.

[0100] For example, as shown in Table 1, the identifier of the first random access resource index is "Random Access Configuration Index A", the random access resource for the first period is "Random Access Resource 1 with a period of 5ms", and the name of the SSB index group corresponding to "Random Access Configuration Index A" is "SSB Index Group 1". Similarly, the identifier of the second random access resource index is "Random Access Configuration Index B", the random access resource for the second period is "Random Access Resource 2 with a period of 15ms", and the name of the SSB index group corresponding to "Random Access Configuration Index B" is "SSB Index Group 2".

[0101] In this application, the entire cell can support the periodic configuration of multiple random access resources. Different areas have different periods of random access resources, and the random access resources of different periods correspond to different SSB index groups. This solution intuitively indicates the random access resources of the corresponding period through the first random access resource index included in the first indication information and the second random access resource index included in the second indication information, thereby realizing the optimized allocation of random access resources and improving the utilization rate of random access resources.

[0102] Table 1

[0103] Identification of random access resource index Period of random access resource SSB index group name Random access resource index A Random access resource 1 with period 5ms SSB index group 1 Random access resource index B Random access resource 2 with period 15ms SSB index group 2 Random access resource index C Random access resource 2 with period 20ms SSB index group 3

[0104] Optionally, before the second communication device operates, it can pre-determine the uniform period for the same cell based on the time-frequency RO resources. For example, if cell 1 is a relatively densely populated area with high terminal access and user demand, the second communication device can configure or agree on relatively more time-frequency RO resources for cell 1, and then determine the uniform period for cell 1 based on the RO resources. The uniform period for cell 1 could be 40ms. Conversely, if cell 1 is a relatively sparsely populated area with low terminal access and user demand, the second communication device can configure or agree on relatively fewer time-frequency RO resources for cell 1, and then determine the uniform period for cell 1 as 20ms based on the RO resources.

[0105] Alternatively, after configuring a uniform period for the same cell, the second communication device can also indicate the sparsity factor corresponding to each SSB index group separately.

[0106] In one possible design, the first indication information further includes a first sparsity factor, and the random access resources of the second period are indicated by the second indication information, which also includes a second sparsity factor. The first sparsity factor is used to indicate a multiple of the period size of the random access resources of the first period, and the second sparsity factor is used to indicate a multiple of the period size of the random access resources of the second period.

[0107] For example, please see Figure 5 , Figure 5 This is a schematic diagram of a sparsity factor provided in an embodiment of this application, such as... Figure 5 As shown, Figure 5 (a) in the text indicates a uniform period for the same cell (e.g., a uniform period of 40ms for the same cell). Figure 5 In the diagram, (b) represents the first sparsity factor (e.g., sparsity factor 2), which indicates a multiple of the period size of the random access resource in the first period (e.g., half of the period of the random access resource corresponding to the current SSB index group 1 is 20ms). Figure 5(c) in the figure represents the second sparsity factor (e.g., sparsity factor 4), which indicates the multiple of the period size of the random access resource in the second period (e.g., 1 / 4 of the period of the random access resource corresponding to the current SSB index group 2 is 10ms).

[0108] Alternatively, the second communication device may not be configured with a uniform period for the same cell, but may instead directly indicate the sparsity factor corresponding to each SSB index group.

[0109] As one possible implementation, the first indication information further includes half-frame indication information, which is used to indicate the period of the random access resources for transmitting the first period.

[0110] Specifically, since the minimum SSB period supported in the existing standard is 5ms, there may be situations where SSB index groups appear simultaneously in the first half of the frame and / or the second half. Therefore, it is necessary to use the master information block (MIB) to indicate whether the current SSB index group is in the first half of the frame or the second half. In the context of supercells, the SSB index group can be placed in the first half of the frame by configuration or protocol agreement. This half-frame indication information is then used to indicate the characteristics of random access resources. In other words, the half-frame indication information indicates which period of random access resources the current SSB index group corresponds to.

[0111] For example, combined Figure 5 When the index of the half-frame indication information is 0, it indicates that the period of the random access resources corresponding to the current SSB index group is the same period of the same cell (i.e., Figure 5 (a) shows the period of the random access resource; when the index of the half-frame indication information is 1, it indicates that the period of the random access resource corresponding to the current SSB index group is 1 / 2 of the uniform period of the same cell (i.e., Figure 5 (The period of the random access resource shown in (b) above). It should be noted that the specific index value of the above half-frame indication information and the period of the random access resource indicated by the index value are only examples, and this application does not limit them.

[0112] Because NTN satellite beams are relatively large, the above embodiment illustrates how different periods can be allocated to random access resources corresponding to different SSB index groups. Different periods can also be allocated to random access resources corresponding to different SSB indices within the same SSB index group. In other words, resource allocation optimization between regions can be achieved first through differences in random access resources between different SSB index groups. For resource optimization within certain regions, further configuration can be achieved through higher-layer signaling. For example, the second communication device indicates the unevenly distributed SSB indices within SSB index group 1. For the SSB indices within SSB index group 1, the resource allocation within the group can be indicated, for example, using a bit pattern.

[0113] As one possible implementation, the first indication information also includes a bit pattern of random access resources. Specifically, the first indication information is used to indicate the random access resources of the first period through the bit pattern, and the value of each bit in the bit pattern is used to indicate whether the corresponding random access resources are active or inactive.

[0114] Specifically, each X random access resources can be divided into a group (where X represents the number of random access resources corresponding to an SSB index), and a group of random access resources corresponds to an SSB index. A bit pattern is used to indicate whether all or some of the random access resources in the random access group are active.

[0115] For example, please see Figure 6 , Figure 6 This is a schematic diagram of a bit pattern provided in an embodiment of this application, such as... Figure 6 As shown, this bit pattern includes SSB index group 1 and SSB index group 2. SSB index group 1 includes four SSB indices: SSB0, SSB1, SSB2, and SSB3. SSB index group 2 includes four SSB indices: SSB4, SSB5, SSB6, and SSB7. Taking SSB index group 1 as an example, SSB0 corresponds to random access resource group 1, which includes random access resource A and random access resource B. SSB1 corresponds to random access resource group 2, which includes random access resource C and random access resource D. SSB2 corresponds to random access resource group 3, which includes random access resource E and random access resource F. SSB3 corresponds to random access resource group 4, which includes random access resource G and random access resource H. Figure 6The SFN0 in the bit pattern shown includes 4 bits. The value of each of the 4 bits is used to indicate whether the corresponding random access resource is active or inactive. For example, if the first bit is 1, it means that all random access resources in random access resource group 1 are active; if the second bit is 0, it means that some random access resources in random access resource group 2 are active; if the third bit is 0, it means that some random access resources in random access resource group 3 are active; and if the fourth bit is 0, it means that some random access resources in random access resource group 4 are active.

[0116] Taking SSB index group 2 as an example again, SSB4 corresponds to random access resource group 1, which includes random access resource A and random access resource B; SSB5 corresponds to random access resource group 2, which includes random access resource C and random access resource D; SSB6 corresponds to random access resource group 3, which includes random access resource E and random access resource F; and SSB7 corresponds to random access resource group 4, which includes random access resource G and random access resource H. Figure 6 The SFN2 in the bit pattern shown includes 4 bits. The value of each of the 4 bits is used to indicate whether the corresponding random access resource is active or inactive. For example, the first bit being 0 indicates that some of the random access resources in random access resource group 1 are active, the second bit being 1 indicates that all the random access resources in random access resource group 2 are active, the third bit being 1 indicates that all the random access resources in random access resource group 3 are active, and the fourth bit being 0 indicates that some of the random access resources in random access resource group 4 are active.

[0117] Step S402: The second communication device sends a first instruction message to the first communication device.

[0118] Accordingly, the first communication device receives the first instruction information.

[0119] In some schemes, the second communication device can also determine a third instruction and send the third instruction to the first communication device.

[0120] Accordingly, the first communication device receives the third instruction information.

[0121] The third indication information is used to indicate the random access resources of the third cycle. The random access resources of the third cycle belong to one of the random access resources of multiple candidate cycles. The random access resources of the third cycle correspond to the third coverage area. The third coverage area corresponds to the third SSB index group. The first coverage area and the third coverage area belong to the same cell.

[0122] For example, the random access resource for the third period is "random access resource 3 with a period of 25ms", "random access resource 3 with a period of 25ms" corresponds to coverage area 3, and coverage area 3 corresponds to SSB index group 3. Combined with... Figure 5 , Figure 5 The (d) in the figure represents the third sparsity factor (e.g., sparsity factor 8), which indicates the multiple of the period size of the random access resource in the third period (e.g., 1 / 8 of the period of the random access resource corresponding to the current SSB index group 3 is 5ms).

[0123] Alternatively, if the triggering condition is met, the second communication device sends a third instruction message to the first communication device.

[0124] For example, the triggering conditions include at least one of the following:

[0125] (1) Meets the preset distribution period. Optionally, the distribution period can be a distribution frequency. Further optionally, the preset distribution period can be the same as or different from the third period. For example, the distribution period can be the distribution period of random access resources or other periods. For example, the preset distribution period can be a random access resource distribution once every 10ms, or a random access resource distribution twice every 10ms.

[0126] (2) The fluctuation of the reference signal received power or reference signal received quality is greater than the first preset range. In some cases, if the fluctuation of the reference signal received power or reference signal received quality of the first communication device relative to the second communication device is greater than the first preset range, the first communication device may have exceeded the first coverage area of ​​the second communication device, for example, moved to the third coverage area. For example, suppose that initially the reference signal received power of the first communication device relative to the second communication device is -95dBm, and after a period of time the reference signal received power of the first communication device relative to the second communication device is -100dBm. As can be seen from the above, the fluctuation of the reference signal received power is 5dBm, and the first preset range is 1dBm to 3dBm. It can be seen that after a period of time, the fluctuation of the reference signal received power of the first communication device relative to the second communication device exceeds the first preset range compared to the initial reference signal received power of the first communication device relative to the second communication device. Therefore, it can be determined that the position of the first communication device has exceeded the first coverage area of ​​the second communication device, for example, moved to the third coverage area. In this case, since different coverage areas correspond to random access resources of different periods, the second communication device needs to send new indication information to the first communication device. In this way, even if the terminal moves to other coverage areas, the allocation of random access resources can be optimized, thereby improving the utilization rate of random access resources.

[0127] (3) The difference between the current time of the random access resource to be sent and the time of the most recent random access resource transmission is greater than or equal to a first time value. For example, suppose the initial time of the second communication device's most recent transmission of random access resources was 5ms, and the current time of the random access resource to be sent is 7ms, the difference is 2ms, and the first time value is 2ms. It can be seen that the difference between the current time of the random access resource to be sent and the time of the most recent transmission is equal to the first time value of 2ms, thus triggering the second communication device to send a third indication message to the first communication device. As another example, suppose the initial time of the second communication device's most recent transmission of random access resources was 5ms, and the current time of the random access resource to be sent is 7.5ms, the difference is 2.5ms, and the first time value is 2ms. It can be seen that the difference between the current time of the random access resource to be sent and the time of the most recent transmission is greater than the first time value of 2ms, thus also triggering the second communication device to send a third indication message to the first communication device.

[0128] Optionally, the random access resources of the second cycle and / or the random access resources of the first cycle or the random access resources of the third cycle are predefined; or, the random access resources of the second cycle and / or the random access resources of the first cycle or the random access resources of the third cycle are determined by the second communication device.

[0129] Step S403: The first communication device performs random access on the random access resources of the first cycle.

[0130] In this application, taking a cell comprising multiple coverage areas as an example, different coverage areas correspond to random access resources with different periods. The first communication device can receive corresponding indication information based on different coverage areas, and the received indication information is used to indicate the random access resources for the corresponding period. The random access resources in different coverage areas do not need to be configured with a uniform period; different period configurations can be used for the random access resources corresponding to different coverage areas. For example, for sub-satellite areas / low access demand areas, relatively shorter period random access resources can be configured, while for edge areas / high access demand areas, relatively longer period random access resources can be configured. In this way, the period of random access resources in different areas can be configured separately and specifically, thereby adapting to scenarios with uneven user distribution, improving the flexibility of resource allocation, and achieving optimized resource utilization.

[0131] The methods of the embodiments of this application have been described in detail above. The apparatus of the embodiments of this application is provided below.

[0132] It should be understood that the division of units in the apparatus provided in this application embodiment is only a logical functional division. In actual implementation, they can be fully or partially integrated into a single physical entity, or they can be physically separated. Furthermore, the units in the apparatus can be implemented by a processor calling software. For example, the apparatus includes a processor connected to a memory, which stores instructions. The processor calls the instructions stored in the memory to implement any of the above methods or to implement the functions of each unit of the apparatus. The processor is, for example, a general-purpose processor, such as a central processing unit (CPU) or a microprocessor, and the memory is either internal or external to the apparatus.

[0133] Alternatively, the units in the device can be implemented as hardware circuits. The functionality of some or all of the units can be achieved through the design of these hardware circuits, which can be understood as one or more processors. For example, in one implementation, the hardware circuit is an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC). The functionality of some or all of the above units is achieved through the design of the logical relationships between the components within the circuit. In another implementation, the hardware circuit can be implemented using a programmable logic device (PLD). Taking a field-programmable gate array (FPGA) as an example, it can include a large number of logic gates. The connection relationships between the logic gates are configured through a configuration file, thereby achieving the functionality of some or all of the above units.

[0134] In the embodiments of this application, each unit in the device may be one or more processors (or processing circuits) configured to implement the above methods, such as: CPU, graphics processing unit (GPU), neural network processing unit (NPU), tensor processing unit (TPU), deep learning processing unit (DPU), microprocessor unit (MPU), digital signal processor (DSP), ASIC, FPGA, or a combination of at least two of these processor forms.

[0135] Furthermore, the units in the above devices can be integrated in whole or in part, or they can be implemented independently. In one implementation, these units are integrated together as a system-on-a-chip (SOC). The SOC may include at least one processor for implementing any of the above methods or for implementing the functions of the units in the device. The at least one processor can be of different types, such as including a CPU and an FPGA, or including a CPU and an AI processor, or including a CPU and a GPU, etc. Several possible devices are listed below.

[0136] Please see Figure 7 , Figure 7 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of a communication device 70 provided in an embodiment of this application. Optionally, the communication device 70 can be a first communication device, a standalone device, or a component within a standalone device, such as a chip or integrated circuit. The communication device 70 is used to implement the aforementioned communication method, for example... Figure 3 The communication method shown.

[0137] In one possible design, the communication device 70 includes a communication unit 701 and a processing unit 702. The communication device 70 is used to implement the aforementioned communication method, for example... Figure 4 The communication method is illustrated. For example, a communication device may be used to execute the method executed by a first communication device.

[0138] In one possible implementation, the communication unit 701 is configured to receive first indication information, wherein the first indication information indicates random access resources for a first period, the first period's random access resources belonging to one of a plurality of candidate period's random access resources, the plurality of candidate period's random access resources further including second period's random access resources, the first period's random access resources corresponding to a first coverage area, the second period's random access resources corresponding to a second coverage area, the first coverage area corresponding to a first SSB index group, the second coverage area corresponding to a second SSB index group, and the first coverage area and the second coverage area belonging to the same cell. The processing unit 702 is configured to perform random access on the first period's random access resources.

[0139] In another possible implementation, the first indication information includes a first random access resource index, the random access resources of the second period are indicated by second indication information, the second indication information includes a second random access resource index, the first random access resource index is associated with the random access resources of the first period, the first random access resource index corresponds to the first SSB index group, the second random access resource index is associated with the random access resources of the second period, and the second random access resource index corresponds to the second SSB index group.

[0140] In another possible implementation, the first indication information further includes a first sparsity factor, and the random access resources of the second period are indicated by the second indication information, which also includes a second sparsity factor. The first sparsity factor is used to indicate a multiple of the period size of the random access resources of the first period, and the second sparsity factor is used to indicate a multiple of the period size of the random access resources of the second period.

[0141] In another possible implementation, the first indication information further includes half-frame indication information, which is used to indicate the period of transmitting the random access resources of the first period.

[0142] In another possible implementation, the first indication information further includes a bit pattern of random access resources. Specifically, the first indication information is used to indicate the random access resources of the first period through the bit pattern, wherein the value of each bit in the bit pattern is used to indicate whether the corresponding random access resources are active or inactive.

[0143] In another possible implementation, the communication unit 701 is further configured to receive third indication information, wherein the third indication information is used to indicate random access resources for a third period, the random access resources for the third period belonging to one of the random access resources for the plurality of candidate periods, the random access resources for the third period corresponding to a third coverage area, the third coverage area corresponding to a third SSB index group, and the first coverage area and the third coverage area belonging to the same cell.

[0144] In another possible implementation, the random access resources of the second cycle and / or the random access resources of the first cycle or the random access resources of the third cycle are predefined; or, the random access resources of the second cycle and / or the random access resources of the first cycle or the random access resources of the third cycle are determined by the second communication device.

[0145] In another possible implementation, the uniform period of the same cell is obtained based on the time-frequency RO resources.

[0146] The embodiments of this application and the method embodiments shown above are based on the same concept and have the same technical effects. For the specific principles, please refer to the description of the embodiments shown above, which will not be repeated here.

[0147] Please see Figure 8 , Figure 8 This is a schematic diagram of another communication device 80 provided in an embodiment of this application. Optionally, the communication device 80 can be a second communication device, a standalone device, or a component within a standalone device, such as a chip or integrated circuit. The communication device 80 is used to implement the aforementioned communication method, for example... Figure 4 The communication method shown.

[0148] In one possible design, the communication device 80 includes a processing unit 801 and a communication unit 802, and the communication device 80 is used to implement the aforementioned communication method, for example... Figure 4 The communication method shown. For example, the communication device is used to execute the method executed by the second communication device.

[0149] In one possible implementation, the processing unit 801 is configured to determine first indication information, wherein the first indication information indicates random access resources for a first period, the first period's random access resources belonging to one of a plurality of candidate period's random access resources, the plurality of candidate period's random access resources further including second period's random access resources, the first period's random access resources corresponding to a first coverage area, the second period's random access resources corresponding to a second coverage area, the first coverage area corresponding to a first SSB index group, the second coverage area corresponding to a second SSB index group, and the first coverage area and the second coverage area belonging to the same cell. The communication unit 802 is configured to send the first indication information to a first communication device.

[0150] In another possible implementation, the first indication information includes a first random access resource index, the random access resources of the second period are indicated by second indication information, the second indication information includes a second random access resource index, the first random access resource index is associated with the random access resources of the first period, the first random access resource index corresponds to the first SSB index group, the second random access resource index is associated with the random access resources of the second period, and the second random access resource index corresponds to the second SSB index group.

[0151] In another possible implementation, the first indication information further includes a first sparsity factor, and the random access resources of the second period are indicated by the second indication information, which also includes a second sparsity factor. The first sparsity factor is used to indicate a multiple of the period size of the random access resources of the first period, and the second sparsity factor is used to indicate a multiple of the period size of the random access resources of the second period.

[0152] In another possible implementation, the first indication information further includes half-frame indication information, which is used to indicate the period of transmitting the random access resources of the first period.

[0153] In another possible implementation, the first indication information further includes a bitmap of random access resources. Specifically, the first indication information is used to indicate the random access resources of the first period through the bitmap, wherein the value of each bit in the bitmap is used to indicate whether the corresponding random access resources are active or inactive.

[0154] In another possible implementation, the processing unit 801 is further configured to determine third indication information, wherein the third indication information indicates random access resources for a third period, the random access resources for the third period belonging to one of the random access resources for the plurality of candidate periods, the random access resources for the third period corresponding to a third coverage area, the third coverage area corresponding to a third SSB index group, and the first coverage area and the third coverage area belonging to the same cell. The communication unit 802 is further configured to send the third indication information to the first communication device.

[0155] In another possible implementation, the random access resources of the second cycle and / or the random access resources of the first cycle or the random access resources of the third cycle are predefined; or, the processing unit 801 is further configured to determine the random access resources of the second cycle and / or the random access resources of the first cycle or the random access resources of the third cycle.

[0156] In another possible implementation, the processing unit 801 is further configured to determine a uniform period for the same cell based on time-frequency RO resources.

[0157] The embodiments of this application and the method embodiments shown above are based on the same concept and have the same technical effects. For the specific principles, please refer to the description of the embodiments shown above, which will not be repeated here.

[0158] Please see Figure 9 , Figure 9This is a schematic diagram of another communication device 90 provided in an embodiment of this application. The communication device 90 can be a standalone device, such as a first communication device or a second communication device, or it can be a component included in a standalone device, such as a chip, software module, or integrated circuit. The communication device 90 may include at least one processor 901 and a communication interface 902. Optionally, it may also include at least one memory 903. Further optionally, it may also include a connection line 904, wherein the processor 901, the communication interface 902, and / or the memory 903 are connected through the connection line 904, and / or communicate with each other through the connection line 904 to transmit control signals and / or data signals.

[0159] Wherein: Processor 901 is a module that performs arithmetic and / or logical operations, and may specifically include one or more of the following modules: filter, modem, power amplifier, low noise amplifier (LNA), baseband processor, radio frequency processor, radio frequency circuit, CPU, AP, microcontroller unit (MCU), electronic control unit (ECU), GPU, MPU, ASIC, image signal processor (ISP), DSP, FPGA, complex programmable logic device (CPLD), or coprocessor, etc.

[0160] The communication interface 902 can be used to provide information input or output to at least one processor, or to receive signals sent externally and / or send signals to externally.

[0161] For example, the communication interface 902 may include interface circuitry, such as input / output interfaces, chip pins, etc.

[0162] For example, the communication interface 902 may include a wired link interface such as an Ethernet cable, or a wireless link interface (Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, general wireless transmission, vehicle short-range communication technology and other short-range wireless communication technologies, etc.).

[0163] Optionally, the communication interface 902 may also include a radio frequency transmitter, an antenna, etc. When the communication interface 902 includes an antenna, the number of antennas can be one or more.

[0164] As one possible design, if the communication device 90 is a standalone device, the communication interface 902 may include a receiver and a transmitter. The receiver and transmitter may be the same component or different components. When the receiver and transmitter are the same component, this component can be referred to as a transceiver.

[0165] As another possible design, if the communication device 90 is a chip or circuit, the communication interface 902 may include an input interface and an output interface. The input interface and the output interface may be the same interface or they may be different interfaces.

[0166] Alternatively, the functions of the communication interface 902 can be implemented by a transceiver circuit or a dedicated transceiver chip.

[0167] Memory 903 provides storage space, in which data such as the operating system and computer programs can be stored. Memory 903 can be one or a combination of several of the following: cache, random access memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM), compact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM), synchronous dynamic random access memory (SDRAM), hard disk drive (HDD), solid-state drive (SSD), etc. Memory is any other medium capable of carrying or storing desired program code in the form of instructions or data structures, and accessible by a computer, but is not limited thereto. The memory in the embodiments of this application can also be a circuit or any other device capable of implementing storage functions, used to store computer programs or instructions, and / or data.

[0168] The functions and actions of each module or unit in the communication device 90 listed above are merely illustrative examples.

[0169] Each functional unit in the communication device 90 can be used to implement the aforementioned communication method, for example... Figure 4 The communication method shown is, for example, a method executed by a first communication device, or a method executed by a second communication device.

[0170] Optionally, processor 901 may be a processor specifically designed to perform the aforementioned methods (for ease of distinction, referred to as a dedicated processor), or a processor that performs the aforementioned methods by calling a computer program (for ease of distinction, referred to as a dedicated processor). Optionally, at least one processor may include both dedicated processors and general-purpose processors.

[0171] Optionally, if the communication device 90 includes at least one memory 903, and the processor 901 implements the aforementioned communication method by calling a computer program, the computer program can be stored in the memory 903.

[0172] This application also provides a chip, which includes logic circuitry and a communication interface. The communication interface is used to receive or transmit signals; the logic circuitry is used to receive or transmit signals through the communication interface. The chip is used to implement the aforementioned communication method, for example... Figure 4 The communication method shown is, for example, a method executed by a first communication device, or a method executed by a second communication device.

[0173] This application also provides a computer-readable storage medium storing instructions that, when executed on at least one processor (or communication device), implement the aforementioned communication method, for example... Figure 4 The communication method shown is, for example, a method executed by a first communication device, or a method executed by a second communication device.

[0174] This application also provides a computer program product, which includes computer instructions for implementing the aforementioned communication method, for example... Figure 4 The communication method shown is, for example, a method executed by a first communication device, or a method executed by a second communication device.

[0175] It should be noted that, in the embodiments of this application, the words "exemplarily" or "for example" are used to indicate examples, illustrations, or explanations. Any embodiment or design scheme described as "exemplarily" or "for example" in this application should not be construed as being more preferred or advantageous than other embodiments or design schemes. Specifically, the use of the words "exemplarily" or "for example" is intended to present the relevant concepts in a specific manner.

[0176] In the embodiments of this application, "at least one" refers to one or more items, and "more than one" refers to two or more items. "At least one of the following" or similar expressions refer to any combination of these items, including any combination of a single item or a plurality of items.

[0177] For example, at least one of a, b, or c can be represented as: a, b, c, (a and b), (a and c), (b and c), or (a and b and c), where a, b, and c can be single or multiple. "AND / OR" describes the relationship between related objects, indicating that three relationships can exist. For example, A and / or B can represent: A alone, A and B simultaneously, or B alone, where A and B can be singular or plural. The character " / " generally indicates that the preceding and following related objects have an "OR" relationship.

[0178] Furthermore, unless otherwise stated, the use of ordinal numbers such as "first" and "second" in the embodiments of this application is for distinguishing multiple objects and is not for limiting the order, sequence, priority, or importance of multiple objects. Similarly, terms like "first node" and "second node" are merely for convenience in describing new parameters in different implementations and do not indicate differences in their execution operations, importance, structure, etc.

[0179] In the above embodiments, the term "when..." can be interpreted, depending on the context, as meaning "if...", "before...", "determined...", or "detected...". The above descriptions are merely optional embodiments of this application and are not intended to limit this application. Any modifications, equivalent substitutions, improvements, etc., made within the concept and principles of this application should be included within the protection scope of this application.

[0180] Those skilled in the art will understand that all or part of the steps of the above embodiments can be implemented by hardware or by a program instructing related hardware. The program can be stored in a computer-readable storage medium, such as a read-only memory, a disk, or an optical disk.

Claims

1. A communication method characterized by comprising: The method comprises: receiving first indication information, wherein the first indication information is used to indicate first periodic random access resources, the first periodic random access resources belong to one of a plurality of candidate periodic random access resources, the plurality of candidate periodic random access resources further comprise second periodic random access resources, the first periodic random access resources correspond to a first coverage area, the second periodic random access resources correspond to a second coverage area, the first coverage area corresponds to a first SSB index group, the second coverage area corresponds to a second SSB index group, and the first coverage area and the second coverage area belong to a same cell; performing random access on the first periodic random access resources.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein: the first indication information comprises a first random access resource index, the second periodic random access resources are indicated by second indication information, the second indication information comprises a second random access resource index, the first random access resource index is associated with the first periodic random access resources, the first random access resource index corresponds to the first SSB index group, the second random access resource index is associated with the second periodic random access resources, and the second random access resource index corresponds to the second SSB index group.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein: the first indication information further comprises a first sparsity factor, the second periodic random access resources are indicated by second indication information, the second indication information further comprises a second sparsity factor, the first sparsity factor is used to indicate a multiple of a period size of the first periodic random access resources, and the second sparsity factor is used to indicate a multiple of a period size of the second periodic random access resources.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein: the first indication information further comprises half-frame indication information, and the half-frame indication information is used to indicate a period in which the first periodic random access resources are transmitted.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein: the first indication information further comprises a bit pattern of random access resources, and the first indication information is specifically used to indicate the first periodic random access resources by using the bit pattern, and a value of each bit in the bit pattern is used to represent whether a corresponding random access resource is valid or invalid.

6. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that, The method further comprises: receiving third indication information, wherein the third indication information is used to indicate third periodic random access resources, the third periodic random access resources belong to one of the plurality of candidate periodic random access resources, the third periodic random access resources correspond to a third coverage area, the third coverage area corresponds to a third SSB index group, and the first coverage area and the third coverage area belong to a same cell.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein: the second periodic random access resources and / or the first periodic random access resources or the third periodic random access resources are predefined; or, the first periodic random access resources and / or the second periodic random access resources or the third periodic random access resources are indicated by using the first indication information and / or the second indication information and / or the third indication information. The second periodic random access resource and / or the first periodic random access resource or the third periodic random access resource is determined by the second communication device.

8. The method of any one of claims 1-7, wherein, The unified period of the same cell is obtained according to the time-frequency RO resource.

9. A communication method characterized by comprising: The method comprises: determining first indication information, wherein the first indication information is used to indicate a first periodic random access resource, the first periodic random access resource belongs to one of a plurality of candidate periodic random access resources, the plurality of candidate periodic random access resources further comprise a second periodic random access resource, the first periodic random access resource corresponds to a first coverage area, the second periodic random access resource corresponds to a second coverage area, the first coverage area corresponds to a first SSB index group, the second coverage area corresponds to a second SSB index group, and the first coverage area and the second coverage area belong to the same cell; sending the first indication information to the first communication device.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein, The first indication information comprises a first random access resource index, the second periodic random access resource is indicated by second indication information, the second indication information comprises a second random access resource index, the first random access resource index is associated with the first periodic random access resource, the first random access resource index corresponds to the first SSB index group, the second random access resource index is associated with the second periodic random access resource, and the second random access resource index corresponds to the second SSB index group.

11. The method of claim 9, wherein, The first indication information further comprises a first sparsity factor, the second periodic random access resource is indicated by second indication information, the second indication information further comprises a second sparsity factor, the first sparsity factor is used to indicate a multiple of a period size of the first periodic random access resource, and the second sparsity factor is used to indicate a multiple of a period size of the second periodic random access resource.

12. The method of claim 9, wherein, The first indication information further comprises half-frame indication information, and the half-frame indication information is used to indicate a period in which the first periodic random access resource is transmitted.

13. The method of claim 9, wherein, The first indication information further comprises a bit pattern of random access resources, and the first indication information is specifically used to indicate the first periodic random access resource by the bit pattern, and a value of each bit in the bit pattern is used to represent that a corresponding random access resource is valid or invalid.

14. The method according to any one of claims 9 to 13, characterized in that, The method further comprises: determining third indication information, wherein the third indication information is used to indicate third periodic random access resources, the third periodic random access resources belong to one of the plurality of candidate periodic random access resources, the third periodic random access resources correspond to a third coverage area, the third coverage area corresponds to a third SSB index group, and the first coverage area and the third coverage area belong to a same cell; sending the third indication information to the first communication device.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein, the second periodic random access resources and / or the first periodic random access resources or the third periodic random access resources are predefined; or determining the second periodic random access resources and / or the first periodic random access resources or the third periodic random access resources.

16. The method according to any one of claims 9-15, characterized in that, The method further comprises: determining a uniform period of a same cell according to the time-frequency RO resources.

17. A communications device, characterized by The communication device comprises a communication unit and a processing unit, and the communication unit and the processing unit are used to execute the method of any one of claims 1-8.

18. A communications device, characterized by The communication device comprises a communication unit and a processing unit, and the communication unit and the processing unit are used to execute the method of any one of claims 9-16.

19. A communications device, characterized by The communication device comprises a processor; when the processor invokes a computer program or instructions in the memory, the method of any one of claims 1-8 is implemented.

20. A communications device, characterized by The communication device comprises a processor; when the processor invokes a computer program or instructions in the memory, the method of any one of claims 9-16 is implemented.

21. A communications device, characterized by The communication device comprises a logic circuit and an interface, and the logic circuit and the interface are coupled; The interface is used to input and / or output information, and the logic circuit is used to execute the method of any one of claims 1-16.

22. The apparatus of claim 21, wherein, The communication device is a chip or a chip system.

23. A communication system, characterized by The communication system comprises the communication device of claim 17 and the communication device of claim 18; or The communication system comprises the communication device of claim 19 and the communication device of claim 20.

24. A computer-readable storage medium, characterized in that, The computer readable storage medium is used to store instructions or computer programs; when the instructions or the computer programs are executed, the method of any one of claims 1-16 is implemented.

25. A computer program product, characterised in that, comprise: instructions or computer programs; when the instructions or the computer programs are executed, the method of any one of claims 1-16 is implemented.

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