Communication method and communication apparatus

Abstract

The application relates to the field of communication, in particular to a communication method and a communication device. The application proposes a concept of a unified carrier, the unified carrier comprising at least two component carriers, and a terminal reporting to a base station a capability of communicating in the at least two component carriers of the unified carrier. Since each unified carrier can be regarded as a single carrier, the base station can share the capability of the terminal on each component carrier of the unified carrier based on the capability reported by the terminal, thereby maximizing the utilization of the capability of the terminal and reducing the waste of the capability of the terminal.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This application relates to the field of communication technology, specifically to a communication method and a communication device. Background Technology

[0002] Carrier aggregation provides greater transmission bandwidth to terminal devices by aggregating multiple component carriers, thereby improving peak data rates and network capacity for users. Carrier aggregation allows operators to utilize dispersed spectrum resources more effectively. However, in carrier aggregation scenarios, the overall capacity of terminal devices is limited, resulting in constraints on the capacity of each carrier. Furthermore, it places higher demands on the terminal devices' ability to support carrier aggregation, leading to higher costs for the terminal devices. Summary of the Invention

[0003] This application provides a communication method, communication device, communication system, computer-readable storage medium, and computer program product that can maximize the use of terminal capabilities and reduce the waste of terminal capabilities.

[0004] In a first aspect, a communication method is provided, the method comprising: transmitting unified carrier-related capability information of a terminal device, the unified carrier including at least two frequency domain resources, the capability related to the unified carrier being the ability to communicate in the at least two frequency domain resources; and performing communication based on the capability information.

[0005] For example, the communication method can be implemented by a terminal device, or by modules, units, processors, circuits, chips or chip systems included in the terminal device.

[0006] It should be understood that this capability information is used to indicate the capabilities of the terminal device corresponding to the at least two frequency domain resources when communicating in at least two frequency domain resources. Furthermore, the capability of the terminal device may be used on one of the aforementioned at least two frequency domain resources, or the capability of the terminal device may be shared or common across the at least two frequency domain resources.

[0007] The method provided in this application allows a terminal to report its unified carrier-related capability information, enabling a base station to communicate with the terminal based on this capability. This unified carrier-related capability refers to the ability to communicate in at least two frequency domain resources. For example, if the terminal reports the capability to support communication on only one frequency domain resource within the unified carrier at any given time, the base station can determine which frequency domain resource to use for communication among at least two resources within the unified carrier. The determined frequency domain resource can differ at different times, meaning the base station can flexibly select the communication frequency domain resource from at least two resources, while other frequency domain resources can be left unused. This reduces the capability requirements on the terminal equipment and consequently lowers its cost. Alternatively, if the terminal reports the capability to support communication on multiple frequency domain resources within the unified carrier at any given time, the base station can determine which multiple frequency domain resources to use for communication among at least two resources within the unified carrier, thereby maximizing the utilization of the terminal's capabilities and reducing wasted capabilities. Furthermore, the capabilities of the terminal device can be shared across multiple frequency domain resources, without limiting the capabilities of each frequency domain resource due to the need to split the total capabilities of the terminal device. Thus, this method also improves the communication capabilities of each frequency domain resource.

[0008] In one possible implementation of the first aspect, communication based on capability information includes: receiving configuration information corresponding to the capability information, and communicating based on the configuration information.

[0009] In this implementation, the base station determines the configuration information for communication between the terminal device and the base station based on the capability information reported by the terminal device. After receiving the configuration information, the terminal device can communicate based on the configuration information. Different capability information reported by the terminal device will result in different received configuration information.

[0010] In a second aspect, a communication method is provided, the method comprising: receiving unified carrier-related capability information of a terminal device, the unified carrier including at least two frequency domain resources, the unified carrier-related capability being the ability to communicate in the at least two frequency domain resources, and communicating based on the capability information.

[0011] For example, the communication method can be implemented by a base station, or by modules, units, processors, circuits, chips or chip systems included in the base station.

[0012] It should be understood that this capability information is used to indicate the capabilities of the terminal device corresponding to the at least two frequency domain resources when communicating in at least two frequency domain resources. Furthermore, the capability of the terminal device may be used on one of the aforementioned at least two frequency domain resources, or the capability of the terminal device may be shared or common across the at least two frequency domain resources.

[0013] In some possible embodiments of the second aspect, the above method further includes: sending configuration information, which is determined based on capability information.

[0014] In some possible embodiments of the first or second aspect, capability information indicates the frequency domain resources that a unified carrier can include.

[0015] In this implementation, the terminal device reports the frequency domain resources that the unified carrier can include, so that the base station can configure information on these frequency domain resources for the terminal device, and the communication efficiency is higher when these frequency domain resources are used as a unified carrier for communication.

[0016] In some possible embodiments of the first or second aspect, the capability information includes at least one of the following: the frequency domain resource pool included in the unified carrier, the number of frequency domain resources that the unified carrier can include, the frequency domain resource bandwidth level of the unified carrier, or the type of the unified carrier, which includes at least one of the following: a unified carrier within a frequency band, a unified carrier between frequency bands, or a unified carrier within a specific frequency domain range.

[0017] In this implementation, the frequency domain resource pool is used to indicate the range of frequency domain resources to which the unified carrier supported by the terminal device belongs. For example, the frequency domain resource pool is 50MHz-4900MHz. The number of frequency domain resources is used to indicate the number of frequency domain resources included in the unified carrier supported by the terminal device. For example, if the number of frequency domain resources is 5, it means that the terminal device can support 5 component carriers within the unified carrier. The frequency domain resource bandwidth level is used to indicate the range of frequency domain resource bandwidth that the terminal device can support. For example, if the frequency domain resource bandwidth level is 200MHz, it means that the total frequency domain resource bandwidth of the unified carrier supported by the terminal device is 200MHz.

[0018] For example, the type of unified carrier can include at least one of the following: unified carrier within a frequency band, unified carrier between frequency bands, or unified carrier within a specific frequency domain. Among the types of unified carriers, a unified carrier within a frequency band indicates that the terminal device can support frequency domain resources within a frequency band, for example, the frequency band is n41; a unified carrier between frequency bands indicates that the terminal device can support frequency domain resources combining multiple frequency bands, for example, the multiple frequency bands can be n1, n2, and n3; a unified carrier within a specific frequency domain indicates that the terminal device can support frequency domain resources within a frequency range, for example, the frequency range is FR1.

[0019] In some possible embodiments of the first or second aspect, capability information indicates the maximum number of antenna ports, and this configuration information is used to indicate that the number of antenna ports used when communicating on a uniform carrier does not exceed the maximum number of antenna ports.

[0020] In this implementation, the terminal device reports the maximum number of antenna ports supported by the unified carrier, enabling the base station to determine configuration information for the terminal device based on this capability. This configuration information indicates that the number of antenna ports used when communicating on the unified carrier is less than or equal to the maximum number of antenna ports. Assuming that the unified carrier includes multiple frequency domain resources, the number of antenna ports that can be used on each frequency domain resource can be equal to the maximum number of antenna ports of the terminal device, thereby improving the communication capability on each frequency domain resource.

[0021] In some possible embodiments of the first or second aspect, capability information indicates the maximum number of blind detections of the PDCCH and / or the maximum number of non-overlapping CCEs, the unified carrier including a first frequency domain resource and a second frequency domain resource; the configuration information is used to indicate that a blind detection of the PDCCH is performed on the first frequency domain resource, the number of blind detections of the PDCCH on the first frequency domain resource is less than or equal to the maximum number of blind detections of the PDCCH, and / or the number of non-overlapping CCEs in the blind detection of the PDCCH on the first frequency domain resource is less than or equal to the maximum number of non-overlapping CCEs; or, the configuration information is used to indicate that a blind detection of the PDCCH is performed on the first and second frequency domain resources, the sum of the number of blind detections of the PDCCH on the first frequency domain resource and the number of blind detections of the PDCCH on the second frequency domain resource is less than or equal to the maximum number of blind detections of the PDCCH, and / or the sum of the number of non-overlapping CCEs in the blind detection of the PDCCH on the first frequency domain resource and the number of non-overlapping CCEs in the blind detection of the PDCCH on the second frequency domain resource is less than or equal to the maximum number of non-overlapping CCEs.

[0022] In this implementation, the terminal device reports the maximum number of blind PDCCH detections and / or the maximum number of non-overlapping CCEs to the base station, so that the base station can determine configuration information for the terminal device. This configuration information can indicate that blind PDCCH detection is performed on the first frequency domain resource, that is, the first frequency domain resource on the same carrier supports blind PDCCH detection, while frequency domain resources outside the first frequency domain resource may not support blind PDCCH detection, thereby reducing the capability of the terminal device. Furthermore, the first frequency domain resource can support the maximum blind PDCCH detection capability of the terminal device, thereby improving the communication capability on the first frequency domain resource, or the maximum blind PDCCH detection capability can be shared on the first frequency domain resource and the second frequency domain resource.

[0023] It should be understood that the first frequency domain resource and / or the second frequency domain resource may be reported by the terminal device or indicated by the base station. The embodiments of this application do not specifically limit the method of determining the frequency band corresponding to the first frequency domain resource and / or the second frequency domain resource.

[0024] Furthermore, the configuration information can also indicate the maximum PDCCH blind detection capability supported by the terminal device for performing PDCCH blind detection on the first frequency domain resource and the second frequency domain resource.

[0025] In one possible implementation, the number of PDCCH blind detections performed on the first frequency domain resources and / or the number of non-overlapping CCEs detected by PDCCH blind detections on the first frequency domain resources, and / or the number of PDCCH blind detections performed on the second frequency domain resources and / or the number of non-overlapping CCEs detected by PDCCH blind detections on the second frequency domain resources, can be reported by the terminal device to the base station.

[0026] In another possible implementation, the number of PDCCH blind detections performed on the first frequency domain resource and / or the number of non-overlapping CCEs detected by PDCCH blind detection on the first frequency domain resource, and / or the number of PDCCH blind detections performed on the second frequency domain resource and / or the number of non-overlapping CCEs detected by PDCCH blind detection on the second frequency domain resource can be determined according to predefined rules.

[0027] Optionally, the predefined rule may refer to the number of PDCCH blind detections performed on the first frequency domain resource and the number of PDCCH blind detections performed on the second frequency domain resource being evenly distributed based on the maximum number of PDCCH blind detections, and / or the number of non-overlapping CCEs in the PDCCH blind detections performed on the first frequency domain resource and the number of non-overlapping CCEs in the PDCCH blind detections performed on the second frequency domain resource being evenly distributed based on the maximum number of non-overlapping CCEs in the PDCCH blind detections.

[0028] Optionally, the predefined rules may also refer to the allocation of the number of PDCCH blind detections on the first frequency domain resource and the number of PDCCH blind detections on the second frequency domain resource according to the priority of the first frequency domain resource and the second frequency domain resource, and / or, and / or the allocation of the number of non-overlapping CCEs in the PDCCH blind detection on the first frequency domain resource and the number of non-overlapping CCEs in the PDCCH blind detection on the second frequency domain resource according to the priority of the first frequency domain resource and the second frequency domain resource.

[0029] In some possible embodiments of the first or second aspect, the capability information indicates the capability of the Channel State Information (CSI) measurement feedback, which indicates that the antenna port corresponding to the CSI measurement feedback is the sum of the number of antenna ports of CSI-RS resources on multiple frequency domain resources, and the antenna port numbers of CSI-RS resources on different frequency domain resources are different.

[0030] In this implementation, the terminal device can report to the network device that it can use a unified carrier to perform joint CSI-RS measurement feedback, instead of needing to perform CSI-RS measurement feedback on each component carrier, thereby reducing CSI-RS measurement overhead and feedback overhead.

[0031] Optionally, a CSI-RS resource indicator (CRI) corresponds to one CSI-RS resource indicator, and the CSI-RS resource corresponding to one CSI-RS resource indicator includes CSI-RS resources on multiple frequency domain resources; or, a CRI corresponds to multiple CSI-RS resource indicators, and one of the multiple CSI-RS resource indicators corresponds to a CSI-RS resource on one frequency domain resource.

[0032] In some possible embodiments of the first or second aspect, the capability information may also indicate HARQ process capabilities, which include support for initial transmission and retransmission on different frequency domain resources within a unified carrier, i.e., initial transmission of first data can be sent or received on a first frequency domain resource, and retransmission of first data can be sent or received on a second frequency domain resource, wherein the unified carrier includes both first and second frequency domain resources.

[0033] In this embodiment of the application, the terminal reports the HARQ process capability so that the base station can schedule the initial transmission of the first data on the first frequency domain resource and the retransmission of the first data on the second frequency domain resource in a certain process of the HARQ process. This avoids problems such as insufficient resources, transmission failure, or poor transmission efficiency caused by simultaneous initial transmission and retransmission on the first frequency domain resource.

[0034] In some possible embodiments of the first or second aspect, the capabilities of the terminal device include signal processing capabilities, which include: a first signal processing capability and a second signal processing capability, wherein the first signal processing capability is used to determine the signal processing time for communication on one frequency domain resource, and the second signal processing capability is used to determine the signal processing time for simultaneous communication on multiple frequency domain resources.

[0035] In this implementation, the terminal device reports the signal processing capability corresponding to the unified carrier to the network device. The base station can flexibly determine the configuration information for communication based on the usage scenario. For example, the base station can reasonably allocate the HARQ feedback position for the terminal based on the identified scenario. Since the signal processing time of the terminal communicating on a single carrier is different from that of the terminal communicating on multiple carriers, the base station can reasonably set the HARQ feedback time according to the capabilities of the terminal device, thereby improving communication efficiency, reducing communication latency, and avoiding waste of communication resources.

[0036] In some possible embodiments of the first or second aspect, the two frequency domain resources are not adjacent; or, the two frequency domain resources are adjacent frequency domain resources, and when the two frequency domain resources belong to frequency range FR1, the total bandwidth of the two frequency domain resources is greater than 100MHz, and when the two frequency domain resources belong to FR2, the total bandwidth of the two frequency domain resources is greater than 400MHz.

[0037] In some possible embodiments of the first or second aspect, a uniform carrier corresponds to a cell.

[0038] In this implementation, a unified carrier corresponds to one cell, which can improve the user experience. One cell includes multiple frequency domain resources, which can reduce the network management complexity of discrete spectrum, reduce network energy consumption, and reduce terminal implementation complexity.

[0039] Thirdly, embodiments of this application provide a communication device. The communication device may include a processing unit and a transceiver unit, configured to perform any of the methods described in the first aspect and its optional embodiments. The transceiver unit is a sending unit when performing a sending step and a receiving unit when performing a receiving step.

[0040] Fourthly, embodiments of this application provide a communication device. The communication device may include a processing unit and a transceiver unit, configured to perform any of the methods in the second aspect and its optional embodiments. The transceiver unit is a sending unit when performing a sending step and a receiving unit when performing a receiving step.

[0041] Fifthly, embodiments of this application provide a communication device, which may be a terminal device or a chip applied to a terminal device. The communication device may include a processor for executing any of the methods in the first aspect and its optional embodiments.

[0042] Optionally, the communication device may also include a transceiver. When the communication device is a terminal device, the transceiver may be a transceiver circuit, an antenna, etc.; when the communication device is a chip used in a terminal device, the transceiver may be an input / output interface, pins, interface circuits, etc.

[0043] Optionally, the communication device may further include a memory for storing computer programs or instructions. The processor executes the computer programs or instructions stored in the memory to cause the communication device to perform any of the methods in the first aspect and its optional embodiments. When the communication device is a terminal device, the memory may be a read-only memory, random access memory, etc.; when the communication device is a chip applied to a terminal device, the memory may be a register, cache, etc.

[0044] Sixthly, embodiments of this application provide a communication device, which may be a network device or a chip applied to a network device. The communication device may include a processor for executing any of the methods in the second aspect and its optional embodiments.

[0045] Optionally, the communication device may also include a transceiver. When the communication device is a network device, the transceiver may be a transceiver circuit, an antenna, etc.; when the communication device is a chip used in a network device, the transceiver may be an input / output interface, pins, interface circuits, etc.

[0046] Optionally, the communication device may further include a memory for storing computer programs or instructions, which the processor executes to cause the communication device to perform any of the methods in the second aspect and its optional embodiments. When the communication device is a network device, the memory may be a read-only memory, random access memory, etc.; when the communication device is a chip used in a network device, the memory may be a register, cache, etc.

[0047] In a seventh aspect, embodiments of this application provide a communication system comprising: the communication device described in the third aspect and the communication device described in the fourth aspect, or the communication device described in the fifth aspect and the communication device described in the sixth aspect.

[0048] Eighthly, embodiments of this application provide a computer-readable storage medium storing a computer program or instructions that, when executed on a communication device, cause the communication device to perform: any method of the first aspect and its optional embodiments, or any method of the second aspect and its optional embodiments.

[0049] Ninthly, embodiments of this application provide a computer program product comprising: a computer program or instructions that, when executed by a communication device, cause the communication device to perform: any one of the methods in the first aspect and its optional embodiments, or any one of the methods in the second aspect and its optional embodiments. Attached Figure Description

[0050] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the architecture of the communication system 1000 used in the embodiments of this application.

[0051] Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram of an O-RAN architecture provided by an embodiment of this application.

[0052] Figure 3 This is a schematic interactive diagram of an example communication method provided in an embodiment of this application.

[0053] Figure 4 This is a schematic diagram of a unified carrier partitioning provided in an embodiment of this application.

[0054] Figure 5 This is a schematic diagram of a unified carrier type provided in an embodiment of this application.

[0055] Figure 6 This illustration shows a schematic diagram of the maximum antenna port corresponding to a uniform carrier provided in an embodiment of this application.

[0056] Figure 7 This illustration shows a schematic diagram of the maximum channel bandwidth corresponding to an example of a uniform carrier provided in an embodiment of this application.

[0057] Figure 8 This illustration shows a schematic diagram of the maximum number of blind detections of the PDCCH and / or the maximum number of non-overlapping CCEs corresponding to a unified carrier, provided in an embodiment of this application.

[0058] Figure 9 This illustration shows a schematic diagram of the CSI measurement feedback capability corresponding to an example of a unified carrier provided in an embodiment of this application.

[0059] Figure 10 This illustration shows a schematic diagram of HARQ capability corresponding to a unified carrier, provided in an embodiment of this application.

[0060] Figure 11 A schematic diagram illustrating an example of PDSCH processing capability provided in an embodiment of this application is shown.

[0061] Figure 12 This is a schematic diagram illustrating an example of receiving and transmitting using maximum antenna capability on two bands, provided by an embodiment of this application.

[0062] Figure 13 This is a schematic diagram illustrating an example of capability sharing within a unified carrier, provided by an embodiment of this application.

[0063] Figure 14 This is a schematic diagram illustrating an example of capability switching between multiple uniform carriers provided in an embodiment of this application.

[0064] Figure 15 This is a schematic diagram illustrating an example of blind PDCCH detection on a frequency domain resource provided in an embodiment of this application.

[0065] Figure 16 This is a schematic diagram illustrating an example of blind PDCCH detection across multiple frequency domain resources provided in an embodiment of this application.

[0066] Figure 17This is a schematic diagram of an example of a base station configuring an antenna port for CSI measurement feedback for a terminal, provided by an embodiment of this application.

[0067] Figure 18 This is a schematic diagram illustrating different DCI scheduling for the initial transmission and retransmission of first data, provided in an embodiment of this application.

[0068] Figure 19 This is a schematic diagram illustrating an example of scheduling the initial transmission and retransmission of first data based on the same DCI, provided by an embodiment of this application.

[0069] Figure 20 This is a schematic diagram illustrating different signal processing capabilities provided in an embodiment of this application.

[0070] Figure 21 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of a communication device provided in an embodiment of this application.

[0071] Figure 22 This is a schematic diagram of another communication device provided in an embodiment of this application. Detailed Implementation

[0072] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the architecture of the communication system 1000 used in an embodiment of this application. Figure 1 As shown, the communication system includes a radio access network (RAN) 100, wherein the RAN 100 includes at least one RAN node (e.g., Figure 1 110a and 110b, collectively referred to as 110, may also include at least one terminal (such as...). Figure 1 RAN 100, denoted as RAN 120a-120j, is collectively referred to as RAN 120. RAN 100 may also include other RAN nodes, such as wireless relay equipment and / or wireless backhaul equipment. Figure 1 (Not shown in the image). Terminal 120 is wirelessly connected to RAN node 110. Terminals and RAN nodes can be interconnected via wired or wireless means. Communication system 1000 may also include core network 200. RAN node 110 is connected to core network 200 via wireless or wired means. The core network equipment in core network 200 and RAN node 110 in RAN 100 can be independent physical devices, or they can be the same physical device integrating the logical functions of core network equipment and RAN node. Communication system 1000 may also include Internet 300.

[0073] RAN 100 can be an evolved universal terrestrial radio access (E-UTRA) system, a new radio (NR) system, or a future radio access system as defined in the 3rd generation partnership project (3GPP), or it can be a Wi-Fi system. RAN 100 can also include two or more of the above-mentioned different radio access systems. RAN 100 can also be an open RAN (O-RAN).

[0074] RAN nodes, also known as network devices, wireless access network devices, RAN entities, or access nodes, are used to help terminals access communication systems wirelessly.

[0075] In one application scenario, a RAN node can be a base station, an evolved NodeB (eNodeB), a transmission reception point (TRP), a next-generation NodeB (gNB) in a 5G mobile communication system, a base station in a future communication network, an access point (AP) in a Wi-Fi system, an AP in a long-range radio (LoRa) system, or an AP in a vehicle-to-everything (V2X) system. A RAN node can also be a macro base station (such as...) Figure 1 110a in the text), can also be a micro base station or an indoor station (such as... Figure 1 110b in the middle can also be a relay node or a donor node.

[0076] In another application scenario, multiple RAN nodes can collaborate to help terminals achieve wireless access, with different RAN nodes implementing different functions of the base station. For example, a RAN node can be a central unit (CU), a distributed unit (DU), or a radio unit (RU). The CU performs the functions of the base station's radio resource control (RRC) protocol and packet data convergence protocol (PDCP), and can also perform the functions of the service data adaptation protocol (SDAP). The DU performs the functions of the base station's radio link control (RLC) layer and medium access control (MAC) layer, and can also perform some or all of the physical (PHY) layer functions. For specific descriptions of these protocol layers, refer to the relevant 3GPP technical specifications. The RU can be used to implement radio frequency signal transmission and reception. The CU and DU can be set up as two independent RAN nodes, or integrated into the same RAN node, for example, integrated into the baseband unit (BBU). RUs can be included in radio frequency equipment, such as remote radio units (RRUs), active antenna units (AAUs), or remote radio heads (RRHs). CUs can be further divided into two types of RAN nodes: central unit control plane (CU-CP) and central unit user plane (CU-UP).

[0077] In different systems, RAN nodes may have different names. For example, in an O-RAN system, a CU can be called an open CU (O-CU), a DU can be called an open DU (O-DU), and a RU can be called an open RU (O-RU).

[0078] Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram of an O-RAN architecture provided by an embodiment of this application.

[0079] like Figure 2As shown, O-RAN includes O-CU, O-DU, and O-RU. Optionally, O-CU and O-DU can be integrated into BBU. BBU and O-RU can be co-located or non-co-located. O-CU can communicate with the core network via backhaul, O-CU and O-DU can communicate via midhaul, O-DU and O-RU can communicate via fronthaul, and O-RU can communicate with user equipment (UE) via air interface.

[0080] The RAN node in the embodiments of this application can be implemented through software modules, hardware modules, or a combination of software and hardware modules. For example, the RAN node can be a server loaded with the corresponding software module. The embodiments of this application do not limit the specific technology or device form used in the RAN node. For ease of description, a base station is used as an example of a RAN node in the following description.

[0081] A terminal is a device with wireless transceiver capabilities, capable of sending signals to or receiving signals from a base station. Terminals can also be called terminal equipment, user interface (UE), mobile station, mobile terminal, etc. Terminals can be widely used in various scenarios, such as device-to-device (D2D), vehicle-to-everything (V2X) communication, machine-type communication (MTC), Internet of Things (IoT), virtual reality (VR), augmented reality (AR), industrial control, autonomous driving, telemedicine, smart grids, smart furniture, smart offices, smart wearables, smart transportation, and smart cities. A terminal can be a mobile phone (e.g., a smartphone). Figure 1 120a, 120e, 120f and 120j), tablet computers (such as Figure 1 120g), printers with wireless transceiver capabilities (such as...) Figure 1 120h), wearable devices, vehicles (such as Figure 1 120b in the middle), charging piles (such as Figure 1 120c in the middle), aircraft (such as Figure 1 120i), ships, robots, robotic arms, smart home devices (such as Figure 1 Examples include 120d). The embodiments of this application do not limit the specific technology or device form used in the terminal.

[0082] By way of example and not limitation, in the embodiments of this application, wearable devices may also be referred to as wearable smart devices. This is 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 a user's clothing or accessories. Wearable devices are not merely hardware devices, but also achieve powerful functions through software support, data interaction, and cloud interaction. In a broad sense, wearable smart devices include fully functional, large-sized electronic devices that can achieve complete or partial functionality without relying on a smartphone, such as smartwatches or smart glasses, or electronic devices that focus on a specific application function and require cooperation with other devices such as smartphones, such as various smart bracelets and smart jewelry for measuring vital signs.

[0083] All the terminals described above, if located in a vehicle (e.g., placed inside or installed inside a vehicle), can be considered vehicle-mounted terminals. Vehicle-mounted terminals can also be called vehicle modules, vehicle components, vehicle chips, or on-board units (OBU).

[0084] Base stations and terminals can be fixed or mobile. They can be deployed on land, including indoors or outdoors, handheld or vehicle-mounted; they can also be deployed on water; and they can be deployed on aircraft, balloons, and satellites. The embodiments of this application do not limit the application scenarios of the base stations and terminals.

[0085] The roles of base stations and terminals can be relative, for example, Figure 1 The 120i (which could be a helicopter or drone) can be configured as a mobile base station. For those 120j accessing the wireless access network 100 via the 120i, the 120i is a base station; however, for the 110a, the 120i is a terminal, meaning that the 110a and 120i communicate via a wireless air interface protocol. Of course, the 110a and 120i can also communicate via a base station-to-base station interface protocol; in this case, the 120i is also a base station relative to the 110a. Therefore, both base stations and terminals can be collectively referred to as communication devices. Figure 1 The 110a and 110b in the text can be referred to as communication devices with base station functions. Figure 1 The 120a-120j in the text can be referred to as communication devices with terminal functions.

[0086] Communication between base stations and terminals, between base stations, and between terminals can be conducted using licensed spectrum, unlicensed spectrum, or both simultaneously. Communication can be conducted using spectrum below 6 GHz, spectrum above 6 GHz, or both simultaneously. The embodiments of this application do not limit the spectrum resources used for wireless communication.

[0087] In the embodiments of this application, the functions of the base station can be executed by modules (such as chips) within the base station, or by a control subsystem that includes base station functions. This control subsystem, including base station functions, can be a control center in the aforementioned application scenarios such as smart grids, industrial control, intelligent transportation, and smart cities. Similarly, the functions of the terminal can be executed by modules (such as chips or modems) within the terminal, or by a device that includes terminal functions.

[0088] In the embodiments of this application, the base station can send downlink information to the terminal, which is carried on the downlink channel and can also be called downlink signal; the terminal can send uplink information to the base station, which is carried on the uplink channel and can also be called uplink signal.

[0089] It is understood that in the embodiments of this application, the physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH), physical downlink control channel (PDCCH), and physical downlink shared channel (PUSCH) are only examples of downlink data channels, downlink control channels, and uplink data channels, respectively. In different systems and different scenarios, data channels and control channels may have different names, and the embodiments of this application do not limit this.

[0090] To facilitate understanding of the embodiments of this application, the following is a brief introduction to several terms involved in this application.

[0091] 1. Physical Transmit Link Control Channel: This is a physical layer control channel. Generally, standard protocols describe it from the UE's perspective, i.e., the physical layer channel control transmitted by the UE. Its function is similar to that of Long Term Evolution (LTE) systems and in 5G (5G) systems. thIn 5G mobile communication systems, the Physical Uplink Control Channel (PUCCH) is used. In 6G, PUCCH can be used to represent the UE's Physical Uplink Control Channel or Physical Transmit Link Control Channel. Alternatively, a new Physical Layer Control Channel (PTxCCH) can be introduced in 6G.

[0092] 2. Physical Transmit Shared Channel: This is a physical layer data channel. Generally, standard protocols describe it from the UE's perspective. It is the physical layer data channel transmitted by the UE, and its function is similar to PUSCH in LTE and 5G. In 6G, PUSCH can be used to represent the UE's physical uplink data channel or physical receive link data channel. Alternatively, a new physical layer data channel, PTxSCH, can be introduced in 6G.

[0093] 3. Carrier aggregation (CA): By combining multiple consecutive or non-consecutive spectrum bandwidths into a wider channel, a larger bandwidth is provided to a single UE. This allows the UE to enjoy a bandwidth equal to the total bandwidth of all component carriers, thus significantly improving the peak rate.

[0094] For example, a UE is served by three component carriers (CCs) at the same time. One of the carriers is the primary component carrier (PCC), and the other two are secondary component carriers (SCCs). The cell where the PCC is located is called the PCell, and the cell where the SCC is located is called the SCell.

[0095] Based on whether CCs belong to the same frequency band and are continuous in the frequency domain, CA can be divided into the following categories: Continuous CA within the same frequency band: CCs belong to the same frequency band and are continuous in the frequency domain. Non-continuous CA within the same frequency band: CCs belong to the same frequency band but are not continuous in the frequency domain. Cross-band CA: CCs belong to different frequency bands; in this case, CCs are usually not continuous in the frequency domain.

[0096] 4. Channel state information (CSI).

[0097] In wireless communication systems, Channel Information System (CSI) is information reported by the terminal to the base station to describe the channel characteristics of the communication link. For example, CSI may include: precoding matrix indicator (PMI), rank indication (RI), channel quality indicator, channel state information reference signal (CSI-RS), resource indication, and layer indication. The base station can determine the channel characteristics of the communication link based on the CSI and determine the communication parameters of the communication link, such as the precoding matrix, based on these channel characteristics.

[0098] The specific content of CSI listed above is merely illustrative and does not constitute any limitation on this application. CSI may include one or more of the items listed above, or other information used to characterize CSI besides those listed above. The embodiments of this application do not limit this.

[0099] 5. Antenna port.

[0100] An antenna port can be simply referred to as a port. It can be understood as a transmitting antenna that is recognized by the receiving device, or a spatially distinguishable transmitting antenna. Each virtual antenna can be pre-configured with one antenna port. Each virtual antenna can be a weighted combination of multiple physical antennas. Each antenna port can correspond to a reference signal; therefore, each antenna port can be called a reference signal port, such as a CSI-RS port or a sounding reference signal (SRS) port.

[0101] 6. Time-division multiplexing (TDM)

[0102] TDM allows multiple users to share a channel on the same frequency band through time division. Each user is allocated one or more time slots to transmit information within a cycle, meaning each user occupies the same bandwidth at different times.

[0103] In 5G, component carrier aggregation (CA) is one of the key technologies for increasing data transmission rates and network capacity. However, with the development of 6G in the future, the use of spectrum resources will become more complex, and a single operator may need to manage more than ten component carriers. For example, the 3GPP protocol specifies that NR CA can aggregate up to 16 component carriers together. This CA method leads to problems such as a large number of total serving cells, poor user experience across the entire frequency band, high network power consumption, and high terminal implementation complexity.

[0104] Each carrier in the spectrum of each operator determines the capabilities of the terminal. For example, the number of antennas on different carriers of the terminal is different, the blind detection capability of the terminal on different carriers is different, the number of hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) processes on different carriers of the terminal is different, and the terminal needs to be able to measure and provide feedback on the received signals on each carrier. All these factors work together to enable the terminal to operate efficiently in a multi-carrier environment, optimize resource utilization, and improve user experience.

[0105] However, due to the limited overall capability of the terminals, the capabilities of the terminals on each carrier need to be processed separately, resulting in limited capability on each carrier, complex instructions from the base station to the terminals, and wasted communication resources. Furthermore, as the number of aggregated carriers increases, the terminal capabilities improve, leading to higher terminal costs and higher requirements for the capabilities of terminals supporting carrier aggregation.

[0106] The terminal defines two types of user processing capabilities, such as PDSCH processing capability, PUSCH processing capability, or CSI calculation capability. The first type represents a higher level of processing capability, suitable for applications requiring high performance. These terminals can support more antenna ports, faster data processing speeds, and more frequent CSI feedback, thereby providing a better user experience and higher data transmission efficiency. The second type typically represents a lower level of processing capability, suitable for terminals with limitations on cost, power consumption, or design complexity. These terminals may have fewer antenna ports, slower data processing speeds, or lower CSI feedback frequencies. In related technologies, a terminal corresponds to only one capability and cannot switch processing capabilities according to application scenarios.

[0107] In summary, the current challenge is to improve the capabilities on each carrier and reduce the cost of the terminal while providing greater bandwidth to the terminal.

[0108] In view of this, this application provides a communication method in which a terminal can report unified carrier-related capability information of the terminal device to a base station. The unified carrier includes at least two frequency domain resources. The unified carrier-related capability information refers to the ability to communicate in at least two frequency domain resources. The base station can determine configuration information for the terminal based on the terminal device's capability information. Based on the configuration information, the terminal and the base station can communicate. Since each unified carrier can be regarded as a single carrier, the component carriers in the unified carrier can share the terminal's maximum capability, thereby maximizing the utilization of the terminal's capability and reducing the waste of terminal capability.

[0109] Furthermore, the method provided in this application can enable one user to correspond to two capabilities, and the base station can switch processing capabilities according to the usage scenario, thereby improving communication efficiency, reducing communication latency, and avoiding waste of communication resources.

[0110] The communication method provided in the embodiments of this application will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0111] It should be understood that the step numbers in the embodiments of this application are for illustrative purposes only and do not limit the order in which the steps occur.

[0112] For ease of understanding and explanation, the following describes the communication method of this application embodiment using the interaction between a terminal device (or simply a terminal) and a network device (e.g., a base station) as an example. The following is in conjunction with... Figure 3 This application provides a detailed description of an example communication method. Figure 3 A schematic interaction diagram of an example communication method provided in an embodiment of this application is shown, such as... Figure 3 As shown, method 300 may include S310 to S340.

[0113] S310. The terminal sends unified carrier-related capability information of the terminal device to the base station. The unified carrier includes at least two frequency domain resources, and the capability related to the unified carrier is the ability to communicate in at least two frequency domain resources.

[0114] Accordingly, the base station receives unified carrier-related capability information from the terminal equipment.

[0115] First, let's explain the concept of a uni-carrier (also known as a joint carrier).

[0116] The unified carrier mentioned in this application corresponds to a cell. A unified carrier can support at least two frequency domain resources in a cell. A unified carrier can be regarded as a virtual single carrier or a logical single carrier. For example, at least two frequency domain resources on the unified carrier share a radio frequency channel, and / or a large-scale fast Fourier transform operation is performed during signal transmission. In this way, unified management of multiple frequency domain resources can be achieved by managing this one carrier.

[0117] It should be noted that in this application, frequency domain resources can be replaced with carrier, or bandwidth part (BWP), or component carrier, or subband. Unless otherwise specified, these descriptions have the same meaning and can be used interchangeably.

[0118] Furthermore, the unified carrier involved in this application may be referred to as a frequency domain resource set, aggregated carrier, joint carrier, carrier group, or other names defined by the future network.

[0119] For example, a frequency domain resource set may include one or more carriers within the same frequency band, or a frequency domain resource set may include multiple carriers within multiple frequency bands.

[0120] Optionally, the frequency band in this application may be the operating band defined by the NR protocol, or it may be a portion of the frequency domain resources within the operating band. A frequency band may refer to a segment of frequency domain resources, which may include continuous resources or discontinuous resources.

[0121] There can be multiple unified carriers, such as unified carrier 0, unified carrier 1, and unified carrier 2. A unified carrier can also correspond to one or more component carrier groups, which can include one or more component carriers.

[0122] In one possible implementation, component carrier groups or unified carriers can be divided or configured based on the frequency band or frequency domain range in which the component carriers reside. For example, Figure 4 This is a schematic diagram illustrating an example of unified carrier partitioning provided in an embodiment of this application, as shown below. Figure 4 As shown, multiple CCs in frequency range 1 form a unified carrier 0, multiple CCs in frequency range 3 form a unified carrier 1, and multiple CCs in frequency range 2 form a unified carrier 2. A unified carrier can be understood as a single logical component carrier.

[0123] Optionally, a unified carrier may include an anchor carrier (CC) and a capacity carrier (CC). The anchor carrier may include at least one of the following functions: camping, receiving paging, or transmitting a low-power wake-up signal (LP-WUS) (e.g., transmitting UL WUS). The anchor carrier can also be called the coverage CC, which guarantees basic coverage performance for the UE. Anchor frequency domain resources can also be called coverage frequency domain resources, i.e., frequency domain resources that guarantee basic coverage performance for the terminal.

[0124] Specifically, stationary operation refers to a terminal selecting a cell to remain in idle or inactive mode. In this state, the terminal monitors system information and paging messages from the anchor carrier to maintain basic communication with the base station and prepare for incoming calls or data. Paging is a method used by the network to initiate service requests to a terminal. When a communication service needs to be delivered to the terminal, the network sends a paging message on the anchor carrier. LP-WUS is a low-power mechanism that allows terminals in energy-saving mode to be woken up and prepared to receive or send data. By sending WUS on the anchor carrier, the base station can notify the terminal when to start monitoring the PDCCH so that the terminal can receive instructions for upcoming data transmission. Capacity carriers can include, but are not limited to, communication functions such as sending and receiving service data.

[0125] The anchor carrier and capacity carrier for a terminal mentioned above can come from one base station or from multiple base stations.

[0126] Optionally, multiple component carriers within a unified carrier can be co-located or non-co-located. That is, these multiple component carriers can be located at the same base station location or very close to it. Of course, these multiple component carriers can also be distributed in different geographical locations, and may even belong to different base stations.

[0127] Optionally, a unified carrier can be a downlink unified carrier or an uplink unified carrier, or a unified carrier can include both downlink and uplink resources.

[0128] Optionally, a unified carrier can be a transmitting unified carrier or a receiving unified carrier, or a unified carrier can both transmit and receive resources.

[0129] Furthermore, the following section introduces the unified carrier-related capability information of the terminal device (or simply the terminal).

[0130] The unified carrier-related capability mentioned in this application refers to the ability to support communication in at least two frequency domain resources on a unified carrier at the same time.

[0131] In this application, the capabilities related to the unified carrier can also be described as: the capabilities corresponding to the unified carrier.

[0132] In some embodiments, capability information can indicate the frequency domain resources that a unified carrier can include. The terminal reports the frequency domain resources that the unified carrier can include, enabling the base station to configure information for the terminal on these frequency domain resources. The terminal's reporting of the frequency domain resources that the unified carrier can include, based on user needs, terminal capabilities, or usage scenarios, can lead to higher communication efficiency.

[0133] In one possible implementation, the frequency domain resources that a unified carrier can include may also be pre-configured to facilitate implementation.

[0134] Optionally, the capability information includes at least one of the following: the frequency domain resource pool included in the unified carrier, the number of frequency domain resources that the unified carrier can include, the frequency domain resource bandwidth level of the unified carrier, or the type of the unified carrier, which may include a unified carrier within a frequency band, a unified carrier between frequency bands, or a unified carrier within a specific frequency domain range.

[0135] Of course, the frequency domain resource-related capability information that the unified carrier can include may also include other relevant information. This application embodiment does not specifically limit this, and the type of unified carrier may also include other types. The above exemplary description does not constitute a specific limitation on the type of unified carrier.

[0136] It should be understood that the frequency domain resource pool is used to indicate the range of frequency domain resources to which the unified carrier can be supported by the terminal device. For example, the frequency domain resource pool is 700MHz-4900MHz. The number of frequency domain resources is used to indicate the number of frequency domain resources included in the unified carrier that the terminal device can support. For example, if the number of frequency domain resources is 5, it means that the terminal device can support 5 component carriers within the unified carrier. The frequency domain resource bandwidth level is used to indicate the range of frequency domain resource bandwidth that the terminal device can support. For example, if the frequency domain resource bandwidth level is 200MHz, it means that the total frequency domain resource bandwidth of the unified carrier supported by the terminal device is 200MHz.

[0137] Optionally, the frequency domain resource bandwidth level corresponds to the number of supported frequency domain resources and the supported frequency domain resource bandwidth range, as shown in Table 1 below:

[0138] Table 1. Correspondence between frequency domain resource bandwidth levels and the number and range of supported frequency domain resources.

[0139] Frequency domain resource bandwidth level Frequency domain resource bandwidth range Number of frequency domain resources A <![CDATA[BW Channel ≤BW Channel,max ]]> 1 B <![CDATA[20MHz≤BW Channel ≤100MHz]]> 2 C <![CDATA[100MHz≤BW Channel ≤2×BW Channel,max ]]> 2 D <![CDATA[200MHz≤BW Channel ≤3×BW Channel,max ]]> 3 E <![CDATA[300MHz≤BW Channel ≤4×BW Channel,max ]]> 4 G <![CDATA[100MHz≤BW Channel ≤150MHz]]> 3 H <![CDATA[150MHz≤BW Channel ≤200MHz]]> 4 I <![CDATA[200MHz≤BW Channel ≤250MHz]]> 5 J <![CDATA[250MHz≤BW Channel ≤300MHz]]> 6 K <![CDATA[300MHz≤BW Channel ≤350MHz]]> 7 L <![CDATA[350MHz≤BW Channel ≤400MHz]]> 8 M <![CDATA[50MHz≤BW Channel ≤200MHz]]> 3 N <![CDATA[80MHz≤BW Channel ≤300MHz]]> 4 O <![CDATA[100MHz≤BW Channel ≤400MHz]]> 5

[0140] As shown in Table 1, BW Channel For frequency domain resource bandwidth, BW Channel,max This refers to the maximum channel bandwidth corresponding to a frequency band. For example, the maximum channel bandwidth for frequency bands below 6 GHz is 100 MHz, and the maximum channel bandwidth for frequency bands above 24 GHz is 400 MHz.

[0141] In one possible implementation, the type of unified carrier may include at least one of the following: a unified carrier within a frequency band, a unified carrier between frequency bands, or a unified carrier within a specific frequency domain. Specifically, a unified carrier within a frequency band indicates that the terminal device can support frequency domain resources within a single frequency band, for example, frequency band n41; a unified carrier between frequency bands indicates that the terminal device can support frequency domain resources across multiple frequency bands, for example, the multiple frequency bands may be n1, n2, and n3; a unified carrier within a specific frequency domain indicates that the terminal device can support frequency domain resources within a frequency range, for example, frequency range (FR)1 or frequency range FR2.

[0142] Optionally, different types of unified carriers can correspond to different frequency domain resource bandwidth levels. For example, unified carrier type 1 corresponds to the first frequency domain resource bandwidth level, unified carrier type 2 corresponds to the second frequency domain resource bandwidth level, and unified carrier type 3 corresponds to the third frequency domain resource bandwidth level. Terminal devices can report the frequency domain resource bandwidth levels corresponding to different unified carrier types respectively.

[0143] For example, Figure 5 This application provides an example of a unified carrier type schematic diagram, as illustrated in the embodiments thereof. Figure 5 As shown in Figure (a), the type of the unified carrier can be a unified carrier within a frequency band, that is, the frequency band of the unified carrier includes Band 0.

[0144] In one possible implementation, the terminal instructs the base station that the unified carrier supported by the terminal is a unified carrier within a frequency band, and the terminal may also instruct the base station that frequency band, for example, as shown in Table 2 below, which is a unified carrier within a frequency band supported by the terminal.

[0145] Table 2. Uniform carriers within the frequency bands supported by the terminal

[0146]

[0147] As shown in Table 2, Uni-carrier_n41 supports the frequency band n41, Uni-carrier_n46 supports the frequency band n46, and Uni-carrier_n78 supports the frequency band n78.

[0148] Optionally, the frequency band can also be indicated by the base station. This application embodiment does not specifically limit the confirmation method of the unified carrier within the frequency band.

[0149] like Figure 5As shown in Figure (b), the type of unified carrier can also be an inter-band unified carrier, that is, the unified carrier includes Band1, Band2 and Band3. Among them, Band1 and Band3 each correspond to one component carrier, and Band2 includes two component carriers.

[0150] In one possible implementation, the terminal instructs the base station that the unified carrier supported by the terminal is a unified carrier between frequency bands, and the terminal may also instruct the base station to multiple frequency bands, for example, as shown in Table 3 below, which are unified carriers between frequency bands supported by the terminal.

[0151] Table 3. Unified carriers across frequency bands supported by the terminal

[0152]

[0153] As shown in Table 3, Uni-carrier_n1-n2-n3 supports frequency bands n1, n2, and n3; Uni-carrier_n5-n8-n18 supports frequency bands n5, n8, and n18; Uni-carrier_n26-n28 supports frequency bands n26 and n28; and Uni-carrier_n34-n40 supports frequency bands n34 and n40.

[0154] Optionally, the multiple frequency bands may be indicated by the base station. This application embodiment does not specifically limit the confirmation method of the unified carrier between frequency bands.

[0155] like Figure 5 As shown in Figure (c), the type of the uniform carrier can also be a uniform carrier within a specific frequency domain range. For example, the specific frequency domain range is FR1, which includes multiple bands. Of course, the specific frequency domain range can also be FR2 or FR3, etc., and the embodiments of this application do not specifically limit the specific frequency domain range.

[0156] It should be understood that the terminal can report a specific frequency range to the base station, and the frequency range can also be indicated by the base station. The embodiments of this application do not specifically limit the confirmation method of the unified carrier within a specific frequency range.

[0157] In some embodiments, capability information may indicate the maximum number of antenna ports. It should be understood that the maximum number of antenna ports may include the maximum number of transmit antenna ports and / or the maximum number of receive antenna ports.

[0158] The terminal reports the maximum number of antenna ports corresponding to the unified carrier to the base station, so that the terminal and the base station can communicate on each frequency domain resource within the unified carrier based on the maximum number of antenna ports, thereby improving the communication capability on each frequency domain resource.

[0159] In one possible implementation, the maximum number of antenna ports corresponding to a uniform carrier may also be pre-configured for ease of implementation.

[0160] In this embodiment of the application, the antenna port can also be referred to as the number of transmission streams, that is, the number of transmission streams is less than or equal to the maximum number of antenna ports.

[0161] For example, Figure 6 This application provides an example of a maximum antenna port diagram corresponding to a unified carrier, as shown in the embodiment of the present application. Figure 6 As shown, the terminal reports the maximum number of antenna ports corresponding to the unified carrier to the base station as N, where N is a positive integer (e.g., N is 4 or 8). Assuming that the unified carrier includes the first frequency domain resource, the second frequency domain resource, the third frequency domain resource, and the fourth frequency domain resource, the terminal and the base station can communicate based on N antenna ports on the first frequency domain resource, the second frequency domain resource, the third frequency domain resource, and the fourth frequency domain resource, respectively, thereby improving the communication capability on each frequency domain resource.

[0162] In some embodiments, this capability information may also indicate the maximum channel bandwidth N for the terminal to communicate on a uniform carrier. BW Among them, N BW The value can be a positive integer. For example, 50MHz, 100MHz, 200MHz, or 400MHz.

[0163] For example, Figure 7 This illustration shows a schematic diagram of the maximum channel bandwidth corresponding to an example of a unified carrier provided in an embodiment of this application, as follows: Figure 7 As shown, the terminal reports the maximum channel bandwidth N corresponding to the unified carrier to the base station. BW Assuming the unified carrier is 200MHz, and includes first, second, third, and fourth frequency domain resources, with a maximum channel bandwidth of 100MHz for each of these four resources, then the terminal and base station can access any two of these four frequency domain resources (e.g., ...). Figure 7 Communication in the first and third frequency domain resources.

[0164] In some embodiments, the capability information may also indicate the maximum number of blind checks in the PDCCH and / or the maximum number of non-overlapping control channel elements (CCEs).

[0165] It should be understood that, in this application, the terminal's maximum PDCCH blind detection capability can be represented by the maximum number of PDCCH blind detections and / or the maximum number of non-overlapping CCEs.

[0166] The terminal reports the maximum number of blind detections of the PDCCH and / or the maximum number of non-overlapping CCEs corresponding to the unified carrier to the base station, so that blind detection can be performed on the first frequency domain resources within the unified carrier based on the maximum number of blind detections of the PDCCH and / or the maximum number of non-overlapping CCEs, thereby improving the communication capability of the first frequency domain resources and reducing the capability of the terminal equipment.

[0167] Alternatively, the terminal reports to the base station the maximum number of blind detections of PDCCH corresponding to the unified carrier and / or the maximum number of non-overlapping CCEs, so that the sum of the maximum number of blind detections of PDCCH on the first frequency domain resources and the number of blind detections of PDCCH on the second frequency domain resources within the unified carrier does not exceed the maximum number of blind detections of PDCCH, and / or the sum of the number of non-overlapping CCEs on the first frequency domain resources and the number of non-overlapping CCEs on the second frequency domain resources does not exceed the maximum number of non-overlapping CCEs.

[0168] In one possible implementation, the maximum number of blind detections of the PDCCH corresponding to the unified carrier and / or the maximum number of non-overlapping CCEs may also be pre-configured for ease of implementation.

[0169] For example, Figure 8 This illustration shows a schematic diagram of the maximum number of blind detections of the PDCCH and / or the maximum number of non-overlapping CCEs corresponding to a unified carrier, as provided in an embodiment of this application. Figure 8 As shown, assuming the terminal reports a maximum of 44 blind detections of the PDCCH corresponding to the unified carrier to the base station and / or a maximum of 16 non-overlapping CCEs, then the maximum number of blind detections of the PDCCH on the unified carrier is 44 and / or the maximum number of non-overlapping CCEs is 16.

[0170] It should be noted that this single PDCCH blind detection can be performed on one frequency domain resource or on multiple frequency domain resources. For example, ... Figure 8 As shown, the PDCCH blind detection is performed on a frequency domain resource (i.e., the first frequency domain resource).

[0171] In some embodiments, the capability information may also indicate the capability of CSI measurement feedback, wherein the capability of CSI measurement feedback indicates that the antenna port corresponding to the CSI measurement feedback is the sum of the number of antenna ports of CSI-RS resources on multiple frequency domain resources, and the antenna port numbers of CSI-RS resources on different frequency domain resources are different.

[0172] It should be understood that the CSI measurement feedback capability in this embodiment can be interpreted as the ability to perform joint CSI measurement feedback within the unified carrier. That is, the terminal can jointly measure and feedback CSI from multiple ports of multiple CSI-RS resources within the unified carrier.

[0173] In this embodiment, the terminal has the ability to report CSI measurement feedback corresponding to the unified carrier, so that the base station can allocate antenna ports of CSI resources for at least two frequency domain resources included in the unified carrier, thereby using the sum of the number of antenna ports of CSI-RS on the at least two frequency domain resources to feed back the CSI measurement feedback result.

[0174] For example, Figure 9 This illustration shows a schematic diagram of the CSI measurement feedback capability corresponding to a unified carrier provided in an embodiment of this application, as shown below. Figure 9 As shown, the terminal reports to the base station that it supports joint CSI measurement feedback within the unified carrier, and the number of CSI-RS ports supported by the terminal for CSI measurement feedback is N1+N2+N3+N4. Among them, the first frequency domain resource supports CSI measurement of CSI-RS port N1, the second frequency domain resource supports CSI measurement of CSI-RS port N2, the third frequency domain resource supports CSI measurement of CSI-RS port N3, and the fourth frequency domain resource supports CSI measurement of CSI-RS port N4. N1, N2, N3, and N4 are positive integers.

[0175] In some embodiments, the capability information may also indicate HARQ process capabilities, which include support for initial transmission and retransmission on different frequency domain resources within a unified carrier, i.e., initial transmission of first data can be sent or received on a first frequency domain resource, and retransmission of first data can be sent or received on a second frequency domain resource, wherein the unified carrier includes a first frequency domain resource and a second frequency domain resource.

[0176] In this embodiment of the application, the terminal reports the HARQ process capability so that the base station can schedule the initial transmission of the first data on the first frequency domain resource and the retransmission of the first data on the second frequency domain resource in a certain process of the HARQ process. This avoids problems such as insufficient resources, transmission failure, or poor transmission efficiency caused by simultaneous initial transmission and retransmission on the first frequency domain resource.

[0177] For example, Figure 10 This illustration shows a schematic diagram of HARQ capability corresponding to a unified carrier, as provided in an embodiment of this application. Figure 10 As shown, the terminal reports to the base station that it supports initial transmission and retransmission on different frequency domain resources within the same carrier. For example, the initial transmission is performed on the first frequency domain resource, and the retransmission is performed on any frequency domain resource among the first, second, third, or fourth frequency domain resources.

[0178] In some embodiments, the capability information may also indicate signal processing capabilities, including a first signal processing capability and a second signal processing capability, wherein the first signal processing capability is used to determine the signal processing time for communication on a frequency domain resource, and the second signal processing capability is used to determine the signal processing time for simultaneous communication on multiple frequency domain resources.

[0179] For example, the signal processing capability includes at least one of the following: PDSCH processing capability, PUSCH processing capability, and CSI calculation capability. Wherein, PDSCH processing capability can be replaced by PDSCH preparation time, PDSCH decoding time, or receive preparation time. PUSCH processing capability can be replaced by PUSCH processing time, PUSCH decoding time, or transmit preparation time.

[0180] For example, PUSCH processing capacity can refer to the time from when the terminal receives the PDCCH to when the terminal sends the PUSCH, where the PDCCH carries a DCI used for scheduling the PUSCH. For instance, the time when the base station schedules the PUSCH will not be earlier than the symbol corresponding to the PUSCH processing capacity after the last symbol of the PDCCH. PDSCH processing capacity can refer to the time from when the terminal receives the PDCCH to when the terminal receives the PDSCH, where the PDCCH carries a DCI used for scheduling the PDSCH. PDSCH processing capacity can also refer to the time from when the terminal receives the PDSCH to when the terminal sends feedback information. For instance, the time when the base station schedules the HARQ feedback will not be earlier than the symbol corresponding to the PDSCH processing capacity after the last symbol of the PDSCH. CSI processing capacity can refer to the time from when the terminal receives the CSI reporting indication to when the terminal feeds back the CSI, or the CSI calculation time. The CSI reporting indication is used to instruct the terminal to report the CSI, and can be triggered by a DCI. For instance, the time when the base station schedules the CSI feedback will not be earlier than the symbol corresponding to the CSI processing capacity after the last symbol of the measured CSI-RS.

[0181] For example, Figure 11 This illustration shows a schematic diagram of an example of PDSCH processing capability provided in an embodiment of this application, as follows: Figure 11 As shown, black represents PDCCH, gray represents PDSCH, and the line fill represents HARQ feedback, as... Figure 11 As shown in Figure (a), processing capability 1 represents the time from when the terminal receives the PDSCH to when the terminal sends the HARQ feedback on the first frequency domain resource. That is, processing capability 1 is used to determine the signal processing time for communication on a frequency domain resource (the first frequency domain resource), such as... Figure 11As shown in Figure (b), processing capability 2 represents the time from when the terminal receives the PDSCH simultaneously to when the terminal sends the HARQ feedback on the first and second frequency domain resources. In other words, processing capability 2 is used to determine the signal processing time for simultaneous communication on multiple frequency domain resources (the first and second frequency domain resources).

[0182] In this embodiment, the terminal reports its signal processing capabilities (e.g., PDSCH processing capabilities) so that the base station can allocate HARQ feedback positions appropriately for the terminal based on the identified scenario. It should be understood that the HARQ feedback time refers to the time interval between receiving data and sending feedback. For example, the terminal needs to complete data decoding and send the corresponding acknowledgment (ACK) / negative acknowledgment (NACK) to the base station within one subframe. The signal processing time for communication on a single carrier is different from that for communication on multiple carriers. The base station can reasonably set the HARQ feedback time according to the terminal's capabilities (e.g., a shorter HARQ feedback time when the terminal has strong capabilities, and a longer HARQ feedback time when the terminal has weak capabilities), thereby improving communication efficiency and avoiding waste of communication resources.

[0183] S320, the base station determines the configuration information based on the capability information.

[0184] In some embodiments, when the capability information indicates the frequency domain resources that a unified carrier can include, the base station allocates frequency domain resources to the terminal based on the frequency domain resources that the unified carrier can include.

[0185] For example, a base station can determine the frequency domain resources of a unified carrier for a terminal within the frequency domain resource pool reported by the terminal. For instance, if the frequency domain resource pool reported by the terminal is 100MHz-4900MHz, the configuration information determined by the base station will include the frequency domain resources of 200MHz-700MHz that the unified carrier can encompass. As another example, a base station can determine the number of component carriers included within a unified carrier based on the number of frequency domain resources reported by the terminal. For instance, if the unified carrier includes 5 frequency domain resources, the configuration information determined by the base station for the terminal will include 5 component carriers within the unified carrier. Furthermore, a base station can determine the total bandwidth of a unified carrier based on the frequency domain resource level reported by the terminal. For instance, if the frequency domain resource level of a unified carrier is 100MHz, the total bandwidth within the unified carrier determined by the base station for the terminal will be 100MHz.

[0186] For example, the base station can determine whether a unified carrier includes one frequency band, multiple frequency bands, or a specific frequency domain range based on the type of unified carrier reported by the terminal. For instance, two frequency domain resources within a unified resource may not be adjacent; or, the two frequency domain resources may be adjacent. When the two frequency domain resources belong to FR1, the total bandwidth of the two frequency domain resources in the configuration information is greater than 100MHz, and when the two frequency domain resources belong to FR2, the total bandwidth of the two frequency domain resources in the configuration information is greater than 400MHz.

[0187] Of course, when the terminal reports any combination of the above capability information to the base station, the base station determines the configuration information based on the capabilities reported by the terminal. For example, the base station can jointly determine the configuration information based on the frequency domain resource pool included in the unified carrier reported by the terminal and the number of frequency domain resources included in the unified carrier reported by the terminal; or the base station can jointly determine the configuration information based on the number of frequency domain resources included in the unified carrier reported by the terminal and the frequency domain resource level included in the unified carrier reported by the terminal; or the base station can jointly determine the configuration information based on the frequency domain resource pool included in the unified carrier reported by the base station, the number of frequency domain resources that the unified carrier reported by the base station can include, the frequency domain resource bandwidth level of the unified carrier reported by the base station, or the type of the unified carrier reported by the base station. Examples will not be given here.

[0188] In some embodiments, when the capability information indicates the maximum number of antenna ports, the base station determines configuration information for communication based on the maximum number of antenna ports. This configuration information is used to indicate that the number of antenna ports used for communication on a uniform carrier does not exceed the maximum number of antenna ports.

[0189] In one possible implementation, the maximum number of antenna ports is the maximum number of receive antenna ports. When receiving data on a single frequency domain resource on a unified carrier, the configuration information can be the number of codewords that can be received on a single frequency domain resource, or the number of information units that can be received on a single frequency domain resource. When receiving data on multiple frequency domain resources on a unified carrier, the configuration information can also be the number of codewords that can be received on each of the multiple frequency domain resources, or the number of information units that can be received on a single frequency domain resource.

[0190] In another possible implementation, the maximum number of antenna ports is the maximum number of transmit antenna ports. When transmitting data using one frequency domain resource on a unified carrier, the configuration information can be the number of codewords that can be transmitted on one frequency domain resource, or the number of information units that can be transmitted on one frequency domain resource, or the number of data transmission streams on one frequency domain resource. When transmitting data using multiple frequency domain resources on a unified carrier, the configuration information can also be the number of codewords that can be transmitted on each of the multiple frequency domain resources, or the number of information units that can be transmitted on each of the multiple frequency domain resources, or the number of data transmission streams on each of the multiple frequency domain resources.

[0191] It should be understood that when a unified carrier includes multiple bands, the terminal can simultaneously receive and transmit at maximum antenna capacity in two bands, or receive and transmit at maximum antenna capacity in each band under TDM, with each band including at least one frequency domain resource.

[0192] For example, Figure 12 This is a schematic diagram illustrating an example of receiving and transmitting using maximum antenna capability across two frequency domain resources (such as a band), provided by an embodiment of this application. Figure 12 As shown in Figure (a), in related technologies, under TDM, signaling is received or transmitted using the maximum antenna capacity on the first frequency domain resource (e.g., Band 1). After uplink antenna switching, signaling can be transmitted or received using the maximum antenna capacity on the second frequency domain resource (e.g., Band 2). This method requires antenna switching, which leads to a certain time delay. Figure 12 As shown in Figure (b) of this application, the first frequency domain resources and the second frequency domain resources can simultaneously utilize the maximum antenna capacity to receive or transmit signaling, thereby improving communication efficiency.

[0193] It should also be understood that when a unified carrier includes at least two frequency domain resources, each of the at least two frequency domain resources within the unified carrier can share the terminal's capabilities. For example, when one frequency domain resource in a unified carrier is used for data transmission, the number of antenna ports used for data transmission using that frequency domain resource is the maximum number of antenna ports supported by the terminal device. As another example, when two frequency domain resources in a unified carrier are used for data transmission, the number of antenna ports used for data transmission using these two frequency domain resources are respectively the maximum number of antenna ports supported by the terminal device.

[0194] For example, Figure 13 This is a schematic diagram illustrating an example of capability sharing within a unified carrier, provided by an embodiment of this application. Figure 13As shown in Figure (a), a unified carrier includes four frequency domain resources (e.g., three bands). The first frequency domain resource is one component carrier included in Band 1, the second and third frequency domain resources are two component carriers included in Band 2, and the fourth frequency domain resource is one component carrier included in Band 3. Each circle represents a transmission channel, meaning the terminal supports a maximum of four transmission channels, or four transmission ports. Each of the four frequency domain resources on this unified carrier can support transmission from four antenna ports simultaneously. Figure 13 As shown in Figure (b), if only two of the four frequency domain resources are active (gray-filled areas), or if two frequency domain resources (gray-filled areas) have data transmission, then data can be transmitted simultaneously using four antenna ports on each of the two frequency domain resources. This method improves communication efficiency.

[0195] In one possible implementation, there can be multiple unified carriers, and capability switching can be performed between multiple unified carriers. Compared with capability switching between each component carrier in related technologies, this method can reduce latency and improve communication performance.

[0196] For example, Figure 14 This is a schematic diagram illustrating an example of capability switching between multiple uniform carriers provided in an embodiment of this application, such as... Figure 14 As shown in Figure (a), assuming the terminal supports data transmission through a maximum of 4 antenna ports, data transmission through these 4 antenna ports is performed on unified carrier 0 and unified carrier 1 based on TDM. For example, the first time unit performs data transmission through the 4 antenna ports on unified carrier 0, and the second time unit performs data transmission through the 4 antenna ports on unified carrier 1. Uplink antenna switching can be performed between the two time units. Compared to related technologies that switch capabilities between each carrier, this application switches capabilities between unified carriers, thereby reducing latency.

[0197] like Figure 14 As shown in Figure (b), assuming the terminal supports data transmission on a maximum of 4 antenna ports, and data transmission occurs simultaneously on both unified carrier 0 and unified carrier 1, the terminal's capabilities are shared between the unified carriers. For example, unified carrier 0 supports data transmission on 2 antenna ports, and unified carrier 1 also supports data transmission on 2 antenna ports. Compared to related technologies that share the terminal's maximum capability between each carrier, this application shares the terminal's maximum capability between unified carriers, thereby improving communication performance.

[0198] In some embodiments, when the capability information indicates the maximum number of blind PDCCH detections and / or the maximum number of non-overlapping CCEs, the base station determines the configuration information for the frequency domain resources included on the unified carrier supported by the terminal based on the maximum number of blind PDCCH detections and / or the maximum number of non-overlapping CCEs.

[0199] In one possible implementation, the configuration information is used to indicate that a PDCCH blind detection is performed on the first frequency domain resource, wherein the number of PDCCH blind detections performed on the first frequency domain resource is less than or equal to the maximum number of PDCCH blind detections, and / or the number of non-overlapping CCEs that are blindly detected on the first frequency domain resource is less than or equal to the maximum number of non-overlapping CCEs.

[0200] For example, the first frequency domain resource in a unified carrier is defined as the frequency domain resource with basic capabilities. PDCCH blind detection can be performed on this first frequency domain resource, while PDCCH blind detection is not required on other frequency domain resources. For example, configuration information is used to indicate the frequency domain resource where the PDCCH is located, on which PDCCH blind detection can be performed, and the number of PDCCH blind detections performed on this frequency domain resource is equal to the maximum number of PDCCH blind detections, and / or the number of non-overlapping CCEs performing PDCCH blind detections on this frequency domain resource is equal to the maximum number of non-overlapping CCEs.

[0201] Optionally, the configuration information can be carried by RRC signaling to semi-statically notify the terminal which frequency domain resources are used for PDCCH transmission, and / or the configuration information can also be carried by DCI signaling to dynamically notify the terminal which frequency domain resources are used for PDCCH transmission.

[0202] For example, Figure 15 This is a schematic diagram illustrating an example of blind PDCCH detection on a frequency domain resource provided in an embodiment of this application, as shown below. Figure 15 As shown in Figure (a), a unified carrier includes four frequency domain resources (e.g., three bands). For example, PDCCH blind detection is performed on the fourth frequency domain resource (e.g., Band 3). No PDCCH blind detection is performed on the second and third frequency domain resources (Band 2) and on the first frequency domain resource (Band 1). The number of PDCCH blind detections performed on the fourth frequency domain resource (Band 3) can be equal to the maximum number of PDCCH blind detections, and / or the number of non-overlapping CCEs performed on the fourth frequency domain resource (Band 3) can be equal to the maximum number of non-overlapping CCEs. Figure 15As shown in Figure (b), the unified carrier includes 4 frequency domain resources (e.g., 3 bands). PDCCH blind detection is performed on the second frequency domain resource (e.g., Band 2). PDCCH blind detection is not performed on the fourth frequency domain resource (Band 3), the third frequency domain resource (Band 2), and the first frequency domain resource (Band 1). The number of PDCCH blind detections performed on the second frequency domain resource (Band 2) can be equal to the maximum number of PDCCH blind detections, and / or the number of non-overlapping CCEs that are PDCCH blindly detected on the second frequency domain resource (Band 2) can be equal to the maximum number of non-overlapping CCEs.

[0203] like Figure 15 As shown in Figure (c), a unified carrier includes four frequency domain resources (e.g., three bands). PDCCH blind detection is performed on the first frequency domain resource (e.g., Band 1). No PDCCH blind detection is performed on the fourth frequency domain resource (Band 3) and on the second and fourth frequency domain resources (Band 2). The number of PDCCH blind detections performed on the first frequency domain resource (Band 1) can be equal to the maximum number of PDCCH blind detections. And / or the number of non-overlapping CCEs that are PDCCH blindly detected on the first frequency domain resource (Band 1) can be equal to the maximum number of non-overlapping CCEs.

[0204] It should be understood that, in this example, when performing PDCCH blind detection in the fourth frequency domain resource as Band3, the second and third frequency domain resources as Band2, or the first frequency domain resource as Band1, the number of PDCCH blind detections can be equal to the maximum number of PDCCH blind detections, and / or the number of non-overlapping CCEs in PDCCH blind detection in Band3, Band2, or Band1 can be equal to the maximum number of non-overlapping CCEs, thereby improving communication performance and reducing the requirements for the terminal by not requiring PDCCH blind detection to be supported on every frequency domain resource.

[0205] In another possible implementation, the configuration information is used to indicate that PDCCH blind detection is performed on the first frequency domain resource and the second frequency domain resource, the sum of the number of PDCCH blind detections performed on the first frequency domain resource and the number of PDCCH blind detections performed on the second frequency domain resource is less than or equal to the maximum number of PDCCH blind detections, and / or, the sum of the number of non-overlapping CCEs in PDCCH blind detections performed on the first frequency domain resource and the number of non-overlapping CCEs in PDCCH blind detections performed on the second frequency domain resource is less than or equal to the maximum number of non-overlapping CCEs.

[0206] For example, at least two frequency domain resources in a unified carrier are defined as frequency domain resources with basic capabilities. PDCCH blind detection can be performed on these frequency domain resources, but not on other frequency domain resources.

[0207] Furthermore, the unified carrier includes multiple frequency domain resources, including frequency domain resources with basic capabilities and those with weak capabilities. PDCCHs can be transmitted on frequency domain resources with basic capabilities. The PDCCH can schedule data transmission on the frequency domain resource where it resides, and it can also schedule data transmission on other frequency domain resources (e.g., cross-frequency domain resource scheduling), such as scheduling data transmission on frequency domain resources with weak capabilities. Optionally, only data transmission can be performed on frequency domain resources with weak capabilities.

[0208] In one possible implementation, the configuration information can be carried by RRC signaling to semi-statically notify the terminal of multiple frequency domain resources used for PDCCH transmission, and / or the configuration information can also be carried by DCI signaling to dynamically notify the terminal of multiple frequency domain resources used for PDCCH transmission.

[0209] In the embodiments of this application, the multiple frequency domain resources used for PDCCH transmission can also be referred to as candidate carriers where PDCCH is located. The terminal's ability to perform blind detection of PDCCH in the candidate carriers where PDCCH is located can be shared or dynamically switched.

[0210] For example, the number of times PDCCH blind detection is performed on the first frequency domain resource and the number of times PDCCH blind detection is performed on the second frequency domain resource can be half of the maximum number of PDCCH blind detections, and / or the number of non-overlapping CCEs in PDCCH blind detection on the first frequency domain resource and the number of non-overlapping CCEs in PDCCH blind detection on the second frequency domain resource can be half of the maximum number of non-overlapping CCEs in PDCCH blind detection.

[0211] For example, the number of times PDCCH blind detection is performed on the first frequency domain resource and the number of times PDCCH blind detection is performed on the second frequency domain resource can be determined according to the priority of the first frequency domain resource and the second frequency domain resource, and / or the number of non-overlapping CCEs for PDCCH blind detection on the first frequency domain resource and the number of non-overlapping CCEs for PDCCH blind detection on the second frequency domain resource can be determined according to the priority of the first frequency domain resource and the second frequency domain resource.

[0212] Furthermore, the number of times PDCCH blind detection is performed on the first frequency domain resource and the number of times PDCCH blind detection is performed on the second frequency domain resource, and / or the number of non-overlapping CCEs in PDCCH blind detection on the first frequency domain resource and the number of non-overlapping CCEs in PDCCH blind detection on the second frequency domain resource can be predefined rules or can be indicated by the base station. This application embodiment does not specifically limit this.

[0213] Optionally, the predefined rule may refer to the number of PDCCH blind detections performed on the first frequency domain resource and the number of PDCCH blind detections performed on the second frequency domain resource being evenly distributed based on the maximum number of PDCCH blind detections, and / or the number of non-overlapping CCEs in the PDCCH blind detections performed on the first frequency domain resource and the number of non-overlapping CCEs in the PDCCH blind detections performed on the second frequency domain resource being evenly distributed based on the maximum number of non-overlapping CCEs in the PDCCH blind detections.

[0214] Optionally, the predefined rules may also refer to the allocation of the number of PDCCH blind detections on the first frequency domain resource and the number of PDCCH blind detections on the second frequency domain resource according to the priority of the first frequency domain resource and the second frequency domain resource, and / or, and / or the allocation of the number of non-overlapping CCEs in the PDCCH blind detection on the first frequency domain resource and the number of non-overlapping CCEs in the PDCCH blind detection on the second frequency domain resource according to the priority of the first frequency domain resource and the second frequency domain resource.

[0215] For example, Figure 16 This is a schematic diagram illustrating an example of blind PDCCH detection across multiple frequency domain resources provided in an embodiment of this application, as shown below. Figure 16 As shown in Figure (a), PDCCH blind detection is performed on Band 3 (fourth frequency domain resource) and Band 2 (third frequency domain resource), respectively. No PDCCH blind detection is performed on Band 2 (second frequency domain resource) and Band 1 (first frequency domain resource). The number of PDCCH blind detections performed on Band 3 (fourth frequency domain resource) and Band 2 (third frequency domain resource) can be half of the maximum number of PDCCH blind detections, and / or the number of non-overlapping CCEs in PDCCH blind detections performed on Band 3 (fourth frequency domain resource) and Band 2 (third frequency domain resource) can be half of the maximum number of non-overlapping CCEs in PDCCH blind detections, respectively.

[0216] like Figure 16As shown in Figure (b), PDCCH blind detection is performed on Band 1 in the first frequency domain and Band 2 in the second frequency domain, and no PDCCH blind detection is performed on Band 2 in the third frequency domain and Band 3 in the fourth frequency domain. The number of PDCCH blind detections performed on Band 1 in the first frequency domain can be 2 / 3 of the maximum number of PDCCH blind detections, the number of PDCCH blind detections performed on Band 2 in the second frequency domain can be 1 / 3 of the maximum number of PDCCH blind detections, and / or the number of non-overlapping CCEs in PDCCH blind detections performed on Band 3 in the fourth frequency domain is 2 / 3 of the maximum number of non-overlapping CCEs in PDCCH blind detections, and the number of non-overlapping CCEs in PDCCH blind detections performed on Band 2 in the second frequency domain is 1 / 3 of the maximum number of non-overlapping CCEs in PDCCH blind detections.

[0217] In some embodiments, the capability information indicates the capability of Channel State Information (CSI) measurement feedback. The capability of CSI measurement feedback indicates that the antenna port corresponding to the CSI measurement feedback is the sum of the number of antenna ports of Channel State Information Reference Signal (CSI-RS) resources on multiple frequency domain resources. The base station determines the configuration information for the terminal to perform CSI measurement feedback on multiple frequency domain resources based on the capability of CSI measurement feedback.

[0218] In one possible implementation, the terminal reports the number of supported CSI-RS ports to the base station. The base station configures CSI-RS resources for the terminal based on the number of CSI-RS ports. The CSI-RS resources include time-frequency resources on multiple frequency domain resources. The time-frequency resources on different frequency domain resources correspond to different CSI-RS ports, so that the terminal can jointly measure and feed back CSI based on multiple ports of multiple CSI-RS resources in a unified carrier.

[0219] Optionally, the antenna port for CSI measurement feedback corresponds to a CSI-RS resource identifier. The CSI-RS resource corresponding to a CSI-RS resource identifier includes CSI-RS resources on multiple frequency domain resources. The CSI-RS ports on different frequency domain resources may be different or the same.

[0220] For example, Figure 17 This is a schematic diagram illustrating an example of a base station configuring an antenna port for CSI measurement feedback for a terminal, provided in an embodiment of this application. Figure 17As shown, assuming the terminal reports 16 supported CSI-RS ports to the base station, the base station configures multiple frequency domain resources in CSI-RS. Each frequency domain resource corresponds to a resource and port number in a component carrier. For example, a CSI-RS resource is identified as CSI-RS resource identifier 0. The CSI-RS resources corresponding to CSI-RS resource identifier 0 include the CSI-RS resources in Band 1 (first frequency domain resource), Band 2 (second frequency domain resource), Band 2 (third frequency domain resource), and Band 3 (fourth frequency domain resource). The port numbers corresponding to the CSI-RS resources in Band 1 are 0-3, those in Band 2 are 4-7, those in Band 2 are 8-11, and those in Band 3 are 12-15.

[0221] It should be noted that in the above example, the port numbers corresponding to the first frequency domain resource as Band1, the second frequency domain resource as Band2, and the third frequency domain resource as Band3 can be different, and the port numbers corresponding to the first frequency domain resource as Band1, the second frequency domain resource as Band2, and the third frequency domain resource as Band3 can also be the same. For example, the port numbers corresponding to the first frequency domain resource as Band1, the second frequency domain resource as Band2, and the fourth frequency domain resource as Band3 can all be 0-3. When the port numbers corresponding to the first frequency domain resource as Band1, the second frequency domain resource as Band2, and the third frequency domain resource as Band3 are the same, the base station can automatically identify and overlay the feedback results.

[0222] Optionally, the antenna port for CSI measurement feedback can also correspond to multiple CSI-RS resource identifiers. One of the multiple CSI-RS resource identifiers corresponds to a CSI-RS resource on a frequency domain resource. The CSI-RS ports on different frequency domain resources may be different or the same.

[0223] For example, if the same CSI-RS resource ID on multiple frequency domain resources corresponds to the same measurement feedback, such as the first frequency domain resource including CSI-RS resource ID 0 and CSI-RS resource ID 1, and the second frequency domain resource including CSI-RS resource ID 0 and CSI-RS resource ID 1, then CSI-RS resource ID 0 on the first frequency domain resource and CSI-RS resource ID 0 on the second frequency domain resource are used as joint CSI feedback, and CSI-RS resource ID 1 on the first frequency domain resource and CSI-RS resource ID 1 on the second frequency domain resource are used as joint CSI feedback.

[0224] For example, a base station can indicate CSI-RS resource identifiers on multiple frequency domain resources associated with a CSI measurement. For instance, CSI-RS resource identifier 0 on the first frequency domain resource and CSI-RS resource identifier 1 on the second frequency domain resource can be used as joint CSI feedback, and CSI-RS resource identifier 1 on the first frequency domain resource and CSI-RS resource identifier 0 on the second frequency domain resource can be used as joint CSI feedback.

[0225] In some embodiments, the capability information may also indicate the capability for joint path loss measurement. Based on this capability, the base station determines configuration information for the terminal, which indicates that path loss measurement is performed on at least one component carrier in the unified carrier, and the path loss measurement results are applicable to other component carriers in the unified carrier.

[0226] In some embodiments, the capability information may also indicate the capability of joint uplink (UL) power control, based on which the base station determines configuration information for the terminal, which is used to indicate UL power control on at least one component carrier in the unified carrier, the result of which is applicable to other component carriers in the unified carrier.

[0227] In some embodiments, the capability information may also indicate the capability of joint time-frequency synchronization. Based on this capability, the base station determines configuration information for the terminal, which is used to indicate time-frequency synchronization on at least one component carrier in the unified carrier. The time-frequency synchronization result is applicable to other component carriers in the unified carrier.

[0228] In some embodiments, the capability information may also indicate HARQ process capabilities, which include support for initial transmission and retransmission on different frequency domain resources within a unified carrier. The configuration information determined by the base station based on the HARQ process capabilities is used to indicate that the initial transmission of the first data can be sent or received on a first frequency domain resource, and the retransmission of the first data can be sent or received on a second frequency domain resource. The unified carrier includes both the first and second frequency domain resources.

[0229] In one possible implementation, the base station schedules the initial transmission on the first frequency domain resource using a first DCI. After receiving a NACK from the terminal, the base station schedules the retransmission on the second frequency domain resource using a second DCI. In this implementation, the base station can flexibly schedule the initial transmission and retransmission of data based on the two DCIs. For example, when the base station receives an ACK from the terminal, it does not need to send the second DCI to schedule the retransmission of data.

[0230] For example, Figure 18 This is a schematic diagram illustrating different DCI scheduling for the initial transmission and retransmission of first data, as provided in an embodiment of this application. Figure 18 As shown in Figure (a), the initial transmission occurs on Band1, the first frequency domain resource of the unified carrier, as follows: Figure 18 As shown in Figure (b), retransmission occurs on Band2 of the second and third frequency domain resources of the unified carrier. The base station schedules the initial transmission on Band1 of the first frequency domain resource of the unified carrier through the first DCI scheduling, and retransmits on Band2 of the second and third frequency domain resources of the unified carrier through the second DCI scheduling.

[0231] In another possible implementation, the base station schedules initial transmissions on first frequency domain resources and retransmissions on second frequency domain resources using a first DCI. In this implementation, the base station can reduce signaling overhead by scheduling initial transmissions and retransmissions based on a single DCI data.

[0232] For example, Figure 19 This is a schematic diagram illustrating an example of scheduling the initial transmission and retransmission of first data based on the same DCI, provided by an embodiment of this application. Figure 19 As shown, the initial transmission is performed on the first frequency domain resource of the unified carrier, which is Band1, and the retransmission is performed on the second and third frequency domain resources of the unified carrier, which are Band2. The base station uses the first DCI to schedule the initial transmission on the first frequency domain resource of the unified carrier, which is Band1, and the retransmission on the second and third frequency domain resources of the unified carrier, which are Band2. The terminal jointly decodes and feeds back an ACK / NACK.

[0233] In some embodiments, capability information indicates signal processing capabilities, including a first signal processing capability and a second signal processing capability. The first signal processing capability is used to determine the signal processing time for communication on one frequency domain resource, and the second signal processing capability is used to determine the signal processing time for simultaneous communication on multiple frequency domain resources. The base station determines configuration information for communication based on the terminal's signal processing capabilities.

[0234] For example, the base station determines configuration information based on its PDSCH signal processing capabilities. This configuration information is used to indicate the location where the terminal performs HARQ feedback, thereby improving communication performance and avoiding waste of communication resources. The base station determines configuration information based on its PUSCH signal processing capabilities. This configuration information is used to indicate the location where the terminal performs PUSCH transmission, thereby improving communication performance and avoiding waste of communication resources. The base station determines configuration information based on its CSI signal processing capabilities. This configuration information is used to indicate the location where the terminal performs CSI feedback, thereby improving communication performance and avoiding waste of communication resources.

[0235] For example, Figure 20 This is a schematic diagram illustrating different signal processing capabilities provided in an embodiment of this application. Taking PDSCH processing capability as an example, for instance... Figure 20 As shown in Figure (a), black represents PDCCH, gray represents PDSCH, and the filled line represents HARQ feedback on the first frequency domain resource of the unified carrier, Band 1. This signal processing capability indicates the time from when the terminal receives the PDSCH to when it sends the HARQ feedback; that is, this processing capability 1 is used to determine the processing time for communication on a frequency domain resource (the first frequency domain resource). Figure 20 As shown in Figure (b), when data is initially transmitted on the first frequency domain resource (Band 1) and simultaneously retransmitted on the second and third frequency domain resources (Band 2), the signal processing capability represents the time from when the terminal simultaneously receives the PDSCH on both frequency domain resources to when the terminal sends the HARQ feedback. That is, processing capability 2 is used to determine the signal processing time for simultaneous communication on both frequency domain resources (the first and second frequency domain resources). Figure 20 As shown in Figure (c), when data is initially transmitted on the first frequency domain resource (Band1) and simultaneously retransmitted on the second and third frequency domain resources (Band2), the signal processing capability represents the time from when the terminal receives the PDSCH on the three frequency domain resources to when the terminal sends the HARQ feedback. That is, the processing capability 3 is used to determine the signal processing time for simultaneous communication on the three frequency domain resources (the first frequency domain resource, the second frequency domain resource, and the third frequency domain resource).

[0236] It should be understood that step S320 is an optional step, meaning that the base station can communicate with the terminal based on the terminal's reported capabilities.

[0237] S330: The base station sends configuration information to the terminal.

[0238] Accordingly, the terminal receives the configuration information.

[0239] In some embodiments, the configuration information may be sent from the base station to the terminal via higher-layer signaling or physical-layer signaling. Higher-layer signaling may include, for example, radio resource control (RRC) signaling, medium access control (MAC-CE) signaling, etc. Physical-layer signaling may include, for example, downlink control information (DCI) signaling, etc.

[0240] It should be understood that step S330 is an optional step, meaning that the base station does not need to send configuration information to the terminal.

[0241] S340, terminals and base stations communicate based on capability information or configuration information.

[0242] The method provided in this application allows a terminal to report its unified carrier-related capability information, enabling a base station to communicate with the terminal based on this capability. This unified carrier-related capability refers to the ability to communicate in at least two frequency domain resources. For example, if the terminal reports the capability to support communication on only one frequency domain resource within the unified carrier at any given time, the base station can determine which frequency domain resource to use for communication among at least two resources within the unified carrier. The determined frequency domain resource can differ at different times, meaning the base station can flexibly select the communication frequency domain resource from at least two resources, while other frequency domain resources can be left unused. This reduces the capability requirements on the terminal equipment and consequently lowers its cost. Alternatively, if the terminal reports the capability to support communication on multiple frequency domain resources within the unified carrier at any given time, the base station can determine which multiple frequency domain resources to use for communication among at least two resources within the unified carrier, thereby maximizing the utilization of the terminal's capabilities and reducing wasted capabilities. Furthermore, the capabilities of the terminal device can be shared across multiple frequency domain resources, without limiting the capabilities of each frequency domain resource due to the need to split the total capabilities of the terminal device. Thus, this method also improves the communication capabilities of each frequency domain resource.

[0243] The foregoing has detailed the method examples provided by the embodiments of this application. It is understood that the corresponding apparatus, in order to achieve the above functions, includes hardware structures and / or software modules corresponding to the execution of each function. Those skilled in the art should readily recognize that, based on the units and algorithm steps of the examples described in conjunction with the embodiments disclosed herein, this application can be implemented in hardware or a combination of hardware and computer software. Whether a function is executed in hardware or by computer software driving hardware depends on the specific application and design constraints of the technical solution. Those skilled in the art can use different methods to implement the described functions for each specific application, but such implementation should not be considered beyond the scope of this application.

[0244] Figure 21 and Figure 22 These are schematic diagrams illustrating the structures of two communication devices provided in embodiments of this application. These devices can be used to implement the functions of devices such as terminals or base stations in the above method embodiments, and therefore also possess the beneficial effects of the above method embodiments. In the embodiments of this application, these communication devices can be... Figure 1 The terminal shown can be Figure 1 The base station can also be a module (e.g., a chip) applied to a terminal or base station.

[0245] like Figure 21 As shown, the device 2100 includes a processing unit 2110 and a transceiver unit 2120. The transceiver unit 2120, under the control of the processing unit 2110, performs receiving and / or output steps. When performing the output step (or, sending step), the transceiver unit 2120 acts as a sending unit; when performing the receiving step, it acts as a receiving unit. The device 2100 is used to implement... Figure 3 The method described in this embodiment refers to the function of the terminal or base station.

[0246] When the communication device 2100 is used to implement Figure 3 When the terminal function is described in the embodiment of the method, the transceiver unit 2120 is used to: send unified carrier-related capability information of the terminal device, wherein the unified carrier includes at least two frequency domain resources, and the unified carrier-related capability is the ability to communicate in the at least two frequency domain resources; the processing unit 2110: performs communication based on the capability information.

[0247] Optionally, the transceiver unit 2120 is further configured to: receive configuration information, the configuration information being corresponding to the capability information;

[0248] Optionally, the transceiver unit 2120 is also used for: communicating according to configuration information.

[0249] When the communication device 2100 is used to implement Figure 3When the base station functions as described in the method embodiment, the transceiver unit 2120 is used to: receive unified carrier-related capability information of the terminal device, wherein the unified carrier includes at least two frequency domain resources, and the unified carrier-related capability is the ability to communicate in the at least two frequency domain resources; the processing unit 2110: performs communication based on the capability information.

[0250] Optionally, the transceiver unit 2120 is further configured to: send configuration information, the configuration information being determined based on the capability information.

[0251] Those skilled in the art will clearly understand that when the communication device 2100 is used to implement the functions of a terminal or base station, the specific working process of the communication device 2100 and the technical effects produced by the execution steps can be referred to the description in the corresponding method embodiments above. For the sake of brevity, they will not be repeated here.

[0252] The communication device 2100 can be a terminal or a base station. The processing unit 2110 can be implemented in hardware or software. When implemented in hardware, the processing unit 2110 can be a logic circuit, integrated circuit, etc. When implemented in software, the processing unit 2110 can be a general-purpose processor that reads software code stored in a storage unit. This storage unit can be integrated into the processing unit 2110 or located outside the processing unit 2110 and exist independently.

[0253] like Figure 22 As shown, device 2200 includes a processor 2210 and interface circuitry 2220. The processor 2210 and interface circuitry 2220 are coupled to each other. It is understood that interface circuitry 2220 can be a transceiver or an input / output interface. Optionally, device 2200 may further include a memory 2230 for storing instructions executed by the processor 2210, or storing input data required by the processor 2210 to execute instructions, or storing data generated after the processor 2210 executes instructions.

[0254] When device 2200 is used to implement Figure 3 In the method shown, processor 2210 is used to implement the functions of the processing unit 2110, and interface circuit 2220 is used to implement the functions of the transceiver unit 2120.

[0255] When device 2200 is a terminal chip (i.e., a chip applied to a terminal), the terminal chip implements the functions of the terminal in the above method embodiments. The terminal chip receives information from the base station, which can be understood as the information being first received by other modules in the terminal (such as an RF module or antenna), and then sent to the terminal chip by these modules. The terminal chip sends information to the base station, which can be understood as the information being first sent to other modules in the terminal (such as an RF module or antenna), and then sent to the base station by these modules.

[0256] When device 2200 is a base station chip (i.e., a chip applied to a base station), the base station chip implements the functions of a base station in the above method embodiments. The base station chip receives information from the terminal, which can be understood as the information being first received by other modules in the base station (such as an RF module or antenna), and then sent to the base station chip by these modules. The base station chip sends information to the terminal, which can be understood as the information being sent down to other modules in the base station (such as an RF module or antenna), and then sent to the terminal by these modules.

[0257] In this application, entity A sends information to entity B, either directly or indirectly through other entities. Similarly, entity B receives information from entity A, either directly or indirectly through other entities. Entities A and B can be RAN nodes, or modules within a RAN node or terminal. Information transmission and reception can be between a RAN node and a terminal, such as between a base station and a terminal; between two RAN nodes, such as between a CU and a DU; or between different modules within a single device, such as between a terminal chip and other modules of the terminal, or between a base station chip and other modules of the base station.

[0258] Embodiments of this application also provide a communication system, which may include: a device 2100 for implementing the functions of a terminal and a device 2100 for implementing the functions of a base station; or, a device 2200 for implementing the functions of a terminal and a device 2200 for implementing the functions of a base station.

[0259] The method steps in the embodiments of this application can be implemented in hardware or in software instructions executable by a processor. The software instructions can consist of corresponding software modules, which can be stored in random access memory, flash memory, read-only memory, programmable read-only memory, erasable programmable read-only memory, electrically erasable programmable read-only memory, registers, hard disks, portable hard disks, optical disc drives, or any other form of storage medium known in the art. An exemplary storage medium is coupled to a processor, enabling the processor to read information from and write information to the storage medium. The storage medium can also be a component of the processor. The processor and the storage medium can reside in an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC). Alternatively, the ASIC can reside in a base station or terminal. The processor and the storage medium can also exist as discrete components in the base station or terminal.

[0260] In the above embodiments, implementation can be achieved entirely or partially through software, hardware, firmware, or any combination thereof. When implemented using software, it can be implemented entirely or partially in the form of a computer program product. The computer program product includes one or more computer programs or instructions. When the computer program or instructions are loaded and executed on a computer, the processes or functions described in the embodiments of this application are performed entirely or partially. The computer can be a general-purpose computer, a special-purpose computer, a computer network, a network device, a user equipment, or other programmable device. The computer program or instructions can be stored in a computer-readable storage medium or transferred from one computer-readable storage medium to another. For example, the computer program or instructions can be transferred from one website, computer, server, or data center to another website, computer, server, or data center via wired or wireless means. The computer-readable storage medium can be any available medium accessible to a computer or a data storage device such as a server or data center integrating one or more available media. The available medium can be a magnetic medium, such as a floppy disk, hard disk, or magnetic tape; it can also be an optical medium, such as a digital video optical disc; or it can be a semiconductor medium, such as a solid-state drive. The computer-readable storage medium may be a volatile or non-volatile storage medium, or may include both types of storage media.

[0261] Finally, the following points should be noted regarding the embodiments of this application:

[0262] First, in the embodiments of this application, the terms "first," "second," and various numerical designations are used for ease of description and are not intended to limit the scope of the embodiments of this application. The order of the sequence numbers of the above processes does not imply the order of execution; the execution order of each process should be determined by its function and internal logic.

[0263] Second, in the embodiments of this application, "instruction" can include direct and indirect instructions, as well as explicit and implicit instructions. The information indicated by a certain piece of information is called the information to be instructed. In specific implementations, there are many ways to instruct the information to be instructed. For example, the information to be instructed can be directly instructed, such as the information to be instructed itself or its index. The information to be instructed can also be indirectly indicated by instructing other information, where there is a correlation between the other information and the information to be instructed. Furthermore, a part of the information to be instructed can be indicated, while the other parts are known or pre-agreed upon. For example, the indication of the information to be instructed can be achieved by pre-agreed upon (e.g., by a protocol specifying the existence of a certain information element), thereby reducing the instruction overhead to some extent.

[0264] Third, the “protocol” involved in the embodiments of this application may refer to standard protocols in the field of communication, such as LTE protocol, NR protocol and related protocols in future communication systems, and this application does not limit it.

[0265] Fourth, "predefined" or "preconfigured" can be achieved by pre-storing corresponding codes, tables, or other information-indicating mechanisms in the device (e.g., a terminal or base station). This application does not limit the specific implementation method. "Storing" can refer to storing in one or more memories, which can be separate installations or integrated into the processor or communication device; alternatively, some memories can be separate installations, while others are integrated into the processor or communication device. The type of memory can be any form of storage medium, and this application does not limit this.

[0266] Fifth, "at least one" means one or more, while "more than one" means two or more. "And / or" describes the relationship between related objects, indicating that three relationships can exist. For example, A and / or B can mean: A exists alone, B exists alone, or A and B exist simultaneously. Here, A and B can be a single object or multiple objects. The character " / " generally indicates that the preceding and following related objects have an "or" relationship. "At least one of the following" or similar expressions refer to any combination of these items, including any combination of single or multiple items. For example, at least one of a, b, and c can mean: a, or, b, or, c, or, a and b, or, a and c, or, b and c, or, a, b, and c. Here, a, b, and c can each be a single object or multiple objects.

[0267] Sixth, in the embodiments of this application, descriptions such as "when," "in the case of," "if," and "if" all refer to the fact that the device (e.g., a terminal or a base station) will make corresponding processing under certain objective circumstances. They are not time limits, nor do they require the device to make a judgment action when implementing it, nor do they imply any other limitations.

[0268] Seventh, in the various embodiments of this application, unless otherwise specified or logically conflicting, the terms and / or descriptions between different embodiments are consistent and can be referenced by each other, and the technical features in different embodiments can be combined to form new embodiments according to their inherent logical relationships.

Claims

1. A communication method, executed by a terminal device or a module applied in a terminal device, characterized in that, The method includes: Send the unified carrier-related capability information of the terminal device, wherein the unified carrier includes at least two frequency domain resources, and the unified carrier-related capability is the ability to communicate in the at least two frequency domain resources; Communicating based on the aforementioned capability information.

2. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that, The communication based on the capability information includes: Receive configuration information, which corresponds to the capability information; Communication is performed based on the configuration information.

3. A communication method, executed by a network device or a module applied in a network device, characterized in that, The method includes: The receiving terminal device receives unified carrier-related capability information, wherein the unified carrier includes at least two frequency domain resources, and the unified carrier-related capability is the ability to communicate in the at least two frequency domain resources. Communicating based on the aforementioned capability information.

4. The method according to claim 3, characterized in that, The method further includes: Send configuration information, which is determined based on the capability information.

5. The method according to any one of claims 1-4, characterized in that, The capability information indicates the frequency domain resources that the unified carrier can include.

6. The method according to claim 5, characterized in that, The capability information includes at least one of the following: the frequency domain resource pool included in the unified carrier, the number of frequency domain resources that the unified carrier can include, the frequency domain resource bandwidth level of the unified carrier, or the type of the unified carrier. The type of the unified carrier includes at least one of the following: a unified carrier within a frequency band, a unified carrier between frequency bands, or a unified carrier within a specific frequency domain range.

7. The method according to any one of claims 1-6, characterized in that, The capability information indicates the maximum number of antenna ports, and the configuration information is used to indicate that the number of antenna ports used when communicating on the unified carrier does not exceed the maximum number of antenna ports.

8. The method according to any one of claims 1-7, characterized in that, The capability information indicates the maximum number of blind detections for the Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH) and / or the maximum number of non-overlapping Control Channel Elements (CCEs). The unified carrier includes first frequency domain resources and second frequency domain resources. The configuration information is used to indicate that a PDCCH blind detection is performed on the first frequency domain resource, wherein the number of PDCCH blind detections performed on the first frequency domain resource is less than or equal to the maximum number of PDCCH blind detections, and / or the number of non-overlapping CCEs in the PDCCH blind detection performed on the first frequency domain resource is less than or equal to the maximum number of non-overlapping CCEs; or, The configuration information is used to indicate that PDCCH blind detection is performed on the first frequency domain resource and the second frequency domain resource, wherein the sum of the number of times PDCCH blind detection is performed on the first frequency domain resource and the number of times PDCCH blind detection is performed on the second frequency domain resource is less than or equal to the maximum number of PDCCH blind detections, and / or, the sum of the number of non-overlapping CCEs in PDCCH blind detection on the first frequency domain resource and the number of non-overlapping CCEs in PDCCH blind detection on the second frequency domain resource is less than or equal to the maximum number of non-overlapping CCEs.

9. The method according to any one of claims 1-8, characterized in that, The capability information indicates the capability of Channel State Information (CSI) measurement feedback. The capability of CSI measurement feedback indicates that the antenna port corresponding to the CSI measurement feedback is the sum of the number of antenna ports of Channel State Information Reference Signal (CSI-RS) resources on multiple frequency domain resources, and the antenna port numbers of CSI-RS resources on different frequency domain resources are different.

10. The method according to any one of claims 1-9, characterized in that, The capability information indicates signal processing capabilities, which include: a first signal processing capability and a second signal processing capability. The first signal processing capability is used to determine the signal processing time for communication on one frequency domain resource, and the second signal processing capability is used to determine the signal processing time for communication on multiple frequency domain resources simultaneously.

11. The method according to any one of claims 1-10, characterized in that, The two frequency domain resources are not adjacent; or... The two frequency domain resources are two adjacent frequency domain resources, and when the two frequency domain resources belong to the frequency range FR1, the total bandwidth of the two frequency domain resources is greater than 100MHz, and when the two frequency domain resources belong to FR2, the total bandwidth of the two frequency domain resources is greater than 400MHz.

12. The method according to any one of claims 1-11, characterized in that, The unified carrier corresponds to one cell.

13. A communication device, characterized in that, include: A module or unit for performing the method as described in any one of claims 1 to 12.

14. A communication device, characterized in that, include: A processor coupled to a memory for storing a computer program, which, when executed by the processor, causes the apparatus to perform the method as described in any one of claims 1 to 12.

15. A computer-readable storage medium, characterized in that, The computer-readable storage medium stores a computer program that, when run on a communication device, causes the communication device to perform the method as described in any one of claims 1 to 12.

16. A computer program product, characterized in that, include: A computer program, when run on a communication device, causes the communication device to perform the method as described in any one of claims 1 to 12.

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