Communication methods and related apparatuses

Abstract

The application relates to a communication method and related device, which are applied to the technical field of communication. In the communication method, a terminal device receives configuration information, the configuration information is used for configuring a communication parameter group, the communication parameter group is associated with at least two BWPs; and the terminal device communicates on an activated BWP in the at least two BWPs based on the communication parameter group. In the method, since the same communication parameter group is associated with the at least two BWPs, when the at least two BWPs are switched, the communication parameters in the communication parameter group remain unchanged, so that the complexity of BWP switching of the terminal device is reduced, for example, the terminal device does not need to perform operations such as downloading / updating / validating of the communication parameters, thereby reducing the BWP switching delay.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This application relates to the field of communication technology, and in particular to a communication method and related apparatus. Background Technology

[0002] In wireless communication systems, the Bandwidth Part (BWP) comprises multiple resource blocks within a carrier. The network side can indicate the BWP within the carrier to the terminal, enabling the terminal to access the network and transmit data. BWPs can be flexibly switched to support various communication scenarios. Currently, the handover latency between BWPs is measured in time slots, which is relatively high and impacts communication performance. Therefore, reducing the handover latency between BWPs is a problem that needs to be solved. Summary of the Invention

[0003] This application provides a communication method and related apparatus that can reduce BWP handover latency.

[0004] In a first aspect, embodiments of this application provide a communication method applicable to a terminal device. For example, the terminal device may be a terminal equipment, a component within the terminal equipment (e.g., a processor, chip, chip system, circuit, or functional module), or a logical node, logical module, or software capable of implementing all or part of the terminal equipment's functions. The method includes: the terminal device receiving configuration information for configuring a communication parameter group, the communication parameter group being associated with at least two BWPs; and the terminal device communicating on the active BWP among the at least two BWPs based on the communication parameter group.

[0005] In this method, when the terminal device communicates on at least two active BWPs based on a communication parameter group, since the same communication parameter group is associated with at least two BWPs, the communication parameters in the communication parameter group remain unchanged when switching between at least two BWPs. This reduces the complexity of BWP switching for the terminal device, such as eliminating the need to download / update / enable the communication parameters, thereby reducing BWP switching latency.

[0006] The optional implementation methods for configuring information may include, but are not limited to, the following:

[0007] In one optional implementation, the configuration information includes configuration information for a BWP group, where each BWP group comprises at least two BWPs. The configuration information also includes configuration information for a communication parameter group associated with the BWP group. In this implementation, the configuration information for the BWP group and the configuration information for the communication parameter group associated with the BWP group may be designed in the following ways, including but not limited to the following three: In one possible design, the configuration information for the BWP group and the configuration information for the communication parameter group associated with the BWP group are relatively independent information elements within the configuration information. In another possible design, the configuration information for the BWP group is contained within or located in the configuration information of the communication parameter group associated with the BWP group. Yet another possible design, the configuration information for the communication parameter group associated with the BWP group is contained within the configuration information of the BWP group.

[0008] In this method, a communication parameter group corresponds to a BWP group. When switching BWPs within a BWP group, such as when switching bandwidth, the complexity of BWP switching is reduced because the communication parameter group is the same. For example, there is no need to perform operations such as downloading / updating / activating communication parameters. Thus, BWP switching can be achieved quickly, communication efficiency can be improved, and terminal energy saving can be achieved.

[0009] A BWP group can also be called a BWP bundle. The configuration information of a BWP group includes the identifiers of at least two BWPs.

[0010] The configuration information may also include the BWP group identifier. In one possible design, the BWP group identifier is contained in or located in the communication parameter group associated with the BWP group. In another possible design, the BWP group identifier and the BWP group configuration information are contained in or located in the communication parameter group associated with the BWP group.

[0011] In another optional implementation, the configuration information includes identifiers of at least two BWPs and communication parameter groups associated with at least two BWPs. The identifiers of the at least two BWPs and the communication parameter groups associated with the at least two BWPs may be designed in the configuration information in the following ways, including but not limited to the following two: In one possible design, the identifiers of the at least two BWPs and the communication parameter groups are relatively independent information elements in the configuration information. In another possible design, the identifiers of the at least two BWPs are contained within or located in the information elements of their associated communication parameter groups.

[0012] In this method, when switching between BWPs corresponding to the communication parameter group, there is no need to switch the communication parameters in the communication parameter group, which reduces the complexity of BWP switching in the terminal device. For example, there is no need to perform operations such as downloading / updating / taking effect of communication parameters, thereby reducing BWP switching latency, realizing fast BWP switching, improving communication efficiency, and thus helping to achieve terminal energy saving.

[0013] In another optional implementation, at least two BWPs include a first BWP and a second BWP; the configuration information includes configuration information of the communication parameter group of the first BWP and first information; the first information is used to determine the association between the communication parameter group of the first BWP and the second BWP.

[0014] In this method, a BWP can be associated with the communication parameter group of other BWPs. In this way, when the BWP switches between other BWPs, the communication parameters in the communication parameter group are the same, which reduces the complexity of BWP switching in the terminal device. For example, it does not require operations such as downloading / updating / taking effect of communication parameters, thereby reducing BWP switching latency, realizing fast BWP switching, and improving communication efficiency.

[0015] In this embodiment, the design of the configuration information of the communication parameter group of the first BWP and the first information in the configuration information may include, but is not limited to, the following three:

[0016] In one possible design, the configuration information of the communication parameter group of the first BWP and the first information are relatively independent information elements in the configuration information. The first information includes the identifier of the first BWP and the identifier of the second BWP. If there are multiple BWPs associated with the communication parameter group of the first BWP, the first information includes not only the identifier of the first BWP but also the identifiers of the multiple BWPs associated with the first BWP.

[0017] In this design, the terminal device determines one or more BWPs associated with the communication parameter group of the first BWP based on the first information. The first BWP and the one or more BWPs are associated with the same communication parameter group, so the switching latency can be reduced when switching between the first BWP and the BWPs in the one or more BWPs.

[0018] In another possible design, the first information is contained in or located in the configuration information of the communication parameter group of the first BWP or in the configuration information of the first BWP. The first information is the identifier of the BWP associated with the communication parameter group of the first BWP, such as the identifier of the second BWP. If there are multiple BWPs associated with the communication parameter group of the first BWP, the first information is the identifier of each of the multiple BWPs associated with the communication parameter group of the first BWP.

[0019] In this design, the terminal device determines one or more BWPs associated with the communication parameter group of the first BWP based on the first information. The first BWP and the one or more BWPs are associated with the same communication parameter group, so the switching latency can be reduced when switching between the first BWP and the BWPs in the one or more BWPs.

[0020] In another possible design, the first information is included in or located in the configuration information of the communication parameter group of the second BWP or in the configuration information of the second BWP. The first information is the identifier of the first BWP, or the first information is the identifier of the communication parameter group of the first BWP. When there are multiple BWPs associated with the communication parameter group of the first BWP, the first information includes not only the identifier of the first BWP or the identifier of the communication parameter group of the first BWP, but also the identifiers of other multiple BWPs associated with the communication parameter group of the first BWP.

[0021] In this design, the terminal device determines one or more BWPs associated with the communication parameter group of the first BWP based on the first information. The first BWP and the one or more BWPs are associated with the same communication parameter group, so the switching latency can be reduced when switching between the first BWP and the BWPs in the one or more BWPs.

[0022] Optionally, the first information is used to determine that the communication parameter group of the first BWP is associated with the second BWP. Alternatively, the first information can be used to determine that the first BWP and the second BWP are associated, and the associated BWPs have the same communication parameter group. If multiple BWPs are associated with the communication parameter group of the first BWP, the first information is used to determine that the communication parameter group of the first BWP is associated with multiple BWPs, including the second BWP.

[0023] In another optional implementation, the configuration information includes configuration information for communication parameter groups, which is used to configure communication parameter groups associated with at least two BWPs.

[0024] In one possible design, the configuration information includes configuration information for a communication parameter group and configuration information for a BWP group. The configuration information for the communication parameter group includes one or more communication parameters associated with at least two BWPs; the configuration information for the BWP group includes identifiers for at least two BWPs. Optionally, at least one of the configuration information, the configuration information for the communication parameter group, or the configuration information for the BWP group may also include the identifier of the BWP group.

[0025] In another possible design, the configuration information for the communication parameter group includes the identifiers of at least two BWPs and one or more communication parameters associated with at least two BWPs. This configuration information also includes basic parameters of at least two BWPs, or parameters that differ between BWPs not included in the communication parameter group.

[0026] In another possible design, the configuration information of the communication parameter group is the configuration information of the communication parameter group of the first BWP. The configuration information also includes first information, which is used to determine the association between the communication parameter group of the first BWP and the second BWP. Optionally, the location and content of the first information include, but are not limited to: 1) the first information is within the configuration information of the communication parameter group, and the first information is the identifier of the second BWP; 2) the first information is within the configuration information of the second BWP, and the first information is the identifier of the first BWP; 3) the configuration information includes the first information, and the first information includes the identifier of the first BWP and the identifier of the second BWP.

[0027] In another possible design, the configuration information of the communication parameter group is the configuration information of the communication parameter group of the first BWP. The configuration information also includes first information, which is used to determine the association of the communication parameter group of the first BWP with multiple BWPs. Optionally, the location and content of the first information include, but are not limited to: 1) the first information is within the configuration information of the communication parameter group, and the first information includes the identifiers of multiple BWPs associated with the communication parameter group of the first BWP; 2) the multiple BWPs associated with the communication parameter group of the first BWP include the second BWP, and the first information is within the configuration information of the second BWP, and the first information includes not only the identifier of the first BWP, but also the identifiers of the other BWPs among the multiple BWPs excluding the second BWP; 3) the configuration information includes the first information, and the first information includes the identifiers of the first BWP and other BWPs associated with the communication parameter group of the first BWP.

[0028] Optionally, the first information used to determine the association of the communication parameter group of the first BWP with the second BWP can be: the first information used to determine the association of the first BWP with the second BWP. The first information used to determine the association of the communication parameter group of the first BWP with multiple BWPs can also be: the first information used to determine the association of the first BWP with multiple BWPs.

[0029] In this embodiment, a communication parameter group may include one or more communication parameters. Communication parameters may also be referred to as parameters. A communication parameter group is associated with at least two BWPs, or at least two BWPs share or utilize the same communication parameter group, or the communication parameter group applies to at least two BWPs, or the communication parameter group is applied to at least two BWPs, or at least two BWPs have the same communication parameter group, or at least two BWPs share a set of configuration information, or at least two BWPs share the same set of configuration information, or at least two BWPs use the same communication parameters, or the communication parameters configured in the configuration information are effective for at least two BWPs. This embodiment uses the association of a communication parameter group with at least two BWPs as an example for illustration.

[0030] Optionally, the communication parameter set includes baseband processing parameters and / or basic parameters of the BWP.

[0031] Baseband processing parameters are also called baseband parameters. Baseband processing parameters may include, but are not limited to, at least one of the following parameters: uplink shared channel related parameters, downlink shared channel related parameters, sounding reference signal configuration parameters, channel state information measurement configuration parameters, beam management configuration parameters, beam failure recovery configuration parameters, radio link monitoring configuration (RLM) parameters, uplink control channel related parameters, or downlink control channel related parameters.

[0032] The parameters related to the uplink shared channel include at least one of the following: antenna port configuration information, maximum layer configuration information, waveform configuration information, time domain resource allocation information, data scrambling identifier, demodulation reference signal configuration information, frequency domain frequency hopping information, frequency domain resource allocation type information, aggregation factor, modulation and coding strategy table information, maximum rank, resource block group size configuration information, invalid resource pattern, rate matching resource information, power control configuration information, number of hybrid automatic repeat request processes, codebook configuration information, or, redundancy version information.

[0033] The downlink shared channel related parameters include at least one of the following: antenna port configuration information, maximum layer configuration information, waveform configuration information, time domain resource allocation information, data scrambling identifier, demodulation reference signal configuration information, frequency domain frequency hopping information, frequency domain resource allocation type information, aggregation factor, modulation and coding strategy table information, maximum rank, resource block group size configuration information, invalid resource pattern, rate matching resource information, power control configuration information, number of hybrid automatic repeat request processes, codebook configuration information, or, redundancy version information.

[0034] The detection reference signal configuration parameters include at least one of the following: antenna port configuration information, detection reference signal resource set configuration information, detection reference signal resource configuration information, transmission power control cumulative configuration information, detection reference signal request configuration information, or detection reference signal positioning resource configuration information.

[0035] The channel state information measurement configuration parameters include at least one of the following: channel state information - reference signal resource set configuration information, channel state information - reference signal resource configuration information, channel state information - indication measurement resource configuration information, measurement configuration information, or channel state information reporting configuration information.

[0036] The parameters related to the uplink control channel include at least one of the following: antenna port configuration information, maximum layer configuration information, time and frequency resource indication information, power control configuration information, frequency domain frequency hopping information, demodulation reference signal configuration information, modulation method information, code rate information, uplink feedback format information, or uplink feedback content information.

[0037] The downlink control channel related parameters include at least one of the following: antenna port configuration information, maximum layer configuration information, control resource set information, search space information, downlink preemption indication information, uplink transmission cancellation indication information, search space switching indication information, control channel skip / drop indication information, blind detection capability configuration information, time slot format indication information, or uplink power control command configuration information.

[0038] The basic parameters of a BWP, also known as radio frequency parameters, include, but are not limited to, at least one of the following: starting position, bandwidth, center frequency, subcarrier spacing, or, cyclic prefix length.

[0039] In one optional implementation, the communication parameter set includes at least one of the following: uplink shared channel related parameters, downlink shared channel related parameters, probe reference signal configuration parameters, or channel state information measurement configuration parameters.

[0040] Based on this method, at least two BWPs associated with the same communication parameter group have the same parameters related to data transmission or reference signals, which enables continuity of service transmission or channel measurement and improves the service experience.

[0041] In another alternative implementation, the communication parameter set includes at least one of the following: parameters related to the uplink control channel, or parameters related to the downlink control channel.

[0042] Based on this method, at least two BWPs associated with the same communication parameter group have the same control channel-related parameters, making the transmission of control information more flexible and timely.

[0043] In another alternative implementation, for cases where the communication parameter set includes at least one of the following "uplink control channel related parameters, or downlink control channel related parameters", the resources of the uplink control channel or downlink control channel may include, but are not limited to, the following three possible designs:

[0044] In one possible design, the resources of the uplink control channel or the downlink control channel are configured based on the BWP with the smallest bandwidth among at least two BWPs. This design uses a small communication bandwidth as the basis for configuration, such as allocating the resources of the uplink control channel or the downlink control channel within the BWP resources corresponding to the small communication bandwidth.

[0045] In another possible design, the resources of the uplink control channel or the downlink control channel are configured based on the BWP with the largest bandwidth among at least two BWPs. This design uses a large communication bandwidth as the configuration basis. For example, in the network-side implementation, the resources for configuring the uplink control channel or the downlink control channel are located in the frequency domain resources that overlap between the BWPs.

[0046] In another possible design, the resources of the uplink control channel or the downlink control channel are located in the frequency domain resources that overlap between at least two BWPs. This design can be agreed upon by protocol to configure the resources of the uplink control channel or the downlink control channel in the overlapping frequency domain resources.

[0047] This implementation enables resource sharing of uplink and / or downlink control channels on at least two BWPs associated with the same communication parameter group, ensuring communication continuity. For example, during BWP handover, the transmission of uplink and / or downlink control channels remains unaffected. Furthermore, it reduces configuration signaling overhead, avoids multiple configurations, and lowers terminal processing complexity.

[0048] In another optional implementation, for cases where the communication parameter group does not include at least one of the following "uplink control channel related parameters, or downlink control channel related parameters", the design of the configuration method for the uplink control channel related parameters and / or downlink control channel related parameters includes, but is not limited to, the following three:

[0049] In one possible design, the parameters related to the uplink control channel and / or the downlink control channel are parameters configured at the BWP level. In this way, the terminal device can determine whether the parameters related to the uplink control channel and / or the downlink control channel are configured from the configuration information of each BWP.

[0050] In another possible design, the parameters related to the uplink control channel and / or the downlink control channel correspond to one of at least two BWPs, allowing the terminal device to transmit uplink control channels and / or downlink control channels on the corresponding BWP. For example, the parameters related to the uplink control channel and / or the downlink control channel correspond to the identifier of one of at least two BWPs, allowing the terminal device to receive downlink control channels or transmit uplink control channels on the BWP with that identifier.

[0051] In another possible design, the uplink control channel and / or downlink control channel are transmitted in the BWP with the smallest bandwidth among at least two BWPs. Optionally, the uplink shared channel and / or downlink shared channel are transmitted in the BWP with the largest bandwidth among at least two BWPs. Thus, this method enables the transmission of the uplink shared channel and / or downlink shared channel when the large-bandwidth BWP is active, and the transmission of the uplink control channel and / or downlink control channel when the small-bandwidth BWP is active.

[0052] For example, regarding downlink control channel transmission, the terminal device can perform PDCCH blind detection on the second BWP and transmit downlink shared channel on the first BWP, where the bandwidth of the second BWP is smaller than that of the first BWP. In this scheme, the terminal device uses a smaller bandwidth for blind PDCCH detection, avoiding communication over a large bandwidth during blind detection and thus reducing terminal power consumption.

[0053] For example, regarding downlink control channel transmission, the terminal device can perform PDCCH blind detection on a second BWP based on a single antenna port, and transmit downlink shared channel data on a first BWP based on multiple antenna ports. The bandwidth of the second BWP is smaller than that of the first BWP. In this scheme, the terminal device uses a smaller bandwidth for blind PDCCH detection, avoiding communication over a large bandwidth during blind detection, and using fewer antenna ports for signal transmission and reception, thus reducing terminal power consumption.

[0054] For example, regarding downlink control channel transmission, the terminal device can perform blind PDCCH detection on the second frequency domain resources and transmit downlink shared channels on the first frequency domain resources. The bandwidth of the second frequency domain resources is less than the bandwidth of the first frequency domain resources. Optionally, the bandwidth of the second frequency domain resources is the bandwidth of the control resource set. Under this scheme, the terminal device performs blind PDCCH detection with a smaller bandwidth, avoiding communication over a large bandwidth during blind detection and reducing terminal power consumption.

[0055] For example, for downlink control channel transmission, the terminal device can perform PDCCH blind detection on a single antenna port in the second frequency domain resource, and transmit downlink shared channel on multiple antenna ports in the first frequency domain resource, wherein the bandwidth of the second frequency domain resource is less than the bandwidth of the first frequency domain resource. Optionally, the bandwidth of the second frequency domain resource is the bandwidth of the control resource set. Under this scheme, the terminal device has a smaller bandwidth for blind PDCCH detection and uses fewer antenna ports for signal transmission and reception, avoiding communication over a large bandwidth during blind detection, which can reduce terminal power consumption. In an optional implementation, at least two BWPs include a first BWP and a second BWP, wherein the bandwidth of the first BWP is different from that of the second BWP. Alternatively, at least two BWPs may include BWPs with different bandwidths.

[0056] This implementation allows the terminal device to switch between BWPs of different bandwidths, which is beneficial for large packet data transmission over high bandwidth and for terminal energy saving over low bandwidth.

[0057] In one optional implementation, at least two BWPs include a first BWP and a second BWP, wherein the first BWP and the second BWP have the same center frequency. Alternatively, at least one of the at least two BWPs has a BWP with the same center frequency.

[0058] This implementation allows the terminal device to switch between two BWPs without switching the center frequency, which can reduce BWP switching latency and improve communication performance.

[0059] In one optional implementation, at least two BWPs include a first BWP and a second BWP, wherein the first BWP and the second BWP have the same subcarrier spacing (SCS). Alternatively, at least two BWPs may include BWPs with the same SCS.

[0060] This implementation allows the terminal device to switch between two BWPs without switching the SCS, which can reduce BWP handover latency and improve communication performance.

[0061] In one alternative implementation, the handover delay between at least two BWPs associated with the same communication parameter group is x1 symbols, where x1 is an integer.

[0062] In this method, the switching between at least two BWPs in the same communication parameter group does not involve the switching of parameters in that communication parameter group, which reduces the complexity of BWP switching in the terminal device. For example, it does not require the download / update / activation of the parameter, which can reduce the switching latency to the symbol level and improve communication efficiency.

[0063] In another optional implementation, the BWP handover delay includes a first handover delay and a second handover delay. The first handover delay is the handover delay between multiple BWPs associated with the same communication parameter group; the second handover delay is the handover delay between multiple BWPs associated with different communication parameter groups; the first handover delay is less than the second handover delay.

[0064] This method defines two BWP handover delays, enabling more flexible BWP handover, flexible resource configuration, and improved communication performance.

[0065] Optionally, the first switching delay is a symbol-level delay, and the second switching delay is a slot-level delay; or, the first switching delay is x2 symbols, and the second switching delay is y slots, where x2 and y are integers.

[0066] Optionally, x2 in this embodiment may be equal to x1 in the previous embodiment.

[0067] Optionally, the terminal device may, depending on the implementation, report the handover delay capability between at least two BWPs associated with the same communication parameter group, such as x symbols, or report the handover delay capability between at least two BWPs associated with different communication parameter groups, such as y milliseconds or y time slots. Where x and y are integers.

[0068] Secondly, embodiments of this application also provide a communication method applicable to network devices. For example, the terminal device can be a terminal equipment, a component within the terminal equipment (e.g., a processor, chip, chip system, circuit, or functional module), or a logical node, logical module, or software capable of implementing all or part of the terminal equipment's functions. The method includes:

[0069] The network device sends configuration information to configure a communication parameter group, which is associated with at least two BWPs; the network device communicates on the BWP that is active among the at least two BWPs based on the communication parameter group.

[0070] In this method, when the network device communicates on at least two active BWPs based on a communication parameter group, since the same communication parameter group is associated with at least two BWPs, the communication parameters in the communication parameter group remain unchanged when switching between at least two BWPs. This reduces the complexity of BWP switching for the terminal device, such as eliminating the need to download / update / enable the communication parameters, thereby reducing BWP switching latency.

[0071] In one optional implementation, the configuration information includes configuration information for a BWP group, which comprises at least two BWPs. The configuration information also includes configuration information for a communication parameter group associated with the BWP group. In this method, each communication parameter group corresponds to a BWP group. When switching BWPs within a BWP group, such as bandwidth switching, there is no latency required for switching communication parameter groups because the communication parameter groups are identical. Therefore, fast BWP switching can be achieved, improving communication efficiency and thus facilitating terminal energy saving.

[0072] A BWP group can also be called a BWP bundle. The configuration information of a BWP group includes the identifiers of at least two BWPs.

[0073] The configuration information also includes the identifier of the BWP group.

[0074] In another alternative implementation, the configuration information includes the identifiers of at least two BWPs, and the communication parameter groups associated with at least two BWPs.

[0075] In this method, when switching between BWPs corresponding to the communication parameter group, there is no need to switch the communication parameters in the communication parameter group, which reduces the complexity of BWP switching in the terminal device. For example, there is no need to perform operations such as downloading / updating / activating the communication parameters, thereby reducing BWP switching latency, realizing fast BWP switching, improving communication efficiency, and thus helping to achieve terminal energy saving.

[0076] In another optional implementation, at least two BWPs include a first BWP and a second BWP; the configuration information includes configuration information of the communication parameter group of the first BWP and first information; the first information is used to determine the association between the communication parameter group of the first BWP and the second BWP.

[0077] In this method, a BWP can be associated with the communication parameter group of other BWPs. In this way, when the BWP switches between other BWPs, the communication parameters in the communication parameter group are the same, which reduces the complexity of BWP switching in the terminal device. For example, it does not require the downloading / updating / approval of the communication parameters, thereby reducing the BWP switching latency, realizing fast BWP switching, and improving communication efficiency.

[0078] Optionally, other alternative implementation methods and / or design methods for configuration information can be found in the relevant content described in the first aspect, and will not be detailed here.

[0079] A communication parameter group may include one or more communication parameters. A communication parameter may also be referred to as a parameter. Other possible implementations of a communication parameter group associated with at least two BWPs, and / or alternative implementations of the parameters that the communication parameter group may include, can be found in the relevant content of the first aspect, and will not be detailed here.

[0080] In the embodiments of this application, the relevant content regarding the handover delay between at least two BWPs associated with the same communication parameter group or between at least two BWPs associated with different communication parameter groups can be found in the implementation described in the first aspect, and will not be detailed here.

[0081] Optionally, the network device may receive handover delays reported by the terminal device between at least two BWPs associated with the same communication parameter group, such as the symbol x, or handover delays reported by the terminal device between at least two BWPs associated with different communication parameter groups, such as milliseconds y or time slot y. Here, x and y are integers.

[0082] Thirdly, embodiments of this application provide a communication device for performing the method in the first aspect or any optional implementation of the first aspect. The communication device includes modules for performing the method in the first aspect or any optional implementation of the first aspect.

[0083] Fourthly, embodiments of this application provide a communication device for performing the method in the second aspect or any optional implementation of the second aspect. The communication device includes modules for performing the method in the second aspect or optional implementations of the second aspect.

[0084] The modules in the third or fourth aspect can also be replaced with units or means, etc. The aforementioned modules can be implemented in software, hardware, or a combination of both.

[0085] Fifthly, embodiments of this application provide a communication device including a processing circuit for executing the method of the first aspect or any optional embodiment of the first aspect. The processing circuit executes a program stored in a memory, and when the program is executed, the method described in the first aspect or any optional embodiment of the first aspect is executed.

[0086] In one possible implementation, the memory is located outside the aforementioned communication device.

[0087] In one possible implementation, the memory is located within the aforementioned communication device.

[0088] In this embodiment, the processing circuit and memory can also be integrated into a single device; that is, the processing circuit and memory can be integrated together. For example, the communication device can be a chip responsible for communication functions, such as a baseband chip, or a system-on-chip (SoC) chip containing a modem core, or a system-in-package (SIP) chip, etc.

[0089] In one possible implementation, the communication device further includes a transceiver circuit for receiving information (or inputting information) or sending information (or outputting information). For example, the communication device may be a terminal device, a unit module within a terminal device, or a logic node, module, or software capable of implementing some or all of the terminal device's functions, etc.

[0090] Sixthly, embodiments of this application provide a communication device including a processing circuit for executing the method described in the second aspect or an optional embodiment of the second aspect. The processing circuit executes a program stored in a memory, and when the program is executed, the method described in the second aspect or an optional embodiment of the second aspect is performed.

[0091] In one possible implementation, the memory is located outside the aforementioned communication device.

[0092] In one possible implementation, the memory is located within the aforementioned communication device.

[0093] In this embodiment, the processing circuit and memory can also be integrated into a single device; that is, the processing circuit and memory can be integrated together. For example, the communication device can be a chip responsible for communication functions, such as a baseband chip, or a SoC chip or SIP chip containing a modem module.

[0094] In one possible implementation, the communication device further includes a transceiver circuit for receiving information (or inputting information) or sending information (or outputting information). For example, the communication device may be a network device, a unit module within a network device, or a logical node, module, or software capable of implementing some or all of the functions of a network device.

[0095] In a seventh aspect, embodiments of this application provide a communication device, which includes a processing circuit and a transceiver circuit. The processing circuit can be a logic circuit, and the transceiver circuit can be an interface circuit. The logic circuit and the interface are coupled. The interface circuit is used to input and / or output information, and the logic circuit is used to execute the method in the first aspect or any optional implementation of the first aspect.

[0096] Eighthly, embodiments of this application provide a communication device, which includes a processing circuit and a transceiver circuit. The processing circuit can be a logic circuit, and the transceiver circuit can be an interface circuit. The logic circuit and the interface are coupled. The interface circuit is used to input and / or output information, and the logic circuit is used to execute the method in the second aspect or any optional implementation of the second aspect.

[0097] Ninthly, embodiments of this application provide a computer-readable storage medium for storing a computer program that, when run on a computer, causes the methods described in any one of the first to second aspects or any optional embodiments to be executed. The computer described in this aspect may include, but is not limited to, terminal devices.

[0098] In a tenth aspect, embodiments of this application provide a computer program product that, when run on a computer, causes the methods shown in any one of the first to second aspects or any optional implementations described above to be executed. The computer shown in this aspect may include, but is not limited to, a network device.

[0099] Eleventhly, embodiments of this application provide a communication system, which includes communication devices as provided in the third, fifth, and seventh aspects, as well as communication devices as provided in the fourth, sixth, and eighth aspects. The communication devices provided in the third, fifth, and seventh aspects can be used to perform the methods shown in the first aspect or any optional embodiments thereof, and the communication devices provided in the fourth, sixth, and eighth aspects can be used to perform the methods shown in the second aspect or any optional embodiments thereof. Attached Figure Description

[0100] Figure 1a , Figure 1b This is a schematic diagram of a satellite communication system.

[0101] Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram of a satellite inter-satellite link communication system.

[0102] Figure 3 This is a schematic diagram of a communication system;

[0103] Figure 4 This is a schematic diagram of a RAN node architecture;

[0104] Figure 5 This is a schematic diagram of a possible application framework in a communication system.

[0105] Figure 6 This is a schematic diagram of another possible application framework in a communication system.

[0106] Figure 7 This is a flowchart illustrating a communication method provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0107] Figure 8 This is a schematic diagram of a BWP switching method provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0108] Figure 9 This is a schematic diagram of PDCCH and PUCCH transmission provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0109] Figure 10 This is a schematic diagram illustrating different BWP handover delays provided in the embodiments of this application;

[0110] Figures 11 to 20 This is a schematic diagram illustrating different configuration information provided in the embodiments of this application;

[0111] Figures 21 to 23 This is a schematic diagram of the device provided in the embodiments of this application. Detailed Implementation

[0112] The terms "first" and "second," etc., used in the specification, claims, and drawings of this application are used only to distinguish different objects and not to describe a specific order. Furthermore, the terms "comprising" and "having," and any variations thereof, are intended to cover non-exclusive inclusion. For example, a process, method, system, product, or apparatus that includes a series of steps or units is not limited to the listed steps or units, but may optionally include steps or units not listed, or may optionally include other steps or units inherent to these processes, methods, products, or apparatuses.

[0113] The term "embodiment" as used herein means that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic described in connection with an embodiment may be included in at least one embodiment of this application. The appearance of this phrase in various places throughout the specification does not necessarily refer to the same embodiment, nor is it a separate or alternative embodiment mutually exclusive with other embodiments. It will be explicitly and implicitly understood by those skilled in the art that the embodiments described herein can be combined with other embodiments.

[0114] In this application, "at least one (item)" refers to one or more, "more than one" refers to two or more, "at least two (items)" refers to two or three or more, and "and / or" is used to describe the relationship between related objects, indicating that there can be three relationships. For example, "A and / or B" can mean: only A exists, only B exists, and both A and B exist simultaneously, where A and B can be singular or plural. "Or" indicates that there can be two relationships, such as only A exists and only B exists; when A and B are not mutually exclusive, it can also mean that there are three relationships, such as only A exists, only B exists, and both A and B exist simultaneously. The character " / " generally indicates that the preceding and following related objects are in an "or" relationship. "At least one (item) of the following" or similar expressions refer to any combination of these items. For example, at least one (item) of a, b, or c can mean: a, b, c, "a and b", "a and c", "b and c", or "a and b and c".

[0115] In this application, "send" and "receive" indicate the direction of signal transmission. For example, "send information to XX" can be understood as the destination of the information being XX, which can include direct transmission via the air interface or indirect transmission via the air interface from other units or modules. "Receive information from YY" can be understood as the source of the information being YY, which can include direct reception from YY via the air interface or indirect reception from YY via the air interface from other units or modules. "Send" can also be understood as the "output" of a chip interface, and "receive" can also be understood as the "input" of a chip interface. In other words, sending and receiving can occur between devices, such as between network devices and terminal devices, or within a device, such as between components, modules, chips, software modules, or hardware modules within the device via buses, traces, or interfaces.

[0116] The following describes the communication system involved in the embodiments of this application.

[0117] The method provided in this application can be applied to various communication systems, such as Internet of Things (IoT) systems, narrowband Internet of Things (NB-IoT) systems, long term evolution (LTE) systems, 5th generation (5G) communication systems, new radio (NR) systems, wireless-fidelity (Wi-Fi) systems, short-range communication, and new communication systems emerging in future communication development. Among these, IoT networks may include, but are not limited to, vehicle-to-everything (V2X) networks. The communication methods in V2X systems can be collectively referred to as vehicle-to-everything (V2X), where X can represent anything. For example, V2X can include: vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) communication, vehicle-to-infrastructure (V2I) communication, vehicle-to-pedestrian (V2P) communication, or vehicle-to-network (V2N) communication, etc. The embodiments of this application can also be applied to device-to-device (D2D) technology, machine-to-machine (M2M) technology, or V2X technology communication. The method provided in the embodiments of this application can also be applied to non-terrestrial networks (NTN) communication (also known as non-terrestrial network communication).

[0118] NTN communication, taking satellite communication as an example Figure 1a , Figure 1b This is a schematic diagram of a satellite communication system. (For example...) Figure 1a As shown, this satellite communication system includes, but is not limited to, satellites and terminal equipment. The satellite provides communication services to the terminal equipment. The satellite base station transmits downlink data to the terminal equipment, where the data is encoded using channel coding. The channel-coded data is then modulated by constellation before being transmitted to the terminal equipment. The terminal equipment transmits uplink data to the satellite, which can also be encoded using channel coding. The encoded data is then modulated by constellation before being transmitted to the satellite. Figure 1b As shown, satellites can also communicate with base stations in cellular networks. Satellites can act as base stations or as terminal devices. Satellites can be drones, hot air balloons, low-Earth orbit satellites, medium-Earth orbit satellites, high-Earth orbit satellites, etc. Satellites can also refer to non-terrestrial base stations or non-terrestrial equipment.

[0119] For example, inter-satellite link communication systems, such as Figure 2 The inter-satellite communication system can be divided into two main parts: the acquisition, pointing, and tracking (APT) subsystem and the communication subsystem. The communication subsystem includes a satellite communication module and transceiver antennas, responsible for transmitting inter-satellite information and forming the core of the inter-satellite communication system. The APT system includes an APT module and an APT transmit / receive module, responsible for acquisition, alignment, and tracking between satellites, determining the direction of arrival of the incident signal. For acquisition, the transmitted wave is adjusted to aim at the receiving direction; for alignment, alignment and acquisition are continuously adjusted throughout the communication process; for tracking, to minimize attenuation and interference in the channel while maintaining high security and transmission rate, the APT must be adjusted in real time to continuously adapt to changes.

[0120] Figure 3 This is a schematic diagram of a communication system. For example... Figure 3 As shown, the communication system may include at least one network device, such as Figure 3 The network device shown ( Figure 3 (The network equipment in this example is a base station in cellular communication); the communication system may also include at least one terminal device, such as... Figure 3 The terminal device is shown. Network devices and terminal devices can communicate via a wireless link. Communication devices in this communication system can communicate with each other using multi-antenna technology.

[0121] As an example, a terminal device is a device that provides voice or data and has wireless connectivity. A terminal device can be called a terminal, user equipment (UE), mobile station (MS), mobile terminal (MT), etc., and can be a device with wireless transceiver capabilities. It can be deployed on land, including indoors or outdoors, handheld or vehicle-mounted; it can also be deployed on water (such as on ships); and it can also be deployed in the air (e.g., on airplanes, balloons, and satellites). Terminal devices can be used to connect people, objects, and machines. Terminal devices can be widely used in various scenarios, such as cellular communication, device-to-device (D2D), vehicle-to-everything (V2X), peer-to-peer (P2P), machine-to-machine (M2M), machine-type communication (MTC), Internet of Things (IoT), virtual reality (VR), augmented reality (AR), integrated communication and sensing, industrial control, autonomous driving, telemedicine, smart grids, smart furniture, smart offices, smart wearables, smart transportation, smart cities, smart homes, remote sensing, passive sensing, positioning, navigation, autonomous delivery and mobility, etc.

[0122] As examples, terminal devices can be UEs conforming to the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) standards, fixed devices, mobile devices, handheld devices, wearable devices, cellular phones, smartphones, Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) phones, tablets, laptops, PDAs, personal computers, mobile internet devices (MIDs), VR devices, AR devices, smart books, vehicles, satellites, Global Positioning System (GPS) devices, drones, robots, helicopters, aircraft, ships, remote control devices, wireless terminals or industrial equipment in industrial control, wireless terminals in self-driving vehicles, wireless terminals in remote medical surgery, wireless terminals in smart grids, wireless terminals in transportation safety, wireless terminals in smart cities, wireless terminals or smart home devices in smart homes, sensing terminals in integrated communication and sensing, cellular phones, cordless phones, Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) phones, and wireless local loops. The terminal device can also be a communication device in a future wireless communication system.

[0123] As an example, wearable devices, also known as wearable smart devices, are a general term for devices that utilize wearable technology to intelligently design and develop everyday wearables, such as glasses, gloves, watches, clothing, and shoes. Wearable devices are portable devices that are worn directly on the body or integrated into the user's clothing or accessories. Wearable devices are not only hardware devices but can also achieve powerful functions through software support, data interaction, and cloud interaction. Broadly speaking, wearable smart devices include those that are feature-rich, large in size, and can achieve complete or partial functions without relying on a smartphone, such as smartwatches or smart glasses, as well as those that focus on a specific application function and require the use of other devices such as smartphones, such as various smart bracelets and smart jewelry for vital sign monitoring.

[0124] Optionally, the device used to implement the terminal's functions can be the terminal itself; it can also be a device capable of supporting the terminal in implementing these functions, such as a chip system, a communication module, or a modem, which can be installed in the terminal. In this embodiment, the chip system can be composed of chips or may include chips and other discrete devices. This embodiment does not limit the specific technology or device form used in the terminal device. In one possible implementation, the UE can act as a base station. For example, the UE can act as a scheduling entity, providing sidelink signals between UEs in V2X, D2D, or P2P, without relaying communication signals through a base station. In another possible implementation, the UE can also act as a relay node. For example, the UE can act as a relay device or an integrated access and backhaul (IAB) node to provide wireless backhaul services to the terminal device.

[0125] As an example, a network device is a device used to communicate with terminal devices; it is an entity on the network side used to transmit or receive signals, such as a base station (BS). A network device can also be a radio access network (RAN) node (or device) through which terminal devices access a wireless network. A BS can be a device deployed in a radio access network capable of wirelessly communicating with terminals. Base stations can take many forms, such as macro base stations, micro base stations, relay stations, and access points.

[0126] The base station involved in the embodiments of this application can be a base station in 5G, a base station in a 6th generation (6G) mobile communication system, an access network device or module of an access network device in an open radio access network (O-RAN) system, a base station in a future mobile communication system or an access node in a WiFi system, or an evolved node B (eNB) in LTE, etc. Among them, the base station in 5G can also be called a transmission reception point (TRP) or a 5G base station (next-generation node B, gNB). Base stations can also be replaced by the following names, such as: wireless access point, node B, transmitting point (TP), master MeNB, secondary SeNB, multi-standard radio (MSR) node, home base station, network controller, access node, wireless node, access point (AP), transmission node, transceiver node, baseband unit (BBU), remote radio unit (RRU), active antenna unit (AAU), remote radio head (RRH), centralized unit (CU), distributed unit (DU), location node, IAB donor, etc. Base stations can also be mobile switching centers and devices that perform base station functions in D2D, V2X, and M2M communications. Base stations can support networks using the same or different access technologies. Optionally, RAN nodes can also be servers, wearable devices, vehicles, or in-vehicle equipment. For example, in V2X technology, RAN equipment can be a roadside unit (RSU).

[0127] Base stations can be fixed or mobile. For example, a helicopter or drone can be configured to act as a mobile base station, and one or more cells can move depending on the location of the mobile base station. In other examples, a helicopter or drone can be configured as a device to communicate with another base station.

[0128] In some deployments, the network devices mentioned in the embodiments of this application may be devices including CU, DU, or CU and DU, or devices with control plane CU nodes (central unit-control plane (CU-CP)) and user plane CU nodes (central unit-user plane (CU-UP)) and DU nodes. For example, the network devices may include gNB-CU-CP, gNB-CU-UP, and gNB-DU.

[0129] A RAN node consists of one or more CUs, one or more DUs, and one or more RUs. Figure 4 This is a schematic diagram of a RAN node architecture. For clarity, Figure 4 Only one CU, DU, and RU are shown. The CU is used to connect to the core network and one or more DUs. Optionally, the CU may have some core network functions. The CU may include CU-CP and CU-UP. The midhaul interface carries traffic between the CU and DU, and the backhaul interface carries traffic between the CU and the core network. The DU is configured to perform Layer 1 (L1) and some Layer 2 (L2) functions, and the RU is configured to perform L1 computation and radio frequency (RF) digital functions; the fronthaul and backhaul interfaces carry traffic between the RU and DU, and between the CU and DU. An integrated DU may include the above-mentioned DU and RU functions.

[0130] The hardware of a CU or DU includes a chassis platform, motherboard, peripherals, and cooling system. The motherboard contains processing units, memory, internal input / output (I / O) interfaces, and external connection ports. A DU system typically uses a multi-core processor and one or more hardware accelerators. These hardware accelerators are designed with interfaces, and their functional components include: storage for software, hardware, and system debugging interfaces, and a single-board management controller. Parts of the DU protocol stack can be implemented in software running on the multi-core processor; computationally intensive L1 and L2 functions can be offloaded to FPGA / GPU-based hardware accelerators; or all L1 functions can be offloaded to FPGA / GPU-based hardware accelerators, while other protocol stack content is implemented in software running on the processor; or the entire protocol stack can be implemented in software running on the processor. Hardware accelerators support interconnection with the processor; similarly, they have multi-channel interfaces pointing to the central processing unit (CPU) for external connections.

[0131] The RU comprises three parts: the O-RAN processing unit (OPU), the O-RU's Digital Processing Unit (DPU), and the O-RU's RF processing unit. The OPU receives Enhanced Common Public Radio Interface (eCPRI) frames from the O-RAN fronthaul and performs fronthaul interface processing, the lowest level L1 (coding, scrambling, modulation, layer mapping, precoding), synchronization, beamforming, and resource unit mapping. The OPU can be implemented as a CPU, FPGA, or application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC). The DPU performs synchronization, digital downconversion (DDC) in the uplink, and digital upconversion (DUC) in the downlink. The DPU can also be implemented as an FPGA or ASIC. The O-RU's RF processing unit includes a transceiver module, up / down converters, power amplifiers (PA), low noise amplifiers (LNA), and transmit (Tx) / receive (Rx) filters. Conversions between the analog and digital domains, such as digital-to-analog converters (DACs) and analog-to-digital converters (ADCs), as well as RF sampling, RF usage during up-conversion and down-conversion, and frequency conversion using a combination of intermediate frequency (IF) and local oscillator (LO), are all performed within the transceiver module. The physical and logical partitions within the RF processing unit do not require specific boundaries.

[0132] In some deployments, multiple radio access network (RAN) nodes collaborate to assist terminals in achieving radio access, with different RAN nodes implementing some of the base station's functions. For example, RAN nodes can be CUs, DUs, CU-CPs, CU-UPs, or RUs. CUs and DUs can be configured separately or included in the same network element, such as a BBU. RUs can be included in radio equipment or radio unit units, such as RRUs, AAUs, or RRHs.

[0133] In one possible design, the processing unit in the BBU used to implement baseband functions is called the baseband high (BBH) unit, and the processing unit in the RRU / AAU / RRH used to implement baseband functions is called the baseband low (BBL) unit.

[0134] In different systems, CU (or CU-CP and CU-UP), DU, or RU may have different names, but those skilled in the art will understand their meaning. For example, in an ORAN system, CU can also be called O-CU (open CU), DU can also be called O-DU, CU-CP can also be called O-CU-CP, CU-UP can also be called O-CU-UP, and RU can also be called O-RU. Any of the units among CU (or CU-CP, CU-UP), DU, and RU in this application can be implemented through software modules, hardware modules, or a combination of software modules and hardware modules.

[0135] Figure 5 This is a schematic diagram of a possible application framework in a communication system. For example... Figure 5 As shown, network elements in a communication system are connected via interfaces (e.g., NG, Xn) or air interfaces. These network element nodes, such as core network equipment, access network nodes (RAN nodes), terminals, or one or more devices in the operation, administration, and maintenance (OAM) systems, are equipped with one or more AI modules (for clarity, ...). Figure 3 (Only one is shown in the image). The access network node can be a single RAN node or can include multiple RAN nodes, such as CU and DU. The CU and / or DU can also be configured with one or more AI modules. Optionally, the CU can also be split into CU-CP and CU-UP. One or more AI models are configured in CU-CP and / or CU-UP.

[0136] The AI ​​module is used to implement corresponding AI functions. AI modules deployed in different network elements can be the same or different. Depending on the parameter configuration, the AI ​​module can implement different functions. The AI ​​module model can be configured based on one or more of the following parameters: structural parameters (e.g., at least one of the following: number of neural network layers, neural network width, inter-layer connections, neuron weights, neuron activation function, or bias in the activation function), input parameters (e.g., type and / or dimension of input parameters), or output parameters (e.g., type and / or dimension of output parameters). The bias in the activation function can also be referred to as the neural network bias.

[0137] In one example, the aforementioned neural networks could be deep neural networks (DNNs), convolutional neural networks (CNNs), recurrent neural networks (RNNs), or generative adversarial networks (GANs). A DNN is an artificial neural network architecture with multiple layers of nonlinear transformation units stacked hierarchically to form a deep computational model. Compared to shallow neural networks, deep neural networks have more hidden layers, allowing the network model to capture more complex data structures and high-level abstract features. A CNN is a deep neural network with convolutional structures. A CNN contains a feature extractor consisting of convolutional layers and subsampling layers. This feature extractor can be viewed as a filter, and the convolution process can be seen as using a trainable filter to convolve with an input image or a convolutional feature map. An RNN is a type of recursive neural network that takes sequence data as input, recursively moves along the sequence's direction, and all nodes (recurrent units) are chained together. A GAN is a deep learning model. It consists of a generator and a discriminator, and is trained through adversarial learning. Its purpose is to estimate the potential distribution of data samples and generate new data samples.

[0138] An AI module can have one or more models. A model can infer an output, which includes one or more parameters. The learning, training, or inference processes of different models can be deployed on different nodes or devices, or they can be deployed on the same node or device.

[0139] Figure 6 This is a schematic diagram illustrating another possible application framework in a communication system. For example... Figure 6 As shown, the communication system includes a RAN intelligent controller (RIC). For example, the RIC can be... Figure 3The AI ​​modules 117 and 118 shown are used to implement AI-related functions. The RIC includes near-real-time RIC (near-RT RIC) and non-real-time RIC (non-RT RIC). Non-real-time RIC primarily processes non-real-time information, such as data that is not sensitive to latency, with latency in the order of seconds. Real-time RIC primarily processes near-real-time information, such as data that is relatively sensitive to latency, with latency in the order of tens of milliseconds.

[0140] Near real-time (NRT) RICs are used for model training and inference. For example, they are used to train AI models and then use those models for inference. NRT RICs can obtain network-side and / or terminal-side information from RAN nodes (e.g., CUs, CU-CPs, CU-UPs, DUs, and / or RUs) and / or terminals. This information can be used as training data or inference data. Optionally, the NRT RIC can deliver inference results to RAN nodes and / or terminals. Optionally, inference results can be exchanged between CUs and DUs, and / or between DUs and RUs. For example, the NRT RIC delivers inference results to a DU, which then forwards them to an RU.

[0141] Non-real-time RICs are also used for model training and inference. For example, they can be used to train AI models and then use those models for inference. Non-real-time RICs can obtain network-side and / or terminal-side information from RAN nodes (e.g., CUs, CU-CPs, CU-UPs, DUs, and / or RUs) and / or terminals. This information can be used as training data or inference data, and the inference results can be delivered to RAN nodes and / or terminals. Optionally, inference results can be exchanged between CUs and DUs, and / or between DUs and RUs; for example, a non-real-time RIC delivers inference results to a DU, which then forwards them to an RU.

[0142] Near real-time RICs and non-real-time RICs can also be configured as separate network elements. Optionally, the near real-time RICs and non-real-time RICs can also be part of other devices. For example, the near real-time RIC can be set in a RAN node (e.g., in a CU or DU), while the non-real-time RIC can be set in an OAM, a cloud server, a core network device, or other network devices.

[0143] For example, a network device can be Figure 5 The core network equipment, access network node (RAN node), or one or more devices in the OAM are shown. For example, the AI ​​module can be... Figure 6The RICs shown are such as near real-time RICs or non-real-time RICs. For example, near real-time RICs are set in RAN nodes (e.g., CU, DU), while non-real-time RICs are set in OAM, cloud servers, core network devices, or other network devices. Exemplarily, near real-time RICs and non-real-time RICs can also be set up as separate network elements, and the network device can be either a near real-time RIC or a non-real-time RIC.

[0144] It should be noted that, Figure 1a , Figures 1b to 6 This is a simplified illustration for ease of understanding only. For example, the communication system may also include other devices, such as wireless relay devices and / or wireless backhaul devices. Figure 1a , Figures 1b to 6 The figures are not shown. In practical applications, this communication system may include multiple network devices or multiple terminal devices. This application does not limit the number of network devices and terminal devices included in the communication system.

[0145] In a communication system, one device can send signals to or receive signals from another device. These signals can include information, signaling, or data. The device can also be replaced by an entity, network entity, equipment, communication device, communication module, node, communication node, etc. This application describes terminal devices and network devices as examples. For instance, a terminal device is a terminal equipment, a chip or chip module within a terminal equipment, or a module or unit applied to achieve all or part of the functions of a terminal equipment; a network device is an access network device, or a core network device, or an operation, administration, and maintenance (OAM) network element, or a chip or chip module applicable to a network-side device, or a module or unit applied to achieve all or part of the functions of a network-side device, etc. A communication system can include at least one terminal device and at least one network device.

[0146] The following describes the terminology used in this application.

[0147] 1. Bandwidth Part (BWP)

[0148] A Block-Based Prefix (BWP) is defined as a contiguous set of resource blocks (RBs) within a single carrier. Introducing BWPs across the entire carrier allocates a portion of the bandwidth for terminal access and data transmission. Terminals perform their operations within this allocated bandwidth, facilitating terminal detection and maintenance. BWP is sometimes referred to as Bandwidth Adaptation, meaning the bandwidth adapts to changing conditions. BWP is a new concept introduced in 5G, designed to adapt to various types of terminals. A BWP is a subset of the entire bandwidth, and its basic parameters, such as center frequency, bandwidth size, subcarrier spacing, and cyclic prefix length, are flexibly configurable.

[0149] BWPs can be configured at the terminal level by radio resource control (RRC), and a cell can contain up to four BWPs. Each BWP has its own set of parameters, which are numerous and complex to implement. For example, BWP configuration includes not only basic parameters (or radio frequency parameters) such as center frequency, bandwidth, subcarrier spacing (SCS), or cyclic prefix length, but also a large number of baseband / communication parameters for uplink and downlink transmission, such as random access channel (RACH) configuration parameters, physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH) configuration parameters, physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) configuration parameters, sounding reference signal (SRS) configuration parameters, beam management configuration parameters, beam failure recovery configuration parameters, physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH) configuration parameters, physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) configuration parameters, semi-persistent scheduling (SPS) configuration parameters, and radio link monitoring configuration (RLM) parameters.

[0150] BWP can also be referred to as frequency domain resources. Frequency domain resources correspond to resources with a certain bandwidth. Frequency domain resources can include both contiguous and discontinuous resources.

[0151] 2. BWP Switching

[0152] BWPs can be switched between, supporting various communication scenarios. For example, communication can occur on a low-bandwidth BWP when there is no data transmission requirement, and when data transmission is required, communication can be switched to a high-bandwidth BWP. The BWP switching latency consists of three parts: 1) PDCCH demodulation / decoding process: the time for the terminal to demodulate / decode the downlink control information (DCI) containing the BWP switching command; 2) Calculation and loading process of the parameters to be switched to (such as RF parameters and / or baseband parameters): the time for the terminal to calculate and load the parameters of the BWP to be switched to; 3) The time for the parameters to be switched to take effect: the time for the parameters to be switched to take effect.

[0153] The protocol considers supporting all handover scenarios and defines BWP handover delay in units of time slots, as shown in Table 1. There are two types of BWP handover delays corresponding to the same subcarrier interval and time slot length: Type 1 and Type 2. One type of BWP handover delay corresponds to one terminal's BWP handover capability. The delay of Type 1 is less than that of Type 2. The BWP handover delays corresponding to different subcarrier intervals and time slot lengths are shown in Table 1.

[0154] Table 1 shows the BWP handover delay in time slots.

[0155]

[0156] As shown in Table 1, BWP handover is currently based on time slots, requiring a delay of about 1ms, which is relatively large and affects communication performance.

[0157] There are three main ways to switch BWPs:

[0158] RRC-reconfigured BWP handover: Primarily used after an RRC reconfiguration message is sent or the serving cell (SCell) is activated, allowing the terminal to enter a new BWP. The ServingCellConfig contains an identifier for the first active downlink BWP (firstActiveDownlinkBWP-Id), and the UplinkConfig contains an identifier for the first active uplink BWP (firstActiveUplinkBWP-Id), indicating the downlink and uplink BWP the terminal enters after RRC reconfiguration or SCell activation, respectively. RRC-reconfigured BWP handover ensures the terminal enters a suitable BWP for service transmission and reception after RRC reconfiguration, rather than remaining on the initial BWP.

[0159] BWP (DCI-based BWP) handover: BWP handover is indicated by DCI, and the BWP indicator field (Bandwidth part indicator) in the DCI indicates that the terminal should handover between different BWPs.

[0160] BWP handover based on a BWP inactivity timer (bwp-InactivityTimer): If a terminal has not transmitted or received data for an extended period, it indicates that the terminal may not have any service requirements. Therefore, the terminal should enter a lower-bandwidth BWP to conserve energy. To address this, a BWP handover based on bwp-InactivityTimer is introduced. bwp-InactivityTimer is used to time how long the terminal has been inactive, and a default downlink BWP identifier (defaultDownlinkBWP-Id) indicates the BWP to enter after bwp-InactivityTimer times out. bwp-InactivityTimer determines whether the terminal has any service requirements by checking if it receives a scheduling DCI. For example, assuming bwp-InactivityTimer is set to 5ms, if the terminal does not receive a scheduling DCI within 5ms, it will enter the BWP with the default downlink BWP identifier (defaultDownlinkBWP-Id).

[0161] Among them, BWP switching can also be called frequency domain resource switching or bandwidth switching.

[0162] 3. BWP switching related parameters

[0163] The parameters related to BWP switching include baseband processing parameters (or baseband parameters) and BWP radio frequency parameters (or basic parameters).

[0164] The baseband processing parameters may include, but are not limited to, at least one of the following parameters: uplink shared channel related parameters, downlink shared channel related parameters, sounding reference signal configuration parameters, channel state information measurement configuration parameters, random access channel configuration parameters, beam management configuration parameters, beam fault recovery configuration parameters, radio link monitoring configuration parameters, uplink control channel related parameters, or downlink control channel related parameters.

[0165] The radio frequency parameters of a BWP include, but are not limited to, at least one of the following: starting location, bandwidth, center frequency (or radio frequency), subcarrier spacing, or, cyclic prefix length.

[0166] The parameters related to the uplink shared channel can also be called uplink shared channel configuration parameters. The parameters related to the downlink shared channel can also be called downlink shared channel configuration parameters.

[0167] The parameters related to the uplink shared channel include at least one of the following: antenna port configuration information, maximum layer configuration information, waveform configuration information, time domain resource allocation information, data scrambling identifier, demodulation reference signal configuration information, frequency domain frequency hopping information, frequency domain resource allocation type information, aggregation factor, modulation and coding strategy table information, maximum rank, resource block group size configuration information, invalid resource pattern, rate matching resource information, power control configuration information, number of hybrid automatic repeat request processes, codebook configuration information, or, redundancy version information.

[0168] The downlink shared channel related parameters include at least one of the following: antenna port configuration information, maximum layer configuration information, waveform configuration information, time domain resource allocation information, data scrambling identifier, demodulation reference signal configuration information, frequency domain frequency hopping information, frequency domain resource allocation type information, aggregation factor, modulation and coding strategy table information, maximum rank, resource block group size configuration information, invalid resource pattern, rate matching resource information, power control configuration information, number of hybrid automatic repeat request processes, codebook configuration information, or, redundancy version information.

[0169] The detection reference signal configuration parameters include at least one of the following: antenna port configuration information, detection reference signal resource set configuration information, detection reference signal resource configuration information, transmission power control cumulative configuration information, detection reference signal request configuration information, or detection reference signal positioning resource configuration information.

[0170] The channel state information measurement configuration parameters include at least one of the following: antenna port configuration information, channel state information-reference signal resource set configuration information, channel state information-reference signal resource configuration information, channel state information-indication measurement resource configuration information, measurement configuration information, or channel state information reporting configuration information.

[0171] The parameters related to the uplink control channel include at least one of the following: antenna port configuration information, maximum layer configuration information, time and frequency resource indication information, power control configuration information, frequency domain frequency hopping information, demodulation reference signal configuration information, modulation method information, code rate information, uplink feedback format information, or uplink feedback content information.

[0172] The downlink control channel related parameters include at least one of the following: antenna port configuration information, maximum layer configuration information, control resource set information, search space information, downlink preemption indication information, uplink transmission cancellation indication information, search space switching indication information, control channel skip / drop indication information, blind detection capability configuration information, time slot format indication information, or uplink power control command configuration information.

[0173] This application provides a communication method and related apparatus, which configures a BWP group-level communication parameter, including a communication parameter group of one or more communication parameters associated with at least two BWPs. This configuration supports switching between at least two BWPs associated with the same communication parameter group, such as bandwidth switching. Since the communication parameter group is the same, there is no delay required for parameter switching in the communication parameter group. Therefore, fast BWP switching can be achieved, communication efficiency can be improved, and terminal energy saving can be achieved.

[0174] The communication parameter groups shown in this application are merely examples of names related to BWP parameters. Other names may be used as standards evolve, and this application does not limit this. Any switching between BWPs where certain BWP parameters do not need to be switched falls within the scope of this application. The embodiments of this application can be applied to communication between terminal devices and network devices, communication between terminal devices, and communication between network devices.

[0175] Figure 7 This is a flowchart illustrating a communication method provided in an embodiment of this application, taking the interaction between a terminal device and a network device as an example. Figure 7 As shown, the method includes:

[0176] 701. The network device sends configuration information.

[0177] Accordingly, the terminal device receives the configuration information, which is used to configure the communication parameter group, and the communication parameter group is associated with at least two BWPs.

[0178] In one scenario, the configuration information is used to configure a communication parameter group that is associated with at least two BWPs. In another scenario, the configuration information is used to configure multiple communication parameter groups, at least one of which is associated with at least two BWPs. Optionally, at least one of the multiple communication parameter groups may also be associated with a single BWP.

[0179] Optionally, the network device may send the configuration information via higher-level signaling, such as RRC signaling and / or media access control-control element (MAC-CE) signaling.

[0180] The communication parameter group includes one or more communication parameters.

[0181] 702. The terminal device communicates with the network device on at least two active BWPs based on a communication parameter set.

[0182] As can be seen, in this method, when the terminal device communicates on at least two active BWPs based on the communication parameter group, since the same communication parameter group is associated with at least two BWPs, the communication parameters in the communication parameter group remain unchanged when switching between at least two BWPs. This reduces the complexity of BWP switching for the terminal device, such as eliminating the need to download / update / enable the communication parameters, thereby reducing BWP switching latency.

[0183] In this embodiment, associating a communication parameter group with at least two BWPs can be understood as, or can also be referred to as: at least two BWPs sharing or sharing the same communication parameter group; or, the communication parameter group applies to at least two BWPs; or, the communication parameter group is applied to at least two BWPs; or, the communication parameter groups of at least two BWPs are the same; or, at least two BWPs share a set of configuration information; or, at least two BWPs share a set of configuration information; or, at least two BWPs share the same communication parameters; or, the communication parameters configured in the configuration information are effective for at least two BWPs. This embodiment uses the association of a communication parameter group with at least two BWPs as an example for illustration.

[0184] In this embodiment, a BWP can also be referred to as a frequency domain resource. Correspondingly, the association of a communication parameter group with at least two BWPs can also be described as the association of a communication parameter group with at least two frequency domain resources. Switching between BWPs can also be referred to as switching between frequency domain resources. The following embodiments use BWPs as an example for illustration. The embodiments for frequency domain resources are described similarly and will not be repeated.

[0185] In this embodiment of the application, different BWPs may correspond to different bandwidths, and switching between BWPs may also include bandwidth switching.

[0186] 1. A partial implementation of the parameters that may be included in the communication parameter group associated with at least two BWPs.

[0187] 1.1 The communication parameter group includes baseband processing parameters.

[0188] In this embodiment, since the communication parameter group associated with at least two BWPs includes baseband processing parameters, the baseband processing parameters included in the communication parameter group remain unchanged when switching between the at least two BWPs. For example, if only the radio frequency parameters change during BWP switching, then there is only a radio frequency parameter switching delay for the BWP, with no or minimal baseband switching delay, thereby achieving fast BWP switching and improving communication performance. As another example, if the bandwidth changes between two BWPs while the baseband processing parameters remain unchanged, then there is no or minimal baseband switching delay when switching between the two BWPs, achieving symbol-level bandwidth switching. For instance, switching to a larger bandwidth allows for rapid packet data transmission, achieving terminal energy saving.

[0189] The baseband processing parameters include relevant parameters, which can be found in the terminology section and will not be detailed here. The following describes some possible implementations of the communication parameter group, including the baseband processing parameters:

[0190] 1.1.1 The communication parameter group includes at least one of the following: parameters related to the uplink shared channel (taking PUSCH as an example), parameters related to the downlink shared channel (taking PDSCH as an example), probe reference signal configuration parameters, or channel state information measurement configuration parameters.

[0191] The uplink shared channel is used to carry uplink data, and the downlink shared channel is used to carry downlink data.

[0192] Based on this implementation method, at least two BWPs associated with the same communication parameter group have the same parameters related to data transmission or reference signals, which makes service transmission or channel measurement continuous and improves service experience.

[0193] Optionally, the communication parameter group does not include at least one of the following: parameters related to the uplink control channel (PUCCH for example), or parameters related to the downlink control channel (PDCCH for example).

[0194] The uplink control channel carries uplink control information, such as HARQ-ACK information and Channel State Information (CSI). The downlink control channel carries downlink control information, such as scheduling information.

[0195] Optionally, for cases where the communication parameter group does not include at least one of the following "parameters related to the uplink control channel (PUCCH, for example) or parameters related to the downlink control channel (PDCCH, for example)", the design of the configuration methods for PUCCH-related parameters and / or PDCCH-related parameters includes, but is not limited to, the following four possible design methods from 1.1.1.A to 1.1.1.D:

[0196] 1.1.1.A: PUCCH-related parameters and / or PDCCH-related parameters are BWP-level configuration parameters. This allows the terminal device to determine from the configuration information of each BWP whether PUCCH-related parameters are configured, and whether PUCCH can be transmitted on the corresponding BWP; and / or, to determine from the configuration information of each BWP whether PDCCH-related parameters are configured, and whether PDCCH can be transmitted on the corresponding BWP. This improves the flexibility of PUCCH and / or PDCCH transmission.

[0197] For example, PDCCH-related parameters include at least one of the following: the bandwidth of the control channel resource set, and the number of antenna ports in the control channel resource set. The control channel resource set may also include a search space, or control channel candidates.

[0198] For example, regarding downlink control channel transmission, PDCCH-related parameters are configured in the configuration information of the second BWP (or second frequency domain resource). The terminal device can perform blind PDCCH detection on the second BWP and switch to the first BWP (or first frequency domain resource) for downlink shared channel transmission. The bandwidth of the second BWP is less than that of the first BWP. Optionally, the bandwidth of the second BWP can be the bandwidth of the control resource set. In this scheme, the terminal device uses a smaller bandwidth for blind PDCCH detection, avoiding communication over a large bandwidth during blind detection and reducing terminal power consumption.

[0199] For example, regarding downlink control channel transmission, PDCCH-related parameters are configured in the configuration information of the second BWP (or second frequency domain resource) and configured for single-antenna port transmission. PDSCH-related parameters in the communication parameter group are configured for multiple antenna ports. The terminal device can perform blind PDCCH detection on the second BWP based on a single antenna port, or switch to downlink shared channel transmission on the first BWP (or first frequency domain resource) based on multiple antenna ports. The bandwidth of the second BWP is less than that of the first BWP. Optionally, the bandwidth of the second BWP can be the bandwidth of the control resource set. Under this scheme, the terminal device uses a smaller bandwidth for blind PDCCH detection, avoiding communication over a large bandwidth during blind detection and using fewer antenna ports for signal transmission and reception, thus reducing terminal power consumption.

[0200] For example, at least two BWPs can be BWP 0 and BWP 1. BWP 0 has PUCCH-related parameters configured in its configuration information, while BWP 1 does not. In this case, the terminal device transmits the PUCCH when BWP 0 is activated, but does not transmit the PUCCH when BWP 1 is activated. As another example, BWP 0 has PDCCH-related parameters configured in its configuration information, while BWP 1 does not. In this case, the terminal device detects the PDCCH when BWP 0 is activated, but does not need to detect the PDCCH when BWP 1 is activated.

[0201] 1.1.1.B: The parameters related to the uplink control channel and / or the downlink control channel correspond to at least one of two BWPs, allowing the terminal device to transmit the uplink control channel and / or downlink control channel on the corresponding BWP. In this design, the terminal device transmits the PUCCH and / or PDCCH based on the BWP identifier corresponding to the PUCCH-related parameters and / or PDCCH-related parameters. For example, the terminal device sends a PUCCH or receives a PDCCH.

[0202] For example, at least two BWPs include BWP0 and BWP1. The parameters related to PUSCH and PDSCH associated with BWP0 and BWP1 are the same, but the configuration information of the parameters related to PUCCH and PDCCH includes the identifier BWP0. Then, the terminal device can transmit PUCCH and PDCCH when BWP0 is activated, and there is no need to transmit PUCCH and PDCCH when BWP1 is activated.

[0203] For example, suppose BWP 0 and BWP 1 are as follows: Figure 8 As shown, the bandwidth of BWP 0 is less than that of BWP 1. Therefore, when there is a large packet data transmission, PDCCH can be transmitted on BWP 0 to instruct the terminal device to switch to BWP 1, and the terminal device can be scheduled to receive PDSCH on BWP 1 for fast large packet data transmission, thus achieving energy saving for the terminal device. Figure 8 The parameters associated with PDSCH for BWP0 and BWP1 are the same, so there is no need to download / update / enable the PDSCH parameters, which can reduce BWP switching latency, such as symbol-level switching latency.

[0204] 1.1.1.C: PUCCH and / or PDCCH are transmitted in the BWP with the smallest bandwidth among at least two BWPs. This method allows the transmission of uplink shared channels and / or downlink shared channels when a large-bandwidth BWP is active, and the transmission of uplink control channels and / or downlink control channels when a small-bandwidth BWP is active. For example, for downlink control channel transmission, the terminal device can perform blind PDCCH detection on the second BWP and transmit downlink shared channels on the first BWP, where the bandwidth of the second BWP is smaller than that of the first BWP. Under this scheme, the terminal device performs blind PDCCH detection with a smaller bandwidth, avoiding communication over a large bandwidth during blind detection and reducing terminal power consumption.

[0205] For example, for downlink control channel transmission, the terminal device can perform PDCCH blind detection on a second BWP (or second frequency domain resource) based on a single antenna port, and perform downlink shared channel transmission on a first BWP (or first frequency domain resource) based on multiple antenna ports. The bandwidth of the second BWP is less than the bandwidth of the first BWP. Optionally, the bandwidth of the second BWP is the bandwidth of the control resource set. In this scheme, the terminal device uses a smaller bandwidth for blind PDCCH detection, avoiding communication over a large bandwidth during blind detection and using fewer antenna ports for signal transmission and reception, thus reducing terminal power consumption.

[0206] For example, for downlink control channel transmission, the terminal device can perform PDCCH blind detection on a second BWP (or second frequency domain resource) based on a single antenna port, and perform downlink shared channel transmission on a first BWP (or first frequency domain resource) based on multiple antenna ports. The bandwidth of the second BWP is less than the bandwidth of the first BWP. Optionally, the bandwidth of the second BWP is the bandwidth of the control resource set. Under this scheme, the terminal device uses a smaller bandwidth for blind PDCCH detection and fewer antenna ports for signal transmission and reception, avoiding communication over a large bandwidth during blind detection, thus reducing terminal power consumption.

[0207] 1.1.1.D: PUCCH and / or PDCCH are transmitted in the BWP with the largest bandwidth among at least two BWPs. Therefore, this method allows PUCCH and / or PDCCH to be transmitted when a high-bandwidth BWP is active, and PDSCH and / or PUSCH to be transmitted when a low-bandwidth BWP is active. It is suitable for terminal devices with a large amount of control information and a small amount of data.

[0208] In addition, the communication parameter group is applicable to multiple BWPs. Therefore, the configuration of parameters in the communication parameter group needs to be compatible with different BWP handover delays and communication requirements under different BWPs. For example, in the PDSCH related parameters, the time domain resource allocation table needs to configure the time domain interval k0 between the downlink control channel and the downlink data channel, such as k0=0 and k0>0, to be compatible with two different handover delays at the symbol level and the time slot level. Correspondingly, the maximum number of multiple input multiple output (MIMO) layers, the maximum number of codewords, and the configuration parameters of the Physical Resource Block (PRB) must all consider the communication requirements of multiple BWPs.

[0209] 1.1.2 The communication parameter group includes at least one of the following: parameters related to the uplink control channel (taking PUCCH as an example), or parameters related to the downlink control channel (taking PDCCH as an example).

[0210] Based on this implementation method, at least two BWPs associated with the same communication parameter group have identical control channel-related parameters, making control information transmission more flexible and timely, ensuring communication continuity. For example, during BWP switching, the transmission of PDCCH or PUCCH is not affected. Furthermore, it can reduce configuration signaling overhead, avoid multiple configurations, and reduce terminal processing complexity.

[0211] For example, suppose BWP 0, BWP 1, BWP 2, BWP 3 are as follows: Figure 9 As shown, for downlink BWPs, the parameters related to the PDCCH associated with BWP 0 and BWP 1 are the same, and the parameters related to the PDCCH associated with BWP 2 and BWP 3 are the same. Therefore, PDCCH can be transmitted on BWP 0, BWP 1, BWP 2, and BWP 3. For uplink BWPs, the parameters related to the PUCCH associated with BWP 0 and BWP 1 are the same, and the parameters related to the PUCCH associated with BWP 2 and BWP 3 are the same. Therefore, PDCCH can be transmitted on BWP 0, BWP 1, BWP 2, and BWP 3.

[0212] For communication parameter sets including PUCCH-related parameters, PUCCH resources can have the following three possible designs, including but not limited to: In one possible design, PUCCH resources are configured based on the BWP with the smallest bandwidth among at least two BWPs. This design uses the smaller communication bandwidth as the basis for configuration, such as allocating PUCCH resources within the BWP resources corresponding to the smaller communication bandwidth. This allows PUCCH transmission on the same frequency domain resources corresponding to larger communication bandwidths. In another possible design, PUCCH resources are configured based on the BWP with the largest bandwidth among at least two BWPs. This design uses the larger communication bandwidth as the basis for configuration, such as in the network-side implementation where PUCCH resources are located in overlapping frequency domain resources between BWPs. Yet another possible design, where PUCCH resources are located in overlapping frequency domain resources between at least two BWPs. This design can be protocol-defined to allocate uplink control channel resources or downlink control channel resources within the overlapping frequency domain resources.

[0213] For communication parameter sets including PDCCH-related parameters, PDCCH resources can have the following three possible designs, including but not limited to: In one possible design, PDCCH resources are configured based on the BWP with the smallest bandwidth among at least two BWPs. This design uses the smaller communication bandwidth as the basis for configuration, such as allocating PDCCH resources within the BWP resources corresponding to the smaller communication bandwidth. In this way, PDCCH can also be received on the same frequency domain resources corresponding to larger communication bandwidths. In another possible design, PDCCH resources are configured based on the BWP with the largest bandwidth among at least two BWPs. This design uses the larger communication bandwidth as the basis for configuration, such as in the network-side implementation where PDCCH resources are located in overlapping frequency domain resources between BWPs. Yet another possible design, where PDCCH resources are located in overlapping frequency domain resources between at least two BWPs. This design can be protocol-defined to allocate uplink control channel resources or downlink control channel resources within the overlapping frequency domain resources.

[0214] For example, for downlink control channel transmission, the PDCCH resources are configured based on the bandwidth of the second frequency domain resources. The bandwidth of the second frequency domain resources is the bandwidth of the control resource set, the bandwidth of the overlapping frequency domain resources in the two BWPs, or the bandwidth of the smaller BWP. The terminal device can perform blind detection of the PDCCH on the second frequency domain resources and transmit downlink shared channels on the first frequency domain resources, wherein the bandwidth of the second frequency domain resources is less than the bandwidth of the first frequency domain resources. Optionally, in this scheme, the terminal device uses a smaller bandwidth for blind detection of the PDCCH, avoiding communication over a large bandwidth during blind detection, which can reduce terminal power consumption.

[0215] For example, regarding downlink control channel transmission, PDCCH resources are configured based on the bandwidth of the second frequency domain resources. The bandwidth of the second frequency domain resources is the bandwidth of the control resource set, the bandwidth of overlapping frequency domain resources in the two BWPs, or the bandwidth of the smaller BWP. The terminal device can perform blind detection of the PDCCH on a single antenna port on the second frequency domain resources, and transmit downlink shared channels on multiple antenna ports on the first frequency domain resources. The bandwidth of the second frequency domain resources is less than that of the first frequency domain resources. In this scheme, the terminal device uses a smaller bandwidth for blind detection of the PDCCH and fewer antenna ports for signal transmission and reception, avoiding communication over a large bandwidth during blind detection, thus reducing terminal power consumption.

[0216] 1.2 The communication parameter group includes radio frequency parameters.

[0217] The radio frequency parameters include at least one of the following: starting position, bandwidth, center frequency (or radio frequency), subcarrier spacing, or, cyclic prefix length, which can be found in the terminology introduction section and will not be detailed here.

[0218] Among them, radio frequency parameters can also be called basic parameters.

[0219] In this embodiment, since the communication parameter group associated with at least two BWPs includes radio frequency parameters, the radio frequency parameters included in the communication parameter group remain unchanged when switching between the at least two BWPs. If only other radio frequency parameters change when switching BWPs, then fewer parameters need to be updated when switching BWPs, thereby enabling fast switching of BWPs and improving communication performance.

[0220] For example, the communication parameter set includes radio frequency parameters other than bandwidth, and at least two BWPs include a first BWP and a second BWP, where the bandwidth of the first BWP is different from that of the second BWP; or, at least two BWPs contain BWPs with different bandwidths. This implementation allows the terminal device to flexibly switch between different bandwidths, thereby facilitating rapid large-packet data transmission over high bandwidths and rapid energy saving in low bandwidths.

[0221] For example, the first BWP and the second BWP have the same center frequency. Or, at least one of the two BWPs has the same center frequency. In this way, when the terminal device switches between BWPs with the same center frequency, the center frequency remains unchanged, thereby enabling fast BWP switching and improving communication performance.

[0222] For example, the first BWP and the second BWP have the same subcarrier spacing (SCS). Alternatively, at least two BWPs have the same SCS. In this way, when the terminal device switches between BWPs with the same SCS, the SCS remains unchanged, thereby enabling fast BWP switching and improving communication performance.

[0223] 1.3 The communication parameter group includes baseband processing parameters and radio frequency parameters.

[0224] In this embodiment, since the communication parameter group associated with at least two BWPs includes baseband processing parameters and radio frequency parameters, and the possible implementations of at least one parameter that may be included in the baseband processing parameters and radio frequency parameters are described in embodiments 1.1 to 1.2, they will not be detailed here. Because the baseband processing parameters and radio frequency parameters included in the communication parameter group remain unchanged when switching between the at least two BWPs, rapid switching of BWPs can be achieved, improving communication performance.

[0225] 2. Possible Implementation Methods for BWP Handover Delay

[0226] 2.1 The handover delay between at least two BWPs associated with the same communication parameter group can be defined as x1 symbols, where x1 is an integer.

[0227] The terminal device can complete the BWP handover within the defined BWP handover delay. If the BWP handover involves a change in subcarrier spacing, the BWP handover delay is mainly determined based on the minimum subcarrier spacing between the subcarrier spacing before and after the BWP handover. For example, Table 2-1 provides examples of BWP handover delays corresponding to different subcarrier spacings and time slot lengths. Furthermore, this application is not limited to the various subcarrier spacings shown in Table 2-1, and may also employ various subcarrier spacings defined in future communication systems.

[0228] Table 2-1

[0229] Subcarrier spacing Time slot length (ms) BWP switching latency 15kHz 1 x11 symbols 30kHz 0.5 x12 symbols 60kHz 0.25 x13 symbols 120kHz 0.125 x14 symbols

[0230] Where x11, x12, x13, and x14 are integers, representing the values ​​of x1 under different scenarios, such as different subcarrier intervals and / or time slot lengths. Optionally, x11 to x14 can be less than or equal to the number of symbols in a time slot for the corresponding time slot length. The four values ​​of x11 to x14 can be partially the same or all different, and this application does not impose any restrictions on this. For example, assuming x11 equals 1, x12 equals 2, x13 equals 3, and x14 equals 6, as shown in Table 2-2, the BWP handover delays under different subcarrier intervals and corresponding time slot lengths are as follows.

[0231] Table 2-2

[0232] Subcarrier spacing Time slot length (ms) BWP switching latency 15kHz 1 1 symbol 30kHz 0.5 2 symbols 60kHz 0.25 3 symbols 120kHz 0.125 6 symbols

[0233] As can be seen, in this method, the switching between at least two BWPs in the same communication parameter group does not involve the switching of parameters in that communication parameter group, which can reduce the switching latency to the symbol level and improve communication efficiency.

[0234] 2.2 The terminal device can report the handover delay between BWPs based on its own capabilities.

[0235] For the handover delay between at least two BWPs associated with the same communication parameter group, the terminal can report the handover delay between the at least two BWPs based on its own capabilities, such as the terminal's chip processing capabilities, baseband switching capabilities, and / or radio frequency switching capabilities. For example, different terminals may report different numbers of symbols for the BWP handover delay.

[0236] For example, the ability of a terminal device to report the handover delay between at least two BWPs associated with the same communication parameter group is either capability 1 or capability 2. For example, capability 1 corresponds to the number of symbols x21, and capability 2 corresponds to the number of symbols x22, where x21 and x22 are integers.

[0237] For example, the ability of a terminal device to report the handover delay between at least two BWPs associated with the same communication parameter group is denoted by x3, where x3 is an integer.

[0238] 2.3 The BWP handover delay includes a first handover delay and a second handover delay. The first handover delay is the handover delay between multiple BWPs associated with the same communication parameter group; the second handover delay is the handover delay between multiple BWPs associated with different communication parameter groups; the first handover delay is less than the second handover delay.

[0239] This method defines two BWP handover delays: (1) First handover delay: x2 symbols; (2) Second handover delay: y slots, where x2 and y are integers. The first handover delay is a symbol-level delay (or microsecond-level delay), and the second handover delay is a slot-level delay (or millisecond-level delay). The first handover delay is less than the second handover delay. Optionally, x2 in this embodiment can be equal to x1 in embodiment 2.1. It can be seen that this method can achieve more flexible BWP handover, flexible resource configuration, and improved communication performance. For example, as shown in Table 3, examples of the first handover delay under different subcarrier intervals and corresponding slot lengths, and examples of the second handover delay under different subcarrier intervals and corresponding slot lengths are given.

[0240] Table 3 BWP Switching Delay

[0241]

[0242] Optionally, the terminal device may, depending on the implementation, report the handover delay between at least two BWPs associated with the same communication parameter group, such as x symbols, where the value of x can be x1 in implementation 2.1, or the number of symbols x21 or x22 under different capabilities in implementation 2.2, or report the handover delay between at least two BWPs associated with different communication parameter groups, such as y milliseconds or y time slots. Where x and y are integers. For example, the terminal reports the following capabilities: (1) First handover delay or Type A: x symbols (e.g., orthogonal frequency division multiplexing, OFDM symbol, abbreviated as OS); (2) Second handover delay or Type B: y1 ms or y2 slots. Where y1 and y2 are integers.

[0243] For example, a terminal reports capability a, where capability a corresponds to the first handover delay and the second handover delay. For instance, capability a includes: (1) the first handover delay (or Type A, denoted as Type A): x1 symbols; and (2) the second handover delay (or Type B, denoted as Type B): y11 ms or y21 slots. Where x1, y11, and y21 are integers.

[0244] For example, the terminal reports capability b, where capability b corresponds to the first handover delay and the second handover delay. For example, capability b includes: (1) the first handover delay (or Type A, denoted by Type A): x2 symbol; (2) the second handover delay (or Type B, denoted by Type B): y12 ms or y22 slots. Where x2, y12 and y22 are integers.

[0245] Here, capability a can refer to the capability of a high-end terminal or a terminal with strong capabilities, while capability b can refer to the capability of a low-end terminal or a terminal with weak capabilities. For example, the handover latency corresponding to capability a is less than the handover latency corresponding to capability b.

[0246] Optionally, multiple BWPs associated with the same communication parameter group can be grouped into a BWP group.

[0247] like Figure 10 As shown, assuming BWP group 0 includes BWP 0 and BWP 1, meaning BWP 0 and BWP 1 are associated with the same communication parameter group, and BWP group 1 includes BWP2 and BWP3, meaning BWP 2 and BWP 3 are associated with the same communication parameter group, then the handover delay of the terminal device switching from BWP0 to BWP1 is a symbol-level delay, such as 1 os, and the handover delay of BWP2 to BWP3 is also a symbol-level delay, such as 1 os, but the handover delay of BWP0 to BWP3 is a slot-level delay, such as 1 slot.

[0248] 3. Possible implementation methods for the configuration information section

[0249] 3.1 The configuration information includes the configuration information of the BWP group and the configuration information of the communication parameter group associated with the BWP group.

[0250] Optionally, the configuration information of a BWP group includes the identifiers of at least two BWPs. This application embodiment provides a BWP group (or BWP bundle) level communication parameter configuration, where one or more communication parameters correspond to a BWP group, and a BWP group includes at least two BWPs. This implementation method allows configuring communication parameters for a BWP group.

[0251] The possible design methods for the configuration information of the BWP group and the configuration information of the communication parameter group associated with the BWP group include, but are not limited to, the following three possible design methods: 3.1.A to 3.1.C:

[0252] 3.1.A: The configuration information of the BWP group and the configuration information of the communication parameter group associated with the BWP group are relatively independent information elements in the configuration information.

[0253] For example, such as Figure 11 The diagram shows the structure of the configuration information. This configuration information includes the following BWP group configuration information: BWP 0's identifier 0, BWP 1's identifier 1; and the communication parameter group associated with the BWP group, taking parameters related to PDSCH as an example. Optionally, such as... Figure 11 As shown, the configuration information also includes the radio frequency parameters corresponding to BWP 0 and BWP 1, such as communication bandwidth, SCS and center frequency.

[0254] Communication bandwidth can also be referred to as bandwidth size.

[0255] At least one radio frequency parameter of the BWPs in a BWP group can be the same or different. For example, the SCS of the BWPs in a BWP group can be the same or different. Another example is that the bandwidth of the BWPs in a BWP group can be different, which allows for fast switching between different bandwidths and reduces latency. The communication parameter group associated with a BWP group consists of communication parameters configured specifically for the BWP group.

[0256] For example, the cell structure corresponding to this design method can be as follows, where: configuration information (e.g., represented by Configuration1), BWP group configuration information (e.g., represented by bwp-group), communication parameter group configuration information (e.g., represented by comm-para-group-config), sequence (SEQUENCE), maximum number of BWPs (e.g., represented by maxBWPnumber), BWP identifier (e.g., represented by BWP-Id), communication parameter group setup and release (comm-para-group-configSetupRelease), PDSCH configuration setup and release (pdsch-Config SetupRelease), PDSCH related parameters or configuration parameters (e.g., represented by PDSCH-Config), optional (OPTIONAL), parameter (parameter):

[0257] Configuration1::=SEQUENCE{

[0258] bwp-group SEQUENCE(SIZE(1..maxBWPnumber))OF BWP-Id

[0259] comm-para-group-config SetupRelease{Comm-par-group-Config}OPTIONAL,--Need M

[0260] …

[0261] }

[0262] Comm-par-group-Config::=SEQUENCE{

[0263] pdsch-Config SetupRelease{PDSCH-Config}OPTIONAL,--Need M

[0264] …

[0265] }

[0266] PDSCH-Config::=SEQUENCE{

[0267] parameter1

[0268] parameter2

[0269] …

[0270] }

[0271] BWP::=SEQUENCE{ / / BWP RF parameter configuration

[0272] bwp-Id BWP-Id

[0273] locationAndBandwidth INTEGER(0..37949),

[0274] subcarrierSpacing SubcarrierSpacing,OPTIONAL--Need R

[0275] cyclicPrefix ENUMERATED{extended}OPTIONAL--Need R

[0276] }

[0277] As can be seen, in the cell structure of this example, the configuration information of bwp-group and the configuration information of the communication parameter group associated with BWP group are relatively independent cells.

[0278] 3.1.B: The configuration information of the BWP group is contained in or located in the configuration information of the communication parameter group associated with the BWP group, or the configuration information of the communication parameter group associated with the BWP group includes the configuration information of the BWP group.

[0279] For example, such as Figure 12 The diagram shows the structure of the configuration information. In this configuration information, the configuration information of the BWP group, the identifier 0 of BWP 0 and the identifier 1 of BWP 1, are located in the configuration information of the communication parameter group associated with this BWP group. This communication parameter group takes PDSCH-related parameters as an example.

[0280] For example, the cell structure corresponding to this design method can be as follows, where: configuration information (e.g., represented by Configuration2), BWP group configuration information (e.g., represented by bwp-group), communication parameter group configuration information (e.g., represented by comm-para-group-config), sequence (SEQUENCE), maximum number of BWPs (e.g., represented by maxBWPnumber), BWP identifier (e.g., represented by BWP-Id), communication parameter group setup and release (comm-para-group-configSetupRelease), PDSCH configuration setup and release (pdsch-Config SetupRelease), PDSCH related parameters or configuration parameters (e.g., represented by PDSCH-Config), optional (OPTIONAL), parameter (parameter):

[0281] Configuration2::=SEQUENCE{

[0282] comm-para-group-config SetupRelease{Comm-par-group-Config}OPTIONAL,--Need M

[0283] …

[0284] }

[0285] Comm-par-group-Config::=SEQUENCE{

[0286] bwp-group SEQUENCE(SIZE(1..maxBWPnumber))OF BWP-Id

[0287] pdsch-Config SetupRelease{PDSCH-Config}OPTIONAL,--Need M

[0288] …

[0289] }

[0290] PDSCH-Config::=SEQUENCE{

[0291] parameter1

[0292] parameter2

[0293] …

[0294] }

[0295] As can be seen, in the information cell structure of this example, the configuration information of the communication parameter group associated with the BWP group includes the configuration information of the bwp-group.

[0296] 3.1.C: The configuration information of the communication parameter group associated with the BWP group is included in the configuration information of the BWP group, or the configuration information of the BWP group includes the configuration information of the communication parameter group associated with the BWP group. Optionally, the configuration information of the BWP group includes at least the identifiers of at least two BWPs.

[0297] like Figure 13 The diagram shows the structure of the configuration information. In this configuration information, the configuration information of the BWP group includes not only the identifier of BWP 0 and the identifier of BWP 1, but also the configuration information of the communication parameter group associated with the BWP group. Taking the parameters related to PDSCH as an example, the communication parameter group includes the parameters related to PDSCH.

[0298] For example, the cell structure corresponding to this design method can be as follows, where: configuration information (e.g., represented by Configuration3), BWP group configuration information (e.g., represented by BWP-group-Config), communication parameter group configuration information (e.g., represented by comm-para-group-config), sequence (SEQUENCE), maximum number of BWPs (e.g., represented by maxBWPnumber), BWP identifier (e.g., represented by BWP-Id), communication parameter group setup and release (comm-para-group-config SetupRelease), PDSCH configuration setup and release (pdsch-Config SetupRelease), PDSCH related parameters or configuration parameters (e.g., represented by PDSCH-Config), optional (OPTIONAL), parameter (parameter):

[0299] Configuration3::=SEQUENCE{

[0300] bwp-group-config SetupRelease{BWP-group-Config}OPTIONAL,--Need M

[0301] …

[0302] }

[0303] BWP-group-Config::=SEQUENCE{

[0304] bwp-group SEQUENCE(SIZE(1..maxBWPnumber))OF BWP-Id

[0305] comm-para-group-config SetupRelease{Comm-par-group-Config}OPTIONAL,--Need M

[0306] …

[0307] }

[0308] Comm-par-group-Config::=SEQUENCE{

[0309] pdsch-Config SetupRelease{PDSCH-Config}OPTIONAL,--Need M

[0310] …

[0311] }

[0312] PDSCH-Config::=SEQUENCE{

[0313] parameter1

[0314] parameter2

[0315] …

[0316] }

[0317] As can be seen, in the information cell structure of this example, the configuration information of the communication parameter group associated with the BWP group is included in the configuration information of the BWP group.

[0318] Optionally, the configuration information may also include the BWP group identifier. The possible design methods for the BWP group identifier, BWP group configuration information, and configuration information of the communication parameter group associated with the BWP group include, but are not limited to, the following two: 3.1.D to 3.1.E.

[0319] 3.1.D: The identifier of the BWP group is contained in or located in the configuration information of the communication parameter group associated with the BWP group, or the configuration information of the communication parameter group associated with the BWP group includes the identifier of the BWP group.

[0320] like Figure 14 The diagram shows the structure of the configuration information. This configuration information configures two BWP groups. One BWP group is identified as 0, and its configuration information includes BWP 0 and BWP1. The communication parameters for BWP group 0 include, for example, PDSCH-related parameters. The other BWP group is identified as 1, and its configuration information includes BWP2 and BWP3. The communication parameters for BWP group 1 also include, for example, PDSCH-related parameters. Additionally... Figure 14 In the example shown, the configuration information also includes the radio frequency parameters of BWP 0 to BWP3.

[0321] For example, this design method takes configuring a BWP group with configuration information as an example. The information cell structure corresponding to this configuration information can be as follows: configuration information (e.g., represented by Configuration4), BWP group configuration information (e.g., represented by bwp-group-config), communication parameter group configuration information (e.g., represented by comm-para-group-config), sequence (SEQUENCE), maximum number of BWPs (maxBWPnumber), BWP identifier (BWP-Id), communication parameter group setup and release (comm-para-group-config SetupRelease), PDSCH configuration setup and release (pdsch-Config SetupRelease), PDSCH related parameters or configuration parameters (e.g., represented by PDSCH-Config), optional (OPTIONAL), parameter (parameter), and BWP group identifier (e.g., represented by bwp-group-ID).

[0322] Configuration4::=SEQUENCE{

[0323] bwp-group-config SetupRelease{BWP-group-Config}OPTIONAL,--Need M

[0324] comm-para-group-config SetupRelease{Comm-par-group-Config}OPTIONAL,--Need M

[0325] …

[0326] }

[0327] BWP-group-Config::=SEQUENCE{

[0328] bwp-group-ID BWP-group-ID

[0329] bwp-group SEQUENCE(SIZE(1..maxBWPnumber))OF BWP-Id

[0330] }

[0331] Comm-par-group-Config::=SEQUENCE{

[0332] bwp-group-ID BWP-group-ID

[0333] pdsch-Config SetupRelease{PDSCH-Config}OPTIONAL,--Need M

[0334] …

[0335] }

[0336] PDSCH-Config::=SEQUENCE{

[0337] parameter1

[0338] parameter2

[0339] …

[0340] }

[0341] As can be seen, in the information cell structure of this example, the identifier of the BWP group (bwp-group-ID) is located in the configuration information (Comm-par-group-Config) of the communication parameter group associated with the BWP group.

[0342] 3.1.E: The BWP group identifier and BWP group configuration information are contained in or located in the configuration information of the communication parameter group associated with the BWP group, or the configuration information of the communication parameter group associated with the BWP group includes the BWP group identifier and BWP group configuration information. For example... Figure 15 The diagram shows the structure of the configuration information. This configuration information configures two BWP groups. BWP group 0's associated communication parameter group includes not only PDSCH-related parameters but also its configuration information: BWP group identifiers: 0, BWP0, and BWP1. The other BWP group, BWP group 1's communication parameter group includes not only PDSCH-related parameters but also its configuration information: BWP group identifiers: 1, BWP2, and BWP3. Additionally... Figure 15 In the example shown, the configuration information also includes the radio frequency parameters of BWP 0 to BWP3.

[0343] For example, the cell structure corresponding to this design method can be as follows, where: Configuration information (Configuration5), BWP group configuration information (e.g., represented by bwp-group), communication parameter group configuration information (e.g., represented by comm-para-group-config), Sequence (SEQUENCE), Maximum number of BWPs (maxBWPnumber), BWP identifier (BWP-Id), communication parameter group setup and release (comm-para-group-config SetupRelease), PDSCH configuration setup and release (pdsch-Config SetupRelease), PDSCH related parameters or configuration parameters (e.g., represented by PDSCH-Config), Optional (OPTIONAL), Parameter (parameter), and BWP group identifier (e.g., represented by bwp-group-ID):

[0344] Configuration5::=SEQUENCE{

[0345] comm-para-group-config SetupRelease{Comm-par-group-Config}OPTIONAL,--Need M

[0346] …

[0347] }

[0348] Comm-para-group-Config::=SEQUENCE{

[0349] bwp-group-ID BWP-group-ID

[0350] bwp-group SEQUENCE(SIZE(1..maxBWPnumber))OF BWP-Id

[0351] pdsch-Config SetupRelease{PDSCH-Config}OPTIONAL,--Need M

[0352] …

[0353] }

[0354] PDSCH-Config::=SEQUENCE{

[0355] parameter1

[0356] parameter2

[0357] …

[0358] }

[0359] Optionally, the network device can configure BWP groups separately for uplink and downlink, corresponding to different parameters, such as transmit parameters and receive parameters. For example, the network device can configure a downlink BWP group for communication of downlink signals, such as PDCCH, PDSCH, CSI-RS, SSB, etc.; and configure an uplink BWP group for communication of uplink signals, such as PUCCH, PUSCH, SRS, RACH, etc.

[0360] Optionally, the uplink BWP group and the downlink BWP group can be numbered separately, for example, downlink BWP group 0, downlink BWP group 1, uplink BWP group 0, and uplink BWP group 1.

[0361] Optionally, the uplink BWP group and the downlink BWP group can be jointly numbered, for example, downlink BWP group 0, downlink BWP group 1, uplink BWP group 2, and uplink BWP group 3.

[0362] Optionally, the uplink BWP group and the downlink BWP group can include the same BWP, or different BWPs.

[0363] For example, downlink BWP groups and uplink BWP groups can include the same BWPs, meaning they can correspond to the same BWP identifier. For instance, downlink BWP group 0 corresponds to DL BWP 0 and DL BWP 1, and uplink BWP group 0 corresponds to UL BWP 0 and UL BWP 1. Alternatively, the BWPs included in the downlink BWP group and the BWPs included in the uplink BWP group can be configured independently. For another example, downlink BWP group 0 corresponds to DL BWP 0 and DL BWP 1, and uplink BWP group 0 corresponds to UL BWP 0 and UL BWP 2.

[0364] Optionally, the uplink BWP group and the downlink BWP group can be configured together or separately.

[0365] For example, in a joint configuration, the network device configures BWP group 0 to correspond to BWP 0 and BWP 1, meaning downlink BWP group 0 corresponds to DL BWP 0 and DL BWP 1, and uplink BWP group 0 corresponds to UL BWP 0 and UL BWP 1. As another example, in a separate configuration, the network device configures downlink BWP group 0 to correspond to DL BWP 0 and DL BWP 1, and uplink BWP group 0 to correspond to ULBWP 0 and UL BWP 1.

[0366] 3.2 The configuration information includes the identifiers of at least two BWPs, and the communication parameter groups associated with at least two BWPs.

[0367] In this method, when switching between BWPs corresponding to the same communication parameter group, there is no need to switch the communication parameters in the communication parameter group, and there is no need to perform operations such as downloading / updating / activating the communication parameters, thereby reducing the BWP switching latency, realizing fast BWP switching, improving communication efficiency, and thus helping to achieve terminal energy saving.

[0368] In this implementation, a communication parameter group can correspond to multiple BWP IDs, such as an implicit BWP group, and the BWPs corresponding to the communication parameter group form a BWP group. The configuration information or communication parameter group indicates at least two BWP IDs, indicating that the configuration information or communication parameter group is applicable to at least two BWP IDs.

[0369] The configuration information may include at least two BWP identifiers and at least two BWP associated communication parameter groups, including but not limited to the following two possible design methods: 3.2.A to 3.2.B:

[0370] 3.2.A: The identifiers of at least two BWPs and the communication parameter group are relatively independent information elements in the configuration information. The configuration information indicating at least two BWP identifiers indicates that the configuration information or the communication parameter group included in the configuration information is applicable to the BWPs corresponding to at least two BWP IDs, and that switching between the at least two BWPs indicated by the configuration information can reduce switching latency. Optionally, the communication parameter group corresponds to multiple BWP IDs, which can be expressed as: the configuration information is associated with multiple BWP IDs.

[0371] For example, Figure 16 The configuration information shown includes BWP identifiers: 0 and 1, as well as PDSCH-related parameters included in communication parameter group 1. Optionally, Figure 16 The configuration information shown also includes the radio frequency parameters of BWP 0 and BWP 1, such as communication bandwidth, SCS and center frequency.

[0372] For example, the cell structure corresponding to this design method can be as follows, where: configuration information (e.g., represented by Configuration6), configuration information of communication parameter group (e.g., represented by comm-para-group-config), sequence (SEQUENCE), maximum number of BWPs (e.g., represented by maxBWPnumber), BWP identifier (e.g., represented by BWP-Id), BWP list (bwp-list), communication parameter group setup and release (comm-para-group-config SetupRelease), PDSCH configuration setup and release (pdsch-Config SetupRelease), PDSCH related parameters or configuration parameters (e.g., represented by PDSCH-Config), optional (OPTIONAL), parameter (parameter):

[0373] Configuration6::=SEQUENCE{

[0374] bwp-list SEQUENCE(SIZE(1..maxBWPnumber))OF BWP-Id

[0375] comm-para-group-config SetupRelease{Comm-par-group-Config}OPTIONAL,--Need M

[0376] …

[0377] }

[0378] Comm-par-group-Config::=SEQUENCE{

[0379] pdsch-Config SetupRelease{PDSCH-Config}OPTIONAL,--Need M

[0380] …

[0381] }

[0382] PDSCH-Config::=SEQUENCE{

[0383] parameter1

[0384] parameter2

[0385] …

[0386] }

[0387] As can be seen, in the information element structure of this example, Configuration6 includes bwp-list and comm-para-group-config.

[0388] 3.2.B: The identifiers of at least two BWPs are contained in or located in the information cells of their associated communication parameter groups, meaning that the configuration information of the communication parameter groups includes the identifiers of at least two BWPs. Optionally, the configuration information can configure multiple communication parameter groups.

[0389] For example, let's take configuring four BWPs (Browser Window Devices) for a terminal on a network device as an example. These four BWPs include BWP 0, BWP 1, BWP 2, and BWP 3. The configuration information for communication parameter group 1 includes BWP ID indicators, such as BWP 0 and BWP 1. Similarly, the configuration information for communication parameter group 2 includes BWP ID indicators, such as BWP 2 and BWP 3. The configuration information for communication parameter group 1 also includes PDSCH-related parameters. The BWP identifiers 0 and 1 are located in the configuration information for communication parameter group 1; for example... Figure 17 As shown, communication parameter group 2 includes PDSCH-related parameters and BWP identifiers: 2 and 3. Optionally, Figure 17 The configuration information shown also includes the radio frequency parameters of BWP 0 to BWP 3, such as communication bandwidth, SCS, and center frequency. It can be seen that the switching between BWP 0 and BWP 1 in associated communication parameter group 1 does not involve the switching of PDSCH-related parameters. If radio frequency switching is involved, the switching delay is 20 microseconds (µs) to 70µs, which is a symbol-level switching delay. The switching between BWPs in associated communication parameter group 1 and BWPs in associated communication parameter group 2 involves the switching of PDSCH-related parameters, with a switching delay of 400µs to 600µs, which is a slot-level switching delay.

[0390] For example, the cell structure corresponding to this design method can be as follows, where: configuration information (e.g., represented by Configuration7), configuration information of communication parameter group (e.g., represented by comm-para-group-config), sequence (SEQUENCE), maximum number of BWPs (e.g., represented by maxBWPnumber), BWP identifier (e.g., represented by BWP-Id), BWP list (e.g., represented by bwp-list), communication parameter group setup and release (comm-para-group-config SetupRelease), PDSCH configuration setup and release (pdsch-Config SetupRelease), PDSCH related parameters or configuration parameters (e.g., represented by PDSCH-Config), optional (OPTIONAL), parameter (parameter), and identifier of the configuration information of communication parameter group (e.g., represented by comm-par-group-ConfigID):

[0391] Configuration7::=SEQUENCE{

[0392] comm-para-group-config-list SEQUENCE(SIZE(1..maxPARAgroupnumber))OFComm-par-group-ConfigID

[0393] …

[0394] }

[0395] Comm-par-group-Config::=SEQUENCE{

[0396] comm-par-group-ConfigID Comm-par-group-ConfigID

[0397] bwp-list SEQUENCE(SIZE(1..maxBWPnumber))OF BWP-Id

[0398] pdsch-Config SetupRelease{PDSCH-Config}OPTIONAL,--Need M

[0399] …

[0400] }

[0401] PDSCH-Config::=SEQUENCE{

[0402] parameter1

[0403] parameter2

[0404] …

[0405] }

[0406] As can be seen, in the information cell structure of this example, comm-para-group-config includes bwp-list.

[0407] 3.3 At least two BWPs, including a first BWP and a second BWP, are included. The configuration information includes the configuration information of the communication parameter group of the first BWP and the first information. The first information is used to determine the association between the communication parameter group of the first BWP and the second BWP.

[0408] Optionally, the first information is used to determine the association between the first BWP and the second BWP.

[0409] Optionally, the first information indicates that the communication parameter group of the first BWP is associated with the second BWP, or the first information indicates that the first BWP is associated with the second BWP.

[0410] The configuration information of the communication parameter group of the first BWP can also be the configuration information of the first BWP.

[0411] In this method, a BWP can be associated with the communication parameter groups of other BWPs. Thus, when switching between BWPs, the communication parameters in the communication parameter group are identical, eliminating the need for switching and downloading / updating / activating these parameters. This reduces BWP switching latency, enabling fast BWP switching and improving communication efficiency. Furthermore, the network device only needs to indicate the communication parameter group once for the first and second BWPs, reducing indication signaling overhead.

[0412] In the case where there are multiple BWPs associated with the communication parameter group of the first BWP, the first information is used to determine that the communication parameter group of the first BWP is associated with multiple BWPs, including the second BWP.

[0413] In this embodiment, the design of the configuration information of the communication parameter group of the first BWP and the first information in the configuration information may include, but is not limited to, the following three possible design methods: 3.3.A to 3.3.C.

[0414] 3.3.A: The configuration information of the communication parameter group of the first BWP and the first information are relatively independent information elements in the configuration information. The first information includes the identifier of the first BWP and the identifier of the second BWP. When there are multiple BWPs associated with the communication parameter group of the first BWP, the first information includes not only the identifier of the first BWP, but also the identifiers of the multiple BWPs associated with the first BWP.

[0415] In this design, the terminal device has received the configuration information of the communication parameter group of the first BWP, and based on the first information, it can know one or more BWPs associated with the first BWP. Thus, it can determine one or more BWPs associated with the communication parameter group of the first BWP. The first BWP and the one or more BWPs are associated with the same communication parameter group, so the switching latency can be reduced when switching between the first BWP and the one or more BWPs.

[0416] For example, Figure 18 The configuration information shown includes the configuration information of the communication parameter group of BWP 0 and the first information: BWP 0 and BWP 1. Taking the PDSCH-related parameters as an example, the communication parameter group of BWP 0 allows the terminal device to know the communication parameter group associated with BWP 0 and BWP 1. In addition, the configuration information of the communication parameter group of BWP 0 includes not only the communication parameter group but also the radio frequency parameters of BWP 0 and the identifier of BWP 0.

[0417] In one possible implementation, the configuration information includes configuration information of the first BWP and first information, wherein the configuration information of the first BWP includes the identifier of the first BWP, the configuration information of the radio frequency parameters and the communication parameter group of the first BWP.

[0418] For example, the cell structure corresponding to this design method can be as follows, where: configuration information (e.g., represented by Configuration8), configuration information of communication parameter group (e.g., represented by comm-para-group-config), sequence (SEQUENCE), maximum number of BWPs (e.g., represented by maxBWPnumber), BWP identifier (BWP-Id), communication parameter group setup and release (comm-para-group-config SetupRelease), PDSCH configuration setup and release (pdsch-ConfigSetupRelease), PDSCH related parameters or configuration parameters (e.g., represented by PDSCH-Config), optional (OPTIONAL), parameter (parameter), BWP configuration information (e.g., represented by BWP-Config) and first information (e.g., represented by first-information), BWP radio frequency parameters (or basic parameters) represented by genericParameters BWP, bandwidth represented by locationAndBandwidth, subcarrier spacing represented by subcarrierSpacing, and cyclic prefix length represented by cyclicPrefix:

[0419] Configuration8::=SEQUENCE{

[0420] bwp-Config SetupRelease{BWP-Config}OPTIONAL,--Need M

[0421] first-information SEQUENCE(SIZE(1..maxBWPnumber))OF BWP-Id

[0422] …

[0423] }

[0424] BWP-Config::=SEQUENCE{

[0425] bwp-Id BWP-Id,

[0426] genericParameters BWP,

[0427] comm-para-group-config SetupRelease{Comm-par-group-Config}OPTIONAL,--Need M

[0428] …

[0429] }

[0430] BWP::=SEQUENCE{

[0431] locationAndBandwidth INTEGER(0..37949),

[0432] subcarrierSpacing SubcarrierSpacing,

[0433] cyclicPrefix ENUMERATED{extended}OPTIONAL--Need R

[0434] }

[0435] Comm-par-group-Config::=SEQUENCE{

[0436] pdsch-Config SetupRelease{PDSCH-Config}OPTIONAL,--Need M

[0437] …

[0438] }

[0439] PDSCH-Config::=SEQUENCE{

[0440] parameter1

[0441] parameter2

[0442] …

[0443] }

[0444] As can be seen, in the information cell structure of this example, in Configuration8, BWP-Config and first-information are relatively independent.

[0445] 3.3.B: The first information is contained in or located in the configuration information of the communication parameter group of the first BWP or in the configuration information of the first BWP; that is, the configuration information of the communication parameter group of the first BWP or the configuration information of the first BWP includes the first information. The first information indicates the identifier of the BWP associated with the communication parameter group of the first BWP, such as the identifier of the second BWP. When there are multiple BWPs associated with the communication parameter group of the first BWP, the first information is the identifier of the multiple BWPs associated with the communication parameter group of the first BWP.

[0446] In this design, the terminal device determines one or more BWPs associated with the communication parameter group of the first BWP based on the first information. The first BWP and the one or more BWPs are associated with the same communication parameter group, so the switching latency can be reduced when switching between the first BWP and the BWPs in the one or more BWPs.

[0447] For example, Figure 19 The configuration information shown includes the configuration information of the communication parameter group for BWP 0. Taking PDSCH-related parameters as an example, the configuration information of the BWP 0 communication parameter group includes not only the communication parameter group itself, but also the radio frequency parameters of BWP 0, the identifier of BWP 0, and the identifier of BWP 1. Thus, the terminal device, based on the configuration information, knows that the communication parameter group of BWP 0 is associated with BWP 0 and BWP 1, meaning that BWP 1 can share or share the communication parameter group of BWP 0. Additionally, optionally, such as... Figure 19 As shown, the configuration information of the communication parameter group of BWP 0 includes not only the communication parameter group, but also the radio frequency parameters of BWP 0 and the identifier of BWP 0. Therefore, the configuration information of the communication parameter group of BWP 0 can be the configuration information of BWP 0.

[0448] In one possible implementation, the configuration information of the communication parameter group of the first BWP includes first information, configuration information of the first BWP, and the communication parameter group. The configuration information of the first BWP may include the radio frequency parameters of the first BWP.

[0449] For example, the cell structure corresponding to this design method can be as follows, where: configuration information (e.g., represented by Configuration9), configuration information of communication parameter group (e.g., represented by comm-para-group-config), sequence (SEQUENCE), maximum number of BWPs (e.g., represented by maxBWPnumber), BWP identifier (BWP-Id), communication parameter group setup and release (comm-para-group-config SetupRelease), PDSCH configuration setup and release (pdsch-ConfigSetupRelease), PDSCH related parameters or configuration parameters (e.g., represented by PDSCH-Config), optional (OPTIONAL), parameter (parameter), BWP configuration information (e.g., represented by BWP-Config), first information (e.g., represented by first-information), BWP configuration information (e.g., represented by BWP-Config) and first information (e.g., represented by first-information), BWP radio frequency parameters (or basic parameters) in genericParameters BWP indicates that bandwidth is represented by locationAndBandwidth, subcarrier spacing by subcarrierSpacing, and cyclic prefix length by cyclicPrefix.

[0450] Configuration9::=SEQUENCE{

[0451] comm-para-group-config SetupRelease{Comm-par-group-Config}OPTIONAL,--Need M

[0452] …

[0453] }

[0454] Comm-par-group-Config::=SEQUENCE{

[0455] first-information SEQUENCE(SIZE(1..maxBWPnumber))OF BWP-Id

[0456] bwp-Config SetupRelease{BWP-Config}OPTIONAL,--Need M

[0457] pdsch-Config SetupRelease{PDSCH-Config}OPTIONAL,--Need M

[0458] …

[0459] }

[0460] BWP-Config::=SEQUENCE{

[0461] bwp-Id BWP-Id,

[0462] genericParameters BWP,

[0463] …

[0464] }

[0465] BWP::=SEQUENCE{

[0466] locationAndBandwidth INTEGER(0..37949),

[0467] subcarrierSpacing SubcarrierSpacing,

[0468] cyclicPrefix ENUMERATED{extended}OPTIONAL--Need R

[0469] }

[0470] PDSCH-Config::=SEQUENCE{

[0471] parameter1

[0472] parameter2

[0473] …

[0474] }

[0475] As can be seen, the information element structure in this example, Configuration9, includes BWP-Config and first-information, with first-information contained in or located in comm-para-group-config.

[0476] 3.3.C: The first information is contained in or located in the configuration information of the communication parameter group of the second BWP or the configuration information of the second BWP, that is, the configuration information of the communication parameter group of the second BWP or the configuration information of the second BWP includes the first information. Wherein, the first information is the identifier of the first BWP, or the first information is the identifier of the configuration information of the communication parameter group. When there are multiple BWPs associated with the communication parameter group of the first BWP, the first information includes not only the identifier of the first BWP or the identifier of the configuration information of the communication parameter group, but also the identifiers of the other multiple BWPs associated with the communication parameter group of the first BWP.

[0477] In this design, the terminal device determines one or more BWPs associated with the communication parameter group of the first BWP based on the first information. The first BWP and the one or more BWPs are associated with the same communication parameter group, so the switching latency can be reduced when switching between the first BWP and the BWPs in the one or more BWPs.

[0478] For example, Figure 20 The configuration information shown includes the configuration information of the communication parameter group of BWP 0. Taking the PDSCH related parameters as an example, the configuration information of the communication parameter group of BWP 0 also includes the radio frequency parameters of BWP 0. Figure 20 The configuration information shown also includes the configuration information of the communication parameter group of BWP 1. This configuration information includes the radio frequency parameters of BWP 1 and the first piece of information: BWP 0. Thus, the terminal device, based on the configuration information, knows that the communication parameter group of BWP 0 is associated with both BWP 0 and BWP 1; that is, BWP 1 can share or use the communication parameter group of BWP 0. Furthermore, the configuration information of the communication parameter group of BWP 0 includes not only the communication parameter group but also the radio frequency parameters of BWP 0; therefore, the configuration information of the communication parameter group of BWP 0 can be considered the configuration information of BWP 0.

[0479] In one possible implementation, the configuration information of the communication parameter group of the first BWP includes the configuration information of the first BWP and the communication parameter group of the first BWP, and the communication parameter group of the second BWP includes the configuration information of the second BWP and the first information.

[0480] For example, assuming the first BWP is BWP0 and the second BWP is BWP1, the cell structure corresponding to this design can be as follows: Configuration information (e.g., represented by Configuration10), configuration information of the communication parameter group (e.g., represented by comm-para-group-config), sequence (SEQUENCE), maximum number of BWPs (e.g., represented by maxBWPnumber), BWP identifier (BWP-Id), communication parameter group setup and release (comm-para-group-config SetupRelease), PDSCH configuration setup and release (pdsch-Config SetupRelease), PDSCH related parameters or configuration parameters (PDSCH-Config), optional (OPTIONAL), parameter (parameter), BWP configuration information (e.g., represented by BWP-Config), first information (e.g., represented by first-information), BWP configuration information (e.g., represented by BWP-Config) and first information (e.g., represented by first-information), BWP radio frequency parameters (or basic parameters) in genericParameters. BWP indicates that bandwidth is represented by locationAndBandwidth, subcarrier spacing by subcarrierSpacing, and cyclic prefix length by cyclicPrefix.

[0481] Configuration10::=SEQUENCE{

[0482] comm-para-group-configlist SEQUENCE(SIZE(1..maxBWPnumber))OF Comm-par-group-Config

[0483] …

[0484] }

[0485] Comm-par-group-Config::=SEQUENCE{

[0486] bwp-Config SetupRelease{BWP-Config}OPTIONAL,--Need M

[0487] comm-para-group-config SetupRelease{Comm-par-group-Config}OPTIONAL,--Need M

[0488] …

[0489] }

[0490] Comm-par-group-Config::=SEQUENCE{ / / Configuration information for the communication parameter group of BWP0}

[0491] bwp-Config SetupRelease{BWP-Config}OPTIONAL,--Need M

[0492] pdsch-Config SetupRelease{PDSCH-Config}OPTIONAL,--Need M

[0493] …

[0494] }

[0495] Comm-par-group-Config::=SEQUENCE{ / / Configuration information for the communication parameter group of BWP1}

[0496] bwp-Config SetupRelease{BWP-Config}OPTIONAL,--Need M

[0497] first-information SEQUENCE(SIZE(1..maxBWPnumber)) OF BWP-Id (in the configuration information of the communication parameter group of BWP1)

[0498] …

[0499] }

[0500] BWP-Config::=SEQUENCE{

[0501] bwp-Id BWP-Id,

[0502] genericParameters BWP,

[0503] …

[0504] }

[0505] BWP::=SEQUENCE{

[0506] locationAndBandwidth INTEGER(0..37949),

[0507] subcarrierSpacing SubcarrierSpacing,

[0508] cyclicPrefix ENUMERATED{extended}OPTIONAL--Need R

[0509] }

[0510] Optionally, the first information is used to determine the association between the communication parameter group of the first BWP and the second BWP. Alternatively, the first information can be used to determine the association between the first BWP and the second BWP, where the associated BWPs have the same communication parameter group. The association between the second BWP and the first BWP means that the associated BWPs implicitly form a BWP group, and switching between associated BWPs does not require changing the parameters in the communication parameter group. Optionally, the BWPs included in a BWP group can refer to the associated BWPs; therefore, a BWP group can also be represented by BWP association.

[0511] 3.4 The configuration information includes the configuration information of the communication parameter group, which is used to configure the communication parameter group associated with at least two BWPs.

[0512] In one possible design, the configuration information includes configuration information for a communication parameter group and configuration information for a BWP group. The configuration information for the communication parameter group includes one or more communication parameters associated with at least two BWPs; the configuration information for the BWP group includes identifiers for at least two BWPs. Optionally, at least one of the configuration information, the configuration information for the communication parameter group, or the configuration information for the BWP group may also include the identifier of the BWP group.

[0513] In another possible design, the configuration information for the communication parameter group includes the identifiers of at least two BWPs and one or more communication parameters associated with at least two BWPs. This configuration information also includes basic parameters of at least two BWPs, or parameters that differ between BWPs not included in the communication parameter group.

[0514] For example, such as Figure 17 The configuration information for communication parameter group 1 includes BWP identifiers: 0 and 1, as well as multiple communication parameters associated with BWP 0 and BWP 1 (such as PDSCH-related parameters); the configuration information for communication parameter group 2 includes BWP identifiers: 2 and 3, as well as multiple communication parameters associated with BWP 2 and BWP 3 (such as PDSCH-related parameters); the configuration information also includes the basic parameters (i.e., radio frequency parameters) of BWP 0 to BWP 3.

[0515] In another possible design, the configuration information of the communication parameter group is the configuration information of the communication parameter group of the first BWP. The configuration information also includes first information, which is used to determine the association between the communication parameter group of the first BWP and the second BWP. Optionally, the location and content of the first information include, but are not limited to: 1) the first information is within the configuration information of the communication parameter group, and the first information is the identifier of the second BWP; 2) the first information is within the configuration information of the second BWP, and the first information is the identifier of the first BWP; 3) the configuration information includes the first information, and the first information includes the identifier of the first BWP and the identifier of the second BWP.

[0516] In another possible design, the configuration information of the communication parameter group is the configuration information of the communication parameter group of the first BWP. The configuration information also includes first information, which is used to determine the association of the communication parameter group of the first BWP with multiple BWPs. Optionally, the location and content of the first information include, but are not limited to: 1) the first information is within the configuration information of the communication parameter group, and the first information includes the identifiers of multiple BWPs associated with the communication parameter group of the first BWP; 2) the multiple BWPs associated with the communication parameter group of the first BWP include the second BWP, and the first information is within the configuration information of the second BWP, and the first information includes not only the identifier of the first BWP, but also the identifiers of the other BWPs among the multiple BWPs excluding the second BWP; 3) the configuration information includes the first information, and the first information includes the identifiers of the first BWP and other BWPs associated with the communication parameter group of the first BWP.

[0517] Optionally, the first information used to determine the association of the communication parameter group of the first BWP with the second BWP can be: the first information used to determine the association of the first BWP with the second BWP. The first information used to determine the association of the communication parameter group of the first BWP with multiple BWPs can also be: the first information used to determine the association of the first BWP with multiple BWPs.

[0518] In this embodiment, the content is not limited to that described in embodiments 3.1 to 3.4 above. For example, the configuration information sent by the network device to the terminal device may be configuration information for a BWP group. This configuration information configures the BWP identifiers included in the BWP group and configures communication parameters for the BWP group identifiers. The configuration information may include: the BWP identifiers included in the BWP group, and the communication parameters for the BWP group. For example, the base station configures BWP ID 0 and BWP ID 1, and the corresponding basic BWP parameters; the base station configures the BWP IDs included in BWP group 0, such as BWP 0 and BWP 1, and the communication parameters configured for the BWP group include PDSCH related parameters. The base station configures BWP ID 2 and BWP ID 3, and the corresponding basic BWP parameters; the base station configures the BWP IDs included in BWP group 1, such as BWP 2 and BWP 3, and the communication parameters configured for the BWP group include PDSCH related parameters.

[0519] The configuration information of a BWP group can be described as follows: a BWP group corresponds to the same set of communication parameters, or multiple BWPs in a BWP group share (or share) a set (or a copy) of communication parameters, or BWPs in a BWP group correspond to the same configuration parameters, or the communication parameters of a BWP group are effective for multiple BWPs in that BWP group, or a BWP group corresponds to the same set of communication parameters, or multiple BWPs in a BWP group share BWP parameters.

[0520] Optionally, the network device is configured with at least one BWP group, and the at least one BWP group includes at least two BWPs. Optionally, the base station is configured with at least two BWP groups, the at least one BWP group includes at least two BWPs, and the other BWP group includes only one BWP.

[0521] 3.5 In conjunction with the possible implementation methods of the configuration information, we introduce the optional implementation methods for triggering BWP switching.

[0522] In one optional implementation, the signaling for BWP handover may include a BWP ID. The terminal device uses the indication of the BWP ID and the configuration information provided in the embodiments of this application to determine whether the BWP before the BWP handover and the BWP after the BWP handover belong to the same BWP associated with the same communication parameter group, thereby triggering the BWP handover operation of the terminal device. For example, some communication parameters are switched while others do not need to be switched, thereby reducing the handover latency.

[0523] For example, in the DCI-based BWP handover method, the DCI field includes the BWP ID. Using the BWP ID as an indication, the terminal, in conjunction with configuration information, can determine whether the BWP before and after the handover belongs to the same communication parameter group, and perform the corresponding BWP handover operation. If they are associated with the same communication parameter group, the communication parameters in that group do not need to be downloaded, updated, or activated. Accordingly, the terminal device can communicate on the handover BWP based on that communication parameter group.

[0524] For example, in a timer-based BWP handover method, the network device configures the default BWP ID for timer expiration via RRC signaling. The terminal, based on the configuration information provided in this embodiment, determines whether the default BWP and the currently active BWP belong to the same communication parameter group. If they are determined to be BWPs associated with the same communication parameter group, the terminal device does not need to download, update, or activate the communication parameters in that communication parameter group during the BWP handover operation, and can continue communication on the switched BWP based on that communication parameter group.

[0525] Optionally, in the timer-based BWP handover method, the timer configuration and the default BWP when the timeout occurs can be notified to the terminal device using other signaling methods, or determined by predefined or protocol-defined methods.

[0526] For example, in the BWP handover method based on RRC reconfiguration, the network device configures and activates the BWP ID through RRC signaling; the terminal device, in conjunction with the configuration information provided in the embodiments of this application, determines whether the activated BWP reconfigured by RRC and the currently activated BWP belong to the same communication parameter group; if it is determined that they belong to the same communication parameter group, then during the BWP handover operation, the terminal device does not need to download, update or activate the communication parameters in the communication parameter group, and can continue to communicate on the BWP after the handover based on the communication parameter group.

[0527] In another optional implementation, the signaling for BWP handover may include a BWP group ID. Using the BWP group ID, the terminal device determines whether the BWP before and after the handover belongs to the same BWP group / bundle, thereby determining the handover delay.

[0528] For example, the DCI field includes the BWP group ID (and BWP ID). By using the BWP group / bundle ID, the terminal device determines whether the BWP before and after the BWP handover belongs to the same BWP group / bundle, and thus determines the handover delay.

[0529] For example, during timer-based BWP handover, the network device can configure the default BWP group ID for timer expiration via RRC signaling. The terminal device determines whether the default BWP and the currently active BWP belong to the same BWP group, thereby determining the handover delay.

[0530] For example, during BWP handover based on RRC reconfiguration, the network device can configure the active BWPgroup ID through RRC signaling. The terminal device determines whether the active BWP reconfigured by RRC and the currently active BWP belong to the same BWPgroup, and thus determines the handover delay.

[0531] The apparatus provided in the embodiments of this application will be described below.

[0532] This application divides the device into functional modules according to the above method embodiments. For example, each function can be divided into its own functional modules, or two or more functions can be integrated into one processing module. The integrated modules can be implemented in hardware or as software functional modules. It should be noted that the module division in this application is illustrative and only represents one logical functional division; other division methods may be used in actual implementation. The following will combine... Figures 21 to 23 The apparatus of the embodiments of this application is described in detail.

[0533] Figure 21 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of a device provided in an embodiment of this application, such as... Figure 21 As shown, the device includes a processing module 2101 and a transceiver module 2102. The transceiver module 2102 can implement corresponding communication functions, and the processing module 2101 is used to implement corresponding processing functions. The transceiver module 2102 can also be referred to as an interface, communication interface, communication module, or input / output interface, etc.

[0534] In some embodiments of this application, the device can be used to perform the actions performed by the terminal device in the above method embodiments. In this case, the terminal device can be the terminal device itself or a chip or functional module configurable within the terminal device. The transceiver module 2102 is used to perform transceiver-related operations or input / output-related operations of the terminal device in the above method embodiments, and the processing module 2101 is used to perform processing-related operations of the terminal device in the above method embodiments.

[0535] For example, transceiver module 2102 is used to receive configuration information for configuring a communication parameter group, which is associated with at least two BWPs; processing module 2101 determines the communication parameter group corresponding to the active BWP among the at least two BWPs based on the configuration information. Transceiver module 2102 is also used to communicate on the active BWP among the at least two BWPs based on the communication parameter group. For example, transceiver module 2102 may include a radio frequency module, an antenna module, etc.

[0536] Reuse Figure 21 In other embodiments of this application, the device can be used to perform the actions performed by the network device in the above method embodiments. In this case, the device can be the network device itself or a chip or functional module configurable within the network device. The transceiver module 2102 is used to perform transceiver-related operations of the network device in the above method embodiments, and the processing module 2101 is used to perform processing-related operations of the network device in the above method embodiments.

[0537] For example, processing module 2101 is used to determine at least two groups of communication parameters associated with BWP.

[0538] The transceiver module 2102 is used to send configuration information, which is used to configure a communication parameter group, and the communication parameter group is associated with at least two BWPs. The transceiver module 2102 is also used to communicate on the BWPs that are active among the at least two BWPs based on the communication parameter group.

[0539] As an example, transceiver module 2102 can receive signals transmitted through a channel. Transceiver module 2102 may include a radio frequency module, an antenna module, etc.

[0540] Optionally, in the above embodiments, the device may further include a storage module, which can be used to store instructions and / or data. The processing module 2101 can read the instructions and / or data in the storage module to enable the device to implement the aforementioned method embodiments. For example, the storage module may also store the configuration information and / or defined BWP handover latency, etc., as shown above.

[0541] For specific explanations of terms or steps in the above embodiments, please refer to the descriptions in the above method embodiments, which will not be detailed here.

[0542] The specific descriptions of the transceiver module and processing module shown in the above embodiments are merely examples. For the specific functions or execution steps of the transceiver module and processing module, please refer to the above method embodiments, which will not be described in detail here.

[0543] It is understandable that the module division in the above-mentioned device is merely a logical functional division. Each function can correspond to a functional module, or two or more functions can be integrated into one functional module. In actual implementation, all or some modules can be integrated into one physical entity, or they can be distributed across different physical entities. Furthermore, the above-mentioned functional modules can be implemented in hardware, software, or a combination of both.

[0544] In one example, the functional unit in any of the above devices may be one or more integrated circuits configured to implement the above methods, such as: one or more application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs), or one or more central processing units (CPUs), one or more microcontroller units (MCUs), one or more digital signal processors (DSPs), or one or more field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), or a combination of at least two of these integrated circuit forms.

[0545] The apparatus of the embodiments of this application has been described above. The possible product forms of the described apparatus are described below. Any device possessing the above-described features... Figure 21 Any form of product that incorporates the functionality of the described device falls within the protection scope of the embodiments of this application. The following description is merely illustrative and does not limit the product form of the device in the embodiments of this application to this specific example.

[0546] In one possible implementation, Figure 21In the illustrated device, processing module 2101 can be one or more processing circuits, and transceiver module 2102 can be a transceiver circuit, or transceiver module 2102 can also be a transmitting module and a receiving module. The transmitting module can be a transmitting circuit, and the receiving module can be a receiving circuit, which are integrated into one device, such as a transceiver circuit. In the embodiments of this application, the processing circuit and the transceiver circuit can be coupled, etc., and the connection method of the processing circuit and the transceiver circuit is not limited in the embodiments of this application. In the process of performing the above method, the process of sending information in the above method can be the process of the processing circuit outputting the above information. When outputting the above information, the processing circuit outputs the above information to the transceiver circuit so that the transceiver circuit can transmit (or output). After the above information is output by the processing circuit, it may need to undergo other processing before reaching the transceiver circuit. Similarly, the process of receiving information in the above method can be the process of the processing circuit receiving the input above information. When the processing circuit receives the input information, the transceiver circuit receives the above information and inputs it into the processing circuit. Furthermore, after the transceiver circuit receives the aforementioned information, the information may need to undergo further processing before being input into the processing circuit.

[0547] Figure 22 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of a device provided in an embodiment of this application. For example... Figure 22 As shown, the device 220 includes one or more processing circuits 2220 and transceiver circuits 2210.

[0548] In some embodiments of this application, the apparatus can be used to perform the steps, methods, or functions performed by the terminal device described above, such as the processing circuit 2220 being used to perform... Figure 21 The transceiver circuit 2210 can be used to perform the functions or steps implemented by the processing module 2101 shown. Figure 21 The transceiver module 2102 shown illustrates the functions or steps implemented by this module. For detailed descriptions of the processing circuit 2220 and the transceiver circuit 2210, please refer to [link / reference needed]. Figure 21 Alternatively, the method embodiments shown above will not be described in detail here.

[0549] In other embodiments of this application, the apparatus is used to perform the steps, methods, or functions performed by the network apparatus described above, such as the processing circuit 2220 being used to perform such... Figure 21 The transceiver circuit 2210 can be used to perform the functions or steps implemented by the processing module 2101 shown. Figure 21 The transceiver module 2102 shown illustrates the functions or steps implemented by this module. For detailed descriptions of the processing circuit 2220 and the transceiver circuit 2210, please refer to [link / reference needed]. Figure 21 Alternatively, the method embodiments shown above will not be described in detail here.

[0550] For example, the processing circuitry may be one or more processors, or all or part of the circuitry within one or more processors. The transceiver circuitry may be a transceiver, an input / output circuit, or an interface circuit, etc.

[0551] For example, in Figure 22 In various implementations of the illustrated apparatus, the transceiver circuitry may include a receiver for performing a receiving function (or operation) and a transmitter for performing a transmitting function (or operation). The transceiver circuitry is also used for communicating with other devices / appliances via a transmission medium.

[0552] Optionally, device 220 may further include one or more memories 2230 for storing program instructions and / or data. The memories 2230 are coupled to the processing circuitry 2220. The coupling in this embodiment is an indirect coupling or communication connection between devices, units, or modules, and can be electrical, mechanical, or other forms, used for information exchange between devices, units, or modules. The processing circuitry 2220 may operate in conjunction with the memories 2230. The processing circuitry 2220 may execute the program instructions stored in the memories 2230. Optionally, at least one of the above-mentioned memories may be included in the processing circuitry.

[0553] This application embodiment does not limit the specific connection medium between the transceiver circuit 2210, the processing circuit 2220, and the memory 2230. This application embodiment... Figure 22 The memory 2230, processing circuit 2220, and transceiver circuit 2210 are connected via a bus 2240. Figure 22 The connections between other components are shown in bold and are for illustrative purposes only, not as limiting information. The bus can be divided into address bus, data bus, control bus, etc. For ease of illustration, Figure 22 The bus is represented by a single thick line, but this does not mean that there is only one bus or one type of bus.

[0554] In the embodiments of this application, the processing circuit may be a general-purpose processing circuit, a digital signal processing circuit, an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field-programmable gate array (FPGA) or other programmable logic device, a discrete gate or transistor logic device, a discrete hardware component, etc., and can implement or execute the various methods, steps, and logic block diagrams disclosed in the embodiments of this application. The general-purpose processing circuit may be a microprocessor circuit or any conventional processing circuit, etc. The steps of the methods disclosed in the embodiments of this application can be directly manifested as being executed by a hardware processing circuit, or being executed by a combination of hardware and software modules in the processing circuit, etc.

[0555] In this application embodiment, the memory may include, but is not limited to, non-volatile memory such as hard disk drive (HDD) or solid-state drive (SSD), random access memory (RAM), erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM), read-only memory (ROM), or compact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM), etc. Memory is any storage medium capable of carrying or storing program code having instruction or data structure form, and capable of being read and / or written by a computer (such as the device shown in this application), but is not limited to this. The memory in this application embodiment may also be a circuit or any other device capable of implementing storage functions, used to store program instructions and / or data.

[0556] For example, processing circuit 2220 is mainly used to process communication protocols and communication data, control the entire device, execute software programs, and process data from the software programs. Memory 2230 is mainly used to store software programs and data. Transceiver circuit 2210 may include control circuitry and an antenna. The control circuitry is mainly used for converting baseband signals to radio frequency signals and processing radio frequency signals. The antenna is mainly used for transmitting and receiving radio frequency signals in the form of electromagnetic waves. Input / output devices, such as touchscreens, displays, and keyboards, are mainly used to receive user input data and output data to the user.

[0557] When the device is powered on, the processing circuit 2220 can read the software program in the memory 2230, interpret and execute the instructions of the software program, and process the data of the software program. When data needs to be transmitted wirelessly, the processing circuit 2220 performs baseband processing on the data to be transmitted and outputs the baseband signal to the radio frequency (RF) circuit. The RF circuit performs RF processing on the baseband signal and transmits the RF signal outward in the form of electromagnetic waves through the antenna. When data is sent to the device, the RF circuit receives the RF signal through the antenna, converts the RF signal into a baseband signal, and outputs the baseband signal to the processing circuit 2220. The processing circuit 2220 converts the baseband signal into data and processes the data.

[0558] In another implementation, the radio frequency circuit and antenna can be set up independently of the processing circuit that performs baseband processing. For example, in a distributed scenario, the radio frequency circuit and antenna can be arranged remotely, independent of the device.

[0559] The apparatus shown in the embodiments of this application may also have a higher... Figure 22This application does not limit the use of other components or other related elements. The methods performed by the processing circuit and transceiver circuit shown above are merely examples; the specific steps performed by the processing circuit and transceiver circuit can be found in the methods described above.

[0560] In another possible implementation Figure 21 In the device shown, the processing module 2101 can be one or more logic circuits, and the transceiver module 2102 can be an input / output interface, or a communication interface, or an interface circuit, or an interface, etc. Alternatively, the transceiver module 2102 can also be a transmitting module and a receiving module. The transmitting module can be an output interface, and the receiving module can be an input interface. The transmitting module and the receiving module are integrated into one module, such as an input / output interface.

[0561] Figure 23 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of a device provided in an embodiment of this application. For example... Figure 23 As shown, Figure 23 The illustrated device includes logic circuitry 2301 and interface circuitry 2302. That is, the processing module 2101 can be implemented using logic circuitry 2301, and the transceiver module 2102 can be implemented using interface circuitry 2302. The logic circuitry 2301 can be a chip, processing circuit, integrated circuit, or system-on-chip (SoC) chip, etc., and the interface circuitry 2302 can be a communication interface, input / output interface, pins, etc. For example, Figure 23 The above device is used as an example of a chip, which includes a logic circuit 2301 and an interface circuit 2302.

[0562] In this embodiment, the logic circuit and the interface can also be coupled to each other. The specific connection method between the logic circuit and the interface is not limited in this embodiment. For example, the logic circuit 2301 can be used to perform... Figure 21 The interface circuit 2302 can be used to execute the functions or steps implemented by the processing module 2101 shown. Figure 21 The transceiver module 2102 shown herein implements the functions or steps. For detailed explanations of the logic circuit 2301 and the interface circuit 2302, please refer to [link / reference needed]. Figure 21 Alternatively, the method embodiments shown above will not be described in detail here.

[0563] The apparatus shown in the embodiments of this application can be implemented in hardware or software, and the embodiments of this application do not limit this.

[0564] This application also provides a communication system, which includes a terminal device and a network device, and the terminal device and network device can be used to perform the methods in any of the foregoing embodiments.

[0565] In addition, this application also provides a computer program for implementing the operations and / or processes performed by various devices in the method provided in this application.

[0566] This application also provides a computer-readable storage medium storing computer code that, when executed on a computer, causes the computer to perform the operations and / or processes performed by the various devices in the methods provided in this application.

[0567] This application also provides a computer program product comprising computer code or a computer program that, when run on a computer, causes the operations and / or processes performed by various entities in the method provided in this application to be executed.

[0568] In the embodiments provided in this application, it should be understood that the disclosed systems, apparatuses, and methods can be implemented in other ways. For example, the apparatus embodiments described above are merely illustrative; for instance, the division of modules is only a logical functional division, and in actual implementation, there may be other division methods. For example, multiple modules or components may be combined or integrated into another system, or some features may be ignored or not executed. Furthermore, the couplings or direct couplings or communication connections shown or discussed may be indirect couplings or communication connections through some interfaces, devices, or modules, or they may be electrical, mechanical, or other forms of connection.

[0569] The modules described as separate components may or may not be physically separate. The components shown as modules may or may not be physical modules; that is, they may be located in one place or distributed across multiple network modules. Some or all of the modules can be selected according to actual needs to achieve the technical effects of the solutions provided in the embodiments of this application.

[0570] Furthermore, the functional modules in the various embodiments of this application can be integrated into one processing module, or each module can exist physically separately, or two or more modules can be integrated into one module. The integrated modules described above can be implemented in hardware or as software functional modules.

[0571] If the integrated module is implemented as a software functional module and sold or used as an independent product, it can be stored in a computer-readable storage medium. Based on this understanding, the technical solution of this application, in essence, or the part that contributes to the prior art, or all or part of the technical solution, can be embodied in the form of a software product. This computer software product is stored in a readable storage medium and includes several instructions to cause a computer device (which may be a personal computer, server, or network device, etc.) to execute all or part of the steps of the methods described in the various embodiments of this application. The aforementioned readable storage medium includes various media capable of storing program code, such as USB flash drives, portable hard drives, read-only memory (ROM), random access memory (RAM), magnetic disks, or optical disks.

[0572] The above description is merely a specific embodiment of this application, but the scope of protection of this application is not limited thereto. Any variations or substitutions that can be easily conceived by those skilled in the art within the scope of the technology disclosed in this application should be included within the scope of protection of this application. Therefore, the scope of protection of this application should be determined by the scope of the claims.

Claims

1. A communication method, characterized in that, The method includes: Receive configuration information, which is used to configure a communication parameter group, the communication parameter group being associated with at least two bandwidth portions (BWPs); Based on the communication parameter set, communication is conducted on the BWP that is active in at least two BWPs.

2. A communication method, characterized in that, The method includes: Send configuration information, which is used to configure a communication parameter group, the communication parameter group being associated with at least two bandwidth portions (BWPs); Based on the communication parameter set, communication is conducted on the BWP that is active in at least two BWPs.

3. The method according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that, The communication parameter set includes baseband processing parameters and / or basic parameters of the BWP.

4. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that, The configuration information includes the configuration information of a BWP group, wherein the BWP group includes the at least two BWPs; The configuration information also includes the configuration information of the communication parameter group associated with the BWP group.

5. The method according to claim 4, characterized in that, The configuration information of the BWP group includes the identifiers of the at least two BWPs.

6. The method according to claim 4 or 5, characterized in that, The configuration information also includes the identifier of the BWP group.

7. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that, The configuration information includes the identifiers of the at least two BWPs, and the communication parameter groups associated with the at least two BWPs.

8. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that, The at least two BWPs include a first BWP and a second BWP; The configuration information includes the configuration information of the communication parameter group of the first BWP and the first information; The first information is used to determine the association between the communication parameter group of the first BWP and the second BWP.

9. The method according to claim 8, characterized in that, The configuration information of the first BWP includes first information, which is the identifier of the second BWP; or, The configuration information of the second BWP includes first information, which is either the identifier of the first BWP or the identifier of the configuration information of the communication parameter group; or, The first information includes the identifier of the first BWP and the identifier of the second BWP.

10. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 9, characterized in that, The at least two BWPs include a first BWP and a second BWP, wherein the bandwidth of the first BWP is different from that of the second BWP.

11. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 10, characterized in that, The at least two BWPs include a first BWP and a second BWP, wherein the center frequency of the first BWP and the second BWP are the same.

12. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 11, characterized in that, The communication parameter set includes at least one of the following: uplink shared channel related parameters, downlink shared channel related parameters, probe reference signal configuration parameters, or channel state information measurement configuration parameters.

13. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 12, characterized in that, The communication parameter set includes at least one of the following: parameters related to the uplink control channel, or parameters related to the downlink control channel.

14. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 12, characterized in that, The communication parameter set does not include at least one of the following: parameters related to the uplink control channel, or parameters related to the downlink control channel.

15. The method according to claim 13, characterized in that, The resources of the uplink control channel or the resources of the downlink control channel are configured based on the BWP with the smallest or largest bandwidth among the at least two BWPs; or, The resources of the uplink control channel or the downlink control channel are located in the frequency domain resources that overlap between the at least two BWPs.

16. The method according to claim 14, characterized in that, The parameters related to the uplink control channel and / or the downlink control channel are parameters configured at the BWP level; or, The parameters related to the uplink control channel and / or the parameters related to the downlink control channel correspond to one of the at least two BWPs; or... The uplink control channel and / or the downlink control channel are transmitted in the BWP with the smallest bandwidth among the at least two BWPs.

17. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 16, characterized in that, The handover delay between the at least two BWPs is x1 symbols, where x1 is an integer.

18. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 16, characterized in that, BWP handover latency includes a first handover latency and a second handover latency. The first switching delay is the switching delay between multiple BWPs associated with the same communication parameter group; The second handover delay is the handover delay between multiple BWPs associated with different communication parameter groups; The first switching delay is less than the second switching delay.

19. The method according to claim 18, characterized in that, The first handover delay is a symbol-level delay, and the second handover delay is a slot-level delay; or, The first switching delay is x2 symbols, and the second switching delay is y time slots, where x2 and y are integers.

20. A communication device, characterized in that, Includes modules for performing the method as described in any one of claims 1 to 19.

21. A computer-readable storage medium, characterized in that, The computer-readable storage medium is used to store a computer program, which, when executed, performs the method as described in any one of claims 1 to 19.

22. A computer program product, characterized in that, When the computer program product is executed, the method as described in any one of claims 1 to 19 is performed.

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