Communication method, system and related equipment

Abstract

Provided in an embodiment of the present application are a communication method, system and related device, comprising: a first network element determining that a condition for sending a wake-up signal for a second network element is satisfied, the first network element having established an RRC connection with a UE while the second network element does not establish an RRC connection with the UE, the wake-up signal being used to trigger the second network element to send a first signal, the first signal is used for the UE and the second network element to obtain downlink synchronization or the UE to carry out signal quality measurement on the first signal; then, the first network element sends a wake-up signal to the second network element to trigger the second network element to send a first signal, which may be SSB, SIB1, TRS, etc. Therefore, before receiving the wake-up signal, the second network element can be in a state of not broadcasting the first signal, so that energy consumption generated by sending the first signal is saved, and network energy conservation is realized.

Description

Communication method, system and related equipment

[0001] This application claims priority to the Chinese patent application filed with the China Patent Office on February 4, 2024, with application number 202410160732.0 and invention name “Communication Methods, Systems and Related Equipment”, the entire contents of which are incorporated by reference into this application. Technical Field

[0002] The present application relates to the field of communication technology, and in particular to a communication method, system and related equipment. Background Art

[0003] In actual application scenarios, there are often multiple network elements (such as base stations, etc.) providing communication services for user equipment (UE), and different network elements use different frequencies to communicate with the UE. In addition, the multiple network elements can support carrier aggregation (CA) to meet the UE's high bandwidth requirements. Among them, multiple network elements can share a site at the same location, that is, co-located; or, multiple network elements can be deployed at different sites, etc. Normally, each network element that supports CA can periodically send a synchronization signal or a physical broadcast channel block (SSB) and a system information block 1 (SIB1) signal, so that the UE within the signal coverage range of the network element can synchronize with the network element in the time domain and frequency domain and access the network element based on the received SSB signal and SIB1 signal.

[0004] As shown in Figure 1, the SSB includes the primary synchronization signal (PSS), the secondary synchronization signal (SSS), the physical broadcast channel (PBCH), and the demodulation reference signal (DMRS). Typically, one SSB occupies four orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) symbols in the time domain and 240 subcarriers in the frequency domain.

[0005] However, when each network element broadcasts SSB signals and SIB1 signals on one or more beams, the network element will continue to operate at high power, causing the energy consumption of the network element to remain at a high level for a long time. Summary of the Invention

[0006] The present application provides a communication method, system and related equipment, the purpose of which is to reduce the energy consumption of network elements and achieve network energy saving.

[0007] In order to achieve the above objectives, this application provides the following technical solutions:

[0008] In a first aspect, the present application provides a communication method, which is applied to a second network element, and the method includes: the second network element receives a wake-up signal, which is used to trigger the second network element to send a first signal, and the first signal (such as SSB and SIB1, etc.) is used for UE (user equipment) to achieve downlink synchronization with the second network element, or the first signal (such as TRS, etc.) is used for UE to measure the signal quality of the first signal, and the UE does not establish an RRC (radio resource control) connection with the second network element; then, the second network element sends the first signal.

[0009] Because before receiving the wake-up signal, the second network element does not need to broadcast the first signal to enable the UE to achieve downlink synchronization with the second network element or the UE to measure the signal quality of the first signal, the second network element can save energy consumption generated by sending the first signal, thereby achieving energy saving. At the same time, after receiving the wake-up signal, the second network element can broadcast the first signal to enable the UE to achieve downlink synchronization with the second network element, ensuring that the UE can normally access the second network element, or enable the UE to measure the signal quality of the first signal from the second network element to meet the UE's signal quality measurement needs.

[0010] In a possible implementation, the first signal is one or more of an SSB (synchronization signal and physical broadcast channel block), a SIB1 (system information block), and a TRS (tracking reference signal).

[0011] In a second aspect, the present application provides a communication method, which is applied to a first network element, which has established an RRC (radio resource control) connection with a UE (user equipment), and the method includes: the first network element determines that the conditions for sending a wake-up signal to a second network element are met, wherein the second network element has not established an RRC connection with the UE, and the wake-up signal is used to trigger the second network element to send a first signal, and the first signal is used for the UE to achieve downlink synchronization with the second network element or the UE to measure the signal quality of the first signal; then, the first network element sends a wake-up signal to the second network element.

[0012] In this way, before receiving the wake-up signal, the second network element can be in a state of not broadcasting the first signal, thereby saving energy consumption generated by sending the first signal, thereby achieving network energy saving. At the same time, after receiving the wake-up signal, the second network element can broadcast the first signal to enable the UE to achieve downlink synchronization with the second network element, ensuring that the UE can normally access the second network element, or enable the UE to measure the signal quality of the first signal from the second network element to meet the UE's signal quality measurement needs.

[0013] In one possible implementation, a first network element determines that a condition for sending a wake-up signal to a second network element is met, specifically including: the first network element sends an RRC reconfiguration message to a UE, the RRC reconfiguration message being used to configure the UE to perform a signal quality measurement on a first signal from the second network element; then, the first network element may further receive a measurement report from the UE, the measurement report including a measurement result of the signal quality measurement performed by the UE on the first signal from the second network element. In this way, during the measurement configuration process for the UE, the first network element may trigger the second network element to broadcast the first signal by sending the wake-up signal, thereby satisfying the first network element's need to obtain the measurement result of the UE's signal quality measurement on the signal from the second network element.

[0014] In one possible implementation, the first network element determines that a condition for sending a wake-up signal to the second network element is met, specifically including: the first network element sending an RRC reconfiguration message to the UE, the RRC reconfiguration message being used to add a carrier of the second network element to the UE; and the first network element also sending an activation message to the UE, the activation message being used to activate the carrier of the second network element added for the UE; so that the first network element can also receive a measurement report from the UE, the measurement report including a measurement result of a signal quality measurement performed by the UE on a first signal from the second network element. In this way, in the process of adding the carrier of the second network element to the UE, the first network element can trigger the second network element to broadcast the first signal by sending the wake-up signal, so that the first network element can obtain the measurement result of the signal quality measurement performed by the UE on the first signal from the second network element.

[0015] In one possible implementation, the first network element determines that a condition for sending a wake-up signal to the second network element is met, specifically including: the first network element receives a request message from the UE, where the request message is used to trigger the first network element to send the wake-up signal to the second network element. In this way, when the UE needs to obtain the first signal from the second network element, the request message can be sent to the first network element to instruct the first network element to trigger the second network element to send the first signal, so as to meet the UE's demand for the first signal.

[0016] In one possible implementation, before receiving the demand message from the UE, the first network element may further send a first configuration message to the UE, where the first configuration message is used to configure a first time-frequency resource used by the UE to send the demand message. In this way, the UE can send the demand message based on the time-frequency resource configured by the first network element, thereby satisfying the UE's demand for the first signal.

[0017] In a possible implementation, when the first network element receives the demand message from the UE, the first network element may specifically receive the demand message from the UE based on a DCCH (Dedicated Control Channel). In this case, the demand message is dedicated signaling.

[0018] In one possible implementation, the first time-frequency resource is a time-frequency resource on a PRACH (physical random access channel), and the demand message is a random access message; or, the first time-frequency resource is a time-frequency resource on a PUCCH (physical uplink control channel), and the demand message is an SR (scheduling request) message or UCI (uplink control information); or, the first time-frequency resource is an SRS (sounding reference signal) resource, and the demand message is an SRS.

[0019] In one possible implementation, the request message received by the first network element includes a reason field, where the reason field is used to indicate the reason why the UE requires the first signal. In this way, the first network element can perceive the reason why the UE requires the first signal based on the reason field, thereby providing the first network element with more UE-related information.

[0020] In a possible implementation manner, the first signal sent by the second network element is one or more of a synchronization signal, a physical broadcast channel block SSB, a system information block SIB1, and a tracking reference signal TRS.

[0021] In one possible implementation, if the first signal sent by the second network element is an SSB, the first network element may further send the SIB1 of the second network element to the UE. The SSB and the SIB1 of the second network element may be used by the UE to access the second network element. In this way, the second network element does not need to broadcast the SIB1, but can provide it to the UE by the first network element, thereby saving energy consumption of the second network element.

[0022] In a possible implementation manner, the wake-up signal sent by the first network element to the second network element includes a reason field, where the reason field is used to indicate the reason why the first network element instructs the second network element to send the first signal.

[0023] In a possible implementation, when the UE accesses the second network element, the first network element may further send a second configuration message to the UE, where the second configuration message is used to configure a second time-frequency resource used by the UE to send a wake-up signal to network element 2. In this way, in a carrier aggregation scenario, the UE may directly send a WUS using the second time-frequency resource to trigger the second network element to broadcast the first signal, thereby meeting the UE's demand for the first signal.

[0024] On the third aspect, the present application provides a UE (user equipment), which establishes an RRC (radio resource control) connection with a first network element, but does not establish an RRC connection with a second network element. The UE sends a demand message to the first network element based on the RRC connection, and the demand message is used to trigger the first network element to send a wake-up signal to the second network element, and the wake-up signal is used to trigger the second network element to send a first signal; then, the UE will receive the first signal, and the first signal is used for the UE to achieve downlink synchronization with the second network element or the UE to measure the signal quality of the first signal.

[0025] In this way, the UE can trigger the second network element to send the first signal through the first network element by sending a demand message. This allows the second network element to be in a state of not broadcasting the first signal before the UE sends the demand message, thereby saving energy consumption generated by sending the first signal, thereby achieving network energy saving. At the same time, after the UE sends the demand message, the second network element can broadcast the first signal to enable the UE to achieve downlink synchronization with the second network element, ensuring that the UE can normally access the second network element, or enable the UE to measure the signal quality of the first signal from the second network element to meet the UE's signal quality measurement needs.

[0026] In a possible implementation manner, the UE achieves downlink synchronization with the second network element based on the received first signal, so that the UE can subsequently access the second network element.

[0027] In one possible implementation, the UE may also receive an RRC reconfiguration message from the first network element, where the RRC reconfiguration message is used to configure the UE to perform signal quality measurement on a first signal from the second network element. The UE may then measure the signal quality of the received first signal, obtain a measurement result, and send a measurement report to the first network element, where the measurement report includes the measurement result. In this way, by measuring and reporting the signal quality of the first signal, the UE may enable the first network element to perceive the signal quality of the first signal broadcast by the second network element when it is transmitted to the UE.

[0028] In a possible implementation, the UE may also receive an RRC reconfiguration message from the first network element, where the RRC reconfiguration message is used to add a carrier of the second network element for the UE; and the UE may also receive an activation message from the first network element, where the activation message is used to activate the carrier of the second network element added for the UE; then, the UE measures the signal quality of the first signal, obtains the measurement result, and sends a measurement report to the first network element, where the measurement report includes the measurement result. In this way, during the process of the first network element adding the carrier of the second network element for the UE, the UE can measure and report the signal quality of the first signal, so that the first network element can perceive the signal quality of the first signal broadcast by the second network element when it is transmitted to the UE, so that the first network element can subsequently determine whether to continue adding the carrier of the second network element for the UE. For example, when the measurement result indicates that the signal quality of the first signal is low, the first network element can determine not to add the carrier of the second network element for the UE.

[0029] In one possible implementation, the demand message is sent via a first time-frequency resource. Therefore, before sending the demand message to the first network element, the UE may further receive a first configuration message from the first network element, where the first configuration message is used to configure the first time-frequency resource used by the UE to send the demand message. The UE may send the demand message based on the time-frequency resource configured by the first network element, thereby satisfying the UE's demand for the first signal.

[0030] In one possible implementation, the first time-frequency resource is a time-frequency resource on a PRACH (physical random access channel), and the demand message is a random access message; or, the first time-frequency resource is a time-frequency resource on a PUCCH (physical uplink control channel), and the demand message is an SR (scheduling request) message or UCI (uplink control information); or, the first time-frequency resource is an SRS (sounding reference signal) resource, and the demand message is an SRS.

[0031] In one possible implementation, the request message sent by the UE includes a reason field, which is used to indicate the reason why the UE requires the first signal. In this way, the first network element can perceive the reason why the UE requires the first signal based on the reason field, thereby providing the first network element with more UE-related information.

[0032] In a possible implementation, the first signal received by the UE is one or more of an SSB (synchronization signal and physical broadcast channel block), a SIB1 (system information block), and a TRS (tracking reference signal).

[0033] In one possible implementation, if the first signal received by the UE is an SSB, the UE may also receive the system information block SIB1 of the second network element from the first network element via an RRC connection, and, after achieving downlink synchronization with the second network element based on the SSB, access the second network element based on the SSB and SIB1. In this way, the second network element does not need to broadcast SIB1, and the UE can access the second network element based on the SIB1 of the second network element provided by the first network element, thereby saving energy consumption of the second network element.

[0034] In one possible implementation, when a UE accesses a second network element, it receives a second configuration message sent by the first network element. The second configuration message is used to configure a second time-frequency resource for the UE to transmit a wake-up signal. The UE then transmits a wake-up signal to the second network element using the second time-frequency resource, thereby triggering the second network element to broadcast the first signal. In this way, in a carrier aggregation scenario, the UE can directly trigger the second network element to broadcast the first signal, thereby satisfying the UE's need for the first signal.

[0035] In a fourth aspect, the present application provides a network element, which includes a transceiver and a processor; wherein the transceiver is used to perform the receiving operation and the sending operation in the method described in the first aspect or any embodiment of the first aspect, or to perform the receiving operation and the sending operation in the method described in the second aspect or any embodiment of the second aspect; the processor is used to perform other operations in the method described in the first aspect or any embodiment of the first aspect except the receiving operation and the sending operation, or to perform other operations in the method described in the second aspect or any embodiment of the second aspect except the receiving operation and the sending operation.

[0036] In a fifth aspect, the present application provides a UE (user equipment), which includes a transceiver and a processor; wherein the transceiver is used to perform the receiving operation and the sending operation in the method described in the third aspect or any embodiment of the third aspect; the processor is used to perform other operations except the receiving operation and the sending operation in the method described in the third aspect or any embodiment of the third aspect.

[0037] In a sixth aspect, the present application provides a communication system, which includes a UE (user equipment) and a network element, wherein the UE is used to execute the method described in the third aspect or any embodiment of the third aspect; the network element is used to execute the method described in the first aspect or any embodiment of the first aspect, or execute the method described in the second aspect or any embodiment of the second aspect.

[0038] In a seventh aspect, the present application provides a computer storage medium for storing a computer program. When the computer program is executed, it is used to implement any communication method provided in the first to third aspects of the present application.

[0039] In an eighth aspect, the present application provides a computer program product comprising instructions, which, when executed on at least one computing device, enables the at least one computing device to implement any communication method provided in the first to third aspects of the present application. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0040] FIG1 is a schematic structural diagram of an SSB according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0041] FIG2 is a structural diagram of an exemplary communication system provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0042] FIG3 is a flow chart of a communication method provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0043] FIG4 is a flow chart of another communication method provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0044] FIG5 is a flow chart of another communication method provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0045] FIG6 is a flow chart of another communication method provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0046] FIG7 is a schematic diagram of a demand message provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0047] FIG8 is a flow chart of another communication method provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0048] FIG9 is a flow chart of a communication method provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0049] FIG10 is a schematic diagram of the structure of a network element provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0050] FIG11 is a schematic structural diagram of a UE provided in an embodiment of the present application. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0051] The technical solutions in the embodiments of the present application will be described clearly and completely below in conjunction with the drawings in the embodiments of the present application. The terms used in the following embodiments are only for the purpose of describing specific embodiments and are not intended to be limiting of the present application. As used in the specification and appended claims of the present application, the singular expressions "one", "a kind of", "said", "above", "the" and "this" are intended to also include expressions such as "one or more", unless there is a clear contrary indication in the context. It should also be understood that in the embodiments of the present application, "one or more" refers to one, two or more; "and / or" describes the association relationship of associated objects, indicating that three relationships may exist; for example, A and / or B can represent: the existence of A alone, the existence of A and B at the same time, and the existence of B alone, where A and B can be singular or plural. The character " / " generally indicates that the related objects before and after are in an "or" relationship.

[0052] References to "one embodiment" or "some embodiments" in this specification mean that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic described in conjunction with that embodiment is included in one or more embodiments of the present application. Thus, phrases such as "in one embodiment," "in some embodiments," "in other embodiments," and "in yet other embodiments" appearing in various places in this specification do not necessarily refer to the same embodiment, but rather mean "one or more but not all embodiments," unless otherwise specifically emphasized. The terms "including," "comprising," "having," and variations thereof mean "including but not limited to," unless otherwise specifically emphasized.

[0053] The "multiple" involved in the embodiments of the present application means greater than or equal to two. It should be noted that in the description of the embodiments of the present application, the words "first" and "second" are only used for the purpose of distinguishing the description and cannot be understood as indicating or implying relative importance or order.

[0054] The embodiments of the present application are applied to a communication system, which may be a fifth-generation (5G) communication system, or a hybrid architecture of LTE and 5G, or a 5G New Radio (5G NR) system, or a new communication system that will emerge in future communication developments.

[0055] An example of a communication system is shown in FIG2 . The communication system includes a network element 1 , a network element 2 , and a UE 3 .

[0056] In the embodiments provided in the present application, network element 1 can be any device located on the network side and having wireless transceiver functions, including but not limited to: a base station (gNodeB or gNB) or a transmission receiving point (TRP) in new radio (NR). Network element 1 can be: a macro base station, a micro base station, a pico base station, a small station, a relay station, a partial sector antenna on a base station, or a balloon station. Network element 1 can include one or more co-site or non-co-site transmission points (Transmission Reception Point, TRP). Network element 1 can also be a wireless controller, a centralized unit (CU), and / or a distributed unit (DU) in a cloud radio access network (CRAN) scenario. Network element 1 can communicate with a terminal device, or communicate with a terminal device through a relay station. Network element 2 is similar to network element 1.

[0057] A base station can be configured with multiple cells, each of which can be the same component carrier (CC) or a different carrier. In this application, the term "cell" and the term "carrier" can be interchanged. A carrier can be understood as a frequency within a frequency band / band. For example, in NR, the frequency band numbered 78, namely Band n78, has a frequency range of 3300MHz-3800MHz, so the band has a bandwidth of 500MHz. If a CC occupies 100MHz bandwidth, 5 CCs can be formed based on Band n78. In addition, the base station can be configured with 3 sectors, and each sector corresponds to a cell. In the carrier aggregation (CA) scenario, carrier aggregation can be intra-band carrier aggregation or inter-band carrier aggregation. Taking the aggregation of two carriers as an example, for intra-band carrier aggregation, the aggregated carriers can be two carriers within the same band, such as two CCs occupying 100MHz bandwidth in Band n78. For inter-band carrier aggregation, the aggregated carriers can be two carriers in different frequency bands, such as a CC in Band n78 occupying 100MHz bandwidth and a CC in Band n41 occupying 100MHz bandwidth. The aggregated carriers can come from the same base station. In this case, these carriers can be considered to be co-located. The aggregated carriers can also come from different base stations. In this case, these carriers may be co-located or non-co-located. Network element 1 and network element 2 are used to implement different cells. At this time, network element 1 and network element 2 can be different base stations for implementing different cells; or, network element 1 and network element 2 can be located on the same base station, such as different sector antennas on the same base station, for implementing different cells. Network element 1 and network element 2 can support CA (carrier aggregation) to meet the higher bandwidth requirements of UE3. For example, when UE3 accesses network element 1 and network element 2 at the same time, network element 1 can implement the primary cell (PCell), for example, responsible for signaling and user data transmission between UE3 and the network side; network element 2 can implement the secondary cell (SCell), for example, responsible for user data transmission between UE3 and the network side.

[0058] UE3 can communicate with multiple network elements of different technologies. For example, UE3 can communicate with network elements that support LTE networks, network elements that support 5G networks, and can also establish dual connections with network elements that support LTE networks and network elements of 5G networks.

[0059] In the embodiments provided in the present application, UE3 can be in various forms, for example, a mobile phone, a tablet computer, a computer with wireless transceiver function, a virtual reality (VR) terminal device, an augmented reality (AR) terminal device, a wireless terminal in industrial control, a vehicle-mounted terminal device, a wireless terminal in self-driving, a wireless terminal in remote medical, a wireless terminal in smart grid, a wireless terminal in transportation safety, a wireless terminal in smart city, a wireless terminal in smart home, a wearable terminal device, etc. UE can also sometimes be referred to as a terminal device, an access terminal device, a vehicle-mounted terminal, an industrial control terminal, a UE unit, a UE station, a mobile station, a mobile station, a remote station, a remote terminal device, a mobile device, a UE terminal device, a terminal device, a wireless communication device, a UE agent or a UE device, etc. A terminal can also be a fixed terminal or a mobile terminal.

[0060] The above description uses an example of a communication system including network element 1, network element 2, and UE 3. In other possible implementations, the communication system may include multiple UEs or a larger number of network elements. Alternatively, in other possible implementations, network element 1 in the communication system may be replaced with other network elements, without limitation. For ease of understanding, the following description uses the interaction between UE 3 and network element 1 as an example.

[0061] Typically, multiple network elements supporting CA in a communication system can periodically broadcast SSBs and SIB1 on multiple beams. For example, each network element can send SSBs on each beam every 20ms. UEs (including UE3) within the coverage area of ​​the network element signal attempt to detect SSBs and decode PSS and SSS. Once UE3 successfully detects PSS and SSS, the UE attempts to decode PBCH. Once UE3 successfully detects PBCH, UE3 decodes the master information block (MIB). Then, UE3 finds the location and SearchSpace information of CORESET0 (i.e., the CORESET for PDCCH or DCI transmission of SIB1) based on the pdcch-ConfigSIB1 information in the MIB. UE3 blindly decodes downlink control information (DCI) 1_0 in the SearchSpace. UE3 detects and decodes the physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH) carrying SIB1 based on DCI 1_0, and then decodes SIB1. If SIB1 carries information about other SIBs, UE3 can also decode other SIBs (such as SIB2). Through the above process, UE3 can achieve time and frequency synchronization with the network element and detect the network element ID. However, each network element in the communication system continuously transmits SSBs and SIB1 on multiple beams, resulting in significant energy consumption for these multiple network elements.

[0062] To this end, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication method. For some network elements that support CA, before receiving a wake-up signal, these network elements may not send SSB and / or SIB1, thereby saving energy consumption of these network elements and achieving network energy saving (NES). Furthermore, after these network elements are awakened, they may send SSB and / or SIB1.

[0063] The following describes various communication methods for achieving network energy conservation provided by this application, in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. For ease of understanding, the various communication methods described below, in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, are illustrated using the communication system shown in FIG2 as an example. In actual applications, the communication process between a network element and a UE in the communication system can also be applied to other communication systems supporting Carrier Access Control (CA), without limitation.

[0064] Referring to FIG3 , a communication method provided by an embodiment of the present application is shown. As shown in FIG3 , the process of the communication method includes the following steps:

[0065] S301: Network element 1 broadcasts SSB and SIB1.

[0066] In this embodiment, network element 1 may periodically broadcast SSB and SIB1. The period may be, for example, 20 milliseconds (ms) or 40 ms, and is not limited thereto. Network element 1 may broadcast SSB and SIB1 separately on multiple beams. For example, network element 1 may transmit SSB and SIB1 separately on eight beams. When network element 1 transmits SSB and SIB1 on different beams, it may transmit them separately on different time domain resources. Alternatively, network element 1 may transmit SSB and SIB1 without distinguishing between beams.

[0067] It should be noted that, during the process of network element 1 broadcasting SSB and SIB1, network element 2 may be in a state of not broadcasting SSB and SIB1 to save energy consumption of network element 2.

[0068] S302: UE3 accesses network element 1 according to the received SSB and SIB1.

[0069] In specific implementation, UE3 can be located within the signal coverage of network element 1, so that after receiving SSB and SIB1, UE3 can achieve downlink synchronization with network element 1 according to the SSB, and access network element 1 according to the MIB in the SSB and the SIB1.

[0070] S303: UE3 establishes a radio resource control (RRC) connection with network element 1.

[0071] For example, after accessing network element 1, UE3 can establish an RRC connection with network element 1, so that UE3 can communicate with network element 1 based on the RRC connection, such as downloading video data from network element 1. The specific implementation process of UE3 establishing the RRC connection with network element 1 has relevant applications in actual application scenarios and is not described in detail here.

[0072] In this embodiment, the establishment of an RRC connection between UE3 and network element 1 is taken as an example for description. In other embodiments, UE3 and network element 1 may also establish a connection in other ways, which is not limited to this.

[0073] S304: Network element 1 sends an RRC reconfiguration message to UE3 based on the established RRC connection. The RRC reconfiguration message can be used to perform measurement configurations on UE3.

[0074] After UE3 establishes an RRC connection with network element 1, network element 1 may send an RRC reconfiguration message to UE3. The RRC reconfiguration message may be used to configure measurement behavior of UE3, such as configuring measurement objects, measurement report configurations, and other parameters of UE3.

[0075] In this embodiment, when network element 1 performs measurement configuration on UE3, the configured measurement objects may include the quality of signals such as SSBs sent by various network elements and received by UE3. In the communication system shown in Figure 2, the SSB signals received by UE3 are the SSBs sent by network element 1 and network element 2 respectively. In this way, when network element 1 subsequently perceives that the signal quality of the SSB sent by network element 1 received by UE3 is poor and the signal quality of the SSB sent by network element 2 received by UE3 is high, network element 1 may switch the network element that establishes an RRC connection with UE3 from network element 1 to network element 2. Alternatively, when network element 1 subsequently perceives that the signal quality of the SSB sent by network element 1 and the SSB sent by network element 2 received by UE3 are both high, network element 1 may add the carrier of network element 2 for UE3 to improve the data transmission efficiency between UE3 and the network side and meet UE3's requirement for higher bandwidth.

[0076] It should be noted that in the communication system shown in Figure 2, network element 2 is in a state of not broadcasting SSB and SIB1 (for achieving network energy saving). Therefore, network element 1 can not only perform measurement configuration for UE3, but also instruct network element 2 to broadcast SSB by executing step S305, so that UE3 can measure the signal quality of the SSB broadcast by network element 2.

[0077] S305: Network element 1 sends a wake-up signal to network element 2, where the wake-up signal is used to trigger network element 2 to broadcast a first signal.

[0078] The first signal may be, for example, an SSB; or, the first signal may be an SSB and SIB1; or, the first signal may be SIB1; or, the first signal may be a tracking reference signal (TRS); or, the first signal may be other types of signals, such as a channel state information reference signal (CSI-RS).

[0079] In a possible implementation, the network element 1 may send a wake-up signal (WUS) to the network element 2 via the Xn interface to instruct the network element 2 to send the first signal. The WUS sent by the network element 1 may be implemented in the following ways.

[0080] In example 1, WUS can be a newly defined wake-up message. For example, a new type of message can be defined in a communication standard protocol (such as release 19), and the name of the message can be, for example, "WAKEUP REQUEST". Thus, network element 1 can wake up network element 2 by sending the message to network element 2 to broadcast the first signal.

[0081] Example 2, WUS, can be implemented by defining a new information element (IE) in an existing message. For example, an IE named "Wakeup Request" can be defined in an existing "HANDOVER REQUEST" message, "XN SETUP REQUEST" message, or "CELL ACTIVATION REQUEST" message in a standard communication protocol. In this way, network element 1 can wake up network element 2 by sending a message containing this IE to network element 2 to broadcast the first signal.

[0082] Example 3, WUS, can be implemented by defining a new enumeration value in an IE included in an existing message. For example, a new enumeration value "wakeup" can be defined in the "Cause" (an IE) included in the existing "HANDOVER REQUEST" message in the communication standard protocol. In this way, network element 1 can wake up network element 2 by sending a message containing this enumeration value to network element 2, thereby waking up network element 2 to broadcast the first signal.

[0083] In actual application, the network element 1 may also send the WUS to the network element 2 in other ways, which is not limited.

[0084] Furthermore, the WUS sent by network element 1 to network element 2 may also carry the reason for waking up network element 2 to broadcast SSB (or other signals). For example, the WUS sent by network element 1 to network element 2 may include a cause field, which may include one or more bits. The value of the cause field may be multiple. When the value of the cause field is the first value, it may be used to indicate that network element 1 needs to switch the carrier for UE3 (that is, switch the cell to which UE3 accesses); when the value of the cause field is the second value, it may be used to indicate that UE3 needs to achieve downlink synchronization with network element 2, etc. The possible values ​​of the cause field may be predefined in the communication standard protocol.

[0085] S306: Network element 2 broadcasts a first signal.

[0086] In this embodiment, when awakened by network element 1, network element 2 can enter a high-power consumption state of broadcasting a first signal from a low-power consumption state of not broadcasting SSB and SIB1, and broadcast one or more first signals, which can be one or more of SSB, SIB1, and TRS.

[0087] Illustratively, this embodiment provides the following non-limiting implementation examples of network element 2 broadcasting the first signal.

[0088] In Example 1, after receiving the WUS, network element 2 may periodically broadcast the first signal. When the first signal is specifically SSB and SIB1, UE3 may access network element 2 based on the received first signal, or may locally store the SIB1 information required to access network element 2 after receiving the SIB1 in the first signal.

[0089] In Example 2, after receiving a WUS, network element 2 may broadcast the first signal within a preset number of periods. For example, network element 2 may broadcast the first signal continuously for two signal broadcast periods. After network element 2 completes broadcasting the first signal within the preset number of signal broadcast periods, it may re-enter a low-energy operation state, i.e., network element 2 enters a state where it does not broadcast the first signal, until network element 2 receives a WUS again, at which point it resumes broadcasting the first signal, thereby effectively saving energy on network element 2.

[0090] The number of times that network element 2 continuously broadcasts the first signal may be defined in a communication standard protocol, or network element 1 may separately notify network element 2 and UE 3 of the number of broadcasts. For example, network element 1 may indicate the number of times network element 2 broadcasts the first signal in a WUS sent, and may also indicate the number in an RRC reconfiguration message sent to UE 3. In this way, UE 3 improves the success rate of signal decoding by receiving the first signal continuously broadcast by network element 2.

[0091] In this embodiment, network element 2 may not distinguish between beams during the process of broadcasting the first signal, that is, network element 2 may only send one first signal in each cycle. Alternatively, network element 2 may also distinguish between beams to broadcast the first signal, so that network element 2 may send the first signal on multiple beams after receiving the WUS. That is, in each cycle, network element 2 may send multiple first signals based on different beams. Alternatively, when network element 1 sends a WUS to network element 2, it may also indicate the beam in which network element 2 broadcasts the first signal (the number of specified beams may be one or more). For example, the WUS sent by network element 1 may carry a beam identifier, which is used to indicate the beam in which network element 2 broadcasts the signal. Thus, network element 2 can broadcast the first signal on the beam indicated by network element 1.

[0092] S307: UE3 measures the signal quality of the first signal broadcast by network element 1 and the signal quality of the SSB broadcast by network element 2.

[0093] In specific implementation, UE3 can measure the signal quality of the received SSB broadcast by network element 1 and the signal quality of the first signal broadcast by network element 2 according to the measurement configuration, and obtain corresponding measurement results. The measurement results can be, for example, numerical values, which can be used to indicate the level of signal quality. In addition, UE3 can also identify the network element to which the received first signal belongs. For example, when the first signal is specifically an SSB, UE3 can parse the MIB in the SSB to obtain the identifier of the network element to which the SSB belongs, thereby distinguishing the signal quality of the signals broadcast by network element 1 and network element 2 when they are transmitted to UE3.

[0094] S308: UE3 may send a measurement report to network element 1 based on the RRC connection. The measurement report includes the signal quality of the SSB sent by network element 1 and received by UE3, and the signal quality of the first signal sent by network element 2.

[0095] In this embodiment, UE3 may send a measurement report to network element 1 based on the following three implementation methods.

[0096] In the first implementation example, UE3 can periodically send measurement reports. Specifically, UE3 can periodically measure the signal quality of the first signal it receives based on the measurement configuration, add the measurement results and the signal quality measurement results for the SSB broadcast by network element 1 to the measurement report, and send the measurement report to network element 1 via the RRC connection. The measurement report can include the network element identifier, a numerical value indicating signal quality, and the like. The period for UE3 to send measurement reports can be configured using an RRC reconfiguration message previously sent by network element 1.

[0097] In the second implementation example, UE3 can send a measurement report once based on an event trigger. Specifically, UE3 can measure the signal quality of the received SSB sent by network element 1 and the signal quality of the first signal sent by network element 2, and identify the SSB sent by network element 1 and the first signal sent by network element 2. When the signal quality of the first signal sent by network element 2 is higher than the threshold, UE3 can determine that there is a measurement event (such as an A4 event) that triggers the sending of a measurement report, so that UE3 can trigger the process of sending a measurement report to network element 1, wherein the measurement report includes the signal quality of the SSB of network element 1 and the signal quality of the first signal of network element 2 measured by UE3. After sending the measurement report, UE3 can trigger the process of sending the measurement report again when a new measurement event is detected.

[0098] In the third implementation example, UE3 can periodically send measurement reports based on event triggering. Specifically, UE3 can measure the signal quality of the received SSB sent by network element 1 and the signal quality of the first signal sent by network element 2, and identify the SSB sent by network element 1 and the first signal sent by network element 2. When the signal quality of the first signal sent by network element 2 is higher than the threshold, UE3 can determine that there is a measurement event that triggers the sending of the measurement report, so that UE3 can start to periodically send measurement reports to network element 1, and the measurement report includes the signal quality of the SSB of network element 1 and the signal quality of the first signal of network element 2 measured by UE3. In the process of UE3 periodically sending measurement reports, UE3 can count the number of times the measurement report is sent, until the number of times UE3 sends the measurement report reaches the specified number, then UE3 ends the process of periodically sending measurement reports.

[0099] The implementation mode used by UE3 to send the measurement report to network element 1 can be configured through the RRC reconfiguration message previously sent by network element 1. For example, the ReportConfigToAddModList field in MeasConfig in the RRC reconfiguration message can be used to configure the mode in which UE3 sends the measurement report.

[0100] In actual application, UE3 may send the measurement report to network element 1 in other ways, which is not limited in this embodiment.

[0101] In this way, after receiving the measurement report sent by UE3, network element 1 can switch or add a carrier for UE3 based on the signal quality of the SSB broadcast by network element 1 received by UE3 and the signal quality of the first signal broadcast by network element 2 indicated in the measurement report to provide better service for UE3.

[0102] For example, when network element 1 determines based on the measurement report that the signal quality of the SSB received by UE3 from network element 1 is low and the signal quality of the first signal received by UE3 from network element 2 is high, network element 1 can instruct UE3 to switch the network element connected to it from network element 1 to network element 2 to improve the communication quality between UE3 and the network side.

[0103] For another example, if network element 1 determines, based on the measurement report, that the signal quality of the SSB signal received by UE3 from network element 1 is high and the signal quality of the first signal received by UE3 from network element 2 is also high, then, if UE3 has a higher bandwidth requirement, network element 1 can add the carrier of network element 2 (as a secondary carrier) for UE3. In this way, UE3 can simultaneously use the carriers provided by network element 1 and network element 2 to transmit data, including sending data to the network elements or receiving data sent by the network elements, thereby improving the communication efficiency between UE3 and the network side.

[0104] It is worth noting that in this embodiment, the measurement report sent by UE3 to network element 1 includes the signal qualities of two network elements. In other embodiments, the measurement report sent by UE3 to network element 1 may include only the quality of the signal of network element 2. For example, UE3 may only measure the signal quality of the first signal from network element 2, and when UE3 determines through measurement that the signal quality of the first signal from network element 2 is lower than a preset threshold, it sends a measurement report including the signal quality of network element 2 to network element 1.

[0105] In this embodiment, when UE3 is in a connected state with network element 1, network element 2 may not send SSB and SIB1 before receiving the wake-up signal sent by network element 1, thereby saving energy consumption of network element 2 and achieving network energy saving. In addition, after network element 2 is awakened, network element 2 may send a first signal to ensure normal network functions (such as UE3 measuring the signal quality of the first signal, UE3 achieving downlink synchronization with network element 2 based on the first signal, etc.).

[0106] In the embodiment shown in FIG3 , network element 1, while performing measurement configuration for UE 3, wakes up network element 2 from an energy-saving state in which SSB and SIB1 are not broadcast, switching it to an operating state in which the first signal is broadcast. In a scenario in which network element 1 adds a carrier of network element 2 for UE 3, network element 1 can also instruct network element 2 to send the first signal by sending a wake-up signal to network element 2. This is exemplified below with reference to FIG4 .

[0107] Referring to Figure 4, another communication method provided by an embodiment of the present application is shown. As shown in Figure 4, the process of the communication method includes the following steps:

[0108] S401: Network element 1 sends an RRC reconfiguration message to UE3. The reconfiguration message is used to add a carrier of network element 2 for UE3.

[0109] In this embodiment, network element 1 and UE3 can be in a connected state, that is, network element 1 and UE3 have established an RRC connection. In actual application scenarios, when network element 1 provides communication services for UE3, it can add the carrier of network element 2 to UE3 if predefined conditions are met. For example, when the amount of data that network element 1 needs to send to UE3 is large (such as the amount of data to be transmitted is greater than a threshold), network element 1 can dynamically add the carrier of network element 2 to UE3. Among them, the amount of data that network element 1 needs to send to UE3 is greater than the threshold, which means that the predefined condition is met. In this way, the network side uses the carrier of network element 1 and the carrier of network element 2 at the same time to send data to UE3 to improve the efficiency of data transmission. At this time, the carrier of network element 1 can be used as the main carrier, for example, to be responsible for the signaling and part of the user data (user data) transmission between the network side and UE3, and the carrier of network element 2 can be used as the auxiliary carrier, for example, to be responsible for the transmission of another part of the user data between the network side and UE3.

[0110] As an implementation example, network element 1 can determine the signal quality of the signal sent by network element 2 when it is transmitted to UE3 based on the measurement report sent by UE3 (such as the measurement report mentioned in the embodiment shown in Figure 3 above). When the signal quality received by UE3 from network element 2 is high, network element 1 can add a carrier of network element 2 for UE3 when the amount of data to be sent to UE3 is large or the amount of data to be sent by UE3 to the network side is large.

[0111] In specific implementation, network element 1 can send an RRC reconfiguration message to UE3 based on the RRC connection. The RRC reconfiguration message may include the identifier of network element 2 and related information such as the carrier to be added, so as to add a new carrier for UE3 based on the RRC reconfiguration message.

[0112] S402: Network element 1 sends an activation message to UE3. The activation message is used to activate the carrier added by network element 1 for UE3.

[0113] In this embodiment, after NE 1 configures the carrier of NE 2 for UE3, UE3 cannot use the carrier to transmit data with the network side if it is not activated. Therefore, NE 1 can send an activation message to UE3 to activate the newly configured carrier for UE3.

[0114] Exemplarily, the activation message sent by the network element 1 may be, for example, a medium access control-control element (MAC-CE) message, or may be other types of messages, which are not limited thereto.

[0115] S403: Network element 1 sends a WUS to network element 2, where the WUS is used to trigger network element 2 to broadcast a first signal.

[0116] In specific implementation, network element 1 may send WUS to network element 2 via the Xn interface. For specific implementation, please refer to the description of sending WUS in the embodiment shown in FIG. 3 , which will not be elaborated here.

[0117] It can be understood that UE3 is not currently connected to network element 2, and network element 2 is in an energy-saving state where SSB and SIB1 are not broadcast. Therefore, in the process of adding the carrier of network element 2 for UE3, network element 1 can send WUS to network element 2 to instruct network element 2 to broadcast the first signal required for UE3 to access network element 2.

[0118] The first signal may be, for example, SSB and SIB1; or, the first signal may be SSB; or, the first signal may be SIB1; or, the first signal may be TRS, or may be other signals that enable UE3 to access network element 2, etc.

[0119] S404: Network element 2 broadcasts a first signal.

[0120] S405: UE3 accesses network element 2 according to the received first signal.

[0121] In the first implementation manner, when the first signal is SSB and SIB1, this embodiment provides the following non-limiting implementation examples.

[0122] In Example 1, after receiving the WUS, NE 2 can resume periodic broadcasting of SSB and SIB1. In this way, UE3 can achieve downlink synchronization with NE 2 based on the SSB broadcast by NE 2 and access NE 2 based on the MIB and SIB1 in the SSB. This allows UE3 to subsequently transmit data between NE 2 and the network using the carrier of NE 2.

[0123] Example 2: After receiving WUS, network element 2 can broadcast SSB and SIB1 within a preset number of cycles, so that UE3 can improve the success rate of signal decoding by continuously receiving SSB and SIB1. For example, network element 2 can broadcast SSB and SIB1 continuously for 2 cycles. After network element 2 completes the broadcast of SSB and SIB1 within the preset number of cycles, it can re-enter the energy-saving state of not broadcasting SSB and SIB1 until network element 2 receives WUS again and then resumes broadcasting SSB and SIB1. In this way, UE3 can access network element 2 based on the received SSB and SIB1.

[0124] Example three: After receiving the WUS, network element 2 can determine whether to broadcast SSB and SIB1 based on the current load situation. For example, after receiving the WUS, network element 2 can obtain its own load and determine whether the load is greater than the load threshold. When the load of network element 2 is greater than the load threshold, network element 2 can refuse to broadcast SSB and SIB1 to avoid excessive load on network element 2 after UE3 accesses network element 2. When the load of network element 2 is less than or equal to the load threshold, it indicates that network element 2 has sufficient capacity to serve new UEs. Therefore, network element 2 can start broadcasting SSB and SIB1 to support UE3 accessing network element 2.

[0125] Among them, network element 2 may not distinguish between beams when broadcasting SSB and SIB1, that is, in each cycle, network element 2 may only send one SSB and SIB1. Alternatively, network element 2 may also distinguish between beams to broadcast SSB and SIB1, so that network element 2 may send SSB and SIB1 on multiple beams after receiving WUS. That is, in each cycle, network element 2 may send multiple SSBs and multiple SIB1s. Alternatively, when network element 1 sends WUS to network element 2, it may also indicate the beam in which network element 2 broadcasts SSB and SIB1 (the number of beams may be one or more). Thus, network element 2 may broadcast SSB and SIB1 on the beam indicated by network element 1.

[0126] In the second implementation, the first signal is SSB. At this time, since UE3 and network element 1 are in a connected state (RRC-CONNECTED), network element 1 can send the SIB1 information of network element 2 to UE3 through the RRC connection between network element 1. For example, network element 1 can send the SIB1 of network element 2 to UE3 through an RRC message, so that UE3 obtains the basic configuration information required to access network element 2. In this way, after receiving WUS, network element 2 can broadcast SSB in one or more cycles without broadcasting SIB1, thereby reducing the energy consumption of network element 2 while enabling UE3 to access network element 2. Accordingly, UE3 can achieve downlink synchronization with network element 2 based on the received SSB, and then access network element 2 based on the SIB1 of network element 2 previously sent by network element 1.

[0127] Among them, network element 2 can send the SIB1 of network element 2 to network element 1 in advance. For example, network element 2 can send the SIB1 of network element 2 to network element 1 through the Xn interface before receiving the WUS. In this way, for each UE that needs to add the carrier of network element 2, network element 1 can send the SIB1 of network element 2 to the UE through the RRC connection established with the UE, thereby reducing the energy consumption of network element 2.

[0128] In a third implementation, the first signal is SIB1. In this case, network element 1 and network element 2 may be co-located, and the frame headers of carrier 1 of network element 1 and carrier 2 of network element 2 are aligned. UE3 can then achieve downlink synchronization with network element 1 based on the SSB broadcast by network element 1 and calculate downlink synchronization with network element 2 based on the carrier frequencies between the two network elements carried in the SIB1 broadcast by network element 1. For example, UE3 can achieve downlink synchronization with network element 2 by calculating the frequency difference between the carriers of the two network elements and using this frequency difference and the SSB broadcast by network element 1. Furthermore, network element 1 can send the MIB required to decode the SIB1 broadcast by network element 2 to UE3 over an RRC connection. This MIB can be pre-sent from network element 2 to network element 1 for storage. Thus, after achieving downlink synchronization with network element 2 through the corresponding calculations, UE3 can access network element 2 based on the MIB sent by network element 1 over the RRC connection and the SIB1 broadcast by network element 2.

[0129] In the fourth implementation, the first signal is a TRS. In this case, network element 2 can pre-send network element 2's SIB1 and the MIB required to decode the SIB1 to network element 1. Network element 1 can then establish an RRC connection with UE3 and send the MIB and SIB1 to UE3 based on the RRC connection. In this way, after receiving the WUS sent by network element 1, network element 2 can periodically broadcast the TRS. Accordingly, UE3 can achieve downlink synchronization with network element 2 based on the received TRS, and then access network element 2 based on the MIB and SIB1 corresponding to network element 2 previously sent by network element 1.

[0130] It is understandable that when the first signal is implemented in other ways, UE3 can also achieve downlink synchronization with network element 2 and access network element 2 based on other ways, and this embodiment does not limit this.

[0131] In this way, the carriers used by UE3 when communicating with the network side may include both the first carrier and the second carrier, where the first carrier is the carrier used for communication between UE3 and network element 1, and the second carrier is the carrier used for communication between UE3 and network element 2. UE3 can then exchange signaling and user data with network element 1 via the first carrier, and exchange user data with network element 2 via the second carrier.

[0132] UE3 accesses network element 2, specifically, it may be synchronized with network element 2 and then performs uplink and downlink services with network element 2. Therefore, UE3 may not perform a random access process with network element 2.

[0133] In actual application scenarios, the signal coverage of network element 2 may also include other UEs. When the first signal broadcast by network element 2 is SSB and SIB1, other UEs may also access network element 2 according to the SSB and SIB1 broadcast by network element 2.

[0134] In this embodiment, since network element 2 does not need to broadcast SSB and SIB1 before receiving WUS, network element 2 can save energy consumption generated by sending SSB and SIB1 signals, thereby achieving network energy saving. At the same time, after network element 2 receives the wake-up signal, network element 2 can broadcast the first signal to enable UE3 to access network element 2 normally, thereby adding the carrier of network element 2 to UE3.

[0135] The embodiment shown in FIG4 above uses the scenario where network element 1 adds a carrier of network element 2 to UE3 as an example. In other scenarios, network element 1 may also instruct UE3 to switch the network element with which it establishes an RRC connection, that is, to switch the carrier used by UE3 to communicate with the network side. This is exemplified below with reference to FIG5 .

[0136] Referring to Figure 5, another communication method provided by an embodiment of the present application is shown. As shown in Figure 5, the process of the communication method includes the following steps:

[0137] S501: UE3 sends a measurement report to network element 1 based on the RRC connection. The measurement report includes the signal quality of the SSB sent by network element 1 and the signal quality of the SSB sent by network element 2 received by UE3.

[0138] The specific implementation manner of the network element 1 performing measurement configuration on the UE 3 in advance and the UE 3 sending the measurement report can be found in the relevant description of the embodiment shown in FIG. 3 above, which will not be repeated here.

[0139] S502: Network element 1 sends an RRC reconfiguration message to UE3, where the RRC reconfiguration message is used to switch carriers for UE3.

[0140] In this embodiment, after receiving the measurement report, network element 1 can determine whether the signal quality on UE3 is too low after the signal sent by network element 1 is transmitted to UE3 based on the signal measurement situation recorded in the measurement report. If it is determined through measurement that the signal quality received by UE3 from network element 1 is low, then after the signal sent by network element 1 is transmitted to UE3, UE3 may not be able to correctly parse all the contents indicated by the signal, which will affect the communication effect between UE3 and network element 1. For example, network element 1 needs to frequently retransmit the signal to ensure that UE3 can successfully parse the signal content. At the same time, the measurement report also records that the signal quality received by UE3 from network element 2 is high. In this case, network element 1 can determine to switch to the carrier configured for UE3.

[0141] In a specific implementation, network element 1 may send an RRC reconfiguration message to UE3. The RRC reconfiguration message may include indication information for switching carriers, an identifier of network element 1, an identifier of the carrier before switching (i.e., an identifier of the carrier of network element 1), an identifier of network element 2, an identifier of the carrier after switching (i.e., an identifier of the carrier of network element 2), etc., so as to implement switching of the carrier configured for UE3 from the first carrier to the second carrier based on the RRC reconfiguration message. The first carrier is the carrier used when UE3 communicates with network element 1, and the second carrier is a carrier that network element 2 can provide.

[0142] S503: Network element 1 sends a WUS to network element 2, where the WUS is used to trigger network element 2 to broadcast a first signal.

[0143] In specific implementation, network element 1 may send WUS to network element 2 via the Xn interface. For specific implementation, please refer to the description of sending WUS in the embodiment shown in FIG. 3 , which will not be elaborated here.

[0144] It can be understood that UE3 is not currently connected to network element 2, and network element 2 is in an energy-saving state where SSB and SIB1 are not broadcast. Therefore, in the process of switching the carrier for UE3, network element 1 can send WUS to network element 2 to instruct network element 2 to broadcast the first signal required for UE3 to access network element 2.

[0145] The first signal may be, for example, SSB and / or SIB1; or, the first signal may be TRS, or may be other signals that enable UE3 to access network element 2, etc., which are not limited to this.

[0146] S504: Network element 2 broadcasts a first signal.

[0147] S505: UE3 accesses network element 2 according to the received first signal.

[0148] Exemplarily, UE3 may access network element 2 by random access according to the received first signal.

[0149] S506: UE3 establishes an RRC connection with network element 2.

[0150] Furthermore, UER3 may also disconnect the RRC connection with network element 1.

[0151] Among them, the specific implementation method of UE3 accessing network element 2 according to the received first signal can be referred to the relevant description of UE3 accessing network element 2 according to the first signal and establishing an RRC connection in the embodiment shown in Figure 3 above, which will not be repeated here.

[0152] In this embodiment, since network element 2 does not need to broadcast SSB and SIB1 before receiving the WUS, network element 2 can save the energy consumption generated by sending SSB and SIB1 signals, thereby achieving network energy saving. At the same time, after network element 2 receives the wake-up signal, network element 2 can broadcast a first signal to enable UE3 to access network element 2 normally, thereby switching the carrier of network element 2 for UE3. Under normal circumstances, UE3 will switch the carrier of the RRC connection established with the network side from the carrier of network element 1 to the carrier of network element 2, that is, switching the cell to which UE3 is connected.

[0153] In the embodiments shown in Figures 3 to 5 above, network element 1 proactively triggers network element 2 to broadcast the first signal. In other application scenarios, UE 3 may trigger network element 2 to broadcast the first signal by sending a request message to network element 1. This is exemplified below with reference to Figure 6.

[0154] Referring to Figure 6, another communication method provided by an embodiment of the present application is shown. As shown in Figure 6, the process of the communication method includes the following steps:

[0155] S601: Network element 1 sends a configuration message to UE3, where the configuration message is used to configure a first time-frequency resource used by UE3 when sending an on-demand message.

[0156] In actual application scenarios, after UE3 establishes an RRC connection with network element 1, UE3 measures the quality of the signal received from network element 1 and determines that the signal quality is lower than a threshold. At this time, UE3 needs to measure the quality of the signal from network element 2 and instruct the network side to provide the signal of network element 2 (hereinafter referred to as the first signal) by sending a demand message to network element 1. Alternatively, after establishing an RRC connection with network element 1, UE3 may need to obtain downlink synchronization with network element 2. At this time, UE3 can send a demand message to network element 1 to instruct the network side to provide the signal of network element 2.

[0157] In this embodiment, UE3 can request the network side to provide the signal required for UE3 to access network element 2 by sending a request message to network element 1. This is referred to as the first signal below. The first signal can be one or more of SSB, SIB1, and TRS. Accordingly, network element 1 can pre-configure the time-frequency resources used by UE3 when sending the request message. For ease of distinction and description, this is referred to as the first time-frequency resource below.

[0158] In a specific implementation, network element 1 can send a configuration message to UE3. This configuration message can be used to configure the first time-frequency resources used by UE3 to send the demand message. For example, the configuration message can be an RRC message, a DCI message, or a MAC-CE message. The first time-frequency resources include time domain resources and frequency domain resources. For example, time domain resources can be the time slots and OFDM symbols that UE3 can occupy in the time domain; frequency domain resources can be one or more REs that UE3 can occupy in the frequency domain.

[0159] As some examples, the first time-frequency resource can be a time-frequency resource on a physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH) that can be used when UE3 sends information to network element 1, a time-frequency resource on a physical uplink control channel (PUCCH), a time-frequency resource on a physical random access channel (PRACH), or a sounding reference signal (SRS) resource, etc., or can be other types of time-frequency resources, which are not limited to this. Among them, PUCCH can be a public PUCCH or a dedicated PUCCH.

[0160] Accordingly, the network element 1 may use the following various non-limiting implementation methods to instruct the UE 3 to use the first time-frequency resource for sending the demand message.

[0161] Furthermore, the configuration message sent by network element 1 can also configure the code resources used by UE3 to send the demand message. For example, when the first time-frequency resource is the time-frequency resource on PRACH, the configuration message sent by network element 1 can also configure the preamble used by the demand message sent by UE3, such as which preamble or which ranges of preambles can be configured to indicate the demand message. For another example, when the first time-frequency resource is the time-frequency resource on PUCCH, the configuration message sent by network element 1 can also configure the orthogonal covering code (OCC) used by UE3 to send the demand message.

[0162] S602: UE3 sends a demand message to network element 1 via the first time-frequency resource.

[0163] The demand message sent by UE3 can be used to trigger the network side to broadcast the first signal. The first signal can be, for example, one or more of SSB, SIB1, and TRS corresponding to network element 2.

[0164] In this embodiment, the demand message sent by UE3 may be implemented in any one of the following multiple implementations.

[0165] In a first possible implementation, UE3 can use the first time-frequency resource on the PRACH to send a demand message. In this case, the demand message can be a random access message sent by UE3 using the time-frequency resource configured by the on-demand SI. Accordingly, after receiving the random access message, network element 1 determines that UE3 requests the network side to provide the first signal of network element 2.

[0166] Alternatively, a new configuration for the demand message can be defined in the communication standard protocol, with reference to the on-demand SI configuration. For example, taking UE3's request for SIB1 (i.e., the first signal) from network element 2 as an example, a new configuration field named "Sib1-RequestConfig" can be defined in the communication standard protocol, and the random access channel occasion (RO) and preamble used by the demand message can be defined in the configuration field. In this way, network element 1 can send a configuration message including the configuration field to UE3, so that UE3 can use the first time-frequency resource (i.e., the configured RO) to send the demand message corresponding to the preamble based on the configuration field.

[0167] In a second possible implementation, UE3 may use the first time-frequency resource on the PUCCH to send a demand message. In this case, the demand message may specifically be uplink control information (UCI) in a new format defined in a communication standard protocol. For example, the newly defined UCI in the communication standard protocol may be a UCI named wake-up request (WUR). Alternatively, UCI in an existing format may be reused in the communication standard protocol as a demand message. For example, the reused UCI in an existing format may be an SR (scheduling request).

[0168] The number of bits included in the demand message can be determined according to the number of SCells in the communication system (that is, the number of network elements that implement SCells). For example, when the number of Scells is 1, the demand message may include 1 bit; and when the value of this bit is 1, it indicates that the first signal of the SCell is requested, and when the value of this bit is 0, it indicates that the first signal of the SCell is not requested. For another example, when the number of Scells is 2, namely SCell 1 and SCell 2, the demand message may include 2 bits; and when the values ​​of these two bits are 01, it indicates that the first signal of SCell 1 is not requested, but the first signal of SCell 2 is requested, and when the values ​​of these two bits are 10, it indicates that the first signal of SCell 1 is requested, but the first signal of SCell 2 is not requested.

[0169] In this embodiment, the first time-frequency resource for sending the demand message may be a time-frequency resource on a common PUCCH on a PUCCH, or may be a time-frequency resource on a dedicated PUCCH.

[0170] Specifically, when the first time-frequency resource is a time-frequency resource on a public PUCCH, the index (index) of one or more time-frequency resources on the public PUCCH that UE3 can use when sending a demand message can be defined in advance in a communication standard protocol (such as release 19, etc.). For example, a table can be defined in the communication standard protocol, and the table can record the indexes of multiple time-frequency resources on the public PUCCH, and each index is used to identify a time-frequency resource. Then, the configuration message sent by network element 1 in step S601 can be, for example, a pucch-ResourceCommon message, and the pucch-ResourceCommon message sent by network element 1 can include the index of the first time-frequency resource. Alternatively, the configuration message sent by network element 1 can be a separately defined message, such as a pucch-ResourceCommonWur message, etc., and the pucch-ResourceCommonWur message can include the index of the first time-frequency resource. At this time, network element 1 can send the configuration message to UE3 by broadcasting.

[0171] It should be noted that in this embodiment, network element 1 instructs UE3 on the first time-frequency resource to be used for sending the demand message by sending a configuration message to UE3. In other embodiments, UE3 may independently determine the first time-frequency resource to be used for sending the demand message. For example, a time-frequency resource on a common PUCCH used by UE3 (and other UEs) to send demand messages may be predefined in a standard communications protocol, so that UE3 can send the demand message to network element 1 based on this time-frequency resource. For another example, a plurality of time-frequency resources on a common PUCCH that UE3 (and other UEs) can use to send demand messages may be predefined in a standard communications protocol, so that UE3 can select one of these multiple time-frequency resources to send the demand message. For example, the first time-frequency resource may be selected from the multiple time-frequency resources using a random algorithm or a hash operation based on an identifier of UE3. In this case, network element 1 may perform signal detection within a resource window corresponding to the 16 time-frequency resources to determine whether UE3 is using one of these time-frequency resources to send the demand message. The demand message sent may, for example, be a UCI.

[0172] When the first time-frequency resource is a time-frequency resource on a dedicated PUCCH, the demand message to be sent by UE3 may specifically be an SR message. Then, the configuration message sent by network element 1 in step S601 may configure the time-frequency resources on the dedicated PUCCH used by UE3 to transmit each SR message. At the same time, the configuration message sent by network element 1 to UE3 may also include an identifier of the SR message as a demand message, so that UE3 can determine the time-frequency resource (that is, the first time-frequency resource) on the dedicated PUCCH used to send the SR message (that is, the demand message) based on the identifier of the SR message. At this time, there is a mapping between the identifier of the SR message and the time-frequency resource. Therefore, the identifier of the SR message specified by network element 1 in the configuration message may also be regarded as the identifier of the first time-frequency resource. Accordingly, when network element 1 receives the SR message based on the first time-frequency resource, it can determine that UE3 has sent a demand message to network element 1. Alternatively, network element 1 may also indicate the first time-frequency resource on the dedicated PUCCH used by UE3 to send the demand message in other ways, such as by sending an RRC message or a DCI message to indicate the first time-frequency resource on the dedicated PUCCH.

[0173] Alternatively, when the first time-frequency resource is a time-frequency resource on a dedicated PUCCH, the demand message sent by UE3 may specifically be a UCI. Then, network element 1 may carry an identifier of the first time-frequency resource on the dedicated PUCCH in the configuration message sent to UE3, so that UE3 can determine the first time-frequency resource on the dedicated PUCCH for sending the demand message based on the configuration message.

[0174] At this time, the configuration message sent by network element 1 to UE3 can be, for example, an RRC configuration message. In actual application, the configuration message sent by network element 1 to UE3 can configure multiple time-frequency resources that UE3 can use. Different time-frequency resources can support UE3 sending different types of messages to network element 1. At the same time, the configuration message can include an identifier of the first time-frequency resource, thereby enabling network element 1 to specify in the configuration message the first time-frequency resource used by UE3 to send the demand message.

[0175] In other examples, the configuration message sent by network element 1 to UE3 may be a downlink control information (DCI) message. For example, in a communication standard protocol, a new field may be defined in an existing format of DCI, such as a field named "WurResoureIndicator", and the newly defined field may include multiple bits, such as 3 bits, etc. In this way, network element 1 may first send an RRC configuration message to UE3 to configure a variety of time-frequency resources on a dedicated PUCCH that UE3 can use. Then, network element 1 may send DCI (i.e., the configuration message in step S601) to UE3, and use the value of the newly defined field in the DCI to indicate the first time-frequency resource among the multiple time-frequency resources for sending the demand message. For another example, a new format of DCI message may be defined in a communication standard protocol, so that network element 1 may use the newly defined format of DCI to indicate the first time-frequency resource, etc.

[0176] In actual application, the format of the demand message can be implemented using PUCCH format 0 or PUCCH format 1 which carries a smaller number of UCI bits.

[0177] In a third possible implementation, after UE3 establishes an RRC connection with network element 1, the demand message sent by UE3 may be a specific type of SRS, wherein the type of SRS used as the demand message may be predefined in a communication standard protocol.

[0178] The first time-frequency resource used to send the SRS may be an SRS resource predefined in a communication standard protocol. For example, based on a resource identifier, the lowest resource in a lowest SRS resource set may be defined as the first time-frequency resource for sending the demand message, or the highest resource in a highest SRS resource set may be defined as the first time-frequency resource for sending the demand message, etc., although this is not limited thereto.

[0179] Alternatively, network element 1 may indicate the identifier of the SRS resource as the first time-frequency resource through a configuration message (such as an RRC configuration message or a DCI message). For example, network element 1 may configure a variety of time-frequency resources that can be used by UE3 through an RRC configuration message (i.e., the configuration message in step S601), and different time-frequency resources can support UE3 to send different types of messages to network element 1. At the same time, the configuration message may also include the identifier of the first time-frequency resource, so that network element 1 specifies the first time-frequency resource used by UE3 to send the demand message in the configuration message. For another example, network element 1 may first configure a variety of time-frequency resources that can be used by UE3 by sending an RRC configuration message, and then indicate the first time-frequency resource used by UE3 to send the demand message by sending a DCI message (i.e., the configuration message in step S601).

[0180] Furthermore, the SRS resources predefined in the communication standard protocol or indicated by the configuration message can be periodic resources, i.e., UE3 can periodically send a specific type of SRS (i.e., a demand message) based on the SRS resources. In actual applications, the SRS resources can also be aperiodic resources or semi-static resources, which are not limited to this.

[0181] S603: After receiving the demand message, network element 1 sends a WUS to network element 2. The WUS is used to trigger network element 2 to send a first signal.

[0182] The first signal may be, for example, one or more of SSB, SIB1, and TRS.

[0183] S604: Network element 2 broadcasts a first signal.

[0184] The specific implementation process of step S603 to step S604 can be found in the relevant descriptions in the above embodiments and will not be repeated here.

[0185] In this embodiment, after receiving the first signal broadcast by the network element 2, the UE 3 may execute the following non-limiting implementation methods.

[0186] In a first implementation manner, UE3 may access network element 2 according to the first signal.

[0187] For example, when the first signal is specifically an SSB, UE3 can achieve downlink synchronization with network element 2 based on the SSB and parse the MIB carried in the SSB. UE3 can also obtain the SIB1 of network element 2 sent by network element 1 via the RRC connection. In this way, after achieving downlink synchronization with network element 2, UE3 can access network element 2 based on the MIB and SIB1.

[0188] For another example, when the first signal is specifically a TRS, UE3 can achieve downlink synchronization with NE 2 based on the TRS. Furthermore, UE3 can also obtain the MIB and SIB1 of NE 2 sent by NE 1 via the RRC connection. Thus, after achieving downlink synchronization with NE 2, UE3 can access NE 2 based on the MIB and SIB1 of NE 2.

[0189] For another example, when the first signal is specifically SIB1, UE3 can not only use the SSB broadcast by network element 1 to achieve downlink synchronization with network element 1, but also calculate the carrier frequency between the two network elements carried in the SSB and the SIB1 broadcast by network element 1 to obtain downlink synchronization with network element 2. In this way, after achieving downlink synchronization with network element 2, UE3 can access network element 2 based on the MIB provided by network element 1 through the RRC connection (or the MIB pre-stored by UE3) and the SIB1 broadcast by network element 2.

[0190] For example, when the first signal is SSB and SIB1, UE3 can achieve downlink synchronization with network element 2 based on the received SSB of network element 2, and parse the MIB carried in the SSB, so that UE3 can access network element 2 based on the MIB and SIB1.

[0191] In this embodiment, UE3 accesses network element 2, which specifically means that after UE3 is synchronized with network element 2, it performs uplink and downlink services with network element 2, that is, UE3 can send data to network element 2, or UE3 can receive data sent by network element 2. At this time, UE3 may not perform a random access procedure with network element 2, and may not need to establish an RRC connection with network element 2.

[0192] Alternatively, UE3 accesses network element 2, which may specifically refer to UE3 performing random access to network element 2. Furthermore, after randomly accessing network element 2, UE3 may establish an RRC connection with network element 2 and disconnect the RRC connection with network element 1. In this way, UE3 can switch the network element with which it established the RRC connection.

[0193] In the second implementation, UE3 can measure the signal quality of the received first signal. For example, after measuring the signal (such as SSB, etc.) broadcast by network element 1, UE3 determines that the signal quality is lower than the threshold, indicating that the communication quality between UE3 and network element 1 is poor. At this time, UE3 can instruct network element 2 to broadcast the first signal by sending a demand message to network element 1, so that UE3 can measure the received first signal to determine the signal quality between UE3 and network element 2. When the quality of the first signal received by UE3 is high, it indicates that the communication quality between UE3 and network element 2 is good. At this time, UE3 can switch the network element with which it establishes an RRC connection from network element 1 to network element 2.

[0194] In the third implementation, the first signal is specifically the SIB1 of network element 2. When the SIB1 of network element 2 stored in UE3 expires (i.e., the duration of the SIB1 stored in UE3 exceeds a preset duration), UE3 may also send a demand message to network element 1, thereby using network element 1 to instruct network element 2 to broadcast SIB1, so that UE3 can update its own stored SIB1 based on the SIB1 broadcast by network element 2.

[0195] It should be noted that, in this embodiment, an example is given in which UE3 instructs network element 2 to broadcast a first signal through network element 1. In actual application, the communication system may further include other UEs, and other UEs may also instruct network element 2 to broadcast a second signal (such as SSB, SIB1, or TRS, etc.) through network element 1 in a similar manner as described above; and network element 1 may pre-configure the time-frequency resources used by the other UE to send the demand message.

[0196] In this embodiment, since network element 2 does not need to broadcast signals such as SSB and SIB1 before receiving the wake-up signal, network element 2 can save energy consumption generated by sending SSB and SIB1 signals, thereby achieving network energy saving.

[0197] It should be noted that, in this embodiment, the example of UE3 sending a demand message based on the first time-frequency resource configured by network element 1 is used for description. In other embodiments, the time-frequency resource used by UE3 to send a demand message to network element 1 does not need to be configured by network element 1.

[0198] For example, if UE3 has established an RRC connection with NE 1, UE3 can send dedicated signaling to NE 1 via a dedicated control channel (DCCH). This dedicated signaling is the demand message in step S602. At this point, the time-frequency resources used by UE3 to send this dedicated signaling can be determined by UE3, without requiring configuration by NE 1. The format of the dedicated signaling can be predefined in the communication standard protocol.

[0199] For example, when the first signal that UE3 requests network element 2 from the network side is specifically SIB1, the proprietary signaling sent by UE3 to network element 1 can specifically be the signaling format shown in Figure 7. Network element 1 can determine that UE3 requests SIB1 of network element 2 from the network side based on the value "SIB1" in the "ENUMERATED" field in the proprietary signaling. Similarly, when the first signal that UE3 requests network element 2 from the network side is specifically SSB or SSB+SIB1, the proprietary signaling can be defined with reference to the format shown in Figure 7, such as by adding the value "ssb" or "ssb, sib1" to the "ENUMERATED" field in the proprietary signaling.

[0200] For another example, if UE3 has established an RRC connection with network element 1, UE3 can send a measurement report to network element 1 based on the DCCH. This measurement report may include a cause field, so that network element 1 can determine the reason why UE3 requested the network side to provide the first signal of network element 2 based on the value of the cause field. For example, the cause field may include one or more bits; and when the value of the cause field is a first value, it can be used to indicate that UE3 needs to measure the signal quality of network element 2. When the value of the cause field is a second value, it can be used to indicate that UE3 needs to achieve downlink synchronization with network element 2. In this case, the measurement report sent by UE3 to network element 1 is the request message in step S602.

[0201] In addition, when UE3 sends a measurement report (request message) based on the time-frequency resources on the PUCCH, UE3 can also indicate the reason why UE3 requests the network side to provide the first signal of network element 2 by using different types of time-frequency resources. For example, when UE3 sends a measurement report using the time-frequency resources corresponding to SR1, it can indicate that UE3 needs to measure the signal quality of network element 2; and when UE3 sends a measurement report using the time-frequency resources corresponding to SR2, it can indicate that UE3 needs to achieve downlink synchronization with network element 2, etc.

[0202] FIG8 above illustrates an example of network element 1 sending a WUS to network element 2. In other embodiments, UE 3 may also send a WUS to network element 2. This is described in detail below with reference to FIG8. In the embodiment shown in FIG8, UE 3 establishes an RRC connection with network element 1, and UE 3 accesses network element 2, so that network elements 1 and 2 can provide higher bandwidth for the UE through carrier aggregation.

[0203] 8 , which shows a flow chart of another communication method. As shown in FIG8 , the method may specifically include:

[0204] S801: Network element 1 sends a configuration message to UE3, where the configuration message is used to configure a second time-frequency resource used by UE3 when sending a WUS.

[0205] In this embodiment, UE3 can trigger network element 2 to broadcast the required signal required by UE3 by sending a WUS to network element 2. This signal is hereinafter referred to as the first signal. This first signal can be any one or more of SSB, SIB1, and TRS. Accordingly, network element 1 can pre-configure the time-frequency resources used by UE3 when sending the WUS. For ease of distinction and description, this is hereinafter referred to as the second time-frequency resource.

[0206] In a specific implementation, network element 1 can send a configuration message to UE3. This configuration message can be used to configure the second time-frequency resources used by UE3 to send the WUS. For example, the configuration message can be an RRC message or a DCI message. The second time-frequency resources include time domain resources and frequency domain resources. Time domain resources can be, for example, the time slots and OFDM symbols that UE3 can occupy in the time domain; frequency domain resources can be, for example, one or more REs that UE3 can occupy in the frequency domain.

[0207] As some examples, the second time-frequency resource can be the time-frequency resource on PUSCH, the time-frequency resource on PUCCH, the time-frequency resource on PRACH, or the SRS resource, etc. that can be used by UE3 to send information to network element 2, or it can be other types of time-frequency resources, which are not limited.

[0208] In this embodiment, the specific implementation of step S801 can refer to the relevant description of step S601 in the embodiment shown in Figure 6 above, and will not be repeated here.

[0209] S802: UE3 sends a WUS to network element 2 via a second time-frequency resource. The WUS is used to trigger network element 2 to send a first signal.

[0210] In this embodiment, the implementation method of UE3 sending WUS to network element 2 through the second time-frequency resource can be referred to the relevant description of the embodiment shown in Figure 6 above where UE3 sends the demand message through the first time-frequency resource, which will not be repeated here.

[0211] S803: Network element 2 broadcasts a first signal.

[0212] The specific implementation process of step S803 can be found in the relevant descriptions in the aforementioned embodiments and will not be elaborated here.

[0213] Furthermore, the WUS sent by UE3 to network element 2 may also carry a beam identifier, which indicates the beam in which network element 2 broadcasts the first signal. The WUS sent by UE3 may carry the identifiers of one or more beams. Thus, network element 2 can broadcast the first signal on one or more beams indicated by network element 1.

[0214] For example, when UE3 accesses network element 2, after receiving the first signal broadcast from network element 2, UE3 can measure the signal quality of the first signal, so that UE3 sends the signal quality measurement result of the first signal to network element 1, so that network element 1 can perceive the signal quality of network element 2 in real time.

[0215] In addition, the present application also provides another communication method. Referring to FIG9 , a flow chart of a communication method is shown. In the embodiment shown in FIG9 , UE3 has established an RRC connection with network element 1, but UE3 has not established an RRC connection with network element 2. As shown in FIG9 , the method may specifically include:

[0216] S901: Network element 1 determines that a condition for sending a wake-up signal to network element 2 is met.

[0217] In a first possible implementation, network element 1 determines that a condition for sending a wake-up signal to network element 2 is met. Specifically, network element 1 may send an RRC reconfiguration message to UE 3. The RRC reconfiguration message is used to configure UE 3 to perform signal quality measurement on the first signal from network element 2. For a specific implementation of the RRC reconfiguration message sent by network element 1 to UE 3, reference may be made to the description of step S304 in the embodiment shown in FIG. 3 .

[0218] In a second possible implementation, network element 1 determines that the conditions for sending a wake-up signal to network element 2 are met. Specifically, network element 1 may send an RRC reconfiguration message to UE3, where the RRC reconfiguration message is used to add a carrier of network element 2 to UE3. At this time, network element 1 also sends an activation message to UE3, where the activation message is used to activate the carrier of network element 2 added for UE3. The specific implementation of how network element 1 sends the RRC reconfiguration message and the activation message to UE3 can be found in the description of steps S401 and S402 in the embodiment shown in FIG. 4 .

[0219] In a third possible implementation, network element 1 determines that the conditions for sending a wake-up signal to network element 2 are met, which may be specifically that network element 1 receives a demand message sent by UE3, and the demand message is used to trigger network element 1 to send a WUS to network element 2. At this time, before network element 1 receives the demand message, network element 1 may also send a configuration message to UE3 in advance to configure the time-frequency resources used by UE3 to send the demand. Among them, the time-frequency resources configured by network element 1 through the configuration message are the time-frequency resources on PRACH. In this case, the demand message sent by UE3 is a random access message; or, the time-frequency resources configured by network element 1 through the configuration message are the time-frequency resources on PUCCH. In this case, the demand message sent by UE3 is an SR message or UCI; or. The time-frequency resources configured by network element 1 through the configuration message are SRS resources. In this case, the demand message sent by UE3 is SRS. Furthermore, the demand message sent by UE3 may also include a reason field, and the reason field is used to indicate the reason why UE3 requires the first signal.

[0220] In this embodiment, the specific implementation manner of network element 1 receiving the demand message and sending the configuration message can refer to the description of the relevant parts of step S601 and step S602 in the embodiment shown in Figure 6 above.

[0221] S902: Network element 1 sends a WUS to network element 2, where the WUS is used to trigger network element 2 to send a first signal.

[0222] The first signal may be, for example, one or more of an SSB, a SIB1, and a TRS. Furthermore, the WUS sent by network element 1 may further include a reason field, which is used to indicate the reason why network element 1 instructed network element 2 to send the first signal. The specific implementation of network element 1 sending the WUS can be found in the description of the relevant aspects of network element 1 sending the WUS in the embodiments shown in Figures 3 to 6 above, and will not be repeated here.

[0223] S903: Network element 2 sends a first signal.

[0224] The specific implementation method of the network element 2 sending the first signal can be found in the description of step S306 in the embodiment shown in FIG3 , and will not be elaborated here.

[0225] Furthermore, when UE3 receives the RRC reconfiguration message sent by network element 1, and the RRC reconfiguration message is used to perform measurement configuration on UE3, UE3 may also perform signal quality measurement on the received first signal, obtain a measurement result, and send a measurement report to network element 1, where the measurement report includes the measurement result. The specific implementation of UE3 sending the measurement report to network element 1 can be found in the description of step S308 in the embodiment shown in FIG. 3 above, and is not further described here.

[0226] Alternatively, when UE3 receives an RRC reconfiguration message sent by network element 1, and the RRC reconfiguration message is used to add a carrier of network element 2 for UE3, UE3 may further perform signal quality measurement on the received first signal, obtain a measurement result, and send a measurement report to network element 1, where the measurement report includes the measurement result. The specific implementation manner in which UE3 sends the measurement report to network element 1 can be found in the relevant description of the embodiment shown in FIG. 4 above, and is not described in detail here.

[0227] In addition, when the first signal broadcast by network element 2 is SSB, network element 1 can also send SIB1 of network element 2 to UE3 through the RRC connection between network element 1 and UE3, so that UE3 can access network element 2 based on the SSB broadcast by network element 2 and the SIB1 of network element 2 sent by network element 1. At this time, UE3 accesses network element 2, which specifically refers to UE3 performing uplink and downlink services with network element 2 after synchronizing with network element 2, that is, UE3 may not perform a random access process with network element 2, and may not need to establish an RRC connection with network element 2. Alternatively, UE3 accesses network element 2, which specifically refers to UE3 performing random access with network element 2. Then, UE3 can also establish an RRC connection with network element 2 after randomly accessing network element 2, and disconnect the RRC connection with network element 1. In this way, UE3 can switch the network element with which it establishes an RRC connection.

[0228] 10 and 11 , the hardware implementation of the network element and the UE will be further described.

[0229] Referring to Figure 10, a schematic diagram of the hardware structure of a network element is shown. The network element shown in Figure 10 includes at least one processor 111, at least one memory 112, at least one transceiver 113, at least one network interface 114 and one or more antennas 115. The processor 111, the memory 112, the transceiver 113 and the network interface 114 are connected, for example, via a bus. In the embodiment of the present application, the connection may include various interfaces, transmission lines or buses, etc., which are not limited in this embodiment. The antenna 115 is connected to the transceiver 113. The network interface 114 is used to connect the network element to other communication devices through a communication link. For example, the network interface 114 may include a network interface between the network element and the network element in the core network, such as an S1 interface. The network interface may include a network interface between the network element and other network elements, such as an X2 or Xn interface.

[0230] Among them, the processor 111 shown in Figure 10 can specifically complete the network element processing actions in the above method, the memory 112 can complete the storage actions in the above method, the transceiver 113 and the antenna 115 can perform the sending and receiving actions on the air interface in the above method, and the network interface 114 can complete the actions of interacting with the network element or other network elements in the above method.

[0231] The processor in the embodiments of the present application, such as processor 111, may include but is not limited to at least one of the following: a central processing unit (CPU), a microprocessor, a digital signal processor (DSP), a microcontroller unit (MCU), or an artificial intelligence processor, etc., which are various types of computing devices that run software. Each computing device may include one or more cores for executing software instructions to perform operations or processing. The processor can be a separate semiconductor chip or integrated into a semiconductor chip together with other circuits. For example, it can form an SoC (system on chip) with other circuits (such as a codec circuit, a hardware acceleration circuit, or various bus and interface circuits), or it can be integrated into the ASIC as a built-in processor of the ASIC. The ASIC with the integrated processor can be packaged separately or with other circuits. In addition to the core for executing software instructions to perform operations or processing, the processor may further include necessary hardware accelerators, such as a field programmable gate array (FPGA), a PLD (programmable logic device), or a logic circuit that implements dedicated logic operations.

[0232] The memory in the embodiments of the present application may include at least one of the following types: read-only memory (ROM) or other types of static storage devices that can store static information and instructions, random access memory (RAM) or other types of dynamic storage devices that can store information and instructions, or electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM). In some scenarios, the memory may also be a compact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM) or other optical disc storage, optical disc storage (including compact disc, laser disc, optical disc, digital versatile disc, Blu-ray disc, etc.), magnetic disk storage medium or other magnetic storage device, or any other medium that can be used to carry or store desired program code in the form of instructions or data structures and can be accessed by a computer, but is not limited to this.

[0233] The memory 112 can be independent and connected to the processor 111. Optionally, the memory 112 can be integrated with the processor 111, for example, integrated into a single chip. The memory 112 can store program codes for executing the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present application, and the execution is controlled by the processor 111. The various computer program codes executed can also be regarded as drivers for the processor 111. For example, the processor 111 is used to execute the computer program codes stored in the memory 112, thereby implementing the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present application.

[0234] The transceiver 113 can be used to support the reception or transmission of radio frequency signals between the network element and other devices. The transceiver 113 can be connected to the antenna 115. The transceiver 113 includes a transmitter Tx and a receiver Rx. Specifically, one or more antennas 115 can receive radio frequency signals. The receiver Rx of the transceiver 113 is used to receive the radio frequency signal from the antenna, convert the radio frequency signal into a digital baseband signal or a digital intermediate frequency signal, and provide the digital baseband signal or digital intermediate frequency signal to the processor 111 so that the processor 111 can further process the digital baseband signal or digital intermediate frequency signal, such as demodulation and decoding. In addition, the transmitter Tx in the transceiver 113 is also used to receive a modulated digital baseband signal or digital intermediate frequency signal from the processor 111, convert the modulated digital baseband signal or digital intermediate frequency signal into a radio frequency signal, and send the radio frequency signal through one or more antennas 115. Specifically, the receiver Rx can selectively perform one or more stages of down-mixing and analog-to-digital conversion on the RF signal to obtain a digital baseband signal or a digital intermediate frequency signal. The order of the down-mixing and analog-to-digital conversion processes is adjustable. The transmitter Tx can selectively perform one or more stages of up-mixing and digital-to-analog conversion on the modulated digital baseband signal or digital intermediate frequency signal to obtain a RF signal. The order of the up-mixing and digital-to-analog conversion processes is adjustable. The digital baseband signal and the digital intermediate frequency signal may be collectively referred to as digital signals.

[0235] Figure 11 shows an example of the components of a UE provided in an embodiment of the present application. The UE may be, for example, a mobile phone, a smart wearable device (such as a smartwatch), etc. Taking a mobile phone as an example, the UE may include a processor 310, an external memory interface 320, an internal memory 321, a display 330, a camera 340, antenna 1, antenna 2, a mobile communication module 350, and a wireless communication module 360.

[0236] It should be understood that the structure illustrated in this embodiment does not constitute a specific limitation on the UE. In other embodiments, the UE may include more or fewer components than shown, or some components may be combined or separated, or arranged differently. The illustrated components may be implemented in hardware, software, or a combination of software and hardware.

[0237] The processor 310 may include one or more processing units. For example, the processor 310 may include an application processor (AP), a modem processor, a graphics processing unit (GPU), an image signal processor (ISP), a controller, a time-frequency codec, a digital signal processor (DSP), a baseband processor, and / or a neural-network processing unit (NPU). The different processing units may be independent devices or integrated into one or more processors.

[0238] It is understood that the interface connection relationship between the modules illustrated in this embodiment is only for illustrative purposes and does not constitute a structural limitation on the UE. In other embodiments of the present application, the UE may also adopt different interface connection methods in the above embodiments, or a combination of multiple interface connection methods.

[0239] The external memory interface 320 can be used to connect an external memory card, such as a Micro SD card, to expand the UE's storage capacity. The external memory card communicates with the processor 310 via the external memory interface 320 to implement data storage. For example, files such as music and time and frequency files can be stored on the external memory card.

[0240] The internal memory 321 can be used to store computer executable program codes, and the executable program codes include instructions. The processor 310 executes various functional applications and data processing of the UE by running the instructions stored in the internal memory 321. The internal memory 321 may include a program storage area and a data storage area. Among them, the program storage area may store an operating system, an application required for at least one function (such as a sound playback function, an image playback function, etc.), etc. The data storage area may store data created during the use of the UE (such as time-frequency stream data), etc. In addition, the internal memory 321 may include a high-speed random access memory, and may also include a non-volatile memory, such as at least one disk storage device, a flash memory device, a universal flash storage (UFS), etc. The processor 310 executes various functions and data processing of the UE by running the instructions stored in the internal memory 321, and / or the instructions stored in the memory provided in the processor.

[0241] The wireless communication function of the UE can be implemented through antenna 1, antenna 2, mobile communication module 350, wireless communication module 360, modem processor and baseband processor.

[0242] Antenna 1 and Antenna 2 are used to transmit and receive electromagnetic wave signals. Each antenna in the UE can be used to cover a single or multiple communication frequency bands. Different antennas can also be reused to improve antenna utilization. For example, antenna 1 can be reused as a diversity antenna for a wireless local area network. In other embodiments, the antennas can be used in conjunction with a tuning switch.

[0243] The mobile communication module 350 can provide solutions for wireless communications including 2G / 3G / 4G / 5G applied on the UE. The mobile communication module 350 may include at least one filter, a switch, a power amplifier, a low noise amplifier (LNA), etc. The mobile communication module 350 can receive electromagnetic waves from the antenna 1, and filter, amplify, and process the received electromagnetic waves, and transmit them to the modulation and demodulation processor for demodulation. The mobile communication module 350 can also amplify the signal modulated by the modulation and demodulation processor, and convert it into electromagnetic waves for radiation through the antenna 1. In some embodiments, at least some of the functional modules of the mobile communication module 350 can be set in the processor 310. In some embodiments, at least some of the functional modules of the mobile communication module 350 can be set in the same device as at least some of the modules of the processor 310.

[0244] In some embodiments, the UE initiates or receives a call request via the mobile communication module 350 and the antenna 1 .

[0245] Furthermore, an operating system runs on the above-mentioned components. Examples include the iOS operating system, the Android operating system, and the Windows operating system. Applications can be installed and run on the operating system. Those skilled in the art will clearly understand that, for ease of description and brevity, the explanation and beneficial effects of the relevant contents of any of the above-mentioned UEs can be referred to the corresponding method embodiments provided above, and will not be further elaborated here.

[0246] In addition, an embodiment of the present application also provides a computer-readable storage medium, which stores instructions. When the computer-readable storage medium is run on one or more computing devices, the one or more computing devices execute the communication method described in the above embodiment.

[0247] In addition, embodiments of the present application further provide a computer program product. When the computer program product is executed by one or more computing devices, the one or more computing devices perform any of the aforementioned communication methods. The computer program product may be a software installation package. When any of the aforementioned communication methods is required, the computer program product may be downloaded and executed on a computer.

[0248] Through the description of the above embodiments, those skilled in the art can clearly understand that the present application can be implemented by means of software plus necessary general hardware, and of course can also be implemented by special hardware including application-specific integrated circuits, special CPUs, special memories, special components, etc. In general, all functions performed by computer programs can be easily implemented with corresponding hardware, and the specific hardware structures used to implement the same function can also be diverse, such as analog circuits, digital circuits or special circuits, etc. However, for the present application, software program implementation is a better implementation method in most cases. Based on this understanding, the technical solution of the present application is essentially or the part that contributes to the prior art can be embodied in the form of a software product, which is stored in a readable storage medium, such as a computer's floppy disk, USB flash drive, mobile hard disk, ROM, RAM, magnetic disk or optical disk, etc., and includes a number of instructions to enable a computer device (which can be a personal computer, training equipment, or network equipment, etc.) to execute the methods described in each embodiment of the present application.

[0249] In the above embodiments, all or part of the embodiments may be implemented by software, hardware, firmware, or any combination thereof. When implemented by software, all or part of the embodiments may be implemented in the form of a computer program product.

[0250] The computer program product includes one or more computer instructions. When the computer program instructions are loaded and executed on a computer, the process or function described in the embodiment of the present application is generated in whole or in part. The computer can be a general-purpose computer, a special-purpose computer, a computer network, or other programmable devices. The computer instructions can be stored in a computer-readable storage medium, or transmitted from one computer-readable storage medium to another computer-readable storage medium. For example, the computer instructions can be transmitted from a website, a computer, a training device or a data center by wired (e.g., coaxial cable, optical fiber, digital subscriber line (DSL)) or wireless (e.g., infrared, wireless, microwave, etc.) mode to another website, a computer, a training device or a data center. The computer-readable storage medium can be any available medium that a computer can store or a data storage device such as a training device, a data center, etc. that includes one or more available media integrations. The available medium can be a magnetic medium, (e.g., a floppy disk, a hard disk, a tape), an optical medium (e.g., a DVD), or a semiconductor medium (e.g., a solid-state drive (SSD)).

[0251] The system architecture and business scenarios described in the embodiments of the present application are intended to more clearly illustrate the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present application, and do not constitute a limitation on the technical solutions provided in the embodiments of the present application. Ordinary technicians in this field will know that with the evolution of network architecture and the emergence of new business scenarios, the technical solutions provided in the embodiments of the present application are also applicable to similar technical problems.

Claims

1. A communication method, characterized in that: The method is applied to a second network element, and the method includes: receiving a wake-up signal, wherein the wake-up signal is used to trigger the second network element to send a first signal, the first signal being used for a user equipment UE to achieve downlink synchronization with the second network element or for the UE to perform signal quality measurement on the first signal, and the UE has not established a radio resource control RRC connection with the second network element; The first signal is sent.

2. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that The first signal is one or more of a synchronization signal, a physical broadcast channel block SSB, a system information block SIB1, and a tracking reference signal TRS.

3. A communication method, characterized in that: The method is applied to a first network element, where the first network element has established a radio resource control (RRC) connection with a user equipment (UE). The method includes: Determining that a condition for sending a wake-up signal to a second network element is met, wherein the second network element has not established an RRC connection with the UE, and the wake-up signal is used to trigger the second network element to send a first signal, where the first signal is used for the UE to achieve downlink synchronization with the second network element or for the UE to perform signal quality measurement on the first signal; Send a wake-up signal to the second network element.

4. The method according to claim 3, characterized in that The determining that a condition for sending a wake-up signal to the second network element is met includes: Sending an RRC reconfiguration message to the UE, where the RRC reconfiguration message is used to configure the UE to perform signal quality measurement on a first signal from the second network element; The method further comprises: A measurement report is received from the UE, where the measurement report includes a measurement result of a signal quality measurement performed by the UE on the first signal from the second network element.

5. The method according to claim 3, characterized in that The determining that a condition for sending a wake-up signal to the second network element is met includes: Sending an RRC reconfiguration message to the UE, where the RRC reconfiguration message is used to add a carrier of the second network element to the UE; Sending an activation message to the UE, where the activation message is used to activate a carrier of the second network element added for the UE; The method further comprises: A measurement report is received from the UE, where the measurement report includes a measurement result of a signal quality measurement performed by the UE on the first signal from the second network element.

6. The method according to claim 3, characterized in that The determining that a condition for sending a wake-up signal to the second network element is met includes: A requirement message is received from the UE, where the requirement message is used to trigger the first network element to send the wake-up signal to the second network element.

7. The method according to claim 6, characterized in that Before receiving the requirement message from the UE, the method further includes: A first configuration message is sent to the UE, where the first configuration message is used to configure a first time-frequency resource used by the UE to send the demand message.

8. The method according to claim 7, characterized in that The first time-frequency resource is a time-frequency resource on a physical random access channel PRACH, and the demand message is a random access message; Alternatively, the first time-frequency resource is a time-frequency resource on a physical uplink control channel PUCCH, and the demand message is a scheduling request SR message or uplink control information UCI; Alternatively, the first time-frequency resource is a sounding reference signal SRS resource, and the demand message is SRS.

9. The method according to any one of claims 6 to 8, characterized in that The request message includes a reason field, where the reason field is used to indicate the reason why the UE requires the first signal.

10. The method according to any one of claims 3 to 9, characterized in that The first signal is one or more of a synchronization signal, a physical broadcast channel block SSB, a system information block SIB1, and a tracking reference signal TRS.

11. The method according to any one of claims 3 to 10, characterized in that The wake-up signal includes a reason field, where the reason field is used to indicate a reason why the first network element instructs the second network element to send the first signal.

12. The method according to any one of claims 3 to 11, characterized in that The method further comprises: When the UE accesses the second network element, a second configuration message is sent to the UE, where the second configuration is used to configure a second time-frequency resource used by the UE to send a wake-up signal.

13. A communication method, characterized in that: The method is applied to a user equipment (UE), where the UE has established a radio resource control (RRC) connection with a first network element, but has not established an RRC connection with a second network element. The method includes: Sending a demand message to the first network element based on the RRC connection between the UE and the first network element, where the demand message is used to trigger the first network element to send the wake-up signal to the second network element, where the wake-up signal is used to trigger the second network element to send the first signal; The first signal is received, where the first signal is used for the UE to achieve downlink synchronization with the second network element or for the UE to measure signal quality of the first signal.

14. The method according to claim 13, characterized in that The method further comprises: receiving an RRC reconfiguration message from the first network element, where the RRC reconfiguration message is used to configure the UE to perform signal quality measurement on a first signal from the second network element; measuring a signal quality of the first signal to obtain a measurement result; Sending a measurement report to the first network element, where the measurement report includes the measurement result.

15. The method according to claim 13, characterized in that The method further comprises: receiving an RRC reconfiguration message from the first network element, where the RRC reconfiguration message is used to add a carrier of the second network element for the UE; receiving an activation message from the first network element, where the activation message is used to activate a carrier of the second network element added for the UE; measuring a signal quality of the first signal to obtain a measurement result; Sending a measurement report to the first network element, where the measurement report includes the measurement result.

16. The method according to any one of claims 13 to 15, characterized in that The demand message is sent through a first time-frequency resource. Before sending the demand message to the first network element, the method further includes: A first configuration message is received from the first network element, where the first configuration message is used to configure the first time-frequency resource used by the UE to send the demand message.

17. The method according to any one of claims 13 to 16, characterized in that The first time-frequency resource is a time-frequency resource on a physical random access channel PRACH, and the demand message is a random access message; Alternatively, the first time-frequency resource is a time-frequency resource on a physical uplink control channel PUCCH, and the demand message is a scheduling request SR message or uplink control information UCI; Alternatively, the first time-frequency resource is a sounding reference signal SRS resource, and the demand message is SRS.

18. The method according to any one of claims 13 to 17, characterized in that The request message includes a reason field, where the reason field is used to indicate the reason why the UE requires the first signal.

19. The method according to any one of claims 13 to 18, characterized in that The first signal is one or more of a synchronization signal, a physical broadcast channel block SSB, a system information block SIB1, and a tracking reference signal TRS.

20. The method according to claim 19, characterized in that The first signal is the SSB, and the method further includes: receiving a system information block SIB1 of the second network element from the first network element through the RRC connection; When downlink synchronization is achieved with the second network element based on the SSB, the second network element is accessed according to the SSB and the SIB1.

21. The method according to any one of claims 13 to 20, characterized in that The method further comprises: When the UE accesses the second network element, receiving a second configuration message sent by the first network element, where the second configuration is used to configure a second time-frequency resource used by the UE to send a wake-up signal; Send a wake-up signal to the second network element through the second time-frequency resource.

22. A network element, characterized in that: include: A transceiver, configured to perform the receiving operation and the sending operation in the method according to any one of claims 1 to 12; A processor, configured to perform other operations except the receiving operation and the sending operation in the method according to any one of claims 1 to 12.

23. A user equipment UE, characterized in that include: A transceiver, configured to perform the receiving operation and the sending operation in the method according to any one of claims 13 to 21; A processor, configured to perform other operations except the receiving operation and the sending operation in the method according to any one of claims 13 to 21.

24. A communication system, characterized in that: The method comprises a user equipment UE and a network element, wherein the UE is used to execute the method according to any one of claims 13 to 21, and the network element is used to execute the method according to any one of claims 1 to 12.

25. A computer storage medium for storing a computer program, wherein when the computer program is executed, it is used to implement the communication method according to any one of claims 1 to 21.

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